Return of the Jedi (Junior Novelization)

by Ryder Windham

  Leia held Han close to her. Behind them, another curtain slid away from a stairway that led up to the palace’s guest quarters. From the stairs, Boba Fett and Jabba’s guards moved forward to the display alcove.

  Han blinked his eyes and said, “Hey, Jabba. Look, Jabba. I was just on my way to pay you back, but I got a little sidetracked. It’s not my fault.”

  “It’s too late for that, Solo,” Jabba said in Huttese. “You may have been a good smuggler, but now you’re bantha fodder.” Jabba laughed again, and Salacious Crumb joined in, cackling wildly.

  Han said, “Look—”

  “Take him away,” Jabba ordered.

  “Jabba…” Han said as he was seized by two guards and pulled away from Leia. “I’ll pay you triple! You’re throwing away a fortune here. Don’t be a fool!”

  As Han was hauled out of the room, a Gamorrean guard and the disguised Lando Calrissian came up on either side of Leia and gripped her arms. Jabba said, “Bring her to me.”

  The guards obeyed and escorted the princess so she was nearly up against the Hutt. Glaring at Jabba, Leia said boldly, “We have powerful friends. You’re going to regret this.”

  “I’m sure,” Jabba slobbered. His tongue lolled out of his wide mouth and brushed against the side of her face and clothes.

  “Ugh!” Leia said, recoiling.

  C-3PO trembled and looked away. “Ohhh, I can’t bear to watch,” he cried.

  Jabba thought Leia had a pleasant flavor, but he didn’t care much for her drab, dusty clothes. He ordered Bib Fortuna to fetch some garments that were more to his taste.…

  Jabba’s guards brought Han down to the dungeon, shoved him into a cell, and locked the door behind him. In the middle of the cell’s floor, there was a dirty puddle; Han splashed through it and nearly stumbled, but his groping hands caught the stone wall and he steadied himself. He still felt painfully cold and he couldn’t stop trembling.

  Suddenly, a growl came from the far side of the cell. Startled, Han jerked away from the sound, then he blinked his sightless eyes and said, “Chewie? Chewie, is that you?”

  Chewbacca barked and stepped out from his shadowy corner. The Wookiee flung his furry arms around his friend.

  Han said, “Chew—Chewie!”

  Chewbacca barked some more.

  “Wait, I can’t see you, pal,” Han explained. “What’s goin’ on?”

  Chewbacca barked his reply.

  There wasn’t anything wrong with Han’s hearing, and he couldn’t believe what the Wookiee had just told him. “Luke?” Han said. “Luke’s crazy. He can’t even take care of himself, much less rescue anybody.”

  Chewbacca barked more.

  “A—a Jedi Knight?” Han said with disbelief. “I’m out of it for a little while, everybody gets delusions of grandeur.”

  The Wookiee growled insistently. Then he hugged Han close to his chest and patted his head, trying to warm him.

  “I’m all right, pal,” Han said. “I’m all right.”

  But Chewbacca hadn’t finished bringing Han up- to-date. He quickly informed Han that Lando Calrissian—who’d betrayed them to Darth Vader on Cloud City—had become their ally, and that Lando had already secretly infiltrated Jabba’s palace.

  If the information had come from anyone other than Chewbacca, Han would’ve never believed it. He found it difficult to imagine he could ever trust Lando again. But if they all got out of this mess alive, he was willing to give it a try.

  The next morning, two Gamorrean guards were stationed in the dark entrance of Jabba’s palace when the massive iron door began to rumble open. As the door lifted, bright sunlight poured in, revealing a solitary, silhouetted figure standing outside. The figure stepped through the doorway and into the cavernous hallway.

  The hallway’s hidden sensors scanned the figure: a human male who wore a black hooded robe. Beneath, the man was clad in a black tunic, pants, a leather belt, and boots. The sensors quickly determined he was not carrying any weapons…but he did have one unusual feature: his right hand appeared externally normal but was actually a fully functional mechanical replica. If this detail concerned Jabba’s security system, it didn’t stop the iron door from sliding shut behind the man.

  When the man was halfway through the entrance hall, the two Gamorreans stepped out of the shadows and raised their axes to block his path. They’d expected him to surrender or run away, and were surprised when he stopped, raised a hand, and gestured at them. Both guards were instantly compelled to lower their weapons and fell back to their stations.

  Luke Skywalker proceeded into the palace.

  Once again, there was silence in Jabba’s throne room. There had been another party, and more drinks and brain cells had gone the way of those previous. Behind Jabba’s dais, C-3PO maintained a nervous watch over the sleeping bodies sprawled throughout the multileveled lair.

  Leia, eyes closed, lay slumped beside Jabba’s slumbering form. She had replaced Oola as Jabba’s slave dancer, and was worried about the acrobatic dances she might have to perform. She wore a collar around her neck that was secured to a long chain. She also wore a skimpy costume that left very little of her unexposed to view. Salacious Crumb—who remained awake—leaned over from his resting spot within the curve of Jabba’s tail and peeked at Leia’s bare stomach.

  Bib Fortuna was also awake. Hearing the sound of footsteps descending the stairway from the main entrance, he ran up and saw Luke coming down. The Twi’lek muttered in Huttese, telling Luke to leave immediately.

  Luke simply said, “I must speak with Jabba.”

  Hearing these words, Leia opened her eyes and sat up. Luke!

  On the stairway, Bib tried to hold off Luke. Shaking his tailed head, he said, “Shh. Ee toe seet. Jabba no two zand dehank obee. No pahgan.”

  Luke stared hard at Bib and said, “You will take me to Jabba now!”

  Bib did not realize that Luke was using the Force to influence his thoughts. Reacting as if it had been his own idea to bring Luke to Jabba, Bib said, “Et tu takku u Jabba now,” and motioned for Luke to continue down the stairs.

  As Luke descended after Bib into the throne room, he said, “You serve your master well.”

  “Eye sota va locha,” Bib agreed.

  Luke added, “And you will be rewarded.”

  Leia saw Luke approach the dais but remained silent. From behind Jabba, C-3PO cried out, “At last! Master Luke’s come to rescue me!”

  Jabba’s guards also noticed Luke’s arrival and edged toward him cautiously. Bib Fortuna stepped up onto the dais, leaned close to the side of Jabba’s broad head, and whispered, “Master.”

  Jabba’s heavy eyelids slid back and he let out a wet snort. The noise awakened others in the room, who looked over to the dais to see what was going on. Jabba shifted his weight slightly, and Leia felt the slave collar tug against her throat.

  Gesturing to Luke on the floor below the dais, Bib continued, “Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight.”

  Outraged, Jabba said in Huttese, “I told you not to admit him.”

  “I must be allowed to speak,” Luke insisted.

  In Huttese, Bib said, “He must be allowed to speak.”

  “You weak-minded fool!” Jabba scowled. “He’s using an old Jedi mind trick.” Bib yelped as Jabba shoved him off the dais.

  Luke sighted the disguised Lando among Jabba’s guards. Several Gamorreans had moved up behind Luke, but he remained outwardly calm and composed. He pulled back his hood to reveal his face. On the dais, Boba Fett emerged to stand beside the Hutt.

  Staring hard at Jabba, Luke said, “You will bring Captain Solo and the Wookiee to me.”

  Jabba laughed. “Your mind powers will not work on me, boy.”

  He’s stronger than I imagined, Luke realized. Moving closer to Jabba, he said, “Nevertheless, I’m taking Captain Solo and his friends. You can either profit by this…or be destroyed. It’s your choice. But I warn you not to underestimate m
y powers.”

  C-3PO saw that Luke had stepped directly onto the trapdoor. “Master Luke,” the droid called out, “you’re standing on—”

  But Jabba interrupted, “There will be no bargain, young Jedi. I shall enjoy watching you die.”

  Jabba’s guards advanced toward Luke. Luke extended his right hand, and a guard’s blaster suddenly jumped out of its holster and flew into Luke’s waiting hand. As Luke raised the blaster to Jabba, a Gamorrean lunged at him, grabbing his arm.

  Jabba shouted, “Boscka!” and brought his hand down on the trapdoor’s control button. As the trap- door opened, the Gamorrean squeezed Luke’s arm and the blaster fired into the ceiling. Both Luke and the Gamorrean plunged into the pit beneath the throne room.

  Jabba’s dais slid forward across the floor, sealing the trapdoor.

  Tumbling through the hole, Luke lost the blaster. He landed amidst the skeletal remains of various creatures. Expecting to fight the Gamorrean who’d fallen into the pit with him, he whipped off his black robe and rose to his feet. The Gamorrean was still rising when Luke glanced up at the bottom of the grating, where Jabba and his courtiers gazed down at him and laughed.

  Luke saw Leia and C-3PO through the grating far above him. There was fear in Leia’s eyes. Luke thought, Don’t be afraid, Leia! We’re going to get out of here.

  Then there was a rumbling sound, and Luke looked to the pit’s far wall, where a large iron door began to rise up into a slot in the rocky ceiling. A horrific growl echoed from a holding cave beyond the door, and the Gamorrean started squealing hysterically. From above, C-3PO cried out, “Oh, no! The rancor!”

  Luke thought, What am I up against now? The door was still rising when he had his first glimpse of the monster’s massive claws. Luke sensed that the rancor’s ferocity matched its size, and his eyes went wide with alarm as the rancor hunched its form and pushed its way through the doorway.

  Lurching into the pit on two powerful legs, the rancor revealed itself to be a reptile-like beast, roughly five meters tall. It had an enormous, fanged maw set beneath a pair of small glowing eyes. Its head and jaws seemed to take up most of its body; its two long arms ended in absurdly long, sharp talons. A broken chain dangled from a manacle at its right wrist.

  The rancor opened its wide mouth and roared at the Gamorrean, who tried futilely to scramble out of the pit. Luke noticed the pit’s walls bore deep scratches and claw marks from others who’d tried to escape the rancor and failed.

  While Jabba and his cohorts cackled and jeered, the rancor reached out and snatched up the Gamorrean. The smaller creature kicked and squealed as the rancor popped him into its mouth. Crunch! The rancor tilted its head back and swallowed the guard, armor and all.

  Then the monster turned for Luke. Above them, Jabba the Hutt smiled grotesquely.

  The rancor swiped at Luke, but the young man jumped aside. A long arm-bone from an earlier victim lay on the pit floor, and Luke seized it. Suddenly, the rancor’s talons wrapped around Luke’s body and lifted him off his feet.

  Luke clung to the bone as the rancor drew him to its salivating mouth. The rancor’s fangs were still slick with the Gamorrean’s blood, and the stench of gore was almost overwhelming. With a sharp twist, Luke wedged the bone into the rancor’s mouth, forcing its jaws back. Startled, the beast reflexively released Luke, who fell to the floor.

  There was a loud snap, and Luke glanced up to see the rancor had crushed the bone. Luke found a small crevice in the pit wall and scurried into it. Gazing past the monster to the holding cave beyond, he spotted a utility door. If I can just get to it…

  The hungry rancor saw Luke and reached into the crevice. Luke grabbed a large rock and smashed it down on the rancor’s talon. The rancor howled.

  Luke rolled out of the crevice and ran for the holding cave, which was littered with even more bones. He reached the utility door and pushed a button. The door slid open, but a heavy barred gate separated him from the adjoining chamber, in which two guards—the rancor’s keepers—were playfully fighting over their dinner. They stopped fighting when they saw Luke. Luke turned to see the monster was still in the pit. He pulled with all his might on the gate but with no effect. On the other side of the gate, the two guards picked up spears and laughed as they poked at Luke, forcing him away.

  As the rancor hunched down and prepared to enter the holding cave, Luke noticed a control panel halfway up the wall beside the doorway. Thinking fast, he picked up a skull from the cave floor and hurled it. The rancor was just ducking its head through the doorway when the thrown skull smashed against the control panel, destroying the iron door’s lifting mechanism. The heavy door came crashing down upon the rancor’s head, its sharp stakes pinning the monster to the floor.

  There was a collective gasp from the watchers above. The rancor wasn’t merely pinned; the door’s pointed base had actually pierced and crushed the monster’s skull. Its left talon flexed once, then went slack. The rancor was dead.

  Breathing hard, Luke fell back against the wall of the holding cave. The rancor’s keepers opened the gate and entered, passing Luke to examine their dead beast. One of the keepers broke down and wept. The other glared menacingly at Luke, who was unfazed.

  Several guards immediately rushed into the holding cave and took Luke away. The guards were surprised and disappointed when Luke didn’t resist.

  Up in the throne room, Jabba was fuming. He couldn’t believe that Luke had killed his prized rancor. Glowering at his guards, he commanded in Huttese, “Bring me Solo and the Wookiee. They will all suffer for this outrage.”

  The guards hurried out, and soon returned with the two prisoners. From a different stairway, other guards—including Lando—dragged Luke into the throne room. As they were hauled before Jabba’s dais, Luke shouted, “Han!”

  “Luke!” Han called back. He still couldn’t see, but he was pretty sure he could smell Jabba nearby.

  “Are you all right?” Luke asked.

  “Fine,” Han replied. “Together again, huh?”

  “Wouldn’t miss it.”

  “How are we doing?”

  Luke grinned. “The same as always.”

  “That bad, huh? Where’s Leia?”

  “I’m here,” Leia said from Jabba’s side. With the slave collar still tight around her neck, and Jabba stroking her like a domestic pet, she was almost relieved that Han was still blinded.

  Boba Fett remained near Jabba and kept an alert watch on the captives while the Hutt began speaking in Huttese. C-3PO listened and said, “Oh, dear.” As Jabba continued, C-3PO translated, “His High Exaltedness, the great Jabba the Hutt, has decreed that you are to be terminated immediately.”

  “Good,” Han said. “I hate long waits.”

  Jabba prattled on, and C-3PO conveyed, “You will therefore be taken to the Dune Sea and cast into the Pit of Carkoon, the nesting place of the all-powerful Sarlacc.”

  Han leaned closer to Luke and muttered, “Doesn’t sound so bad.”

  “In his belly,” the protocol droid continued, “you will find a new definition of pain and suffering as you are slowly digested over a thousand years.”

  “On second thought,” Han interjected, “let’s pass on that, huh?”

  As the guards hauled Chewbacca, Han, and Luke out of the throne room, Luke glared at the Hutt and said, “You should have bargained, Jabba. That’s the last mistake you’ll make.”

  Jabba laughed heartily and tugged the chain that held Leia, forcing her back against his slimy bulk. Leia thought, This isn’t going to end well, Jabba. Not for you!

  Under a clear blue sky, a herd of wild, thick-furred banthas trekked across the western Dune Sea, the large area of sandy desert that stretched across the Tatooine wastes. Bound for a distant mesa, the banthas ignored the three repulsorlift vessels that passed in the distance. The vessels—one large and two small—glided several meters above the sand, heading north. Even the banthas knew better than to travel
that way across the Dune Sea, if only to avoid the Great Pit of Carkoon.

  The three craft were owned by Jabba the Hutt. The two smaller repulsorlifts were matching nine-meter-long open-topped cargo skiffs, which Jabba had had armor plated. Hardly more than flying platforms, the skiffs were without seats, so the pilot and passengers all stood on an exposed deck that was edged with a low protective railing. The first skiff flew as escort to the larger vessel and carried a group of Jabba’s goons; the second skiff carried six guards—including Lando, in disguise—and three bound captives: Luke, Han, and Chewbacca.

  The larger repulsorlift was Jabba’s sail barge. Thirty meters in length, the Khetanna had been designed as a luxury pleasure craft, although most of its expensive trappings had been stripped years ago. Its two bright orange sails—primarily used as awnings to protect those on deck from the glare of Tatooine’s suns—had faded considerably, and its hull and interior were mostly bare metal. What it lacked in comforts, however, it made up for with armor plating, a custom-mounted deck blaster cannon, plenty of room for Jabba’s guests, and an extremely well-stocked kitchen. By any standards, the barge had style.

  But Leia’s standards were higher than most. The sooner I get off this stinking death trap, the better. She was inside the banquet room, located on the deck below the privacy lounge at the barge’s stern. Because Jabba preferred the dry heat of Tatooine, the barge’s air-conditioning system had been removed long ago and replaced with retractable window shutters. Still scantily clad, Leia sat beside an open window on the barge’s port side and gazed at her captured friends on the skiff traveling alongside.

  Jabba and his cronies were laughing and drinking heavily. Bounty hunter Boba Fett paced, instinctively eyeing the horizon for any signs of trouble. R2-D2 had been outfitted as an ambulatory bar, and was serving drinks—mostly spice-spiked flameouts and pink-and-green bantha blasters—from an elaborately decorated gold tray that wrapped around the back of his domed head. The Hutt downed another drink, then tugged at the chain attached to Leia’s collar, just to remind her who was boss. Leia winced at the sharp jerk from the chain but clung to the edge of the window to keep her eyes on the skiff.