Star Wars - Shadows of the Empire

by Shadows Of The Empire (by Steve Perry)

  It reminded Leia of Han's desperate flight into the asteroid field after they'd fled Hoth, and the hiding place into which they'd scurried to avoid being cap- tured by Vader-a place that had turned out to be something other than what it had first seemed.

  Ahead of them, the Outrider flew. As Leia watched, the ship rolled, twisted on its long axis like a screw.

  "Oh, man," Lando said. "A couple meters either way and we're bugs on a canopy and Dash is doing barrel rolls. He is crazy." Chewie said something.

  "I hear that," Lando said.

  Threepio translated for Leia: "Chewbacca says that Master Dash must be part bird." Leia found herself nodding. Lando had been right.

  Whatever else he was, Dash Rendar could fly.

  Luke kept the Rogues spiraling in and out, drifting the skirmish several degrees one way, then the other, to keep the Destroyer's big guns from locking on them.

  They were doing okay so far.

  "Look out, Dixie!" Wedge yelled.

  Luke saw the danger. A TIE fighter had gotten be- low Dix and now bored in, firing at the X-wing's ex- posed belly. Dix cut hard to his right and began a sharp starboard turn- Too late. The deadly lasers raked the X-wing like fiery claws and ripped into it.

  Dix's ship blew apart in a fireball that ate the craft's oxygen, then winked out, leaving nothing but blasted and ionized wreckage.

  Luke felt his stomach roil. Oh, no. They'd lost Dix.

  Suddenly it wasn't a game. People were dying. Good people. He could never lose sight of that, not for a mo- ment. It was only fun as long as nobody got hurt and that part never lasted. War was ugly. It got bad.

  Now it got worse. The nightside Destroyer came around the terminator and began unloading its fighters.

  No more time to think, no time to worry. Luke abandoned himself to the Force.

  "Terminator coming up," Dash said. "And we're past the plateau's sensor station. Ready to go up top?" "I was just beginning to enjoy this," Lando said.

  "But I suppose if we have to..." They were approaching the nightside of the moon, and while the darkness wouldn't hide them from Impe- rial sensors, it would offer them some cover from curi- ous eyes.

  "We're about four minutes away from the ship- yard," Dash said over the comm. "Any luck at all and the tooloos operating the scopes there won't notice us until we're a minute or so out. Time they get their fight- ers scrambled, we'll be right on top of 'em." "Copy," Lando said.

  Leia felt her stomach twist, go fluttery. The flight so far had been dangerous, but this was going to be a whole lot more so.

  Lando shook his head, said, "This was not my idea, right? I want it on record that this was not my idea." Dark shadows began to paint the rock, lengthening so fast they could see them move as the Falcon flew deeper into night.

  "Going up," Dash said.

  The Outrider lifted from the canyon.

  "Blast!" Lando said.

  Directly ahead of them, no more than a few hundred meters and getting closer fast, the canyon ended in a wall of dark rock.

  Chewie roared.

  Lando didn't bother to answer as he pulled the Fal- con up in a climb that made Leia's stomach feel a lot worse.

  They missed the collision by centimeters.

  "Oh, better be careful," Dash said as the Falcon rose into the night. "Did I mention the canyon dead-ends pretty soon?" "Just wait, Rendar," Lando said. "Next time I see you I'm going to punch you in the nose!" "Yeah? You and what army?" Chewie snarled.

  Leia could figure that out easily enough.

  Over the comm, Dash Rendar laughed.

  Wedge's voice over the comm seemed calm, but there was a lot of emotion under it. "Luke, we aren't going to be able to keep this dance going much longer. Once that second Destroyer sets up a south pole, we'll be in range of the big guns on one or the other." "I hear you," Luke said. "Artoo, would they have had time to make it to the yard yet?" Artoo whistled. Luke glanced at his sensor screen, saw the translation of the droid's whistles. They could have made it, but barely.

  "One more minute," Luke said. "Then let's make a pass at the daysider and get out of here." "Copy, Luke. You heard the man. Let's throw a few more rocks and keep 'em jumping." Around Luke, TIE fighters and interceptors swarmed like saurian hornets from a disturbed nest. The Rogues had taken out a score of them, maybe more, and lost one of their own, plus another one damaged. Good fly- ing, but given the odds, they couldn't keep it up for- ever. He had to hope they had bought enough time.

  A TIE fighter appeared in front of Luke, coming right at him.

  Luke thumbed his own fire button, and the two craft sped directly at each other. Neither pilot blinked.

  The TIE exploded, and Luke flew through the fire- ball.

  Artoo's exclamation sounded like "Yeeooww!" "You okay, Artoo?" The droid whistled. Yes, he was okay. He had been better, however.

  Luke smiled. The party was getting raucous. It was time to pack it up and leave.

  There it is, dead ahead," Dash said.

  The lights of the shipyard blazed in the darkness, a beacon visible for a long way.

  "We'll pass right over your target in... thirty sec- onds." Leia leaned forward. Strained to see...

  "There it is! There's Fett's ship!" "Been fun, people," Dash said. "See you around." Ahead of them, the Outrider pulled up in a hard climb and rocketed toward space.

  "Where are you going?" Lando said.

  "Hey, you didn't pay me to shoot, only to guide. I'm outta here." "Dash, blast you!" "Never mind," Leia put in quickly. "We don't need him." Chewie pointed at the sensor screen and said some- thing.

  "Oh, dear!" Threepio said.

  "I wish you'd stop saying that," Leia said. "What?" Lando spoke before the droid could. "Company.

  We've got half a dozen TIE fighters on our tail!" "Is that all? For a hotshot pilot like you, that shouldn't be a problem, right?" Lando shook his head. "Yeah, right. But just for fun, why don't you and Chewie go see if the guns still work?" The Wookiee came up. Leia was already on the way.

  "I'll take the dorsal turret," she said.

  Chewie growled, and she took that for agreement.

  Now things were really going to get interesting..9 Luke... ?" Wedge said over the comm.

  "Right, Wedge. Rogue Squadron, this is Rogue Leader. Break off your attack, go to lightspeed-re- peat, break off and jump to hyper!" The leap into hyperspace was a trick-they weren't going far enough to need it, and they'd reenter normal space in a few seconds. But better that the Imperial fighters thought they were going far away; maybe no- body would bother to look for them at a moon just around the bulk of the huge gas planet right in front of them. That was the hope.

  Rogue Squadron peeled away from the engagement in a shallow arc.

  The TIE fighters, who'd obviously been ordered to defend but not to pursue, allowed them to go. Most of them.

  As the Rogues sped from the battle, Luke felt a sud- den wave of something he couldn't quite identify wash over him. Like a sense of danger that couldn't be ig- nored, some kind of warning- Luke!

  Obi-Wan!

  He jerked the control stick between his knees to the side without questioning further.

  The beam from a laser cannon flashed past.

  If he hadn't moved it would have cooked him.

  But there weren't any TIEs behind him! Only Rogue Six. As he watched, Wes's X-wing altered course to fol- low him. What-?

  "Wes! What are you doing" Wes yelled, a short burst of expletives, then, "Luke!

  Something's gone wrong with my Artoo unit! It's taken control of my ship! My stick is dead!" Yeah, Luke thought, I'll be dead, too, if I don't do something!

  To complicate things, one of the TIE fighters who decided to give chase did get within range. The TIE let loose with a blast of its weapons, barely missing Luke.

  Luke pulled the stick back into his belly and hit full thrust. The X-wing responded; acceleration mashed him into the seat; his face stretched and flattened as if a giant hand pressed
hard fingers against the skin and muscles.

  "Everybody get clear!" Luke managed to say through peeled-back lips. What was going on? He'd al- most been fried, by one of his own! At the moment, he couldn't think about it-but he couldn't not think about it, either.

  He could have died. If not for the Force, he would have died. Whatever he might have been would never have come to pass- Behind him, Wes's X-wing replicated Luke's maneu- ver, trying to stay with him.

  The TIE fighter kept shooting, too.

  Blast!

  This was bad, this was very bad. What was he going to do? He couldn't fight, not one of his own people!

  And if all he did was run, sooner or later the out-of- control X-wing would blast him.

  First things first. The TIE fighter.

  Luke looped around, trying to shake Wes and lock on to the TIE at the same time.

  He didn't manage either very well. The TIE fighter zipped away, and Wes kept shooting at Luke.

  Luke felt the sweat seeping from him, soaking his suit. He wasn't prepared for this; it had never crossed his mind.

  If Wes could bail out, that would solve it. Thing was, he couldn't eject; like the others, he wore only a lightweight flight suit, not suitable for protection against the vacuum of deep space- Another blast of laser fire stabbed out from the pur- suing X-wing.

  Missed, barely!

  The TIE fighter swung around. Probably didn't have any idea what was going on, but he was going to take advantage of it for sure.

  Luke felt himself gripped by the fear, an icy sensa- tion that turned the perspiration cold. What was he going to do? He had to figure it out, and he had to figure it out fasti He had an idea. It was risky, but his choices were getting real limited.

  Here goes.

  At the apex of his climb, Luke killed his thrust and shoved the control stick forward. Inertia kept the craft going, but its relative speed compared to Wes's out-of- control craft made it seem to stop as Rogue Six rock- eted past before his malfunctioning R2 unit could compensate.

  The TIE fighter had looped and was opposite Wes, trying to track Luke.

  Luke punched in full thrust again and swung the stick hard to port, spiraling away in a left turn. He gave the little ship all it-or he-could take.

  The TIE fighter ran into Wes's fire and shattered.

  That was something, at least.

  Luke felt better, but it wasn't over yet.

  He jockeyed the X-wing around. Wes copied his move and fired.

  Luke had never asked the X-wing for more.

  Artoo shrilled, and Luke tuned it out. He had to trust the Force now; normal skill wouldn't get him out of this.

  He dodged.

  Another blast cooked the vacuum.

  Luke stalled and dived.

  Wes's ship hammered at him, splashing a glancing shot off the rear shields.

  He had to shake him!

  Come on, come on.

  He knew the Force was powerful, but he wasn't sure his control of it was enough. A mistake and a good man would die.

  A mistake and they might both die.

  He focused himself. Cut hard to port, then star- board, gave his engines full power, pulled up and into an inside loop, circled down and behind Wes, almost blacking out from the G-force.

  Help me, Obi-Wan.

  Luke fired.

  The beam splashed against the runaway X-wing's main engine precisely, cut through and killed it.

  Rogue Six's thrusters flamed out.

  Luke was close enough to see the R2 unit on Wes's ship try to effect repairs as he flew by, but it surely wasn't going to fix that.

  Rogue Six couldn't fly very well, but it could still shoot.

  It did shoot, tracking him and lancing out with powerful beams. Like a wounded firecat, it was still danger- ous to approach.

  Luke dodged, abandoned himself to the Force again, let the X-wing become an extension of his body. The little ship danced, hopped, slowed, sped up, and man- aged to avoid being speared.

  Luke felt the sigh slip from him.

  Steady.

  Luke made another pass.

  Wes's R2 blasted at him. Luke imagined he felt the heat of the beam.

  Maybe it wasn't his imagination.

  Come on...

  "More of those TIEs coming back, Luke," some- body said.

  "Not now!" Once again he let the Force direct his aim, gave himself to it. Pinpointed the targeting sensors in the nose cone. Felt the Tightness of it- Fired again...

  A hit!

  Now Wes's guns were dead and he-or his crazed droid-couldn't fire the lasers or the torpedoes.

  Luke sighed again. Thank goodness.

  What in the galaxy could have caused it to malfunc- tion that way?

  "Wedge, see if you can get a magnetic line on Wes and let's get out of here, fast!" "That's affirmative, Luke." Bad enough when it was the enemy shooting at you; much worse when it was your own men.

  "Hey, I'm sorry, Luke, I don't know what hap- pened!" Wes said.

  "Don't worry about it. We'll sort it out later. Right now, we'd better go before the Empire decides we might be worth chasing after all." "Copy that, Luke." But now that the heat-and sweaty cold-of the incident had passed, the fear oozed back, the taste of it sour in him.

  He could have been blown apart.

  If not for the Force warning him, he would have been fried, would have winked out like an overloaded glowbulb, never knowing what had hit him. Dead, gone, no more.

  "Those TIE fighters are coming back, Luke." "Let's move it!" Until now, that had never seemed a real possibility to him. Luke had always thought that somehow all the lasers would miss, all the missiles would sail past harm- lessly, that he would live forever. It hadn't seemed real that he could actually cease being.

  Now it seemed real.

  Leia fired, and the quad-barrels of the Falcon's dor- sal guns pistoned, spat its hard energies at the incoming TIE fighter.

  The Imperial craft flew right into the beams. Ex- ploded.

  That was three she'd gotten, and Chewie had hit some of them, too, but there were more of them swarming in.

  Too many more.

  "We can't land," Lando said over the comm. "If we put it down on the deck, we'll get blasted!" "What are we going to do?" Leia said.

  "I don't know; we can't keep flying around-uh- oh." " 'Uh-oh' what?" "Boba Fett's ship-it's taking off." "Follow it!" "How? There's a wall of Imperial fighters between it and us!" "Go around them!" She was too close to lose Han now.

  "I'll try." The Falcon lurched, fell in a belly-twisting dive. Be- cause they were in a gravity well and they needed the power for the shields, the artificial gravity was turned off. Leia felt herself go weightless; only the safety straps kept her from floating out of the seat. Abruptly she grew heavier as the power dive bottomed out and Lando hit the throttles hard in a climbing turn.

  Another TIE fighter came into view. Leia started the guns working, but the fighter zipped past, too fast.

  Missed it.

  She felt the Falcon rock as the shields were hit by enemy fire.

  "I sure hope that bootleg shield generator Han in- stalled holds up," Lando said.

  Leia didn't answer; she was too busy trying to shoot down the next pair of TIE fighters coming at her.

  Her gun beams lanced out and pierced one of the fighters, sent it spinning away, control surfaces riddled with holes.

  She missed the other one.

  She heard Chewie yelling something, and she wished she could understand him other than from context.

  "I hate to be the one to say it," Lando said, "but I have a bad feeling about this." Dack at Rogue Squadron's secret moonbase, Luke and Wedge hurried from their fighters to where Wes's X-wing had been towed. Wes stood there staring at his ruined ship.

  Wedge said, "You all right?" "Yeah, I'm fine. I'd sure like to know what my Artoo unit ate for breakfast, though. What could have gotten into it?" Luke hoped he looked better than he felt. He was still rattled, his
knees a little rubbery. He took a deep breath, fought to keep his voice calm. "Why don't we see if we can find out?" he said. He waved at the crew chief. "Get a coupler on this Artoo unit, would you?" As the chief hustled her crew over to do just that, Luke heard a whistle behind him.