Dance of the Sith

Chapter 1 - Runnin' Wild and Free

But she's alive and here, and like he feared, fighting with the Rebellion, but she's alive. He couldn't ask for anything else.

***

She's never been shot down before. It isn't Leia's first space battle, so she knows what to do if it happens, but it certainly doesn't feel like that remotely prepared her for being so incredibly alone.

She has never been alone before – Vader always made sure she was with someone until right now, when everything spiraled beyond their control. She's crashing, spiraling to the ground, and if she loses control, the ship will explode and... she'll die. Yes, it's terrifying.

"Leia!"

It's Vader's voice over the comm system. He feels her fear, no doubt sees her crashing.

Focus, Leia. It could be worse – she's still here, but they have no reason to shoot her down when she can't shoot back. Probably. "Father," she manages, voice shaky. Usually, Leia is proud of her ability not to panic, but right now? All she can think about is how she nearly died, still could be about to, and she's all her father has left.

"Are you okay?"

"I – I'm fine," she replies, eyes darting over the controls as she grips the steering controls, trying to take herself downward at a safe rate so the ship doesn't burn up when it head-on hits the atmosphere below. "I'm crashing, though."

"Remember what I taught you," he answers, though she can feel his fear. He's trying to be strong for her, and she appreciates that more than she can say. Leia desperately needs some sort of reassurance right now, something other than the fear burning her inside out. And her father has crashed many times, so he knows what to do. He taught her a little, but it's different – it was never hands-on.

"I will," Leia promises. Doesn't make it easy.

Focus.

"Send me your coordinates when you reach a landing location," Vader requests, "I'll send someone down to pick you up."

"The rebel base is down there. I'll have to abandon the crash site." If she doesn't want to get killed anyway.

"That will not stop them."

Leia twists around, trying to get a glimpse out the viewport in the back. The space battle is still raging., and her father can't leave. She understands, even if she desperately wants to be with him right now. "It'll be a while."

The crash is a blur of Leia trying to keep control of her TIE fighter. The trip through the atmosphere is far faster than it normally would be, and the tension of it isn't something she cares to repeat.

She counts herself lucky they don't shoot at her, though. They could. It isn't as though that would be unheard of for rebels or anything. They're terrorists, after all. They're Jedi, and they may preach to be good, but reality shows otherwise.

The fighter touches down, and she sends the coordinates before opening the top and Force-jumping out, rolling when she lands and drawing on the Force to cushion the landing. The fighter crashes into the ground up ahead of her, dissolving into a shower of sparks and twisted scrap metal.

Leia pushes herself up, breathing heavily. The crash is over, and now, she just wants to sleep.

The fight's just starting, though. She has to move, to get out before the rebels detect her. Stealth is something she can do, at least. Even if she doesn't exactly like it.

She breaks into a sprint, crossing a hillside before scanning the surroundings with her macrobinoculars. Leia doesn't see anyone approaching, but what she needs to find is some sort of energy reading.