Edges of the World

Chapter 21

There were no casualties.

She had led a successful ground mission.

She had flown into enemy territory, led a team that freed slaves, had fought a Sith, and she'd done it all without losing any of the troops under her command.

Why didn't she feel victorious?

There were people, families, huddled in the ship. Thanking her, thanking Sana, thanking the troops, thanking Han, thanking Chewie.

They were exiting the atmosphere, and soon would be leaving real space behind and truly would be all clear.

From where she had left him on the planet's surface, the Sith reached out to her in the Force.

Leia. She could hear a touch of sadness in the mechanical voice's tone. She wondered if he remembered discussing baby names with her mother. Picking hers out. You will explain what you showed me.

She reinforced her mental shields, and he tore through them like they were not there at all.

You will not escape so easily. Explain those visions.

She moved quickly towards the cockpit and shouted at Han, almost panicked, "Punch it! Let's get out of here!"

Han turned towards her, indigent. "Give us a moment Your... youness. We're on it."

She rolled her eyes, exasperated. Why did this have to be a fight? "Darth Vader is here. I'd really like to get as far away as possible."

His face smoothed out, understanding replacing the upset. "Well, why didn't you just say so? Signal the transports, and then jump up to lightspeed Chewie."

Chewie grumbled his agreement and fiddled with several buttons and switches on the dashboard before pushing the controls up to full speed.

As the stars stretched out around them Leia let go of the tension that was holding her, releasing it into the Force, slumping slightly against the cockpit's wall.

This time, when she built her shields up Vader did not crash through.

"Are you ok? Did you see Vader on the planet?" Chewbacca was watching her, concerned.

She gave him a weak smile, trying to mask her exhaustion, both mental and physical.

"Yes. We fought."

Han turned towards her, radiating worry. "You fought with Vader? Kriff, you're as crazy as the Princess."

Chewie laughed, agreeing with his friend's assessment. "I'm impressed they can fit their bravery in such a small frame."

Han snorted. For her part, Leia sunk into one of the empty seats in the cockpit.

"I'm a Jedi. It's my job to fight the Sith when they make their presence known."

"Oh joy, more Jedi nonsense. My favorite." The wavering blue glow of hyperspace danced across his face, calling attention to and deepening the lines of Han's scowl.

"I don't get it, why are you so resistant to believing in the Force? You'd think with all the time you spend with my counterpart, and with Luke... even just fighting against Darth Vader, it'd be pretty impossible to deny that the Force is real."

Han turned away from her, pretending to focus on various controls, fiddling with the nav computer. She knew there wasn't much he actually had to adjust now that they were on a plotted course. He was just avoiding looking at her.

"I just know I can trust what I can see, ok?"

She reached for a hydrospanner that was laying in a corner of the cockpit, floating it to her hand.