"What the hell?!" Tasha exclaimed as she fell into the chair. Meteors swam around the falcon, the ship shuddering as they bounced off the deflector shields, hopefully not damaging the ship.
"We've come out of hyperspace into some sort of meteor shower," Han informed her, "it's not on any of the charts,"
"Um, that all well and good, but where's Alderaan?" Tasha asked, rocking in her seat.
"Believe me princess, if I knew I'd tell you," he replied tersely, not looking up from the controls. Luke and Obi-wan rushed in behind them, and Tasha vacated her seat for Chewbacca, leaning over the back of Han's chair.
"What's happened?" asked Luke anxiously, "where's Alderaan?"
"That's what I'm trying to tell ya kid," Han snapped, "it aint there. It's been totally blown away."
"What?!" Luke exclaimed, "How?"
"Destroyed, by the Empire," Tasha puts in, as she put the pieces together in her mind, all the information she had gathered over the past months coming together.
"Its not possible," Han said, turning to her to see if she was joking or not, trying to dispel what an awful thing that would be. He saw the serious look in her eyes, the rigid set of her jaw, and knew she was completely serious. "The entire fleet couldn't destroy a planet. It would take a thousand ships and more fire power than-" Han was cut off by an insistent bleeping above his head.
"There's another ship coming in." Tasha said, her emerald eyes scanning the consol above her, Han nodding in conformation.
"Maybe they know what happened?" said Luke uncertainly, Tasha scoffing in indignation.
"It's an imperial fighter," said obi-wan patiently.
"It's followed us!" he exclaimed. Tasha snorted slightly . . . lets just say humility isn't her strong point.
"No," obi-wan explained slowly, "It's a short range fighter,"
"It sure is leaving in a big hurry." Said the farmboy, still anxious, "if they identify us we're in big trouble." First sensible thing he's said since he got on board, thought Tasha bitterly.
"Don't worry kid; he won't be around long enough to tell anyone about us. Chewie jam his transmissions." Han ordered.
"You'd be as well to let it go," said obi-wan, "it's too far out of range."
"Not for long!" Han said stubbornly.
"A fighter that side couldn't have gotten that deep into space on its own," obi-wan thought out loud.
"It must've gotten lost, been part of a convoy or something" Luke suggested uncertainly.
"He's almost in range," Tasha reported, swinging around to look back out the cockpit window. She noticed a small, dark grey mass floating, about the size of a moon, and the last piece of the puzzle fell into place like a bomb, shattering everything.
"No," she muttered, her eyes widening slightly in horror, "it shouldn't be operational yet."
"Look! It's heading for that small moon. Luke pointed out the window.
"We might be able to catch him before he gets there!" replied Han.
"That's no moon." Tasha said, rushing forward slightly, "it's a space station"
"It's too big to be a space station," Han dismissed uncertainly.
"What the hell would you know about it?" she snapped, "I'm the one who-"
"Turn the ship around." Said obi-wan, even his voice having a touch of anxiety to it.
"Yeah," said Han slowly, "yeah, I think you're right," his practiced fingers flicking the switches on the consol.
"Now he listens!" Tasha scoffs in exasperation, and Han tosses a glare at her. The ship shudders under them, and Tasha clutches Han's shoulder to stop herself from toppling over. He doesn't seem to mind though. It shudders again, still moving toward the space station. Tasha's panic level rose a little from 'oh no!' to 'how the hell am I gonna get out of this?!?!'
"Why are we still moving towards it?!" Luke screeched at Han, his voice rising in panic.
"We're caught in a tractor beam. It's pulling us in!" Han replied, still struggling for control of his magnificent ship.
"Surely there's something you can do," Luke whined.
"There aint anything I can do kid," said Han, "I'm at full power. I'm gonna have to shut down. Don't worry kid-"
"They're not gonna get me without a fight." Han and Tasha both finished at the same time.
"You won't win," said Obi-wan quietly, with perhaps Tasha thought just a hint of amusement in his voice, "but there are alternatives to fighting." Tasha's mind spun. She got them into this; she would be the one to get them out.
"Solo," she said slowly, "you're a smuggler, right?"
"Now's hardly the time to debate titles, sweetheart!" he replied angrily. Tasha ignored him.
"Well, where do you hide your cargo? The underfloor compartments we passed on the way in? 'cause if they're big enough . . ." she let her voice fade out, and watched the cogs whir in Han's brain, pondering the feasibility of her plan. A smile broke out on Han's face that soon found its way onto Tasha's as well.
"You're brilliant." Han said as though he were thinking out loud, "gorgeous and brilliant." Not being able to come up with an answer to that, her cheeks flaming slightly, Tasha said rather impatiently:
"Solo. Now!"
"Right," he said, hopping out of his seat and brushing past her. Tasha followed him out the door and through the passages of the ship, near to the front entrance. The ship rocked violently as the base took over the controls of the ship. Han hastily pulled the covers off the compartments and Luke jumped in, Tasha helping him lower R2 down into the steel abyss. R2 bleeped and a small, secret smile passed Tasha's face.
"Yes R2," she said, a slight chuckle slipping into her voice, "just like old times."
"Tasha comes on," Han said urgently. She nodded, handing her precious droid over to Luke and leaping down softly into the compartment next to Han.
"Quickly!" she said to him in an urgent whisper as he slid the cover over the top of the two of them, plunging them into darkness. Tasha could hear her heavy breathing in the silence.
"Come here often?" Han whispered into her ear, earning him an elbow in the ribs for his trouble. The heavy pounding of booted feet sounded over head, and Tasha sucked in a harsh breath, praying that they would keep walking. They paused momentarily, and the lid creaked, accommodating their weight. They only paused for a moment, but to Tasha it felt like an eternity. She tightened the grip on her blaster handle as they moved off again, her palm slippery with sweat. The boots returned, again stopping directly overhead.
"Report to lord Vader," said the heavily altered voice of a stormtrooper, "there's no one on board." Tasha tensed even more when she heard that name. She stretched out her feelings, using the force to probe the area around her, and, sure enough, he was there, his commanding presence causing her to almost gasp from shock.
Han pushed the cover off, and noticed the tense, almost fearful look on Tasha's face.
"You okay?" he asked. She nodded, shaking Vader's presence from her mind. He had to have felt her as she had done him; the bond they had shared was just too strong.
"Yeah. I'm fine," she replied, almost trying to convince herself as much as him.
"It's lucky you had these compartments," comments Luke.
"Luck had nothing to do with it." Han dismissed. "I use them for smuggling, but I never though I'd be smuggling myself in them. This is ridiculous; even if I could take off I'd never get past the tractor beam."
"Leave that to me." Obi-wan said simply.
"Damn fool." muttered Han, "I just knew you were gonna say that."
"Who's more foolish?" teased Tasha, "the fool or the fool that follows him?" she raised her eyes and Han rolled his eyes at her again. Footsteps sounded on the ramp, and Tasha dashed behind a corner, pulling out her blaster and Han not far behind. The scanning crew zipped up the ramp, and Tasha waited for them to come past before knocking them out with the butt of her blaster.
"Not bad for a girl." Han said, and Tasha frowned.
"What happened to 'gorgeous and brilliant'?"
"Nice. Hey down there!" Han yelled down the ramp. Tasha looked at him quizzically, and he mouthed silently at her, 'trust me.'
"Can you give us a hand with this?"
Three stormtroopers walked up the ramp. Tasha and Han both shot one each before they had time to respond. The third took a shot at her, which she dodged before firing straight back. Tasha's was a hit.
"Not bad, for a guy." Tasha teased a slightly malicious look on her face. Han rolled hi eyes, helping Tasha to pull off the stormtrooper's uniform. She pulled on one of the uniforms, tucking her hair carefully into the back of the helmet. She took a deep breath, the air sticky and humid through the rather claustrophobic helmet.
This is where the fun begins.