Han asked, “How you feeling, kid? You don’t look so bad to me. In fact, you look strong enough to pull the ears off a gundark.”
Luke grinned. “Thanks to you.”
“That’s two you owe me, junior,” Han said, referring to the Battle of Yavin, when he’d prevented Darth Vader from shooting down Luke’s starfighter.
Han swiveled to lean against the foot of Luke’s bed and face Leia. “Well, Your Worship, looks like you managed to keep me around for a little while longer.”
“I had nothing to do with it,” Leia retorted. “General Rieekan thinks it’s dangerous for any ships to leave the system until we’ve activated the energy shield.” Indeed, the Rebels had been working round-the-clock on the power generators so the energy shields would be ready when needed.
“That’s a good story,” Han said. “I think you just can’t bear to let a gorgeous guy like me out of your sight.”
In bed, Luke grimaced. Han was his friend, but the Millennium Falcon’s captain was also so full of himself that he could be unbearable. How can Han talk to Leia that way? She’s a princess! Sometimes I wish he would just keep his mouth shut.
Coolly glaring at Solo, Leia slowly shook her head and said, “I don’t know where you get your delusions, laserbrain.”
Chewbacca tilted his head back and produced an amused, gurgling bark.
“Laugh it up, fuzzball,” Han said reproachfully. “But you didn’t see us alone in the south passage.” He moved toward Leia and slinked an arm around her back. “She expressed her true feelings for me.”
Stunned, Luke’s eyes darted from Han to Leia and back to Han. Is Han serious? Does Leia really want…?
“My…!” Leia gasped, her temper boiling over. Han eased away from Leia as she released a barrage: “Why, you stuck-up…half-witted…scruffy-looking…nerf herder!”
“Who’s scruffy-looking?” Han asked, looking genuinely insulted. Then he turned to Luke and said, “I must have hit pretty close to the mark to get her all riled up like that, huh, kid?”
But Luke wouldn’t meet Han’s gaze. He was too angry. Even the droids sensed the tension in the air.
Leia composed herself, then moved closer to Luke’s bed. Looking at Han, she said, “Why, I guess you don’t know everything about women yet.” Then she leaned over Luke and kissed him on the lips.
Luke thought, Huh?
C-3PO, who had been standing just behind Han, nearly tripped over himself to get a better view. After seeing that Leia and Luke were indeed in an embrace, the baffled droid redirected his gaze from Chewbacca to Han to see their reaction. Chewbacca made a curious whimpering sound. Han did his best to keep his expression relaxed and neutral, as if seeing Leia and Luke interested him only mildly.
The kiss lasted about three seconds.
Leia pulled away from Luke. She looked at Han, who kept his expression neutral as he met her gaze. Then, without any further word, Leia walked to the door and left the room.
Han turned his casual gaze to Luke. Luke put his hands behind his head and leaned back into his bed, trying hard to keep a smug smile from his face. Well, Han, do you have anything to say now?
From a loudspeaker, a voice announced, “Headquarters personnel, report to command center.”
Han glanced at Chewbacca, who tilted his furry head at the door. Trying not to look relieved at the opportunity to make an exit, Han tapped Luke’s arm and said, “Take it easy,” then followed Chewbacca out of the room.
Ever polite, C-3PO added, “Excuse us, please,” and trotted after R2-D2, leaving Luke alone.
Walking fast, Han arrived first at the command center, followed by Leia, Chewbacca, and the droids. Inside the dim, low-ceilinged room, General Rieekan stood beside Wyron Serper, the center’s senior controller, who was seated before a console screen. Seeing Leia, General Rieekan said, “Princess…we have a visitor.”
The group gathered around the console screen and examined a comm-scan display map of Echo Base and its surrounding areas. On the map, a small, unidentified blip appeared to the north. Rieekan said, “We’ve picked up something outside the base of zone twelve, moving east.”
“It’s metal,” Serper reported.
“Then it couldn’t be one of those creatures,” Leia said, referring to the wampas.
“It could be a speeder, one of ours,” Han suggested.
Serper raised a hand to adjust a control on his headset. “No,” he said. “Wait—there’s something very weak coming through.” Serper switched on an audio speaker, allowing the others to hear the intercepted transmission, a strange series of choppy electronic noises.
Looking to Rieekan, C-3PO said, “Sir, I am fluent in six million forms of communication. This signal is not used by the Alliance. It could be an Imperial code.”
With that possibility in mind, the gathered Rebels listened even more attentively to the signal. After several seconds, Han decided, “It isn’t friendly, whatever it is.” Without waiting for the general or anyone else to issue an order, Han turned to his first mate and said, “Come on, Chewie, let’s check it out.”
As Han and Chewbacca headed for the hangar, Rieekan thought they might require backup. To Serper, Rieekan said, “Send Rogues Ten and Eleven to station three-eight.”
Trouble had arrived.
When the Imperial probot was finished sending its message, it retracted its two high-frequency transmission antennae down into its sensor head. Then the droid hovered away from its hiding place behind a wide snowdrift, where its telescopic sensors had maintained an unobstructed view of the Rebels’ power generator.
The probot was heading down a ridge toward the Rebel base when its sensors detected movement by a nearby snowbank. The probot spun its sensor head and directed its primary visual sensors at the snowbank, where a Wookiee’s snow-covered head had popped up.
Chewbacca ducked as the droid fired three rapid laser bursts. The laser bolts missed the Wookiee and bored into the snowbank.
But Chewbacca was just a decoy, and Han—concealed behind a rise of glacial rock—was right behind the droid. While the droid was still distracted, Han rose and snapped off a quick shot at the droid’s hovering form. Unlike the droid, Han didn’t miss.
The fired bolt slammed into the droid but barely dented its metal plating. The droid responded by quickly rotating its cylindrical body in midair and firing back at Han. But Han had already ducked and the droid missed again.
Han came up fast and fired a second blast at the droid, again meeting his mark. After the way the droid had taken his first shot, Han knew he’d be lucky if he could disable it. So he was surprised when—a moment after his second shot hit the droid—the droid exploded into smoke and flames, leaving nothing behind but a fine spray of black-metal dust across the snow.
In the command center, General Rieekan stood next to Leia, who sat at a comm console and listened to Han’s report. From the comlink, Han’s voice said, “’Fraid there’s not much left.”
“What was it?” Leia asked.
“Droid of some kind,” Han answered. “I didn’t hit it that hard. It must have had a self-destruct.”
“An Imperial probe droid,” Leia deduced.
Han said, “It’s a good bet the Empire knows we’re here.”
It had been anything but easy for the Rebels to establish a base on Hoth. But if there were even a slight possibility that the Empire knew the location of Echo Base, no one was safe on the ice planet. With grim resolve, Rieekan said, “We’d better start the evacuation.”
Many light-years away from Hoth, five Imperial Star Destroyers and their respective TIE fighter escorts rendezvoused in space. Despite the immense size of each Star Destroyer, all fell under the shadow of an even more enormous ship: the Super-class Star Destroyer, Executor.
At 8,000 meters long, the Executor was the largest traditional starship constructed by the Imperial Navy. Only the Death Star space station had been larger. Equipped with more than a thousa
nd weapons, the Executor carried 144 TIE fighters and 38,000 stormtroopers. And all were at the disposal of the ship’s commander: Darth Vader, Lord of the Sith.
Clad entirely in black, with a helmet that completely concealed his head and a cape that reached the floor, Darth Vader was darker than deepest space. On the Executor’s bridge, he stood before a transparisteel viewport and surveyed his fleet. Because the Executor was protected by a powerful shielding force field, the bridge was positioned at the bow—usually the most vulnerable area of a starship—and offered Vader a panoramic view unobstructed by any part of his ship.
Behind Vader, a long walkway extended to the captain’s control station. The walkway was without railings, and on either side the floor dropped off to expose the bridge’s lower level. There, gray-uniformed Imperial technicians operated their console stations, and tried not to look up to find themselves eye level with Darth Vader’s boots.
A door opened near the captain’s station, and Vader’s two chief officers—the pompous Admiral Ozzel and the younger, powerfully built General Veers—entered the bridge. Like all high-ranking Imperial officers, Ozzel and Veers wore gray uniforms and caps, as well as black leather gloves, belts, and boots. They were approaching the walkway that led to Vader when the Executor’s captain called out, “Admiral.”
“Yes, Captain?” Ozzel answered, turning with Veers to face Captain Piett, a lean man with eyes that appeared tired from staring at monitors.
“I think we’ve got something, sir,” Piett informed him. “The report is only a fragment from a probe droid in the Hoth system, but it’s the best lead we’ve had.”
Unimpressed, Ozzel snapped, “We have thousands of probe droids searching the galaxy. I want proof, not leads!”
But Piett wasn’t finished. He added, “The visuals indicate life readings.”
“It could mean anything,” Ozzel said, growing impatient with Piett. “If we followed up every lead…”
“But sir,” Piett interrupted, “the Hoth system is supposed to be devoid of human forms.”
“You found something?” Darth Vader’s deep, mechanically tinged voice rumbled, his black mask looking down at Piett. None of the officers had heard or seen his tall, dark form approach.
“Yes, my lord,” said Piett, directing Vader’s attention to a lower console monitor. The monitor displayed the transmitted image of a snow-base power generator.
“That’s it,” Vader said with conviction. “The Rebels are there.”
Admiral Ozzel saw nothing on the monitor that specifically indicated a Rebel presence, and he did not believe in expending time and energy on a mere hunch. Employing what he considered his most diplomatic manner, Ozzel still sounded condescending when he spoke: “My lord, there are so many uncharted settlements. It could be smugglers, it could be…”
“That is the system,” Vader interrupted. His tone was filled with restrained menace, making it clear that he would not tolerate any questioning of his actions. “Set your course for the Hoth system. General Veers, prepare your men.” Darth Vader turned and stalked off the bridge.
Veers looked at Ozzel, who appeared stung by Vader’s lack of respect for military protocol. Hoping to restore his commanding officer’s confidence, Veers said, “Admiral?”
Ozzel nodded, giving his permission for Veers to prepare the soldiers, as if his permission even mattered. Veers walked off quickly, and Ozzel—furious over his treatment by Vader—threw a threatening gaze at Piett before he left in a huff.
If Captain Piett was afraid of Admiral Ozzel, he didn’t show it. In Piett’s experience, it was smarter to be afraid of Darth Vader.
On Hoth, everyone at Echo Base was preparing to evacuate. In the transport bay, several transports were being loaded by soldiers carrying heavy boxes of equipment and supplies. The soldiers moved quickly, but not in panic. Near one transport, two Rebels faced their captain.
“Groups seven and ten will stay behind to fly the speeders,” the captain ordered, prompting one soldier to walk off quickly. Turning to the remaining soldier, the captain said, “As soon as each transport is loaded, evacuation control will give clearance for immediate launch.”
“Right, sir,” answered the soldier.
In the main hangar deck, Han was atop the Millennium Falcon, trying frantically to complete the welding on the lifters. In the Falcon’s cockpit, Chewbacca sat ready at the controls. After finishing a weld, Han stood up and shouted, “All right, that’s it. Try it…”
Chewbacca threw a switch. Unfortunately, the switch accidentally triggered a minor explosion on the problematic lifter, and nearly launched Han from the Falcon’s hull.
“Off!” Han shouted as he leaped away from another small explosion. “Turn it off! Turn it off! Off!”
Chewbacca howled as his furry fingers darted from one switch to the next. When he realized Han had stopped shouting, the Wookiee looked from the cockpit to see if he was all right. At first, all he saw was smoke.
The smoke cleared. Han was unhurt but exasperated as he surveyed the new damage. Sometimes, being captain of the fastest ship in the galaxy was not as thrilling as it could be.
In the medical center, Luke got into his bright-orange pressurized g-suit. He was almost ready to leave when 2-1B turned his skull-like metal head in time to see his departing patient. Luke had the impression that 2-1B had genuinely enjoyed hearing about the technical challenges of converting T-47 airspeeders into snowspeeders, and wasn’t surprised when the droid commented, “Sir, it will take quite a while to evacuate the T-47s.”
“Well, forget the heavy equipment,” Luke said. “There’s plenty of time to get the smaller modules on the transports.” He grabbed his flight gear and headed for the door.
2-1B said, “Take care, sir.”
During his recovery, Luke had gotten to observe the droid well enough to know he meant it. Luke smiled and said, “Thanks.”
Leaving the medical center, he proceeded through the laser-cut corridors to the main hangar. Pilots, gunners, and astromech droids scurried about as he walked toward Chewbacca, who was now working under the Millennium Falcon.
“Chewie, take care of yourself, okay?” Luke said, and reached up to scratch the Wookiee’s neck. Luke turned to walk away, but Chewbacca threw his arms around Luke and gave him a tight hug before letting him go. Luke looked up to find Han standing atop the Falcon with a small repair droid.
“Hi, kid,” Han said from his elevated position, then turned to the repair droid and scolded, “There’s got to be a reason for it. Check it at the other end. Wait a second.” While the droid rotated its visual sensors, Han looked back down at Luke and asked, “You all right?”
“Yeah,” Luke said. There were so many things he wanted to tell Han. How much their friendship meant, how he hoped Han wasn’t hurt by Leia’s rejection, how he wished him safety and happiness…but everything he thought of saying somehow sounded like the one thing he didn’t want to say: Good-bye. So Luke just nodded, then started to walk away.
“Be careful,” Han said.
Glancing back, Luke said, “You, too.”
In the command center, a Rebel controller urgently gestured for General Rieekan and reported, “General, there’s a fleet of Star Destroyers coming out of hyperspace in sector four.”
Rieekan leaned over the controller’s shoulder to examine the monitor display of sector four, then ordered, “Reroute all power to the energy shield.” Turning from the controller, Rieekan faced a Rebel officer and said, “We’ve got to hold them till all the transports are away. Prepare for ground assault.”
While the Executor and five Star Destroyers had traveled through hyperspace to arrive in orbit of the ice planet Hoth, Darth Vader had been inside his meditation chamber. A spherical enclosure with a black exterior, the chamber was pressurized to keep Vader comfortable, even with his helmet off.
General Veers entered Vader’s private quarters and carefully approached the chamber. Veers stood at att
ention as jawlike clamps unlocked at the sphere’s side, allowing its upper half to rise.
Darth Vader was seated in the center of the chamber’s bright white interior. His black helmet was already facing the general, as if he’d been anticipating this meeting.
“What is it, General?” Vader asked.
“My lord, the fleet has moved out of lightspeed,” Veers reported. “Comm-scan has detected an energy field protecting an area of the sixth planet of the Hoth system. The field is strong enough to deflect any bombardment.”
Vader seethed. “The Rebels are alerted to our presence. Admiral Ozzel came out of lightspeed too close to the system.”
Hoping to explain Admiral Ozzel’s decision, Veers said, “He felt surprise was wiser.…”
“He is as clumsy as he is stupid,” Vader interrupted. “General, prepare your troops for a surface attack.”
“Yes, my lord,” Veers said, then left.
Vader’s seat rotated, allowing him to face a wide viewscreen. It flicked on and displayed an image of Admiral Ozzel and Captain Piett on the Executor’s bridge. Ozzel turned his face and said, “Lord Vader, the fleet has moved out of lightspeed, and we’re preparing to—aaagh!”
On the viewscreen, Ozzel was touching his throat with his left hand. Vader, using the Force, had constricted Ozzel’s windpipe.
“You have failed me for the last time, Admiral,” Vader said.
Admiral Ozzel took a step backward but remained on the viewscreen.
Vader said, “Captain Piett.”
“Yes, my lord,” said Piett, tearing his eyes away from the choking admiral to face Vader.
“Make ready to land our troops beyond their energy field and deploy the fleet so that nothing gets off the system.” As Admiral Ozzel’s strangled form fell to the bridge’s deck with an audible thud, Vader added, “You are in command now, AdmiralPiett.”
Piett straightened and said, “Thank you, Lord Vader.” He looked to some nearby soldiers and jerked his head slightly, silently instructing them to remove Ozzel’s corpse. Piett had always strived to learn from the mistakes of others, but he had not expected a promotion so soon.
The Empire Strikes Back (Junior Novelization) Page 3