Recompense

Hiking back to the rest of her group, Leia had to hold back triumphant giggle. She had never been a compulsive person, had known she should have waited for orders from her commanding officer—even if that was technically Han Solo- but even though she knew she was going to get an embarrassing dressing down, it had all been worth it. She'd probably even be accused of being suicidal again, but nothing was farther from the truth. Speed made her feel alive.

She stepped nimbly over a pile of fallen branches, looking around briefly to see if Luke was nearby. They had been separated as they pursued the stormtroopers, and she had gotten the distinct sense that he enjoyed the race as much as she did. There was no sign of him, but the endorphins from her all too brief speeder ride tamped down any of her normal tendencies to worry. Surely he'd be along shortly.

As expected, Han was waiting for her back at the small clearing where they had startled the Imperials. Hands on his hips in an unconscious imitation of her own typical pose when she was preparing to unleash a scolding, the look in his eyes when she reappeared was both pure relief and pure annoyance. She deserved it, of course, but it had definitely been worth it.

"Got them," she reported with a quick nod to their other companions. "I'm pretty sure they didn't have a chance to report our presence, but their disappearance will presumably be discovered before too long. We should probably relocate."

"Where's Luke?" Han asked tightly, obviously holding his tongue until the situation was a bit more settled. Leia gave him a small smile, impressed that he was still maintaining his professionalism even though he would have been justified in screaming at her. Her lingering doubts about his qualifications to lead the operation—part of why she'd insisted on joining the team-disappeared.

"We were separated," she told him. "I'm sure he'll be back soon."

"You've already been gone for an hour." Han turned back to the rest of the team. "We need to find him if we're going to be able to relocate the camp before the Imps show up looking for their buddies." She could tell he was pissed, and was glad she hadn't verbalized her compliment for his leadership skills: that would not have gone over well.

Addressing the waiting commandos, who were trying to look busy while bracing themselves for an explosive argument between the newly commissioned general and the princess, Solo said, "We'll find him." He then pulled Major Derlin aside. "Take the squad ahead. We'll rendezvous at the shield generator at 0300. Leia and I will find Luke and bring him along."

Overhearing them, Chewbacca strode over, clearly expecting to accompany his longtime partner in their search for the missing Jedi. "Chewie," Han added with a sigh. "I want you to stick with the strike team." With a long look at Leia, he added, "We don't need to divert any more personnel."

"And if Luke's hurt?" Chewie grumbled in Shyriwook. Leia winced slightly, and Han realized suddenly that she'd picked up Chewie's complicated language during his many months in Jabba the Hutt's captivity. "Who will carry him? Her?"

"We'll deal with it," Han said, trying not to let his frustration show. He knew that asserting his authority in a squad containing so many of his friends would be difficult, but this was getting ridiculous fast. "Head out." After a moment of reflection, he added, "And take the droids with you." Leia smirked knowingly.

Derlin saluted, and Han returned the gesture, glad that at least someone was going to give him the respect due his rank. If this was what being an Alliance general was going to be like, he'd turn in his stripes the moment this mission was over—assuming, of course, that he was alive to do so.

"Come on," Han said to Leia, more gruffly than was truly necessary. In reality, he was glad that someone had taken the necessary initiative to take out the stormtroopers, especially since it was his fault they'd been tipped off to the Rebels' presence. But even during the short time they'd spent back with the Alliance over Sullust preparing for the current battle, it was clear that his and Leia's budding relationship was the subject of intense gossip. Her blatant disrespect for the chain of command would do little to tamp down the broadly held belief that he followed her around like a sick baby manka cat.

They set off into the forest from which Leia had emerged, Chewie's grumbles of displeasure still audible as the remainder of the strike team began trudging through the woods in the opposite direction.

"Hey," Leia said softly when they were finally out of earshot. "You giving me the silent treatment now?"

"You shouldn't have taken off like that," Han responded, refusing to look directly at her as he scanned the woods for signs of Luke. "You could have compromised the whole mission."

Abandoning her earlier resolution to let Han have his say without complaint, she scowled. "If we hadn't shot down those troopers they would have been back with a whole squad in minutes. You don't think that would have compromised the mission?"

"That should have been my decision, not yours."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have tried to sneak up on them. Of all the harebrained…"

"Do you not understand that this mission is under my command?" he asked sharply. "You didn't have to volunteer, but since you did, I expect you to follow orders like anyone else. Got it, Princess?"

She retreated slightly, taken aback by his tone. "Yes, General," she muttered finally. They walked on in silence.

Overhead, birds were tweedling brightly as they swooped into the soft beds of needles coating the forest floor, making careful selections of nesting material before heading back for the upper branches to scold the puffy tailed rodents that frolicked among the fallen branches, competing for bits of bark and berries. The air was scented with the spicy, loamy aroma of the ubiquitous conifers that stood like skyscrapers around them, shielding them from the heat of the day. Were it not for the weapons they carried, and the invisible looming presence of the Death Star above them, they might have been lovers on a hike to a hidden waterfall.

"Do you think we should call out to him?" Leia asked softly. Han pondered for a moment, accepting her silent apology for her inadvertent disrespect earlier. He reached over and took her hand, squeezing it gently.

"Let's see if we can find which direction he went first," Han told her. "Where did you get separated? Do you remember?"

Leia nodded. "It was right after I shot down the first trooper. Shouldn't be hard to find with all the smoking wreckage…" She grinned slyly at him, and he smiled back.

"Atta girl." He sniffed the air, noticing a faint odor of burnt metal and plastic. "That way?"

"Yeah," she agreed, releasing his hand and trotting ahead. "There."

A thin trail of smoke still rose from the wreckage of the speeder bike as Han and Leia crept up, taking care to hide themselves behind the shelter of an enormous fallen log. "Luke went off that way, and I followed the other one over there," Leia whispered, peering up to see if there was any sign of Imperials searching for their fallen comrade. So far, the forest seemed quiet. After a few minutes, Han nodded sharply in the direction she had indicated as Luke's most recent path, and they pushed on.

"Looks like he came this way," Han noted, pointing out blaster marks etched into the trees several meters up from ground level. He scrambled on top of a boulder that leaned casually against a decaying carcass of a stump, peering into the murk of the forest. "I don't see any other wrecks from here."

"How far is it to the shield generator?" Leia asked as he hopped down, brushing a spider web from his forehead.

"Depends on how far off track we get. We should be okay to keep heading this way for another couple hours."

Leia gulped. "So soon…" she whispered, closing her eyes. She was ready for the coming battle, could feel it in her bones, but she just couldn't do it without Luke. Not wanting to give Han the wrong impression by articulating her terror, she took a deep breath and turned away, swatting at the sudden tears that filled her eyes.

"Hey." Han pulled her close, not fooled for a moment. "Luke'll be fine. He's a tough kid. We'll find him."

Unable to speak, Leia just nodded and then followed Han deeper into the forest.

In spite of the cool breeze, they had both broken a good sweat after another half hour of hard walking. Suddenly Han stopped and sniffed the air.

"You look like Chewie," Leia said with a small laugh.

"Smells like another wreck," he told her. She stopped and took a deep breath through her nose, shaking her head when she smelled nothing unusual. "Let's keep going. There's more blaster marks that way."

They crossed a shallow stream and squelched through a patch of thick mud before climbing up a rise that overlooked a ring of trees. In the center, two smashed speeders were piled at the base of one massive trunk. Han put his finger up to his lips to hush Leia as they scrambled down towards the scene.

"Kriff." Han picked his way through the wreckage, finding more blaster marks closer to ground level behind one of the trees. Spotting a familiar looking object settled on top of a large fallen branch that rested like a bridge over a small hollow, he hurried over. "Luke's helmet," he said somberly as Leia joined him. Abruptly, she gasped and whipped out her blaster.

Han turned, pulling out his own weapon as he spotted the stormtrooper lying prone in the dirt on the far side of the hollow. Aiming his blaster carefully, he approached and turned the man with his foot. "He's dead," he confirmed, looking down at the hole blasted through the weak spot in the armor and into the man's chest. "Luke made it this far, anyways."

Leia looked up as there was a soft rustle of leaves behind them. She pointed her blaster, waving to Han to crouch down beside her as they watched carefully for any sign of hostile forces. After a moment, a pair of the little rodents rolled out of the tree towards them, engaged in a vicious wrestling match and paying the humans no mind. She had just began to breathe a sigh of relief when she heard the distinct sound of a blaster firing followed almost immediately by the heavy thump of Han Solo falling to the ground beside her.

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Luke had never been so embarrassed in his life.

He'd been busy entertaining the chief, or at least the fuzzy creature who seemed to be the chief, with a few tricks involving floating objects across the room of the small hut where he'd been presented following his incidental encounter with the furry Endor native, and hadn't noticed that a group of the creatures had marched off into the woods carrying hunting gear until they returned with dinner tied to stakes. Dinner, of course, being the bulk of the strike team that he'd accompanied to Endor, minus Han and Leia. At least with them he could have joked about it afterwards, but the bound commandos who were being unceremoniously loaded onto spits looked decidedly unamused. Rather than savoring the bizarre humor of the situation, Luke walked over to the team, shaking his head vigorously as he released them one at a time from their bonds.

After a tooth-baring growl at the little hunters, Chewie enveloped Luke in a hug. The others brushed detritus from their clothes as they observed the gathering with some confusion.

"Where are Han and Leia?" Luke asked as Derlin approached, watching the armed natives cautiously.

"Looking for you," the major told him. "We, uh, stumbled into a trap." He sent a quick glare in Chewbacca's direction, and the big Wookiee shrugged. "We're supposed to rendezvous at 0300. Who…I mean, uh, what are your friends here?"

"I have no idea what they're called," Luke admitted as the one he assumed was the tribal chief approached, yammering at him. "Any idea where Threepio is? Maybe he could help?"

With an eye roll so deep that Luke's Aunt Beru would have warned him against permanent blindness, Derlin gestured behind them. "He's on his way."

Luke had to choke back a laugh as the droid emerged from the woods on a livery carried by six singing creatures. They set him down gently as Artoo rolled up behind, scolding and squalling.

"Master Luke!" Threepio called out, "You're safe!"

"I am, Threepio," Luke responded. "Sorry to cause everyone concern." He gestured to the village around him. "Threepio, can you translate their speech?"

"Certainly, Master Luke! I am fluent in over six million forms of communication…" Luke held up a hand to stop the monologue.

"Just tell us what they're saying."

"Well, this is rather embarrassing," Threepio continued. "They seem to think I am some sort of deity."

With a noise that scattered the creatures brave enough to start approaching Chewbacca, the Wookiee burst out with a guffaw that echoed through the trees. Luke allowed himself another small chuckle.

"Droid, just have them return our gear and let's keep moving," Derlin interrupted. "We've got a long way to go."

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Leia whirled around, her blaster pointing at the trees as she fought the urge to kneel down next to Han and check his injuries. In the brief second she'd looked at him, there was no sign of any physical damage, suggesting he'd been hit by a stun blast. The source of that blast needed her immediate attention, and unfortunately they were nowhere to be seen.

She crouched down, two fingers going to Solo's neck as she kept her blaster poised, watching carefully for any motion. She could feel a strong pulse.

"Freeze."

Somehow they had crept up behind her. From the tenor of the voice and the distinct size and feel of the blaster barrel shoved roughly between her shoulder blades, Leia knew it was a stormtrooper without even looking.

"Drop your weapon." Another trooper appeared next to her, nudging Han with his foot and then pointing a blaster at his head. She gently set her own blaster on the ground next to her, lifting her hands to her head and watching with dismay as the first trooper roughly rolled Han over and snapped thick binders onto his unmoving wrists. Her captor reached around and picked up her blaster, never moving the weapon from her back. She shifted uncomfortably, longing to either stand or sit and relieve the burning strain in her muscles.

"Call ahead to base and let them know we got two of them," the first trooper said as his companion began struggling to drag Han towards the woods. "And bring the bike over here." As he trotted off to comply, Leia heard the man behind her quietly mutter, "Idiot."

She had a second of relief as the trooper moved the blaster from her back, but before she could even consider turning to attack he had clasped both her wrists together in one hand, pulling out another pair of binders and fastening her wrists tightly in front of her. She bit her lip against a gasp of pain as he grabbed the cuffs to pull her to her feet.

The second trooper had returned with a speeder bike, and was manhandling Han's limp body over the front. He hopped on behind, one hand on his unconscious prisoner's back as he slowly proceeded through the woods.

"Now," said the first trooper, obviously the higher ranking, "You going to behave yourself, or do I need to knock you out?"

Leia gulped, trying to look as meek as possible. If she was stunned, they'd be locked in an Imperial cell before either of them awoke. It was a long shot, but at least if she was awake they might have some chance at escape. Trying not to think about the implications of failure, Leia squeaked, "I'll behave."

"Good." Clasping her around the waist, the trooper lifted her up onto his own bike, settling behind her as he followed his companion back through the woods. Leia leaned forward slightly, trying to give the impression that she was resigned to her fate, as she watched for a good opportunity.

Making sure Han and his captor were still in sight, Leia waited until they were in the middle of a small, soft-looking meadow before wobbling and pitching herself sideways off the bike. As she had hoped, the trooper had gotten complacent as she stayed submissive for the first portion of their journey, and was a hair too late in reaching out a hand to catch her. True to his companion's earlier description, the second trooper spun his bike around when he heard his superior officer curse, and Han slipped backwards off the bike, knocking the trooper off with him as he fell.

Leia pushed herself up and dashed the few meters across the field, spying the fallen trooper and—more importantly—his blaster. Her hands were still tightly bound, but she was determined to be able to lift the heavy blaster long enough to take out their two pursuers before she worried about that. The trooper groaned and rolled towards Han, not seeing the princess barreling towards him.

She nearly had her hands on the blaster when, with a roar of engines, she was grabbed by the back of her collar and lifted back onto the speeder bike. "Nice try," the trooper taunted as he lifted his smaller sidearm to her head. She slumped into his arms as the stun bolt smashed into her temple. "Get back up and let's get moving," he hollered to his companion, who was struggling to lift Han back onto the bike. He shook his head, making sure his helmet-to-helmet radio was turned off as he again grumbled, "Idiot."

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"What is the meaning of this disturbance? There are going to be hundreds of Rebels crawling like parasites over the Sanctuary Moon in a matter of hours. You do not need to consult me about their disposal, Lord Vader." The Emperor remained seated on the dais of his throne room, which had been hastily assembled as word of the monarch's impending visit had been announced. Vader continued to kneel, knowing that Palpatine was aware that he was seething about the reprimand and was enjoying his apprentice's anger.

He had come immediately when he'd received the report, and then visually confirmed, that the two rebels captured in the forests of Endor were none other than Han Solo and Leia Organa. Palpatine had specifically instructed that he remain undisturbed until they received word of Skywalker's location or capture. Vader assumed the old man would appreciate the importance of holding his son's best friends captive, but he had clearly misjudged and now Palpatine was using the opportunity to humiliate him in front of the Royal Guard.

Fine. Two could play at that game. If Palpatine had no interest in using the princess and the smuggler as bargaining chips, Vader would gladly hold them in reserve. He gave another deep bow, and then stalked out as Palpatine dismissed him.

Stepping out, Vader suppressed long sigh as one of his lieutenants sidled up beside him. "The prisoners, milord?"

Vader thought for a moment. He wanted them secured on one of the star destroyers that was waiting in the outer parts of the system for the Rebel fleet to arrive. They would still end up in the battle with their lives at risk, but it was the best option for preserving them at the moment. And, he thought practically, if they were killed, he could still harness the anguish he expected from Luke to further the boy's journey to the Dark Side.

"Contact Admiral Strage and have them transferred to the detention unit on the Chimaera," Vader said finally. "Inform me when the transfer is complete."

"Yes, milord." The man bowed deeply and hurried away, leaving Vader to stare out the viewport into the deep blue expanse of space. Luke was below, he knew in his heart, on the green sanctuary moon. Soon they would be reunited, and Palpatine would be dead.