A Matter of Commitment
story and art by Dani
PART 3
PART 6 PART 7
Even as tiring as hyperlight travel was, and as hungry as she found herself after having only ship's fare so far, that first day on Ord Mantell was an experience that Leia was reluctant to let end. Their unfamiliarity with the city and its transport system caused Leia and Threepio to overshoot their destination. They ended up having to walk a considerable distance, but such were the sights of Jettee-Fel that they hardly noticed the hardship. There was actually free enterprise and entertainment so varied and so intriguing that Leia had to turn away with effort to continue on towards Nida's. If the rest of the rebel underground here was still intact, the princess didn't think she'd mind taking Emil's place for a while. The local festival included art forms from all over the galaxy. It was a cultural smorgasbord. It was fascinating. She reasoned that if the festival was this interesting and sophisticated, she'd have to ask Captain Solo to introduce her to the convention's technical aspects after all. Surely the rebellion could find some way to draw a benefit from the competition inspired by the participation of so many high-tech civilizations.
It happened that she and Captain Solo ended up arriving at Nida's place simultaneously. He and Chewie had rented a speeder. Not that they had anything against public transport or a good walk, but the advantages of a readily accessible ground speeder far outweighed those of a slow, open hoverbus. Han leaned against the craft and watched Leia coming up the court. She looks tired,he thought. Her steps were short and heavy. Yet, as she got closer, he could detect a sparkle, an excitement in her eyes. Han remembered his first time at Ord Mantell's festivals. He suspected that they would be very interesting to a person like Leia. He felt something softening deep inside of him.
"How are you doin', sweetheart?" he greeted her. "Can I buy you dinner?"
"I'd just as soon go straight to bed," she told him wearily.
"Oh?" he leered.
Leia returned his look with her iciest glare. Han just kept on leering. Stars, he's obnoxious,Leia thought. Then she noticed his lip. "Have you been fighting?!" she asked incredulously. "You just got here!"
The leer faded. "Oh, this?" Han touched it tenderly. "It's nothing."
"What happened?" she persisted.
"I got fresh with the wrong gal."
Leia sighed. "All right. Forget it."
Leia, Chewbacca, and Threepio followed Han into Nida's. It was a modest tavern fronting an assemblage of rented rooms. Inside, it was dimly lit, but Han picked out the familiar woman behind the bar right away. She was a little older, a little grayer, but there was no mistaking the sharp black eyes, the warm smile of recognition.
"Well, if it isn't Han Solo!" she exclaimed as she slid out from behind the bar. "Hide my daughters!"
Han's face was cracked by a huge grin as he embraced the older woman. "Ah, Nida!" he laughed. "You're looking good!"
"The straight and narrow is good for a person. You should try it sometime."
She winked and held Han away to run a motherly eye over him. "Not that you aren't looking mighty fit, son. Must be dirtside a lot if you're eating so well." Han shrugged. "What's that on your lip? Looks fresh..." She reached up to Han's face but he pulled away quickly
"Oh, it is," he assured her. "It is."
Nida abandoned Solo to hug the expectant Wookiee. "And Chewie! How I've missed you, big fella! How's Malla? And the cub?" Chewbacca growled informatively and Nida was nodding approvingly. "Wonderful!" she cried. "And who's this, Han?" Nida inspected the patiently waiting princess.
"Oh, Nida," Han said, "This is Leia. She's traveling with us."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Nida," Leia graciously offered her hand and Nida accepted it.
"Why child, you look worn out! When's the last time this rogue fed you?" She was waving to catch her cook's attention when Han interrupted.
"We'll eat in our rooms, all right, Nida?"
"Of course! But the word is 'room,'" she corrected. "You know how it is around here during the convention, Han. As it is, I've had to squeeze my single boarders together to handle the overflow from Liana's place across the harbor." She looked at Leia curiously. "You don't mind, do you?"
Leia smiled tiredly and shook her head. Han took in her reaction with a guarded expression.
Nida showed them out the rear entrance into a circular courtyard. It was surrounded by level upon level of rented rooms. The sky was a darkening patch of blue far above their heads. The air was cool and tinged with the fresh smell of a large body of water. The harbor must be close,Leia thought. Their room was ten levels up, right on the top and directly across from the tavern entrance.
Nida gave Han the keycard to their room and told them that she'd send food up to them as soon as she could. "And if another room opens up," she offered, "you've got it."
"Oh, that's all right." Leia tilted her head. "We really don't know how long we'll be able to stay, so please, don't go to any more trouble."
"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you'll have a chance to come down to the tavern and talk a bit..." She threw a meaningful look at Han. "Especially you, son."
"Sure, Nida." Han gave her an affectionate squeeze. "I'll be down in a little while."
The room was fair-sized and included a large bed, a couch, a chair--even cooking and food storage capabilities. The annex was equipped to facilitate a large variety of life forms. While they showed wear, the two rooms were clean and comfortable. The whole south wall was open to a balcony that overlooked the coastline.
Leia tossed her bag onto the table and tried out the annex. While she was absent, Han spoke to Chewie in a low voice. "Do you think Nida knows something about that scout?" Chewbacca cocked his head and made a speculative comment. "Yeah, and she did sound like she was sitting on top of some kind of news." Han glanced at the annex door. "Listen, after we eat, I'll go talk to Nida. You stay here with Leia, okay?" The Wookiee nodded and hooted softly. Solo fidgeted. "What's taking her so long?"
The food and Leia arrived at the table at the same moment. "I wondered what it would take to get you out of there," Solo grumbled as he excused himself. Leia ignored him and helped Chewie sample the several steaming dishes displayed before them. It was all very good, but sleep was weighing heavily upon her. She realized that the bed would have to be shared, so she opted for the long, low couch instead. After all, Captain Solo and the Wookiee had probably had to bunk together before.She kicked off her boots and stretched. Suddenly, the speeder came to mind.
"Han," she said pleasantly. "You wouldn't mind if I borrowed your speeder, would you?"
"Now?" Han asked around a mouthful of meat and gravy.
"No, later. I'd have it back by dawn."
Solo frowned, then shrugged. "Go ahead." He should've figured this assignment would keep her busy after dark as well as during the day.
"Thank you." She picked up an extra blanket and without even bothering to undress, made herself comfortable on the couch.
Han glanced at the bed and then back to the princess, realizing that she'd already figured out the sleeping arrangements and he hadn't even given it a thought. Had he really just assumed that she'd share the bed with him? Oh well,he thought as he polished off the rest of his dinner, here's to fur in my face.Chewie was putting the rest of the food into the cooling unit when Han slipped on his jacket and went out.
Nida and Han took their drinks to an isolated corner of the crowded tavern. Solo wasted little time before asking her about the scout ship incident. Nida shook her head. "No, I don't know anything about a Lodian ship. I'll keep my ear to the chatter hereabouts, though." She sipped her drink and looked grave. "You remember Thackwell?"
"Yeah, what about him?"
"He was in port about three weeks ago and he told me that he'd been in a crap den on Miromax when a bounty hunter shot down a poor Joe. Just a nobody. Seems that the scumrunner thought he was taking out a bounty by the name of Han Solo. Course, he was wrong, got thrown into the deep freeze, but I guess we both know what that means."
"Uh-huh. Bounty hunters...Ah!" Han snapped his fingers. "Jabba! That gank lover must've put me on the bounty roster." That would explain the ship that had attacked them in orbit. He wondered if the bounty was good if he were dead. If the fellow on Miromax was any indication, Solo was in deep trouble.
"Hope you're not getting careless, Han. You're as close to family as they come." Nida leaned a bit closer to Han. "You think that the Lodian scout was a bounty hunter?"
Han was staring into space. He blinked at the concern in Nida's voice. He grinned confidently at her. "I don't think it's anything I can't handle. But thanks for the warning. I've been working pretty steady and haven't been slumming portside lately." And it's probably a good thing,he thought. I should've known that Jabba wasn't going to wait forever.He noticed the shrewd expression on Nida's face.
"Uh-huh. Is Leia your boss, then?"
"Not really." Han kept his voice carefully neutral. "We just happen to be going the same way."
"Well, she certainly seems to have a lot of say as to how long you'll be staying."
Han knew that he couldn't deny that. It was up to Leia, or at least up to the circumstances of her work here. Was it so obvious? "Yeah...she does have something to say about that. But while we're here, I'm not under any obligation to anyone but myself." Hah!he thought.
"I thought so. It's apparent that you're not sleeping with her. After all, you and Chewie have never needed two rooms before..." Nida paused, then went on cautiously. "Besides, I've heard a little bit here and there and I can just about guess what you're up to."
Solo frowned and declined to respond. He hoped that Nida would drop the subject.
"Now don't you get sullen on me, Han Solo! You know that I've always seen the idealist in you."
Han shifted uncomfortably. Nida could always make you think she knew what you were thinking by the way her black eyes seemed to stare right through you. He felt like a pirate who'd just been caught sending flowers to his granny.
"And you know as well as I," Nida's voice sounded matter of fact, "smuggling's always been just another form of rebellion, right?"
Han flinched visibly at her choice of words. Stubbornly, he retained his pretense. "You don't understand, Nida, honey," he replied evenly. "I'm just a freighter bum, no more, no less. I'm just another peon who's playing the game, y'know?"
"Peon, huh?" the old woman chuckled. "I don't think that the Rebel Alliance would trust just any peon with Leia Organa." She smiled triumphantly at Han's surprise.
"Damn! Is that who she is?" They both knew that Nida had won, just as they knew that Han would not admit it. "Is there anything you don't know?" he asked.
"Son, an ex-spacer such as myself is only grounded, not dead and buried. I keep on top of what's going on." She took another sip of her drink and assumed a thoughtful look. "And you want to know something else?"
"What's that?"
"I approve of what you're doing. I know we all try to hide our idealism and make like it's business as usual, but now my business is my life. The kids are gone." Her voice was tinged by sadness. "This is all I've got left. Not that it isn't good. It keeps me in touch with the old life, and the new faces. I'm not too worried about my future. Ord Mantell--in fact, Triordian itself--is too big for the Empire to put any undue pressure on, but even here there are signs. And I hear things, a lot of things, and I don't like it." She watched Solo's face, but his expression was unreadable. "I know that you can't tell me anything. Hell! I wouldn't want to hear it anyway. But I'd guess that now that she's here, things might get a bit stirred up. Maybe I'm not too happy about the changes and what it'll do to me and my business, but I've got my kids and their kids to think about now. I want them to have every chance that I had. Ask Chewie--he'd know what I'm talking about."
"No, I know what you mean," Han told her. "But I'm just making a living. I'm no hero, Nida." He fell silent again. He thought about something she had just said. "Did you say grandkids?" he asked.
"Yeah," she answered proudly. "Belle and Amati both had baby boys last season. Yanet is due soon."
Han whistled as he tried to imagine those three feisty gals all settled down and raising kids. "Things change, all right. I can't imagine any of your girls content to tend a family."
"It's not that bad, Han. Things do change, people change too. And what about you? We know what you've been doing. Is there anyone special in your life yet?"
Solo hesitated and could have kicked himself for it. As usual, Nida seized upon his silence.
"Oh ho!" She smiled her all-knowing motherly smile. "She is very pretty. You always did have champagne taste. Maybe you're not so idealistic after all, eh?"
"What makes you think it's her?" Han hoped that Nida couldn't see him blushing in the tavern's low lighting.
"Call it a woman's intuition." Nida realized that Han actually seemed to be embarrassed. He was inspecting the bottom of his mug with a rueful smile just playing about the corners of his mouth.
"C'mon," he protested. "If it were her, d'you think I'd be bunking with Chewie tonight?"
"Perhaps we have a problem with compatibility...or with social status? Don't worry, it'll work itself out."
Han just sat there for a moment. "Ah, Nida," he sighed, recovering some of his cool demeanor. "You just don't understand. Leia and I mix just about as well as Jedi and Sith Lords, and besides, I'm waiting for a woman just like you." He stood up to go, giving her a kiss. "I just hope you weren't the last of your kind."
"Good night, son."
"Night, Nida."
Boba Fett, like Han Solo, had obtained supposedly restricted information from SPC's computer, but since he couldn't charm young women, it cost him fifty credits. Mentally, he tacked that amount onto the figure that he would present to Jabba the Hutt upon delivery of one Han Solo. He cocked his laser rifle and held it at ready while he approached the docking bay that supposedly held the Millennium Falcon.He found the alcove empty and the blast door locked down tight. He could break in, but that would attract a lot of attention, not to mention the time and effort. He reslung his weapon and decided to go into the city. Without a sound, he disappeared into the night.
The sound of the door woke Leia, and she opened one eye sleepily to make sure it was Han Solo. It was. He looked first in her direction, then in the direction of the bed where Chewbacca's snoring had recently ceased. The two of them exchanged several muffled comments that Leia couldn't make out.
Han stepped over to the bed and shed his jacket and holster. The princess watched as he drew the blaster and laid it carefully on the stand next to the bed. Then she had to bite her lip as she somewhat guiltily watched him strip to his shorts. Not polite to spy,she thought, but isn't that what this mission is all about?And she couldn't help but admire what she saw outlined by the moonlight from the south wall. Every inch lean, hard, and male, yet, he was lent certain vulnerability by all that exposed skin. Leia had to admit, she'd always been just a little curious...
Almost as if he could feel her gaze, he turned towards the couch. Leia quickly closed her eyes, a thrill coursing through her body and settling high in her thighs as she wondered how he'd react if he knew she was watching him. She heard him climb into bed and experienced a hot flash. Leia was more than a little surprised to recognize feelings of sexual arousal. Of lust. A brief glimpse of a half-naked male had set some long-neglected appetites clamoring for attention. In fact, she was sorely tempted to sate herself upon hard, hot Corellian flesh. She allowed herself to wonder what he would do if she approached him. She suspected that he would submit...
Reason put an end to that speculation. Theirs was a working relationship. Sex would interfere. And Leia knew better than to give anyone you weren't sure about a personal lever against you. If he'd be gone tomorrow, it would be different. If he was committed to staying with the Alliance, that, too, would be different. But nothing was sure about Han Solo. And until he showed her what lay under that thick hide of his--besides that enticing torso--she would be damned if she'd show him what lay under her own. With a determined effort, Leia turned her thoughts to Emil and sleep.
Han was doing a little thinking of his own. He had learned a little about Nida tonight, and as usual, Nida had learned a lot about him. He loved the woman, true, but sometimes being with her could be damned unsettling.
"Things will work out," Nida had said. Hah!Han thought. I'm not waiting around for that, or for anything else...am I? Hell, I'm working steady, putting a little aside. Still a smuggler, though. And running guns for the Alliance was a little different than running spice for Jabba. A little more dangerous, after all; they don't throw you in jail or fine you for aiding the rebels. For that, the Imperials would suck your mind dry, collapse your brain, or worse. Dangerous. I could make the break here on Ord Mantell,he mused. Lots of work here, and legal work at that. But there's Luke. Who'd look after the kid? And Leia...me and Leia...a princess and a guy like me...Nah, we're worlds apart...aren't we? "Smuggling's just another form of rebellion." You're right about that, Nida. We're both bucking the system.
A couple of timeparts later, Han heard Leia and the droid leave. He had a sudden urge to get up and go with her.
Chewbacca, too, had heard the princess going out the door. He had expected it, knowing that she had a task to perform under the cover of dark, but he was surprised when Han got up and crossed to the window in the north wall. He stood there for several minutes. Probably worried about her again,the Wookiee thought. I should suggest that he go along with her, but as always, Han will not listen to me. Han will only listen when he is ready to listen, not before, and if he was ready, he'd have gone out after Leia already. Hmph!Chewie rolled over. Are all humans as stubborn as mine appear to be?
Right about this time, Luke Skywalker was trudging along in the knee-deep snow on the plains of Hoth, taking readings and wondering how anything could survive in as harsh an environment as this. He'd come across some odd animal tracks, but no sign of anything else. Just snow and ice. He noticed that Wedge was reaching down into the snow.
"Find something?" Luke yelled. Antilles came up and answered with a flying white sphere that exploded against Luke's mouth.
"Just a snowball," Wedge laughed. "That's all!"
For a moment, Luke was dumbfounded. He had discounted the obvious! Well, he may be naïve but he was not stupid. He quickly figured out what was expected of him and he retaliated in like form. His first shot was remarkably accurate and Wedge was painfully aware of it. The other pilots joined in and the ensuing melee was probably the most fun anyone would ever have on Hoth. As Luke ducked another white missile, he knew that he would have to come up with some sort of surprise for Leia.
In the end, Leia couldn't have done without the speeder. Within only minutes of leaving, she and Threepio were cruising the semi-deserted streets near Emil's shop. In this area of Jettee-Fel, the lighting was not as good as the Harbor district from which they had come. There were more loiterers and cheap all-night taverns. Leia parked the speeder a discreet distance from their destination. Before leaving the vehicle though, she pulled her small custom laser pistol from her bag and slipped it into her belt beneath the dark brown cloak she wore. She carefully locked the speeder down and gave Threepio his instructions.
He was to precede her, and upon reaching the alley leading to the rear of Emil's, find an unobtrusive spot to wait and watch. The princess would then go on to break into the shop and search for the information that might still be hidden within Sonel's computer banks. If Threepio should notice anything suspicious, he was to notify Leia by comlink. The droid chattered nervously about the perils of traveling along dark, narrow streets alone. Leia told him not to worry; she would be all right.
"What about me?" the mechanical grumbled. The rebel shook her head. She watched him march down the street ahead of her, thinking that this was one droid who would certainly have ulcers if it was at all possible for him to do so. He reminded her of a nanny she had known as a child. That thought made her smile as she followed the hapless droid.
Upon reaching the alley, Leia searched her bag once again for a handheld scanner unit. She took a brief reading. There were three quiescent life forms occupying this gloomy access. She determined that she would have to pass by all of them before reaching Emil's. After pinpointing their exact location, she proceeded quietly into the dark. Leia was nearly upon them and drew her weapon, thumbing the safety. She stepped past them without any sign of hesitation. Then, a soft step, a strange tingling in the back of her mind, and she whirled. Her blaster was leveled upon her would-be assailants. The two beings, mere shadows in the alley's gloom, stepped quickly back. Behind them, Leia could see people passing along the street, but they showed no concern for what went on only a few feet away. She hoped that these two wouldn't press the issue for Leia was loath to use the gun and draw unwanted attention. She really didn't want to use the pistol at all this trip. Right now, surprise was Leia's only ally. She made an impatient gesture and the two backed away hastily, hands out, palms up. She stared hard into the darkness, regardless of the appearance of emptiness. Leia took a deep breath. "You too, scum!" Her voice was a deep and threatening as she could make it. The unseen one paused and then scampered out on the tail of his cohorts.
When they were gone, she relaxed. She knew that she should've asked Han Solo to come along, for while she had handled the situation competently, she knew that she was out of her element and that Solo would have made a nice rear guard. Better anyway than a fussy protocol droid who couldn't actively protect her even if he had wanted to. But Han had to be her backup in case something went wrong. Someone had to get back to the Alliance with the results of this mission.
Leia trotted down to Emil's rear entrance. Slipping the gun into her belt once more, she scanned the building. It was devoid of biological life, and there was no indication of operational machinery inside. She could be reasonably sure that there were no monitoring devices in there, but a conventional anti-theft alarm was a certainty. She carried a sonic distorter unit, but its use would render her own scanner useless, so instead, she drew the blaster and adjusted its setting to wide dispersal. Firing it was very much like shining a flashlight. She played it over all the area surrounding the door in order to fuse all the electrical connections within the wall. That would take care of any alarm the door might trigger upon opening, but it also ruined the mechanism that opened the door. Leia readjusted the intensity of her laser beam and sliced the lock. She then picked up a piece of packing crate bracing that lay nearby and pried the door open. Once inside, she shut it again. No one would be able to tell that the store had been broken into.
The main floor was as typical a store as anyone could expect. Using the light from her scanner's screen, Leia searched for anything of importance even though she didn't expect to find much up front. She was satisfied that her movements were not being picked up by any additional alarm system as well.
She opened a door leading to a lower level that served as living quarters for the proprietor. At first glance, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Leia immediately headed for the computer console. Halfway there, she stopped short. There was an odd sensation growing in her mind. She could sense rather than see the invisible beams that were spreading inward from the walls. Leia jabbed at the sonic disrupter. She breathed an expletive picked up from listening to the rebel pilots during battle. It was an Imperial monitoring device. Motion-activated, no doubt. They hadbeen here and now Leia had walked right into a trap. And while the disrupter would kill the monitor's transmission, it was a sure giveaway of her presence. There wouldn't be much time. She sprang toward the computer.
At the local Triordian Security Station, several rooms were being loaned out to Imperial Captain Medon Krahar. Inside, two troopers had been watching an empty holo-plat. Suddenly a small greenish figure coalesced thereon, the first movements of which went unnoticed, for one trooper was dozing and the other was pouring a hot drink from the thermal dispenser. He turned, cup in hand, and exclaimed, "What's that?"
The greenish image was flickering in and out, full of static. The other trooper started and blinked uncertainly. The green glow illuminated only his dumbfounded face. "I don't know," he mumbled. "Could be a malfunction."
His partner, though, was doubtful and left to get their commanding officer, who was just outside the room talking with the Triordian lieutenant. "Captain?" he called out. "We've got something!" The three men returned to the observation room. They stared at the faltering holo.
"What is this?" the captain demanded. "Did something set off our monitor? What's wrong with the holo?"
"I know that all our equipment is functioning as it should," answered the first trooper. "I set it up myself. Maybe it's interference?"
"If I may interrupt," the lieutenant spoke up brusquely. "I've seen this before. Someone is scrambling your signal. By the strength of the distortion, I'd guess it is at the source."
The captain looked at him sharply. "Are yousure? How would anyone know that there was a monitor to jam?"
"They'd know if they scanned continually and picked up the device's emissions once it was activated. It can be done. Look." He rewound the recorded images and played them out again. They could see the slight form of a young female becoming brighter and then blinking back into static as she jabbed at an instrument that she carried. She then dissolved into static.
Alarmed, the captain pulled out his comlink. "Activate the Interceptor! We have a positive signal!" he barked.
"Aye, sir!" came the reply.
PART 6 PART 7