A Star Wars Fairy Tale: Return, Part 9

Luke could see the fight below from the dungeons where he was imprisoned. It wasn't going well for the Rebels. Carriage after carriage was either destroyed by the Imperials or burned to a cinder by the dragons. The young knight sat back against the wall, concentrating. Emperor Dragon?

He heard the soft, slithery voice in his mind. Yes, Small Magician? It is time?

It's time. The Rebels are trapped between the Black Crystal Mountain and the Imperial Army and Sith Dragons. They need your help.

My clan would do anything for you and the Rebels. You granted us the freedom to find a new home.

Then help us now. They can't take on those dragons alone.

It is done, Small Magician. We owe you a great debt. This will be our way of repaying you. I will gather the clan, and we will be on our way within minutes.

Please, hurry! I don't know how much longer they'll last.

There was concern in the Emperor Dragon's thoughts. What of you, Small Magician? You are not fighting?

No, Luke admitted. I have...other things I need to do.

The screech of the cell door opening cut off his conversation. The shiny red armor of the king's guards glinted back at him. “Lord Vader requests your presence in the throne room at this time.” He didn't resist as they yanked him onto his feet and lead him out of the dungeon.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Han wished this was a nightmare he could wake up from as he and the other Rebels were marched across the main courtyard, past the stables. The day was definitely not going the way he planned. He'd either be killed by a jealous half-demon or left to rot in a stinking dungeon. He'd never see the Falcon or Chewie again, or Lando, or Luke. The Rebels would be wiped out before they could get in the door. Worst of all, not only would he never see Leia again, but she would be forced to get hitched to an old guy who would probably try to make her just as crazy as he was.

He was so lost in his gloomy thoughts, he didn't hear the squeaking. There was...something...in the rafters, but he dismissed it as mice or squirrels or rabbits who took a wrong turn on their way to Albuquerque City or something. The last thing he expected to see was two forest-toned balls of fur fall belly-first onto the nearest soldier, knocking him to the ground.

“What the heck?” He didn't know how, and he probably didn't want to know, but it was raining furballs. They were leaping from windows, from places in the walls. They jabbed at the soldiers' feet and dented their helmets with their spears. They covered their eyes until they tripped over furniture. They pushed chairs in their way and threw fruit from the bowl on the table at them.

Han grinned as he heard familiar whinnies...and two soldiers went flying across the room. He took his ax back from one of the fallen soldiers and ran over to where Chewbacca and Malla kicked two more soldiers into their growing pile. He threw his arms around Chewie's neck. “Good work, boy! What took you so long?”

“General Solowolf!” Cecil and Arthur hurried over, going under more soldiers being kicked into a pile. “I know this is most unorthodox, but Wicket” he indicated the squeaking fluffball by his side, “told us that you were in considerable danger and required our assistance.”

Han clapped the tall butler on the shoulder. “You were just in the nick of time, Goldenrod. I've never been so happy to see you, Art, Chewie, and a bunch of squirts in my life!”

Wicket tugged on Han's trousers, squeaking excitedly. “He says he saw one of those awful guards in the crimson armor taking Princess Leia upstairs to His Majesty's private suites.”

“Damn it.” Han turned to the nearest Rebel. “Commander Williams, you take the squirt army back to the drawbridge and get that open.”

“Right, sir.” The younger man frowned. “What about you, sir?”

He made for Chewie. “I'm going after Leia.”

“But, sir...” Cecil began, but it was too late. Han climbed onto the Wookie stallion and galloped off into the castle before anyone could stop him.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Leia's eyes fluttered. Her head throbbed. She had no idea where she was. All she remembered was Boba Fett dragging her away from the drawbridge...the guards blocking Han...the angry and horrified look in his eyes...and then, an explosion of pain in the back of her head. And then, nothing.

“Leia?”

“Han?” Han leaned carelessly against a bed done in black brocade coverlets. Or at least, it looked like Han. The man before her had Han's hazel eyes and the scar on his chin, but the eyes seemed more yellowish than green, the grin feral rather than lazy. He'd replaced his usual black vest and white tunic with a black blouse opened at the chest. “Is that you?” She rubbed her head. “Fett must have hit me harder than I thought. I have the worst headache.”

“Let me help you with that.” His long fingers went to her temple, rubbing it. “You know, my darling, we could get married today. We could forget the world, shut everything and everyone out. It would just be you and me.”

Now Leia knew something was wrong. There wasn't a hint of Han's usual teasing tone, and his eyes didn't sparkle with their usual merriment. “Darling? You've never called me that before.” She tried to concentrate. “What about Luke, and Lando, and the Rebels?”

“Who cares about them?” His fingers circled round and round on her temples. “I care about you. I want you, child.”

She tried to concentrate, but it just made her head hurt. “Something is wrong here. You're not my fiancee.”

He continued to rub. “What makes you say that?”

She tried to reach out with her magic. “I can't feel you. Not the way I usually do...and what little I get is colder than the Kingdom of Hoth in the dead of winter. You're not my funny, joking Han. It's like you're not even human.” She raised an eyebrow. “Besides, not only do you not call me 'darling,' but you've never called me a child, either. Luke yes, but I've never heard you call me that. At least, not to my face.”

His voice lowered, sounded more seductive. “You don't trust me?”

“Well, yes...no...” The more she tried to use her power, the foggier her brain became. She couldn't think. “I don't know anymore.”

He wrapped his arms around her. They were so cold, like long blocks of ice. Come to think of it, was Han's face always this white? “Trust me, my beautiful child. Let me handle your power. Things will be all right when it's just us. We can be happy with no one around at all, and no one to bother us. That's what you want, isn't it? What we want?”

“No...” It was so easy to give in. So easy to just let someone else do the talking. It would just be her and Han. No one else. They could get married, live in the castle, be together. She'd never have to worry again.

No, whispered that strong voice in the back of her mind. Skeletal fingers tried to thrust it back, but it just nudged its way to the front of her temples again. This isn't Han. He wouldn't ask you to do that. He respects you, not as a magician or a princess or a politician, but as a woman. As a friend.

“We could be together...have all the power we could ever need. Just don't fight me, child. Give me control over your power.”

“Power?” Her eyes were swimming. She felt more...what did she feel? Maybe she shouldn't feel. Maybe he was right. Maybe she should stop fighting...

“Yes,” his voice purred, “power. We could use that power, get the others to do what we want. Get my inheritance back. Even defeat your father.” He bit her earlobe, almost feral. “But you must do as you are told. I am your master now.”

“Yes,” she murmured, unable to resist as he pulled her close to him. He had turned her head to kiss her when she saw the mirror out of the corner of her eye. It had been hung in the center of the chamber's back wall, standing nearly to the ceiling. It was a beautiful piece of workmanship, the frame made of gilt-covered metal fashioned in intricate ravens and thorns, the glass rippling like waves in the Cerulean Lake in the Kingdom of Aldran.

What she saw in the reflection made her pause. Her beloved rogue was replaced by a skeletal being in a black cape. His bony fingers caressed her chin. Yellow eyes bored into hers. Those eyes held no love, nor had they ever known love. They only knew one thing – power.

He was so intent on his seduction, he didn't notice her fist curling. He didn't have the chance to pull back before that little fist hit him right in the nose. She dove off the bed as he tumbled head over heels to the floor.

“You bastard!” she snarled. She could see him clearly in the mirror now. “You are not Han. I don't know what you are, but you're not my fiancee!”

That was when she heard the chuckles. “Good. Very good.” The man she'd believed to be Han got to his feet. “Your hatred has made you strong. I knew, from before you were born, you would make an excellent black sorceress. I foresaw it. Your place and your brother's is at my side.”

“Forget it.” She put up her fist again. “I'm no sorceress. I'm a politician.” She thought of her lost family, and of Han. Of his strength, his caring, his respect. His devil-may-care nature, and how he made her laugh. She thought of Luke and his kindness, and Lando, and Wedge, and the Ewoks, and the Rebels. “People like you and Jabba don't understand. All you see is the power, or the money. I want to help everyone – animal, human, Force magician – to live in harmony. The real power is in them.”

He laughed, but it didn't sound like Han's rich laughter. It was more like a cackle. “Oh, but you're quite mistaken.” He raised his big hand. “The real power is in the darkness.” A dully glowing black light emerged from his fingers. It curled tightly around Leia, dragging her to him, ignoring her angry cries. “I will be your master, my sorceress. I'll show you how powerful the blackness can be. Your father is preparing to turn your brother to my side, even as we speak. ”

Leia looked towards the mirror. She knew this wasn't Han, but those were his hazel eyes gazing at her, even if his smile seemed cruel and his fingers cold. The fogginess was setting in again. Her head throbbed. What was she doing? Was this really wrong? Her struggles were lessening. She could no longer see the reflection in the mirror.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Han had never ridden Chewie as fast as he did now. They galloped through the castle like a man and horse possessed, leaping over furniture and startled guards and ignoring orders to desist and reminders that horses belonged outside. He didn't need Force magic to know Leia was in trouble. He'd almost lost her twice, first to Vader, then to Jabba. He wasn't going to wait and see if the third time was the charm.

They barreled up the steep steps and through the door just in time. Han blinked almost comically for a few minutes. The last thing he expected was to see his exact double leaning over Leia, looking a lot more seductive than he ever managed to be.

Chewie's frantic whinny broke him out of the spell. He nodded at the mirror across the way. Leia's reflection in the mirror looked normal, other than that really crazy black get-up she was wearing, but his double...his double's reflection was nothing like him. Leia had called him scruffy-looking, but this guy was hideous. He looked like a dried prune in a cape.

Han didn't hesitate another minute. He jumped off Chewie, snatched the small Ewok-made ax from his belt, and slammed the blade into the mirror as hard as he could. The mirror shattered with a resounding crack, sending shards of glass and beams of black light everywhere.

The moment the other Han started screaming, Leia shoved him aside. Chewie grabbed him by the cape, swinging him back into the bed. He tumbled head-first with a gasp.

That was when Han saw the blue light. Leia held her knife right at the creature's chest. “Where is my brother, Palapatine? Where's my father?”

Palapatine was slowly rising to his elbows. “You'll never find him. Your father will corrupt him, and you will be dead.”

Leia pointed the weapon further at his chest. “Tell me!”

She wasn't expecting the fiery black light Palapatine shot at her shoulder. She nicked his shoulder, instead of stabbing it the way she'd wanted to. He screamed, his chest growing spikier by the moment. Han and Chewie pulled Leia aside as the ancient sorcerer vanished in a burst of black magic.

Han pulled her gently against him. Chewie nudged her burned shoulder. “It's not bad,” she insisted.

Her fiancee didn't look convinced. “I've got to get you to the nearest doctor.”

“No,” she breathed. “We have to get that drawbridge open, and we need to find Luke.”

“First thing's first, though.” He lifted her into his arms, and then on Chewie. “By the way, where did you get that outfit?”

“I'm assuming Palapatine made it appear.” She grabbed a handkerchief from the side table to wipe the black lipstick off. “His twisted idea of what a Queen of the Empire looks like.”

Han got on in back of her. “I like you better in white.” He gently put his arms around her, trying not to jolt her bad shoulder. “You ok?”

“I will be,” she said, “once we stop my father and that sick bastard from corrupting my brother.” She held up the knife in her right hand, giving him a small smile. “And I get first dibs.”

Chewie whinnied and shook his head at all this human love. He adored his humans, but he couldn't understand why it took them so long to figure it out. He could practically smell the sparks between them the first time he saw them together. He settled for a snort as he charged downstairs, making sure not to bounce too much and hurt Leia's bad shoulder.

“By the way,” Han started as they made their way down the stairs. “What's this about Luke being your brother?”

Leia sighed. “It's a long story...”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Wedge was starting to feel hopeless. He was on foot now, his own horse having been killed by one of the Empire's bowmen. He was out of arrows and just about out of time. And the drawbridge at the castle still wasn't open.

He ran into Lando when the Falcon came careening around a corner. Lando and Niem were in better shape than their vehicle. The paint was flaking worse than ever, the left wheel was dented, there were at least four arrows sticking out of the right side, and the back door had vanished all together. Admiral Ackbar wasn't doing much better. The bubble-shaped floating carriages the squid people of the Kingdom of Mon Calimari drove were either riddled with arrows or sunk beneath the Dagobah swamp waters.

He started towards Lando when he almost ran right into at least three swords thrust at him at once. “Freeze, Rebel!” the man in the heaviest and shiniest armor said. One of the other men took his bow and arrow and knife. Another grabbed his arm. “It's over now...” And that's when they heard flapping. They all looked upwards...and at the sight that seemed to have blacked out the sun. Wedge imagined if he could see through the commander's visor, the man's eyes would be as round as saucers. “What in the hell is that?”

The moment Wedge saw them, he cheered. Those weren't just any Sith Dragons soaring in numbers so great, they darkened the sky. He recognized the largest as the dragon Luke had ridden during the Battle of Yavin Woods.

Niem Numb nearly fell off the driver's seat when he saw the dragons. He let out a series of shocked “Yeah,” Lando gaped, “I think they are.” He saw two of them burn Imperial carriages. Three more scooped Imperials who were attacking Rebels on foot in their claws and threw them into the Dagobah Swamps. “Yeah, old buddy.” Lando gave his jittery friend the biggest grin he could manage. “I think these guys are on our side!”

The remaining Wookie stallions were frightened at first, many of them bolting into the stark black woods. Attich, however, sensed a fellow noble ruler, one not unlike himself. He galloped right up to the Emperor Dragon. Greetings, Great Winged One.

Greetings, Four-Legged One, the Emperor Dragon replied. You and your clan have done well.

Thank you, Great Winged One. We are here to aid our clan member the Solitary One.

We too were called to aid a human. The Small Magician with the Golden Scales once did our clan a great favor. We thought it was time we did him a favor in return.

Attich and the Emperor Dragon bowed before each other. It seems, said Attich, that perhaps not all humans are like the Dark Ones. Perhaps we can live in harmony, human and animals.

The other dragons and horses started to gather around them cautiously at first. Lando and Niem drove the Falcon up to the crowd. Tauntaun tried to nudge her way in, pushing her nose this way and that until she could get a good view. Wedge pushed his own way through.

The Emperor Dragon saw the young horseman with the black hair the moment he stepped into the group. He nudged him kindly, gently tugging on his sleeve. Wedge gulped, turning two shades of pale. “Uh, hello, dragon. Nice dragon. I'm glad you're our friends. I really wouldn't want you eating me.”

More of the remaining Rebels gathered around the dragons and horses. The Emperor Dragon finally got tired of tugging at Wedge. He gently took the young man in his claws and set him on his back. “You want me to ride you?” His eyes widened. “Really?”

Other Rebels started to climb onto dragons. Those who didn't got on the remaining Wookie stallions, and carriages. The Emperor Dragon nodded at the others in his clan. When everyone was seated, the dragons began flapping their wings.

Niem Numb chattered to Lando, giving him a questioning look. Lando shrugged. “I don't know what's going on here, either, but I wouldn't argue with a dragon.”

As the dragons flapped their wings, a deep blue light gathered around them. The faster and harder they flapped, the more the light gathered and spread. It spread to almost every creature in the Rebel group.

Admiral Ackbar waved to them from the enormous seahorse that pulled his carriage. “We'll stay here and hold off the remaining Imperials. You go open that vault.”

Even as more magic gathered, they heard the creak. The drawbridge was finally opening at Bast Castle. Lando swore he could just barely see two familiar very tall and very short figures in gold and blue and a hoard of tiny furry bears jumping around. He grinned at Niem. “I told you they could do it!” His curly dark head turned to Wedge and the others on the dragons. “Ok, fellas, follow me. We're going to find a way up that piece of crystal if it takes us all week!”

The Emperor Dragon gently growled at Lando. That won't be necessary, Caped Human. Slowly, almost every single thing around them – the horses, the carriages, the dragons, the Falcon – rose into the air. We know how to get in.

Tauntaun whinnied nervously. Niem Numb's chattering became even faster and more fearful. Lando's jaw nearly hit the ground. “What's going on? What...how...”

“I think it's the magic.” Wedge loved it. He loved this sensation of being in the air. “Their magic. Luke told me they had magic.” He gently grasped his scaly new friend's neck. “Come on, Your Dragon Majesty. Let's fly.”

Lando found himself agreeing with Wedge as they all soared through the air. Tauntaun rode the currents like an expert. Niem held Lando's arm hard at first, but once they'd been in the sky for a few minutes, he began to relax. He tugged on Lando's shirt and pointed to some dark clouds ahead.

“What in the...” Lando frowned. “More dragons. Vader must have sent out the reserves.” He saw Wedge charge ahead, with the other members of Rogue Squadron following behind. “Let's let the dragons deal with their own kind. We have to liberate that vault.” He looked over his shoulder. “Hera, you come along, too. We'll need Sabine's explosives.”

Sabine and Ezra were leaning out a window, grinning in dazed delight at the world far below. The girl in the colorful armor pumped her fist as Hera turned to follow the Falcon. “All right! Let's go get that vault!”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Luke never saw the dragons' arrival. He didn't even feel it. He met his father in the hallways outside the dungeons. He gave his father's mind a quick glance. Father wasn't as faithful a servant to the King as he claimed to be. He wanted to train his children himself, not let his master do it, and rule his own lands with no interference.

“Father,” he said quietly, “you know that if you let go of all that darkness, you will be able to train us. Palapatine will never let you help him.”

“He's my master.” Vader turned on his son. “He's wise in the ways of the Dark Magic. He will show you how to wield it.”

“Search your feelings,” the younger man insisted. “You still have them, no matter how much you've tried to hide them. I can feel it.”

“My only feelings now,” said Vader, “are the ones that compel me to do my duty.”

Palapatine had just appeared in a thin black light. There was a slit in the shoulder of his cape. “Good work, Vader,” he said, wincing when he moved his shoulder. “Welcome, my young apprentice.”

Vader handed the green crystal sword to his master. “His weapon.”

“Ahh.” His master turned the hilt over in his aged fingers. “Your sword. Much like your father's.” He gave Luke that chilling smile. “By now, you've probably learned that your father's magic can never be purified. Soon, you will call me master, as he does.”

“You're wrong,” Luke insisted. “Soon you'll be dead, and so will I.”

“You refer to your pitiful Rebel outlaws.” The false king's nasty smile widened. “They're walking into a trap. As are your friends in the courtyard.”

Luke was internally rolling his eyes. He could almost hear Han's voice in his head. This guy is cocky AND ugly. Nice combination. “Your overconfidence is your weakness.”

Palapatine sneered back. “Your faith in your friends is yours.”

Luke turned away. The evil king's sneer continued to widen. “My Sith Dragons will take care of your fleet. Almost every soldier at my disposal is already sending your so-called friends to the dungeons. The drawbridge will remain closed. I will wed your sister as soon as we're finished here.” The lightsaber had begun to shake a little. “Take your father's place at my side. You know that's what must be.”

The young man turned away from him again, towards the heavy, dark tapestries in the back of the room...but the green crystal sword on the arm of the throne continued to shake.