Princess Leia and the Merman, Part 5

The maze wound down through a series of deep caves and gorges. Leia was becoming increasingly worried that they were lost. Every trail seemed to lead them right back into the network of boulders. All they found was enveloping, suffocating darkness. Inky black night was everywhere.

Leia had never been so cold in her life. Even with the jacket she'd filched from Lando, she was absolutely frozen. Luke, clad only in the remains of his Naboo Navy uniform, wrapped his arms around his torso to keep himself warm. The dogfish constantly shivered.

She took a left turn, then a right...and found herself staring at a jagged rock wall. There was nothing else behind her, and only the wall in front of her. It's hopeless, she thought. How could I get out of here when countless merfolk couldn't? She felt around her, looking for Luke, or the dogfish, or something living. Rough stone brushed against her legs and poked into her jacket.

“Well,” she said to herself with a sigh, “it looks like I'm stuck here.” The young princess settled down in a corner, yawning. “I'm tired. I have no idea what time it is.” Her hands finally found the shell necklace. It was already starting to flicker. “I need to get going...but I'm so tired.” She curled up in the soft sand. “I'll just sleep for five minutes. Not a minute more.” She sighed as she pulled the jacket more tightly around her. “Oh Han...” Shortly after she closed her eyes, the sea-green shell flickered its last. Only the pink shell continued to provide a tiny flame in the darkness...

~*~*~*~*~*~

Maz looked out over the ocean on the jetty. It looked to the average eye like she had been collecting shells and sea glass all day. This wasn't entirely a lie. One bucket was filled with interesting shells and large pieces of colorful sea glass. That was only part of the reason for her to be out here, especially at this hour of the night.

The moon had just risen to its full height. It was still fairly bright, its light glowing pale and soft on the rippling waters. Maz held the other bucket in her lap, stirring it with a spoon. “That girl,” Maz sighed. “She thinks she's lost. She's really just cold and confused. She needs to warm up a little and remember what she really wants.” Her deeply furrowed reddish fingers poured what appeared to be pale blue rocks in the water. “This should help give her good dreams. She'll need them. She's so close to solving the maze...but she'll never free Solo if she doesn't start looking under the surface.”

Blue and green pebbles floated down, down, down, into the deep currents, dissolving instantly in the waters that flowed through the Naboo Sea...and the maze. It flowed around Leia, caressed her head, her shoulders. A tiny smile played on her lips as she dreamed.

~*~*~*~*~*~

In the center of the maze, among the silver and gold coral and the piles of treasure, there was a single, bell-shaped cage. Steel bars were covered in seaweed and barnacles, sheltering the misshapen form within. The Beast was wrapped tightly in a ball, his jagged tail curled around his barbed skin and the fungi-crusted black slime that all but obscured the red in his tentacles. His tail flicked as he shivered.

He was a stupid Beast who obeyed orders. Master said so. Still...there was something...someone...a human girl...someone he...loved? The girl...in the white gown that flowed like the ripples in a calm sea...she was beautiful...kind...smart. He was a monster. Or was he? What was he, before? There was a big spotted shark...he was his friend...did he have friends? Could someone love a monster?

Leia. His fractured mind managed to unearth that one, glorious name before the blue and green magic flowed around him. Magic stroked his ridged back, ran across each horn on his head, danced around his throat and tail. He was finally lulled into a peaceful, hopeful sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~

She was looking for someone. An elusive figure with gold hair...or was it reddish brown? Her feet, clad in soft satin dance slippers, made no noise as they flitted along the hallway in Naboo Castle. The moonlight showed cool and pale through the windows. She could see the sea sparkling in the distance. Something about the sea made Leia want to reach out and touch it. It looked so blue, so pure...

She caressed something solid. A tanned hand wrapped around her slender fingers. His warm smile lit up the dark hallway. Han was there, clad in the same white blouse, black silk vest, and navy trousers he'd worn at the ball. When she looked down at herself, she realized her gown was even more elaborate than her ball outfit, a creamy dance dress with layers of delicate gold lace trim, ruffled sleeves, a plunging neckline, and a tulle skirt that swished as they twirled. The shells in her necklace glowed like they were on fire.

They swirled out of the dark hall and into the brilliantly lit ballroom. Everyone in the kingdom was there. Lando, his gold and blue cape swishing as he flirted with three ladies of the court. Luke waved, a big sunshine smile lighting up his sweet face. He too wore cream and gold, nearly a match to his gold hair. Her parents, both of them, beamed proudly. Couples clad in every color of the rainbow danced around them...and yet, time seemed to stop as their dances became even more elaborate.

She only had eyes for the man in her arms. “I thought I'd never see you again. When Jabba took you away, it was like my heart stopped. I haven't felt this way about anyone since I lost Luke.” She leaned on his shoulder. “Everyone leaves me in the end. Mother left me. Luke left me. Father barely has time for me. He just thinks of me as a thing he can marry off to the nearest nobleman.”

“How could you love me?” Han whispered. “I'm no one. I'm not royalty. I'm not even human! Jabba was right. I'm a no-good mer-crook. I stole the jewels from your father's house and helped lure humans to their death in the water, then took their treasures to sell to Jabba.”

“You didn't let Jabba have me.” Her snub nose nuzzled his strong chest. “And you carried me to the cove. You saved me. Now, let me save you.”

“I want you to save me. I need you.” He cupped his hands around her chin, pulling it to look into his almond-shaped hazel eyes. “Leia, please. Help me.”

Leia's brown eyes locked with his. “Jabba told me a beast was holding you prisoner in the center of the maze. How can I defeat a beast?”

Han's eyes grew so sad, Leia nearly wanted to cry. “Don't believe everything you see...or hear. Follow your heart. Maybe the beast ain't so bad.”

“Han,” she breathed, “I...” The dancers continued to whirl around them, a blur of color and movement, but the world stood still as she gazed up at his lips. What was real? Could this be real? Was it a dream? If it was a dream, she didn't want to awaken. “I...”

He looked so hopeful. “Yes?”

~*~*~*~*~*~

“Oh, no.” Jabba was watching the two slumber in his magic pearl. “Why does that sea witch have to interfere with everything? I can't have Solo giving up the game before it's done!”

He uncorked a bottle, sending its powder black and red contents into the water. “This should take care of that witch's magic. They won't be feeling so romantic when my spell gets through with them!”

~*~*~*~*~*~

No sooner did Leia open her mouth to tell Han that she loved him then the music suddenly stopped. The dancers and musicians vanished. Her parents, Lando...they all seemed to melt away. When she looked down at her feet, she realized she was ankle-deep in moonlit water that was rising fast.

“Leia!” Luke rushed over to his sister. “We have to hurry. If we stay, we may drown!”

Han tried to push her towards the exit. “Get out of here! Leave me!”

“I won't leave either of you! Han, Luke,” she exclaimed, wading towards the windows, “cover these! We can't let the moonlight get near Han's legs!”

They shut the curtain of every window in the room, but their efforts were in vain. A thin sliver of moonlight trickled through the largest curtain. Beams crawled along the now knee-height water, until they encircled Han. She and Luke turned around just in time to see him collapse into the lake forming at their feet.

“Le...Leia...” he choked, “follow...your...he....” His last words were drowned out by anguished screams. Black light writhed around him, binding his arms, rubbing his throat until he disappeared all together in a burst of moonlight. His handsome figure was replaced by the shadow of a monster. Three-inch-long claws that were as sharp as broken shells reached out to slash her to ribbons. She let out a scream and ducked away, wading over to Luke.

It was too late. To her horror, the moonlight was transforming Luke, too. Slime writhed around him, turning his gold hair green, rendering his human form unrecognizable. Other barnacle-covered, almost-human creatures followed him, all of them silent and menacing, all reaching for her...they wanted to take her away...

“NO!” She burst out of the ballroom...but she could see nothing but water for miles. No beach, no castle. Just miles and miles of gray ocean. “Luke!” she screamed. “Han! Where are you?”

A familiar brown-spotted nose poked Leia in the side. She grinned at her dogfish friend. “Where have you been?” She grabbed hold of his dorsal fin, and they swam away.

They weren't quick enough. The dogfish was an expert swimmer, but the barnacle slaves were surprisingly fast. They surrounded them, reaching out for them as kelp tangled the two. Leia could no longer move or run. The dogfish was barely visible in all the seaweed.

She looked up...and into the jaws of the most hideous beast that had ever existed under the sea. The last thing she saw before she screamed was a mouth filled with razor-sharp teeth...and very human almond-shaped hazel eyes filled with anguish and sorrow. The strong claws held her beneath the waves as the last light in the necklace went out...

~*~*~*~*~*~

“NOOOOO!”

Leia's eyes finally snapped open. Luke held one her arms. Chewie nudged her with his nose. Both had concern in their wide eyes. “Sis...ter,” her brother croaked, “you...scared. Scared me. You yelled.” He stroked her hair. “Better?”

“A little.” They helped her into a sitting position. Luke draped a heavy old coat from a wreck around her shoulders. “I had a horrible nightmare! We were at Father's ball, and Luke, you were there, and Lando, and Father. And Han...”

“Han?” Luke looked confused, even as the dogfish seemed to perk up a bit. She swore the shark grinned at the mention of that name. Her brother frowned. “He is...merman. With...Jabba. One of...his...workers.”

“Not anymore.” She got to her feet with the dogfish's help, holding onto his fin. “He was captured by Jabba, and now he's being held prisoner by some beast in the center of the maze. We have to rescue him. I won't leave without him.” The dogfish bobbed up and down, its eyes bright at the mention of Han's name.

“If...your friend...” Luke gave her a small version of one of his sunny smiles. “Then he is...my friend. I will...help...you.”

“Good.” Leia smiled back at him. “Why don't we go find some breakfast? I haven't eaten since I was on Lando's yacht yesterday. I'm starved!”

Luke raised an eyebrow. “Lando? Is he...friend...too?”

“Sort of. It's long story.” She put an arm around Luke. The dogfish somehow managed to put his fin around his other shoulder. “I'll tell you about it after we eat.”