|
|
|
Welcome
to
Nathaniel Reed's
|
 |
:: An ongoing episodic story of fan-fic set after Episode VI Return of the Jedi, and inspired by George Lucas' historical draft concepts ::
FAQs
|
| |
Gana, Corsa, and Benji attempt to flee the StarDestroyer !
31st March 2026 |
| |
| As I did with the progression of the Virtual Edition Episode X, I will post below sections of the prose for Episode XI as I draft it.... here, following on from the previous month's drafting, the children, Gana and Corsa Solo and Benji Skywalker, caught up within the hangar bay network of the Imperial Star Destroyer, need to steal a long-range shuttle. Their resourcefulness and initiative gets them only so far.... and then a 'divine hand' intervenes....
|
The deck officer walked over to them. Most of the hangar personnel had stopped what they were doing and turned to watch the interaction.
“Identify yourselves,” he instructed.
Corsa straightened her back, and smiled broadly at the officer.
“I’m so sorry, sir, we seem to have gotten lost. Could you please direct us back to the Captain’s private quarters ?”
The officer frowned and his mouth dropped open in puzzlement.
“What do you me-- ?”
Just then another voice called out demanding the children to stay where they were.
The first supervisor from earlier had re-appeared at the open doorway. A duty of patrolling stormtroopers, four in all, accompanied him, as did the group of technicians. The officer beckoned to the troopers to follow him, and the five walked across the deck to join his colleague and the children. The technicians fanned out, watching with intent curiosity.
“I had ordered you three not to move,” the first officer began. “It would be wise of you to learn some obedience !”
The four troopers arranged themselves around the group, cradling their blasters in their hands. As with their kind on the Bastion moon, the soldiers’ white armoured shells sported black horizontal bands and the black and red star-burst logo on their shoulder epaulettes.
“Do you know who they are, Dee-Oh Five-Oh-Three ?” asked the second officer.
“No, Five-Oh-Two, but I’m sure we soon will !” He had his comlink in his hand, and was raising it to his mouth.
The children glanced at each other, visibly shaken and nervous.
“Hangar Control, are you still there ?” the deck officer spoke above their heads. “We have the three children in custody again. Do you have them listed as passengers ?”
“Checking, Five-Oh-Three,” came the muffled response.
The children watched the comlink in the officer’s hand as if it were a Klatooinian marsh frog. It might be a culinary delicacy for the Hutts, but the frog, like the comlink, offered a sour taste to the kids.
The awkward silence seemed to last forever. And then the tinny voice broke stillness.
“Negative, Five-Oh-Three, there are no children on the manifest.”
The first deck officer grinned mirthlessly, and snapped the comlink off.
The second officer snapped his fingers and gestured to the four troopers.
“Detain them !” he ordered.
One stormtrooper pointed his blaster at the children, while his colleagues stepped forward and took each by the arm.
Gana gave a quick sideways glance at his sister and cousin.
“Push ?” he whispered.
They each gave an almost imperceptible nod.
As one, the youngsters twisted towards their captors and pushed out with their free arms : the troopers were violently thrown back, one of them knocking against the fourth stormtrooper, causing him to fire haphazardly into the air. The second deck officer was jostled in the melee, but he retained his footing though was shaken.
The children instinctively hunkered down.
“We’ve got to find a ship !” hissed Benji.
“There are too many people in the way !” responded Gana, realising they didn’t have a clear line of flight for a Force-empowered run.
The first deck officer still held the comlink in his hand. He raised it quickly and called for the stun guns to be activated.
High across the three walls of the hangar bay at each corner and the mid point were nestled stun cannons. With a pneumatic hiss, they jolted into action, and auto-targetted the perpetrators.
“Look out !” cried Corsa intuitively, and pointed upwards.
The children immediately rolled to the deck away from each other, just as the blue concentric rings of stun energy rippled down towards them.
The fallen stormtroopers scrabbled to their feet, and began aiming their blasters. The second deck officer instructed them to set for stun.
“Suspected Jedi !” continued the first officer into his comlink. “We need back up now !”
The children rolled again, and jumped to their feet, a larger distance now separating them.
Gana waved his hand at the nearest stormtrooper, and his blaster was thrown to the deck with a clatter. Corsa attemped to do the same but realised that the trooper facing her had already aimed. She dived to one side as a stun blast shot towards her.
“Get them !” yelled the second deck officer.
Benji raised both hands and the stormtrooper closest to him was lifted off his feet. A loud alarm klaxon began to shrill, and at the same time, the first deck officer made to grab the boy.
Distracted, Benji side-stepped the officer and dropped the stormtrooper to the floor.
Another round of stun cannon-fire splayed out targeting the children precisely. Once again the Force had whispered to them, but although the older Solo twins were able to nimbly step to one side and evade the blue rings, Benji’s right shoulder and arm caught the edge of a blast. The boy’s arm went numb, and he cried out in shock and discomfort. The officer moved forward to grab him once more.
Just then, eight more stormtroopers ran into the hangar bay from the main corridor. The two duties of guards fanned out left and right as they entered, and trained their guns on the commotion.
Suddenly, there came the snap-hiss and blue glow of a laser sword flashing into view just below the first deck officer’s jaw. He froze, and glanced sideways at the mortal intrusion.
At the other end of the lightsabre stood Leia Solo, in her trim white tunic and skirt, her feet planted squarely, her greying hair tied into a top knot.
She looked at her oldest children and nephew.
“Go. Leave that way,” she nodded towards a large closed hatchway across the bay. “I’ll deal with this.”
The children nodded, and ran for the hatch.
Without a glance towards them, Leia twirled her sword away, stepped in front of the deck officer, and pushed out with her left hand. The man was thrown across the hangar.
She whirled around, bringing up her laser sword to bear, and parried a salvo of crimson gunfire. The eight stormtroopers ran towards her, continuing to fan out wider. They fired more shots, and all of them were deflected away.
The hangar personnel all backed away, hiding behind the TIE fighters or the paraphernalia on the deck, or making a run for it to the access doors.
The closest four troopers had now gathered themselves, and were aiming at Leia, but the second deck officer ordered them to pursue the children. They turned and ran after the children.
Another spray of crimson fire as the two new groups of stormtroopers advanced on Leia, and once again, the blue sword hummed as it flashed and twirled. This time some of the blaster fire was skilfully deflected back at the troopers, and two of them were struck.
Leia glanced across at the remaining deck officer, and flicked out her hand, sending the officer, like his colleague, tumbling and sliding over the floor.
Noting the four stormtroopers pursuing her children, she threw her lightsabre in their direction. It spun viciously, slicing into the closest trooper’s back. As he fell, the sword smacked back into her hand, ready to parry yet more gunfire as she turned to face the other six troopers. She threw her left hand wildly behind her back, and several loose containers were sent sliding into the legs of the pursuing troopers. They collapsed to the floor.
The stun cannons tracked the Jedi intruder, and fired once more, but Leia nimbly leapt high into the air, and the blue rings simply fizzled out across the polished floor.
The children made it to the far hatch, and slapped the controls. The double door parted on its diagonal and slid open with a hiss. The children ran through to the next hangar along, and Gana turned to close it behind them.
Leia spun her sword, and two more troopers fell with direct hits. She ran towards two more, and then dived to the side at the last minute. A line of barrelling blue stun rings smashed into the stormtroopers, who fell back on to the deck.
Another three squads of stormtroopers ran into the hangar bay just as the remaining two troopers spread apart to pincer Leia with gunfire. The blue sword flashed left and right, and the troopers were struck squarely in the chest.
Another flicker of stun blasts rained down on Leia, but once again she jumped out of harm’s way.
The twelve arrivals quickly fanned out to re-engage with the Jedi warrior.
|
| |
| |
| Nathaniel Reed, 31st March 2026 |
| |
| |
 |
| |
|
|
