Zorba the Hutt's Revenge (7 page)

Then at last, while staring at a room on the top floor of the tallest factory, he spotted her. She was smashing a window and crawling out onto a ledge. Luke looked higher with the macrobinoculars, checking out the roof of the building. There was a platform with a hovertransport. Around the corner of the building from Leia, he saw a service ladder that went up the side of the building-a ladder that could help them get up to her!

A short time later, when Luke met up with Leia on the ledge, she was so startled she almost fell, but then regained her balance.

"Leia! At last Kate and I found you!" Luke said. "There’s a ladder to the roof around the corner. Quick-follow me!"

Leia, Luke, and Kate carefully climbed the ladder up to the flat, black roof. They scurried across it and soon reached the platform with the parked hovertransport. Luke used the macrobinoculars again, this time to scan the brown sky above the tall smokestacks, looking to see if there were any Imperial vehicles flying nearby. But instead of an Imperial vehicle he saw the Millennium Falcon!

Inside the Millennium Falcon Han Solo and Chewbacca were weaving in and out among the smokestacks, desperately searching for Luke, Leia, and Kate. Laser cannons from the barge fired at the Falcon as Han descended low enough to spot the wrecked cloud car convertible. Then suddenly he heard a communication signal and a familiar-sounding voice!

"Millennium Falcon! Do you copy? Over."

It was Luke!

"I copy," Han said. "Where are you, Luke? Over."

"Check starboard, three-five. I’m piloting the Imperial hovertransport. This thing’s a puddle jumper without even enough vertical thrust to get us home."

"I’ll get below you and open the hatch," Han said. "Do you think Kate can make the jump into the Falcon? Over."

"Of course she can," Luke replied. "We’re all ready to ditch this thing and fly back in style!"

In seconds the Millennium Falcon was flying directly below the hovertransport, a short leap away. Leia and Kate jumped out of the hovertransport first, falling safely into the Falcon. Then Luke set the hovertransport on automatic pilot and made the leap too. Ground fire continued to target them. It missed the Millennium Falcon, but blew the hovertransport to pieces.

Luke looked around the cockpit of the Falcon. "Where’s Ken?" he asked. "You didn’t leave him home alone, did you?"

"Don’t blame me," Han said, "but Ken got behind the wheel of my Custom Model-Q Foley and zoomed off for Cloud City."

"Han, he’s just a kid!" Luke protested. "He’s not even thirteen years old!"

"Tell that to him," Han said. "He seems to think he’s old enough to drive in the Cloud Car Racing Finals. But don’t worry, I sent Threepio, Artoo, and Chip to bring him back." When Luke, Leia, and Kate were safely seated inside the Millennium Falcon, a fleet of very strange looking spaceships appeared, each one a unique model from a different planet. There were dozens of them, and most of them were out-of-date models. It was a fleet of bounty hunter spaceships. A ragtag fleet, the spaceships descended through the clouds until they were just above the factory barge. Leading the pack was the ancient Huttian spaceship, the Zorba Express. The Millennium Falcon soared away from the factory barge and over the Rethin Sea, just in time to avoid being spotted by the incoming fleet. From inside the Falcon, Han, Chewbacca, Luke, Leia, and Kate could see the fleet of spaceships attacking the factory barge. The spaceships attacked relentlessly, dropping ion explosives, nova bombs, and doonium acid mines.

The entire factory barge began to quiver and tremble under the shock of the tremendous blasts.

At last Zorba the Hutt scored a direct hit on the central generator building-the domed power center for the Imperial barge.

In their last look back, Han, Chewbacca, Luke, Leia, and Kate saw the factory barge splitting in two and shattering.

A huge fireball rose into the plumes of brown smoke. Han Solo could practically feel the heat of the explosion behind him as the Millennium Falcon flew farther and farther away. The factory buildings, smokestacks and all, plunged down into the sea of liquid rethin, then vanished as if they had never existed at all.

"A narrow escape, Chewie," Han said with a grin. "If I’d stopped for even half a minute to lubricate our subatomic accelerator, our friends here would still be down there, boiling in bubbling rethin."

Han wasn’t the only one who was pleased with his timing. Zorba the Hutt was just as pleased, because he had information that Princess Leia was a prisoner in the tallest building on the barge, trapped in Trioculus’s chambers.

And so he was convinced that Princess Leia had gone down with the factory barge, and that her mortal remains were now sinking deep into the liquid metal core of Bespin. The death of Jabba the Hutt had been avenged! "A-HAW-HAW-HAW!! . . ." Zorba roared. Zorba the Hutt returned directly to Cloud City, to the very room where Darth Vader once encased Han Solo in carbonite. There Trioculus was strapped to a hydraulic platform from which he could not escape.

"Your so-called Queen of the Empire is dead, Trioculus," Zorba announced. "Princess Leia’s body is now sinking into the core of the planet, along with all your factories. So the next time a Hutt offers you a fair deal-a chance to trade one life for another-think twice before you refuse it." Zorba stroked his beard and wagged his thick tongue. "But I almost forgot. There won’t be a next time for you. A-HAW-HAW-HAW . ."

"You’ve sealed your doom, Zorba!" Trioculus shouted in defiance. "An armada of Imperial starships will come to destroy you-and Cloud City!"

Zorba thumped his massive tail on the floor in anger. "When the rumor gets out that you’ve been encased in carbonite and hidden somewhere in Cloud City, no Imperial will dare try to blow up this city. Besides, Cloud City was armed by the Rebel Alliance before I took it over from Lando Calrissian. We’ll gladly defend ourselves against any stormtrooper invasion!"

"We can still make a deal, Zorba," Trioculus said. "I could share my power with you! You could become a grand admiral in the Empire!"

"Never," Zorba replied with a scowl. "I’d rather join the Rebel Affiance than raise the tip of my tail to help you! And now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to encase you in carbonite. Your body will be frozen and trapped, and your mind will be in constant torment!" Zorba licked his cheeks with his thick tongue. "Get ready . . . get set . . ."

"No, Zorba! Stop!"

"Go!!!" Zorba threw the switch, and the hydraulic platform was dropped into the pit.

"Ahhhhhhrrrrggghhh!" Trioculus screamed, the sound growing louder and louder. In the pit there was bubbling liquid, gaseous fumes, and huge billows of smoke.

PZZZZZZT! SIZZZZZZZ!

The deed was finished.

Just as it had once been done to Han Solo, Trioculus’s body was now trapped inside a block of carbonite.

Huge metal tongs then lifted the block out of the pit. Trioculus resembled a living sculpture; all three of his eyes now stared out in horror into the blackness in front of his face.

Soon Zorba broadcast his news from Cloud City, announcing the death of the Rebel Alliance Princess who murdered Jabba the Hutt! He warned all citizens to be alert for a possible Imperial attack, because Emperor Trioculus-now encased in a block of carbonite-was about to become a permanent, heavily guarded exhibit in the Cloud City Museum. Inside the Millennium Falcon, they too heard Zorba’s news broadcast.

"Trioculus has been carbonized-that’s the best thing that’s happened since I finished building my sky house!" Han exclaimed. "But we’ve got to get you off the planet, Princess. If Zorba the Hutt finds out that you’re still alive, sparks are going to fly. And I don’t want you to be around when the trouble starts."

Making a quick stop at Han’s sky house, they picked up Ken, along with Chip, Threepio, and Artoo-Detoo. The three droids had spotted Ken returning to Han’s house in the cloud taxi. As Han packed up a few things, Ken frantically told everyone about his misadventures in Cloud City.

But they didn’t hang around very long. For all Han knew, bounty hunters were spying on his sky house with macrobinoculars just to make sure that Leia was really dead. As soon as they were all aboard the Millennium Falcon, Han set their course, punching codes into the navigation unit without giving anyone any clues about where he was taking them.

"You haven’t even had a chance to enjoy your house yet, Han," Leia said. "I’m sorry you have to leave like this."

"Your safety comes first, Princess. For the time being, I’m leaving behind the life-style of a homeowner. I’m officially a traveling man again."

"Where should we go?" Luke asked the princess. "To the Rebel Alliance Senate on Yavin Four?"

"Too many Imperials between here and Yavin Four," Leia countered.

"If they board us for an inspection and find you," Han said, "Zorba the Hutt will be one of the first to hear the news."

"Dweeeeboo Ptzvaaa!" Artoo tooted.

"Artoo suggests that perhaps we should head for your home planet, Han," Threepio translated. "The Corellian life-style has always been agreeable to droids."

"I’ve got another place in mind," Han replied.

"Where exactly?" Leia asked.

"Don’t you like surprises?" Han asked.

"Is it a planet?" Ken added.

"Or is it a moon?" Luke asked. "Or an asteroid?"

"Or a space station?" Ken suggested.

"Let’s just say it’s a romantic place," Han said with a wink.

"Romantic, Han?" Princess Leia asked, smiling.

"Yes, Princess. Any objections?"

"None that I can think of," she replied. "As long as I have my brother along to chaperon," she teased. "Okay with you, Luke?"

"Affirmative," Luke replied. "Power up and engage sublightspeed thrusters!" And they took off.

Han’s sky house quickly became a speck of dust far behind them. Moments later, so did the planet Bespin.

"Luke, take over the accelerator for a minute, okay?" Han asked. Luke took control of the acceleration lever and Han gave Princess Leia a kiss-a very long kiss. While he was kissing Princess Leia, a crazy thought popped into Han Solo’s mind. Maybe he should propose marriage to her. Maybe it was about time that he popped the question.

But what would he say exactly? Senator Leia Organa, could you ever love a mischievous Corellian pilot like me enough to say "I do" at the altar? No-too stiff and formal. How about the simple approach? Princess, will you marry me? Nope. Too short, not enough affection. What about Leia, will you be my wife and the mother of my children? No, too old-fashioned.

It was a tough problem. A very tough problem indeed.

No doubt about it, he would have to wait until some other day to figure out how to say the words in just the right way. Or the day after some other day. Ken smiled and gave Luke Skywalker a little nudge as they watched Han and Leia embrace. Luke waited until just after Han’s and Leia’s lips separated before pulling on the hyperdrive thruster, boosting their velocity far above light speed. ZWOOOOOOSH! There was a blurry flash!

And then they were gone!

Glossary

Avabush spice

A spice that acts as a truth serum, also brings on sleepiness. Often it’s baked into sweets, such as candy-flavored buns.

Bantha

A mammoth creature as large as an elephant, with tremendous looped horns. Ridden by Tusken Raiders as a form of transportation.

Bespin

The giant, gaseous planet where Cloud City is located. Bespin is located in the Bespin System. It has a core of liquid rethin metal, but its prosperity comes from the resources of its Tibanna gas mines. The Empire maintains a barge on Bespin that floats just above the Rethin Sea, with many factories for making war machines. Braze

A word that is short for "brown haze," much as the word "smog" is short for "smoke and fog."

Carbonite

A substance made from Tibanna gas, plentiful on the planet Bespin, where it is mined and sold in liquid form as a fuel in Cloud City. When carbonite is turned into a solid, it can be used for keeping humans or other organisms alive in a state of suspended animation, encasing them completely.

CB-99

A dusty, slightly bent, old barrel-shaped droid hidden in a secret room in the palace of Jabba the Hutt. He has a hologram file containing Jabba the Hutt’s will. Chip (short for Microchip)

Ken’s personal droid, who lived with him in the Lost City of the Jedi and has now gone out into the world with him.

Cloud Police

The force that keeps the peace by enforcing the laws of Cloud City. Their leader is Chief Muskov, who does the bidding of the governor of Cloud City. The Cloud Police have a tradition of trying to remain neutral between the Alliance and the Empire. Jabba the Hutt

A sluglike alien gangster and smuggler who owned a palace on Tatooine and consorted with alien bounty hunters. He was strangled to death by Princess Leia, choked by the chain that held her prisoner in his sail barge at the Great Pit of Carkoon. Jawa

A meter-high creature who travels the deserts of Tatooine collecting and selling scrap. It has glowing orange eyes that peer out from under its hooded robe. Jenet

An ugly, quarrelsome alien species. Scavengers, they have pale pink skin, red eyes, and sparse white fuzz that covers their thin bodies. They are sometimes known to hang out in the Mos Eisley Cantina.

Kate (short for KT-18)

A female, pearl-colored housekeeping droid that Luke buys from jawas on Tatooine as a housewarming gift for Han Solo.

Ken

A twelve-year-old Jedi Prince, who was raised by droids in the Lost City of the Jedi. He was brought to the underground city as a small child by a Jedi Knight in a brown robe. He knows nothing of his origins, but he does know many Imperial secrets, which he learned from studying the files of the master Jedi computer in the Jedi Library where he went to school. Long an admirer of Luke Skywalker, he has departed the Lost City and joined the Alliance.

Kip

The planet where Zorba the Hutt was kept prisoner for illegally mining gemstones. Mos Eisley

A spaceport on Tatooine, made up of low concrete structures. The cantina at the spaceport is a dangerous place, a hangout for many outlaws and fugitives. Ranats