Star Wars-New Paths

Celebration! The Alliance has defeated the Empire in battle, destroying the Death Star superweapon. A medal ceremony has just concluded, and Han, Luke, Leia, and Chewbacca are in a debriefing room with General Dodonna...

         

Dodonna looks weary, but he smiles as he addresses the group, "This is a day that will be remembered. The day that a small faction defeated an Empire that thrives on oppression. To each of you, I am thankful. Mon Mothma will arrive shortly to give her gratitude."
"I was certain that hope was thinning, and without Luke, Han, and Chewbacca, none of this would have been possible." Leia spoke as she gestured to the trio of heroes.
Dodonna nods, "I agree. Gentlemen, what you have done...was nearly impossible."
"Attention for the Leader!", a guard interrupts.
All rise as Mon Mothma enters the room. She had just arrived back to the base after her initial evacuation. Alliance leadership evacuated her, as the last stand of hope, once the Death Star entered the system. She addresses the group.
"Please...relax. Be seated. There is a lot to process and go over." She pauses for a breath, then continues, "I apologize for not being present for the ceremony. We ran into an Imperial patrol, and had to make a long series of jumps so it took much longer to return...anyway, Han...Luke...Chewbacca...we are forever in your debt in all you have done in the past days. The medals were symbolic, but the gratitude is forever and tangible. Luke, will you please meet with General Madine and his staff for a discussion about your role in destroying the Death Star? They have analyzed your data, and have additional questions."
Luke nods, "Yes, sure. I'm still processing that myself, but I will be happy to help." He rises and exits the room.
Mon Mothma smiles, and continues, "Han Solo, it is my understanding that you and Chewbacca entered the battle of your own accord, and placed yourselves at risk to disrupt the Empire's pilots. Thank you so very much. Chewbacca, your planet has long been occupied by the Empire, and your people enslaved and scattered throughout to keep them from organizing a front. It is my promise that part of our doctrine will be towards freeing the Wookiees and returning them to your home. I was told that you declined a medal for the ceremony?"
Chewie spoke in his dialect, and Han translated, "Yes, ma'am...Chewie refused taking a medal. It is a part of his code of honor for his people. If his role were to be revealed, it could place his people in danger of retribution, plus he is a fugitive from an Imperial slavery camp. I can't express what they would do to him, if he were to be discovered."
Mon Mothma nods in agreement. "I understand, and we will honor that code, Chewbacca. If you ever need anything, you may address me personally." She looks to Han. "Captain Solo, your history is not unknown to many of us. Some of our pilots are Corellian, and once they heard you were a part of this battle, many spoke of your exploits. Smuggler, an ex academy attendee. You are wanted on a few systems..."
"Yeah...I'm sure most of what you heard about me is exaggerated. I'm just a freighter pilot trying to earn a living," Han spoke in his way of getting out of the attentions. "I'll admit that I have a few enemies, but I think less than the rest of you?"
Mon Mothma chuckled, "Yes. We have that in common, Captain. Don't worry. We have no plans of turning you over to any authority. We actually want to offer you some work. We need intelligence, and a man with your skills would be a valuable asset to us. You will be well paid, and be able to use our resources for maintenance and upgrades to your ship. Will you accept?"
"Listen...with all due respect, I'm not one to align with some faction that has a short life span. You all won this battle, but can you win more? I doubt it. And I don't know what my future would be hanging around a group that could be wiped out at any given moment. You make a nice offer, but I think that me and Chewie can..."
This time, Chewbacca interrupts with a series of grunts, and Han drops his chin, "Wait...what do you mean?" Chewie continues, and Han emphatically shakes his head, but Chewie continues. Han clamps his mouth shut, and turns his head back to Mon Mothma.
Han and Chewbacca rise from their seats, "My partner and I will discuss your offer. We'll get back to you. Pardon us, we need to check on our ship and discuss this in private."
Mon Mothma nods and the two take their leave of the room. She watches them leave with a grin.
"I wonder what that was all about..." Leia speaks up.
"Chewbacca reminded Captain Solo of our promise to his people. Even a man with his reputation would not cross a Wookiee. Partners or not."
Leia asks, "And how do you know, ma'am?"
Mon Mothma rises from her seat, "Wookiees played an extremely pivotal role in the New Republic and the Clones Wars. I was friends with the Senate representatives of Kashyyyk, as was your father. We both learned a good bit of the language. I only wish your father had been here with us for this day. He wanted to see his old friend, General Kenobi."
Leia frowned, "I didnt see much of him, myself. Once we reached Han's ship, I saw a glimpse of him fighting Vader, but Vader struck him down. I remember a wave of sadness wash over me, and Luke took it very hard. I will have to talk to Luke sometime and find out what their relationship was."
"Luke...an amazing young man. He got a lucky shot and destroyed the most massive weapon ever created. He would have done the Rogue One team proud. What was his full name again?"
Leia looked up at her, "Skywalker. Luke Skywalker. From Tatooine. One of the generals told me his father was a pilot for the Republic in the Clone Wars."
Mon Mothma regarded her, "His father was much more than that. He was a member of the Jedi Order. He was a hero of the Republic. General Kenobi was his master. Your father told me that Master Kenobi went into hiding from the Empire's forces. However, I'm not sure whatever happened to Luke's father. A casualty of the Emperor's Order to kill the Jedi, I suppose. I don't believe there are many left, if at all. Luke may be all that is left of whatever existence the Jedi have, so we cannot let him be known too well. But, that is a matter for myself and the Alliance Council. You will have a larger role, Princess Leia, and we need to gather as many from your homeworld as possible. I will task a few ships to assist you in finding refugees. General Madine will be working with Luke and a few pilots to create a new group of pilots and operatives. If we can get Captain Solo to help us, his smuggling connections would be of great assistance to the cause.
So, Princess Leia, I need you to prepare for your trip. We will communicate on the secure protocols, while we determine the location of a new base. The evacuation will commence tonight. The Empire has certainly had time to regroup and plan an attack. May the Force be with us."
Leia rises, "May the Force protect us, as well. I'll speak to you soon, Mon Mothma." She exits, and Mon Mothma looks to General Dodonna.
"I will need constant updates and reports on Skywalker. If the Force is with him, he may be the key to finishing this war with the Empire." Dodonna nods, and he exits the room, leaving Mon Mothma alone to her thoughts. She slowly shakes her head, and whispers, "The missing child. Now I think I know why Bail wanted General Kenobi to come back."

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Luke enters the space where General Madine is going over some tech readouts.
"General, you wanted to see me?"
Madine looks up from his work, "Skywalker. Yes, come in and have a seat. I have a few others coming to join us, but I wanted to speak to you alone."
Luke sits while showing a look of confusion. Madine continues, "I reviewed the data from your X-Wing, and, overall, some excellent piloting and execution. What has me troubled is you turning off your targeting computer prior to firing the kill shot. Why did you do that?"
"General. It is hard to explain. I had a feeling wash over me. I needed to go by instinct...that's all my mind would let me believe. It was as if the computer added an unneeded distraction."
Madine looks with stone eyes, then nods. "Well, in analyzing the targeting computer data, you did the right thing. I have not found one scenario and simulation that allows for the computer to have hit the target in the way that you did it. Every simulation had the same result of impacting the surface of the thermal exhaust port. Only a perfect angle and speed would have allowed a missile to get to the reactor core. The flaw was so minute that I doubt the Empire would have ever discovered it. But, that is a discussion for another time. Now then, let's discuss you. You are Luke Skywalker, and before a few days ago, you were a resident of an Outer Rim world. Your name filtered its way to me through word of mouth. When I heard the name, it triggered a memory from my childhood. I was young when the Clone Wars ended, but the name Skywalker was legend. Some of the veteran pilots here flew with your father in the wars. I will assume your instincts are from a connection to the Force that is normally found in Jedi Knights. They were all destroyed, so you won't be able to train properly to become one. However, your abilities can be fine tuned for our needs. I sense that you will be a strong leader for us. I have gathered a roster of men to train and teach you to be a proper military pilot and operative. You are to be promoted to the rank of Commander, but you will take full command of your group once they are confident that you have transitioned properly. Is that amenable to you?"
Luke nods, "I'm not sure if I know what to do, but I will trust your decision for me and do the best I can. I just want to be a part of the Alliance and make a difference. I want to avenge my friend, Ben, and fight for those who cannot fight for themselves."
"You will do fine, Luke. Let's meet the others."
They both rise and enter an adjoining room. There, seated, were several members of the Alliance chatting amongst themselves, and each wondering why they were there. They stood tall when Madine entered the room, then clapped when they saw Luke enter behind him.
"Gentlemen, please sit down." He waits for the din to settle to silence. "We are forming a group to take care of special assignments and missions. This will be a similar group to those who obtained the Death Star plans, but in this case, will be sanctioned and supported by the Alliance leadership. It will be made up of ground operatives, and a special squadron of pilots. You will all train together, and gain knowledge from each other to be a cohesive unit. Commander Skywalker will assume command of the unit, once the rest of you are confident in his leadership. Are there any questions?"
A pilot stood up, "Sir, I'm in. What will our designation be?"
"Good question, Wedge Antilles. I'm open to suggestions."
"ROGUE"...the word came from the back of the group. Everyone turned to look at the source of the voice. A short, but muscular humanoid stood there, and nodded as he spoke. "Yes. The ones who died to get those plans went rogue, and sacrificed themselves without the initial support of the Alliance. I was on the communications station when they used the call sign, "Rogue One". We should honor them by calling ourselves 'Rogue Squadron' for the pilots, and 'Rogue Team' for the ground and combined units. A fitting tribute for those willing to die for all of us to be in this room."
Agreement mumbled then grew in volume. General Madine nodded. "Then we have it. We carry on the Rogue name. Now then, the order has come through. Prepare for evacuation. Pilots to your ships, and ground crews to your transports." All rose and scurried out of the room. Luke grabs Wedge by the arm.
"Why are we evacuating? We destroyed the Death Star. I thought Rogue Group was for clean-up of what is left."
Wedge looked at Luke and realized that Luke was new to everything. "Luke...this is far from over. The Empire is vast. I guess being on some backwater world, you didn't get enough information. The Empire was not just that Death Star and a few large ships. There are tens of thousands of Star Destroyers and even larger numbers of fighter ships and support craft. That is just the Imperial Navy. Thousands of planets and systems are under Imperial rule. If we can win more small battles, and convince these worlds to fight the Imperial presence, then we gain allies and turn the support to our cause. My home is on a Core World, and I want it to be free. I'm fighting for them. We will talk more, but right now, we need to get off this moon before the Empire gets a fleet here. Come on, I'll help get you prepped."
Luke nodded. "Yeah...let's go." He followed Wedge, but he silently put himself down for being so naive. He had a lot of growing up to do, and in a short amount of time. He muttered under his breath, "I have a bad feeling about this."

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In the cockpit of the Millenium Falcon, Han is sitting silently, while listening to his friend, then speaks.
"Look, I know what they promised, but it won't happen overnight. We have debts to clear, and I want to pay off Jabba with what we have. Maybe we can catch up with these rebels after that, and we will see what happens from there. I have a feeling the Empire has a big crosshair on these guys, and with them being bigger and more active, there is going to be a lot of fighting. I don't know if we should be in the middle of it."
Chewie growls and grumbles his response, and Han looks resigned.
"Okay, big fella. We'll stick around until we can all the repairs and mods we need for the Falcon. I guess we can stand to have friends that we can run back to if we run into problems. If it gets too much to handle we will have to leave and fend for ourselves. I still think these guys are suicidal against what the Empire will throw at them."
Chewie speaks more, interjecting at times as Han talks.
"Luke? Nah, he's already brainwashed by these people. I mean...what he did was amazing, but that was a lucky shot. What? Jedi powers? Okay, I know they once existed, but they are all gone now. That old man was the last of that religion. You saw what happened to him. Heck, I heard they were a part of why the Empire came to be in existance. Huh? Betrayed by the Republic? You saw this happen at the end of the Clone Wars? I don't know. Okay, you knew a Jedi and he disappeared at the end of the war. I'm sure he is dead, too. Regardless, no matter what Luke has inside him, that religion won't be back to train him to be one of them. Luke will be a good fighter, but that's about it."
Then Chewie says something that makes Han give in.
"Life Debt? You are extending that to Luke also?", he sighed as Chewie nodded. Han knew exactly what that meant, and there would be no discussion to change that.
"Okay pal. I'm with you there. Luke is my friend, too. I guess we need to stick close to him then. I just hope Jabba forgets about us for a while. If we have to, we run. We survive, even if that means we take Luke, kicking and screaming, with us..."
His comm unit beeps.
"Solo. What's up?"
"Captain Solo, this is General Dodonna. We will be evacuating the base. Our sources intercepted a transmission that a strike fleet has gathered to receive personnel and starfighters at the Imperial Shipyards. They will be here before long to attack. You were made an offer, and you do not have to answer us now, but a messenger will be outside your ship in a few minutes with coordinates for a rendezvous point. If you choose to join us at that location, please make several hyperspace jumps before arriving. Dodonna out."
Han and Chewie make their way to the ship's ramp, and at the bottom is Leia.
"Han, Chewie. I have the coordinates for you to meet up with us later."
Han shrugged, "And they sent you to convince us to make the rendezvous, right?"
"Yes. They felt a familiar face would help. Besides, I have seen what you can do. I know you are more than whatever money you can scam. The Alliance can use your talent and resources."
Han nodded, "Yeah. I'm sure. I'm just a smuggler, your worshipness. Maybe we will see you soon. We had a lot to do before we ran into Luke and the old man, and we still have those things to do." Han didn't want to show his hand just yet. He figured maybe Leia would add something to sweeten the pot for profit. He was about to offer a counter offer when an alarm went off.
"AN IMPERIAL SCOUT CRAFT HAS ENTERED THE SYSTEM. AN IMPERIAL SCOUT CRAFT HAS ENTERED THE SYSTEM. EXPEDITE THE EVACUATION. EXPEDITE THE EVACUATION."
"Okay, your Highness, we both need to get going. Good Luck!!" He and Chewie start up the ramp.
Leia starts, "Han...meet up with us...please." Too late, the ramp starts up and closes, leaving her staring at the belly of the Falcon. She turns on her heel and runs to her transport, being hurried along by her personal escort.

Emperor Palpatine is seated on his throne in the restructured Jedi Temple. Six red clad guards are at station in the Imperial Chamber. A door at the far end of the hall opens and Darth Vader enters the chamber. The Emperor’s chair turns to face Vader as the Dark Lord takes a knee.
“Guards, leave us.”
The guards exit through slits in the wall, and the Emperor looks back to Vader, letting him kneel silently for several minutes. Finally, he speaks. “Rise, Lord Vader. “
“Yes, Master.”
“I’m certain you can sense my rage and anger at what has transpired. What is your excuse for failure?”
Vader cocks his head slightly, “Failure? None, from my perspective, my Master. Governor Tarkin was given too much authority. Too much responsibility. He destroyed an Imperial Weapons Research Base on Scarif. One that contained rebels on the mission to get the plans for the Death Star. Had I been able to interrogate one of them, the location of the rebel base would have been obtained. He destroyed Alderaan, a key world rich in resources, and has jeopardized loyalty from other systems to the Empire. His lust for power rivalled our own, and would have only led to an attempted coup.
The failure was not mine, my Master. “
Palpatine stood. “Yet you failed to stop a single pilot in a Starfighter from destroying our greatest technological achievement. For that alone, I should restrict your bacta treatments. However, I need your focus. Obi Wan Kenobi survived the purge of Order 66. I need to know how this was possible, and whether we can find if others survived. We cannot allow another Jedi to become a threat.”
Vader put his thumbs in his belt. “Yes, Master. I agree that we need to find any others. I suspect that pilot to have been a new apprentice to Obi Wan. I felt the Force in him. It was strong, but it was confused. He is not yet trained. I need to find the identity of this pilot, and then perhaps we will have a
link to any surviving Jedi.”
Palpatine paced back and forth for a few moments before speaking, “Do whatever you need to do, Lord Vader. You may use any methods necessary. You will go to the shipyards at Fondor. Your new flagship is near completion. Equip a fleet to your desires. Find this pilot. And kill him.”
“Yes Master. It shall be as you order.”
Vader kneels again, then rises and turns to walk away. Palpatine’s voice stopping him for a moment.
“Lord Vader…the Empire cannot function if you continue to fail.”
“Yes, Master.” Vader exits the chamber, and Palpatine opens a comm channel.
“Send for Moff Jerjerrod. He is to see me immediately for a new assignment”