Nebulous - Han Solo [2]

Chapter 23: This Way

A shot rang out over Tasha's head and she swore, ducking around the next bend, hitting the nearest panel to shut the door that was between them. She couldn't feel Han in the carbonite, it was like he didn't exist, stopped in that moment of fear as the substance froze him into place. Her blaster was useless as the ship powered up off the platform, out of range before she even got close. Tasha didn't know whether she was going to cry or collapse or scream profanities at the ship. In the end, she chose the last one, shouting things that made Lando pause as he shot at the troopers following them (until a shot landed particularly close to his head, then he started firing again).

"We need to get out of here!" Tasha shouted over the roar of blaster fire, the singed smell of plastic and concrete filling the air from the missed shots. She fired again and again, not sure how many she was actually hitting and not really caring.

"This way!" she heard Lando's voice over the din, glancing at him as he began moving along the walkway around the side of the building. No cover: the thought flashed through her brain before anything else, her soldier's instincts, honed over years on the battlefield. They rounded the corner out of the troopers' line of fire, and Tasha sprinted for it, diving for anything that would stop the incoming shots from hitting her. The air smelt like burning concrete again, and it was hard to get a proper breath through the smoky air and high altitude. Her black hair flew through the air as she cast a look over her shoulder at Lando punching in codes for the door, at Leia firing at the troopers with a look of fierce concentration on her face. She focused and fired. A panicked beep next to her made her look behind her again, at Lando still furiously punching in codes.

"Lando get that kriffing door open!" she shouted at him, another blast close to her pulling her back into the fight. More troopers were there now. They didn't have much time.

"They've locked me out!" Lando shouted back, ducking as another bolt hit close to him, "there's nothing I can do!" a beep sounded next to her again, and Tasha gritted her teeth.

"Artoo see what you can do with it!" the blaster fire was getting louder, "our luck's not going to hold out for much longer!" the silver and blue astromech trundled along the ground, blaster fire following him as he attempted to reprogram the door. Tasha's blaster was running out of shots. The door sprang open with a triumphant beep.

"Let's go!" she shouted, "Chewie get Leia and Lando out of here!" the Wookiee howled back, sprinting through the open door with her sister and the traitor hard on his heels. Tasha couldn't repress a smile as she heard Threepio's bickering tone. She made a break for it. Again. The door slid shut behind her and Tasha blasted the control panel before setting off after her friends.

***

"They're back again!" Leia said as they reached the Falcon, Artoo opening the door as the heroes sprinted towards the ship, smoke shielding them from the incessant blaster fire.

"Get inside!" Tasha shouted back to her, the ramp on the ship lowering far far too slowly. The younger princess stubbornly kept shooting towards the dissipating smoke cloud. Tasha was about to open her mouth again when she heard something that made her stop.

"Leia!" shouted Lando, "go!" the girl looked over, apparently not as shocked by this as Tasha.

"Good to see you're useful for something!" she shouted, still not entirely trusting him, "now get inside and take off!" Lando glared at her before running up the ramp, muttering to himself. Tasha scoffed, firing until her power pack was empty before running up the ramp, slamming her hand on the close button as she raced to the cockpit. The machine was spluttering slightly, unhappy about all the commotion as Chewie began to rev her up. Tasha vaulted herself into the pilot seat, Leia hanging anxiously over her shoulder, Lando still too close for comfort, peeking out the side of Chewie's chair. A group of little red dots blinked up on a screen at her elbow, and Tasha gave a harsh looking smirk.

"This is where the fun begins," she muttered, "three fighters, coming right at us."

"Let's get going then," said Lando, clearly keen to get out of there.

"Luke," Leia murmured.

"Right on it," said Tasha to Lando, punching in a lever by her hand as the ship jumped in speed.

"I know where he is," said Leia, her voice stronger this time, "we have to go back for him." Chewie let out a protesting howl but Tasha shushed him quickly.

"Turn her around Chewie," the raven girl said, her voice allowing no room for disagreements. The Wookiee howled again, but this time much softer, more of a whinge than a genuine protest. The fighters sped past them as the ship turned, not as fast as she was and not anticipating the move. They swerved through the blood-like sky, Tasha letting the Force lead them up to one of the many cloud city buildings.

"There," said Leia, her voice still overly quiet, pointing to something hanging off a cloud city weather vane.

"Lando," said Tasha, "go over to the manual release for the top hatch." The man began to protest, but was soon cut off by a snarl from Chewie, and raised his hands in surrender before leaving the cockpit.

"You should probably go too, sis," Tasha said, and Leia nodded, still quiet, calm. Unnervingly so. Chewie let out a small grumble as the younger girl left, and Tasha shook her head slightly.

"I don't know, mate," she said, "how we usually do it. Faith and luck." And the Force she added silently.

"Got him," came Lando's slightly muffled voice of the comm, and Tasha pushed the ship into overdrive.