Conflict And Balance [Star Wars AU]

Chapter 16

A group of Imperial troopers were sent to Manaan to verify Amidala's answer, and the results were not favorable.

"There was nothing on the ocean except the City of Ahto while the ocean floor had remnants of a Republic base," the team reported. In turn, having gained this information, Vader had to report to the Grand Moff.

"She lied?" Tarkin exclaimed in surprise and anger.

"Yes," the Sith replied, "As I had told you, there is no way she would betray the Rebellion."

He rubbed his forehead, and sat back on his chair, releasing a breath. He was tired of Amidala's persistence; her refusal to just give up annoyed him. He considered the document in datapad that contained the plea of her death sentence.

"And here I thought I would give her a life sentence," Tarkin mused as he put his signature on the datapad. "Well then, it is done, she will be terminated; the courts will obviously concur with the Emperor."

'Terminated?'

A blow to Vader; every part of him suddenly froze. He was aware he shouldn't feel that way yet his mind was restless. Those times he had with her, he secretly enjoyed it. And now she was to be executed. He stopped himself from thinking, knowing that he shouldn't have a problem with it.

"Any problem, Vader?" Tarkin nonchalantly asked.

"N...no." Vader left before he could make his superior even more suspicious. It was now or never. He must set his plan in motion. The Emperor? Or the love of his life? He must choose and either way, he cannot return back.

* * * * transition * * * *

Leia watched the huge Corellian ship land in the hangar. The ship was below her expectations which made her even more furious. A junkpile outran her? It was odd, if not humiliating. She dispatched a squadron to investigate the ship and employed scanners.

If the outside appearance was junk, the interior was beyond the word, she judged. The main hold and crew quarters were messy with scrap paper and metal decorating the room. The storage was empty, save for rations. The entire ship was void of a crewmate, which was bizarre; there were no escape pods.

In the cockpit, she got hold of the clearance codes for the blockade. A traitor, she deduced. She took the datapad and called an officer.

"This is the ship that escaped my grasp in Tatooine," she stated, as she exited the ship, "Though it might be empty, I sense something. Find the droids at any costs, even if you have to tear the ship apart. Tell me if you have found anything."

Little did she know that underneath her, in the smuggling compartments, they were all there, hidden from her sight both physically and in the Force. Ahsoka's claustrophobia was getting to her; beads of sweat rolled on her face as her breathing became heavier and frequent.

Obi Wan could only pity her. The air in the compartment seemed to get warmer and also stuffier. As soon as the thumping started to dwindle, Han and Chewbacca finally lifted the covers and got out of their hiding spaces.

"I am grateful for these compartments, you've got here." Ahsoka took a deep breath and relaxed against the wall, stretching her arms. The others did a bit of stretching exercise before they went on the move.

They hid behind corners as the scanning team entered. Lucky for them that it was merely two men. Just as they neared the corner, Han and Ahsoka covered their mouths, and knocked them out, the latter putting a sleep suggestion into the Imperial.

With Solo in disguise as a distraction, the three, with the droids, sneaked into the hangar bay control-room, hiding behind corners and crates. They reached the destination without any interruptions and waited behind the door.