Star Wars: Hope Fails

Chapter 2: Luke Skywalker Lost

Flaming hunks of rock from the size of a fist to the size of a mountain besieged Luke Skywalker. He navigated an impossible, ever-shifting maze where death was assured if he could not keep his X-Wing under complete control. Plunging into the asteroid field seemed to be the only escape from his relentless pursuer in the modified TIE Fighter. The Empire had taken the lives of everyone he knew and he wasn't about to give them the satisfaction of taking his life as well. Better to die here amongst the fractured pieces of the Rebel Alliance and... Leia.

Only hours ago he rescued Leia (a Princess!) from her imprisonment aboard the Death Star. And for what? To postpone her death by those few hours. Some hero. It's possible she may have left Yavin Four before the Death Star destroyed it. Maybe she escaped with Han Solo aboard the Millenium Falcon? But Luke would never find out if he didn't survive these asteroids first. This was nothing like flying Beggar's Canyon back home on Tatooine. This was far more intense. Or, as Han described the Rebel attack on the Death Star, more like suicde.

Tiny rocks peppered his X-Wings' shields like hail on a roof. Large ones criss-crossed his path from every direction, pushing his failing ship to the limits of its remaining functionality. If only he still had Artoo-Detoo to help keep the X-Wing in one piece. But his astromech droid was destroyed as well. Destroyed by that same TIE pilot who'd prevented Luke from making the shot that would have kept his life from shattering. What was it about that pilot? Luke had felt something during the chase he could have sworn was radiating from the sleek TIE fighter that chased him into the asteroids.

Who was he kidding? He shut off his targeting computer. He probably could have landed the shot to destroy the Death Star if he'd used his head. Instead he trusted what was probably a stress-induced hallucination - the ghostly voice of someone he just saw die. It was Luke's fault the Rebellion was destroyed. All because he thought he could take on the Empire alone. Uncle Owen was right - Luke shouldn't have gotten involved. Instead he ran off with that crazy, old hermit Ben Kenobi on one of his damn fool missions.

Ben Kenobi ( 'Obi-Wan' Kenobi, as he was known by people aware of his past as a Jedi Knight) had meant a lot to Luke in the short time they spent together. Ben felt like the father Luke had never known. He'd opened Luke's eyes to a much larger world - the world of the legendary Jedi and the Force. But he had been murdered by Darth Vader. The same man who had murdered Luke's own father. And since Luke had never met his parents, Vader may have murdered his mother as well. Who knows? There was no one left alive who might have told Luke what happened to them. Everyone Luke knew had been killed by Darth Vader.

The thought of Vader caused a swell of anger in Luke. And he embraced it. If he were to escape death within this meteor shower he would have revenge. The thought of Darth Vader impaled on the end of his light saber (his father's light saber) mingled with the tumor of rage swelling in his chest. The more he allowed his hatred to grow the more confident and focused he became. And this was a good thing because it was all that kept Luke from crashing into a stray asteroid.

Barrel rolls, engine stalls, anti-gravity by-passes - Luke put every trick he'd aquired as a bush pilot on Tatooine to use and then some. The X-Wing quivered and groaned but responded as best it could to his commands. The damage from the battle plus the hammering of the asteroids rapidly took its toll. Some asteroids passed so close he could feel the heat of the molten plasma they carried. 

So many sacrifices made to save Luke's life in the past few hours. They would not be in vain. Biggs died so Luke could make the shot to destroy the Death Star. Luke and Biggs grew up together - he was like a big brother. Wedge took a hit and survived only to be blown out of the sky trying to help Luke escape that damned TIE fighter pilot. Wedge only knew him for an hour at most yet gave his life to save Luke's. And then there was Ben.

Ben sacrificed himself to Darth Vader's light saber so that Luke, Princess Leia, Han Solo, Chewbacca, and the droids, Artoo-Detoo and See Threepio, could escape the Death Star. He gave his life for the Rebel Alliance and freedom from the oppressive galactic Empire. In the short time he'd known him Ben Kenobi had given so much: Luke's father's light saber, guidance in the ways of the Force, and true friendship. Luke didn't know how but he would repay Ben's kindness.

All these senseless deaths. For what? Because the Empire wants things their way and anyone who thinks otherwise must die. Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru were simple farmers. All they wanted was to live a quiet, honest life. The Empire didn't care. To the Imperial Storm Troopers who shot and burned them, Luke's Aunt and Uncle were the "enemy" and therefore slaughtered. Why? Because "orders" were to leave no witnesses. The Empire liked to keep word of its tyranny quiet.

All of these thoughts shot through Luke's mind like the zig-zagging asteroids outside his ship. There was nothing to focus on. Nothing but emotions: sorrow, fear, and rage. So he embraced them. He used them to focus on navigating his X-Wing out of the debris of Yavin Four. His eyes turned blood-red. "I'll kill Darth Vader and every Imperial bastard that crosses my path."

A cold shiver ran down Luke's spine. He reflexively sent his ship into sharp dive. Within a second he saw why: a bantha-sized asteroid rolled past the cockpit above. The Force was with him.

Several more asteroids of varying size shot at him from head-on. He sent the X-Wing on a spiraling pin-wheel that narrowly allowed him to pass through. Ahead of him he glimpsed open space - he was nearly out!

Luke gunned the throttle and his two remaining engines grunted forward. The safety of black lie just ahead. 

"I'm coming for you, Darth Vader," he growled. His bloody red eyes glared hatefully through the cracked view port. A cold grin spread across his lips. "You're going to regret..."

A huge asteroid rolled across Luke's view. He saw nothing but gray rock and glowing plasma. Luke pushed the X-Wing hard to starboard and that's when its third engine burned out. Alarms blinked and wailed. The asteroid smashed the shields. Luke felt rattled like a pebble in a can. And then he felt nothing.