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Jun. 14th, 2008 02:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ishotfirstWhen he walks back through the door, it's not exactly walking. It's darker than he remembered coming through, and he trips on something in the fog and stumbles, falling, hitting the ground with a dull thud.
"C'mon, Solo," the tin voice of a stormtrooper in his armor. "Get up."
They drag him to his feet and then walk him the remaining distance to the cell, then throw him in. His body feels like hell, and the warm booth at Milliways, the whiskey with Ben Wade, the comfort from Demeter fades like a burnt out star. Maybe he was dreaming it all, just an after effect of the poison running through his veins.
A familiar bark jars him out of his funk and he lifts his head as large, furry arms wrap around him and pull him up.
"I feel terrible."
Chewie grumbles something along the lines of you look terrible too as he carries Han over to a platform and lies him down. The steel is cold underneath his back and Han shifts, uncomfortable, as the door slides open.
Leia is at his side almost immediately, her hand brushing lightly over his hair. "Why are they doing this?"
"They never even asked me any questions," he protests, quietly, weakly, as he hears the door to the cell slide open again.
"Lando," she hisses.
Han pushes himself up a little and stares at the other man. "Get out of here."
Lando steps quickly into the room, followed by two guards. "Shut up and listen! Vader has agreed to turn Leia and Chewie over to me."
"Over to you?"
"They'll have to stay here, but at least they'll be safe."
Leia looks up at him as Han stands up. "What about Han?"
"Vader's giving him to the bounty hunter."
To the bounty hunter. The words ring in Han's ears as he turns and looks into the dark shadows of the cell, away from Leia, away from Lando, away from Chewie and the guards. To the bounty hunter. Which means he'll be taken to Jabba. Which means...maybe he should have had backup come with him after all.
"...someone called Skywalker."
Skywalker.
Han whips his head around at the word, instantly feeling dizzy, to stare at Lando. "Luke?"
Lando nods. "Lord Vader has set a trap for him."
There's a moment's pause, as the words sink in, and then Leia speaks up. "And we're the bait."
"Well," Lando replies. "He's on his way."
The fury in Han boils up slowly, starting from his toes and working up into his torso, heart pounding in his chest, a headache brewing at his temples. A trap. For Luke. They were using him for a trap for the kid and if that kid got hurt because of Lando...
"Perfect," he remarks, the anger biting into his voice. "You fixed us all pretty good, didn't you. My friend!"
One moment he knows he's standing there, glaring at Lando, and then the next he feels his fist connecting hard with the black man's face -- if there's one thing that Han knows how to do, it's to hit someone hard enough to ensure they'll be feeling it for a week. But once isn't enough. They both hit the ground, and he hauls back to hit him again before something smacks hard into his jaw and again into his ribs, sending him flying back. The guards in the room hit him with the butt of their rifles -- which only serves to really tick off the wookie to the point of going after them.
There's the click of blasters being armed and Han glances up at the guards who are now aiming at his best friend.
"Stop!" Lando shouts, standing up between them. "I've done all I can do. I'm sorry I couldn't do better, but I have my own problems."
"Yeah," Han growls up at him, from the floor. "You're a real hero." He's still pissed, and is going to be pissed for quite some time about this incident, but as soon as Lando and the guards walk out of the cell, he feels the pain come back in a rush. It's everything he can to keep from falling over, but he slumps down anyway, one hand going to the blood on his chin as Leia and Chewie kneel next to him.
"You certainly have a way with people," Leia murmurs, as she reaches for his chin and gently dabs at the wound.
++++
The guards and storm troopers come for them later, stripping Han of his jacket and placing binders on his wrists. Leia and Chewie (with the only somewhat assembled Threepio in a pack on the wookie's back) are lead out before he is. As they travel through the corridors, Han wonders where they're going.
And what's going to happen to him when he gets to Jabba the Hutt.
Boba Fett isn't about to take a bribe to let him free, and he doubts there's any chance of escaping an entire squadron of storm troopers -- while he's done it before, he's at a bit of a disadvantage, this time. Unarmed, no ship, hostile territory, surrounded, and bound, rifles aimed at his back and head if he dares step out of line.
He doesn't.
He walks.
When they reach a certain level of the mining facility, they're lead into a doorway and down a ramp to a platform. There is steam coming from the edges, machinery in many places...and Vader. And Lando.
I don't know who I hate more, Han thinks to himself. The Dark Lord himself or the guy I thought was a friend.
"What's going on...buddy?" Han asks, leaning over to Lando.
Without turning his head, Lando speaks. "You're being put into carbon freeze."
Carbon freeze. They don't...use that on humans. Han stares at the lift into the chamber in a blank state of shock, before he feels himself tugged forward by his guards.
Chewie panics and wildly moves to attack the guards trying to walk his friend into the lift, yelling loudly, so loud it echoes off the walls of the chamber and bounces around. The storm troopers swing their rifles to push the wookie back, but it's no use.
No Chewie, no, dammit buddy don't do this.
"Stop, Chewie, stop!" He shouts. "Do you hear me? Stop!" Han struggles against the stormtroopers and finally pulls himself free, then moves to get in Chewie's face -- as best he can, with him being so tall -- "Chewie! Chewie," he orders. "This won't help me. Hey!" He stares at him a moment. "Hey."
Calm down.
"Save your strength," he urges. "There'll be another time. The princess -- you have to take care of her. You hear me?"
Han winks at Chewie, who nods and wails sadly, not even noticing as the stormtroopers place binders on his wrists. Han steps back a little, then looks over at Leia.
Leia. I...you've got to...
No. No time for words. He steps forward and he presses his lips against hers, kissing her. Not like the kiss in the access bay in the Falcon, not the kiss on the forehead just hours before, not a gentle peck on the cheek. This is a kiss, and he's trying to tell her everything in just one --
Stormtroopers yank him backward and he stumbles a little, lips still tingling, eyes locked on hers, as they walk him backwards to the lift.
"I love you!"
The shout comes echoing over to his ears, and Han doesn't smile, doesn't nod, just looks back at her eyes, those damn eyes that can make him do anything.
"I know."
They've undone his binders and he looks down, nervously, into the pit as he's lowered, before he glances back up at them again. Leia. Chewie. Threepio.
Lando.
Vader.
Perfect hibernation.
The body shuts down, the heart slows, blood cooling to just enough where it barely needs to travel at all. The lungs stop, but he doesn't need to breathe. Soon, the heart stops as well, and the blood collects.
But his brain stays awake.
Awake.
Frozen solid, unable to move, unable to see, unable to breathe, or feel a thing. But his brain is working, however slowed down it is, and while it's not a perfect sense of what's going on, he knows he's awake.
Waiting...for who knows how long.
Trapped.
"C'mon, Solo," the tin voice of a stormtrooper in his armor. "Get up."
They drag him to his feet and then walk him the remaining distance to the cell, then throw him in. His body feels like hell, and the warm booth at Milliways, the whiskey with Ben Wade, the comfort from Demeter fades like a burnt out star. Maybe he was dreaming it all, just an after effect of the poison running through his veins.
A familiar bark jars him out of his funk and he lifts his head as large, furry arms wrap around him and pull him up.
"I feel terrible."
Chewie grumbles something along the lines of you look terrible too as he carries Han over to a platform and lies him down. The steel is cold underneath his back and Han shifts, uncomfortable, as the door slides open.
Leia is at his side almost immediately, her hand brushing lightly over his hair. "Why are they doing this?"
"They never even asked me any questions," he protests, quietly, weakly, as he hears the door to the cell slide open again.
"Lando," she hisses.
Han pushes himself up a little and stares at the other man. "Get out of here."
Lando steps quickly into the room, followed by two guards. "Shut up and listen! Vader has agreed to turn Leia and Chewie over to me."
"Over to you?"
"They'll have to stay here, but at least they'll be safe."
Leia looks up at him as Han stands up. "What about Han?"
"Vader's giving him to the bounty hunter."
To the bounty hunter. The words ring in Han's ears as he turns and looks into the dark shadows of the cell, away from Leia, away from Lando, away from Chewie and the guards. To the bounty hunter. Which means he'll be taken to Jabba. Which means...maybe he should have had backup come with him after all.
"...someone called Skywalker."
Skywalker.
Han whips his head around at the word, instantly feeling dizzy, to stare at Lando. "Luke?"
Lando nods. "Lord Vader has set a trap for him."
There's a moment's pause, as the words sink in, and then Leia speaks up. "And we're the bait."
"Well," Lando replies. "He's on his way."
The fury in Han boils up slowly, starting from his toes and working up into his torso, heart pounding in his chest, a headache brewing at his temples. A trap. For Luke. They were using him for a trap for the kid and if that kid got hurt because of Lando...
"Perfect," he remarks, the anger biting into his voice. "You fixed us all pretty good, didn't you. My friend!"
One moment he knows he's standing there, glaring at Lando, and then the next he feels his fist connecting hard with the black man's face -- if there's one thing that Han knows how to do, it's to hit someone hard enough to ensure they'll be feeling it for a week. But once isn't enough. They both hit the ground, and he hauls back to hit him again before something smacks hard into his jaw and again into his ribs, sending him flying back. The guards in the room hit him with the butt of their rifles -- which only serves to really tick off the wookie to the point of going after them.
There's the click of blasters being armed and Han glances up at the guards who are now aiming at his best friend.
"Stop!" Lando shouts, standing up between them. "I've done all I can do. I'm sorry I couldn't do better, but I have my own problems."
"Yeah," Han growls up at him, from the floor. "You're a real hero." He's still pissed, and is going to be pissed for quite some time about this incident, but as soon as Lando and the guards walk out of the cell, he feels the pain come back in a rush. It's everything he can to keep from falling over, but he slumps down anyway, one hand going to the blood on his chin as Leia and Chewie kneel next to him.
"You certainly have a way with people," Leia murmurs, as she reaches for his chin and gently dabs at the wound.
++++
The guards and storm troopers come for them later, stripping Han of his jacket and placing binders on his wrists. Leia and Chewie (with the only somewhat assembled Threepio in a pack on the wookie's back) are lead out before he is. As they travel through the corridors, Han wonders where they're going.
And what's going to happen to him when he gets to Jabba the Hutt.
Boba Fett isn't about to take a bribe to let him free, and he doubts there's any chance of escaping an entire squadron of storm troopers -- while he's done it before, he's at a bit of a disadvantage, this time. Unarmed, no ship, hostile territory, surrounded, and bound, rifles aimed at his back and head if he dares step out of line.
He doesn't.
He walks.
When they reach a certain level of the mining facility, they're lead into a doorway and down a ramp to a platform. There is steam coming from the edges, machinery in many places...and Vader. And Lando.
I don't know who I hate more, Han thinks to himself. The Dark Lord himself or the guy I thought was a friend.
"What's going on...buddy?" Han asks, leaning over to Lando.
Without turning his head, Lando speaks. "You're being put into carbon freeze."
Carbon freeze. They don't...use that on humans. Han stares at the lift into the chamber in a blank state of shock, before he feels himself tugged forward by his guards.
Chewie panics and wildly moves to attack the guards trying to walk his friend into the lift, yelling loudly, so loud it echoes off the walls of the chamber and bounces around. The storm troopers swing their rifles to push the wookie back, but it's no use.
No Chewie, no, dammit buddy don't do this.
"Stop, Chewie, stop!" He shouts. "Do you hear me? Stop!" Han struggles against the stormtroopers and finally pulls himself free, then moves to get in Chewie's face -- as best he can, with him being so tall -- "Chewie! Chewie," he orders. "This won't help me. Hey!" He stares at him a moment. "Hey."
Calm down.
"Save your strength," he urges. "There'll be another time. The princess -- you have to take care of her. You hear me?"
Han winks at Chewie, who nods and wails sadly, not even noticing as the stormtroopers place binders on his wrists. Han steps back a little, then looks over at Leia.
Leia. I...you've got to...
No. No time for words. He steps forward and he presses his lips against hers, kissing her. Not like the kiss in the access bay in the Falcon, not the kiss on the forehead just hours before, not a gentle peck on the cheek. This is a kiss, and he's trying to tell her everything in just one --
Stormtroopers yank him backward and he stumbles a little, lips still tingling, eyes locked on hers, as they walk him backwards to the lift.
"I love you!"
The shout comes echoing over to his ears, and Han doesn't smile, doesn't nod, just looks back at her eyes, those damn eyes that can make him do anything.
"I know."
They've undone his binders and he looks down, nervously, into the pit as he's lowered, before he glances back up at them again. Leia. Chewie. Threepio.
Lando.
Vader.
the platform drops suddenly, and he feels like he's going to fall over as the steam rushes in from all angles, he slams his eyes shut because it burns, it's so damn hot, and then the carbonite hits him, fire and metal liquid rushing over his body, but he doesn't have time to scream, doesn't have time to do anything because it all goes blank and black
Perfect hibernation.
The body shuts down, the heart slows, blood cooling to just enough where it barely needs to travel at all. The lungs stop, but he doesn't need to breathe. Soon, the heart stops as well, and the blood collects.
But his brain stays awake.
Awake.
Frozen solid, unable to move, unable to see, unable to breathe, or feel a thing. But his brain is working, however slowed down it is, and while it's not a perfect sense of what's going on, he knows he's awake.
Waiting...for who knows how long.
Trapped.
