Jedi’s Honor – 10

Luke nods as if he will obey the genera’s orders, then slips his blaster from its holster. Although the general may be interested only in the charismatic human, Luke is unwilling to take that chance. Once he places his empty hands in sight, he will be at the general’s mercy – and Imperial’s have no mercy.

Luke’s entire family has perished at the hands of the Empire. The Dark Lord Vader killed his father when Luke was an infant, and he never knew his mother. His adoptive parents, Owen and Beru Lars, died when stormtroopers raided their moisture farm back on Tatooine. They were simple people, desiring nothing more than to scratch a living from Tatooine’s desert soil. Certainly, neither his uncle nor his aunt had any interest in the Rebellion. Yet the stormtroopers killed both of them – because Owen had the misfortune to buy a pair of Droids that once belonged to an Alliance commander.

He has no intention of becoming the final member of his family to die at Imperial whim. If he falls, he will fall resisting the Empire.

Without raising his blaster where the troopers can see it, Luke fires. The shot flashes from beneath the table, narrowly missing the general. For a moment, an anxious silence seizes the room. The patrons freeze, awaiting the stunned stormtroopers’ reply. Nobody expected Luke to attack – not even the general.

Luke has no intention of allowing an Imperial reply. He kicks his table over and stands, firing again. This time, his blue bolt finds its mark. A breastplate shatters, and one trooper drops.

The wall behind Luke erupts into a series of thuds and crumps as the stormtroopers finally return fire. They are too slow; he has already dived and rolled to cover beneath another table. He aims at the general again. Just as Luke squeezes the trigger, a stormtrooper steps in front of his commander. The man stumbles backward, drops his weapon, then slumps to the floor. The general drops prone behind his savior’s motionless form and snatches the blaster rifle.

Luke’s table erupts into a red, blue, and green shower of splinters. Finding himself without cover, Luke squeezes off a few wild shots to suppress his opponent’s fire. His tactic proves little help, for he has run out of places to hide. Several tables lie tipped on their sides, but frightened prospectors huddle behind each one. Seeking cover behind any table will get a bystander killed.

The charismatic man with the fiery eyes suddenly stands, shielding Luke from the Imperials. “Stop this!” he bellows. “Stop this carnage at once!”

Amazingly, the stormtroopers hold their fire – at least temporarily. Luke does not fire either, for the man’s voice carries such authority that he finds himself obeying automatically.

“My freedom is not worth these deaths,” the man says to Luke. “But you have my gratitude.” He turns to face the Imperials. “I surrender, Governor Parnell.”

The four stormtroopers, careful to avoid Luke’s line of fire, move toward the young Rebel pilot. Luke fingers his blaster. If he fires, he could hit the speaker. In such close quarters, his lightsaber is a much more efficient weapon. If he tries to honor the unknown man’s request and fade away, he’s sure as vacuum going to end up with the general’s boys – Imperials aren’t the type who ignore dead stormtroopers.

If Luke fires his blaster, Click Here
If Luke draws his lightsaber, Click Here