"Mystery at Taciti Station" - A Round-Robin Adventure!!

Hey all,

I've been participating in one of these over on another board - trekbbs.com - and I've been having a lot of fun with it. Since I am a regular over on the Literature forum here, I thought I'd see if there was much interest in starting something like it on this board.

Basically, I'll start the story in my next post, and if you want you can take it from there. Hope you participate and have fun.

 

Han woke as the Millenium Falcon fell out of hyperspace. The whine of the engines ceased and he felt a shudder past through the deck.

"Gotta check those condensors," he said to himself, and he sat up from his bunk and headed for the bridge.

He'd been feeling restless lately. With the Rebels scattered throughout the galaxy after the "victory" at Yavin, he mistakenly volunteered to cart supplies to the outer bases, shipping weapons and food stuffs. Chewie had returned to Kashyyk for a short time to visit family, leaving him alone on the Falcon.

"I wish--" he began to say aloud, but quickly stopped himself. He wouldn't do it to himself, not again. While he couldn't deny his feelings for Leia were clearly strong, he wasn't ready to enter into another relationship. Not now, anyway.

He always felt a little bit emptier around this time. A little sense of loss crept into his heart. Now that he thought about it, he was glad to be alone for a few days.

Arriving in the bridge, he sat in the pilot's chair and examined the coordinates. "Wait a minute," he said, as he looked out the window to the stars and the blue and green planet before him. "Where in space am I?"

 

Is this a round robin, then?

 

Yepper.

 

Wow, this thread sank much faster than I expected. Figured it would take more than an hour for it to fall to the 2nd page.

This is by far the hardest board to break into.

 

Confusion raked at Han's mind as he double checked the coordinates. Everything looked accurate to him, but this was not where the Rebel Base was located. Maybe the navi computer is malfunctioning Han thought to himself. Great!

Knowing that if the navi computer was not functioning properly, making another hyperspace jump was not the best idea. Instead, he looked around for other ways to figure out where he was, and how he could get to where he was needed.

 

Han decided he needed to examine the navi-computer. After spending some time scanning the surrounding system, he found nothing that he was familiar with. The only answer he could hope for was that the navi-computer could give him some idea.

As he started to prepare for the task, a burst of static came into the bridge through the communications system. He checked the readings and replied: "This is Janus Timm, of the Lady Hawk. Can anyone read me?"

"Lady Hawk, this is Taciti Station," came a male voice. "You will hold position and wait to be boarded."

Taciti Station? Han thought, curiously. Never heard of that.

After a moment, the Falcon's sensors picked up three ships leaving the planet's atmosphere. They were approaching fast.

 

This is cool...I just wish I had an idea to post Help?

 

Up

 

In a matter of minutes, the three ships were on top of him, and one connected itself to the Falcon. It wasn;t long before two men came into the cockpit, where Han sat, with blasters in their hands.

"Please come with us," one said in a mechanical voice.

Han wasn't up for a fight. All he could do was hope that this was really nothing. Perhaps it was just some kind of routine thing. He wasn't sure. He stood from his seat, and followed one man, while the other trailed behind him, blaster up.

Han noticed how strangely they were dressed. At first he had been afraid that they were Imperials, but at first sight of them, he immediately dismissed that possibility.

******************

I'll leave the description of the clothing up to somone else.

 

Luke's eyes opened in a start.

All was quiet. The space around him empty, and his X-Wing reported nothing wrong. Yet, he felt something. Something distant, in pain.

Stretching his muscles as best he could in the cramped cockpit, he opened his comm frequency. "This is R5 calling Lady Hawk," he said, using the code names he and Han had agreed upon. "R5 calling Lady Hawk, you there?"

Nothing.

Han was late. Not unusual for the rogue, but not a regular occurance. And Luke couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss. That his friend had stumbled into trouble.

"R2," he said, "Power up the engines."

 

The sound of the cell door slamming shut echoed loudly. Han looked around and sat on the cold, metal slab that served as a bed in his four-by-four meter prison.

He'd been processed, probed and investigated by the officials here for several hours. While they learned nothing of value from him, or so he believed, he couldn't understand why they chose to harass him so. Nor had they allowed him to receive any clues as to where he was or how he'd gotten here.

They were most likely tearing the Falcon apart. Han didn't want to think about that. The idea of parts of his ship laying out on some deck while strangers poked and prodded was just too disturbing.

"Hello," whispered a voice from nowhere in particular.

Han listened intently, uncertain if he'd actually heard something.

"Hello in there," the voice whispered again.

"Who's there?" Han said.

"Name Jam," the voice said. "I'm in the next cell."

Han looked up and saw a small grate near the ceiling. The walls were cold, black metal. Several lights were set in the ceiling, shining brightly down upon him.

"Good to hear it," Han said.

"You'll be here a while," Jam said. "They'll keep you until you admit it to them."

"Admit what?"

"Whatever it is they say you did."

Han shook his head. "I didn't do anything."

"That doesn't really matter to them," the voice said with a chuckle.

-----------------------
Somewhere in a distant system
-----------------------

"Are you sure?" Leia said, concern creeping into her voice. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"I'm certain," Luke said through the communication station's speakers.

His signal had come in a few minutes earlier, and he'd explained that Han hadn't reported in on schedule. While often the case with Solo, while he might be tardy from time to time, he was not irrespondible. Besides, if Luke felt that something was wrong, Leia was quick to believe him. In the year they had know each other, Leia's become steadily impressed with Luke's sharp intuition.

Perhaps what they say about him really is true, and he is strong in the Force.

"I'm tracking his route, seeing if I can determine what happened," Luke said.

"Having any luck?" she asked.

"Not yet," Luke replied. "It may... that I..."

The transmission ended. Leia checked the readings. "Luke?" she said into the communicator. "Luke, can you read me?"

Nothing.

"What happened?" she asked, as the communications officer began working the controls.

"I don't know," he said. "The transmission was cut at the source."

 

* * * * *

Han sighed loudly. "Look, I don't even know what you're talking about," he insisted. "I've never even heard of Taciti Station before yesterday."

"That is what they all say," his interrogator intoned, his face deadpan. His eyes were pale blue, almost clear, and strangely lifeless. "Yet you were the only person in the system when it happened."

Han pushed his chair back angrily and tried to stand up, but two guards immediately flanked him. He glared at them, tugging at his stuncuffs.

The interrogator lazily lifted a hand. "Do not worry. He is not going anywhere."

The guards evaporated.

"Hey, can you teach me that trick?" Han asked sarcastically. "Useful thing to know in a place like this."

The interrogator raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" He tapped his datapad a few times, entering in some information.

Han's temper flared. "Look, what are you saying about me anyway?" He strained to see the datapad, but the interrogator turned it away from him. Han growled and sank back in his chair, staring at the interrogator, whose face remained completely impassive.

For nearly an hour, neither moved. Han clenched his teeth, willing his stiff muscles not to twitch with exhaustion, and prepared himself for another hour of discomfort.

To his surprise, the interrogator started, then seemed to listen to something for a moment. His unsettling eyes moved slowly to fix on Han. "You may go." Each word was clipped and precise, as they all had been, but these were somehow more.

Han grinned insolently. "You're angry, aren't you?" He got up, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet to get the blood flowing again, then leaned his face in close to the interrogator's. "You wanted to string me up, didn't you? Or thread wires through me?" He spit in the other man's face, not caring about the consequences. "Well go ahead! Get it over with!"

The blue eyes fixed on his, and a chill ran down Han's spine. "No."

* * * * *

 

"Leia?!" Luke said one last time before clicking off his communicator.

His X-Wing lurched violently to the right, straining the inertial dampeners and forcing him into the left side of the cockpit. The stars that had been streaming in waves and shades of blue around him had turned red and black. Controls were not responsive.

"R2, see if you can boost the sensors," Luke struggled to say. "Are we still in hyperspace?"

Streams of green text appeared on the readout that translated R2-D2's beeps and whistles. However, the letters and words were gibberish. Whatever had taken hold of his X-Wing had either jumbled the ships systems, or R2.

Suddenly, the ship settled. The red and black around him flashed into the familiar dark sea of stars. Regaining his composure, Luke examined his controls.

"Master Luke, are you all right?" appeared in green on R2's screen.

"Yes, R2, I'm fine," he replied. "Good to see you're still in one piece. Run a diagnostic. Is the ship okay?"

A moment later, the astromech confirmed that the ship's systems were operational. However, the engines had been cut off and he was unable to restart them. Luke tried with little success. He then looked out his cockpit and saw the a blue and green planet rise from behind him.

"Where are we?"

"There is no information on the charts," R2 said. "We are no where."

Luke shook his head, confused. "How is that possible?"

 

"master luke, do you think we should land?"artoo bleeped.

"No, r2 we dont know if this planet is rebel or not--wait a minute, HAN. he's down there artoo, prepare to land.


there was static on the communicater.


"this is the taciti station. Who are you?"

 

Okay, here goes
******************
Leia sighed, frustated that both of her friends had been lost. The only thing that she could think of doing is find a shuddle and go to where Luke had last been located. But she knew that if she did that, she would most likely get lost; she wasn't exactly pilot material.

Sighing again and this time slamming a fist on the console she was working at, she made up her mind: she WOULD go to where Luke had been last located and she WOULD find out what in the Force was going on.
*********************
UP!

 

* * * * *

Luke stared at his comm. "Who are you?" he demanded. "I am Luke Skywalker."

"We are sending--" the voice began haughtily, then broke off. "Luke Skywalker?"

"Yes . . ."

Luke's confusion grew as he heard muffled thuds and frantic whispers coming through the comm. He could only catch fragments of what was being said, but he caught his name several times, and "X-wing." Then, "Hurry up! He's waiting!"

Luke put a hand over the comm. "Artoo, do you have any idea what's going on?"

The little droid bleeped a negative.

Luke sighed. "I was afraid of that." He returned his attention to the squawking voices, who were once again speaking to him.

"Luke Skywalker, er, X-wing. Please--" the voice dissovled into more whipsers, then, "We are transmitting coordinates. Please-" There was a thud, and the comm went dead.

Artoo whistled insistently, and coordinates rollwed across Luke's screen. "Okay, Artoo, go ahead." He stared out the viewport. "I have a feeling Han didn't get the same reception we're getting."

* * * * *

Please excuse the typos-- I'm not on my home computer, so I don't have a spellchecker.

 

Standing over the unconscious communications officer, Baron Leech stared down at his fist. Flexing the fingers, he looked at the man seated next to the comm officer.

"Transmit the coordinates," he growled. "Nothing more. I want Skywalker brought to me immediately when he lands."

The Baron turned and stormed away. The officer looked down at his unconscious peer, crumbled on the deck by his chair. He then turned and quickly transmitted the information to the approaching X-Wing.

-----------------------------------------
Elsewhere on Taciti Station
-----------------------------------------

Han almost yanked his hair out of his head when he saw the Millenium Falcon on the landing platform.

It was surrouned by computer parts, gutted from the Falcon's insides. The engines were in pieces and neatly organized at the ship's aft. The landing platform was lowered. He approached it, stumbling, his mind racing with anger and sorrow at the condition of his beloved vessel.

Inside, the Falcon felt violated. The lights were dim, but showed the damage the search team had done. Computer stations were open and wires disconnected. As he made his way through the ship, he found almost every system had been physically inspected.

Even the holographic game table was opened and gutted.

It's going to take me months to put this thing back together again, Han thought, his eyes tearing slightly.

The question was: Did his investigators discover the contraband he'd been carrying to for the rebel base?

"You shouldn't have come here, Solo," came an unfamiliar voice from behind Han.

 

"I don't care what condition the ship's in," Leia argued with the deck officer. "I'm taking her."

The Princess stormed passed the mustache'd man and approached the battered and bruised cargo ship, known as the Lucky Seven.

"Princess, you are not certified as a pilot, and that ship is very... tricky," the deck officer said.

"I have a mission to run," she said, continuing her fast pace towards the ship, as the man struggled to keep up. "So unless you want to find me another available transport--"

"There are no other available--"

"Then back off and inform flight control that I'm taking off," she barked.

The deck officer stopped, and after a moment turned and ran.

Leia's mind was spinning. Both Han and Luke were missing. The two people who meant the most to her, gone. She could feel her emotions tearing, trying to determine which she'll miss the most, but unable to agree.

Either way, she'd lost so much in this war, she wasn't going to let two more leave her behind. Not without a fight, anyway.

She reached the entry ramp when a familiar voice stopped her. "Princess," it said. "You really shouldn't fly that thing by yourself."

 

Luke folded his arms over his chest as the elevator swiftly rose through the heart of the monolithic building he'd been ushered into. An officer of low rank stood by the door, staring into the crack between the doors, while R2-D2 stood silently beside his master.

The doors parted, revealing a large penthouse office. The officer practically leaped from the elevator and moved away from Skywalker. Artoo ejected his third leg and rolled out, followed by Luke.

The room was bright purple. Thick drapes covered the walls, and a thick shag carpet stretched over the length of the floor. There were no windows. The only illumination was provided by yellow lights shining from the ceiling.

"Welcome to Taciti Station, Luke Skywalker, hero of the Rebellion!" said the Baron, seated behind a large, smooth metal desk painted a darker shade of purple. He tapped a control panel on his desk, stood and walked around to extend his hand to Luke.

"My reputation precedes me," Luke said, as Artoo remained close by.

"What corner of the galaxy has not heard of Luke Skywalker, the man who single handedly destroy the dreaded Death Star," the Baron said with a jovial, over-the-top laugh.

Luke could sense nervousness in the large man. His blue uniform, decorated with a series of bright and colorful medals. "That is interesting, considering I have no idea exactly where I am in the galaxy," he said, shaking the Baron's thick hand.

"Oh, well, we'll get to that in time, Luke, in time," the Baron said.

 

"And you are?" Solo asked, eyeing the stranger as his hand slowly moved towards his blaster. Or, more accurately, his empty holster. Han cursed himself for forgetting that the security forces had taken his weapon and not returned it.

"These people are not to be trusted," the stranger said, taking several steps towards Han.

"But you are?" the smuggler responded, taking a step back. The stranger stopped, and smiled.

"I'm not your adversary, Solo," he said. "In fact, I'm your best hope to getting out of this alive."

"Who are you?" Han demanded.

"Let's just say, I'm a friend," the stranger said. "And I warn you that a fellow rebel has come here looking for you. His naive behavior has allowed him to fall into the clutches of the Baron."

"Luke," Han said, knowing instantly that his friend had come looking for him.

"He is there now," the stranger said.

"Is he safe?"

"For the moment, but I cannot asure you that it will continue that way," the man said.

Footfalls could be heard on the boarding ramp, and Han saw a shadow stretch over the deck.

"Don't trust anyone," the stranger said, then shimmered and vanished. Han stared at the place he had stood in amazement.

The visitor entered the ship and looked at Han. "Do you know when you'll be departing, sir?"

"Excuse me?" Han said.

"Do you have a departure time?"

"You guys tore my ship apart and left me to clean up the mess, what do you think?"

The man looked around, then back at Han. "Well, you can't stay here indefinitely. Please perform whatever repairs you'll need immediately and depart. We have limited space and we need this platform cleared as soon as possible. "

Han was about to argue, but the officer simply turned and exited the Falcon.

 

"I'm presuming there's a point to all of this," Luke said, arms folded over his chest, his temper beginning to flare.

"I only wish for you to consider my proposal," the Baron said.

"To work for you? You can't be serious."

"Oh, but I am," the Baron said, walking around his desk and approaching Luke. "With your talents and my resources, we could easily make a place for ourselves in this galaxy."

"That won't happen with the Empire in control," Luke said.

"The Empire," the Baron said, shaking his head. "An institution that couldn't hope to sustain itself."

"If you really feel that way, why don't you help the rebellion?"

The Baron looked at him for a moment. He smiled. "You don't understand, do you? I would have thought that your Force abilities would have allowed you to sense the truth by now."

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean," Luke said. The Baron was beginning to get his attention.

"Perhaps things would be clearer if you understood exactly where you were," the Baron said with a wide smile.

"I'd appreciate that," Luke said.

"Come with me." The Baron moved towards the door.

 

Luke fell into step beside the large man, Artoo following closely behind, twittering lightly. The Baron led the way into a large, ornate hallway, lined with holo-panels depicting beautiful vistas from all across the galaxy. Luke noticed particular images that he recognized from other recordings of the Cathedral of Winds and the Mon Calamarian coral reefs.
"I like your decorations here."
"Our organization is one that enjoys the simple things. These holos are representative of what we hold of the greatest value in the galaxy."
Luke was now thouroughly perplexed.
"Are you going to tell me what your organization is?"
The Baron gave him an impish smile.
"Your questions will be answered in time."
A door hissed open and Luke followed the man inside.

 

Luke scanned the large, circular room. Cages with transparent barriers filled the walls, and within each was a different species. The cages were fitted with items found in each of their specific environments.

In one cage, a white, furry creature with a single horn protuding from its large head sat in the center, rocking side to side and grunting to itself. In another, a brown, snake-like animal about fifty meters in length moved around the floor, millions of thin legs guiding it along.

One cage, however, was empty.

Luke looked at the empty cage for a moment, considering what could possibly go there, when the realization hit him. His hand moved in a flash to his blaster.

"I wouldn't bother with that, Skywalker," the Baron said. Luke turned to see that three men in uniforms had appeared beside him. Each bore a blaster, ready to strike Luke down long before he could bring his own weaon to bear on them.

"What are you, somekind of zookeeper?" Luke said.

"For my own, personal enjoyment," the Baron said. "This is an important collection, envied by many of my peers. You, however, will make them salivate."

"Me?" Luke said.

"Of course," the Baron said with a laugh. "The last remaining Jedi, son of..." He stopped himself. "Oh, that's right. You wouldn't know that yet."

"How do you know so much about me?" Luke asked.

The Baron motioned for one of the men to take Luke's weapons - including his lightsaber. The others than escorted him into his empty cage. "You poor boy," the Baron said. "So confused. I would take the time to explain things to you, but, I have guests coming and must prepare."

The Baron exited, leaving the three men behind. The door closed. Luke looked at them, seeking some kind of answer, but they simply stared into space. A moment later, each of them vanished.

"Where am I?" Luke wondered.

 

"Either help me with the repairs, or go away," Han said, shaking a hydrospanner at his visitor.

"There is only so much I can do," the stranger said.

"Then shimmer away again, I've got work to do,"
Han replied, turning his attention back to his repairs.

The stranger straightened, cocking his head as if someone was speaking in his ear. "Luke," he said.

Han turned and was on his feet in an instant. "Where?"

"The Baron has him in his display room," the stranger said.

"Display room?" Han said, confused.

The stranger eyed him for a moment. "There is no time to explain, but we need to get him out of there if you are to escape."

"Tell me what to do," the rogue pilot said, as the two walked down the cooridor of the Millenium Falcon and headed for the exit.