Han Solo - Rebal Dawn Part 9

"Yeah, dammit, jump!" Han made a course adjust-ment. "I can be there in eight minutes. I want you blasting away from Rimrunner at full throttle on the fol-lowing coordinates..." He glanced at his navicomputer and gave her a string of numbers. "Copy that?" "But Rimrunner..." was the faint reply.

"Blast Rimrunner!" ttan shouted. "It~ a s.h.i.+p, you can get another! Now do it, Salla! This is gonna be hard enough without you arguing! You've got three minutes to get into that suit! Go!"

He keyed his intercom to Jarikk s.p.a.cesuit frequency. "Jar/k, you standing by with the magnetic grapple and the winch?"

"Affirmative, Hah," Jar/k said. "Just warn me when I can make visual contact. Itk hard to see in this hehnet."

"I'll tell ya, kid," Hah said tersely. "Here% your coor-dinates for the grapple." He repeated them. "Timink gonna be critical here, so don't be slow about it. Any drift, and we'll graze the edge of the magnetic field and then we're in the same fix as Rimrunner. Basically, we've got one chance to get in and get out safely. Got that?" "I copy, Hah," Jarik said, tensely.

As Han piloted his s.h.i.+p toward the rescue coordi-nates, he worried that Salla% thrust paks wouldn't be strong enough to propel her far enough away from her doomed vessel. He didn't want to risk cras.h.i.+ng into Rimrunner. The Falcon was a freighter, not designed for tight, pinpoint maneuvering of this sort. True, Han could make his s.h.i.+p practically stand on her head, but picking up a tiny s.p.a.cesuited human while trying to stay out of the particle jet~ magnetic field was risky enough, without worrying about having Rimrunner slamming into them.

Hah carefully checked and rechecked his course. He had to do this precisely, on the first try. He had to get her before she got within range of that deadly plasma. He had a brief, hideous vision of what it would be like to bring a radiation-seared corpse aboard, and made himself concentrate on his piloting. This maneuver was probably the trickiest piece of piloting he'd ever tried ....

Minutes later, Han, sweating, began entering the course corrections that would bring them to the intersec-tion point. He slowed his s.h.i.+p... slowed her again... then again, He didn't dare come to a dead halt, for fear that he'd drift into the magnetic field ....

He kept his eyes riveted on his sensors. Rimrunner was only about fifty kilometers away, now, growing on his screens. "Jarik, I have visual contact with Rimrun-ner. Stand by."

"I read you, Hah. Standing by."

Had Salla ejected ill time? Han tried calling her. No answer, but there was a good chance that her suit com-link wouldn't be strong enough to reach him through the interference.

The doomed freighter grew on his screens, in his viewport. Hah slowed still further, hardly daring to blink. Where is she? Did she have the courage to jump?

Salla didn't lack for courage, Han knew that. But jumping into s.p.a.ce, with nothing between you and some very hard vacuum was a scary proposition. Han bit his lip, picturing her pus.h.i.+ng herself away from Rimrunner's airlock and triggering that first thrust pak. Although he'd spent time in s.p.a.cesuits himself, he didn't like it, hanging there, with nothing between you and in-finity in all directions. And he'd certainly never had to try and cross kilometers of s.p.a.ce in nothing but a s.p.a.ce-suit. The Corellian wasn't sure he'd have the courage to do what he'd demanded of Salla ....

Before she became a smuggler, Salla had spent time as a technician on a corporate transport. He hoped she hadn't lost her s.p.a.cesuit skills.

Han watched the schematic on his navigation boards. There was the neutron star, with Rimrunner~ projected downward-spiraling orbit marked out. Salla~ s.h.i.+p had reached apastron. The blip that was the Falcon was closing rapidly. Thirty klicks ....

And there, marked in virulent green, was the deadly plume of the plasma, haloed with the magnetic field in violet.

Han swallowed. So close...

He was closing on twenty klicks, now. He looked up, and through the viewport made out Rimrunners mynock shape.

Where is she? he wondered, checking the schematic again. Where is- "Got her!" Han suddenly yelled. "Jarik, I see her blip! No visual yet, but stay sharp!" He made a few mi-nor course changes so he'd exactly match Salla~ trajec-tory. She was moving toward him at a pretty good clip, fast enough to stay in a straight line, not fast enough to risk losing control and going into a spin. Hah admired her suit expertise.

"Ready, Han," the youth said, then muttered some-thing under his breath... a prayer? Han was too busy to inquire.

Hah turned on his s.h.i.+p~ intercom, "Chewie, you standing by with that med-pak?"

"Hrnnnnnnggggghhh!"

As Hah watched her blip, he kept glancing up at the port, and suddenly- "I got her! Visual contact! Jarik... fire magnetic grap-ple on my order..."

Han counted seconds in his head. Three... two... one...

"Fire!"

A tense second...

"I got her! Activating winch!"

"Chewie, can you hear her?"

Chewbacca roared. No, he couldn't hear her, but he'd let Han know the moment he could. "Jarik, Jarik, is she okay?"

"She's waving, Han!" A moment later, the kid said, "Okay, Han, she's inside! Closing the airlock!"

Chewbacca's roar came over the intercom a moment later. "Right!" Hah said. "We are getting outta here!"

Hah 'altered course and increased speed, pulling out of the neutron star's gravity well. Checking the schematic, he saw that Rimrunner was just pa.s.sing through the plasma jet and accelerating in its...o...b..t.

That was close/ "How is she?" Han said over the intercom. "Talk to me, guys?

A moment later he heard Salla's voice, hoa.r.s.e but recognizable. "I'm okay, Han. Just a cut on my head. Chewie's fixing me up."

"Jarik, c'mon up here and take the controls," Hah said. "I want to see Salla. Chewie, don't forget to check her for radiation exposure .... "

"Arrrmnnnnnnnnghhhh!" came the exasperated roar.

"That's goodff "Han," Jarik said, "she's coming up. Stay where you are.

A minute later, the three joined Han in the c.o.c.kpit. The Corellian slipped out of the pilot's seat, and Chewie and Jarik took over the pilot~ and copilot~ seats. Salla sat down in the pa.s.senger seat, scowling. There was a bandage on her forehead, half-covered by her wiry mop of black hair. Hah bent over her solicitously. "Hey... honey..."

She pulled away from him, and for a second he thought she was going to swing at him. Her eyes flashed with anger at the universe in general. Taking the hint, Han stepped back. "Hah... that blip..." She pointed. "Is that Rimrunner?"

Han turned and looked at the schematic, then the viewport. Rimrunner was still in the plasma jet, visible only as an orange glow. "Yeah," he said. "She's really picking up speed .... "

Silence reigned in the c.o.c.kpit as the four watched the blip that was Salla's pride and joy speeding through the last of the plasma, accelerating faster and faster, heading for the accretion disk as the neutron star~ gravity pulled the freighter into an ever tighter, closer orbit.

Minutes later, a tiny flare blossomed for a second on the edge of the accretion disk. Salla stood up. "Well, that~ that," she said, flatly. "If you gentles will excuse me, I need to use the 'fresher."

Han stood aside as Salla walked back into the Fal-con's interior. He thought about how he'd feel if it was his s.h.i.+p that had just bought it, and could understand the pent-up anger that she was barely controlling.

Minutes later, he heard m.u.f.fled thuds and cries com-ing from the s.h.i.+p's small lounge area. Hah glanced at his friends. "I'll check it out."

When he arrived back in the lounge, he found Salla standing with her back to the hologram game board, beating her fists against the Falcon's bulkheads and cursing a blue streak.

"Salla..." he said.

She whirled to face him, amber eyes blazing. "Han, why didn't you just let me die?"

For a second he thought she was going to punch him, and got ready to duck. But she restrained herself with a visible effort. "Why, Han?"

"Satla, you know I couldn't do that," he said, holding up his hands placatingly.

She stamped around the Falcon's lounge, obviously on the verge of going nova. "I can't believe I tried that microjump! I can't believe the Rimrunner is gone! How could I have been so stupid?"

"We'd raced before, Salla," Han said. "This time was just... bad luck."

She slammed a fist into a bulkhead, cursed again, then stood cradling her abused hand. "That s.h.i.+p was my life! My living! And now, just... gone!" She snapped her unbruised fingers.

"I know," Han said. "I know."

"What am I going to do now? I can't earn a living. I worked so hard to get that s.h.i.+p!"

"You can ride with me and Chewie," Han said. "We can always use extra crew. You're a hot pilot, S~la. You'll find work. Good pilots are always in demand."

"Ride with you?" she scowled. "I don't need charity from you or anyone, Hah."

"Hey!" he said, in injured tones, "I am not in the charity business, Salla, you know me! It's just that . . . hey... I need the help."

She stared at him. "You... need... me?"

Han shrugged. "Well... sure. I couldn't do without you, honey. I don't risk myself~or my s.h.i.+p-for just anybody, you know."

"That's true," she muttered, staring at him intently. Hah wondered what was going through her mind, but decided it wasn't a good time to ask. Cautiously, he moved toward her, wondering if she'd push him away again, but she didn't.

He wrapped his arms around her, pulled her wiry form against him, kissed her cheek. "I know how you must be feelin', Salla. I lost a s.h.i.+p not too long ago, too, remember."

"I remember," she whispered. "Hey, Hah... I forgot to thank you."

"For what?"

"Saving my life, what else?"

He chuckled. "You've saved my hide a time or two in tight spots, Salla, don't forget. Remember that time the Nessies tried to pull a fast one on us? If it hadn't been for you spottin' those bogus datacards, I'd have lost a bundle."

She began to shudder violently. Her teeth chattered. "D-don't buh-beee n-nice ttto mmmeeee, Hhhan," she managed, s.h.i.+vering. "Wh-what's h-happening?"

He stroked her hair. "Adrenaline letdown, Salla. Hap-pens 'all the time after battles. You get the shakes, and you feel stupid, because by the time it happens, you're safe."

She managed a nod. "I'm ss-such a ff-fool."

"But you're a live fool," Han reminded her. "That's the best kind."

Salla laughed shakily.

alla Zend was very quiet over the next week-so quiet that Han worried about her. He'd never seen her the way she was now. She refused offers to ac-company Hah and Chewbacca on a couple of Runs, even though Hah wasn't kidding when he said he needed her help. Jarik had recently found a girlfriend in the Corellian section of Nar Shaddaa, and was spending u all available time with her. The kid had also hired on with Shug because the master mechanic was upgrading the hyperdrives on many of the Desilijic smuggling ves-sels. It was a big job, and Shug needed all the help he could get.

Salla began hanging out at Shug~ s.p.a.cebarn every day, working on the hyperdrive upgrades, too. But when Han returned home from a run, she was always there to greet him, smiling, with an affectionate kiss. Her behavior toward him was... different... somehow. She had a way of looking at Han as though she were some-how... evaluating... him. It made the Corellian uneasy.

The most unnerving thing of all was that Salla asked him to teach her to cook. Having been raised by Dewlanna, Hah was a fair cook, though he didn't bother preparing meals just for himself. But, since he and Salla were together almost every night, Han had fallen into the habit of fixing a meal for them.

Suddenly, out of the blue, Salla wanted him to teach her. For some reason Han had a bad feeling about that. He couldn't say why that worried him-after all, it wasn't a big deal, learning to cook, right?--but it did.

He began with easy things... breakfast, stews, soups, then graduated to menus such as boiled traladon steaks with tubers on the side, imush-roots chopped and sauteed with hot sauce, Wookiee fiat-biscuits with forest-honey glaze.

Salla paid strict attention and approached cooking with all the seriousness she'd have given to tearing down and rebuilding a faulty motivator matrix. She was so earnest about it that Han grew more and more troubled.

He considered asking her what was going on, but he didn't want to pry. Salla had just lost her s.h.i.+p. That was reason enough for some eccentric behavior, he told himself.

One night, when she'd served the first meal she'd cooked all by herself, Han finished the last bites of slightly scorched ladnek tail and somewhat rubbery marsh-root souffit, and smiled at her. "This was tasty, Salla. You'll be a gourmet cook in no time!" "Really?" she looked pleased. "Sure," he lied. Truth was, she had a long way to go.

"Han... there's something I've been meaning to tell you," she said. "Something really important."

Uh, oh. Here we go, he thought, with a feeling of dread. "What's that?" he asked.

"Well, I've been making some plans. It won't cost nearly what I thought, especially the hall, and I have a little bit saved. With what you've still got from the big sabacc game, we can do it. IYe talked to a caterer, and---" "Salla, what are you talkin' about?" Hah broke in, completely confused.

"Our wedding," she said. "I've been thinking about it, how you said you need me, and you're right. We need each other. It's time to go 'ahead and have a real life together, Han. Like Roa and Lwyll. Remember what a nice wedding they had? We can have something just as nice. I think we owe it to ourselves. All our friends can come."

Han stared at her, too dumbfounded to speak. His first impulse was to shout, "Have you gone crazy?" but he counted to ten. Maybe Salla needed medical atten-tion. She had suffered a blow to her head. Concerned, he finally managed, "Uh, Salla, I don't think that's in the cards right now."

She chuckled. "I knew you'd say that, Han. Men! They never want to admit how they feel. Don't you re-member tellin' me that you kind of envied Roa and Chewie, having a real family?"

Hah remembered saying something along that line, but he certainly hadn't meant for it to be interpreted like this. He shook his head. "Salla, honey, I think we'd better discuss this. You haven't told anyone about this, have you? Or actually made any concrete plans?" "Well . . . just a few people," she said. "Shug, and Mako and Lando, and Jarik. And I put a reservation fee on the hall."

Mako! Hah groaned inwardly. His old friend from his Academy days would be having a wonderful time spreading this all over Nar Shaddaa. Jarik, why didn't you warn me? he wondered, then he realized that the kid was so head-over-heels for that cute little thing he'd been seeing that he probably hadn't even really listened to Salla.

"Salla," he said, "this isn't like you. We've never made any promises, any commitments. I mean, some-day, maybe... but..."

She was smiling at him again-that smile that made him feel like a traladon on its way into the slaughter-house. An all-knowing smile that said she wasn't really listening. Desperate to communicate without really hurting her with the truth, Han reached out and took her hand across the table. "Salla, honey... we've never even said the word 'love' before. Are you tellin' me that you love me enough to spend the rest of your life with me?"

Her amber eyes s.h.i.+fted, just slightly, then she nod-ded. "I know what I want, Han. You and me together, and an end to risking our lives hauling spice. We'll be like Roa and Lwyll, and go off together to make a new life. An honest life. Maybe we'll have kids someday."

"But do you love me?" he asked, holding her eyes with his own.

"Sure," she said. "Of course I do, Han. You know that."

No, I don't think I do, he thought, cynically. He hadn't missed that slight s.h.i.+ft of her eyes. He knew Salla was fond of him, cared for him, and had pa.s.sion for him. But love?

"Anyway, you'll see, this is the right decision, Han. We're going to be really happy, and this will be the best wedding ever. We'll have a great party 'afterward."

Han didn't miss the fact that she hadn't asked him whether he loved her. She doesn't want to know the an-swer, he realized.

For a moment it was on the tip of his tongue to say, u "Salla, I don't love you, and I don't want to marry you." But somehow he couldn't quite get the words out. He didn't want to break up with her, and that would cer-tainly do it.

Han silently resolved to talk to Chewie, and maybe Lando about this, since Salla had 'already shot her mouth off. Maybe one of them would have some idea how to tell her "no" about the marriage, without losing her.

Hah didn't want to lose Salla, but he sure wasn't get-ting married. Especially now, when he was on top of the smuggling heap, with the speedy Falcon as his very own! He had places to go, business to do, cargoes to haul, and there was fun to be had fun that would be totally ruined if he was married. As far as the Corellian was concerned, getting married was tantamount to some unending Imp work detail. Han would hardly have been less dismayed to find himself sentenced to the spice mines of Kessel.

The next day he cornered Chewie in their apart-ment, and, while ZeeZee trundled back and forth, pick-ing up things and putting them down again in the exact same spot, told him the whole story. His friend growled and moaned, shaking his head. "Whaddaya mean the way S'alla's actin' reminds you of Wynni?" Han de-manded. "Wynni can't keep her paws off you, tries to seduce you every time we run into her. Salla ain't like that. She just wants to get married."

Chewbacca amplified on his previous statement. Salla reminded him of Wynni because she wasn't asking whether Han wanted her, she was just a.s.suming that he did, and doing what she wanted. Marriage, the Wookiee pointed out, had to be something where both partners had an equal voice. Sometimes one partner might ac-cede to the wishes of the other, but n.o.body should just a.s.sume they knew what was best and start making deci-sions for a couple.

Han's brow furrowed. "Year, I see what you mean," he muttered. "Salla ain't askin', she's just takin' it for granted that we're gettin' married." He shook his head sadly. "Today she's out shoppin' for an outfit. She says 'cause I'm Corellian, she wants a traditional Corellian wedding. That means a green dress."