Star Wars - 214 - Jedi Prince 05 - Queen of the Empire by Paul Davids, Hollace Davids Read Free Book Online
Authors: Paul Davids, Hollace Davids
turning on the power thrusters. "We’re going to haul it from here to Tatooine in thirty-three standard time parts, or my name is Zack Kluggerhorn."
"Are you losing your touch, Han?" a familiar sounding female voice said from behind Han’s shoulder. "I should think you could make it there in thirty time parts or less." Han and Lando turned in shock. Who else was inside the spaceship?
"Leia!" they both exclaimed.
"Why are you planning on departing for Tatooine?" Leia asked. "And especially in such a rush?"
Suddenly Han noticed something different about the princess’s eyes and became suspicious.
"Wait a minute," he said, "you’re not Leia!"
"Of course I am," she replied.
"Then what are the four colors of the stones on the wedding ring you bought for me?" he challenged.
"Why should I tell you and spoil the surprise?" she asked.
"Aha!" Han exclaimed. "The real Leia would know it’s not a surprise, because I already saw the ring when we were in the jewelry store. You’re the Project Decoy Human Replica Droid." Suddenly Luke Skywalker popped out from behind the large, horizontal stabilizer at the rear of the cockpit. "I never could fool you, Han," Luke said. Ken poked his head out too, smiling with delight at being able to surprise Han and Lando.
"Fugo fixed the laser unit in the droid’s eyes, Han," Ken said. Luke explained. "When Mon Mothma received an emergency intelligence report that both the Millennium Falcon and the Zorba Express were heading for Hologram Fun World," Luke said,
"we figured we’d better check up on you two. Chewie wanted to come, too, but Mon Mothma decided he should stay behind in case they needed help keeping Triclops under control."
"So you’re here to spy on me and Leia," Han said, frowning in disgust. "Can’t a guy even sneak away on personal business once in a while without everybody in the Alliance finding out about it?"
"Your business on this trip is no longer personal, Han," Luke continued. "You proposed marriage to my sister-the gossip’s all over Fun World. Welcome to the family!"
"Save the congratulations until we get the bride back safely," Han replied. "Leia’s in deep, deep-"
Han’s words, as he continued to fill the others in, were drowned out by the sound of the spaceship’s engines roaring to life. The Millennium Falcon accelerated as fast as its sublight-speed thrusters would permit it to go-and then it made the hyperspace jump and exceeded light speed.
Neither the passengers aboard the Millennium Falcon nor those on the Zorba Express had any way of knowing that at that very moment a large Imperial spaceship was orbiting the planet Tatooine. It was the Moffship, the official space vehicle of the Imperial grand moffs-the Imperial governors of the outer regions of space.
The grand moffs were holding a secret conference-a Mofference. And leading the secret Mofference was razor-toothed Grand Moff Hissa, whose body had been nearly destroyed by a torrential flood of liquid toxic waste back on the planet Duro. Grand Moff Hissa would never forget how High Prophet Jedgar had left him to die in the underground caverns of Duro. A stormtrooper saved Hissa’s life, lifting him out of the bubbling acid slime that had eaten through his body. If the Prophets of the Dark Side were allowed to have their way, Grand Moff Hissa would not have lived to tell the tale; as it was, Hissa survived, although he lost both his arms and his legs. Grand Moff Hissa adjusted his mechanical hover-chair to raise it a few inches above the floor as he presided over the Mofference.
Hissa was outfitted with mechanical arms, which had been taken from an Imperial droid and surgically attached to his shoulders. The liquid toxic waste had eaten away his body all the way up to his hip bone, leaving no stump for attaching any mechanical legs. The feisty and embittered grand moff would now have to spend the rest of his life confined to a hover-chair.
"Any Prophet of the Dark Side who approaches and
"Are you losing your touch, Han?" a familiar sounding female voice said from behind Han’s shoulder. "I should think you could make it there in thirty time parts or less." Han and Lando turned in shock. Who else was inside the spaceship?
"Leia!" they both exclaimed.
"Why are you planning on departing for Tatooine?" Leia asked. "And especially in such a rush?"
Suddenly Han noticed something different about the princess’s eyes and became suspicious.
"Wait a minute," he said, "you’re not Leia!"
"Of course I am," she replied.
"Then what are the four colors of the stones on the wedding ring you bought for me?" he challenged.
"Why should I tell you and spoil the surprise?" she asked.
"Aha!" Han exclaimed. "The real Leia would know it’s not a surprise, because I already saw the ring when we were in the jewelry store. You’re the Project Decoy Human Replica Droid." Suddenly Luke Skywalker popped out from behind the large, horizontal stabilizer at the rear of the cockpit. "I never could fool you, Han," Luke said. Ken poked his head out too, smiling with delight at being able to surprise Han and Lando.
"Fugo fixed the laser unit in the droid’s eyes, Han," Ken said. Luke explained. "When Mon Mothma received an emergency intelligence report that both the Millennium Falcon and the Zorba Express were heading for Hologram Fun World," Luke said,
"we figured we’d better check up on you two. Chewie wanted to come, too, but Mon Mothma decided he should stay behind in case they needed help keeping Triclops under control."
"So you’re here to spy on me and Leia," Han said, frowning in disgust. "Can’t a guy even sneak away on personal business once in a while without everybody in the Alliance finding out about it?"
"Your business on this trip is no longer personal, Han," Luke continued. "You proposed marriage to my sister-the gossip’s all over Fun World. Welcome to the family!"
"Save the congratulations until we get the bride back safely," Han replied. "Leia’s in deep, deep-"
Han’s words, as he continued to fill the others in, were drowned out by the sound of the spaceship’s engines roaring to life. The Millennium Falcon accelerated as fast as its sublight-speed thrusters would permit it to go-and then it made the hyperspace jump and exceeded light speed.
Neither the passengers aboard the Millennium Falcon nor those on the Zorba Express had any way of knowing that at that very moment a large Imperial spaceship was orbiting the planet Tatooine. It was the Moffship, the official space vehicle of the Imperial grand moffs-the Imperial governors of the outer regions of space.
The grand moffs were holding a secret conference-a Mofference. And leading the secret Mofference was razor-toothed Grand Moff Hissa, whose body had been nearly destroyed by a torrential flood of liquid toxic waste back on the planet Duro. Grand Moff Hissa would never forget how High Prophet Jedgar had left him to die in the underground caverns of Duro. A stormtrooper saved Hissa’s life, lifting him out of the bubbling acid slime that had eaten through his body. If the Prophets of the Dark Side were allowed to have their way, Grand Moff Hissa would not have lived to tell the tale; as it was, Hissa survived, although he lost both his arms and his legs. Grand Moff Hissa adjusted his mechanical hover-chair to raise it a few inches above the floor as he presided over the Mofference.
Hissa was outfitted with mechanical arms, which had been taken from an Imperial droid and surgically attached to his shoulders. The liquid toxic waste had eaten away his body all the way up to his hip bone, leaving no stump for attaching any mechanical legs. The feisty and embittered grand moff would now have to spend the rest of his life confined to a hover-chair.
"Any Prophet of the Dark Side who approaches and
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