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he surveyed the scene below. A dozen or so troopers were moving in and out ofthe freighter. "Getting back to the ship's going to be like flying through the five Fire Rings ofFornax." Leia Organa turned long enough to glance in surprise from the ship to Solo."You came here in that wreck? You're braver than I thought." At once praised and insulted, Solo wasn't sure how to react. He settled forgiving her a dirty look as they started back down the hallway, Chewbacca bringing upthe rear. Rounding a corner, the three humans came to an abrupt halt. So did the twentyImperial troopers marching toward them. Reacting naturally—which is to say,without thinking—Solo drew his pistol and charged the platoon, yelling and howlingin several languages at the top of his lungs. Startled by the totally unexpected assault and wrongly assuming their attackerknew what he was doing, the troopers started to back away. Several wild shots fromthe Corellian's pistol initiated complete panic. Ranks and composure shattered, thetroopers broke and fled down the passage. Drunk with his own prowess, Solo continued the chase, turning to shout back atLuke, "Get to the ship. I'll take care of these!"

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"Where do you think you'regoing?" But Solo had already rounded a far bend in the corridor and didn't hear. Notthat it would have made any difference. Upset at his partner's disappearance, Chewbacca let out a thunderous if unsettledhowl and rushed down the hallway after him. That left Luke and Leia standing alonein the empty corridor. "Maybe I was too hard on your friend," he confessed reluctantly. "He certainlyis courageous." "He certainly is an idiot!" a furious Luke countered tightly. "I don't know whatgood it'll do us if he gets himself killed." Muted alarms suddenly sounded from thebay below and behind them. "That's done it," Luke growled disgustedly. "Let's go." Together they startedoff in search of a way down to a hangar-deck level. Solo continued his rout of all opposition, running at top speed down the longhallway, yelling and brandishing his pistol. Occasionally he got off a shot whoseeffect was more valuable psychologically than tactically. Half the troops had already scattered down various subpassages and corridors.The ten troopers he continued to harry still raced headlong away from him, up againsta dead end, which forced them to turn and confront their opponents. Seeing that the ten had halted, Solo likewise slowed. Gradually he came to acomplete stop. Corellian and Imperials regarded one another silently. Several ofthe troopers were staring, not at Han but past him.

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He was debating what to do when Solo came tearing around a corner and nearlyran him down. Seeing ten troopers in pursuit, the Wookie decided to reserve hisquestion for a less confused moment. He turned and followed Solo back up thehallway. Luke grabbed the Princess and pulled her back into a recess. She was about toretort angrily at his brusqueness when the sound of marching feet caused her to shrinkback into the darkness with him. A squad of soldiers hurried past, responding to the alarms that continued to ringsteadily. Luke looked out at the retreating backs and tried to catch his breath. "Ouronly hope of reaching the ship is from the other side of the hangar. They alreadyknow someone's here." He started back down the corridor, motioning for her tofollow. Two guards appeared at the far end of the passageway, paused, and pointeddirectly at them. Turning, Luke and Leia began running back the way they had come.A larger squad of troopers rounded the far bend and came racing toward them. Blocking ahead and behind, they hunted frantically for another way out. ThenLeia spotted the cramped subhallway and gestured to it. Luke fired at the nearest of their pursuers and joined her in running down thepassage. It looked like a minor service corridor. Behind them, pursuit soundeddeafeningly loud in the confining space. But at least it minimized the amount of firethe troops could concentrate on them.

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A thick hatchway appeared ahead. The lighting beyond turned dimmer, raisingLuke's hopes. If they could lock the hatch even for a few moments and lostthemselves somewhere beyond, they might have a chance of shaking their immediatetormentors. But the hatch stayed open, showing no inclination to close automatically. Lukewas about to let out a shout of triumph when the ground suddenly vanished ahead ofhim. His toes hanging over nothingness, he failed to regain his balance, succeedingjust in time to nearly go over the edge of the retracted catwalk anyway as the Princessplowed into him from behind. The catwalk had been reduced to a stub protruding into empty air. A cool draftcaressed Luke's face as he studied walls that soared to unseen heights overhead andplunged to fathomless depths below. The service shaft was employed in circulatingand recycling the atmosphere of the station. At the moment Luke was too frightened and concerned to be angry with thePrincess for his attention. A burst of energy exploded above their heads, sendingmetal slivers flying. "I think we made a wrong turn," he murmured, firing back at the advancingtroops and illuminating the narrow corridor behind them with destruction. An open hatchway showed on the other side of the chasm. It might as wellhave been a light-year away. Hunting along the rim of the doorway, Leia located aswitch and hit it quickly. The hatch door behind them slid shut with a resoundingboom. At least that cut off the fire from the rapidly nearing soldiers. It also left thetwo fugitives balanced precariously on a small section of catwalk barely a metersquare. If the remaining section were to unexpectedly withdraw into the wall, theywould see more of the battle station's interior than either wished. Gesturing for the Princess to move aside as much as possible, Luke shielded hiseyes and aimed the pistol at the hatch controls. A brief burst of energy melted themflush with the wall, insuring that no one could open it easily from the other side.Then he turned his attention to the vast cavity blocking their path to the oppositeportal. It beckoned invitingly—a small yellow rectangle of freedom.

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Only the soft rush of air from below sounded until Luke commented, "This is ashield-rated door, but it won't hold them back very long." "We've got to get across there somehow," Leia agreed, once more examining themetal bordering the sealed doorway. "Find the controls for extending the bridge." Some desperate searching produced nothing, while an ominous pounding andhissing sounded from behind the frozen door. A small spot of white appeared in thecenter of the metal, then began to spread and smoke. "They're coming through!" Luke groaned. The Princess turned carefully to stare across the gap. "This must be a single-unit bridge, with the controls only on the other side." Reaching up to the point at the panel holding the unreachable controls, Luke'shand caught on something at his waist. A frustrated glance downward revealed thecause—and engendered a bit of practical insanity. The cable coiled tightly in small loops was thin and fragile seeming, but it wasgeneral military-issue line and would have supported Chewbacca's weight easily. Itcertainly ought to hold Leia and himself. Pulling the cable free of the waist catch, hegauged its length, matching it against the width of the abyss. This should span thedistance with plenty to spare. "What now?" the Princess inquired curiously. Luke didn't reply. Instead, he removed a small but heavy power unit from theutility belt of his armor and tied one end of the cable around it. Making sure thewrapping was secure; he stepped as close to the edge of their uncertain perch as hedared. Whirling the weighted end of the cord in increasing circles, he let it arc acrossthe gorge. It stuck an outcropping of cylindrical conduits on the other side and felldownward. With forced patience he pulled the loose line back in, then recoiled it foranother try.