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INTRODUCTION

Luke Skywalker being so clearly the hero of "Star Wars", have we ever stopped to consider how important Han Solo actually was, too? Not only was this braggart, reckless adventurer and apparently unprincipled scoundrel - who inside was so brave and loyal - destined to be the man in Princess Leia's life, her fate, her mate. He was also the one appointed to save Luke's life.

How would Luke have survived without Han? Would he even have survived? How about in the Death Star's trench, when only the "Falcon", piloted by that daredevil, turned the tables on Darth Vader, a Darth Vader Luke never suspected on his tail? Here, in this one split-off alternate reality I have called #357, a Hanless Star Wars where Luke, Leia, the droids, and Obi-Wan Kenobi arrived safely on Yavin's moon after Leia's rescue, then found that Alderaan had been destroyed by the Death Star, here there was nothing left of Han. Han went on his way with Chewbacca, trading and smuggling and wheeling and dealing - and, oh yes, he did pay Jabba back, eventually. Here Luke was alone; facing Leia, and facing Death.

Or was he?

PICTURE #7

The Yavin Base was in an uproar. The news of Alderaan's destruction had just come in, with a shell-shocked pilot on an X-Wing scout ship.

"How is such a thing possible?" Luke faced Obi-Wan Kenobi uncomprehendingly. "It would need more firepower than half the starfleet firing at the same time!"

"Unfortunately not, Luke," sighed Ben. "The ray they employ is not a laser. For generations there have been speculations about a so-called 'planet buster'. Well - they have it now..."

"Where's the Princess?" Luke realized that she was nowhere in sight.

"She must want to be alone, with her shock and sorrow..." murmured Obi-Wan, slightly guiltily.

"No, that's wrong!" Luke couldn't imagine letting her cope with such a terrible loss without trying to help. "I'm going to look her up!"

Which was easier said than done, as she was now in the quarters assigned her by the Base's Command, with Threepio standing guard before the doors, with strict instructions against letting anyone in.

"Threepio, it's me!" Luke was exasperated. "Tell her that I must see her! That she must let me in!"

But C-3P0 kept repeating: "Master Luke, I cannot! Her Highness has given express orders..."

The doors slid open and Leia stood in the entrance. Pale and wan, with dark circles under her eyes, her white draperies flagging, she looked rather like a ghost.

"How am I supposed to sleep when you're making such a racket? Threepio, I've told you..." She saw Luke, then, standing silent now, they looked at each other.

She moved into his arms, her head on his shoulder. She started crying softly, then harder. Luke guided her carefully inside the room and tried to help her lie down on the bed-seater. But she held on to him with all her strength, crying even harder.

"I never cry! I shouldn't have the time..." she sobbed.

Luke held her, stroked her hair, and gestured to Threepio for some water. That worthy went to the side-shelf, poured a glass from the chiller carafe. When Leia's sobbing ceased, he held it to her lips. She drew Luke down, to sit beside her on the seat.

"Thank you. Seems I'm not making it alone, this time..." She fumbled for the cloth Threepio handed her.

"You won't have to. I'll never leave you - I promise!" Luke wiped her face and eyes carefully with the cloth, and she held still. "Try to sleep now. I'll stay with you."

"Thank you," she said again. Lying down, she never let his hand go. Threepio covered her with a soft, fleecy blanket.

Luke sat by her as she fell asleep, his heart pounding. A mixture of emotions was battling inside him. She was a Princess! High-born, a Senator in her own right, and the most beautiful woman he had ever seen... He was a simple farmer, an apprentice pilot... but she wanted him by her side, she needed him.

He knew this one thing: he was hers unconditionally, hers to command. Forever.

PICTURE #8

Ben Kenobi sat alone in the small room he contended himself with on Yavin Base. This was his meditation time, but today he wasn't meditating.

"I am not clear about what I am accused of," he said to the air.

"Of stupidity - of bungling. Of again bungling, in a manner unforgivable," said Yoda's voice, scathingly, from over his head. "No Power in the Universe there remains, who doesn't know that the master of all bunglers are you!"

"How could I have foreseen that they would become attracted to each other? More to the point, how could I have prevented it?"

"By letting Destiny take its course. By in the nature of Time not interfering."

"I did no such thing!"

"Matters different should have been. From time before time, foreseeing was that she should meet the One for her made. Then love him and marry him she would have. "And now, for your hiring another for his ship, another who old and unattractive to her is, her eyes turned have to the one they never should: her brother!"

"And I still can't tell them, not now..." mumbled Ben, as if to himself. "Not before the battle, when Luke needs all his attention..."

"Impaired our Hope have you, before he could become a weapon, even. If that not stupidity is, then a Skynthian black Bantha am I!"

"They'll do what they have to, regardless. They are of good stock."

"Their spirit of the Force is - but their bodies human are. And to let their DNA weaken is something Humans must not do! Luke Skywalker not only our Hope is, but the first of the Jedi reborn! Any offspring of his, genetically as strong as he must be! To marry his sister all following generations would fatally flaw!"

"They're not getting married! They haven't even told each other... and, anyway, they are going to be too busy for the coming months to be able to think of anything but the war. If they survive, that is."

Now Ben was somber.

Yoda was silent, then. Rueful but not guilty;for he knew that he was right. But even he did not know what should be done. Except for chastising Obi-Wan.

PICTURE #9

Luke was in the large hangar, with his friends, Wedge and Biggs.

Wedge Antilles he'd met on Yavin Base, and had soon learned to appreciate his courage and resourcefulness; but Biggs Darklighter was his childhood friend, from Tatooine, and they'd both been extremely surprised and happy to have been reunited on the Rebel Base. They were going over the fighters, together with their droid-mechanics.

Biggs took Luke aside.

"You know, Luke, I've got a bad feeling about this. Any moment now, the Empire's going to find us. I bet they're tracking us, right this minute."

"So?" Luke looked at him, surprised. "That's the idea, isn't it? To get into the trenches of the Death Star and bomb it from the exhaust port?" They'd all had an extensive briefing, based on the blueprints Artoo had carried, soon after their arrival on Yavin's moon.

"Yeah... but not everybody's going to make it, you know. I've... had a funny kind of dream, only it wasn't. A dream, I mean. It was a vision."

Luke looked at him, openmouthed. This was Biggs talking! His sensible, older friend, the practical one, the leader.

"What kind of a vision?"

"What I'm trying to tell you is that I may not make it. And that there may even be a chance that my death would be meaningless... just one of the casualties. And that would be the worst. So, look out for some special action. That's all."

Luke was terribly upset.

"What kind of talk is that! Of course you'll make it! We'll both make it - remember Tatooine? The sticky times we had? We made it all right."

But Biggs just shook his head.

PICTURE #10

Vic was in Yavin Base's largest hangar preparing to leave, his reward securely stashed aboard the "Asteroid Queen". Ben Kenobi and Princess Leia had come to see him off.

"Isn't Luke here, to say goodbye?" Leia asked him.

"We said goodbye this morning. He's with the pilots. That boy's going to be a great fighter!"

Leia smiled.

"I know. He may be new to it, still, but he's extraordinary! In every way..." She sighed, her eyes looking into the distance.

Vic observed her shrewdly.

"Careful, girl. Now is not the moment to fall in love - and this boy's not the one!"

She was stung. "I'm not falling in love! And it's none of your concern, anyway!"

"None of my business, you mean. But I am concerned," said Vic, ignoring Ben Kenobi's slight head shake. "Sorry, Cap'n, but this must be said. I can't imagine why you haven't told them, yourself!"

Before Leia could ask them what was going on, however, the com-system over their heads spoke into the hangar.

"Attention, all hands. Pilots report to your commanders; technicians, to your posts; officers meet in the war-room, immediately. The Death Star has entered the Yavin System."

After four tendays of hoping the Empire wouldn't be able to find them, even while preparing for its attack, the Empire had.

Leia and Obi-Wan rushed off to the meeting, while Vic gave vent to a mighty curse. To leave at this juncture was more than dangerous. Why had he waited until now? Idiot...

PICTURE #11

As he ran into the hangar, to board his fighter, Luke found Princess Leia in his way.

"Good luck." Her star eyes looked into his.

Luke held her and knew: he must come back; because she needed him, but mostly because he needed her: this steely warrior princess - this frail young girl.

She kissed his cheek, and Ben Kenobi, who'd come up to Luke's ship, stood there with downcast eyes;but not in embarrassment.

As they boarded their fighters, Luke knew that Wedge and Biggs were in his squadron, and that there was nobody he could count on more in a pinch than on his two friends. He hoped that Biggs had gotten over his strange depression.

Luke had had extensive training during the four tendays he'd spent on Yavin Base. Not only as a pilot, by the Rebellion's aces, but as a Jedi, by Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Remember, Luke, trust in the Force!" There he was, Ben, standing next to his X-Wing, as it was being fitted out with the astromech Luke had requested Artoo Detoo.

"I'll remember!"

They all boarded their crafts, taxied outside, took off.

PICTURE #12

Luke remembered, all right. The battle was going badly, very badly. Luke had no time to even grieve for each of the casualties.

His turn to use the Force had come. Most of the other fighters were gone, Red Leader had self-destructed. Luke had taken his place, and was now in the Death Star's trench.

Luke had understood that to get his proton torpedoes into the exhaust port he'd have to forgo his computer and use the Force. He could even imagine he heard Ben's voice in his head, telling him so. But the trouble was a trio of TIE fighters that had come out of the Death Star and were following him and his two companion fighters - Wedge and Biggs - with sinister accuracy.

All of this was going on at breakneck speed, the speed of fighter ships in space, Luke and Biggs and Wedge barreling along the trench; the three TIE's following in hot pursuit. Wedge took a hit and Luke told him, urgently, to get out, back, away; Wedge did, with a heartfelt "Sorry!"

And now the leader of the TIE's was centering his cannon on Luke's X-Wing. Luke took no notice, pre-occupied with getting there to deliver his torpedoes - he was in the home stretch - but Biggs saw, bitterly, that Luke was almost gone.

He braked suddenly, and his X-Wing went out of control, impacting on one of the TIE's that was rushing at them, which hit the next one, which hit the leader, in a domino effect. The first TIE exploded, together with Biggs, in a spectacular display. The second TIE hit the leader a glancing blow that sent them both high over the Death Star, out into free space.

Luke was at the exhaust port, now. He pushed the lever down and the torpedoes went free - and into the port.

He climbed then, climbed and fled. High over the Death Star, far over Yavin's moon. Speedily and desperately and with one thought only: to get away, as far and as fast as possible from the holocaust due to happen - now.

When it did, when the sky was illuminated, when the Death Star became candent dust, Luke turned his mind's eyes inside himself. Grief for Biggs, overwhelming and terrible, filled him - together with a puzzlement that would never go away again.

For, every time he'd think of the Death Star battle, he would distinctly remember hearing, inside his head, Biggs's voice telling him to let go the torpedoes, now.

It had been only fractions of time-units after Biggs's X-Wing had blown up; but, by then, it was certain that Biggs was already dead.