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By Root 620 0

pronouncements and long periods of distraction marked by a faraway gaze and an aversion to company. But of all the prisoners in the hold, Enara was the only one to step beyond her own fears and needs to befriend him. She had been the first to speak to him when he had first arrived, and hers had been the only compassionate face he had seen when he awoke in agony after the beating at the hands of Nil Spaar.

But the tenuous promise of a rescue was not enough to keep Han from dozing. Pain quickly exhausted him, and his bruised organs, his torn and battered muscles, assailed him relentlessly when he was conscious. Sleep was his only relief.

“The fighting is close now,” Enara said during one of Han’s wakeful moments. “If you need to walk—”

“If those doors open, I can get to them. But I still don’t hear anything.”

“Soon,” she said.

He saw that her face was pale, and he felt her hands trembling, the skin that was usually soothingly cool now hot against his. “Enara—what’s wrong?”

“I cannot keep them apart. So many dying—your way is so hard, so much chaos,” Enara whispered.

“Are you some kind of empath?”

“It is not hard to feel death,” she said. “They are coming. They are almost here.”

It was at that moment that Han began to believe that something truly was happening aboard the starship. He struggled to a seated position just as Enara pitched forward, whimpering loudly, her palms pressed to her forehead, her tousled hair hiding her face.

Moments later, there were noises from beyond the doors—cries, blaster fire, thumps against the bulkhead, and a grating, unnerving sound that Han was certain he knew but which his pain-drugged mind could not identify. Then the small hatch inset into the large loading doors was flung open, and a towering Wookiee frame filled the opening.

“Chewie!”

With a piteous wail, Chewbacca rushed across the deck and scooped Han up into his arms. Throwing back his head and roaring delight, he spun Han in circles—a dance of joy.

“Ow—not so rough. What kept you?” Han answered gleefully. “Where’s my ship?”

Then Han yelped as Chewbacca juggled him in an effort to reach his comlink. After barking into the device, Chewbacca slung Han over his shoulder and started back toward the hatch, now guarded by another giant.

“Wait—wait—the others—wait, Chewbacca, the others. We have to take them, too—Enara, Taratan, Noloth—stop, you thick-headed furball,” Han bellowed. “Put me down, I’m not dead yet. Enara!”

As Chewbacca reluctantly complied, Han saw that Enara was still seated where she had been, though no longer doubled over. “Come on,” he called to her. “There’s room for you, too, isn’t there, Chewie? How many of them can we get—”

His words trailed off as he looked around the hold. None of the other prisoners had reacted at all to what was happening—they were scattered in their usual haunts and gatherings, sleeping, talking, sucking water from the drip-pipes.

“What’s happening?” he asked, taking two unsteady steps toward Enara. “Come on—our reservation here’s expired.”

“I cannot go,” Enara said. “Go, please—I am at my limit.”

“I don’t understand.”

Enara shook her head sharply. When she did, the rest of the prisoners vanished, leaving only Enara, Han, and Chewbacca. Chewbacca whined unhappily and tightened his grip on his blaster.

“Now you are inside,” she said, “seeing as I do.”

“Where are the others?”

“They were never here,” she said. “They escaped at the transfer camp and were picked up by Star Morning. They are elsewhere now, safe. You can go.”

Chewbacca whined again and tugged at Han’s shoulder.

“That was—they were an illusion?” Han said, ignoring Chewbacca’s urgings. “You were covering their escape? Never mind, it doesn’t matter—you can leave now, too. There’s no one here to protect.”

“I must stay,” she said softly. “Denied his prizes, Nil Spaar would try to replace them. Denied the security of their protection, he would seek security through the death of his enemies. Go, Han—I am not a prisoner here. I have chosen this freely. Go now.”

Turning away from them, Enara lowered her chin to her collarbone.