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Luke tapped his pocket, the lump of the dummy explosive device still in the same place it had been all the other times he had checked on their way to Jabba’s palace.
He wouldn’t have recognized Lando if he hadn’t already seen his disguise, lumpy clothes hiding his silhouette and the mask covering enough of his face that he could have been anyone when Luke spoke into the translator inside his own helmet.
For all the practice he had had in keeping his tone smooth and clear, he was still thankful for the fact that no one would be able to hear the strain in his voice, his throat tight and his heartbeat hammering in his ears.
He took a deep breath when C-3PO finished translating Jabba’s response back to him, holding his arm as steady as he could as he pressed the button on the device and took it out of his pocket.
It had the intended reaction, gasps and shouts and the crowd backing away from him, and Jabba laughed.
Luke lowered the device.
Even through the helmet, he could feel the difference in the air, the stinging dryness replaced with a suspiciously damp, musty smell that set off the instinct to bolt.
The eye coverings didn't make it easy to see through the thicker darkness than aboveground, but it was enough to make out the white splotch of the same shirt Han had been wearing a year before.
He almost slipped on a wet spot on the floor in his rush to get over to Han, barely noticing the spark of pain from his knees hitting the ground when he dropped down a little too fast.
“Chewie--”
“It’s me,” Luke said, gingerly lifting Han to sit upright. “We’re getting you out.”
“Who,” Han stammered, shaking so much that it started to shake Luke too. “Who are you--”
“Oh,” Luke whispered to himself, holding one arm around Han’s waist to keep him up while he moved his free hand up to pull off the helmet. “Someone who loves you.”
“Luke,” Han gasped, his eyes unseeing and blank, his hand trembling as he lifted it to Luke's cheek. “How did--where are we?”
“Jabba’s palace,” Luke said, and he wished he could have answered with anything but that. “Lando’s here too, we’re going to get you out.”
“Leia--”
“She’s not here right now,” Luke said. “She just had to--”
It felt like his blood went cold when was cut off by the same laugh he had heard before with his hand on the button of an empty threat.
Han’s hand slipped from Luke's face to grab helplessly at the front of his shirt, slumping against Luke's chest.
“Jabba.”
“I'm sorry,” Luke whispered. “Leia’s coming for us.”
Obi-Wan’s hut was coated with a thick layer of sandy dust, surprisingly untouched for anywhere that had been left unsupervised for so long on a planet with so many scavengers.
The quiet felt heavier without C-3PO anxiously chattering at her, the stifling heat a little harder to ignore, not helped at all by the starchy black of the only fabric she had had available other than old fatigues.
Even without any evidence of anyone else coming to the hut since she had left with Obi-Wan all that time ago, she wasn’t about to stay in one place any longer than she had to.
Without a lot of options, she draped the thick cape over her shoulder and headed out towards one of the caves on the way to Jabba’s palace.
Putting her lightsaber together didn't take long; with all the pieces finally together, everything fell into place just as smoothly as when she had practiced on Dagobah, her hands moving over the metal as easy as breathing.
She didn't give herself time to savor the feeling of the kyber crystal in her palm, warm and faintly thrumming against her skin before she clicked it into place and shut the hatch on the handle.
She could still feel that faint thrum even in her right hand when she pressed the button on the side, squinting against the bright, glowing green shooting out in front of her before she pressed it again, hooking it to a clip at her waist.
The comforting weight of it at her hip felt almost like when she had first woken up in the hospital a year before, a missing piece of herself finally replaced, and there was a steadiness to her step as she walked back out of the cave that she hadn't felt since her first lightsaber had fallen away with her hand.
She checked her com one last time in the hopeless hope that she had somehow missed a call, but with the screen still blank, she walked back out into the glaring light of the suns.
Luke had to fight back the feeling of being somewhere outside of his body.
The metal collar was too tight to breathe in without it pulling at his neck, nowhere to hide from the stares and the whistles in his direction, the metal around his hips holding up the strips of thin fabric digging into his skin just as much as the collar.
He couldn't put himself back in his body without seeing red.
He clenched his hands until his fingernails stung against his palms at a rough tug on the chain, yanking him closer against Jabba, sickeningly clammy against his back even in the dry heat.
Leia was coming for them, he told himself, and he didn't feel bad when he thought of her skewering Jabba with the lightsaber she had put together after dropping her off near Obi-Wan’s hut.
The lightsaber she had to have put together.
He almost didn't notice the noise in the room dying down slightly, too caught up in the thought of a dead slug, but he had to stifle a grin when the room fell silent at the approaching silhouette shrouded in black.
When he looked down to Leia's side, he could see the faint lump at her hip that hadn't been there before.
Ignoring the metal digging into his neck, he sat up a little straighter.
There was another tug on the chain before Jabba said something Luke didn't fully understand.
“I must be allowed to speak,” Leia said, her tone making the hairs at the back of Luke's neck stand on end.
One of the cronies at Jabba’s side repeated what she had said, another tug on the chain before Jabba shouted back at her.
“I will be taking Captain Solo and his friends,” she said, no room for questioning. “You can either profit from this or be destroyed.”
He almost didn't manage to hide a grin that time.
“But I would warn you not to underestimate my ability to do so,” she added.
“Master Leia,” Threepio said shakily, unheard over the rest of the noise. “You're standing on--”
The only word Luke recognized of what Jabba said next was die, but before he could say anything else, Leia held out her arm, a blaster flying straight to her hand from the holster of one of Jabba’s guards.
Before Luke could take another breath, Jabba held out his arm, and the floor underneath Leia and one of the other guards collapsed.
Luke could see into the pit if he craned his neck as much as he could against the shackles; the Rancor, Threepio had lamented, barreled past Leia, the guard disappearing into its mouth without a moment’s pause as Leia ran to the other end of the pit. He couldn't quite see her there, but he could hear the jeers, the clanking of metal against metal before she darted out of the way of the spears being prodded through a thick gate.
He was about to try to shout about the control panel halfway up the wall before Leia saw it first; she scrambled for a skull by her feet, hurling it towards the panel, and she almost didn't get out of the way in time before another overhead hatch came crashing down on the Rancor’s head with a sickening squelch.
The excited cheering turned to astonished gasps, a thick few seconds of silence before Jabba shouted at the remaining guards.
He recognized Solo just before a rough yank on the chain, a trio of guards bursting into the pit to take Leia away, but it still wasn't enough to tamp down something close to giddiness.
If Leia had survived and killed the Rancor, they would be able to survive this.
Leia and Han were dragged back out from the holding cell a few minutes later, Chewie shackled behind them as they were roughly pushed forward towards Jabba.
Han’s eyes were still unfocused when he asked her, “How’re we doing?”
“Same as always,” she muttered, shooting a look at the guard behind her when he prodded at her back.
“That bad, huh?” Han snorted. “Where’s Luke?”
Leia didn't say anything, her eyes locking with Luke's, the barely contained rage making him thankful he was on her side.
“I'm here.”
Luke grit his teeth at the next tug on the chain when Jabba spoke again.
“Oh, dear,” Threepio said quietly. “His High Exaltedness, the great Jabba the Hutt, has decreed that you are to be terminated immediately.”
“Good,” Han grumbled. “I hate long waits.”
“You will be taken to the Dune Sea and cast into the pit of Carkoon,” Threepio continued, “the nesting place of the all-powerful Sarlacc.”
Han shrugged and nudged his elbow at Leia's side. “That doesn't sound so bad.”
“In its belly, you will find a new definition of pain and suffering as you are digested over a thousand years.”
“That’s not even possible,” Leia mumbled.
“Actually, you know what,” Han said, “let’s pass on that one.”
Chewie growled in agreement.
“You should have bargained, Jabba,” Leia said, louder this time to be heard over the noise. “This is going to be the last mistake you make.”
Jabba laughed with another yank on the chain as the guards took Han and Leia away; Chewie shot Luke a concerned glance, but when he looked back at Leia, her chin was held high, and she was barely stifling a smile.
The barge was even louder than Jabba’s palace, the same crowd crammed into an even smaller space with nowhere for the sound to go.
Luke could see one of the two skiffs flying next to it if he looked out the window, Han and Leia and Chewie still shackled with Lando still disguised at their side.
“I think my eyes are getting better,” Han said. “Instead of a big dark blur, it’s a big gray blur.”
“There’s nothing else to see,” Leia said. “I used to live here.”
“And you're gonna die here,” Han said. “Convenient.”
“Just stay close to Lando and Chewie,” Leia said quietly, bumping her left elbow to Han’s side to indicate where Lando was standing. “I’ve got it covered.”
Han snorted again. “Great.”
The barge stopped with the first skiff a little ways back from the steeply sloping pit; the second flew forward, only stopping once it was hovering just over the edge of it.
Jabba barked an order, and the crowd in the barge fell silent as Threepio walked over to a comlink.
“Victims of the almighty Sarlacc,” he said, his voice even more tinny over the loudspeakers. “His Excellency hopes that you will die honorably, but should any of you wish to beg for mercy, the great Jabba the Hutt will now listen to your pleas.”
Han stepped forward, turning a little to the side to face the barge when Leia nudged his arm. “You tell that slimy piece of worm-ridden filth he’s not getting shit from us.”
Chewie growled again.
“Jabba,” Leia shouted, “this is your last chance.”
Luke had to try not to stare at Lando slowly shifting back from Leia and Han, his heartbeat spiking when he saw Artoo zip out to a balcony facing the skiff.
Jabba spoke into the comlink.
The silence erupted into cheering, and Leia was prodded to the edge of a plank jutting out over the pit.
Luke’s breath caught in his throat. “No--”
Before he could finish getting the word out, Leia jumped.
She bounced on her heels, the plank wobbling before she took that last step forward; she spun around just as her feet went over, grabbing the edge of it as she went down with enough force to propel herself back up onto the skiff.
The cheers became angry shouts as Leia's lightsaber shot out from a hatch at the top of Artoo’s domed head, drifting slightly to the side before shooting straight to her hand when she reached out for it.
In one smooth movement, she hit the button to extend the lightsaber from its handle and brought it down on the guard that had pushed her to the plank, sending him toppling from the skiff and into the pit with a choked-off scream.
She knocked another guard over the edge on her way to Chewie, snapping the shackles from his wrists and turning to Han. Before she could finish freeing his hands, a cannon blast from the barge rocked the skiff sideways, knocking Lando over the edge to scramble for a rope.
“Hey--hey! Little help here!”
Before Leia could turn to face him, another shot hit the skiff at the same time Boba Fett flew down from the barge; Leia swung out at him as soon as she was steady, the lightsaber slicing through his blaster like butter, but she didn't get out of the way in time to dodge the cable shooting out from a device in Boba’s sleeve that wrapped her arms tight to her sides. She could move her wrist just enough to slice through the cable, almost singing her shirt before she swung forward again, knocking Boba backwards to where he hit his head against the rail.
“Han,” Lando shouted. “Chewie!”
“Lando!” Han shouted back, blindly fumbling around the ground as Chewie barked directions at him. “I got it, hang on--”
Leia climbed up onto the railing, launching herself at the guards on the other skiff before she could hear Chewie growl again.
“Boba Fett?!” Han shouted back, grabbing onto a thick rod that had been dropped by one of the guards. “Where is he?”
He stood up, blindly spinning around, the rod smacking the control panel on Boba Fett’s rocketpack and sending him careening over the rails.
Chewie glanced over the edge just in time to see him tumbling into the pit.
“If it works,” Han mumbled to himself, holding his hand out in front of him to keep from walking into the railing before holding the rod down in the direction of Lando’s shouts.
“Lower! A little lower!”
“I'm trying--”
When Luke turned away from the windows, the rest of the guards inside the barge had all left for the skiffs, the remaining crowd distracted, and he took his chance.
He jammed his elbow back against Jabba’s belly, one hand tight on the chain a couple feet down from his neck as he clamored up around the back of the rusted throne; Jabba’s arms couldn't reach to shake him off when he looped the rest of the chain around Jabba’s neck, yanking back with all his weight, the chain digging into his palms as he kept pulling until Jabba floundered and went still with a gargled groan.
He could make do without a lightsaber or someone to wield it if he had to.
The last cannon shot Jabba had had the chance to order hit the side of the skiff, knocking Han almost over the edge before Chewie lunged out to grab his ankles. The rod almost fell from his hand, and Lando slipped a few feet down before grabbing for a shallow ledge at the edge of the pit, kicking out at the tentacle squirming out from below him.
“Lando!”
“I got it, hold still.” He gripped the ledge as tightly as he could with one hand, swinging out for the rod again, but not before the tentacle wound around his ankle. “Han! Shit--”
“Chewie, give me the--I know, just give me the blaster! I felt it right there!”
The rod wobbled as Chewie let go of Han with one hand, picking up the fallen blaster and handing it down to him.
“You're blind--”
“I got it,” Han insisted, shifting his arm in the direction of Lando's voice. “Trust me, don't move.”
“Whoa! No! A little higher!”
Han adjusted, Lando pressed his face into the sand, and he took the shot.
There was a shriek from the pit when it landed square on the tentacle below Lando's leg; Chewie yanked them both back up onto the skiff, tumbling on top of each other before scrambling upright only to see Leia on the other skiff taking out two guards with their blasters aimed at Chewie.
Finally freed from the chain, Luke ran out to the balcony, knocking a distracted guard over the rail before waving to Leia.
“The cannon!” she shouted, slicing down on an oncoming guard before pointing her lightsaber to the center of the barge. “Point it at the deck--”
Before he could do as she said, a guard from the barge shot out at her before Luke could get the chance to kick his blaster away.
She almost dropped the lightsaber, doubling over with her wrist held to her torso, shocks and spasms shooting up her arm from the jagged hole a couple inches up from her palm.
She clenched her jaw, keeping her breathing measured as she tentatively held her hand out, curling and uncurling her fingers as she peered in at the charred wires.
She ignored the sharp pang in her wrist as she gripped the handle of her lightsaber again, whipping around to cut through the last two guards on the skiff before leaping from the railing to grab onto a rope hanging from the top of the barge above the balcony.
“The cannon, come on!”
She climbed up onto the barge just as Luke got the cannon in place, winding the rope around her wrist and her free arm around Luke's waist, jumping up over the edge with a hard kick to the control panel.
Luke had to bite back a yelp as they leapt from the railing, the deck exploding into fire and shrapnel just before they landed on the skiff.
“You okay?” she asked, giving Luke's arm a quick squeeze before turning to Chewie. “Don’t forget the droids.”
Luke nodded, bracing himself against the railing when the skiff swerved down, the electromagnets set into the bottom lowering to lift Artoo and Threepio from the sand.
Lando pulled his mask off and chucked it over the edge, pulling off his jacket next to give to Luke.
“Thank you,” he said quietly, wrapping it tightly around himself before turning to where Han was slumped against the rail. “Are you alright?”
“Better than dead,” he mumbled; he rubbed at his eyes, holding his hand out with a grimace to tug Luke down next to him. “How're you holding up?”
Luke shrugged and shuffled closer, linking his arm tight with Han’s. “Better than dead.”
Han snorted and waved vaguely in the direction of Lando and Chewie. “You guys?”
Chewie grunted in response, and Lando nodded, remembering a second later that he couldn't see it.
“Still in one piece.”
“Leia?”
She looked back from the flaming remnants of the barge, a steely expression on her face that Luke couldn't quite read but still set him on edge.
She glanced down at her wrist before holding her hands behind her back where no one else could see, tugging the charred hem of her sleeve a little lower.
“There’s one more thing I need to do.”
There was another loud crash, a shockwave rocking the skiff from one last explosion before what was left of the barge dropped to the sand.