Luke Skywalker will once again be taking center stage in theStar Warssaga whenThe Last Jedihits theaters on Dec. 15.
“Most people have not met Luke.
They don’t know what he’s really like.
Credit: Disney Lucasfilm Press
He’s a symbol for many people, even as he was this hero going on his own journey.
When she was finally done, a wave of riotous shouts broke out.
“Oh, come on!
That’s ridiculous!”
“Redy doesn’t know what she’s talking about!”
“Who was that man in the hood?”
Dwoogan rinsed out the washcloth in the sink, chuckling the whole while.
“You asked for a story,” she said.
“Don’t blame the teller if the story isn’t quite what you were expecting.”
“Redy thinks everything the New Republic has been saying is a lie!”
“Every story is true to the teller,” said Dwoogan.
“That doesn’t mean they’re all equally true in the larger sense.
“Hearing stories you don’t like can be a good thing.
It reminds you that not everyone thinks alike,” said Ulina.
“The Empire wanted everyone to think alike, remember?
That’s a good thing.”
The deckhands pondered this.
Tyra looked uncomfortable at this.
Several deckhands glanced at Tyra curiously, but the girl avoided their eyes.
Dwoogan broke in smoothly.
“Ha, they’ve got some fun tales.
You just have to get them real drunk first.
They’re not all bad sorts.
Some of them fought for the Empire because they weren’t told any other stories.”
“Tell us a story from an Imperial!”
“Tell us!”
Dwoogan nodded at Ulina.
“Ask your third mate.
She used to help Imperials who wanted to get out of that life find jobs with smuggling crews.”
The deckhands turned to Ulina with even more awe and admiration in their eyes.
“Uniforms can be deceiving both to the wearers and to those looking at them.
Many of the stories I know aren’t safe to share.
The deckhands looked thoughtful.
Tyra bit her bottom lip and nodded almost imperceptibly.
Ulina looked at Tyra.
Abruptly, she asked, “You’ve been to Jakku, right?”
Surprised, Tyra locked eyes with Ulina.
“My family are scavengers, and I was there with them for a while.”
we couldn’t get other jobs.”
“Did you see the starship graveyard?”
Tyra’s eyes lit up.
“Oh, yes.
The wrecks were magnificent.
“So let me tell you a story about Luke Skywalker and the starship graveyard.”
“I didn’t know he was on Jakku!”
“Well, you’ll see.
The story I’m about to tell you has been passed from teller to teller across many smuggling crews.
The original teller was someone who fought for the Emperor.
THE STARSHIP GRAVEYARD
I lived under the glorious reign of Emperor Palpatine.
I lived to see the New Republic’s petty leaders squabble over the ashes of a once-great galaxy.
I lived, but my comrades died.
The life of a gunner is one of endless waiting punctuated by flashes of terror.
my fingers tense over the console, heart pounding, sweat dripping .
there, flashing streaks over the starboard bow!
Target, track, fire!
Green as I was, even I knew the battle wasn’t going well.
True to our commitment to discipline, the Imperial ships fell into neat ranks and tight formations.
True to their despicable worship of chaos, the rebels followed no code of tactics or rules of engagement.
They swept around our flanks, skimmed over our blind spots, refused to engage us head-on.
A series of explosions against the bridge.
Bright lights blinded us momentarily.
“Losing altitude,” intoned the computer.
“Velocity vectors incompatible with stable orbit.”
We were falling toward the planet, unable to climb out of the deadly trap of its gravity well.
My crewmates and I struggled up as the deck stabilized and officers barked orders.
The deck buckled again, and we screamed and tumbled back down.
My head struck a console as I fell, and blood streamed down my face, blurring my vision.
Through the haze of blood and sweat and terror, I saw a glowing hologram rotating over the console.
MOST WANTED: LUKE SKYALKER, JEDI WAR CRIMINAL, EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.
The internal channel broadcasting the holo was dedicated to showing the likenesses and crimes of the most dangerous rebels.
In regular operation, the channel had the effect of raising our alertness against rebel infiltration.
My heart skipped a beat as the deck lurched again.
A powerful bolt of energy arced across space to strike an Imperial Star Destroyer.
I was not a superstitious man, but I shuddered at that horrid image.
My heart convulsed as I imagined the voices howling for mercy in that doomed ship.
The bolts crossed the span of bridge windows and struck two more Imperial Star Destroyers.
It was a sign.
It was a nightmare.
It had to meansomething.
Beams of lightning crisscrossed the windows and ensnared more Imperial Star Destroyers.
Like lassoed beasts, the graceful, dark metallic hulks buckled and strained against the tractor beams.
But their struggles were useless.
One by one, the ships lost their momentum, dipped, and were hurled down toward Jakku.
I did not see any rebel star cruisers that could have launched the beams.
Carelessly, almost lazily, the hologram turned to face me, and stopped moving.
Instead of a face I saw only a bright, featureless oval under the glowing hood.
The holographic circuits sputtered and hissed, and an acrid smell filled my nostrils.
Interference artifacts appeared in the projection.
The hologram’s hands reached toward me, as though intent on grabbing my throat.
“Shields collapsing,” intoned the computer.
“Hull breach imminent.
My teeth and bones rattled.
My ears filled with a high-pitched, incessant drone.
Then I heard the inhuman, deafening metallic roar and screech of a ship dying in space.
My crewmates and I screamed until we could not catch our breaths.
For more onThe Legends of Luke Skywalker,read EW’s full Q&A with Liuhere.
