- New Alderaan, 8005 C.R.C.
If Remembrance Day was dedicated to mourning Alderaan and its culture, then the day after was dedicated to celebrating it. The streets of New Aldera were alive with color and people, with performers from all across the galaxy coming to spread the customs that the Empire had tried to eradicate nearly three decades ago. The smell of fresh roast kulkan and boiled ruica filled the air, coming from vendors that had managed to get their hands on such rare exports. In the distance, Leia could hear a Gungan band drum out the rhythm to the ancient tune “Tialga Hath Fallen.” All of these things brought back memories… but at least they were good memories.
“Leia, eat your ruica.”
“No.” The stubborn five-year-old princess crossed her arms in defiance. “I don’t want to.”
“A lot of brave star-pilots crossed the stars from Broest to deliver ruica seeds to our planet,” her father calmly said. “They are supposed to make children very strong.”
“I don’t care.” She shoved the plate of blue leaves aside. “I’m already strong enough.”
Sitting across from her, her mother smiled warmly. “Tialga ate ruica.”
Leia blinked in surprised. “She did?”
Her mother nodded. “And you know what Tialga did, don’t you?”
“She stood against all odds so that her children could reach a safe haven.”
“That’s right. And she couldn’t have done it if she hadn’t eaten her ruica.”
Leia still was not completely convinced; she had a feeling this was another ploy to get her to eat her vegetables. Regardless, she pulled her plate back and reluctantly stabbed the blue leaf with her fork. She regarded it with a look of disdain for a moment before deciding to eat it.
She still hated the taste. But if the warrior-queen Tialga could tolerate it, so could she.
“Forgive me, Your Highness, but you look rather tired today. Did you get enough sleep?”
Leia blinked rapidly as she came back to the present. She realized that one of her aides (whom she could have sworn she had dismissed) was standing in front of her, looking both concerned and eager to help.
“I’m fine, Via,” she said to the young woman. “I got plenty of sleep, but I don’t think all of the sleep in the galaxy could have prepared me for all of this.”
“If you need to rest, then—”
“No, no. As I said, I’m fine.” Leia then smiled as she narrowed her eyes. “And didn’t I tell you to take some time off to enjoy the celebrations?”
Via swallowed, shifting her feet. “Well, yes, but—”
“Then go do that. If I need to make an executive order as Chief of State to make you have fun, then I will.”
Getting the message, Via hastily bowed before swiftly departing, disappearing into the crowds. At that moment, Leia spotted her family coming up to meet her; Han, Anakin, and Jacen were all carrying glowing treats while Jaina was sharing a piece of meatpie with Chewbacca. It made Leia smile to see that her children, despite well being on their way to adulthood, were still able to enjoy their youth even after fighting a war against Imperials and Sith. Upon seeing her, Han walked over and handed her a second glowing treat that he had been carrying.
“Don’t worry, it’s fickleberry,” he said to her with a wink. “You’re favorite.”
Leia smiled as she accepted the treat. “Second favorite,” she corrected him.
“I think it might be Chewie’s favorite,” Jaina remarked as the Wookiee scarfed down the whole piece she had given him.
Leia laughed before looking back at Han, raising an eyebrow. “Where are the droids?”
Han frowned as he looked behind him. “I thought they were right behind us.”
“I think I saw Threepio follow Artoo into one of the gaming dens,” said Anakin, pointing vaguely in the direction of said dens. “I heard him muttering something about dejarik.”
Han snorted. “Well, they can stay there, so long as they don’t get into any trouble.”
Leia smirked. “Han, just how long have you known those two?”
“Too long, if you ask me.”
The six of them proceeded to make their way through the crowds, exploring the sights as they enjoyed their treats. It felt nice to feel like a family again; it allowed Leia to forget about being Chief of State, forget about being a princess, and just focus on being a mother. She wore many hats in her life, and sometimes it felt nice to just wear one.
The sound of the drumming got louder the further they went, indicating that they were getting closer to the open amphitheater where all of the musicians would be performing. Once the Gungan band had finished the final overture of their song, a crowd erupt into applause as an announcer spoke over them, loud enough to be heard even from this distance.
“Give it up for Augie’s Great Municipal Band, who came all the way from the waters of Otoh Gunga to deliver us that beautiful rendition of ‘Tialga Hath Fallen!’” Now then, don’t go anywhere as we set the stage for our next group of performers: Lola and the Huttslayers!”
As more cheers broke out, Leia’s eyebrow furrowed in confusion and she looked over to Han, who shared her befuddled expression.
“’Lola,’ huh?” he said. “Sounds like a few letters off from a litigation battle.”
“I had a toy droid named Lola,” Leia murmured. “She was probably my favorite thing in the galaxy when I was a child.”
“But there’s no way they could have known about that, right?” Han asked. “Hell, I didn’t know that.”
Chewbacca made a sound.
“Okay, sure, there are a lot of things I don’t know, but….”
Her husband and his friend’s bickering became background noise as Leia once more found herself falling into her well of memories.
“Please tell me you can fix her!”
Her father chuckled, which slightly miffed her given how dire the situation was. “Well, let’s see here.” He gingerly picked up the broken disk-shaped droid and set it down on his desk. He opened up a drawer and brought out some tools which he then used to meticulously pick at the droid’s exposed parts.
She rarely ever saw her father fix broken things. Usually such tasks were left to the Royal Family’s aides and helpers, since he and her mother were too preoccupied with other matters. She did know that he sometimes liked to tinker with the red XJ-2 airspeeder that rested in the Royal Palace’s garage, and she long awaited the day when he would finally let her drive it. “Maybe in another seven years,” he had told her when she had asked him for the nth time a week ago.
After a few minutes (though it felt like hours), he reconnected Lola’s wires, closed her up, and pressed the toy droid’s activation switch. Its single optical sensors came to life and it gleefully buzzed over to Leia.
“You fixed her!” she exclaimed.
He laughed. “Well, I wouldn’t be Viceroy of Alderaan if I couldn’t fix at least one thing in this household.”
She ran over to him and gave him the biggest hug a nine-year-old could muster. “You’re the best. I love you.”
He ruffled her hair with his hand. “I know you do, Princess.”
Before she knew it, she and her family had made their way to the New Aldera Amphitheater. The dome had been lowered, exposing the audience and performers to the fresh air outside. Standing at the front was a Hamadryas ticket taker who, upon recognizing Leia and her family, stepped aside and gestured for them to enter free of charge. While Leia wasn’t planning on sticking around long enough to see the whole show, she was curious enough as to who exactly “Lola and the Huttslayers” were. Another worker at the theater, a jittery Sullustan, guided them a booth that was isolated from the rest of the audience and overlooked the entire theater, giving them a clear view of the stage. From all around the theater, the announcer’s voice boomed as a panel opened up in the stage floor.
“Now then, coming to you from the furthest reaches of the Outer Rim, I present you… Lola and the Huttslayers!”
A dais rose up onto the stage, delivering the band in question. It was comprised of four females—human, Twi’lek, Mirialan, and Togruta—each carrying a unique instrument… and all wearing a dancing-girl costume.
The same one Leia had worn when she had been a prisoner of Jabba the Hutt.
Han groaned as he buried his face in his hands. Jacen, Jaina, and Anakin all looked mortified. Even Chewbacca made a sound of dissatisfaction.
The Sullustan from earlier poked his head into the booth. “Ah, is everything all right in here, Your Highness?”
Leia did not respond, simply staring in abject disbelief as the band started playing, dancing to the groove of “Lapti Nek.”
“You get used to it after a while.”
Leia hugged herself tightly, feeling exposed in the revealing outfit Jabba had forced her into. She said nothing, wanting to wake from this nightmare already.
“Of course, where I come from, this sort of fashion is rather typical,” the heavyset dancer went on, gesturing at her own dancer’s outfit. “Nights on Askaj can get rather cool, but during the day? Hoo! You wouldn’t want to be wearing a furcoat, I’ll tell you that.”
Leia remained silent. Another dancer, one with dark hair and a mesh leotard with pieces of blue velvet over it, was watching her from a distance with cold emerald eyes. A third dancer, one with platinum blonde hair with a blue streak running through it, was glancing around the chamber they were in, looking as if she was about to say something only to decide against it.
The solemn silence was then broken when Jabba’s Twi’lek majordomo barged in, his red eyes glowing at them.
“Jabba wants you to perform,” Bib Fortuna declared. He then pointed a long bony finger at Leia. “You, he wants to sit with him.”
Leia swallowed as dread set into her stomach. She wondered how it would look in the history records if she were to die in this hellhole of a palace. A leader of the Rebellion, a Princess of Alderaan, forevermore the slave of a Hutt.
Truly, there could be no worse fate.
“Mom?”
Leia stirred back to reality and looked over at Jaina, who was giving her a concerned look.
“We can leave if you want,” her daughter said.
“I’m all for that,” said Jacen. Han, Anakin, and Chewie quickly concurred.
“Yes,” Leia said, rising from her seat. “We might as well.”
“Is everything all right?” the Sullustan worker asked as they walked out of the booth. “Is… is it anything we can fix?”
Leia sensed that Han was about to fire off with a retort and she raised a hand to stall him. “The music is simply not my cup of tea,” she said politely. “Besides, I want to check out as many of the venues as I can and there is only so much time in the day.”
The Sullustan sighed in relief. Apparently, he had genuinely believed that he had done something wrong. “Ah, yes. Completely understandable. Have a glorious day, Your Highness.”
Leia nodded in acknowledgment and was about to leave with the rest of her family. However, she paused and turned back to face the Sullustan.
“Actually, could you let me know when Lola and her band are done performing? I would like to speak to her in private.”
The Sullustan looked surprised, as did her family. “Ah, of course!” he said. “I could certainly arrange that. I’m sure sure she would be honored to meet you.”
“Thank you,” Leia said kindly before turning to leave, her confused family trailing close behind.
As Jaina walked alongside her, Leia glanced at her daughter and gave her a slight nudge with her arm. “Jaina?”
“Yes?”
“Promise me that you’ll never let anyone put you in one of those.”
Jaina smiled. “You have my word.”
While Han and Chewie watched a sabacc tournament (and not participate as she insisted) and the three kids went looking for C-3PO and R2-D2, Leia returned to the amphitheater once she had been told that Lola and the Huttslayers had finished their performance. The Sullustan worker led her backstage to where the bands’ personal rooms were and tapped his fist gently on one of the doors.
“Who is it?” a woman’s voice came from inside.
“The Chief of State is here to see you, Lola,” the Sullustan said.
There was a pause. “No, seriously, who is it?”
“I’m being serious, Lola. Could you open up.”
After a moment, the door slid open and Leia came face to face with the band’s leader and namesake. Her dark hair was done up similarly to how Leia’s own was during those harrowing days in Jabba’s palace twenty-four years ago; thankfully, she had put on a loose shirt over her dancing-girl outfit, so it did not quite feel like she was staring at a mirror.
Upon seeing Leia, Lola’s eyes went wide and her mouth fell open in shock. “Oh my stars,” she murmured.
Leia smiled politely. “May I come in?”
“Of—of course!” Lola stepped aside and Leia stepped into the backroom. The other members of the band were also there and all three of them gasped in shock upon seeing her.
“Princess Leia!” exclaimed the Twi’lek member. “By the Bright Lands, it is an honor to meet you!”
“I’m sorry, where are my manners,” Lola said. “Your Highness, these are my bandmates Sheela, Jani, and Ryara. I’m Lola, of course.”
“A pleasure to meet you all.” Turning her attention to Lola, Leia said, “If I may ask, where did you get the name ‘the Huttslayers?’”
Lola seemed surprised by the question. “You mean… you don’t know?”
Leia raised an eyebrow. “Should I?”
“I mean no offense, Your Highness, but I thought the answer would be obvious.” Lola gestured at the dancing-girl outfits that her bandmates were still visibly wearing. “We were inspired by you.”
“Me?” Leia responded in surprise.
“Of course. You’re the original Huttslayer. This outfit is the one you wore when you killed Jabba the Hutt.”
Leia smiled weakly. “I’m aware of that fact. But I wasn’t aware that it was common knowledge.”
“To be fair, the Hutts have done their best to destroy any copies of the recording that showed his death,” said Sheela. “My own master only kept his because he was a relative of Jabba’s and took great pleasure in his demise.”
Leia turned her attention to the Twi’lek. “You were a slave?”
“We all were,” said Lola. “One way or another, we all learned about how you killed Jabba and it inspired us to turn against our own masters.”
Leia wasn’t sure how to process all of this. As Chief of State, it bothered her that slavery was still a thing in some parts of the galaxy and that her predecessors had done little to address it. As someone who had been briefly enslaved by a Hutt herself, she wasn’t quite sure how she felt knowing that the outfit she had worn as a slave had become a symbol of inspiration for others.
“Are these… outfits the same ones you wore back then?” she asked.
“Oh, no,” said Jani. “We tossed those out. We got these for our band.”
“And you don’t find it… objectifying?”
“Of course not,” Lola said. “If anything, we found it empowering.”
That last word struck a chord in Leia’s mind. Suddenly, she found herself recalling a dream she had not so long ago, shortly after the final defeat of the Empire at Coruscant. It had been similar to a vision she had experienced all the way back on Nam Chorios thirteen years prior, when she was still coming to terms with her Force powers.
She sat on the throne of the Emperor, wearing his black robes over her slender body. Behind her, the frozen form of Luke Skywalker hung overhead, signifying the end of the Jedi Order. Pulling back the black robes, she revealed to her horrified self that she was wearing nothing but the golden slave harness and silk loincloth underneath, bejeweled with the emblem of the Empire.
As Leia stared at her dark reflection, she saw that her brown eyes had become white pinpricks, glowing like stars in the shadow of her raised hood.
Full red lips peeled back into a sinister smile as Empress Leia spoke a single word. “Mine.”
Lightning flashed and Leia suddenly found herself on a desolate world, rain pouring down. Her dark self was sitting atop a spiked throne made of stone, shooting out lightning from her fingertips towards the sky, striking down Rebel ships as hooded figures surrounding them uttered an ancient chant.
Lightning continued to flash as Leia’s twisted self stared back at her, eyes glowing as bright as the twin suns of Tatooine.
“Mine.”
Coming back to the present, Leia cleared her throat and smiled cordially at Lola, who was starting to look at her with concern.
“Well, I’m glad my actions were enough to inspire you all to throw off your own shackles. As Chief of State, I hope to address the issue of slavery that is still rampant in the galaxy.”
“You have our support no matter what,” said Ryara. “Although I suppose we don’t need to tell you that.”
“It is appreciated all the same.” Turning back to Lola, Leia gave the band leader a small bow. “It was a pleasure speaking with you.”
“The pleasure is all ours, Your Highness,” Lola said. “You are a beacon of hope to all of us.”
Not in the way I would have liked, Leia thought. She kept this remark to herself however and simply acknowledge the words with a smile and nod as she left the room.
“Man, how hard is it to find a golden protocol droid and a blue astromech?” Anakin Solo muttered as he and his siblings waded through a crowded gaming den, most of its occupants being organics rather than droids. “I really hope they didn’t get into any trouble.”
“Well, I don’t think they’re in here,” said Jaina, dodging the tail of an oblivious Sarkan. “Let’s go back outside and check another one of the dens.”
After pushing their way back through the den, the trio ended up back outside in the bustling streets of New Aldera. As they scanned the crowd, Anakin caught a gleam of light in his eyes, accompanied by the cry of a mechanical voice.
“Ah, Master Anakin! Master Jacen! Mistress Jaina! Over here!”
Jacen shook his head. “Guess it wasn’t that hard,” he muttered as they walked over to meet the two droids. Anakin noticed that R2-D2 was acting rather jittery, rocking side to side on his legs, while C-3PO was trying to say something over his alarmed beeps but was speaking too fast to be decipherable.
“Threepio, slow down,” Jaina said exasperatedly. “What happened? Where have you two been?”
“We were just in the gaming den over there when we came outside to find you,” C-3PO said. “Artoo here was gloating about his victory at a game of dejarik when he spotted a mysterious figure slipping through the crowd. He went after them and I helplessly followed, not knowing what else to do, and….”
The protocol droid trailed off and Jacen stepped forward. “And what, Threepio?”
“Well, I didn’t quite a good look at the person in question, but Artoo apparently did. But the way he described him… I’m sorry, but I’m starting to fear my counterpart has gotten his wires crossed because….”
“Come on, Threepio, get to the point,” Jaina insisted.
C-3PO stiffened. “Well, if my companion is to be believed… then the figure he saw was wearing the mask of Darth Vader himself!”