PANIC CORD ━━━ l.skywalker ¹

04

F O U R

Clary regrets a lot of things in her life—jumping into a garbage chute of the Imperial space station is definitely one of them. She looks around, the putrid smell of trash stinging her senses as her eyes land on the only door that appears to be an exit. Chewbacca is already banging against the hatchway as Luke clambers his way as well. He inspects it for a moment before attempting to pull it open. When he ends up stumbling backwards Clary's heart sinks as she glances around. She hears a swift noise and Han giving a quick shout before plummeting into the large room, landing in the muck beside her. He shakes his head, lifting his arms as he glances around, nose wrinkling in disgust.

"Oh," he exclaims, sarcasm dripping off his words as he rises to his feet. "The garbage chute was a really wonderful idea." He glares pointedly at Princess Leia who meets his gaze with a scoff. "What a wonderful smell you've discovered," he comments, nose still wrinkled before his gaze rests on Clary. His gaze softens as he nods towards her. "Are you all right?"

Clary sighs in response—she was fine, of course, but she really wanted to get out of the chute. A bad feeling seems to be creeping on her thoughts as she glances around nervously. She's so engrossed she doesn't notice Han pushing past her, taking out his blaster until he's aiming it at the hatch, causing both Chewbacca and Luke to jump out of the way. Before anyone can react he's firing at it. Clary's pulse accelerates as the laser bolt ricochets wildly around the small metal room. She lets out a short scream, along with Leia, as they duck their heads, trying to avoid the red beam as it bounces off the walls. The beam nearly misses Clary as Han shoves her into the garbage, hiding them from the beam. There's a loud explosion that echoes in the small confinement the group is trapped in, signaling that the laser had hit the ceiling. Slowly, Clary rises to her feet, looking at her attire in disgust as something slimy rolls of her arm. Han is standing beside her and Clary spots Leia rising to her feet as well, a rather grim expression creasing her pretty face.

"Will you forget it?" Luke questions, glaring Han's way. "I already tried it—it's magnetically sealed."

Leia eyes Han's blaster warily. "Put that thing away, you're going to get us killed!"

"Absolutely, Your Worship," Han mutters sarcastically, yet hooks his blaster to the belt of the Stormtrooper uniform as he glances around the room. "Look, I had everything under control until you led us down here."

Clary tries not to argue with her brother—they definitely did not have everything under control before Leia blasted at the vent, providing them an escape route. She weighs the possibilities, though, knowing no matter what they may do, the Stormtroopers will find out where they are sooner or later.