I open my mouth to speak but, suddenly tongue-tied, I close it again. I look to Harris for help.
‘So you didn’t beam us on to your ship, Mr Solo?’ Harris says calmly.
‘Why would I want to do that?’ He glares back. ‘And less of the Mr Solo, kid. You can call me Han.’ He lowers his gun.
I find my voice. ‘We’re sorry for the intrusion, Mr So.., er Han, ‘but your ship has just saved us from the Death Star. We’re very grateful.’
Han raises a quizzical eyebrow.
A low-pitched roar comes from beyond the rear hatch. ‘It’s all right, Chewy,’ Han shouts over his shoulder. It’s just a bunch of kids.’
A huge furry head appears.
‘Chewbacca! Way to go!’ Harris says delightedly. He nudges me with his elbow. ‘We’re actually on the Millennium Falcon!’
‘Can I see round your ship, Han?’ Harris almost begs. ‘The Millennium Falcon’s my favourite ever starship and that flight in hyper-drive was awesome!’
Han gives Harris one of his lopsided grins, while Chewbacca tosses his head and roars gently in what I assume is agreement.
‘Okay kid, I’ll show you around this bucket of bolts, but then we’re going to have to find somewhere to drop you and your ship off. I’ve cargo to pick up in the Kessel sector and I don’t need any extra passengers.’
Harris and Stevens bound towards the exit hatch. I follow more slowly, wondering whether we’ll actually be able to leave the ship. We’ve never managed to do so before. But I’m curious. Not so much about the famous Millennium Falcon, although I am rather keen on its present owner, but it occurs to me that we’ve never actually seen our ship from the outside.
But what might happen if we do leave the ship? I stop in my tracks at the entrance to the hatch.
‘What’s that, kid?’ Han turns to me.
I hadn’t realised I’d spoken out loud. ‘Our ship is powered by our minds and guided by our imaginations.’ I say by way of explanation.
Harris and Stevens have already joined Chewbacca outside the ship. ‘Never mind all that now, Jem,’ says Harris impatiently.
‘Sounds kinda weird,’ says Han.
‘We’ll tell you about it later.’ Harris is almost jumping up and down with excitement. ‘C’mon, Han, let’s go.’
As I step onto the ramp my stomach lurches and my knees start to buckle. I sit down abruptly.
‘Hey, are you all right, kid?’ Han crouches next to me.
‘I just feel a bit light-headed,’ I reply, trying to put on a brave face. ‘Our ship suddenly feels… less substantial…’
‘Low sugar. It’s the after effect of being in hyper-drive.’ Han looks up. ‘Chuck her one of those Banquet Bars, Chewy.’
Chewbacca rummages in a nearby cardboard box and throws me a crumpled package. The wrapper reminds me of a Snickers. I know the Earth-based confectionery company has been a multi-global for centuries; maybe they’ve changed the name in this galaxy.
Chewbacca nods encouragingly as I tear open the wrapper and take a bite, while Han pulls a communicator from his jacket and holds it out to me. ‘Go back inside and rest. Call me on this if… if anything should happen.’ He looks at the ship, frowning slightly.
As Harris and Stevens disappear through the hatch into the corridor beyond, the walls of our ship start to shimmer around me.
I have a bad feeling about this.
Will Jemma be all right alone on the ship? Will it still be there when Harris and Stevens return? Tune in next week for episode 6…
And if you we’re wondering what on earth (or off-earth) is going on,
you can catch up with the entire first series of Space Cadets here
Written in response to a prompt from Susan T. Braithwaite
Genre Scribes Friday Fiction Writing Challenge #50
The challenge this week was banquet.
Photo credit: Md Mahdi on Unsplash
Uh oh…. shimmering ships aren’t good. They’ve gone Beyond the Sphere (😉) of their boundary and anything can happen out there! Good one, Chris!
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‘Tis true… almost anything could happen. We just have to wait and see.
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Is Jemma the only smart one here? Things can go bad…at light speed. I wonder what the outside of the ship looks like? Would it look different to each cadet? Like one seeing it painted red, another seeing it blue? (I saw that on a twilight zone once) This is not a good time to take a tour, even of the Millennium Falcon. I must say you keep the story interesting Chris.
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Jemma has emerged as a natural leader throughout the voyage although, of course, she’s telling the story. I don’t think she’s an unreliable narrator though.
Since the ship is ‘powered by the minds and controlled by their imaginations’, you might well be right that it appears different to each of them. You can bet Harris’s version has a lot of weapons!
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That’s what I was thinking too. I would love to be there with them using my adult imagination. Love the imagery you created. Awesome story Chris!
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Now that could conjure up a whole new dimension, Darnell! I’m so pleased you’re enjoying this little voyage into the (almost) unknown 🙂
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It’s well written and enjoyable. Keep Writing 😎
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Absorbing as ever, Chris! Yep, Han Solo is certainly scrumptious 🙂
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Thanks, Gretchen! Let’s hope Jemma can keep her head if Han has to come to her rescue…
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More suspense! You’re really good at this! I’m just glad I’m not on the ship, because if my imagination took we’d be toast!😬 (#ElementOfRisk)
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I don’t know, you could concentrate on the interior decor: all those bare walls just crying out for tiles 😉
And i wonder what Foster and Panda might make of it..?
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😂
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[…] What next for our gallant cadets? Are they really on board the Millennium Falcon? Will the Force be with them? Will Jemma swoon at Han Solo’s feet? Or will she remember her training and regain her composure? Tune in next week for episode 5… […]
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Going well
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Thanks Aleesha 🙂
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Great episode Chris.
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Thanks, Sadje!
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You’re welcome 😇
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Excellent episode, Chris! So easy to visualize. And, Han’s lopsided grin…😍 I love how you fit the prompt word in–Snickers will always be Marathon to me 😁
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Ha ha, it was a bit of a stretch, but quite fun, I thought. Always a Marathon to me too 🙂
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I loved it! It read as a very natural part of the scene. Oh, how do you feel about Opal Fruits?😂
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Starburst would be so much easier to fit into the story 😉
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🤣 I hope the generator doesn’t spit that out, ’cause I’ve got nothing for that. Though, now I’m craving some fruit chews.
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Me too, now that you’ve mentioned them!
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Think about soft cushions and chocolate. Think about soft cushions and chocolate. Soft cushions and chocolate. Soft c…
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Now that I can do!
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[…] previously… […]
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HAHAHA! You got the bad feeling line in! Perfect ending. And this is already better than the Solo movie. Just sayin’. 🙂 Han Solo and Chewie will always be the rapscallions of adventure in our imaginations. 🙂
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That reference was just for you!
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Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw LOVE IT! xxxxxxx
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🙂 🙂 🙂
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