UNDER FIRE
Chewbacca saw it first. The ship, aerodynamically perfect, slid through Kessel’s atmosphere like a vibroblade. The ship fired surgical strikes of turbolasers at the Falcon’s maneuvering jets, disabling them further.
“We’re already crashing!” Han bellowed. “What more do they want?” But he knew: they wanted the Falcon to be destroyed on impact, all occupants erased.
When the Hornet tried to outflank them, Han swept the ship aside as a towering plume of atmosphere boiled into the sky. The Hornet Interceptor tried to second-guess his move, but Han lurched sideways again, driving the Hornet into the roaring upward flow of wind.
Han gave a cry of triumph.…
Then the surface of the planet Kessel rushed up at them like a gigantic hammer.