"Running away from your problems won't solve them." - Areta Noko, from Collected Wisdom of the Jedi Masters

"What's wrong?" Ray asked as he glanced toward Frank and Gerard. Both of them were still in shock as they stared at the Black Mariah, at the empty space where Mikey should have been.

"The door," Frank said. "It was supposed to be locked."

"And now Mikey's gone!" Gerard exclaimed.

"Who's Mikey?" Ray asked.

"My brother," Gerard said. "We left him in the ship, and now he's gone."

As Gerard told Ray about his brother and why the two of them had left Coruscant in the first place, Frank inspected the lock. It didn't look like it had been tampered with at all, and there were no fingerprints on the door. When he checked his key ring, he saw that the key to the ship was still there. He knew for a fact that there was no other copy. There hadn't been any foul play. Mikey had gotten out of the Black Mariah on his own, although Frank couldn't possibly imagine how he had done it.

"Hey Gerard?" Frank said.

"What is it?" Gerard asked.

"If Mikey could go anywhere in the galaxy right now, where would he go?"

"Probably back home," Gerard said. "Why?"

Frank looked towards a set of gray buildings in the distance and said, "I think I might know where Mikey is."

As Gerard, Ray, and Frank looked for him, Mikey Way ran past the security booth, feeling suffocated by the stuffy air, the drab, gray paint, the people crowded around him. He knew that this wouldn't last long though. Soon, he'd be gone. Soon, he'd be far away from Gerard and his delusions, Frank and his villainy, Alderaan and its foreign ways. He'd be home, where he belonged.

"Hey, you!" the security officer shouted as she pointed straight at Mikey. "I need to see your ticket!"

Mikey searched through his pocket, but all he had was a leaf of paper ripped from Gerard's sketchbook. He gave it to the officer, sure that it wouldn't pass her scrutiny. However, she only gave it a brief glance and then handed it back to Mikey. "You're all good," she said. "Have a nice trip."

"Thanks," Mikey said as he shoved the paper back into his pocket. He started running again, this time toward the gates. He glanced out the window, watching a starship take off. In a few minutes, that would be him. He would be on his way home.

"Last call for Flight #4242 to Coruscant, departing from Gate Five," Mikey heard over the intercom. "Last call for Flight #4242 to Coruscant, departing from Gate Five."

Mikey broke into a sprint, pushing his way through the crowds as he made his way to Gate Five. When he got there, he found a huge passenger ferry waiting for him. It was nearly full, and it was scheduled to take off in only a few minutes, but Mikey was sure he could climb aboard. He stepped onto the ship, but all of a sudden, someone pulled him backwards.

He turned around, and Gerard was there, looking cross. "What are you doing?" Mikey shouted as he glanced back toward the ship, which was now racing away from the spaceport. "You made me miss my flight!"

"You were supposed to stay in the Black Mariah!" Gerard exclaimed.

"I just wanted to go home," Mikey said. He hadn't signed up for any of this. His brother could run around with the Most Dangerous Man in the Galaxy, but he wanted no part of it.

"Mikey, you can't go home. It's too dangerous," Gerard said. He sighed and added, "Come on. Let's go back to the ship."

At first, Mikey stayed put. He was done with his brother bossing him around. He was done playing along with his crazy schemes. He was ready to take control of his life, but he changed his mind when he saw who Gerard was with. Frank was standing next to him, and there was a clone too, just like the ones he'd seen in Gerard's comic books. Both of them were scowling at him, as if he'd done something very wrong, and for a moment, Mikey was intimidated enough to follow all of them out of the spaceport and back to the Black Mariah. He knew he was being a coward, but what else was he supposed to do?

When the four of them made it back to the Black Mariah, they all climbed aboard. It was a tight squeeze, but they all fit. As Frank started up the ship, Gerard asked, "So where are we going next?"

"Cloud City, I think," Frank said. "I need to unload some cargo, and then we'll be on our way."

Mikey sighed, wishing that his escape attempt had worked, that he could go home instead of flying to the edge of the galaxy, but there was nothing he could do now. He was stuck.

Several days went by. Mikey spent his time sulking in a corner and staring out the window and into the nothingness that surrounded them. Ray was a little friendlier, telling his new companions stories from the frontlines of the Clone Wars, but sometimes, he needed some time alone to process everything that had happened. On the other hand, Frank and Gerard spent every waking moment together, chatting and flirting and getting to know each other better. They had everything in common: they liked all the same bands, all the same holograms, all the same comic books. By the time the Black Mariah approached Cloud City, they had a secret language, one filled with references and inside jokes, one that Ray and Mikey would never understand.

Frank knew it couldn't last, not when Gerard was headed to Ilum. He dreaded the day when he'd have to say goodbye, but for now, he savored the little moments he shared with Gerard, every time he smiled, every time he laughed, every time he looked at him like he understood everything. Sometimes, Frank considered taking another detour, landing on yet another planet just so he could make this time with Gerard last a little bit longer.

When they got to Cloud City, Gerard was daydreaming, Ray was taking pictures, and Mikey was still sulking in a corner. "Come on, guys," Frank said as he climbed out of the ship. "Don't you want to see Cloud City?"

"Remind me again what we're doing here?" Ray said, following Frank out of the ship.

"I...uhh...need to unload some cargo, remember?" Frank said.

"Can we come with you?" Gerard said.

"Yeah, of course," Frank said with a smile.

"Can I stay behind?" Mikey asked.

"Not after what happened on Alderaan," Gerard said. "Come on, Mikey."

Mikey reluctantly climbed out of the ship, and the four of them walked down the street, toward the market. Frank looked around at the soft clouds and the luxury resorts towering over him. Maybe he'd be able to afford them after he sold the diamonds and the data pod, after Gerard and Ray had paid their fees.

Gerard came a little closer to Frank and whispered, "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," Frank said. In truth, he was feeling much better now that Gerard was next to him.

"You sure?"

"Trust me," Frank said with a slight smile. They continued walking, but all of a sudden, Frank spotted an old friend. "Lando Calrissian?" he said.

"Frank Iero?" Lando said. "It's so good to see you! How have you been?" He paused and then asked, "Wait a second. Were you the one who stole those droids back from the Hutts?"

"Lando, don't say that so loudly," Frank said. "You never know who might be watching."

"I'll take that as a yes," Lando said. He turned toward Gerard. "And I'm guessing this is your new boyfriend?"

Frank laughed, unsure of how to respond. "Hey, do you have time for a quick game of Sabacc?" he said in a desperate attempt to change the subject. "We can chat while we're playing."

"Sure, but if you lose, I want your ship."

Frank couldn't bear to lose his ship, but he knew that if he was going to play with Lando, the stakes needed to be high. He thought for a moment, and soon, he came up with a plan. "I've got an even better idea," Frank said.

"What is it?" Lando asked.

"I've got the diamonds from the Imperial Vault in the cargo hold of my ship," Frank said.

"Wait, really?" Gerard said.

"Yes, really," Frank said. "You can go in there and check for yourself if you'd like."

"Trust me, I will," Lando said. "I want to make sure you're not bluffing."

Frank shrugged as Lando headed over to the Black Mariah. Frank opened up the cargo hold, and sure enough, the diamonds were still there, sparkling in the light. "If I lose, they're all yours," Frank said. "But if I win, I want the Millenium Falcon."

"You've got yourself a deal," Lando said. "Are you ready to lose, Fun Ghoul?"

"It's death or victory, Lando," Frank said as they headed into a cantina. He turned to Gerard, Mikey, and Ray, and said, "You guys can watch if you want, but I know I'm going to win."

"I'm sure you will," Gerard said. "Good luck, Frank."

"Thanks," Frank said as he sat down at the table. Ray watched intently as Lando dealt out the cards, while Mikey seemed more interested in the sushi he'd just ordered than the game. Frank glanced back at their table for a moment, and when Gerard whispered, "You can do this, Frank," he smiled. The game began, and with Gerard cheering him on, Frank was sure he would be victorious.

The objective was simple. He had to aim for a value of 23 or -23 without going over, but when Frank glanced at his cards, he saw that he was nowhere close. "Negative five," he called out as he took three cards and placed one in the interference field.

"Sixteen," Lando said as he took another card.

Frank glanced at his new cards, but somehow, his luck had gotten even worse. "Zero," he said as he took another card.

Lando chuckled. "Too bad we're not playing the Corellian Spike version. You would have just won," he said. "I'm at twenty, by the way."

Frank kept on taking cards, hoping to improve his score, and at first, his strategy seemed to work. After a few hands, he was at twenty-one. As long as there wasn't a Sabacc Shift randomly changing all of the card values, he could beat Lando. He took one last card, hoping to finally make it to twenty-three.

He drew a ten. His score was over twenty-three, and he'd lost the round. Frank sighed, knowing that he still had two more rounds to go. If he was lucky, he could still beat Lando.

The second round went better. After the Sabacc Shift, Frank and Lando were tied at sixteen, so they had to settle it by rolling a die. Lando rolled a four and then passed the die to Frank. As he rolled, he heard Gerard cheer, and he felt like there was still hope for him, like he might actually win.

He rolled a six. Frank smiled, knowing that it all came down to the final round. As Lando dealt the cards, Frank tried to think of a strategy, but he couldn't stop dreaming about the gorgeous boy at the other table.

When Frank got his cards, he studied them carefully. He was at a ten right now, but he was sure that he could improve his score. He took another card, but it brought him to a -4. Meanwhile, Lando went from -15 to a -22. Frank was almost certain that Lando would win, but he tried his best to draw more cards and improve his score.

That was when the Sabacc Shift happened. Frank looked back at his cards, and he had a seven, two eights, a three, a five, and a negative eight, totaling up to exactly 23. It was a Pure Sabacc. He stared at his cards, almost certain that he'd won.

"I've got an Idiot's Array," Lando said as he set his cards on the table. Frank inspected his cards, and sure enough, Lando had an unbeatable hand. "Good game, Frank," he said.

"Good game," Frank said.

"So I get your diamonds?" Lando said, grinning.

"Yeah, I guess so," Frank said, a little disappointed. The two of them walked over to the Black Mariah, and Frank unlocked the cargo hold and helped Lando load the diamonds into his ship.

"Hey Frank, is it okay if we go shopping while you're unloading the diamonds?" Gerard asked. "I think we might need some better disguises if we don't want the Empire to catch us."

Mikey groaned, but Ray said, "Yeah, I think that would be a good idea."

"Me too," Frank said. "Just come back once you guys are done."

"Of course," Gerard said. He, Mikey, and Ray wandered off, leaving Lando and Frank alone for a few minutes.

They spent the time catching up, sharing stories of wild heists and dangerous escapades. However, as he talked with Lando, his mind was elsewhere. He was still thinking about Gerard, wondering if a few fleeting moments of happiness with him would be worth the pain that would come when they finally made it to Ilum. Maybe he would be better off if he backed off now, before he was in too deep.

After all of the diamonds were in the Falcon, Lando said, "I should probably get going, but it was nice talking to you." He then whispered into Frank's ear, "By the way, if you and the kid with the black hair dye aren't together already, then I'm sure you two would make an adorable couple..."

"Quit trying to meddle in my love life, Lando," Frank said.

"I'm just trying to help!"

"You're not helping."

All of a sudden, Gerard, Ray, and Mikey came back. Ray had bought a pair of sunglasses and a black jacket, and Mikey had ditched his glasses and dyed his hair blond, but Frank couldn't believe his eyes when he saw Gerard. His bright red hair perfectly framed his face, and he looked incredible in his brand skinny jeans, blue jacket, and tall boots. "What do you think?" Gerard asked, and Frank nearly melted into a puddle.

"You guys look great," Frank said. "Lando, I'll see you around, right?"

"Of course," Lando said. "See you later, Frank."

Lando walked away, and as soon as he was gone, Frank smiled. "What's going on?" Gerard asked.

"Nothing," Frank said as he climbed back into the Black Mariah.

"I know that's not true," Gerard said. "You just lost a game of Sabacc, and you're smiling about it."

"I didn't lose," Frank said.

"That makes no sense," Gerard said. "I saw it happen. Lando had the Idiot's Array."

"I would have won either way," Frank said. "I lost the game, so I got rid of the diamonds that were weighing down the ship. If I'd won, I would have gotten another ship to carry them. No matter what happened, I would have gotten my way."

"That's pretty clever, Frank," Gerard said.

"Thanks," Frank said. "I'm kind of glad I lost though. Lando's ship is a piece of junk."

Frank started up the ship, and as soon as Ray, Mikey, and Gerard were all aboard, he launched it into the air. It was much faster now that he wasn't carrying the diamonds anymore, but Frank worried about how he was going to get that money back. Now that the diamonds were gone, he had to steal the data pod. He hated to betray Gerard, one of the few people who cared about him, one of the few people who saw the best in him instead of the worst, but he had to do it. He glanced toward the data pod, still sitting on top of Gerard's backpack. It was still out of reach, but one of these days, when Gerard wasn't looking, he would take it.

Frank piloted the ship toward the nearest hyperspace route, but just as he was about to turn on the hyperdrive, he got a warning from the ship's safety system. "The stabilizer's broken," he said.

"Is that bad?" Mikey asked.

"Yes, of course it's bad!" Frank exclaimed.

"What are we going to do?" Ray asked.

Frank paused to think for a moment, trying to keep himself from panicking, and then he finally said, "I know somebody. Somebody who could fix this."

He turned the ship around and steered it straight toward Alsakan, the bright skies and dark cantinas of Cloud City already far behind them.