Luke fires at a TIE fighter. At his port, Han follows a fighter in his sights, releasing a blast of laserfire. He connects, and the fighter explodes into fiery dust. Han laughs victoriously.

Two TIE fighters move toward and over the Millennium Falcon, unleashing a barrage of laserbolts at the ship. Another TIE fighter moves in on the pirateship and Luke, smiling, fires the laser cannon at it, scoring a spectacular direct hit.

LUKE: Got him! I got him!

Han turns and gives Luke a victory wave which Luke gleefully returns.

HAN: Great kid! Don't get cocky.

Han turns back to his laser cannon. Two more TIE fighters cross in front of the pirateship. While Chewbacca manipulates the controls, Leia turns, looking over her shoulder out the ports.

LEIA: There are still two more of them out there!

A TIE fighter moves up over the pirateship, firing laserblasts at it. Luke and Han look into their respective projected target screens. An Imperial fighter crosses Solo's port, and Han swivels in his chair, following it with blasts from his laser cannon. Another fighter crosses Luke's port, and he reacts in a like manner, the glow of his target screen lighting his face. The TIE fighter zooms toward the pirateship, firing destructive blasts at it. Luke fires a laserblast at the approaching enemy fighter, and it bursts into a spectacular explosion. Luke's projected screen gives a readout of the hit.

The pirateship bounces slightly as it is struck by the enemy fire. The last of the attacking Imperial TIE fighters looms in, firing upon the Falcon. Solo swivels behind his cannon, his aim describing the arc of the TIE fighter. The fighter comes closer, firing at the pirateship, but a well-aimed blast from Solo's laser cannon hits the attacker, which blows up in a small atomic shower of burning fragments.

LUKE: (laughing) That's it! We did it!

The princess jumps up and gives Chewie a congratulatory hug.

LEIA: We did it!

Threepio lies on the floor of the ship, completely tangled in the smoking, sparking wires.

THREEPIO: Help! I think I'm melting! (to Artoo) This is all your fault.

Artoo turns his dome from side to side, beeping in response. The victorious Millennium Falcon moves off majestically through space.

DEATH STAR - CONTROL ROOM: Darth Vader strides into the control room, where Tarkin is watching the huge view screen. A sea of stars is before him.

TARKIN: Are they away?

VADER: They have just made the jump into hyperspace.

TARKIN: You're sure the homing beacon is secure aboard their ship? I'm taking an awful risk, Vader. This had better work.

MILLENNIUM FALCON - COCKPIT: Han, removes his gloves and smiling, is at the controls of the ship. Chewie moves into the aft section to check the damage. Leia is seated near Han.

HAN: Not a bad bit of rescuing, huh? You know, sometimes I even amaze myself.

LEIA: That doesn't sound too hard. Besides, they let us go. It's the only explanation for the ease of our escape.

HAN: Easy...you call that easy?

LEIA: Their tracking us!

HAN: Not this ship, sister.

Frustrated, Leia shakes her head.

LEIA: At least the information in Artoo is still intact.

HAN: What's so important? What's he carrying?

LEIA: The technical readouts of that battle station. I only hope that when the data is analyzed, a weakness can be found. It's not over yet!

HAN: It is for me, sister! Look, I ain't in this for your revolution, and I'm not in it for you, Princess. I expect to be well paid. I'm in it for the money!

LEIA: You needn't worry about your reward. If money is all that you love, then that's what you'll receive!

She angrily turns, and as she starts out of the cockpit, passes Luke coming in.

LEIA: Your friend is quite a mercenary. I wonder if he really cares about anything...or anyone.

LUKE: I care!

Luke sits in the copilot seat. He and Han stare out at the vast blackness of space.

LUKE: So...what do you think of her, Han?

HAN: I'm trying not to, kid!

LUKE: (under his breath) Good...

HAN: Still, she's got a lot of spirit. I don't know, what do you think? Do you think a princess and a guy like me...

LUKE: No!

Luke says it with finality and looks away. Han smiles at young Luke's jealousy.

FOURTH MOON OF YAVIN: The battered pirateship drifts into orbit around the planet Yavin and proceeds to one of its tiny green moons.

FOURTH MOON OF YAVIN: The pirate ship soars over the dense jungle.

MASSASSI OUTPOST: An alert guard, his laser gun in hand, scans the countryside. He sets the gun down and looks toward the temple, barely visible in the foliage.

JUNGLE TEMPLE: Rotting in a forest of gargantuan trees, an ancient temple lies shrouded in an eerie mist. The air is heavy with the fantastic cries of unimaginable creatures. Han, Luke and the others are greeted by the Rebel troops. Luke and the group ride into the massive temple on an armored military speeder.

MASSASSI - MAIN HANGAR DECK: The military speeder stops in a huge spaceship hangar, set up in the interior of the crumbling temple. Willard, the commander of the Rebel forces, rushes up to the group and gives Leia a big hug. Every one is pleased to see her.

WILLARD: (holding Leia) You're safe! When we heard about Alderaan, we had feared the worst.

LEIA: We have no time for sorrows, Commander. You must use the information in this R2 unit to plan the attack. It's our only hope.

The surface of the Death Star ominously approaches the red planet Yavin.

CONTROL ROOM: Grand Moff Tarkin and Lord Vader are interrupted in their discussion by the buzz of the comlink. Tarkin moves to answer the call.

TARKIN: Yes.

DEATH STAR INTERCOM VOICE: We are approaching the planet Yavin. The Rebel base is on a moon on the far side. We are preparing to orbit the planet.

YAVIN - JUNGLE: A lone guard stands in a tower high above the Yavin landscape, surveying the countryside. A mist hangs over the jungle of twisted green.

WAR ROOM BRIEFING AREA: Dodonna stands before a large electronic wall display. Leia and several other senators are to one side of the giant readout. The low-ceilinged room is filled with starpilots, navigators, and a sprinkling of R2-type robots. Everyone is listening intently to what Dodonna is saying. Han and Chewbacca are standing near the back.

DODONNA: The battle station is heavily shielded and carries a firepower greater than half the star fleet. It's defenses are designed around a direct large-scale assault. A small one-man fighter should be able to penetrate the outer defense.

Gold Leader, a rough looking man in his early thirties, addresses Dodonna.

GOLD LEADER: Pardon me for asking, sir, but what good are snub fighters going to be against that?

DODONNA: Well, the Empire doesn't consider a small one-man fighter to be any threat, or they'd have a tighter defense. An analysis of the plans provided by Princess Leia has demonstrated a weakness in the battle station.

Artoo-Detoo stands next to a similar robot, makes beeping sounds, and turns his head from right to left.

DODONNA: The approach will not be easy. You are required to maneuver straight down this trench and skim the surface to this point. The target area is only two meters wide. It's a small thermal exhaust port, right below the main port. The shaft leads directly to the reactor system. A precise hit will start a chain reaction which should destroy the station.

A murmer of disbelief runs through the room.