Star Wars_ Splinter of the Mind's Eye - Alan Dean Foster [83]
Halla fired. The beam of energy had no visible effect on the creature, which continued lumbering toward them. Luke had his own pistol out, as did Leia. All three of them fired. If the joint barrage had any effect it was to irritate the sluggish beast. It blinked blood, continued its bowlegged walk toward them at a faster pace.
They continued retreating toward the entrance. “Hin, Kee,” Luke called to the Yuzzem. “Go back to the crawler … get the rifles!”
Hin chittered a reply, then both Yuzzem were racing for the exit. Luke considered the crystal, receding behind the protective bulk of the monster. Taking his lightsaber from his belt, he activated the powerful blue beam and started cautiously forward.
“Luke, have you lost your mind?” the Princess shouted.
He reflected briefly that it wasn’t impossible, and then dismissed the thought. If he paused to do much thinking, the steadily advancing carnivore would have him for a snack.
It hesitated within snapping distance, slightly hypnotized by the weaving beam of the saber. Luke lunged forward. The saber contacted the creature’s chin. Intense energy punctured a small hole in the wide lower jaw.
That produced a dimly outraged moan from the thing. Jaws parted to reveal a gullet high and wide enough to dance in. Luke saw something moving inside. Whether prodded by instinct or a good guess, he threw himself sharply to his left and rolled rapidly.
The long pink tongue exploded outward, to pulverize a black boulder which had been just behind him. As he rolled to his feet and continued backing away, the creature spat out chunks of rock.
Before Luke could move out of range the thick tongue shot out again. Unable to dodge, he held his saber tightly in front of him. It seemed pitifully inadequate against that pink pseudopod. But the sizzling sound was loud. Apparently he’d contacted sensitive tissue, because the creature let out a throaty yelp. With single-minded determination, it resumed stalking Luke. Death glinted in narrowed yellow eyes.
Leia and Halla kept up a steady fire on the massive body, to no effect. “Useless,” the Princess said tightly. She looked toward the entrance. There was no sign of movement there. “Hin!” she shouted. “Kee!” No response.
“They’ll get here,” Halla advised her. “They’d better.”
Unexpectedly, the monster hopped forward. Horizontal door-jaws snapped shut with a ringing thud as Luke ducked beneath the bite. His saber cut a black line across the underside of the jaw as he stumbled clear, to bang into one of the thick pillars supporting the roof. One of the gaps in that soaring ceiling shone directly above.
He shot an anxious glance toward the entrance. Where were the Yuzzem? He couldn’t avoid this angry behemoth much longer.
No time to worry about anything other than himself now. It was crawling for him once more. A quick glance at the ceiling, a quicker decision, and then he was swinging the lightsaber at the pillar’s base.
Like an X-wing in atmosphere, the incredible energy beam sliced through the black stone. A rumbling noise followed, punctuated by explosive crackings.
“Halla, Leia … run!” he yelled. Then he was sprinting to join them.
Lumbering toward them, the lizard-creature never noticed the cracks in the ceiling overhead. They spread, multiplied, joined, and then the pillar disintegrated, bringing a section of roof as wide as the existing gap down on top of the monster. Gigantic blocks of curved stone crushed its front end to pulp, stilling the toothy grin forever.
As the rumbling echoes of the collapse subsided and the black dust began to settle, Luke, panting, paused to look behind him. There was no sign of the front end of the beast. It was buried completely beneath tons of volcanic rock. Twitching hind legs clawed futilely at the air for a while. The massive scimitar tail smashed at the ground. Before very long, all movement ceased.
“What happened to Hin and Kee?” he finally asked. “The thing had me cornered. I could’ve been