• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

"Yeah, we're lucky, all right." He hadn't been able to tell for nearly an hour whether he still had ears or not. He supposed that it was just as well he couldn't feel them. "Which way?" he asked.

"We could use our lightsabers to cut hand - and footholds into the rock,"

Tbnel Ka suggested.

Jacen nodded. He looked in the direction of the pass toward which they were heading. "What's that?" he said. He pointed to some tall, narrow objects now visible in the pass. They looked like the rigid trunks of scrawny metal trees that had only one or two limbs--limbs that moved.

"Power generators," Tenel Ka said. "The winds are strong in the temperate zone where cold air meets hot. The Twi'leks use wind turbines to run their generators and supply much of their power down in the caves."

Jacen flicked on his lightsaber. "Well, I'm ready to feel some of that hot air," he said as a cold wind buffeted them. He swung his lightsaber to notch a few footholds in the icy rock, then stepped forward and swung again.

And so they progressed across the slippery expanse. A powerful gust hit them without warning, knocking them both to their knees on the ice-covered rock. A second gust was followed by a loud clattering noise.

Jacen and Tenel Ka looked up in horror as hundreds of small rocks bounced and rolled and ricocheted down the slope toward them.

Jacen switched off his lightsaber. "Look out!" he yelled.

Tenel Ka punched the power stud on her weapon, turning it off. "This way!" she shouted, sitting directly on the ice and throwing her arm around him. Pulling him on top of her, she pushed off down the slope.

Like a living sled they slid quickly downhill on Tenel Ka's tough lizardhide armor, picking up speed and outdistancing the small avalanche.

Fortunately, the smooth rockface did not add significantly to the bruising they had already sustained. Unfortunately, the slope was long and steep, offering no handholds or footholds on the way down. No way to stop.

They slid. And slid...

Until they finally tumbled, gasping and panting, onto a broad level area near the base of the mountain. Helping each other up, they scrambled to their feet and ran from the tumbling rocks that followed them down.

Within a minute, the tide of rock that had pursued them slowed and stopped.

Panting and shivering, Jacen and Tenel Ka stood for a moment with their arms around each other in the lee of a tall rock. The shelter: blocked most of the wind, and--just for a moment--it felt a little less cold.

Jacen was surprised that Tenel Ka did not simply dust herself off and gruffly order him to keep going. Instead, she clung shivering to him for longer than seemed absolutely necessary.

Tenel Ka's loose hair fell forward to cover Jacen's shoulders. He welcomed the extra warmth and snuggled into it. He felt as if he could fall asleep under its blankety softness. He was so cold, so sleepy....

He closed his eyes, resting his head on her shoulder. Sleep seemed like a very good idea....

"Jacen, my friendf Tenel Ka's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Hmm? he asked groggily.

"Jacen, my friend. Tell me a joker Jacen's eyes snapped open. Had he really heard correctly? He put his face close to hers so that he could see her eyes in the starlight. How had he ever thought of her eyes as cool gray? he wondered. Had it taken the contrast with true cold for him to be able to see it? It was obvious now that they were warm, so warm....

"Wh-what? What did you say?"

She leaned her forehead against his. "Would you please tell me a joke?"

He smiled, though his lips cracked painfully.

"Umm... what side of a Wampa ice creature has the most fur?"

"I might welcome the company of even a Wampa ice creature at this moment, and invite it to join our group for warmth. I do not know, Jacen, my friend. Tell me--which side of a Wampa ice creature has more fur?"

Odd, Jacen thought. Tenel Ka must have known this joke. He was certain he had told it to her before. But at the moment that seemed very, very unimportant. Jacen smiled again into the soft red-gold cloud of hair that