Warrior ◊ Star Wars

chapter thirty; familiar places now unknown

Wind nipped at her cheeks, coloring her skin scarlet as she pulled her parka closer to her body. Mara's shoes sunk a few inches into the snow with each step, the cold beginning to numb her feet despite the boots she wore. Flurries of white danced in her vision, carrying over to billow her hair and dust blond strands with flecks of pale ivory. Her throat and lungs stung from inhaling frigid air, chilling her even more. She was genuinely afraid the temperature would freeze her very blood.

The worst was her fingers, completely exposed to the environment. They tapped against the metal of the gun slung over her shoulder, which wasn't a source of warmth at all. They had gone completely numb, all feeling leaving the tips. Shivers also ran down her spine, icy air twirling down her backbone and making her shudder. There was also the fact she couldn't stop her teeth from chattering.

The desert hadn't suited Mara, and she was now paying that price after living in it for two years. For someone who had been accustomed to constant heat for so long, the wintry climate didn't welcome her.

Poor Rey, she thought, she'd love snow, but this would just be torture.

Then there was the added fact that besides Finn, Han, Rey and Chewbacca, everyone on this planet wanted to kill her. Being so close to the enemy, her brother, to the creature that leached into her mind so freely had begun to make her more anxious then before. A nauseous feeling trapped itself under her skin, letting fear creep in. She did her best to ignore it, knowing her unwell state would begin to subside once she hit something. It was the waiting that sucked.

Large black structures prominently rose from the opaque ground, sheltered by the towering mountains beside them. They headed towards large tunnels, not daring to walk up to the front door and punch the guard in front (that was Mara's idea, which predictably was shot down. They promised her a few heads to bash later.)

The four made their way up the rocky slope, Finn leading the way, "The flooding tunnels are just over that ridge. We'll get in that way."

Mara was the farthest back, staying close to Chewie in hopes the large Wookie would help shield her from the wind, and called up to Finn, "How long until we reach it? Rough estimate?"

She saw him shrug, stopping momentarily, "Less than an hour maybe?"

She was certain she'd freeze before then.

Han held his jacket closer to him, forehead creasing as he came up with a question, "What was your job when you were based here?"

Finn's nervous jittering had mostly stilled since his talk with Mara on the Falcon, but his delayed response and tense form gave him away. He swallowed, then meekly answered, "Sanitation."

The blonde visibly face palmed, then quickly pulled back the freezing hand from her face.

"Sanitation!" Han exclaimed, grabbing a hold of the younger's jacket in exasperation. Finn's expression reverted to surprise as the captain grew visibly irritated, "Then how do you know how to disable the shields?"

"I don't-"

Mara was already pissed, pulling up her feet from the weight of the snow and stocking up towards the front. She wasn't going to hit him, no, but her already sour mood and tendency to fire up easily left her with a few choice words for him, "I am literally freezing on enemy ground-"

"I'm just here to get Rey."

With that her small spark of irritation diffused, her wide mouth clamping back shut as her intimidating stance relaxed back. Finn voiced her own reasons for being here, and that alone shut her down.

Han, not so much.

"People are counting on us! The galaxy is counting on us!"

"Solo, we'll figure it out!" He interjected, eyes glowing with the notion of an idea, "We'll use the Force-"