Labyrinth of Death | Chapter 16

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 | Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16


His second glove had come off in his frantic scrapings. Blood ran freely from his fingers, painting the snow red. Grimly, he gouged out another handful of snow, and another. Dig. Dig. He grunted and slapped his numb fingers on his thigh, then shook his hands vigorously.
He gestured to Raenen. “Come here!”
She obeyed.
“Get in!” He pointed into the hole.
Raenen clambered into the shallow depression and looked out at him. “It’s not big enough for both of us, Barras.”
“It’s not supposed to be.” Barras pulled his snow coat over his head and pushed it into the excavation.
“Barras, no! That’s yours!”
“I don’t care.” Barras smiled at her and grabbed up his gauntlets, tossing them inside. “All that matters, Raenen, is that you survive. Get off this freezing moon and tell the Sith Lord that Radoth is a traitor. That’s all you have to do.”
Raenen pushed off the coat. “No, Barras! Without you…what do I have to live for?”
Barras packed snow in front of the entrance, shivering violently. “I don’t know, Raenen.” He blew hard on his knuckles and continued raising a wall. “But I hope you find something.” He glanced at her. “Give me your second gun.”
“Don’t shoot yourself, Barras!”
Barras reached in and grabbed her unbroken blaster, pulling it out of her reach. “I’m not going to.” He slipped the blaster into his own holster. “When I’m gone, get your clothes away from your skin. You’ll freeze with wet clothes on.” He kissed the tips of his fingers and blew on them. “Until I see you again.”
With that, he turned and ran across the snowy plains, shivering violently. He gritted his teeth together to stop them from chattering. “She’ll be fine.” He grinned at the dark sky and skidded to a stop in the snow. “You know what, Glewthon?” he yelled at the darkening sky. “You won’t take me! You may be a cold moon, but I can beat anything you throw at me! Do your worst, Glewthon! Do it! And I’ll come out the champion! Because I AM THE CHAMPION!”
A wampa roared close by.
Barras’ head rotated, and he dropped to one knee, firing blasts at the wampa. “Die, you ugly creature!”
The wampa groaned and fell to its knees, then keeled over face-first in the snow.
An idea occurred to Barras, and he grinned, though a sick feeling pervaded his insides. “It might just work!”

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Raenen had carried out Barras’ orders, stripping her wet clothes away from her body and slipping his dry snow coat on. Tears streaked down her face. “Oh, Barras, why?” She pulled her legs up to her body and shivered slightly. “Why did you have to give your life for me?”
A sob racked her body. Drops slid down her cheeks and dropped from her chin. “Barras…”
With her hands, she rubbed her shoulders vigorously. The emotional pain in her mind flooded over, and she screamed in anguish, winding down into a moaning wail. “Barras…not again. No, please!”
Her chin dropped to her chest, and her mind slipped into unconsciousness.

–––––

A much younger version of Raenen pressed her back against the wall of a house, wretched terror in her eyes. “No, please, I didn’t mean it! I’ll give it back!”
A tall, fat man glared at the skinny street child and raised a blaster. “Too much of your kind of trash wandering these streets.”
“No!” screamed Raenen. “Don’t…please.” She dropped to her knees and cowered against the wall, covering her eyes with her arm. “Don’t shoot me. Don’t shoot me.”
“Too late for that, you thief,” growled the man.
And a shot rang out.
“No!” Raenen screamed.
Something smashed into the bricks just above her head, sending chips of mortar and dust onto her head. She screamed again and cowered down further, trying to shrink.
“Leave her alone!” came a new voice. A young voice.
Raenen peeked out at the young boy who stood, hands on his hips, glaring at the man. “Jae, go away! He has a gun!”
“Two of you?” the fat man asked, scowling fiercely. “There’s too many of them. Some of these kids need to go.” He pointed the blaster at Raenen again and fired.
Jae leapt in front of Raenen. “No—” His shout was abruptly cut off, and his body fell backwards, his head colliding with Raenen’s knee.
“Rae,” he whispered, then his voice failed.
“Jae!” screamed Raenen. Her hand brushed his forehead and ran down to the blast hole in his chest. She glanced up at the man, a tear streaking down her face. “You killed him.” Her voice became a wail. “You killed him!”
The man winced at the high pitch of Raenen’s voice. “Same as I’ll do with you.”
Raenen lunged at the blaster, knocking it upwards as the man fired. She bit his hand and wrenched the blaster out of his hand, then pointed it at him. “Go away!”
The man uttered a curse and retreated. “I’ll get you, missy, you can be sure about that!” He backed off, then ducked into a side street.
Raenen dropped the blaster and returned to Jae’s side. She collapsed on the ground next to him. Her hand caressed his smooth, cold forehead. And she wept, an aching wound torn into her soul that could never be healed.

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Dmitri Pendragon
Blog Moderator

Postscript. May I also draw your attention to the fact that Si has won the November 2013 CotM award, if you haven't heard, and by scrolling down you should be able to get to the post, where you can ask questions.