The planet of Astoria was small, sitting on the edge of the Hyperiol system. It was a snow planet, producing upwards of 18-20 inches of snow any given day. But it also held some of the most breathtaking and massive mountain ranges and forests that far surpassed the likes of any akin planet in the system, perhaps even the galaxy. It was quiet, and at night the stars could always be seen, unlike the sun which hardly ever made an appearance. The planet's early inhabitants, after migrating out of the system, were stricken with fear upon the sight of the sun-they had never before seen a star so large, nor so warm.
The history of Astoria is short, and currently the planet is uninhabited. It is a forgotten planet. Many consider it merely uninhabitable, given the migration of the Natives several generations ago. But beneath the snow and the ice, lies a bedrock of rich soil and nutrients, prime for gardening and the preservation of life. But still the planet lay dormant, and has for several hundred years. Only a few stray animal species still lay claim to the land; a large colony of jackrabbits with 6 inch antlers who are docile and shy with razor sharp teeth used the pierce the frozen bark of trees to reach the sap which they consume as their primary food source. And their predators-a group of crystalized snakes who's skin when molting become completely transparent, making them the prime beasts of prey, and beneath the snow and the ice in Astoria's deep cavernous lakes are a special kind of fish that glow when collected in close proximity to other fish, emanating spots of soft pink haze that can only be seen at night. This, in succession with beams of ribbon-like reflected light in the night sky make for an absolutely breathtaking experience in the evenings on Astoria.
Deep within the planet's core, however, is possibly the most breathtaking image of all. A thick, black graphite crystalized diamond makes up the inner core of Astoria. That is, it is rumored to house this incredibly precious stone, but it has never been proven, nor mined for. The story exists solely as folk-lore, as many things in the galaxy tend to do.
On this particular day the planet was exceptionally cold, with a wind that bit through the skin and back out again. The peaks of the mountains were hidden amongst low hanging dark grey clouds, with snow cascading down the slopes in thick blankets. A jackrabbit screeched in the distance, puffs of sound emanating from it's hops could nearly be heard a mile away. All was quiet.
At the base of Astoria's tallest mountain a woman suddenly wakes up, gasping for breath and covered in an inch of snow. She has no idea how she got here, or where here was. Her muscles ached from lack of movement, creaking like the frozen branches of a tree. The sweat that dripped from her brow was beginning to freeze, every molecule turning to micro-sized crystals hardening on the skin, and her hair, black as deep space, began to collect fragments of large snowflakes, dampening her locks for the subsequent freezing of them.
She stood slowly, the snow falling from her body in clumps. She looked around, her eyes squinting as she scanned the ground around her feet. Suddenly she lunged forward and grabbed a discarded pair of metal framed round glasses. After slipping them onto her nose she took a long and calculated look at her surroundings.
Suddenly out of the corner of her eye she spotted movement. She swiftly turned, her hand instinctively reaching for the holster on her thigh. But she paused, noticing it was just a jackrabbit. Slowly she stepped toward it but it quickly bared two rows of razor like teeth and she jumped back quickly. The rabbit closed it's mouth and happily hopped away. The woman's eyes, that were wide and watering from the cold breeze, watched it as it hopped away, wondering where the hell she was.
Then again, there was a rustle of the bushes behind her and she grabbed her weapon quickly-twisting it up in a defensive stance, the deep purple light ignited and the hot buzz illuminated her face melting the frozen beads of sweat.
A small figure stepped out, or more accurately rolled out from behind the bushes and beeped shyly at the woman. Cautiously she lowered her lightsaber as the droid rolled over to her and bumped its head against her calf. She knelt down and peered at it. It was a BB-8 unit, early model, white and grey detailing. Beautiful little guy, she thought.
"What are you doing all the way out here?" She asked it, slipping her lightsaber back into its holster. It beeped wildly, spinning around in front of her. Her smirk faded with its words, "You were abandoned?" It beep and whirred sadly, lowering its head. Then the woman rubbed it's head and straightened one of it's antenna, "That's okay, I've been abandoned too."
The BB-8 unit whirred and beckoned her to follow, and curiously, she did. The little droid was so quick she barely kept up, her bones she stiff and numb. Quickly though she was met with a crash-landed ship, a rather large ship at that, half buried in the snow. The droid rolled up to it and opened a door with a key pad.
"Was this your ship, or did you find it?" It beeped happily and she nodded, looking around the cargo space. "So when your crew crash landed here they were rescued and left you all alone? What horrible people, I'm so sorry BB-8."
The droid beeped softly, and the woman turned to it. She had never before heard such an emotive droid in her life, it almost purred softly at her feet and she slowly sat down next to it, her knees popping under the pressure, but she ignored it.
"My name is Elle, by the way." She said, watching the clouds of air exit her mouth begin to crystalize before they dissipated into nothing. BB-8 beeped and rolled to her other hip and pointed at her lightsaber, Elle smirked sadly and took it out. "I used to be, buddy. But...not anymore."
The droid beeped and beckoned Elle further into the ship. She noticed it was considerably warmer inside, as opposed to outside and she wondered what the walls were made of, or the insulation between. BB-8 led her to the cockpit and explained what had happened and why the ship wasn't able to fly. It was all a bit over her head, she was hardly an engineer, but she understood most of it. The ship needed gas, and every system function was down outside of the weapons canons. Lot of good that'll do them way out here, she thought.
But for a moment, in her hazy confusion mixed with the potentially life threatening chill in the air, she felt safe. Elle did not know how she ended up in this place, on this planet, or with this little droid-but it was all she had at the moment.
Elle subconsciously grazed her hand against her lightsaber and looked out onto the vast tundra ahead of her. The snow covered ground and the merciless flat white and grey clouds made discerning a line in the horizon nearly impossible. But there was safety in that, there was plainness in that. No "one or the other," just flat-no sides. Here she didn't have to fight, she just had to live.