"Should I ask, my lord?" Pierce's voice was wry, but he didn't bump into her, even as Six stopped short. He slowly pulled his hand from her collar and folded his arms, glaring at the blockage in front of them.
"Well, this was where we came in," Six gestured with frustration at the blocked entrance. She could see spurts of daylight peeking through the loosely piled boulders of packed snow and ice. The rays of light improved visibility, she could see Pierce's rough-hewn features more clearly. But the precarious stacking meant if she tried to Force push the pile could fall back on her and Pierce, making that idea moot. Another rumble caused a tremor through the walls of the cave, letting her know this was where the cave was the most unstable and they'd better act quickly.
"Suggestions, Lieutenant?"
"Any other routes out of here, my lord?" Six shook her head.
"Not anymore, the first explosion effectively blocked the alternate exit when it brought down that other section of tunnel." Six continued to examine to boulders that blocked their way.
"What about those sabers you're always brandishing?" Pierce asked.
"Better used on more solid substances, not those that melt," Six pulled out her comm unit, "If the wall isn't too thick, maybe the base can pick up our signal." She moved carefully close to the blocked entrance. "This is Talon to Dorn Base, requesting assistance." She saw Pierce raise a skeptical eyebrow at her comm name, but it was a name guaranteed to attract attention if anyone was at the base communications console. She waited a moment before being rewarded with the reply chirp of her unit.
"Talon!" A hearty male voice came through on the comm. "Back on Hoth, who would have thought? Haven't seen you since they shipped you off to Ziost. Heard you're a 'Lord' now, pretty fancy." Six smiled as she recognized who had picked up her signal.
"Stow it, Henson" she said good-naturedly, "This is serious. I'm in Hawken's cave and there's a blockage at the east entrance, north is inaccessible as well. Any clue on an ETA for a removal crew?"
"You and that cave, Talon, knew it'd do you in one day," Six could heard the corporal's snicker over the comm, "I'll get Clipson to mobilize a crew, but it might be awhile." The cave chose that moment to rumble again, debris pattering around her feet.
"Put a rush on that, Corporal," Six tried to convey as much urgency as she could with her voice, "It's coming down fast, Talon out."
Six knew letting Henson go would be the clearest way for him to understand how serious their situation was, the bright chatter-box of a Corporal and she were old friends from when she lived here and she would love to catch up, but now was not the time. She looked over at Pierce; his expression had gone from skeptical to incredulous.
"And here I thought you were supposed to be a Sith," his tone was disbelieving, "Never heard one talk like that, my lord." Six looked up at the ceiling of the cave, folding her arms and tapping her foot in exasperation.
"I'm lots of things, Lieutenant," she pinned him with her red eyes, "I tend to let the situation dictate the role I assume. I knew anyone listening at the Dorn comm center would respond better to 'Talon' than 'Lord Sixfee'. But right now, becoming 'someone-not-trapped-in-a-cave' is top priority." Six went back over to the blocked entrance.
"You are full of surprises, aren't you, my lord?" Pierce said as he joined her by the entrance, "Why Talon?" Six chuckled at the unbidden memories.
"I was notorious for not fighting fair," she said, while laughing softly, "As one of the few females on post I used any advantage I could. 'Talon' became my comm name, because I was always using my claws, either physically or verbally." To her surprise the Lieutenant grinned.
"Talon, eh," he said thoughtfully, "I'll hand it to those Hoth boys, my lord, it's a good name for you."
Six gave him a rueful smile before examining some of the ice boulders near the bottom of the pile at the entrance, then an idea formed.
"Were you able to salvage any of those charges?" she asked. His look brightened, as he realized where her thoughts had headed.
"Might have a couple," he said slowly, "You thinking of blowing our way out?" At her nod, his eyes turned speculative, "Could work, I guess, just need to plant the charges deep enough to get the explosion to focus outward instead of in."
"Leave that to me," Six said, drawing her light saber, "Just tell me where they will need to go."
The perks of having a demolition expert on hand, Six thought, as she watched Pierce examine the boulders and assess where the charges would do the most good. After he did a thorough job, he signaled to her where to create holes in the ice. The cave rumbled again as she worked, reminding her they needed to get moving. They planted three charges, then traveled back to the fork in the path. Six understood they had to get enough distance between them and the blast to prevent injury, while being close enough to make a break for it afterward. Standing snug against the wall, she handed Pierce the detonator.
"The honor is yours, Lieutenant," she said, with a dark grin, "Any last requests?" She was surprised when a sly look crept over his face.
"Maybe a kiss for luck, my lord?"
A bold request, Six thought, but why not. She gave him a brisk nod and craned up to give him a light kiss on the lips. Pierce had something else in mind, she realized quickly, as his arms wrenched her to him and his mouth met hers. The kiss was fierce and hungry, catching her off guard, but igniting her natural passion and her arms wrapped around his neck. His tongue slid along her lips, demanding entrance, then surged inside when she parted them with a moan. No simple press of lips, this was the raw desire of a man denied something far too long and finally able to indulge himself; Six couldn't help but to respond to it.
Her eager reaction only seemed to fuel whatever had taken him over, she heard a growl as he clasped her tighter. His tongue warred with hers before he broke from the kiss to rake his teeth along her jawline to her throat. Six felt her head lean back as she gave herself over to the temporary insanity of the situation, her breath coming in gasps. Suddenly, the clattering of rocks at their feet reminded her of where they were, and she froze, feeling as though she had been dropped naked into a snowbank.
"We need to stop," her voice rasping, as she pushed reluctantly against the chest plate of Pierce's armor. But dislodging him was proving difficult, he seemed intent on his exploration of her skin with his mouth. "Lieutenant!" she let her voice snap and it seemed to have the desired effect. He backed up to look her in the eyes, giving her a bold grin while the flames in his eyes slowly banked.
"If that doesn't bring us luck, my lord, I don't know what will." his voice was husky as he smiled at her.
No apology, she noticed, but she wasn't surprised as she took in a deep breath and exhaled sharply. Shouldn't have enjoyed that so much, she told herself, feeling conflicted. She and Quinn were... well, her thoughts pulled up sharply, what were they? After the teasing and games they had played, to include an amazing night together, their relationship was still lacking definition. Now with Pierce in the picture, she felt the tables being turned on her. She recognized that he used the same tactics on her that she'd used while pursuing Quinn. Almost made her feel bad for the Captain, she thought, almost. She took another deep breath and focused her gaze on Pierce.
"I think it's time to get out of here, Lieutenant," she said, motioning to the detonator he still held with her head. His smile melted into the more common grim look she usually saw on his face, but his eyes were still intense as he looked at her.
"Hope this works, my lord." he said, positioning himself between her and the blast. The charges detonated with a resounding boom, and Six grinned as she saw the opening to the cave clear. She took off at a full sprint, barely registering that Pierce wasn't following.
"My lord!" she heard him shout, freezing just beyond the exit when she heard the panic in his voice. "Only two!"
She stood confused for a moment, then the meaning of his words sunk in; they'd set three charges. She scanned the remaining ice boulders, catching a flash out of the corner of her eye as the third charge exploded. She ducked down as fast as she could, covering her head with her arms. Getting low to the ground let most of the debris pass over her, but one determined chunk caught her in the side, knocking her over. She cried out as she heard a crunch, and her side flared in blinding pain. She tried gathering her focus as she lay on the snow gasping, but every breath felt like a knife plunged into her side. Not again, was the last thing she thought, as her vision started to fade and she heard heavy boots running towards her.