Chapter Three
Hours had passed, she had lost track of time as she moved further into the ruins. When she was on a mission like this time would pass her by with no notice. She did notice how much cooler it was her almost uncomfortably so. It was as if the air had shifted the second she had passed the threshold. Is seemed strange she thought as she shook off the shiver that threatened to climb her spin. She made a mental note to bring her jacket the next day. This whole planet was just a bit odd. It was completely deserted and yet it hadn't been at one time. The ruins were proof of that so where did the people go? It's like they picked up and just vanished. What was strange was the fact that there was no writing, no signs on who had been there before. There should have been at least some kind of writings. She sighed as her shoulders slumped in defeat. Maybe she was wrong to come here. Maybe everyone was right with telling her that she was chasing fairy tales. She didn't want to believe them, that this was all a mistake. Something told her to stay however she still couldn't chase away the self-doubt.
"You're not wrong." A deep voice echoed around her. She wiped around rather quickly shinning her light every which way.
"Who's there?" She demanded only to be meant with silence. "Come out so that I can see you." She said her voice echoing in the dark and yet she still heard nothing. She took a shaky breath beating down a more terrifying thought that entered her mind. That she was going crazy like her mother had. She was hearing things and seeing things that weren't there. Her mother's battle with this had resulted in her death when Addy was a young child. Unable to stop the voices she had ended her own life, something Addy had never been able to get passed.
"I am so sorry" The voiced had echoed again only this time it was in her head.
"Okay this is getting a little old." She said out loud. "Who are you?!" She demanded.
"A friend."
"Well friend is you are real than show yourself!" She demanded again as she stood in the middle of the ruins with her fist clenched at her side ready to fight if need be. Once again she was meant with silence. As tears began to fill her eyes mostly out of frustration she spoke one last quiet plead. "Please."
"Miss Adelaide." A voice echoed down the hallway. This was a voice she knew. "Miss." The voice called out again.
"KD?" She called out as her beloved droid came into view.
"Oh Miss! I have found you!" The droid came to stop in front of her.
"KD. What is it? Why didn't you use the comms?" She asked suddenly concerned.
"Miss I tried but a rather nasty storm has moved in making communication with you impossible. I am afraid we will have to stay here until it passes."
"That could be hours." Addy responded.
"Yes that may very well be." Addy sighed slightly not really liking the idea of staying there for the night. She briefly entertained the thought of braving the lightning and rain to make a run to her ship.
"Not a good idea." The voice echoed in her head once more.
"Okay KD but let's head up toward the entrance more." She said trying as she might to ignore the voice.
"I was just going to suggest that Miss."
"Yeah? And why is that?" She asked as they headed in that direction.
"The air on this end of the tunnel is nearly fifty degrees cooler than the surface. Staying here would lead to a very cold night for you."
"Wait, surface?" She asked glazing over her droids concern for her warmth.
"Yes miss we are currently underground."
"Underground?!"
"Yes Miss." Odd, this whole place was just odd. It hadn't seemed like she was underground but then again she was hearing voices and thinking she was being watched. Maybe this place was just brimming with ghost from the past.
"You're not entirely wrong." Perfect! Her ghost was a sarcastic asshole.
"Maybe." It chuckled. She mentally rolled her eyes.
"Hey KD, let's get out of here. I'm done with this."
"With what Miss?" KD asked.
"All this hocus pocus bantha shit." She answered as she lead the way back where she had started that morning.
"I'm sorry Miss, hocus pocus bantha sh…"Addy sighed.
"Never mind KD. Let's just go."
"Are you feeling okay Miss?" The concerned droid asked her.
"No! Yes! I'm fine." She answered not really sure how to answer that. Though she could have sworn she had seen movement then out of the corner of her eye just to the left of her.
"Nope." She thought to herself as she passed. "Defiantly not okay."
When she finally reached the entrance she found that not only had the rains truly came but it had come with a vengeance. The wind was howling, lightning split the sky and the thunder felt as if it was roaring from the depths of hell itself. The rain was the worst, pouring from the sky in sheets making visibility nonexistent and it had started to flood near the entrance.
"Great." She thought to herself. Everything in her camp would be soaked but at least she had thought to keep all of her research and important stuff locked away on her ship. Still this couldn't have come at a worse time. She needed to be sealed inside her ship where she would feel safe. This storm was a wicked one and could last for hours. It made her nervous but for now she was stuck in a scary ass temple with her droid and the voice in her head. "Lovely." She thought to herself. "Perfect., just perfect."
"KD!" She had to shout over the roar of the storm and she motioned for the droid to follow her. She walked back the way they had just come, moving deeper into the underground.
"Miss?" Her droid questioned.
"We need to head back." She moved further along until they came about half way down. She was afraid to go much further due to the growing chill in the air. She wasn't exactly prepared for the cold. That and she didn't want to get any closer to where she had heard the voice. It had been a deep baritone voice, soothing almost calming but it still was a voice in her head and that alone was very alarming.
"Okay KD we will stop here for now." She had found an outcrop of rocks that would act as a bit of shelter and possible warmth of some sort. Not much but it was better than nothing. With nothing left to do and a sleepiness suddenly coming over her she folded herself into the small space pulling the small bag she had brought with her. It was going to be a very long cold night. She arranged her bag to use as a pillow and wrapped her arms around herself. KD stood alongside her but she knew that if KD didn't recharge she would be stuck dragging it to the surface. Her droid needed to conserve whatever it had left. She reached into the side of her boot where she had stashed a short knife, gripping it and holding it close. The only weapon she had at the moment. If anything was going to attack her in the middle of the night she wouldn't be going down without a fight.
"Hey KD why don't you power down for a bit. No sense wasting your batteries just standing there."
"Are you quite sure Miss?"
"Yes, I'll be fine." Or so she thought. Not more than an hour into her long night she sat shivering with cold. She had turned out her light fighting against her fear of the dark, her ears straining to hear something, anything. She couldn't over the chattering of her own teeth. She was becoming very lethargic, drowsy but she was afraid to close her eyes. What if this was it? What if she froze to death here and no one knew where she was. She would be just another lost forgotten soul. She wanted to cry but had no strength to do it.
"Foolish foolish girl." The soft yet now familiar voice spoke in her head again. She wanted to respond but found that she couldn't or maybe she just didn't want to. "So you're just going to sit there and freeze to death? That's your plan." She didn't respond. She did think of some very creative yet unflattering words to call the voice. The voice chuckled. "At least you're in there somewhere." The voice sighed. "This was not how this was supposed to happen." She wasn't sure what happened next. She felt as if she was suddenly floating and then it was as if warmth suddenly enveloped her, wrapping it around her like to very comforting safe arms. She couldn't help it she snuggled into it deeper relishing in it. She fell into a deep peaceful sleep.
This was not going how he wanted, none of this was. He didn't understand his need to watch over this stubborn little creature but he did. He had tried to talk to her in his own way but she passed it off as a crazy notion. She had an attitude about her that he found amusing and addicting. Maybe it was his lack of human connection for five years but he craved her more than he ever had anyone else. It was very disconcerting and had kept him from sleeping himself. Sleep was a luxury he didn't have. Too many nightmares of the past kept him on edge. He had found her in his aimlessly wondering huddled next to her droid cramped into a tiny space shivering. The foolish girl was going to freeze to death. He had entered her thoughts once more and could sense her thoughts or rather the lack of them. She was giving up. He had sensed it before and he hadn't understood it before. She was determined but had dark moments of self-doubt. Something he related too mare than he wanted to admit. After an inter dialogue with her to which she didn't respond he did the only thing he could think of. First he had gathered supplies to create a small fire for warmth and then without giving it a second though he scooped her up placing her gently in his lap wrapping his arms around her. He leaned back against the stone wall and just held her to him. She seemed to settle as she actually snuggled into his chest giving into his warmth. Once she had settled into a dreamless sleep an unsettle thought occurred to him.
How the hell was he going to explain this when she woke up?
A/N So whatcha think? Will she wake up to him or will he be gone? When will they finally meet? Let me know your thoughts. Thanks for reading!
