silver

Five - Snowfeather Shrine

"Whoa...I-a shrine..." said Squeak, amazed. I nodded. The ice glowed with the Force. I could feel the Force here, like a soft, high-pitched humming that reverberated through the air.

"I wonder how long this has been here for," Squeak wondered aloud. "It looks ancient..." I nodded in agreement.

"Oh! Wait, look there!" I said, pointing to a glowing blue disk on the floor in front of us. There was a layer of snow on top of it but I could still see the blue glow from underneath. But on this one there was something yellow...

"SQUEAK!" I shouted, barely holding back the giggles, "Did you or did you not pee on the sacred Jedi shrine!?"

Squeak wrapped her arms around her stomach. "I didn't know Clarissa! I didn't-" I cut her off and dissolved into laughter. Squeak looked shocked for a moment, then she also began laughing. I took a deep breath and put my hands on my knees, gently tilting my head forward.

"Clarissa, watch out!" said Squeak. I jolted up and turned around. I had almost stepped onto the glowing disk.

"What do you think would happen if I stepped on it?" I asked curiously.

"Clarissa-"

I stomped my foot onto the disk.

"Clarissa! Clarissa! Clari-"

The disk turned a bright red. So did all of the glowing ice in the shrine. The birds' delicate crystal eyes started to bleed. A screech emitted from the walls, turning me livid.

Tears streamed down Squeaks' face in fear as I grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the main system of caverns.

But we were too late - the door has already been buried with chunks of ice and stone.

"Mai! Mai!" I yelled, knowing she could not hear me.

"Ahsoka! Ahsoka, can you hear me? Barriss?" wailed Squeak desperately. Behind us, the ice and snow of the shrine continued to thunder, drawing into itself and covering everything in rubble.

"Squeak, you need to stop the rocks."

"What? How? Clarissa, they're so-"

"The Force, Squeak. I know how gifted you are."

"But-"

"Squeak! I know you can. I'm counting on you."

Squeak gulped and turned to face the onslaught of thunder and ice. She extended her hands, palms upwards, towards the dying shrine. She closed her eyes, her orange head tails coming to a rest on her shoulder blades.

"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me," she whispered. I clutched at the stones blocking our escape, desperately trying to reopen the passageway.

"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me," she said. I turned around and saw that the sounds of shattering ice had subsided.

"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me," she declared. I huddled against the wall of fallen stones, watching helplessly as the boulders tumbled through the passage, blocking the way back into the shrine.

"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me," Squeak hollered. I felt a rock behind me give way. I turned around in shock, and began to yank at boulders again, gradually clearing a small hole back into the icy cave.

"I am one with the Force and the Force is with me!" Squeak roared. She pulled her hands and knees to the ground, and a shock wave emanated from her body.

All of a sudden, the snow and icy rocks disappeared, leaving us a clear way back to the main entrance. I looked back, and the shrine was gone, as was the Jedi Temple, presumably. From the echoing ice chambers, I could hear the crackling of our fire.

"Squeak! You did it! Squeak, you-" I turned to face Squeak and gasped. Squeak had collapsed to the ground as if she had been stunned.

"Squeak!" I gathered her frail body in my arms and closed my eyes, envisioning a path back to the others. Following my intuition, I raced through the chilly tunnels, desperately trying to make sure I did not lose Squeak.