Losing Order

Chapter 1

Skurn woke up early that morning and shifted in Kylo's arms as he slept deeply beside her, worn out from scavenging a small corpse of some strange animal that had been half eaten and frozen in the ice. She had tried to convince him she was strong enough to leave and search for a ship or civilization but he had refused and forced her to stay put in this cramped space... sure it was warmer than outside... but Skurn was ready to get moving again. She would do anything to get off this planet; this entire place brought her torment and only torment.

So, as she slipped free of his grip, Skurn walked out into the open snowy world. It was just as she remembered it... blank. Without looking back she began trudging through the snow in the same direction she had gone as a child, towards the shelter she knew had to exist somewhere a few miles out, now that she was older and not to mention closer, Skurn was sure she could make it there without trouble. Not much trouble anyway, her healed wounds were still tender and already were getting a bit sore after only a few minutes of walking. Shaking the feeling off, she started moving faster until she was running, cold air freezing her lungs while the ice and snow numbed her legs until she couldn't even tell if they were tired or not.

The hours slipped by without incident with her stopping every now and then to rest and catch her breath in a spot sheltered by the wind and snow that had started falling. She could tell she was getting close... sensed it. However pain went through her mind causing her to stagger and fall to the ground before shoving Kylo from her mind and staring around the world around her, it didn't take long to notice the black-cloaked figure at the edge of her vision. He didn't look happy to be trudging through the snow either, though she was a bit more concerned with how he'd caught up with her so quickly. What if she was actually going in circles?

"What were you thinking?" His voice growled as he reached her.

Skurn glared at him. "I was thinking about finding real shelter, which we would've found sooner if you hadn't stopped me."

Kylo reached out and she flinched back a bit before realizing he was examining a wound, when his hand pulled away she could see blood on his gloved hand. Skurn blinked in surprise, she hadn't realized it had even ripped open, but that would explain why she felt like she'd been stopping more often. She probably had been. Skurn could sense that he was still staring at her silently as she waited for his anger to explode; nervously she glanced up at him to see him with his helmet off, his face seemed irritated but not completely furious as she expected.

"Zeh, you are the only one I can trust." She tensed as he pulled her closer before relaxing; he wasn't about to hurt her. "I couldn't stand it if you died... If you did, I would do something even the Knights of Ren would disagree with."

Wincing as his grip tightened, Skurn squirmed from his arms. "Yeah well, a little blood and cold won't kill me that easily. I was born here, raised a bounty hunter, and have the power of the Force on my side. I'm fine."

"The Force won't always save you." He growled; sticking close to her as she walked towards the general direction of the shelter she was searching for. "And I won't always be here to protect you... I was almost too late before."

"I'm not going anywhere so don't get your cloak in a twist." She muttered, noticing the pain her wounds brought more and more now that she was aware they were open again.

Luckily the low built place she was looking for finally came into sight and she struggled to push open the heavy door, which Kylo finally helped with after standing to the side for a few minutes ignoring her. Skurn didn't comment or thank him as she walked inside the unused and mostly destroyed base that the Rebellion had once used. The walls were lined with broken wires and the ground was littered in fallen ice and various broken machinery. She was sure there would be a few bodies littering the floor eventually as well...

She was certainly glad she hadn't made it here when she was a child. Skurn knew she would never have gotten that door open and if she had somehow found another way in... well all of this junk, and the faint scent of death, would have worsened her fear. Turning a corner she felt her foot kick something and looked down to see the removed skull roll across the ground, the body was nowhere to be seen. Staggering back, she felt herself run into Kylo, which made her jump forward again as she was unsure if his anger could still get the better of him.

"Something ate them." Kylo commented, apparently ignoring what just happened. "Stay alert, it could still be here."

"Obviously." Skurn responded dryly and began exploring once more.

Other than the other bodies they found, which were in various forms of decay and being fed on, there wasn't much else to see inside the old base. The icy walls were still holding up pretty well so at least they didn't need to worry about that, and she was pretty sure Kylo had gone off after they'd past the control room to try and see if any of the communications were still up, which left her by herself to find any medical supplies that were possibly left behind to stitch herself up... what she found was the exact opposite.