Han turned to check out the path behind them, swinging the light in a broad arc that revealed green dripping stalgamites and putrid puddles of oily, black water.
"How's it back there?," Solo's voice broke through the close atmosphere.
Luke stopped abruptly, skidded a few feet and grimaced."So far nothing, but I'm sticking close to you- too dark for much"
"Except accidents," Solo growled."If we could go back..."
"And have Mon Motha all over us? Han, you know we promised her to check these undercity caverns out."
"Ya, but did we have to pick the slimiest one? Besides, I don't even know if we are getting someplace. Seems we're going in circles."
"Well, we can finish up in here and maybe there'll be time for dinner with Leia. She's been so busy lately, I hate going on assignments when she has a some spare time."
"I get tired of all those droids at the palace," Han muttered."Everytime I try to see her, they're so cool and sneering, those little prim voices ..."
"I don't think they were programmed to sneer," Luke pointed out, suppressing a smile.
"Well, I think it depends on the situation. Look at the Imperial Droids. I mean, those are mechanicals with an attitude, so loaded with self destructs they've got a personality complex."He flipped the light around."Just a stalgamite. Felt creepy."
For an instant as the glowrod swung to his left, Luke glimpsed something alive? on the moist wall. It was dark and flat, and almost instantly he lost it. Was it really there? He reached forward, mentally groped the stone. It felt dead.
Not inactive matter, but a life-dead sense. It was disturbing, especially buried under mounds of earth, but there was nothing to do but press on, and Han was already several meters ahead.
Luke caught up, opening his mouth to tell Solo about the creature, when something black and soft hit him square in the chest.
He reeled back against the wall and tore the flapping, screeching thing off with his gloved hand just as Han came running back, the eerie blue beam of the glowrod bouncing off the walls and stagnant floor.
The jedi straightened as a shrill screaming deep within the tunnels rose, a resurgent wave that subsided to an echo milliseconds afterwards.
Han shook his head. "Minox."
Luke shook his head, fingering a small tear in his glove."Personally, I would like to get out of here."
To be Continued...
