The thermal regulator's out

[for_everyone]

Pirates are definitely not an ideal encounter in the Outer Rim, though they're occasionally a little less fraught than the Imperials. The set of pirates the Ghost only just escaped, however, had slightly better ships and better armaments than the usual, which means they took a few hits on their way to a clear heading out of range of the rogues and their guns. Lightspeed is only useful when you're not headed straight into a gravity well.

"Well," Hera says, rubbing her hands together to keep her fingertips warm. "Good news is we have shields and our hyperdrive is minimally damaged. Our environmental controls are fried, though, mostly the thermal controls and water recycler, which is better than the oxygen generator being out."

She lifts her head, turning to shout back deeper into the ship.

"Any other damage reports, Chop?"

Comments

[notallofus]

He doesn't. Kanan waits a few seconds, his eyes still closed. Under the blankets, one of his hands finds hers, and he carefully moves his fingers between hers. He hopes she doesn't mind too much.

"I went there to - to build my lightsaber."

[for_everyone]

She closes her fingers around his, holding on. It helps stop the shaking, for one.

"D-did you bring everything with you? Or d-did you have to f-find things th-there?"

Besides the kyber.

[notallofus]

Kanan makes a kind of noncommittal, 'mmm' sound in his throat.

"We - found the kyber there. Then they'd show us. How t-to use it."

[for_everyone]

"L-like a r-rite of p-passage?"

She wants to use a different word, a Twi'leki word, but sticks with Basic instead. It's too cold for translation, and once she relaxes into it it will be harder to pull back out. She's aware of that, even as she's also aware that talking together is what's going to keep them awake for the next six and a half hours.

[notallofus]

"It was -"

He swallows, as for the first time in years he thinks to the shadows of the crystal caves, the snowy winds tossing his cloak around him. The soft call, like singing. He can feel the pull of his lightsaber, and knows he could reach out, and draw it to his fingers, even from the other cabin.

"There was an old temple - leading to the caves. We had to enter the caves and - find the one - m-meant for us."

It's not just that they so rarely talked about this. These were secrets of the Jedi Order, kept even from the other younglings before they had done this themselves. But what did it matter now. The temple must be gone, the caves shattered. There was no more use for these secrets.

[for_everyone]

"Is -- "

She frowns a little, mouth fumbling around the words.

"Is th-there only ever one? F-for each of you?"

Does she mean Jedi? Does she mean Force sensitives? Does it even matter?

At least her shivering is starting to die down, blood flowing more easily from her core to her extremities. Even her lekku are starting to tingle less, and the pain is certainly ebbing.

[notallofus]

"Not only ever one."

Feeling her shivering subside, Kanan's hold on her relaxes slightly.

"But you don't use - just any."

[for_everyone]

"Are -- are they alive? Is that why -- "

Maybe these are questions that shouldn't be asked, but Hera's filter isn't so good just now. The returning warmth is such a relief.

[notallofus]

"They - they are, sort of -"

His eyes shut tighter, and he leans a little more heavily against her. "It's hard to explain. But they're - alive in the Force, they s-speak through it."

[for_everyone]

"Is y-yours talking? All the t-time?"

What does it say, she wonders? Is it a comfort to hear, or a burden?

[notallofus]

"I'm usually - aware of it."

Even when he's tried to ignore it. "Like the Force."

[for_everyone]

"It's who you are," she says, very quietly, into the space between them.

"I know I d-don't understand, b-but it's g-good to hear you t-talk about it m-more. Even like th-this. You s-seem less l-lost, and it reminds m-me that we all h-have purpose. We c-can all do something."

[notallofus]

"I just -"

He blinks his eyes open, looking to her, as much as he can.

"I don't like - putting this on you."

[for_everyone]

"Who else is there?"

She manages to keep any stutter out of her words, in part due to the warmth, and in part due to how important this is.

"And even if there were anyone -- you know I have no shortage of secrets already. It's -- the ones we can share, I want to."

[notallofus]

"I know."

And he knows that it might seem absurd, to be worried that he's putting Hera in more danger. As if the Empire doesn't have reason enough to be after her. And yet -

"It - it felt like a poison, sometimes. And something I could spread if I wasn't careful."

[for_everyone]

Hera musters up a faint smile, huffing out a breath of what isn't quite laughter.

"I know it's not the same, but I feel that way, too, sometimes. Or I have, about the mission. So it's lucky we found each other, hm? We're already in as much trouble as we can be, for what we know. And what we do."

Well, almost in as much trouble, given the thing they don't talk about. But --

[notallofus]

"I don't think it was luck," he murmurs, into her shoulder.

His filter isn't quite so active, either.

[for_everyone]

Hera's heart rate picks up again, and her fingers tighten on Kanan's, just for a second.

She breathes.

"I'll admit I might think you're right about that."

[notallofus]

Kanan doesn't moves from her, but briefly lifts his face, up into the cold air.

"Okay," he says.

"I think it's your turn."

[for_everyone]

She almost shifts closer in to him, but the lift of his face into the chill and the fact that his question penetrates means she's saved from that current mis-step.

"Do you know the first time i ever sat in a ship as a pilot, it was the slowest, clunkiest, most broken-down freighter this side of the Outer Rim?"

[notallofus]

He smiles, leaning his face back from the cold again.

"It's hard to imagine anything you fly staying slow or clunky."

[for_everyone]

"There's only so much of a ship you can replace," Hera says dryly. "Without having to just invest in a new one entirely. Which -- "

Well, since Kanan said it flat out like that --

" -- is what happened after the first few runs, when they saw what I could make even that slagheap do."

[notallofus]

That's no surprise.

"Who wouldn't want to see what you could do with a decent ship."

[for_everyone]

"Imperials."

She chuckles a little, the sound more than slightly raspy.

"And even then, probably only some of them."

[notallofus]

"That's true," he agrees, also laughing softly.

But then, he wouldn't want to be on the other side of Hera firing her ship's cannon. Or any weapon system, when it came to that.

"When did you first pilot a ship?"