Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, obviously.

.

.

Chapter 1: The Cave

.

A single sun set on a lonely, desolate planet as the First Order's shuttle landed on a small stretch of flat land. Insanely high mountains nearly blocked the sunlight, which basked their snowy tops in its reddish glow. Long, deep shadows fell upon barren valleys and crevices. With neither settlements nor vegetation in sight, the surroundings looked like an empty hellhole, one of many in the Outer Rim.

The shuttle's door opened and six stormtroopers marched out, with their blasters ready to fire. Hesitantly, they spread out, setting their feet carefully on the unsteady ground. Their white armor stood out amongst the dreary gray of the local rocks. Then, a trooper in a chrome armor emerged alongside Kylo Ren. Her mantle and his cape billowed in the chilly wind dramatically as they surveyed the mountains.

"This place doesn't seem inhabited," Captain Phasma noted shortly; her voice distorted by her bucket-like helmet.

Kylo Ren lowered his head, as though he was listening. The intensifying wind blew his shoulder-length hair in his face. "The boy is certainly here, hiding. I can sense his presence." He lifted his chin. "I sense… distress."

Phasma put her finger on her blaster's trigger. "Maybe he noticed one of the stormtroopers," she said and head out without waiting for Kylo Ren. Briefly, she glanced at her subordinates, who wandered about aimlessly like stray nerfs. Probably, as their training overseer, she was supposed to give them instructions, but she didn't. They weren't worth her effort.

Kylo Ren closed his eyes and felt out the Force. He let it flow through him and reached out to search for the fugitive – a teenage force-sensitive boy, who managed to slip away several years ago. Picturing the youth, he let his mind wander, until something caught his attention. Abruptly, Kylo Ren turned and stared at a deep crevice in the east. The boy was there, but he wasn't there alone. He reached for his communicator. "Phasma, come in."

A bored voice answered him. "Phasma speaking."

"Have your troopers check the caves east from the shuttle. Don't let the boy escape," he ordered.

"All troopers, caves in the east, double time," Phasma's voice sounded in the com. She must have let it on for longer than she meant to, for Kylo Ren heard her add, "Top marks in the academy for this crap."

Kylo Ren ignored the disgruntled captain and set off toward the caves himself. With the nightfall, the wind on the mountainous planet intensified, whistling in the crevices and causing small rocks to topple from above like hail. He pulled his hood over his head and snatched his lightsaber. As he approached the destination, he felt the rogue boy's presence clearer, as well as the strange disturbance. Kylo Ren furrowed his brows, struggling to pinpoint what it was – never in his life had he sensed something quite that odd. Actually, it wasn't a presence at all, but the lack of it, as though there was a hole in the Force there, and it was on the move. Cautiously, he gripped the handle of his lightsaber with both hands.

Right before entering the cave, Kylo Ren paused, noticing two sets of footprints leading inside. Phasma's stormtroopers went in before him. He licked his lower lip, before taking a step inside.

He activated his lightsaber to light the way, a narrow corridor leading straight ahead. With his peripheral, he noticed something lay on the ground ahead – a single spoon, a crude, handcrafted tool. The cave was inhabited. Assured that he was on the right path, Kylo Ren pushed onward, his footsteps echoing across the cave.

Suddenly, a scream pierced the silence. Then, another joined him, building up into an ear-wrenching crescendo, before it got silenced. Kylo Ren could only hear his heartbeat and the loud, whistling noises of himself breathing heavily. Instinctively, he took a step back, before he realized what he was doing. He wasn't a frightened child nor an unsure jedi apprentice, he was Kylo Ren! Biting on his lower lip, he continued forward. Unknowingly to himself, he held his breath and set his feet lightly not to alert anyone of his arrival, although his brightly red lightsaber was a dead giveaway.

A voice of one of the stormtroopers sounded in his com. "FN-1198 to Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren. I've found an abandoned settlement together with an old shuttle and two bodies, fresh ones, judging by the look of it.

Another stormtrooper answered him. "They died from hunger?"

"Negative," the first soldier said. He lowered his voice, as though he was muttering to himself. "Strange, I see no wounds either. I have no clue why they're dead." The trooper paused for a while and it seemed that he turned the com off. However, after a moment, he spoke again, sounding distressed. "I see a movement!" Sounds of blasters being fired followed, interrupted by his scream, before his transmission ended.

Quickly, Kylo Ren wiped beads of sweat that gathered on his forehead. As he did that, he saw his hand shake a little. "Stop it," he whispered to himself and walked ahead. He followed the two sets of stormtrooper footprints down the corridor into a large, dome-like chamber. Squinting his eyes, he waved his lightsaber around to shed some light on his surroundings.

Right next to the entrance, lay two stormtroopers, motionless and with their blasters discarded. Kylo Ren didn't need to check if they were dead; he knew they were. Immediately, a quiet whimpering drew his attention, and he approached its source. The red glow of the laser blade illuminated the very person, he was looking for.

A scared, youngster gawked back at him with fear, shivering. The runway jedi apprentice sat with his back propped against the cave's wall. His limbs were tied so tightly that he resembled a caterpillar. When he saw Kylo Ren enter the chamber, he stopped pulling at his binds and tried so say something, but it was muffled by his gag. Nonetheless, he thrashed violently, constantly mumbling into the piece of cloth, which had been shoved into his mouth. His eyes bulged from fear, but Kylo Ren sensed that he wasn't afraid of the First Order. No… he was terrified of something far worse.

Kylo Ren glanced back at the dead stormtroopers; something had to kill them, and the jedi boy wasn't the one. "What happened here?" he questioned the youth.

The boy let out a muffled sound, before he looked up persistently, as though trying to convey something.

"What?" Kylo Ren muttered, suddenly sensing the disturbance in the Force again, picturing it like a black hole. When the boy pointed his chin at the ceiling, he gazed up. "What the-"

Abruptly, two creatures dropped from the ceiling, lightly landing on the ground, cutting Kylo Ren's exit off. In the light of his lightsaber, they were barely visible, half-hidden in shadows. Only their humanoid shape and pale, almost translucent skin could be distinguished, before they slithered back into the dark corners of the chamber.

It was clear that they were preparing to strike with an element of surprise. It wasn't a problem for Kylo Ren though – realizing his eyes were useless anyway, he closed them and tried to sense the aggressors with the Force. It was everywhere, from the crass walls of the cave, dusty flooring and stalactites hanging from the ceiling to the tied up boy. There was no sign of those two creatures though.

Suddenly, a pale figure fell onto him from above, fast and without any warning. Kylo Ren swung his sword at it, but the unknown foe outmaneuvered him easily, vanishing back into shadows. Before he could ready himself, another one attacked from the other side. Briefly, he saw a sunken face resembling that of a corpse and a pair of pitch black eyes as the creature reached out with long, thin fingers. This time, Kylo Ren managed to make use of his lightsaber; he slashed the enemy clean in half. When his laser blade went through the waist, the flesh turned into dense mist and flew away, laughing at him.

"This one has much force in him," a female said, her raspy whisper echoing in the cave. "We should take him to mother."

"He's too weak, sister," the other creature responded, mocking Kylo Ren. "Do you want to offend her?"

"No!" the first voice howled. "He'll make a fine bait though, won't he?"

"Oh yes, he will," the second foe said.

In the meantime, the young jedi apprentice managed to spit out the cloth, he was gagged with. With a whistle, he drew a breath. "Ben, run!" he shouted to Kylo Ren. "You must warn General Leia! She's in-"

He never got the chance to finish, for a humanoid, willowy figure leapt from the ceiling, landing right by his side. Kylo Ren narrowed his eyes, taking in her appearance – thin limbs, a net of purple veins visible from under the thin, pale skin. The female belonged to a species unknown to him.

She leant over the boy and put her finger on his lips. "Silence," a dark, desperate desire sounded in her whisper. Hastily, she cupped his face and covered his lips with hers. She moaned in contentment, as she cocked her head and deepened the kiss.

The boy's body stiffened and his legs twitched uncomfortably, before he stilled forever. When the female pulled away, his eyes were glassy, lifeless, and his corpse slumped to the cave's flooring.

Kylo Ren froze, unwittingly lowering his lightsaber. The moment in which he broke his focus drew the attention of the ominous foes. Both females slowly walked toward him, staring him down with their huge, bottomless eyes that were black like a starless sky. Even though they didn't look particularly muscular or sturdy, they were far more dangerous than a rampaging wampa. Kylo Ren found himself unable to move, either because of his fear or maybe he got perplexed by the women's eerie stare.

Suddenly, a plasma blast whizzed right past Kylo Ren 's ear and the shot hit one of the creatures right in her chest. It passed through her half-corporeal body, but it offered enough distraction. Kylo Ren looked over his shoulder to see who came to his rescue.

Captain Phasma pulled the trigger of her blaster without delay, targeting the other creature. "I've tried to contact you for a while," she said, before her voice got deafened by the sound of her weapon at work. Initially, she was a bit startled by how little effect her offensive had on her foes, but she never stopped firing. "Are we retreating to the shuttle?"

Kylo Ren backed away from the chamber, letting Phasma cover his escape. "Affirmative." He glanced one last time at the dead jedi apprentice and remembered his warning, which got interrupted so brutally. With a shake of his head, he expelled distracting thoughts and turned on his heel, running for the shuttle.

Phasma followed him closely, making good use of her blaster until it ran out of energy. "Shit," she muttered, staring at the charging progress. When the ghost-like females slithered closer to her, she whirled around and dashed after Kylo Ren.

The shuttle was empty, when they got to it, with no sign of the stormtroopers around. Kylo Ren leapt for the steers, engaging the primary systems before he even sat in the pilot's chair. In the meantime, Phasma punched a button that closed the shuttle's door.

Kylo Ren sat down, keeping his hand on the steer and the other one about to turn the engines on. He glanced back at Phasma. "Where are the stormtroopers?" he asked. Three of them should be still alive.

"They're done for."Phasma found a spare blaster and unblocked it. She pointed the rifle at the shuttle's door, ready to evaporate whoever wished to enter. "We need to save ourselves now."

Kylo Ren arched his eyebrow at her statement. Well, she would be the one explaining it to Hux, not him. He flipped a switch and pulled at the steers, as the shuttle's engines buzzed. Slowly, the Lambda-class vehicle lifted from the ground and hovered for a while, before the thrusters' power redirected from vertical to horizontal.

"They're coming!" Phasma pointed her finger at two mist-like creatures gliding toward the shuttle.

Their forms dissolved into twin, indiscernible clouds of light-gray smoke. Quickly like speeding tantans, they flew right for the spacecraft, easily percolating through boulders that were in their way. Would they be able to penetrate the ship's door in this state?

Kylo Ren didn't want to know the answer. Impatient, he tugged the steers, as if it could make the shuttle move any faster. "Damn it," he cursed under his breath, wishing the damn craft would be as quick as a TIE-fighter. His gaze was fixed on the smoky creatures that were approaching rapidly, almost caught up to Kylo Ren.

Finally, the apathetic engines kicked in, buzzing from the strain, he was putting on them. The shuttle dashed forward abruptly, causing Phasma to sway on her legs. Just before the small craft escaped, Kylo Ren caught the glimpse of the creatures with a corner of his eye. Mockingly, they laughed and said one word in unison. From the cockpit, he couldn't hear their voices, but he could read their lips.

"Weakling," they said and vanished when the shuttle darted into the upper parts of the atmosphere, passing the thin layer of clouds.

Kylo Ren gritted his teeth and clenched his hands on the steers so forcefully that he knuckles turned white. A deep wrinkle ran through his forehead as he furrowed his dark brows in a hateful grimace. "I'm not weak!" he muttered to himself, glaring menacingly at the space in front of him. "I'm not," he added; his voice sounding frail, like that of a lost child.

.

.

Author's note:

Thank you for reading the first chapter. Have you liked it? Please leave a comment and tell me what you think. I'll give you virtual muffins if you do!