The Jedi books he stole from Rey call this mystical plane the World Between Worlds. But it really should be called the Worlds That Never Were because as far as Kylo can tell, this is where the Force presents its 'what ifs.' Each time he steps through the portal into the shockingly fluid cosmic Force, Kylo sees time twisting back on itself to present alternative realities. As far as he can tell, those realities seem to exist in parallel with his own. But somehow, they link to his existence anyway. Because each time he encounters his family.
Where is he this time? Oh, yeah, here. Mos Eisley Spaceport on Tatooine. Fuck, he hates this version of the future. Or maybe this version of the present? Kylo is not really sure when or if this version of events ever takes place. But he hates it all the same. It's like the Force is fucking with him when it takes him here.
But . . . here he is again. Kylo ducks his head as he walks into the sandy hovel his extended family calls home. It is furnished mostly with spare parts, crumpled fast food wrappers, and a couple of sad looking couches that were new before he was born. Clearly, no woman has lived here for a long, long time. There's way too much mess.
His grandfather is seated at the table tinkering as usual. As Kylo walks in, eighty-year-old Anakin Skywalker looks up from the pod racing engine he's working on, lifts his safety glasses, and grabs a greasy rag to wipe off his hands.
"Heya kid, did they give you leave?" he calls. It's a normal voice, not the deep stentorian tones that his Darth Vader mask reportedly produced.
"Yes," Kylo nods. He's trying hard not to show how much he is inwardly cringing at this version of reality. This is the life in which Darth Vader is a semi-retired drug smuggling pilot for the Tatooine branch of the Hutt cartel. Kylo hates to see his revered grandsire as a shady old man whose glory days were spent fleeing TIE fighters rather than flying them.
His elderly grandfather stands and putters over to the sink to wash his hands, flashing the cursive 'Padme' tattoo on the inside of his wrist. He moves easily despite his years. Anakin Skywalker is rather astoundingly spry although his stance is a little stooped now. Probably from decades spent bending over mechanical projects or hunched over starship controls. He looks a bit thin from age, but otherwise he appears just fine.
"Your old man went into Tosche Station to pick up some power converters. He should be back soon."
"Making a run soon?" Kylo asks, searching for how to change the topic from his loser father. How in the Hell Han Solo ended up first mate on Anakin Skywalker's smuggling freighter is a story he doesn't know. But apparently, it's how Han Solo married the bosses' daughter and that's how he came along.
In this reality, Leia Skywalker Solo is long dead, having suffocated in a sandstorm.
Luke Skywalker is very gratifyingly in jail.
His grandfather turns around and nods. "I'm moving product to the Core next. Then it's the usual Kessel Run. Nothing special."
Gazing at the man he idolizes but never met, Kylo thinks that even in old age in obscurity in the Outer Rim, he has a princely bearing. Anakin Skywalker has a full head of steel grey hair and a handsome lined face that look incongruous with his greasy worn work tunic and sandy boots.
"Don't suppose you could tell your buddies in the Empire to lay off the patrols, now could you?"
Kylo gives a wry smile. "If I could, I would."
"Just make sure you let us know if you get transferred that direction. I don't want your dad or I to blow your TIE accidentally."
Kylo smirks. "As if either of you could catch me."
That bravado prompts a wide smile and a chuckle. "Don't get cocky, kid. We may have taught you all we know, but your old man is still the best starpilot in the galaxy."
Whatever. Kylo doesn't want to hear praises for Han Solo. The fact that Darth Vader and Han Solo are longtime drinking buddies and co-pilots in this reality is super fucking weird.
His grandfather looks him over with approval. "Look at you in that uniform. A lieutenant. Damn, you make us look good. From slave to free to respectable in three generations." The old man grins. "Your mother would be so proud."
Just then Han Solo clamors in. "Those damn jawas were there first and they were sold out of—"
"Forget it. Look who's here."
"Heya kid." Han Solo, jacket on and blaster strapped to his thigh as always, wanders over to clap him on the back. In his middle sixties, his father looks like he always does. With that same smirking sneer that belongs on a younger man's face. At this age, it just gives off grumpy old man vibes. Still . . . the guy has swagger in spades and attitude to spare. It's really annoying actually. What did his mother ever see in this shifty loser, Kylo wonders.
"Didn't know you were coming. We almost missed you." His dad squints at him and frowns. "Is that long hair regulation? It would not have passed muster back in my day."
"He's no platoon grunt like you, Han," Anakin speaks up. "The boy is an officer."
"Junior lieutenant," his father grumbles.
"Better than your AWOL sorry ass," his grandfather retorts.
"Don't start, Snips," Han Solo complains. And here is yet another annoying aspect of this reality—the tendency of his father and his grandfather to bicker like an old married couple. It's embarrassing. Grown men—grown old men—shouldn't act like this. And that nickname Snips is just terrible.
"So . . . what's new?" Anakin wants to know.
"Nothing much."
"Come on, spill it," his father urges impatiently. "Whatcha been up to?"
"Well, . . . uh . . . . I . . . . uh . . . I met a girl," Kylo blurts out, searching for a safe topic.
"Oh." His grandfather now has a twinkle in his eye. He exchanges glances with Han Solo. "This is news."
"First I've heard of it. Did you get her pregnant?" his father demands as he sighs. "Is that it?"
"No, Dad," Kylo complains. "It's not like that."
"Haven't scored yet, then?" his father gibes. "I'm not surprised."
"Han, shut up. Let him talk." Anakin shoots his father a look. "Tell us about her, Ben."
"Her name is Rey," Kylo begins. Her name is Rey and he hasn't seen her in two years but he's crazy about her. Over the course of about a month, their paths crossed again and again and then she was gone from his life. But he can't stop thinking about her. Dreaming about her.
"Is she cute?" His father cuts to the chase.
"Of course, she's cute," Anakin intercedes.
"She looks a little like Grandma actually," Kylo suggests, searching to how to explain Rey in this context.
"Then she's definitely cute," Anakin decides. "What's she like?"
"She's a mechanic."
"I like her already," his grandfather approves.
Encouraged, Kylo reveals more. "She's Rim. From a desert world like here. She used to do a lot of desert scavenging, actually."
His father snorts. "What is she? A fucking jawa? Ben's in love with a fucking jawa, Snips."
"Shut up, Han." Anakin is looking at him closely. It makes Kylo want to squirm. "So . . . is this serious?"
"She hates me," Kylo confesses the awful truth. "I really pissed her off."
"Grovel," Han Solo advises automatically. "Tell her what she wants to hear. Lie if you have to. Women love to humble a guy."
"Nah. Don't do that." His grandfather dismisses this suggestion. "Were you in the wrong?" he asks.
Kylo thinks a moment back to the last time he saw Rey. She and the few who remained of the Resistance were cornered in the Rim not long after Crait. The final battle had been brief and bloody. No quarter once again. In the end, he had spared his mother who was already dying of radiation sickness from her exposure to space. He had also spared Rey. But he made the two women watch as he executed all their rebel friends. He had been trying to prove the point that the war was over and he had won. But hysterical, tearful Rey ranted about what a monster he was, what a disappointment he had been, how duped she felt. His mother said nothing as she looked on in silence and leaned heavily on her cane. You organize another rebellion, and this will be the fate of all of your followers, Kylo warned them both sternly.
The timing was utterly wrong yet again, but before he left Kylo offered Rey an opportunity to join him. It was a magnanimous second chance at the life she turned down on the Supremacy. This time she didn't just turn him down, she spat on him. The trashpicking Jakku scavenger got under his skin with that gross rejection. He grabbed the ancient Jedi tomes she clutched to her chest, gripped her by the throat, and informed her she was making a big mistake she would regret. Then he ordered his troops to pull out, leaving the two women standing stranded and alone, surrounded by bodies.
So . . . was he in the wrong? "No, I wasn't in the wrong." Rey might think he was, but he doesn't believe so. He had ended the war and brought peace and order to the galaxy. What's so wrong about that?
His grandfather doesn't ask any questions. "Okay, then don't apologize. Sometimes a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. But don't be an asshole about it. Let her know you care," he counsels.
Kylo sighs. "It's too late. We're broken up."
His father grunts at this news. "Well, move on. More fish in the sea, kid. Go rebound with some hot chick," Han Solo advises. "Spend some of that second lieutenant cash on another girl."
"He doesn't want another girl," Anakin points out. "Sounds like it's time for the grand gesture," he judges.
"Nah, don't do that—"
Again, his grandfather shoots his dad a quelling look. "Show up at her house with flowers and tell her how you feel and that you want to try again. Tell her you can move past your issues."
"How do we do that?" Kylo complains. "I think she hates me now."
"Well, if you can't resolve your problems, maybe you can ignore them. Or just tolerate them," his grandfather suggests.
"She lives on another system now." Rey is on Dantooine working a dead-end job in a droid factory currently.
"Well, she can get a job near you, can't she?"
"Yeah, I suppose so . . . " Kylo can't really imagine Rey living on Coruscant.
"Sounds risky," his father inserts himself with more negativity. "I'd move on, kid."
Anakin disagrees. "If she's special to Ben, then she's worth taking a risk for. Is she special?" his grandfather asks.
Kylo nods sadly. "She's one in a billion." He's so hung up on this girl. Ever since they touched hands in the Force, he's been longing for her. In his late-night fantasies, she turns to him in Snoke's burning throne room riddled with bodies and accepts his hand. Then he tugs her close and goes in for a kiss. That day, Snoke dies, the Resistance dies, and he and Rey begin. If only that were the case . . .
Does his grandfather see his wistful look? He must. "Well, there you have it. Go get her, Ben."
Before he can respond, his grandfather's com buzzes and it's work. That gives Han Solo an opportunity to slide over and ask under his breath, "Hey, can I borrow twenty credits, kid? We don't get paid until after this shipment."
Typical, Kylo thinks. Somethings never change. Even in this alternate universe his deadbeat dad is still a loser. But to make it easy, Kylo just digs in his pocket to hand over the cash.
"Thanks, kid. I owe you."
Kylo gives him a tight smile. He knows he'll get his payback on Starkiller Base. And it will be very, very satisfying.
His grandfather is off his com now. "Trouble?" Han Solo correctly reads his father-in-law's expression.
"Yeah. The Pikes are making noise about raising prices again. We need to leave now. Let's be sure to charge up the main gun. We might have to fight our way off Kessel."
"Sure thing, Snips."
"I'll walk you to the ship," Kylo offers as he watches his father and grandfather gather up their gear. Docking bay 94 is nearby, so their trio troops on foot to where the Millennium Falcon awaits. In this reality, the Falcon is well maintained and painted black with blue trim. Kylo credits the flashy styling to his grandfather. Han Solo never kept anything looking nice.
Watching his father climb the ramp of his beloved ship, Kylo thinks of how he remembers this scene reenacted hundreds of times over during his childhood. Only his mother would be present then. She'd be fuming as she watched her husband leave. Leia Organa spent most of his childhood angry. She was angry at her husband, irritated with her son, and stressed from her job. Looking back now from an adult perspective, Kylo sees how unhappy she was.
His grandfather lingers a moment at his side. He shoots a glance his direction. "Your dad loves you. You know that, right? He's just not good at showing it. After your mom died—"
"It's okay. I understand."
"Do you?" Anakin Skywalker raises an eyebrow.
"Yeah." Yeah, he gets it. Han Solo is an asshole in any version of reality.
His grandfather, however, is not. Darth Vader is far more sensitive and caring than the rest of his family. It just reaffirms to Kylo how deserving Anakin Skywalker is of his esteem. Because even this aged, lackluster version who never met a Jedi Master is a good man.
"We gotta get going," his grandfather says apologetically. "Sorry about this. Next time, we'll talk longer, alright?"
"Yeah, sure." Kylo holds out his hand for a handshake but Anakin ignores it and grabs him for a backslapping bear hug.
Kylo closes his eyes and revels in the moment. These days, it's only in the World Between Worlds that he ever encounters people who care about him. And a hug from Darth Vader—even this version of Darth Vader—is something special.
"Take care, Ben," Anakin says sincerely. "You're going to be the very best of the Skywalkers. Just you wait."
They part as his father's voice hollers out, "You coming, Snips?"
"Go make things right with your girl. Bring her by sometime. I'd like to meet this Rey," his grandfather tells him.
"Yeah, okay," Kylo instantly accepts. Then he watches his grandfather stride up the ramp of the Falcon.
Maybe this miserable existence as a Hutt pensioner isn't so bad, Kylo thinks as he watches the ship liftoff. His family hadn't seemed unhappy. And for all their misfortunes in this reality, what little remains of his clan is still together. There is more unity here on miserable hardscrabble Tatooine than there ever was in his cushy reality. It's a sobering realization that a small, insignificant life like this might be far happier than a life that makes the history books. And he should know. Because while he rules the galaxy, he is more alone than ever before. That's why he comes here to the home of the only person who he thinks would understand.
Kylo steps back through the portal now. He's back where he began in his ancestral castle on Mustafar. Darth Vader's foreboding home on the Hellish lava world turned out to be more than just a personal retreat from the demanding life of a Sith Lord. The true value of this place lies not in its historical significance or in its physical comforts but in its mental stimulation. For this castle is located at a nexus of the Force where Light and Dark converge and bend. Here the invisible energy field that binds the universe together is particularly strong. Some places like this provoke visions or conjure long dead spirits. The Dark Side, in particular, seems to linger about certain locations and artifacts. But Vader's castle takes things to the next level. This isn't some magical Jedi Temple or haunted Sith tomb. Here at Mustafar, the Force is strong enough for you to literally enter its metaphysical realm.
It's simply amazing.
But it's also befuddling as Hell.
Every time he steps out of the alternative realities the Force shows him, things resume right where they left off. It makes Kylo wonder how truly real his own existence as Supreme Leader Ren actually is. It also makes him wonder what alternative realities Darth Vader saw through this portal.
Kylo spends long moments contemplating what the Force has shown him this time. He always looks for a lesson. But not finding any deeper meaning to this experience, he decides to take his grandfather's advice literally.
Kylo reaches into his pocket for his comlink. He dials up his Chief of Intelligence who oversees the First Order secret police.
"The Resistance girl you've been watching on Dantooine."
"Yes, Supreme Leader?"
"Bring her in."