Gray eyes flew open in the dim cell, searching for light. A thin beam streamed through a small flap in the lower third of the door and barely made the features of the room discernable. Elara was on the floor, and as she turned her head away from the door she saw a plane of metal protruding from the wall, about six feet in length.
Is that supposed to be my bed? She thought, bewildered. A simple, flat sheet of metal.
Is that what I've been reduced to? She snorted in disdain, We treat murderers better than that on Volik.
Pistons hissed as the door slid open, momentarily blinding Elara. She shielded her eyes with a hand as they adjusted, and was confused when she saw a bandage wrapped around it, stretching from mid-finger to an inch below her wrist. The faint smell of blood sent a memory crashing into her.
She was running. Faster than she had ever run in her life, she ran from the First Order and their chrome captain. She didn't know what she would do if they caught her, but she did not want to stay around and find out. So she ran. Trees flew past her in emerald blurs, branches whipping her face and needles pricking her bare feet. A stream gurgled just ahead of her.
If I can just make it to the water, I can lose them.
The rushing water seemed to pull her, making her feet fly faster. Then, her foot dipped down into a hole in the earth and she was twisting, and she was falling. She tried to catch herself with her hands, but her right fell on a sharp stone just before her head hit something hard. Her vision blurred and blackened as something warm began to cover her hand. The metal captain was approaching, at an almost lackadaisical speed, and a blaster was aimed between her eyes…
Elara jerked up, her collar being pulled by a trooper in white until she sat upright. Her body ached, and she winced, glaring at the trooper who disturbed her rest. Just as she was about to give them a piece of her mind, the one in chrome strode through the door, cape billowing around her legs.
"The General requests your presence on the bridge immediately. Can you walk?" her cold, metallic voice filled the room. Elara pursed her lips and nodded, not entirely sure what the answer to that question was herself, but she may as well try, right? She braced herself on the "bed" and pulled herself to her feet, placing her left gingerly on the floor. She moved to take a step, but as soon as her weight was placed on her injured leg, it buckled beneath her. Another trooper had entered the cell, and he caught her under the arm as she fell. The captain motioned to the other trooper, he grabbed her under her other arm, and both of them began to drag her out of the cell and down the halls.
They entered the bridge after the seemingly endless maze of metal corridors, and she was brought in front of a tall, angry looking man. He grabbed Elara roughly under her chin and jerked her face upwards so that her gaze met his. His icy eyes seemed to penetrate straight through her, and a chill went down her spine.
"This is the girl. Captain Phasma, have you notified the Supreme Leader that she is in our custody?" his harsh voice cut through the silence of the room.
"Of course, General Hux. What shall we do with her until then?" the captain replied.
The man contemplated her for a moment, then released her chin. "Take her back to her cell. When Ren returns, he can deal with her."
The captain nodded and motioned to the troopers, and they began their journey back to Elara's cell.
For the next three days, she lay on the metal bed, picking at the food that a trooper would occasionally throw through the flap on the door. She had taken off the leather jacket she wore and balled it up to make a pillow, leaving herself in her thin tank top. Most of the time she slept, but in order to pass the time while she was awake, she sang. Music on Volik was abundant, so Elara had plenty of songs to choose from, but she saved her favorite for when she was having a particularly difficult time sleeping. It was the one her mother sang to her as a child, and it spoke of the beauty of nature: the wind whispering through the trees, the singing birds, the rush of the waterfalls.
This was the song she was singing when he arrived. The door flew open, and he stepped into her cell menacingly. His looming figure was dressed in all black and a mask covered his face. Troopers flanked him on either side, and at his silent command they grabbed her and brought her up to face him.
"Elara Makali, welcome to Starkiller Base." his voice was low and hollow, and Elara could swear that, under that mask, a wicked smile was plastered on his face.
"My name is Kylo Ren."