Prologue

"You have no place in this story, you come from nothing, you're nothing…but not to me. Join me."

The young Jedi forced back tears in her swelling, hazel eyes as she looked down at his hand. Kylo Ren, the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, was extending his hand out to who? A helpless, orphaned girl who begged him to change. She knew he could change.

Rey was about to burst into tears.

Please don't. Please don't go this way, Ben.

She hesitated, racing her glance from his lightsaber, to his hand, to his eyes; those damned, glassy eyes that opposed her pleading stare. Rey wanted to go with him so desperately, for she began to take Kylo Ren's hand when an imperative voice spoke to her:

The man you speak to is Kylo Ren, but the man you seek is crying for help behind a facade.

Rey immediately knew what she had to do, and this time, her personal interest wouldn't hold her back. She used what strength she had left to connect to the Force, channeling all of her focus into moving a single lightsaber to her grasp. Kylo grimaced as he forced his arm out as well, reaching to that saber as if his very existence depended on it, and it did.

Wind flung both of them back a few feet, but the distance only made their opposing forces even more extreme. Sounds of struggle escaped Rey's lips as she squinted at the weapon from a more civilized time.

Moments passed. These final seconds cued strange crackling and whirling noises, signs of future fatigue in the two Force users, and horrific damage to the once eerie throne room.

Ben, I can save you.

Ben Solo is dead! I killed him!

Please, please come back to me.

Join me, Rey, and we will rule the galaxy together. Do not resist me.

And without a moment's hesitation, everything went dark.

The Desert With No Sand

"Hey, Dad? Quick question. How do I fix this droid? He keeps talking to me in Ubese," a young boy questioned, tinkering with a green protocol droid.

"Try rewiring the left hip, kiddo. That's where they keep the language settings these days, eh?" Han Solo replied, emptying a crate of deactivated thermal bombs. "Chewie, you mind giving that kid a hand? I'm busy over here."

The Wookiee responded with a whine as he stomped over to a young Ben Solo, who sat helplessly on the ground. Chewbacca and Ben were like peas in a pod back then, well, at least when Han wasn't around. Ben always sought out the Wookiee for comfort when his parents fought, and Chewie never let him down.

A few minutes later, Leia popped her head from behind the door, holding a rusted lightsaber. "Guess who's going to train to become a Jedi with his uncle?" she exclaimed.

"No way! And is that a real lightsaber? I've never touched one before!" Ben gasped, running over to go see the foreign, elegant weapon.

He was so. . . innocent. So innocent that it physically sickened Kylo Ren to even think about it. His poisoned thoughts turned the once sweet memory into a bitter, black one.

"Yep! And guess what? The next time we see you, you're going to be mentally scarred from our decision and have to live with the act of killing your father for the rest of your life!"

Kylo sat up in a cold sweat from a breeze that was chilling to the bone. Where was he? He went to go brush hair out of his mouth when something occurred to him: the same mask that he had destroyed was now perfectly intact and on his face. "The hell…?"

Kylo Ren looked around, wanting to remove the mask, but knowing that if he did, his face would probably freeze. "Hello?" the Supreme Leader screamed, clenching his bruised fists.

Surrounding him was an endless landscape of snow, and numerous, thick snowflakes had already clouded his eyesight.

What had happened?

At this rate, Kylo knew for certain that if he didn't move, he would die out in the middle of nowhere from hypothermia. Thinking quickly, he reached for his lightsaber, but noticed that Rey's was there instead of his.

I could have sworn this was destroyed…

Despite the change, Kylo ignited it for subtle warmth and began to wander aimlessly for any signs of life. On his journey, various thoughts zipped across his conflicted mind. His major concern was Rey, and he truly hoped that she wasn't too far away from him.

Hours passed by, yet Kylo seemed to have no luck when it came to finding shelter, and the saber began to overheat too, which didn't help either. The desert without sand was continuous, and the Knight weakened immensely. "Rey...anyone...please…" he quivered. A small, moving dot was spotted rushing toward the collapsing Kylo Ren, but he was already long unconscious when it finally reached him.

"Where am… who are you?" he questioned, coughing vigorously from the aftermath of the frigid temperatures. He was incapable of opening his eyes from the fatigue that seemed to plague him after a long, long day. Though the rest of his body was in a healing wrap, the same, notorious mask still remained on his face.

"You're awake!" a soothing voice replied, looking down upon the First Order executive. "Before I tell you my name, I need to know who you are. I kept your helmet on to respect your privacy, but we have to know which side you're on," she explained. A slight tenseness was growing in the woman's voice.

The dark figure held his breath, perplexed that his mask hadn't answered that question for the stranger.

"Kylo," he replied, not wanting to reveal too much about himself. "Kylo Ben is my name. I am… a Jedi master. And who are you?" He recoiled at his response. If she hadn't recognized him by now, though, it would be best for his identity to be concealed.

"A Jedi? I thought Luke was the last of them. But I'm Princess Leia Organa. You can just call me Princess Leia if you'd like,"

Leia Organa?

Kylo jumped in the bed, instantly regaining the strength he needed to see this woman through his eyes. It was her. His mother's flawless, pale, yet rosy skin glistened in the harsh light that the room had to offer. Her beautiful hair was tied in a braided crown, a look that he always remembered from his childhood.

But something was off. She was so much younger than he had remembered. Kylo examined the princess carefully and realized something that seemed impossible.

I must be having a vision. Perhaps that fight with Rey put us into a trance of some kind.

"Are you alright? You must've been out there for so long," the Princess began, looking off into the distance. "It's so strange. You're the third person we've saved this week. Where do you come from?"

Kylo stiffened and clenched his fists. "Who did you save? What planet is this? Where's Rey? I need answers, Princess," The very word disgruntled him, and it definitely showed in his tone, but he was so confused that it didn't matter anymore. Kylo knew it must be a dream, yet it felt so real.

The Princess tilted her head a bit, uncomfortable with how much his voice sounded like Han's whilst using sarcasm, but Leia took a step back, sensing his aggravation. "We've found a strange bunch consisting from a stormtrooper with no memory of the Empire, a Resistance pilot who only seems to talk to his droid, and, well, you," she explicated. "And whoever this Rey is, I'm sure we can find her for you."

"Bring me to them. I'm sure I can walk now, Princess. How long have I been out?"

"Fifteen hours. These data scanners say that you might need another-"

"Bring me to them. Now."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. And watch your temper, Kylo. We already have enough problems on our hands."

"What do you mean?"

Leia paused for a moment and took a deep breath. "Nevermind. I have a lot of work to do, but I'll try to check in every hour or so. Maybe expect a visit from Han Solo."

Han Solo. Kylo recoiled once again.

"I'm joking with you. He'd probably just make up an excuse to avoid it. You stay here now, ok? I'll be back to check on you soon," Leia told him, sounding a bit exasperated. Kylo remained stern as she walked out, shaking her head with disappointment. "Alpha 23? Alpha 23? Do you repeat?" the Princess questioned as she spoke into a transmitter.

"Yes, your Highness. We hear you, out," a male voice replied.

"You may release the pilot from his chamber. I want you to try and see if he recognizes that stormtrooper we found earlier, out."

"Yes, of course, your Highness. It will be done immediately."