Don't Call Me Ben
1.
"Ben!"
He looked up and smiled at his closest friend as she jumped down from the trees onto the ground, the sun glinting off red and gold highlights in her pale brown hair. She smirked as she threw herself down on the grass next to him, her hazel eyes glinting mischievously.
"Skipping class again are we?" She tsked. "What an awful example Master Skywalker's star pupil is setting for us all!"
"I am meditating." Ben smiled at her. "Sometimes individual study takes one further than any class can."
She rolled her eyes, the sun catching the amber and green in them. "Ugh. You sound like the old man."
"You say that like it's a bad thing." Ben nudged her. "That old man is my uncle and he's very wise."
She leaned against his shoulder and sighed dramatically. "Yes, yes, very wise and all that. For a Sage he's a pretty good fighter, I'll give him that."
"You focus too much on fighting ability Kyla." Ben shook his head.
"And you don't focus on it enough Ben." She leaned her head back to look up at him. "I worry it'll get you killed one day."
He frowned down at her. "My saber is not likely to be what saves me. I don't need to win in a fight when I can simply avoid it. Diplomacy solves more disputes than a blade does."
"And now you sound like your mother! Boring, you're going to put me to sleep." She threw her hand over her face as if fainting and made a snoring noise.
He nudged her playfully with his shoulder, knocking her over. "And you'd rather I sound like a undisciplined, childish drunken smuggler?"
"Hey!" She protested. "Don't talk about Han like that. I like your father, he's utterly fascinating."
"You like him perhaps a little too much." He replied dryly.
"Why Ben!" Kyla smirked, hitching herself up on her elbow. "Is that jealousy I hear in your voice?"
He snorted. "Of course not."
Laughing she sat up and ruffled his short, dark hair. "You should grow your hair out, you look too prim and proper with it short like that."
"I'll leave being scruffy to you and my father." Ben frowned slightly, looking pointedly at her own hair, currently pulled up into a ridiculous mass of braids that looked like she'd slept on it. And she likely did. He thought with amusement.
Kyla reached up for a moment to touch her hair as if she'd been unaware before smirking. "A little scruff in your life wouldn't kill you." She placed her hand on his face. "But you know you don't need to be jealous Ben, if I am fond of the father it's only because he reminds me of his son."
Ben glanced at her out of the corner of his eye but didn't reply.
Taking his silence as permission she leaned in to kiss him only to almost fall on her face as he quickly jerked away from her.
"Kyla stop." He turned away to stare into the forest. "I've told you before, it's against the Code."
Making a sound of frustration, Kyla snapped back. "If you read into those moldy old scrolls far enough I am pretty sure breathing is against the Code!"
Ben turned back with lowered brows, his lips pursed disapprovingly. "You shouldn't talk like that."
"How do you expect me to talk then?" She frowned back at him. "Following the Jedi code to the letter is why they almost went extinct; it's sheer folly to walk down the same path that almost destroyed us the first time. You know I am not wrong."
He looked down and away again, unable to meet her eyes or answer her question, leaving his own doubts unsaid. "You shouldn't voice such opinions; others may misunderstand your feelings."
"I don't care what others understand, I care what you understand, what you feel." She crawled closer to him again, narrowing her eyes at him. "Look at me Ben and tell me you don't love me."
"Of course I love you. You're my best friend." He said dismissively, still looking down.
Slamming her fist into the grass, exasperated, she cried. "That is not what I mean and you know it!"
Taking a deep breath he finally looked up and opened his mouth to speak.
"Hey, Solo!"
Both jumped at the sudden sound of another voice and turned to stare at the new comer.
Scowling at them both, Harin, one of the other older students stood at the edge of the clearing. "Master Skywalker is looking for you."
Quickly standing, Ben brushed past the younger boy, stopping just past him. "Are you coming Ky?"
"He's looking for you oh meditating one, not me." She folded her arms and leaned back against the tree.
Ben glanced at Harin and frowned as the other openly glared at the girl on the ground. "Coming?"
"Like I'd want to stay here." Harin spat, turning on his heel and returning the way he'd come.
2
Kyla sighed, staring out across the tops of the trees as the sun set. That Ben Solo, she thought in annoyance, he'll drive me mad someday I swear.
The snap of a branch made her look down and she frowned to find not just Harin from earlier glaring up at her but an entire gang of nine other students. Almost the entire class, she mused.
"Can I help you? Are you kids lost?" She smirked and pointed. "The temple is back that way, better hurry along before you miss dessert."
"You think because you're Solo's girlfriend you can talk to us like that?" He yelled up at her. "That you can talk down to us, the same way you talk bad about the Jedi, like a filthy Sith!"
She burst out laughing. "As if you would know anything about how a Sith sounds. Have you ever been out of your fancy rich homes before you came here? I bet you haven't. Now run along children, I have no interest in playing with you." She waved her hand, her tone disdainful.
"That's a shame."
Almost too late she sensed the attack and was able to throw up a shield; even so the impact tossed her out of the tree. Hitting the ground hard, she looked up at Harin with huge eyes as she struggled to catch her breath. "Are you mad!?"
"You think you're so great don't you, you and your sister. So called "wild talent", like you're some prodigies, so much better than us because you came already knowing how to use the force." Harin spat at her. "But you're nothing but spacer trash, no family, no nothing, you are nothing, you have no right to speak of the Jedi the way you do. It's time you learn your place."
"You're kidding me." Kyla smirked from the ground; slowly she stood and brushed leaves from her robes. "And you're going to do that how little boy?"
The group glanced among one another and Harin's nostrils flared, together as one, they all pulled hilts from their robes and ten sabers ignited at once.
Instantly her smile vanished, she herself was unarmed, her saber still safely back in her rooms. "Oh now come on…" She started.
Harin cut her off. "You should run orphan."
She blinked in shock for only a second before she threw herself to the ground, ducking below a sloppily thrown blade as it cut past her head. They're seriously trying to kill me! With a gasp she rolled and dodged, doing the only thing she could in the situation, fleeing. Ben! She called out, hoping he'd hear but not having time to listen for his response.
The group split into three, four coming along each side of her as she dashed through the trees, Harin and an older girl whose name Kyla had never bothered to learn directly behind her. Perhaps I should have, she snorted at herself, a girl should know the names of her enemies after all. I need to get off the ground.
Two of the students took to the trees suddenly, almost before she could think it, cutting off her escape and she cursed. None of them are this skilled on their own, how are they doing it together?
Kyla dodged to the side as one of the youths to her left slashed in with their blade. That was blessedly unskilled. Her thought cut short as the one to the right mirrored the attack almost perfectly and she was forced to skid to a halt, falling on her face into the mulch of the forest floor. Idiot! Think, this shouldn't be beating you, you're the best in all the combat training!
Kicking into the ground she shot forward again, using the force to boost her speed and just in time as three separate blades hissed into the wet earth behind her. She glance back to see Harin's face twisted into a feral sneer. There is something wrong, very, very wrong.
Kyla look forward again and skidded to a halt at the cliff edge that seemingly appeared out of nowhere, she spun back to face her pursuers. Breathing hard she looked around desperately for something to use as a weapon or escape route. Foolish girl! She thought. Why would you run away from the temple?
Eyes wild, Harin and his gang stopped at the edge of the trees, forming a ring around her. "Nowhere to run now mongrel, why don't you beg for our forgiveness like a good little dog?" He growled as her closed on her.
Shutting off their blades the others glanced again amongst themselves, not moving forward but not relenting either. Only one older girl beside their leader spoke up now. "Harin…I think we made our point…"
"Shut up!" He turned on her. "We've made our point when I say we have!"
Looking shocked the girl took a step back and fell silent.
Harin took the distraction to wheel and slash at Kyla with his blade.
Having nowhere to go, she dodged as best she could but faltered as she was forced back, foot slipping almost off the edge. She looked back, eyes huge at the massive drop and then back at the boy attacking.
What occurred next seemed to happen all at once, she looked away from the edge and saw Ben arrive, pushing violently through the ring of padawans. "Ben." She breathed a deep sigh of relief and smiled at him. I'm safe now.
Her smile faltered at the look on her friends face, he was horrified and she couldn't figure out why at first before she felt the sharp burning across her ribs. Crying out she instinctively threw herself backwards away from the cutting blade and into the abyss beyond.
3
Ben stood motionless among the other students, mouth open, unbelieving as he watched his friend vanish. The look on her face….he blinked slowly, everything felt very slow, his limbs felt paralyzed. In her eyes, hope. She thought I was here to save her. I was supposed to be here to save her. Why didn't you save her!
Harin turned, his blade still glowing in the growing darkness, the sun having set. "Solo! I didn't….I mean we didn't mean…..it was just a joke…you know….we were just playing with her!"
For a time he didn't move or reply, he looked up and fixed his eyes on the other boy, his face in deep shadow.
"It went too far, I swear…" Harin never got to finish, stuttering in what appeared to be shock.
With a snarl of rage, Ben's saber lit up the clearing and both Harin and his blade hit the ground only seconds later, both cut cleanly in two.
The rest of the students stood frozen in surprise as he spun on them, face twisted he cut two more down before the others were galvanized into action, fleeing into the trees in all directions.
The seven moved with speed born of utter terror, as unthinking as animals chased by a predator. He caught two more at the rear of the group before any of them even noticed, his attacks coming fast and furious from the darkness of the forest.
One of the remaining students grabbed the arm of his closest fellow and forced them to stop. "Stop! If we keep fleeing we'll just die running, we need to face him together!"
"He's gone mad!" The second boy pulled his arm from his friends grasp. "Harin went mad, Solo went mad, this is all insane! You're as mad as they are, let me go!"
The first opened his mouth to reply only to jerk forward and gap down at the saber sticking through his chest. He looked up as he thought he heard screams in the distance, his attacker already gone. As his sight dimmed he saw the same look of confused pain on his friends face as they fell together, dead before either hit.
The nameless girl looked back. Almost to the temple, almost! She nearly tripped as she realized she was now alone, even the last two now vanished. Where did they go? When did they go?!
Surging forward with even more speed she abandoned them to whatever their fate, thinking only of herself now. I'm the only one left, oh gods, Master Skywalker help!
Hope soared as she saw the spires of the temple rise out of the trees and broke into the clearing around the main building. She laughed hysterically as she saw the dead girls sister look up and smile from the sand in which she played. Safe!
The last thoughts she had as she landed face first into the sand, blinking dumbly up at the little girl who looked back at her just as confused. Why is there sand in my face? She tried to twist her head to look back the way she came. Is….is that my legs back there? Why are they so far away from me….
Breathing hard, Ben doubled over, hands braced on his knees as he stood over where last one fell. Eyes as unfocused as his thoughts he stared sightlessly at the ground. A sound behind Ben made him spin with a snarl, blade raised to strike again.
Staring back up at him with eyes of green and gold hazel was a girl of three or four, her hair tied up in messy buns by a sister who would never return. "Ben!" She announced happily, smiling up at him she offered her favourite toy.
4
Ben stared at the wall of the medical bay as a First Order medic tended to his wounds; he glanced up as Supreme Leader Snoke entered.
"Ben my boy!" The old man smiled. "This is unexpected and you're hurt!"
He looked down and swallowed hard. "I am sorry but I didn't know where else to come…who else would take me in now…."
"You should have come sooner, these wounds are days old!" He admonished. "And you're always welcome here no matter what, you know that." Snoke patted him on the shoulder. "Come now, what's happened to you?"
Haltingly at first but in an ever increasing tide he spilled it all out, what had happened, what he'd done.
Looking sad, Snoke shook his head. "I am sorry my dear boy that you had to go through such a thing in order to finally come to us. But it is done and you are home now Ben, together we will ensure nothing like that happens to anyone else. Along with the Knights of Ren you will help us bring order back to this galaxy."
"Don't call me that." He snarled unexpectedly.
Snoke raised his scarred brows. "Pardon?"
"That name, do not call me that." His whole body shook with emotion. "I will kill anyone who ever calls me that again."
"Very well, I understand. I can ensure no one calls you by your birth name again." Snoke said thoughtfully. "But what shall we call you?"
He covered his face with his hands for a time before answering. "Kylo. Call me Kylo. Kylo Ren."
Snoke nodded. "Very well Kylo Ren."
After the young man fell back into silence, Snoke nodded to the medic and took his leave, letting him alone with his thoughts.
Standing in the darkness of the viewing area, a young woman watched him as he sat, wallowing in his own misery.
The door behind her opened and Supreme Leader Snoke entered. "My daughter you did perfectly. The way you used what I taught you to cloud that boys mind and orchestrate the attack, masterful. And throwing yourself off the cliff as he arrived was inspired, even I did not expect that. Thanks to your covert activities the Jedi are no more and Vader's grandson has joined us. This is a momentous day; the Order has your years of hard work to thank for it."
She didn't turn to face him as she asked. "He actually killed them all?"
"Save for the master himself yes, no sign was found of that one. He's vanished into the ether it seems." Snoke's tone was disapproving.
"My sister?" She demanded through her clench teeth.
"Ah…" His crippled hand touched her shoulder lightly. "That he would kill even the younglings was an unforeseen tragedy. It seems losing you was a greater shock than we anticipated. " His other hand offered something out to her. "The body was not suitable for retrieval but Captain Hux was able to bring this, he knew you'd want it."
She looked down to see her tiny sister's favourite toy, one she herself had made by hand. A simple ship carved from wood, dirty, blood spattered and unmistakably burned through the middle by a saber. Choking she took the proffered keepsake, clutching it tight to her wounded chest, she looked down, shutting her eyes tight.
"I am truly very sorry you had to make such a sacrifice for our cause child." He said consolingly. "It will be for the greater good I assure you, her death will not be in vain." With that he silently left the room.
Breathing raggedly through her nose to keep from crying she nearly crushed the toy in her hands and slowly looked up. Glaring unseen through the glass at her best friend, her only friend, eyes flashing yellow in the dim light.
I will make you suffer. She silently vowed to him. I will make you feel what I feel and then even if it kills me, I will see you dead Ben Solo.