[ BEFORE SNOKE'S DEATH ]

Kylo Ren, grandson of Darth Vader, now an apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke, is continuously trying to prove himself to him, his leader. Snoke knows Kylo is too weak, too vulnerable, too conflicted. So, he uses that against him, makes him do things he shouldn't. Slowly, Snoke is starting to see Kylo's darkness, and how it's consuming him. This, Snoke likes. But, Kylo is at war with himself, for what he did to his father, his mother, himself. He's at constant battle with himself. Darkness, confusion, anger, despair, all boiled into one, while light, kindness and care battle the dark. Kylo just wanted a way out, but it's too late now. He's buried himself deep in a hole he didn't mean to dig. Tonight, Snoke called upon Kylo Ren, asking him to do another mission he didn't want to do. This time, it was a sabotage mission. A storm trooper had stolen weapons from their ship and has been selling them on his home planet. Kylo's mission was to hunt down the trooper, terminate him and retrieve the weapons. Kylo Ren did as he was told, as always.

[ ZAYAH ]

I grab my dirty robe off the floor, feeling my owner roll off of me and exhale in relief. He had his way with me for the fifth time this week, that's a record. I'm usually the least picked. I make my way past the slave quarters, into the shower hall - a small room lined with rusty, but functional, shower heads where every slave, man or woman, showers in public. There are no stalls. Everyone is in the nude. I don't even know how long I was in the shower, trying not to cry, trying not to look weak again. I scrubbed, scrubbed, scrubbed at my skin, wanting this gross, icky feeling to leave me, but it didn't, no matter how hard I rubbed that flaky, gritty soap on my skin. At one point, the showers turned off and I grabbed a towel, drying myself off and slipping into clean clothes - a beige gown that resemble a nightgown, but thicker, and slipped on some work boots that weren't even mine, and made my way outside to eat. I found a few of my 'friends' outside. By the looks on their faces, they had been ravaged, too. I join them at a table, completing out little circle of friends and we start talking, trying to get our minds off of what just happened to us again. We should be used it by now, we've been here since we were sixteen years old. We're around the same age now. I'm the oldest; twenty four. Doesn't mean it hurts any less to go through that. Hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I feel a guard behind us. But Cami, a friend sitting right next to me, doesn't know he's behind her, and stands up abruptly, making him fumble and drop his food. He angrily turns to her.

"You little bitch!" he said to her. "You made me spill my food. Watch where you're going, you clumsy whore!"

"I - I'm sorry," she stuttered, clearly terrified. "Here, let me help y-"

"That's right, clean this shit up!" He grabs her by the collar of her shirt and pushes her onto the ground. "CLEAN. IT. UP." She pushes everything onto the tray that's on the ground and I swear I feel my blood begin to boil. She stands up and turns towards a trash can to throw it away. The guard grabs her shoulder. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To . . throw this away. It's trash."

"Eat it."

"W-what?"

"You heard me. Eat. It."

"But it's covered with sand and dirt. This floor's filthy."

"Eat it!" He raises his hand to strike at her and she flinches, dropping the tray. I get up from my seat and quickly get in front of her.

"She said no!" I say, and he freezes in surprise. He didn't expect me to stand up for her.

He laughs, making my fearlessness disappear in a matter of seconds. "You really think you have power here? You're nothing. You're no one. You want to know how you mean nothing? Your parents dropped you off here at the age of sixteen because they didn't want you. YOUR. OWN. PARENTS. And you have the audacity to act like you mean something? The only reason you're alive is because of what's in between your legs." He spits at my feet and turns to walk away. I got so mad, I felt myself wanting to terminate him. To choke him. To make him swallow those words, or maybe my fist, either would work just fine. And then . . . he stopped. He sounded like . . he was choking. And I realized my hands were clenched. I was thinking about choking him. I was doing this. How? Then, I was on the back of my head with something blunt, and I was unconscious.

I awoke, chained to the bed I was laying in. I was in a dimly lit room, where an abundance number of crates and weapons were stored. This was the give-away. I was free to whoever wanted me. I was terrified. I yanked on my bed, trying hard to break the chains and -

"Who is she?" I hear behind me. I spin in my seat and look at the man who said it. I've never seen him before. Clean, black robes. Nothing expensive-looking. He didn't look native. He had jet-black hair reaching his chin, and a scar on his face.

"She's one of our slaves. Our men adore her, she has lots to offer, if you're interested," said the same guard that I was arguing with only moments ago. "She's our bosses' favorite." The other man's face - the dark-haired one - had a disgusted look on his face. As if he couldn't believe that guard could've said such a thing about me. "How much is she?"

"Free for whoever wants her."

My heart sank, but I couldn't find any words in me. I couldn't speak. The man's eyes locked on mine and I didn't know what to do. The guard unchained me and I stood up quickly, shoving him aside and standing oddly close to the man. He seemed protective, dominant, asserting. He didn't look at me the way other men did, which was a relief. The guard scoffed. "Take her. We'll find other women." He shrugged his shoulders and walked away, leaving me alone with him.

"Come with me," he said. "You won't be staying in this shit hole anymore."

I managed a quiet, "Thank you," and followed him out. He wouldn't speak again. He didn't even make eye contact with me. That same day, he'd bought a hover-car, and a small home just ten or so miles away from this city, in a different city. "Where are we going?" I asked him as we got in the two-seater craft. Behind our seats was a space big enough for more seats, but there weren't any. It was just empty. Guessing it was for transporting goods and such.

"I'm taking you far from here," he said. For once in my life, I felt relief, actual joy. "This place is hell, I don't know how you could've survived this shit hole." He knew that what he had said had come out nicer than he intended to, and he cleared his throat, furrowing his brows to look meaner. What was up with him?

"Is it safe? I - I don't want any of them to know where I am."

"Don't worry, they won't. I'll tell you everything once we get there."


I'd been watching this particular girl for nearly two months, ever since I received my orders from Snoke, I'd been traveling to Tatooine every couple of days, traveling back to Snoke to report everything. But every time I arrive at Tatooine, I find myself drawn to this girl. It kills me inside because I don't know what it is about her that has me so hypnotized. Then I saw it. Felt it. The Force. She used it. By the look on her face, she didn't know what the hell she'd just done. When I found out she'd been handed away to the Free-For-Taking guards, I was infuriated. Something inside me needed to know she was okay. So, I stole money, tons of it, bought a very small home in a different city, even bought a little hover-car, and stole her away. She doesn't know she's actually supposed to be sold off to the highest-paid sex worker in the galaxy, and she won't know. I could sense the fear in her the moment I walked up to her. But I can tell she'd warming up to me. I can't let her see I'm doing the same.

Here we were, at her new home. Small, like a off-white sand-igloo, sunken into the land just slightly. "Your home," I said to her. Her hazel eyes lit up as I said so. I was mesmerized by how long, curly and black her hair was. I could've sworn she was some sort of angel. I almost smiled. "You're kidding, right?" she asked me.

Digging into the pockets of my robes, I pull out two rusty keys attached to a key ring and toss it at her. She catches them and her eyes get wider. Without hesitation, she rushes into the house, and I follow - not running - behind her. She's nearly in tears when she enters. She's slowly walking around, her long fingers grazing each surface as she passes. Then, as if she were slapped, she looks at me, with a concerned and stern look on her face.

"Did . . you want something?" she asked me.

"What?"

"Did you want something?" she repeats, grabbing at her robes. Her body language said take me but her facial expressions said please, no. This is what she must've done in order to survive back there, to just willingly give herself up so she wouldn't be beaten, sold or killed off like the other women. I felt a sting in my chest as I noticed her gesture.

"You owe me nothing," I said. her face showed relief. "You won't be giving your body to anyone ever again. You're free."

Her face showed relief, appreciation, and something else. "There's a catch, isn't there."

"No. There is none. I don't think a woman should be living such a horrible life. Especially you." Especially you? You idiot, I said to myself, Could you be more obvious? "I must go," I said abruptly. "There's things I need to take care of and I've stalled long enough. This is your home. Soon, I'll come back with your hover car. I've left enough money for you to survive for six months. There's vegetation in the backyard and -"

"I'll never see you again, will I?"

Her words made me light-headed. "I can't promise anything." I moved past her to leave, but she grabbed onto my arm, stopping me. "Do you even know my name? Can I know yours?"

My name.

"I'm Zayah. I don't have a last name. Well, I do, but I don't remember it."

"I already knew your name."

"Oh." She slightly shook her head, wondering how I could've known her name when we never exchanged it. "What's yours? I'd like to know the name of the man that quite literally changed my life."

I hesitated. I can't tell her I'm Kylo Ren, apprentice to Supreme Leader Snoke and the grandson of Darth Vader. "My name's Ben Skywalker." She let me go and I exited the house, getting into the car. Before I shut the door to my hover car, she stood outside the front door and waved.

"I'd really like to see you again, Ben."

I nodded at her, shutting the door to my hover car and taking off to find that damned storm trooper. I was so distracted by Zayah that I lost track of time. Dammit! He's probably long gone by now. Even on my way to find the storm trooper, all I could think about was her.