Chapter 2
The Ghost: Old Friends
Ben took a breath as the Ghost shot away from the Finalizer. Hux would piece together what had happened soon enough. He'd left more than a few bodies. But the Ghost was in hyperspace before the Star Destroyer could see it. Ben's authorization allowed them to open any doors they needed without raising any alarms.
If he thought he had much time to rest after his escape, he underestimated his companion.
As soon as the ship had come to a stop, Kaila's lightsaber flared to life. "Do you mind telling me what is going on?"
Ben looked impassively at the glowing blue blade. "You're free and you have your ship. Why does anything else matter?"
"You kidnap me! you commandeer my ship!" Kaila rose up, taking her stance. "These are not the actions of the man they call Jedi Killer."
"Do you really want to test that?" Kylo snapped venomously, reaching for his lightsaber.
Kaila just continued to glower at him, her skin illuminated turquoise from the glow of her saber. "Oh, believe me, I have suspected that day to come for years now!" She took a step towards him. "Your own mother told me what you had done. What you would do if you found me. I expected a monster. But what do I see before me? A frightened brat!"
Kylo blinked, shocked by Kaila's words. She really had no fear of him. She'd comes to terms with her inevitable demise. "Fly the ship," he ordered.
"Why do you need my ship?" She asked. She pointed out into space. "You command the entire fleet of the First Order. You rule the galaxy! You could have any of them take you wherever you want to go!" She stopped for a moment, blinking, before cocking her head, Her lekku hanging to the side. "You don't want them to know where you're going. You're running away."
Kylo took a step back. He blinked and swallowed hard.
Kaila's lightsaber disengaged. She dropped it to her side and took a step towards him, furrowing her brow. "Ben...?"
His father, uncle and Rey had been the only ones to call him by that name for years. Snoke had forbid it from being spoken aloud. Kylo turned away, pointing to the controls. "Fly. If you won't, I can do it myself."
Kaila took her seat at Ghost's helm. "She must be a hell of a woman."
"What?" Kylo took the co-pilot's seat. He felt his heart do an odd flutter in his chest.
"The girl. The one everyone is talking about." Kaila flicked a few switches. "The one you killed Snoke for. Have the rest of the First Order found out? Is that why you're running?"
"The girl killed Snoke," Ben- no, Kylo... Kylo, Kylo, Kylo- snarled.
"I heard that story too. But there is another story I have heard from the Rebellion." Kaila turned to him. "One where it was you. You killed Snoke to save the girl's life. You fought by her side. I have not met her. But if you were willing to turn against your Master for her..." She raised her arms over her head, stretching. "Your father wasn't even spared."
Ben kept his gaze firmly on the space in front of them. "Why are you flying the Ghost? Your mother would never give up this ship."
There was a pause. Just a heartbeat of hesitation. "I'm not going to tell the Supreme Leader of the First Order anything."
"So she's not dead then. No reason to keep it a secret if she was." Ben thought about it. He blinked as realization dawned and he finally turned to Kaila. "Did she think Thrawn would recognize it?"
Kaila remained silent.
"You might as well tell me. Even if I hadn't left the First Order, I don't care if General Syndulla has gone after Thrawn. The First Order cut ties with him years ago." Ben nodded. "Yes... That's it. She's gone after Thrawn. She always had a personal vendetta against him."
"She came to me several years ago and gave me the Ghost. I haven't seen her or the rest of the crew since. They're somewhere in the Unknown Region." She paused. "I think."
"Does it bother you?"
"No." Kaila turned to Ben, glowering. "I'm thirty-four kriffing years old. I don't need my mother to watch over me." She pointed a finger at him. "Tell me, Ben... Is taking over the galaxy just a temper tantrum because you think your Mommy and Daddy abandoned you? It wouldn't surprise me. You Skywalkers have always let your family squabbles nearly tear the galaxy apart."
Kylo reached for his lightsaber. Kaila threw her hand out and Force Shoved it out of his hand.
His hand then shot out towards her, fingers curling inward as he reached out with the Force. Kaila grabbed at her throat, choking for air. "I wouldn't test me, Kaila. You think me a brat? I look at you and do you know what I see? A Jedi washout who runs from responsibility and dresses like a Twi'lek whore."
He released his hold on her and Kaila slumped over, taking in deep, gasping breaths. Kaila looked up at him, fear in her eyes for the first time. "What happened to you, Ben?"
Kylo glared. "Maybe if you hadn't left you'd know."
"Certainly doing a lot to dispel me of the belief you're a brat with abandonment issues." She went quiet, turning her focus towards the console in front of her. It was clear it was busy work. She was thinking. "You're walking trash, but you did get me off a Star Destroyer. I can get you away from the First Order... But that's all I'm promising."
Ben laid back in the bunk. He had randomly chosen one of the four cabins. It didn't seem to be currently lived in. He wasn't sure he cared if it were.
As he reached out with the Force, trying to locate Rey, he felt something. The room had echoes of the Force in it. They were long gone, but still flickers of the light remained. His eyes opened at the sound of the door. "Was this Master Bridger's cabin?"
"My father's," Kaila replied. "Ezra was next door. You can sense him, can't you?" She leaned against the wall and smiled. "Sometimes I come in here and I... I feel his presence."
"Why aren't you flying the ship?" Ben groused, turning on his side to face away from Kaila.
"Why are you so angry at me for leaving?" Kaila asked. He could hear her footsteps on the metal floor, getting closer and closer to him. "Are you so sorry you didn't have the chance to butcher me with the rest of the students?"
"You left because of who I was," Ben snapped. "You found out about my family and you left."
"I followed my Master," Kaila replied. "There was always friction between Ezra and Master Skywalker. And when the news about your grandfather came out... That was the straw that broke the eopie's back."
Kylo sat up. "Vader was a great man."
"Vader killed my father," Kaila snapped back.
Ben shrank down, looking away and shaking his head. "Thrawn killed your father. That's why your mother hates him so much."
"My mother has a lot of reasons to hate Thrawn. And my father did die in a conflict with him. But as powerful as Thrawn was, he couldn't defeat a Jedi. Vader could. He was there. He cut down my father right in front of Ezra. He died protecting Ezra. And that's only one person of many Vader took from my family." Kaila sat down in the chair across from Ben.
"It wasn't just that Vader was Master Skywalker's father... Your grandfather. Master Skywalker tried to explain to Ezra everything that happened at the Battle of Endor. Master Skywalker risked the entire Rebellion- my mother, Chop, Rex, Sabine, Zeb, everyone- to bring Vader back to the light side. Ezra just couldn't stay around someone who did that." She looked down. "I had to go with him. Ezra was my Master. He was family." She paused. "He regretted leaving. After he'd cooled down. But by then... It was too late."
Ben swallowed the lump that had developed in his throat. "Because I killed everyone."
"You did."
"I lashed out at the man who tried to murder me."
It was now Kaila's turn to recoil.
"I woke up to find my uncle standing over me with his lightsaber ignited, ready to strike." Kylo sat up. "I saw the hypocrisy of the Jedi."
"Master Skywalker was afraid," Kaila whispered. "Of what you were becoming."
"Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering," Kylo snapped, mocking the words Luke had spoken so many times. "When I looked into his eyes... There was no difference. Light or dark. It didn't matter."
"Dark Sider's lament isn't going to work with me." Kaila rose to her feet. "Nothing you can tell me is going to justify what you've done, Ben. You've killed good people. Our friends. But if you're looking for absolution, the rebels need supplies. I was supposed to bring them. I can work some deals. Get what they need. While I'm dropping them off, I can take you to them."
Ben shook his head. "You can't. If I try to walk into the Resistance headquarters, he'll kill me on sight."
"He?" Kaila shook her head. "He who?"
"Luke," Ben replied.
"Luke's dead, Ben."
Ben couldn't explain the feeling that rose up in him at tht pronouncement. His father was gone. His mother. And now Luke. "How?"
"When you fought him on Crait," Kaila sighed deeply. "He was still at the First Jedi Temple. He projected himself across the galaxy. It drained his life force."
Another one of his family Ben had caused the death of. "He sacrificed himself to stop me." Ben nodded slowly. He looked down. "Why would he do that?"
"I don't know. I just know what your mom told me."
Ben's head jerked up. "My mom? My mom's dead."
Kaila let out a laugh. "What are you talking about? General Organa is fine. Well... Not fine. She's still recovering. Not to mention losing her husband and her brother in such a short span."
"I was there!" Kylo shouted. "I saw the bridge get blown up. I know she was on it! I felt her! That's why I..."
"That's why you what?"
Kylo wasn't about to explain to Kaila his feelings in that moment when he'd sensed his mother. How he'd refused to shoot. How his wingman had done it anyway. They emptiness that filled him as he watched that section of the ship explode. "I know my mother is dead."
"General Organa is the one who asked me to ferry supplies to the Rebellion. She trusts me... Because she trusted me with her son. She keeps trying to convince me to stay on. To work with your girl. I don't know what you think happened, but your mother is alive."
"How?" Kylo demanded.
"You never thought much of her choice. Not learning the ways of the Force. That didn't mean she didn't have it. And it's strong in your family. Stronger than any I've seen. Even untrained, an explosion wasn't going to take out General Leia Organa."
She rose to her feet. "So you don't want to go to the Rebellion. So what next, Ben?"
"I don't know," Kylo growled, trying to ignore the panic rising in him at Kaila's revelations.
"Are you going to hold me hostage? Make me take you wherever you want to go? You really haven't given me a compelling reason to put up with you. I got you away from the First Order. My debt to you is paid. Once I find a quiet planet, I'm going to drop your sorry, murderous ass off."
Kaila turned and stormed out of the room.
"A bit hard on him, don't you think?"
Kaila whirled around at the voice behind her. "Dad."
When he had died, he had been blind. But when he appeared to her, he always looked at her with warm eyes. Had he not been an ethereal blue, Kaila knew his eye color would have matched hers. Kanan smiled softly. "Hi Kai."
"What are you doing here?" She felt her eyes well with tears. "I haven't seen you in years."
"It's not that easy, is it? Besides, you don't need me." Kanan reached out to her, his hand ghosting over her cheek. "Look at you. All grown up. You look so much like your mother." He shook his head. "You can't leave Ben."
"You know what he did." Kaila retorted. "Am I just supposed to forget that and let him tag along like my little brother? Try to redeem his soul?"
"You can't redeem him. No one can do that but him. But he needs a shepherd."
"He has his mother," Kaila looked down. "He has the girl. They keep calling her the last Jedi. Master Skywalker was so self-important, he ignored the rest of us..."
"That's Ezra talking. He and Luke had their problems." Kanan tilted up Kaila's chin. "I saw the destruction of the Jedi. For nearly sixty years the Force has tried to recover from the chaos. It's finally healing but the only way the Jedi will truly be revived is if the rifts are repaired. If those that use the Force can band together."
"If Master Skywalker's protege is so powerful, give her the responsibility! Maybe she'll have some luck. It's obvious Ben is in love with her. Isn't that supposed to be what redeems?"
"She's too close to it all," Kanan responded. "Ben needs to change for him. Not for the girl. Not for his mother. Being around them will create expectations." He smiled. "Not to mention the girl is young and as volatile as Ben. She need to finds a path a much as he does. You already know yours."
Kaila looked towards the cockpit. "My path's just open space."
"Open space will be good for him. He needs to get a little lost in the galaxy before he can find his way."
