A/N: A huge thank you to everyone who faved and/or is following! Special shout out to the awesome people who left me a review and encouraged me to continue with this! (Some people don't like their names explicitly mentioned in an A/N so I opted for sending you a PM instead! Hope that's cool!) 333


Disclaimer: Yoda informed me he sold the rights of our favorite space opera to a certain black and white mouse and is now enjoying retired life on his favorite swamp planet sipping cocktails while he takes his daily mud baths.


Chapter 2

The blaster General Hux had instantly raised and aimed at Rey was still spinning across the floor in dizzying arcs when Ben had already slammed the man himself against the slanted window with a single Force push. He held him there, deriving no small amount of pleasure from seeing the man who had always competed with him for Snoke's approval and had never wasted a moment to taunt him now pressed flat against the glass, eyes bulging as he sputtered and thrashed wildly about like a fish on land.

Once his anger flowed free it was always difficult to stem it again, but it would be foolish to crash the man through that window into space because that would have everything and everyone else in the Throne Room sucked into it too. Besides, he still needed Hux. They needed him.

She had taken his hand.

Rey's presence at his side was as surreal as it was intoxicating. She had chosen him. Not the renegades she believed to be her friends and allies. Not the defected Stormtrooper. Not the cocky pilot. Not his uncle. Him.

She had taken his hand.

Perhaps the magnitude of what had only just transpired, of feeling liberated and able to breathe for the first time in years, had simply bewildered him. Had broken a dam inside of him and through the cracks now poured the unsettling mix of old fury he had so long relied on and a fledgling sense of peace.

Perhaps it had merely made him realize just how lost he'd been. How she had unlocked a part of his soul he had never truly been able to smother. With her he had caught glimpses of what it was like to be Ben Solo again. It scared him as much as it sparked something so alien and unfamiliar it might actually be hope. He, Kylo Ren, Master of the Knights of Ren, Commander of the First Order and Apprentice of Supreme Leader Snoke, felt hope.

She had taken his hand.

He couldn't stop repeating that one sentence; that one glorious truth, over and over to himself. The fresh memory of her hand in his, not through their Force Bond but here, where he was, where she was too, served only to increase his newborn protective instinct. He would make sure Hux wouldn't ever dare aim a weapon at her again. It had been torture to watch Snoke subject Rey to torment and interrogation. It had fully awakened that slumbering urge to protect her. To protect the only person that still called him Ben. That believed he was still there. In him.

He chanced a glance at Rey, almost desperately wanting to see her to reaffirm she was actually here and not an illusion concocted by his scarred heart. She stood a little behind him, looking away from both him and General Hux. A concerned frown creased her forehead and her hands were balled into fists pressed tightly against her hips.

He wanted to reach out to her. Tell her things were going to change. That everything was going to change. That together they could end this war. That vermin like Hux wouldn't stand in their way. But it was difficult to radiate anything but anger however purposefully channeled through the haze that Kylo always put around him. That he in turn had tapped into and embraced. It was like trying to squint against a harsh light and see the world for what it was through narrow slits between his fingers as his hand attempted to block the blinding effect it had on him. It was ironic how incandescent the Dark Side could be.

A slipping sound and the high-pitched squeak of leather boots against glass abruptly broke his train of thought. Ben whipped his attention back to the General before he slid down any further. He wasn't done yet.

He increased the pressure so Hux stopped squirming like the insignificant insect he was. For the briefest of moments Ben couldn't help but be entranced by the strange image of Hux almost comically sprawled among the stars. His pale face was contorted in an ugly and seething grimace as corpses and chunks of steel drifted lazily passed behind him.

And then he felt Rey's mind like pinpricks on his consciousness. Each felt like a warning and a plea at the same time. The sensation cleared the haze of anger around him just enough to realize he was close to crushing the man splayed against the glass. So close to forcing the last bit of air to leave his lungs in a final, fatal, pathetic rasp.

Releasing his Force hold on him at once Ben dropped the General carelessly onto the floor, his gaze lingering on the destruction visible all around them and which he only fully took in now. The Supremacy was bleeding like a wounded animal: Most of the Battle Cruisers had been reduced to nothing more than dust: There was floating debris and wreckage everywhere: Explosions still ruptured the hull and spouted both material and people out into the unforgiving embrace of cold, lightless vacuum.

The General scrambled to his feet with all the dignity he could muster, his breathing heavy and coming out more like chokes. He was on the verge of spitting accusations and insults when his eyes shot to the Throne.

"S-Supreme.. Supreme Leader Snoke-" General Hux took a step back, visibly shaken. He had sounded far from grief-stricken however. Face taut but sorrowless he seemed to regard the fact that he had miscalculated this outcome as something akin to a personal affront and the consequently unexpected result as highly inconvenient.

"Dead." Ben filled in, his tone one of barely concealed indifference as he let his hatred for the man fuel him to make him appear more in control than he actually felt. It was vital he fooled Hux. He couldn't allow him to treat him like a child with a temper.

General Hux made to move forward. So did Ben. All it took was one meaningful step in the man's direction to stop him in his tracks.

"What happened?" General Hux demanded in unmistakable reproach.

Bristled, Ben only just managed to repress the reflex to punish the man in front of him for his insolence and have him flat against the glass like a dead fly again.

Instead he crossed his arms over his chest and forced himself to answer tersely, "It would seem that Supreme Leader Snoke and his Pretorian Guard died in the crash with the Raddus."

General Hux didn't even bother to hide his suspicion. He almost looked amused at the obvious lie when his lip ever so slightly curled upwards in a sneer that was simultaneously threatening and mocking him.

Ben flexed his fingers, itching to force the man on his knees with one simple flick of his hand. "It would be in your interest not to doubt my word-"

"And the girl?" General Hux rudely cut him off, looking at Rey with unmasked disdain.

Ben ground his teeth. It was tempting to give in to his rage bubbling violently just under the surface. But he shouldn't. That would mean Hux had won already.

"She is no longer our prisoner." He stated, then drew on the Force to give his next words the weight they should carry, "She will be your Empress."

Rey instantly stiffened, he could see her frozen posture in the periphery of his vision. More than that he could feel the Force around her inadvertently respond to how she felt about his use of that title. Wavering. Uneasy. Panicked?

General Hux glared in outrage but bit back a retort as Ben expanded his reach of the Force just enough to have it press against the periphery of his mind. It was as effective as having a sword dangling above an exposed neck. But it didn't stop Hux's eerily transparent blue eyes from acquiring an even icier hue.

"From now on Empress Rey and I will rule the First Order together."

Hux wasn't a stupid man. For once Ben appreciated that fact when he could tell by the narrowing of those cold eyes that the General had caught the implied with or without you.

"What about the Resistance?"

Next to him Rey stirred. He could hear and feel her hold her breath. Her palpable and swelling anxiety for her friends making him instantly jealous of the hold they had on her. Even now. When she had made her choice. When she had stayed with him. When she must know he had no intention of going out of his way to spare them the fate they deserved. The order to kill them all hung readily on his lips.

And yet he didn't say it.

Rey had wordlessly taken a step closer to him. He didn't miss the meaning behind the gesture. If he would destroy those she still perceived to be her allies, if he gave in to Kylo's burning lust for revenge, his desire for it, he might lose her. Now that she had come for him.. Now that she was still here with him.. The thought of chasing her away, make her leave him, was disproportionately unbearable.

"Let them go." He said in a commanding voice and it felt like he was giving himself an order too. An order that was taking a considerable amount of self-control to obey.

General Hux, predictably, scoffed indignantly, "Let them go? You want me to allow the remnant of our defeated enemy to escape? We can't afford to be lax now we have the chance to eradicate them once and for all-"

This time it was Ben's turn to bluntly override him, and he made sure his tone carried due finality, "As you said, General, they're already defeated. I won't waste precious resources hunting down a ragged band of survivors, enemy or not. They're no threat to us now. Not anymore. With no means to get off that deserted planet they have nowhere to go. Send a Cruiser to patrol in orbit if you like, but I think we have more important things to do than witness a handful of Resistance scum rotting away."

Ben sensed Rey's irritation at his wording but most of it was washed away by a wave of tentative, fragile relief. It wasn't trust yet. It wasn't gratitude. But it felt infinitely better than her previous anxiety. Of her doubting he wouldn't do everything to keep her here. With him.

Hux was still fixing him with a deadly stare but he had grown impervious to those a long time ago. It seemed especially powerless now. Perhaps something in him had changed. Something jarred loose or fixed into place instead. All because of that one, incredible fact.

She had taken his hand.

Clearly General Hux was appalled at the very idea of having the opportunity to quench the Resistance stolen from him. For a moment he just stood there, livid and practically trembling with repressed ire.

"Don't you have a ship to evacuate?" Ben remarked off-handedly. He could sense the man's feelings of hostility spike. He responded in kind and stabbed at Hux's mind just enough to have him wince.

"Very well," General Hux grudgingly conceded and left a deliberate pause before ending with a hissed, "Emperor."

He dipped his head in a not quite convincing sign of reverence and obedience, then marched out of the Throne Room.

The soft, shuffling sound of her lithe footsteps approaching made Ben tear his gaze away from where the hem of Hux's long, military coat had just vanished around the corner.

"He obviously doesn't trust me."

There was that frown again. Why was she so worried when with their combined power there would be no one strong enough to stop them?

"Not just you." He replied cynically, then added unconcernedly, "We don't need his trust. Just his loyalty."

"I'm not even sure we have that. And even if we do now, I doubt for much longer."

Her skepticism, apart from being glaringly uncharacteristic, was riddled with the unease he had perceived in her before. When he had referred to her as Empress. Her brows furrowed even more and he felt an annoyingly familiar gap grow between them. Or maybe he had just become aware of it again and it had been always there. Was still there. But wouldn't be forever. It didn't need to be there. He felt an instant aversion to this contradicting sense of being apart when they were finally together.

"Maybe not. But it's a risk we'll have to take. When we no longer need him.. When all of this," He spread his arms wide to encompass the surrounding carnage suspended macabrely in space, "When we have made this war..redundant.." He caught himself at the conflicted expression spreading on her face. He was prophesizing too much. Thinking too far ahead. He just felt so eager and hungry to create the future he had dared envision. Because of her. With her.

"I'll deal with him." He settled on saying.

She didn't reply, just cast her eyes down and nodded. Again he felt that hint of the chasm between them. Ben instinctively took a step towards her as if by literally decreasing the physical distance between them he could somehow bridge that mental and emotional gap too.

"Stay close to me." He instructed her, his finger under her chin to lift it up so her eyes would meet his, hoping that his imploring look could express the fervent wish embedded in those words. Her initial silence was maddening. Severely testing his patience. Then something in her expression changed. That frown finally dissolved.

Elation surged through him and he released the breath he didn't realize he was holding when Rey nodded again but so very differently this time. A spark rekindled the warmth of those brown orbs staring unwaveringly back at him; as if to say she had understood the full extent of what he had meant to say to her with that one, terse sentence.

Without another word passing between them, without the need for words, they made their way through the crippled ship. Steel groaned all around them. Stormtroopers gave them a wide berth as they frantically made for the escape pods and shuttles. Exposed circuitry sizzled, their white hot sparks competing with the equally erratic light strips overhead and running along the narrow corridors.

The doors to the elevator slid shut behind them without a problem. Miraculously it was still working. Probably of the few things aboard that did. Whether unconsciously or deliberately they stood in their respective places again: he behind her to the left and she in front of him to the right, her back turned against him.

For a fleeting moment he felt scared. Scared that all of this hadn't been real. That it had been an illusion playing out in his mind alone. That they were on their way now to Snoke. That even if he killed his Master she could still reject him. She would refuse to take his hand.

Rey, probably sensing his childish, irrational reaction, threw him a quizzical look over her shoulder and the wall of fear he had slammed into instantly crumbled to dust. It was real. She was real. He had truly freed himself from Snoke.

His gaze trailed down to her hands resting unclenched on either side of her. No stun cuffs. If his anxious mind still needed proof then that was it. Ben felt almost lightheaded with the relief spreading through him. Then he saw the glistening, crimson puddle gathering next to her feet. A droplet of blood splashed on the grid floor. Another. Another. The steady splatter adding a sinister rhythm to the monotonous and unvarying hum of the elevator.

"You're hurt."

In an instant he was by her side. But when he made to take hold of her arm so he could examine the wound she automatically drew back a little. A reflex the result of years of living on her own with no one to trust. Surviving by mistrusting. Not unlike himself.

Was there something else in her reaction? Was she afraid of him too?

The thought caused a sharp twang in his heart. He knew she saw the monster in him as clearly as he felt it poised. Always. Ready to come out and tear apart whatever was in his way. How could he make her see he would never attempt to wound her again? How could he trust himself that he wouldn't?

"Just a scratch." Rey mumbled sounding strangely self-conscious. She cast a furtive glance in his direction which, seeing he was standing so close to her, meant she had to tilt her head back a little. He hadn't noticed before the way her eyelashes curved up. How could he not have noticed?

"You?" she asked tentatively, blinking up at him. And then he understood her apparent nervousness. His proximity made her uncomfortable. He was making her feel like she had done when she had stood but an inch away from him. His prisoner claiming boldly he would turn. That she would help him. Maybe those words had effectively turned him into her prisoner instead. Cornered and feeling trapped by her standing so incredibly near he had retorted that when the moment came she would be the one to turn. Maybe both of them had had part of the truth right.

"Not even a scratch." He answered, the grin playing around his lips nothing to do with that fact but with the intensely pleasing realization just being physically close to her had this effect on her.

Rey arched one brow doubtfully. Obviously she wasn't too unsettled to suspect he wasn't entirely accurate. He did feel sore to his bones. He knew his body would be covered in bruises. He might even have broken a rib or two. But it was nothing. That kind of pain was nothing. How could it be? His soul being torn apart hurt so much more. Stars. His longing to be even closer to her as he was now hurt more..

"That just means the guards I fought were tougher than yours." She gave him an almost playful stab back. An attempt to release the tension he felt coming from her like charged particles electrifying the very air between them. He felt strung too but released at the same time. Perhaps he just couldn't quite believe his eyes yet. He greedily took her in then stopped himself and internally cursed at how easily he was distracted just by the sight of her. How was gaping at her going to fix her injury?

He closed one hand around her wrist and threatened to become lightheaded again when she didn't try to pull it out of his grasp but allowed the Force surrounding her to flow freely towards him. She visibly relaxed and closed her eyes. Ready for whatever he was going to do to her. Trusting him to treat her wound.

"It won't hurt." He offered rather awkwardly but he wanted to give her some form of assurance. He wasn't good at that. Never had been. And yet he wanted so desperately to show her she had made the right choice. She had been right. He had turned against his master. Not for whatever vision she had had of his future. Because of her. Just her.

He closed his eyes too and let his other hand hover above the graze on the side of her shoulder. First he gathered the Force near it so it had a higher concentration of life-filled energy, then gently guided it towards the broken and partly burned skin. He stopped the bleeding this way. Then, one fiber at a time, her flesh knitted together again and the heat radiating from what had been a severe abrasion ebbed away. But he didn't stop yet. Unpracticed as he may be in Force healing Ben treasured the chance to relieve her of her pain.

When he finally withdrew, when her eyes flitted open again and found his, he allowed himself a moment longer to submerge in that dizzying feeling that was the aftermath of what had happened in the Throne Room. The decision she had made. The decision he had made. The choice they had both made.

Because of it vision was turning into reality. Fantasy suddenly materializing into potential. There was something disorientating, hallucinatory even, about it; like waking up from a dream to discover that the lines between both worlds were blurring. Fading. Becoming one. It must be true for Rey too. He could see it reflected in her widened eyes. Feel it in the way the Force around them whirled, twisted and turned around its axis like a hurricane, pressing their presences together while they still retained their own forms in it.

They both hadn't planned this. It had happened to them. But in all his life Ben had never felt more grateful for the capricious interference of the Force as he did now.


A/N: ok, that was possibly the most unrealistically long elevator ride of my life...but big ship, people, big ship, it'd take at least ten minutes to get from the top floor to the basement! ;) Thanks for reading, I'd love to get your thoughts on chapter 2! 333