Chapter I: Shoot First
~ 3 Years Ago ~
Extremely dry weather.
Check.
Unbearable Sun.
Check.
Sand.
Check.
More Sand.
Check.
For Rey this felt just like home… and Ben probably knew it.
Anxiousness. Confusion. Regret. Tense emotions were running through Rey's mind like wildfire, probably just as fast as her desert speeder was taking her across the dunes of the desert planet Tatooine. Thinking about why and who she was here for in the first place was making her heart beat even faster than that.
Rey braced from the desert gusts, gripping the handles of her x-34 speeder tighter. Her memories of the lonely life she left on Jakku roared back as the heat pounded her from above. With the dry wind scraping at her signature goggles, gauze, and tan wraps, she couldn't help but notice the similarities of the desert planets.
It was almost nice being here. The conflicted dreams she had as a child to leave Jakku were now a reality but that didn't mean she didn't miss her home. And Ben knew this.
After an hour of travel, she saw her destination in the horizon. Mos Eisley Spaceport. Ben told her specifically not to land at the spaceport itself, to keep records clean from Resistance and First Order intel. A rendezvous between these two would be nothing but trouble if it was public knowledge for either side.
Rey gulped nervously. She was starting to feel that ball of hesitation in her throat grow as she came closer and closer. The anxiety. The doubt. The unwillingness to turn back. This wasn't a Resistance mission. This wasn't a vacation or a joyride. She was here because Kylo Ren asked her to be here. She was here because she was made an offer to be here.
She was here because he told her to come here.
And for some reason… I listened.
With a turn of the key switch the rented speeder came to a halt, Rey looking out at the dual setting suns of Tatooine with a reflective stare. A wise man long ago said that Mos Eisley Spaceport was a hive for scum and villainy, and looking at the dark eyes that all peered over to a dismounting Rey, years later it was still quite the same.
Rey left her parked speeder and headed towards the main hub of the city, specifically looking for the cantina as Ben specified. Security seemed to be beefed up from thirty years ago, as big business has tried it's best to calm this reckless frontier infested with gangs and heathens. A pair of armored Gammorean guards as bouncers in front of the Cantina gave an illusion of safety, but it's wretched soul was the same.
Rey entered into the entrance as the Gammorean's eyed her all the way in with their pig snouts grunting. Her first footsteps into the dim chamber caused quite the stir, even as that quartet of Biths on stage continued their cheerful jazz performance. The Cantina surroundings around the band however felt like it hushed itself in an eerie silence – every crook, thief, and raider of all sorts of races eyeing this small framed desert goer like new meat.
Rey payed little attention even though there weren't exactly angels surrounding her. These threats were nothing compared to the devil that awaited her across the bar. She already felt that Dark side presence outside. That presence that haunted her since Takodana. Those shadowy eyes were locked on Rey at entry.
"So you did have the courage to show yourself alone." An all too calm Kylo peaked over with an amused grin. An unmasked face. A quite snug face that Rey wasn't exactly used to.
"I had a feeling you would." His voice was surprisingly calm and soft. "You never disappoint."
Rey stood strong only because she didn't know what else to do. She could only let out a deep breath as she stared at Ben's face, seeing that scar that she gave him on Starkiller base for the very first time. The damage she did to his face was strangely soothing because she knew she could hurt him.
The flipside was that she did hurt him.
Kylo made sure Rey didn't forget that she did.
It was a battle that ended three days ago that made her come here in the first place. The battle of Kashyyk marked the biggest First Order victory since the fall of Starkiller Base, months of silence had given birth to a military retaliation that the galaxy hadn't seen in years. The Resistance Base on that planet was integral for control of the Mid Rim, and the consequences for destroying Starkiller base were heavy for the Resistance.
Rey was deployed in battle and met a Kylo Ren she couldn't recognize. A renewed dark knight that made the one on Starkiller Base look like a novice. Rey took a beating and was fighting for her life after a grueling battle but Kylo had inexplicably spared her without much explanation. Ben Solo had made her an offer that day. And for some reason not matter how illogical and dangerous… deep down she couldn't turn away. She wouldn't deny him.
The way he spoke. The way he let her live and walk away… she didn't understand and she wanted answers.
"It feels like more stupidity than courage, now that I am actually here." Rey expressed regret after a long awkward silence.
"Courage and stupidity are interchangeable traits for sure." Kylo could only smirk at her candor, turning his attention back to the Bith horned quartet like nothing had changed, almost disregarding the danger of the Jedi hopeful in front of him.
He was tapping his foot to the beat apparently in no hurry to do anything at all.
Strange indeed.
"… H-how did you know I would come?" Rey's puzzled face was hidden behind wrappings and those goggles.
Kylo's dark eyes stay fixated only on the band as he spoke. "We all know that a scavenger like you can't resist a new and interesting place to excavate. You see a dark mysterious cave and you just need to explore. Let's face it Jedi." He turned with that new confident grin. "I interest you is all."
Rey's heart was beating so fast. She felt his confidence. She felt his calmness. She felt his eyes pierce through her soul. She felt his knack for reading her even without any force trickery this time.
"… Interest is a bad word." Rey replied a bit shakily, trying to keep calm. "Confuse is probably a bit more accurate."
"Regardless." Kylo grasped at his hands, twiddling his gloved fingers. "Either way you're here. Mission accomplished for me."
Rey huffed and could only stand as still a statue as she had been for a while now. She didn't know how to react to this Kylo Ren. She almost wished he would just come and attack her in raging fit with mask and tunic adorned. It would be almost easier dealing with that… than this.
Ben was playing mind games. He had to be.
Rey felt the dark side that still flowed from him. It felt more intense now than ever really. But seeing Kylo dressed in a normal attire of black that made him look… dashing, seated at a booth with a beverage in front of him, tapping his foot to the horned quartet (who were indeed playing the same amazing song over and over) on stage was making her uneasy.
The masked Kylo Ren from six months ago was tension personified. Rey saw it in his eyes and his face when he first unmasked himself on Starkiller Base. He had an uncontrollable anger. A twitch to his complexion… a confusion. He was unpolished young man that was going to break at the seams at any time just like the instability of his crimson lightsaber.
But this Kylo Ren?
He seemed comfortable. Calm. Relaxed. Dark… powerful but not showing any tells of it at all.
It was frightening.
Almost more frightening then his reemergence from a six-month hiatus since Starkiller Base where he seemed to grow his power exponentially. Rey had scars across her body to prove it.
[Rey gasps as his dark force grips her beaten body, pulling her up from the ruins of a demolished Wookie Hutt, pulled right into a glare with a dark mask that showed no emotion.]
["Not going exactly like last time is it little Rey?" Kylo's lightsaber flashes in front of her as she grimaces.]
"… So are you going to sit down Rey or are we going to do this stand offish act all night?"
Rey gulped, almost breaking in a cold sweat as she shook away thoughts from her near death confrontation. Still extremely cautious, distrust keeping her alert, the only motion now was her hands slowly pulling those dark goggles to her forehead.
"Enough games. Why did you bring me here Ben? Why did you spare me?" Rey asked dead serious as those hazel eyes were finally revealed.
Kylo smiled at first sight of those mysterious orbs, slowly lifting his shot glass to his lips. He took the shot of his whiskey with experience as he whipped his head back, downing the drink quite casually and quickly. Rey watched the glass pressed back to the table with a clank. He was… getting drunk?
Or was he already intoxicated?
Rey had her lightsaber on her ready to strike and Kylo didn't seem to care one bit
He has to be intoxicated… the way he is behaving.
"Look, I just want to enjoy this beverage and the ambiance of the scum of the underworld around me." Kylo explained, glancing around the cantina playfully. "And for you to join me of course. Nothing too complex Rey… just take seat."
Rey was reminded of theology books she would scavenge and read from time to time. There were stories of demons that try to coerce you with charm and a handsome façade.
A Devil will lure you in… only to tear your heart out.
"You spared my life days ago… for what? So I can be a drinking companion?" Rey gave him the most puzzled yet angry look her face could muster. "You're madder than any of us ever could have imagined."
Kylo let out an annoyed sigh. "Just sit down Rey. You came all this way for some answers, just humor me and pretend to be civil? If I wanted to attack, I would've done so by now clearly. And if there was an ambush you'd sense it."
"My hesitance is far from unfounded…" Rey's eyes furrowed. "Based on your history? You usually have a lightsaber pointed right at me."
"Fair enough." Kylo tapped his amber drinking glass in an agitated manner. "But seeing that you did come here alone and with no backup as I did? I presume you're willing to take one more adventurous leap and join me at the table. I could have killed you then and I can still kill you now."
"I don't buy this civility from you Ben." Rey shook her head.
"Well you have little choice now don't you?" Kylo Ren chuckled at the girl mockingly. "You made the choice to put your life in my hands the second you left Resistance protection in secrecy. Besides, you have your lightsaber. You should be fine 'Jedi'."
Rey's was hesitant. She was antsy. She was getting annoyed.
"That is unless Skywalker hasn't been training you all that well." Kylo shrugged. "How is the senile old man doing anyway? I still owe him a visit."
Rey was now getting angry.
"Listen to me." She snapped, showing her fire for the first time. "Words of my master should never leave that tainted mouth of yours ever."
"He was my master as well." Another indifferent shrug was her only reply. "A terrible one… but he was."
Unlike Luke? Rey wasn't exactly a Master Jedi yet and it showed. She was clenching her fists as hard as she was gritting her teeth. "I should strike you down you-"
"Uh, miss?"
It went from full on anger to a passive stare so quickly. Interrupted with a kind whisper, Rey turned to see a bright azure toned Twi'lek with a bewildered look plastered on her face. She had those signature tentacles for hair that draped down to her budding chest, adorned in an all-black latex uniform that left little to the imagination.
Eye candy for the scourge of the underworld meant good business.
"Uh, I apologize but I must ask that you take a seat." The Twi'lek server suggested with a hand towards Kylo's table. "You're clogging up the walk ways for the other waitresses dear."
Rey gave out a deep breath as her anger subsided. Her emotions went from when she was defending Finn from a wounded Kylo Ren on Starkiller Base to how she would treat random droids after meeting BB-8 in zero seconds flat. It was just in her nature to be attentive to others feelings nowadays.
"… I apologize." Rey bowed her head. "Excuse me."
"Yes how impolite and ill-mannered of her." Kylo interrupted a bit too loudly with a smile, changing his face to a twisted sneer as he craned over to Rey. "Excuse her. She's not used to city life being a desert rat and all. But she was just about to take a seat… am I right?"
Rey's patience was once again being tested. Annoyance aside, between this Twi'lek's kind smile and Kylo's malevolent grin, it was reminding her that they were indeed in a cramped cantina with plenty of bystanders.
A lightsaber confrontation wouldn't be the wisest of decisions even if she felt she could beat him. Which deep down… she didn't.
She had no doubt Ben would tear down the entire city if they fought let alone this cantina. Scum infested or not, the people in the cantina were collateral she didn't want lost. Rey knew the risks coming here. She would just have to play along.
"I'm sorry. Excuse my ignorance." Rey apologized softly while her face was hard and hateful towards Ren. Slowly and reluctantly she took a seat at the dim booth, eyes staying on Ben's every motion as her rear was finally planted on the hard wooden chair with a squeak.
Kylo only nodded in approval as his dark eyes didn't break from Rey's. This was exactly what he wanted.
"Uh, no apologies necessary ma'am. Thanks for complying." This Twi'lek was quite perky, having a smile that just asked for tips. "So what will be your choice of beverage tonight?"
"This Corellian whiskey would be a good choice... if you don't mind me suggesting." Kylo egged her on a bit as he nudged the bottle he had towards her. "Not too expensive… and it really gets the job done"
"I do mind and a glass of water will be fine." Rey completely ignored the suggestion, Kylo sighing with a playful headshake as it was said.
"Uh, water?" The Twi'lek blinked at the unusual order. "Heh, okay… uh one water coming up… I guess..." she muttered as she walked off towards the busy bar.
Glasses of water were a definitely a rare request around here. Alcohol flowed in this cantina like a cascading river.
"Heh, water." Kylo pulled the bottle of whiskey to him disappointed, once again filling up his shot glass with that dark liquid. "I almost forgot the first rule of the Jedi Code." He topped off the glass. "… Be forever lame."
Rey rolled her eyes at this sharp quipping Ben Solo. A side she had never seen. This… act was wearing thin on her nerves. "Did you really just bring me here in all this secrecy to just verbally aggravate me?"
Ben looked to the air in playful thought. "No but to tell you the truth this a lot more fun than thought it would be." He lifted his glass in a cheer, taking another shot while Rey could only stare on dumbfounded.
Now seated across from this devilish entity, Rey was starting to settle in. She realized that was actually watching the commander of the First Order getting drunk in front of her with no regards to her as a threat at all. He was too… neighborly. Playful even. Like they were… friends or… even like this was some sort of… get together?
He looked handsome. He was charismatic. He could've killed her by now…
What is going on?
"Listen Ben. I'm breaking every rule and shutting down every bit of common sense that I have being here tonight. I don't know what you're trying to pull but-"
"Silence," Kylo put his index finger to his mouth, staring at her now a bit more serious. "Look over towards the round table of Aqualish over your right shoulder."
"… What?"
"Just do as I say." Kylo tilted his head. "You want answers? I'm giving you them. Just like how you decided to show up here tonight, it's up you to take it or not."
Rey stared at Ben's shady glower with a shaky trust. A hand to her lightsaber hilt later and she slowly peaked over to her right begrudgingly. She kept Ben in her peripheral, as she indeed saw a group of armed Aqualish as he said. Those bug eyed and green skinned thugs looked like nothing but trouble.
But really this entire cantina was filled with these kind of shady beings. There was nothing really special about this particular table.
"You're looking with your eyes, use the force prized student of Skywalker." Kylo started to pour another drink for himself, looking on quite intently. "Surely your amazing master at least taught you how to do this."
Rey disregarded yet another cheap shot as she was now a bit intrigued. She let out a breath at his snarky words as she tried again, staring at the Aqualish harder, looking beyond what was in front of her. She began to hear indistinct chatter tickle her mind as she found her peace, a moment in time sprouting into her psyche as she saw four shapes begin to be molded from spiritual energies of the force.
The physical world began to fade into darkness. She saw the shapes take humanoid form, glowing a bright cerulean, a conversation taking place that she couldn't hear clearly but she recognized each one of them. It was like a holographic playback of a memory imprinted here permanently by the Force.
"… Master Luke…" Rey whispered in amazement, seeing this imprint of the force clearer as time passed. "… Chewbacca… Han… and… Obi-Wan Kenobi."
It was true. Rey had never actually seen Obi-Wan… but she knew. Somehow she knew it was him. Luke would passingly talk about his master while they trained. He seemed guarded about the stories of his past but Rey would get a tidbit of information from time to time.
She was staring at the beginnings of Luke and Han's story.
"Yes, this is where they began their journey Rey." Ren scoffed, his dim eyes peering at the exact same scene playing except with contempt. "The journey to ruin Vader. The journey to thrust the entire galaxy into the chaotic state it is in now."
Rey almost didn't hear him. She was so amazed seeing young versions of her mentors, it was… emotional.
"R-ruin Vader… chaotic state?" She fought to get back into the conversation regardless. "No… this is where they unite to save the galaxy."
"Yes, our points of view differ obviously on that front." Kylo Ren admitted. "But this we can agree. Here's where they make a deal that will start a chain of events that bring us here to tonight." He pointed at her. "I brought you here to lay it out on the table Rey. The truth."
Truth? Rey turned back to Kylo Ren after that moment of awe, finally starting to hear the commencements of a conversation worth having. What she came for were answers and seeing those memories playback made her even more curious. Why was Ben showing her this?
"It aggravates me." Kylo sighed disapprovingly. "Skywalker really thought he could ruin Vader and just walk away without consequence didn't he?"
"He saved that man Ben." Rey scowled in disagreement. "He saved Anakin Skywalker. He saved his father. He did the opposite of what a coward like you did."
"Saved?" Kylo almost laughed out of his chair, pounding the table so hard making Rey actually lean back a bit. "Luke Skywalker still walks to this day and the only remnants of Vader is a scorched helmet scrounged from Endor and a tattered legacy to boot. The most powerful Sith Lord that ever lived broken by the trickery of his son, his own flesh and blood."
Rey remembered the images of the molten helmet of Vader from when she dug into Kylo's mind. And now? She saw for the first time an inkling of the Kylo Ren she knew as that scowl appeared.
"Vader was meant for so much more Rey." Kylo's teeth clenched. "You called that saved?"
"Typical," Rey's brow furrowed. "Is this the senseless reason you slaughtered your loving father? Your twisted view on the redemption of Anakin Skywalker caused you to plunge your lightsaber through his heart? So you wouldn't fall to that same fate? So he could never have a chance to coerce you to the light?"
"My family… not yours." Kylo Ren grinned sinisterly. "You know nothing of my family."
"… I know your mother loves you still. I know your father sacrificed his life trying to save you." Rey's eyes narrowed even more. "I know that your family doesn't deserve the self-serving prick that they raised. Oh, I know plenty if not more than enough about you and your family Ben Solo."
"Ouch… prick you say? Heh, your charm knows no bounds doesn't it?" Kylo turned amusingly towards his left again as his eyes lit up. "Well look at that. Always on cue aren't you Han?"
Rey followed Ren's scanning pupils, suddenly seeing another memory playback now only a few feet away from her. She saw a bug-eyed Rodian armed with a blaster pointed at a young Han Solo. Against his will the Corelian smuggler was forced to move towards their table at blaster point, Rey blinking as suddenly the Force memories took seats right next to them. At their own table…
Once again the force was speaking to Rey… showing her.
A bounty hunter named… Greedo was next to her.
Of course Han was sitting next to… his son.
They were literally inches away. Rey felt like she could almost touch these apparitions they were so close. They were literally seated like a table for four.
"Han Solo. Always so charismatic and calm in the face of impending doom." Kylo said as he looked over to the vision of his father sitting next to him. "Aren't I a chip off the old block?"
Rey stayed silent. She was once again taken back by the force imagery, staring at a calm and composed Han who was trying to talk his way out of an apparent bounty collection. The image of Ben sitting next to his father was also bizarre. They looked so much alike. Beyond the longer hair and the scar? The resemblance was uncanny.
Han Solo was such a good man.
Kylo Ren was such… a bastard.
Where did it go wrong?
"There you go, weasel your way out of this again old man. You're so good at it." Kylo spat as if the force memory imprint could hear. "If anything I can give Han credit for is that he was a survivor. He escaped near death more times than he could probably count."
Suddenly Rey could only see red, a blaster shot from underneath the table sealing Greedo's fate as Han Solo pulled the trigger from below like the crafty smuggler he was. She could almost smell the burning ashes behind where the laser scorched the wall as it penetrated the bounty hunter's body.
"Han Solo shoots first." Kylo's stare became a bit cold, more serious. "Han Solo doesn't get caught… he always finds an out. That's how he's built. That's what makes him tick. That's the essence of who he is Rey."
"Until you decided otherwise of course." Rey replied with bite as she watched the apparition of Han Solo walk off into the darkness. "He loved you and you exploited that."
"He only got caught because he wanted to get caught." Kylo explained. "Love or not… Han Solo isn't stupid. He came to me on that bridge, I asked him for help and he gave me his blessing."
Rey's face was in disbelief. Was he trying to justify murdering his father this way?
"Are you truly telling me with a straight face that Han Solo wanted to die by your hands Ben? You expect me to believe this?"
"You don't have to believe anything." Ben truly seemed to not care with a shrug. "I know what he was thinking. I know what was needed to be done. This is much bigger than personal opinions… mine or his. His death was needed for the greater good."
"Your twisted view of your legacy aside… your family should be the most important thing in your life."
"Oh like how your family abandoned you to live and die alone on Jakku all those years?" Kylo smirked as Rey twitched. "They certainly thought there was some greater calling doing that to a poor little child like you now didn't they…? Or were they just pricks as you so eloquently put it?"
Rey gulped as she stared into those eyes that seemed to be reading her every motion. How… did he know?
"… Do you want know what I said to Han before I killed him?" Kylo asked all too playfully while Rey just stared attentively. It was clearly rhetorical. "I thanked him Rey. I thanked him for letting me take the next step towards my destiny. To finish what his friend Luke Skywalker screwed up thirty years ago."
"You're mad…"
"No, I'm appreciative." Kylo Ren swirled his drink. "And this is why you're here tonight. I'm appreciative of you as well."
Rey could only breath a bit heavier as Ben's eyes gave off an uncomfortable yet suggestive vibe.
"I wanted to thank you Rey... in person" Ben seemed genuine enough. "You humbled me. You beat the hell out of me. You embarrassed me on Starkiller Base." He glanced around the cantina for a bit. "Six months I had to deal with the fact that you in one day bested me when I had been pushing myself for years. It drove me insane… it made me thirst even more for power."
"Bastard." Rey shook her head with an angry grimace. "Do not place any responsibility of your descent to the darkness on me…"
"I offered to teach you but taught me. Your amazing strength in the force made me dig deep." Kylo more or less ignored her. "I came back stronger than ever because I put myself through hell. I tortured my body… I tortured my mind… thinking every day how a 'little girl' made me look like a worthless little scum."
Rey bit her lip as she felt the dark side flowing through him.
"I completed my training in the depths of a tomb where there is no light." Ben's eyes seemed to almost go dead, thinking of the months of torture on Moraband as he completed his training. "The pain I experienced… the defeat you made me feel? … I've become invincible. You were the only thing that was in my mind as I pushed through the suffering…"
Rey felt sweat underneath her wraps, seeing flashes of an improved Kylo Ren brutally slamming her into anything he could find on Kashyyk, holding her still aching ribs as he stared a hole through her head. Did she inadvertently… make him into the monster he had become?
"You were my light in the darkness… you are my path to my destiny." Kylo said simply as he took another shot a bit too happy now. "… thank you Rey."
"Stop. I will not be a stepping stone for you…" Rey shook her head defiantly, staring at the scar across his eye now like it was some sort of rite of passage for him. "… Is this the part where you tell me that I don't know the power of the dark side? And that I should join you?"
"Join me? No, no no. You couldn't be more wrong Rey." Kylo Ren shook his head now with that devious grin. "On the contrary, you being on the other side is exactly what I want. Your death or your imprisonment won't help me… yet. I quite like the arrangement we have now. You're the champion of the light side and I am the darkness you are trying to extinguish. I think we rather enjoy our roles in this war. Beating me down gives you pleasure and vice versa."
"T-this is the most sense you've made all night..."
"Heh, you and I will push each other to the limit. Imagine how much stronger I became after you showed me how weak I was." Kylo became serious again. "Remember the beating I gave you on Kashyyk. Use it to become stronger… this will happen battle after battle until one of us breaks, and our destinies will be fulfilled."
"You let me go… so I can challenge you…"
"Astute Padawan." Kylo complimented dryly. "You're the only one worth a damn on the other side. I became stronger in half a year than I ever did meddling with those who couldn't push me. Heh, pity such a powerful and amazing girl like your self has to be settled with the weakness that is the Republic."
Rey clenched her fist, almost feeling like Ben was tricking her into thinking she was being his tool. "T-this will be a fatal mistake Ben. You should've killed me when you had the chance."
"If I die by your hands then I deserve it." Kylo shrugged. "Just like how the Republic let my First Order grow in power… now Hosnian Prime is just a memory. Just like how the New Republic will be a memory…"
"You and your allies will pay dearly for that by the way." Rey recalled seeing billions die in less than a few seconds.
"Then do something about it." Kylo egged her on. "The dark side is fair Rey. There is no debate over some idiotic objective set of morals… that's the beauty of war. Whoever wins will decide what is right or wrong not some hokey Jedi peace mongering bullshit."
"…"
"Look, I know Skywalker and my mother told you to come here and try to sway me back to the light." Kylo rolled his eyes. "You've probably told them about how I let you live and they probably think that there's a chance there is still light in me even after I killed Han."
"… That is the blindness of love." Rey sighed, conceding the fact. "I see nothing but darkness in you…"
"That's because you're a smart girl." Ren chuckled as he looked her up and down, leaning over the table with a scowl. "Tell Skywalker that if he wants to some sort of Reclamation? To bring his cowardly self to me and beat one out of me." His voice became dark. "He ran away like a little bitch after I had slain his weak students with my Knights of Ren. The Republic tuned a blind eye as my First Order grew in power because they were afraid of the repercussions of 'war'. Now their capital is burnt to nothing."
"I am not afraid of you Ben." Rey had about enough of his sermon, insulting the ones she cared about was off limits. "For my friends? I will defeat you. I will stop you… You and the First Order will pay for all your crimes."
"Good, because you're the only one on that side that would be willing to do so." Kylo nodded approvingly. "You called me a coward earlier tonight but it seems to me that you are allied and are fighting for ones you should be calling the same name."
Rey's eyes thinned, gripping her lightsaber tightly, for the first time feeling like she was going to attack him. No one would ever call her friends cowards… they've suffered too much to be insulted like that.
"Heh, seems like I hit a nerve talking about the ones you care about." Kylo began filling his glass yet again, making sure it was filled to the rim. "Let's see how this plays out shall we?"
He took another shot, staring at Rey all the while so amused. After a shake and a gasp of pleasure he smiles.
"You want to take your lightsaber and drive it through my head don't you?" Kylo put his hands to the side. "Well nothing's stopping you Rey. I brought my lightsaber too and I don't mind a dance to end tonight's festivities… you know maybe that last shot did me in! Maybe I am drunk out of my mind and this is the perfect moment to rid yourself of me."
Rey looked at him carefully as his brow furrowed.
"But if I'm still mostly here, and my reaction time is similar when sober…" Kylo leaned back against his booth. "Then you better hope that you've improved dramatically over the last few days… I may not be as merciful as when I was sober…"
Rey growled. The anger. The frustration. She forgot about everything that Luke tried to teach her. That confident smile needed to be wiped out. He needed to be silenced.
"Come on…" Kylo motioned to her with a finger. "Let's roll the dice and see what happens. This is exciting."
Rey had no control. That lightsaber was about to be unleashed but-
"Here's your water ma'am!" The blue Twi'lek returned with a perky smile, placing it softly on the table as the tension at the table snapped like a stretched rubber band. "Sorry I'm late but it's packed in here today."
"I… thank you… i-it's fine…" Rey looked at the reflection in the glass as she let out a deep huff from her lungs. The redness in her cheeks from her uncontrolled emotions were a sign of weakness. This emotional roller coaster was making her feel like she was going to burst inside.
Kylo was so snug. He was playing her like a puppet.
You're a Jedi now… no emotions…
"Well if it isn't Mission Vao! My favorite server of all the galaxy!"
"Ugh… Batu…" The Twi'lek apparently named Mission turned to a human dressed in yellow and black armor, armed with a pistol at his side. A large greyish Wookie stood next to him tall with of course a bowcaster draped behind his back. They seemed like a fun pair… regulars in this place of filth.
"Why are you letting these two simpletons sit at my seat?" Batu took a hand to Mission's cheek only to have it batted away.
"Look I've told you a million times, you don't have a reserved seat here you piece of banthaa poodoo!" Mission scowled. "Go find another seat and another server before I have you kicked out."
"You heard the nice young Twi'lek." Kylo amusingly stepped in. "You're bothering me and my friend here as well." He pointed at Rey. "Have some manners jerk."
Oh no. Rey felt a problem brewing.
"And who do we have here? Some long haired little loud mouth who doesn't know who I am? Batu Rem? The premier bounty hunter on Tatooine?" Batu laughed as he glanced down at Ben with no fear what so ever. "Tell me Chundaar what should we do with this little scoundrel?"
Chundaar, a quite ferocious Wookie growled as he glanced down Ben with bad intentions.
"Ah that sounds like an idea." Batu laughed. "My friend here thinks we should tear you limb from limb my friend."
"I heard him." Kylo calmly nodded with the childhood memories of talking to Chewbacca still quite clear. "I think he should go home and bathe before any scuffle because even for a Wookie he's burning our eyes with his stench."
"RRRNGH!" Chundaar suddenly shoved Mission aside, grabbing Kylo Ren by his shirt and lifting him up, roaring into his bored face with threats.
These two are going to die…
"Stop!" Rey took a desperate stand, holding her hands out. "Please the both of you we can settle this peacefully."
"Hah, begging for your boyfriend's life now you little wench?" Batu looked down on her.
"What did you call me?" Rey scowled, memories of when she had to defend herself from overzealous slavers on Jakku began to come back with a vengeance.
"I think he called you a wench…" Kylo laughed as he was still hanging in the air in the clutches of 330 lbs of hair and fury.
"Shut up Ben…"
"Oh come on Rey… let's have some fun." Kylo tilted his head as he stared at the Wookie. "We don't even have to kill them… let's just have a ball."
Rey calmed herself as she wasn't in the mood for games. Summoning the force, she raised her hand and spoke softly. "You both will walk away. You will forget-"
"No no Rey." Kylo interrupted her with a shake of his finger. "If you pull that little force trick I will choke these two until their necks snap. Be a little more creative than that…"
"Grrr…"
"Hehe, this is amusing." Batu turned to Kylo with a belittling sigh. "Is your little whore here trying to protect you? What kind of man are you?"
"Wow…" Ben laughed so entertained now, slapping at his thigh. His neck craned to Rey. "He just called you my whore." The alcohol was clearly making this Dark Knight a bit too easily amused.
Rey twitched again as she stared Batu down like now she was about to do something she was going to regret. Teaching these two a lesson wouldn't be too bad of an idea. Would it?
"Remember padawan… there's no anger… only peace." Kylo mocked, pulling the best Luke Skywalker impression he could muster.
Rey wasn't even listening. She had already made up her mind. The young Jedi hopeful in her was shut off. The fighter in her wouldn't let this slide.
"F-fine…" Rey almost whispered looking at Kylo as she seemed to give in. "First… no lightsabers."
"Heh, that would make this too easy. Fine no lightsabers…" Kylo agreed.
"Second? No use of the force…"
"Aw now you're just being no fun."
"Third we don't kill them."
"Restrictive rules… but you have a deal Rey."
Chundaar and Batu could only blink to themselves as they looked back and forth. They were being ignored like they weren't a threat. This wasn't acceptable!
"I hope you can handle a Wookie hand to hand." Rey shrugged. "Or better yet I hope you can't."
"Sure, I haven't toughed it out on Jakku for years dealing with low life's like you have desert rat but I've been in my share of scraps. This should be fun."
"Grr, you two both need to silence yourselves!" Batu growled as the two bounty hunters felt belittled, he waves his gloved hand. "Chundaar rip him to shreds!"
Chundaar growled to the air as he was going to slam Kylo, suddenly the knight lifting his legs up, thrusting his boots into the Wookie's face sending him staggering into the wall. Batu was about to run to his partner's aid, but found a well-placed kick to the face to be hard to ignore.
"Urgh! You little-"
Whap! Another kick was sent just as fast, the bounty hunter reeling onto another groups table. Unlucky for him the group of Aqualish from earlier just shoved him away annoyed as he interrupted their card game. In another stumble he ran into a right cross from Rey that floored him this time.
"You have a hard head." Rey shook to get some feeling back into her right hand as felt something inside her… a nostalgia. Beating down scum like this would give her a bit of a lift on those long days on Jakku. Whether it was those that were bothering her or others. All she needed was her staff to feel complete.
She was actually having fun.
"Where is your bravado now?" Rey smiled cutely as she crossed her arms.
Batu wiped blood from his lip as only his ego was wounded worse than his throbbing face. "Shut it! I will not be beaten by a –"
"Wench?"
One last roundhouse to the face sent the bounty hunter's head flat first on the ground and out cold.
Satisfied with her results Rey could only blink as she heard a yell.
From across the cantina Kylo seemed to be having a bit more trouble than she was, being tossed around like deadweight by an angry Wookie. The yell was understandable as Ben was whipped over the bar like he was weightless, smashing into an array of alcoholic beverages, hitting the floor with a harsh thud.
"Wow this day is shaping up nicely." Rey's amusement was short lived as Chundaar turned with those dark eyes having its sights on her now.
"RRNGH!" The Wookie growled as he charged at Rey with reckless abandon. Rey's reflexes were great before any Jedi training and she calmly waited with confidence. She tucked and rolled underneath those lanky legs just at the last moment. Chundaar groaned he swiped at air with those large paws.
Rey backed away towards the bar to regroup as she noticed Ben's head pop up from the behind counter. He was drenched in all sorts of alcohol and a bit out of it. It was… amusing. Ben could take a beating.
"I handled my fight. How about your end of the bargain Ben?" Rey gave him a cheap shot for once.
"There's a noticeable difference in size between the two if you hadn't noticed…" Kylo leapt over as he was soaked completely, dripping alcohol and bruised up but still a big smile on his face. "Admit it Rey… this is a fun time."
"Better then hearing your drivel surely." Rey countered as they stood side by side, an angry Wookie about to tear them apart.
"We can take him down if we work together." Kylo suggested.
Rey scowled. "… I will never… ever work with-"
"RRNNGH!" Chundaar charged once again as the two force wielders now acted on instinct, both of them darting on the side evading the sloppy attack, swiftly both of them shoving the Wookie over the top of the counter send him crashing into the barricade head first.
CRASH!
"How does that feel Wookie?" Ben was all grins as he glanced over to see Chundaar holding his head and groaning. "Heh… so how was that for you?"
"Surprisingly… refreshing." Rey let out a breath.
"You know perhaps we should-HEY!"
Rey and Ben couldn't say another word as they were grabbed by two large Gammoreans, snorting as they were picked up and escorted out of the cantina.
- S - S - S -
The cold hit them both as both of the force users were tossed to the dirt ground outside the Cantina in a furious roll. Kylo and Rey grimaced as the Gammoreans grunted, telling them basically to "Get lost."
Rey rolled to a stand as she looked at the bouncers with an amused grin. She hadn't remembered the last time she got in a scuffle like this. A part of her enjoyed way more than she should have… she was a bit embarrassed really.
"You definitely have a nice punch." Kylo Ren got up, dusting himself off as he walked over to her. Ben couldn't remember the last time he got kicked out of a bar…
"And you got your rear handed to you by that Wookie." Rey breathed deeply trying to calm herself of the rush. "You know, I just realized you followed directions even with that Wookie beating on you… I hadn't expected that from the likes of you."
"A deal is a deal." Kylo shrugged. "I am all about fairness. You came to me tonight no questioned asked, I am more than willing to deal Rey."
Rey shook her head… still in disbelief.
"… So is this why you really brought me out here. For a drink… some talk… and a bar fight? Need I remind you that we are enemies Ben Solo?"
"Well the bar fight was not part of the plan obviously." Kylo thought for a minute. "Yes we are enemies on the battle field. We are enemies in the war between the light and the darkness… but who says we can't have some down time in between?"
"Let this be clear… I don't like you." Rey said it quite clearly. "Why do you speak as if we are friends?"
"Whether you like it or not we are two of a kind Rey." Kylo smirked. "We share a connection even if our philosophies differ… even if our sides our opposite. You truly believe that you came here on your own because you were just stupidly brave? Because I let you live?"
Rey only gulped as she looked to the ground.
"There's something inside you that makes you intrigued by me and the truth is I share the same feelings for you."
"W-what?" Rey gasped at what Ben was insinuating. "Are you drunk out of your mind?"
"No. I'm drunk on you. I am attracted to you Rey. Your power… your beauty." Ben walked towards her, stalking as she backed up a bit. "That is the truth. I am obsessed with you. Ever since you left me almost dead on Starkiller base have I reflected on it. It just… feels right."
Rey didn't want to listen. He didn't seem completely intoxicated and the words were hitting something in her chest she couldn't pin point. Rey felt a weakness in her knees, an anger in her soul… a moment of hesitation within herself.
"I… what…" She looked at him in disbelief. "What do you expect me to think of this Ben?"
"Honestly I don't care what you think." Kylo Ren shrugged. "You can accept it. You can reject it. You can be excited. You can use it as a reason to hate me more to become stronger. It doesn't matter… I just wanted you here to hear the truth."
He came so close, towering over Rey with a snug grin.
"I know you Rey."
"… You don't…"
"Oh?" Kylo stared into those hazel eyes. "I know that your worst fear is losing the new friends you have now because you are afraid to be alone. I know that every night on Jakku before you slept you sat above your AT-AT, staring at the stars to wait for a family that was never coming back because this life is cruel."
She looked at him as he didn't seem to emote any kind of rage.
"I know that the closest thing to a boyfriend you ever had was a lizard that visited you for about a month straight when you were a bit higher on rations than usual… I know a lot about you Rey. I can go on if you like."
"No!" Rey scowled. "Y-you… read my mind-"
"Just because you blocked the whereabouts of Skywalker's location doesn't mean I didn't get other information." Kylo smirked snugly, reminding her of their tango of mind reading awhile back. "So if the best dirt you have on me is that I have an unhealthy admiration for my grandfather's legacy than you seem to be at a bit of disadvantage there. We should do these little rendezvous more often to learn more from one another…"
"You're… insane! Why would I ever agree to something like this with a monster like you?"
"It is because I am a monster that you can't resist…"
Rey stared on silently after as she had no other reply for this Kylo Ren. She came here hoping to understand more about what this young man was. What made him tick. What made him the way he was…
She was no more confused than ever.
"I could have beaten you down and forced my way into your mind Rey." Ben reminded her. "I could've killed you or I could've taken you to my master Snoke but I am offering you opportunities to get to know each other like two normal beings would."
Rey gulped again, sighing deeply. She felt relaxed… it was so strange. It felt right to be here with him. She couldn't understand it. Were these her emotions?
"Well…?"
Damn it…
"F-first off… the lizard was not my boyfriend." Rey crossed her arms tightly around herself. "I didn't even know if it was a boy…" She looked at him with a shrug. "And he was eaten by another larger lizard right in front of me after three weeks... not a month."
"Hah… you see? That is friendly banter." Kylo Ren was impressed. "Was that so hard?"
"Extremely…"
"Good so that settles it." Kylo Ren was quiet satisfied. "You and I will push each other to the brink but at least you know where I stand."
"This will be the last meeting like this Ben." Rey made sure he heard clearly. "The next time we meet I will be stronger… and I will stop you."
"Good I like your confidence." Ben agreed, suddenly the vibe changing in him at an instant, Rey feeling a coldness in the air. "I hope it stays that way for you Rey because I warn you now. I'm willing to go as far as needed to see this world bend to my will. There is a darkness in me that will make even you wilt. That will crumble the Republic… that will crush every ally you have."
"I… I won't let you…" Rey growled back defiantly.
"Keep this determination when the darkness starts surrounding you and you have nowhere to run. You will hurt. You will suffer." Ben almost whispered. "One day you will look into my eyes after you realize you can't stop me… and that day I hope you don't tell me that you wished that you would have never been found on Jakku. Don't tell me that you wish you were still the same little girl sitting in a pile of sand alone… playing with her trash. Don't wish… that you didn't exist… that you were no one."
I am… no one.
Rey didn't say a word as her heart rate sped up, her breaths shallower. His gloved hand suddenly finds her chin, pulling it up.
"Pity, we made a good team today though didn't we? Imagine the things we could do together…"
Together…
With their lips inches apart suddenly Rey gasped as images and voices scorched her mind so quickly and aggressively that she gagged, pain tearing at her psyche. Ben could only stare on confused as she pulled away, her eyes wide open as she looked at him like a monster.
Images similar to what she felt when she held Luke Skywalker's hilt for the first time sprouted… but these were even worse.
"S-stay away from me!" Rey gasped as she turned quickly, putting on her goggles in a hurry, walking away furiously to her speeder with no regard to her surroundings.
Ben could only stand there with his arms crossed, watching her with that same amused grin on his face that had started out the night. Rey was clearly shaken up by what she saw, clumsily fiddling with the keys to her Speeder as she ignited the engine.
"It was a nice get together Rey. We'll do more of these right?" Ben just kept staring, looking at this curious girl that enticed him so much.
"… Before you even think about inviting me anywhere again." Rey looked at him with a paler face that was hidden by a goggled mask. "Just try to kill me instead…"
Ben could only nod.
"… Duly noted."
With that Rey took off into the desert night with a roar of that rising engine, soaring at the speeds she wanted to get away from this mess. Rey realized now that even though Kylo didn't hurt her… it was a mistake to come here. She had given him an edge that he would now use…
It took about ten minutes to see her vanish but Ben watched the speeder disappear into the night, not moving an inch until he saw it pass the horizon. He took a glance around as he knew he seemed to affect Rey in more ways than even he imagined. It worked out even better than he thought.
After walking to his own speeder he takes a peak at his muddied formal wears, staring at it. Someone of his stature shouldn't be roughing it like this. A small smirk breaks out of that young man's face as he opened up the compartment on the rear of his vehicle.
Moments later, from the entrance of the cantina the two Gammorean bouncers were almost asleep suddenly being awoken by a clearing of the throat.
"I'm sorry. I just realized now that I forgot to pay my bill and tip the waitress, if you would just let me move along here I'll gladly pay up."
The Gammoreans grunted angrily ready to beat this young man down, opening their eyes only to see a Kylo Ren with that infamous obsidian helmet underneath his left arm, and a lightsaber hilt in his right hand.
"I don't think either of you heard me the first time and I don't like to repeat myself. Kindly move…"
The crimson lightsaber with the cross guards illuminated the darkness, the humming of the weapon and squealing of two dead Gammoreans followed soon after.
- S - S - S -
"Uuungh…"
"So you're finally awake... you missed all the fun Batu Rem."
"I… I what happened… that girl… did she get away?"
"Yeah she did… but I am not sure if you will."
Batu's vision came back in a blur, the bloodied Bounty Hunter gasping as a black shape began to get clearer before him. On the table in front of his seeing eyes sat a mask… helmet that had become infamous with the propaganda of the First Order… He was staring at it with a dread he couldn't explain.
Kylo Ren…
"So I made sure no one will take your seat at this table tonight." A shirtless Kylo Ren laughed from across as Batu's head snapped that direction.
It was silent.
Batu stared in horror as the entire cantina was viciously slain and eviscerated. Limbs and heads separated from bodies as it seemed no one in the Cantina was spared. There were piles upon piles of bodies and it was a mindless massacre.
"Hey… who told you to stop playing?"
Apparently not everyone was dead. Batu glanced over to see a frightened and shaky Bith quartet, start to reluctantly play again, doing a much more somber more off key rendition of what they usually perform.
"I like this song… I can hear it all night." A bloodied Kylo Ren grinned, standing strong, wiping his face with his dirtied formal attire he had been wearing all night.
"Where is Chundaar?" Batu growled.
"Oh… your Wookie friend over there tried his best to get away. He's sitting next to you." Kylo pointed next to Batu. "Your old friend just couldn't seem to keep his head on straight."
"I…" The bounty hunter was frozen in terror, seeing the headless body of his Wookie friend sitting next to him, his severed head laying on the table where Kylo was changing.
"Y-you monster!" Batu growled, trying to reach for his blaster.
"Looking for this bounty hunter?" Kylo playfully waved the DL-44 pistol mockingly as Batu knew he was a dead man either way if that helmet in front of him was any truth.
I am… going to die…
Ben looked at the firearm with an unimpressed scowl. "The trusty blaster… a weapon makes even the meekest of men brave for a few seconds right?"
"W-wait… NO!"
Kylo suddenly pointed the blaster right at Batu Rem, pulling the trigger, the weapon firing with a ping as Batu only saw a crimson light flash before his eyes. He expected to be dead and there was no pain but he wasn't sure if he was or not.
Kylo's cocky voice told him he was very much alive.
"Excuse me for changing in public." Kylo already had the lower half of his usual wears on, putting on his top. "I need to get going. The First Order has a lot of work to do."
Batu opened his frightened eyes, the unbelievable sight of a blaster bolt suspended and crackling in midair, literally inches away from the center of his forehead. He was literally staring death straight in the eye.
"P-please… let me go! I'll pay you whatever you wish! Name your credit count!"
"Credits don't interest me Batu. But your squirming is entertaining." Kylo suddenly crushed the DL-44 pistol into bits, letting it fall from his hands.
"Don't kill me… I beg you!"
"Have some dignity will you?" Kylo sighed as he pulled what looked to be a tunic up to his neck. "You almost ruined a special night between my friend and I. You think you can just get up and walk away after that?"
"P-please sir… I had no idea who you were-"
"You're pathetic and a coward." Kylo began to pull the tunic over himself, the cloth hugging his toned body's every muscle. "Besides… I just wanted to have a talk. Man to man."
"A-a… talk?" Batu kept staring at the red blaster bolt that was still crackling energy inches from him. The salt in his eyes were burning, he was sweating profusely at the moment.
"Yes… a talk." Ben was straightening out the wrinkles in his tunic as he picked up his set of gloves on the table, the one next to Chundaar's head. "What do you think of the young lady who beat you to a pulp today with her bare hands? Be honest."
"U-uh… she's… amazing!" Batu really didn't know what to say, over enthused positivity being the natural reaction.
"You are correct. She is amazing." Kylo Ren nodded in agreement. "You see that beating she gave you? I admire that. I admire her. I've never had this feeling before and it has opened up my mind like nothing else."
"T-that… is g-great…"
"When you meet someone like that and you look into their eyes? You start looking into your own soul to search for answers." Kylo slid his left glove on first, tightening it around his wrist. "You know what I found?"
"Uh… good things?"
"I found nothing." Kylo said a bit happily. "I found no soul… no conscience… no light… and it was beautiful."
"…"
"After the torture my master put me through and the completion of my training I think my admiration for her is a means to an end." Kylo nodded to himself mostly, grabbing his other glove. "Vader needed someone to love, to push him to where he needed to be. You know Darth Vader correct?"
"Y-yes... but of course…"
"He needed Padme to become who he was." Kylo slid the next glove on easily, tightening it with a wriggle of his fingers. "I need the exact same thing… I need that girl. I need Rey."
"Y-you should go get her then…" Batu gulped. "Just let me go and-"
"Do you want to see the gift she gave me months ago?" Kylo interrupted him as he walked over to the booth now, calmly taking a seat. He could only smile brightly at the sight of a crimson bolt dangling in front of this sweating poor soul.
"Please… I just don't want to die…"
"Oh it will be fun! Just keep look at my face." Kylo leaned forward pointing at the healed injury against his eye. "You see this scar? She gave that to me." His grin only got bigger. "But that's not all…"
Batu gasped as he looked passed the crimson spark for the first time in the conversation. It was too grotesque to ignore, even staring death in the eye wasn't enough. Ben's face began to fade ghostly pale, veins now clearly seen popping from his facade. His eyes went a bright amber, slits for pupils forming as he stared a deathly stare.
The dark side now tainted his soul… any ounce of light seemingly gone.
"She gave me a gift that just keeps giving." Kylo's dark side visage, his true face emerging for the first time. "Imagine years now what she can do for me."
Batu was speechless. Seeing the Dark side truly… for the very first time.
Those yellow eyes glanced around the cantina, admiring the carnage done. "Well I appreciate the ears Batu. We had a nice chat and I think my work here is complete. Any last words before we end tonight with a bang?"
"L-last words?! N-no please! I beg you-!"
"No please… I beg you…" Kylo Ren mocked in monotone, his toothy smile was the last image Batu was about to see. "Sad last words for a sad life. But cheer up Batu… you've seen the darkness now." He leaned over whispering. "Isn't it glorious?"
"No! PLEASE! AAAGAAGH!"
The blaster bolt was gradually pushed forward inch by inch, this Kylo making sure it was a slow painful death for this piece of scum. The inhumane screams were routine for Kylo now and didn't affect him. He stared as the bolt split Batu's skull in half, burning the cantina wall close to where Han Solos blaster killed Greedo.
Batu's body fell, slumping over now nothing more than a carcass. Kylo stood up nonchalantly, scoping the room of dead bodies one last time as he grabbed his helmet, sliding it underneath his left arm at a job well done. He walked over to a clumped mess of tables and chairs suddenly pushing it all away with a sweep of the force.
The debris hid one broken and freaked out Twi'lek.
"Please! Don't hurt me please!" Mission, the blue Twi'lek cried out as her eyes were watery, the girl trembling uncontrollably.
"Calm down… who said I was going to hurt you?" Kylo's eyes had no comfort in them even if he wanted to, as Mission could only sob to the ground. "Get up…"
Mission was heaving as she felt her life flashing before her, looking up at Kylo with reddened eyes. She shakily stood. "Please… I'm afraid of dying…"
"Death isn't the worst thing that can happen to you dear." Kylo said truthfully, taking his gloved hand and placing it on her chin. "You were a great server today… why would I kill you anyway?" He smiled so dark.
"But you killed… everyone else…"
"Not the band!" Kylo playfully ran a finger down those tentacles, as indeed the band was still playing. "You're useful. You have a place in this life." He motioned to the dead bodies with a shrug. "These others here… they were worthless. They looked like threats… so I shot first."
Solos shoot first…
"I…"
"About my bill… I'm sure you can scrounge up whatever you like from these… bodies." Kylo looked around at the mess of limbs, torsos, and heads, pointing at a pile. "That group right there look like they were rich I'd start there."
Mission was still besides herself, staring into those dark eyes that were as mesmerizing as they were haunting. Kylo was amused by her glance now that she felt she wasn't going to die.
"Do you know who I am?" Kylo asked amused, those amber pupils shimmering.
"Y-yes…" Mission sobbed back with a weak whimper.
"Then tell me Twi'lek… who am I?"
Ben Solo?
Kylo Ren?
Ghost of Vader?
Devil…?
"You're the face of the Dark Side…" Those blue lips whispered.
Kylo let her face down gently as he nodded. He takes one last look at that blue little being below him, slowly placing that black helmet on his head. A smile broke behind that façade of darkness as it locked in.
"Smart girl…" His voice filtered.
(Rey's Vision)
I see Ben's body next to mine. He's so warm… his lips so soft. He presses my back against the glass. He kisses me with no hesitation, sliding his tongue into my mouth. I feel the pleasure building inside… I can't stop him.
[An image of Kylo Ren, mask on sits at an altar of obsidian, a large throne seated high above a stairway also black. Rey enters the palace dressed in a black tunic, walking as an army begins to separate as she enters.]
"Together we can make this world whatever we want Rey." He whispers to me. "We are unstoppable."
"We can't be together…" I tried to speak back as litters my neck with kisses. "I don't share the same view of the world as you Ben…"
[Rey stares at the many armored colors of an army vast… it wasn't the Resistance… it was surely not an army of Storm Troopers but it was something else entirely. She walks up the staircase, staring Kylo down as she kneels before him. His crimson lightsaber is placed over her shoulder… Knighting her.]
I couldn't believe it. I felt Ben inside me, I gasped as he entered me for the first time. I held onto his strong back as he began to drive his member into me with such ferocity… such passion. I love it… I love this…
"Sometimes… agh… all you need… is a different point of view Rey..." Ben moans into my ear.
[Rey stares at Kylo Ren as a helmet is presented to her. She reluctantly takes the masked helmet, staring into the abyss that the visor reflected back at her. She feels a gloved hand at her shoulder, encouraging her to place it on her head.]
I feel my orgasm coming. He is too much…
[Rey slowly lifts the helmet above her head, it coming down and locking on her neck. She opened her eyes to see a much darker world… a much darker point of view.]
"AAGH!" I yell out as we came at the same time… his head resting against my shoulder as we pant.
"I need you here with me Rey."
"… I need you too…"
[Rey stands strong with Kylo Ren, both masked and jet black at the throne. The army beneath them begins to chant as they raise their myriad of weapons. Kylo and Rey both unleash their lightsabers of blue and red, the army underneath in a frenzy to do their bidding.]
"The galaxy will bend to our will Rey." He says it again, holding me tightly. "Whatever doesn't? … Burns."
A/N: This ain't your momma's Kylo Ren.
Hopefully.. it's believable? :)
Not much angst... but a lot more Han solo, alot more crazy, and a lot more Sith.
Really long chapter for the wait... it was hard to write. Love ya'll!