I hate politics. There is very little I remember about it from high school government. If what I write sounds off to you I'm sorry. Also, I know nothing about ships, so if my terminology is wrong I'm sorry. Again.

Kylo was starting to regret smashing his helmet to bits in the elevator. It had always been a crutch of his. He didn't like to admit it out loud but he was a rather emotional person. It was his greatest weakness. The helmet helped keep people from reading his features and using his feelings against him.

"The Atterra system is requesting reinforcements to discourage political uprising."

It also made it hard for people to tell if he was paying attention to them.

He hated war meetings. All the bureaucrats droning on about politics reminded him of the senate meetings his mother took him to as a small child. He could never sit still through any of them. As an important figure head for the First Order however, he was required to attend these meetings unless he was preoccupied.

It was easy to hide his boredom behind his helmet. Whatever he didn't hear Hux would surely repeat in the future anyway, but with his helmet gone he had to at least fake paying attention to uphold a professional appearance.

He sat at a large circular table with several other dignitaries, admirals, and of course General Hux. The man was the exact opposite of him. From what Kylo understood Hux had grown up in a very political household as well, however he had a much bigger appreciation for it than himself. It made sense that someone as bland and mundane as Hux would enjoy such convoluted subjects like government.

"After the destruction of Starkiller Base, our other territories have become anxious. Several small uprisings have begun and they request troops to quell the dissenters," said an admiral, Yuna, Kylo believed her name to be.

"Supreme Leader Snoke has expressed his desire that we spare all available ships to locate the remaining Resistance fighters. With their base destroyed they have nowhere to set down and a limited fuel supply. It should be easy to locate them," said Hux. Kylo scoffed quietly. Armitage Hux, always the suck up to the Supreme Leader. The group murmured amongst themselves.

"With all due respect sir," said another admiral Kylo believed was called Nexus, "If the Resistance fighters are on the run then we should focus our efforts on those who have been inspired to rise up against our forces. The rebels in the Atterra system should be taken care of before anyone else is inspired to revolt."

"Are you questioning the orders of your Supreme Leader?" Hux challenged. The room fell silent, "That is what I thought. Once the Resistance is taken care of, other mutineers of the First Order will see our might and fall back into line. Now we should focus our search efforts on-," Kylo's attention started to drift again. He could only handle so much of listening to Hux's irritating voice. He leaned his elbow against the arm of his chair, holding his head up in an attempt to look focused.

Kylo had to disagree with Hux's point regarding the uprisers. If they did destroy the Resistance, that wouldn't stop others from rising up in hopes of achieving freedom. For centuries the people of the galaxy have tried to fight oppression in whatever way they could. It would be no different if they stopped the Resistance. More people would arise to join the fight.

His thoughts drifted to the scavenger, Rey. She had wasted her whole life on some barren planet nobody cared about. She didn't owe anyone anything, yet when she heard the call for freedom she answered it and she wouldn't back down. She was a strong willed individual, he could not deny that fact.

At least she would be able to take his mind off the dull war meeting.

Kylo stilled when a childlike giggle echoed through the room. He sat up straight in his chair, looking around the room. No one other than the military leaders were allowed in that room, but knew for a fact he had heard a child laugh. Kylo looked back at the table and realized everyone had seen his sudden jolt.

"Did something I said offend you Ren?" Hux asked, not the least bit pleased to be interrupted in the middle of his speech. Kylo's cheeks flushed in embarrassment. He had never wanted his helmet so much before.

"No, of course not," he said angrily, trying to recover from his initial humiliation, "I just remembered something the Supreme Leader told me."

Nobody questioned him, knowing what transpired between him and the Supreme Leader was private. Hux continued speaking regarding the Atterra system but Kylo did not hear him. Instead he tried listening for the twinkling sound of innocent laughter. He clutched the arms of his chair. Kylo felt ridiculous. His paranoia was messing with his head. He tried to convince himself that he had been imagining the sound the whole time, but deep down he knew he had heard it.

Another round of giggles filled the room and he clutched the arms of the chair tighter. He had already caused a scene in front of a room full of admirals. He didn't need them thinking he was unfit as a leader any more than they already did. Kylo glanced up at the clock in the far corner of the conference room. He estimated the meeting would take another thirty minutes at most. Afterwards he could retreat to the safety of his quarters without anyone questioning him or finding it odd. There he would meditate and try to find the cause of his hallucinations.

"I'm looking for Mommy. Have you seen her?" said a cheerful voice right beside him.

Without warning he jumped out of his chair, pulling his lightsaber from his belt and flicking it to life. Everyone backed away from him in shock. Hux was the first to recover from the sudden outburst, his face going red with anger.

"Ren what is the meaning of this?" he exclaimed, but Kylo would not look him in the eye. He stared down at the floor in front of him, desperately searching for the owner of the mysterious voice.

But there was no one there.

Hux's question was left unanswered. Kylo deactivated his lightsaber and everyone in the room could breathe again.

"Pardon my behavior," he said, breathing heavily, "If you will excuse me." Before anyone could protest Kylo went storming out of the room. He marched straight to his private quarters without saying a word to anyone. As the door closed behind him he ripped his cape and gloves off, tossing them across the room. He leaned up against the wall, sliding down to the floor. He ran a hand over his face. Something was very wrong with him. He had no idea what but it was getting worse.

He debated asking Snoke for assistance. He was his master and would probably have some knowledge regarding the matter. A ripple through the Force pulled him out of his thoughts. It gave him a sense of foreboding that told him he shouldn't tell Snoke. Despite his obvious confusion, he decided to obey it and chose not to confront the Supreme Leader. Kylo would have to figure it out on his own.

He pulled himself to his feet, stumbling just for a moment, and walked into his room to meditate on the matter.

"I think it's the motivator again," Rey said, adjusting a valve beside her. Chewie growled in acknowledgement and handed her the tool needed to fix it.

Back on Jakku, Rey would sometimes bring spare parts from her scavenging back to her fallen AT-AT home. When she had free time or was in a particularly good mood she would tinker around and build small things. She didn't have any small unnecessary parts at her disposal but working on the Falcon was just as good.

And the reason she was in a good mood was because Luke agreed to give her a couple lessons about The Force and the Jedi.

And why they must end, she recalled him saying, but she did not care. She was happy to finally get the chance to understand a part of herself she hadn't before. He promised to start working with her the following day. It was almost nightfall and Rey had been working all day to keep busy.

"That should just about do it," she said adjusting the motivator. Chewie offered her a hand and pulled her out of the small compartment she had been working in, "Though I doubt it will work for much longer. You really should replace it."

"Uhhhhhrrrrr," Chewie roared. Rey tsked sadly.

"It's an old ship. Its on its last leg. I don't think it will last much longer." Chewie grumbled in sad agreement. Rey placed a hand comfortingly on his arm, rubbing the shaggy fur. He had been through a lot on The Millennium Falcon, but they both knew its days were numbered.

"I'll go up to the cockpit. Check to see if the motivator is working properly," said Rey, dismissing herself. She climbed into the cockpit, seating herself in the chair that was once occupied by Han Solo. Rey's heart clenched tightly as she remembered how kind he had been to her. She wished she had known him longer. She wished he didn't have to die.

How could his own son do something so terrible? She asked herself. When she had read his mind, she had seen his struggle with the light and the dark. She didn't understand how he could choose the darkness when his father had come all the way to the heart of enemy territory to save him. Rey scowled, flipping several switches to turn on the ship.

"How does it look?" she yelled to Chewie. He roared loudly in response, followed by a clanking sound Rey was positive wasn't a good sign. Rey sighed, "Maybe I didn't secure it properly. Can you check to make sure the couplings are all secure?"

"What are couplings?"

Rey screamed, startled by the sudden voice beside her. As she steadied her erratic heart, she looked at the co-pilots seat only to find it empty. Rey scrunched her eyebrows.

"Ahhhhhhrrrrrr?" came Chewie's loud roar, concern evident in his tone. She could also hear R2 beeping frantically in the background.

"Did you hear that?" she called over her shoulder. Her response was a confused chirping and more perplexed growling.

Rey ran a hand over her forehead. There was no way she imagined it. It was so clear just like earlier on her walk. She searched around her compartment in hopes of finding the mysterious voice that had frightened her. There was very little room to hide but Rey didn't want to take chances. When the coast was clear, Rey let go of a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Where is Daddy?"

Rey jumped once again, her hand flying to her blaster. She held it in front of her, spinning around in her chair trying to locate the person speaking to her. Again, she was met with an empty cockpit.

"Something is wrong with me," she muttered fearfully. Rey climbed out of the pilot's chair and started walking to where she had left Chewie. R2 sat a couple feet away.

"I think I'm going to turn in early tonight," she said wringing her fingers nervously.

"Uhhhhhhhhrrrr Ahhr?" asked Chewie. Rey shook her head.

"I'm fine, nothing is wrong. I just feel like I should hit the hay early tonight. Who knows what Master Skywalker is going to have me do tomorrow. I should be well rested."

Chewie looked skeptical but he nodded anyway, wishing her a goodnight. Rey forced a smile, trying to convince her two companions nothing was wrong. She quickly walked down the ramp of The Falcon to the small village a few minutes away.

Luke had told her she would find bedding in one of the huts where she could spend the night. It took a little searching but eventually she found the cozy hut with several blankets neatly folded on a cot just big enough to fit her.

She laid them out on the cot and settled down for the night. She tossed and turned for what felt like hours, the day's events plaguing her mind. Whatever was happening to her was something beyond her control or understanding and that frightened her.

Maybe you should tell Master Skywalker, she thought to herself. The idea seemed reasonable enough until she suddenly felt overwhelmed with uncertainty. A nagging feeling overcame her body as if telling her not to confront Luke. The cold biting of it was enough to convince her not to tell him. As she decided this the uncomfortable sensation dissipated, allowing her to relax.

With the day's events finally catching up to her, Rey's eyes began to shut. She didn't know what to do about the voice she had been hearing, but as she finally started to drift to sleep she hoped she would be able to escape it long enough to get some much-needed rest.

She soon discovered that she had been horribly wrong.

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