En Route to the Corellian System, 30 ABY

For the duration of the three-day hyperspace trip to Corellia, Janus shared a bunk with Rey. The young woman took the bunk above Rey, and slept for the majority of it. Rey played Dejarik with Bodhi, sabac with Han, and pazaak with Jyn. Mara kept to herself for those three days.

"It's always best to leave Mara alone," Han told Rey. "She's got a temper. And she used to be an assassin. Not a good combo."

Whenever Rey felt safe getting away, she sat in her room and listened to more of the holo diaries.

"And, anyway," Ben said in the latest of the entries, "Uncle Luke is coming for a visit. I hope I can convince him to take me with him, or at least I can tell him about these dreams. I guess that's really all I've got for now. Solo out."

He smiled at the holo, and it winked out.

Janus glanced over from atop her bunk, a strange smile on her face. "Benny. That's his datapad, isn't it?"

Rey jumped and glanced over her shoulder. "You scared me! It is."

"Sorry." Janus sat up. "I miss him. Don't worry, it gets more entertaining- he kept those up even at the academy."

"Really?" Rey asked.

"Yeah, some of us were even in them," Janus said, a sad smile on her face. "He had lots of friends. He was rarely alone."

Rey paused a moment. "Mara and Han say Ben went dark. You were dark, weren't you?"

"I used the dark side of the Force, that's right," Janus said. Rey could sense that the woman was still coming to terms with it.

"What happened?" Her tone was only curious, not judgmental.

"They made me feel alone," Janus admitted. "Alone, betrayed. . . And so angry. Angry, scared, and full of hate. I felt powerful then- now I realize I was so caught up in the emotions, I couldn't see my way out. Until you pulled the mask off."

Rey nodded sagely.

Janus sighed. "This isn't stuff you need to hear about yet. Mara would be better. She knows it more intimately than anyone, even me."

"Because she was the Emperor's Hand?"

"Yes," Janus said. "She's never been evil herself. But she's always been surrounded by it."

"But isn't service to evil still evil?"

"It is."

Both girls jumped, and looked to see Mara standing in the doorway.

"Sorry, Mara," Rey said quickly.

"It's fine," Mara said. "I just overheard you asking about Ben."

"I just thought-"

"You didn't want to upset Han or I," Mara interrupted. "I understand. It must all be very confusing to you. Han wouldn't mind so much. He still loves his son. He and Ben were really close- closer than Leia and him ever were."

Rey nodded, not sure what there was left to say. Mara then just turned away and returned to her room. Rey looked to Janus, who shrugged, and flopped back under her bunk and pulled the blankets up over her head.

Rey opened the next entry.

This holo of Ben had dirt and scratches all over him, and there was blood and dirt on his shirt. His dark hair was disheveled and he was slightly out of breath.

"Hi, diary. Don't really know how to begin this," Ben said. "I'll just come out and say it: Galen and Dak are traitors."

He snarled that word- traitor.

"When I went out to hang out with them, Galen said that he didn't want to play with me anymore. When I asked why, Justin Loran and his crowd came out- it was an ambush," he explained bitterly. "Turns out, Galen and Dak wanted to play with the big dogs. Let them!"

His expression faltered into one of fear. "Apparently they believe some of the rumors about me now, like why I'm not in the news as much, they think it's because I'm dark, like Vader or someone like that. I tried to tell them I wasn't- that didn't stop them. I could feel it- they were too scared, of Loran, of me. I don't know how to tell Mom about this- she's always been afraid when I mention the Force. This is gonna kill her."

He glanced over his shoulder, and looked dead into the camera. "I keep thinking someone's coming for me, and I think I feel a hand grabbing me or see a wispy hand- then it's gone. I think I'm hallucinating- I'm going crazy!"

Ben then sobbed on the camera. "I'd better go out and present myself to her Highness. Force, I hope she won't be mad at me."

The holo then fizzled back out.

Rey hurriedly tapped the next one. A fixed-up but still terrified Ben appeared onscreen.

"Going to make this quick," he whispered. "But Mom got all scared and cold when I told her why. She helped me clean up. But she and Dad are talking, and it's turning into a full fight. I felt it- she's scared of me."

It then disappeared.

Rey felt a sinking in her stomach, and pity. The boy who Janus said was never alone was clearly much lonelier than he appeared.

That would've been before he met Janus, she reminded herself. She couldn't make sense of it, the two Bens she knew. The younger Ben Solo, while troubled, was a good person, someone she'd love to know. The older, however, from what Jyn had told her, killed other Padawans and destroyed the Academy and was like Janus before she ripped the mask off.

How could the two exist as the same person?

That, she realized, was what Mara and Han were both struggling with. They both knew Ben much better than she could ever dare to dream she could. He'd betrayed them both so terribly, Rey couldn't even imagine it. It was beyond even what Kura had done to her.

She turned off the datapad. She'd seen enough of Ben Solo's story for the night.


Corellia, 30 ABY

Rey stepped out of the Millennium Falcon and glanced around, taking in the heartbeat of Corellia. A city planet, it was beyond anything Rey knew. It was not a forest like Endor's moon or Takodana, and it wasn't desert like Korriban or Jakku, or even oceanic like the world she dreamed of. It was grimy, with bright glows all around, and several levels of buildings.

"Kid, this is nothing, compared to Coruscant," Han said.

"Wow," Rey said. "I never knew there were entire planets that were cities."

"There's so much more to the galaxy than desert," Jyn said. "Hoth will be interesting. That's a snow planet, and you've never seen snow before, so. . ."

"We need to stock up," Mara reminded them. "Bodhi, Janus, you should go looking for food supplies. Han, you should get weaponry and check in on if there's been any activity with Leia. Cassian, you need to get men's clothing. Jyn, you get Rey fitted, and get some women's clothing. As for I, I'm going to see if there's been any special activity on Hoth beside touristic historians."

Mara pulled on goggles and a headscarf, obscuring her fiery red hair and emerald eyes. She looked even more intimidating, a feat Rey did not think possible.

"We meet at the spaceport in three hours. If you're not here, we'll come find you personally, agreed?" Mara asked.

"Agreed," others chorused.

"Come along," Jyn adjusted her own green-grey headscarf around her hair and shoulders. "I don't know what your clothing size is, and I doubt you do either, and I think sizes might be different on Jakku, but anyway, Hoth is a snowy rock in the Outer Rim. Desert clothes just aren't going to cut it."

Rey nodded. She followed Jyn onto a tram and sat down next to her. Excitedly, Rey peered out the window behind her as rain fell all around and the cityscape blurred past them.

Then, something changed, the tram was going faster, and faster-

"Is this normal?" Rey asked.

Jyn shook her head, and she stood up, grabbing her blaster from inside her jacket. She whipped it out, as did several other Corellians. Rey grabbed her lightsaber and DL-44.

"Put the lightsaber away!" Jyn hissed. Rey clipped it back on her belt, confused as to Jyn's animosity towards the act. "Stay here, Rey."

"Wait-"

Jyn didn't listen to Rey's protest, and disappeared into the crowd. Rey's jaw dropped, her eyes blinked twice. She couldn't believe what just happened.

She left me, she thought. Jyn left me. Just like everybody else.

Her features hardened as she looked back outside. There was no stop. Jyn left her, and Rey didn't know why. Soon enough, someone was going to die. She couldn't just stay here and let everyone die- she had to do something.

A plan formed in her mind. It was a stupid plan, probably, but she was ready to go through with it, just to see if it could save everyone. What did she have to lose, anyway? No one cared enough.

The Corellians pointed blasters at the windows and swapped rumors and theories loudly. No one paid Rey any attention as she approached the team door, and used her new multitool to pry open a panel on the door. She recognized the tram type, and cut the right cord.

The door opened. A strong wind came from the outside. Rey pulled out goggles from her pouch, and put them on, along with her worn, weathered gloves. She took a deep breath, trusting in that intuition she always knew, and gripped the sides of the tram, and glanced up. She knew how to climb up the side of large machinery, this wasn't so bad, compared to the Star Destroyers.

She took another deep breath. You can do this, you can do this.

Rey got a good foothold, and managed to pull herself up to the roof and get secure footing. The rain came at her, cold and stinging from the high speeds. It was difficult to see, even with the goggles. She still continued forwards, and leapt, trusting the Force. She landed flat on her stomach, and gripped at the ridges in the durosteel.

One out of three cars done, Rey thought as she looked ahead. She got on her knees, and then to her feet. The force of the wind nearly knocked her over, but she stood firm, and made large steps towards the front. She made the jump to the second car, and managed to land on her feet.

She nearly fell over backwards, but managed to stabilize.

Almost there, she thought. The tram sped up, knocking her forward onto her knees. The wind cut at her face, and the rain relentlessly pounded at her goggles, and the lenses were in danger of popping out.

I can do this, she thought as she started crawling forward. She heard blaster fire, and hurried up to the edge of the second car. She had one more jump to make. On this one, though, her foot slipped and Rey screamed as she tumbled through the air.

Despite all the terror, Rey found a moment of peace in her flight. She felt the Force in all its glory, beyond anything she'd ever felt before. This gave her enough clarity to grab the side of the tram platform, the railing.

"Oh my Force, Rey!" Jyn screamed. The woman turned away from the blaster battle and pulled Rey up from over the side as easily as if Rey were a rag doll. Rey was then pushed against the wall as Jyn flattened herself to the ground to avoid a blaster bolt.

"What are you doing here?" Jyn hissed as she sat up, hiding herself with the wall. Her green eyes flashed angrily.

"I thought you left me!" Rey cried.

Jyn's expression changed. Horror and empathy lurked there. Rey would never forget that as long as she lived. Before she could respond, another blaster bolt pulled Jyn back into the battle. She snuck a side shot, and there was a death cry.

Rey reached for her lightsaber, and the blue blade ignited. Rain hissed as it met the pure light. Jyn nodded.

"I'm right behind, you," she said. "Give 'em hells."

Rey stood up, and turned around the corner, where two thugs were waiting. Rey blocked the blaster bolts with a simple swing of her saber. Jyn shot over Rey's shoulder, and both were dead within seconds.

Rey turned to the door, and tried to open it, but it was locked. She then used the lightsaber to carve a door in the material. With a simple kick, the disk fell in. Rey entered to see the conductor of the tram bound and unconscious, and a hooded figure at the front.

Rey pointed the end of the lightsaber towards the figure. It turned around as Rey got closer, revealing a masked man with the hood up. Rey could sense that the figure was male.

"Well, well," the man murmured. "If it isn't a new Jedi. And Jyn Erso Andor. How adorable. My contacts told me you'd be here. Unfortunately, it's your destiny to die on this tram."

"That's not happening," Jyn said. "I'm too old to die at the hands of some whippersnapper like you!"

She fired, and the man held out a hand, absorbing the bolt.

"I'm more powerful than you could possibly imagine," he said. "Kylo Ren has taught us well."

"Kylo Ren?" Rey asked. The name sounded familiar. "Who's that?"

"Our leader," he said. "He will lead the Knights of Ren to become the new champions of the Force and the First Order!"

"Not if we have anything to say about it," Jyn snarled.

Rey swung at the Knight of Ren, and she was lifted and felt a hand choking at her. She dropped her lightsaber as she clawed at the invisible hands, trying to get free. Jyn snatched up the he lightsaber and swung and fired at the Knight of Ren alike. The Knight of Ren blocked the blaster bolt and pushed Jyn back a few steps, but dropped Rey in his surprise.

Jyn fired again as Rey scrambled to behind the Knight of Ren, and as the Knight of Ren was distracted with the bolts and Jyn, Jyn threw the lightsaber to Rey, who caught it with a little help of the Force.

The Knight of Ren Force-pushed Jyn into the wall of the tram as Rey ignited her saber and plunged it into his chest. He gasped as he fell into the throes of death and shook. Rey turned off her saber, and the Knight of Ren crumpled to the floor. Rey hooked her saber to her belt, and glanced over to the corner as Jyn sat up.

"The tram!" Jyn reminded her.

"Right," Rey said, and she hurried to the terminal. She glanced over the writing, barely able to understand the Aubresh. She grabbed the big red lever, and pulled it down with all her might. The tram hurtled to a stop, right in front of a station. Rey fell back in relief and sighed.