Balance
Summary: Light and dark. Good and evil. Love and hate. The force was all about balance. And yet, neither of them knew where they stood.
Author's Note: I have to say, I think this is one of my favorite chapters so far! That being said, I finished it last night and was going to post it, but I was told by some of my friends who know I write that I had to wait a little bit longer to post it. But I hope you like this chapter as much as I do!
Special thank you to all of my lovely reviewers – and there are a lot of you this time around! Please, keep them coming. They are my inspiration, truly. Thank you MadTeaParty92, jackiemack916, Avid Vampire Hunter, GreekGoddessHestia, BW, Sunnyonthehights, Infinity Comes to A End, BDarkbracken, MLM24, SelenaGomezMileyCyrusfan, ladybear92, desna99 AKoto3725, kryflonka, Alliel 23, Guest, ForeverDelighted, Ceruleon, MaidMarian17, The Last Fallen Angel, Malakaii, ForPony39, xcislyfe22, Mia Aisli, PurpleLightning12, projektrevolution20, M. Jade, Elorrra8787, elfigreen14, lachesisBenton, Guest, Magiically, xXxOtAkU-444xXx, Anon, Tiara of Sapphires, marvelgirl03, MoonMoon91, AtiamaAmisl, Infinite101, TheKatieBugg, Infinities Lover, ZoopBooper, bluejustic13, Wings through Skies, The-Splatoon-Rook 64, and MmeSylveon.
Tiara of Sapphires – you got the Hamilton reference! One of the few who did it. I'm glad you liked it!
Elfigreen14 – Yes that was a Hamilton reference! As a history teacher, it is my current obsession. If only I could afford tickets.
ForeverDelighted – I'm glad you've picked up on that! She's not actually resisting at all, but she has gotten overly cocky. Which, honestly, is something that happened to Anakin as well.
Sorry there aren't more replies, but I skipped out on a lot of grading to write this and I NEED to get some of that done now. Enjoy, and remember to let me know what you think!
Chapter Eight: Hard and Easy
Rey let herself catch her breath as she sat in the cockpit of her little X-Wing fighter. Her adrenaline was soaring, and beads of sweat pooled on her forehead. She wiped herself quickly as she tried to come up with some kind of plan. No doubt there were already a team of Stormtroopers surrounding her aircraft, blasters ready to fire, waiting for her to exit so that they could take her captive and present her to the sadistic Kylo Ren. She waited for the inevitable impact of a shot from a blaster, or the sound of an order telling her to give up and surrender herself. But they never came. The area surrounding her X-Wing was completely silent. There was no one charging at her, which meant that she was either alone or completely surrounded, deemed to be little more than an already neutralized threat. Somehow, she did not think that it was the former. She double checked herself, making sure she was as armed as humanly possible. If she was going to find this weapon and be successful in her self-imposed mission, she was going have to take on as many Stormtroopers as she could. Bracing herself for the fight she was certain would ensue, she opened the door to the cockpit. Immediately, she aimed her blaster in front of her. She was ready to strike, and strike hard, if need be.
But to her great surprise, she was alone in the docking bay. She frowned; she had not expected it to be that easy. But Rey was also not one to look a gift horse in the mouth; she was going to take full advantage of the situation she was presented. Immediately, she sprang in to action. She ran towards the entrance to the corridor, her mind trying to recall the possible locations of the weapon that the general had offered during her debrief on the mission. Biting her bottom lip, Rey raced towards the corridors, hoping for find some semblance of coverage to keep her location hidden from the enemy.
She tried multiple doors, all of which seemed locked without a droid to access them. Silently, she cursed to herself. If she stayed in the docking bay, she would be like a sitting duck just waiting to be hunted. And Kylo Ren would take great pleasure in hunting her down. She had to find a way out of the open floor plan.
After what felt like an eternity, she came to a door that she was able to open after pushing a few select buttons. Thanking her lucky stars, Rey made her way to the back corridor. She attempted to steady her breathing, knowing that gasping for air would draw unwanted attention to her. She kept her blaster out, ready to fire the second she came into contact with anyone. But there was no one in sight; it was as if the massive star ship was completely deserted. It was too easy. She walked a little further down, expecting at some point she would run in to someone. A group of Stormtroopers. First Order generals, lieutenants, or captains. But with every empty corner that she turned, she was filled with more and more dread.
It was too easy.
Immediately, Rey began to suspect the worst. She should never have disobeyed her master – she should have never tried to do this on her own. Luke was right, she was not ready for this. There were too many variables that Rey had not even thought about before running off to play the hero. She had not fully thought this through. And that was when the realization hit her. This mission was not just easy. It was a trap. She was filled with a sense of impending dread. As soon as she realized exactly what she had walked in to, she felt a pit in her stomach. She tried to turn back, to find her way back to the docking bay. Perhaps she could remain undetected and find her way back to D'Qar. Her master would surely forgive her stupid mistake, she was only an apprentice after all. If only she could get back.
She heard, from somewhere in the distance, a pair of boots on the ground. They were calmly making their way towards her. Rey swallowed, she had not gone as undetected as she originally thought. I just walked straight into a trap.
Rey turned her back and ran in the direction that she came from.
She found the door that had let her in to the corridor to the docking bay. But where it had once been left wide open, it was now barred shut. Frantically, the young woman pushed a series of key codes to try and gain passage through. But all efforts were futile. She was most certainly trapped.
Rey heard that set of boots coming steadily behind her. Whoever had been trailing her had finally caught up. She did not stop trying to unlock the door, although she knew that it was no use. Whoever was behind her had intentionally let her into the corridor, and locked the door behind her. She was going to be captured.
"We did not think you would take the bait," A steady voice from behind greeted her coolly. But it was not the voice that she expected, "We did not think that the Resistance would truly believe false information planted in our computer systems. You all must truly be dim."
Rey turned around to greet her captor. The orange haired general gave her a small, eerie smile as he continued, "I would have expected better from you, if I am being quite honest. You were the Jedi apprentice, the only one to match the skill of our own knight in battle. And yet you came so easily. Like a little mouse, walking straight into a trap." He approached her. Rey could not move, she was trapped between the First Order general and the door.
He grabbed Rey's jaw, forcing her to make eye contact with him. She wanted to scream, but knew it would be no use. The last thing she wanted to do was show any semblance of fear in front of this cretin. "Tell me, little mouse, what makes you so special? Why does our Supreme Leader want you here so bad? Why is Kylo Ren so enamored with you?"
Rey had it. She knew she could not fight, there was no way she could reach for her lightsaber and try to fight this horrible human being. The second that she did, she knew she would be forcible restrained. There was no winning in this situation. There had to be something that she could do, a final act of defiance in the face of her captor. Without another word, Rey spat in the general's face.
The last thing she saw before everything went dark was the general's fist hurdling towards her face.
When Rey finally came to, she had momentarily forgotten where she was. It took her the briefest of moments to remember where she was, and how she had come to be there. She remembered her stupidity, falling straight into the trap laid out by General Hux. As she recalled her last encounter with the red headed general, she carefully lifted her hand to her face. Almost immediately, she could feel the large and swollen spot under her eye. It was swollen shut. She winced as her hand carefully grazed the skin there; it was tender. Well, that explains the blurry vision, she thought to herself.
She assessed herself for any other injuries. She had to wonder if they had done anything to her while she was unconscious. But she seemed to be okay, apart from her swollen eye. Her weapons were gone, taken from her no doubt when her captors threw her in to her cell. She was not bound, like she was the last time. Whoever had decided to place her here seemed confident that she would not be able to run. They obviously underestimated her.
Immediately, Rey began to take inventory of her surroundings. There had to be something here that could help her to escape her captivity. She was placed in a single-person holding cell. She was currently sitting on a cold metal slab, no doubt meant to be some kind of bed. What shocked her, though, was that she had been given a pillow. It was flat, stained, and no doubt uncomfortable… but it was a pillow nonetheless. Why give her some symbol of comfort in this horrible place?
Rey tried to push her mind from the pillow, although she did cling to it fiercely as she assessed her surroundings. There was nothing of consequence in her cell, nothing that she could use to plot her escape. But that still did not stop her from coming up with a plan. She tried her hardest, running through all possible situations in her head.
Rey had been conscious for around twenty minutes when she began to feel it. Her head was hurting, no doubt caused by the pain from the blow to her face. She ignored it for a while, but the pain grew to the point where she could not stand to keep her eyes open. She laid her head down on her haggard pillow, trying to relieve the pain somewhat. It worked, but as she lay there she found it harder and harder to keep her eyes open. In no time, despite her best efforts, Rey fell unconscious again, clinging to her pillow.
When she woke again, she knew immediately where she was. She groaned, however, hoping that it had been nothing but a horrible dream. Unfortunately, the harsh light from the cell immediately proved her wrong. This was real, her captivity was real.
She tried to figure out how long she had been unconscious, how long she had been stuck here. Her throat was dry, and her head felt heavy. Growing up on the desert planet of Jakku, Rey was quick to recognize the signs of dehydration. Based on her symptoms, she felt that she could not have been there for more than two days, without water. Rey sighed, she wished there was some way she could keep a marker going. She wanted to keep track.
That was when she saw it, on the floor by a wall in her tiny cell. A tray of food.
It was not much. In fact, it was food that was comparable to her time on Jakku. Very minimal, providing nothing more than bare sustenance. But it was something. And next to the small tray was a cup of water. She scooted on the floor of her cell, closer to the temptation of food. Immediately, Rey reached for it. But before she put the cup to her lips, she thought better of it. Gingerly, she set the cup down, not wanting to spill the liquid inside of it.
"It is not poisoned," Immediately, her head shot up to see who had entered the small cell. The tall, dark, masked figure that haunted her nightmares for the past few months looked down at her. Rey felt all of her muscles stiffen, and her heartbeat more than doubled at the sight of him. She shuffled away from him, her back against the wall. "If I wanted to kill you, I would have done so already."
Rey did not reply, and she did not move as the masked knight moved closer to her. He reached out his gloved hand to her face; instinctively, she flinched away. But that did not deter him. Gently, he stroked the bruise on her swollen eye. Rey did her best to hide the involuntary wince at the pain. But it was no use, Kylo Ren was too perceptive, "I instructed them not to hurt you. You are of no use to me broken,"
Rey did not say anything, although she was thoroughly confused by the meaning of the dark knight's words. She pulled away from him again, repulsed by his touch.
"You are already much stronger than you once were," He continued, ignoring her obvious repulsion. "But you do not yet know the full force of your power. Tell me, do you want reach your full potential? Do you want to know just what you can do? How powerful you are? Skywalker would deny you that, your birthright. But you could truly –" he paused for a moment. Even behind a mask, Rey could tell that the bastard was smiling, "blossom here. Under my tutelage."
"I'd rather die," Rey spat out at him, breathing heavy.
"We shall see about that. Luke Skywalker has kept a lot hidden from you. He did the same thing to me. Supreme Leader Snoke would not deny you. I would not deny you."
"Not all enough are weak enough to be tempted by such false promises," She scoffed. But almost as soon as the words were out of her mouth, she regretted them. Her comment set the dark knight off. He launched at her, his hands wrapping tightly around her throat.
"We shall see who is the weak one, desert rat,"
Rey tried to pull his hands off of her. But he outmatched her – physically at least. She struggled against him, kicking and punching. But her dehydration made her weak. She would not win against him. Not this way.
But she had to try something.
Rey stopped resisting him, and instead put all of her focus into her mind. She was no match for him physically, but mentally she could take him. Using the Force, she tried to push him away. It was unlike what she did in her training, this was not like moving inanimate objects. Initially, Rey had caught him unawares. She could feel him loosen his grip around her throat in surprise. She got the advantage, and she tried her hardest to keep it. She pushed him with her mind even farther, but the second that he caught on to what she was doing he began to fight back.
Do not resist me. The voice echoed in her mind.
Rey and Ren were pushing against each other's minds now. Rey was becoming exhausted, she was still too weak from her beating to take him. But she would not give up; the knight's grip on her throat was loosening even more now. She could finally get him off of her…
Suddenly, Rey was on a planet that she did not recognize, she had never been there before. But she was standing there, as throngs of young children ran by. A young girl with long dark hair lagged behind the rest, unable to keep up. In front of Rey, the young girl stopped, stomping on the ground in frustration. She did not seem to notice the young woman standing just a few feet from her. But Rey could not help but notice something eerily familiar about the girl.
She watched helplessly as the little girl began to cry. Rey wanted nothing more than to reach out and comfort her. To tell her that she knew what it was like to be so alone too. But before she could even try, two figures, one short and one tall, approached the crying young girl. Rey looked on, wide eyed, at the ensuing exchange. She knew the two figures.
"Master," The short figure said, "Why is she crying?"
"I'm crying because I'm lonely," The young girl said, the fire evident in her voice. She was not going to let anyone answer for her. Immediately, Rey identified with the little girl. "No one ever wants to play with me. They think that I am too strange."
"They think you are strange because you are special," The tall figure knelt down so he was at eye-level with the young girl. His voice was calm and reassuring as he spoke to her, "I help special people, I train them so that they one day can be Jedi."
"Jedi?" The girl asked, her eyes lighting with fascination, "Like in the stories?"
The elder figure nodded as he spoke to the child, "I would like to train you."
"Me?" The little girl asked, wide eyed. She looked eager, but she bit her bottom lip, "I don't know. I can't leave my momma and poppa." She turned her head, looking at the direction that she came from. There was someone waiting for her at home.
"I spoke to your mother and father," The older man explained, his voice soothing as he spoke to the child. "Your family have produced Jedi before. They knew to expect that something like this may happen."
The girl took a few moments to process what he was saying, "I could learn to be a Jedi Knight?"
The taller figure nodded, and stood up. "If you would like to come with me, then yes." He extended his hand to her.
The little girl hesitated for another moment, looking between the two figures. Rey watched as he took the taller one's hand. The younger one gave her a small smile, "Hi there. I'm Ben."
Rey watched on as the little girl smiled back and introduced herself, "My name is Rey. Rey Kenobi."
As Rey came back into the present, she gasped for air as if she had been underwater for a long period of time. When she looked at her surroundings, she noticed that Kylo Ren was no longer gripping her throat. The dark knight was staggering away from her, taking off his mask as he gasped for air.
Rey was too distracted processing what she had just seen to pay attention to the young angelic face that was hidden behind the mask. What the hell had she just seen?
"What did you do to me?" Ren's face was contorted in anger as he hissed at her, "What the hell was that?"
Rey was still trying to figure that one out, "I-I don't know!"
She was still trying to catch her breath as Kylo Ren stormed out of her cell in anger.
Author's Note: Well, there we are! Please let me know what you think of it! I feed off reviews, and the more I see in my inbox the more tempted I am to forgo grading and write for you guys instead. (Also, I really really do not want to grade these projects, so you would be doing me a huge favor!)
