Chapter 10
Kylo Ren had not expected to enjoy cooking dinner with Chewie, but he had. They seemed to have a comfortable silence between them, and though Chewie was uncharacteristically quiet, he had given Kylo a fierce hug before bringing out the dinner plates, which were heaped with roasted meats and vegetables this time.
During dinner, they seemed to all be lost in their thoughts as well, which suited Kylo fine. He had enjoyed his time courting Rey, but the First Order needed his attention as well, and the news he received of Hux's doings were nearly as disturbing as the local First Order's food offerings were generous.
Unless Hux were dumb enough to attack him directly, he would need to organize the knights and plan for battle. The personnel loss necessary to restore his leadership could become significant depending on how many troops actually supported Hux's mutiny. Then again, it was possible the people involved could be reconditioned instead. He did not like to waste good soldiers.
He wondered what Rey would make of his dilemma. Which was worse? To destroy life or destroy freedom? Of course, he knew his own feelings. Death was final. Enslavement was not. He had faced that choice everyday he lived under Snoke, and now he was free. He wondered if a day would ever come that he could downsize the stormtrooper units to volunteer-only units, as they had in the past. Then all those who wished to could move on and become farmers or teachers or fathers if they wanted. He expected Rey would like that.
What is it? You're staring at me. Rey asked in his mind. Kylo smiled and sent his memory of their shared vision to her, with an emphasis on his glow at her pregnancy. Rey's silverware clashed to the table and she turned very red. Kylo bit his lip to avoid snickering. He had been waiting for the right moment to mention the pregnancy in the vision, but this seemed as good a time as any.
Chewie looked back and forth between them and shook his head, as if absolving himself of any role in their drama. He then excused himself and left. A memory of Chewie doing the same during a dinner with his parents came to mind, and Kylo smiled. It had been a happy evening, one of the few where his parents' love for each other overwhelmed all the fears and differences between them. He wished it had happened more often.
I'm not asking this time. Rey said in his head. He glanced at Rey, and she darted her eyes back to her plate.
Feeling shy? He asked her. She kicked his shin the next moment, and he chuckled. It wasn't the first or second time he had laughed today, and it felt strange, but good. He had been too terrified to feel joy while both Luke and Snoke lived. Would his future with Rey be like this? Easy smiles and teasing each other over dinner? He refused to repeat the failures of his father's neglect.
Of course, if his present situation was any indicator, it was his work that would end up neglected. Further flirting with Rey could wait at least until he arranged things with the First Order. "Excuse me," he said after quickly clearing his plate.
He went to the cockpit where his notes were. It was strange using paper and pen, but paper and pen was all Chewie could find when Kylo asked earlier. The local First Order bases had been very helpful in supplying information on the movement of Hux's forces. Much of the First Order believed they would fall apart without a strong force user at its helm, and many others simply didn't like Hux. While Kylo Ren had a reputation for ruthlessness, he was not known to be cruel.
Kylo was thoughtfully thumbing the page of notes when the radio came to life. "Millenium Falcon, this is TIE fighter T14-02. You have incoming from Angry Bandit, captained by Knight of Ren member Marx Junko. He insists that he needs personal proof that Kylo Ren is on board the Millenium Falcon to withdraw his attack. Please advise."
Kylo pressed his lips in a straight line. Marx was the most likeable of his knights, but he always had been a pain in the ass. Kylo closed his eyes and reached into the force for Marx and his ship. There. He held his hand out as if holding an invisible object, then rotated his wrist quickly, as if flinging it into a spin.
The Falcon's radio exploded in alien cursing. Kylo smirked, grabbed the air, and set it straight again.
"Kylo Ren, you crazy bastard! What on earth landed you back on the Millenium Falcon? I thought you wouldn't be caught dead in that ship again," Marx asked over the radio. Kylo Ren had given up on schooling Marx in formalities ages ago, which was just as well. Marx was the closest thing Kylo had to a friend within the knights.
Kylo Ren sat down in the copilot chair and activated the microphone. "An unexpected turn of events. The Falcon was simply in the right place at the right time. I'm surprised you left the school." Marx, despite being incredibly childish himself, had volunteered to take over the training and management of the force-sensitive children they found in the First Order.
"Wan has them now. She wanted to come too though." Wan Tiebolt was another knight of Ren who had made an unlikely pairing with Marx. They were both humanoid aliens, but Wan looked like a walking praying mantis and rarely got excited, whereas Marx was some squat avian variety who rarely was calm. "I heard the gist of it. Gossip travels fast, you know. So Hux tried to do you in? I'm surprised he had the guts or the wit to pull off a proper attempt."
"He set our ship on a locked course directly at a sun and removed all personnel, escape pods, and ships while I slept. The heat woke me."
Marx whistled. "Then I'm surprised you're alive. How did you escape?"
"The force," Kylo said simply.
"Super-specific there. The force. Like that couldn't mean a thousand things. Oh yea, speaking of rumors, there's some rumor going around that you and some new Jedi girl have a force connection that lets you interact no matter the distance. Actually started Resistance-side too. Dunno if you want to try clearing things up or wha-"
"It's true," Kylo said. "She's on the ship. You'll meet her soon."
"Oh, you captured her? Congratulations, Kylo-"
"No, I'm here as her guest."
The radio was silent. Kylo Ren narrowed his eyes.
"Umm, Kylo Ren? My most excellent Supreme Leader and master?"
Kylo growled. "What is it?" An obsequious Marx was never a good sign.
"I don't mean to question your judgment, but is it wise to bring the Jedi of the Resistance into the heart of the First Order at this time?"
Kylo Ren sighed. He knew he would have this conversation repeated with every Knight of Ren. If he were in Marx's place, he would have thought himself mad. "Rey supports my position of Supreme Leader and is accompanying me to help me seize it. The Resistance has estranged her since learning of her bond with me. She will not be telling them our secrets."
"But Kylo-"
"She is the future mother of my child, Marx. I will have her at my side."
Another minute of radio silence, then a panicked, "Congratulations! I didn't even know you've had time to… well, not that it takes long, but still.. I thought the human reproductive system took… Anyway, my sincerest congratulations. I will personally see to it that your lady feels most welcome by the First Order. Look at the time! I gotta run. Signing off!"
Kylo Ren gaped at the radio. He hadn't meant to suggest that Rey was already pregnant. They hadn't even kissed. His heart skipped a beat as the force shifted around him, forming a connection to Rey, and Rey shrieked.
"If you turn around, I will throw you off this ship," Rey threatened.
Kylo Ren sighed and covered his eyes with his arm so she wouldn't try to kill him if she ever realized her nude reflection had been perfectly visible on the glass of the cockpit. "You're undressed."
"I'm in the shower. Can't we talk later?"
Ben sighed. He had not meant to create this connection, but if she was there anyway, he may as well brief her. "I caused a misunderstanding. I would like your thoughts on it."
"Can it wait five minutes?"
Kylo Ren closed the connection and pondered the implications of what happened. Introducing Rey as the future mother of his child would significantly reduce the obstacles for her acceptance by the First Order, but it could endanger her already fragile ties to the Resistance.
It was strange to realize he cared about such a thing, but he cared because she cared.
A few minutes later, Rey entered the cockpit wearing a loose sleep shirt that looked big enough to fit Chewbacca. "It is Chewie's," Rey confirmed. "A friend of theirs bought it as a gag gift when he was younger. I think a guy named Lando?"
Kylo shrugged. He knew Lando had been one of his dad's friends, but hadn't met the guy. Still, he wanted to thank Lando now. The shirt stopped just below Rey's knees, so he was able to see her legs and feet for the first time. Furthermore, though she kept her arms crossed tightly over her breasts, her hips were made very evident by the drape of the cloth.
"Stop looking at me like that. I wanted to wash my clothes, and it was the only backup option onboard. You wanted to speak with me. Start talking or I'll leave."
Kylo Ren forced his eyes to meet hers. "I spoke to one of my knights, a guy named Marx Junko. I tried explaining our situation, referred to you as the future mother of my child, and he congratulated me and ran off to prepare things for us."
Rey blinked as she registered what Kylo Ren hadn't spelled out. "He thinks I'm pregnant," Rey said. She sank into the closest passenger chair as if about to faint, but then her anger exploded into the force. "You didn't correct him?!"
"He signed off before I recovered from my own shock," Kylo Ren admitted, though he was too mesmerized by the anger pouring off of Rey to be upset. She was so powerful, and she hadn't even tapped her full potential yet.
Rey's fury tripled in force. She stood, grabbed the neck of his shirt, and pulled him so close that her angry breaths felt like feathers dusting his collarbone. "So you're telling me that the great Supreme Leader of the New Order, the grandson of Darth Vader, the son of the two most famous generals in the Rebellion and Resistance, the nephew of Luke Skywalker, and the master of the Knights of Ren was too tongue-tied to correct his own subordinate after implying that a girl he's not even kissed yet is pregnant with his child!?"
She was beautiful and magnificent in her rage, and it took every ounce of his willpower not to kiss her then and there. "I want you so badly," he said hoarsely, no longer able to focus on anything beyond restraining his desire to close the narrow gap between their lips.
A different kind of fire lit in her eyes until the force felt like a molten flame between them. She let go of him and stepped away, her modesty forgotten as she stood up straight in the thin nightgown and gazed down at him. "I know," she said and left the cockpit.
Marx and Wan are totally figments of my imagination. I know nothing about the Knights of Ren other than that Kylo Ren leads them, so I'm making stuff up. Also guessing what the Han and Leia relationship was like given what tidbits we're offered in The Force Awakens and Leia's title as General Leia Organa instead of General Leia Solo.
I love Disney for rebirthing Star Wars, but I'll always be a little sad that they took out the original canon for Han and Leia... not to mention removing Luke's story with Mara Jade. Course, my personal favorite was Talon Karrde. May the force be with all of you fictional people.