A/N: One chapter left! Please read and review!

Just stay with me, hold you and protect you from the other ones

Skywalker was here. But not in the battle. So what was he up to? Closing his eyes to focus, Kylo Ren carefully scanned the area in search of the Last Jedi and could feel nothing. No indication of his presence, no thoughts concerning him. But he could sense something, so he headed in her direction.

The Resistance attempted to engage him, as they had in the air, and he deflected easily any blaster bolts that came his way, having more important things to address. His trajectory took him to the gates of the base, where General Hux and his men were repelling the invading force. Not very well – the blast doors had been damaged so nothing kept the Resistance out except manpower.

People from both sides moved out of his way as he walked through them, and those who got too close were pushed back viciously. He passed through the enemy's line and then through his own while paying very little attention to what was happening. He wasn't going to lose track of her again. And if Skywalker was with her… Well, it would be good to have that resolved, too.

"Ren, didn't expect you," Hux said tightly as his rival stalked by the hill from which he was scanning the field, formulating a plan for their offensive. The aerial support was much appreciated and would turn the fight in their favor. As it was, his troops were spread thin and he was thinking he might actually welcome the help of the Snoke's apprentice. Not that he was disappointed when the man showed no signs of slowing once he was through the lines.

"General," Kylo Ren replied dismissively, intent on his agenda, whatever it was. But then he stopped suddenly and turned, extending his arm with carefully controlled violence.

Hux was shocked by the wave of power that washed over him and he looked up. A Resistance soldier had broken through, perhaps in Ren's wake, and was aiming right for the general. And had managed to get off a shot before Ren had stopped him, and it. Hux blinked as he stared at the crackling, immobile bolt of energy. Glancing at Ren, he motioned for his men to take care of the assailant.

"Thank you," he said stiffly.

A sardonic look crossed Ren's face and he waved it off. "It won't stay there once I'm gone. I'd recommend moving out of the way."

"Where are you going?"

Raising an eyebrow, Ren looked him up and down in a way that made him feel like he had spoken out of turn. "Skywalker is here. I'm going to find him," he said flatly.

Hux whirled around to look at the base, then back at Ren. "The mines? The generator?" he guessed.

Ren shrugged elaborately. "Perhaps the general will allow me to go find out," he growled.

"Yes, of course." He considered saying more, but didn't, so Ren disappeared through the damaged doors.

Inside the base was quieter, having been emptied prior to and in preparation of the battle. Snoke had moved everything truly important to other locations, though he hoped not to lose this one. The readily available kyber crystals were a great resource that could not be easily found somewhere else. Not that they were worth enough to him to stay and oversee the siege, of course. There were other matters to which he must attend, apparently.

His hunt took him deep inside the facility, down lower than he had ever been. Still, he moved unfalteringly forward. The mines were large and labyrinthine, and would provide an excellent location for what he hoped to accomplish. His comm crackled suddenly, and he practically snarled when he answered it.

"Yes?"

"Sir, General Hux seems overwhelmed. Should we send reinforcements?" Captain Phasma asked.

"Yes. Report to the General for orders, Phasma," he added shortly.

"Yes, sir."

It took some effort not to throw the device from him or break it, but reason won out and he kept it on his person. Hopefully it would not reveal his presence before he wished to do so. He turned off his lightsaber and tucked it into his belt as he searched briefly through the caverns nearby. Then he settled on the floor to focus on what he wanted.

The girl was here, too, he thought idly. Would Skywalker bring her? Or would he come alone to face him? It would depend on his motives – if he brought her, the intention would be to kill him or at least capture him. If he didn't… Well, then Skywalker was testing himself and didn't want the girl to have to suffer the consequences of that test.

Finally, there he was. He looked much older, tired, but showed resolve. His eyes were bright as he surveyed the cavern before moving forward. The girl did not feel nearby.

"Ben."

"Uncle." Kylo Ren stood up but didn't reach for his lightsaber. Skywalker had been using his to light the path, but now he let it rest in a nonthreatening position.

"You summoned?"

Smiling grimly, he could no longer hold still and paced a little. "You came out of exile. I didn't expect to see you in battle so soon."

"Why not?"

Pausing to gauge the expression on his former master's face, he shook his head slightly. "Because of how the last battle went."

"Maybe that's why I'm here."

"Oh, I'm sure that's why you came here now," he snapped. Then took a breath to calm himself. "Did my mother send you?"

"She didn't need to."

"You know, she sent my father to me, too. Did you hear how that went?" he asked cruelly, and saw a reaction on Skywalker's face at last.

Luke's fingers tightened on his lightsaber and anger flickered across his expression, but he didn't otherwise move. "I did," he answered after he'd calmed down again.

"And you thought I'd appreciate your interference more than his?"

"No."

Kylo Ren stopped abruptly, facing Skywalker. "Then you've come to kill me?"

Pained but resolute, Skywalker looked his nephew up and down. "That depends on you."

"I see. If I'm willing to come quietly, you'll put me in shackles and take me home to my mother. Where I'll stand trial for my crimes against the galaxy and can only hope that my poor, dear parent is not going to have to give the order for my execution. Am I getting this right so far?"

Skywalker said nothing, and Kylo Ren smiled, the scar on his face twisting uncomfortably.

"Or I could face you here and force you to kill me. Get you angry enough to go over to the Dark Side. And then you'd serve my master in my place?"

"No," Skywalker said sharply.

"Is that why the girl isn't with you? So she doesn't have to witness anything that might turn her? She is very powerful. And untrained. I'm sure I don't need to tell you how fragile a state that is. So easy for the Dark Side to take hold in someone young and unprepared, don't you think?" he continued relentlessly.

"Ben, please," was the anguished response.

"Why did you come back, Uncle?" Kylo Ren demanded, body rigid with anger.

Skywalker's shoulders tensed but he looked calmly at his nephew. "Because someone has to own up for what happened."

"Let's see who it is, then," he replied resignedly as he pulled out and ignited his lightsaber. Skywalker gave a nod, just like he used to, when they would practice fighting all those years ago. This time, though, neither of them held back.

"Finn! Luke's disappeared!" Rey cried, causing the squad to come to a halt.

Finn moved back to them to look around, as though the Jedi might just be behind the last curve. "When did you last see him?" he asked Rey, turning to face her.

"I don't know! We were talking about the crystals and then… Then he was just gone," she told him mournfully, panic and shame filling her. How was she ever going to help the Resistance if she couldn't keep track of one man?

"It's going to be okay, Rey. I'm sure he can handle himself. Let's just continue with the mission," Finn told her soothingly, touching her shoulder.

She began to nod, to be calmed, but then she considered the familiar presence she was feeling. "Wait, Finn! He's here. Kylo Ren's here and Luke must have gone to face him! We have to help!" she insisted, gaze alternating between him and Chewbacca.

Looking torn, Finn glanced toward the rest of the squad, who all looked uncomfortable, then back to Rey. "We have to finish this, Rey. They're depending on us." Her face fell. "Alright, why don't you and Chewie go look for him – just reconnaissance, Rey! And call as soon as you find him," he offered hesitantly, clearly unhappy at the thought of being separated.

Chewbacca reinforced Finn's statement, looking at her intently.

Jumping at the chance, she nodded and immediately headed off to find Luke. Finn shook his head after her, worrying at his lip, before resuming his role as the leader of the squad. Rey made her way down the corridors at just short of a run – she wasn't worried about missing her master in her rush, or of losing the Wookiee. From the nearly overwhelming feelings that weren't hers but were in her head anyway, she didn't have a lot of time.

She skidded to a stop, motioning for Chewbacca to do the same, when she came to the cavern lit by chaotic green and red – the lightsabers clashed, sending sparks. Unlike her own fight on Starkiller base, they seemed evenly matched and neither were giving any ground. Kylo Ren's style was much more aggressive and reckless than Luke's, and seemed more intent on causing bodily harm. She thought of how he'd burned Finn's shoulder, but couldn't see any burns on Luke.

Kylo Ren was unmasked and the wound she'd given him almost distracted her from the thought of the dejected child she'd seen in her nightmare. Almost. But she couldn't drive away the feeling of pity, or the thought that she, too, knew what it was like to be left behind by your family and not understand why. To be alone and afraid, trying to figure out what you did to drive them away. I'm not like him, she told herself firmly. She wouldn't betray those she loved, or kill them to further her own ends – even if he was tormented by the choice afterward.

Her hands clenched to her sides and tried to figure out what to do – just running out there with her lightsaber was not the best plan, more than likely. And just shooting at Luke's assailant… That didn't seem like a good idea, either. Motioning for Chewie to stay where he was, she slowly crept closer and became aware that they were speaking.

"You rely too much on Form 3," Kylo Ren said as he almost got through Luke's guard.

"You don't use 6 anymore?" Luke responded, almost conversationally despite the grim determination on his face. On both of their faces.

The scar cutting through his features twisted as Kylo Ren smiled slightly. "Oh, I do." Reaching out with his off-hand, he used the Force to drive Luke back a few meters.

To Rey's surprise, Luke almost smiled back before closing the distance between them quickly. "That always was your favorite."

Kylo Ren paused suddenly, nearly losing a hand before blocking at the last second. "Your girl is here," he said dispassionately.

Luke was similarly distracted and Kylo Ren took advantage of it, but almost as an afterthought – her terror seemed unfounded when Luke turned back to block before he was in any real danger. "Rey, I've got this. Go help Finn," Luke ordered.

Though she wasn't exactly hiding, she was still surprised when Kylo Ren glanced her way, especially when his guarded expression dropped for a moment. "Luke," she murmured beseechingly, wishing he could just come back with her and they would stop.

"Rey, now," Luke repeated tensely.

"So protective," Kylo Ren commented harshly, recovering himself, and Luke narrowly avoided a slash to his side.

"Leave her out of this," he snapped, and Rey hadn't expected him to sound so… well, so protective, as his ex-student had pointed out. People being interested in her safety was a new situation for her but she'd have to dwell on it later.

"I've heard that before," was the angry response as Kylo Ren twisted around and managed to land a hit on Luke's arm.

He cried out in pain, but dodged enough to keep from losing the appendage. Retreating quickly, he held his lightsaber up again and defended himself. "She was just worried about you," Luke explained and it took Rey a moment to realize they were referring to someone else – to Leia, she supposed.

"Yes, and we can see how that turned out."

Another well-aimed slash drove Luke back further, wincing but not gravely injured. "Ben… We only ever wanted to help you."

Swinging his weapon around, Kylo Ren caught Luke's using the crossguards and pulled so that their faces were close together. "Only one of you ever succeeded," he snarled before sliding his blade down until it sparked against Luke's metal hand.

Luke dropped his lightsaber and jumped back, hastily retreating from Kylo Ren's reach (not an easy task, given their respective heights) while stretching for his weapon. Reacting quickly, Rey threw him the one he'd given her, and he gave her nod, igniting it just in time to keep from losing his head.

"No fair," Kylo Ren stated, sounding amused.

"Perhaps you should have brought an apprentice," Luke responded levelly.

Kylo Ren glanced at her again, then back at Luke. "Perhaps I have," he suggested.

Luke understood the implications and she could feel an unexpected amount of anger radiating from him. "You can't have her, Ben." His voice was dangerous and he attacked with renewed vigor.

Rey, defenseless, watched in mute horror as she felt a shift in them. No, not in them – in the ground! The generators – Finn must have been successful. Too successful because now the mine was about to collapse. Surveying the room, it struck her that her teacher and her… enemy were not paying attention to it, both filled with deadly intent. If Luke killed his own nephew… Would he be as haunted as the man in question was for killing Han? Would it take him down a dark path from which he could not return?

Looking up, she saw cracks forming in the roof of the cavern and could predict what would happen to the distracted men fighting before her. Reaching out, she pushed with all her strength and managed to drive them apart as crumbling rock crashed down where they had just been standing.

The effort left her breathless and she bent over, hands on knees, while she recovered. When she stood up, she realized she had miscalculated. The cave-in had effectively separated the two combatants, but she was on the wrong side.

Kylo Ren was standing there, looking at the rubble with a heavy frown while he caught his breath. Then he slashed at it ineffectually with his lightsaber a few times before turning to her, seeming calmer. Disregarding that, she pulled out her blaster and levelled it at him.

His expression was not unlike how he'd stared when she'd successfully summoned Luke's lightsaber to her the last time they'd met, and she didn't know what to make of that. "You're not going to kill me," he stated, almost gently.

Glaring, she took a few steps back, relieved that the ground was no longer shaking and considering making a run for it. "How do you know?"

He smiled slightly. "You didn't have to push us apart."

"Maybe I just wanted to save Luke from having to kill you," she countered.

"It would have been more effective if you'd let my surroundings kill me. Now someone else has to," he said reasonably, as if they were discussing the weather.

She didn't answer, just kept an eye on him while she looked for a way out of here that wouldn't involve turning her back on him.

Startlingly, he took a step toward her and she focused on him again. "You no longer want me dead," he said slowly, as though surprised.

"Get out of my head," she snapped.

"Get out of mine," he replied amiably.

Her eyes narrowed as she assessed him and he did nothing to stop her. He was frustrated not to have finished his fight with Luke. She was skeptical, but it seemed like his distress did not stem from being unable to kill his former master. It was something else that she couldn't place without delving further. He was worried about… about his mother. And about his own weakening resolve. He hated himself and wanted this to be over, but her existence gave him hope.

She drew back sharply, shaking her head to clear it. "What do you want from me?"

"Your help."

"Why me?"

"Because you can do what I cannot."