It was early the next morning.
Rey sat with her legs crossed, examining the Holocron in her palm. A small droid beeped near the side of her bed, trying to coax her into taking a cold dinner tray. The little servant had been at this for some time. Finally giving in, the Jedi reached for the tray. With a sigh, she placed it on the bed next to her.
The droid whistled appreciatively in response, rolling for the exit.
"That door is locked," Rey said warily, watching the droid bump into it.
The Jedi sighed heavily. It appeared like the droid would be spending a few hours in her room; at least until the next meal time.
Closing her eyes, Rey attempted to clear her mind. It was tougher than usual, especially being in this room.
Her thoughts were noisy. She kept lingering on the night before, replaying the encounter with the jealous stormtrooper and the subsequent fight with Kylo Ren.
The room was trashed from fighting the so called "Sith Lord", if she could call that a fight at all. He never lifted a hand in his own defense, but it felt good to get her aggression out.
Upon waking, it was clear that Kylo Ren had simply pushed all the debris into one corner. The piles of busted drywall, furniture, and light fixtures were evidence of the massive beatdown he had received.
But it was the mess by the door, that left Rey with a queasy feeling.
The wall was scuffed with black marks and had an indentation. CA-4595 had died there. All the blood had been scrubbed clean. Fortunately for Rey, the body was gone when she woke up. That was likely by Kylo Ren's order as well.
Rey couldn't help but second guess her actions. Could the Jedi have stopped CA-4595 without killing her? Everything happened so fast and Rey felt like she had been backed into a corner. Even so, the Jedi needed to know for sure.
In that moment, Rey breathed in and out. She vividly pictured CA-4595 barging in again, blaster raised. The Jedi recalled how it made her feel…
"It is you!" shouted CA-4595. The stormtrooper's helmet made her voice sound distorted and strained.
With a start, Rey jumped out of bed—expecting to find that Kylo Ren had barged in. Concentrating hard on the Holocron lessons, she was completely caught off guard. Her Jedi senses had failed to warn her of the threat.
"Excuse Me?" Rey asked, her brows snapped together. She felt like she was going to have a heart attack.
"You don't deserve him," spat the intruder, shaking her gun at Rey.
CA-4595 took a step closer, keeping her edge. With a 'click' and 'release', the blaster switched from stun to kill.
"Lower your weapon and leave," Rey commanded, raising an eyebrow. The young Jedi was well versed in mind tricks by now.
To her surprise, CA-4595 didn't comply. Rey's words had fallen on deaf ears. CA-4595 overheard Lord Ren's instructions and switched off the internal speakers in her helmet. Strangely, the Jedi's power of influence had an apparent flaw. It was likely that Master Skywalker didn't know about this.
"He's better off without you," the stormtrooper said coldly. She pulled the trigger and fired twice.
Quick on her feet, Rey rolled and avoided both rounds. The deadly blue streaks narrowly missed the viewports behind her. The stormtrooper was careless; she could have killed them both.
The Jedi sprang forward to defend herself, as the next shot rang out.
In a fluid motion, Rey channeled her abilities. She used the Force to hold the third shot in midair; just like Kylo Ren. Vibrating in place, the deadly blue flare cracked loudly.
CA-4595 panicked, looking at her blaster in disbelief.
Rey seized the opening, reaching out and Force Pulling the weapon out of her hands. The bewildered stormtrooper tugged with all of her strength but failed to hold onto the weapon.
The blaster skidded away and came to a short stop—just out of reach. The intruder dove for the weapon, but Rey gave it another Pull.
"Kriff," CA-4595 cursed, scrambling to her feet.
Relieved, Rey trained the weapon on her would-be-assassin. The stormtrooper backed up against the wall, considering her options.
"Why?" Rey asked, breathing heavily.
The stormtrooper's thoughts were transparent. She hated Rey and envied the Jedi's hold over Kylo Ren. There was something else at the surface too. A longing to be by his side, at any cost. An intimate relationship with Kylo Ren came with many benefits.
As the Jedi looked deeper, imagery surfaced that made her shudder. Detailed and graphic memories of Kylo Ren burned into Rey's retinas.
She could feel Kylo, every bit of him.
"Jedi whore," CA-4595 snapped, as if she knew that Rey was viewing something intimate. The stormtrooper reached for a tab on her belt, removing a grenade.
Rey was quicker; lashing out with a Force Push.
The third laser—still hovering in mid-air—was affected by the Push. It redirected and hit CA-4595 squarely in the chest. With a loud cry, the stormtrooper went flying into the wall. Her back crushed in the drywall facade.
The whole room reverberated with the power of Rey's attack. Falling from the stormtrooper's hand was the grenade. Luckily, she didn't have the time to activate it.
An odd feeling washed over Rey. Breathing heavily, she felt stronger. In a trance-like state, she gave her downed opponent a once over and decided to approach.
Rey stood a few feet away from CA-4595.
"What could he possibly see in you?" she asked rhetorically. Of course, there was no answer.
"You'll never lay a hand on Kylo Ren again," Rey said bitterly. She raised the blaster at CA-4595's visor.
I'll make sure of it, Rey thought. With that, she pulled the trigger.
Rey snapped out of her trance with a gasp.
For the first time, she felt possessed by the Dark Side. It was like an infection, consuming every bit of her. The sensation was addicting and her insides churned for more.
Rey stumbled backward, putting distance between herself and the stormtrooper. For the first time in a long time, she was afraid. The Jedi curled up in a corner, trying to find herself again. She stayed in the same position, until Kylo Ren arrived and embraced her.
The Jedi pulled herself to the present, exhaling deeply. She was calmer today, even if she was distracted. She grabbed a thin piece of meat off the cold tray, trying a bite of it.
Redirecting the blaster wasn't intentional, she convinced herself. What was so concerning was that feeling of power; losing control and giving into desire. These were all things Master Skywalker warned her about.
Just as concerning, was that a part of her wanted CA-4595 dead and out of the way. The Jedi didn't want to have feelings for Kylo Ren. But one thing was very clear; the Darksider wanted her. His heart belonged to Rey. And CA-4595 was trying to take something that was rightfully hers.
Had this been another scavenger on Jakku, Rey would have reacted in a similar fashion. She would have used violence to protect what was hers.
Tears started to form in Rey's eyes. This behavior… it wasn't her. It wasn't who she wanted to be.
The Jedi was sure of one thing: Kylo Ren was dangerous, for reasons beyond the obvious. He was a shadow threatened to swallow her light. Rey was determined to escape his grasp. Staying here wasn't going to work.
Looking for help, Rey reached out. The Force was her ally and she needed to trust in her taining.
"Master Luke." She kept repeating, like a mantra.
Kylo Ren sat quietly, getting his wounds patched. He watched over Rey all night, only leaving when the morning shift changed. Keeping track of night and day on a Star Destroyer could be a tricky thing, especially in the void of space.
As the medical droid added another stitch to his shoulder, Kylo closed his eyes. He concentrated on Rey. She was awake now, sitting on the bed and facing the door. No doubt, she was still upset with him.
He sighed. Deep down, he knew that Rey was justified in her actions. She gave him a pretty good beating; unlike his fantasies, this wasn't much fun. All that anger on display and she refused to cross the line.
The Jedi stayed in the light, just out of reach. It was frustrating, having her this close, he admitted. Rey was like water, escaping his fingers whenever he tightened his grasp.
The medical droid finished stitching the last wound. One of the staffers came over to inspect the droid's handy work.
"I asked for a lightning bolt," Kylo Ren said with a half smile, unable to see the scar toward the back of his shoulder.
"Well, you got one," the medic replied, dryly.
Kylo flashed the medic an angry look, before finding a mirror to inspect it. Sure enough, the droid put a lightning bolt on the back of his shoulder.
"These droids can't tell when humans are joking," the medic chuckled.
The Sith Lord wasn't amused, cursing under his breath. He pulled on his usual black undershirt, opting to leave the heavier layers off.
"Is there anything else you need, Lord Ren?" The medic asked, punching data into his tablet.
"Deliver breakfast to my apprentice," Kylo ordered, narrowing his gaze.
"Are you kidding? That's not my job," he said with another laugh, not looking up to see the Darksider's face.
Without warning, Kylo Ren summoned his lightsaber and ignited it. Startled, the medic fled the infirmary; dropping his tablet as he ran.
Kylo Ren hissed, turning the fiery lightsaber on the medical droid. These droids weren't designed to be able to run away or hide. It was therapeutic, slashing the metal into pieces.
On the bridge of the Thrive, the Resistance received an incoming transmission. Their best pilot was out flying a recon mission with BB-8.
"At least two Star Destroyers are within jump range of the Finalizer. They're hiding on the edge of the Karthurn system. The large amount of moons and asteroids there could be hiding more ships." Poe reported, appearing as a hologram on the table.
Leia sighed, staring at the data from Poe and BB-8. From behind, Luke Skywalker stood alone; meditating.
The Jedi Master searched the Force for signs of his apprentice. He sensed Rey's unmistakable energy signature. Her voice was faint, like a whisper. It was clear she was following her lessons, even in the clutches of Kylo Ren. That gave him hope.
"You were right General, it's definitely a trap," Poe continued. "The moment our cruiser arrives, the reinforcement ships will cut off our escape."
The snowy image of the pilot flickered.
"At least the engineers were telling the truth. We've found a way to track the Finalizer," Finn offered, looking for a positive spin. "We just need a diversion that lasts long enough to give Rey a chance to escape."
Leia tapped her chin and considered the options. Rey was just one person, but she was too important to the Jedi Order to abandon. She was too important to the galaxy, in fact. At this point, it was a question of resources.
The General wondered how quickly Admiral Ackbar could arrive with the reinforcements.
Standing around the command table, Leia's advisers spoke quietly. They seemed divided on which course to take.
"Hey, I've got an idea that Finn isn't going to like," Poe chimed in, putting an end to the separate conversation.
Finn and the General exchanged looks, as Luke approached. The Jedi Master joined the discussion, keeping his ears open for Rey.
Suddenly, a welcome voice entered his mind.
"Master Luke," Rey said clearly. "I need your help."