A few minutes later, Padme heard a knock on her bedroom door. She did not feel like talking.
"Go away!" she grunted.
"Padme, please let me in," Leia asked. Padme reluctantly opened the door for her mother.
"I'm not going downstairs..."
"I'm not asking you to." Leia closed the door behind her. "Come and sit with me."
The two women sat down on the bed. Padme remembered back to the time she found out Leia was her mother. Just like then, she played nervously with the hem of her skirt.
"I know you love him," her mother said softly, as she brushed a stray lock of hair under her daughter's ear.
"Of course I love Dad! He's just over protective!" Padme complained.
"I wasn't referring to your dad, Padme, and you know that. Sweetheart, we just want the best for you."
"He is the best for me, Mom! He loves me so much!" Padme stopped speaking. The pain of Ben being tortured and forced to work for the Order overwhelmed her.
Leia placed her hand on Padme's face. She hated to see her daughter in so much pain.
"Honey, he's protecting you, isn't he?" Leia guessed correctly. Padme could not deny the truth anymore. She simply nodded her head, before the tears came. Leia tightly embraced her.
"Please don't tell Dad!" Padme begged, as her mom wiped her tears away. "He'll just force me to stay here."
"You will have to tell him eventually. Han just wants what is best for you. He won't admit it to you, but he knows he was wrong to try to keep you here. He is so proud of what you have accomplished, and so am I."
"It will only be a matter of time, Mom. Once the Senate declares war, then the Rebels will have the manpower they need to crush the Order once and for all. Then the galaxy will be at peace, and I..." Padme's voice trailed off. She wistfully thought about being with Ben.
"Does he treat you well?" Leia asked.
"Yes. He loves me. He hates working for Hux..."
"But he doesn't want you to get hurt," her mom finished her sentence. "He reminds me of someone."
"Who?" her daughter curiously asked.
"Your father."
Padme smiled. She had heard of the many stories of how Han risked his life to save Leia.
"Being in love during wartime is not easy," Leia confessed. "You need to trust each other, trust in the love that you share, even though you are far apart. But even if it does not work out, please remember that you are loved by so many people."
Padme nodded her head before Leia embraced her, She knew what her mother was trying to tell her. Her parents met during wartime, and their relationship did not last. But there was no turning back now. She could not worry about what will happen between her and Ben. They needed to deal with their present circumstances.
"Get some rest," Leia urged, before kissing Padme's forehead. She rose from the bed and left the room. Padme turned off the light and went to sleep.
Meanwhile, Kylo was trying to figure out how to find the weakness in Starkiller Base. His research had to be atypical. He could not simply look up the weapon on the Holonet. Hux would be suspicious, and there would be dire consequences for Kylo. So he took a different approach.
He found the answer at a conference Hux had. Kylo entered the general's mind. It make him sick that he had to do this, but he had no other choice. The vulnerable spot in the weapon was the oscillator. If the oscillator was destroyed, Starkiller Base would explode.
Kylo was joyful until he finished reading Hux's mind. In order for it to be destroyed, not only did the oscillator have to be taken out, but the shields surrounding it would have to be down, and the weapon would have to be fully charged and ready to fire.
He was summoned to appear before Hux in his office. Begrudgingly, Kylo entered the general's office.
"Sit down, Ben," Hux commanded. Kylo took a seat and Hux sat next to him. Kylo wished he could be anywhere else but there.
"I was searching the Holonet, trying to find information on your precious Padme," Hux began.
Kylo's heart dropped. Did Hux find out that Padme was Mand'lore? He did his best to not appear nervous.
"There is not much information about her, except for one very interesting item," Hux declared, as he typed. An Imperial document appeared on the screen. It had Padme's name on it! Kylo backed away from the screen, trying to figure out what it was.
"Did you know about this, Ben?" Hux quizzed him.
"Know what? I can't even tell what this is!" Kylo replied in frustration.
"Let me enlarge the print so that you can see." Hux did so. When Kylo saw what it was, he had to bite his lips from gasping in shock.
"This is an Imperial prisoner record. Your precious Padme was captured by Emperor Vader," Hux told Kylo.
"I knew nothing about this," Kylo responded truthfully. "Why is this important?"
"Ben, you are not seeing the obvious. Did you really think you were going to hide her Force sensitivity from me? The only time Vader captured prisoners himself was if they were Force sensitive. He would made them do his bidding or be killed."
Kylo was not sure what upset him more, the fact that Hux knew Padme was Force sensitive, or that she was a prisoner of Vader's. No wonder she flinched when he grabbed her from behind back on Sundari!
"In fact, she is really special. She was the last prisoner Vader captured. He died the next day. Now that cannot be a coincidence, right?" Hux assumed.
"I don't know. She never said anything to me about this! Why does it matter to you? You hate her!" Kylo wondered.
"I do, but just like you, I can use her."
"Use her how?" Kylo felt the anger rise in himself. "Are you replacing me with her?" If that was the case, he was going to kill Hux right now.
"Do you want to be replaced?" Hux answered back rhetorically. "Of course not! In fact, I need both of you."
"Why?" Kylo did not like where this conversation was heading.
"Once the Order takes over the galaxy, we will need to replace the troops we have lost with new soldiers, trained at birth to be loyal. To be loyal," Hux paused, turning to face Kylo. "And to be powerful in the Force."
Kylo realized what the general was saying. He wanted him and Padme to have children, that would serve the Order. He was sickened by Hux's plan.
"Ben, I thought you would be delighted by my plan," Hux grinned, proud of making his masked prisoner of his squirm in his seat.
"No!" Kylo growled angrily. "I will not do it. I will not force myself on her!"
"Who said anything about force? Doesn't she love you? Doesn't she want to be with you?" Kylo wisely refused to answer.
"She will not agree to it. She would rather die..." Hux raised a hand to silence Kylo.
"I beg to differ. I think she will agree to it, if it will protect you."
"You sick bastard! You promised to keep her safe, if I revealed the bases. You liar!"
"Be quiet! That was before I found out she was Force sensitive. If she gets captured, she will be imprisoned and initiated into the Order."
Kylo's stomach churned. He knew what Hux did to female prisoners. To think of Padme being in that situation infuriated him.
"Or if you prefer, I will take her myself, and she will bear my children..."
"ENOUGH!" Kylo screamed, as he stood from his chair. "Leave Padme alone! She means nothing to you!" Kylo was about to leave, but Hux grabbed his wrist.
"I did not dismiss you, Ben."
"The name is Kylo!"
"No. You are Ben Kryze, the forgotten heir to the Mandalorian royal family, an ex-Jedi and my prisoner. Sit down now, otherwise I will get the truth serum, and find out more things about your precious Padme!" Hux threatened.
Kylo hated him more and more as the days went on. But he had no choice. He had to protect Padme. So he sat back down, feeling miserable.
"Very good, Ben. You are a quick learner. Now look at me."
Although he didn't want to, Kylo faced his captor.
"I should have explained myself better," Hux began, clearing his throat. "You and Padme having children benefits me. But this would also be your reward for all you have done to help the Order accomplish its goals."
"I don't need your rewards," Kylo barked.
"No. But you do need Padme. You will do anything for her, even this. Maybe it will not happen. Maybe she will die before then. But I thought I would give you fair warning, in case she is ever captured. You may leave now."
Kylo walked out, trying to not make it obvious how terrified he was. He headed to his room, tore off his helmet, went to the bathroom and threw up.
He was not looking forward to telling Padme any of this. He was also upset with her. She never told him she was a prisoner of Vader's. If Kylo would have known, he could have prevented Hux from seeing the Imperial document. Now that Hux knew Padme was Force sensitive, he wanted to use her like he used Kylo. Hux had also said that it wasn't a coincidence that Vader died the day after he captured Padme. Kylo thought for a moment before remembering. The chip that showed his father's murder. He needed to look at it again.