Rey dutifully appears at the Coruscant broadcast studio of the official First Order news channel for all of her subsequent media appearances. The process is always the same. She jumps to Coruscant in the stolen First Order shuttle and hails the Finalizer in orbit. Then she descends to the surface with an escort of TIEs. She is met on the landing pad by a squad of stormtroopers commanded by the Second Knight of Ren, the big guy from Maz Kanata's tavern, Nestor Ren. In his vicar's robes identical to Emperor Ren's uniform, the knight appears very much the authority figure. Once inside the studio, Kylo's knight personally stands sentry off camera at all times. Is he guarding a prisoner or protecting a VIP? It's ambiguous, and very intentionally so. This is not exactly friendly turf for a rebel fighter. Rey gets a lot of disdainful, even hateful looks. Using her best Jakku posturing, Rey blithely ignores the hostile stares just like she ignores Nestor Ren and the rest of his show of force. She plays it cool and tries to keep her focus on the task at hand.
Being the face of the Resistance is far more difficult than she realized. Her first task is to deal with the aftermath of the botched prisoner rescue. The meticulously planned raid that was to reintroduce the Resistance to the galaxy has become a debacle. Rey gets grilled over the violent convicts the rebels mistakenly liberated. She watches stone faced as pictures of the dead prison guards smiling with their families are flashed up on screen. Rey does her best to acknowledge the mistake, express deep sympathy for the loss of life, and then get right back on message. But from the outset, the revived Resistance makes a bad first impression. Winning over the hearts and minds of the public just got a lot harder. Even after the media cycle runs its course, that initial raid keeps coming up again and again to discredit Rey and her cause.
Luckily, the Resistance media blitz is more than just Rey. She enlists the small group of academics and journalist volunteers back at the base to inundate the holonet with essays and articles in support of the Resistance cause. These people write with a historical context and scholarly bent that Rey cannot hope to imitate. She is the young, perhaps a little superficial holonet pundit who speaks from the heart in everyday language, and they are the learned thinkers who churn out an ongoing counterpoint to the constant propaganda barrage from the First Order. Rarely is the Resistance response consistent in tone or in theme, much of it is overblown reactionary rhetoric, and some of it is petty. But it is loud and incessant. Kylo said he wanted her to create media pressure, after all. Rey delivers.
Is it working? Rey can't tell. She is far too close to it all. Plus, she barely has time to sleep as she feeds the constant holonet media beast. The pace is exhausting.
When the next raid goes awry with the same embarrassing results, it's obvious that the First Order has a spy among the Resistance. Recalling Kylo's comment, Rey suggests to the council that they start to vet all new volunteers. Accepting all comers gives the First Order ample opportunity to embed spies with us, Rey contends. The council agrees. Everyone on base is especially vigilant from then on. Sure enough, a week later two rebels are identified as possible spies.
Finn approaches Rey for help. "Is it true that you can tell if someone is lying by using the Force?"
"Sometimes," she admits. And that's how she gets enlisted in the interrogation efforts. Rey watches as the first suspect is repeatedly questioned. The man is lying outright, Rey senses. He is a First Order spy, she's certain. When Rey reveals her assessment, things happen very quickly. The man is hauled to account before the rebel council. He denies he is a spy and refuses to inform on others. The questioning gets rough and still yields no information. Once it becomes clear that there is no point in continuing, someone puts a blaster to the man's head and fires. Horrified Rey looks on in stunned silence.
Then, it's time for her to watch the second interrogation. This man too is lying. He is also a First Order spy. But when her opinion is asked, Rey equivocates. I'm not sure, she answers. The other evidence against the man is shaky at best, so the council concludes to throw him out in lieu of execution. In the few seconds that Rey is left alone with the accused, the man turns to her and is grateful. They said you were one of us, he tells Rey. Thank you for covering for me. I understand why you needed to give the other guy up to keep your credibility. Don't worry, the man assures Rey, there are five more of us. We are here to collect intelligence, but we are also here to help you get away, if necessary. We will fight and die for the Emperor's secret sister.
Flustered Rey is uncertain what to do with that knowledge. Plus, she is terribly guilty about the fate of the first suspect. She decides to keep quiet for the sake of the five others and for her own self-preservation. Does that make her complicit? Yes. Rey is uncomfortably aware that the worst spy of all is herself. And now, in a bizarre irony, she has inadvertently become the de facto arbitrator of guilt in these matters.
Rey takes issue with this among the rebel council. She thinks that there should be some sort of trial to determine the truth and not an effective thumb's up or thumb's down from her as the resident Jedi. But no one sees the point in this. And now Rey, who has been all over the holonet arguing for a guarantee of basic civil rights in the Empire's judicial system, points out the obvious: shouldn't we be giving the accused the same right to a trial that we seek from the enemy? That's different, she is told. In time of war, we don't have the time or resources for all that. Plus, swift capital punishment sends a message. It acts as a deterrent. Rey vociferously disagrees but she is far outnumbered.
Afterwards, Rose takes her aside to encourage her to let the matter go. Spies will only get us all killed. They must be dealt with harshly to protect us. And we are the good guys, Rose reminds her with a reassuring smile. Remember? But in this instance, Rey is not so certain.
This is the first real disagreement Rey has had with the rebel council, but she fears it will be just the beginning. Rey's frequent holonet appearances keep her away from the base a lot. It's almost two days' travel time one-way from Dantooine to Coruscant. As a result, Rey is often left out of the daily decision making. Rey has the impression that several on the council like it that way. They would rather her voice of moderation be absent. Go do your political stuff, her more militant opponents on the council tell her, why we plan the real fighting. It comes off as patronizing. Rey feels marginalized and complains to Finn.
Finn is a patient listening ear, as always. But he doesn't wholly share her views. There is a lot of frustration about the two bungled raids and a growing consensus that the Resistance needs to act bigger and bolder to redeem itself and change the narrative. Talk of assassination arises again. Rey maintains her staunch opposition. But she is uncomfortably aware that she is one vote of dissent among many supporters.
More and more, Rey feels like a lone voice shouting in the wilderness, whether she is live on-air on the holonet arguing for reforms to the First Order or in-person arguing for restraint to the rebel council. It's frustrating and demoralizing. Neither side is listening to her. Rey feels caught in the middle and trapped in an increasingly complex web of deceit.
"Tough day?" It's Nestor Ren who is correctly reading Rey's woebegone expression as she marches out of the broadcast studio into the adjacent green room. Rey slumps unceremoniously into a vacant chair.
"They're all tough days," she sighs. Then she scowls over at the knight. "Why are you even here?" She's never asked him this. Mostly she ignores Nestor Ren when he attempts to engage her in conversation. Rey is not a talker by nature. And when she finishes these media appearances, she is all talked out. Stressed out, too.
"I'm here because he wants you to be protected," the knight answers calmly. "You are a rebel fugitive. Some aggrieved war veteran could storm in and put a blaster to your head. We have our own share of extremists on our side, my lady."
Yeah, she knows. "Call me Rey. I'm not a lady. I'm just a scavenger," Rey grumbles.
"You're his lady," Nestor Ren counters quietly.
Rey makes a face but declines to debate the point. It doesn't really matter what this guy thinks. So instead, she asks, "What is it you guys actually do?"
"The knights? We are the defenders of the faith. We serve the Master as warriors for the Force."
That seems a bit grandiose for babysitting her once a week on Coruscant. Rey slants the knight a sideways glance. "You seem more like my prison guard."
Nestor Ren lets the comment roll off his back. Despite his imposing appearance of muscles, tattoos, and lightsaber, he seems rather affable. He now starts cataloging a Knight of Ren's job description. "We study and practice the Force. We quest for knowledge by seeking out relics and temples. We quash blasphemy and we punish heretics. And once a week," he smiles genially, "I hang out with the Master's girl when she's in town."
Rey ignores this last bit. "Heretics? Are there Force heretics?" she asks.
He nods. "The Jedi and Sith are the two most prominent religions of the Force, but other smaller sects persist. The most well-known are the Dagoyan Masters, the Dathomir Nightsisters, and the laymen of the Church of the Force. There are others scattered here and there. We are tolerant where we can be," he allows. "We leave alone those sects that foster respect and greater understanding of the Force if they roughly comport with our views."
"Oh? And where do I fit into this pantheon?" Where does an untrained, sometime enemy Force-user rejected by Luke Skywalker fit into this mix?
Nestor Ren takes on a serious tone as he explains, "We defend the faith. That means we defend the Master as the reigning high priest and we defend each other as brothers in the Force. You are a Force-user under the Master's protection, so we defend you as well."
Rey digests this statement a moment. She's still unclear on where Nestor Ren fits into the First Order hierarchy. "So I know that Hux is his best general. And that old bald guy is his chief administrator. But what are you exactly?" Rey had never heard of the Knights of Ren before recently. She had no idea that Ren was Kylo's title and not an assumed surname. There is nothing about these guys publicly available on the holonet—she's checked. As far as Rey can tell, the knights are something akin to a secret religious police.
Nestor tries again to explain. "The Master rules the galaxy in all things sacred and profane. He has a military to enforce order. He has policy advisors and bureaucrats for his civilian government. And he has the knights to keep the faith."
Rey is still pretty fuzzy on this. Nestor is not trying to be obtuse, but that's the effect nonetheless. "Is this how Snoke was going to run things too?" she asks.
"Yes. My old Master was to be the ultimate authority in all things. He was to be the head of the state and the head of the church, if you will. That's why Snoke called himself the Supreme Leader. Ben is Snoke now, only he chose the Emperor title instead."
"So . . . do you report on me to him every week?" Rey asks with a raised eyebrow. It's been a couple of months now since she last saw Emperor Ren in person. She has no idea what Kylo is up to these days. She has wondered about him a lot. Far more than she expected, actually.
"The Master always asks about you," Nestor admits. "Ben wants to know how you are doing." The knight fixes her with a questioning look. "How are you doing, my lady?"
"I'm floundering," Rey candidly admits. "This isn't working. I show up on these shows and talk and nothing changes. The Resistance seems to be veering more extreme, not less. Most of the Empire thinks I am a misguided idealist or a terrorist bitch." She's venting now and maybe she shouldn't be. The scavenger from Jakku is used to scorn but the anonymous haters on the holonet take it to a whole new level. Rey can let the comments on her appearance roll off her back but the cutting remarks about her intellect get under her skin. Rey is very self-conscious about her lack of education.
"My lady," Nestor tells her gently, "Ben wants to know how you are doing personally. I don't give him an assessment of your performance." The knight gives her an encouraging smile. "It is hard to be in the middle. You get hit by both sides. Peace is hard. The Sith knew that. It's why they believed peace was a lie and sought to exploit conflict."
"And the Jedi?" Rey asks.
"Historically, their well-intentioned meddling created larger, deeper conflicts over time." The knight shrugs as he tells Rey, "Snoke would have ruled very differently. He would have been Darth Sidious all over again. But Ben is doing this his own way. I guess you can't grow up with Leia Organa as a mother and not have some democratic principles wear off. Ben is not the despot autocrat Snoke would have been. In time, once things get up and running, the Master will be a far more benevolent leader." Nestor Ren now loyally adds, "Do not underestimate Ben Solo. People have been doing that for years and they learn their lesson the hard way. Ask Luke Skywalker and ask Snoke," the knight says pointedly.
"Do you think Ben can actually do this?" Rey asks plainly. She's looking to be reassured. "Do you think he can actually pull off a lasting peace?"
Nestor nods. "He's a Skywalker and the grandson to Lord Vader. Ben was born to do this. It's our job to help him. If he fails, we all lose and there will be another civil war. You think your job is hard? It is. But his is far harder."
"So, I should keep showing up here each week to do my part, is that it?" If this is a pep talk, it's not a very good one, Rey thinks glumly.
"These things take time. It's only been a few months. You will learn patience." Nestor now appraises her steadily. "I sense much fear in you. No-do not attempt to hide it. Embrace it. Understand it. My lady, we are all a mix of Light and Dark. Do not repress the Darkness within. Do not be Skywalker."
Remembering the depressed, grumpy Jedi Master on Ahch-To, Rey nods. She definitely doesn't want to be that guy.
As requested, Rey keeps slogging through holonet appearances. To the extent Kylo needs to relay information, it comes through Nestor Ren. Otherwise, Kylo is nowhere to be found. Is he busy organizing his new Empire? Or is he respecting Rey's request to let her focus on peace? Rey didn't really expect him to do that. It tells Rey that she hurt him. She isn't proud of that. But what else can you do with an overbearing guy like Kylo Ren? Still . . . Rey didn't expect that Kylo would disappear completely. Now, bizarrely, Rey feels a bit rejected too.
Her world is very complicated right now. Her heart is conflicted over the goals of the Resistance. More and more, she is confused about where her loyalties lie. Layering a romance with Kylo atop all that seems foolish. And then there is Finn, with his rosy future that Rey fears he will never live to see. Rey knows that pursuing a future with Finn just puts an even bigger target on his back. It also will disturb the fragile friendship Rey is working hard to maintain with Rose. For now, the best course seems to be to focus on her job and to avoid getting closer to either man.
And is it too much to ask for a young woman to be left alone to find her own way? To want to focus on other important things in lieu of a relationship? Where is it written that she needs to have a man around at all times? Rey isn't used to being close to people and so the concept of having not one but two suitors is sort of a shock. Her choices are stark and have serious strings attached. To hear Kylo tell it, the galaxy hangs in the balance. No pressure. No pressure at all. Well, no thanks, Rey decides. She will stay single for now and refuse to choose either man. She's choosing peace instead. And, well, it looks like she may have scared Kylo off for good anyhow.
It's been a long day and Rey has finished yet another holonet appearance. All that pointless verbal sparring is exhausting and she is glad to be done. Rey is distracted as she climbs up the ramp into her stolen shuttle to head home. It means she is taken by surprise when she discovers the visitor waiting inside.
It's Kylo Ren.
"Hello Rey."
"Kylo!" she yelps and starts. The young Emperor of the galaxy stands just inside her shuttle. He is unmasked and wearing his habitual dark robes. Kylo looks pale and serious as usual. And also subdued. Even his wild hair looks carefully combed and that is not at all like him. Rey looks him over, trying to place what else has changed in the almost three months since they have met. The scar she gave him is barely visible now, but otherwise he is the same. Kylo is handsome in that quirky, intense way she remembers. Is it their attraction that sets her heart pounding? Maybe the danger and power this man exudes? Or is it the Force? Rey can't be sure.
Kylo bristles under her silent gaze for she sees him shift his weight. Is he nervous? She suddenly is.
"That's my sword," Rey blurts out. Hanging at Kylo's waist on the left-hand side is the hilt of the lightsaber that had called to her on Takodano.
"It's Vader's sword," he answers back.
Her eyes fly to his. "You fixed it? Can you do that? I thought it blew up."
"It did. The crystal ruptured but it's fused back together now. I healed it with the Force."
"Let me see." Kylo hands the saber over and she inspects it. "Is this an all new casing?"
"I replaced the external piece," he explains. "All the wiring inside is new, too. It fried when the crystal blew."
Rey nods as she traces her hands over the workmanship. He must have labored over this sword for hours, she thinks. It looks just like new, with not even a scratch.
"Go ahead. Light it up. That's what you usually do when you see me." Kylo smirks a little as he says this. It's what passes for a smile from this enigmatic man. And is he flirting? Rey does a double take and then depresses the sword's ignition switch. The blade leaps to life.
She blinks at what she sees. The clean blue blade now hisses and spits and intermittently gives off sparks. It is a bit ragged looking now, too. Not the solid, opaque blue it once was. "Oh," Rey says with disappointment. "It looks like yours now." Kylo works his jaw and she can tell he is displeased with her reaction as she shuts off the weapon and hands it back. It's just like Kylo to feel dissed on behalf of his grandfather's sword. "Here. This was never meant to be mine. It belongs to you," she concedes.
He accepts the saber silently and replaces it at his waist. Watching him, Rey realizes that she has forgotten how tall Kylo is. She is not exactly short but he towers over her. His form is lanky, but plenty muscled too. Rey remembers vividly his broad, strong chest.
Flushing at the memory and looking for something to say, Rey wonders aloud, "Did Maz ever say how she got it?"
"Yes. It was a lie." Kylo does not elaborate. He moves on to business now. "You've been busy. Sometimes you're on the holonet twice a week now."
Rey shakes her head and looks away. "I don't think it's working."
"I'll be the judge of that," he counters. "Here." Kylo reaches into a pocket and produces a datafile that he hands to her.
"What's this?"
"It's a code of civil rights for all sentient species of the Empire. It will be formally announced tomorrow. We're leaking it in advance to the holonet tonight. And I am leaking it now to you."
Rey looks up in surprise. "Civil rights? Really?"
"Yes. It covers all your favorite topics for the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It contains a list of specific guarantees for personal freedoms. There are even a few limits on Imperial authority in judicial proceedings."
Of course, due process, she thinks. "Is this an exclusive list?"
He shrugs. "I suppose it could be supplemented, if necessary. But all rights not specifically granted to the people are reserved for the Empire. Plus, we trump any local system authority, naturally. The laws of the Empire are supreme in all things."
"How does this compare to the Republic constitution?" Rey asks. That is the gold standard of civil rights as far as the Resistance is concerned.
"Some of it is verbatim. Most is not. It can't look too similar. That's bad politics for me."
"I understand." Rey turns the small datafile over in her hand. "This is . . . sudden." She hadn't been expecting this. If anything, she had judged her efforts to be a failure on the whole.
"I'm testing the waters. Seeing how far I can push things," Kylo answers. "With the Resistance floundering, it seemed like a good time to act. Hopefully, this won't be perceived as a concession. That's important for my side. I cannot appear to be negotiating with terrorists."
"Does this mean we are going to get a constitution eventually?" Rey asks hopefully.
"There is no need for a constitution without a Senate," he quells that line of thought.
"Yeah, I guess not. This is huge," she muses aloud. "This is huge, Kylo. You didn't start small."
He nods his acknowledgement. "I want peace too. You're not the only one taking risks." He gives her a pointed look. "You need to react to this news by demanding more. It has to appear that you haven't gotten anywhere near what you want. I need you on the holonet howling about how this being too little, too late. Make it work for me, too. Make it look like this is a meaningless gesture even though it's not."
"I can do that," Rey easily agrees. "I want this to work. Is there more where this comes from?"
He shrugs. "Maybe. We'll see."
"I hope so. And soon. This needs to work because too many people have died. Kylo, I have deceived too many people who I care about. People who trust me . . . "
He raises an eyebrow at this. "The traitor?"
"Yes." She shoots him a glare. She hates when Kylo calls Finn that. "Look, I thought I would be fighting for the Resistance at Luke Skywalker's side. Instead, I am dancing around lies and deceiving everyone. And I am everywhere on the holonet talking about things I barely understand. I feel like a fraud," she vents. "This isn't me, this isn't who I am." Kylo opens his mouth to speak but she beats him to it. "And don't tell me that truth is a point of view because I know a lie when I hear one . . . or when I tell one . . . I tell a lot of lies these days," she sighs.
Kylo looks disarmingly understanding at her outburst. "Sometimes we have to do things we don't like in order to make change," he says gently. "People like us do what must be done." Kylo now admits, "I've done plenty of things I'm not proud of to get this far. But the Force is with me and it will all be worth it in the end."
Rey looks away. He sounds so confident of his words. But the ends don't justify the means for Rey quite the same way they do for Kylo Ren. "I'm worried it's all going to blow up in my face," she half-whispers. She has nightmares about all the ways in which she could expose herself and things could get ugly fast.
He takes her meaning. "I hear the rebels are killing spies."
"I'm the one killing spies," she confesses miserably.
"Yes, I heard that. Rey," Kylo steps forward to hover over her. When she doesn't immediately look over, he tugs at her arm to get her attention. "Rey, if you get in trouble, get out of there. Leave your precious Finn behind—he's not worth dying over."
Looking up into Kylo's dark eyes beneath slashing black brows, Rey is moved to confess her worst fear. "Someday it's all going to blow up in my face. And then both sides will turn on me." She is in a very precarious position, Rey knows. She continually worries that she is playing the fool. But she's doing it for peace.
"I will not abandon you," he promises. "I will not turn on you. You can trust me if things go badly. I have men embedded with the Resistance. They are all praetorians and they are good in a fight. Their job is to get you away—"
"Why?" she interrupts. She's not convinced. Rey challenges him now. "Why not let the Resistance deal with me instead? It would solve a problem for you, right? Because how are you going to explain the terrorist mouthpiece who was your agent all along? Who might be your estranged sister?"
"I don't have to explain anything," he boasts.
She calls him on it. "Of course, you do! That's why we're going through this whole strawman charade of reform, right? Because explaining that the mighty Kylo Ren who conquered the galaxy is adopting some of the Republic's values is a little awkward to your base of support."
Kylo has no rejoinder to this argument. He knows she's right.
And now, Rey completes the line of thought. "You turned on your family . . . you turned on Snoke . . . you're going to turn on me eventually, aren't you?" she accuses miserably. "You're just using me to get what you want and you'll crush me in the end. You'll get your peaceful reforms and then you can exterminate the Resistance and me too. Problem solved."
"No. I won't," he grinds out.
"I wish I could believe that." Rey shakes her head.
"I wish you could too," he snaps back indignantly. Then his voice and his stance soften. "I wish I had known that you were out there on Jakku. I would have come to rescue you. I would have come back for you." Kylo Ren is no mere brute. He is uncannily perceptive at times and this is one of them. He reaches to cup her cheek in a soft caress. Even with his gloved hand, it's the sort of intimate gesture that betrays a lot. "Maybe then you would be able to trust me." Rey flushes and cringes a little as he adds, "Maybe then you wouldn't fear being abandoned once more."
Rey jerks her head away. "Don't you dare call me damaged again!" she hisses. That comment had stayed with her a long time after their last meeting. Because the truth hurts, especially when you hear someone else say it. She scowls over at Kylo and takes some pleasure in reminding him, "No one has ever come back for me except Finn."
Kylo raises an eyebrow. "He wouldn't now if he knew what you are doing."
And there Kylo goes again, spouting off uncomfortable truths. Rey squirms. "I know. That's the worst part," she lashes out. "I am surrounded by people now, but I am very much alone." Isolated by her lies and her betrayals and by her growing sense of distance from her Resistance brethren.
Kylo doesn't argue with her. Instead, he backs down and steps back. "You are not alone. You have me. You will always have me. That's how this works."
She raises a dismissive hand to forestall him. This guy's sense of entitlement to her is annoying. "Don't start on that destiny crap—"
It sets him off. "Do not," he orders sternly, "disrespect the Force!" He waves a gloved hand in front of her face as he gives her a petulant look. "I will have faith even if you do not. In time, you will understand. We're a good team, Rey. That's no accident or coincidence. That's not luck. That's the Force!"
The Force, the Force. It's always the Force. Well, whatever, she thinks. Rey is irritated by how raw their conversations always seem to get. She doesn't see this guy for almost three months and they pick up right where they left off. Bickering as he lectures her on the Force and rambles about destiny. Sure, she believes in the Force. But where was destiny when she was starving on Jakku? Where was destiny during all those years spent alone out of self-preservation and happenstance? Where was destiny before she found a droid in the desert and crossed paths with the deadly Skywalker clan? As far as Rey is concerned, destiny before Kylo showed up was simply Rey helping herself. Call it survival skills, call it a string of random luck, call it her dogged determination to survive. But whatever you call it, it was her. Rey's independence is what kept her alive and she's not about to cede her free will to the Force or to Kylo Ren's manipulations. Destiny be damned because Rey is in charge of her own life. She only hopes she is making good choices still.
Remembering now the datafile in her hand, Rey tries to end the meeting. She takes a deep breath and makes an effort to speak in normal tones. "Thank you for the concession on civil rights. This is a big give. Anyone who gives this more than cursory thought will see that."
He nods. "My Empire needs more Light and more freedom. This is just the beginning," he promises.
"Yeah, okay," Rey mumbles. Kylo is standing close again now, in her space. It's distracting. Rey forces herself to look away from his lips. A man shouldn't have such full, pouty lips. They are far too inviting.
"Rey, trust me," he rasps from overhead.
Rey glances up. She stares and he stares back. Is he going to? He's not. But for a brief moment, Rey could swear that he was going in for a kiss. She is left there hanging in perplexed disappointment. She's oddly craving his comfort today.
For Rey remembers Kylo Ren's kisses. One in particular when he had her smashed up against the wall with his hot mouth on hers and his hands wandering everywhere until General Hux walked by. Kissing Kylo is like kissing a volcano. Rey knows from experience that once all that pent-up passion is released she quickly gets swept up in the moment. For everything about this man is intense. He's as exhausting as he is magnetic. Watching him now, all Rey can think is that this man is nothing like Finn. He is dangerous, not dependable. Erratic, never predictable. Demanding, and not easygoing. He's more pragmatist than idealist. He has no scruples, for nothing is sacred to him but the Force and the Force justifies all things.
He's not who the hero should look like. Heroes look like Finn. Heroes are the downtrodden who shake off their chains and find the courage to fight for what they believe in. Their motivation is the greater good, not their own aims. They are selfless role models, like the Jedi of old, who commit to a concrete set of values. And that's nothing like Kylo Ren. He's not loyal to anything, not even his own side. His creed seems to be mostly creating peace to cement his own power. This young Emperor doesn't bother trying to inspire others. His leadership is by fiat and his goal is to be a sort of benevolent dictator. He is arrogant, maybe foolish, in his insistence to leave the past behind all for his indeterminate glorious future. For he is a princely Chosen One, a demigod of the Force, sent to save all us little people. It smacks of hubris. Kylo Ren's will to power might be laughably hokey except he takes it very seriously. And if there is one thing this complicated, oddly compelling man believes, it's that the Force is with him.
He blesses her now with that same power. "May the Force be with you." Then as Rey stands mute and frozen on the spot, he cups her face and leaves her with a kiss. This is not seduction. It is a lingering, soft peck on her forehead. A kiss of peace. He drops his hands and steps back as he repeats the benediction. "Fear not, for the Force will be with you always." He gives her one long, last searching look. Then, he walks away down the ramp.
Rey watches him go. What the Hell was that, she wonders. She will never understand Kylo Ren.
Finn is there as usual on the landing pad when Rey returns to base. He welcomes her with a hug. "I'm glad you're back. You're just in time."
"Did you see the announcement about civil rights?" Rey asks with excitement. "That is huge! It's real progress." She can't wait to discuss it with her team.
"Not really." Finn clearly doesn't view it as positively as Rey does. "Not if you think that the Empire has only partially given us back the same rights we had under the Republic. Why should we grateful for that?" He's genuinely confused.
"Because it is progress," Rey staunchly contends. Maybe it's incremental progress, but it's something. It's not everything she wants either, but that's how compromise works. You have to give something up to get something.
"Come on." Finn tugs her forward. "The council is convening right now. Rose is already there. You need to be present for this one."
"Another spy?" Rey sighs as her heart sinks. Her hopeful mood is fading fast.
"No spies. We're voting to approve the next few missions."
"Oh? Is it that supply depot on Ord Mantel?" Rey asks.
"Yes and no. We're going forward with those raids to pick off equipment and supplies. But the meeting is mostly to vote on the assassinations. First Hux. Then Ren. No more of this liberating prisoners stuff. We're going to liberate the galaxy next."
Rey stops in her tracks. "Now? We're going to assassinate the Empire's leaders now?"
Finn blinks. "Yes, now. We've been kicking this idea around for a while now. Rey, that's how the old Empire fell. Luke Skywalker took out the Emperor and Vader at Endor. You start at the top."
"Do you think this is a good idea?" Rey demands of her friend. "We're finally making progress and getting concessions on things like civil rights and so we decide to destabilize the Empire?"
Finn nods. "I wouldn't put it that way, but yes. I think we should aim high. We've got them on the defensive now. Let's depose those guys and demand back all of our civil rights."
Rey frowns and opens her mouth to speak.
Finn preempts her. He puts a friendly arm around her and ushers her forward. "Come on. Let's have this debate in the council where it belongs. You can tell me off there."
