Life in the realm of Mortis is not like living at all. Rey never gets hungry. She never thirsts. She never gets tired. She never sleeps. All the normal cycles of the body cease. She just . . . exists. She isn't cold. She is never hot. She's just . . . fine. We are alive, her father explains, but suspended in time. For in the idyllic prison of the Force, life stands still. There is day and there is night on Mortis, much like Rey dreamed about before she arrived, but those changes don't seem to impact anything. It's weird.
Snoke shrugs it off. Her father turns out to have dozens of historically impressive aliases, none of which have any meaning to Rey except his stint as Supreme Leader Snoke. So while Rey dutifully calls him 'Father' to his face, she always thinks of her host as Snoke. He's been immortal for a long time now, so having time stop is no big deal for him. But Rey, who used to mark the walls of her AT-AT to chronicle her time waiting on Jakku, finds it odd. She has no way of knowing how long she has been here.
Rey soon discovers that Snoke is a talker. A big talker. He's spent millennia here alone and now he's making up for that isolation by jabbering Rey's ear off about anything and everything. He's got a random anecdote or an opinion or a lesson in the Force for just about every subject. It makes for some rather bizarre discussions.
Rey admires some pretty wildflowers and they remind Snoke of a battlefield on Naboo from back when the Trade Federation invaded. He and Darth Sidious were trying to start a war back then, and they were unsuccessful. It took almost ten full years for the Clone Wars to finally commence, he bemoans. There hadn't been a full-scale war since the formation of the Republic, so no one knew how to react to our aggression. For a while, the Republic worlds simply tolerated it. That was the hardest war ever to start, Snoke gripes, and he's started more than a few wars in his time. It was frustrating to be appeased over and over again. No one wanted to fight, Snoke complains. In hindsight, he should have just assassinated Chancellor Valorum to hurry things up.
Ooookay. Rey just nods along with this twisted wisdom.
Then she asks about the mountains on Mortis and Snoke starts waxing nostalgic about how they remind him of Alderaan. He has fond memories of besieging that forest world and burning its cities to the ground back when the Sith Empire invaded the Republic. That anecdote segues into Snoke's recollections of invading Coruscant. Rey gets a gleeful play-by-play of the sacking of the main Jedi Temple by a bunch of Sith Lords. Clearly, Snoke considers his Sith Emperor years as the heyday for the Dark Side. He's full of stories about invasions, betrayals, and epic duels involving guys she's never heard of.
But okay. Rey just nods along, asking a question here and there when she can get a word in edgewise.
As they wander a wild orchard, Rey marvels at the fragrant ripe fruit and swats at bees buzzing by. That prompts Snoke to show off his handiwork. He concentrates a moment and the trees begin to bloom anew in record time. I have always loved a garden, Snoke confides as they stroll. All true connoisseurs of the Force must be surrounded by living things. For life creates the Force and makes it grow. Back in my Sith Emperor days, Snoke relates, I had a large garden on Dromund Kaas. Our capital world was a cool, humid jungle world where anything grew. In more recent years, I kept an estate in the lake country of Naboo. Even if I could die, Snoke muses, I would never allow myself to be buried in a red desert tomb on desolate Korriban. I would want my body cremated on a pyre like a warrior-king, and my ashes scattered to intermingle with the soil. That way my essence will return to the Force from which it came, and my body will too.
All this stream of consciousness monologue is the opposite of Rey. Her experience growing up alone in the desert has made her very comfortable with silence. And so, she listens for the most part, rather than contributes. Snoke appears fine with that arrangement. He asks her very little about herself and even less about Kylo and his fledgling Second Empire. Egomaniac Snoke is all about himself. He's obviously an extrovert whereas Rey, like Kylo, is an introvert. But rather than cause conflict, it promotes harmony. Because Snoke has the audience he needs and Rey is content to nod along. She doesn't mind being the straight man foil to his litany of exploits.
Some of what he says is so outrageous that it can't be true. But, of course, it is. Clearly, this is Snoke's universe, Rey thinks, and the rest of us little people are lucky to live in it. And while Snoke's precise recollection of events dating from thousands of years ago is impressive, it's his demeanor that has Rey most dumbfounded. The casual manner in which he discusses the rise and fall of great civilizations, the nonchalant tone in which he admits to extreme cruelty, the indifferent attitude towards morality in general—it's everything she ought to expect from the man who destroyed Hosnia. But still . . . wow. Snoke is a strangely charming mix of arrogance, intelligence, and loneliness. Worst of all, he's fun. He shouldn't be. But he is. And he knows it.
It's not all lectures. Snoke teaches Rey the Force. His instruction eschews the practical skills Kylo taught. Instead, he focuses almost exclusively on deep meditation aimed at promoting her connection to the Force. The stronger and more effortless the connection, the more powerful you grow. This is key, Snoke explains, because you mature into your power. As a Chosen One, she has almost limitless potential, he reveals. But first, she must unlock the bottleneck between her and the Force. Feel it flowing through you. You are the conduit for its will and, in turn, it obeys your command. Let go and surrender yourself to the Force. Make it your ally, he instructs with a crafty wink.
His back-to-basics approach is very intentional. There have been Force users with excellent connections to the Force but limited power who surpassed Force users with enormous power they could not fully tap. The connection is key, Snoke teaches, sounding vaguely like Rey remembers Luke Skywalker. But there is a catch: Snoke will let her connect to the Force with any emotion except pain. She's got the pain part down. That's how you turned your eyes yellow, he chides. They will become normal in time when you stop rushing your power. Pain is the quick and easy path, but it has limits and risks. Too much Darkness is dangerous. It can consume you. Trust me, for I speak from experience, Snoke intones. I spent centuries consuming one host body after another to achieve my aims.
You can channel the Force with any emotion, even happy ones, Snoke teaches. Emotions run the full gamut and they are all useful. In time, she will relearn to connect with peace and calm like a Jedi would. You will be all things in the Force, Daughter. I will teach you, Snoke promises. Balance yourself and you will build a foundation for lasting power that is far greater than mere Darkness. You are capable of wielding it all. So do not confine yourself to half of the Force. There are no limits for people like us, he boasts.
She struggles, but Snoke is a surprisingly patient teacher. It reminds her of Kylo. For all her husband's petulant impatience with his underlings, he had never been anything but thoughtful when teaching Rey. Kylo also has the same great reverence for the Force that Snoke has. They speak with a similar serious awe about it. It's very different from Rey's original approach of viewing the Force as a means to an end, like a set of skills to be mastered. The neat tricks will come later, Snoke assures her, and they will come easier, provided that you have the proper foundation.
"Is this the way you taught Kylo?" Rey asks, wondering if she should feel dissed.
Snoke shakes his head no. "Kylo Ren showed up a Jedi with years of practice connecting with the Force. You, my dear, know next to nothing. So, we will begin at the beginning."
And that launches Snoke into the background of how he began the First Order over thirty years ago when he first learned of Ben Solo. With one eye on the earnest dark-haired adolescent whose power frustrated his mother and scared his uncle, Snoke began laying the groundwork for the Second Empire. Planning all along to one day hand it over to his Apprentice. I made sure that by the time that boy came of age, I had armies waiting to act at his disposal and just the right amount of political unrest simmering. Conditions would be ripe for civil war once again, Snoke plotted. For he vowed that this latest Skywalker son would not disappoint him.
Snoke's smile is sly as he relates how easy Kylo's family had made the whole transition. They never told him about his grandfather, so I made sure that news leaked out publicly to politically embarrass Leia Organa. As planned, my Apprentice learned of his heritage over the holonet in blaring breaking news. Not from his Jedi Master who preached incessantly against Darkness or from his parents who spoke too often within earshot about their fears for their son. Snoke chuckles as he recalls the circumstances. That boy was already somewhat alienated even if he was still trying hard to be a good Jedi. Struggling to earn his family's attention, respect, and love. But then Skywalker tried to murder him and my desperate Apprentice dug deep and managed a Force shockwave that I felt all the way here. Ben Solo had just taken his first steps into a much larger world, Snoke intones sagely. The act confirmed Skywalker's worst fears, destroyed the Jedi temple, and killed most of the students. And that was that. Within a week, the disillusioned young Jedi was kneeling fealty to me and the universe was yet again on a course towards balance.
Snoke's eyes slant towards her now. What I didn't count on was you, Daughter. Kylo Ren and I both sensed your existence at your awakening, but he was the one to find you. That was no accident. That was the Force at work. Suddenly, destiny had rearranged itself and things would unfold differently. So, I bridged your minds. Snoke looks smug. Given how taken Kylo Ren was by you, it was probably unnecessary. But I wanted to hurry things along. Fortunately, the Force agreed. And, Snoke pronounces with great relish and a theatrical flourish, here we are.
Yes, here she is. Rey is still processing all that she has learned. She has so much to tell Kylo. He needs to know about her origins. He needs to know about Snoke. But most of all, he needs to know that Snoke is no threat to him. For her father professes to have no intention of reclaiming his Supreme Leader role. The ancient prisoner Sith seems to fancy himself above the day to day tasks of ruling the First Order. He's done that gig several times already, Snoke reminds Rey. He will delegate it to his Apprentice. He's content to let Kylo rule like he once let Sidious rule the first Empire.
Snoke has considerable pride in Kylo, Rey realizes with a bit of shock. Whatever their relationship was as Master and Apprentice, Snoke seems to think Kylo has graduated past all that. The war, the search for Skywalker, the murder of Han Solo, and the showdown in the throne room—Snoke considers that all necessary training—just like he considers Kylo's formative years as a Jedi necessary too. Snoke is like some dominant father figure who browbeat his son to impart his knowledge and then sat back to wait for him to rebel. And when he finally did, Snoke was pleased, not angry. It demonstrated that it was time for the Apprentice to leave the nest.
But will Kylo believe that? Rey suspects not. She fears that he will receive the news about Snoke as yet one more would-be usurper plotting against him. Poor Kylo is so beset with enemies already. Certainly, Kylo will be angry with her for leaving. He made it clear all along that he alone would deal with the mystery Sith. But Rey does not regret leaving. She is glad to know the truth. And Snoke, for all his megalomania, is growing on her. Plus, his training is helping. Just this morning, Snoke greeted her with a smile and bade her to find her reflection in the pond.
What she sees there is astounding: her eyes are no longer yellow.
Rey gasps. It is another moment of de ja vu from the dream that led her here.
This is more proof that the Force wanted you to come, Snoke decides. The Force wanted us to meet so that you could become balanced. For that is the constant push of the universe—balance. It took him many lifetimes to understand that, Snoke admits, but now that he has lived several millennia, he sees the patterns repeating themselves. There is a purpose to it all, he contends. If history repeats, it's for a reason. The cosmic Force wants to give us another chance to get it right. Staring back at her reflection in the pond, Rey can't help but agree that balance is the answer to it all. Snoke agrees. Balance will usher in a new golden age of the Force, he promises, and it will set me free.
In between meditation sessions, Snoke goes on at length about anything and everything. So on the rare occasion when Snoke actually shuts up, Rey is ill at ease. "What?" she demands, leveling him a pointed, suspicious look. "Whaaat?" He's making her self-conscious as he silently observes her.
"Am I staring? Forgive me. I am continually struck by how you resemble my Tosca. You are so different as women, even though you look alike. It is disconcerting for me, Daughter. It's like seeing her again in the flesh after all these years have passed."
"Feeling guilty?" Rey needles him. She's heard the tale twice already of how Snoke murdered his one and only lady love in a fit of jealous rage.
Her father considers a moment before answering. "I have my share of regrets," he allows slowly. "She taught me an important lesson. I didn't see it that way at the time, of course. But with distance, it became clear."
This is a respite from Snoke's usual war stories and political intrigues, so Rey encourages the topic. "How did you meet her?"
"She somehow talked her way into an audience. I never did learn how. It was quite extraordinary so it made an impression. Normally, I did not receive ladies in my throne room, only Lords. She came because her husband was among a group of Lords I decided to purge. The ranks of the Sith had become lackluster from indulgence and easy living. The Lords had become complacent. It was time to shake things up." Snoke shrugs. "Hardship hones a Sith. Pain sharpens his resolve. Fear motivates him. All three are essential for proper Dark training."
"So you were going to kill her husband," Rey summarizes.
"He was proscribed, yes. The list was unofficial but had leaked out."
"She came to beg for mercy."
"Mercy?" Snoke looks amused at the quaint thought. "From me? No, no," he corrects. "You don't beg mercy from a Sith Emperor any more than you ask for forgiveness. That's not how Sith society worked. She came to strike a deal. Lady Tosca offered to serve in temple rituals in exchange for me sparing her husband's life."
"Temple women were abused in all sort of ways for Dark rituals. They usually were castoffs from the ruling families. Women with the Force who had disgraced their family honor and lost the protections of the Dark patriarchy. It was an ugly fate that served as an effective deterrent. That meant temple women were generally in short supply. So you see, what Tosca offered was both an inducement and a sacrifice. She couched it in terms of protecting her two sons," Snoke recalls. "They would never find suitable Apprentice positions if their father were to be proscribed. In those days, Apprenticeships were strategic relationships. Families angled to establish alliances and curry favor by placing their sons with influential Masters who could further their career and enhance the family glory."
"And you agreed?"
"Yes. On a whim." Rey must look shocked because he hurries to explain, "Oh, I didn't let her near the temple priests. I kept her for my own private rituals."
"I won't ask," Rey deadpans.
"Then, I won't tell," Snoke responds with a rakish smirk. "But I warn you that the Dark Side of the Force is a pathway to many abilities, some considered to be unnatural."
"Ewwwww." Rey shoots him a look and unrepentant Snoke grins. "Ewwwww," she repeats. "No details, please. I get it-you seduced her."
"Was there any doubt?" he chuckles. "Daughter, you are prim for a married woman. Or maybe it's my Apprentice who is the prim one, eh? Did the celibate Jedi have him too long?"
Rey remembers being handcuffed to the bed for Kylo's 'training.' "No," she speaks up to defend her husband's prowess. "Not at all." She catches Snoke's eye and he smothers another chuckle. He's always laughing at her.
"Tosca was hardly the usual femme fatale," Snoke assesses. "Sith ladies cultivated aggressive beauty. Their lure was bold and shameless. And usually cold. A Sith lady of fashion might wear a low-cut dress, but always with a frown. Never a come-hither smile. They played hard to get and had to be chased. And even when you caught them—even when they wanted to be caught—they put up a fight. And to keep them, you had to cater to their fickle whims."
Rey knows the type. "High maintenance."
"Exceedingly so. But not Tosca. She was pretty in a simple way. And she was direct. She didn't play games and she was never petulant or passive aggressive. It was so refreshing. I was hooked immediately." Snoke falls silent for a long moment before adding, "She was very good. I think I was as drawn to her goodness as I was to her beauty."
Rey frowns. "She sacrificed herself for her family."
Snoke frowns now too. "I never could decide if she had betrayed her husband by approaching me. She cost him his honor but she saved his life. Which did the man value more?"
"I would have valued my life over my honor," Rey the Jakku survivor volunteers.
"As would I," wily Snoke agrees, adding dryly, "You don't spend centuries seeking immortality if you have scruples over honor. Had she sacrificed for my life, I would not have considered it a betrayal but a tribute," he muses. "But I'm not certain her husband saw it the same." Snoke shakes his head. "The man was unworthy."
"So he lived?"
"I let him live. It was what she wanted. I gave her that, at least. And I made sure her sons were apprenticed to worthy Masters, even though they turned out to be thoroughly forgettable Sith."
"So in all those subsequent years, there was never anyone else for you?" Rey is curious.
"Oh, do not misunderstand me, Daughter. There were plenty of women, and several consorts. But none who mattered. None who came close to Tosca." That is a bittersweet recollection because Snoke laments, "She never loved me. She said she did, but she didn't. Nothing I could give her or do for her could convince her to love me. She loved her family. Her love for them was impervious to my power. And that was the lesson: that love can be stronger than power. Not always, but sometimes."
Rey thinks of Kylo. Will he ever understand why she has come here? Will he ever forgive her transgression? Can he understand how important it was for her to find her father? "I don't know . . . " Rey has her doubts about love. She is very new to love. And her and Kylo's love is nothing like what she's seen depicted on the holonet. It's much messier.
"Do not underestimate love like I did," Snoke instructs. "Tosca's bargain was worth it. She knew how precious love was. I did not. It took me many more lifetimes of living to realize how rare and precious love is. And how powerful."
"I don't know . . ." Rey equivocates. "People fall in and out of love all the time." Love seems more easy come, easy go for other people, at least.
Snoke is undeterred. "Oh, I'm counting on it, Daughter. I am counting on love. Love will set me free," he smirks.
Rey's eyes narrow. She understands his implication. "Kylo won't come for me." They have had this conversation before.
Snoke's rejoinder is always confident. "He will come. I have foreseen it." Her face is solemn as he tells her, "I always trust the Force."
Exchanges like this make Rey wonder if she is a de facto hostage. Was she lured here so Kylo would follow her? If so, that strategy will fail. Kylo is highly skeptical of this man, even without knowing his identity. And, Rey suspects, Kylo won't be chasing after her anytime soon. He warned her not to seek her father many times. Kylo was certain Rey's quest was a trap. And, frankly, Rey still isn't sure if it is or not. But she's not unhappy and she is enjoying both Snoke's company and his training. So, Rey plays along. She wants to know her father, even if he's a treacherous, Dark mastermind. Because at least he didn't sell her off for drinking money.
"How do you balance the Force anyway?" she asks. She's heard a lot extolling the merits of balance, but nothing about how to achieve it.
"Revan came close. Very close."
Rey dutifully asks, "Who is Revan?" He's probably someone she should know, but doesn't. Rey hates how limited her education is. Normally, that's not a huge issue because Rey studies up on new things as they arise. She's always had a very curious mind. And now that she's serving as a Senator, Rey has learned ways to hide her ignorance and to make up for her lack of formal teaching. She's become quite ashamed of her Jakku past. Thankfully, like Kylo, Snoke doesn't fault her for it.
"Who is Revan? Darth Revan?" Snoke gives her a pointed look. "The very question is a slap in the face. But you are far from the only citizen who would ask that question, Daughter. Revan is your Republic's greatest hero. Three times he saved your democracy. First from the invading Mandalors. Then from his brother's assault. And finally, from me. Revan thoroughly eclipses Luke Skywalker. And yet, no one knows his name."
"I've never heard of him. Darth Revan is a hero of the Republic?" How is anyone named Darth a hero of the Republic? Rey raises an eyebrow as she waits for Snoke's history lesson.
"Revan was the ultimate Jedi and not a bad Sith." Coming from Snoke, that's high praise indeed. Rey starts listening closely now. "Revan was a patriot at heart. He loved the Republic and its ideals. He embodied the Jedi ethos of compassion completely. That's why he was extremely vocal when the Senate and the Jedi Order looked the other way at the suffering of the Rim worlds at the hands of my Mandalorian invaders."
"Wait—you were behind that invasion?"
"Oh, yes, of course. As Sith Emperor, I liked to stir up trouble for the Republic now and then. It kept both sides on their toes," Snoke explains. "It was good for all involved." Then he resumes his story. "Revan was a headstrong young man, like most new leaders are. Charismatic, too. He and his brother took it upon themselves to rebel against the High Council. Revan and his Jedi Crusader followers went to war to drive out the Mandalorians. They vowed to save the Republic from its complacency and bad leadership."
"Did it work?"
"For the Republic? Yes. For Revan? No."
"Oh. Somehow I knew that was going to be the answer," Rey grumbles and it prompts Snoke to laugh.
"Revan was an exceptional tactician, ruthless in his willingness to match his enemy's brutality. He figured out that he had to beat the Mandalors at their own game. That was conduct unbecoming to a Jedi, of course. So while Revan narrowly saved the Republic from my proxy invaders, he and his followers were judged war criminals for their success. Declared enemies of the state and exiled for life for their well-intentioned forays into the Dark Side. The one Jedi General who returned to answer the charges laid against them was stripped of the Force and sent on her way in disgrace. Like Revan, she was a hero misjudged a villain."
"But you were the real villain."
"Naturally," Snoke preens.
Rey rolls her eyes and he snorts. Snoke never takes offense at her irreverence. He quite enjoys it, Rey suspects. "So, what happened to Revan?"
"He had figured out that the Mandalorians were my pawns. Revan and his brother showed up at my hidden stronghold determined to kill me. Truly, it was a pathetic attempt. But I quite liked them anyway. I was impressed by their gumption," Snoke confides. "Revan and Malak were men of principle. They had the spirit of true Jedi. And yet, they were already Dark though they didn't realize it. I just helped things along and then sent them back to the Republic as my agents."
"Was that when he became Darth Revan?"
"Hmmm, yes," Snoke replies, thinking back. "It did not progress as planned. It became a civil war, but not as I plotted. Revan became more Light, as his brother grew Darker. In the end, Revan slew his brother to stop his separate conquest of the Republic. My plans were thwarted for a time and the Star Forge asset was destroyed in the process."
"You mean you lost?" Rey surmises.
"It was a victory deferred," Snoke counters. "Revan came for me again. I had become something of an obsession for him. By then, he was a man without a creed or a state. The Jedi and the Republic wanted nothing to do with him. Such fools! He was their best and brightest. But even Revan considered himself to be a failure. He was a fallen Jedi who was too impure to live by his cult's constraints. But he could not bring himself to continue as a full-fledged Sith either. He had far too many scruples. The man was full of compassion. His true nature was Light even if his analytical mind led him to make Dark choices. He was something of an enigma. I found him fascinating," Snoke admits.
"So . . . what happened?"
"I kept him prisoner. I picked his brain for knowledge of the Jedi and the Light and for information about the Republic. Revan and I played mind games with one another for a few centuries. He was a worthy opponent." Snoke looks oddly wistful now. "I have often thought of him as inspiration during my own years of captivity. Revan exerted quite an influence on me. His ideas challenged me. They broadened me."
"So . . . did Revan want balance?"
"No one did back then. The Jedi were only interested in keeping the Force pure in the Light. And, well, I wasn't interested in balance either. I only wanted more power. Mastery of the Dark Side alone was not sufficient. I wanted to master the entire Force. To rule it all. And Revan could do it."
"How?"
"He could use both the Dark Side and the Light Side interchangeably. Others have been both Jedi and Sith, but none have used both skillsets simultaneously. Revan could shoot lightning and then heal with a touch. He was no match for my Darkness, of course. But the breadth of his talents was enviable. He was very nimble with his power, even if it paled in comparison to my own." Snoke pauses. "Ordinarily, I would have killed him, but I admired him too much. Plus, it would have been a waste to destroy him and lose all that knowledge." Snoke has a rare moment of self-awareness now. "I was never the same Sith after Revan." And is that admission a lament or just a statement? Rey isn't sure. "After Revan, I started to mellow."
"Mellow?" Really? Really?
"Yes. I'm afraid that during my first millennia, I tended towards the extreme. But when you are a Sith Lord from age thirteen onward, without any Master or true father as a mentor, you prove yourself with ruthless ambition. In those years, I was a young man in a hurry," Snoke decides. "But once I had done everything possible one could do as a Sith, Revan came along and opened my eyes to new possibilities."
"Revan was the only Jedi I knew who fell to the Dark Side out of selflessness. All the others—including Anakin Skywalker—succumbed to Darkness for selfish reasons." This is the poignant crux of the tale that seems to grip Snoke so completely. For he is even more animated than usual as he makes his point. "It was all so innocent, Daughter. Therein lies the tragedy of the man. For Revan set out to fight the Mandalorians and found he could not beat them and remain firmly in the Light. He and his Jedi followers resorted to Darkness to win, thinking they could repent afterwards with no lasting consequences. Such ignorance!" Snoke scoffs. "Such hubris! Those silly Jedi knew not what they did. For Darkness is dangerous. Darkness leaves its mark. You cannot dabble in Darkness without being changed by it. By the time Revan and his brother tracked me down, they were Sith in all but name only. I was so struck by that fact."
"Darkness is a choice," Rey recalls Kylo's teaching.
"Indeed. But Revan chose Darkness to save the Light. I knew he and Malak would be something special. I thought they might become great Sith. And arguably the brother did. But Revan was something unprecedented. It took me many centuries to realize that he was a prophet of the Force. A harbinger of things to come who came too soon. Neither the Jedi nor I understood at the time." Snoke is contemplative as he reveals, "My enemy Revan has been a lasting inspiration for me."
Rey thinks of her one-time enemy Kylo Ren and how he has become an unexpected ally. Friends and foes can change fast and look different than you expect when the bright lines of Dark and Light become blurred.
Snoke's mind is still in the past. "Revan first piqued my interest in the Light. So when I found myself bored in here, I projected myself into the Jedi Order to experience it firsthand."
"I wish I could have seen that," Rey smirks.
"Does it shock you that an old Sith Emperor masqueraded as a Jedi?" Snoke teases.
"No. I'll bet you loved it!" she accuses.
"I did! I actually did it twice! Each time, I waved around a blue sword and pledged allegiance to the Republic like a good knight. All the while, laughing at them behind my facade of earnestness. The Jedi's version of the Force was so simplistic. Their view of the galaxy so myopic. Their understanding of history so self-centered. But they had some wisdom and some inspiration," he concedes.
"Oh?" Rey raises an eyebrow. That's the first praise she's heard from Snoke for the Jedi Order.
"All that Jedi superstition prompted me to undertake a true scientific study of the Force. I spent years investigating midichlorians to debunk their myths. That's how I accidentally discovered how to create life using the Force." He leans in conspiratorially. "The dirty secret of that Sith trick is that it is accomplished with mostly Light Side power."
"Creation is Light?"
"And destruction is Dark," Snoke provides the corollary. "As a Sith, I had learned to destroy life and to prolong it. But thanks to my time as a Jedi, I learned to create life and, in time, to resurrect it. So, you see, it was worth waving a blue sword around." Snoke resumes teaching as they begin to stroll again. "The Force is life. The Force finds a way just like life finds a way. Ever changing, always evolving, and renewing itself generation after generation." He slants a sly glance over her direction. "You don't know do you?"
"Know what?" Rey isn't following.
"You are with child."
"Whaaaat?" Rey stops in her tracks. Did she hear right? Please let her have heard wrongly.
Snoke smirks at her reaction. "Within your womb grows a new life. Concentrate and you will sense it. A new Chosen One. Perhaps the greatest of them all. The Force is strong in my family-" he begins.
"Oh, Gods," Rey gulps. She is suddenly anxious and trembling.
"You really must stop saying that, Daughter," Snoke chides. "There are no gods. There is only the Force."
"Oh, Gods."
"Come here, my dear." Rey stands there stone faced with shock as Snoke envelopes her in fatherly hug. "I am pleased. I am very pleased," he informs her.