Ben stepped off the elevator, arriving at the end of a long corridor. At the end, two tall doors stood waiting for him. He could feel his mother behind them. His muscles tensed, teeth bared, he let his anger boil over, prepared to charge down the hall with everything he had to end Snoke but before he could take a step, a voice broke his concentration.
"Ben?" a familiar voice questioned.
And then, as if there was an echo, another voice, this one unfamiliar.
"Ben Solo?"
He slowly turned, ready to snap. Standing behind him stood Rey flanked by a small group of people, dressed in the tattered garb he knew belonged to the Jedi.
Rey held out her hand, motioning for Theo and the others to stand down, her gaze never leaving Ben. It was the first time she had physically seen him since killing Snoke, except for whatever happened in the cave on Dagobah, at least she thought he was physically present then. His constant pulling at the back of her mind all this time made it hard for her to place realty.
She tried to keep her own feelings at bay, concentrating all her energy on him, knowing she could not let her guard down. She held back everything she wanted to say, having to regulate herself with Theo and the others there, almost disappointed she had to share this moment with them. Judging by the look on Ben's face this was most certainly not the time or place to sort out what they had been going through since they killed Snoke.
"You're here for Leia," she said.
He did not respond, instead turned around and kept moving towards the door at the end of the hallway. Rey ran after him, grabbing his arm to spin him around.
"You know every bit as much as I do that the Knights of Ren are in there with her...and Snoke," she managed to choke out the last words.
"All the more reason for you to stand aside and get out of my way," he growled.
"If you would take a minute to feel anything other than hate, you would see we have a common enemy and I brought help. You don't have to fight them alone."
Ben looked over his shoulder at the group who stood stunned at the exchange happening before them.
"You mean your sensitive Jedi friends?" he pointed, "You know as well as I that they are nowhere near prepared for this but I do appreciate you bringing them here. Their defeat will be swift and easy. You lead them right to me."
Rey's brow frayed, her jaw tensed. "Do not make this into something else. We are here to get Leia. There is no need for…"
But before Rey could utter another word, the door at the end of the hallway flew open. Cynical laughter reverberated around them accompanied by an intense burst of energy. The pressure barreled down on the group, knocking over Scarlett and the others. Rey dug her heels into the ground and crouched down low, Ben doing the same next to her. After what felt like several minutes passed, the impact dissipated, leaving Theo and the others temporarily stunned.
Without hesitating, Ben ran at a full sprint down the hall, unsheathing his saber. Rey followed suit, screaming at the others over her shoulder, "Arm yourselves now!"
Theo, still recovering from the blast, pulled himself up and turned to the others.
"This is what we have prepared for. Your years of training have come to this. Be smart with your choices and remember what you are fighting for, the good side, the light, the souls of all of those wronged by the First Order and the Knights of Ren!"
With that, he drew his lightsaber, thrusting it in front of himself, he joined the charge. Amell, Clive, Cory, Emory, and Scarlett followed close on his heels.
In front of them stood the Knights of Ren, calmly waiting as Ben and Rey sprinted toward them. Ben let out a long, deep yell, swinging his saber over his head. Rey reached out with her mind, holding her hand in front of her, letting the force flow through her, pushing with everything she had.
Two of the Knights on the left buckled under the pressure from the force flowing out of Rey, leaving four. Ben reached them first, the light from his saber smacking into one of them. Rey swung her lightsaber low, connecting with another Knight's saber. He pulled up and spun around, giving Rey an opportunity to aim for his shoulder. She brought her lightsaber down quickly but not fast enough, he lunged upward, forcing Rey to jump back. With lighting speed, he thrust forward, swooping his saber back and forth. The red glow lit up Rey's face where thick drops of sweat were forming. She knew the Knights would be highly skilled and deadly but she forgot that they would be fighting with a hunger that comes from wanting absolute power.
Jerking her arm back to avoid contact, Rey felt a gash in her left shoulder. Screaming in pain she looked behind her to see another Knight, the light from his saber moving away from where he had struck her. Without hesitating, she shoved her body weight into him, knocking him away. Before she could react, a white light pierced through the Knight's toursou. He muttered a faintly audible grunt as he tumbled to the ground. There was just enough time for Rey to see Theo, standing behind where the Knight had fallen. His hand flew up from his side, pointed at Rey.
She held her breath, her eyes wide, "Theo…?"
In a blink, Rey felt the other Knight come up from behind. The force flew through Theo, sending the Knight flying in the air, slamming into the wall. As quick as he reacted to Rey's attacker, Theo spun around to join Scarlett and Cory as they took on another Knight.
Knowing they had it under control and grateful they had her back, Rey looked around the room. Ben was face to face with another Knight, lightsabers locked in battle. She started over towards him when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. General Hux was standing by the doorway, talking into a comm, calling for backup. Running at full speed, Rey jumped over unknown obstacles, the fighting a blur around her.
"I need all stormtroopers to report to the tower room now! And deploy the tie fighters immediately!"
Steps away from Hux, the communicator flew out of his hand, disintegrating against the wall. Rey looked over her shoulder to see Ben, his hand extended. She turned back to Hux, his shoulders grinding into the wall behind him. His feet dangled in midair, the veins in his forehead bulged. Gasping for breath, he clutched the sides of his neck.
"Ben, stop! Let him go! He is not worth it!"
Ben's gaze remained fixated on Hux, his outstretched hand held steady. Rey stood frozen in place, knowing precious seconds they needed to concentrate on defeating the Knights were slipping away. She turned to plead with Ben one last time when instantly, she was hit from the side, collapsing onto the floor.