Snoke has, at least, left her with her lightsaber. She's actually surprised for a moment that he would leave her armed. Her and Luke and Han as well. The other two he almost seems to pay no mind. As she ignites her lightsaber, she can see Snoke's face light up with a maniacal grin.

He's enjoying this.

It's a test, she realizes.

A test of Kylo Ren's devotion to him, of his commitment to being his apprentice.

Ben takes another step toward her and she stands up straight, weapon held high as she faces him. "Ben, don't do this." The words are quiet, urgent. She takes a step toward him. "You don't want to. This isn't you." He's come so far. And a part of her just wants to scream how unfair it is. He'd let go of all this, he'd moved past it. He loved her and with that love came compassion and light.

Snoke laughs again. Her eyes flicker to him for a moment. He's lounging in the throne, casual, as if he's watching a bit of fluff on the holovid. As if this isn't the moment, as if her life isn't falling apart before her very eyes. She can't lose Ben. Han and Leia can't lose their son. Not again. She won't let them.

Ben advances on her and she turns toward him with a shout.

All hell breaks loose with the first clash of their lightsabers, the first sparks of red meeting blue. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see the guards advancing on Luke and Han. Han's blaster goes off, taking the first out while two others converge on Luke.

"I don't want to hurt you!" she shouts at Ben, twisting to avoid a strike from his lightsaber.

His motions are strangely jerky, not the smooth fighting of their sparring on Chandrila, or even the sparring they did on the first base on D'Qar. She knows he's not being controlled. She doesn't know how, but she knows that Snoke hasn't dug in that deep. She's not even sure if he could really. But at the same time, it feels like he's resisting something. Snoke is in there, a parasite digging in his claws to bend Ben to his will.

She brings up her lightsaber to clash with his, pushing him back. He lets her, leaning back a little as she pushes at him with a snarl, pressing him back, closer to the dais. Snoke is watching them with piercing intensity. Ben finally twists, his hand coming out and knocking her back with the Force.

She rolls with it, letting it take her into a summersault before coming back to her feet and advancing on Ben.

Their lightsabers come together again, blue on red, purple sparks flying out form where they meet. She twists, he turns to meet her. He pushes away and she follows. It's a dance of terror and desperation. She doesn't want to hurt him. But as he strikes at her, harder, faster, she's afraid she might have to.

"Ben!" she shouts as his lightsaber makes contact with the upper part of her arm. Searing pain lances up her arm as she twists away from him. She lashes out without thinking, without planning. This is survival. If she has any chance of bringing him home, she's going to have to take him down. As she twists, she strikes out with her lightsaber, catching him on the upper arm.

She can smell the burnt fabric and flesh as it cuts into him.

And he says nothing, makes no noise. Just continues to come at her, as if he's not even human. The pain doesn't even slow him down. Not for one moment. It's frightening and for one brief moment she wonders if she might lose this. If she might lose him. She's tried to avoid those thoughts these last days, trying to believe that belief will get her through, that the Force will not let her down.

But as he comes at her again, twirling to get the right angle, nearing taking her out at the knees, she begins to doubt.

It's a little niggling thing at first. It lets him get in a hit to her hip, just a glancing thing as she's able to rotate away from it and most of the blade catches her clothes. The smell is atrocious, and she snarls at the small bit of pain as it grazes her hip.

Together they twist, turn, come together as their blades cross. He's calm the entire time, not an extra bit of emotion out of him. She's a raging thing, terrified and angry, and she really wishes she could just turn and strike down Snoke. She contemplates it at one point. It would be easy enough to feint, pull back, and then duck under Ben's raised arm.

But she doesn't.

As she glances over at Snoke. He's watching her with a hungry gaze that tells her he knows exactly where her thoughts are going. When her eyes meet his, he grins.

And instead, she pulls the same move, ducking underneath Ben's arm only to whirl around on him and catch him in the back. That gets a response. He grunts in pain as he turns back to her and it's a strange bit of relief that hits her, realizing he's still human beneath that mask. There's still something of Ben there, even if he's mostly Snoke's tool at the moment.

That bit of pain seems to spur him on. She can hear Snoke shout something, can hear him laugh as Ben turns on her with a vicious flurry of attacks. He's everywhere almost at once, beating her back, using his longer reach and strength to push at her. He makes another glancing hit off her other arm, one that cuts into her side a bit.

But Rey is making her own progress.

She falls back, almost too easily, lets him start to come up and over her. Ben thinks he knows her. And he does, certainly. Every bit of her has been open to him at one time or another. But not now. Now he's clouded with Snoke's thoughts, with Kylo Ren and vengeance and all that entails. And so she lets him drive her back, lets him think he has the upper hand.

She can hear Snoke laugh with glee as he watches.

But then she rolls, twisting suddenly and coming up. Ben never sees it coming. She slashes her lightsaber down and strikes his helmet. Shards of it break off and her lightsaber drives through it, slicing down the side of his face and slashing into his shoulder before she's able to pull back.

Ben stumbles back.

Snoke shouts something she can't hear.

All she can think is she hurt him. She can only see a bit of his face through the broken helmet, can see the blood dripping into his eye, down his cheek. The one eye she can see is dark, almost dead. The intensity that's usually in his gaze is missing and it's an eerie sight.

She hears Hans's blaster go off.

She hears Luke curse.

And all she can do is stare. This isn't what she wanted. She's supposed to be here to save him. He's staring at her, his lightsaber held crackling at his side. This is it, she thinks. She almost closes her eyes, but instead watches him carefully as she tries to delve into his mind.

Her eyes drift just. Just a little.

Come on, Ben…I know you're in there…

When he finally does move, it's not at all what she expected. He rushes at her, and she catches a glimpse of raw fury on what little of his face she can see. It takes her breath away, and then she has no choice but to respond. He beats her back with massive slashes of his lightsaber, all of his weight and strength behind each strike.

Rey scrambles to keep up, parrying each of his thrusts, but falling back little by little. She tries to spin under one of his slashes, but he reaches out with his other hand and tosses her back. It takes everything in her to get back to her feet and turn to face him again.

But she does.

She has no choice.

She can hear Luke fighting one of the guards, hears a grunt of pain that she's not sure comes from him or the person he's fighting.

She hears Han shout something and his blaster go off a moment later.

And then Ben pushes her back again.

And again.

She stumbles.

Parries his thrust.

Falls back again.

The back of her feet hit something, and she's already so overbalanced, that she can't keep upright. Her butt hits the ground and she realizes she's sitting at the bottom of the dais moments before Ben strides closer, using the butt of his lightsaber to hit her hand hard enough that her lightsaber flies out of it. He kicks it aside with one booted foot.

And then he's standing over her, lightsaber pointed at her chest.

"Excellent, my apprentice!" Snoke shouts from somewhere up above her. She doesn't turn to look up. Her eyes are solely focused on Ben. The lightsaber he holds out in front of him trembles just a bit before he steadies it.

"Ben," she whispers.

"Did you think he would turn?" Snoke asks, voice almost conversational. "Did you think you'd rescue him? That he was ever truly one of you?"

"You've underestimated me," she says, not even turning to look at the shriveled creature on the throne behind her. "And you've underestimated him."

Snoke's wheezing laugh ends in a cough. "Did I?" She hears him shift, can feel him lean over her. His next words drop heavily into the room. "Kill her."

Her eyes stay on Ben, but out of the corner of her eye, she can see Luke moving closer. His steps are almost soundless as he creeps forward toward where this is all playing out.

She doesn't know where Han is.

A part of her hopes he's disappeared somewhere. He doesn't want to see this.

"Ben, you don't want to do this. I know you don't." The words are whispered, a plea dropped into the middle of all this madness. "I can feel the conflict in you." He takes a step toward her. The lightsaber comes close to the side of her face. She can hear it there, can feel the heat of it so close to her. She's thrown back to the time he faced her in the woods of Takodana. Where is the map? His voice so cold and distant through the mask, the way he walked around her, brought the lightsaber so close to her then that she was sure he'd kill her if she didn't give him what he wanted.

But not here.

Not now.

She whispers his name again as she tries to reach out to him. Her eyes flutter and half-close. She grips onto their bond, her hands clawing at the ragged sections of it, trying to knit the tears back together as she tries to pull her away across it to him. She can feel Ben shudder, can see the lightsaber waver just a little bit as she comes close.

So close.

There's something there, oily and slick, like a curtain that's closed between her mind and his. It repels her every chance she almost breaks through.

Snoke.

"Yes," he says from somewhere above her, and she watches as Ben straightens even more, his body held rigid. The tremors in his arm cease, the lightsaber steadies near her head. Her eyes fly open and meet the one she can see through the cracked part of his helmet.

"This isn't you," Rey whispers. "You're not Kylo Ren."

"You still think you can turn him?" Snoke asks, his voice a near-hiss at the end. "You think you've seen his weakness? You think he'll go to you? You a mewling child with no more control of the Force than what my apprentice has granted you?"

"He's already turned," Rey says, eyes still on Ben.

"A momentary weakness. He's back here, where he belongs." She hears him shift. "And I know his every thought, his every movement. He is mine!" There's a shriek there at the end, and Rey is not so sure Snoke truly believes it. He's half in control of Ben, a part of his mind inside his like the parasite he is.

"He will never be yours," Rey says, every word punctuated. She stands then. She won't face Ben, won't face her death at Snoke's hand, laying on the ground like a frightened child. She stands before him, tall and proud.

Ben's lightsaber tracks her movements. He raises it up, the killing blow so close. She doesn't close her eyes.

"Strike her down, Kylo Ren! Take your place at my side as my only worthy apprentice!" Snoke shouts.

Ben raises the lightsaber even more. "I know what I have to do."

"Ben." Her voice is soft, and she tries to keep the terror out of it. She has to believe he won't do this, that he can't do this. He loves her, and she can see the softness about his eyes as he looked at her, the determination and love as he took her to his bed, as they came together as one. "Fight him, Ben." She pushes back through the bond. "You have to fight. You can't let him win. Not this time." She grabs ahold of the bond, leans forward just a little. Her eyes stay locked onto his. His pupils are pin points of light in the amber irises, despite the dark room. Ben doesn't see her. Snoke won't let him.

And so she moves closer.

His lightsaber trembles a little as he raises it high.

She can see Luke out of the corner of her eye moving closer. His lightsaber is raised and for one terrifying moment, she realizes what he means to do. Ben's entire arm is trembling on the lightsaber he holds above her and she watches as it goes through his whole body, the shudder bending him over just slightly.

His eyes move away from hers for the first time, and she follows his gaze to where his uncle stands, lightsaber at the ready. And all she can remember is Ben's memories, his uncle standing over him, intent on killing him.

He has the same look on his face now.

And she notices it's not anger, not vengeance. It's sorrow and the pain of a lifetime of hurt and worry. It's knowing he has to do something and not wanting to. It's terror and pain and horror. It's everything he doesn't want to do and yet somehow she knows he's going to gather up the strength to do it this time.

She looks back to Ben, who is watching his uncle, the eyebrow she can see is drawn up, the eyes wide open. He nods once.

It's a plea.

Luke nods in response.

And she feels cold. He's going to kill him. He's going to take him out before he can do any harm to her and she knows. Kriffing Ben Solo. He's told his uncle to do it. He has no doubt. There's such calm acceptance there in his gaze. His arm is still trembling, fighting Snoke, battling with him for some sort of dominance over his own body. He has such a tenuous hold on it at the moment, one half second away from striking her down.

"Do it," she hears Ben say, his eyes still focused on his uncle. He won't even look at her. She sees a shudder wrack his body, watches as the lightsaber lowers a hair.

"No!" she shouts, her hands going out. Luke is thrown back a little and then she turns on Ben, snarling as she steps toward him, as she tears into his mind. It's not pretty. It's not kind or gentle. It's a violation, plain and simple, rippling up the bond and then tearing through the oily veil protecting Ben from her. She feels more than hears Snoke scream. The sound is inside her head. It reverberates throughout her mind, ricocheting off every bit of her.

She keeps going.

Ben!

And then he is there. She feels him, sees him. He comes to with a gasp and she's thrown out of his mind, back into the red room, the guards frozen in place as they watch.

Ben Solo rips off his helmet.

He's breathing hard, staring at her.

But he's there.

Present. She can see the pupils widening, watches as his hand falls heavily to his side, the lightsaber disengaging. "Rey!"

His voice is hoarse, ragged. And it's the most beautiful sound she's ever heard in her entire life.

Snoke snarls. As one, they turn to face him, lightsabers igniting.

"You are unworthy of being called my apprentice!" Snoke shouts. His mouth is twisted in fury, his eyes squinted half shut as he raises his hands toward them.

She knows what's next.

She can feel it start to rise up in him, can see the energy that traces along his arms, blue streaks that seem to illuminate his scarred, pitted face, the bright blue eyes, creating shadows in the crevices of a face so steeped in dark power that it has split nearly in two.

The hair on her arms, on the back of her neck, stands up, that moment just before it strikes. Snoke's eyes are on Ben and she knows he's aiming for him first. "Ben!" she shouts just as Snoke makes a jabbing motion toward him, sending the lightning streaking out toward Ben.

She screams.

Snoke laughs, shrill, frightening.

"Ben!" she shouts, starting to move toward him, knock him out of the way. Ben is staring at Snoke, as if he knows exactly where this is going, as if he's accepted his fact. Rey lifts her lightsaber and just barely manages to catch the edge of the lightning, pushing it away from Ben. It hits one of the guards instead and she hears him scream in agony as he flies backward.

Snoke snarls something incoherent, turning back to where Rey and Ben are standing close together.

"You!" he says, every bit of darkness in that one single word. He stands then, no longer the indifferent Supreme Leader, who finds amusement in the pain he's causing them. She feels real fear slice down her at his towering presence. "You will watch him die first, knowing you will join his fate only moments later. You want your bond? You shall have it. For eternity."

He raises his hands again and Ben pushes Rey back, behind him. She pushes back, coming to step next to him. "We're equals," she says.

"Of course."

They raise their lightsabers together.

Snoke raises his hands.

The lightning crackles at his fingertips.

She reaches out a hand to grasp Ben's. Together, they still themselves for the onslaught. Snoke cannot win.

Snoke will not win.

He points his hands in their direction.

And then…

Nothing…

They hear the sound of a blaster going off, and watch as the laser hits Snoke right between his beady eyes, tearing a hole a couple inches wide in his skull. His eyes go wide, lightning still crackling down his fingertips.

He falls back.

The lightning engulfs him, turning on its originator.

Rey turns to see Han standing off to their side, blaster still aimed at Snoke, eyes grim. He turns to them and nods, lips pressed together. She's never seen him look so serious. "I wasn't going to let him kill my son."

Snoke lets out an inhuman howl of pain as the lightening radiates through his body. With one last lashing out of his hand, he sends the lightening across the room. Han Solo is thrown back, hitting one of the red-curtained walls with a loud thud.

He falls motionless to the floor.

And then Snoke's body explodes, sending them all flying back. The last thing Rey remembers of that moment was seeing Ben twisting as they flew through the air and the look in his wide eyes.

Triumph.

And relief.

Snoke is dead.

The Resistance can win.