CHAPTER 2:
The Flight from Exegol
"Ben. We need to leave now." Her voice was soft. It cut through the foggy haze of weariness and sadness that had descended upon him.
He opened his eyes, which were bleary and red. He felt a little better - the crying had helped, if only to release the emotions that had been trapped under the weight of Kylo Ren. Pushing himself up into a sitting position, he once again locked eyes with Rey. Though she still seemed wary of him, she did not look away.
Once he was off the ground and standing once more, the duo continued on. Rey's X-Wing was now in view, and so was his TIE Interceptor. He could barely stand the thought of climbing into that vessel again. Visions of his mother, standing on the bay of one of her Rebellion ships, watching him draw closer and closer. The feel of the cannon trigger in his grip, thumb brushing against the button that would kill his mother, just as he had killed his father. It had felt final at the time - doing this would end Ben Solo, and allow Kylo Ren to rise. No more silly emotions, no more hesitation. All his ties to his past life, to the light side, would be gone in one press of a button, glowing red in the cockpit of his ship.
But something had called to him. He did not know whether it was Leia, or Rey, or even Luke, the old Skywalker. Whatever it was, it was solid, a clear voice that penetrated deep inside him.
Ben.
Just one word. In an instant, his plan to murder his mother had gone away. All that was left was a distant humming in his mind, and the sounds of warfare around him in the vast expanse of space. He then had made eye contact with his mother. Her eyebrows had creased, and she had pressed a hand to the window of the Rebellion Cruiser.
He was sure it was her voice when he heard, "Ben. Come home." It wasn't as clear as the voice before, but still, he heard it.
Gunfire had then lit up the deck of the ship.
"Ben. Do you know where the Rebel base is?" Rey questioned, breaking through his memories with the sound of her voice.
He thought back to his childhood. Large trees, draped in ivy and native plants, the forest floor overgrown with moss. His home used to reside there, where he had lived with Leia and Han and Chewbacca. He remembered a rounded stone house, covered in wildflowers and some sort of tangly plant that he would always have to brush aside when entering the door. It was Yavin 4, he believed, an old rebel base. Leia had fallen in love with the lush woods, and Han was… Han about it. Chewbacca used to chase him around the forest until his mother called them both inside, where they had eaten meals made from native wildlife.
The tears were threatening to spill down his cheeks again, but he did not let them fall. He just responded with a resolute, "Yes" to her question, and climbed into the Interceptor, watching her jump into the cockpit of the X-Wing and power up the engine.
"You know, this ship was Luke's. He blew up the first Death Star with this," She yelled over the sound of the boosters, a twinkle in her eye as she smiled at Ben.
The corners of his lips twitched upwards.
"Wow." He couldn't bring himself to utter anything else, but Rey seemed delighted at his response.
"I'll let you fly it sometime," She called back, as the shuttle door closed over her. The wings opened, creating that signature "X" shape, and she began flying off into the clouds, past the falling remains of the Star Destroyers.
Ben powered on the Interceptor, brushing past old emotions cluttering the edges of his mind, and he began to follow the former scavenger into the sky. His radio buzzed, startling him, and he righted his ship as it began to drift left.
"Imperial TIE One, online." He did not know how else to answer the call.
"You don't need to address yourself as that, Ben." Rey's voice was staticky, but he could hear her strained patience through the communication system.
"Is General Hux better?" He replied, a small smile now present on his face.
Rey's laugh came in through the radio.
"Sure, why not?" She responded, gave another short giggle, then said, "I'm preparing to jump to Lightspeed. Just wait until you're beyond the triple-digit Z-coordinates, then feel free to link to my ship's pattern to follow me."
She's a good flyer, he thought to himself, as he adjusted a few dials on the dashboard above him, flipping on the Link switch and connecting to her ship's coordinates.
Static met his ears once more. "Alright, we're approaching jump speed, in 3, 2…"
He braced himself, and with a tremendous shudder, the Interceptor launched into Hyperspace, trailing behind the muddied X-Wing.
Ben glanced out the window. Beyond him, a sea of stars, flying past him, sweeping him away from Exegol.
He was going home.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .