Chapter 21
It all flooded into her senses. The first time she saw Ben Solo, how shy she'd been to speak, the life they'd shared training with Luke.
That's when she remembered Leia's words.
Rey…It's not the first time.
She tried to tell me! She exclaimed mentally, and she knew Kylo heard her.
She'd seen every dream he'd had since childhood. All of her, running with him, hand in hand on the beaches of Naboo, light, and laughter making them glow with warmth.
She saw that night. The night Ben held her so closely in his arms, so unwilling to let her go, his outcry of pain when Luke made her forget everything…
No. It had to be a lie. It couldn't be true.
But Kylo was streaming tears, and his hand was trembling.
It was everything he'd wanted to say, for so long. He never gave up. He searched the galaxy for years…and he'd never been able to find her.
Until finally, there was a spark of hope.
"The droid was accompanied by a girl."
"What girl?!" He snapped, desperation and rage in his force grip.
She gasped as one by one; the memories played themselves in her mind.
And principle of all, when Luke tried to make him forget her. His look of outrage and betrayal, running away from his master, right into the arms of another.
Snoke.
Endless days of training, meditation and sparring blurred until Rey couldn't differentiate between the days. That was when she realized, neither could Ben. After she'd been taken away from him, he was only half the person he'd been. The other half slowly started to pool with concentrated rage.
It all finally led up to the night Ben Solo died. Kylo Ren emerged from the wreckage of his hut, the home he'd shared with the girl he'd never see again.
A friend of his heard the ruckus and woken up, darting over to him to see if he was alright. The rest of the padawans followed suit.
Kylo told him what Luke had tried to do, and that he was leaving. Several of his friends agreed to go with him.
"You killed the last Jedi!" one of them shouted, switching on his lightsaber. "We must avenge Master Skywalker!"
That night it was a literal fight to the death. Kylo, with six of his friends, fought side by side against the padawans, until they'd won the battle and escaped the temple.
Kylo supported one of his friends on his shoulder as they limped, struck in the leg with a lightsaber. They were all covered in scratches and blood. Kylo led them to find a ship they could fix to escape the planet. Under his guidance, they became the Knights of Ren.
Then Kylo's reign of Terror began.
But suddenly the images in her mind were different. They were tinged with the foggy lens of past memories. This was so clear it was almost too sharp for her mind. She realized it was a vision of what was to come.
Ben Solo facing Snoke, and turning against him, to stand with her.
The images stopped, and she looked at who she knew now, was Ben Solo.
He was trembling, out of breath, just as she was. Now you understand, he said.
Luke had done this. If she hadn't been taken away…if he hadn't tried to block Ben's memories or try to kill him…
Kylo Ren would've never been born.
The realization hit her so hard it impacted her soul.
But it wasn't too late for him. Ben Solo wasn't dead. He was going to turn to the light.
I'll come find you, she said with her heart.
Ben swallowed back the words that had risen in his throat, resigning to say, I'll be waiting.
"STOP!" A voice said.
There was a whoosh of air as the yurt's stones crumbled around them, as Luke Skywalker pulled the roof down from the structure.
Rey withdrew her hand, but Kylo left his outstretched.
He hadn't wanted to let go.
He was suddenly so angry. Luke was always coming between them. Always. Ever since the very beginning!
The force bond disappeared.
"No," he gasped to himself, his heart pounding in his chest so loudly he could hear it.
What if Luke hurt her? Was he going to attack her for turning to the dark, as he'd attacked him?
Kylo tried his best to open up the connection again, but no matter how hard he willed it, there was nothing but silence.
His hand was still warm from touching hers.
He'd seen everything. The faces of the people who'd thrown her away so recklessly. The inside of their ship, a pile of junk held together with scraps and rusted old metal parts. They'd sold the only thing they had of value; their daughter. While the details of the transaction were being made, they'd been at some watering hole on Jakku. The stench of alcohol had filled Kylo's nose just reliving the memory.
It infuriated him.
Neither parent looked very healthy, they'd both been skin and bones.
He was stunned to see a dream she'd had of the two of them on the Falcon, passionate lovers. He'd never dared to have such dreams, but his imagination was now running wild with the possibilities.
And the vision he'd seen kept playing over and over in his mind. When she came to him, they were going to stand together, side by side, like they always should have.
She was going to join him.
~.~
Luke's worst fear had been realized.
Rey and Kylo Ren had made contact and looked to be one with each other.
Had she turned? Had she joined the dark side? Was she beyond hope, just as he'd feared?
He knew this was a mistake. He never should've agreed to train a Palpatine.
"Is it true?!" she shouted over the pouring rain, her eyes filled with hurt. "Did you try to murder him?!" She asked.
No. He'd told her the rest of the story. The story she was never supposed to hear. "Leave this Island NOW!" He demanded, turning away from her.
~.~
Luke's furious response was all she'd needed to know it was true.
She'd had enough. Rey was sick of the half-truths, the despair, of his pessimistic view of the Jedi and lack of hope that the war could end. She understood he'd needed to mourn for the loss of his friend but enough was enough. Suddenly the story Luke had told, how he wallowed in self-pity felt so artificial. So staged. So ingenuine.
And he'd taken her memories, her love for Ben. He'd been her master, and he betrayed her too.
You failed both of us, she thought, and it made her snap.
"STOP!" She demanded, but he kept walking briskly away from her. "STOP!"
The furious padawan struck him down with her staff. "Did you do it?!" she demanded. She needed to hear him say it. "Did you create Kylo Ren?!"
Are you the one who took ben Solo from me?!
Luke tried to fight her off but ultimately, he was left staring at the business end of his own father's lightsaber.
"Tell me the truth," she said.
Luke wore a defeated expression and finally spoke. "I saw darkness. I'd sensed it building in him. I'd see it at moments during his training. But when I looked inside…it was beyond anything I'd imagined."
Rey faltered for a moment, seeing what Luke was seeing.
"Snoke had already turned his heart. He would bring destruction…and pain…and death and the end of everything I loved because of what he would become. And for the briefest moment of pure instinct, I thought I could stop it."
Rey saw in horror that it had been true, Luke held a lightsaber over a sleeping sixteen-year-old boy ready to strike. "It passed like a fleeting shadow," he said. "And I was left with shame…and with consequence."
Now she understood. Luke had changed his mind about killing him, but Ben didn't know that. All he'd seen was his master standing over him with a lightsaber, ready to kill him in his sleep.
"And all I saw…were the eyes of a frightened boy whose master had failed him."
Rey was filled with a surge of hope like never before. "You failed him by thinking his choice was made! It wasn't!" She said the rest in a rush. "There is still conflict in him. If he turned from the dark side, that could shift the tide. This could be how we win!"
"This is not going to go the way you think," Luke said.
"It is," she assured, turning off the lightsaber. "Just now, when we touched hands…I saw his future. Just as solid as I'm seeing you. If I go to him, Ben Solo will turn."
"Rey, don't do this…" Luke said, shaking his head sadly.
He'd been wrong. About all of it. Rey Palpatine…was somehow a warrior of the light. She wanted to bring Ben back to their side, not join him.
He wanted to apologize, tell Rey he'd wronged her, and even confess what he'd done to her.
But before he could speak, she flipped over the lightsaber and pointed it at him, for him to grab.
He couldn't do it. He'd seen enough war to last him a lifetime.
"Then he's our last hope," she said, and with that, she walked off into the rain.
Soon after, Luke heard the revving of the Falcon's engine.
~.~
Kylo was practically skipping down the hallway to Hanger 8 on Snoke's ship.
He knew she was coming. He could sense it. Already he could feel her presence.
But he paused mid-step at the sound of Snoke's voice in his head.
When she arrives, bring her straight to the throne room, he said.
Kylo's heart fell into his stomach, and suddenly he'd regretted making her come here.
But if she turned, like he knew she would…It would all be fine.
Kylo, upon hearing an announcement over the PA system that an unauthorized escape pod had docked, knew she'd arrived. He marched over immediately, trying his best to keep his composure.
But suddenly there she was, looking up at him with hopeful eyes.
There was so much he wanted to say, but for the moment he was powerless.
His master was waiting.
He turned away from her and let the stormtroopers behind him do their job.
To her credit, she didn't fight it this time. She was handcuffed, but it was a courtesy measure. There was no point in imprisoning her, she was here because she wanted to be. She'd come of her own volition. If she were going to escape, she would have by now.
This thought gave Kylo courage.
"Will you be needing an imperial escort?" One of the stormtroopers asked him, but Kylo waved his hand dismissively. "That won't be necessary," he said. "I'll escort the prisoner myself."
Kylo looked her up and down, and the slightest bit of color rose to his face, but he otherwise averted his eyes and nodded his head, a gesture meaning follow me.
She walked alongside him, and he held her from behind, in a seemingly dominative move, but in actuality it was protective. Once they were out of earshot, he said almost inaudibly, "I'm relieved you arrived here safely. I thought he might have hurt you."
Rey gently nudged him in response, the only reply she could give. I'm okay, she said mentally.
When they made it to a hallway, and they were alone, he allowed the smallest smile to escape for a brief moment. "I liked your dream," he said out loud.
He didn't even have to look. He knew she was probably blushing furiously. She stomped his foot. Could've very easily been accidental, but he knew it wasn't. "It was just a dream," she whispered.
It doesn't have to be, he said to her mentally.
Eventually, there was an elevator, he walked in first, and clasped together his hands in front of him, holding his head up high.
"Voice recognition required," the elevator said.
"This is Kylo Ren with a prisoner. I require access to the Throne room."
"Permission granted," the elevator chimed, and then the doors closed.
Now they could actually talk.
"You don't have to do this," she said. He couldn't see her expression; she was standing in front of him. "I feel the conflict in you."
Of course, you do, he thought. You always have.
"It's tearing you apart," she said.
I've been fighting it every day, he mentally said. But now I think I know –
"– Ben," she said, jarring him from his words.
At the sound of his old name, he looked down at her. She was facing him now. "When we touched hands, I saw your future. Just the shape of it but it was solid and clear." There was conviction in her words, but she hadn't seen what he'd seen.
She took a few steps forward, so she was closer to him. "You will not bow before Snoke. You'll turn." She whispered her last promise. "I'll help you."
"I saw it," she said again, but he interjected.
"I saw something too," he said softly. "Because of what I saw, I know that when the time comes, you'll be the one to turn. You'll stand with me."
He could see in her eyes she didn't believe him, despite the fact he'd never once lied to her.
She still doesn't understand, he thought. Her future wasn't the only thing he'd seen. He'd also seen her past. "Rey," he said, as a last attempt to make her see, "I saw who your parents are."
Suddenly her eyes grew suspicious. Defensive. She backed away from him until she hit the elevator door.
Before she could reply, it opened to reveal the throne room.
And Snoke himself.
