It isn't long before he overcomes her weak attempts to block him from her mind, and she hears the deep growl of frustration as if it echoes from her own throat. He doesn't push forward as strongly as he could, she feels his hesitation when she cringes in pain at the struggle between them.

Why are you blocking me out?

Jeyna can't explain. Even as her heart rises with relief at the connection, at the sound of his voice, angry as it is, her mind is wracked with guilt. She hadn't wanted anyone to be hurt. She should have argued more with Aleck, pushed for him to release her. It could have prevented the fighting. She could have spared lives if she'd only had more of a backbone. But time and again, she feels like no one gives her a chance to make her own decisions.

Tell the pilot to surrender you. If he does, I will call off my ships from the battle before more lives are lost. If this continues, the Rebel forces will be decimated.

She looks at Poe, his face furrowed in concentration as he keeps them on a straight course through the unknown solar system, listening to comms intently as if waiting for a prayer to be answered.

"You have to hand me over," she tells him. He jerks his head her way, giving her a suspicious glance.

"I'm not giving up that easily," he insists.

"Your friends and allies are being killed," Jeyna says urgently. "If you give me to him, he'll call off the First Order."

"And you believe him?"

"Yes, I do," she snarls in reply, frustrated with his stubborn streak. "This is bigger than me! It's not worth it to sacrifice so much of the Resistance!"

He looks torn, not answering her. "You have to trust me, Poe. Whatever Revan left, I will do everything I can to make sure it's not used against the Resistance! You said you would get me to the point where I could make my choice, and I'm making it!"

He fixates his eyes on her, and she can see how lost he is in the moment. He's trying to cling onto hope that there is another solution, but she presses on with her demand. "We aren't sacrificing any more of the Resistance for this. I'm going to him." The strength in her own voice surprises her, and she returns his stare with a piercing glare.

His resolve crumbles. He forms a fist, slamming it into the metal panel of the door in frustration. "Where?!"

The image floods her mind in response. White sand, rocks jutting out into calmly rolling surf.

"The ocean planet we were on before," Jeyna says, closing her eyes as the picture vanishes. She keeps them closed as he completes the short jump through hyperspace, only opening when the dizzying blur is gone. This time she can see the planet as they approach it. It's a beautiful ball of turquoise, speckled with islands that grow in size as they descend.

Poe sets them down on one at random, near the top of a hill that slopes down to the shore. She scrambles to remove the harness. "Take off as soon as I'm out!" she tells him, not wanting to risk a confrontation. He hesitates, but she is already climbing, clumsily, from the vessel and spilling down the hill.

Her heart is racing in anticipation, as she sees the black ship land not far from them, past an arching line of rocks that bisect the beach. The saltwater scent fills her nose as the breeze gusts off the water, and she recognizes the scent now. It's somehow refreshing despite the briny quality.

Her mind takes a backseat as her legs carry her forward instinctively, reaching the bottom of the hill and setting off towards him. Every rational thought that had kept her from wanting this moment flies from her brain at the feeling of his presence, so near. She is on autopilot, getting to him her only primitive goal.

Jeyna forces her way across the sand as fast as she can, ducking under a massive span of rock and emerging closer to his ship. The ramp descends, and she sees him. The mask is back on, the black combat suit and cloak covering him. But she can feel him, feel the storming emotions that swirl under the disguise.

He takes the helmet off as he descends the ramp, letting it drop with a heavy thud onto the metal. His hair is swept back from his face, sunlight illuminating it to reveal a deep brown, and not the black it usually appears. She is relieved to see he looks tired but physically fine after the confrontation with Snoke.

She's almost to the ship when the sound of a blaster going off behind her makes her cringe, the flash of red shooting past her.

She screams in realization of its intended destination, even as the bolt freezes, feet from Ben's black-gloved hand. He's holding it, crackling in the air. The red reflects in his eyes as he glares past her.

Jeyna turns, spotting Poe. He's by the rock archway, the blaster still held in his outstretched hand. His eyes are widened in shock, and she realizes he can't move. He's frozen in place, moments after making a foolish attempt at killing the new Supreme Leader.

"Please," she says, turning back to Ben. His eyes dart to hers. "Please don't hurt him."

She flinches when the blaster bolt moves suddenly, ricocheting wildly off course and colliding with a boulder, sending bits of scorched dust flying into the air. Ben stalks the rest of the way down the ramp into the sand, the wind from the ocean pushing his cloak out behind him.

"Does his life mean something to you?" he demands, eyes raging with barely restrained jealousy.

"There's been enough killing today," she stammers out, looking to him pleadingly when he stops a few feet from her.

"Then make your choice, before I lose my patience," he orders her.

Her brow furrows at his words, confused. She can't read the myriad emotions now swirling in his honey eyes, they are so chaotic. His lips quiver before he attempts to force his expression to remain locked. "Do you want to come with me?" he pushes.

Jeyna's taken aback by the question, that he is even offering her the final say. The muscles of his face fail to withhold his emotions, and hopefulness mixes with desperation on his features. I know what it's like, to have all of your choices made for you. I won't decide for you. Not anymore.

Ben's voice in her mind is gentle, almost comforting. It's in stark contrast to the harsh tones he's spoken aloud in.

"Would you let me go? If I wanted to leave?" she asks doubtfully. The pain that flashes on his face is instantaneous, his lips parting for a harsh intake of breath.

"If that's what you want," he says, quietly.

She can't bear it any longer. She crosses the last few feet between them, reaching for him. He is frozen, searching her face, as she gently caresses the faint scar on his cheek that is still fading. "I want you," she admits. "You're all I want."

Her words unlock him, his eyes clear of their storm. His beautiful face breaks free from control, the relief obvious even as his eyes show surprise. She rises to kiss him, the sand shifting beneath her feet as she lifts to her toes. She clings onto his shoulders to steady herself, and his lips are hesitant against hers for the first time.

She breaks away from his lips to whisper, "Ben?"

He moves finally, his large black glove cradling her face to bring her back to his mouth. His other hand finds the small of her back, pressing her closer. The kiss is different than any before, the steady energy that comes from it feels like it's rocking her very heart. He deepens it, his fingertips sliding to her neck so his thumb can stroke her cheek. She has the sudden urge to rip the gloves from him, and fling them into the ocean for daring to separate their skin.

His chuckle breaks the kiss, and he pulls away enough for her to catch the way his lips quirk upwards in a grin. "You still have amusing thoughts," he says.

Jeyna can't help the shy smile that she gives him back, even as her mind tries to remind her that Poe is still frozen behind them, very much able to see everything. A flush of embarrassment burns her cheeks.

"Poe is still-" she tries to say, to step back, but his arm around her back halts her retreat.

"Still alive? You're welcome," he interrupts. The small grin lingers even as his lips find hers again, she can feel it until he angles his mouth more firmly against hers. His tongue teases her lips open, slipping in to stroke hers. Nerves wriggle deep in her belly, even as her mind begs to relax and forget everything but him.

Too soon, he pulls away. "We need to leave. They'll eventually try to track his ship, now that my forces aren't distracting them."

She tries to find stable footing as he releases her, turning to see Poe is staring at Ben, not backing down even as he is frozen in place. She doesn't miss the challenging glare Ben gives back to the pilot.

"Don't hurt him," Jeyna repeats.

He looks at her, and for a very long moment she is worried by his hesitation. But then his hand reaches out, and she sees Poe crumple to the sand. She gasps at his unmoving form.

Ben turns to return to his ship, hesitating when he gets to the ramp and she still hasn't moved. He turns to look at her, before raising his eyebrows. "I didn't hurt him. He's just going to be unconscious…For a long time."

She huffs before tearing her eyes away from Poe, joining Ben at the ramp of the ship. It's even more intimidating up close, the entire front of the vessel is lined with weapons. It looks like a command shuttle, and with a start, she realizes it's most likely his personal ship now that he is the Supreme Leader.

He retrieves his helmet, but waits by the hatch for her to enter, his eyes steady on her as she steps into the shuttle. He shuts the hatch behind her, and she immediately misses the ocean air and sunshine.

"You like it on this planet," he remarks. Jeyna nods, surveying the interior of his ship. It is typical for the First Order. Cold metal, shining surfaces, sterile while also managing to feel hostile.

When she looks back to Ben, it seems like he wants to say more, but stops himself. Instead, he jerks his head slightly, towards the front of the ship. "This way," he urges, leading her to the cockpit.

Jeyna takes a seat near the navigation chart, unwilling to sit in a copilot's seat again so soon. Ben's piloting is smooth, and she is grateful for their easy liftoff from the beach after the aerobatics she'd been forced to endure in the X-wing.

She is silent as he talks on comms, surprised by the hard authority that takes over his voice when giving orders to the First Order. She can't hear any replies, but she picks up enough from his half of the communications. They are going to be returning to the Finalizer, before transferring to the Supremacy.

Disappointment fills her at the thought of returning to the First Order's headquarters, surveying Ren as he disconnects the headset and drops it. The cockpit is silent for a moment before they jump to hyperspace, the blur outside the window dizzying her. She tears her eyes away from it.

"You're going to stay with the First Order?" she asks suddenly, unable to stop herself from inquiring about his motives any longer.

He punches in coordinates before turning from the controls, letting autopilot take over while they are in hyperspace. When he stands to face her, his face is curious.

"You don't think I should?" he asks. He approaches the second navigation seat, sitting beside her and searching her gaze.

Jeyna struggles to find the right way to answer him, before sighing. "I don't think that your path…is their path," she says finally.

Ben looks away, towards the disorienting lights of hyperspace swirling around them. She tries to follow his gaze but can't stand it, looking back towards her lap even as he answers her. "They have resources. Military power. I can use them, for the time being."

She frowns. "Use them for what?"

Jeyna hears the deep breath Ben takes, sees his gloves clench before he relaxes his hands again. When she looks to his face, his eyes snap back to hers. "My whole life, for as long as I can remember…There's been something else inside my head," he begins. "Since I was a child, I've heard voices in my mind… coming from someone else." Her eyes widen in horror and he drops his gaze from hers.

He continues on, voice tentative, gaze on his gloves once more. "I thought I was losing my mind, at one point. I couldn't tell which thoughts were my own. And they all pulled me, towards the darkness. But when my emotions settled enough, when I could focus on you… I could hear that my voice was different from the rest. I know my own voice now."

His eyes lift from his hands, to search hers imploringly. "Do you think I'm insane?"

She leans forward instantly, wanting to reassure him. "No, of course not!" she insists, before repeating in horror, "Your whole life… You've had to deal with this your whole life?"

He nods, and she feels heartbroken at the thought. Did Leia or his father know? Did he tell anyone, to ask for help? Or did he keep it to himself, afraid it would be mistaken for something far worse? Would they have assumed he was destined for the dark side? Leia had said that people were scared of him, and his powers, even as a small child. What would they have done, if he'd admitted voices were luring him towards the darkness? The thought pains her, as she searches his face sadly.

"Who could do that?" Jeyna asks. "They'd have to be a strong force user, correct?" Her mind is already spinning, trying to fully understand the problem to try to solve it.

"Yes, they'd have to be very strong. I thought it was Snoke, but he's dead and they are still there," he admits, hesitating. "I don't know who it is. But I know what they want."

She raises her eyebrows, but she already thinks she knows. "They want whatever Revan left," Ben confirms. "The voices have gotten louder, the closer we get."

"Isn't that a reason to not find it?" Jeyna asks.

He leans forward, and fierce determination fills his eyes as they capture hers. "No," he disagrees. "If I find what they want, they'll reveal themselves. And then, I can kill them. I can be free."