There is nothing, and she is no one, for a very long time. But eventually, Jeyna becomes aware of herself again. The blackness around her flashes with her pain, a dull throbbing that feels like it is the entirety of her world at the moment.

There is a thought, lingering there within her brain. It isn't hers, and yet she can't hear the voice that speaks it: I didn't mean to harm you…

Her brain is functioning enough now for her to reach out, with her limited access to the force, to try to grab onto that distant thought and track it to the source. And yet when she tries, all she feels is the void, empty and cold. It seems to acknowledge her attempt, and it communicates with her again.

You are weak with the force, and it was too much. Let me show you what will become of the galaxy, in a way that you can understand.

Jeyna is alone with the darkness for only a moment more, before she sees it. The seed sprouts before her eyes, pushing its stalk upwards as its roots sink down. She watches it grow, flourishing into its full being. But more than that, she can feel it. She feels the energy within its cells, the current that is life pulsing within it. She understands that this is only a small part, in a very large web, and yet it is also everything, contained in this one living thing.

She feels it when the energy is pulled from every last cell of the plant. The energy isn't just transferred, it is completely removed from existence. The connections to the web are broken, the life turned to something worse than death. It isn't killed, it is undone. Removed as if it never were.

The plant turns to nothingness before her eyes, the color fading, the matter disintegrating before it vanishes. There is a wound that remains, a hole left where once a small part of a large thing had been. And she feels it, when all along the web, similar events occur. The wounds spread, the shockwaves they send out colliding and destroying. There is nothing left, nothing of the energy that once was. The web has been undone.

You have to find me. It is the only way to stop it.

When the visions end, the darkness takes back over her mind. Her thoughts fade, and she surrenders to nothingness.

Two Days Later

When Jeyna finally opens her eyes, the harsh light makes her wince. She turns her face into unfamiliar, rough textured sheets. Alarmed, she flips over onto her side, only to be greeted by the sight of a medical droid by the narrow bed. Behind it, a woman she has never met before looks shocked, jumping up from her bedside seat.

"Send for the Supreme Leader! She's awake!" she calls. Jeyna sees a man go rushing from behind a console, to exit the nearby security door.

It only takes a moment of looking at her surroundings, the design of the dark floor and walls, for Jeyna to understand she is back on the ship.

"You must feel confused," the woman says, stepping closer. She's older, her hair pulled back into a tight bun. She waves a hand at the droid, and it floats further away. "You're in a private room of the medical bay, on board the Finalizer. You became ill suddenly while on a mission to Nar Shaddaa, and were brought back here."

"Where's B-Ren? Where is Ren?" Jeyna asks, almost slipping up when saying his name. Her voice is hoarse with lack of use, and she swallows painfully.

The woman looks nervous at the question. "He'll be here any minute! He's never gone for long."

Her head is pounding, but she nods slowly, taking in the other woman's uniform. "Are you a nurse?" she asks.

"Yes. We were transferred from the Supremacy to take over your care," the woman answers.

Jeyna would find that to be curious, if she felt better. Her mouth is ridiculously dry, her tongue nearly sticking to the roof of her mouth. Her throat feels like it's raw. "I'm sorry, could I have some water? Please?" she asks hesitantly.

The nurse jumps immediately to retrieve it for her. "Of course! Is there anything else you need!?" She brings a small glass, holding it up to Jeyna's lips, even as she tries to take it for herself. "Painkillers? Are you feeling alright? We weren't able to find anything wrong with you to explain the coma," she rambles, clearly full of anxiety. "Nothing showed up on scans, there were no injuries or abnormalities-"

"Coma?" Jeyna spits out, splashing some water down her chin. The nurse immediately tries to wipe it for her, even as she flinches back.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to upset you. Please don't be upset when the Supreme Leader gets here," she says quickly, looking back fearfully at the security door.

"I was in a coma? For how long?" Jeyna asks, her voice rising.

"Only two days-"

"Two days!" Jeyna interrupts her, eyes widening. What had happened to her? How had she just lost two entire days? She'd had some odd dreams, sure, but it definitely didn't feel like two days had passed by. She frowns at the thought of the dreams, trying to remember. Her stomach sinks, goosebumps erupting across her arms, as the memory fights to return.

"I'm sorry!" the nurse apologizes, her voice sounding close to panic. "Please, is there anything else you need? We did all we could, I'm so sorry-"

"Stop apologizing!" Jeyna snaps loudly, before wincing with guilt. "I'm sorry, I don't feel quite well. But it's not your fault, why are you apologizing so much?"

The nurse's eyes are wide with terror. "Your last medical team didn't take your condition seriously enough for the Supreme Leader. They're all in beds in the medical bay themselves, now! But I told him, there was nothing we could find. I didn't know what else to do!"

She frowns sympathetically, feeling bad for the woman who is clearly terrified of Kylo Ren. "Well I'm okay now, so I don't think you have to worry," she tries to console her. The nurse nods, but still looks just as nervous.

Jeyna closes her eyes slowly, letting her head fall back onto the lumpy pillow once more as she tries to catch herself up. The image of the plant being drained of energy fills her mind, the dreams refusing to stay in her subconscious. But where had the dreams come from? Who had shared them with her?

She doesn't have long to contemplate before the security door opens. The nurse jerks as if startled, whirling to face the doorway. Jeyna opens her eyes to see him, dressed fully as Kylo Ren, his tall body filling in the frame of the door as he hovers there. She feels his presence surge in her mind before he restrains himself, his emotions leaking through to her. She feels the relief and anxiety, the tightness that grips his chest, as if it is her own.

He steps closer to her bed. "Out. Now," he orders.

The nurse doesn't need to be told twice, practically throwing herself to the door to escape. It shuts behind her, and he immediately rips the helmet from his head.

Ben's eyes look agonized as they land on hers, his jaw working as he tries to suppress his emotions. He surprises her when he comes forward, collapsing to the chair by her bedside and burying his face against her chest, above her heart. His arms wrap around her, tangling in the sheets as he clings onto her. She frowns, feeling guilty that he is upset despite it being out of her control. She still doesn't fully understand what happened to her, but she does her best to comfort him, gently stroking his hair.

"I'm okay," she says softly after a long moment. He jerks, lifting his face to look at her, and the raw pain in his eyes makes her breath catch.

"You wouldn't wake up," he says quietly.

"I'm okay now," Jeyna repeats uncertainly.

"Who did it?" he asks. His voice is still low, but it holds a furious note in the question.

"I don't know," she says honestly. "But they said they didn't mean to harm me-"

"I don't care what they meant. I'll kill them," he interrupts.

"Ben," she says pleadingly, uncertain how to defuse him. She pushes his hair back from his face, letting her hand linger against his skin. He pushes his cheek more firmly against her palm, searching her gaze.

"They could have destroyed your mind. I felt it, but I couldn't stop it," he says.

"They were trying to show me something," she says. "It was important. They said I have to find them."

Fury flashes in his eyes as she sees the muscles in his jaw lock, his teeth gritting. She feels the buzz of aggression through their connection, even as he tries to hold it back from her. "You aren't finding anything. I'm taking you away from here. There's places I can hide you, where they won't be able to find you in the force."

Jeyna shakes her head automatically, sitting up in the bed. "No, you don't need to do that. I don't think they'll hurt me again, it was an accident-"

The chair topples backwards as he shoves himself out of it, standing. "It doesn't matter!" Ben insists, voice rising with anger. "I'm not letting that happen again!"

"You said you wouldn't make my decisions for me anymore," Jeyna points out quietly.

His eyes darken, hands curling into fists as he turns from her, energy surging. She can feel the unstable power emanating from him, like electricity crackling in the air. Her hair feels like it's standing up at the roots, chills shooting across her skin. "Ben…" she tries again, hesitantly.

There is a tremor, shaking the bed. The chair rattles against the floor, the entire room vibrating briefly with an ominous shake. His anger is leeching out, as he apparently can't contain it.

She flinches when his fist connects with the wall, the metal giving in to the impact as a noticeable dent is left. She jumps up as his fist connects a second time, attempting to catch his arm. "Stop, before you hurt yourself!"

Ben turns his face from her, even as she tries to get closer. She attempts to strengthen their connection, but his energy makes it hard to grasp. "Please, it's okay," she says, voice trembling as she reaches up, pulling him back to face her. He relents, stepping towards her even as his posture crumples. He presses his forehead against hers, eyes shut tightly. His breathing is heavy and erratic, and she does her best to hold him steady. "I'm here, and I'm okay, and I'm not going anywhere," she says slowly.

"You don't understand," he breathes. Their connection in the force flourishes, growing stronger by the second as his chaotic energy fills her. He's relinquishing control, letting her into his mind as much as he's been in hers.

Ben's arms wrap around her as he pulls her tightly into his chest, but it is secondary to the surge of emotion he releases into the bond between them. She gasps at the intensity, even as the memories begin to flow, rushed and scrambled, but all focused on her. She struggles to make sense of them, tumbling over her mind…

She's looking from his perspective as he walks into the interrogation room. He'd instantly detected her relief at the sight of him. He'd assumed they must have broken her, to feel relief at the presence of a monster. But then he felt it, the curiosity within her, her mind intriguing him.

The memory shifts, and she sees her own face, enthralled as she first saw him without his mask. He had been fighting a pull to her, drawn to her intelligence and subtle strength… he'd told himself she'd only ever see him as a creature that lurked beneath a mask, stealing her thoughts. And yet when her eyes landed on him, there was no fear or repulsion. He was shocked to feel her attraction to him.

It spins again, and his desire is surging, as she sees herself on the last night they'd spent on Kashyyyk. The firelight glows off her damp skin as she'd pulled her soaking clothes off. He'd been unable to tear his gaze away until she'd snapped at him. He'd tried to memorize the sight of her, exposed and beautiful, and so shy about it.

The memory shuffles rapidly as his control weakens, and their mouths are meeting on Dxun. His lust rages, he's barely keeping it together, he wants to consume her until there is nothing left that isn't his…

She is running across the sand to him… He's terrified to give her a choice. She'd assured him her feelings hadn't changed. But he knows if he gives her the chance, she'll reject him. Instead she chooses him, rising up to press her lips to his. He's filled with doubt. But as it recedes, hope creeps in. And with it, something so contradictory it almost hurts. It's as joyful as it is desperate, it is all that matters as it threatens to destroy everything else in its path. He is in love, as completely as she is.

When the memories stop, there is only Ben, and the pull of his energy. He is vulnerable now, and she can truly feel it for the first time. He keeps it covered with loneliness and pain. But when his chaotic emotions subside, she can detect it, bright and strong. The pull to the light.

"I understand," Jeyna says, voice muffled against his chest. "I love-"

His mouth crashes into hers without warning, forceful and messy. His body forces her backwards, almost colliding with the bed before he pushes her down onto it. He settles between her legs, his lips closing over hers more firmly as he finds a semblance of control. His tongue traces the inside edges of her lips before she meets it with her own.

She struggles to remember what they'd been arguing about, her mind blanking as his free hand searches her body, finding the skin that is exposed by the shifting of her loose clothing with his glove. Their connection is too encompassing, the lust ignored for too long, and she has to fight the instinct to lose herself in it.

She pulls her mouth from his, moaning out his name pleadingly. There are so many reasons this shouldn't be happening. They had been arguing, it had been important. And the Knights, what if they saw-

"Let them see," he growls, descending upon her neck. He kisses and bites, sucking at the delicate skin until she gasps, pleasure throbbing in her core. She hears the rip of stitches as he tears at the delicate material of the shirt the nurses must have put her in. The ties along the back give way, and she jerks at the sensation of cool leather against her breasts as his fingers trace her curves.

His hips thrust against hers, and she cries out at the feeling of him, hard, between her legs. Her hands immediately grasp his shirt, pulling, and she has to restrain from reaching farther. Her mind is torn, knowing this has to wait but wanting desperately to pursue this new sensation with him.

She wets her lips, unable to stop the thoughts of wrapping her mouth around him, letting her tongue wander his hard length. His growl is aggressive as he rocks into her again, roughly, crushing her to the sheets beneath him.

Ben grabs her face, forcing her back to him as he kisses her again. Her lips feel swollen against his, as his thoughts blur with her own through their bond, their minds entangling. She surrenders to him, their energy building, her body pressing to his with need. Their kisses become warm and steady, and she feels his love like a physical thing. It courses through her veins, wrapping around her to pull her closer, tingling her nerve endings.

The memory of the web flares suddenly, as if it has a mind of its own. She recalls the feeling of it being undone, disintegrating into nothingness. She doesn't understand, she can't process it. Did it even matter?

It is abrupt when he notices the memory of the dream, jerking back from her, his mouth leaving hers wanting.

Jeyna opens her eyes to him, feeling as he replays it within her brain, his eyes flashing with understanding. He shifts, propping himself next to her side, one of his legs staying tangled between hers. She tries to steady her breathing at the sudden change. "That can't be right…" he mutters.

"It's what I saw," she says hesitantly, voice weak and breathy.

"Do you understand it?" He searches her gaze questioningly, his hand rising to caress her cheek. She shakes her head.

"It is the destruction of the galaxy," Ben says softly. Her heart thuds at the words, and how he sounds so calm uttering them is beyond her. His thumb still grazes her skin absentmindedly. "And the end of the force…"

Jeyna feels like she's been drenched in cold water as she understands, tearing her gaze away from his in a panic. "Shouldn't you sound a little more alarmed about that?" she asks. When she returns her eyes to his, he slowly shakes his head.

"I've faced worse the last two days…" he says offhandedly. She furrows her brow in disbelief.

"Worse than the destruction of the entire galaxy?" She demands, sitting up suddenly. He frowns.

"It could be a lie," he suggests. "He could be using it to urge you to find him."

"Find him? Do you know who it was?" she asks with alarm.

Ben's gaze holds her, steady, calm. He is the calmest she's ever seen him. She has no idea what has suddenly centered him, but she can bizarrely almost see the change in him, as if it's a visible shift. His energy isn't clouded by chaos any longer. He feels clear and focused, his mind open to hers, his eyes warm.

"It can't be possible," he admits, shrugging one shoulder. "But there is only one person I can think that would be sending you the order to find him. The one whose holocrons open for you."