Chapter Twenty-Four:
Rey sits with Poe in the bridge as they zip through hyperspace. She keeps going back to the mirror in the underground cave. To the image of herself, a Sith. To the threat of loss, of death. To Kylo on the ground, unable to break through. She should ask him what happened. Later. When she doesn't have to worry about being overheard.
"Are you sure he won't lead them to us again?" Poe asks, breaking the long silence.
"I can't be sure of much," Rey says.
"We won't get away as easily next time."
...if we do at all...
"I think we're strong enough. We'll be fine."
I have seen your future. If you refuse me now, Finn will die, and Poe, and Finn. And Kylo. And then you.
But that was the darkness reaching out to her, to tempt her away from the Jedi path. Not truth.
"Let's hope you're right. We're here."
The Falcon surges out of hyperspace to the sight of a single planet lost in a sea of pitch-black galaxy. The orb of green and blue hangs still before them. No star. No sun. No light source in sight. And yet it is brilliant.
"Is that it, then?" Finn's there with them now, his hands resting on either seat, leaning over Poe and Rey to get a better look at it.
Marysyram is its name. A mystery. Who knows when it was last visited by outsiders.
Rey feels at once the wave of energy pulsing from it. The Force is at work here, giving life to this impossible planet in the middle of nowhere.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Poe says as they descend through the atmosphere, into the clear blue sky.
Forest extends below them. A mountainous region that eventually gives way to ocean.
"What are we looking for?" Finn asks, as they slowly glide over the landscape.
Rey cranes her head, her eyes scanning for something that could stick out to her. There's nothing to grasp to. So she tries the opposite approach, closing her eyes and reaching out with the force, hoping for guidance. Nothing. Everything is still and peaceful.
"I don't know yet. Land there." Rey points to their left, to a patch of grass below a hanging crag, on the shore of the ocean.
Poe shuts down the engine. He glances out the window. "It makes no sense. How can it be day when there's no sun?"
"I don't know. But it is."
Rey rises unsteadily to her feet and retreats to the back of the ship where the rest of the group is gathered. Poe and Finn follow behind her.
Rose and Kylo are already on their feet. Rey avoids his searching look as she keeps moving, lowering the ramp and descending onto the land. She's taken one step down onto the verdant land, one breath of the clear air, when the ground trembles angrily beneath her feet. She reaches for something to hold her up, and finds Kylo's hand locked on hers.
Their eyes meet for one brief second, but then his eyes are flying up and opening wide. "What the—"
At his exclamation, two more voices gasp in incredible awe.
Rey looks as they do and sees a monstrous creature rearing up over them, over the trees. A four-legged beast of the same greenish hue of the forest, a long neck extending skywards. A tail flicks out behind it, as it steps out of the forest and into the ocean. From end to end, it must be some sixty feet.
"My goodness!" Rose exclaims. She trips forward, moving towards the creature. "It's beautiful."
"This planet is ancient," Kylo says. "This land is..."
"... eternal," Rey says in unison with him, knowing the same.
As the creature dips into the ocean, as if about to enjoy a bath or a cool swim, Rey turns back to the others. There's so much planet to cover and not enough time. "We'll have to split up if we hope to find what we're looking for."
"And what are we looking for?" Finn asks again.
"I hope you'll know it when you see it." Rey glances back at Kylo. "I'll take Finn and Chewie and Artoo. You can go with Poe and Rose and Threepio."
"I really don't think that's a good idea," Poe and Kylo manage to say at the same time.
Rey grins at that. "Now that's a sign that it is. You'll be fine. Rose will keep an eye on you."
Rose gives a mock salute. "Aye-aye! You can count on me."
"If we find something, we'll reach out to each other," Rey presses on, staying assertive to keep them on this path. "I don't know what this planet holds, but be careful."
"It would help if I were armed."
"No," Poe says at once, glowering at Kylo. "I don't trust—"
"I won't be of much use if I can't fight," Kylo interjects. "I might as well stay behind."
"Fine with me."
"No." Rey hurries back into the Falcon. She removes an extra blaster from the compartment and hurries back down to the others. She shoves the weapon in Kylo's hand. "Don't make me regret this."
He scoffs, slips it away in the holster on his belt. For a second, Rey is struck by how much like his father he looks. The stance, the expression on his face. So much of Han Solo is written into him.
She turns away, to face Poe. "Are you okay with this?"
"Do I have a choice?"
She gives a firm shake of her head. "Be safe."
"May the Force be with you," Rose offers as they set off on separate paths.
May the Force be with you.
AN: Happy May the Fourth everyone! I'm sorry for this short and mostly filler chapter. I just really wanted to get one up today. Things are somewhat hectic here with life taking on a new turn, so I might not be posting as often as I've been. But I promise the story will not end here.
Stay safe 3