Chapter 23: Cavern
The pod speeds faster and faster towards the planet, I quickly start flipping on the proper landing gear and try and slow the pod. Except the pod wont slow down. Quickly fear takes over me, the pod is malfunctioning. I pull the seat straps around me as tight as they will go and brace for ejection, I dont know if I will die as soon as the hatch opens because I have no idea what awaits out there. I close my eyes and press the ignite button. Everything goes black.
The bright light blinds me before my eyes open, but I know im alive. I reach my hands up to undo the straps by memory because I cant see still. I open my eyes slowly as the bright light is still shinning in my eyes. I roll out of the chair and face first onto the hard surface. Picking my head up and propping myself on my elbows, I open my eyes all the way and find myself staring at dirt. I look strait ahead and there are large green bushes and trees that tower over me creating a canopy, except the broken branches from my fall. Letting a beam of light in directly landing on me. I roll out of the sun onto my back. My whole body hurts. I focus for a few minutes on my breathing and slowly work my muscles into working again.
Suddenly Kylo opens up the connection, his emotions run through me like a sip of cold water on a hot day. Anger, frustration, and irritation. I close my eyes trying to force him out, I push back trying to stop him from scolding me like a child. Using all my energy I push him out, I let out a gasp. I did it, I forced him out not allowing him to access my mind anymore atleast. He still knows where I am. Exhaustion taking over me.
When I come to again the sun is still shinning through the canopy of trees. I roll to my stomach and push myself up. Looking around me, its the same in every direction. I need to get to higher ground and locate the pod to send a distress signal to the resistance. I only know the information for the base on D'qar. I hope someone is still there, but I doubt it. Why didnt I think of this before? I just start walking strait but the canopy doesn't allow much light in anywhere and the forest grows darker and darker the farther I walk. I turn back around and stand at the ejected seat.
"Good Job Rey, What now?" I question myself outloud. Maybe allowing Kylo to come get me would be better than dieing in these woods.
"No" I frown, I can do this on my own. I need to put distance in between us. The air around me cools down and the sun stars darkening. A storm? I remind myself I know nothing of this planet. Including weather conditions and predators. And I have no lightsaber. I feel Kylo pushing against the wall I put up, I push back. I wont allow him to torment me right now. He is still the enemy!
From behind me some branches crack as something moves closer and closer to me. I can see anything in the dark forest around me. I hold my hand up ready to force push whatever I see. But nothing appears. From my left some more branchs crack and I hold my other hand up in that direction.
"Put your arms down child. I am not here to hurt you. Only help." A deep voice calls out from beyond where I can see. I dont drop my arms, but hold my stance. From the darkness emerges an old man with a beard as white as snow that hangs to his hands. His hair long and white, his clothes old and torn and his skin sagging and wrinkly. His eyes so blue they are almost white. "I saw you crash and came to see the carnage. I wasnt expecting to find someone alive. Let alone standing, you must have a powerful guardian angel. Are you with the First Order?"
The mans seems genuin so I drop my arms and straiten up. "I belong to no such thing!" I go to wipe my hands on my cloak but look up and make eye contact with him. Its the cloak and black clothes. I defiently look first order. "Its not safe for you to be around me mister."
"Oh child, do not worry about me. Come, a storm is brewing. I am not far from here. You look like you have been through alot. I can clean your wound." He points to my head, I hadent even notices the blood trailing down my face from a cut above my eyebrow. He motions with his hand for me to follow him. "Stay close, it gets dark. Oh, and stay quiet. There are things out here you dont wanna be awakening." I walk behind the man, my front to his back, at one point i put my hand on his shoulder because I couldnt see anything. I pull my hood up around my face shielding me from the cool breeze. In the distance there is a small orange glow. Its faint and hard to see, I almost sprint towards it but stay close behind this man. He knows what hes doing.
Kylo is still pushing against my wall, but I focus on pushing back. I cant let him through. The closer the light gets I can see more detail, its flickering off the walls inside a small cavern. From behind me a loud screech echos through the woods. Sending chills down my spine.
"Hurry, come." The man quickens his pace till we are inside of the cavern, the glow from a small firepit in the center of the cave. "They are afraid of light. Spent so long in the dark."
"Why didnt they attack when we were out there." I ask, i sit next to the fire warming myself up.
"Because they have good sight but horrible hearing." He walks over to grab a rag and a bucket off a small table. He sits down next to me and dips the cloth in the water and proceeds to clean my forehead.
"Is it just you here mister?" I ask. This old man reminds me of myself back on Jakku, all alone.
"Yes. It wasnt always like this though. I was once a young man with a charming wife. She was my everything. So beautiful." He lowers his hand for a moment, probably thinking of her face. And it saddens me that I asked him anything. "We were just going to land here to take a break from our endeavor but our ship malfunctioned during our decent and we ended up not far from here. Me and her lived in this cave for many days. She became pregnant but unexpectedly her and child died during childbirth. Hes turns his attention to two dirt mounds on the far side of the cave. One much much smaller than the other. He looks back at me and continues cleaning my wound. Such a tender old man. "I have been here, waiting to join her and my daughter in the afterlife. But I guess my body isnt ready to go."
"You loved her?" My question came out so quick. I have never talked to someone about love like this before.
"I didnt deserve her, she was to good for me. But we were soulmates." His words make me flinch and he notices. He lowers his arm again and gets up to go back to the table and grabs a handful of leaves and comes back to sit next to me. "Eat." And he turns watching the fire dance. "No matter where I go, Ill feel empty. So I prefer to stay. Luckily I did, or you would of been food for the forest creatures by nightfall." His words hang in my mind. Empty. Until now I didnt realize how empty I felt being so closed off to Kylo. I can still hear his heart beating and I slightly smile. But I cant give in now. The storm outside is loud, wind howling and rain pouring down through the canopy of trees. The old man adds a few more logs to the fire.
"Tomorrow we will go find your ship so you can communicate to whomever you need to. There has to be someone looking for you that is waiting to hear your alive." He says. Little does he know how much danger me being here puts him in.