Snoke's Throne Room, The Last Jedi
"It's time to let old things die. Snoke, Skywalker, the Sith, the Jedi, the rebels; let it all die."
Kylo held out his hand. The opportunity had finally arisen to bring an end to the squabbling between the Jedi and the Sith that had, for millennia, wrought conflict and strife upon the galaxy, and he knew he must seize it. He had come to understand that one could not exist without the other, and that true peace would come not with the extinction of one, but rather the unity of both; strength through passion, but control through harmony, and he had come to finally understand this through the most unlikely of places—in the mind of an exceptionally gifted Jakku scavenger.
"Rey, I want you to join me. We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy."
"Don't do this Ben," Rey replied, her stomach sinking. "Please don't go this way." She felt crushed; she had come so close to bringing Ben back to the Light and wanted so desperately to see that come to fruition—not only for the sake of bringing peace to his tormented soul, but to see him reunited with Leia, to spare the lives of those brave Resistance fighters, and to see peace restored to the galaxy.
More so, she wanted to bring him to the Light for her own sake. Despite their conflict, despite the terrible things he had done, she felt a bond with him unlike any she has ever had with anyone—one that could only be established through the Force. She had escaped the First Order with Finn, flown across the stars with Han & Chewie, and undergone tutelage of the Light side of the Force by the legendary Luke Skywalker, yet she had not been able to peer into their respective being as she had done with Ben. Rey had seen, in the glimpses which she and Ben were linked through the Force, his hopes, fears, desires, regrets—corners of his soul that only she had bore witness to, and he had seen the same in her.
"No, no, you're still holding on!" Ben shouted back. He had become frustrated with Rey, angry that she did not understand what needed to be done because of her short-sighted ideals. Life had been cruel to them both, and not a single soul could understand Ben like she had—especially not Han or Skywalker. She knew that the Jedi and the Sith must both end, yet her vision was clouded by complacence; she did not understand that together, they possessed the power to reshape the future of the galaxy.
But there was something else. For a reason that yet eluded him, Kylo Ren earnestly desired that she join him in this quest. Could it be the threat of insurrection? No, he didn't need her to keep his subordinates in check. Besides, he thought, I could have Hux play that role until he outlives his usefulness. Did he fear her power? Surely there was no reason to. Indeed, she's strong with the Force, but the ease with which I had gained her trust would be her undoing if I so needed to strike her down. No, it was not enmity which he felt toward her, but rather some kind of calling.
Whatever the case, he was resolute: she would join him.
Ben and Rey held each other's gaze in a fierce stalemate. Realizing an approach to bring her guard down, Ben calmly asked, "Do you want to know the truth about your parents? Or have you always known?"
Tears began to roll down Rey's cheeks. This was the truth that she had always sought but could never face.
"You've just hidden it away," he pressed on. "You know the truth. Say it." Indeed, the wound that had been seared into Rey's heart was exacerbated with each of Kylo's icy words.
"Say it," he repeated. Rey swelled with anger and despair, and she struggled to rip the words from her lips.
"They were nobody," she replied gravely, the utterance of those words gnawing at her as they entered the air.
"They were filthy junk traders," he drove further. "who sold you off for drinking money. They're dead in a pauper's grave in the Jakku desert. You come from nothing. You're nothing."
Every word he uttered reaved her soul; She hated him for it, but more so she swelled with hatred for her parents who abandoned her on that wasteland.
"… But not to me." Suddenly, the chaos rampaging through Rey's thoughts came to a halt, bewildered by Ben's choice of wording. What came as a greater surprise to her was that she could both sense and see in him the sincerity of that sentiment. The anger she felt toward him began to subside, and that she felt toward her parents cemented into her being—now a calm, focused ire.
Once more Ben would plead to her: "Join me. Please."
Rey's thoughts began to race again. She wanted to join Ben, but not like this; nearly everyone she's known since leaving Jakku was on those ships, and to leave them behind was inconceivable. She looked upon the large magnifying glass aside Snoke's throne. Its gaze was still aimed at the remainder of the Resistance fleet, and the sight of the dwindling cargo ships dropping one by one cast upon Rey a sense of hopelessness and contempt. How could the Resistance recover from this? Even with their victory at Starkiller Base, the First Order still possessed a powerful military Force and an equally pervasive influence over many of the galaxy's systems. Still, she couldn't betray those brave Resistance fighters—especially Leia.
"Don't look over there," commanded Ben, continuing his tactic of fracturing her ability to think concretely. "Look at me."
Rey shifted her attention solemnly toward Ben, tears streaming down her face.
"You need to let. Them. Go."
"You know I can't do that Ben," she replied sobbing.
"As long as those rebels exist there will always be conflict. The sooner you let go of the past the sooner we can bring peace to the galaxy."
"The First Order rules through oppression Ben!" retorted Rey aggressively. "You can't rule people through fear and executions!"
"The galaxy was no better before it. The First Order was allowed to rise because the New Republic could hardly maintain control over its core planets, much less the Outer Rim."
With each word, Rey felt her chance to bring Ben home growing farther out of reach, and the time to save her friends was ticking ever downward. She noticed Luke's lightsaber held loosely in Ben's hand; if she could take it, she would have the upper hand and a chance to escape to her friends' rescue.
"You're conflicted, I know." Said Ben, again breaking Rey's train of thought. "It doesn't have to be this way; we can reform the First Order for the better. You and me. Balance."
That sounded idealistic to Rey, but here was one last chance for her to bring Ben home.
"Alright," she began, looking toward the magnifying glass once more. "But please spare them."
"Rey let them g—"
"Leia is on that ship Ben!"
Ben was taken aback, his steadfastness now cracked. His mother hadn't even crossed his mind; as much as he had tried to bury it since leaving her behind, Kylo could still sense her—and she was indeed on one of the fleeing cargo ships awaiting imminent destruction. Who cares? Just let it go; he wanted to say it, but he could not will himself to utter those words. Ben and Rey stared at each other in fierce silence for a moment that felt like an eternity.
At last, it was Ben who broke the stillness in the air.
"Fine." he said, taking a step toward Rey and offering his hand. "I'll give the order for them to stop firing."
Awe befell Rey, and a smile began to form between her teary cheeks. "Oh Ben, will you really?" she exclaimed, moving past his outstretched hand and embracing him. Throughout this entire interaction, nothing had caught Ben off guard quite like that did. For but a moment, he was unsure how to respond; however, he resolved to return the gesture. Bringing one arm around her shoulders and the other around her back, he held her tightly for this moment of respite.
Suddenly, they heard the entrance door to the throne room glide open. From it emerged General Armitage Hux.
"What the devil happened in here?!" he shouted, glaring at the duo still holding each other. His eyes fell to what he quickly recognized was the mutilated corpse of Supreme Leader Snoke.
"The Supreme Leader is dead…" he muttered. He looked back at Kylo Ren, who returned his stare. Any way you look at the present scene, Ren murdered Snoke, and both he and Hux were aware that if Hux was allowed to leave that room, Ren would find himself at the top of the First Order's hit list, right above Skywalker. For Hux, this was the moment he'd been waiting for throughout much of his military career: at long last, the opportunity had arisen to oust Ren for a clear shot at the title of Supreme Leader of the First Order, and he took no second further to think about it.
Hux turned and darted through the door. Ben extended his reach with the Force to stop Hux in his tracks, but was suddenly sent flying as a terrible crash erupted within the ship. As a final act of sacrifice to allow the remainder of the fleeing cargo ships a chance to reach the surface of Crait, Resistance Vice Admiral Amilyn Holdo had slammed the Raddus heavy cruiser into the Supremacy, effectively crippling the ship and damaging many of the other First Order ships present.
By the time Ben managed to get back up on his feet, Hux had already recovered and escaped the room. Recovering both of their lightsabers, Ben rushed to Rey and grabbed her hand. Handing her the lightsaber of his late grandfather, he urged her to follow him. "We need to get out of here right now," he instructed gravely.
"What about calling off the attack?" demanded Rey.
"It's too late. That man is about to turn every stormtrooper on this ship against us both."
Surely enough, a damaged transmission could be heard on the ship's intercom:
Attention all crewmen: Kylo Ren has defected from the First Order and murdered Supreme Leader Snoke with the assistance of the rebel captive. I repeat: the Supreme Leader is dead. If these individuals are spotted, they are to be executed immediately. Long live the Supreme Leader.
Rey followed closely behind Ben as they sped onward through the ship's corridors with their sabers drawn, mindfully taking routes less patrolled by stormtroopers. Try as they might, however, they could not remain undetected forever. As they crossed through a doorway, another door further down the hall opened as a trio of stormtroopers entered through it. Upon spotting Ben and Rey, one of the troopers quickly reached toward his helmet's comms to relay the location of the fugitives, and the other two raised their blasters toward them.
Acting fast, Rey threw her lightsaber at the trooper calling for reinforcements, which rapidly spun in the air before removing both the trooper's hand and head, effectively preventing word of their location from getting out. Rey then retracted the saber, which pierced through the same trooper's chest as it shot back to her; Ben immediately followed up this attack by forcing the remaining two troopers off their feet and rushing toward them, Rey running right behind him. Dragging his saber along the floor, he quickly sundered the one trooper still on the floor and slashed at the other as he stood back up, finishing the two in a single, continuous burst.
Suddenly, a larger squad of stormtroopers emerged from the door Ben and Rey had previously come through, immediately opening fire upon seeing them. Without hesitation, Ben pushed Rey behind him, deflecting the incoming blaster bolts with his lightsaber.
"Through the door, now!" he instructed. As the door shut behind them, they caught a glimpse of the trooper squadron broadcasting their location and headed toward the door. Getting off this ship was about to become a whole lot harder. The duo weaved through various hallways in order to lose their pursuers, ultimately stopping when the coast was clear to catch their breaths.
"The nearest hangar is this way, right?" asked a winded Rey, pointing toward the right end of the hallway.
"Yes, but they'll expect us to go there." replied an equally exhausted Ben as he leaned on the nearby wall.
They agreed and turned leftward to find a different hangar. As they proceeded, however, they began to hear sounds of battle and explosions followed by yelling coming from the direction of that first hangar. Ben and Rey paused, befuddled by what they were hearing, and began to make their way toward its source. Lightsabers at the ready, they proceeded through the entrance gates to reveal a hangar in flames and ravaged by heavy laser blasts.
Rey continued cautiously into the room, scanning the scene of fire and wreckage, Ben trailing behind her. Suddenly, the embers cast the shadow of a survivor, and Rey soon after recognized the figure that emerged from them.
"Finn?!" she exclaimed, much to her own disbelief. The figure turned in the direction of her voice, and indeed, there stood Finn, whom she had not seen since she'd left on her quest in search of Skywalker.
"Rey," Finn muttered, skeptical himself that he would hear her voice, much less here of all places. Confirming what he had heard now with the clear sight of her, Finn's feet moved without second thought, rushing toward her. "Rey!" he now shouted with joy.
"What are you even doing here?!" exclaimed Rey as they embraced.
"It's a long story you wouldn't believe," he replied. Finn's eyes widened as he suddenly remembered the events leading up to the destruction of the hangar, prior to his duel with Captain Phasma. "I was actually here with—" he trailed off, his gaze darting around the room. "Rose? Rose!"
"I'm here!" called another voice from behind a cover of debris. Out from the cover emerged Rose Tico, who quickly came to Finn's side.
"Rose this is Rey. We go a while back."
"Nice to meet y—" Rose greeted Rey with a smile, but this sentiment quickly left as she noticed the ominous figure behind Rey. Finn's expression, too, became grim as he realized what Rose saw.
She had never seen the face of Kylo Ren, but she knew from his lightsaber who it was that stood before her in solemn silence. Finn, however, recognized his face immediately, and he definitely remembered the lightsaber that seared his back.
"You're… You're him," uttered Rose, trembling in fear.
"You." Finn raised his blaster toward Ben, suddenly boiling with fury.
Kylo stared back at him, unintimidated.
"Wait," Rey intervened. "He's with us."
"What?" Finn replied sharply. "What're you talking about?"
"He helped me take down the Supreme Leader," Rey explained carefully, "and now we're on the run from the First Order."
"No. I don't buy it," he replied angrily. Looking past her toward Ben, he raised his voice. "Just what are you planning, huh?!" he yelled.
"We don't have time for this," Ben replied coldly. "Rey, we need to leave now."
"Please Finn," pleaded Rey. "I know how angry you must be, but a lot has happened since we last saw each other and I need you to trust me."
"So what? You're just gonna forget everything he did? To you, to me? Rey, he killed Han!"
That last part stung Ben. Killing his father was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do, and he had been reliving the pain of that moment constantly ever since. Turning again towards Kylo, Finn continued.
"You want us to take you to the Resistance so you can radio your boys, is that it?"
"I don't need to do anything like that to destroy the Resistance," Kylo shot back. "This fleet is finishing the last of the Resistance's cruisers this very moment."
What? Finn looked out one of the large hangar windows into space and could see both the remnants of Resistance ships as well as First Order destroyers firing as they advanced.
"Finn we're running out of time," said Rey. "They need us."
Finn stayed silent for a moment. He certainly didn't want the help of Kylo Ren for this escape, much less bring him anywhere near the Resistance, but as he quickly thought over all their options, it was glaringly apparent that they would have a hard time getting off this ship even with his help.
His pondering was interrupted when a nearby AT-ST collapsed, almost crashing down onto Ben, who quickly dodged it. Ben looked toward where the walker previously stood to discover that the culprit was the very BB-8 astromech droid he previously sought over, who buzzed menacingly at him as the intended sabotage had missed its target.
"Is that… BB-8?" asked Rey in disbelief. BB noticed her as she said this and began chirping with delight, quickly rolling down over to her. Upon reaching her, BB began fussing and quickly glancing between her and Kylo in concern. "It's okay BB," she reassured the droid. "I see him too."
Regaining his focus, Finn took a deep breath. "How do you know he won't double cross us? I've already had my fill of that for today," to which Ben rolled his eyes.
Rey found the answer to that difficult to explain. She was reminded that the experiences she shared with Ben were theirs alone, and that the journey they undertook together was one that would be little understood by one not attuned to the Force. She was given no time to come up with an answer, however, as the stormtroopers who had previously been following them had arrived, alerted by the crash of the fallen walker. As they emerged through the hangar doors in numbers, they opened fire. Acting fast, Ben halted the blaster fire in their tracks. "Through that door!" he instructed, nodding toward the entrance to another hallway as he held the bolts in mid-air. "I need you to just trust me okay?" Rey followed up to Finn as she urged him to move.
The group proceeded through the door, and Ben followed behind slowly, as keeping blaster bolts suspended was becoming increasingly difficult as the troopers continued their barrage. Turning back around, Rey quickly scanned the area for something she could use to help. Amidst the flaming debris, she saw the leg of the fallen AT-ST and reached out to it with the Force. The leg proved rather heavy, but she was able to sling it towards the troopers with enough force that it dispatched most of them, allowing Ben the chance to proceed with her through the hangar door. As they continued, they could hear the collective explosions of all the bolts being released by Ben simultaneously.
As they ran, Finn raised the elephant in the room: "so whats the plan guys?"
"We need a ship," replied Ben. "There's another hangar this way."
"Wait," interjected Rey as she stopped to review her surroundings. "I have an idea." She remembered that she had Chewie on standby, and he could be their escape ticket. Following Ben's lead, the group navigated through the ship's corridors, eluding their pursuers as well as finding a functionally intact comms room that had fortunately been evacuated. Rey then took over from there, carefully acquiring the proper frequency to hail the Falcon.
"Chewie? Chewie, do you read me?" Initial attempts were met with static, but to her relief her message was eventually met with Chewie's elated roar.
"Perfect!" Rey replied. "Listen Chewie, I need a pickup from…" she paused, unsure where exactly she was on this massive ship or even where on it the Falcon could extract them. Ben chimed in: "tell him Hangar 23E," the location of which Rey quickly relayed to Chewie.
"How do you know that hangar isn't crawling with stormtroopers?" inquired Finn.
"Watch this," replied Ben with a smirk as he began working on a nearby panel. "I am sending out an all clear signal for Hangar 42A."
Confused, Finn pressed the query. "What for? What's there?"
"Wait for it."
Surely enough, the ship's intercom immediately activated, and General Hux issued a new command across the ship: The traitor Kylo Ren and his Resistance accomplices are attempting to escape via Hangar 42A. Intercept and execute them immediately.
"There he is…" mumbled Ben, almost disappointed at how predictable Hux could be regarding his petty rivalry. Turning back to Finn, he continued. "Hangar 23E should be fairly empty now, but they know the signal came from here, so we need to leave quickly."
Stealthily winding through the halls, they stopped at a crossroads as the march of a platoon of stormtroopers grew louder as it approached. The group hid in a nearby lab and listened as the platoon marched past them. As they listened, BB-8 chirped up. "Shh," instructed Rey, keeping her ear to the wall. BB-8 then chirped again, louder this time. "Shh!" repeated Finn; "They'll hear you little dude!"
A third chirp came then, unlike the first two. Where the first two had been the high-pitched trill typical of BB-8, the tone of the third came as a much deeper buzz sound. The group collectively turned their heads toward the origin of the sound. At the other end of the room ominously stood a First Order BB-9. The group remained frozen as did the droid, but its stare was fixed upon them in silence. Suddenly, the BB-9 began to emit its droning buzz again and BB-9 erupted into a discordant frenzy. "It's transmitting!" yelled Ben, which Finn quickly followed by drawing his blaster and eliminating the droid.
Without hesitation Ben dashed out of the lab and in the direction the group previously came from, issuing the command "run!" as he did. Without a beat skipped, Hux again emerged on the intercom, redirecting his forces toward their newly confirmed location. The trooper platoon they had previously eluded had now converged on their position, and as they flooded the hallways, the team was in a pinch to find an alternative route to the hangar. Scanning the area around them, Finn recognized a door with a familiar indicator and promptly beckoned the others to follow him in.
"Um, Finn…" began Rey, as she and the others realized where they now were. "Why have you taken us into a restroom?"
"Okay, hear me out." Finn directed their attention toward a hatch in the floor used by maintenance workers.
"Oh man," mumbled Rose from the rear. Rey too, was unsure how to respond to this suggestion.
"Absolutely not," retorted Ben.
"Hear me out guys" implored Finn "Every hangar has a decontamination chamber for troops to go through after going to hostile environments. That DeCon water goes through these waste tunnels, so we can use them to get under the hangar!"
Rey and Ben glanced at each other. It was a terrible option, but this maneuver had essentially placed them in a corner and the troopers were closing in fast. Reluctantly, they agreed with Finn's proposal and descended through the hatch.
The tunnels smelled of all sorts of things—all of them foul—and the lighting was dim. They were, however, relatively much less inhabited, though Rey and they others knew this would not last forever. Finn led them onward, roughly estimating the distance and direction which they needed to travel. Throughout the tunnel system, the voices and splashes of patrols inflowing from various access points echoed from a distance; it was unclear if these were in fact the trickery of echoes or if there were that many stormtroopers swarming the escape route. This waste system must have indeed been extensive, as the group managed to reach their exit without incident despite the clamor of distant soldiers growing louder as they made their way through. There, at the location which Finn was fairly sure lay underneath the hangar 23E, was a ladder which ran alongside a vertical waste pipe to a hatch on the tunnel ceiling.
Ben now took the lead, climbing up the ladder and listening carefully as he inched the hatch lever to the open position. The hatch opened with a deep creak, and as Ben stuck out his head to scan the room, he was relieved to find that, not only had he correctly located the hangar, the hangar was quite empty thanks to his previous diversion. The room was, however, a mess of tossed ships, scrambled tools, and electrical fires from Admiral Holdo's ravaging of the Supremacy. As the others joined Finn, the Millennium Falcon swooped into the hangar and made a crude landing atop some strewn TIE fighters.
As the boarding ramp dropped as much as it could, Finn and Rose hastily assisted BB-8 onto it before ascending themselves. Rey hopped onto the ramp, but noticed that Ben had hesitated to follow.
"I'll take a TIE and follow you," he said solemnly.
"What, why?" She responded with a confused expression.
"I'll watch your back in case they send any fighters after you." While there was truth in this statement, he knew that Rey and her friends were going to rendezvous with the rest of the Resistance, which he was for few obvious reasons averse to participating in.
"Don't be ridiculous," she retorted as she knelt and extended her hand. "All these fighters are ruined and there's no time for you to go out and find one."
Ben's thoughts raced to think of some excuse to avoid getting on that ship, as he was heavily averse to walk into a den of Resistance members that not only despised him, but also included his mother Leia. Seemingly sensing this internal conflict, Rey stepped down from the ramp to level with him.
Holding both his arms in hers, she tried her best to console him. "Ben, it'll be okay. I promise. More than anything, Leia wants to know that you're alright."
He broke his gaze and pondered in silence for a moment, still determined to find any possible alternative. Time had, however, run out, as a large patrol had arrived at the hangar and immediately opened fire upon seeing the infamous Falcon, forcing Ben to grudgingly follow Rey onto the ship.
As Rey regrouped with the others in the cockpit, she was met with relieved smiles from them all. These quickly faded into concerned stares, however, when Ben emerged from behind her. Likewise, Chewie eagerly turned around in his seat to greet Rey, but was shocked when he saw the man who had murdered his closest friend. Suddenly struck with rage, Chewie lunged at Ben and lifted him against the wall, roaring into his face as he did.
Ben had forgotten about this colossal beast, and consequently this encounter took him quite by surprise. Rey, realizing she should've expected this, attempted to diffuse the situation but struggled to speak over the Wookiee. Finally, she resolved to reach out to the Falcon's controls with the Force and jerk the ship to throw Chewie off balance, enough so that Ben was able to extricate himself from his grasp.
"Chewie!" Rey commanded. "Listen to me please. It's okay, he helped us escape."
Chewie snarled back.
"I understand Chewie," Rey assured softly. "But please, remember what Leia asked of us. We're bringing him home."
He grumbled as he turned to return to the pilot seat, whimpering quietly as he remembered the agony he felt when he lost Han.
Finn scoffed. "This is gonna get us all killed," to which Chewie quickly growled in agreement. "What's the plan?"
"Well—" Rey began, but truthfully hadn't thought this far ahead yet. She cast a glance toward Ben, who hesitantly pitched in.
"They haven't sent fighters after us yet, but that won't last long." He paused; logically, the best thing to do would be to escape into hyperspace, but he knew well that that proposal would fall on deaf ears. As he peered out the pilot's window, it was apparent that this idea wouldn't have been very feasible anyway, as they were surrounded by a plethora of debris from the Supremacy's destruction, making it impossible to lightspeed travel in any direction without shredding the Falcon. "We need to make as direct a run toward Crait as possible, and then use the debris as cover when they launch their fighters."
Chewbacca snarled matter-of-factly.
"He's not telling you what to do Chewie," retorted Rey. "But please take his suggestion, yeah?
Chewie obliged, albeit with a scoff, and kicked the Falcon into as high a gear as he could, weaving through the wreckage. A sudden jerk of the ship tossed Ben off his feet; whether this was intentional or not was unknown to the crew, but was no less humorous to Chewie, who let off an delighted roar as Ben fell.
Surely enough, TIEs began trickling out of various hangars from the more intact side of the Supremacy and the Falcon crew quickly rushed to assume battle positions. Rey hurried on to mount one of the Falcon's gunner turrets, with Finn and Ben stumbling behind her. As she climbed up to her gunner emplacement, Finn and Ben shot a glance down at the other seat, then at each other.
"I'm better fit for it. I have the Force," Ben stated bluntly.
Finn rolled his eyes as he nudged Ben away, adding a "yeah yeah" as he began climbing down.
Shrugging it off, Ben returned to the cockpit, where Rose had garnered some repair tools and stood at the ready with BB-8 should the need for sudden maintenance arise. Upon seeing Ben standing at the door, however, she once again began trembling in fear. Ben cast an apathetic glance at her for but a moment, then proceeded to take a place standing behind Chewie, to which the Wookiee returned a hostile grunt but no less permitted him to stay.
The swarm of TIE fighters had now assumed their attack formation and were closing in to engage. As they did, however, half the detachment pointed their attention toward the fleeing Resistance ships, dispatching the other to deal with the Falcon. Chewbacca roared as he too noticed this and began weaving through wreckage to try to catch up with the Resistance fleet. Soon after, the Falcon's blaster turrets began firing off and the sounds of explosions and swarming TIEs surrounded the ship.
"Got another one!" Finn sounded off as he took another TIE down. Rey too, began confirming her takedowns over comm. Meanwhile in the cockpit, Chewie swerved and rocked the Falcon with swift finesse to dodge its pursuers. Despite their combined efforts, however, the multitude of enemy fighters swarming them was proving to be an arduous obstacle to overcome, and the Falcon was taking hits. Alerts began going off throughout the ship, and Chewie called out to Rose to tend to them. "Got it!" she affirmed, as she and BB-8 hurried off to make their repairs.
At the rate this skirmish was going, Ben had the nagging feeling that they may not be able to shake their pursuers, much less reach the still-distant Resistance fleet, which was finally reaching Crait's atmosphere. Looking out the cockpit window, Ben noticed they were approaching a small chasm formed by two colossal pieces of debris in proximity of each other. Chewie noticed it as well and began speeding toward it to funnel their pursuers. Once they entered the chasm, Rey and Finn found better luck in hitting their marks, though their enemies were still in abundance.
Ben reached out to one of the debris pieces and narrowed his focus. Once he had a grip on it, he began to pull it towards him. "Make a break for the clearing," he instructed Chewie, as the debris piece began accelerating toward the other. Chewie let off an alarmed yell as he was alerted by the groaning metal hulk approaching the Falcon, but proceeded to maximize the ship's speed to clear the closing gap.
The ship had just made it as the two giants collided, crushing the TIE fighters between them. As Rey and Finn finished off the remaining TIEs that had either escaped the chasm or circumvented it, Chewie made a sharp turn and rushed toward Crait. Ben, who found himself exhausted from the strenuous task of manipulating such immense objects with the Force, fell into a nearby seat and tried to regain his composure.
The Resistance ships by this time had finally reached the base within the mountains of Crait and managed to take up defensive positions and seal its reinforced blast gate. As the TIE fighters closed in to lay down their drumfire, the Resistance turret emplacements met them with a barrage of their own. During the skirmish, the First Order had deployed a series of transports which carried in some heavy artillery onto the battlefield: a pair of First Order AT-ATs, another pair of AT-M6s, and a superlaser siege cannon as well; hovering over them, meanwhile, was Kylo Ren's command shuttle, headed by the newly self-titled Supreme Leader Hux himself.
Knowing well that the siege cannon would make quick work of the blast doors, the Resistance scrambled a group of V-4X-D ski speeders in a last-ditch attempt to take out the artillery piece and halt the First Order's advance. Facing heavy losses in the face of the First Order's air superiority, the cannon and its accompanying ATs comfortably established their positioning and began preparing to breach the blast doors. Rushing to assist the Resistance, the Falcon finally arrived to the battleground and the crew attempted to focus fire on the cannon, which proved difficult, however, as the fleet of TIE fighters quickly responded to the Falcon's arrival by swarming the artillery's defensive position.
Time was quickly ticking against the Resistance as the cannon was drawing power, and Ben knew it would not be long until it was ready to breach. He stood up, feeling weary still as he did, and prepared himself as much as he could for what he was about to attempt. "Chewbacca, I need you to drop me on top of the siege cannon," he said, gripping Chewie's chair to steady himself as the ship tossed and turned. Chewie gave a confused yell in response, still keeping his focus directed on the action ahead of him.
Ben elaborated. "Tell the Resistance fighters to draw the ATs fire. You swing around and drop me behind the ATs and draw the TIE fighters away. I'll take out the cannon." Not too keen on being told what to do by Ben, but no less in a hurry to get him off the ship, Chewie yelped in accordance and flew a loop around the Resistance fortress toward the First Order encampment, dropping the landing platform and flying as steadily as he could while doing so. Ben tumbled toward the platform and readied himself as the Falcon lowered in altitude. As instructed, the ski speeders made another beeline toward the ATs and managed to draw their fire away from the Falcon.
Suddenly, the Falcon took a hit that threw Ben out of the ship—much sooner than he planned. As the Falcon evaded the fighter, Rey noticed the man overboard. "Ben! Chewie, we've lost Ben! What happened?!"
Chewie roared back defensively.
"What do you mean it's his plan?!"
Chewie once again retorted, clarifying that it was no longer going as planned. Any sort of rescue, however, was not within the realm of possibility, as the enemy fighters were locked on to them.
Ben regained his composure to find that he stood face to face with the daunting wall of ATs, and just behind them he could see the cannon primed to fire. No, growled to himself as the beam of light penetrated the hull of the Resistance fortress, effectively blowing it wide open. "No! No!" he repeated louder. This idea had gone terribly wrong, and he was not at a capacity to face off these goliaths. Still, he drew his saber; he would not be defeated without a fight. The ATs did not engage him, but rather towered ominously over him as they stared him down. Then, an announcement came from the command shuttle above.
"Well, if it isn't the traitor Kylo Ren," Hux's voice was unmistakable. "Did you have fun scurrying around with your new vermin friends? Well I certainly hope you have, because at long last you and the last of their wretched Resistance will be executed. Fire the cannons."
Soon after, a pair of bolts fired from the shuttle's twin heavy cannons, which Ben suspended mid-flight with the Force.
"Why you insolent-" snarled Hux as he ordered the ship to fire upon Ben a second time. This time, Ben struck the bolts with his saber, sending them back towards the shuttle's left wing; he quickly followed that by sending the suspended bolts toward the right wing.
"Agh!" bellowed Hux as the shuttle limped away. "That's it! All armored units, engage the traitor Kylo Ren."
Ben braced himself for what was to come. He figured he could try charging the ATs, but true to the name of the shuttle's cannons, the strenuously heavy bolts had further tired him, and there was a significant gap to clear for that idea to work.
Isolated from the others and staring in the face of the end, the sounds of explosions and aircraft faded into silence as Ben prepared himself. He was just about to launch his assault when he suddenly felt a presence behind him. "I've got it kid. You've done a great job," said a voice that felt as familiar as it was foreign.
Ben turned to find Luke Skywalker standing before him, exactly how Ben remembered him so long ago. Luke turned his face toward the ATs and extended his hand outward as the they unleashed their barrage on his and Ben's position. Ben flinched as he and Luke were engulfed on heavy firepower. Watching the salt and smoke explode around them, Ben quickly realized that Luke was protecting them with a Force barrier.
Ben had endured many moments of internal conflict throughout his journey, from his trials to gain Snoke's confidence to the intertwining of his fate with Rey's. As he stared down at his uncle and former master, however, Ben felt resolute in his hatred toward him. Seemingly sensing this sentiment, Luke turned his face back toward Ben—still maintaining the barrier between them and certain destruction—"I know the anger you hold Ben, and I'm sorry you've had to hold it this long."
Every word he so calmly uttered fueled Ben with fiery emotion, until he could no longer control himself and lashed out with his saber, cutting through Luke with ease. It was then that Ben realized that Luke was not actually present with him, but was rather projecting himself via the Force.
"I'm not asking you to forgive me Ben," continued Luke. "but please let go of your hate. You don't have to do it alone. Go on and help the others."
Ben continued to glare at Luke, still seething as all the events that ultimately amounted to his hatred replayed in his mind. There was in the back of his mind, however, some force or essence that urged his senses to return to him.
Some trick by Skywalker?
He was surely capable of such a power, but no… this feeling called from elsewhere. As he searched further within himself for it, he discovered not only its origin, but also that it was not but one voice. He turned toward the Resistance base, but gave one more glance toward Luke, who too turned to assure him, with a smile, "she's missed you too," before returning his attention to his barrier. This moment was the first time in a long time that Ben looked upon the face of his former master without swelling with fury, and with a deep breath he proceeded to sprint toward the demolished fortress gate.
He slowed to a fatigued walk as he approached the base's entrance. For but a moment, the base actually seemed derelict and silent, until out from the shadows emerged a squad of Resistance troopers, all with their blasters fixed on Ben.
"Coming by yourself sure is a bold statement, buddy," said an unidentified voice. "I can respect that, but I think you might be biting off more than you can chew on this one." The voice came from the legendary Resistance pilot Poe Dameron, who also emerged from the darkness with his blaster aimed at Ben. "Remember me?" he punctuated with a victorious grin.
Ben, unbothered by the arms pointing at his face, simply returned a confused brow to Poe. Poe, taken aback, immediately followed,
"What? Do you not remember me?"
"Not really," Ben replied cooly.
Poe scoffed, then raised his voice. "Are you serious?! I haven't gotten a break from you and your boys! You hounded me for my droid; you interrogated me!"
"You'll have to be more specific," retorted Ben, giving a hint of a smirk as he did.
"Whatever," sighed an exasperated Poe as he began to signal the troops. "Alright get ready to—" his sentence was cut short when he felt a gentle hand rest upon his shoulder.
"Stand down everyone, we don't need those right now," commanded General Leia Organa as she brushed past Poe to approach her son. Ben stood immobilized as Leia walked towards him. For a moment, she paused, smiling as she looked at him; Ben, meanwhile, felt a sense of shame and could not help but avert his gaze from hers. In response to this, Leia stepped closer to him and held his face in her hands so that he would look upon her, and in a most soothing voice told him that she was happy to have him home as she embraced him. Feeling a whirl of emotions, Ben simply stood rigidly, ultimately raising a hand to place on Leia's back, which assuaged some of the tension in the room.
"Come with me," she continued. "We're all boarding the Falcon to leave here."
This moment was interrupted by loud metallic groaning coming from outside the base. The group all turned their attention to the group of ATs, which were all hovering over a barely visible Luke holding his arms outstretched in the air. Luke closed his fists, and subsequently the groaning noise grew increasingly raucous as the tanks were slowly crushed into condensed forms. Finally, he brought his hands together and further crushed them into a single giant mass.
This astounding display garnered admiration from the group of Resistance soldiers previously surrounding Ben, as they murmured excitedly amongst themselves about the fantastic feat they just bore witness to.
"Let's go Ben," repeated Leia, prompting the soldiers to follow as well.
"Greatest Jedi ever right?" mumbled Poe as he stared in awe at the metal hulk before turning to catch up with the group.
Ben and Leia followed behind the group in placid silence as they ventured through the winding caves of the base, ultimately coming upon a clearing where the remained of the Resistance was boarding the Falcon. As the last of the group boarded, Rey noticed the pair and eagerly descended from the platform to greet them.
"Thank you Rey," said Leia sweetly.
"Of course," replied Rey, elated to see her reunited with her son. "Let's go on then, hmm?" she continued, grabbing both Ben and Leia's hands.
Ben was again hesitant to board the Falcon, still uneasy at the uncertain path that had unfolded before him as a result of the day's events. He knew that everyone else on the Falcon hated him still—he could live with that—but what had shaken him was that his role in the galaxy had now become unclear; his goals—destroy the last of the Jedi and quell the Resistance—felt less concrete as Supreme Leader Snoke lie dead, the First Order seemingly about to be turned against Ben if Hux would have his way, and most of all, Ben standing amongst those very enemies he swore to annihilate and yet leaving them alive.
Was it really all because of her?
Suddenly, Ben's thoughts were interrupted by a heavy sense of absence. His eyes met with Rey's, who seemed to have felt similarly, as an expression of horror formed on her face. Confused, Ben shifted his attention toward Leia, whose head had fallen in grim understanding. Luke Skywalker, almighty legend and the last of the Jedi, had at last become one with the Force after exerting the entirety of his strength to perform his incredible feat of projection. Tears began to trickle down Rey's cheeks as frustration swelled through her—frustration at how not once could she gain a victory without incurring loss, and despair that this family that had guided her now found itself, once again, one member short. Leia stepped forward to console her, bringing Rey into her embrace. "Shh, I know," she said calmly. "No one's ever really gone."
Ben was torn as to how he should feel about Luke's passing. For a long time, it was all he wanted, yet here and now, he felt no better from its occurrence, and even felt some remorse for how distraught Rey felt for it. No longer willing to press the matter of his aversion to being among the Resistance for the time being, Ben quietly followed as the trio made their way aboard the Falcon.
The ship sailed steadily away from Crait with a destination yet undecided. Leia, ever the steadfast general, swiftly collected herself and began formulating a plan of action for the Resistance. Amidst the chatter, Ben too pondered as to what his next move should be. His strategy had to be sound and his movements deliberate from here on. One thing he knew for certain was that he had to return to reclaim the helm of the First Order, lest he remain hunted by Hux. Leia, who had glanced toward Ben and seen that he was deep in thought, called upon him for ideas on how to proceed. Caught off guard by this summon, he arose and cautiously approached the circle of the Resistance's remaining command. Feeling the glares of the entire room upon him, he knew he must choose his words very carefully.
"You're out of your mind" interrupted Poe as Ben began to explain.
"No," added Finn. "You just wanna regroup with your drones so you can finish us off!"
"Hux doesn't need me to crush whats left of your pathetic Resistance" snapped Ben, becoming increasingly aggravated at being stuck on a ship full of people who despise him. As his anger swelled, he felt an arm take a hold of his, and Rey's voice firmly followed.
"Settle down Ben. You need to get that they have a hundred reasons not to trust you, especially Finn, and your anger is not going to help that in the least."
Ben remembered well the face of FN-2187 and the punishment he unleashed upon him for his defection from the First Order—a vicious lightsaber slash during their confrontation on Starkiller Base which left him in critical condition. Acknowledging that such an experience would not easily be forgotten, Ben took a moment's respite before continuing, calmly now. "Its for the good of all of us. Hux wants me gone just as much as he does the Resistance—maybe even more. If I can retake the First Order, I can end the war."
"Yeah, by getting rid of our side right?" interjected someone in the crowd, which sparked raucous discourse among all those present. As the disorder ensued, Leia walked over to Ben, took his hands in hers, and gazed deeply into his eyes, feeling in him sincerity, albeit in the presence of uncertainty toward himself as well. Leia silenced the crowd and gave her son a smirk.
"I trust him." This did not entirely appease the crowd, but they no less trusted their general's judgement. "How will you do it?" she added.
"Well, it seems that the collision disabled the Supremacy's long-range communications, so Hux may not have been able to turn the entirety of the First Order against me. If I can reach them before he does, I can discredit him and cut his influence then and there. I'd need a ship."
"Well it won't help your alibi to show up in a Resistance ship. I have an idea," retorted Leia as she made her way over to Chewie, who upon her instruction entered destination coordinates.
Following a jump through hyperspace, the Falcon arrived at a planet unfamiliar to Ben, and landed in a seemingly derelict hangar which featured a handful of X-Wings. Despite the quiet, dilapidated appearance of the hangar, it was clear that these fighters were seeing regular use. The purpose for the group's arrival was made clear when Leia led Ben and the crew to a veiled ship toward the back of the hangar; removing the tarp revealed a First Order TIE fighter, which Leia explained was to be used for infiltration missions. She advised Ben to take it, as it would be much easier for it to enter First Order space than any other craft the Resistance could offer.
"Thank you," Ben said, still not quite able to look his mother in her eyes. "For all of this."
"Of course, son," she replied sweetly.
Ben felt a sudden sense of shame; looking up at Leia, the memory of slaying Han replayed over and over in his head, each time hammering harder at him. How could she help him, much less trust him in the least, after he took Han from her?
"It's okay Ben," interjected Leia, seemingly aware of her son's internal strife.
"Right…" he muttered as he regained his focus. Noticing Rey amidst the crew, he addressed her as well: "Rey, come with me. I can help train you, and we can bring peace together."
Rey, unprepared for this proposal, paused as she attempted to quickly discern if this was the right course of action for her to take.
Casting a glance toward Rey, Leia once again interjected. "Ben, go focus on reeling in the First Order. I'll continue Rey's training."
Ben and Rey were both surprised by this idea. "What?" Leia continued, "don't you think I learned a thing or two from my brother? Now go on."
Ben further protested, but Leia would have none of it, and she nudged him to board the TIE, to which he begrudgingly obliged.
—Epilogue—
True to Leia's expectations, the TIE indeed facilitated Ben's entry into First Order space. Feeling it necessary to put an immediate stop to Hux's insurrection before his influence could spread throughout the First Order (and also unwilling to tolerate this slight against him), Ben returned to the site where the Supremacy and its remaining accompanying fleet remained while they underwent repairs. Ben quietly boarded the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer Finalizer, and following a brief confrontation on the ship's bridge as well as a vulgar display of power, Hux relinquished control of the fleet and abdicated the title of Supreme Leader to Kylo Ren. Subsequently, Ben declared the Supremacy decommissioned and anointed the Finalizer as his new flagship.
The following months saw Ben taking on the arduous task of preserving the integrity of the First Order's leadership structure in wake of Snoke's death. True to his word, he did not pursue the Resistance for some time, focusing rather on the First Order's infrastructure, a move which raised concerns from his commanders which needed to be addressed. During this time, Ben communed little with Rey, but every so often was able to link his mind with hers if he concentrated heavily on meditation. During these encounters, they could converse for short intervals of time and update each other on their respective statuses, and he was impressed at her progression in her training.
On one such occasion, Ben presented to her a lightsaber design he had tinkered with to gift her when they would next meet in person.
"You mentioned you used to use a staff. I thought you might feel more comfortable using something like this."
The lightsaber, which was folded in half, snapped into place as Ben gave it a swing. With no other kyber crystal to use for the demonstration, Ben had inserted his own, and the saber staff thus flared an unstable red glow from each of its ends.
"Ben, is this your way of reminding me that 'this lightsaber belongs to you'?" she asked with a sly grin, dangling Skywalker's lightsaber in front of him.
This joke, clever as it was, actually coerced a chuckle out of Ben, and their meeting ended soon after. This would also be the last time they would converse for quite a while. In the back of his mind, Ben would begin feeling a sinister presence lurking, rapping at the window of his consciousness. He did not know where this omen hailed from, nor could he resist its presence, but every day, it grew ever prevalent, until one day it finally spoke to him.
"Look how feeble you've become," growled this voice of evil.
"Who are you?" asked Ben.
"Oh, you know of me well. Such wasted potential. You were destined to surpass Vader."
"I have control of the First Order, and I will bring an end to the galaxy's conflict. I will succeed where Vader failed," Ben retorted, unsettled by this enigmatic voice.
With a cackle, the voice continued. "you could never hope to achieve such power so long as your time is wasted with her."
Rey? Thought Ben. How did this entity know about his relationship with her? Was it Snoke? No, this felt different—worse even.
"We're stronger together," he asserted "learning to balance the light and the dark side."
Once again, the voice erupted in a cackled laugh. "Fool, she is but biding her time, until she may surpass you."
Ben didn't believe it. However, this entity was so powerful in the dark side, that he could feel its influence seeping into his mind. Could this be a ploy by the Resistance? Is Rey using Ben to perfect her mastery of the Force so that she may defeat him?
"You think me unbelievable?" continued the voice. "Just as your power is lent by your lineage, so is hers."
"What do you mean?" inquired Ben.
With a final chuckle, the voice answered: "Come to me and find out. You will seek the power I offer."
The subsequent events are told in the Rise of Skywalker