Chapter Five

Rey had been walking along the winding path of the labyrinth for over an hour. Since Archais had departed, she was left alone.

Again.

Despite his purpose to engage her, Rey had actually felt a kinship to the knight. He held himself in a determined way, one she recognized. She wondered what it was he survived. Knowing how the First Order operated, she was sure it wasn't pleasant. Archais hadn't been a soulless murderer, as she suspected. Even if she hadn't seen what existed beneath his mask, Rey felt his darkness ebb in her presence. Maybe Kylo wasn't the only one who could be turned.

She pushed the thought from her mind.

Hope was a tricky thing. It could make one feel protected and justified, but it could also make you wait for something which would never happen, forcing you to give up something better. While Leia had subscribed to it, Rey doubted its capacity to carry her through the trials ahead.

The green walls of foliage began to blur until they all appeared identical. It wasn't until she singed a mark into one wall with her lightsaber that she realized she was going in circles.

"No," Rey groaned, staring at the mark in disbelief. She ran a hand over her head, smoothing back a few stray strands while contemplating her next move. "You can do this, you can do this," she told herself.

Her freedom was on the line, as well as the safety of her pupils. By now they were probably offworld. With any luck, Chewie had already delivered them to the Resistance. She could only imagine how Finn, Rose and Commander Dameron would react when they found out she wasn't part of the drop-off. As bad as that was, nothing could compare to how alone her students must be feeling.

There was no trying to win this challenge. She had to win.

Rey strolled forward, marking the maze walls as she went. She burned tiny signs to herself in the most obscure language she could think of: Mando'a. There was a chance the remaining knights would notice her tactic and either cut the entire panel off the wall or cover the mark with one of their own so she could no longer decipher it. Seeing as she'd rather chance that than continue wandering aimlessly, Rey went about leaving herself breadcrumbs.

Once she was able to discern the various intersections and turns, she began to notice a pattern: right, left, left, right, left, right, left, left, right. The significance of the pattern wasn't recognizable, but it mattered little to Rey, whose main objective was to escape.

As she made up for her lack of progress earlier, a dark shadow passed overhead. Rey glanced up, shielding her eyes as she watched a First Order transport skim over the gardens. The red insignia stood out against the black ship, a taunting reminder of how the First Order had stolen her not once but twice.

Not the First Order.

Ben.

She sighed again, annoyed with herself for being unable to refer to him by his chosen name. He didn't deserve her forgiveness. He'd made the decision to come after the Resistance. He'd made the decision to come after her students. He'd made the decision to come after her.

After all they'd shared and he still thought of her as...what? His enemy? His prize?

And then there was that moment at breakfast. She blushed, recalling how tenderly he'd cleaned her face, not at all repulsed by her lack of table manners.

How could someone who loathed her as much as he did turn around and act so graciously? The man was an enigma.

Like this maze, Rey thought.

Her attention shifted back to the path before her. There was a spike in dark energy within the Force, indicating her next challenger was approaching. Rey stilled at the next intersection, awaiting the knight.

"'Ello," a voice greeted her in Huttanese.

She grinned, replying back in the same dialect, "Did you just say 'hello'?" His candor was almost humorous.

Almost.

"No, I said "'ello," but that's close enough," he returned.

She quirked a brow.

"Apologies for the lack of formalities, Madame Jedi." He gave a mock bow and she narrowed her eyes.

"It's Rey, not Madame and not Jedi."

"No?" the faceless warrior stepped out from behind the curved wall to her left. His — she assumed from the deep pitch he was a man — head was tilted in interest, no doubt surprised by how well she could speak the language. "It appears I am mistaken then. I believe the trials were for a Jedi."

Rey didn't let her eyes leave him, her hand already closing around the hilt of her saber staff. Their banter was friendly so far, but she knew this was all a part of the game. A little loth cat and mouse...

Too bad she was neither.

Her eyes narrowed at her next contender. In retaliation, the man snapped out an electro-whip, the blue energy crackling as thong came to life.

Rey dug her heels into the ground, testing the earth's texture as she readied herself for his attack. She'd noticed the change in the pathways at the intersection. It was subtle, but even the slightest misstep could cost her in a critical battle. She'd learned that lesson the hard way on Jakku.

Mind your surroundings, Mashra had warned her. If it hadn't been for the Aqualish, Rey was sure she'd have died in the Sinking Fields. Mashra had always advised her to wait for an opponent to attack.

So she did.

But she didn't wait long. Like Archais, this knight gave very little warning, charging at her with clear intentions. Spinning away from the end of the whip, Rey wondered if his enthusiasm was due to his intense training or orders from his master.

The whip clapped less than an inch from her face.

Perhaps it was a bit of both.

Rey ignited both ends of her saber staff. The electro-whip shot out, aimed at the top half of her weapon. She twisted the staff, avoiding his attack and shifting out of range. He recoiled and struck again, this time going for her ankle. Leaping into the air, Rey somersaulted over her blades. She hissed when she slid backward. The path had transitioned from dirt to small pebbles, affecting her landing.

The knight provided no time for her to collect her thoughts, engaging her immediately. He brought the whip down. It was sheer survival instinct which allowed her to raise her staff in time to keep the weapon from embedding itself into her shoulder blade.

Beads of sweat rose on her forehead from the severe heat of the electro-whip. Its proximity to her bare skin frightened her. This nameless knight was proving to be more challenging than his brother.

With a shove of the Force, Rey broke away. She stabbed the end of her staff at him, intending to hit the knight in his calf. Incapacitation was her goal. There was no need to kill the man, no matter how intent he appeared to be on ending her.

Her strike barely missed, the knight side-stepping at the last possible second. Rey twirled her saberstaff, ready to catch him on the upswipe when the whip snapped out, singeing an errant strand of hair hanging by her ear.

She felt a vibration through the Force.

Apprehension. Rage. Vigilance. And...

...fear.

Fear of losing her.

Rey's impulse was undeniable. She glanced up, catching those dark eyes which haunted her lonely nights on Yavin IV. Those same eyes which had entrapped her on Ahch-To. Those eyes she knew she'd never escape from, whether she won the trial or not.

"Ah!"

Her skin burned as the whip collided with her side, searing through her tunic to leave an angry red burn along her torso. Gasping, she instinctively reached for the wound. It felt as if R'iia herself had held a torch to her side. The opening was slick with a mixture of fluids, hot to the touch and pulsing.

The Force rippled with his wrath, the darkness so great it stole the breath from her lungs. Or it may have been the pain. In any case, Rey found it difficult to breathe.

She shuffled backward, rocking on her legs unsteadily as she attempted to put distance between herself and her attacker. The knight advanced, unaffected by the surge of power which had impacted Rey so violently. She chided herself for being rendered immobile by those eyes. Hadn't Master Skywalker warned her about them?

Would she ever learn?

The knight's whip lashed out once more. It came at her like a meteor propelling through the atmosphere, deadly and destructive. Rey ducked, nearly losing more hair in the process. Her buns bobbed against the curve of her head as she dodged another stroke and another, her mind scrambling along with her feet.

She tried to lose herself in the Force, but all she could feel was Ben's uncontrollable fury. The boiling heat of his temper scorched across the bond. It almost made the pain of her fresh wound seem bearable.

Almost.

Then the heat shifted and she felt a different kind of warmth, like a balm being spread over her wound. It came across their connection, persistent and unyielding, just like her bond mate. There was an underlying calm to it, as if all the frenzied madness within him had burned out, leaving behind only this. This warmth. This passion.

Rey allowed the sensation to wrap around her. It filled her with peace and cleared her mind.

She could smell her sweat on the breeze and taste the trepidation hanging between them. She heard the air fill her attacker's lungs. She could feel his muscles tense as he prepared to attack.

Another burst of electric blue soared by, narrowly missing her and effectively jolting her out of her tranquil cocoon. Rey clenched her jaw, breathing out through her nose as she steadied herself on the dirt path. She'd lost ground by retreating, but it was a favorable option compared to losing her head.

Hands wrapped around her staff, her eyes locked onto the approaching knight. She counted his steps as he charged.

One, two, three and lift—

Crouching down, she twisted her body up, angling it to the slide before slicing her saber staff through the air. The staff's blades cut forward with ease, causing the knight to jump over it and, by extension, Rey.

She countered by swinging her weapon around and straightening, her blade ending up tucked under the helmet of the knight. She held it in position, wedged between the top of his armor and his face covering, the gentle thrum of the blade the only sound between them.

For a moment, all was still.

Rey held her breath, unwilling to flinch while in such a critical position. The knight must have shared her opinion, remaining frozen until Rey eyed his whip. She tilted her head slightly, merely enough to communicate what she wanted.

With a grunt, the knight tossed the weapon several paces out of reach. Then and only then did Rey start breathing.

"Madame Jedi," the knight spoke in Huttanese again. He moved to kneel and Rey sheathed her lightsaber.

When his knees hit the ground, he removed his helmet, revealing a Thradian face. His full black eyes held hers, before he bowed his head in respect.

"You can call me Rey," she reminded him, bolstering her weapon.

"I am called Cadmus," the yellow-skinned sentient replied, rising to his full height.

He was taller than her, though nowhere near the height of the Supreme Leader, whose Force signature had calmed dramatically. Rey didn't allow herself another look up at him, too concerned by his effect on her and what it had almost cost.

"It was an honor, Madame— Rey," the knight kept his head bowed, but withdrew a bacta patch from his robes. He handed it to her, indicating she should use it on her wound.

"You'll have to teach me how to use one of those someday," Rey grinned, pointing to his whip, as she applied the patch. "That's the second time someone has used one on me."

"It would be my pleasure," Cadmus promised, retrieving his weapon.

"I will take my leave. May the Force be with you."

Rey smiled, pleasantly surprised to hear those words pass his lips. "May the Force be with you, Cadmus."

She watched him walk off, ignoring the gaze she could still feel from above.

And the warring emotions in the bond.

Kylo watched her move further away from him, seemingly uninfluenced by the way the Force connected them in her moment of need.

He'd felt the way everything had stilled, almost as if he was experiencing it for the first time. In fact, Kylo half-expected her to turn her weapon on him, until he heard her quick inhale and felt her confusion. It was only then he realized she saw him.

Time stood still.

It had nothing to do with the Force and everything to do with Rey. She'd always managed to make him feel trapped.

The day he'd found her in Takodana forest, he'd been grateful for his helmet. While it intimidated her, it also hid his surprise. She was so beautiful— the most gorgeous thing in the galaxy. And as if that wasn't enough, she was more powerful than she realized, gifted with the Force, like him. The pull to her was as unexpected as it was undeniable. He'd gone for her, disregarding his orders in favor of having her, consequences be damned.

Kylo never regretted it.

Even after spending a year parted from her, worried Hux would snatch her up, or worse, that she'd be hit by a stray blaster bolt, he never considered an alternative. There was only one woman in the galaxy who truly knew him. She didn't agree with his methods, but she understood them. She understood him. Was that why the Force had connected them?

Their most recent Force bond was short-lived. When she took Cadmus' hit, Kylo's body had instantly jerked, as if he'd been the one burned. It had taken all of his hard-earned willpower to keep from leaping from the terrace. Feeling her pain was one thing, but seeing it etched on her face...it nearly destroyed him.

And it was all his fault.

Watching Rey falter had his hands balling into fists at his side. His rage rolled through him, disappointment in his own choices following close behind. Once again, he had chosen poorly. Once again, he'd made a mistake where the Scavenger was concerned. No wonder she didn't want him. No wonder she'd left. Everything he did was for her, yet in the end all he managed to do was hurt her.

Rey already bore a scar from Snoke's throne room, a jagged cut on her upper arm which marred her sun-kissed skin. Kylo winced, recalling how he hadn't been able to get to her in time. No, in the end, he hadn't been enough. In fact, she'd saved him.

He watched his knight advance, his heart stuttering in his chest. Rey was too still. Why wasn't she moving? What was she—

Like the Knight of Ren, Kylo saw her attack too late. In the next instant, she held her blade to the Thradian's neck. Another victory. Kylo could breathe again.

She was safe, but she was the only one.

He was grateful Carsmica had come to collect Temiri from his care. Kylo was in no condition to watch the boy while subsequently chastising his knight.

Cadmus had not heeded his warning. The Thradian would be severely punished for his insubordination. Kylo's displeasure only increased when he witnessed Cadmus' offer following the duel. Cadmus had charmingly volunteered to teach Rey and it incited a potent spark of jealousy within him. Rey was his to teach.

His.

Eyes darker than a sea tempest, Kylo watched as Cadmus exited the maze. He would return to the palace to report in. Once alone, the Supreme Leader would ensure such impertinence did not happen again.

He'd been clear when he'd directed his knights. Any choice they made to disregard his orders could be viewed as treason. And Kylo did not tolerate treason— ven though he had committed the ultimate act of betrayal by cutting Snoke down. His knights didn't need to know about that, though. Only Rey knew what had happened in the throne room.

Like the Force, the secret bound them.

"Master," a voice called to him.

Kylo turned away from his balcony, joining the speaker in his main chamber. "Archais."

The knight knelt, head bowed in submission. When he rose, he addressed Kylo. "I see your catch has succeeded yet again."

The Supreme Leader narrowed his eyes. "The last Jedi is not one to be underestimated."

"I know," the knight chuckled and removed his helmet.

Archais was unique. Unlike the other knights, he was human. Like his master, he preferred to keep that detail a mystery, hidden beneath his armor and his mask. What was beneath the protective shroud was another reason why Kylo's second in command preferred to keep covered.

Lacerations, long since healed, decorated his swart skin. The lines were dusty pink, raised from his cheekbones and dipping under his jawline. There were similar marks on Kylo, running along his back, down his legs, winding like a serpent around his arms. All came from the same tormentor, a true monster.

Snoke.

Archais was the only one who remained from Kylo's time as Ben Solo. He was the sole survivor of the purge Snoke ordered upon his apprentice, focused on breaking him, snuffing out the light for good. Each time Ben watched another companion fall to their death, more of his soul shattered, allowing the darkness to creep in. One by one they were ripped away from him until only Archais remained.

Either too stubborn to die or too foolish to surrender, the man remained. He held true to his declaration to follow Ben from the academy and walk a new path.

The choice had nearly cost him his life.

Kylo had little to be grateful for, but Archais' friendship was a rare treasure. He held it close.

"You best reign in your emotions, Master," his ally suggested. "Cadmus may not follow protocol, but he isn't ignorant enough to disregard how you feel about her. It won't bode well for Rey if you place an even larger target upon her back."

"I'm not—"

"You are," Archais interrupted.

There were few people who could cut off the Supreme Leader. Very few. The man who stood before him and the young woman in the gardens below could be considered either extremely lucky or extremely unfortunate to have earned such favor with him. It all depended on his mood.

Currently, Kylo was less concerned about being interrupted and more concerned with what his friend had uncovered.

He'd only spoken of Rey to Archais once. Apparently, that single conversation was enough of an anomaly for the knight to put it together.

"What have I done?" he questioned, running a hand through his hair.

"You gave her a chance," Archais responded. "If you showed her mercy, there would be questions about your tolerance for the former Supreme Leader's murder. You would have a mutiny on your hands. And if you executed her—"

"I would never—"

"I know, I know," Archais held up a hand, pursing his lips. "But Master, your emotions have always been your weakness. If you don't conceal them, they will bring an end to this...for both of you."

There was a long pause as the weight of what his knight said settled between them. When the Supreme Leader broke the silence, his tone changed. "She and I...we're bound," Kylo admitted.

It was the first time he'd spoken of their connection out loud to someone other than Rey. The only other person with knowledge of their bond had been Snoke and he was in no position to tell anyone.

"Through the Force?" It was a question, but the way his knight spoke made it sound more like a statement. He nodded. "That is rare indeed," Archais remarked. "What does it mean?"

Kylo shook his head. Over the past year, he'd researched Force bonds, but there hadn't ever been a recorded instance of one existing between two individuals who were neither master and apprentice nor family members.

The two men stood in silence for a time, each processing the complicated nature of having the Jedi Killer and the last Jedi bound.

Then a knock sounded. Kylo's eyes flickered to the double doors and back to Archais. "Make yourself scarce."

"Master," the knight bowed, retreating out through the emergency passage in Kylo's bedroom.

It was a safety precaution for the royal family, one Kylo had shared with only Archais, Carsmica and Aubani. He had it on good authority his grandmother had leveraged the hidden network of tunnels and corridors during her reign. He intended to do the same if it meant protecting his secrets.

"Enter," he called through the door, his demeanor instantly changing when he caught sight of who it was.

"Cadmus."

"Master," the Thradian immediately went to his knees.

Arachis's warning was at the forefront of Kylo's mind as he stared down at his knight, only the second of twelve sent into the maze. If there was any chance Rey would make it through, he needed to send a message.

No one would dare disobey him again.

A/N: Thank you to my beta rebelrebel for all her support and assistance on this chapter.