AN: Hey guys, long time no see. My apologies for getting this out so late, school and college applications are really stressing me out. But I'm back, and hopefully I can get the next chapter out before the Last Jedi releases for you guys. Still can't believe that it's next month. In other news, I started an Instagram account for my writing pieces, if you guys want to follow it to keep up to date on when I'll post for this and how my progress is feel free to do so. It's called poisonspike501 if you want to check it out.

I'd like to thank BleachChef, Luishunter65, TheSecretNovelist, ssibbett, zazz15, king of the kaiju, Ryu otsutsuki, JT1997, astrogoddess, Uplifting-Bonny, AshieCha, and trexxa1 for following and/or favoriting this story and my account. It means a lot guys, thank you so much. I think that this might actually be a new record for an amount of favorites and follows. (If I missed anyone either today or any other time, I apologize, it's hard to keep track of when people add this.)

SaintsFan1- Same here, obviously I've seen the trailer more than once, but when I last posted I only saw it one time so I wasn't paying that close attention to detail. Glad you liked the last chapter, got that right about Hux, and thanks I try my best. Hopefully the plan does work out okay, I think it will, I didn't write it yet, so we'll see. The battle is definitely going to happen next chapter, I can guarantee it. I love writing those moments between Kylo and Rey, it's one of my favorite things to do. Don't worry, I'll be sure to add more after the battle. Thanks again for the review!

C.Z.B.- So happy that you liked the last chapter, I loved that part as well. Glad I could make you feel that way, that's one of the main reasons why I wrote this in the first place. I can't wait for the battle either, I love writing fight scenes so much! Same here with the trailer, fingers crossed for Reylo. This is probably the only thing keeping me sane right now, I'm going nuts about how close it is. Thanks again for the review!

PoisonTree2-0 - I must be losing it, I don't think I acknowledged you before, unless I did and I forgot. Oh well, if I didn't I apologize. Glad that you liked the last chapter, hope you enjoy this one. Thanks for the review!

QueenSkywalkerKenobi- I don't think I recognized you either, so sorry about that. Happy to hear that you like this that much. Sorry for the spelling mistakes, sometimes my computer doesn't catch them which leads to me not noticing them. Hope you like this chapter as well. Thanks for the review!

Okay, now that that's out of the way, let's dive right in.

Chapter 37

Rey woke up at 7:00 the next morning. They were leaving the ship at 1:00, and for once she could actually sleep in. Granted it was only for an hour or two, but she took what she could get. She quickly showered and changed into her now signature black clothing. She had to admit, she looked pretty damn good in black. She grabbed her lightsaber off the nightstand and hung it on her belt, she then walked out of the room for breakfast.

Thankfully she didn't have to go in for training today, although she did enjoy it, she needed a break. As she walked down the hall she could somehow sense a change in the atmosphere. Everyone seemed tense and uneasy, they were probably nervous about the attack on Coruscant. The Order hasn't done something like this in a while and they couldn't fail. If they did Snoke wouldn't be too happy with them, and nothing good comes when Snoke isn't pleased, at least from what she heard anyway.

But while others were nervous, they weren't nearly as nervous as she was. This was Rey's first field mission for the Order, scratch that, her first EVER field mission. She might've looked calm on the outside, but she was completely panicking on the inside. She couldn't mess this up, she needed to prove that she was loyal, she needed to prove that she has what it takes to be a Sith, she needed to prove that she was capable of successfully leading a group of troopers into battle. She needed to put everything she ever learned from being a scavenger and from training with Kylo to use if she was going to succeed.

As she entered the cafeteria she tried to push all of her worries to the back of her head. She was meeting up with her friends and she didn't want them to get worried about her. Over the course of the last few days, Rey was surprised that her friends were complaining about not going with her. There was a very high possibility that they'd get killed, especially since they didn't go on that many missions. But apparently it didn't matter, she was their friend and they wanted to protect her and be by her side during the battle. She had to admit, she was touched by their concern for her. But if one of them got killed or injured while trying to protect her she'd never forgive herself.

The only trooper that she was close to that would be with her was Austin, and he was her second in command. They both had to worry about every single trooper in their squad on the battlefield and try to find a way to keep them out of blaster fire. She'd grown close to Austin and she'd never forgive herself if something happened to him during battle and she couldn't help him, or worse he tried to help her and died in the process.

She mentally slapped herself for adding new things to worry about. All she wanted to do was eat and hang out with her friends, not have a panic attack over the possibilities of events that could go wrong.

Rey went on line for food and grabbed herself a tray. As she moved down she grabbed whatever she could get her hands on. She was most likely not going to be able to eat lunch, so she needed to be full enough to last until dinner. It shouldn't be too hard for her, she once went three to five days without eating and she only really got slight stomach pains the beginning of the third day. She was so used to not having food that not eating a meal wasn't that big of a deal.

She sat down at her usual table and saw that Austin and Blake were already there. Bandit, Larry, and Rex would probably be there shortly. "Morning boys." The two troopers responded in unison.

"Morning Rey."

"I assume the others are on their way." They nodded their heads yes. "Are you ready for later Austin?"

"As ready as I'll ever be. I'm sure everything will be fine."

"I hope so. But let's not talk about that right now. I wanna relax for a little bit."

"Yeah sure. So what did you do last night?"

"I hung out with Kylo." Before Austin or Blake could ask why, the remainder of their friends came in. They sat down at the table and everyone greeted them. Larry spoke up when they were done.

"So what did we miss?" Austin informed them on what they were talking about.

"Rey was just telling us what she did last night."

"Really? What did you do Rey?"

"I was hanging out with Kylo."

"Doing what?"

"Just talking, watching the holonet, and just general stuff. It's what we always do when we're alone." She immediately regretted those words. She wasn't too comfortable with telling others about her and Kylo yet. Although she did promise them that she'd tell them eventually, she wasn't ready to yet. Bandit noticed her worried look.

"Rey, is there something going on between you two besides the force connection. You said that there was another reason why Ren acts the way he does around you. Is this part of that reason?"

"Yeah, it is."

"Why do you guys get together so often just to hang out?"

"Well. It's. Uh. Complicated."

"What do you mean by complicated?" Rey took a deep breath, there was no use hiding her relationship from them anymore.

"Kylo isn't just my master and friend. I'm in a relationship with him." The whole table went quiet. They thought it would be something similar to that, but they didn't expect it to happen for awhile.

"How long has this been going on Rey?"

"Ever since one of my first training sessions with him. We kissed and everything just kind of fell into place."

"So he's what, your boyfriend?"

"I guess you could call it that. We never really used those terms before. But, yeah I guess so. But you guys can't tell anybody. We don't want Snoke, Hux, or anybody in the Order finding out. It could ruin Kylo's reputation and Snoke wouldn't be too happy with him, that kind of emotion can lead to the light side."

"Don't worry Rey, your secret is safe with us."

"Thank you."

"Just out of curiosity. Did you two ever, you know, do it?"

"Bandit, gross! I've never done that in my life! I'd rather wait a few more years until I'm ready."

"Alright, alright. It's just a question. At least now we don't have to envision that."

"Ugh. You guys are so creepy." The group laughed. Although it was an uncomfortable topic, at least it was out of their system. For the remainder of the time things went back to normal. There was no talk about her and Kylo, it was just a group of friends, having fun and just enjoying being together.

They stayed in the cafeteria for about an hour or two. Rey and Austin didn't have to report in until 12:45, so they had some time to kill. When she left she said goodbye to her friends and made plans to meet up after the battle was over. When they left it was around 9:30, so they went their separate ways. Austin went to go clean his armor and blaster and check on the squad. Rey went to the bridge to look over the map of where they were going to be on Coruscant.

As she entered, nobody noticed her come in. She's been coming in and out of there for so long that nobody seemed to care anymore. She went over to the table and pulled up the attack plan. She already reviewed it and knew what to do, she just wanted to get a better sense of her surroundings.

As she looked it over she saw that there was a large amount of space and not much cover. There were some buildings and some large objects that they could hide behind, but otherwise they were completely out in the open. If the supporters were even a decent shot, they could take down several of their men. She tried to find a way that would give her squad cover, but she saw nothing. Perhaps they could sneak up on them and get an advantage before they attacked.

As she studied she heard footsteps come up next to her and as she turned her head she saw the smug face of Hux. "Is there anything you need General?"

"No. I just noticed you studying the map of the area."

"Yes. I noticed that there isn't much room for cover."

"Ah yes. Not to worry, you'll get some."

"What do you mean? The area is completely out in the open."

"You see that line of buildings over there?"

"Yeah. What about it? It's nowhere near the attack area."

"Yes, but there's cover over there. It's near a large central area, and there are smaller buildings and structures that can be used as cover."

"What are you suggesting?"

"That we move the battle there."

"How?"

"Simple, we get their attention. We use the troopers that we already have and send out false information about a shipment of weapons in that area. At the right time you guys go to that area and wait for them to show up. When they do you attack."

"Oh I see. I should inform my master."

"No need. I did it earlier this morning. But you have nothing to worry about."

"Thank you Hux. Speaking of my master, I haven't seen him at all. Do you know where he went after you spoke with him?"

"I think that he went back to his room. Something about getting in the right mindset or something."

"Ok, thanks." She left the bridge and started to make her way towards Kylo's room. Whatever he was doing, she felt she might as well get in on it to calm her nerves.

Kylo had woken up early that morning, when there wasn't really a need for it. He ate his breakfast and talked to Hux about using a distraction to gain more cover. He wanted to get it out of the way for what he really wanted to do. Meditate, and just maybe get in touch with his grandfather.

He didn't meditate much, he only did it before missions or to calm himself down when breaking things with his lightsaber didn't work. He had been sitting in his room, on his bed for hours and he actually felt at peace for once. He could feel the force around him and it filled him with energy and confidence.

As he was lost in his trance he didn't hear the door open and Rey come in. He just sat there with his eyes closed without a care in the world. He eventually was able to feel Rey's presence within the room, he's been around her so much he can identify it instantly. He opened his eyes and found her at the window staring out into the galaxy.

Kylo didn't say a word, he was getting a feeling of nervousness and panic coming from her. She was afraid of the battle. "Rey, you okay?" She immediately turned around and he could see a small amount of relief cross her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"No your not. Don't try and lie to me."

"Sorry. I'm just worried about later."

"Rey you know the plan inside and out. You're a good leader, and an even better fighter. You'll be fine, I promise."

"Don't you think I know that? But what if troopers die, or what if people I know die? I can't live with that."

"This is war. There's going to be casualties. Surely you experienced that in the Resistance."

"Not exactly." He looked at her with a confused look on his face. She fought with the Resistance, she knew that people were dying, unless she wasn't told. Rey noticed the confused look on his face and explained herself. "I never actually fought with the Resistance. What happened on Starkiller didn't really count. I was a hostage and I was confused as to what was going on."

"But you had to know that people were getting killed. Our pilots managed to bring quite a few of your x-wings down."

"I knew that was happening. But I wasn't up there, and I wasn't really thinking about it. But now I'm responsible for others and their lives and if they die then it's on me."

"Come here." He patted the space next to him at the edge of the bed. She obeyed and sat next to him. He put his arm around her to bring her closer and to comfort her. "Everybody who's in a leader position goes through this."

"Yeah right. I bet you didn't."

"You'd be surprised. I had to deal with the Knights of Ren before I was ready for the troopers. They were a smaller group and I knew them very well. If one of them got killed it was on me. But I managed to put my fears away and just use my training and my instincts to get the job done. You get the hang of it over time and you just need to put faith in your men."

"I know, I know. I'm just too nervous."

"Meditate. It helps."

"I don't think I can."

"Just relax and don't think about anything. I've been doing it for hours and it helped to calm me down. This is as important to me as it is for you. I need to please Snoke, I can't have another failure."

"Fine. But if it doesn't work and things go wrong because I'm too nervous, I'm blaming you."

"Fine with me. I'd probably get blamed anyway. Now meditate, we don't have that much time left." Kylo watched her move into a comfortable position in the middle of his bed to meditate. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. He could see and feel the tension around her. She wasn't calm enough, he looked into her thoughts and saw that they were still on her troopers.

Kylo positioned himself next to her and took her hand in his. She didn't open her eyes, but he could see that she felt more secure. He closed his eyes and began to meditate as well. Kylo could feel the force begin to get stronger around them, how it embraced their minds and thoughts. After a couple of minutes, Kylo began to see something. An image of some sort. It reminded him of the force vision that he had.

He focused on the image and within an instant he was transported to an unfamiliar planet. He looked around and saw that he was on some sort of base, and that it looked like there had been a battle. Bodies were everywhere, Kylo didn't recognize anybody, until he saw the pile of stormtroopers. All dead.

He walked around, panic beginning to consume him. He walked towards the entrance to the base, when he heard a noise behind him. He stopped and quickly turned around. Standing in front of him was Rey, and he felt relief wash over him. As he looked at her she didn't say anything or acknowledge him at all, her face was as blank as Hux's. "Rey? You alright?" No answer. "Rey? Can you hear me?" Still nothing.

Suddenly out of nowhere FN-2187 appeared and stood next to her. His anger began to rise exponentially. "Get away from her you traitor!"

"Sorry Ren, I won't let you hurt her anymore."

"What? Rey come over here!" She didn't move. "That's an order!" Still nothing. "What have you done to her?!"

"You'll soon see. Attack." All of a sudden Rey activated both blades on her saber and began to run towards him.

"Oh crap." He reached for his lightsaber but found it wasn't on his belt. "What? Where's my saber?"

"Looking for this?" He looked up and saw his saber in the hands of the traitor.

"Double crap." Rey had gotten closer to him and began her attack. He tried to dodge as much as he could, but she was too fast. She managed to corner him and stick her blade through him.

Kylo immediately opened his eyes and began to breathe heavily. That wasn't like anything he'd felt or experienced before. He looked over at Rey and saw that she was completely calm. She must've not been in the vision with him, she didn't know what she did.

Rey's eyes fluttered open and she looked at him. She saw beads of sweat drip down his face. "Kylo, you alright?"

"Yeah. Yeah I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You're looking at me weird."

"Huh? Oh. I'm just admiring how pretty you look right now. Not that you're not pretty every day, it's just that.."

"It's fine. I know what you mean."

"Good. We should get to the hangar. We're leaving soon." Kylo looked at the clock next to his bed, it was 12:40. They were meditating for hours, when it felt like minutes.

"Right." The two simultaneously got off of the bed. Kylo went to where his helmet and saber were, while Rey headed for the door. She stopped and waited for him. Kylo didn't hear the door open and turned to face her.

"You can go. I'll meet you down there."

"Alright. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine." Rey looked him over and sighed. She could've looked at his thoughts, but considering the way he was acting she figured it was better to just leave him be. She let the doors open and exited the room. She began to make her way towards the hangar.

When Kylo heard the doors close he put his saber on his belt and grabbed his helmet. He walked into the refresher and looked himself in the mirror. As he looked at himself he saw why Rey was so concerned. His eyes were beginning to tear up at the thought of losing her to the enemy. He wiped his eyes clean of the tears and turned the sink on. He took off his gloves and began to splash water onto his face, trying to erase any existence of the tear formation.

When he was satisfied, he turned off the water and wiped his face with a towel. He put his gloves back on and grabbed his helmet. He took one last look at his face before pulling the bucket over his head. As he heard the locks click into place, he let out a sigh. Now nobody can see any weakness upon his face. He had a job to do, and it was time to complete it.

He put his hood over his helmet and exited his room. He made his way to the hangar and tried to look as menacing and sure of himself as possible. As he passed people in the hallways they stared at him, scared of what he might do.

As he approached the hangar he saw that it was filled with prepped ships and troopers. As he entered everyone stopped to look at him. Everyone immediately lined up and stood at attention. Rey was facing the troopers with her squad commander, he made his way over to them. "Rey, Commander. Is everyone accounted for?" Austin answered him.

"Yes sir. Everything's ready to go."

"Good. Load the troopers onto the ships immediately. Rey, come with me." He began to walk towards his command shuttle, Rey following behind him. She managed to catch up with him and grabbed his arm. Kylo stopped and turned to face her.

"Kylo, I need to know something before we leave."

"What?"

"Did you see something bad happen during the battle later?"

"No Rey. Everything's fine. It's nothing that you need to concern yourself with."

"Alright. You know you can talk to me right?"

"Yes, I know." He placed his hand on her arm reassuringly. "Let's get on board." He dropped his arm and the two boarded his command shuttle. There were extra troops on it, for easier and quicker landings and takeoffs. As the two took their respected positions, one of the troopers approached Kylo.

"Orders sir?"

"Inform all ships to prepare to leave. We're going to Coruscant."

AN: Hope you guys liked this chapter. I can't wait to write the next one.

I forgot that I had something to ask you guys. I'm going to major in creative writing in college and I need to send in a portfolio with my application. I'm not lying when I say that this story is the best thing I've ever written so far. I have to submit 10 pages of my best pieces, and I have no idea what to submit for this. Should I do the first few chapters, or should I do the chapters that stand out above the rest (and I have no idea what those are). If you have any suggestions on what I can submit I'm all ears, I trust you guys. You can either put it in a review or PM me, it's your choice. Also, does anyone know a good amount of writing pieces to put into a portfolio? Because the school didn't say how many and I'm freaking out about it.

Anyway, hope to hear what you guys think, don't be afraid to review.

Until next time, may the force be with you.