Naboo

Even though it was past midnight, Snoke poured himself some more wine. This was the calm before the storm and he was savoring it as best he could. He was also savoring the familiar feeling of exhilaration before a battle. Their empire was growing steadily and soon they would be unstoppable. The emperor would be the most powerful warmonger in the country.

Snoke enjoyed the thrill of battle though he only personally entered a battlefield if the emperor himself was participating in the fight. But mostly when it came to conquering smaller kingdoms, the emperor would let his other generals lead the armies. In the case of Jakku, there was no need for the emperor to intercede; he didn't even need to know. But he himself had provided the perfect opportunity and the perfect excuse to muster their forces near the province of Jakku. It had all been General Hux's idea. Kylo Ren had been against attacking Jakku, citing that it would be a waste of resources on such an insignificant province and that once the larger kingdoms around it had fallen, Jakku would have no choice but to surrender without the need for war. But Hux had planned the attack, Jakku would be his conquest and the time was now.

The morning after the emperor had suddenly disappeared from the palace, Snoke had been informed by the guard who had slept outside Kylo Ren's chambers that he had gone to Jakku.

Snoke and Hux had met that morning to discuss the matter.

"Why on earth would he ride all by himself all the way to Jakku?"

The ginger haired general had stroked his chin and turned to Snoke with the brilliant idea

"I see an opportunity here" Hux had said "We can send our forces to Jakku without the emperor's permission and we could say it was out of concern for his security"

Snoke smiled

"Of course, then all we have to do is attract their attention and war with Jakku will be inevitable"

"What about the emperor?" Hux asked

"He can take care of himself. Though he may act like a fool half the time he is cleverer than he seems" Snoke waved his hand "and I'm sure he will find you"

Hux had left with his men the same afternoon. He could not wait another day.

Snoke was so lost in thought that he barely noticed when his manservant arrived to announce someone into his chamber

"Sir?"

Snoke whirled around "Yes, what is it?"

"Sir, the Dowager Empress is here and wishes to speak with you"

"Send Her Majesty in" Snoke replied swiftly

The woman was permitted admission, and when she entered, though she was small, her commanding presence seemed to fill the entire chamber. Beautiful and grand, Leia Organa's eyes hardened as she took in Snoke.

"Your Majesty" Snoke said "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company at this very late hour?"

"I have come to ask after my son" She said coldly "Since he spends most of his time with you, perhaps you can tell me where he is. I haven't seen him in weeks"

her dislike of Snoke was evident in her tone.

Snoke bowed

"Your majesty" He said "I can't tell you where the emperor is at the moment, but rest assured he will come to no harm"

Leia closed her eyes and through gritted teeth said,

"Then he is safer away from home" she opened her eyes "and if he will come to no harm while he is away, then I pray he never returns to your side"

"You can pray all you want your majesty, but your son is where he is today because of me" Snoke said smiling "Don't forget it"

Now it was Leia's turn to smile, but her smile was sad

"How could I ever forget" she said grimly

And with that, she left the room.


Jakku

Poe Dameron led the two young women down the stone steps towards the back of the palace. The prisons were located outside of the Nima fortress which protected the town and the palace, while the prisoners of Jakku were housed outside in cage like prison cells. Most of the prisoners were just thieves and brawlers. Jakku was a peaceful little kingdom and nobody committed any serious crimes, with the exception of outsiders. Right now, the only outsider in the prisons cells was the First Order trooper.

Rey's feet sunk into the sand as she exited the stone steps. Her outfit was weighing her down and the dark cloak that Poe had draped over her to cover her glittering clothes and jewelry was just another added weight. She wished she'd taken the time to change into lighter more comfortable attire, but her curiosity had gotten the better of her earlier and she was in too much of a rush to see the trooper.

"Now, there's no need to be afraid my lady, but if you do feel frightened, know that I'll be right beside you" Poe said turning to look back at Rey.

"I'm not afraid!" Rey answered in an exasperated voice "I can take care of myself"

"Ah…I'd forgotten" Poe smiled as he remembered the day they had been attacked at the shrines and the Princesses prowess with the sword.

The First Order trooper's cell was the most heavily guarded. Poe made Jess and Rey stay hidden behind another cell while he called away the guards. When they were safely out of sight, Poe beckoned to them.

Rey walked forward quickly but Jess moved more cautiously, as though she were approaching the cage of a dangerous animal. Rey could just make out the outline of the man crouching in the corner, shrouded in darkness.

"I'm here" Rey called to him "What is it that you want?"

The figure rose up and walked out from the shadows and into the torchlight. He was bruised and looked tired but his eyes were glowing with reflected light.

"You're in danger" he said simply "Your kingdom is in danger"

"And why are you telling me this?" Rey asked, frowning "You could have simply told the captain" Rey gestured to Poe.

"They wouldn't have believed me" The trooper said looking away, he opened his mouth again to speak and then closed it again.

"Tell me" Rey continued "Is it to do with the First Order?"

The trooper regarded her and then began to speak

"Before I was called away to raid the shrines, me and some of my fellow troopers were stationed in the Unknown regions with General Hux's battalion. Even now as we speak, Hux is planning a surprise attack on Jakku"

Rey's eyes widened, war was coming sooner than she expected and of course, nobody would think to patrol the unknown regions. The people of Jakku were afraid of it and believed the place to be filled with evil spirits, but that superstition was now going to cost them the safety of their kingdom.

"Of course, the First Order has no honor. They would attack us while our backs are turned!" Rey said bitterly

"You don't understand" The trooper persisted "Hux has been planning this for months. The emperor doesn't know about it and Hux thinks he can take Jakku for himself"

He paused for a moment and then said darkly

"Hux in not like the emperor, he takes no prisoners. You're all in danger"

"Why are you telling us this?"

The trooper blinked and then said

"Because it's the right thing to do"

Rey straightened herself. A few minutes ago, she was excited at the prospect of learning something about the First Order's plans, but now, panic was rising within her.

"I must tell my father…"

"No my lady" Poe Dameron cut across her "You and Jess should go back to the palace. I will tell your father"

Rey nodded, she turned to Jess, who was pale and silent

"We should go back"

But looking back once more, she gazed into the face of the trooper

"Thank you, Finn"

He smiled. She had remembered his name.


Kylo Ren had followed one of the soldiers he had overheard on the streets all the way to the Jakku prison cells. He hid in the shadows, hand on his sword, waiting quietly until the man had changed into his guard uniform. Jakku had the tiniest prison complex he had ever seen, but of course, this was a small kingdom and he was the emperor of a vast empire, so everything else would seem tiny in comparison to what he was used to.

The guard now moved closer to his hiding place, fastening his belt and Kylo Ren pounced on him, dragging him backwards. He knocked the guard unconscious with the hilt of his sword, stripped him and changed into the uniform.

He realized he had no idea where he had to go once he emerged from the darkness. He had thought that it would be easy to find the First Order prisoner, considering how small and poorly guarded the place was but walking around a few times, he was completely lost.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted some people coming down the sandy pathway ahead of him. He backed himself against the sandstone wall, sword in hand, pretending to be a guard on duty.

"But I don't believe the part about Kylo Ren not knowing about this attack, I'm sure he might have planned it with Hux"

The mention of his name caught his attention and slowly he looked around to see who it was that was talking about him. His heart skipped a beat. It was the Princess and there were two other people with her, a man and another woman. What's she doing here?

He strained to listen, not moving a muscle.

"A man as greedy and bloodthirsty as Kylo Ren certainly wouldn't pass up an opportunity to terrorize a small kingdom like ours..."

Kylo Ren's eyes widened. Here was the woman he had idolized in his mind, and he couldn't believe the words coming out of her mouth about him. Anger and bitterness began to bubble in his heart.

"There's no way we can fight this alone, the First Order is too powerful" The man beside her said

"I'm sure if our neighboring kingdoms came together to fight we would have no difficulty in bringing down the First Order and finish Kylo Ren" the princess replied

So, she wants to destroy me? Kylo Ren thought, gritting his teeth. His mind worked furiously to try and hide his anger, but he was forced to snap back to attention as the three figures came closer and closer to the place where he stood. He found that he could no longer move, and as they passed the wall where he stood, relief flooded through him. But then, the princess hesitated and her head turned to him, her eyes bore into his and he saw a flash of recognition in hers as her mouth opened slightly.

What happened next seemed a blur of events he did not anticipate. The Princess, quick as a flash, reached up under her skirt to retrieve the dagger she had secured on her leg with a belt, and just as swiftly, she strode to where he was standing and brought up the blade and held it across his throat. He froze.

"Who are you and why are you following me?!" She demanded


Rey had noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Not something, but someone, she recognized him immediately. It was the man who had sat on the wall of the courtyard, but this time he was dressed in guard uniform.

In one swift movement, she had the dagger at his throat

"Who are you and why are you following me?!"

The man's eyes blazed

"I'm not quite sure what you mean" Then looking down at the blade on his throat added "Your Highness"

Rey snorted "You've been following me the whole time. You know what I think?" she whispered menacingly "I think you're spying on me"

"And why would I spy on you?"

"Good question" Rey replied in a high pitched voice "what were you doing on my courtyard wall?!"

"I have no idea what Your Highness is talking about, I'm just a poor soldier doing my job"

"Or, you could be an enemy spy" Rey suggested "How about that?"

Kylo Ren felt the blade digging deeper into his skin, if she pushed any further, she would draw blood. He was used to pain and seeing his own blood, but this woman was making him feel helpless, pushed up against a wall. If he made a move to disarm her, he would risk exposing himself. It was humiliating. He suddenly felt like a weak fool who had let his heart rule his head and at that moment he realized the importance of Snoke's teachings.

"Forgive me Your Highness, I was under orders from your father" he lied "I'm assigned to protect you"

"I knew it!" Jess whispered

"I know of no such order" Poe, who was frowning, finally spoke up "And I don't recognize you"

"You wouldn't know me" Kylo Ren said "I was hired in secrecy. Pardon me Your Highness, I'll leave now if you don't require my services"

Rey was convinced. She was sure this was the work of her mother and that Jess had been right about spies being set on them. She removed the dagger from the man's throat. But now she had something else to worry about.

"Don't tell my mother you saw me out here" She said sheepishly

"I won't" The man said

The three of them turned around again and headed up the lane while Kylo Ren started walking up the path in the opposite direction. He'd gotten away for now and he'd also gotten a good close-up look at the princess, the sole reason he'd come to Jakku in the first place, but now he'd had enough. He had to find the trooper.


Finn was almost drifting off to sleep when he noticed movement outside his cell. Slowly, he crawled to the bars and peered out. Across from him, a guard was examining the front row of cells.

That's strange Finn thought as he settled back, but as the guard turned Finn nearly cried out in surprise. It was not a guard, but the emperor himself who was looking right at him now. Finn caught himself.

"Your Majesty?" Finn whispered

Kylo Ren put a finger to his lips.

"I'm going to get you out, hold on" he said

Before he knew it, Finn was free. He and the emperor were now galloping across the desert on two stolen horses, far away from Jakku where he had been a prisoner for more than two months.

When they had gone far enough, Finn signaled Kylo Ren to stop his horse. The two men dismounted and Finn proceeded to tell Kylo Ren about Hux's plans for Jakku. He listened silently, and after Finn finished his story, began to speak

"Change of plans, we're not going back to Naboo. Let's pay a visit to the Unknown regions"

Finn nodded, before turning back to mount his horse. Kylo Ren hesitated for a while and looking up at the sky, at the stars that twinkled like little glowing speckles against the gorgeous midnight blue, he felt as if the vast heavens were reaching out to him. Jakku was certainly beautiful at night, perhaps it wasn't so desolate and insignificant after all and he felt he wouldn't mind owning such a view.

"Well Princess" Kylo Ren muttered to himself, his fists were clenched and the cut on his throat was like a burning reminder "You want to see me destroyed, but let's see how your army stands against the might of mine"