Chapter 4: Intruder


Rey jolted awake, her eyes taking in the familiar, silken canopy of her room. Something had woken her, and even though she couldn't explain in words how she knew, she knew something was wrong. That was clearly becoming a normal occurrence for her nowadays.

Throwing her sheets off, she scrambled to a window and looked out. Sunlight shone beautifully off the waters of the lake on this side of the estate, and Varykino, which she could see in the distance, continued to stand prominently. All was still and quiet. Moving away with a frown, for the feeling in her chest was growing, she threw on her robe before heading to her veranda. What she felt reminded her of when the Emperor would come to visit Naboo, but stronger. So much stronger. She would recognize him anywhere — her grandfather's presence in the Force was unmistakable. This was definitely not him.

This was something else.

The wind blew softly around her robe as she paused, waiting. Her eyes scanned the courtyard below, and she noted the same members of the Red Guard standing alert as always, their force pikes glinting in the light. A few death troopers were milling about. Nothing was out of the ordinary.

It began quietly at first. Just a slight disturbance... until it wasn't. She glanced up, shielding her eyes from the sun as the burning feeling inside her grew. At first, all she could see was the Star Destroyer still posed overhead since Lieutenant Mitaka's visit. Not a moment later, movement caught her eye. She gasped, flinching away, as an old light freighter careened onto the grounds — her grounds. It flew almost parallel before crashing and destroying the landscaping towards the front of the estate. Shouting erupted as it hit, and the impact of it caused the house to shake. Shocked, she stood still for a split second before running out of her room. This was the most excitement she'd ever had in her life, and she'd be damned if she let it slip by. She would have been more worried for the pilot's life if the landing had been fatal, but whoever it was had been skilled enough to ground that burning pile of junk as gracefully as possible given the circumstances. If she could get past her guard and troopers… she would be able to finally get off this planet and away from her grandfather. This was her ticket. The Force was finally giving her an out, and she could feel it. It felt righter than anything else had before in her life. At the very least, she could get to one of the speeders and leave the estate while they were otherwise occupied.

Something that felt a lot like guilt overshadowed the sweet taste of freedom on the tip of her tongue, but she pushed it down. She needed to stop feeling guilty. Stop trying to please a man who kept her here, under lock and key, until it suited his needs.

As she raced down the stairs, she heard shouting and blaster fire coming from outside. Rounding a corner, she crashed into someone and was grabbed and pulled to the side.

"Rey."

The warning was strong within her voice, as was the underlying plea.

Don't do this.

She ripped her robe in her haste to move away. Being a Force-sensitive had its perks, none of which she had learned or could properly utilize when surrounded by people who were trained specifically to keep her here. What little she knew were from legends, and what she'd seen her grandfather do on occasion. Never had she had urgent enough cause to use them until now.

"I have to."

She stared into Rose's eyes, willing her to understand.

"I told you, I'd find a way out somehow. I was hoping for days that I would, and now, here it is. This is it. You... You'll let me go."

Rose rolled her eyes.

"That mind trick won't work on me or anyone else here, and you know it." Rey's face flushed in embarrassment as her attempt was so easily thwarted. "The Emperor... he'll send Vader after you," she whispered, moving closer. Her eyes were intent on hers, trying to get her to understand as she grabbed her elbows tightly. "And that's if the death troopers and guard somehow manage to let you escape. Not just you, but all of us here. I can't let you—"

"Come with me."

Instead of being phrased as a question, her words came out as unyielding as a demand. Rose's grip slackened with shock.

"Come with me," she repeated. Steps began to echo down the hall as Rose just stared.

Troopers.

"Lady Palpatine!" one of them shouted.

Not waiting for a response, she yanked Rose by the elbow and ran towards the double doors that led to the outside of the house. She would save her even if she didn't want to be. Rose was the only friend she had. The only person who sympathized with her loneliness out here.

The double doors blasted off on their own before they could reach them, however, and a tall, imposing figure stepped through the dust. Pure fear jolted through her system and she stumbled back. She only knew one other who was that tall. She might have been woefully untrained, but she knew raw power when she saw it. When she felt it. This was very different to Palpatine — this feeling wasn't cold. It permeated the air in the room and electrified it like a wire, charging the atmosphere and causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand on end. There was only one other person it could possibly be.

Vader.

Rose's words came back to her and she froze, her hand clutching the other girl's tightly as she moved in front of her, as if to protect her from him, the ruthless Sith that he was.

The ruthless Sith who had once shown her some measure of kindness. Someone who'd somehow had children, if the rumors she'd heard were true. Children who'd turned and joined a rebellion that had been annihilated 30 years ago. She wasn't allowed any sort of connection to the outside world, but that didn't mean the grounds keepers or troopers were immune to gossip. Gossip she happened to overhear on occasion.

As the smoke cleared, all the air inside her lungs exited in one large, stunned breath.

The figure by the door wasn't Vader.

It was the man from her nightmares. Her jaw dropped in shock. Never in a million years had she believed he was an actual, living person. She supposed she should have known better being from the family she was. Fate worked in mysterious ways for them, typically with violent, unhappy ends.

Her heart beat so loudly in her chest, she was surprised no one else in the room could hear it. She'd barely seen his face in the dreams she'd had, always forgetting specifics upon waking, but seeing him here, she knew it was him. The recognition rooted her to the spot.

He had familiar, shoulder-length black hair, incredibly broad shoulders, and was covered in dirt and grime from the crash. He was scratched and bleeding in a few places, and a bright, blue lightsaber was held in one hand as he stood in the doorway.

He's a trained Force-sensitive, she thought, with no small measure of awe... and envy.

He was on the defensive and appeared to take stock of his surroundings. Dressed in all black — despite the fact that it was a simple shirt and pants — with his lips turned downwards in a fierce frown, he cut an intimidating figure. That was, until he finally noticed her. The darkness surrounding him like a blanket lifted as soon as he caught sight of her.

"You?" he asked, shocked.

"Me?" she said dumbly. Did he know her?

"I have a bad feeling about this," Rose muttered, leveling him with a glare.

Rey barely heard her protests as she walked towards him in a daze, dragging her along. It felt like a moment had been suspended in time as she looked at him and he, in turn, eyed her. She flushed as his gaze moved in an excruciatingly slow manner from her exposed legs to her black, slip of a nightgown, and finally her torn robe, before meeting her eyes once more. His were dark and intense and burning. Her heart stuttered.

Blaster fire cut through the room, and the spell was broken. She ducked instinctively and winced as a shrill scream ripped from Rose's throat and right into her ear. Rey moved until her back was pressed against the wall next to where the doors should have been. Doors he'd kriffing blown off.

The man immediately looked away from her to face the death troopers. For one second, she felt concerned but realized that was completely unfounded when he raised his right palm, closed his eyes, and froze the four men and their blaster fire.

Rey's eyes widened comically. Silence reigned and no one moved, the Force a live wire that enveloped the room. She'd seen some Force abilities, mainly her grandfather's propensity towards lightning, but never had she seen that.

Since his attention was otherwise occupied, she glanced behind her and across the threshold of the estate, only to witness a grim scene. A lush, green lawn and beautiful scenery was strewn with death troopers and members of the Red Guard. Lightsaber marks were littered against their armor, and her eyes narrowed on a blaster lying innocently nearby. The transport ship was smoking in the background, a beacon that would lead the Empire directly here and ruin her chance to leave. No, they had no time. Neither she nor Rose. Nor this man... whoever he might be. Familiar or not. They needed to get to the closest city and smuggle their way out.

She steeled herself and glanced back at the man only to find him already assessing her. His hand had dropped to his side, and she looked back at the troopers only to find them still frozen. Somewhere, deep down, she felt the beginnings of jealousy.

The silence was tense as she grabbed Rose and hauled herself away and over the threshold of the house to put space between them. She nearly fell as she walked backwards down the steps, but righted herself at the last minute. Her hand still clasped Rose's tightly as the heels of her feet brushed against something large and bulky. Breaking eye contact for a moment and looking down, a strangled sound left her throat, and she jolted away from the body of a Red Guard member who had a hole placed strategically through where their face should have been. Her stomach churned.

"Rey," Rose's voice was a low, cautious whisper, tinged with fright, as he came towards them. "Rey."

He moved forward like a predator, and she forced Rose behind her once again. Her fight or flight response was kicking in.

"Who are you?" she finally asked, her voice clear and demanding. She was no empress, and if she had her way, she would be no senator either, but the blood of her family ran through her veins, and she would be damned if she cowered before him. If she could maintain her dignity before the most feared man in the galaxy, then she certainly would for him. He matched her step by step as she continued to back Rose up to where she knew the speeders would be. They needed to get to Theed.

His voice startled her. It was deep, smooth, and inviting. Unique.

"You're Rey Palpatine," he pointed with the lightsaber, causing her breath to hitch. "The granddaughter of the Emperor."

"So you're here to kill me, then, I presume?" she continued, her eyes drifting to the blaster by her feet. The one she noticed before. She snatched it up, and he, surprisingly enough, made no move to stop her.

"You're going to use that to try and kill me?" his voice was soft, and he still seemed to be sizing her up. "And here I thought we knew each other."

"What?" Rose asked, disbelief in her voice.

They both ignored her.

The sunlight gleamed off his black hair as he continued to stalk them across the lawn, and at this angle, she could see the color of his eyes. They were a light brown edging towards amber. Rey let out a huff before she purposefully glanced behind him to where the death troopers were still frozen.

"I don't think trying to kill you would work very well in my favor," she retorted, holding the blaster up towards him, regardless.

He glanced behind him, as if forgetting the death troopers were there at all. He let go and the Force snapped back into place around them like a rubber band, the blaster fire finding the death troopers squarely in their chests as it rebounded.

Rose held onto her more tightly, and Rey took the opportunity to shove the blaster into her hands before grabbing a Force pike on the ground.

She held it up to him and turned it on.

"Don't come any closer, or I'll knock you out."

He turned around and paused. His eyes flickered from her to the pike. He didn't seem worried at all.

"Why are you here?" she spat.

"For my grandfather."

His reply was simple and threw her off. She was beginning to get restless with all this wasted time, and she glanced up in the direction of the Star Destroyer still hovering above the planet.

"Your grandfather?" she reiterated, confusion in her tone. She lowered the pike for a moment.

His head tilted to the side a fraction.

"You don't know? Haven't seen my younger face plastered all over the HoloNet?"

"I don't..." she raised the pike back up as he began to advance.

She was going to say she wasn't allowed — never had been allowed to glance at the HoloNet. But that seemed awfully pathetic, and the realization that he knew a whole lot more about the state of things than she did once again fueled the seeds of jealousy inside her.

"Rey," Rose breathed, her breath fanning over her ear and rustling her hair. "He's—"

"Do you know how to pilot?" he interrupted, his eyes still glued to her. He took a step forward and she followed with one step back. As intense as his gaze was, she couldn't look away.

"Yes," she snapped immediately.

"No!"

"Rose!"

"You don't," she retorted, "And I'm not about to die trying to make it out of the atmo because you think reading a stolen book constitutes as experience."

She bristled.

"We need to get moving, then."

He walked towards them brusquely now, and she matched his long strides as the blaster in Rose's hands went off. In the blink of an eye, it was suspended in mid air.

"I'm not going to hurt you," he muttered, sounding irritated as he raised the hand still holding the lightsaber and made a point of sheathing it. "But if you plan on getting off this planet alive, then we need to go."

"Who are you?" she said once again, her voice a whisper now. Her pike was still pointed at him, but she knew he could overpower her easily if he truly wanted to. It was merely a formality. "Why are you even planning on helping us leave? Why not just kill me? You know who I am. I'm sure there's a huge bounty on my head."

He moved towards her this time, but with the lightsaber sheathed, her fear of him had decreased.

He stopped a foot away.

"You feel it, don't you?" His voice was quiet and smooth once again. It wrapped around her like a soft, summer breeze. "The pull. You and me. Why do you think I even bothered entering the estate? I could have taken a speeder and left."

She was at a loss. So he did. He felt it, too. Even now, she felt the pull to him.

"You're Force-sensitive, and you've been kept here like a pretty bird in a cage. Like a prisoner. I know what that feels like. What loneliness feels like."

There was a moment where they just stared at each other, and she assessed him. He didn't appear to be lying to her, and they did need a pilot if they were planning on getting off Naboo. As if sensing her increasing complacency, he reached over slowly — his eyes still on hers — to flip off the notch on the pike.

Before he could make it there, she swung at him, and he stopped it with the Force just a few inches before it could have connected with his head. His eyes hardened and her breath caught in her throat as one large hand moved towards her forehead and everything went black.


And now, we're getting into it. Hope you guys enjoyed Rey and Ben meeting for the first time! Also, I can't remember if I've said this already but thank you all so much for the reviews and alerts! They motivate me to write :)

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