Chapter 8

"Solo? Ah, Solo. You took the boy's name and have turned him against me," the Emperor began, fuming at the betrayal he somehow had not foreseen. He stared down at his granddaughter with daggers in his eyes.
"If you will not ascend the throne, I will kill that boy with the cruelest stroke and then take your soul for my own!"
Rey reached behind her to make sure Ben was still there but began to panic as she sensed he was no longer behind her. She looked around frantically until she saw that he was being held by two of Palpatine's guards, a dagger at his throat. Rey began to rush towards him but stopped when she saw the guards press the dagger closer to his neck. As much as she tried to control her anger, Rey felt it begin to boil over and heard her grandfather laughing in delight.
"Good! Good! Your anger, I feel it. It makes you so strong. So powerful. My child, ascend the throne! Take what is rightfully yours and you can save this poor boy's life, if that is what you wish," the Emperor spoke with triumph. Rey could feel tears start to burn her eyes as she looked at her monstrous grandfather. She could feel Ben's eyes piercing into her as she turned to face the Emperor. As she looked at Palpatine, she noticed how distracted her was by the power of her anger and used this to help peer into his unblocked mind. She saw herself on the throne and knew what she had to do in order to save Ben's life.
"I will take my place as Empress," she sighed. Rey! Ben screamed at her through their bond. Ben, don't worry. I have a plan, she sent back with the images she had seen in the Emperor's mind. Rey stepped forward and took a seat on the throne, looking out to the crowd surrounding them. She let her anger boil over to continue to cover her true intentions. "My friends! The Palpatine rule has been restored with my granddaughter! The Sith are reborn and nothing will-" the Emperor was cut short by the blue of Rey's lightsaber that had pierced his heart, if that what was actually truly there. His scream filled the entire throne room as his life came to an end. Ben took his chance and knocked out both of the guards holding him before running towards Rey. The Emperor was no more but he was more concerned about Rey slumped against the throne with her eyes closed. He reached out a touched her face and tried to wake her.
"Rey, you did it. It's over. Rey, please, wake up," he whispered. Her eyes fluttered awake but Ben drew back at how they looked. They were no longer the deep brown he always loved staring into. Rey's eyes were a fiery red with a yellow rim around them. Ben gasped in horror as a wicked smile curled across Rey's face.
"Yes Ben, I did it for us. Now we can rule together, you as my Emperor and I as your Empress."