It took all her self-control not to display the terror she felt. In this moment, all she had was the technique her mother taught her. Athena let the Force flow through her, like a river that brought calmness and strength. Then she envisioned the library. For a couple of breaths, Kylo Ren was trapped in her vision, trapped in soft waves of the Force. The overwhelming anger and fear that she could feel in him faded. Softly, Athena pushed him out of her mind only to awaken in the cold reality again.

She was proud of herself. To withstand an attack from a trained Jedi who had turned to the dark side was no small feat. Yet she could not rejoice in that much longer, as Kylo Ren remained a deadly threat. Athena had always known about her legacy, and she knew the risk of The First Order learning about it. But negotiating with the First Order was a suicide mission as it was already. Her grandfather did not change much about that.

"A Sith?" Hux asked, rubbing his sore throat, and sending hateful glances at Kylo Ren.

"A Jedi, turned Sith," Ren explained.

"Killed by your grandfather," Athena added, regretting her words instantly. She wasn't one to be impulsive. Provoking Kylo Ren could be the last thing she ever did.
"Exactly," Kylo Ren said. In seconds, he turned from impulsive and angry to collected, "a loss felt keenly by the Sith."

The voice distortion of his helmet let no room for sarcasm, but Athena could swear he was smirking.

"Sith and Jedi are all the same to me. All those prophecies about the chosen one, the Skywalkers... in the end, they were both training weapons of mass destructions. Every time, us people hold our breath and wait if we're about to be killed, utilized as pawns, or exploited for wars we have nothing to do with," Athena spat. For the first time, she let emotions crack through her immobile mask. She would probably die at the hands of the First Order anyways. Dying on a planet blown up to pieces or killed in the various massacres of force sensitive killer machines. Even though she still believed she could save her people's live through negotiations and clever tactics, she had given up making it out alive of this war a long time ago.

"Ahh. Finally. You're scared," Kylo's mechanical voice purred. "You think you're doomed anyways. You think you don't belong to any side, and you believe there could be a middle ground. There isn't, young countess," his voice sounded almost seductive, even with the helmet.

"You have potential, countess of Serenno. Stay here, as my guest... and I will show you the dark side."

...

They locked Athena in a confined living space. She did not fight back as Kylo Ren put her wrists into handcuffs. She shivered as his leather covered fingers touched her wrists. A part of her had to admit there was something deeply alluring about him. Like an enticing presence that drew her closer and closer... even though she had not even seen his face yet.

Her mission was nowhere to be completed. While she had been confident that General Hux could be swayed to spare the Outer Rim planets and sign a peace treaty, Kylo Ren was an entirely different story. Athena despised the Sith for their blatant hunger for power. Not because they wanted power, but because they knew no limits to it.

She had no idea how much time passed, but she used her time to think. There was a way to get out of this. After a while, she sat down on the hard bed at the side of her room and drifted away...

Kylo Ren watched the sleeping young woman. He was still unsure of what to make of her. The countess was certainly courageous coming alone to the Finalizer to negotiate a truce. Now that she was sleeping, he could read her mind easily, without the unsettling barrier she had built earlier. Her chest rose and fell softly. Reading her mind in this state would not hurt her.

Athena Serenno was courageous indeed, but her motives were not easy to fathom. She did want to protect the people of the Outer Rim. The girl did not like people suffering. On the other side, he could get a strong sense of ambition and greed. And arrogance. The young woman was completely sure of herself and held onto the idea that there could be a better order in the galaxy than the constant fight between light and dark. The Force was not remotely as strong in her as in him, in fact, he would even call her a weaker Force user.

As Athena awoke, she could slowly make out his dark figure sitting on a chair right in front of her.

"My dear countess, how have you slept?" he asked teasingly. Her violet eyes betrayed her surprise as she saw him the first time without his helmet. Kylo Ren did not need to read her thoughts for knowing that she was intrigued by the young man she saw. People always expected him to look like a monster.

"Well enough, thank you, commander Ren," she answered smoothly. Kylo Ren was impressed and appalled at the same time. Even though her life hang in the balance, she stuck to her manners and polite words like a true politician.

"Tell me, countess. What do you know about the Force? Who has trained you?" he asked softly. There was no need to be threatening anymore. This girl was smart enough to know when to fight him and when to obey.

"My mother. And she has learned from my grandfather. I possess books about the Force and I have learned the techniques to guard my mind," the young woman answered. Her dark blonde locks gave her a soft, youthful appearance as opposed to her serious eyes and frown on her forehead. Kylo Ren noticed that she very openly displayed her wealth, with precious gems covering her black dress all over. As if it held any meaning to him or the First Order.

"Why did you not try to find someone to train you? General Organa, perhaps? Luke Skywalker?" he asked, feeling a faint sting in his heart at the mention of his mother.

Athena scoffed and shook her head. "I would never trust a Jedi. I do not aspire to become a Jedi nor a Sith. I am elected to represent my people and to ensure their survival, that is already enough to me."

Kylo pondered over her words. If he recalled correctly, Count Dooku had left the Jedi because of the corruption of the Republic and the inflexible morals he deemed wrong. He was turned by Darth Sidious while helping to destabilize the Republic through the separatist movement.

Her violet eyes found his brown ones, allowing him to see another glimpse of her feelings. "I know about Starkiller," she whispered, "I have dreamt about planets exploding, many at ones. That's why I came here. That's why I worked for months to get an audience with General Hux."

Kylo leaned towards her, closing the gap between them. The countess didn't flinch, even as she could feel his breath on her skin. "Visions? What else have you seen?"
"Visions of the past, mostly," she answered. "Some of your grandmother, I think," she added.

Now this was unexpected. His grandmother?

Athena took a deep breath. Now was the chance to reach him, to get him to listen. No one else knew about her visions, as she had kept her past and her ties to the force a secret to most. She hesitated. Then she reached out her hand and touched Kylo Ren's face ever so lightly.

Kylo didn't stop her. Athena had no idea what he would to her if he decided she was no longer worthy to keep alive. But her intuition guided her, and she had always learned to listen. Even if it meant being pulled to the dark side.

"The republic will be reorganized as the first galactic empire."

Imperator Palpatine rose with the loud applause of the senate. Thousands of senators cheered for the new imperator.

"So, this is how liberty dies – with thunderous applause," a young senator with auburn hair said solemnly. She and her companions were not applauding at all, rather watching the scene with terror.

Another scene...

"And what if I don't join your rebellion?" she questioned. The man in front of her wore the clothes of a noblemen. His demeanor was elegant, his words friendly.

"The republic cannot be fixed, my lady. It is time to start over."

"This is what I saw about her," Athena explained.

Kylo grabbed her hand, still placed on her cheek. "Do you see Vader too?" he asked impatiently. The countess shook her head. "No. Never. I mostly see my grandfather, sometimes other scenes of the past. How it all started."

Both looked at each other, but it was clear that even Kylo Ren had no answer to the question why Athena experienced those visions.

Athena realized Kylo still held her hand, blood rushing to her cheeks. She withdrew it, holding her breath yet again.

"I have a proposition for you, countess. Stay here and become my apprentice. And in return, I will give you the peace you wish for." Kylo needed to find out more about the girl's visions. For years he searched for guidance from his grandfather Anakin Skywalker, only to find a woman how dreamt regularly of her own grandfather and the events that let Anakin Skywalker to turn to the dark side. There was a reason the force was showing her those images. He would solve that mystery and at the same time take an apprentice worthy of his legacy, the flesh and blood of a powerful Sith lord.

...

Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Somehow people forget that Kylo Ren is not only Vader's grandson, but also Padmé's. Padmé Amidala is an underrated character in my opinion. I will explore her influence and legacy throughout next chapters.