Published February 11, 2019

The Hunt

At last, when as the dreadful Passion
Was over past, and Manhood well awake,
Yet musing at the strange Occasion,
And doubting much his Sense, he thus bespake:
What Voice of damned Ghost from Limbo Lake,
Or guileful Spright wandring in empty Air,
Both which frail Men do oftentimes mistake,
Sends to my doubtful Ears these Speeches rare,
And rueful Plaints, me bidding guiltless Blood to spare?

~ Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, Book I, Canto II

Driving a nondescript cargo ship, wearing normal traveling clothes, Ben almost felt like a different person. He liked the normalcy of it, the anonymity he could enjoy outside of his family's shadows.

Of course such a pleasant change could not last long for him. The moment he entered her castle, Maz Kanata sensed him, fixed her goggles on him, and shouted his name over the din, elongating each syllable: "Ben Solo!"

The music and conversation stopped, and almost everyone in the cavernous room looked at Ben.

Clenching his fists at his sides, he bit back the curses that came to his mind and met the diminutive proprietor's gaze. "You must be Maz."

As she crossed the room to reach him, the patrons started to talk among themselves again, but Ben heard his name echo among them.

"Solo, did she say?"

"Han Solo?"

"No, his son."

"Son of Solo?"

So much for anonymity. Ben was already recognizable in his mother's world of politicians and his uncle's world of religion. With his luck, or lack thereof, he would become just as notorious in his father's world of trade and crime.

When Maz reached him she barked, "Where is my boyfriend?"

"Who?"

"The Wookiee, Chewbacca."

Ben held back a snort. "I don't know. I'm just here with your delivery."

Maz sniffed. "Why do you think I placed an order with your father?"

Ben shrugged. "Well, he asked me to do it, so I'm here. Do you want it unloaded or not?"

"Of course. But first, you look like you could use a meal."

Ben followed her with some reluctance. Food would be welcome, but he wanted to get away from the crowded palace sooner rather than later.

He hoped that Maz would leave him after getting his food, but instead she plopped down in a chair at his table and started talking. She wanted to hear about his family, but Ben knew no more than what could be learned from news holos and interplanetary gossip. As for his own training, there was no way he was going to open up to a stranger about that.

"Where are you going after you unload?" Maz asked.

"I don't know." He was not eager to go back to Hosnian Prime. Ben glanced at the window. "Maybe I'll just stay here a while."

"And do what?"

"Try to relax, I guess. Enjoy the scenery." Takodana was a peaceful planet—not quite as picturesque as Naboo, but the forest and lake were tranquil. It would be as good a place as any to clear his head and connect with the Force. He had also brought his old bowcaster with the idea of practicing his aim. Maybe he could find some targets in the forest.

Unloading Maz's shipment did not take long, since Ben used the Force to make it easier to move the crates. When he got the bowcaster from his cargo ship, the sun was starting to dip behind the line of trees.

He took some practice shots to make sure it was still working and that he could fire it properly. When he had built it, he had not been strong enough to shoot it. Chewbacca had said that required the strength of a Wookiee, though Han had challenged him on that point. Ben was rather satisfied when he shot the laser bolts into the trees without trouble.

With no real destination in mind, Ben walked around the lake's perimeter, looking and listening. He sensed through the Force that Takodana was full of life, though much of it was hidden from his eyes. The trees provided shelter, but also carried a sense of potential danger.

He had been walking for about ten minutes before he spotted some small animals interacting with each other on the opposite side of Nymeve Lake. From the movement it seemed to be some kind of bird. As he made his way around the lake's shoreline, he recognized the species: they were porgs, a semi-aquatic type of bird.

Not a bad quarry, Ben thought as he took aim.

The second before he pulled the trigger, one of the porgs looked directly at him and gave a squawk that Ben could have sworn was a warning. The other porgs were already scattering when the bolt hit the water's surface, missing its target. Some took to the water while others waddled along the shoreline and a leapt for short bursts of flight. One of them, the one who had warned the others, crossed the beach, flew up to a tree, and seemed to disappear into the trunk.

Ben quickened his pace, jogging to reach the other side of the lake. He was about fifty meters away when the porg's head appeared, and he realized it had taken shelter in a hole in the trunk. It was holding something shiny in its mouth. Ben slowed as he recognized the oblong shape.

It was a lightsaber.

"What the kriff?" Ben mouthed the words but did not make a sound. He recognized the weapon for what it was, but it did not look like any he had seen before.

The porg watched him with wide, knowing, fearful eyes. Ben only looked at it for a moment before he raised his bowcaster again, taking aim at the small creature. Again, the porg reacted before he pulled the trigger, leaping from the trunk and half flying, half jumping to the low limb of another tree.

As it tried to get away, Ben started to run toward it. "Come back with that!"

The porg did the exact opposite, flying further into the forest. It was darker under the tree canopy, which blocked both the fading sunlight and the coming moonlight. With its head start and high vantage points, Ben was just barely able to keep the porg in his sight. It was quite determined—not just desperate, as a hunted animal would normally be, but almost intelligent.

Ben slowed his pace so he could move more quietly and focus more on his surroundings. He reached out with the Force, and sensed the porg there, hiding among the darkness and the foliage, alive, trembling, afraid. Ben was surprised at how strong and discernible its emotions were—they felt more like the thoughts and emotions of a human than an animal.

A voice from somewhere in his subconscious seemed to urge him, Get on with it. Kill it. That was what he had come to the forest to do. And more importantly, that lightsaber must belong to someone, and as a Jedi student it was his responsibility to find out who its owner was.

He aimed the bowcaster where he knew the porg was, and fired.

He heard the porg cry out in pain, and there was a sound like something small falling onto the ground, but then there were other sounds, like something larger getting to its feet and running away. Ben went toward the sound, accelerating as whatever he chased seemed to. He was no longer sure if it was the porg.

The terrain in this part of the forest rose and fell in hills, cliffs and outcroppings. An animal or person could hide behind them, sneak up on someone. Ben paused with his back against a wall of stone and dirt, listening once again. He sensed his quarry not too far away, in pain but not in mortal danger. He must have merely wounded the porg.

Then he heard something new: a mechanical kind of whirring. Ben tensed, becoming wary. He had little fear of animals or darkness, but ever since he was a small child he had possessed a strange aversion to droids.

Suddenly a spherical orange and white astromech droid rolled out from behind a bend. Ben frowned at it in surprise. "Where'd you come from?"

The droid beeped a strange response, which made Ben wonder if its parts were out of whack. "'Rey human bleeding arm'?" he repeated uncomprehendingly.

The droid beeped again, insisting that he follow it.

"I don't have time—I'm looking for a—" Ben suddenly felt foolish. "I was chasing a porg. It was carrying something valuable, a lightsaber."

The droid made a gesture like a nod. I can show you both.

"Really?" Ben looked at it dubiously. Apparently done trying to convince him, the droid turned on its sphere and started to roll away quickly. Not sure what else to do at this point, Ben followed it around the bend and a short distance away.

I found help, the droid chirped as they approached a rather thick-trunked tree. It rolled around to the other side, and Ben followed, then stopped short at what he saw.

There was a person curled up at the base of the tree: a female human, with pale skin and dark hair pulled back. Her clothes were sand-colored and only slightly better than rags. Rudimentary arm-wraps covered her arms, but her left arm was bleeding through the dirty fabric. This injured arm cradled the lightsaber against her chest, while her other arm held the injured one.

Seeing Ben, she got to her feet, her eyes filled with both fear and anger.

"What—him? He's the one who did this!" the girl raged at the droid.

"Who are you?" Ben asked.

"I could ask you the same," she groused. "Did he send you here to kill me? Did he decide I'm a threat after all?"

"I don't know what you're talking about. Where's the—how did you get that?" Ben pointed to the lightsaber.

"Why do you care?"

Ben unhooked his own lightsaber from his belt and held it out for her to see. "I'm a Jedi padawan." The girl's hostility faded somewhat, replaced by surprise. "I know lightsabers, and I thought I knew every person in the galaxy who owns one. Except you."

The girl stared at him, still guarded but also uncertain.

Ben moved slowly, crouching and placing his bowcaster and lightsaber on the ground. Then he stood and approached the girl. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk."

"You stay right where you are."

"Don't be afraid," he said. He meant for it to sound soothing, but it came out sounding like an instruction.

"That happens when you're being hunted," she deadpanned. That was the first hint of an explanation.

"Were you running away from someone?" Ben asked.

"Yes—you." Her words seethed with anger, but also irritation, as though he were missing something obvious.

He looked at her, nonplussed. "I was shooting a porg a few minutes ago," he admitted. That was the only thing she could be referring to.

"I know."

"Did you think I was chasing you?"

"Yes, because you were. I was the porg you were chasing. You grazed my wing." She held up her bleeding arm.

Ben wondered if this girl was insane, or if he was going insane. "How is that possible?"

She seemed to sag a little, suddenly seeming tired and sorrowful. "It's a long story."

"Okay. How about we start with this: Who are you?"

"No one."

"That's really helpful." Ben glanced at the BB unit. "That droid called you 'Rey.' Is that your name?"

"Yeah."

"My name is Ben."

"I would say 'It's nice to meet you,' but honestly …"

Ben fought back a smile at that. He looked at her wound again. "Is your arm badly hurt?"

She paused, assessing it herself. "I don't think so. It's bleeding but not broken."

"You need to get that bandaged, probably put some bacta on it."

"Yeah. I need to get to Maz's castle. You've already made me late."

The ordinariness of that statement struck Ben as being out of place in such a bizarre situation. "Do you want help?"

"I can manage." She walked past him, not taking her eyes off him, as though she expected him to attack her at any moment. She still held the lightsaber against her chest, as though protecting it, or hoping it would protect her. The droid followed her, and after a moment Ben picked up his weapons and started to walk after them. Hearing his footsteps, Rey turned around to glare at him again. "Still following me?"

"Not exactly. My ship is near the castle, and there's nothing left for me to do out here, so I might as well go back."

Rey did not buy this explanation, but she did not protest as he followed her.

By now most of Maz's guests had left or gone to their rented rooms, but she was still serving food and drinks to a handful of patrons in the lounge and dining area. When she caught sight of Rey she barked, "You're late."

"You can thank him for that." Rey jerked her head toward Ben.

Maz set her eyes on him. "Ben. Did you hurt my mechanic?"

"I'm not sure. She says I did, but I wasn't aware of it."

"Sometimes we can hurt others without realizing it." Maz gestured for Rey to follow her. "Come on, child. Let's get you cleaned up."

Ben waited in the lounge while Rey and Maz went into a back room. The astromech droid rolled up near him but did not say anything. When the females came back, Rey's injured arm had been wrapped in bacta patches and clean fabric. The lightsaber hung from a belt at her waist. Maz was giving her instructions. "The dishwasher droid needs oil, and—"

Ben interrupted, holding up a hand. "Maz, wait." He turned to Rey. "Can I get something for you?"

She looked at him blankly. "What?"

"Something to drink, or to eat if you're hungry."

"You're offering?"

"Yes." Why was that so hard for her to understand? If she was telling the truth, maybe she had the intelligence of a porg.

"What do you want in return?" Rey pressed.

"Nothing. Well, you could answer my questions, but I hoped you'd do that as a courtesy. Anyway, if what you say is true, I owe you." Ben sat down at an empty table and pulled out another chair for Rey, gesturing for her to sit. She regarded him for a moment, then slowly came over and sat in the offered chair.

Ben bought himself a drink, figuring he needed it at this point. When her food arrived, Rey tore into it ravenously. Ben watched with a mixture of pity and disdain. She certainly ate like an animal.

When she was almost done with her meal, he tried to talk to her once more. "Now, would you care to explain how you were a porg when I first saw you, and human now?"

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Not really. Why should I?"

"You show up in the middle of the woods with a lightsaber and tell me you turned from a porg into a human, and think you don't need to explain anything?"

"Keep your voice down!" Rey hissed. She glanced around the room with that mixture of fear and irritation.

Ben lowered his voice but continued to argue. "If there are other people like that, it would be good to know. Now I'll always wonder if an animal is really a person in disguise."

Rey paused, frowning. "I think I'm the only one … but I don't know for sure. It might've happened to other people."

"What might have happened?"

Instead of answering, Rey seemed to deliberate. Then she looked to the small pirate passing by. "Maz, do you know this man?"

"Of course I do. He's my delivery boy."

Ben was not sure whether he felt amused or insulted by such a mundane introduction. He waited for Maz to add that he came from good people, that his parents were war heroes, or at least that his father was an old friend; but she said nothing else about him.

"Oh. Well, can he be trusted?" Rey asked.

"Hm." Maz adjusted her goggles, adding more magnifying lenses in front of her eyes, and peered at Ben, who suddenly felt distinctly uncomfortable, as though she were looking into his soul.

"What?" he demanded.

"If you live long enough, you start to see the same eyes in different people," Maz said sagely. She turned to Rey and informed her, "I see the same eyes in both of you."

Rey and Ben both looked at her, and then at each other, surprised and unsettled by this comparison. Maz shrugged and continued on her way, leaving them to their own devices.

"Well?" Ben said.

Rey folded her arms, still thinking it over. Finally she said, "I'll tell you the truth. I'm not comfortable talking in here, though." She glanced at the counter where Maz was serving drinks to her late-night patrons. "I'll ask Maz to let me take the night off. We can talk by the lake."

Ben thought this strange. Most women who were afraid of being bothered by men would want to stay in a public area. Before he could ask, Rey added another condition, eyeing the bowcaster: "And you'll leave that thing behind."

"Fine."

The astromech droid followed them when they left the castle. "Is that droid yours?" Ben asked.

"Not exactly," Rey said. "Its owner sometimes stays overnight at the castle, and it doesn't like to power down at night like a good droid."

They stopped by Ben's parked ship, where he left the bowcaster. Then they started down the path to Nymeve Lake.

After walking in silence for a few minutes, Ben asked, "What do you think Maz sees in our eyes?"

"I don't know," Rey said shortly.

"You seem to know her pretty well. You must have—"

"I said I don't know," Rey insisted.

"Alright, alright."

They walked back to the shoreline where the porgs had been playing earlier, near the tree with the hollow. Rey went over to it and retrieved a folded blanket from the hollow. She wrapped it around herself before sitting down on the sand.

Ben sat next to her and waited. He was about to speak when she suddenly said, "Before you start interrogating me, I have one question for you: Why would you hunt porgs?"

"You had a lightsaber."

"You were hunting us before you saw that. Why?"

Ben shrugged, knowing his answer would not satisfy her. "Target practice."

"But porgs are defenseless! They can barely fly, and they don't have sharp teeth or beaks or claws. They can be annoying, but they never hurt anyone."

"Alright, look, I don't have strong feelings about porgs one way or the other. Now, tell me why you claim to have been one."

The droid rolled up next to Rey, then bumped gently into her, as though to give her a nudge, beeping something supportive. Rey looked at it and seemed to soften. "It all started because of BB-8. He got separated from his owner on Jakku. I saved him from some junk traders who wanted him for parts."

"Jakku? Is that where you're from?" Ben had not been there, at least not as far as he could remember, but he knew of its importance in the history of the Galactic Civil War. It was often mentioned in relation to his birthday, since the war had ended with a battle there. But from what he had heard, it was not a hospitable place to live.

A beat passed before Rey answered, "Yes."

"What do you do there?"

"I'm a scavenger. BB-8 thought he could track down his owner on Takodana, and said I could trade better here, so I came here with him." She glanced over at the castle. "I found the lightsaber in a box in Maz's cellar—I can't explain why I went down, somehow it just … it called to me. When I touched it … I saw visions—some I recognized, things I'd experienced, but also people and places I'd never seen. I don't know if they were from my future, or someone else's past."

"What were they?" Ben asked, fascinated.

"It doesn't matter," Rey answered shortly. This only piqued Ben's curiosity more, but she continued before he could decide whether to press her. "When they were over, Maz found me. I thought she'd be angry with me for snooping in her things, but she seemed … excited, almost. She said the lightsaber had belonged to Luke Skywalker, the Jedi knight."

Ben gaped at her, increasingly perplexed. Rey did not notice. She smiled slightly. "I'd heard stories about him, but I thought he was a myth." Ben wondered if he should tell Rey of his relation to the Skywalkers, but she went on with her narrative. "Maz told me I should take the lightsaber, learn to use it, and become a Jedi knight so I could defeat the First Order. I'd never even heard of them. Have you?"

"I think I've heard the name." In fact, Ben had heard his mother mention them while complaining about the ineffectiveness of the Galactic Senate. "Aren't they a bunch of Empire loyalists?"

"Something like that. Maz thinks they're the new form of evil coming to power, like the Sith and the Empire."

Ben raised his eyebrows. Rey saw his skepticism and nodded. "I thought she was crazy. I might have liked something … some bigger kind of destiny, but I'm not a hero. I left the lightsaber and ran away, to the forest. I was getting ready to leave when …" Rey stopped, and she drew breath with difficulty. "He came after me."

"Who?"

"I don't know his name. All I know is … well, I don't know much about the Dark Side, but whatever its is, he's made of it. I think he's some kind of sorcerer. Someone in the castle tipped him off about what had happened with the lightsaber."

"What did he do?"

"He found me in the forest. He froze me, somehow. I couldn't move. He …" Rey struggled to continue. "He seemed to … I felt him, in my mind. I think he read my thoughts. And other things about me … I can't explain—"

"You don't have to," Ben said, almost reassuring. "I think I know what you mean."

Rey drew her knees to her chest and pulled her blanket closer around herself. "I'd never been so afraid in my life."

"What happened then?"

"He seemed to think the same thing as Maz, that I have a strong connection to the Force. But he does too. He wasn't sure if my powers meant I'd be a threat or an asset to him. He decided to leave me alone, for now, in case I could be useful someday. But he wanted to make sure my powers would be limited and I wouldn't be able to learn about the Force. So he …"

"… turned you into a porg," Ben finished, finally understanding.

Rey nodded, blinking hard, seeming to fight back tears. For a few moments she was silent, lost in the memory. When she spoke, her voice was quiet. "Did you know that animals don't cry? They might express grief in other ways, but they don't shed tears. I found that out the hard way."

Ben could only stare, as he had for the better part of an hour. His incredulity had given way to something else. He thought it might be pity, but it was more personal than that. Though he had never experienced anything as bizarre as what Rey described, something about her story and her situation resonated with him. He knew how it felt to be alone, even when there were other people around. He knew what it was like to want greatness and at the same time want to run away from a legacy.

"So what happened then?" Ben asked.

"He left, and BB-8 told Maz what had happened. She found me and gave me the lightsaber." Rey looked down and turned the weapon over in her hands. "She's not a Jedi, but she knows about the Force. She did something to the saber, so now it works kind of like a talisman. It lets me turn back into a human at night, and it keeps the sorcerer from getting too close. I'm sure he's still watching me, though. Sometimes I think I can still feel him in my head."

That was a feeling Ben understood all too well. For as long as he could remember, he had sensed, or perhaps, as his parents supposed, merely imagined, some dark, invisible presence watching over him.

Apologies did not come easily to Ben. He was frequently told to give one, but rarely felt he owed one. Now, however, he realized it was the right thing to do.

"I'm sorry for chasing and shooting you." He paused, waiting for Rey to accept his apology, but she did not answer. He tried again. "Is there any way I can make up for it?"

She looked at him in surprise. Then her expression softened. "No … but thank you."

"There must be a way to break the curse."

"I think so too. But I don't know what it is, or how to find out."

"Do you have any idea how to use the lightsaber?" Ben suspected she did not, since she had not attacked him with it.

Rey shrugged one shoulder. "I've been trying to teach myself. I know how to fight with a quarterstaff, so I kind of translated those techniques to the lightsaber."

"And you work for Maz now? But you're living in the forest?"

"Maz has a strict policy for people who need sanctuary. She gives them food and a room for free the first night, but after that you have to pay a lot. She let me stay for one planetary rotation. Since then I've been sleeping in the woods. I've been trying to sleep during the day, when I'm a porg, and work at night. I do odd jobs in exchange for food. Maz is much kinder than my boss on Jakku. But it's kind of lonely being nocturnal." She looked up at the moon overhead, becoming wistful. "Growing up on a desert planet, I never thought I would miss the sun. But now I miss feeling it on my skin. Whenever the sun is out I'm covered in feathers, so I can't feel it the same way."

Ben wished he had something helpful to say. He had no idea how to comfort or encourage someone. No one had ever been very good at doing that for him. But Rey's words about the sun reminded him of something he had heard in the past.

"My mother …" He stopped, and Rey looked at him questioningly. He swallowed, self-conscious. "There's something she says … I don't know if I believe it, but she says her mother used to say, 'Hope is like the sun. If you only believe in it when you can see it, you won't make it through the night.'"

Rey's expression became thoughtful. "I think that makes sense. On Jakku, sometimes there were sandstorms, and I had to stay indoors for days, waiting for them to end. But I had to hope they would end. Otherwise they would have been unbearable."

They both fell silent after this philosophical exchange. For the first time, Ben noticed the stillness of Takodana at night. It was still full of life, but most of it was asleep now, resting, though what was awake was full of energy.

And here he was, sitting with a pretty girl by a lake under a moonlit sky. He almost choked when it occurred to him what a fuss his parents or classmates would have made if they knew where he was, who he was with, the story he had just heard and was willing to believe.

He did not know how long they stayed outside, but after some time, BB-8 interjected an observation and a warning.

"What? Is it that close already?" Rey asked in dismay. "I know nights on Takodana are short, but it feels like the night just began."

Ben looked at the sky, and realized that it was lighter on one side than on the other. The dawn was approaching. "I'm sorry I took up so much of your time."

"It's alright." Rey paused. "It was actually kind of nice talking about this. You're the only person to find out since it happened."

"Thank you for telling me." Ben hesitated, glancing at the sky, the castle, and his ship before looking at her once more. "Can I see you again?"

She blinked at him, uncertain. "Why?"

"I …" He did not want to say too much, to make offers or promises he could not keep, or inspire hope for things that would not happen. What he said finally was, "I might be able to help you. I just need to think about how."

Rey looked at him for a moment. "Alright," she said, deciding again to trust him.

"Thank you. I'll come back tomorrow." Ben paused and said, "It was good to meet you, Rey."

"Really?" She raised her eyebrows at him.

"Truly."

"I wish I could say the same."

Ben looked at her, a little hurt and ready to be annoyed at her unforgiveness. Then Rey's expression melted into a smile, and he realized she was teasing. He smiled back, for the first time that night, perhaps the first time since the vacation started.

They stood up together, and Rey headed over to the tree with the hollow. She put her blanket and the lightsaber there, and then took a few steps into the forest. Ben watched from the shore.

As the sun rose over the tree line, pouring the first rays of light onto the planet, Rey seemed to shimmer and morph, shrinking in size, finally stopping when she was about a foot tall and half as wide, with wings and webbed feet and feathers the same colors as her clothes and skin and hair.

She was a porg again. Which meant her story was true.

Ben blew out a puff of air, running a hand through his hair. BB-8 noticed and beeped a remark. Ben smiled involuntarily, amused, for the first time, by how crazy it all was. "This is going to take some getting used to," he murmured. Then he turned and headed back to his ship.

Author's Note: Ben's aversion to droids is because of an incident in his infancy that is recounted in Last Shot by Daniel Jose Older.