Published August 25, 2020

"Clemency"

Cain said to the Lord, "My punishment is more than I can bear. Today you are driving me from the land, and I will be hidden from your presence; I will be a restless wanderer on the earth, and whoever finds me will kill me." But the Lord said to him, "Not so; anyone who kills Cain will suffer vengeance seven times over." Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. ~ Genesis 4:13-15, New International Version

To his credit, Poe did not rush to a decision regarding where Ben would go after recovering from the battle. Rey appreciated that. At least, she tried to. As Poe sought counsel from just about every person in the Resistance base, she suspected that he hoped to have his own opinions confirmed.

The officers were split on the matter—not between each other, but within themselves. No one was eager to punish the only child of their recently deceased general, and they owed him a debt of gratitude for the aid he had given Rey on Exegol. On the other hand, the general consensus was that he was too dangerous to keep around, too unpredictable to be trusted, and too guilty to be allowed complete freedom.

A few, including Zorii Bliss, thought that he deserved death, which seemed to be the safest way to make sure he was not a problem in the future. Others thought death would be too easy, too light a penalty; he might even welcome it as an escape.

Lando, one of the few people alive who had known Ben before his turn to the Dark Side, did not give direct advice, but he shared his thoughts with Poe anyway. "I told you we got through the Rebellion because we had each other. You rallied the Resistance by convincing them they weren't alone. It sounds like when Rey was alone on Exegol, the one person who came to help her was Ben."

Rose had every reason to hate Kylo Ren: her planet had been decimated by the First Order, her sister had been killed during the evacuation of D'Qar, and he had personally hurt and almost killed Finn. Yet she did not display any anger toward him. After hearing the full report from Rey, and having the story confirmed by Ben, Rose's assessment was simple but poignant. "He stopped fighting what he hated. Instead he saved what he loved."

Finn did not offer an opinion, even when Poe pressed him for one. "I don't know what to think … and I don't feel right judging or punishing someone I used to be like."

Poe scoffed at this. "You're nothing like him. You never were."

He could not discern the emotions in Finn's expression. "You don't know that."

Rey patiently waited until Poe had spoken to every other person before she spoke to him. "I don't suppose you want to hear what I think, do you?"

"I'm pretty sure I can guess," Poe said coolly.

"Actually, I had an idea that no one else seems to have thought of."

Poe looked at her skeptically, but Finn gestured for her to go on.

Ben himself was unaware of the particulars of these conversations, though he could sense the general air of unease hanging over the base.

When Rey came to see him again after a day of meetings, Ben said flatly what they both knew. "They don't want me here."

Rey inclined her head. "There's been discussion about what you should do, or what should be done with you. There's no formal government in place, so there's a lot to figure out; and out of all our priorities, no one is sure where you fit in."

"What options are they arguing about?"

"I convinced them that you shouldn't be executed—"

"Really? Thanks."

"—but they aren't keen on having you walk around freely. If you're imprisoned, no one really wants or feels qualified for the job of guarding you."

Ben looked at her. "No one?"

Rey lowered her eyes. "They seem to think I'm needed in other areas."

"And what do you think?"

She looked back up at him and said, "I think you deserve peace, just as much as everyone else who survived this war."

Peace. What a strange concept. Ben Solo had been born at the end of a war and grown up in a time of relative peace in the galaxy. But his mind and spirit had never been at peace, and he had spent the last seven years training for and engaging in warfare.

When he had decided to help Rey, he had not counted on making it out of Exegol alive, so he had not bothered to plan further than that.

He had meant what he said about being done with the First Order, with political and military pursuits. But he could hardly imagine himself fitting into any stable, peaceful society.

"I had one idea," Rey ventured. "The others are open to it, but I thought we should get your opinion."

"I'm listening."

"I can take you to a remote, hard-to-find place. The locals are peaceful and don't ask many questions. I don't think they have regular interplanetary travel. Chewie and I are the only people alive who have been there. No one from offworld will find you there, so you won't have to defend yourself against anyone who wants revenge."

"So it's exile."

"… If you want to call it that. But we can negotiate the details. I can go there—to make sure you're still there, and that you're alright. And we'll probably still see each other through the Force."

"Do you think so?" Ben asked.

The question surprised her. "Why wouldn't we?"

"Palpatine drained the life force from our bond," he reminded her.

Rey stilled as she considered, for the first time, the possible consequences of that. "Does that mean …"

Ben shrugged. "I don't really know what it means—how it might have impacted our connection. Dyads in the Force are pretty rare, and I've never heard of this happening to one."

They both sat in thoughtful silence, remembering and reflecting.

"You gave me part of your life force," Rey pointed out. "So in a way, part of you lives in me, right?"

"I suppose so."

"Then we might still have some connection. And even if we don't … the Force brought us together. I think it'll keep us together."

"Maybe," Ben said slowly. "Or maybe it just did that so we could defeat Snoke and Palpatine. If we've already accomplished its purpose for us—"

"If we have, I'll come back to check on you anyway. I'm not going to drop you off and leave you to be alone forever." Rey stopped after this adamant declaration, seeming embarrassed again, and tried to return to a more formal tone. "Would you agree to such an arrangement?"

Ben considered this, and could not think of anything much better. "I guess that sounds alright."

Rey nodded. "Good. I'll let the others know." She paused. "There's one other thing we should discuss. It's about your mother. The officers are figuring out how to distribute her belongings. There isn't much, but … we thought you might want to see, in case there's anything you want."

"… Oh."

Seeing his reaction, Rey said gently, "You don't have to, if you don't want to."

"Yeah, I'll look."

Rey and Chewbacca helped him to walk, partly because he needed it, and partly to make it clear to anyone who saw them that Ben was moving around the base under their supervision.

It was strange, for Ben, to think that Leia had lived and worked with these people for the final years of her life. He might have been closer to her at one time, but they had known her more recently; she might as well have been two different people.

Maz Kanata, Commander D'Acy, and Lieutenant Connix were waiting for them in Leia's former quarters. The general's belongings had been laid out on the bed, about a dozen-odd items of various sizes.

"She was holding this when she died." Maz held up a golden medal on a sash. "You recognize it?"

Of course Ben recognized it. "Dad's."

"She presented it to him after the first Death Star was destroyed." Maz proffered the medal. "If either of them were here now, I think they would have given it to you."

Ben looked at her, and then at the medal; then he shook his head. "I don't deserve it." He looked over at Chewbacca, who had known Leia longer than anyone else now alive. "Chewie—you should have it. You helped him that day, and you knew him best."

Chewbacca accepted the medal appreciatively, growling his thanks.

Most of the other items were jewelry and trinkets, things Ben had no need or desire for. "Anyone can have those." He nodded to Rey and the female officers. "You worked with her. You can take your pick."

None of the women moved.

"Leia already gave us so much," Rey said quietly.

"These were things she would have kept in her family," Connix mused. "But if he's not taking them …"

"There is a mausoleum on Naboo," D'Acy posited, "where General Organa's mother is buried. We can leave them in its keeping. In name, they will still belong to the general's next of kin."

Ben nodded in agreement.

Poe joined them to discuss—or rather argue about—the custody of Leia's droids. As her son and her next-in-command, Ben and Poe seemed to have the greatest claims to them. Rey wanted Ben to have at least one droid to keep him company and provide him with help. But neither of the men particularly wanted charge of C-3PO.

"What's a protocol droid going to do in exile?" Ben asked.

"Translate for you and the locals, if you need to talk to them," Rey shot back, ever practical.

"I'd rather live in complete silence than have him running my ear off."

"All the more reason to send him with you," Poe retorted.

"Excuse me!" They turned at the sound of C-3PO's metallic voice. "If anyone would like to hear my opinion—"

The humans exchanged slightly guilty looks, but C-3PO did not notice as he shuffled up to them. "Master Ben, I have been told that I have served your family for longer than my memory bank has recorded, which is a considerable amount of time in itself. It would be my privilege to continue in your service."

Ben looked at him for a long moment, his mouth twisting as he searched for a diplomatic response. "Honestly, Threepio, I think you'd do better serving the Resistance. They're more likely to need you as they travel to different places. If it makes you feel any better, I think they were more like my mother's family these past years. She'd probably want you to stay with them."

C-3PO bowed his head respectfully at the mention of Leia. "If you say so, sir."

"You should probably come with us to drop him off," Rey told the droid. "I'll need you to help me talk to the locals."

R2-D2 slid forward, calling for their attention next. Rey laid a hand on him and said, "Ben should at least keep R2-D2. He could come in handy."

"And give him a means of communication?" Poe exclaimed.

"We'll monitor it," Rey answered smoothly. "He should have a way to contact us if there's ever an emergency. And who knows—we might need to contact him someday."

Once the plan was in place, Rose helped Rey gather supplies for Ben to take to his new home. Although Rey said food and shelter could be obtained there, she wanted to leave him with some reserves. She tried not to ask for too much, and Poe tried not to deny her requests.

When his injuries were healed and all preparations had been made, Ben expected his leavetaking to be short. Lando and Chewbacca were the only ones who wanted to wish him well, and Rose was the only Resistance member he wanted to thank with more than just a polite goodbye. But when they finished loading the Millennium Falcon, R2-D2 needed a moment to bid farewell to BB-8, and it turned out that a few others wanted a word with Ben before he left civilization forever.

"Ben Solo!" Maz Kanata strode up to him on her short legs, carrying something. "I have something for you."

She held out a paper book with a thin leather cover. Ben had studied such ancient objects during his training as a Jedi. But this one seemed newly made, untouched by time. When he knelt and took the object in his hands, he saw that it had no title or decoration, and when he flipped through the pages, he found that they were blank.

"What is this?" he asked finally.

"Your log."

"What, like a ship's log?" Lando said. Books and other primitive forms of communication had been used for such purposes long ago, but captains now used holorecorders or other means of technology, often built into their vehicles.

"He will need it," Maz assured him. She turned back to Ben, who looked at her quizzically. "You are about to begin a journey. You need to know where you've been in order to plan where you're going."

"I'm not going anywhere. My journey is over."

"If that were true, you wouldn't be here now. The Force isn't finished with you. You must answer the questions you've been avoiding."

Ben looked at the book again, and realized that some of the pages did have some writing on them, questions meant to prompt a response. "You came up with this?"

"I, and Rey, and our healer."

"I'm already healed." Ben indicated his leg, which was now fully functional.

"I would expect a former Jedi to know better." Maz poked her finger into his chest. "You are more than this matter, young Solo."

Ben did not know Maz well, but he knew better than to try to argue with her, so stood and he tucked the book into his jacket. "Thank you."

She nodded once, then turned and walked away. But then someone else approached: Finn. "Hey—Solo." His greeting was casual, or at least was supposed to appear so. "Can I have a word before you go?"

Ben could not imagine what the man might have to say to him. Finn also seemed uncertain, once they had moved a short distance away from the others. He folded his arms and shifted his weight awkwardly.

"I don't know if you know this," he said. "But I'm Force-sensitive."

"I didn't know. But somehow that doesn't surprise me," Ben said, remembering their few fateful interactions.

Finn looked at him solemnly. "I didn't want to ask about this in front of the others, but … on Exegol, when we were escaping … I felt Rey … die." He turned his face away for a moment, overcome with emotion, and had to collect himself before he spoke again. "But a few minutes later … I felt her come back. She says that was because you saved her—that she died, but you brought her back with Force healing, and that it almost killed you."

"That's true."

For a moment the two of them simply looked at each other. Then Finn sighed. "Look, we probably won't ever see each other again, and that suits me just fine, but I need to get this off my chest." He pointed a finger at Ben, almost in his face. "I'm still not cool with what you did on Jakku, or Starkiller, or Crait. I won't forget everything you put us through. And I don't like this …" He waved his hand in Rey's general direction. "… thing you have with Rey." Ben glowered at him, but then, to Ben's surprise, Finn's face softened. "But I appreciate you saving her." He held out his hand, as though expecting Ben to shake it.

Ben stared, amazed and incredulous. When he did not move immediately, Finn gave him an impatient look, as though to say, Come on already. Ben cautiously grasped his former enemy's hand. They shook once, then quickly released each other.

Finn nodded curtly. "May the Force be with you."

It had been years since anyone had said those words to Ben. He had never expected to hear them again, much less have them addressed to him. Now he struggled to recall them to his own tongue. "… May the Force be with you. Finn."

Rey, R2-D2 and BB-8 were too far away to hear the words being exchanged, but they saw the handshake. R2-D2 beeped something optimistic, and BB-8 chirped his agreement.

Rey glanced at them, smiled, and nodded. "I think so too."