Chapter Eleven

Echoes of the Past

Poe sat in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon, his eyes focused on nothing in particular and his arms tightly crossed. Finn sat down in the chair next to him.

"Hey," he ventured. "You all right?"

Poe shook his head as though clearing wool from his mind. "I think so." He shifted slightly, his expression hardening. "How could she just leave us like that?" he asked hotly.

"She's not herself. You have no idea what she's fighting."

"Oh, and you do?" Poe snapped.

Finn drew himself up in his seat. "Yeah," he answered. "I do. And so does Leia."

Poe ran a hand down his face. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be angry. At either of you."

"It's all right," Finn said. "We've all been through a lot lately."

"So," Poe asked. "What's going on with her? I know she feels a lot of responsibility as the last Jedi, but is…is there something else?"

Finn studied him a moment, weighing whether to tell him his friend's secret. He finally admitted, "It's Kylo Ren."

"Kylo Ren?" Poe asked, bewildered.

"There's some kind of connection between them," Finn explained. "It's been there since Starkiller. They can see each other, communicate, even halfway across the galaxy from each other. Even Leia doesn't fully understand their bond. I think that's what happened last night. She and Kylo were fighting somehow."

Poe stared out the viewport. "Damn," he said. "Kylo Ren."

They sat in silence for a while. Finally, Finn asked, "Can you fly?"

"I can always fly." The pilot's hands began to expertly play over the controls, readying the ship for takeoff.

Rose, the droids, and Chewbacca entered the cockpit. The Wookiee had a bacta pouch attached to his left side.

"How is he?" Finn asked.

"Give him a few days and he'll be back to bashing in heads," replied Rose.

Chewbacca gave a low growl of agreement.

The Millennium Falcon soared upwards like a long-trapped bird finally set free. It flew through the cloud layer and exited Wavett's atmosphere, the star-specked vista of the galaxy opening before it. Poe Dameron had seldom been happier to see this view. He leaned forward and threw back the lightspeed lever.

There was no streaking of stars or jerk of acceleration. Instead, an awful grinding noise filled the cockpit.

Poe threw himself back into his seat and buried his face in his hands. "Oh, come on!" he exclaimed. "After everything that's happened to us, this."

"I agree," said C-3PO. "The situation appears truly hopeless."

"Don't give up yet," Rose said. "Let's see how bad the damage is."

The crew trooped to the engine room. Poe pulled open the panel covering the hyperdrive.

"It's bad," he said.

The hyperdrive's metal casing was charred and blackened, and many of the delicate interior components had been melted to slag by electrical fires. It was clearly damaged beyond what they could fix with what they had on board.

Poe headed back towards the fore of the ship, the rest following him. "We can still use the backup hyperdrive. It'll be slow, but we can at least get to an inhabited system, buy a replacement drive."

"Maybe you should send out another distress signal, Rose," Finn suggested as they entered the cockpit.

Rose looked up and stopped in her tracks.

"Rose, what is it?" Finn asked.

"We don't need to send another distress call," she responded, pointing out the viewport. "Look!"

A large, boxy gray starship hung "above" them. It had a maw-like docking bay running the length of its front and dozens of cargo containers attached to a metal lattice on the stern.

Poe eyed the ship warily. "Is that the First Order?"

"Let me take a look," Finn said, climbing onto the console.

Chewbacca roared for Finn to get his dirty feet off the nice, clean control panel.

"I don't think it's First Order," Finn said, clambering down. "Sorry, Chewie."

The Wookiee murmured something to the effect that he had better be sorry.

"Looks like a bulk freighter," Rose said, scrutinizing the ship. "Baleen-class, I think."

A crackle came from the comms. "This is the Wattled Purrgil," said a voice. "Are you the folks who sent out the distress call?"

Poe pressed a button. "Yes," he replied. "This is the Pomojema. We seem to be having some trouble with our hyperdrive."

"You should be able to fit into the docking bay if you maneuver carefully. It's a bit cluttered, I'm afraid."

"Copy that. Over," Poe said, turning off the comms.

"Do you think we can trust him?" Finn asked.

"What other options do we have? It beats floating in space for weeks," Rose shot back.

Poe adjusted the controls and let the Falcon coast towards the open docking bay of the larger cargo ship. He expertly maneuvered in, sliding between a half-deconstructed interstellar transport and a rack of deactivated loading droids.

The Resistance crew exited the Falcon and looked around for the owner of the freighter. An elderly man emerged from the dark recesses of the docking bay. He had a large, white beard and was wearing grimy, grease-stained coveralls.

"Howdy, folks," the man said. "The name's Fobis, Fobis Doolevy. I'm the captain of this ship."

"Pleased to meet you, Captain Doolevy," Poe said. "My names's Kes."

"Nice to meetcha, Captain Kes. You say you've got hyperdrive problems?"

"Yes, the damage is pretty substantial. We might have to replace the whole thing."

Fobis asked, "Permission to come aboard?"

"Sure," responded Poe nonchalantly.

Poe and Chewbacca led Fobis into the Falcon. The rest of the crew remained outside and looked around the interior of the bulk freighter.

"Well, Captain Doolevy certainly won't win any awards for neatness," C-3PO said, casting a disapproving glance about him. His observation was not unwarranted. Ship parts, cargo hauling devices, and food wrappers were strewn haphazardly across the floor or collected into piles. Wires and cables hung from the ceiling like lianas and vines in a tropical jungle. The walls of the landing bay were obscured by mountains of junk and detritus. There were few lights, lending a murky feel.

BB-8 rolled forward into the depths of the docking bay.

"Should we stop him?" Finn asked as the astromech disappeared into the gloom.

"Let him explore," Rose said, sitting down on a crate. "I don't think he'll get into too much trouble."

BB-8 wove through piles of junk, looking for anything interesting. A cone-shaped piece of white and green metal, its narrow end pointed downwards, caught his attention. Three long antennae stuck out of the cone's wide end. He beeped curiously. As he rolled closer, he realized that it was the head of a small droid, shrouded in dirt and cobwebs.

BB-8 gingerly reached out with a mechanical arm and pressed a port on the antenna-dotted wide end of the conical head. It shot upwards, revealing that it was balanced on a single wide wheel by a metal pole attached to the axle.

"Ba-battery—charged," the droid said tinnily. He turned his head and rolled back and forth, his wheel squeaking, as he focused on his reviver. "He-hello."

BB-8 beeped at him and led him towards the Falcon.

Rose looked down as the droids rolled up to her.

"Hello-hello," said the green and white droid.

"Hello," Rose replied, reaching towards him.

The droid scooted away from her hand. "No-no-no thank you."

"Looks like someone treated you badly," said Rose. "It's all right, I won't hurt you. What's your name?"

"D-d-Dee-Oh," the timid droid stuttered.

"Dee-Oh?"

He nodded.

Fobis emerged from the Falcon, Poe and Chewbacca following. "You're in luck," he proclaimed. "I've got some Isu-Sim parts sitting around someplace in here. Let's see, was it this pile? No, that one."

He reached into one of the mounds of metal and began to pull out mechanical components. "Zimfeld nozzle," he rattled off, handing a tube to Poe. "Durkheim channel, Flume Capacitor, Neutron Pack."

Soon, Poe, Chewbacca, and Finn were carrying armfuls of tools and hyperdrive parts. They headed back into the light freighter. Fobis hefted his own bundle and moved to follow them, but Rose stepped in front of him.

"Is this your droid?" she asked, pointing at D-O.

Fobis leaned forward and stared at the droid. "I can't say I've ever seen it before," he confessed. "If I have, it must not have registered. I don't have much use for any 'droid that can't carry cargo. I bought this ship off a Bestoonian a few years back; it came with a lot of junk. It was probably his."

"He seems to have been through some bad things."

"That's quite possible. That Bestoonian seemed like a rough customer. Odd thing is, he gave me a great deal, barely haggled." Fobis stroked his beard. "He almost seemed like he was glad to get rid of this ship."

Rose digested this information. "If you don't have any use for him, may he come with us? If he wants to, that is."

They looked at D-O, who was driving circles around BB-8 and chanting, "Friend—friend."

"Sure," Fobis said. "No skin off my snout, as a Kubaz I used to know always said. Now, let's go get your hyperdrive fixed."

"A capital idea, Captain Doolevy," C-3PO said as they boarded the Millennium Falcon. "I never before thought I could miss standing on solid ground so much."

"Well, I'd say your hyperdrive should work now," Fobis said as Finn secured the final new component in place.

"Thank you for your help, Captain," Poe said. "You've done us a great service. Is there any way we can repay you?"

"Oh, no, no." Fobis waved his hand. "I'm only too happy to help a fellow spacer. There've been plenty of times I've been helped out tight jams by strangers; I'd be a pretty sorry fellow if I couldn't pass it on to others."

Poe escorted the older man to the Millennium Falcon's boarding ramp. "Thank you again."

"Safe travels and fair stars to you," Fobis said, giving a two-fingered salute. "Oh, and one more thing…"

"What?" Poe asked.

Fobis's eyes twinkled. "If you see the last Jedi, Commander Dameron, give her my regards."

Poe looked at him for a moment. "Okay," he said finally as he closed the boarding ramp. "May the Force be with you."

Fobis watched as The Millennium Falcon pulled out of the docking bay, turned, and flew away. Its engines lit up briefly as it made the jump to hyperspace, and then it was gone.

Fobis turned away and walked back towards the bridge of his freighter. "Never can tell who you'll meet in this galaxy," he said, shaking his head. "Never can tell."

A gray-hided Gronk boar picked its way along a rocky ridge on Remnicore, using its three tusks to root for any bits of organic matter on the ground that might prove edible. Suddenly, alerted by some primal instinct, it began to run, only to be halted as its hooves lifted off the ground. The boar struggled against the invisible grip, running in place and squealing wildly, but to no avail. Its eyes rolled back in its head as the Living Force was drained from it, flowing into a black-gloved hand. Muscle and fat shriveled away until the animal was little more than skin hanging loosely off of bone.

Kylo Ren opened his eyes and let go of the creature's withered husk, letting it drop to the ground. His face had more life now, eyes bright, angry red traceries gone.

The scar Rey had given him on Starkiller remained, however. When Kylo had asked why, Tor Valum had said simply, "Some wounds are best healed by those who inflicted them."

Now, Tor Valum looked at Kylo with a broad smile. "You have grown strong in this technique. You are almost a master in it."

"Teach me more," Kylo requested.

"I know things that would split your mind asunder were I to reveal them to you." Tor Valum said. "I can teach you little you could safely handle that you do not already possess."

Kylo Ren was only partially listening to his master's words, his attention drawn to an opening in the rock face. A faint glow came from within it.

"What's down there?" Kylo asked.

Tor Valum followed his gaze. "A vergence in the Force. A place strong in the dark…and the light."

"I can feel it."

"If you are drawn to it, you must enter, or it will give you no rest. Go."

Kylo picked his mask up off the boulder it rested upon and placed it on his head. He drew his lightsaber and descended into the cave.

The red light from Kylo's saber was refracted by the cavern's ice-covered walls. The space seemed vast and empty. Yet Kylo could sense a presence, one that he had never encountered before, but which was still strangely familiar.

From the darkness came the sound of labored, mechanically-assisted breathing. Kylo strained his eyes into the darkness, trying to make out the source of the noise. He could feel the presence drawing nearer to him, the breathing growing louder. Then another lightsaber sprang to life in the cave, casting a dim red glow on the hulking, black-armored form of Darth Vader.

"Grandfather?" Kylo asked.

Vader did not respond. Instead, he stepped forward, swinging his lightsaber at Kylo's head. Kylo parried the blow easily. Vader took a step back and then lashed out again. Kylo beat his sword aside and lunged.

Vader dodged with surprising speed and struck back, Kylo barely managing to catch the Dark Lord's lightsaber on the crossguard of his own. The two combatants pulled back and circled each other, looking for any opening.

Kylo Ren launched a vicious assault, hammering blows against his ancestor, but it was like attacking a wall. Vader firmly blocked each attack, no matter how brutal or subtle.

"You are strong," Darth Vader boomed, his voice echoing in the cave, "but you are no Sith."

"I don't…have to be," panted Kylo. He felt himself beginning to tire.

Vader seemed to sense Kylo's weakness. His lightsaber became a blur, seeming to strike at Kylo from every direction. It was only a matter of time before one of his blows landed.

Finally, it happened. Kylo shunted aside a swift cut at his legs, but was unable to lift his blade in time to stop the Sith Lord's next swing. Vader slashed him across the chest. Kylo screamed in pain and fell to the ground.

Kylo struggled to remove his helmet. He finally managed to pull it off, gasping for breath. He looked down at his chest. The wound was gone.

Darth Vader loomed over him. His lightsaber snapped off. A glow from within the ice itself reflected off his armor.

Kylo knelt. "Show me how to be strong like you," he said, "Grandfather."

Vader reached up with both hands. There was a hiss of air as he pulled off the top part of his helmet, then removed the collar containing the breathing apparatus from around his neck.

Where Vader had been, there now stood a dashing young man, his face framed by long, light brown hair. He had a scar running through his right eyebrow. The life support armor had faded away, replaced by dark robes.

Anakin Skywalker examined the black mask he held in his hands. "This is not strength," he said. He let Vader's helmet fall to the ground, where it shattered into dozens of pieces.

"It is weakness. I sought power to save those I loved, but in the process I destroyed them and everything they fought for. I was reduced to a shell of a man, unable to survive apart from machinery. Why do you seek power?"

"To destroy Snoke," Kylo answered. "To rule the galaxy."

"No," interjected Anakin. "To hide your shame for what you did to your parents. To your uncle."

"Luke betrayed me!" shouted Kylo. "Your son tried to kill me."

"And in retaliation you burned down his temple and slaughtered his students."

"As you once did," Kylo countered.

"You don't have to repeat my mistakes, Ben," Anakin said. "Stop this while you still can, while a few others still care about you."

Kylo narrowed his eyes. "I understand you now. Your weakness. Your pain. You allowed love to cloud your judgement. I will succeed where you failed. Snoke shall fall, as will anyone else in my way."

"And then what?" asked Anakin.

"I…." Kylo faltered. "I don't know."

"The darkness is not your destiny. Turn back to the light, Ben." Anakin stepped back into the shadows and faded from view.

Kylo Ren staggered out of the cave confused and troubled. Tor Valum was waiting patiently by its entrance.

"Tell me about Mortis," Kylo said.

Tor Valum responded, "It is the well of the Living Force. The source of the galaxy's birth. A crossroads where the cosmic and the material meet."

"I want to be stronger than those who came before," said Kylo, hunger burning in his eyes. "Where is it?"

"I can show you the way," Tor Valum said. "But you must do me a favor."

"What favor?"

Tor Valum grinned. "You will not find it difficult. You have done it often enough before. But first, I must tell you a tale. Sit."

Kylo Ren sat on the rocky ground.

"You think me hideous, do you not?" Tor Valum raised a hand to stay Kylo's answer. "No, I see it in your eyes…I am perfectly aware of how I appear to others. Yet I was not always so.

"Once, a long time ago, I was glorious and majestic to behold. My sole purpose was to preserve and protect this planet. I kept light and darkness, life and death, in balance, and shielded my world from those who would ravage it and exploit its resources. Yet I grew proud, and hungered after knowledge forbidden to my kind. It corrupted my heart, although it did not yet touch my flesh.

"Nevertheless, I grew wise, as I thought, in the dark side of the Force. Beings came from across the galaxy, as you did, to learn my ways. But they then used my teachings to bring suffering and destruction. So others came, strong in the light, to prevent anyone from learning from me."

"The Jedi," Kylo said.

"Yes," acknowledged Tor Valum. "The Jedi and the Sith fought a great and bloody battle before my fortress. I tried to stop their fight, but my power and theirs combined and escaped the control of any of us. Strange energies and magics were released, warping the land. They turned me into the creature you see before you, now as twisted on the outside as I was within. But the fight at last was ended; the combatants had been wiped out.

"I emerged from the ruins of my fortress to a desolate wasteland. Little life is now left on my world, except for scrawny plants, sickly animals, and those poor creatures who saved you from your ship.

"Since that day, I have taught but two other beings. You are one."

"The other…is Snoke," Kylo realized.

"Yes," Tor Valum admitted. "Another of my great mistakes. The only reason I was willing to train you was because I knew you would wish to kill him. But before you can destroy Snoke, you must find Mortis. Reach into my mind."

Kylo Ren stretched out his hand. There was a shock of unfamiliarity as he entered the ancient creature's brain; it was unlike any he had experienced before, as much pure Force energy as it was neurons and synapses.

"Do you see it?" asked Tor Valum, gritting his teeth as his thoughts were probed.

"I see it," Kylo said. "A mountain in winter. No, autumn."

"Can you see the way?"

"Yes. Across the stars, and then…sideways."

"You have what you need."

Kylo pulled out of Tor Valum's mind.

"Now: the favor," Tor Valum said. "I grow weary of this wretched form, and this near-dead world. Kill me, that I may leave them. And then, perhaps, I shall take a new form, and my world will grow again."

Kylo Ren drew his lightsaber. "You're certain you want this?"

"Yes…strike me down!"

Kylo drove his lightsaber into his master's chest, then turned it off. Tor Valum gasped in pain and sank to the ground. His body disappeared into nothingness, leaving only a tattered robe. "Thank you," a voice whispered as a chill wind caught the garment, carrying it up over a ridge and out of sight.

Kylo stood silently for a moment. Then he turned and headed for his TIE whisper.

It was night, but General Leia was still awake, looking out over the jungle of Ajan Kloss.

"He is going to Mortis," a voice said.

Leia did not seem startled. "I feel it too."

Luke Skywalker's spirit stepped forward to stand by his sister's side. "He'll soon be more powerful than our father."

"So will she."

"She feels too much. Love. Anger."

"Don't we all?" Leia asked, giving him a look.

Luke smiled slightly. "Well…"

"I've lost everything, and everyone. But I would still choose to love."

They stood in silence for a while.

Finally, Leia asked, "Can he be saved?"

"I don't know." Luke paused, then continued, "It's almost time."

"I know," said Leia. "Will he be there?"

"All who were, and some who are yet to be, are here."

Leia looked at her brother. "Trust her instincts. She may not follow the path of the Jedi, but she's our only hope."