Chapter III: Path of Destruction

Force, it was boiling on this useless excuse for a planet.

Arielle trudged to the top of a sand dune and stared down at the Aki-Aki festival below. She had conducted research on this planet during the ride here, and it had included the so-called "Festival of the Ancestors". Held once every forty-two years, the festival was colourful, vivid, and thousands were dancing on the sand with flowers draped around their necks. They didn't appear to have noticed the sudden First Order presence.

She looked back to the transport where Griffin Company was unloading. She and Phasma had brought twenty stormtroopers to overlook the festival whilst the remaining eighty of the company searched the surrounding area. Between them and the Knights of Ren already skulking through, the Resistance group shouldn't be able to stay hidden for long.

After Kylo had called Arielle in Phasma's office, she had rushed to her quarters to pick up her mask and then had hurried down to the briefing room, where Pryde, Hux, the knights and the supreme leader himself, facing a wall, were seated around a table, apparently waiting for her.

The first thing she had noticed was Kylo's reforged mask. Whereas her own was elegant and sleek, the glowing red cracks in his mask made it seem unnatural and imposing. Given the unease from the First Order officers that had been rippling through the room, Arielle guessed they would have agreed.

As she entered, Kylo turned from the wall he was facing and threw down a yellow necklace onto the table. It was simple with a few flowers attached to it, but nothing particularly special.

"The scavenger girl was wearing this," he announced, his distorted voice resonating throughout the room, "and I've had it identified originating from the Forbidden Valley on Pasaana." He turned to Pryde. "Set a course there and warn the local troopers."

"And how exactly," Hux interrupted, "did you acquire this… thing" he finished dismissingly.

"The Force sent it to me."

"Of course, it did."

Kylo ignored that Hux's verbal barb and proceeded unruffled. "Myself, Agent Arielle and her stormtrooper company shell lead the hunt, accompanied by my knights. I want the girl and her fellow rebels brought to me, preferably alive."

"To be presented before Emperor Palpatine, I presume," queried Pryde.

"They're more valuable to him alive," answered Kylo, callously.

Arielle had remained silent throughout all the proceedings, and afterwards had headed straight to her quarters to prepare. She had grabbed a rag and polished her lightsaber as she always did before a mission. But this time, something in Arielle seemed to tell her she would have extensive use of it in the near future.

Right now, Arielle would have welcomed a battle as she continued to overlook a tribal party on a scorching-hot, good-for-nothing planet. Once upon a time she would have enjoyed the celebrations blow and shied away from any sort of conflict. Once upon a time, Arielle Ren was a very different person.

Nienor Helltze loved trees.

As in, she practically worshipped them with all those branches to climb up and then to jump off, probably only to land on her arse and then throw a crying fit. But her three-year-old self thought it was the best thing in the world.

And what a world Naboo was. The capital city of Theed was at its zenith in the New Republic era with millions of tourists from all different planets and cultures arriving every day to look in awe upon the pristine buildings and beautiful blue waterfalls. Nienor had loved all the funny aliens that arrived, with tails on their heads and razor-sharp teeth.

Of course, she wasn't to know that saying such things to their faces was really quite offensive. But that was the jewel of innocence she has later thought. There had been a lot she didn't know.

Least of all was Nienor's gift. A gift that let her leap higher than the other children and let her pull toys towards her without having to get up.

She didn't understand why her mother and father were so reluctant for her to use it, why she could sometime feel their fear coming off them.

"It's dangerous," Papa had told her as he lifted her up onto his knee. But when she had questioned why, he had just shaken his head.

"People like you were hunted down," he had explained, "in the old times, the wizards that used it were once great and good, but they became evil and murdered anyone like you. So, you must not use it."

While this had scared Nienor, it hadn't dissuaded her from continuing to use her gift. And as she grew older, Nienor discovered, to her delight, that her gifts only strengthened, and she found herself ascending the tallest trees that Theed had to offer. She had often just sat at the top, watching the sun set on the city, without a care in the world.

When she was nine, Nienor had been wandering on the outskirts of Theed accompanied by a couple of her friends when she had noticed a very peculiar ship landing in the outlands. And because she still had an hour before dinner, Nienor had declared that they would investigate it.

Although her friends had been scared and refused to go, Nienor ran after it alone. She had never once regretted that decision, but constantly found herself wondering what life she would have led had she listened to them.

Although the ship must have landed a mile or two away, and was hidden by the foliage, Nienor located it quickly. She hadn't given it any though at the time, but it was if something was pulling her towards the ship. Towards the person flying it.

The ship had turned out to be one of those legendary X-Wings Nienor had grown up learning about, the ship that had toppled the evil empire. Quietly, she had tiptoed up and hid behind a tree as the pilot emerged. He was wearing an orange jumpsuit and, as he took his helmet off, Nienor noted the pilot's golden hair and ocean-coloured eyes that seemed to sparkle as he looked around at his surroundings.

"I'm sure of it, Artoo," the pilot had said to the blue domed astromech droid in the ship, which had beeped in reply. Nienor sucked in a breath of air as the pilot fixed his gaze on the tree where she was hiding. He smiled.

"Hello there," the pilot cheerily called.

Burning bright red, Nienor guiltily stepped into view. "Hi," she said back.

The pilot strode forwards and knelt down beside her. "And what would your name be, little one?"

Nienor had flared up at that. "I'm not little," she had snapped indignantly, "and I'm Nienor. Nienor Helltze. Who are you?"

The pilot chuckled at her temper. "Luke. Luke Skywalker. Pleasure to meet you Nienor Helltze."

"What are you doing here?" she then asked.

"Let's just say I'm looking for someone."

"I can help! I know everyone around here," Nienor had boasted, putting her hands on her hips. She had often seen Mama do that and reckoned it would make her look tough.

"Do you really?" Luke had said, feigning astonishment, as he placed his hand on her brow. A slight tingling sensation shot through Nienor and she instantly stepped back. Luke too pulled his hand back, this time with real astonishment.

"What was that?" she demanded.

Luke flexed his hand and took another look at her, a proper assessment this time which made Nienor feel self-conscious.

"Nothing," he said at last, "I'm sorry, but is it possible for me to speak with your parents?"

She looked at him cautiously, but Nienor had found herself fascinated with his kind and handsome stranger with a magic hand. "Sure," she replied, "you can stay for dinner."

Nienor had turned around and led the way home, but she could have sworn she heard Luke tell his droid, "I think we just found her, Artoo", before he followed her. Throughout the journey home, Nienor had merrily chatted with the strange pilot, although, once they arrived in Theed, she had been confused at everyone's constant staring at them.

"Nienor!" her mother had shouted as she and Luke strolled into her home. "How many times must I tell you-" her mother had walked in to greet her, only to suddenly stop and pale at the sight of her daughter's companion. Her father had joined them within seconds and his face had warped into anger.

"Go wait in your room," Papa had spat out while Luke only pleasantly looked around.

"But-!"

"Go!"

So Nienor had obediently done as she was told, but still spent the next twenty minutes with her eye pressed against her bedroom door. She caught bits and pieces of her parents' and Luke's conversation, but none of it had made any sense to her.

"She doesn't have it, none of us here do."

"The Force had guided me here. Your daughter must have be taught."

"She will have no such thing! Now, get out of my house!"

Nienor had startled to hear her father yelling, but her mother had managed to calm him down.

"Maybe it's for the best," she heard her mother say, "if she can learn to control it…"

"By training with Darth Vader's son! My daughter will not become like him!"

"Mr and Mrs Helltze. My father's actions are unforgivable to many. But I promise you, the path I will lay for Nienor will not be one of destruction…"

Eventually, Nienor had grown board and played with her toys instead. It must have been another hour of intense whispering from the adults before they called her downstairs. When they did, her father was solemn while her mother seemed to be battling with tears. But Luke had looked remorseful.

"Nienor darling," Mama had said, "you know me and your father love you very much and we've always had your best interests at heart." She loosened another sob before continuing. "We know we've never been fully supportive of your ability, but that's because we've been worried about what could happen if you lost control of it."

Nienor stayed silent and had been uncomfortable at the sight of her mother crying. But her mother had composed herself and then had gestured towards Luke.

"Master Skywalker has been explaining things to us, and we believe it would be the best thing for you to go with him and learn how to use your gift."

Luke's face remained passive, even as her father stifled what might have been a snarl. But Nienor had been shocked into silence at this news and remained in shock as she had packed her thing. Her mother wept even as he and her father pulled Nienor into a tight hug.

"Call us as soon as you can," Mama had whispered as she released her, and Nienor found tears falling down her own face. But then her father gripped her by the arm and looked deeply into his daughter's eyes.

"Nienor," he had growled, "promise me you won't become like the old wizards did. Promise me you will remain the good person I know you to be."

"I promise."

Papa had smiled sadly as Nienor waved goodbye and walked off with Luke Skywalker.

It was the last time she saw her parents in the flesh. Nienor would go onto to call them via hologram nearly every week, but never again would she give her mother and father a hug.

Nienor was bursting with questions as she walked with Luke towards the Theed transport hub. What are we doing? Where are we going? When are we next eating? What is the Force?

Luke waved most of the questions off, but it was the last one that brightened his face up. "The Force is all around us, Nienor," he had explained, "it surrounds and binds us. Every living being in the galaxy is joined together through the Force."

She pondered this for a very brief second before blurting out, "is it the thing that makes me jump high?"

He burst out with laughter. "Yes, little one," Luke said, "it's what makes you jump high."

After that, they had caught a transport had taken them across the galaxy. The sensation of travelling through hyperspace had stunned Nienor, and even more so at the sight when they emerged from the vortex. The planet that she had seen was simply gigantic, with four smaller ones orbiting it, all of varying colours. The transport aimed towards one of those, specifically the green planet, filled with trees taller than any Nienor had ever seen. Needless to say, she had been eager to climb them.

"That's Yavin-4," Luke had whispered in her ear as Nienor gaped at the new planet, "that's where you're going to learn to use the Force."

After landing, they hiked across the lush landscape for two days until a large structure had appeared on the horizon. As they neared Nienor noticed several other smaller huts appearing in addition to the rocky building that Luke had called his temple. It was dark by the time they arrived, and she saw several other, smaller figures emerge from the huts. Children like me, she had realised with delight while Luke waved at them as they approached.

"Master Skywalker!" one of them had shouted over as he and a couple others jogged over. One was a boy who had a squid head and the other was a human girl with white hair with dark skin, but it was the tallest that caught Nienor's attention. He had jet black hair with the creamiest brown eyes she had ever seen in her nine years of life.

Damn, he's cute, Nienor had thought dreamily.

I know.

Nienor then simultaneously realised two things: that she was staring at the dark-haired boy, who was now smugly grinning, and he somehow was talking in her mind.

Blushing feverishly, Nienor diverted her gaze and looked up at Luke, who was doing his best to pretend not to notice. "Nienor Helltze," Luke had said, "meet my other pupils. Hennix," he pointed at the squid, "Voe," the white-haired girl waved, "and Ben, my nephew."

The tall boy, Ben, stepped over and stuck out his hand. "We're happy to meet you, Nienor," he had said warmly, and Nienor had shaken his hand enthusiastically.

The next morning, she met the rest of Luke's students, all of them varying in size and species. They were all around Nineor's age, but Ben was the oldest and been training with his uncle for the longest. Although they had all been nice to her, Nienor found herself, to her later shame, clinging to Ben in those early days. He was kind and funny and handsome. He made her feel welcome and, when Nienor got confused at Luke's teachings, Ben had taken her aside and explained it.

The Force. Nienor had initially believed she had needed no training and was already a master at using her gift, only for Master Skywalker to prove her very, very wrong. He had simply lifted several huge boulders into the air with one hand, a feat that left Nienor with her mouth open.

"Teach me," she begged. And he did.

Luke may have been a great teacher, but Nienor was far from a great student. She wasn't the strongest in the Force, nor was she particularly skilled in combat. Even her lightsaber had been crude, faulty and, no matter how many times she had wacked it against the wall, it never seemed to work properly. As a result, Nienor often found herself bruised and on the ground after the numerous sparring sessions. Despite numerous private sessions with Luke and Ben, Nienor found her fellow students outpacing her.

Or at least, they were, until Nienor discovered one specific aspect of the Force that resonated with her. She had always adored climbing trees, something which Ben and Voe joined her in, but Nienor always scampered up ahead. But about six months after joining Luke's Jedi Order, and on one of these trips, Ben had misplaced his hand, slipped, and fell. Voe had screamed and Nienor had reached out her hand in desperation, and something in her latched onto something.

Like a whip, one of the tree branches caught Ben as he fell, inches away from the ground. It had coiled around his body and then set him safely on the ground. Nienor breathed a sigh of relief as she examined her hand and then the branch, which had resumed its normal position. Ben gave no sign that he'd barely avoided death as he glanced up at her curiously.

In the days following, Nienor realised it wasn't just trees that she could almost effortlessly form a connection, but the dirt and grass around her, the wind in the air and the waves in the sea.

"The Force works in mysterious ways," Luke had mused after Nienor had confined in him, "what you may lack in other abilities, you may have in a natural affinity with the elements."

Nienor had liked the sound of that and soon spent days at a time immersing herself in the woods, and then the sea and then sitting on the edge of a cliff. But her connection with the Force only grew and Nienor began working her gift into her combat session, sending waves of dirt and water at her opponents, blinding them while she disarmed them.

Unfortunately, while Nienor became more and more powerful, her relationship with her peers became strained. They became less inclined to chat or eat with her and Nienor found herself an outsider amongst her so-called "friends". Cheat she heard Voe mutter one day and it took some immense self-restrain not to lash out.

"They're just jealous," Ben had consoled her in the woods one starry evening, "don't worry about it, Nienor. Their envy of you will pass soon."

"Just as it will with you," Nienor had shot back and Ben, for the first time since she'd met him, flinched. Like with her, the other students had begun to resent Ben for his power and skill with the Force. The pair of them were becoming outcasts.

But this only strengthened their bond. While the bitterness between her, Ben and the students did fade away as they all matured into teenagers, Nienor came to consider Ben her best friend and they were inseparable. He soon taught her how to speak using just her mind and it quickly became their secret and silent means of talking.

Who else knows how to do this? she asked mind-to-mind late one evening while she was practicing. Nienor and Ben were in their separate huts, as all with all the older students.

Just me and you, came Ben's reply.

Wow, I feel so special.

Shut up and let me sleep.

Poodoo-head.

Meanie.

Perhaps it was because of this mental link between Nienor and Ben that she had begun to feel what he did. The fear, loneliness, and a pull towards anger like which she had never experienced before. It felt cold and terrible and, for a long time, she had tried to ignore. It wasn't any of her business after all. It was just Ben being moody and Nienor had no reason to doubt her friend.

But by the time they had entered into adulthood, even Nienor could not deny Ben had became more withdrawn than ever before. Rarely would be talk to anyone other than her and Master Skywalker kept casting worried glances over at his nephew.

"Please," Luke had pleaded her on one occasion, "talk to him. Make sure he's staying away from the dark side."

"You're his uncle-"

"And your closer to him than anyone else here. How close," Luke had smiled sadly, "is of much speculation to your peers."

Nienor had simply frowned before Luke had continued.

"The emotion's he's feeling," he said, "the despair and loneliness, it's the path to the dark side, a path towards death and destruction. I can't lose my nephew to it."

Luke's words stirred up the promise Nienor had made to her father. So that night, she found Ben sitting by the campfire whilst the others had retired to their huts. She sat down beside him and crossed her arms.

"Alright," Nienor simply said, "you know I've been ignoring what's on your mind for ages now, but not anymore. So, what the kriffing hell is going on with you?"

Ben said nothing for a moment, staring into the crackling flames before him. "Have you ever felt a pull towards the dark side," he asked eventually, "I mean, I know all we've ever been taught is that the dark side is only for the greedy and cowardly, and then any Jedi who used it descended into evil. But… I can't explain it… it…"

"Try," Nienor gently asked.

"I don't know," came his honest response, "I don't… Maybe…"

He trailed off and lifted his eyes to look into hers, placing his fear and confusion bare before Nienor, who had been too stunned to answer. Instead, she pulled him towards her, and he stiffened slightly as she wrapped her arms around him.

Just relax, she had said in his mind, knowing that her presence there would calm him and, indeed, some of the tension had gone from his body.

They must have stayed liked that for a minute or two before Nienor pulled away and walked Ben towards his hut. Afterwards, she crept into her own and promised herself to speak with Luke in the morning and get Ben the help he needed.

That was the night that, deep in sleep, Nienor's vision came.

She had woken up with a start to the sound of an explosion and rubble collapsing. She, Ben, Luke, and a few others slept in huts outside, but all the others… Nienor ran out of her hut to see the Jedi temple burning, the corpses of all the younger padawans scattered about the debris.

Despite what her vision had shown her, it had still broken Nienor's heart to see Ben Solo on his knees before the smouldering remains of the new Jedi order. He looked right at her with tears streaming down his face and Nienor didn't hide the horror on her face at what she was witnessing.

That had been the night that Nienor Helltze and Ben Solo had died, albeit both in their own way. Ben gave himself fully to the dark side while Nienor… She gave herself fully to another role, one she had been playing ever since.

"General."

Arielle Ren blinked and shook herself out of her memories. She turned around to find Captain Phasma standing to attention, her commlink flashing with new information.

"The Knights of Ren have located the rebel group," Phasma stated.

Arielle nodded. "Then move out."

Their transport landed a few miles away, in an area containing several slopes of rocks, in addition to a vast, open plain of desert. As Arielle exited the ship, she noticed a detachment of stormtroopers had already arrived, alongside the Knights of Ren.

And they had captured a Wookie.

Chewbacca, Arielle thought as she strode over, Phasma at her back. The stormtroopers saluted as she came over while the Wookie only roared at her. As she approached, Arielle's gaze was drawn to a dagger held by the stormtrooper sergeant. It looked like a thoroughly ornamental dagger with a blade that shortened in the middle. It looked stupid, but Arielle could sense a dark presence that oozed out of the weapon.

"What is that?" she demanded, indicating the dagger.

"We don't know. The Wookie had it when we captured it, and it won't tell us."

Arielle took the dagger, meaning to examine it closely. Her fingers made contact with the blade and she took a sharp intake of breath when the familiar sensation of the Force gushed into her. She saw a gigantic throne flash before her eyes. She nearly dropped the dagger in amazement, but then more images flared up. A withered alien with eyes like buttons, waves crashing upon a metallic wreckage, and then the Jedi scavenger girl herself, but with yellow eyes and lightning erupting off her hands.

The visions ceased, and Arielle brought the blade up to her helmet's visor. Up close, she could see numerous symbols, which she recognised as the Sith language. The memory of spending hours picking through Snoke's relics the night of Palpatine's message suddenly snagged in Arielle's mind. She took another glance at the dagger and through back to the vision of the wreckage in the ocean. Arielle suddenly understood the dagger's true purpose.

"I assume the rebels are located in this vicinity," Arielle asked, addressing the Knights of Ren, all of whom nodded in confirmation. "Return to the planet's atmosphere," she continued, "and should any of them escape, follow them."

Arielle turned to Phasma. "Take the Wookie back to the Steadfast for interrogation," she ordered, "I will deal with the rebels myself."

"Yes, general," Phasma said and moved over towards Chewbacca, who snapped and growled at the stormtroopers, struggling against his restraints.

Arielle slipped the dagger into her belt and strode away, leaving her stormtroopers behind. They would only get in the way and she could feel a pull in the Force already. Arielle didn't doubt who that tug belonged to and, as she paced across the sand, a smile formed on her lips. The scavenger Jedi, at last, she thought as Arielle swiftly moved towards her prey, past the lumps of rock that littered the path in front.

Eventually, a ship shaped like a pair of binoculars caught Arielle's gaze in the distance. It was parked atop of one of the peaks, and, although they probably thought they were well-hidden, she could see a couple of figures moving around it. Arielle increased her speed and, as she drew nearer, saw one of the figures was a golden protocol droid and, by the time she had reached the base, recognised the defective stormtrooper, Finn.

But they were not Arielle's primary concern, not as she looked upon the stretch of stand before her, where the scavenger Jedi herself stood, albeit with her back turned. Her white robes fluttered in the breeze as she activated her lightsaber blade, seemingly in anticipation of an oncoming assault.

And it wasn't the Force that notified Arielle, but her ears. A low hum echoed across the landscape, one that bore a resemblance to a TIE fighter, but one that must have been only a few meters above the surface.

Impossible, nobody is that absurd, Arielle thought as she turned to look at the approaching ship. As it came inti view, she recognised, with a jolt, the distinctive red-and-black design of a TIE whisper, the signature ship of…

Kylo the Fool, Arielle signed mentally, watching as Rey began running and then leaped into a backwards flip. Her lightsaber cut into the left wing of the speeding ship as Rey flew over and landed on the sand with barely a grunt. The fighter, on the other hand, wasn't as lucky, as the wing severed itself from the cockpit, sending the remains of the ship crashing into the desert. It collided with the surface violently and rolled several times before it came to a halt. No one emerged.

Arielle didn't have it in herself to worry about Kylo, in fact she almost laughed at his incompetence. But more importantly, the scavenger Jedi was now exposed in the open, and hers for the taking.

Rey turned the moment she heard Arielle's footsteps and raised her lightsaber indistinctively into a defensive position. The young Jedi's eyes narrowed.

"Who are you?" Rey yelled, the distinctive odour of fear tainting her words. Arielle relished it.

"Seriously?" Arielle indicated her face-wear. "The mask doesn't sell it?"

She prowled ever closer to Rey, who mimicked her movements until the two were circling each other. Arielle took in the scavenger's appearance. She was young, probably in her early twenties, but with a strong, well-defined figure. Arielle would also have guessed that her upbringing on Jakku would have made her at ease in the sand. Advantage to Rey.

"You're another one of Snoke's followers," Rey said suddenly, "I saw you in a vision… A Knight of Ren?"

"Arielle Ren, pleasure to meet you," she quipped and did a mocking bow. "You're younger than I expected; it seems Luke must have been scrapping the bottom of the barrel when he found you."

Rey had the audacity to smirk. "I wouldn't expect you to know anything about Master Skywalker, who faced the entire might of your regime and won. Only cowards like you and Kylo Ren would have joined the dark side."

But now it was Arielle who smirked, "I take it Luke never mentioned me then."

That rattled her, and Rey pointed her lightsaber directly at Arielle. "What do you know of Master Skywalker?"

Judging by the shaky way Rey held her blade, Luke hadn't gotten around to much combat training, meaning Leia must have taken over. But there would be only so much a part-time Jedi could teach. The last hope of the Resistance: an unbalanced and half-trained attack dog with no knowledge of her lineage. Arielle almost pitied her.

She removed her mask and let it fall to the ground. Rey blinked in surprise, beholding Arielle's hair, eyes, and scars. Her very human face. In spite of the knights' training, Arielle preferred to fight face-to-face.

"Did you think Ben Solo was Luke's sole failure?" she sneered, "but then I would have been surprised if he'd mentioned anyone apart from his nephew. The nobodies don't matter in this galaxy. And-" Arielle winked at her "-they never will."

Lies, all of it. Her words were only designed to hit Rey where they would hurt the most. Unlike Kylo, Arielle had never hated Luke, and sometimes found herself missing him. But the insult had the desired effect on Rey, whose stance now looked even more unsure.

"You lie," Rey said quietly. And then she lunged.

A twitch in her right hand's muscles gave the scavenger's plan away, and Arielle easily side-stepped the attack. She pulled her own lightsaber into her hand and ignited a single crimson blade, using it to block Rey's follow-up swing. Her opponent fell back from the impact, and Arielle pushed her advantage, aiming a slash to Rey's head.

The Jedi ducked and stretched out her hand, meaning to throw the dark sider back, only for Arielle to copy the movement, and both of them were sent flying back.

Arielle was able to flip in mid-air, landing on all-fours. She whipped her head up to see Rey land on her feet and was already rushing towards her. Arielle smiled. This was going to be interesting.

She pushed herself to her feet and Force-leaped towards Rey. Arielle brought her blade down hard on Rey's, and the kicked at her side. The impact winded Rey, and she lost concentration. With Arielle's free hand, she telekinetically lifted Rey into the air and slammed her down onto the desert ground. She heard a sickening crack, probably a few shattered ribs.

"Rey!"

A scream sounded behind her, followed by the firing of a blaster. With battlefield instinct, Arielle ducked and threw her weapon, sending her lightsaber spinning towards the attacker.

The energy bolt caught Arielle on her upper arm, and she suppressed a scream as the pain shot through her. But it was just a graze, and the shooter was less lucky.

Arielle briefly recognised Finn, with his face full of anger and dread, as her lightsaber spun towards him and ripped into his neck. He barely had the chance to cry out before his head fell from the rest of his body. It landed with a thump, and Arielle only stared at her victim's decapitated body as it too collapsed onto the ground.

So much for taking them alive.

"Finn!"

Arielle spun her head to look at Rey, who was back on her feet. But her face was contorted into horror and fierce hate and before Arielle could even begin to contemplate the yellow hue in Rey's eyes, the Jedi was charging towards her. Rey was out for blood.

Arielle barely had time to summon back her lightsaber, which only just reached her in time to block Rey's strike. But Finn's last action was already taking its toll on Arielle, as her weapon arm was now straining under both its wound and the ferocity of the scavenger's attack. Arielle stumbled back, just as Rey flew towards her again, swinging the blade in an arc that barely missed Arielle's nose.

"You killed him!" Rey shrieked, slashing at Arielle again. She was tapping into the dark side, Arielle realised with dismay, although it was certainly unwittingly.

Rey's subsequent attacks were completely uncoordinated and were that of a wild, uncaged beast. With her wound impairing her ability, Arielle found it easier to simply dodge the next few swings rather than fight back, watching as Rey's anger over the murder of her friend skyrocketed.

One thing was for sure: Rey was unquestionably Palpatine's granddaughter.

But Arielle's strength was fading. She knew if this fight continued to drag out, she would lose, just as the unfocused and wounded Kylo had on Starkiller. Undisciplined and feral as she was, Rey was not to be underestimated, especially now she was using the power of the dark side.

She evaded an intended strike to her leg and responded with a counterattack to Rey's arm. The scavenger twisted and Force-pushed Arielle back. Now Arielle saw her opportunity.

She knew she had never been very skilled at lightsaber combat, even if she had improved through the knights' training. But any victory she took normally required her special affinity with the Force. And luckily for her, they were surrounded by sand.

Arielle stood up and as she raised her lightsaber, she left her body. Arielle connected with the Force and let it guide her. She stayed on the defensive against Rey, but now fluently blocked the frenzied attacks with grace. But all the while, Arielle plunged into the Force and drew it into herself and the surrounding environment. It became hers to command.

She snapped her eyes into focus and a strong gust began to surround them. Rey was initially unfazed, until the sand left the ground and began to swirl around them. Her strikes began to cease as the miniature sandstorm closed in around them. The grains hurled into them both, but Arielle kept herself focused and the sand quickly withdrew from her.

But it swarmed into Rey, who gagged and fell to her knees. She may have been used to sand but was unprepared for this Force-aided offensive. Rey dropped her weapon and spluttered. As she knelt down, Arielle sensed the sand invading every organ in her body. It would have been so easy to press the attack until Rey joined Finn in death.

But the scavenger Jedi still had a part to play.

Regretfully, Arielle snapped her fingers and the sandstorm dropped. She placed her hand on Rey's forehead and drew the grit out, causing the girl to choke and hurl.

But with Rey semi-conscious and delirious, Arielle stealthily attached the Sith dagger to the Jedi's belt. And as she removed her fingers, Arielle sent a projection of what she had learnt about the dagger's purpose into Rey's mind. The second Death Star's remains and the Wayfinder hidden inside.

Arielle stood up and walked towards the TIE whisper's debris, from which an uninjured Kylo Ren was finally emerging. He looked in surprise at Finn's headless remains, and then in worry at Rey. Arielle turned her head to see the scavenger scramble to her feet and dart towards her friend's corpse. Kylo made to hurdle towards Rey, but Arielle raised her hand to stop him.

Let her go, Arielle said mind-to-mind, and felt Kylo's searing temper rage in response. She's merely walking down the path I've just laid out for her.

What path? Kylo demanded.

Arielle watched as Rey heaved Finn's body onto her back and carried it towards her ship. The path to the final destruction of the Jedi.

She tried not to think about what Papa would have said.