Halo

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A/N-thank you very much to everyone who kindly reviewed the last chapter.

Chapter Thirty-Four-The Last Jedi's Sacrifice

Kylo and Rey stood back to back as they fought for their lives against the invading horde of stormtroopers. The bodies of the fallen troopers lay scattered around them, but still they kept on coming. The Tie Fighters continued to swarm above them, destroying what remained of the old Jedi temple ruins. As millions of droplets fell from a limitless sky, the wind howled in a low pitch around the force-sensitive duo as they worked to remain close to each other, knowing if they became separated it could doom them both. They both knew they couldn't go on like this forever, they didn't have limitless energy reserves, soon one or the other would make a mistake due to tiredness, and it could cost them dearly.

The acrid smell of blaster fire burned Rey's nostrils as she steadied her breathing. Now wasn't the time to give into despair. She needed to concentrate, to stay focused. She deflected another blaster bolt, but another one got past her defences and hit her on her left arm. She let out a startled yell as blood began to pulse from the open wound. Kylo glanced at her in alarm, his eyes narrowing in outrage as he slashed at the trooper responsible for inflicting harm on her. The stormtrooper screamed in pain as he was impaled by Kylo's fiery red blade.

While they were distracted fighting, more First Order transports had landed. The ramps opened revealing more ground troops. Kylo and Rey suddenly found themselves hemmed in, the rows of stormtroopers four deep on all sides. They knew the game was up, soon they would be completely overwhelmed.

"Rey, listen to me." Kylo communicated telepathically in her mind. "You can escape. Its me they really want."

The First Order's sheer weight of numbers meant that there was no way that they could both fight their way out and survive, but there was a chance that one of them could. And as far as Kylo was concerned, that person was going to be Rey. He was willing to risk it all on a counterattack-if he cut a swathe through the troopers on one side, Rey could hopefully slip through the gap and escape. He didn't need to voice the plan; Rey had already seen it.

"I'm not leaving you." Rey cried in her head.

"You have to." Kylo pleaded. "It's the only way. You're already hurt."

"Its just a flesh wound." Rey denied hotly. "I've had worse."

Kylo suspected she wasn't lying about that, but the opened wound on her arm was still pouring blood. She was tired, her rapid movements slowing with each passing minute. "Rey, this is the only way."

"No." Rey's response was cut short as another blaster bolt found its target and zipped across her cheek, leaving a bloody trail behind.

Kylo's heart bled right along with the new wound she had suffered. He couldn't bear to see her endure anymore. He was resolved on his new course of action and no pleas from her would change his mind. Her life was all that mattered to him. Time seemed to slow down as they made eye-contact. Rey's lips parted in anguish as she stared into his warm brown eyes, softer than she knew eyes could be. It was like he was trying to communicate a thousand emotions in that one look. "We're okay. You and me."

Rey nodded, taking in every moment for her memory, knowing it was the medication she would need to survive the next few minutes. In all the world there wasn't another like him. "Ben...?"

"I know." Kylo answered with a sad smile.

Rey cut the telepathic communication with him as she braced herself for the end. He may be resolved on his course of action, but so was she. There was no way she was going to leave him to die alone. If this was the end, then they would die together. She braced herself, her fingers clasping the hilt of her lightsaber in a tight grip.

Then a miracle happened…the last Jedi appeared to save them.

Luke Skywalker walked through the centre of the horde of stormtroopers, he was dressed in his old jedi robes, his green lightsaber acting like a beacon of hope for his beleaguered nephew and the exhausted scavenger. The troopers, shocked by the legendary Jedi's unexpected appearance, held off their attack momentarily as they stared at him in awed silence. Kylo and Rey were equally as stunned. For a moment they thought they were hallucinating. Skywalker looked years younger. Gone was his former grizzled appearance. His long greying hair was shorter, returned to its former shade of brown, his beard was neatly trimmed. He was the Jedi master of old, the young, vital man that Kylo remembered from his youth.

The sound of a loud voice yelling orders at the stunned stormtroopers broke the spell everyone was under. Phasma herself appeared; her unique chromium armour was covered in sparkling droplets of rain. Her black and red cape, flying the colours of the First Order, flapped wildly in the strong winds. She raised her primary weapon-a personalised Sonn-Blas F-11D blaster rifle- and aimed it directly at Skywalker. She fired continuous rounds at Luke, fully expecting him to drop down dead in front of her. Supreme Leader Snoke would be proud. Instead Luke just paused, and turning to face her, merely dusted his right shoulder with his left hand, smiling smugly at the infuriated captain.

Incensed by this bold display, Phasma ordered the rest of the troopers to open fire on Skywalker. The stormtroopers obeyed their captain, raising their weapons toward Skywalker. Luke took the opportunity to close the gap between himself and his nephew. When he reached Kylo, he looked up at his nephew's face, his smirk dissolving into a weary smile. "As soon as they fire, take Rey with you and make a run for it. Han and Chewie are waiting for you."

Kylo's tumultuous emotions overwhelmed him as he stared at his uncle. His chest tightened as the words he wanted to say got stuck in his throat. He felt like every muscle was giving into gravity. He was tired, weary to the bone. "I…" He couldn't manage anymore.

"I know I failed you, Ben. I'm sorry for that. One more thing…." Luke paused, his blue eyes glistening with moisture. "You think that forgiveness is weakness, but it's absolutely not; it takes a very strong person to forgive. Forgive your mother. She loves you. Always has. Make amends with her, Ben. It's the only way you'll fully heal."

"ON MY COMMAND." Phasma bellowed to her troops.

"See you around, kid." Luke touched his temple with his forefinger in a final gesture of farewell to Kylo as he turned around and walked toward the enemy to face them alone.

"FIRE!" Phasma roared.

Skywalker's intervention had proved the vital distraction they needed to escape. Kylo grabbed Rey's hand in his own and towed her along with him as the stormtroopers focused all their firepower on Skywalker. Luke closed his eyes and switched off his saber as the ground exploded around him and his image faded into nothingness.

High on the clifftop outcrop he used for his daily mediations Luke Skywalker collapsed from the mental stress necessary to sustain such a lifelike illusion of himself. As he sat down on the cliff, Luke beheld the twin suns of Ahch-To in their final descent towards the horizon. He had taken all his strength to project himself to help Ben and Rey, but now that it had been done, he could at least enjoy a few last breaths from the island that had been his home. Luke Skywalker knew that he was going to die, but it was something he accepted; death was the way of all things, even the stars. Though unsure if it was real or just a memory, Skywalker heard the familiar and comforting voice of Obi-Wan Kenobi, urging him to let go, and so he did.

When Kylo looked at Rey he noticed her eyes were streaming with the tears he could not cry for his uncle. Painful emotions tightened his throat as he pulled her along with him toward the place he had been forced to abandon BB-8. To his relief he found the damaged droid shielding behind a low rock wall. Kylo reluctantly let go of Rey's hand and hunkered down to make it easier to pick up the loyal little astromech.

"You came back." BB-8 beeped in his binary language. "I knew you would."

It was BB-8's continuing faith in him that broke the dam of Kylo's tears. Hugging the little droid to him, he pushed himself back onto his feet. In the distance they could hear the loud explosions as the Tie Fighters continued to bombard the planet's surface. Kylo gasped, it felt like his lungs were filling with water, as if there was just less space in them for the air. Inflating them felt like pushing up a lead weight on his chest. Why couldn't he breathe? Why was it so hard?

Then he felt Rey's gentle hand on his arm. Kylo looked down into her eyes. They were the were the softest brown infused with green, somewhere to rest and breathe. The chokehold of his emotions eased as he lost himself in her sympathetic gaze. High in the skies above Ahch-to, the Millennium Falcon, with Han and Chewie at the helm, began to make her descent toward them.

A/N-thanks for reading! I don't know about you guys, but I got quite emotional writing that. Let me know how you felt in the reviews. Thanks.