It was almost like the whispering had grown louder with the realization. Rey could hardly think straight. The Darkness swirled around her mind like black ink in water. She was about to lose control. Panic washed over her and she whirled back around to face Jarda. "Explain! Now!" she seethed. Had this been a trap the whole time?

"It's a Sith trap. " Jarda responded, eyes growing wide. The whispers grew more viscous, pushing themselves into her consciousness. Jarda put her hands over her ears and shook her head. "It's not supposed to be doing this to me. I can't think like this. I feel like I'm going crazy."

Theo and Doj, who had stood by silently watching the other two. "What the hell are you two talking about?" Theo walked to Jarda's side and attempted to pull her arms away. Jarda thrashed harder. "We don't hear anything." Doj looked to Rey with concern. She was barely able to register what was going around her.

Rey felt her mind be overtaken. There was no way for her to concentrate on the balance with the constant whispering. Her knees buckled and hit the hard floor, her consciousness slowly slipping away. She reached, one last time, throwing all of her energy to center her mind and push the whispering aside. Harmaa she reached out to the Force. Thinking back to the cave on Ahch-To. Guide me.

Her hands hit the ground. The stone cool against her palms. Her saber rolled off beside her but she didn't notice. All of her power funneled to concentrate.

Listen

What?

Listen

No one speaks it. It's not a whisper in her head. Rey can feel the word reflected back to her. Her body trembled beneath her and she took a final breath. Shifting her thoughts from the Force, she let the voices in her mind grow louder. Jarda is yelling now. Theo and Doj desperately trying to calm her.

Rey listened as the voices swirled around. She can't differentiate one from the other. They overlap, blending together in sharp tongues foreign to Rey. She tries to focus on picking one out. "Nw kash zo tash. Antai kash tik sh." the voice whispered. "Pro sh nu gauti ty. Pro midwan nu gauti pergaleas. Pro pergaleas nuyak chains aras svistuis."

Rey paused. Each voice is saying the same thing, over and over again. Finally she heard it, this time in basic. Buried deep in a quiet voice. "The Force shall set me free."

She gasped and looked up, opening her eyes. The writing on the wall is back and glows like hot embers. The words running through her mind are echoed on the wall. All saying the same things. Rey feels that pull, deep inside herself. In the place she felt awaken last year. She knew what she must do.

Taking a sharp breath, she struggled to get herself up. Jarda, she noted, has collapsed on the ground. Theo and Doj on either side trying to rouse her, but Rey can't hear them anymore. She stumbled, willing her legs to move beneath her as she made her way towards the glowing wall. The words are like flames, growing as she moved to them. She reached out a shaking hand and placed her palm over the text.

It was though her mind exploded, and Rey felt all of the Darkness wash over her. The whispers begin to die down and Rey realized she understands them for the first time.

Peace is a lie. There is only Passion.

Through Passion I gain Strength.

Through Strength I gain Power.

Through Power I gain Victory.

Through Victory my chains are Broken.

The Force shall free me.

Rey knew what this must be. She had repeated the Jedi code to herself many times from the sacred text. The Sith code was eerily similar.

Her body collapsed underneath her, the words forgotten. The whispering faded to a gentle hum, and the darkness pulled her into a dream.

Ben smiled, his heart felt like it had finally mended back together. He'd saved her, and she kissed him. The moment was gone too soon, he wanted to be closer, and leaned in to press his body close to hers, but his strength failed him. He felt his weight give out underneath him, and the remainder of this life force flow out with his final breath.

When he opened his eyes, he found himself back in the same place he'd woken up before time and time again. He had given up trying to make sense of where he was long ago. The space around him was endless and faded out into a thick fog. It reminded him of where his mind would go in some of his deepest meditation sessions, so lost in thought and feeling that his surroundings were the least of his concerns.

That's how he had felt for the majority of his time here, as though he was lost in meditation. Only occasionally anchored to reality when the small figure of Rey appeared before him, or when Luke had come to him. Any other time was spent in a timeless state, his mind at rest, or he was thrust into old memories. Those had been the most difficult part of this time. Luke had mentioned he was reliving them in order to learn something, but would only shake his head and grimace when Ben asked for any insight.

He felt the weight of his chest rise and fall with each gentle breath and his thoughts turned back to Rey, where they often rested. He had no idea what she was going through, if her trials were similar to his. The small amount of information he had gotten from her the few times he did see her did not settle well with him. Familiar irritation flickered as he ruminated on how helpless he was, and though it had been easy to keep distracted in his memories here, his heart mourned the loss of the connection with Rey. He had no idea how much it grounded him, supported him, made him feel understood on such a deep level until it was ripped away.

Ben had been reminded of the intensity of it every time he relived a memory. The feeling of it severing played over each time he came back to his reality. He knew Rey's mind well enough to guess she was experiencing much of the same pain. That had only been confirmed in bits and pieces on the rare occasion he saw her. Clouded as it was, the smallest ripples of her emotions flowed through the atmosphere when he had held her close.

Lifting his head back up, Ben forced his eyes to open and softly focus on the fog in front of him. The previous frustration only grew the more he thought about it. He shifted his focus back again to the memories that had played over and over. All of them had been major events from the past year. Some with Rey, others emotional moments that threatened to tear him apart at the time. Luke had mentioned that he needed to overcome his fear, but Ben didn't even begin to understand what fear he was referring to or how to overcome it.

He meditated on some of the memories. There had to be a correlation somewhere. This wasn't unlike what he had practiced at one time long ago when he had trained with Luke. The Jedi had taught him fear led to the Dark Side.. but Ben had felt as though it was survival that led him astray. He paused. Perhaps his judgement had been clouded before. His mind traveled to the memory of Luke above him, saber ignited. No. Survival was only a piece of the catalyst that drove him to Snoke. He had feared for his life at that moment. Fear was what truly lead him to the Dark Side.

It was almost as though Ben had begun to tug on a loose string that unraveled the rest of the deceit that was in his mind. He could find, time and time again where he had acted in fear. All of the things he had done to become Snoke's apprentice was born out of fear that he needed to be powerful enough to save himself from the Jedi. His rise as Kylo Ren and desperate attempt to kill the memory of Ben Solo was another attempt to forget the pain of his childhood, all rooted in the fear of being alone and powerless. If his family was willing to treat him like a monster than he was more than willing to become one.

Ben could see now how much more pain this had only caused him. He had been willing to do anything to break free of the past that he had almost ruined any hope for his future. It was surprisingly easy to see the influence Snoke had on his mind, twisting the fear into excuses for all of his behavior. Snoke. Who had only been a puppet for Sidious. Ben swallowed hard and steadied himself for a moment in realization. Who knows what could have happened if he hadn't had Rey. He had no intention for becoming a slave to the Sith, so much had been hidden from him.

Rey had done so much for him without even knowing. Her connection and presence gave him the understanding he had craved for so long. Though they had both been unwilling to see it at times, he had known from the beginning their connection had been much more than coincidental. Once he had finally learned the truth of their dyad, the conflict between the Light and Dark in him grew unbearable. He felt like he was ripping at the seams, but with her, he could almost believe her reassurance that he could come back. That it wasn't too late. That he could be forgiven.

The last few minutes he'd spent with her played over his mind again. Why had that memory played for him? There had been anything but fear in his final moments, dissolved when he'd seen her eyes flutter open gain with life. His brow furrowed in concentration. It felt as though it was right there, he just didn't know how to see it. So much of his adult life had been spent with him, and those he looked up to, twisting the Force to how they saw fit. Ben hardly knew what to believe any more.

Rey had mentioned meeting the Force before, and talking about the dissolution of the Sith and Jedi to keep the balance of the Force. How was he supposed to remain neutral with the ideologies and ideas of both sides pulling at his mind. He had found the whole story rather odd. In all his years of study he had never heard anything like she had mentioned before. Why now?

The answers you seek are before you, though you refuse to see.

His eyes shot up. Ahead in the mist was the bright orb Rey had described to him before. Recognition flashed over his features and he tilted his head to the side, waiting for the explanation he knew was coming.

Your mind has been twisted to believe that accepting the balance is rooted in your feelings. The Sith teaching you to use the power of your emotions and the Jedi telling you to shed all connection to them. The balance is knowing that the only difference between the two is the choice of action.

Ben sat quite dumbfounded. The orb flashing gently in front of him. "What am I supposed to do then?" he questioned quietly.

The memories you've been reliving are the defining moments of your life. In each one, you experienced similar emotions, but emotions are nothing more than precedents. It is your actions that mattered. In each memory you felt predominantly fearful. The Sith would teach you to use this fear as a show of power.

Ben saw as two forms grew before him. The memory of him before his father on Starkiller. He winced as he watched himself ignite his blade. Quickly he turned his gaze to the floor.

Power is an illusion. This act only broke you.

Ben felt his lip tremble and looked back up as the forms shifted and he saw himself leaning over Rey's lifeless body.

Here is the same core fear. The Jedi would say to deny this fear and accept the peace of death.

The forms shifted and the same light of the orb gathered around Ben's hand and was pulled into Rey's form as she began to breathe again.

This is your defining moment, Ben Solo. To be balanced is to accept your emotions as they come, and to choose your actions to heal. Much of the galaxy is scarred from the Sith, who have only chosen destruction and corruption to rise to power. The Jedi let this evil fester instead of bringing healing, fighting violence with violence, and denying their fear for the Dark Side, which only led to their end.

Ben could see it clearly now. It was fear that had led to the creation of Kylo Ren. His parents and Luke had sensed Snoke's corruption in him from a young age, their fear had sent him to Luke, who's guarded fear had only led him to try and kill Ben. Though Luke had spoken to him about that night, and told him he never truly could have killed him, the almost-action was enough to become the catalyst for Ben to embrace the lies he had been told and run to the power of the Dark Side for safety.

He could see now, how they had all been so wrong. Each side acting in fear and using their code to justify their actions. He had become so caught up in the lies, the torture he had felt made so much sense now. Ben could feel parts of himself letting go, finally he could accept the past for what it was, maybe he could even… forgive himself?

Yes.

The orb moved closer to him as the images disappeared.

You must be able to forgive yourself if you are to return. Without it, your self-loathing would be used to further punish yourself. Forgiveness is the only way for you to have the humility needed to purge the Darkness.

Ben just sat there. He knew what the orb was telling him made sense, and he wanted to give up his self hatred, but it had been a part of his identity and his driving force for so long. How could he suddenly let it go? "I know what I have to do." he said and internally winced when he recognized the familiar phrase. "I don't know if I have the strength to do it." he finished and bowed his head.