Chapter Fourteen

Rey started out into the rain. Chewie had not been happy about her leaving, but he didn't stop her. The rain was not letting up and it would only become more dangerous the longer they waited. Flash flooding was a real concern.

Rey packed light. Just the bare minimum of food, medical supplies and weapons. She wanted to find Finn and Rose as quickly as possible and get off this planet. The entire galaxy seemed to be on edge and she wanted those that she cared about close to her.

Visibility was incredibly poor. Rey stumbled and slipped constantly on the wet, uneven ground. Having lived so long in the desert, Rey had dreamed of rain but even she had to admit that this was terrible. It was going to take much longer to get to Finn and Rose than she would like.

The area that she had sensed her friends was in a remote mountain region. Chewie had argued that they should fly the Falcon closer but there was no safe place to land. Also, the area was at the epicenter of a fierce lightning storm. The last thing they needed was for the Falcon to sustain damage.

So, Rey set out alone to find her friends. When she had reached out using the force, she could tell that there were other lifeforms in the way. She hopped that she would be able to spot them in time to avoid them. She was not looking for a fight. Stealth was paramount.

With the limited visibility and noise caused by the torrential rain, Rey had to rely on the Force to help her navigate. She reached out with her senses in a tightly controlled manner. Just keeping her readings to her immediate surroundings. She didn't want to be overwhelmed like before.

She had been walking for over an hour before she came to an abrupt halt.

The only path through the area was via a narrow ravine. This place sparked a memory and she had to push down a feeling of dread. Something about this was familiar, like she had been her before. But that was impossible. She had never set foot on this world before today.

Pushing down the feeling of dread, Rey focused her attention on the life forms on either side of the ravine. From the way they were positioned, Rey knew that they were looking to attack anyone that tried to pass.

She kept low and tried to survey her surroundings. It didn't look like going around would be an option. She would have to go through. Rey didn't want to get into a fight. She was just here for her friends. Besides, she wasn't sure she could win this fight. The numbers were not in her favor. There were at least thirty people lying in wait.

Sighing, Rey stood up and unslung her pack. Bargaining was her best option. Strolling forward, she raised both of her hands high in the air and called out "I don't want any trouble."

Even in the dim of the downpour, Rey could hear the malicious chucking. Keeping her chin up and her voice strong, Rey continued to speak.

"I don't have much but what I have is yours for safe passage."

Rey tossed the small bag of provisions in front of her. It landed with a wet thud. One of the group came forward and stopped right in front of the pack. He toed it with his right boot. Clearly weighing the contents. The man kept both hands on his blaster but right now the blaster was not pointed at her. Rey thought that was a good sign.

"If you don't have much, how can you afford to pay the toll?"

More chuckling met his words. Rey glanced around before responding. She was surrounded.

"I will need to travel back this way with two friends. Whatever provisions they have, we will also give to you when we return."

Rey kept her voice strong. She couldn't show weakness to these jackals. Rey knew the type. Scum who would rather take from those that did an honest day's labor than work themselves. Jakku was full of them. Still, they had her surrounded and there were far more of them than she thought she could handle, Force powers or not.

"I'm afraid that just won't do," the man replied with mock regret. "You might have enough for the return trip but that is a separate matter. You definitely don't have enough to pass now."

The man kept his blaster pointed at the ground, but Rey knew that others had her in their sights. She could feel their malice. There smug satisfaction of the violence to come. Keeping her hands in air, Rey remained calm.

"As you can see, I have nothing else." As she spoke she turned in a slow circle. The act may have been interpreted as her demonstrating that she had nothing to hide but really it was to see exactly where all their men were positioned.

"Now, now. Let's not be too hasty. A pretty girl like you always has something to bargain with." The man leered at her as he spoke. His gaze deliberately raking up and down her body.

Rey could feel her lip pull back in distaste. There was no way that she was going to be their plaything.

"No," she replied. "I don't think we will be making those kinds of deals today. You have my offer. Take it or meet your doom."

The leader tilted his head back and laughed. When he spoke, his tone was laced with amusement and the malice.

"That is the funniest thing I have heard all cycle. Keep me amused and we might just let you live after we are done with you."

The man started to raise his blaster at her, but Rey used the Force to rip it out of his hands. The blaster went flying and landed in her outstretched hand. Rey didn't hesitate. She shot the leader first before taking out two more attackers that were standing near him.

Surprise helped her immensely. Everyone stood still in shock at what had happened. Rey used that shock to race forward, further into the ravine. She shot two more as she ran before the she felt a surge from the Force alerting her to danger. She dropped to the ground and rolled to her right. Blaster fire raced through the air right in the area that she had been. Turning around to face her attackers, Rey could see that they had recovered from their earlier shock and were rallying their assault. She fired twice more but only one of her shots met its target. Throwing the blaster down, she reached for her saber and thumbed it on praying it would work.

The bland sprang to life. Its glow casting eerie shadows on the cliff face. The sight of it gave her attackers pause but only for a moment. They began firing at her. Rey was able to block most of the shots, but one got through her defense and grazed her shoulder.

She need to think of something. There was no way she could keep this up. Could she use the Force to pull down some boulders to crush them or at least to separate them? No, that wouldn't work. They needed this pass to get back to the Falcon.

Her attackers kept pressing closer. Rey was running out of time. Rey was about to use the Force to push them back when loud shouting rose from the back of the group. The bandits were being attacked from behind.

Rey hoped that this would give her the chance to escape, but several of their group pursued her. Still it was better than having the entire group after her. Especially since her saber picked now to fizz out. Blasted thing.

Rey continued to run. Evasion was her best bet now. Let two groups hack each other apart. What did she care? Rey just needed to get to Finn.

The second group proved to be deadly efficient. They cut through the looters and would be rapists with ease. Soon, even the those that had continued to attack her were forced to turn and deal with the other group. Rey was grateful for that they showed up. She might actually make it out of this.

Rey felt something wrap around her ankle. One of the attackers had not turned to fight the other group. He kept is focus on her and lashed a rope around her ankle. Rey barely had time to register this before she fell face forward into the mud. Flipping onto her back, Rey tried to untangle her leg from the rope. If the stupid saber had worked, she could just cut through the rope. But no, it had to fail.

This was taking too long. The water and mud made the rope slippery and adrenaline made her hands jittery. She struggled with the knot. Her attacker advanced on her. Running up fast, blaster in hand.

Just as he raised his arm to shoot her, a fiery blade erupted from the man's chest. There was no mistaking that blade. Dread and fear flooded through Rey. It was Kylo Ren.

Rey scrambled back on the wet ground. Trying to put as much distance between them as possible. How was he here? How had he gotten so close without her sensing him? Rey would figure that out later. Right now, she just needed to get away.

Kylo barely acknowledged the man hanging from his blade. His attention was riveted on her. Merely tilting his wrist to the side, the dead man slid to the ground with an ominous thud. Sounds of the battle seemed to fall away. His expression, at first a dark mask of fury, morphed into something even more terrifying. He looked down at her in triumph. Rey had never seen anything more chilling.