Twenty Seven.

He became aware that he was nowhere. All was cold and grey.

He was dead.

The realisation was accompanied by very human need to feel at the site where he had been impaled, fingers urgently exploring flesh that seemed whole but of course, didn't actually exist. He stared carefully, still feeling the agonising pain as the laser blade drove through his flesh…and then he forced it away. Would he feel that forever or would it fade as he faded?

There were echoes, distorted sounds of voices, rippling around him. It was like listening through water, everything magnified and muffled, all at the same time.

And then he heard her.

She was alive. It had worked, Thank the Maker, it had worked.

And he was dead. He had done everything he could to atone now…but it was fair. Every other member of his family as gone and he had finally fulfilled the Skywalker legacy. He had given his life for something he truly believed in. For someone he loved-just as his mother had given her life to reach him and draw him back to the Light.

But there was still something holding him there, an invisible thread that still bound him to Rey.

The Dyad Bond. It still existed. He could still hear and feel Rey.

Was this truly his punishment, to watch the woman he loved for the rest of his life, always longing, sharing her triumphs and disasters, maybe seeing her love another, live a full life, raise a family…without him?

Surely this was some form of Hell?

But he had made his choices-some freely made, some scavenged as the only option he had left when all else had been taken from him-and he had been offered chances to escape. Rey had wanted to save him…and maybe, had he taken her hand in the Throne Room, they would both be alive, they would both have survived. And maybe Luke and his Mom as well. All those deaths maybe could have been averted, both those of people who meant so much to him and the nameless legions who had died in the conflict.

It was all his fault.

If only he had taken her hand.

His heart ached. For the pain he had caused her so many times…and now, by taking her memories, her friends, her love and the Bond.

The Bond that still existed…

Focussing every ounce of his concentration, he snagged the tenuous connection and pulled…

-o0o-

No one said a word, all shocked by what they had seen. Kylo Ren's words had silenced and BB-8 had closed down his projector, staying beside Rey as she sobbed. The young Jedi stiffened as she felt arms wrap around her shoulders and the warm presence of Rose, who was hugging her. Unable to say anything, she just curled into the smaller woman and cried until her tears were exhausted. BB-8 shot off a stream of comforting beeps as she slowly looked up.

"Thanks," she sighed as Poe walked forward. His comm beeped and he automatically raised it to his lips.

"Dameron," he said shortly.

"General-are you safe?" Beau asked and Poe checked around his group. Finn was looking hugely conflicted and Poe didn't know what to think. Something about Ren's words had seemed…right, tugging at that irritating deja vu feeling that Poe had been fighting.

"Safe may not be the correct term," he admitted. "Finn, Rose and Rey are unharmed, if that's what you're asking."

"Rey?" Zorii's voice broke over the com. "He did it then?" There was an awkward pause.

"If by him, you mean Ren, then yeah," Poe said, his tone subdued.

"Flyboy-what aren't you telling us?" Zorrii demanded.

"There's been a complication," Poe suggested.

"General-can this wait?" Beau said, breaking in. "There are some very serious things happening. First-did three stormtrooper transports explode? And second-the fleet has arrived and is engaging." Rey frowned.

"What?" she murmured. But Poe gave a slightly more confident smile.

"Our Jedi took them out," he reported.

"She can do that?" Beau asked. Poe chuckled.

"For sure," he confirmed.

"Wait-what did you say about the fleet?" Rose asked, scowling. Poe sighed.

"There are two First Order Star Destroyers in orbit above us," he reminded them. "But since Exegol, we've had a stampede of worlds and former Republic politicians swarming to join us in forming the New Republic. And they have offered us vessels to mop up any remaining First Order ships. This seemed like a good opportunity to test out their resolve. So how many have turned up?"

"Eighteen heavy cruisers including three that escaped the Hosnian massacre," Beau reported and Poe frowned as Finn walked to his side and leaned close.

"Where were they the we needed them?" Finn murmured as Rey rose slowly to her feet. She was peering at the shape of Kylo Ren.

"While he lived, he was a powerful deterrent," she murmured. "They wouldn't step forward when the First Order was in the ascendent and Kylo Ren ruled. But with him gone, much of their force destroyed and the remains scattered…maybe they feel they-we-stand a chance." Rose suddenly crouched down by the orange and white droid, glancing at her hand.

"BB-8…can you broadcast what you recorded?" she asked urgently. "Up to the point when Ren died?" The little droid beeped in agreement and edited the recording, then sent the whole thing to the Resistance vessels and the nearby comms relays. Rey frowned.

"What…?" she asked.

"I asked him to record what happened," Rose said, struggling to recall why. Then she turned over her hand to see a few words scrawled there. "I must have thought it important enough to leave myself a 'To Do' list."

"Anything else on that list?" he murmured as Rose sighed.

"Remember that Rey is your friend. Trust her. And do what she asks," she read.

"Can you bring the Falcon to our location?" Poe asked, his eyes focussed on the sky. There were flashes of lasers and explosions overhead as the two forces engaged. "I need to get up there…"

"And do what?" Finn asked, frowning. "You don't have your X-wing and we're all on the Falcon. One hit and…"

"I asked D'Acy to arrange one of the cruisers to have a fighter ready for me," Poe explained, a confident smile on his lips. BB-8 gave a worried beep and then rolled forward. "It's okay, buddy. I can't do anything down here and there are still a few stormtroopers who will be really pissed at us…" But Rey was standing with her eyes closed, her fists pressed against her temples.

"Will you all SHUT UP!" she screamed. Everyone spun at look at her as finally, with the wind blowing and the lightning flashing in the skies, she was able to crouch before the body. Quietly, she took his hand, feeling his skin cold as it had never been in life. He was always warm, vital…even when she touched him on Kef Bir, when the waves lashed and sprayed them with freezing water, his skin was warm as she used her life force to heal the wound and give him his life…

"Be with me," she mouthed. "Help me. I need advice so badly."

"You only have to ask," a voice said. Luke appeared, his face grave. Beside him, Anakin, Obi-Wan and Yoda all materialised. Rey looked up.

"It cannot end like this," she said,

"What is, is," Yoda said, his eyes narrowing. "Restored has continuity been."

"No," she said. "I can't be left here without him. I can feel him…" Her eyes widened and she closed her eyes. "I can feel him still, in the distance. He's in pain…confused…in despair…"

"Dead is young Solo," Yoda stated.

"Then why can I still feel him?" she cried, angry tears sliding down her cheeks. "Why do I have to share his pain? Why did I forget he loved me? That he came for me? That he fought and suffered and almost died to help me defeat Palpatine? That he was left so alone when he was alone for most of his life, seduced by Snoke and abandoned by everyone who should have loved him and protected him!" She saw Luke look uncomfortable and a brief flash of triumph shot through her.

"Kid-these things are difficult," Anakin sighed.

"Force Bonds are incredibly unpredictable," Obi-Wan pronounced. "A Dyad Bond even more so. By rights, you should have felt it severed with his death. Death is the only thing that can end a bond."

"Unless together they are meant to be," Yoda put in. The ancient Jedi hobbled slowly forward, using his stick heavily. Rey wondered why he hadn't chosen a more able shape for his Force Avatar. "The Force does not choose. The Force has no will. But other forces do."

"Maybe there can be no balance unless they are together," Obi-Wan murmured. Anakin rolled his eyes.

"Look, I was tagged as the Chosen One all my life," he pointed out. "It's really not fair to land that burden on anyone."

"Maybe it's not anyone," Luke suggested, his eyes thoughtful. "Maybe Balance requires them both. Both powerful, one corrupted to Darkness, the other stubbornly wedded to the Light but both a mix of both. Truly a balance." Yoda looked down on Ben's slack features.

"A good point, you make," he said then looked up. "But he is almost beyond reach."

"He can be brought back?" There was sudden hope in Rey's voice and her teary eyes brightened.

"Difficult will it be," Yoda decreed. "Holocron and Altar are gone. Cannot use same method. Only option is to heal and draw him back through Force."

"Why didn't he do that?" she asked, frowning. There was an awkward sharing of looks.

"He was too weak, too badly injured to save you on Exegol-though he tried," Anakin told her.

"And he couldn't hear us," Luke said. Then he had the grace to look self-conscious. "Not that he would want to hear me anyway. But he would have benefited from a word of advice and comfort-but he was not able to hear us because of his past. Because of the evil he did."

"But I used Force Lightning though I can hear you," Rey asked, her anxiety swirling in her chest. "I saw the Emperor and Snoke use it. Does that mean that I am evil?"

"All it means, Rey, is that you are a very powerful Force User," Obi-Wan reassured her. "Because you use the Dark Side, you can access more power. But you are still in the Light. But you need Ben Solo to help you, to balance you. Your souls are connected-that is why neither of you could cross until the other also died."

"Then there is hope?" she sighed and then she sagged. "He is dead. It will take all my life to bring him back, won't it?"

"Maybe…if you were alone," Anakin said. "But I will help. I will lend you my energy."

"And I," Luke said immediately. "He's not the only one who has things to atone for."

"None of us were without failure or weakness," Obi-Wan added. "May I suggest we call one other?" He closed his eyes and a fifth shape shimmered into being, Rey gasped-for it was Leia. The woman's eyes softened with sorrow as she gazed down on the body of her son.

"Ben."

"I'm sorry," Rey said thickly. "I know you wanted him saved…but I didn't know him when he brought me back. He had gone back to the Dark. And I…I…" Leia wrapped her in a hug that was surprisingly warm and real despite the woman being a ghost.

"I saw," she reassured Rey. "And I want to help you bring him back."

"Rey-what's happening?" Rose asked, her eyes suspicious. "I can't see anyone there." The young Jedi almost laughed at her confusion.

"Part of the fun…or not...of being a Jedi is that you can sometimes communicate with the spirits of Jedis from the past," she explained. Rose looked around wildly.

"You mean ghosts?" she asked.

"Yes, ghosts," Rey explained patiently, not looking at Anakin, who was grinning or Leia and Luke who were whispering between themselves. "Force Ghosts. And they may be able to help me bring Ben back."

"Whoa whoa whoa…no one said anything about resurrecting the man who led the First Order and killed hundreds personally and thousands…maybe millions…by his orders…" Poe said immediately, raising his hands as if to ward off the very idea. "And let's not forgive him for torturing me…"

"He apologised," Finn murmured. "He did everything he said. He got us off the First Order ship when he could have run on his own…"

"He asked me about Paige," Rose murmured. "I believe him. He did terrible things…but he did everything he could to bring you back to life…and I think…he knew and accepted that it would cost his life." She sighed. "I remember…he was sad. He was sorry. He was broken and alone. And I knew…it was genuine…"

"It was," Rey murmured. "I…feel him…"

"We are all with you," Anakin told her. Rey nodded, looking at her human friends.

"Do I need to remind you that there is a damned space battle going on overhead?" Poe asked them, irritably gesturing towards the skies. The flashes of laser fire were intensifying as individual as well as larger battles raged. "I need to get up there…"

"Actually-you don't," Finn told him, his face stern. "You are the General…and though you are the best pilot in the Resistance, your own skills are not necessarily needed, just weight of numbers-and maybe some co-ordination, which you can oversee from the Falcon!" For a second, resentment and anger warred on Poe's handsome face-and then he shrugged.

"And that is why you're my co-General," he said with a resigned smile.

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Leia murmured in Rey's ear. "I made the right choice. I just think he needs to keep believing in himself."

"I'll tell him," Rey murmured. "I need help. I just need a tiny fraction of your life energy-as I used to heal that creature on Pasaana. Alone, I won't survive-but I have to do this." Then she started as she felt Luke's hand on her shoulder. Anakin knelt by his grandson's side with Obi-Wan and Yoda by his side. Slowly but determinedly, Rose took station at his other side, resting her hand on his shoulder. Finn walked forward and crouched by Rose with Poe rolling his eyes and following his fellow General.

"Do we do something?" he asked. "Murmur an incantation? Pray? Whistle?" Rey closed her eyes and rested her hand on the ugly defect in Ben's chest.

"Be with me," she said and concentrated.

She could feel the Force flowing around them, the brilliant shapes of the Force Ghosts, the warm thrumming of her friends and the eddies and flows of the other life-such as it was-on Dathomir. Above, she could sense the concentrations of life on the ships, lives snuffing out as shots were traded and TIE and X-wings exploded into clouds of debris and vapour.

But before her was a vacuum, a black hole in the Force where his brilliant life force should be…but trailing through it was a single golden thread, the last residuum of the precious, unique Dyad Bond. She felt energised, almost glowing with the power of the Force, not only from the Ghosts but from her living friends and she concentrated on knitting the tissues back together, repairing the awful damage she had wrought. Slowly, flesh moved, blood vessels and organs were reconnected and muscles and skin once again were whole.

And she could feel him, feel the faintest flicker of light at the end of the Bond and her heart swelled with pity. Denied the peace of death, denied the honour and acceptance of becoming a Force ghost for his misdeeds, he was trapped in limbo…alone.

Her soul mate. Her other half.

I am here, she thought and pulled, feeling him reach out to her.

Rey…

His voice was faint, almost devoid of hope but she channeled power through, surging life force into his repaired body.

"Come back, Ben. Be with me. Live."

She was almost glowing, her eyes blazing with light as she surged power, never taking more than a small portion from each person. And she found herself smiling, feeling Rose's essential goodness, Finn's steadfastness, Poe's strength of mind all flowing through her-as well as echoes of Luke and Leia, who she had known so well. Finally, exhausted, she felt him coming closer and closer, the light growing brighter and brighter until she could almost feel his warmth…

…and then she could feel nothing at all.

Her vision blanked and she collapsed backwards, breathing hard and gasping for air. Her friends were all sitting back, looking totally drained. And the Force Ghosts had gone.

"Thank you," she whispered, forcing herself to crawl forward, resting a hand on his chest, the wound gone and perfectly repaired flesh visible through the rent in his tunic. And her eyes flickered open wider, feeling the strong, steady beat of his heart under her hand. She leaned forward, tenderly brushing a lock of raven hair off his forehead and looking into his face.

"Ben?" she asked, sending her concern and hope down the bond. "Ben? Be with me. Don't leave me alone any more."

He took a jagged breath in and his eyelids flickered before his eyes slowly opened and he looked up at her with wonder.

"Rey."