The girl was just as he expected her to be. He could feel her from across the stars — the pain, the suffering, everything — before they met. Even while she sleeps, he can feel the anger pour from her in heavy waves of emotion. Her emotions are chaotic, untempered, but not dangerous. She has yet to understand her power, and if left to her own devices, she may never reach even half her potential.

Ben looks to his grandfather's disfigured mask. He searches for guidance. There is a connection between himself and the girl from Jakku. He can feel that this connection runs deep, but he cannot seem to draw the answers to this hidden link that binds them. He searches with his mind. Whatever the connection may be, it runs deeper than a mere coincidence.

Ben rises to his feet. He retrieves his mask and places it over his head. The Force has drawn them together through some type of bond, a bond established years before either of them existed. He can feel it. Energy that's transcended through generations, but he can't seem to find the answer to their bond.

He must see her. Ben crosses through his private quarters and exits into the hallway. Ben passes two officers clad in black uniforms. His eyes catch the emblem stitched on their sleeves. The First Order — it is a means to end rather than a belief system he subscribes to. Ben pulls back his thoughts and hides them in the back of his mind. Snoke may be in his head right now, searching for signs of misplaced loyalty. If Ben's intentions are discovered, his careful planning will be all for nothing.

A group of Stormtroopers file out of an elevator, each of them saluting as they pass him. Ben ignores their salute and enters the elevator. He presses his index finger against the button to his desired floor. He clasps his hands behind his back and corrects his posture. The doors close, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

The elevator descends downward in a sharp motion. Ben absentmindedly rocks back and forth as several thoughts flit through his mind. Who is this girl? She has such a strong connection to the Force. How is it that someone as strong as herself ended up in Jakku of all places? The next question that comes to his mind is her parentage. His mother and father only had one child and his uncle has remained celibate. That could only mean that she is from a different lineage entirely.

The elevator slows to a stop. The doors swish open. He brings both his hands to his side and steps into the almost vacant hallway. The barracks floor of the Supremacy is hardly active at such a late hour. Most of the lower level enlisted soldiers have either gone to sleep or are working the overnight shift. He passes door after door until he finds the room he is looking for. He places in the commanding officer's override code to trip the lock on the door. In most cases, it's used primarily to enter the rooms of enlisted men in the event that scheduled personnel are late for their shifts. Not this time. Override Complete flashes in red letters before the door opens. Ben prepares himself for whatever reaction the girl may have from indifference to fear.

Lights turn on as he steps inside the room. She lays in a small cot with her back turned to him. Her breaths are heavy but slow. She's still asleep. Ben grabs a stool placed in front of a small, empty desk. He sets the stool in front of the cot and sits. His hand hovers over the girl for a mere second before he wills her to wake from her slumber.

The girl draws in a sharp breath. She turns over on her side and props herself up on her elbows. Her green eyes are dilated with both fear and confusion. She looks up to him. Her breath comes out in heavy gasps. Her eyes lower for a moment as she swallows nervously. She looks back to him.

"Where am I? " her voice is demanding, despite her situation.

"You are on a First Order capital ship," he informs her. "We met on Jakku. I am unsure of how much you remember before you fainted."

Her breath seems to steady. "I remember you killed him."

"The Corlute? If I recall correctly, you helped me kill him," Ben replies.

The girl sits up, crossing her legs as she straightens her posture. She no longer looks to him with fear. There's a curiosity in her eyes that seems to linger as her gaze casts upon him.

"What is your name?" he asks.

"Rey," she answers.

"Just Rey?"

"I don't have a last name, or maybe I just don't remember it," she pauses. "Who are you?"

"I am a commanding officer in The First Order," he pauses before he says his second name. "Kylo Ren."

Rey's eyes lower. He can feel the conflict within her. He chooses not to search her mind. If he is ever to train her in the ways of the Force, there must be trust established between them first. To pick pieces from her mind to use against her would destroy any chance of that trust being established.

"I can't go back to Jakku," Rey says. A fragile sort of quiver tones her voice when she continues, "I don't know where to go…"

Ben can see tears form in her eyes when she looks back up to him. She's fighting her emotions. He can sense as much. Ben can ease her pain away in just one motion of his hand, but he won't. Rey must learn to handle her emotions on her own. That is the first thing she must master if she ever wants to become what she is meant to be.

A single tear falls down her cheek. Rey wipes the tear with the back of her fingers. She takes in a heavy breath. She wants to appear stronger than she is. He can feel that much from her, but she's already been so beat down by the society she was raised in. It won't be easy for her to regain control of thoughts, her emotions, and her life itself.

"I don't have anyone," she says. "I don't know how useful I'd be here. If you could drop me off somewhere…"

The words "somewhere in the New Republic" seem forced into his mind as if she wishes for him to hear them. Yet, she refrains from speaking the words. She must know how hopeless she sounds. She lacks the communication skills it would take to survive in a more developed society. Developed worlds all adhere to an unspoken economic class system. A poor girl from Jakku with no family name would amount to nothing in the developed world. If anything, she would be better off starting all over in a chaotic society similar to the one she knows from Jakku.

"You could go to The New Republic if you wish."

His offer is a mere farce. Snoke would never allow it. That and it would be foolish to let such a powerful force user slip through his fingers. But, the illusion of having control may gain him her trust.

"Where would you take me?" her voice is a small whisper.

"I thought you had a place in mind."

Her brow raises in confusion. "I don't know… "

"You've never been anywhere but Jakku, have you?" he asks.

"I might have when I was young," she replies. "I don't remember. I think I have though. I remember a place with so many lights."

Her eyes cast downwards at her crossed legs. Her fingers curl into the bedding beneath her. Grief and anger both seem to pour from her in waves. She's been so hurt and abused that her mind is an array of scattered emotions.

Rey's eyes become glossed over. Her gaze seems as if it's in some far away place, possibly an ideal life she imagined that can never be. Life can never be so easy.

"Rey," her name flies from his lips in a soft murmur.

The girl's eyes flicker up to his. They become focused as they seem to study his mask with a new found curiosity.

"Rey," he says her name in a stronger tone this time. "The developed world is different from the world you know. The people are just as cruel, but in different ways."

"It can't be worse than Jakku," she argues. "If I could just see it for myself…"

"You would be disappointed," he says. "I could take you there, but I ask you to consider a different option."

"A different option? I don't understand."

"Join me," he says. "I can teach you many things."

Rey's eyes narrow at him. "I can't join The First Order! "

Her eyes flicker downwards. Her lips are pressed together as she seethes with a confused sort of anger. Her eyes seem to soften as she looks back up to him. "Thank you, Kylo Ren, for everything. But, I cannot accept this offer, not in my good conscience. I know enough about The First Order, and it's not something I want to be a part of."

Silences befalls both of them. It's the kind of silence that feels like miles of distance stand between them rather than an error of communication. The girl's lips part, but she hesitates. He can sense her uncertainty.

"If you wish to leave, I will take you to a planet of your choosing," he says. "But, I ask that you consider your options before you make a choice. I can teach you many things, Rey."

"What would you teach me?" she asks. "How to kill? I'm not sure that's something I want to learn."

But, isn't it? He remembers the way she looked upon Unkar Plutt's lifeless body. She was the one that fired the shot that took his arm off. A part of her wants to kill. He can sense that hidden desire buried deep within her soul.

"Think about it as a way to defend yourself," he offers her a different viewpoint. "When you reach the developed world, you will be more aptly prepared to deal with men like the ones you knew on Jakku."

"I…" she pauses. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to learn."

Ben rises to his feet. Those are the words he needed to hear. She may resist now, but when she learns what she is, she will never leave his side. He looks to her, taking in each detail from her slender form to her chestnut colored hair.

"I will call on you tomorrow, Rey," he says.

Rey looks up to him. Her lips part as if to say something, but instead, she chooses silence. He studies her features one last time before turning away from her. He stops for a split second. He thinks to show her his real face, but that thought passes in a single fleeting moment. He walks to the door and doesn't dare look back.