"The girl - how is her training going?"
Ben keeps his head in a low bow as he crouches before the Supreme Leader. Snoke is in his head. He can feel it. Ben focuses. Rey is weak, he forces himself to think as Snoke pries through his head, digging for any bit of information he can precure from his mind.
"She has potential," Ben answers. "But, she needs more training. I need more time to show her the ways of the Dark Side."
"This Rey will have to prove herself worthy to us," Snoke says. "My patience is thin, Kylo Ren."
"You mean to test her?" Ben asks.
"In combat," Snoke replies. "She will either show us she is a worthy asset to The Force Order or she will die trying."
Ben keeps his thoughts focused. He focuses on Rey's fear the first time she felt Snoke's presence and fixates on that one moment. Snoke lips turn up into a twisted grin. Snoke can see Rey's fear and he is reveling in it.
"You are dismissed." Snoke turns away from him, making his way back to his throne.
Ben rises to his feet. He turns away from Snoke, keeping his thoughts centered until he leaves the throne room. Ben makes his way to the elevator and slams his button down to Rey's floor. He breathes deeply, trying his best to refocus his energy. The elevator door opens. Ben collects himself and steps out into the hallway.
The dark energy resonating from Snoke still lingers. Ben feels as if his skin is being stabbed by thousands of needles. He stops before Rey's door and hesitates. Rey mustn't feel his energy in chaos. She needs him to be her mentor and to show her this bit of weakness might shake her confidence in him. Ben takes one final deep breath and places his hand against the buzzer to her room.
The door opens with a swish. Rey looks up to him with her green eyes. There's this energy radiating from her. It's this calm that he's never felt within himself. The girl has been practicing meditation. He senses peace - peace he's never been able to find. A stinging sensation fills his heart and envy swells within him. How? She's only been trained for mere weeks.
Rey's eyes seem to pierce through his mask. There's this light he feels from her as she looks up at him. Ben feels something. It's familiar, but he doesn't remember who he felt this energy from before.
"Hi…" Rey's voice is so soft when she speaks.
Ben is still for a moment. His mind feeds off her energy, clearing the leftover residue that Snoke had projected onto him. He draws in one last bit of her calming energy before he closes himself off to her. He motions for her to follow him and walks through the hall. Ben signals the elevator and waits for it to reach their floor.
Rey is stealing glances at him as they wait. It confuses him - her draw to him that is. Rey has become attached to him in this way that he can't quite understand. Maybe she doesn't even understand it herself.
The elevator doors open. Ben steps inside and waits for Rey to follow. Once Rey is by his side, Ben presses the button to his desired floor. The doors close, leaving the both of them in silence. Ben recalls Snoke's words - the one's regarding Rey proving herself. It really shouldn't matter to him what happens to her, but he suddenly feels this tinge of fear. What if she does perish?
It doesn't matter. Ben tries to think those three small words over and over again, but it doesn't change his fear. He needs to keep her alive. So, he will have to work her hard. He cannot go easy on her, because the enemies she will soon face will show her no mercy.
The doors open. Ben exits the elevator with Rey following closely behind him. Ben stops before the training room and keys in the access code. The door slides open. Ben steps inside and motions her inside before closing the door behind her. Rey walks to the center of the room and turns back to him. He allows himself one glimpse inside her mind. Rey wants to see his face - his true face.
Ben goes to a nearby table and pulls his mask from his head. He sets his mask on top of the table and pauses, his fingers lingering on the corner of the table. He turns away from the table and faces Rey. Ben reaches inside his cloak and retrieves a lightsaber attached to his belt. Rey's eyes look to it. Ben outstretches her hand and offers her the lightsaber. She approaches him and takes the lightsaber in hand.
"I can hold it," she whispers. "It's not like it was before."
"Most of these weapons are imprinted with dark energy. Your mind was untrained so you fell prey to the energy that still lingers from its previous master," Ben explains.
"Someone else owned this weapon?" Rey asks.
"At some point, yes," he answers. "The crystals used in these weapons are so few and far between that newer models are hard to come by."
Ben reaches for his lightsaber and takes it in hand. He presses the button to ignite his weapon. Three red beams ignite from the hilt. Rey looks to his blade in awe. Rey looks down to the hilt of her weapon. She outstretches her arm, keeping it far from her body. She presses the button to ignite her weapon. A single red blade ignites from it parallel to the floor. She tests it in her hands, the blade humming as she moves it through the air.
"You think I can learn to use this?" she asks, her eyes still on the blade.
"Only if you're willing to learn," he replies. "Rey, I want you to try to strike me with your blade."
Fear resonates from her. She looks to him with uncertain eyes. Rey looks back down on the blade as worry fills her eyes.
"I don't want to hurt you," she says with a quiver in her tone.
It's endearing how naïve she truly is. She truly believes she can hurt him. Ben looks to her, his gaze piercing through hers.
"You won't hurt me, Rey," he says with confidence.
Rey takes a hesitant step towards him. The fear of hurting him is swelling within her. Her eyes drop to the floor. Rey hesitates and lowers her lightsaber. Rey's eyes flicker up to his. She takes another cautious step towards him. She pauses one last time before she charges forward. Rey swings her blade towards him. Ben raises his blade, catching her attack against the crossguard of his lightsaber.
Ben steps backwards and blocks her next attack with ease. She's holding back, because she's afraid to cause pain. She's afraid to kill.
"Don't hold back," he instructs. "You're enemies will not hesitate to kill you."
Rey steps back from him. She holds her lightsaber in front of her in a diagonal line. Her chest is heaving as she draws in heavy breaths of air. She must learn. Ben takes advantage of her hesitation. He swings his blade against hers, knocking it from her hands. Rey stumbles backwards and falls to the floor. Ben places his lightsaber close enough to her neck so that she can feel the heat coming off of it, but not enough to hurt her. Her eyes look to the blade in terror.
"You cannot hesitate, Rey," he says. "You cannot sympathize with your enemy or show mercy. If you are merciful, you will die."
Ben removes the blade from her neck. Her mind that was once in peaceful clarity has become chaotic. He leans to the floor and takes her hand in his. The peace she found had so easily has crumbled around her like a house of cards. Ben lifts her to her feet.
"There is a certain draw to peace," he says. "But, as I said before, it is never enough. It won't protect you when others wish to hurt you. Peace will not save you from death. Peace is a lie. There is only passion, and through that passion, you will find strength and power.
Rey's hand is interlaced in his. Her green eyes look up to him. Doubt still lingers in her mind. He can sense her apprehension at the thought of inflicting pain.
"I'm not afraid to die, sir," she admits in a sharp whisper.
"Maybe not," his eyes linger on hers. "But, there are worse things than death. To be taken alive by your enemies, to be held against your will…that is worse than death."
Rey's mind seems to scatter at his words. Fear shrouds her mind. He hates that he has to use her worst fears as encouragement, but if Snoke means to throw her out into battle so soon, this is what he must do to prepare her.
Rey's eyes look to her lightsaber. Her hand releases from his. She goes to the lightsaber still ignited on the training room floor. Rey crotches to the floor and takes the lightsaber in hand. She holds it still in her hand for a moment before she turns back to face him.
Ben beckons her forward with a gloved hand. Her soft eyes become fierce as she charges towards him. Fear turns to passion. He grins to himself. He may make a worthy Sith out of this girl after all.
