—Chapter 22: Déjà Vu—

The door to Faris Ren's personal quarters opened, and the pair stepped into the vast, expansive grandeur of the Supreme Leader's private residence. Sharna felt a shiver as she took in the fine details of the space. Every surface was pristinely kept, and the sharp contours of the architecture and furnishings conveyed strength. Multiple elaborate doorways lined the perimeter of this front room, probably leading to more comfortable, less intimidating rooms beyond—but this space was for first impressions, and those had nothing to do with putting guests at ease. Sharna wanted to lay down in the middle of it and let the power wash over her. First things first.

Faris's back was to Sharna as he strolled across the foyer. A door slid open at his approach and he entered it without breaking stride. He looked over his shoulder back at Sharna, who stood at attention just outside the door. He beckoned for her to enter, and she stepped through the threshold. Faris had made his way over to a bar at the far end of the room, but Sharna had planted herself just inside the doorway, preferring to observe from a distance. Nothing about this room was right—much like the man at the bar, it was entirely too plush.

"Would you like something to drink?" asked Faris, lifting a decanter of honey-colored liquid up for her to observe. "Coruscanti whisky. Best liquor in the Core."

"No thank you, my lord," replied Sharna dryly. Her vocoder camouflaged her indifference. She hoped she wouldn't have to endure this little farce for too much longer.

"Suit yourself. I'm having some." Faris poured a small glass of the amber fluid, and tossed it back in one gulp. He poured himself another. "One of the perks of being Supreme Leader is that I get to enjoy the finest of everything the galaxy has to offer," he said, waggling his eyebrows at her.

Sharna refused to let her disdain show. "I'm sure the galaxy is only too happy to accommodate you. The people want their ruler to know they appreciate the protection and excellent leadership he provides."

"Indeed," he replied, settling himself down in an opulent loveseat adjacent to the bar. "They will do anything I ask."

Sharna could feel the bile rising in her throat as Faris's eyes roamed over her body.

"Why don't you take that mask off and come sit with me?" pleaded Faris suggestively. "It will be some time before Lorim reaches Kamino. We may as well relax for a bit."

She swallowed her revulsion, grateful for the very mask he wanted her to remove—it hid her contempt. "But my lord, it is my duty to remain alert. I can scarcely be counted on to protect you if I allow myself to become too relaxed." She wasn't sure how much longer she could feign interest in him and his antics. All she was waiting on now was for Kylo Ren to make his appearance.

As if the Force itself heard her thoughts and sought to deliver her from her misery, an alert chimed over the intercom system. Faris looked around stupidly for the source of the noise.

Sharna rolled her eyes under her mask. "My lord, the intercom is programmed to recognize your voice. Simply answer normally from where you sit."

Faris recovered inelegantly, but did as she suggested. "Of course, my dear." He cleared his throat and spoke into the ceiling, "This is Supreme Leader Faris Ren. State your business."

It was Captain Yara, the Supremacy's head of security. "Supreme Leader, General Hux was attacked in the detention cell. He is currently in the infirmary being treated for a punctured lung, broken ribs, and concussion resulting from blunt force trauma."

Faris jumped in surprise. "The Jedi attacked him? How?"

"My lord, it's unclear. According to the stormtroopers who were on guard outside the cell, there was a loud thud against the door before it opened and General Hux crawled out, screaming for them to seal the door. He was heard uttering the word 'Ren' before passing out."

This was music to Sharna Ren's ears. At last, he's here…

"What does Hux have to say about this?" queried Faris.

"He remains unconscious, my lord."

Faris sighed deeply. "Alright, fine, I'll come down there. Is there anything else I should know before I head to the infirmary?"

"That's all we know for certain at this time, sir. Simeon Ren is investigating further and will report directly to you," replied Yara.

"Terrific. Okay, I'll head out soon." Faris's eyes flitted around the room curiously, finally returning his gaze to Sharna. "How do I turn it off?"

"Sir, come over here," suggested Sharna helpfully. Faris rose from his seat and met her in the middle of the room.

"Yes?" he inquired.

"It's already off, you fool," she snarled, igniting her lightsaber and stabbing it into Faris's abdomen. Faris's eyes went wide, and he clutched at the hilt of Sharna's saber. She held him in place, relishing the look of complete befuddlement he wore.

"Sharna…" Faris intoned, slumping forward, further impaling himself on the crimson blade.

"What? Is something the matter, my lord?" Her voice oozed sarcasm. "Oh! Did Kylo Ren just stab you in the gut? I heard he was sneaking around in here somewhere, come to rescue his Jedi girlfriend. That fiend! I'll be sure to tell everyone he was here. Then I'll collect my army and avenge you, don't you worry." With that, she wrenched her lightsaber out from Faris's stomach, emptying his abdominal cavity out onto the rug in the process. With a muculent squish, Faris's body fell to the floor.

She stepped back, surveying her handiwork. The room was far too orderly to have been the scene of a fight to the death. Reaching down, she unclipped Faris's saber from his belt and placed it in his hand, then walked a circle around his body and kicked over a few things, smashing a few baubles and slashing a few pillows. When she was satisfied that it looked enough like Faris had actually put up a fight, she headed for the exit.

As the door opened before her, she took one last look back at her Supreme Leader and sighed. "It really is a shame about the rug," she lamented, turning on her heel and leaving the lavish room, whistling to herself as she strolled through the imposing foyer and out of the residence.

She looks like hell.

Finn had been able to get a good look at Rey—Ben hadn't let go of her once since opening their connection. Rey's face was purple and misshapen, and her eyes, though open, were barely more than slits in the engorged tissue of her eyelids. Blood trickled out of her broken nose. Ben and Rey had been looking at one another meaningfully, saying nothing, for what felt like too long, and Finn was starting to worry if they were actually communicating, as he'd assumed, or if they were just spinning their wheels, wasting time while Rey sat there suffering.

Poe stood silently by, watching as well, shocked, but not so frozen that he wasn't still trying to come up with a plan for how to help Rey. Their problem was that they were still another ninety minutes from the Finalizer.

Ben nodded his head at Rey, and turned to address the onlookers standing near him. "She says they still don't know where the base is, so you're safe for now. They've attacked Corellia as well as Arkanis, so their recruitment ships will probably be heading out toward Kamino again to deliver their spoils." He looked remorsefully back at Rey. "Rey's pretty sure she has multiple fractures in her face and upper body. Also, she was moved to the Supremacy, so we'll want to avoid the Finalizer when we arrive."

He didn't mention it to them, but he'd had a long chat with Rey about what had transpired with the clones after she had left him there. Why Hux had said they were dead, he didn't know, but he tried his best to convince her that if they were, it was through no fault of hers.

Poe looked at Ben. "Is there anything else you can do for her from here? Could you, I don't know, heal her?"

Finn brightened at the suggestion. "Hey, yeah, could you?"

Ben was still wearing a hopeless expression, but considered the idea. "I'm not sure. We may need to be together in the same place. I've also only ever dealt with superficial wounds," he added, looking her over gravely. "But I could try."

"We can't do anything else for her in the next ninety minutes…" remarked Poe.

Up to this point, Ben had been leaning over Rey, close enough to feel her ragged breathing on his cheek. Before he could begin, he had to step back and straighten his spine some, giving himself a much needed stretch. Then he rubbed his bare hands together as he took several deep breaths. He made like he was about to touch Rey's face, but stopped himself and turned his head to Finn and Poe. "Don't talk to me," he ordered, very plainly.

Poe just stared. Finn nodded weakly. Thus assured that his companions wouldn't disturb him, Ben laid his hands gently upon Rey's face. Rey, who had disappeared from her friends' view while Ben was readying himself, became visible once more. She winced, and everyone held their breath.

The doors to the infirmary opened with a whine, and Sharna Ren surveyed the room and its occupants, looking for the one person in the galaxy whom she enjoyed interacting with less than anyone else. Other than a few stormtroopers being treated for minor cuts and bruises they probably suffered during training exercises, most of the stations were empty. Toward the back of the infirmary, a respectable number of beds removed from the next nearest patient, was her target, General Armitage Hux.

Exhaling, Sharna readied herself to go speak with the unpleasant man. Approaching his bed, she was relieved to see that he was still unconscious—she wouldn't actually need to talk to him. Glancing at the readout next to the bed, she saw that his condition was perfectly stable. His shirt and jacket had been removed prior to repairing his internal injuries, and he had been kept unconscious to facilitate the healing process—although that had completed some time ago. They probably left him unconscious because they don't like talking to him either, mused Sharna. He looks smarmy even in his sleep.

Sharna Ren held her hand up near the general's forehead and began scouring his memory. She saw Faris, Simeon and herself exiting the detention cell, and his eyes moved to the girl. Such disrespect, she thought, as she witnessed him openly bad-mouthing Faris to the Jedi—not that she herself held all that much respect for Faris, but Hux's station didn't entitle him to say such things.

Then began the physical assault. This was clearly personal. She could feel his pent up hatred being unleashed, but it was not toward the Resistance, or the girl, but toward Kylo Ren himself. By smashing this girl's face in, Hux knew he was destroying something Kylo valued.

The memory continued like this for quite a while. This is getting repetitive… When does Kylo show up?

"What are you doing?"

Sharna jumped in surprise, interrupted from her perusal. Turning toward the intrusion, she found Simeon Ren standing behind her. Given the infrequency with which he ever spoke, the sound of his voice struck Sharna as distinctly alien, and she couldn't help feeling rattled by it. She quashed the uncomfortable sensation.

"Nothing, what are you doing here? I thought you were investigating the attack on Hux?" she asked.

"There's nothing more to learn there. The cell is sealed with the Jedi inside. I came to speak to the Supreme Leader. Where is he?"

This development took Sharna Ren by surprise. Why wouldn't Kylo have freed her when he attacked Hux? She probably weighs fifty pounds wet… surely, he could have carried her out… Figuring that out was a future problem. Her more immediate concern was explaining Faris's absence from the infirmary. She had been planning to tell Simeon that Kylo had murdered him, but without confirmation from Hux's memories of Kylo's presence on the ship, she was reluctant to pin anything on him just yet. She had to improvise.

"He decided to send me to the infirmary in his place. He can't stand talking to Hux if he doesn't have to." This was as sound an excuse as she could ever hope to have.

"I see. Well, let us wake him up then," replied Simeon, and he punched some commands into the biomonitoring system. Hux's eyelids fluttered.

Dammit, cursed Sharna to herself.

Upon realizing where he was, and noting his compromised and unflattering state, Hux shot up from the bed. He flung his legs off the side and stood as tall as he could, hastily ripping the biomonitoring tags from his face and arm, smoothing down his hair, and reaching for the rest of his bile-stained uniform.

He cleared his throat before addressing his visitors. "Greetings," he said formally, fastening buttons with a deftness that could only have been attained through rigorous practice. "What is the status of our prisoner? What of Kylo Ren?"

Yes, you fool, let me pin this on him… pleaded Sharna. This was a momentous occasion—she actually wanted Hux to keep talking.

Simeon Ren answered, and Hux was nearly as taken aback as Sharna had been to hear him speak. "The prisoner remains in detention. The guards were instructed to let us know if anything developed. As for Kylo Ren? Nothing. When you said 'Ren' before collapsing, no one realized that Kylo was the 'Ren' to whom you referred. Please elaborate."

Not 'no one', thought Sharna, Just not you.

Hux stared off at some spot across the room and bit his lip. With a shake of his head, he offered a retelling of his experience that sounded ridiculous in his own ears. "I was looking right at her when he just... appeared in front of me. He saw me, and knocked me into the door. He was about to attack me further, so I escaped as fast as I could. That's when I blacked out." He took a long breath, and stared at the part of Simeon's mask where he expected his eyes would have been. "He literally appeared out of nowhere… Is that normal for you people?"

Though Sharna wanted to punch him for his disrespectful tone, she and Simeon ignored the impudent question. Looks like there's more to Force bonds than I realized, she thought with alarm. Besides being aware of their existence, Sharna really knew very little about them. Seeing Kylo's glove in Hux's chambers was the only indication she'd had that passing objects across the galaxy was even possible through such a bond, but it was the most logical explanation for why a Knight's glove would have been at the Jedi's feet. Becoming physically present in the other person's world went well beyond what she would have thought possible. And it also complicated her plans tremendously if he wasn't actually on board, as she'd been assuming when she murdered Faris. Eventually, Faris's body would be found, and unless a suspect presented himself soon, Sharna, as the last person with whom he'd been seen, would face heightened suspicion.

Sharna Ren needed to dictate the direction of events going forward. "Simeon Ren, put the ship on alert for the traitor Kylo Ren, and conduct a scan of nearby space for any small craft that may be in the area. Then I suggest we go check on our Jedi friend."

Hux interrupted, "Hold. Order the alert and the scan, and then report to the Supreme Leader. I will return to my quarters on the Finalizer to get changed, then we'll meet back at the detention cell. Do not go in there without me."

Simeon Ren nodded curtly and swept from the infirmary to see to his responsibilities. Sharna, irritated that the news of Faris's death would become public so soon, glared at Hux through the blackness of her mask. "I'll come with you," she said, struggling to keep the menace out of her tone. Deciding which of the two men to keep an eye on was easy. Simeon was a predictable grunt going to do a predictable job—Hux was an insolent troublemaker. She would follow him back to his room and make sure he didn't do anything to complicate her situation even further—and in the meantime she hoped a plausible explanation for Faris's demise would come to her.

Having hastily requisitioned a shuttle back to the Finalizer, Hux arrived at his quarters in relatively short order. The fury he felt in the interrogation room had subsided somewhat, but he was incredibly anxious to get back to that cell and neutralize the girl. He might even kill her. Having to give up the possibility of ever getting the location of the Resistance base out of her would be a fair tradeoff if he could just see the look on Kylo Ren's face the moment he learned of the girl's end.

The door to his quarters opened, and Hux entered swiftly. He immediately noticed the lightsaber missing from his desk, and stopped abruptly in his tracks.

"Something the matter?" asked Sharna Ren. Hux did not care for her at all—she displayed the same self-importance and aggrandizing as Kylo Ren himself. Indeed, all these mystics disgusted him.

Hux didn't answer her immediately, running up to the front of his desk and opening the drawers. "Someone's been going through my things," he said.

"Is something missing?" she asked, almost coyly. She was intensely curious if he would actually admit to having left the lightsaber out in plain view for someone to take, or if he would try to hide his foolishness from her.

"There was—Was there anything on my desk earlier when you came to get the scavenger?" he asked.

"On your desk? Not that I recall, no. Why? Are you missing something?" she asked again. Could Hux tell she thought this was funny? Did she even care?

"Never mind," he said with irritation, reaching into a low drawer. With a barely audible click, something inside the drawer shifted. Hux pulled a wide ring-shaped device from the depths of the drawer and slipped it quickly into his pocket, almost as if he didn't want Sharna to see it.

"Was that a neural disruptor?" she asked, genuinely impressed. It seemed the good general had a few surprises to offer up after all. It was no wonder he didn't want her to see it—those could disable even Force sensitive individuals.

"Let's just get the girl," he demanded, storming away from his desk and out of his quarters, the sanctity and pristine order of which he felt had been well and truly violated. Due to his hurry—or maybe it was the concussion—he had completely forgotten to change out of his soiled uniform.

Even before Simeon Ren had made it all the way to the door of the detention cell, it was obvious things were amiss. The door to the cell was wide open, and the guards were nowhere to be found. Simeon allowed himself a small smile under his mask. This Jedi amused him.

Stepping up beside him as he surveyed the area was Sharna Ren, back from her jaunt over to the Finalizer with Hux. "Well, look at that. Our little Jedi is just full of surprises, isn't she?"

Hux, as always, was fuming, the color in his face reddening to match his hair. Why did these insufferable Force users view everything as a game?

Sharna couldn't help but find the whole thing terribly funny, and she flirted briefly with the idea of laughing right in his weaselly little face. This was absolutely perfect. In the end, however, her professionalism won out, and apparent stoicism endured.

"Okay, so where could she have gone?" asked Sharna. "I'm guessing the guards who were stationed here are either dead or have selective amnesia. Did the bridge's scans pick up any ships?"

"No," replied Simeon Ren simply.

Sharna thought quickly. With the Jedi escaped, there were all sorts of new explanations for Faris's death emerging. She decided to press Simeon and find out if he knew about Faris yet. "What did the Supreme Leader say when you told him about Kylo attacking the general?"

"The Supreme Leader is dead," he replied, without emotion.

Hux's eyes went wide. "What?"

Simeon continued, "He was disemboweled with a lightsaber. In his quarters."

Sharna listened raptly, curious if Simeon would volunteer anything more. When he didn't, Sharna helped him out. "The Jedi must have killed him."

Both Simeon Ren and Hux turned to Sharna. Simeon's face, under his mask, was unreadable, but Hux's expression went beyond words. "But that's impossible! I—" Hux stopped himself from saying any more.

Sharna once again had her mask to thank for obscuring her mirth from this idiot. You what? You disarmed her? But then you let her take back her saber because you were careless? Is that what you were about to say? I didn't think so…

When she was sure she could speak without giggling through it, Sharna simply asked, "You what?"

Hux balled his fists at his sides. "Nothing… let's just find her and get control of this situation."

"I completely agree," professed Sharna. "Simeon, since you're so good with the folks on the bridge, would you please instruct them to get our fleet over to Kamino? I'm certain we can expect those predictable Resistance scum to try to take our property from us once again. Let's not be caught so flat-footed this time." Simeon nodded, and headed for the bridge. "And you're going to help me catch that snipe," she said, looking at Hux. "Got your toy ready?"

Rey was free. After healing her, Ben had released her from her restraints and armed her with a blaster. Resolving to keep her escape a secret for as long as possible, she decided to neutralize the guards with suggestion. When the door suddenly slid open behind them, they were startled and ready to fire, but Rey froze them in their tracks and followed up with quick instructions to return to their quarters for a nap. Now that she was out, however, she struggled to figure out where to go.

She felt a little lighter for having talked to Ben, but not much. The clone children were dead, but not by her or Ben's actions. Ben, at least, had done what she could not: in the heat of the moment, he had been able to see an army of children bred to bring about their death and destruction and still just see children. She felt enormous shame that she had fallen so far, but her pride in him, that his better angels had prevailed, gave her hope that she too could do better going forward.

That the children were dead anyway was a mystery she hoped to unravel later. First: escape.

However, though making it out of the cell had been easy, making it around this ship was a good deal more complicated. The Supremacy II was so sanitary that mapping it with the Force was nearly impossible; microscopic life was integral to being able to read any kind of a Force signature off of inanimate objects—there must have been droids scrubbing this ship sterile on a constant, rotating basis. Added to that, the sheer size of the Supremacy made trying to find anything specific—like an escape pod or a shuttle—by just wandering around hopelessly inefficient. At this rate, Ben would probably get here first. Either way, she wanted to find her saberstaff before getting off the ship for good.

That woman. She had taken her saber, she knew it. Rey had seen her looking at it on Hux's desk, and when she asked to be left alone to snoop through Hux's room, well, that was just too obvious. To get to her saber, she would need to find that woman. Rey needed to find someplace where she could hide and focus on looking for her specific signature.

Rey peeked around corners, looking for someplace that would suit her needs. Spotting an access port in the wall about twenty feet further down the next hallway, she made her way in that direction. Sensing no one nearby, she opened the port and snuck inside.

She took a few centering breaths, not having had the freedom to just breathe and focus in what felt like ages. As she relaxed, her mind drifted to Ben. She missed him. She missed the odd calm that he exuded—did he exude it? Or did she just feel calmer around him? When she actually thought about it, "calm" wasn't a characteristic she would have ever ascribed to him, at least not until recently. When did he start seeming calm? And anyway, had they really been apart long enough for missing him to make much sense? They had spoken, had touched, using the Force, not even fifteen minutes ago—but that wasn't the same as actually being together. How long ago had that been? It felt like weeks, but it had probably really only been a day.

A very long day. Rey was exhausted. Since her last real rest, she had traveled several hours through hyperspace to Kamino, fought stormtroopers, freed children, interrogated First Order officers, battled TIE fighters, crashed her X-wing, been detained, been tortured, and been on the run. Focus was difficult—she was too distracted by her own fatigue. She wondered how bad it would be if she just took a nap in the access port. If her friends showed up to help her, surely Ben could find her signature and get her out whether she was asleep or not.

Then again, what if her captors could do that as well?

No. It wasn't time yet. Steeling herself, Rey felt a burst of energy and sense of purpose. Got to find her saberstaff. She took another several steadying breaths, and pushed out with her senses. Just like that first time, she saw the white noise begin to coalesce around her. The noise was considerably quieter here, on this antiseptic death machine, but still, she could feel it. The people onboard were bright beacons humming with energy, and as she watched them move, the layout of the Supremacy actually became much more concrete to her as their forms cut paths through the empty spaces within. She could count the number of floors, and she could see the shape of the whole vessel spanning the full sixty klicks wide. She just needed to zero in on one particular signature to find her saber. Now where was it?

Narrowing the radius of her search, she felt for any familiar signatures on her same floor. She wasn't sure she knew any of them well enough to match them to their specific identities, but she found five signatures on the whole ship that seemed reasonably familiar to her—two were Force sensitive. There was General Hux, the two stormtroopers who had been guarding her, and five Knights of Ren, including Faris, making a total of eight individuals whose signatures she might find familiar. So there were two Knights on board, then. Which two, she didn't know, but she hoped one of them would have her saber.

If only she wasn't so exhausted, this process would be so much more efficient. Refocusing her efforts, she attempted to pinpoint the signatures closest to her present position. There were two nearby that were moving together, and one was probably a Knight. They were very close.

"Well now, looks like our bird found a lovely little nest. General, you know what to do."

It was the woman. Rey drew her feelings back into herself and summoned all her strength to face her would-be captors, but it was too late. She felt something cold on the back of her neck. Then she felt nothing at all.