General Hux coughed, clearing his throat. "Supreme Leader, the Order of Organa is gaining power. Their fleets have grown stronger," General Hux said as he bowed before Snoke himself. "Shall we release our new fleets?"

Snoke, who stood a towering seven feet, looked down irritably at Hux and the other generals across the table in the large conference room. "I believe it is time to do so. Now that I have made sure that the princess is no longer at the helm of the resistance, I sense there is disorder in the Organa faction," he said, gesturing out a slim hand. "But we are still missing a key component. One that you, General Hux, have failed to return to me," Snoke hissed slowly.

"Sir?" Hux asked nervously, confused.

"Kylo Ren believes he has escaped from our grasp. But he is naive. I sense him now that he is in the presence of another Force-sensitive. One that has been on the Finalizer before, but due to all of your poor direction, managed to escape." He glared down at the generals around the table, who ducked their heads, avoiding his piercing gaze.

Hux's lip curled at Kylo Ren's mention, but he remained silent as he brainstormed for a moment. "The Scavenger from Jakku?" Hux asked, surprised.

"Very good," Snoke sneered condescendingly. "For now, release the new troops. We must make our presence known. In the meantime, I will collect Kylo Ren myself, along with you, General," he announced. He glared directly at Hux, who shrunk under his gaze. "Ren is apparently under the impression that he is free to follow his own will. We shall remind Ren of his place."

"Yes, Supreme Leader," Hux nodded, unable to hide his eager smile.

….

"Master Luke," Poe addressed, shifting his pilot's helmet around in his hands. Finn stood at his side. Luke turned and nodded at them in greeting. "We have some pressing news."

Finn stepped forward. "Sir, I know it's...it's a difficult time for you, for all of us, of course, but we have some good news we thought you might like to hear."

Luke gave a solemn nod. "Go on."

"Through better trade alliances with the Azalea system we've been prospering, and we've been able to purchase a lot of new ships and equipment. We no longer have to use the leftovers from the old Resistance."

Finn looked to Poe, who continued. "Our forces have expanded rapidly in the past two months. Our recruiting programs have finally paid off, and our Star Fleet is now well over twice the size as it was at the start of the year," Poe explained.

Luke nodded silently, looking from Poe to Finn, who felt dispirited when Luke's face remained sullen.

Poe stepped forward, his eyes brightening. "Sir, we are fully equipped to face the First Order once again."

Luke shifted his gaze, considering. "I see. That is good, very good. But our enemies have grown stronger too, I have sensed it. And...I am afraid we are no longer fighting the First Order," he said, his tone dark, sullen. His gaze slowly lifted. "We are now facing a new Empire."

….

For the following week, Ben continued training Rey as usual, with absolutely no mention of the kiss the had shared. He helped her to further develop her skills in lightsaber combat, still having her use the her makeshift double-ended saber.

Even though they never mentioned what had happened between them, pretending as if it had never happened in the first place, Rey felt that their dynamic had shifted. There was a distinct tension between them, one that made Rey acutely aware of her thudding heart and clammy hands at all times. Ben and her no longer talked as much, resorting only to short, light conversation when they were back at the house. She noticed that when she looked at Ben, he seemed unwilling to maintain eye contact with her for very long, his eyes flickering quickly away. He also now stuttered sometimes when he spoke, as if he had become more self-conscious.

Ben had also begun teaching her the importance of meditation to strengthen her connection to the Force. They would sit across from one another in the snow, their eyes closed for long periods of time, and Ben would calmly guide her with centering her thoughts and emotions to access the full power of the Force.

During these silent meditation periods, Rey always felt unable to fully concentrate, unable to steer her thoughts away from their kiss, continually sneaking peeks across at Ben in the silence. Several times, she caught him doing the same.

….

It had been seven days since Rey had kissed him, yet it seemed that this was all that Ben could think about. He wasn't sure whether she'd done it out of sympathy, an attempt to comfort him, or if it had arisen from a different feeling. A feeling that he himself had begun to experience from the moment he'd laid eyes on her back on Takodana.

His thoughts were almost always centered Rey, building to the point of obsession.

Thinking about her brought him warmth, excitement, and yet trepidation all at once, realizing that he was falling down an irreversible path. He struggled to keep his composure around her, trying to remain as stoic as possible, to keep from betraying his burgeoning emotions.

Ben yearned to touch her again, to feel her warm cheek, her soft lips upon his. He tried his hardest to refocus his thoughts, to calm his mind, especially when trying to show Rey how to meditate. But during these sessions he could only fixate on the fact that Rey sat just a few yards from himself, so tantalizingly close.

But above all, Ben realized that because Rey was so strong in the Force, potentially just as strong as he, she needed to be able to effectively defend herself, for her Force sensitivity made her a target. Especially if—perish the thought—Snoke ever managed to find her.

On the afternoon of this seventh day, Ben was coaching Rey with her footwork while she practiced her lightsaber combat. He moved around her slowly, striking at her from all different angles, testing her reflexes and agility. He admired her remarkably quick learning ability as well as her endurance, which was integral in combat; from his own experience, the first one to tire was the one defeated.

As he coached her, giving her suggestions for how to move her feet and shift her lightsaber so as to fight most efficiently, he sensed movement not far off from their clearing. He lowered his lightsaber and looked off into the line of trees, wondering which kind of creature he sense.

"What is it?" Rey asked. Ben sensed the presence grow swiftly closer, and he looked back at her.

"I'm not sure," he said, and Rey came up to his side. They remained in tense silence for a few long moments, surveying the line of trees ahead, snowflakes drifting down slowly all around them.

A low growl sounded not far from where they stood, followed by a shrill, piercing shriek. The calls resonated through Ben's body, and he noticed Rey move closer to him, her eyes scanning the treetops ahead. "Is that the creature you talked about?" She asked, concern in her voice.

"That would be it," Ben said, widening his stance.

"What is it?" Rey questioned, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"It's called a Nexu," Ben said, positioning his lightsaber before him. "Get behind me," he said, glancing over a Rey, but she stepped forward, frowning. Ben scowled at her. "Rey—"

But Ben cut himself as they heard another growl, closer this time, followed by the sound of snapping branches. Ben kept his eyes trained before him, confronted with the memory of when Snoke had forced him to face a Nexu on this planet as a trial during his training. He'd only been about seventeen years old then, and he remembered how terrified he'd been, especially when the beast's large claw had sliced a large gash across his collarbone. Though he felt more calm and prepared now to face the Nexu, he still felt a tremor of fear, especially for Rey's sake. He was determined to not let it touch her.

Suddenly, in the dark of the forest, Ben saw a large Nexu leap down from the trunk of a tree, now barreling towards them as it growled viciously.

Rey gasped and leapt directly to Ben's side, and with his free hand he instinctively moved a protective arm before her.

Just before the Nexu reached them, Ben swiped his crackling lightsaber before him threateningly, and the creature slid to a stop in the snow before them, just yards away. It lowered its head and released a horrible wail, the spikes on its back rising to their full height. Its red eyes focused on Ben's lightsaber, considering the challenge he posed.

Ben stepped forward and swung at it in a broad, powerful motion, and it moved backwards, hissing and pawing into the snow with its large claws. It shook its head wildly as it stalked to the right, still facing Ben.

The animal's hiss became higher in pitch, and it abruptly lurched towards Ben. He embraced his anxiety, moving forward to meet the Nexu halfway as he swiped aggressively at the beast with his saber, slicing across the side of its face as it quickly turned away from his attack.

The Nexu shook its head, pawing at its new injury, red droplets of blood falling into the white snow below. The spikes on the animal's back shivered in agitation, and it again lurched towards Ben, who with a wave of his arm sent it flying onto its back in the snow.

It immediately flipped back over onto its feet and charged again towards Ben, who sent it flying backwards farther this time, directly into the trunk of a tree. Ben felt empowered at his ability to face the beast, his childhood fear, and rolled his shoulders, relaxing his tense muscles.

The beast growled as it slowly stalked back towards him, a deep sound that again vibrated through Ben's very bones. Ben was surprised by its persistence, and he positioned himself, ready to strike again with his lightsaber, determined to finish the beast off.

With a high-pitched howl it rushed towards Ben, its spikes flattened against its back as it made itself more aerodynamic. Just as it was about to reach Ben, however, the creature suddenly its course, passing around him and charging directly at Rey behind him. Ben flipped around just as the creature leapt towards Rey, who grunted as she thrust her lightsaber out towards the animal, making contact with its shoulder as it landed just before her, releasing a deluge of dark red blood.

The nexu stumbled as it landed, buckling down onto its front knees as it whined in pain. Rey backed up from it briskly, staring at it as it remained in place in the snow, hissing and whining.

Ben was taken aback at her quick reflexes, staring at her just as he had when she'd been able to will the blue lightsaber into her grasp on Starkiller Base. She never ceased to amaze him.

He blinked, his eyes flickering between her and the downed Nexu. Ben narrowed his eyes in confusion as Rey remained just a yard before it, staring down at it.

"Finish it!" Ben yelled, looking across at her encouragingly. She looked at him, still panting, her expression conflicted. The creature attempted to stand, but faltered, kneeling down again from its injured shoulder.

"I can't," Rey called back, her voice troubled.

Ben walked cautiously towards the back of the creature. "But now's your chance, Rey," he said, raising his eyebrows in concern as he watched her.

"I can't do it," she repeated, backing away from it. She shook her head slowly. "Not when it's like this. It wouldn't be fair."

Ben stopped in place, tilting his head in confusion. Does she actually feel sympathy towards the beast? He wondered. "Rey, the creature has no such feelings towards you," he said, moving around the beast in a wide arc towards her. The Nexu seemed to sense that it was no longer in direct danger and began to lick the gash on its shoulder.

Rey lowered her lightsaber to her side, disengaging it. She looked firmly across at Ben, the breeze blowing stray strands of her hair across her face. "I'm not killing it," she declared. "That's senseless violence."

Ben looked between her and the creature, debating whether he himself should kill it. He walked slowly towards Rey, confused but also intrigued by her mercy, something had never been a part of his training under Snoke. He stood before her, studying her face.

Rey looked at him expectantly as her eyes searched his. He sighed quietly, glancing back at the animal, who was now limping away into the line of trees, whining. "Okay," he said softly, slowly nodding. "We'll let it go."

A warm smile slowly spread across Rey's mouth, and Ben was momentarily frozen in place by her beauty. Rey's bright eyes locked onto his, and he released a small, shaky breath, filled with the overwhelming desire to lean down and kiss her.

He abruptly turned his face away, rubbing his arm distractedly. "That's enough for today," he said uncomfortably, glancing back at her. Her smile had left her face, and she raised her eyebrows, nodding.

"Okay, yeah," she agreed.

Ben began trekking back to the house, maintaining a pace just quick enough that Rey was not able to keep up at his side.

….

That night, Ben had difficulty falling asleep, staring up at the ceiling of the bedroom as he sensed Rey's calm, even presence in the bedroom across, deep in her sleep.

His thoughts shifted between Rey—her shining eyes, her strong body, her courage and sheer ability in facing the Nexu—his ill mother, and his Knights. He trusted that their allegiance was still to him, yet he still felt apprehension for the future.

Ben was relieved that he'd been able to come up with a convincing lie when Rey had asked him where he'd gone when he'd temporarily left the planet. But he also felt a strong sense of guilt, not just for having left her without telling her beforehand, but for lying to her face.

A white lie, he assured himself. It's for her own good, she's better off not knowing.

Anyone remember the Nexu from one of the prequel films? I was brainstorming creatures from the Star Wars universe for this scene and thought it was fittingly ferocious. Speaking of which, it seems that another ferocious beast is inspired by Rey's pure heart...and her looks. But really, who isn't? I'll be the first to admit I have a girl crush on Rey.

On a semi-unrelated note, may I introduce you to this amazing rendition of Rey's theme I found on YouTube? It's mesmerizing: watch?v=HNsfLn5PSJ0 I always write these chapters to the soundtracks of the Star Wars films to help with the pacing of the scenes, and I came across this gem and thought I'd share (not my own of course).