***Author's Note***

Good Evening, my friends! Okay, so long chapter tonight. I had a lot to get through, so hold on to your hats (if you're wearing them!) Hope you enjoy the chapter. Not a whole lot more to go; one, maybe two more chapters, and it'll be done. I'd like to thank SereneDefiance for her invaluable critique and all her lovely musings. There are a couple bits I added to this chapter, just for her; she'll know which ones they are. ^_^ Enjoy!

***End Note***

Poe angled the shuttle for the ground, bypassing the Wookie cities; Chewie had spent most of the day preparing the Wookie High Council for what they may be able to expect for the next 24 hours or so. Poe put the shuttle down in the middle of a small meadow, and they all filed quickly out. Rey and Ben felt through the Force to ascertain which direction they should go. They both pointed off to the left of the shuttle, and the excursion was off. They trudged for hours through the jungle, pausing now and again to choose a fork in their path, or to check to be sure they were not being followed.

"Are you going to tell me what you're hiding from me, or will I have to figure it out myself?" Ben asked as he glanced at Rey.

Rey sighed, "I thought we'd already been over this, Ben. I said we'll talk about it after this whole mess is over."

"Exactly when is that? When we've got the Darksaber? Or did you mean when my sister is dead?"

Rey looked stricken and more pale than ever, "Oh, Ben, no; that's not what I mean at all! I just meant until the First Order is at least crippled, if not defeated entirely."

Ben growled under his breath, "But that could be another year!"

Rey stopped and took Ben's shoulders, turning him to look at her, "Trust me, Ben. It won't wait that long. I promise, I'll talk to you before the month is out, but if both of our but feelings are right, you probably won't have to wait even that long. Hopefully, we'll be discussing this tomorrow."

Ben stared at her for a long moment, "Alright. We'll talk tomorrow. But I'll keep you to that, even if this isn't finished. Deal?"

Rey thought for a moment, "Deal. Now; we have a job to do."

Poe opened his mouth to ask what that had all been about, when Ben and Rey's heads snapped up, and they held up a hand. "Something's wrong," they said in tandem before they took off running. As they ran, their feeling of dread increased; suddenly, there was smoke in the air, and getting thicker. They broke through a gap in the trees, and they saw before them a small hut that had once blended in to its surroundings perfectly. Now, however, it burned like a torch; they knew that if anyone was still inside, there was no chance to save them. Suddenly, off the left, in a small clearing, a small patch of orange caught Rey's eye. She sprinted off towards it, with Ben hot on her heels. Rey drew up short, her hands covering her mouth as she gasped. Poe and Finn caught up to them, and both greened a bit. The Twi'lek had clearly been tortured heartlessly. One of his Lek'ku had been severed, and there were many long, shallow gashes that had clearly been made by a light-saber. He had many smaller cuts, as though he had been viciously beaten, and three of his fingers had been cut off; the rest were pointing off in odd angles. The final blow, however, was the dagger that had been stuck in his gut.

Ben's mouth was set in a grim line as he knelt beside the old Twi'lek, gently pulling him upright so the Twi'lek's back would rest against Ben's chest. "Hold on, Old One; I'll help you, just hold on."

The Old One's hand came up and rested heavily on Ben's hand, "It is too late...for me. You must...stop her...your sister...she...took it...I could not...stop...her," his eyes widened as he spoke, his panic clear to see.

"Damn it," Finn muttered. Poe ran his fingers trough his hair, frustrated, as he began to pace in a circle.

Rey came to kneel beside the Old One, tears in her eyes. "I'm so sorry we weren't on time. If we'd just been a little faster..."

The Old One shook his head, "Quiet, now, child," he said gently. "She would have...found me...sooner...or...later. I am...an old man now...I have lived...alone...for so long...I will be glad...of...company again. There is...one thing...you should know. She said...you'd come...She said...she's waiting...She said you'd know...where she means. She said...it ends today...You must end it..." His back arched as he convulsed violently, "For all life...you must...end...this..." the convulsion calmed, and one final breath rattled from his lungs as the light faded from the Old One's eyes. So ended one bearer of the Darksaber, and began another.

Ben touched the comm that was hooked to his robes, "Mother; we found the Twi'lek. But we were too late; Padme got here first. She has the Darksaber, and the Old One is dead. She didn't just kill him, mother. She...tortured him. No, that's too tame a term for what she did to him. I don't think she did this because she had to, either. No, there's a disturbance in the Force here. She kept him alive while she worked on him." His disgust was clear in his voice, and he could not resist the sneer that curled his lip. "She has gone too far, this time, Mother. I cannot allow this to continue; I have allowed it for too long. It ends today. There will be a clearing with a rock wall on the right side; set the transport ships down there. I can sense the force she brought with her; she intends this to be the final battle, I think." Just then, there came the flash of lightning and the roll of thunder; a storm was coming.

Leia's voice crackled through the comm, "Message understood, Ben. We will join you as soon as we find the clearing. We'll judge by your current position. And son?" The General's voice cracked, "Come home to me. May the Force be with you."

Ben slid out from under the Twi'lek's body and laid him gently on the ground, a terrible fire in his eyes. He stood and raised his right hand; a massive amount of dirt rose and settled beside a new grave. Ben then extended his hand towards the Old One, lifting him with the Force, and laying him gently in the grave before covering him again with the mound of dirt. Next, he brought a stone from within the ground and settled it at the head of the grave, upon which he carved, Here lies the Old One, whose courage was unsurpassed by lesser beings. "Padme will pay for what she did here today. I may not have my connection to her anymore, but I still know her Force-Signature better than anyone. We must find her, and quickly."

Ben opened his mind and pressed his consciousness outward from himself, seeking Padme's Force Signature. His eyes flew open, sparking with righteous fury, as he located her. "She's this way," he snarled as he surged forward, fury roiling off of him like a tide. Poe and Finn kept up as best they could, but soon began to fall behind, panting with exhaustion.

Rey dug in her heels and yanked on Ben's arm, stopping him. He turned, snarling as electricity snapped and crackled from his fingertips. "Ben, you need to calm down. You're walking a dagger's edge; if you're not careful, you'll stray too far on one direction, and fall back to the Dark Side. Look at me!" Ben's eyes snapped to hers and held as he took a deep breath, then another, followed by a third. By now, Finn and Poe had caught up to them and were watching Ben warily, with fear creeping into their eyes. He could sense their fear, but it was Rey's fear that undid him. She was afraid of him.

The energy rolling off of him subsided and the electricity stopped crackling. Sense returned to Ben's eyes, and he was abruptly ashamed of himself. "Rey...I'm so sorry. I lost my temper for a moment, but I'm alright now. Please, don't be afraid of me, Rey. I can't stand that from you." He took a small, hesitant step towards her, arms extended, and she closed the distance, wrapping her arms around his torso and burying her face in his chest. "I am so sorry, my Light," he whispered as he stroked her hair. "You are right, as always. It will never happen again. You will never again have cause to fear me."

Just then, all four were jolted into activity when they heard Tuk-Tuk's unmistakable "voice", Behind! Danger! Ben spun and managed to bring his twin sabers up to block just in time; green flashed and sparked against red as they sprang apart. "Poe! Finn! Stay behind us!" Shouted Ben, aiming a Force-Blast at his opponent. Out of the corner of his eye Ben saw Rey's saber-staff blur into a violet-colored whirlwind as she attacked a second opponent; both seemed surprised at the resistance. Ben's opponent aimed a vicious blow at Ben's neck; he ducked, rolled, and lunged upwards, his sabers sinking to the hilt into his opponent's back. His opponent fell to the ground just in time for Ben to see Rey neatly block with one end of her saber, then spin into her opponent, burying the other end of the staff in his gut. As her opponent fell to the ground, she shut off her staff-saber and ran to Ben's side.

"How did we not sense them?"

"Padme must have been cloaking them, somehow. What I would like to know," Ben started, his voice unnervingly even as he turned to where Tuk-Tuk sat perched in a tree, "is where the hellyou came from! You're supposed to be on Tagoria! There's a reason we left while you were sleeping, and that was it! You could have been killed, Tuk-Tuk!"

Tuk-Tuk sat staring down at them, utterly unabashed. Ben maybe die. Rey maybe die. Leave Tuk-Tuk alone. Tuk-Tuk not want be alone. If Ben die, if Rey die, Tuk-Tuk die. Tuk-Tuk go where Bond-mates go.

Ben felt a lump rise in his throat as he walked over to the tree. "Come down here, Tuk-Tuk." Tuk-Tuk slowly and cautiously climbed down the tree and stared mournfully at Ben, his amber eyes he in his feline face. Ben held out his arm, and Tuk-Tuk climbed carefully up Ben's arm, settling onto his shoulder, nuzzling into Ben's cheek. "Tuk-Tuk? I understand exactly how you feel; I feel that way about Rey. Knowing how you feel, I couldn't possibly send you back, nor do I think you would go. Therefore, all I will say is stay safe when we reach the battlefield, okay?" Tuk-Tuk cocked his head as he watched Ben and considered. Tuk-Tuk safe. Yes. Tuk-Tuk be safe. Tuk-Tuk help, too! Tuk-Tuk stay on cliff. Throw rock! Ben chuckled at the thought, "That is an excellent idea, my friend!"

Ben held out a hand to Rey, and together they again started towards Padme's Force Signature. Finn and Poe seemed unable to relax; they kept their blasters drawn, and kept rotating as they walked; checking their six and checking the trees. "I've got a bad feeling about this," Grumbled Finn. "Han always told me to listen to my feelings."
"So does Luke," muttered Poe.

"What do you mean, Poe? What does my Uncle have to do with Finn?"

"Oops," said Poe.

Finn sighed in irritation, "I didn't want anyone to know just yet. Luke has been training me for the last few months. Apparently, I'm a Force-Sensitive."

Ben and Rey glanced at each other and rolled their eyes, "About damn time," they said together.

"Wha...but, I...you...How did..." he sputtered and stammered until Rey took pity on him and interrupted.

"Finn, we've always known. Anyone who's even partially Force-Sensitive stands out like a sore thumb to someone who's been trained. We just figured you wanted to be left alone about it."

Ben stopped suddenly, his face terribly still. "It's just through there. Both armies are just...waiting. Tuk-Tuk; go now. I don't want her to see you." Tuk-Tuk nodded and sprung from Ben's shoulder, swinging from vine to vine as he headed towards the cliffs. Ben watched him go anxiously. "I just hope he'll be alright. I would never forgive myself if something happened to him."

Rey took his arm, "I understand. I feel the same about all of you."

Rey and Ben clasped hands tightly, took a deep breath, and stepped through the trees, their backs ramrod-straight. Poe and Finn followed behind, looking for all the galaxy like a pair of bodyguards, not that Ben and Rey needed them. To their left waited the Resistance, with General Organa at their front, with the ever-faithful Captain Antilles on her left, and her beloved twin on her right. She held one hand of each man, and squeezed tightly. They sensed relief spread through the Resistance as they saw their four heroes arrived. To the right, the First Order was arranged in all its strength and power. Padme stood brazenly at the front, grinning madly.

"At least, our honored guests have joined us." Scattered laughter echoed through the First Order. "Welcome, dear brother. I hope you have been well?"

Ben's eyebrows drew together, "Enough with the formalities. No more games, Padme. We both know why we're here. You said it yourself: 'The next time we meet, only one of us will walk away.' Isn't that what you said? Well, I finally agree. This must end, Padme. We can't go on like this. You can't go on like this."

Padme's eyes popped wide, and a mad cackle burst from her throat. "You wish so quickly to end the pleasantries? Fine!" She waved her hand, and her forces rushed forward.

General Organa shouted, "Charge!" The Resistance surged forward, like an army of angry ants as blaster bolts flew every which way overhead. Dozens of Knights of Ren stepped forward, engaging their light-sabers simultaneously. Ben and Rey glanced at each other, lighting their sabers in answer.

"Now would be a good time, Finn," Luke shouted above the din. Finn grimaced, but nodded. From under his jacket, he produced a light-saber of his very own; as it engaged, Rey saw that it shone a bright silver, with a very slight curve at the tip. He stood proudly between Luke and Rey. Clearly, the Knights had not expected a fourth Jedi. Even as Ben marveled at their good fortune to have such a friend, another light-saber lit, followed by another, then three more. Soon, another dozen light-sabers gleamed in the darkness of the impending storm, ready to take on the Knights. Padme no longer looked quite so cocksure. The mad gleam had faded from her eyes, and she looked...worried.

"You worry about your sister; we've got this!" shouted Finn. He and Rey screamed fierce battle-cries as they leaped into battle.

Ben turned his full attention to his sister and removed his light-sabers from his belt, holding them comfortably in his hands, gazing fondly at their gleaming silver hilts for a moment before engaging the brilliant green blades. "You could still come back, Padme. You could call off this whole thing, and just come home. It doesn't have to end this way."

"Yes. It does. And besides, I'm tired of your silly speeches. You and your wife will die here on this field." Just then, another flash of lightning, and another roll of thunder tore through the sky, as the rain began to pour from the sky. "How appropriate, don't you think, brother? It looks familiar, doesn't it? How many times have you dreamed of murdering me here!?"

Ben shook his head, "I never dreamed of killing you; only mourning you. Please, Padme. You're my sister, and I love you. I have never had any desire to kill you, nor do I possess such a desire now! Do not make me do this." Ben pleaded with his twin one final, desperate time.

In answer, Padme activated her light-saber before switching it to her left hand; from her belt, she drew a second, shorter saber, with a hilt as black as night. As it hissed to life, Ben saw the blade curved gently, elegantly, to a point. The blade was utterly black; like the opposite of a light-saber. Rather than producelight, it was as though the blade absorbed light. The effect was striking, and disturbing. It was only amplified by Padme's second, red-bladed light-saber, which she now held in her left hand. Unlike Ben, however, Padme had never mastered the two-handed technique; she had always favored the single-blade style. Therefore, her left hand became more for defense. Ben, however, had trained long and hard with his two-handed style, mastering it so completely that he had become utterly ambidextrous when there was a light-saber in each hand.

They circled like rabid dogs, neither taking their eyes off the other. "I know what she hides form you, Ben." She jerked her head in Rey's direction.

"Fine, but I don't want to know."

"Hmph. Well, I just thought I'd offer before she dies. You see, you might have figured out how to block me from your mind, but no one else here has." Padme's eyes unfocused as every soldier within ten feet of Padme, whether Resistance or Stormtrooper, put their blaster to their own head and pulled the trigger, screaming in terror. Ben stared in shock.

"How could you? You own men..."

"They matter little to me. Now, killing your friends...that would matter to me." Ben watched in horror as Rey, Finn, and Luke turned their light-sabers on themselves. They struggled as they drove their own sabers towards themselves. FORCE! USE NOW! Came Tuk-Tuk's agonized scream into Ben's mind, shocking him into action.

"NO!" Screamed Ben. He brought up his right hand, still clutching one of his light-sabers, and shoved the Force towards Padme, sending her flying, end-over-end into the cliff on the other side of the field. He Force-Jumped multiple times in quick succession to propel himself from rock to tree, and high into the air, before landing in a graceful crouch, light-sabers held out behind him, directly in front of Padme's prone form. "Get up," he snarled. "Let us finish this, since it is what you seem to crave."

Padme spat blood onto the ground and stood, grinning madly, her teeth dyed red. Her senseless yellow eyes popped wide, "There's the brother I've been waiting for. You'll kill me for her, then? Is there anything you wouldn't do for the girl?"

"No; there is nothing I wouldn't do for her. Everything that I have done has been for her. But this, I will not do for Rey. This, I will do for you, my dearest twin."

Padme screeched with rage and sprung at her brother, bringing both blades down ferociously on her brother's; his knees buckled from the power behind the blow. "You know you don't want this, Padme." He shook off her attack, and launched one of his own. He spun, striking first with left, then right, then left again. She countered with a powerful slash across his eyes, which he narrowly avoided; the heat of the Darksaber burned his forehead. "Be reasonable, sister!" Ben sprung into the air to land behind her, where he jabbed quickly; Padme spun and blocked, just in time. Again and again, one attacked and the other countered. At last, Ben left a minuscule opening that he knew she would see. Padme took the bait and lunged, but at the last second, he saw hesitation spring into her eyes. The Darksaber began to vibrate in her hand; Padme's attention was diverted for a fraction of a second, and her brow knit together over her yellow eyes. Ben breathed deep, knowing what he must do. He pressed the light-saber in his right hand up, forcing her left hand away, opening her right side, and brought up the saber in his left hand to sever her right hand. Ben dropped the light-saber in his left hand long enough to Force-Push the hand, still holding the Darksaber far from his sister; where it landed, he did not know. As Padme staggered backwards, screaming in pain, Ben called his own light-saber back to his hand, and lunged, both sabers pointing directly at her. With an agonizing scream, he sank his light-sabers to the hilt in his beloved sister's chest.

Across the field, Rey gasped and turned to face Ben. She saw him lunge, and she knew what was about to happen. She sprinted across the field, knowing she had to be near him. Ben drew his sabers from Padme's chest. Her yellow eyes stood out shockingly against her pale face, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. "Oh," she said softly as her knees gave way. Ben lurched forward to catch her, pillowing her head in his lap.

"No, Padme. Please, don't go. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Please, don't leave me, sister." Rey stood silently before them, tears streaming down her face, her saber-staff still glowing a vivid violet. Padme's lips were moving, but no sound would come out. "Shh, it's okay. You're going to be fine."

"I...love...you...brother...Thank...you..." Padme jerked once in Ben's arms, and then went terribly still as her final breath shuddered from her lungs.

Ben shook his head in denial, "No. Padme, wake up." He began to shake her as he screamed, "Get up! Don't go! Please, no! I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry!" At last, he could no longer deny the fact that she was gone and screamed, a heartrending, gut-churning sound that carried on the wind and struck every living soul that heard it to the core. Slowly, the battle wound down as more and more combatants turned to see what had been the cause of such a sound.

Rey began to sob in earnest. Ben looked up at her and screamed through the rain, as his voice cracked with his grief, "Why did it have to be her?" Rey disengaged her saber-staff and shook her head as she sank to her knees, sharing in Ben's grief. As ever, his pain was her pain; she knew he wanted to join his sister in the Force. They stayed like that, both sitting in the muck and mud and blood, for an immeasurable length of time. At long last, General Organa strode through the mass of bodies, pushing people out of her way with Chewie's help. At last, she reached her son, and fell to her knees beside him, openly weeping for the loss of her daughter. They clung to each other for a long moment. Chewie knelt carefully beside Rey and put a heavy hand on her shoulder.

"I'm glad you're here, my friend," Rey murmured thickly. Tuk-Tuk coming. He came springing down the cliff-side and skidded to a halt beside Rey, spraying mud everywhere; it would have been funny, had the scene not been so dismal. Tuk-Tuk sensed the pain of his Bond-mates, and curled into Rey's lap, giving her what comfort he could. Chewie huffed gently and placed his hands on Rey's elbows, lifting her gently to her feet; simultaneously, Leia did the same for her son. He struggled to his feet, hefting his sister's motionless body.

They formed a small procession with Finn and Poe bringing up the rear, and the crowd parted respectfully before them, removing helmets and hats, or simply bowing their heads if they had neither. By the time they finally reached the Wookie tree-city, the storm had finally stopped. Ben laid his sister's body on a bed of rushes; apparently a runner had been sent ahead to request that the Wookies prepare a funeral. As they raised the funeral pyre, Ben stood before the gathered crowd and began to speak, tears still streaming down his face.

"My sister and I have not had the most ideal relationship. And yet, here we are, all mourning her loss. She may have been nothing more to you than an evil tyrant, but to me, she was my twin; my other half. We shared everything for every moment of our lives together, until the Dark Side stole her from me. I refuse to remember Padme the way she died. Instead, I will remember the child she was before the Darkness took her. I will remember a beautiful young lady who was always quick to laugh and tease." Ben took the torch a Wookie offered him, and turned to where his beloved twin now laid upon the completed pyre. He strode forward and laid the torch gently on the wood, which caught quickly. "Goodbye, my twin. May the Force be with you, always. I will miss you," he added quietly, as though to himself. Rey stepped forward to take her place by his side, and silently wrapped her left arm around his waist, Tuk-Tuk still curled in the crook of her right. Ben leaned his head onto Rey's and pressed a kiss to her hair. They stood there like that until the fire began to die.

Chewie laid a gentle hand on each of their shoulders and whined softly. They followed as he led them through the tree-town, until they came to a little bungalow. Chewie held the door open for them and bowed his way out of the room, letting the door swing shut behind him. Ben and Rey took advantage of the solitude to use the large tub they found heating over a fire on the far side of the room to scrub first themselves, and then Tuk-Tuk, free of the mud and blood. Without bothering to put their clothes back on, Ben and Rey (who was still carrying Tuk-Tuk) climbed into bed with Tuk-Tuk nestled comfortably between his Bond-mates, and fell into the blessed, comforting emptiness of a dreamless sleep.

***Author's Note***

Okay, wow. Hopefully nobody's too terribly emotionally distraught after that. Phew. Okay, all the heavy is over; the remainder will be sheer fluff and happiness! I promise! Thank you all for reading, as ever.