It was unusually still when the ramp lowered. The stormtroopers filed out, blasters raised. Rey's breath sounded harsh in her ears from helmet as she looked around her, trying to follow the tactics of the other stormtroopers. They fanned out cautiously, a few signalling forward with a hand gesture. Rey stayed at the back of the group and moved towards one of the cavern walls. Behind her, Kylo Ren descended the ramp casually. She could sense his menacing presence, like an angry specter lingering over her shoulder. Relief flooded through her when, in her periphery, she saw Kylo's tall, dark form turn and disappear down an adjacent tunnel. Like her, he seemed to be on an alternative mission.
The wet environment of the planet provided the damp, heavy air and swirls of dark green and brown moss that crept alone the moisture-slick stone floor. The cavern was immense, with side chambers and tunnels. An occasional hole in the ceiling of rock allowed beams of pale light to shine through. Had she not been in such a precarious situation, Rey would have enjoyed the sight.
There were obvious signs of activity: crates overturned, scuff marks on the ground from the dragging of heavy objects, and errant plasma burns on the walls from an engine repair. Her friends had been here. Rey's heart leapt. Perhaps she wasn't far behind.
Fragments of a shattered glass viewing screen crunched loudly under her boots. White helmets turned in unison to glare at her. Rey gripped her blaster and stared repentantly at the ground. She had to maintain focus.
She moved on the edge of the group for a few steps. The Resistance had been here, she had no doubt. Rey ducked around a stone wall of the abandoned base. Did they hear her message? She had no idea, but at least their escape was one less victory for the First Order.
She peered down the dark corridor before her. If the Resistance had any sense, they would hide their most valuable fighters away from view. She slowed her pace from the others and dropped back even further. Maybe she could find one fighter that had been scrapped and resurrect it?
"Stormtrooper, why are you not in position?" It was a commanding officer of some sort. He approached her with heavy strides that echoed in the cavern.
Rey straightened, casting a longing glance down the hallway. She turned slowly and tapped her earpiece in her helmet.
The other stormtrooper sighed through his mic. "Get back to the ship. Await further instructions."
Vulgarities in several languages hurled through her mind as Rey placidly moved after him. A step later, she halted.
No.
She had come this far.
"There could be Resistance hiding in these caverns, sir," she argued. "I need to verify."
She could feel the irritation coming off the superior stormtrooper in waves.
"Be quick about it," the officer relented, and walked off in the opposite direction.
Rey was certain she was being tracked now—if not visually, then by a signal produced in the stormtrooper suit. She turned another corner and dropped her blaster to the ground. Flipping open the panel on the wrist of her suit, she looked for a short range chip. Rey frowned. Sure enough, she could make out the dull blue glow hidden behind a thick bundle of wires. To remove it would require her to rip out the wiring first, which would destroy the life support in her suit. Not that it mattered on this planet—it clearly had a breathable atmosphere—but it would mean she would have to remain unmasked and risk discovery, or maintain anonymity with the mask and risk suffocation.
Her choice was easy. She ripped out the wiring and then the chip, crunching it into a hundred pieces under the heel of her boot. Grabbing the blaster again, she took a quick look over her shoulder and continued down the hall as fast as her legs could carry her. Her stormtrooper helmet lay abandoned on the rock floor.
She did not go unseen.
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The halls proved a nightmarish maze of tunnels, some mined, others natural. Rey pressed herself against the damp wall and listened to the steady sound of water droplets hitting the rock floor below. The occasional shaft of light illuminated enough for her to decipher evidence of Resistance activity, but that had stopped some time ago. Her missing presence, signal or no signal, would surely be noticed by now.
Worse, she was lost.
Unbidden, her heartbeat thudded loudly in her ears. Panic began to take hold. Her escape plan had been foolishly bold and relied heavily on luck. She didn't want to perish in this wet, dark place, and especially at the hands of the First Order. Rey closed her eyes, furiously trying to calm herself.
Where do I go? Lead me… she called out with mind. Her breathing and heartbeat slowed, and when she opened her eyes, the Resistance was around her. She knew instantly they weren't there; their images wavered like visions before, but it felt real. The battle scared helmets of the engineers, the tired, patched clothing, the clatter of repair instruments echoing when someone dropped them. A pilot garbed in an orange jumpsuit ran frantically past her. Rey followed, taking the same winding route as the woman, dodging people and droids as if they were really there. It was hard to keep up in the cumbersome stormtrooper suit, but she managed to keep the vision of the pilot just within sight.
The woman slowed and began to climb up a phantom x-wing fighter. She locked gazes with Rey, and the vision of her melted away, along with the fighter. Rey blinked and looked around. She stood in an even larger cavern than the one the First Order had landed in, and this one held exactly what she needed.
Suddenly, the eerie quiet of the cavern was shattered by the echo of pounding footfalls.
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Kylo Ren stopped dead in his tracks, his cloak whipping around him. The ripple in the force was unmistakable. The girl was here. He was right. That same raw power, unchecked but pure, surged around her, lighting her like a beacon. Curiosity overrode his irritation at her escape from the destroyer, and he changed course to follow.
Captain Phasma's clipped voice came over his communications link in his helmet. "We are prepared to leave, sir. The Resistance is not here."
His long stride didn't waver for a second.
"Send the squadron immediately to my coordinates," he ordered, killing the link before she could argue it.
He couldn't see what Rey could see, but he had no doubt she was tapping into visions of the past. What other way could she move with such determined confidence, like she had been here before? By his estimation, the Resistance had fled within hours of the First Order's arrival; the girl would have never visited this place before.
Kylo blended in with the shadows, the turning his helmet away from the occasion beam of light to prevent a stray reflection off the inlay chrome design. His gloves and shoulders were soaked from staying close to the damp rock walls, and the hem of his sodden cloak slapped miserably against his boots. More exhausted than he was willing to admit, his fists tightened. The raw wound on his side ached with every step. The sooner he could leave this foul place, the better.
He felt Rey's presence long before he saw her stark white stormtrooper suit, a pillar of white against the brown and gray rock walls. She was standing in the center of a massive cavern, its ceiling easily fifty meters high and containing a fissure opening just enough for a good pilot to manage a fighter through. Light poured in, highlighting the moss and slime and pools of collected water. Her pale reflection wavered at her feet as she stared ahead. Something in the rear of the cavern clearly captivated her attention.
Kylo paused, not wanted to give her another opportunity for flight. He felt for his grandfather's lightsaber hanging at his belt. Something was amiss—didn't the girl sense it? Or was she blinded by her inexperience and hubris? He wanted to move closer, but was interrupted by the cacophony of heavy footfalls echoing around him. As silent as a herd of Banthas, he thought with contempt, and stepped out of the darkness to meet the arriving stormtrooper squadron. Even so, his gaze never left the girl, who turned and finally saw them. Even from his distance, he could see her wide-eyed expression.
She bolted, Kylo moving after her almost instantaneously. He clenched his teeth under his mask, wishing he was recovered enough to use the force to freeze her in her tracks. Every step was agony. Somewhere in the distance, Captain Phasma ordered "blasters ready!", but the idiot troops were far from his attention.
Danger!
The whisper of the force, of instinct, of experience pulled him to a stop. Breathing hard through the helmet's respirator, he looked around.
There—the almost imperceptible blinking orange light of a charge hidden behind an outcropping of rock. And another behind the crate. He didn't need to see the others to know that they were surrounded by charges. Oblivious, Rey spun and fired a shot at the group of stormtroopers. No. Stupid girl, they were doomed.
"Stop!" He cried out, whether to warn the troops or the girl, he didn't know. "It's a trap!"
It was too late. Before Phasma could halt the command, several stormtroopers fired retaliatory shoots. A stray blaster bolt hit the rock outcropping, and the sinister Resistance trap lying behind it. It was too close to the girl. She would never survive.
The Knight of the Ren let out pained scream in unison with the fearsome detonations around him. Time slowed. He stretched out his arm and summoned the girl to him with what little strength he had left. Sensors were blaring warnings in his helmet, and the oppressive heat scorched his back. In an instant, the body of Rey was thrown back and landed at his feet. Kylo collapsed over her, pelted by fire, rocks and exploding debris.
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A/N I've had most of this written for months, but I finally got the time to work on it a bit more. Since I have already plotted this story out, I am going to maintain my timeline and ideas, despite the differences that may occur with the release of the latest film.
Let me know your thoughts! Hugs.