"Rey!" Pia-h, the youngest of the Padawans, threw his arms around her. "You came back!"

Rey knelt down so she was eye level with the six year old. "Of course," she said, returning the hug while she looked at the rest of the group. It was the four youngest Padawans that were in hiding, the eldest being fourteen and experienced enough to carry a lightsaber of his own.

"Are you all right?"

Pia-h and the twin girls nodded their heads, but the fourteen year old, Gen, narrowed his eyes. "You've led Kylo Ren right to us!" he exclaimed, switching on his blade.

"Hold it!" Rey caught Gen's lightsaber as she called it out of his hand. "You know how I've been away on a mission?" Pia-h and the twins nodded again. "Well, you're looking at my mission right here," Rey said, pointing at Ben. "Kylo Ren no longer exists. We have Ben, Master Luke's nephew, fighting alongside us again,"

"Is that what you call it? A mission?" Gen asked as he folded his arms. "And what type of mission were you on exactly?" The Padawan's eyes dropped slightly downward. "Are we required to marry the Sith now?"

In the heat of the moment, Rey had forgotten about the ring on her finger. The only person she'd told had been Poe.

"My feelings for Ben have nothing to do with the Sith, nor the First Order," Rey said slowly and steadily. "If you would like to discuss my relationship, we can do so at a later time.

"Now, do you know where Master Luke and the other Padawans might be?"

"They said they would fight the First Order," one of the twins piped up. "Master Luke told us to hide,"

This rationale made sense to Rey. Pia-h and the twins were far too young for battle, and Gen had most likely been instructed to watch over the younglings. But the longer the small group stood around exposed like this, the more likely they were to be found.

"Poe," Rey asked, "Does your comlink communication still work?"

Poe switched a button on and off. "Yeah,"

"We need a ship to take these Padawans to safety," Rey said. "Is there a vessel large enough to transport these four?"

"There was when we arrived," Poe said. "I'll call my men and see what they can do,"

As Poe walked away to radio his comrades, Gen said, "I can stay and fight,"

Rey hesitated. Gen hadn't taken his eyes off Ben since they removed the stone door. The Padawan's eyes shone bright with loathing, the memory of losing his parents to Kylo Ren's deadly orders still fueling an anger that had not quenched. Still, if Rey were to deny Gen his lightsaber in the middle of battle, she may as well be striking him down herself.

"Yes," Rey agreed, "You can stay and fight. But you are not to raise your blade against Ben,"

As Rey handed the lightsaber back to its owner, she heard a small voice whisper in the back of her mind: "Traitor…"

After seeing the youngest Padawans safely into the sky, the five fought their way through the crowd of Stormtroopers until they came upon Luke and the others. It had been a few years since Rey watched her Master fight, but time had not taken any edge from his technique. He remained as swift as ever, defending not only himself but also the allies around him. Rushing over to her Master, Rey joined the battle with ease, quickly embracing the dutiful position of Padawan she had taken all those moons ago.

As the two sides clashed on the ground, a lone Stormtrooper slid undetected through the treetops. He knew that the First Order was losing, as the x-wings now outnumbered the tie fighters. To be elevated and see the battle in its entirety was to have the advantage, but ships were easy to detect. One trooper in a tree was not.

The Stormtrooper put Ben in the crosshairs of his blaster. The First Order wanted the Rebels eliminated in that battle, but nobody else seemed to notice that the shell of Kylo Ren stood among them.

Giving a twisted smile under his mask, the Stormtrooper pulled the trigger.

Luke had milliseconds to react.

He knew a blast was heading towards his nephew, and there was no way Luke could stop it. Ben, however, did not have to be the victim. After all, Ben had been a victim most of his adult life, a puppet wielded by dark strings at the hands of Snoke.

But no more. There was so much Ben had left to give.

Knocking his nephew aside, Luke became vaguely aware of Rey's screams as the blast ripped through his back, across his abdomen, and out his stomach.