A/N: Chapter 5 is here! Please remember to leave a review and let me know if you enjoyed it! The wonderful feedback I have already received from you all really does help keep me writing this story:)

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Peace. Serenity. Harmony.

They wrapped their soothing arms around her as she floated, weightless and mercifully removed from the rest of the world. There was only warmth, the pleasant heat of the bacta tank seeping into her bones and alleviating the pain that had nearly rendered her immobile by the time she was able to rendezvous with the Rebellion. Now, Adamus was far behind her. The danger had passed…for now.

Breathe, Rey reminded herself, inhaling deeply through the oxygen mask that covered her mouth and nose. She did not know how long she had been here, alone and surrounded by silence, but it was a welcome change. Had it been minutes? Hours? Whatever it had been, she felt much better for it.

But the time for relaxation and recovery had come to an end. The rebels would have many questions for her, especially Finn and Poe. And she dreaded answering them.

Ben…

She could not tell them. They could never know. How she escaped from the station had to remain a secret. Her list of lies was growing, and with it, her burden of guilt. She was a Jedi. She was supposed to be better than this.

And yet…she was not.

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After emerging from the bacta tank, exiting the medbay, and returning to her own personal quarters on the MC85 Star Cruiser known as the Resurgence, Rey took her time freshening up. She was in no hurry to be interrogated. Discarding the simple white robe she had worn in order to preserve her modesty whilst traveling from one area of the ship to another, she pulled on a pair of gray pants and her sleeveless, knee-length black tunic, which was divided into two sections—front and back—and left the sides of her legs exposed. Next, she draped her long gray sash over her right shoulder and secured it at her waist with both a black obi and a pair of brown leather belts. Strips of faded beige fabric were wrapped tightly around her arms, a solid leather piece of armor fastened to her left shoulder and another braced around her forearm.

Lastly, she tucked her pants into well worn boots and stood, taking a deep breath and attempting to quiet her racing thoughts. She briskly combed her fingers through her dark, shoulder-length hair, gathered up the top section, and tied it back from her face. Then, after a brief glance at her reflection, she left her quarters and headed for the main hold.

When she arrived, Rey found it far more crowded than she had expected. Many miners had managed to escape the destruction of the facility and were now seeking refuge with the Rebellion. Some were debating what to do next. Some simply embraced each other and cried, mourning those they had lost. Others stared blankly into space.

But they were not the strangers who caught her attention and held it. Near the center of the crowded room, she spotted a small group of men and women wearing white polished armor—stormtrooper armor. Her muscles instinctively tensed, her teeth clenching, but then Rey realized something extraordinary. Their helmets were removed. She could see their faces, and they were smiling as they spoke with Finn, whose eyes were alight with hope.

"Rey!"

She turned at the sound of a familiar voice and saw a man not much taller than she making his way toward her.

"It's good to see you up and about," Poe grinned broadly.

She forced a smile in return, though she knew what was coming. "Yes, I'm feeling much better now."

"Let me get Finn and Rose, and then we can talk somewhere away from all this noise."

Rey nodded, and he disappeared into the crowd once more. In the moments that followed, she silently rehearsed her story, the tall tale she had decided to tell. Then he was back with both of her friends, and she followed them into a small conference room that was located just off of the main hold. The door slid shut behind her, and she suddenly felt trapped.

"How are you feeling, Rey?" asked Finn, leaning forward onto the circular table that stood between them.

"Much better now that I'm back on the Resurgence," she repeated, as if she were trying to convince herself of the sincerity of her words.

"When you first arrived, you said something about the First Order following you down to the planet's surface?" Rose's face was scrunched up in a mixture of curiosity and concern.

"Yes," Poe seconded, "and Finn said you didn't make it to the hangar before it blew. How did you manage to get off the station?"

"There was an escape pod," she answered steadily. "I took it and then crashed on Adamus. It was not long before the First Order arrived in their transporters."

"What about Kylo Ren?" Finn interjected anxiously. "How did you get away from him?"

Rey's heart began to beat faster, but she was careful to display no outward signs of distress. "When the bombardment began, there was an explosion. He was knocked unconscious, and I took my chance to make for the escape pods."

Poe's expression darkened. "You mean you didn't kill him?"

"No."

He shook his head in disbelief and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. She could feel the anger simmering inside him and threatening to boil over.

"You mean to tell me that you had a perfect opportunity to kill the Supreme Leader of the First Order, and you didn't take it?"

"That wasn't the mission," she shot back, becoming defensive.

"That's not the—" his voice cut off suddenly as he gestured furiously with his hand. "Is that really an order I need to give? Does it not go without saying that when you have a mass murderer at your mercy, you do the galaxy a favor by ridding it of him?"

"That isn't the Jedi way," Rey responded tightly, fists clenched at her sides.

Poe stared at her for a moment, eyes wide and nostrils flared. Then, as he drew several slow, deep breaths, he seemed to regain his composure. But despite this, she sensed that his frustration and disappointment in her had not lessened. He took several deliberate steps toward her, advancing until he was less than a meter away. Defiantly, she met his gaze.

"I thought I could trust you," he said quietly, "that I could count on you to get the job done. I guess I was wrong."

"That's not fair of you!" Rose intervened. "Rey risked her life to free these people, and because of her, many of them survived."

"The mission was failure, Rose," Poe responded sharply, turning to face her. "The goal was to take control of the station and free the miners in the process. Instead, we lost the station and far too many innocent lives."

Pressing her lips together, Rose looked at him silently for a moment. Then her dark eyes glimmered. "We gave these people hope today. Leia would be proud."

He swallowed hard and blinked, briefly averting his gaze. Turbulent emotions were swelling inside him, and Rey's hardened heart softened. He was hurting. He was grieving. Just like the rest of them.

"There's something else that might have turned the tide in our favor," Finn broke in hesitantly. "The ship that fired on the station was the Finalizer. Why would it bombard the facility while Kylo Ren was still inside it?"

"That's General Hux's ship…" Poe's features brightened. "He fired on his own Supreme Leader. So the rumors are true! There is division within the ranks of the First Order. If they turn on each other and destroy themselves, we might see an end to this war after all."

"I wonder if Kylo Ren made it out before the station blew," Finn mused.

"Only time will tell," Poe replied, a new spring in his step as he moved past Rey and headed for the door. "Come on, let's get these people some food and have them assigned to their temporary living quarters. When we get back to Naboo, we can figure out a more permanent arrangement."