Chapter 8 – The Ultimate Power

A/N; Hello again. Hope you all have liked the story so far, and once again sorry for the crappy updates. I wanted to clear up something, I know a lot of the time throughout this Kylo appears to go out of character, which is partially intentional. He is, in a way pretending to be someone else on Earth so as not to give away his true intentions, as the story progresses you'll see more of his normal self. But fair warning this chapter is kinda fluff, but consider it a break from the intensity of the situation, so enjoy!

Exactly a week had passed since The Comte had arrived and in that week, everything was quiet, much to Christine's surprise. She had lived in a suspended state of dread, constantly awaiting an attack that never came. After what her Uncle had told her, she knew it was only a matter of time before all hell broke loose, more specifically, until Marthe broke free. Christine had searched her mind a thousand times over, but still could not fathom how that was even possible. Every witch knew that no one came back from the Shadow plane, why of all people? Was her mother the exception. She barely had spoken to Kylo, on the night that her Uncle had come to the manor, they had a terrible argument, once Christine had learned of his decision to stay. As she sat idle mindedly on her bed, she recalled what had been said that evening.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Christine fumed, storming like thunder into her room, "You chose to stay?"

Kylo followed behind her, his own anger bubbling beneath the had always found it profoundly difficult to kept his emotions in check, this time, was no different. He crossed his arms, staring the young girl down as she paced in frustration. "My decision is mine alone", he answered briskly.

Christine glared, "He put you up to this, didn't he?" she hissed, "Xavier did this".

Kylo Ren felt his patience wearing thin and clenched his jaw tightly in an effort to restrain himself. The young girl continued, even she finding it difficult to recover her composure, "This isn't your fight!" she shouted abruptly, her ears hot and ringing. "You don't know what you're getting yourself into".

He laughed dryly, "Since the moment I've crashed on this planet, I have dealt with mishappen creatures and foolish little witches, I think I can handle a tired and deranged woman".

"You've been on this planet three days!" she screamed, angry that Kylo could be so misguided, "I don't know how time works where you are from, but here that is fleeting. You don't have the right to get involved".

Kylo Ren had grown tired of the witch's prying, of course, he hadn't stayed to help, he had stayed to complete his mission. Christine's nagging had become an annoyance he was not prepared to tolerate.

"No right? Tell me, how many times have I saved your life since I came here? I think that merits right". They stood inches from each other, Kylo kept his dark eyes in a menacing glare, and Christine's nose scrunched in disgust. He towered over her in height, but she would not back down, even if she had run out of things to say. "Go to hell", she spat and sped from her own room, leaving him alone.

Christine felt regret at the memory, had she overreacted? Witches were, by nature, prideful creatures and did not easily give in. Still, was it right to ignore him childishly, for trying to help in the hour of need? Christine huffed, dismissing the thought, she was not going to sway so easily.

Kylo passed the length of his room, hands raking through his wild curls. It had been thirteen days exactly since he had come to this godforsaken planet and still, he had nothing. He could only imagine the Supreme Leader's fury at his lengthy absence. Kylo's impatience had morphed into anxiety. Thirteen days and he had achieved nothing. No information but one rambled sentence of a feral warlock. In the end, she controls the ultimate power. That one mere sentence haunted him day and night, this Marthe that they spoke of, Christine's mother, could lead him to the power source of the planet. After all, that was his true reason for staying. The very thing that these humans wish him to fight against, is what he wanted most. Christine's mother was his prime focus, and that very fact had landed him in treacherous waters with Christine herself. She took her role of helping others more seriously than he had first presumed. Kylo had heard the terms 'charge' and 'the innocent' countless times, but he never understood how much it actually meant to the native girl. Their separate goals collided with each other, his to stay on this planet and retrieve the power source, hers to have him safely transported back to his own galaxy as quick as possible. Their conflicting agendas had caused a rift to form in their already shaky friendship. Even more irritatingly, this actually bothered him. It annoyed Kylo that she refused to be in his presence, let alone speak to him. He had secretly hoped that the argument that had occurred between them would be forgotten, just as many bickerings between them had come and gone. Christine was a lot more stubborn than he had originally given credit.

He would never contemplate apologizing, what precisely had he done wrong? Even then, Kylo Ren would never bring himself to admit fault to a being lesser than himself. After all, he was superior to the native girl. The brief friendship that they had shared did not change that fact.

A knock came at his door, and he almost jumped, so lost in his own thought. He quickly composed himself, "Come in", he said.

He scowled himself, as part of him hoped it would have been her, ready to apologize for overreacting, but instead it was the Comte. He smiled entering, with no children of his own, he had grown fond of Kylo in the short time that he had known him. "Am I interrupting?" he asked.

"No", Kylo answered, "Just thinking".

"A dangerous thing to be trapped in your own mind, care to join me in the kitchen?" Xavier smiled.

"Why not", he muttered.

Xavier did most of the talking as they walked into the kitchen, where, to Kylo's surprise, Christine sat idly at the table, her back turned from them.

"Christie, remember how I said I wanted to chat with you?" Xavier chuckled, and she turned to face her uncle. Upon seeing Kylo Ren, her lips drew into a line. "What are you playing at?"she growled, rising to her feet. Kylo cursed the male witch in his mind, as he strode over to the island counter.

"Now now children", he smirked, "Don't think I haven't noticed, the little quarrel, between you two".

Christine crossed her arms over her chest, glaring her uncle down.

"Christie dear, I know why you are feeling upset, but what's done is done. Kylo chose to stay of his own free will. It's not as if you could have forced him to leave".

A low growl emanated from the young girl, that familiar twist of ruby and emerald danced in her eyes. Christine felt as though she had been backed into a corner, and was not exactly happy about it.

"Come on now Christine I expect better from you", her uncle tutted, "Sulking is beneath a young woman like you".

Her Uncle's usual 'charm' worked to no avail on the girl, and he sighed, "Come now, you have spent this entire week living in that library, and Kylo, you've been no better cooped up in that little room. You two are spending the day out of this house whether you like it or not".

Kylo held a breath, waiting for an outburst that never came, Christine sighed, she could have stayed angry at Kylo until the end of time, but there was no getting around her uncle. "Fine", she snapped.

Xavier was pleasantly surprised at his niece's submission, unlike his young brother, he firmly believed Christine should be integrated and have as normal a life as possible, sadly, she was never given a real chance. She sped from the kitchen to her own room, discarded her dress and slipped into her normal attire, a plaid shirt and a pair of faded jeans. Christine glared at her reflection in the mirror, annoyed for not realizing her Uncle's deceit sooner.

In the room opposite, Kylo Ren was also getting ready. Alone with Christine for the day, what fun. However, he thought, it would give him the opportunity to gather more information on Marthe, and, if he was lucky enough, maybe even information on the power source itself. Sadly to Kylo, this meant one thing, he would have to swallow his pride after all.

Christine raised an eyebrow as someone lightly knocked on her bedroom door , expecting her uncle, she turned and crossed her arms tightly across her chest, "Enter", she stated briskly. She was surprised when it was Kylo who walked in. From the moment he stepped foot on her carpeted floor, it was clear he regretted it. Christine watched on as he shuffled awkwardly on his feet, hand scratching the nape of his neck anxiously. "What do you want?" she asked finally, outwardly she appeared cool and confident, little did Kylo know, Christine was knawing at her inner cheek.

Kylo grunted it'll be worth it, he thought, you do not have to mean it, you just have to fake it. "I am sorry, for upsetting you … and for going against your wishes. You, were right, it, wasn't my place", he finally managed to choke out. Christine's face looked as though it had been carved from stone, and for a fleeting moment, Kylo Ren panicked, how could one woman be that angry?

Christine contemplated his apology and partially enjoyed watching him squirm under her unbreaking gaze. "How hard", she began casually, "was it for you to say that?"

Kylo bit his tongue, before answering through clenched teeth, "Immensely".

She remained silent, before chuckling in victory, "Grovelling suits you", the young witch smirked, and Kylo's face flushed a deep crimson in fury.

She laughed again, this time lightly, "You're so easy to annoy!"

Kylo calmed, however, did not enjoy being made the fool … whatever kept the native girl happy, he needed answers, and fast. "So, what is it we will be doing today, the mall again?" he questioned, almost desperate to change the subject.

"Pfft, a little boring don't you think?" she replied, "I was thinking we go to Helga's Cove for the day, the weather is supposed to keep". Kylo looked puzzled for a moment before Christine swiftly continued, "It's a beach, they have them where you're from, right?"

Kylo rolled his eyes, of course, we have damned bitches, he thought to himself. But then he realized, a beach would most likely be secluded, private, perfect for attempting to pry information from her. It would have been so much easier to probe her mind with the force and be done with it, but Kylo doubted that the native girl would take too kindly to that course of action. He had to do things the hard way.

Kylo sat on Christine's bed as she made calls to her friends from before, much to Kylo's annoyance. He had hoped that he could have her alone, it would be much easier to lead the conversation with just the two of them, he may have been easy to irritate, but Christine's innocent mind was even easier to manipulate. The boy, Artur, was thrilled to see Christine, it was clear that the girl, Zahra, took a lot more convincing, but came around to the idea.

Kylo lay back, bored, and fiddled with the tassels of a throw pillow, when something black and soft startled him, "You", he snarled. Adorlee, Christine's cat, smirked as her tail wagged behind her, Kylo knew that the creature was far below human intelligence, but she seemed to relish in his distaste for her. Her emerald eyes bore into his own, and for the life of him, he could not believe what happened next.

"You do realize that you are lying on my spot?"

Kylo jumped and fell clumsily off of the bed. Adorlee laughed and leaped onto the pillow on which kylo's head had been resting. "Much better", she smiled. Kylo had frozen, his eyes wide. "What, never seen a boss ass kitty before?"

Christine glared at him,resting her phone against her neck, "Can you keep it down?" she hissed, before returning to her call, "No Artur I'm still here".

Kylo glanced around before stumbling to his feet, this whole planet is insane, he thought. After a further five minutes of what Kylo had dubbed 'mindless chatting', Christine hung up the phone, tucking it safely into her jeans pocket. "So, the guys are going to meet us down there", she smiled,"Gods it's been an age since I've gone swimming".

A lump sharply lodged itself in Kylo's throat. Would they have to actually swim?

Christine noticed the sudden change in Kylo's face, and it took her seconds to click on. "You can swim … can't you?"

Kylo stuttered, swimming, was not a big priority for the Master of the Knights of Ren. "I", he coughed, "Have never been presented with the occasion". Christine smiled sympathetically, and quickly glanced at her watch, "Well, we don't have to meet everyone for another four hours, I bet, we can go down early and you, Mr. Kylo Ren, are going to get a few lessons".

The pair packed the car with everything they would need. Christine prepared a picnic for them and provided Kylo with a wet suit, towels, and all that you could possibly want for a beach day. Kylo's anxiety had begun to build at the mention of swimming, it had not left his mind. He sat on the passenger's side, his stomach churning. A rap came from his window, and he looked to see Xavier smiling at him. Kylo opened the door, "You want to speak to me Sir?" he asked.

"Please Kylo my boy, Sir makes me sound like an old senior", he smiled, "Just wanted to have a chat before the two of you set off". Kylo hopped from the car, he towered over Xavier in height, but there was something about the man, that made him seem like the safest person on the planet. "I see you and Christie kissed and made up" Kylo seemed startled but the Comte laughed, "It's an expression son".

"Ah. I see", Kylo didn't see, but he liked talking to the man, and did not want to seem foolish. "You know, I don't have any children of my own. Christie is the closest thing I have to a daughter. I never really connected to the boys, bless them. But little Christie, she seemed to take to me as a child. I guess you can say I favorited her".

"I can see why", Kylo mused, "She is a very, unique, individual".

"She didn't have many friends growing up", The Comte continued, combing his hand through his silvery hair, "Brothers you know, can be cruel, especially at that age. And my brother, well, he didn't really believe in mixing witches and humans, Christine, well, she was alone for most of her childhood".

I can relate, Kylo thought. "I know she has some mortal friends but, I don't think they can ever fully comprehend her. So, I suppose, in this ramble Kylo, I want to thank you, for staying, I mean, I know how much of a handful she can be at times. But the truth of the matter is, it makes me quite happy, that she has such a fine young man to call a friend".

Kylo softened for a moment at the Comte's words, and an unfamiliar pang of guilt attacked his chest. Friend, in his life, Kylo never saw any use for friends. As a child, however, he himself was a loner. At his Uncle's Jedi Academy, he didn't fit in with the other students, and as the Comte said, children can be cruel.

"I myself am happy, to have found a friend in your niece", Kylo replied quietly. He thought of what he was saying, was it really necessary for him to lie to such lengths? This was Christine he was talking about, the girl he had already decided to execute once his mission was complete. Xavier smiled, "Well, enjoy your day my boy, live a little, time is wasted on the young". With that, the Comte sped from sight, leaving Kylo alone with his thoughts. For the hundredth time, he yearned to consult with his Master, to seek strength to carry out the task at hand, and remind himself of who he was, and who he was destined to be. He could let attachment to the native girl, no matter how small, stand in the way of his goal. He would find the Ultimate Power, and he will kill Christine La Vedette.

She smiled as she approached him, her soft brown curls whipping and blowing in the wind. She carried with her a cooler bag filled with their food for the outing. "Come on E.T, we have some swimming to learn".

The pair clambered into the car. Christine ignited the engine into life, and they zoomed off. At first, they didn't speak, but Christine seemed to always manage to lure Kylo into the conversation. "Tell me about your home spaceman", she asked suddenly. Kylo hadn't been prepared for the question and struggled with the answer. Instead, he decided to tell her about StarKiller base.

"I live on a military base", he said, "I am but a simple pilot".

"So you like to fly?" she questioned. Kylo thought for a moment, "Yes", he answered honestly, I like to fly".

"What's the base like?" Christine continued with her questions, and Kylo found himself carefully filtering his answers. "It's on an ice planet", he said.

"Huh, ice planet, you must get pretty cold then", she added, taking a sharp left onto a back road.

"I'd like to think that I'm used to it", he lied, in reality, Kylo had loathed the planet. Its freezing temperatures were far from pleasant.

"I don't think I could", Christine shuddered, "I like the heat, all witches do. I like the beach, though, even though the water is freezing".

"I've never been", Kylo mumbled, another lie. He rested his head back and let his mind drift away.

"Ben the water won't bite!" His father ruffled his hair and smirked, "Come on, you aren't a chicken are you?"

Kylo huffed, his black curls fell over his eyes, and looked at his mother pleadingly. "Han, he'll go in at his own pace". His mother was sitting on a blanket with her brother, Kylo was five years old, and it had been his first trip to the beach. Han smirked, and in a flash, he threw the boy over his shoulders. "First time for everything buddy!"

"Han!" Leia protested, and Chewbacca roared lightly. Kylo squealed and slammed his tiny fists on his father's back, but to no avail, "I don't wanna!" he cried. The cool water splashed and licked Han's heels but he waded through the water, not stopping until it reached his waist. "Okay Ben, showtime!" His father through him into the crystal water, the young Kylo screamed again as he fell head first. He panicked furiously, and even though the water was arguably shallow, the small boy slipped under the waves. Within seconds of not resurfacing, Han stopped the boy out and onto his shoulder. Kylo humiliated, sputtered and coughed, furious that his father had dropped him, but like any five years old, he began to cry.

"Oh Han, give him here" Leia had reached the water's edge, and Han handed the child to his mother.

"He'll never learn if you keep babying him", Han complained.

"He's five Han", Leia scolded him, hugging Ben tightly to her.

"Aw, don't be mad sweetie", Han wiggled his eyebrows and wrapped an arm around his wife and child, and planted a gentle kiss on Leia's lips.

To most people, this wouldn't have been a particularly bad memory, but to Kylo Ren, it was a nightmare and a testimony to his 'incompetent' parents. "Hey hotshot, where'd yah go?" Christine's comment drew Kylo from his mind, "What?"

"You spaced out on me", she laughed, "Anyhow I was asking about the beach, you sure you'll be okay with Zahra and the guys being there?"

Kylo looked puzzled, "I thought it was just the other fellow", he muttered.

"Artur, he'll be there, him and a few others", Christine wavered.

Kylo raised and eyebrow, "Define a few", he quizzed.

"It's just three!" she protested, "Riana, Kyle, and Amir".

"Fine", he stated and returned to gazing out the window. Damn, he thought. Getting Christine alone was going to be even more difficult than he had first anticipated. Christine smiled "It might be good for you to mingle with humans that are actually human. Considering most of your interaction has been with witches".

"I doubt it", he mumbled, but then realized, he would have at least three hours alone before Christine's friends would show up, he had to act quickly to get the information he needed. "Are we almost there?" he whined, growing impatient. The young witch smiled, "Glad to see you turning around".

They arrived at Helga's Cove thirty-three minutes later. They parked, and unloaded the car. "I know the perfect spot", Christine called, slamming the trunk hood shut. They traveled down the path, arriving at the shingle beach, they continued to walk, stopping at an area that Christine thought was the best place on the shore, to Kylo, it all looked the same. Christine gazed around her, taking in the smell of salt in the breeze and the beautiful dark ocean. She inhaled deeply, feeling a calming serenity overcome her. Kylo, on the other hand, turned his nose up at all that was before him and prayed for the time that they would return to the manor. Christine lay out their picnic blanket, securing it to the ground with four rocks at each corner to prevent it blowing away. After that, she discarded her clothes, her wetsuit already on beneath them. She folded her jeans and shirt neatly and placed them into her bag. She watched Kylo as he leered at her, his hands tightly crossed against his chest. "Well you can't swim in those", she tutted, gesturing to his t-shirt and jeans. Kylo growled under his breath, but still, undressed and tucked his own clothes away.

The two walked on the shingle, reaching the water within minutes. The tide was out, and as the water began to lap at their ankles Kylo realized something that Christine had elected not to tell him; the water was freezing. "Give me a break", he hissed as Christine quickly changed direction, heading towards the large boulders that loomed over them. "Come on!" she called excitedly, the water only at their knees. Christine began to climb., hauling herself up the largest rock. "What are you doing?" Kylo snapped.

"Diving of course!" Christine replied gleefully. Kylo huffed, but climbed the rock, and followed her to the top. He felt a knot tighten in his stomach as he gazed down at the waves, they were awfully high. "The water is much deeper here", Christine commented, "But there are no currents so nothing to worry about there".

Yes, Kylo though, nothing to worry about, expect drowning. Christine quickly tied her wild hair in a low bun to stop it whipping across her face, and turned to Kylo. "Now when you dive you keep your arms in front of you and your body curved", she told him, and he scoffed, "What about the actual swimming part, hmm?"

"I was about to get to that", she glared, but sighed, "Yeah know what? This'll be easier", she pressed her forefinger against his forehead, zapping the information into his mind, he would swim, probably perfectly.

"Knowing and doing are two very different things Christine", he stated, blinking rapidly.

Christine laughed, "Can't you just trust me? I promise I'm not going to let you drowned okay".

Kylo wavered a moment but nodded. She smiled, "Okay, watch me!"

Christine stepped back to take a running start and dived into the water. Her body curved as though she were a dolphin, and she slipped through the water gracefully, barely making a splash. Kylo watched on, irritatingly impressed, however, she did not resurface. "Christine", he called, and then panicked, "Christine!" Still, she didn't come to the surface. "Damn that girl", he snapped, before sucking in a breath. Come on, you aren't a chicken, are you? Han Solo's voice rang in his ears. Kylo closed his eyes, and swiftly imitated Christine. He dived perfectly, slipping through the water as easy as Christine had done. Surprising to him, he instantly kicked, propelling upwards, and surfaced. He raked his hand on his head, pushing his hair from his eyes. "Christine!" he called again and dived once moe. This time, he kept his eyes open, however, the salt stung them. He couldn't see her, could she have sunk to the bottom. He shot up for air, hoping to see Christine bobbing in the water alongside him, he was alone.

"BOO!" Water splashed him, and Kylo spun in the water, to see Christine bursting into hysterics, "You make it so easy!" she squealed, and Kylo fumed. "Is that so", he snapped and used to force to cause a mini-tidal wave to engulf the witch. Kylo smirked triumphantly, as Christine resurfaced gasping and spluttering, "You son of a bitch!" she cried and used her hands to splash him in return.

A splash war broke out between the two until they ran out of steam. "Uncle", Christine groaned, exacerbated, and worn out. "I win", Kylo said slyly.

"You can have this one", she yawned, "I'll get the next". The two swam back to the rocks and dove a few more times before swimming back to the shore. Christine unpacked two towels, which with a simple spell she had kept warm. They plopped down on the blanket, and snacked on sandwiches and chocolate bars, making small talk and joking.

"Yeah know, it's been ages since I've had this much fun", Christine laughed, "Maybe you aren't as bad I first thought".

"Funny I was thinking the same thing", Kylo shot back, wolfing down the remainder of his turkey and ham sandwich.

"Really Kylo, I've actually enjoyed spending time with you", the witch smiled and nibbled at a Hershey's bar.

"Didn't you do things like this when you were a teenager?" Kylo asked.

"I am a teenager", Christine replied sharply.

Kylo rolled his eyes, "You know what I mean".

Christine felt her chest tighten, "Marthe would never have allowed it", she answered coldly.

"I know what you mean", Kylo lied, "My Uncle trained us day and night in my youth, there was no time for fun". Kylo knew exactly what he was saying. Because relating to Christine might ease her into telling him more information on the elusive Marthe.

"We have that in common", Christine trailed off, staring out at the sea.

"Tell me about your mother", Kyo asked body. But he didn't see himself getting another opportunity.

"She is an evil heartless bitch, what more is there to know?" Christine snapped, becoming agitated by Kylo's prying, he saw this and devised quickly a new tactic. "It must have been hard for you", he began, "Your mother is supposed to be, well , a mother. Someone who would do anything for you put your needs above your own. To care for you, and love you unconditionally. A mother is supposed to teach you right from wrong, and do what's best for you. Your mother was the exact opposite, you have been deprived of something that most people take for granted, it's okay to feel anger". Kylo's words were laced with a false sense of sympathy and understanding, he was telling Christine only what she wanted to hear. But Christine lapped up every word. She sniffed, lowering her head. "You know", she mumbled, "You really are a good person, Kylo Ren". He smiled, and when he did so it was plastered in false warmth, but also real guilt. Guilt for deceiving and toying with a young girl, who was, unlike most people in his life, genuine. "As are you", he replied.

"Huh, you know, if you had met me a year ago, you wouldn't have thought that", Christine mumbled, staring out to the water once more. "I was so far gone … even I don't know how I was brought back".

"This Marthe must be very powerful", Kylo commented, "If her hold was that great on you".

"It's my fault that Marthe is as powerful as she is", Christine snapped angirly, however it was anger focused on herself. Kylo froze, taking in what the witch said. It wasn't Marthe that he needed to find the ultimate power, it was Christine.