WARNING: THIS IS A COMPANION STORY FORTwo Parts of a Whole: A Reylo Star Wars story. PLEASE AT LEAST READ CHAPTERS 1-19 BEFORE STARTING THIS STORY!
(This Chapter follows Two Parts of a Whole chapter: 28)
Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the Amazing characters other than Eshreal...
As always enjoy!
Chapter 6: The Knights of Rey
As soon as the Starfall landed on Olara the team rushed Gear to the med bay to get his wounds retreated properly. There wasn't even time for proper introductions. Eshreal and Cade stayed behind to give Leia a mission report while the Zer-o and Taliki helped Asera.
Leia was only a little upset that they had all but blackmailed the woman into coming back with them, but she was also very grateful to have someone who could heal with the Force among the resistance. She informed them that Hux was hiring poachers to capture dangerous animals for his fighting pits. Cade wanted to go after him, but Leia had other news.
While they were gone Hux had officially declared war on the Resistance and was planning to publicly out Kylo Ren as Ben Solo and execute 3 of Kylo's officers. Rey, Kylo, Poe and Phasma had rushed off to save them almost right away. Leia said she wasn't nervous but every few moments she would ask Kaydel if they'd heard anything new.
When Hux started his broadcast all of the inner circle squeezed into the communications room to watch. The room was filled with mixed emotions as they watched Kylo Ren and Rey work together to save three First Order officers. There were grumbles of 'they better be damn useful' and 'it's such a big risk for those bastards' and even 'Poe and Rey should leave Ren and that giant woman there to get what's coming to them'.
Hard looks from Leia shut every mouth in the room. Some of the tension left the room as they watched Hux flounder in his panic as once again things didn't go his way. Then everyone kicked into high gear waiting for the heroes to return.
Asera was upset to learn that Kylo Ren was not only a part of the Resistance now but the lover of Rey the last pure light Force user as well as one of the teachers too. She was relieved to learn that he wasn't there at the moment and wished that they had warned her that they were harboring the former Supreme Leader. She was shocked and horrified to learn that Kylo Ren was the son of two of the Resistance's greatest heroes. She felt better upon hearing that the others had reservations and concerns about learning from a dark Force user.
Once Asera was sure that Gear was going to be fine, Eshreal and Taliki showed her to an empty room. Then she headed back to the med bay to begin preparing for any injuries Rey and the others had sustained.
When Kylo Ren's shuttle landed outside the base Cade, Eshreal and Zer-o rushed out to help. Asera wasn't shocked when Zer-o came in and told her that they needed a stretcher and a cell prepped for the mall called Ozoroth. After everyone was treated and things were hashed out everyone returned to their rooms to pass out for the night.
In the morning everything seemed as though it had returned to normal. Asera was surprised when Eshreal knocked on her door early the next morning. She threw it open to find everyone waiting outside her door.
"What's up guys," she asked.
"You missed breakfast. Now it's time for class," Eshreal said with excitement.
"Class? What class," Asera asked.
"Because most of us grew up on our own, Ren volunteered to teach everyone the basics before Force training in the afternoons. Even the little kids and ex slaves," Zer-o explained.
Asera was shocked to hear that so many people within the rebellion were unschooled and that Kylo Ren was the one teaching them.
"No thanks. I don't need academic lessons. Someone come get me when you start training," Asera said, not wanting to be rude but also not wanting to spend any more time than necessary with Kylo Ren.
"Oh, okay," Taliki said disappointedly.
"We really wanted you to get to meet Rey, but I guess that can wait until later," Zer said and the group started heading down to the conference room.
"Wait, Rey is going to be there?"
"Yeah. She's never had any schooling either so she's always at lessons," Cade said.
And that was how Asera ended up in the cramped conference room with Eshreal and Taliki to her right and Zer-o and Cade to her left and Gear behind her with a bunch of kids practically in her lap listening to Kylo Ren confidently teach things like math, science, and history. He was a surprisingly good teacher and the way he treated the children and ex-slaves made Asera not so leery when it came to learning from him. But Rey was too busy taking notes to talk to the group.
After academic lessons everyone headed to the dining hall for lunch. After lunch everyone broke off to do their chores. Asera was of course assigned to the med bay where she would see patients and keep up the equipment. Though now that Gear was up and about there were no patients and all of the equipment that Cade and Zer-o had stolen from the academy didn't need any up keep, she soon found herself wandering around the base until it was time for Force training.
Eshreal and Taliki found her back near the med bay and showed her the way to the training ground that was nothing more than an open field filled with giant rocks and fallen trees. Rey and Kylo were already there sparring. The group stood back to watch as the two moved together like a well-oiled machine. When they were done Cade and the others had no choice but to clap.
"Wow," Asera said.
"You guys are amazing. I hope I'm that good one day," Eshreal said and bounced over to their mentors.
"You will be. You just have to keep at it," Rey said.
"Who is this," Kylo asked.
"Oh, Kylo, Rey, this is Asera Tessu. She can use the Force to heal people," Taliki explained.
Kylo looked Asera over and then nodded.
"I feel it too," Rey said.
Asera looked confusedly between the two.
"They have this freaky Force bond thing that allows them to communicate telepathically among a whole host of other things," Gear said.
"It is nice to meet you Asera. Do you have any formal training in using the Force for anything other than healing," Rey asked coming over to shake her hand.
"Yes, but only the basics. I have been able to develop some techniques on my own but I'm not a very skilled fighter," Asera answered.
"Well unfortunately you're going to go through a crash course on the basics of the Force as well as fighting because we are running out of time. Within the next 10 days I plan on heading out to get you all your own lightsabers. It is important for you to have them now that the First Order is backed by men wielding them. Once you have them I will be showing you all the basic lightsaber fighting styles. I know those of you who have lightsabers have been developing your own styles, but this will help when fighting against someone who also has one," Kylo said and the others nodded.
"Who says I want to fight," Asera asked shocking everyone.
"Why are you here if you don't want to fight," Rey asked.
"I came here to learn about the Force and to teach you all how to heal with the Force. I'm all for taking down the First Order and these new Sith, Jedi whatever but I planned to do it from the side lines," Asera said.
Kylo and Rey exchanged a look.
"Well Asera, long gone are the days of the pacifist Jedi Order. With the Darkness we are currently facing we will need every available hand when this war actually begins. Zroyais' men can't be hurt by lightsabers while in their armor and they are skilled with a lightsaber even if they don't seem to be able to manipulate the Force. They are well trained and ruthless. The Force is the only advantage we seem to have over them," Kylo stated.
"I know fighting an unknown enemy can be scary. I never thought I would be a part of something so important. A year ago I was nothing more than a scavenger on the planet Jakku with no real purpose but to collect scrap in order to feed myself to stay alive and wait for my family to come back for me," Rey said and they all could feel the pain behind her words. "I know the others all feel the same way."
Rey looked around the group and they all nodded. Asera was shocked. No one had bothered to mention that the hope of the Resistance was little more than a slave. She looked at the other members of the Last Hope and wondered what they'd meant by they'd been on their own.
"She wants to know your backgrounds," Rey said as though reading Asera's mind.
Asera and Kylo listened to the stories of Eshreal, Cade, Taliki, Zer-o and Gear. Rey had heard it all before but it still seemed to get to her. Eshreal went over and put her arms around the taller woman.
"It is okay, Rey. If we all hadn't lost something we never would have found our way here," she said with a slight smile.
Zer-o and Asera were shocked to see that Kylo Ren seemed effected by their stories too. Asera felt herself grow angry.
"You don't have the right to feel any type of way about the things that happened to them. The First Order is the cause of all this suffering and yet we are all supposed to be so grateful that you are willing to teach us and train us to fight an enemy you practically courted," Asera snapped.
"Asera," Rey started but Kylo shook his head.
"What's your story Asera? Did I personally do anything to you? I was only 8 years old when the Force awakened in me and Snoke began digging his claws into my psyche. I was 11 when Cade's parents were murdered. I was 13 when Taliki was sold into slavery. I was 14 when Eshreal's home world was destroyed. I was 19 when Snoke got Zer-o's mother killed. It wasn't until 5 years later that I joined the First Order. So yes I am to blame for a lot of things, hell you could even argue that I am the reason Gear's mentor was killed but even that I had nothing to directly do with. So tell me Asera Tessu, what did I personally do to you," Kylo snapped at her.
Asera's lower lip trembled.
"You willingly went to the man who was responsible for all of our pain! You killed for him! You did his bidding with pleasure. My parents were resistance fighters who were killed simply for gathering information about a store house. And when I was only 13 when I was sent away from my village and spent the next 5 years alone running from the First Order," she said.
Kylo scoffed at her and said, "And yet you were raised by people who actually cared for you, you ended up at one of the top medical academies in the Galaxy. None of us here can actually say that. We are all misfits Asera. My own mother and father were afraid of me as a child. I was left alone most of the time until I went to live with Luke and even then none of the other children wanted anything to do with me. No one here has had an easy life. Now you don't have to train with me. If Rey wants to make time to just train with you that's fine but as of right now you are taking away from the rest of the groups training time."
Kylo all but dismissed Asera.
He turned to the others and said, "We will be studying the school of Alter as it has the most applications on the light and dark side of the Force. Most of you can already use Telekinesis, Force Jump and Force Pull and Push with ease now. Some of you have even mastered other abilities within the Alter class such as Gear's Precog or Eshreal's Tapas."
Asera watched as the group worked together. Even Zer-o, who seemed to hate Kylo Ren as much as anybody, was into it. What shocked her was that Kylo Ren also seemed to be instructing Rey. In a moment of down time she asked the others about it.
"Well we came here to learn from Rey only to find out she has even less formal training than the rest of us. The Force is stronger in her because she is Kylo Ren's equal. He's actually been training her for a few months and most of their strength comes from the fact that through the bond they can access both sides of the Force," Cade explained.
"Is that why you all are willing to learn from him," she asked.
"I'm only here because there is no one else," Zer-o said.
"We are willing to learn from him because when he and Rey are together his light shines bright enough for him to feel like Ben Solo in my head and if Rey trusts him after all he's done, none of us have the right to judge them or their relationship. Besides he's a great teacher and not bad to look at," Eshreal said with a giggle.
Zer-o, Cade and Gear gave her a crazy look to which she just shrugged.
"I was hesitant at first but Essie is right. Ren is a good teacher and he's not all bad now that Snoke isn't pulling his strings anymore," Zer-o said.
"Fine. I give it a week. The first time he pulls some dark side mess on me, our deal is done," Asera said and joined the group after their break was over.
Neither Kylo nor Asera were really happy about working together but it quickly became clear that she was talented and a quick study. In fact she impressed Rey enough that she decided that Asera didn't need any extra training to catch her up to the others. Being able to heal with the Force required immense skill and control. The fact that Asera could do it easily meant that she could learn and master Force techniques faster than the others.
After five days of training Kylo felt that Asera was on the same level as the others meaning she was ready for her own lightsaber too. Kylo wanted to take a trip back to Ilum much to Eshreal's dismay. All that was left was to take it before Leia so she could either give her permission or say no which would just lead to Kylo taking the group anyway.
"First you want me to let you recruit the Knights of Ren and now you want me to let you take a group of Padawan to Ilum which is dangerous enough to get to but it is also guarded by the First Order," Leia said.
Kylo was about to speak but Eshreal stopped him.
"No offense Leia but if your son thinks he can handle the Knights of Ren then we need them. And I lived on Ilum by myself for over 14 years from the time I was 8 years old so I think a whole group of us should be fine. Besides the only thing that separates padawan from Jedi knight is the Jedi trials. I am sure everyone one of us has passed at least one of those trials. We aren't padawan; we are the Knights of Rey," Eshreal said and for once no one argued.
"I like that," Zer-o said.
"Much more fitting than the Last Hope since we've found 2 new people since we started calling ourselves that," Cade said and laughed.
Rey looked slightly uncomfortable and asked, "Why not Knights of the Resistance or something to that effect?"
"Because we came together to come learn from you. You alone gave all of us hope that the galaxy could be saved. Not to mention the fact that you brought Kylo Ren back to the light," Gear said.
Kylo and Leia looked expectantly at Rey who looked at a loss for words.
"I don't think I am the leader you guys are looking for. I have no real experience with things like this," she said.
"I'm sure my brother said the same thing," Leia said with a sigh.
"I know Han said it," Kylo said.
Everyone looked at him. Kylo never talked about his father. At least not in front of anyone other than Rey.
"Your father was a great leader even when he didn't want to be," Leia said, taking Kylo's hand.
The dark Jedi looked even more uncomfortable than Rey had earlier. Leia released him quickly as though she'd taken his hand more out of habit than conscious thought. She looked at her son and sighed.
"Fine. If you all think you can handle it I won't stop you," Leia said.
"We won't disappoint you," Rey said with a bright smile.
"You should come with us Leia. A lightsaber would do you some good too," Taliki said to which Leia just smiled and shooed them all from her office…