Author's Appreciation: Guys... GUYS. Seriously. I cannot even begin to describe what I'm feeling. Words escape me so please excuse this babble and help me form words. 4,000+ people read this story over the weekend. FOUR-FREAKING-THOUSAND. I am so lost for words right now. I want to cry from excitement. You guys; your kind words and support throughout this series has been so unwarranted and I don't deserve. Thank you all so, so, so, so much.
And now I give you a not as amazing chapter and I'm sorry. But now we have to make our way to TFA with the events leading up to it! I have like... the next 12 chapters ready to go so... review so I know you're still on board!
Speaking of...
Reviews:
SoulSpeak: Oh, it was Taka... and I have a feeling his safety is in question.
Warnaudrey: IMSORRYIMSORRYIMSORRYHEREHAVETHISCHAPTEREVENTHOUGHITWONTHELPBECAUSEIMAWFUL
AkatsukiShizu3: The feels have only just begun... IMSORRY
hrlqnn: Agreed! awkward indeed!
Raveclauses: IMSORRYFORMAKINGYOUYELLLOUDLY
LoveFiction2017: Poor Kylo indeed!
Andrea: Oh I see! Hey, maybe I am psychic! Who knew! And yes, love as a motive can be powerful and oh so very awful!
Ellipse27: We will definitely see into maintenance... just not yet. Their grief will come soon enough in more than one ways... spoilers?
I love you guys. Really. You're all amazing and I mean that from the bottom of my heart.
Ash sat upright quickly, hissing as her head throbbed from the sudden motion. Her hands clutched her head as she tried to put the pieces together of where the hell she was. She looked around, recognizing the interior of the old transport unit. She carefully slid out of bed and began walking towards the front. That asshole was going to get a piece of her mind when she saw… she froze as she stared at a very bright field outside the windshield of the cockpit. She was no longer in the Launch Bay, hell… she wasn't even on StarKiller. The grass gave that away as she began to panic.
She slammed her fist into the release hatch button, the ramp slowly descending from the ship as Ash quickly exited the ship. She was standing in a warm and sunny field, flowers all around… and the sun… the sun was so welcoming. Yet, everything that should have been a comfort felt wrong. Where was she?
"Oh hey, you're awake." She jumped as a man in an orange jumper approached. He threw his arms up cautiously, smiling brightly as he did. "Hey, it's cool. Everything's cool." He said. Her hand hovered over her belt where her saber rested.
"Where am I?" She asked, her voice sharp.
"D'Qar." He answered. "You're in the Ileenium System." He then realized the girl really had no clue what was going on. "How did you get here?" Ash frowned, looking at the ship. "Well, yeah, I got that part. The ship took you. What I'm really asking is, why are you here?"
Ash looked back at the stranger. "I was hoping you could tell me."
He shrugged, still smiling that dazzling smile. "I don't know why you're here. Where did you come from?"
She wasn't sure she was at liberty to say. "I need to find the Commander." She partially mumbled as she looked around.
"Commander?" He asked. "I mean, I'm the Commander."
Ash frowned, was this guy messing with her. Then, she saw the insignia on his flight suit. That wasn't a First Order jumpsuit. "The Commander of what?" She asked, nervously.
"My name's Poe, Poe Dameron. I'm Commander of the Resistance, under the direction of General Leia Organa."
Her eyes went wide. "Oh… shit."
Now Poe was getting uneasy, his eyes wandering towards Ashlyn's jumper and to the First Order insignia. He then saw the weapon she had been discreetly reaching for. "We aren't going to have a problem, are we?"
"I think it might be too late for that…" There was hesitation in her tone.
With that, a larger transport unit came into view followed by three separate X-Wings. Both Ash and Poe looked up as they watched their distance shorten, arriving to the scene. "We'll let the General decide." Poe said as the ship's landed close to the scene. It didn't take long for a few Resistance soldiers to rush out, ready to fight if this meeting went sour. Almost as immediately as the soldiers took their place, an older woman emerged from the transport ship. Ash could sense right away a very strong presence as she walked forward. She wasn't afraid of Ash, that was certain as she came closer to her.
"You must be Ashlyn. I'm happy you've arrived safely. I hope Commander Dameron has welcomed you." She said with a warm smile.
Poe, now looking completely bewildered, spoke. "General, she's from The First Order." She could feel the tension suddenly form within everyone standing in the immediate area at the mention of what she was. However, the General didn't flinch.
"I know that, Commander Dameron." The General said. "She's also a welcomed guest that we are to keep safe." She looked passed Ashlyn and to the ship. "I believe you have a message for me."
Ash started to nod only to quickly shake her head. "No-" She stopped herself. "Okay, yes, I do. I guess it's for you. He didn't specify. But can somebody please tell me what the hell is going on?"
The General's smile turned more sympathetic than anything. "How about we take you to the base and sort this out? You have my word that you are not a prisoner of the Resistance. You're safe."
Ashlyn stood her ground, her eyes locking on everyone standing in the field, the nervous pilots along with the Commander, and the welcoming face of the General. Something in her gut told her she could trust her. With a curt nod, her hand dropped from her saber. The General walked forward, showing no fear or distrust from Ashlyn. She kept her smile as she looked to the ship. Ash nodded, stepping out of her way. The General marched onto the ship with purpose, found where the transmission was being kept and took the drive it was stashed away on. She didn't wait for the message to play, in fact, on the orders she received it was better she didn't.
The General emerged from the ship, looking at the group hopefully. "We should head back. Dear, please ride with me." She said to Ashlyn. Reluctantly, Ash followed the General, but not before sharing a quick glare with Poe. They didn't trust each other, and that was fine. Perhaps this General could at least answer some of her questions.
When the transporter arrived at the Resistance base, Ash stared in awe. Their base was underground, and looked much smaller than StarKiller. That was for certain. The General looked at Ashlyn. "Stick by my side, no one will bother you." She said as they disembarked the transporter. Ashlyn did as she was told, sensing all the negative and shocked emotions coming from anyone and everyone they passed. Poe Dameron immediately joined them, standing on the other side of the General. "Mind if I walk with you, ma'am?"
"Commander Dameron, when I tell you to trust me that this young lady is not going to harm me, I expect you to respect my wishes." Ash liked this woman, she had a fire to her. She smiled apologetically to Ashlyn as they continued to walk, leaving Poe Dameron behind.
The General's office was on the small side, yet there was a desk and two well stocked bookcases with text that Ashlyn was unfamiliar with by first glance. She sat nervously in one of the only two chairs in the office, the General sat behind her desk. "You must have so many questions."
Ash shifted in her seat uncomfortably. "I won't pretend that I'm not with the First Order or that this is a Resistance base. I just want to know how I can leave without too much trouble and get back to where I'm needed."
"If I could send you back, I would." She sympathized. "I don't have the means to do so."
"I'm sure you can find a way." Ash said, her tone somewhat dark.
The General just smiled, recognizing that stubbornness. "I see you're a Force User." She said, nodding to the saber around Ash's belt. "I can sense a great deal of struggle within you."
Ash made a face that held more confusion than anything. "You're familiar with the Force?"
"Let's just say I have a very good understanding of it." She smiled warmly. "My dear, you're here for a reason, something I truly don't know much about. However, I firmly believe it's no accident."
"General-"
"Please, call me Leia." She insisted.
Ash took a moment of pause, trying to analyze what the hell was happening. "Leia." She repeated. "I have to get back to where I belong."
Leia knew; she had felt the pull to the light on the other side of the galaxy. The way he was now being torn and ripped back from the darkness. She felt it even before he had realized what was happening. When he reached out to her through the Force, she was surprised, but for a different reason. He needed help and he had nowhere else to go. Of course she helped him. What else was a mother to do? Regardless of the war and regardless of the galaxy; her son needed her. There was nothing that could stop that.
She had her doubts, of course, that maybe this was a trap. Yet, something in his urgency and the way he battled his feelings, she knew. He made her promise that she would keep Ash safe and prevent her from coming back to him. "Ashlyn, you can't go back."
Ash's fingers dug into the arms of the chair she was sitting in, her knuckles turning white. "Why can't I?"
"I'm afraid I cannot disclose that information. I know I'm asking so much of you by asking you to trust me." Leia's tone was comforting. "But just know that this is for the best."
Ash shook her head. "You don't understand, they need me. I need to go back; I have to go back."
Leia was given permission by the desperate man to do whatever necessary to convince Ashlyn to stay. Any other circumstance, she wouldn't do so. However, the desperation from him was hard to ignore. He had sent Ashlyn to D'Qar with a message. This message was to be used in the event to trick Ashlyn. While Leia was against hurting the girl, she knew she had to. With a reluctance, she plugged the hologram drive into a slot on her desk. One her desk, a blue hologram appeared. It was him; Kylo Ren with his helmet on.
'General Organa. As per our negotiation for the release of the First Order personnel you have captured; we offer a trade for their safety. This maintenance worker is freelance, she has no true allegiance to us and is useless to us. Use her as you will, her life means nothing.' It wasn't true. Leia knew that. Ashlyn didn't; she could see it on the girls face as the hologram disappeared.
"That can't be…" She said emotionless.
"We traded a war criminal for your safety; a necessary trade. You'll be safe now." Leia could feel the anger and hurt begin to pool up inside the red haired girl before her. She hated lying to someone she had never met before. Yet, she made a promise. A promise she wasn't sure she wanted to keep as she saw the panic begin to arise on the girls face. "I promise you'll be safe here. We can use someone with your specialties and-" Ash was up out of her chair and running for the door. "Ashlyn!"
She ran; that was all she could do. This couldn't be true, none of it could be true. He wouldn't just trade her life away like that. There had to be a mistake. She ran down corridor after corridor, ignoring the startled Resistance members. "Hey!" A somewhat familiar voice called behind her. Ash peered behind to see Poe Dameron now chasing after her along with a few other Resistance members.
She kept running, dodging Resistance after Resistance as she tried to escape. If she could get to one of those x-wings, maybe she could break the atmosphere before they shot her down. Corner after corner, Ash turned and was now faced with a dead end. "Shit!" She hissed, turning to see those who were chasing her, lead by Poe Dameron. She was trapped like a womp rat; cornered.
Ash was in a state of panic, Poe could see it on her face as his hand hovered over his plasma rifle. That didn't go unnoticed by Ash as she grabbed her saber from her belt. With a flick of her wrist, the amber blade shot out. "Hey, easy there. I don't want to hurt you." He tried.
"I want off this base!" Ash demanded, clutching her lightsaber.
Leia had finally caught up to the commotion then, pushing her way forward and to the front of the group. "Ashlyn, please listen to me. The Force has guided you here; we only want to help."
She growled. "Like hell you do!" With that, she raised her saber.
In that moment, two things happened; Poe grabbed his blaster, shifted it to stun and knocked Ashlyn out. Her body falling limp on the floor, her saber now making a burn mark on said floor where she lied limp. Two; Leia slapped Poe on the back of the head for doing so. "What?!" He gasped. "She was going to attack!"
"We could have talked her out of it." Leia sighed, desperation in her voice. What had she gotten her base in to? "Take Ashlyn to one of the rooms; make sure she doesn't hurt herself."
Poe nodded to the lightsaber. "What about that?"
Leia walked to weapon and picked up the lightsaber; the blade retracting. Poe gave her a pointed look. "You forget my lineage, Commander Dameron."
As the commotion cleared, Poe stayed behind with Leia, watching as other Resistance members took Ashlyn away. "Why her?"
"She's important." Leia explained. "I need you to trust me on this one. Try and be patient with her; we need her comfortable and settled in here."
There were a lot of things Poe Dameron didn't understand; the Force being one of them. Yet, he knew if Leia had a feeling, it was better to follow than not.
Hux did his research; he studied the surveillance cameras for hours, waiting for someone to show up in front of the cavern door. When that proved to be a fruitless effort, he pulled up a record of every communication that left the base. He'd catch the bastard that did this, and when he did… well, it was better to not think of it.
His bottle of whiskey was empty by the end of that fateful day, things were falling out of line and Kylo Ren had been slipping further and further into a darkness unlike anything he'd seen before. Ashlyn Novafall was truly the force that pulled him back to the light, that kept him from diving deeper. Now, she was gone.
He was surprised, to say the least, that Ren deliberately disobeyed the Supreme Leader. While he had expected a different outcome, he was at least a little relieved it didn't come to that. Now the question was, where did he send her? Then again, should anyone but Kylo Ren know the answer to that? The anonymous contact that Kylo Ren was in touch with only held suspicion, even for General Hux. Who was Kylo in contact with? Who did he trust enough to keep the girl safe? Again, a question that didn't matter.
Then, he saw it. The communication that was delivered to Snoke. The transmission was short, it only stated the corruption that Kylo Ren was having an affair and that it would be in the Supreme Leader's best interest to end it. "The balls…" Hux muttered as he traced back to transmission. To his surprise, it came from the maintenance bay. Soon, Hux was staring at the exact person whom had betrayed them; betrayed Kylo Ren, betrayed her. "Got you, you son-of-a-bitch." Hux said victoriously as he stood from his desk and headed for the cavern to cut-off Kylo Ren.
Hux had arrived to the cavern door just as Kylo Ren was leaving. The man looked defeated; exhausted. Surely, he did not get any sleep. "Commander Ren." Hux said; his tone serious.
Kylo Ren placed his helmet over his head. "General." The distortion replied.
"Walk with me." Hux nodded back down the hallway where he came from. Ren silently obliged as the two continued to walk side by side. "How are you?"
The helmet growled. "How do you think?"
Right, dumb question. "I had done some research this morning; watching surveillance, tracing transmissions. The usual." Kylo said nothing as he peered out the slits of his mask at the ginger next to him. "The transmission to the Supreme Leader came from maintenance." Kylo Ren knew, he had somehow always known in the back of his mind. Whether it was a feeling coming through from the Force or his hatred for the man. Hux's expression was unreadable as he avoided looking at the masked figure next to him. "I won't tell you not to." He said simply as he continued walking down the hallway.
That was all the permission Kylo Ren needed. His body sharply turned and left for a different destination all together. It pained him to be walking down the maintenance wing knowing that she wouldn't be there. It tug at every part of his being as he stopped once reaching his destination.
With a swift wave of his hand, the door to the apartment in question ripped open. He stormed right in, his lightsaber in his hand as he scanned the room. Taka, with fear in his eyes, got up from his couch and began backing away. It didn't take long for him to register what the Commander was doing there.
His saber crackled and hissed, echoing in the room as it illuminated the space in the deep shade of red. "I'm really going to enjoy this." His mask hissed, unable to fully express the anger hiding behind it.
Taka had no one to hide behind anymore, he made sure of that when he went to the Supreme Leader in the first place. What he thought would get Kylo Ren in trouble, maybe even sent away, completely backfired. What was done, was done. And no one dared to intervene as the rest of the maintenance team heard the screams echoing down the hallway.
She gasped for air as her body sat upward, her chest heaving as she woke from being stunned earlier. Her head was pounding; if she saw that Poe Dameron again she'd kill him. Speaking of killing him, she reached down to her belt, her saber was gone. In a panic, she looked around the small room. There, on a wooden table against the wall across from her bed sat the familiar weapon. She sighed with relief, forcing herself off the bed and grabbing the saber. She felt complete again.
Ash took note of the room she was in; brown walls, a twin sized bed, a table and a small light on said table and a door leading to the refresher. There wasn't much to look at; then again, she wasn't making it a permanent residence. She was out of here the moment she left the door.
As Ash made her way to the door, she felt something tug on her mental state; pulling her to stay in the room. "Stop." The deep voice said. Ash turned to see the man in black standing in her room. He looked tired; worn out. He had felt her panicking state and her plan to bust out of the base at any cause. He had to stop her.
Her body trembled slightly as she saw him. "Are you really there?" She asked; skepticism as she stared him down in disbelief.
"No. It's the bond." Ren informed her, keeping himself in check and careful not to reveal too much. "That'll all go away soon."
"Go away?" Ash asked. "What do you mean 'go away'? What is going on?"
He hesitated for just a moment. "You are staying here from now on."
"Why?" Her tone filling with something Kylo Ren hadn't felt from her in so long; hurt. "Why am I here?"
He played it off as though it were nothing. "I don't need you any longer." He said. "It's over. Your use has run out."
Ash's chest tightened; she found it very hard to breathe then. "My use?"
"Were you not playing my game, Ashlyn?" Kylo Ren's voice was cruel; he knew he had to be cruel. He had to be to get her to stay put.
Her cheeks began to burn from anger, embarrassment, pain; he didn't mean it, right? "I was not a pawn in your game." She didn't sound so convinced then.
"Weren't you?" It killed him just as much to destroy her. "I got what I wanted. Be happy I didn't dispose of you instead."
Her body unwillingly trembled then. "You don't mean that."
Kylo Ren's own chest was tightening. By the stars, he wish he could just tell her. He really did. But he knew Ashlyn. He knew she'd fight to come back. He couldn't have that happen. It was better off if she forgot him; she'd lead a happier existence if she did. "Come now, Ash. You didn't believe I actually could have loved you, did you?" Inside, his mind was screaming for him to stop. This killed him just as much as he watched her heart break right in front of him.
She felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach; how could he do this? How? Perhaps she had been wrong about him. Perhaps he truly was as evil as everyone claimed. "You're a monster." She said through gritted teeth. "A fucking monster."
"Goodbye, Ashlyn." He couldn't hurt her anymore. He had to be done with it and leave. With that, his projection of Kylo Ren was gone. Taking everything with him.
Ash yelled; in anger, in hate, in sadness. Every negative emotion that could ever be held by the girl surfaced. She grabbed her lightsaber and without thinking clearly, she destroyed everything around her. Her heartache could be heard outside the door, and felt by two people. One was on base, the other was miles and miles across the stars feeling every bit of it as she did.
After her tantrum subsided, she retracted her saber and threw it across the room. Ashlyn sank to the floor and pulled her legs to her chest tightly. Unable to control everything she was feeling, she began to sob. Her body rocking back and forth slightly; everything hurt. Everything was painful and Ashlyn couldn't do anything.
In that moment; Kylo Ren sank further into the darkness with Ashlyn Novafall not too far behind.
Final Thoughts: Holy vague ending, batman! I promise, the next chapters will be more entertaining. I hope... Anyway! Thank you for reading and see you next time!