Chapter 6

Koita Mathe swung his lightsaber and slew three Rebels that fired at him from the ramp of the Millennium Falcon. The heat from the fire was stifling in his mask and his cloak had long been abandoned, kissed by flame and no longer of any use. As soon as he cleared the ramp, he punched the rickety old button to close it, sealing him in with perhaps twenty or so rebels. All unarmed.

Their screams pierced his ears, but he couldn't stop to flinch. They were all of nefarious intent against the First Order and needed to be suppressed by any means necessary. Meticulously, he moved through the loading room and the medical room, hardly registering the feel of his lightsaber against the bodies of those enemies. He even took down a brassy protocol droid that waved his arms in protest, hardly seeing it. No, he only saw the First Order and it's need to be ensured.

Suddenly, the door slid shut behind him, it's ancient -yet efficient- locks clicking into place. Koita Mathe rolled his eyes, then slammed his lightsaber through the door, wounding the wise numbskull who thought to suppress him. Commander Dameron, the Force told him that much of whom was it that was wise, but not wise enough. All that noise for a cut to the arm though…

The Force tingled around him, turning his chin over his shoulder. Faroh was in danger. Grave danger. And the Rebels were fleeing. Koita Mathe turned back to the door and began to twist his lightsaber towards the control panel, feeling the Force for both his comrade and the situation at hand.

Faroh screamed in the Force, Koita Mathe feeling a pressure on his head unlike anything he had yet known. It was a squeeze, almost like a choke hold, but upon his temples where there wasn't anything to move. At least, not yet.

"Faroh!" Koita Mathe shouted, recalling his lightsaber as he felt the Rebels leave the sagacious ship from another hatch than the main ramp, (To where, He thought in the back of his mind). "Faroh! Who is hurting you? Is it the girl?"

"K-K-K!" Faroh's voice echoed in Koita Mathe's ears. "K-Kyl…"

Silence, followed by a relief on Koita Mathe's temples.

A pain seared Koita Mathe's chest and he clutched it, bending over at the waist for a moment. His brother-in-arms, his fellow knight… had fallen. That rebel scum had slain a Knight of Ren! He screamed, latching onto the Force with every ounce of rage, every breath that escaped his lips that should have filled his brother's body, and twisted the Force to bend to his will.

The door groaned, then sputtered, then… CLACK! Shriveled into a useless heap and flew away from him, allowing him into the smoking corridor. He turned, hearing a hatch close, and feeling the presence of the rebels evade him. He turned again and moved towards the cockpit, the Force telling him that the cunning of the rebels was not limited to their commander.

SWSWSW

Kylo stood over Rey's body, flicking his eyes from her to the lifeless heap that was his personal guard. He had been too focused on Rey to have seen Faroh come from the field to protect him, and had knocked Rey unconscious. But he did see his own hand shoot up and clamp the Force upon his fellow knight's head, a rage sweeping over him that he had not felt since deciding to murder Snoke. He stood there, the consequences of his actions lapping over him like the very fire that burned before him.

The penalty for murdering a fellow knight was death. This was nothing short of deserving of that punishment. He had slain his brother-in-arms, not only his subordinate, for merely touching this woman who was trying to kill him. He lifted his head, searching for Koita Mathe. He could feel him trying to communicate with Faroh, but had killed him before the man could confess his murderer. If he kicked Faroh's body into the fire, no one would know…

A gust of wind rustled his cloak, the feeling of danger slithering down his spine. Instinctively, he bent over and scooped Rey into his arms, her head lolling over his arm and her body incredibly soft. He turned around, seeing his own model TIE Fighter, the Raven Starr, hovering before him, cannons loaded and poised for firing.

"Don't be ridiculous," He told the pilot, sending his message through the Force. "You'll kill her."

SW

Finn watched in horror as the Terror of the Galaxy held Rey in his arms once more. What made it worse was her arm, waving freely in the air, started towards her forehead, but suddenly dropped it at the movement of Kylo's fingers.

"Disengage the canons." Finn hissed, looking over Connix's shoulder.

"We have a shot." She nearly whispered.

Finn glared at her. "No, we don't."

She whirled around to glare at him, but he cut her off. "That's an order, lieutenant."

SW

Kylo continued to stare at his ship, admiring it's lethal beauty. Suddenly, one of the Rebel ships below it burst into a ball of fire, forcing the TIE pilot to glide away from the blasts. From the top of the Millennium Falcon, shouts could be heard, and Kylo turned. Standing in crouched, determined fear, were at least a dozen or so rebels who appeared to have escaped Koita Mathe.

He turned back to his ship and sent another message via the Force, "Trade? Rey's life for your rebels?"

SW

Finn leaned away, the voice that had haunted his dreams echoing fresh in his ears. Trade? His best friend and crush for Poe, Rose, and other rebels that lead the Resistance? His chest heaved and he began to shake his head. No, he couldn't do it! He couldn't give her up for the world.

Connix turned to look at him over her shoulder, her face calm, expectant.

The moment he looked at her, Finn knew that the answer was simple, and yet so devastating. Rey was one woman, one who could handle herself against all that the First Order had to offer; they had seen it countless times. The Rebels on the other hand were-

"The Falcon is starting up!" Connix told him suddenly, twitching her chin to stare, wide eyed, out the massive windows.

Finn looked back to Kylo and Rey, watching him pull his attention from the shivering Falcon to the Raven Starr, waiting for a response.

"Focus all attention on recovery efforts of the Rebels," Finn told her, his heart shattering as he spoke. "Leave Rey."

SW

Kylo watched with grim satisfaction as Koita Mathe lifted the Millennium Falcon above the flames to keep the ship from exploding, and the two man crew of the Raven Starr throw down a spare rope ladder for their own to climb. The Rebels looked first at it in speculation, but one, Poe Dameron, shouted up to the Raven Starr and latched on to the swaying ladder. Kylo watched them go, a deep hatred settling into his chest as he shot feelings to Koita Mathe, commanding him to hold the ship steady.

They would pay dearly for taking his precious ship, but that would come later when they would begin negotiations for Rey. He adjusted the unconscious woman in his arms, holding her closer in case any of the rebels tried to be brave. Her beacon of light within the Force pulsed, the result of the blow and his technique to keep her unconscious. There were others among the Rebels that flickered in the Force, the misfortune of their birth keeping them completely oblivious to the fact which pleased him greatly.

Poe Dameron saw the last Rebel onto the ladder, then latched on himself, his face turning back to Kylo and his captive, his jaw setting with frustration.

Kylo smirked beneath his mask. "Koita, fly"

The Millennium Falcon moved forward, nearly pulling Dameron with it. He dangled, one leg unattached to anything at all as both arms gripped the rope ladder. He gritted his teeth and pulled himself upward, hands waving above him encouraging him to climb all the faster.

Kylo turned his back on his pirated ship, his feet crunching slightly on the meadow's surface, the smell of burning flesh and jet fluid seeping through his mask, the auditory sensors detecting nothing but crackling and the occasional shrill shriek of an overheated bullet. The ship that he hated far more than the Rebels' ideals themselves settled before him, the rear sputtering from the damage the native Nabooans had inflicted upon it. Kylo swallowed, accepting that he would have to ride in it once more.

The ramp lowered, and Koita Mathe rushed out, mask pointed first at his superior, then at their comfortable TIE fighter hovering above them.

"Think they'll fight?" He asked Kylo, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

"No," Kylo told him firmly. "They wouldn't risk losing the girl." He turned, more to show the Rebels of their choice rather than to look. "We'll be fine."

Dameron had finished climbing and the rope ladder and rear door closed, securing the remaining Rebels within. Kylo watched them, Rey's body pulling on his muscles, imagining the face of the traitorous Storm Trooper, FN-2187, glare down at him. He had seen his face the night before, the same glare, a combination of hatred and reverence and imagined those sentiments intensified. In the recesses of his mind Kylo wondered, did he have a name? Or did he keep his Storm Trooper call code as the only name given to him by the handlers?

The TIE Fighter shivered, the result of an inexperienced pilot, before lurching forward, lifting through the clouds, leaving their precious warrior to sway, almost lifeless, in Kylo's arms.

SWSWSW

Connix pushed them through the atmosphere into the sea of stars and nebulae, and looked over her shoulder at Finn as he staggered back, hands flying to his hair at the weight of his decision. A hand tapped her arm and she looked up, seeing Poe over her shoulder, gesturing to take command of the ship. Carefully maneuvering around her, Poe whistled. "Wow," He declared, smiling and adjusting his bloody arm, "This thing is nice."

"Head's up!" Rose cried, slamming her palms onto the control board, eyes wide as she looked out the windshield.

Poe looked up, seeing no less than four rounded Special Forces TIE fighters hover in front of them with several more cutting through the black of space to appear before them. "It's okay," Poe told her, taking in the different array of buttons and switches before him, "In this thing, we're invisible."

"What about Rey and the Falcon?" Rose asked, looking at him. "They'll blow it out of the sky."

He hesitated, his hand hovering over a particular switch. From the commlink, voices began overlapping, asking questions. He moved his hand and spoke into the commlink, "You've been listening to Rebel Scum Radio, let's take a request from caller number one."

Rose stifled a laugh as radio chatter ceased for a solid five seconds before someone demanded, "Black Command, could you repeat that? Over."

"Sorry caller number one, I don't have that particular song on my schematic. Please call again." He touched the button labelled "tactical" and let out a yelp when the seat dropped two feet and slid him forward, the entire command board shifting the panels upward to project a complete frontal and side view of the battle scene, right and left control sticks thrusting into his hands. The only problem were his feet that dangled a solid foot away from the foot pedals.

"How tall is this guy?" Poe breathed, reaching between his legs for the adjustment lever that shot the pedals to his own inadequate height. At once, he pushed both control sticks towards the battle screens, propelling the TIE fighter forward at such a speed he heard the surviving Rebels let out screams.

"Sorry!" Poe called over his shoulder, watching the Special Forces TIEs follow him, the radio chatter silencing once again. "Alright, Chewbacca where are you?" Poe said, scanning the screens for the freighter.

"I told him to run," Connix's voice called behind him. "I told him to get out and find the others."

"Alright, then." Poe replied, tapping at what looked like the hyperspace controls whilst watching the Special Forces TIEs begin to follow him, radio chatter scarce as they moved. Once they were a safe distance away, he grinned and touched the telecom button, and licked his lips, "This is Poe Dameron of Rebel Scum Radio, thanks for tuning in. We'll be seeing you soon. Laters!"

He pushed the button that accessed the coordinates and grinned as the stars stretched before him in long, white streaks and propelled them forward into a vast tube of (hopefully) untraceable safety.

SWSWSW

Finn fell hard into a leather seat, chest heaving with disbelief and disgust. He had left Rey. Rey! Tears stung at his eyes, but nothing compared to the tightening within his chest at the thought of it. Once again, that black figure in the mask, the Terror of the Galaxy, carried her away from him. Finn looked around the comfortable ship, once the object of his admiration. It was now a warped, hideous thing because it's efficiency and comfort took him farther and farther from Rey.

"We're going to get her back," Poe's voice told him, pulling Finn's glance toward him. He leaned against the doorframe, and he clutched an arm soaked with blood as Connix fiddled with a surgical droid. "I saw Ren with Rey. We'll get her back, I promise."

"What if they kill her?" Finn's asked, though he couldn't recall opening his mouth.

Poe shook his head, "I don't think they will. She's got a connection with him, something I've never seen before. He's not going to kill her, it'll backfire on him."

Finn blinked, and this time he remembered speaking. "Are you sure?"

Poe swallowed, looking to Connix as she joined him, realizing that Rose had taken over the pilot's seat now returned to cruiser mode, her face red and wet. "No," Poe whispered, reaching out to touch Connix's back. "I have no idea what they'll do to her. But," He turned back to Finn, "She's my family, too. I won't stop until I've done everything in my power to get her back. I promise."

SWSWSW

Kylo watched Rey as she slept, lain down on the communal couch where he had left her. He sat across from her on one of the stowaway chairs, hands clasped in front of him, in control of everything in the ship from the dead bodies to Koita Mathe who flew them. She had gained weight from the last time he carried her, a good thing given the bones that he had felt upon her stomach the first time. Her face was soft, reminding him of that look. He had forgotten it, recalling all her faces but that one. Her mouth was soft, opened slack just slightly, and her eyebrows had small sprouts beneath their arches, a result of plucking. She tried to make herself appear beautiful, but for whom? And who would dare to suggest that she wasn't already lovely to look at?

Koita Mathe sent them into hyperspace, a tunnel of blue and white shooting around the ancient ship. Not that Kylo could see the accustomed sight from where he sat. He could have, if he turned his head and leaned back on the seat rest. But he did not turn his gaze from Rey once, and his feelings hardly wavered from her. The Force was drawing him to her, but he could not explain why. It simply felt, right, to be with her in this way.

Comfortable with their situation, Koita Mathe stood, and moved back to the common area where Kylo sat. Koita Mathe reached up and removed his mask, his face awash with sweat and flattened blond hair.

"We will make it to the Finalizer, courtesy of fuel from her royal highness the Queen of Naboo," He announced. "After that, this junk should hit the decommission pile."

Kylo didn't have to look at Koita Mathe's face to know that he was unsettled. The death of Faroh had deeply disturbed him, and not only as a grieving knight. Kylo could also feel his guard's fingers gliding over his brain for anything that might shed light on the subject rather than ask it outright. Kylo blocked him, not in the mood to be searched.

"What happened to Faroh?"

Had he not trained rigorously to withhold emotion, Kylo would have exhaled and rolled his eyes. Instead, he replied in a calm monotone, "He died in battle."

"A Kight of Ren does not so easily fall, Kylo," Koita Mathe told him.

"I told you she was strong," Kylo told him, still admiring Rey. She had a wounded hand, one that smelled of burnt flesh and sterile gauze rather than bacta fluid. "You're no match for her, much less Faroh. To have challenged her was foolish of him."

"You were fighting her," Koita Mathe breathed. "You must have fought her with Faroh at your side. She overpowered the both of you?"

Kylo turned slowly toward Koita Mathe, anger flaring, inspiring him to stand straight in apology for his insubordination.

"She got a lucky shot."

"Yes, sir." Koita Mathe replied, his feelings still unsettled.

SW

For hours, they flew in silence, Kylo always watching Rey to ensure that she wouldn't awake on them. She did only once, but with a wave of his hand, her head resettled on the cushion and she was at peace.

"Pretty little thing, isn't she?"

Kylo turned to Koita Mathe, seeing him with his mask off and leaning against the wall Kylo remembered seeing his father lean against. Kylo said nothing, knowing that his feelings of agreement could be read by his companion.

"When was the last time you saw your family, Koita?" He asked at last.

"Seven months, three weeks, and four days, sir." Koita Mathe answered, his feelings uneased again. If Kylo didn't know any better, he would say that Koita Mathe remembering his family would be the cause of his discontent. Thankfully, he wasn't so naïve. Koita Mathe was worried that he would not be at Kylo's side if he saw his family.

"I want you to go home to your family, Koita." Kylo commanded, turning back to Rey. "Spend time with them, a month, I think. Then rejoin me."

"And what will you do for protection in the meanwhile, sir?"

Kylo leaned back in his seat, feeling his back release tension. "Send me another two knights, ones I'm familiar with. But not until you step onto the Nest. I want to give those who would betray me a chance to try something. Civil disputes must be contained before they spread."

"Very good, sir." Koita Mathe answered.

Kylo could feel the gentle fingers of the Force sweep over his brain, clawing gently at his thoughts and feelings like a delicate massage. He whirled on Koita Mathe, the fingers evaporating the moment he moved.

"Do you have anything to add?"

Koita Mathe's eyes searched Kylo's frame, then moved to Rey, admiring her as she slept. "Do you love her, Kylo?" He whispered, looking back to him. "There's no doubt she would make a wonderful apprentice and a powerful Knight of Ren should she choose to take the vows of knighthood."

His eyes looked away for a moment, an idea coming to mind. "What if I took her with me to the Nest?"

Kylo leaned away, looking to Rey as the idea settled into his mind.

"We've made dependable knights made of stubborner stuff that what she's got," Koita Mathe urged, moving from his post to stand next to his superior. "And… from what our brothers can attest, female knights make the pretties brides."

Kylo listened, letting himself ponder the implications of allowing Rey to go to such a place as the Nest.

"I'll think on it." He said at last, the monotone voice emitting from his mask hiding his true feelings. "When you get there, prepare a place for her. She will be my apprentice when she is loyal to the First Order... if I decide she is to go."

This time, Koita Mathe's feelings jittered with an almost childlike joy. The man smiled, "Yes, sir."

Kylo waited for him to leave, practicing his breathing as he imagined a black cloak swaying from Rey's shoulders, a black dress hanging from her hips and tightened over her bust, a crimson lightsaber in her delicate hands. Kylo reached up and touched the buttons to relieve his mask, pulling it from his shoulders.

"My apprentice…" He breathed. "My… apprentice."

SWSWSW

At some point, Finn was able to stand and look around the Raven Starr. Around him, Rebels huddled, still shocked by such violence inflicted on what was supposed to be a peaceful farewell to General Organa.

"Hey," A gentle voice called behind him.

He turned and saw the kind face of Rose upturned in a half smile. "You saved us," She breathed.

He shook his head, "Not all of us."

Her eyes hardened and she shook her head. "Just like the First Order to ruin something so precious as a funeral."

"They saw an opportunity and they took it," Finn told her.

"It was Rey," A voice called out.

They turned and saw a lieutenant curled halfway into a ball on the floor, glaring at them. Her jacket had blood smears and upon her trousers were smoke stains. The moment she spoke, what small chatter there was silenced.

"It was Captain Rey," She repeated, her voice rising. "She invited that monster to the funeral! She did this to us!"

"That's enough," Finn warned.

The lieutenant scoffed, "You don't want to hear it, but it's true. She's exactly where she deserves to be for causing this."

"The First Order would have shown up anyways," Poe's voice called, directing all eyes to him as he stood up from his chair, a bacta wrap around his arm. He moved to the center of the gathered Rebels, Connix coming to stand close to him. "We intercepted four transmissions from friendly pilots around Naboo. The First Order was told to stand down, but also to be prepared for battle. I'm not saying I'm condoning Captain Rey's actions, but…" He shook his head, "There's no way we could have made it out without losing some of our own."

"Then why did we go in the first place?" Someone demanded, several voices chiming in with agreement.

"It was a gamble," Poe confessed. "We hoped they would honor the ceasefire. We planned on getting off Naboo well before that clock hit zero, but that didn't happen." He opened his mouth, then closed it, then added, "It's not just Captain Rey's fault."

Finn looked at Poe, grim realization coming over him as he realized his friend was avoiding his gaze.

"What will happen to Rey?" Rose asked, shifting her weight towards Finn.

Poe inhaled slightly, then turned to them. "I will have to report her actions to the council."

Finn felt a block of ice fall into the pit of his stomach. He swallowed hard, but said nothing.

Poe continued, "After that, it will be the decision of the council whether or not to begin hostage negotiations with the First Order… if there are negotiations to be had at all."

Please Review!