Rey's eyes squinted hard as she stepped into the bright sunlight. Vi had agreed to take her to Riosa in her ship, she was just saying good bye to Cardinal and they would be on their way. Rey had been caught up packing a small bag and wasn't sure if Vi was ready. She shielded her eyes from the light and headed toward Vi's little craft.
Vi was standing with Cardinal under the wing of the ship when Rey spotted her. She must still be saying goodbye, Rey thought.
Just then Cardinal pulled Vi toward him and planted a soft kiss on her forehead, he pulled back and traced the spot with his finger for a moment. Vi reached her hand up to Cardinal's face, she smiled at him warmly and slid her hand down his arm, holding his hand for a moment and exchanging words Rey couldn't hear. Then Cardinal backed away and turned to head toward one of the huts.
Rey hadn't meant to witness an intimate moment. She glanced behind her and noticed C-3PO just inside the doorway.
"Don't mind me, but I do feel slightly out of place now that General Organa is no longer with us," he said with his head bowed slightly.
"We all miss her, Threepio." Rey nodded, she placed a hand on his arm for a moment before she turned and headed toward Vi's ship.
"All set?" Rey asked Vi.
"Yeah," she answered, wistfully glancing at Cardinal's receding form.
"First Order problem?" Rey asked with a tease in her eyes.
"Yeah, it's a problem." Vi shook her head, "Let's go to Riosa. You still need to tell me your plan for when we get there."
Rey nodded, "I need to speak with Kylo Ren," she said as she settled into the copilot seat.
"I thought you were going to say that. How are we going to do that, without him killing us, exactly?" Vi started punching buttons on the control panel.
"What do you know about the Knights of Ren?" Rey asked.
Vi's head cocked to the side, "They're a bit of a mystery but...they are rumored to meet on the outskirts of the capital once every Riosan year, there is an abandoned Imperial colosseum where they are said to meet secretly."
"That's very orderly," Rey quipped.
"Well, it's apparently the one night a year you are able to see Mustafar in the night sky from Riosa." Vi explained.
"Oh, Mustafar...Darth Vader?" Rey asked, "They gather to see his...home world?"
"Well, not his home world, but the planet where he built his castle when he became a Sith Lord." Vi answered as she pulled the joy stick back and sent them soaring into the sky.
Kylo Ren walked into the colosseum alone. He could hear three men gathered and talking in the otherwise deserted courtyard in low tones.
"Kylo Ren, Supreme Leader," one of the men, Timber, announced and all three immediately bowed in unison toward him.
Kylo Ren nodded and lifted his hand in thanks.
"Supreme Leader," another man, Kozine, repeated again in awe, "you will be a wise ruler."
Kylo Ren held up his gloved hand once again, this time definitively. The men grew still, reverent.
"Where is Teev?" He asked.
"Late, for some reason..." Kozine answered.
"I need to speak to all of you about something important." Kylo Ren said, his voice low.
The men looked at each other, Timber's expression grew wary.
"Our earliest training, from Luke Skywalker; I have been made to contemplate it again." He began.
"Yes, we heard of him appearing on Crait." Timber nodded, "Our old Master from the Jedi academy."
Kylo Ren took a deep breath, the impossible task stretched before him. "My fellow Knights of Ren," he began, "I feel the pull to the light, follow me as I return to the teachings of my uncle, Luke Skywalker. We have misinterpreted the life of Darth Vader."
The three men before him moved as one, in complete unity, as they ignited their lightsabers.
"Ben Solo, Hux informed us of your erratic behavior since Snoke's death at the hand of that girl." Timber said, his mouth tense.
Ben set his jaw at the mention of Rey.
"We had all hoped he was wrong. Hux suspects you may also have had a hand in the death of our Supreme Leader."
Ben Solo took one step back and ignited his own lightsaber, "The First Order must be torn down and a new order set in place, we can install a new Galactic Senate."
Timber shook his head slowly, raised his lightsaber and said, "So you weren't strong enough to resist the light."
Ben's breath caught in his throat suddenly and his eyes narrowed, there was a change in the Force around him.
Then, from the shadows at the end of the courtyard, Rey walked in.