"You're Not Alone"
By EsmeAmelia
Chapter 7
Kylo could sense it as soon as Lieutenant Mitaka entered the room, fear pulsing off of him to the point where Kylo could almost hear his heart ramming against his chest. The news wouldn't be good . . . and depending on how bad the news was, Lieutenant Mitaka might need to be replaced soon.
Perhaps very, very soon.
"Sir . . . we were unable to acquire the droid on Jakku."
Kylo turned slowly, slightly in Mitaka's direction, letting the officer feel his unseen glare.
"It escaped capture aboard a stolen Corellian YT model freighter." Though Mitaka's voice was steady, the fear pulsed off him more rapidly with every word.
"The droid . . . stole a freighter." Kylo was unable to keep a hit of wry amusement out of his voice.
"Not exactly, sir," the lieutenant continued. "It had help."
Now Kylo fully turned to face him, letting him feel the full intimidating air of his presence.
Mitaka maintained his outward composure, but Kylo could feel his inner desperation to get away as soon as possible. "We have no confirmation, but we believe FN-2187 may have helped in the escape . . ."
At the mention of the traitor, the lightsaber's red flames shot out of its hilt. Almost without any conscious awareness, Kylo, started slashing at the console once, twice, three times, over and over and over, rage shooting through Kylo as more and more sparks flew from the console. Another slash, another, another, another another another. His mind's eye saw the traitor in place of the console, every slash piercing through him. Traitor, traitor, traitor!
When the slashes finally settled, Kylo took in a deep breath, thankful for the mask hiding his face. "Anything else?"
Mitaka swallowed. "The two were accompanied by a girl."
With that, Kylo's hand shot out, harnessing the Force and yanking Mitaka toward him until his neck was firmly settled in Kylo's grip. Kylo pressed his thumb into the lieutenant's neck, letting him know that he could be dead in a matter of seconds. "What girl?"
Mitaka desperately gasped for air. "Just a girl . . . we don't know who . . . probably a scavenger."
"A scavenger?" Kylo pressed his thumb in further. "How did you let a scavenger escape with the traitor and the droid?"
"They eluded us," Mitaka gasped out, his voice now little more than a whisper. "No one was expecting a freighter in that condition to fly so well."
"So you underestimated the enemy."
"Sir, we've sent out search parties, the droid will be back in our hands soon along with the traitor and the girl, I assure you!"
Finally Kylo dropped Mitaka, who landed in a heap. "See to it that they are," he said as he stormed out of the room, his hands clenched, his teeth grinding, sweat building up on his forehead. That damn traitor! Why didn't Kylo just kill him on Jakku? Why didn't Kylo just kill him on Jakku?
Well, he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice.
And the girl. Who was the girl?
. . .
During all the nights on Jakku when the scavengers told each other stories of the long-ago wars, Rey never seriously thought that she would meet the Han Solo and Chewbacca – and aboard the Millennium Falcon, no less. Who would have thought that the Millennium Facon had been so close by for however many years that Unkar Plutt had it?
Of course, even if she had allowed herself a fantasy like that, she wouldn't have imagined that the Millennium Falcon was so grungy or that Han Solo was so . . . sad. What could have happened to the Rebel Alliance general that made him go back to smuggling while searching the galaxy for a stolen ship?
As soon as the Falcon touched down on the planet Han called Takodana, Rey rushed out of the cockpit and down the ramp, BB-8 by her side, eager to step out into the greenness. Maybe she had seen grass and trees before when she was little, before she was abandoned on Jakku, but any memory remnants were distant and faded.
The ground felt soft and sturdy under her feet, not sagging like the sands of Jakku. She breathed in a fresh, thick smell of water, plants of all kinds, soil, even a hint of sweet flowers. Green, green everywhere, under her feet, up and down the endless stretches of trees, feeling like a soft, warm blanket that she could get lost in.
And right by the Falcon was water.
So much water flowing, rushing through the ground, sparkling in the bright sun that was warm but not blaring. Again Rey searched her faded memories, wondering if she'd ever seen so much water in one place before, finding that she only remembered the fantasies of oceans that came to her at night.
She could hear chirps and calls in the distance – birds, she guessed. What kinds of birds lived here? Were there fish in the water? She thought of jumping in the water to look for fish even though she couldn't swim. Birds and fish and plants and life!
As she stared out at the stone towers against the bright blue sky in the distance, she allowed herself a moment of contentment. Finn, Han, Chewie, BB-8, she felt that they genuinely cared about her even though she hadn't known any of them for long.
She tried not to think about how she would have to return to Jakku soon and never see any of them again.
"So beautiful," she whispered. BB-8 beeped in the affirmative as she stared at every detail, trying to press them in her mind so she could revisit this moment when she returned to Jakku. Maybe remembering the green would help the endless desert not to feel so lonely.
I wish Ben were here.
The thought sprung into her mind unexpectedly, yet she immediately realized that she did wish Ben was here – actually here, not just linked with her. They could enjoy the gorgeous scenery together, she could introduce him to her new friends, maybe seeing Takodana's beauty would even help him feel like his old self again. Her heart suddenly longed to share the moment with him.
Maybe they'd link now and she could at least tell him about it.
Ben, are you there? she thought even though she knew she couldn't activate the link just by thinking to him. So much has happened in so short a time, I want to share it all with you. I want you to feel what I'm feeling now.
But he didn't appear.