A Reylo Romance: "Don't be Afraid, I Feel it Too"

Breaking Out

I wake in a glowing blue room. The bars of my cell are lined with blue crystal and so is the floor. Mom is unconscious in the cell beside me, the bars that separate us are aglow with energy. I try to sit up but the crystal beneath me makes my bones ache.

"Mom?" I say. She doesn't wake. I look towards the cell door. There are two Stormtroopers stationed by the entrance down the hall.

Why isn't Rey here with us? What plans does Snoke have for her?

I close my eyes, wishing I had the strength to cry. I've always admired how Rey could so honestly cry when her heart ached.

Father, what do I do?

I wait, but there is no reply.

What could we have done differently? I think back to the mess hall, to last night when Rey and I were arguing. She would have never let me come and face Snoke without her, no matter what I said. Maybe I could have put a sedative in her drink and had her sleep through this battle, safely back on the Resistance Starship. But she'd never forgive me for doing that. Why does she have to be so brave? So honourable?

Snoke's words got to her. He was lying about her and Finn's destiny, he had to be. He was just trying to get to me, to make me doubt my decision to marry her, and make her doubt her decision to want me as the father of her children. Or maybe he wasn't lying. If Finn had a fair chance, and I'd never taken Rey hostage that first time on Takodana when I wanted information about the map, then would they be together now? The thought is too much to bear.

The familiar sound of BB-8's ball rolling over a smooth surface pulls me out of my thoughts.

"BB-8?" I whisper.

She comes into my vision, rolling up to the two Stormtroopers at the end of the hall. They look down at her.

"Is this one of our droids?" one of them asks. The other shrugs. BB-8 rolls past them towards my cell.

"Hey!" the Stormtrooper yells. "Sto-!" A phaser blast to his chest cuts off his words and he flies into the opposite wall. The other Stormtrooper turns to face where the blast came from but he's too slow and is also hit. Finn runs around the corner and steps over the unconscious Stormtroopers. I never thought I'd be so glad to see FN2187 in all my life.

* * *

"You're heavy," Finn grunts as he drags me across the blue floors. I resist the urge to tell him to hurry up. He's doing the best he can. He pulls me out of the cell and I roll onto my side.

"My mom..." I say in a hoarse whisper.

"What?" Finn asks.

"Get the General."

"Oh." Finn opens the doors of the next cell, having no effects at all from the blue crystal lining. But why didn't it affect Snoke, when he touched it?

I watch as Finn lifts Mom up into his arms and carries her out. It's a good thing she's little. Then a horrible thought hits me. Is she too weak to have survived so much crystal exposure?

Finn sets her down gently against the wall outside of the cell. I crawl over and take her hand.

"Mom?"

I breathe a sigh of relief when I feel a faint pulse.

BB-8's gears startle me and I jump, my adrenaline now pumping. We're still too close to the blue cell doors, but my strength is already returning now that I'm no longer touching it. BB-8 watches us from a distance. I open my arm out for her to join us and she rolls over to me.

"Where's Rey?" she beeps as I put my arm around her.

"I don't know," I say.

BB-8 lets out a high beep of concern.

"She was in the throne room at the center of the ship the last time we saw her," I say.

"Can we go see if she's still there?" BB-8 asks.

Finn is already running ahead of us.

"Finn!" I call after him. Mom opens her eyes at my yell.

Finn stops at the end of the hall and looks back.

"We have to stick together," I tell him. He looks around the corner then returns. Mom sits up, holding her head in her hand.

"What happened?" she says, her voice scratchy.

"The dark blue crystal, it makes our Force powers weak," I say. "And we're highly sensitive to it."

She glances to the left, squinting at the glow of the cell doors.

"Where's Rey?" she asks.

"That's what we need to find out," Finn says.

Mom looks up at him. "Finn, I thought you were flying an X-Wing on this mission," she says.

"Sorry Ma'am. I disobeyed a direct order." He looks at BB-8. "It was BB-8's idea."

Mom shakes her head. "Well, for once I'm glad." She starts to get up slowly and I reach out to help. "Let's go find my daughter-in-law."

Her words are like a small stab to my heart. I can't stop thinking about all that Snoke said. I look over at Finn. He's wearing Poe's jacket again, a serious expression on his face. If we find Rey and free her, I'll let Finn go to her first. He's the one who saved us on this mission. She can see him as the hero and decide if being married to me is what she really wants.

"Can you walk?" Finn asks, reaching a hand out to me.

"Yes." I get up. My legs are a little shaky but I'm getting stronger again. Finn and I help Mom get to her feet. She waves us away.

"I'm fine," she insists.

"We should hurry," Finn says, holding his blaster to his chest, which looks as though it was probably stolen from a Stormtrooper. "I know a short-cut."