Darkness Rises & Light To Meet It

Say Something

"What happened?" Hux's glare was fierce as he watched Kylo Ren get up, Snoke's lifeless body mere feet away.  

"The girl," He thought quickly, head still addled from being pushed by the pure force of the lightsaber breaking in two. "She killed Snoke." Getting to his feet he met Hux's gaze. "What happened?" Ren shifted Hux's attention to a more important matter, where the girl was, he did not need him thinking about how she managed to kill Snoke, all of the Praetorian guards, and himself alone with seemingly no training.

"She took Snoke's escape craft."

"We know where she's going. Get all of our forces down to that resistance base. Let's finish this." Ren made his way towards the elevator but stopped abruptly as Hux began to yell.

"Finish this? Who do you think you're talking to? You presume to command my army. Our Supreme Leader is dead! We have no ruler-" Hux was cut off as Kylo Ren force choke him.

His blood boiling and his temper dangerously close to its tipping point Ren growled back. "The Supreme Leader is dead?"

If he did not need the red headed weasel for his army he would be as dead as their former master and guards.

"Long live the Supreme Leader."

——><—— ——><—— ——><—— ——><——

Luke Skywalker.

The Jedi Master still stood among the red mineral floor of the deserted planet, salt falling from the sky. He brushed it off of his shoulder eyes fixed on Kylo Ren.

Ren ordered the pilot to lower the ship to let him confront his would be murderer. When Hux began to contradict his orders he knocked him temporarily unconscious to which the pilot immediately obeyed the new Supreme Leader's command.

Luke was his only focus. Nothing else mattered to him. That man would pay for what he did. For forcing his hand. For his creation. For his betrayal. For the creation of the monster he resented.

As he left the ship and approached the Jedi he failed to hide all emotion from his face. Temper boiling over. "Did you come back to say you forgive me? So save my soul?" He seethed. Pure hatred was all he felt for Skywalker. Nothing he said or did could undo the damage he had caused. It was too late for that.

"No."

No one could save him. No one wanted to save him. Rolling his shoulders he let his cape drop to the ground initiating the beginning of the duel. With one fluid motion he took his stance and ignited the crackling red saber.

Luke waited for Kylo Ren, blue saber at the ready, he would not act first.

Ren could not wait any longer, temper over flowing, he charged at Luke attempting to strike him down as he passed. Nothing. The Master has effortlessly avoided his attack. He slide to a stop and faced him yet again.

A second attack was in order. Ren charged once again, fueled by hate, aiming for his opponent's head but Luke dodged this as well. Bending over backwards so that he just barely missed the sabers blow.

"I failed you Ben, I'm sorry."

There was that name again. Except this time Luke spoke it. What was this? He was apologizing? After everything he had done. After everything he had already been through with his mother and father and then Luke, his uncle, his hero, his role model. No amount of apologizing could make up for trying to kill your own nephew simply out of fear of a future that had not happened. That might not have happened if Luke had not meddled in what he did not know.

"I'm sure you are!" Ben yelled
, years of anger and fear in his voice. Ren continued hate taking over yet again, "The Resistance is dead. The war is over. And when I kill you I will have killed the last Jedi."

"Amazing. Every word of what you said was wrong. The rebellion is reborn today. The war is just beginning. And I will not be the last Jedi."

Ren swallowed hard at this. He could sense her now. Rey. She was here. He grabbed for the hate he had in the moments prior refusing to get drawn away.

"I'll destroy her and you and all of it." The rage that he had once had was fading and his tone betrayed him.

"No." Luke spoke softer now as he deactivated his lightsaber. "Strike me down in anger and I will always be with you. Just like your father."

Han...father...

At the mention of his father Ren felt another pull only this time it was painful. His fathers death haunted his every thought and Luke sensed it. Snoke has known from the moment he had talked to Ren. It had split his very soul in two. It was a weakness.

Kylo Ren, lightsaber sizzling, ran at Luke Skywalker blood boiling as he clinched to his hatred for the Jedi Master and felt a blow meant to slice him in half. Turning, he looked at his former master dumbfounded. Luke Skywalker stood there. Alive and untouched. Ren approaches him carefully a curious idea coming to his mind. Lifting his lightsaber he poked at Luke and stared.

Luke was not here. He was merely a projection. Ren glared at him. He could not kill his uncle even if he tried. By projecting himself halfway across the galaxy Luke had sentenced himself to death by his own hand.

"See ya around kid."

Gone. He was gone. He was dead. Gone. Screaming Kylo Ren looked back at the rebel base and sensed no one. They were all gone.

Gathering up his troopers they entreated the base in formation. Ren made his way to the control room, commanding the two Stormtroopers to wait at the door.

Slowly, he looked around taking it in. Something shiny on the ground caught his attention. Kneeling down he picked up the dice he had grown up playing with on the Falcon.

Han Solo's dice.
His father's dice.

Silence suddenly engulfed him and he felt a pull like so many times before. Ben knew that if he looked up he would see her. Rey.

He waited for the fiery insult. For her to call him a monster. To say how disappointed she was. How he was the monster she had envisioned  him to be.

Say it.

Rey just stared at him with a look that was equal parts disappointment, anger, and...sorrow.

Say it!

Ben needed to hear her say it again. That he was nothing more than a monster. An irredeemable murdering bastard that was the cause of all her pain.

Say it! Damn you! Say something!

Nothing.

If time had passed he could not tell. It felt like they had been looking at each other forever.
Rey moved her hand, pressing something. A door closed in front of her. Cutting off their connection.

His heart pounded. Looking down he watched as his fathers dice faded away into nothing.

Alone.

He was alone again.

And he had everything and nothing all at once.