Ashes to Ashes | A Kylo Ren Story

1. Taken

Flames roared from the throwers held by the stormtroopers, screams being drowned out by the constant blaster shots as the the troops marched through.

What was supposed to be a routine inspection had turned brutal when the Order identified a spy.

So naturally now the whole village had to be obliterated.

You weren't exactly sad to see it go, you would however be slightly annoyed that you would die via blaster, it seemed rather undignified.

You were shivering despite the columns of flames engulfing the buildings around you, perhaps it was the cold blaster being pushed against your spine. That was probably it, the trooper was moving you from your lovely little hut to the village centre, you could see other troopers herding different households in the same direction. A strange strategy, you thought, if they wanted to kill all of them, why not do it in the comfort of their own homes?

A reverberating roar caught your attention as a flash of light indicated a ship coming out of hyperspace just outside the atmosphere, fast approaching it appeared to be a a strange looking shuttle with large, overdramatic wings pointed upwards.

Frankly you thought it looked obnoxious, but you could see why it would evoke fear in all of its pitch black glory.

A jab from the nuzzle of the blaster had you shuffling along again, towards impending doom, the looming shape off the ship was now just about to land, hovering just outside the border of the town. You passed a family huddled together, with two children both crying in earnest, a small twinge of guilt tugged at your heart, but you faced forward and continued on, trudging at the pace of the trooper behind you.

Chaos had torn through the village centre, sand seemed to be suspended in the air giving the flames a hazy quality, tension and fear laced the air, you could almost taste it.

Despite having heard the atrocities the First Order had committed, even in nearby villages, you could not quite comprehend that everyone here was going to die, and you felt in your gut that it wasn't your time.

Regardless there wasn't really anyone in the village that you particularly minded dying.

Was there?

"Sima" you exhaled, panic rising in your stomach like bile. Or maybe that was actually bile, you felt sick.

She was a young Twi'lek sold to the village by the Hutt traffickers, a servant at the small inn, bought by the same old Quarren that had bought you years ago, Yon Morg.

You had befriended the girl when you had caught Morg's son trying to make a pass at her, the punch to the jaw you gave him earned you another ten strikes to your already marred back.

As you approached the fountain in the middle of the village centre the scene became clearer through the sand and smoke, your eyes frantically scanned the huddled group of villagers searching for the small girl. Tugging the tattered blanket you had wrapped around yourself as you were dragged from your hut tighter.

Your eyes locked onto the hunched figure of Sima across the square, the trooper shoved you to your knees, the rocks in the sand cutting through your thin pants and in turn shredding your knees.

When the trooper turned to gather more people you crawled towards Sima, shuffling past the hunched figures of crying people, when you were only metres away from the girl a blaster was lowered in front of your face. You froze, taking a moment before turning your head to follow the white armour up to the bucket head, you sat back on your knees as you gave what you hoped to be a soul-shaking stare into the pitch black eyes of the trooper.