ᵀʰᵉ ᶠᵃˡˡᵉᶰ

She could scuttle about as she liked, but Rey was not as untraceable as she seemed to think herself. From ship to ship and planet to planet he'd followed her trail and finally found himself in this remote sector. It was an industrial town with a seedy stretch of bars and other establishments designed to distract the overworked population. On this dark and starless night, he pushed through the crowd and kept his mind focused on feeling her presence amidst the chaos of the city streets.

Come out, little mouse...

While the two slept, dreams were invaded by something downright wrong, but all of it was targeted on the young Solo. It was like a wisp of thought, tickling the back of the boy’s thoughts, and preying on his lingering doubts. Flashes of various council members were seen, and more importantly was Luke’s disappointed expression. Each of the members turned away from him in disgust, if he were to look their way. “Shameful… so shameful… You’ll never be able to live up to their expectations.” Whispered a playful voice in his mind. It was the same woman from before, who had hurt his friend with ease.

That same memory of Cal choking appeared. This time it was worse, and he was seen tugging at the invisible fingers on his throat, pleading eyes looking into the other’s. “B–ben– ! Please!” His face was turning all shades of purple and blue, before the strain of it’s powerful vice finally had him keeling over into a heavy slump. Ben would look over, most likely distraught with his actions, with his arm outstretched from the attack he’d see her form right next to him. Rey’s bright eyes locked with his, a grin playing on her pale features. “You will be their undoing, Ben Solo… And you will love it, just like me…”

| @destruxi |

By this point, it wasn’t anything new for Ben’s dreams to slowly become warped by something unseen and unknown. Like mist, it usually took no form yet was undeniably present. This time, however, the visions before him were more vivid than ever. He felt his stomach sink as the council looked on him with a disappointment he’d always imagined they’d felt towards him. The voice, thought not his own, spoke words he had told himself over and over.

Those doubts were only torn away by the memory of what had happened just hours prior. His friend in dire need, and him unable to stop it. He saw his hand outstretched, but not to help...he was hurting Cal, it was his fault. Ben’s pulse raced with adrenaline and his brow beaded with cold sweat. She was right, he had always known in some way he would bring only misfortune upon the order. But no, he would not love it, he wanted it to go away, he wanted--

“STOP!” His yell broke the silence of the shared quarters, and jolted Ben straight out of his sleep. He sat, wide eyed and panting as his mind struggled to trudge its way out of the nightmare and back into reality. Still, the worry was too fresh. “Cal?” He called, softer, looking around the dark of the room.

Metallic limbs strode forward with heavy steps, and it’s head swiveled around as it paused to look back at the Master it had come to acquire not too long ago. The circumstances could not be any stranger. It felt the need to reflect on what transpired just days prior, as he was still trying to get used to the immense layout of one of their large vessels…

The both of them had been in a heated bit of conflict, vying for the other’s life. His body had been mostly resistant to the attacks of the other’s crimson blade, spots still singed from their encounter, but the both of them had wound up in a place on the world that had them surrounded in treacherous danger. There didn’t seem to be a way out, as they had fallen into quite a deep pit, where several places in the rocky walls were crumbling. In an unfortunate mishap on his part when falling, some of these massive chunks of rock had landed on his leg, and more was on it’s way to land on the rest of his form.

Though, as if a sudden change in their situation, whether it was to continue their fight or what, the human had decided to use a power he’d never witnessed before; And thus the rocks never landed on him, but off to the side in some wonderful show of power. This had been enough for ‘Robot’, as he was referred to by this one and others, to cease with the fighting. He concluded that his life had been spared, due to some motive of the other, seeing the way he handled himself during combat must’ve changed the human’s mind. This was all that Robot needed to give his unspoken pledge to the being, and now he was staring at said Master with curiosity and wonder on where they were headed to next.

| @destruxi |

Kylo hadn’t exactly known what to make of the creature when they’d happened upon it during their raid of a nearby village. Phasma, however, wasn’t keen to let it live, if there was even the slightest chance that it may be important to the Resistance. Having no real reason to argue, Ren engaged the droid in combat and was surprised to see that it was oddly resilient to his lightsaber’s blade. He had already begun to wonder if there would be worth in bringing it back to the ship, when their fight was interrupted by a nearby avalanche.

He flung his hand outward, stopping the bulk of the projectiles in their tracks and letting them instead drop to the base of the slope where they now sat. With the robot free, Kylo informed Phasma of the change of plans. He could sense tension even through that thick chrome armor, but she put up no argument and they lead the robot into the ship. Once back on base, he led the newcomer to his quarters. He stood to face it, looking it over. “Well, can you speak?”

   “Dreams… Oh, those dreams…” Cal knew of them alright, and knew that this couldn’t have been a coincidence that they ran right into something from right out of them. He could feel Ben’s irritation, and the tension was thick as he stood up to watch him pace. “Yeah, they will probably. This is all just insane! So what does this mean? That every time someone wants to go on a mission, they have to watch their backs, or some crazy woman will come after them? Where did she even come from?? I wonder who her Master is??” He had so many questions, and knew that Ben wasn’t going to be able to answer any of them, but felt like getting them out into the open. This was still so fresh, and he had the wound to prove that it wasn’t his imagination. “Ben, you know I’ll be there with you when we see the Council. There’s no reason to worry.”

| @destruxi​ |

“If she even has a master...she said that she was taught by many.” Ben mused, thinking over what he could remember of their exchange. It was difficult, when his mind was still reeling from her cold and unwelcome touch. Still, he tried to focus on the present, the way that Luke advised. “I know, but the Council has a way of delivering verdicts that suit their mood. Let’s hope that they’re happy today.”

As it turned out, Ben had little reason to worry. The council was as much in the dark as they were about the girl’s identity, and were more concerned with identifying her than scolding the two for any reason. That night, he hoped to put the matter behind him, settling into bed and hoping that she might lay low for a time after her failure to capture him. Unfortunately his hopes were rarely rewarded...

Cal was sitting as still as he could, while Ben went to work in trying to patch up the gash on his head. He felt utterly miserable, and confused at the emotions he was feeling from the other, which had him turning slightly to glance at Ben. “Sorry? Ben, this wasn’t your fault… How were we supposed to know we’d get jumped by some strange darksider??”

He turned fully around to stare at him, hoping that he’d see just how alright he was, keeping his expression serious. “Ben… Do you know who that was? She seemed incredibly strong. No, I mean, felt like it.” He shivered at the power he felt just a few minutes ago, cutting off the air to his lungs. “Do you think Master Skywalker knows?”

| @destruxi |

Cal was right, of course. He always had a way of calmly cutting through the storm that seemed to overtake Ben’s mind in an instant. Still, the feelings would not so easily subside and he was happy to distract himself with the questions posed by his fellow knight.

“I’ve never seen her before,” He said, truthfully, yet hesitation parted his lips again. “But...I think that I’ve...felt her. In dreams.” Cal knew the dreams, the ones that had set him running into the room thinking there was danger, only to find a wide-eyed Ben entangled in sweaty sheets. “I don’t think that Luke knows, but I suppose we’ll be finding out. They’ll want to know everything...” He folded his arms, beginning to pace. He was glad to be away from the nightmarish situation, but facing the Council was a tribulation all its own.

Rey was grinning at the desperation on the boy’s face as he struggled to find air in his lungs, and was reveling in the burst of intense emotion from the one fighting her. With a quick glance, her blade was brought up to just stop the other’s from singing her clothes, a hair too close. Her gaze slowly drifted back to him, and Cal was able to gasp in large amounts of oxygen from the distraction caused by Ben.

Rey’s expression was nearly blank, a hint of surprise was in her more minute features, the slightest crease of her brow as she tried to piece it together as to why he interfered with her entertainment. She knew why, of course, but was still trying to process why he cared for it. “Fine… I suppose you were right. It looks like I’ll be leaving by myself, this time.” She hissed her words, before using the Force to push Ben backwards. Cal yelled hoarsely and scrambled to go over to him, as Rey sunk back to the shadows and out.

| @destruxi​ |

Ben knew that it was futile to give chase, and he had other matters on his mind. He was relieved to see Cal very much alive, if shaken. Immediately, he turned his attention towards getting the two of them back onto the ship in one piece, which luckily didn’t prove too difficult. At his own insistence, Ben got them into the air and into hyperspace unaided. Once they were surrounded by the silence of it, he turned to Cal and looked him over. 

“Are you sure you’re alright?” He asked, already leaving his seat to retrieve the small medkit from its place. He could see, at the very least, a nasty wound where Cal’s head had met the stone wall. He began to clean it carefully, stomach turning at the sight. It wasn’t the shock of gore, but rather the realization of how badly things could have gone had Rey made good on her promise to take him. “I’m sorry.” The words left on instinct, as his mind raced. I could have done more to stop it, I should have insisted, I should have...his thoughts congealed into one ugly mass of guilt and anger, one he tried to swallow as best as he could.

As Robotnik was fully prepared to talk the other’s ear off, in order to sate his endless curiosities over wherever he had managed to end up in this strange new place; There was a sensation that stopped him mid-word, and it felt like he had been choking on air. If it was air, or some sudden reaction to an unknown substance in the air, the Doctor immediately clutched his throat. He looked at the other, seeing his hand was raised, and had been raised up right before this feeling started to happen.

Robotnik heard him speak, hated it, but nodded all the same. He would do anything to get this to stop. “-h–How–?! wh–” He tried to gasp out any words, anything to voice his questions, but it wasn’t happening. This had to be from this strange being’s doing, he quickly concluded. There was a certain sort of smugness in that filtered tone, another thing he didn’t like, that was his only hint of a clue. Did he stick me with something, when I wasn’t looking?? Thoughts were running wild, trying to figure out what had suddenly stricken him.

| @destruxi |

Kylo was pleased to see confusion mar the previously condescending smirk on the ‘doctor’s’ face. He was also pleased to hear little more than gasped chokes in lieu of his rambling. Still, all good things must come to an end, and he wasn’t quite done with this one yet. As suddenly as it had begun, his hand fell to his side, and so too did the prisoner fall to the floor.

“I am Kylo Ren, commander of the First Order, and as far as I’m concerned you are nothing but our prisoner. Remember that every privilege we grant you can be taken away at any moment. Including your life.” He paced closer, slowly, before speaking again. “So I’ll ask you, once more. Do. You. Understand?”

Rey focused on their fight, using her aggravation over sensing his defensive emotions to spur her on with such viciousness in her strikes. She parried his moves with a swiftness that someone untrained wouldn’t have been able to avoid, unscathed. Quickly into their fight she noticed that he was well-beyond what she had expected, but the loud hum of her erratic saber blocked out the minute surprise on her face. It was a threat to the both of them, but she knew how to tame it’s blade, and kept on going with her attacks.

The question had her pause, and lock eyes with him as they took a breather to seize one another up. “… Many… And this is too fair a fight, don’t you agree?” Her gaze flicked to the boy still on the floor, and she raised her hand up to summon the power in her fingertips. Suddenly, Cal was sitting up and gasping for air, clutching his throat desperately. “Why don’t we add a little spice into it? The poor boy…” She was too focused on giving the other pain, leaving her momentarily distracted.

| @destruxi​ |

They seemed to have reached the same opinion simultaneously. Neither had known what to expect, and it seemed so convenient that they found themselves evenly matched. While Ben was shocked by the fury of her blows, they left little room for any feints. Her movements were clear and deliberate, and thus predictable. Yet they were strong enough to keep him on his toes at all times.

Her vague answer hardly had time to register in his mind, as she moved on to a different sort of attack. Ben’s heart sunk as he heard the gasping of his awoken friend. He glanced back only a moment, just long enough to catch the desperation on Cal’s face, before swiftly moving towards her to strike furiously at her side. “Let him GO!”

   “…….” Her silence was thick in the air, and the tension was muddled right in the center of it, but her expression said it all. She was pissed. It was like something pretty dangling before her, yet she wasn’t allowed to get near or grab it. He was the one forcing her to finally reveal the weapon of her own make, and the hilt was immediately unhooked from her belt from somewhere hidden in here dark robes.

   “No need to force it…” The violent hum of a lightsaber was heard, and it’s blood-red coloration matched the streaks of red that lined the walls around them. Yet, it’s blade wasn’t like anything that this Jedi may have possibly ever seen, cracked, fringed on all the edges, like it were to explode at any given second; And there were two. One for each side of her hilt, that snapped out to unhinge itself into an even deadlier weapon. “But I am not leaving, until you’re back with me on my ship, Jedi…”

| @destruxi​ |

Ben wasn’t sure what he had expected from her, but a lightsaber had not even crossed his mind. Had she been a Jedi once? Yet the blade (or rather, blades) was like nothing he had ever seen. The red rays protruding from either end of the hilt were ragged and irregular, as though it was a blaster bolt frozen mid-fire. He felt his chest tighten, but his saber didn’t lower an inch.

“Then I guess you won’t be leaving.” Ben growled, lunging forward to strike for her exposed side. He was well trained, sure, but he had no idea what her own training had entailed. That, and he had never gone up against such a saber. After a few parries, he shot a question at her, even if he doubted she would answer. “Who taught you?”