Savior

Rey had the sudden urge to run to Leia with this new information, she excuses herself from the table. She arises slowly from the bench trying to not cause any alarm to her friends. As she walks through the great archway and starts a direct course to the General's private office. She wove herself through the crowds in the main corridor, having to stop and go as pedestrians stepped in front of her. But when she spotted the long hallway, that just off the main corridor, she sprinted for it. The hallway was candlelit and made of rough dark stone and each door was made out heavy wood. She stopped before Leia's office and brought her hand up in a fist to knock on the door. Before her hand could reach the door, it swung open in haste. Leia stood there as if expecting her. Leia, dressed in a dark flowing dress, stood there as if she were already aware of the situation. "Leia, I have terrible news." Rey had let out almost out of breath. The General stepped aside with her hand gracefully sweeping it to her office, gesturing for her to come in. Leia offered no response to Rey as she walked into the plain, sunlit office. There was a dark, yet simple wooden desk filled with reports and datapads. There were unlit used candles in a candelabra that sat off on the side of her desk. From the sight of her desk, you could tell that Leia worked much later than the rest of the Resistance to make sure that everything was in proper order.

"Leia, it's Ben. He is in trouble. The First Order has issued a bounty of one million credits over his head. General Hux wants him dead. Leia, what are we going to do?" Rey asked as she sat down in a simple chair that was in front of Leia's desk. Leia walked around the desk, to face Rey. Leia placed her hands on the edge of the aged desk to support herself as she lowered her body into the chair. She contemplated the report from Rey. Leia was stricken with fear as the worst was displayed in her mind. She could see the public execution of her son, her boy. She did not want the images to keep playing, but her fear powered it, unable to stop them.

Ben, Kylo Ren, forced to his knees on an expansive stage. General Hux and an executioner stood on either side of him as a laser ax hovering over Ben's neck. His head is aimed at the ground as he was hunched over with his hands tucked behind him. His soft waves of black hair cover his face. Hux shouts the order to the executioner and the stormtrooper raises his ax high. Leia's panic rises in her chest. Leia shut it out, not being able to watch the rest that was certain to come. Leia swallowed, her throat's grip was tight. Her breath was fast. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, steadying her mind. Rey sat in the agonizing silence. She waited for the General to come up with any sort of plan. Rey was so lost in panic, her mind could not focus on trying to come up with a plan that would not be as hasteful has her thoughts. "Leia," Rey interrupted the silence, "We have to save him. I do not know how, but we cannot let the First Order have him. Hux will kill him. He will plaster the execution all over the galaxy. I do not know if I could live with myself if I don't try to save him…" Rey's voice trailed off at the thought of seeing this man that she has an incredibly complex relationship with violently dying prematurely. She would see this through. She is determined to.

"It could be a trap, Rey. What if Kylo Ren betrays us? Maybe General Hux knows that you and I will go and save him. Besides, we don't even know where he is. We cannot send what we have left of our forces to go save a man that has killed thousands. Even if he is my son, I do not think sacrifice many to save one enemy." Leia's heart was heavy as she came to the logical decision. Her emotional side wanted to drop everything and run to her son, but she has a responsibility to everyone left of the Resistance and their families to make sure she made the right choices to ensure their safe returns. She could not sacrifice them for Kylo Ren. Rey was beside herself at the cold, logical, and almost unfeeling rejection of the impromptu extraction mission. "General, with due respect, I do not think that I can accept that. I do not think I could let the 'what ifs' scare me away from saving him. I am going to him. I can bring a small group of fighters, voluntarily and discreetly extract Ben. Not Kylo Ren, Ben." Rey stood up with composure as she told the General of the Resistance what she was going to do with or without her permission.

"That may work. No one really knows Ben Solo is Kylo Ren's given name. They only know that Ben Solo was my son. I told the Republic that my son was killed by Kylo Ren in the attack of Luke's Jedi Praxeum. I am not even sure that anyone other than Hux or us knows what he looks like. If you take a small group of men with you, you may be able to save him. This will be top secret. No one other than people you ask to join will be made aware of this, so gather those who will not decline the offer." Rey contemplated the General's idea before she spoke. Rey was thinking of those who would follow her to save a mystery man and she could only come up with four. Poe, Rose, Finn, BB-8, and maybe Leia. This is mission could go either way. Leia could be right that Hux is aware of Rey and Kylo Ren's connection and will strike them down. "Rey, I want you to find Ben. Reach out to him to see where he is hiding. Tell him he needs to stay hidden" Leia instructed sternly as Rey nodded her head.

"I will go to my chambers and see if I can reach out through the bond and speak with him. I will let you know as soon as I know anything." Rey reported back to the General. Leia gave a short nod as she stood up to excuse Rey from her office. Rey wasted no time. She stood up from her chair and swiftly walked to the wooden door. She opened it to the same candlelit hallway made of rough stone. Rey stepped out into the busy corridor, not caring if she bumped shoulders with someone walking by. She needed to get to him. She was focused on the task at hand with no time to stop in order to be polite. She started to run. Her feet were hitting the stone floor hard as each fast step propelled her closer to Ben. Rey approached the same wrapping staircase, she ran up the steps three at a time. Each step was true, no time to falter, everything must go perfectly. Rey could not think about the 'what ifs' about this mission to save Ben.

As Rey came to her chambers she slowed to a steady pace. Her chest lifted and fell heavily as her arm rose to the cool metal handle. With slight pressure she pushed open the door to the humble room, closing the door behind her. Rey made her way to the neat bed and slowly lowered herself. She took a deep meditative breath as she tried to clear her mind. She must find Ben. Rey outstretched her arm, holding her hand out. Reaching out through the Force trying to find the bond. The Force was warm as it wrapped around her while she searched for Ben, trying to find the string to tug on. "Ben…" Rey called out softly trying to pull the string tighter. There was only silence calling back to her. Rey steadied her breathing, trying to focus on her mind on an image of Ben. She pictures him with softened brown eyes, his long slightly crooked nose, the angular shape of his face, and his plush lips that are soft, long pink against his pale skin. The image of him was so vivid and stuck in the forefront of her mind. The warming sense of the Force tugged taut in her chest.

"Ben, please…" she called out to him again, hoping that this could work. The bond tugged tighter against her pulling her towards him. She could see nothing but a soft glow of light. There was no floor or ceiling. This place contained no sense of left or right. It just was. This place in between was infinite. When Rey opened her eyes, she was in the same place she had left him. The light pink and purple topped trees that had branches that twisted and contorted trunks littered the rolling field. The long, sun-beaten grass caressed the tips of her fingers. Rey looked to the grass and took it in her hand. It was soft and woolly to the touch, almost tickled her hands. "Rey wh-, what are you doing here? How are you here?" Ben Solo's voice cut into her thoughts. Her hand slipped from the grass back to her side as she straightened her posture. Her head snapped up from the ground to meet a shirtless Ben Solo. He was sweaty and breathing hard like he had been training. Pieces of loose hair fell out of the knot he had piled on the top of his head. Rey lifted a loose fist to her closed mouth as she cleared her throat, trying to avert her eyes from the exposed skin of his chest.

"I cannot really explain how I am here. I just reached out through the Force and pictured you… then I just connected the bond. But that is not why I came to you. I have news. Ben, the First Order released a statement all over the HoloNet calling for you to be hunted down. They are charging you with the murder of Snoke and that you must be brought to justice. General Hux put a one million credit bounty over your head, dead or alive." Rey watched his questioning expression turn to worry as she told him the abominable news. She could feel the slight panic ripple through their shared bond as it tugged at her chest. Ben knew that General Hux would try to capture him after he escaped and that he would not let him go. General Hux could not fully step into the role of Supreme Leader of the First Order if Kylo Ren was still alive. Hux will not stop until the death of Kylo Ren. Ben's fist balled at his side as he looked past Rey, processing the information.

"Ben, where are you? Your mother and I want to come and bring you back to the Resistance base." The wind blew between them, causing the grass and purple trees to sway. Ben's loose hair lifted with the wind as his eyes locked into Rey's. He did not know if going back with her may be the best decision. It would put a target on everyone's back. Innocents would be put in jeopardy because of him and he did not know if he could have more blood on his hands. His hands already felt like they were dripping with the blood of all of the innocent souls from his past. His hesitation and fear of the First Order attacking them on the Resistance base shot through the bond. Rey, disappointed, sighed, and looked down at the woolly grass.

"I do not want anyone else to die because of me, Rey. It would be dangerous to take me back there, should I be discovered. If they find me here, then maybe it is my time to die. It is my time to pay for all the bloodshed and hurt I am responsible for. Maybe this is the way that I redeem myself. I could not live with myself if you, my mother, and everyone else on your base were to die because I was too pussy to take responsibility for my actions." Ben stepped an arm's length away for her body. He looked down at her soft brown eyes that looked back up at his dark ones. Her eyes looked down to his toned bare chest in front of her face. Ben could feel her embarrassment ripple through her. He summoned his simple grey tunic from a nearby tree into is hand. He slipped it on over his head, threading his built arms through the loose sleeves.

"The planet that we are hiding on is uncharted and does not officially exist in any database. The First Order is completely unaware of it. It will be safe for the time being, Ben, please, let me come to get you. I could not live with myself if you- if you-" Rey could not even let the words be spoken. As if she actually spoke them, then the words would be given life. No, she will not say that she could not live with herself if this man before her, that she has an indescribable relationship with, had been captured and executed because she did not try hard enough to convince him to let her help him. Her emotions of hasteful fear and panic coursed through her and headed straight to Ben Solo. His chest tightened at the fact that, up until recently, his sworn enemy was standing before him begging to save him from his own fate. His confusion wrapped around him like a thick blanket. No one had ever fought for him and most certainly never showed any semblance of love towards him. And yet, everyone regarded him as a monster, he was feared, but she is able to somehow let it go. How could anyone like Rey trust a monster like Kylo Ren? How could a girl, discarded in the desert, like garbage, left to die, be so willing to trust him?

"How?" is all he could muster in his disbelief of this young woman standing tall in front of him. Her hope of a better future keeps her so strong in the glory of the Light, yet willing to risk everything to save him and his soul. That was her passion. Passion is a slippery slope in the Jedi Code, especially to this raw, untrained Jedi. He sensed that the Dark in her too, that she fights to resist is warm call.

"I will have a small group of voluntary fighters join me and-" Rey was cut off as Ben's brown eyes drifted to hers. Her eyes bore determination and hope while his were reeling in disbelief. He was staring in awe of a true Jedi.

"No," he interjected gingerly, "How could you want me? Why would you risk so much just to save me? I am a monster, Rey." he just could not figure out her obsession with saving him was. The thought brought anger up, summoning Kylo Ren.

"Because, Ben, I see the fight between you and Kylo Ren every time you look at me. I know that you are stronger than Kylo and that you will defeat him. The vision back on Ahch-To showed me what you could be. I do not know if you can ever return fully to the Light, just yet, but I know that if you take a step toward it with me, I can help you balance the fight. To help find peace within you. I can't do it for you, but I can help you." her argument was so convincing. Ben knew that this young woman truly cared about the sanctity of his soul. His feet took a step towards her unthinking. They were dangerously close to one another, but neither of them moved as they stared into each other's eyes, waiting. Rey was frozen at the advance, never being this close to him.

"I am in the Outer Rim, Raioballo sector, coordinates L-4, the planet is called Dantooine. I will find you when you land." Kylo Ren raged inside as Ben reported their location. But, Ben knew that what she had suggested was right. Kylo Ren was angered that he was throwing away the past fifteen years of his life to follow this young Jedi, but something in the Force was rattling around within him, willing him to take that step and join her.

"Okay. We will be there shortly." Rey nodded at him, feeling a sense of somehow she had won a battle against Kylo Ren in the war on Ben's soul. A smile touched her lips as she felt the tight tug of the bond go slack. Rey's eyes opened to her stone chambers. The light of Ahch-To's second sun setting filled the small room through the small open window. Rey felt more confident than before. She had to go. She had to begin the preparations for the mission.