-Ahch-To- D-12 Quadrant, Unknown Region

 Luke handed Rey a helmet he'd brought with the training droids off the Falcon. She took it and smiled. "I have one of these back home," she frowned. Memories of Jakku flashed in her mind; of a freighter leaving the planet, of the fat Crolute—Unkar Plutt—telling her to be quiet.

    She closed her eyes and shook her head. Her attention returned to the pilot headgear. Turning it around, she gave her Teacher a quizzical look upon seeing the black painted visor; but deduced its purpose almost immediately. "I can just close my eyes, you know."

"Where would the fun in that be?" he asked, examining the small orb-shaped training droid. A second later, he flipped a tiny switch on the side and the device hovered into the air. "These tend to have a bit more of a sting to them. Most want to open their eyes right after being hit."

"Who says I'll get hit?" she asked.

Next to Luke, Artoo whistled long and low.

Rey frowned at the astromech. "Well maybe I'll be the first."

"Are you ready?" Luke asked.

In response, Rey put on the helmet, dropped into a low stance and ignited her saber-staff. "Ready." Focusing on the sounds around her, she easily separated the vibrations from the shifting gears and expenditures of air when the small droid moved in contrast to the wind blowing on top of the island and the waves crashing against the rocks below. The moment she turned to follow the sound of the training droid, it fired.

She screamed.

Yanking the helmet off her head she stared daggers into Luke. "That hurt!" she exclaimed.

Artoo chuckled.

"Oh Shutup!"she said to the droid.

The Jedi blinked; his face ever stoic. "You act as if I didn't warn you." Next to him, Artoo beeped rapidly and sputtered.

Leaning over, she examined the tiny burn mark on the back of her thigh. "Is there a lower setting I could start with? Something that doesn't ruin clothing perhaps?"

"No. One setting only. And believe me it's nothing in comparison to getting hit with a blaster bolt...or lightsaber."

She gave him a disgusted half smile before putting the helmet on once more.

"Don't listen with your ears, Rey. Feel the Force, let it flow through you." holding up two fingers he motioned the droid to continue. "Calm your emotions. You've done this before, you can do it again. It's all about instinct."

Slightly more alert, Rey twitched at every sound. A second later, the hovering seeker droid fired again. She moved her weapon up to block but was hit in the arm, causing her to growl in frustration. The training remote shifted twice around her before firing again, landing another hit. The machine continued to pierce her defenses, leaving five more burn marks before she yanked off her helmet and threw it at the training droid.

Luke studied her actions in silence.

Rey reached out to the remote after it dodged her helmet and pulled it toward her within striking range. With a one-handed diagonal swipe from her saber-staff, she cut the mechanism down the center, sending it to the ground in three pieces. She remained still after her outburst, looking straight ahead while breathing strongly through her nose. Soft wind blew over island top, cooling her burns and temper. Once the anger subsided, she extinguished her weapon and stowed it away at her side. Kneeling down, she picked up the pieces and stared at them. Her eyes then looked to the smaller, third piece belonging to the core of the droid.

Jakku returned to her thoughts again; memories of days working on countless machines and ships alone in the unforgiving heat. Waiting for two pieces of her life to return so she would be whole.

Tears filled her eyes.

Dropping the severed halves of the seeker droid, she sat down quietly and looked away. As tears ran down her cheeks she asked, "Why can't I remember why they left?" she wiped her eyes with her palms. "Why couldn't I go with them?"

Luke walked over to where she sat and knelt down next to her. Gently, he placed his left hand on her shoulder. The moment she felt his touch, she closed her eyes and bowed her head. Quietly, he responded, "Perhaps they were trying to protect you. Perhaps they were ignorant people making poor decisions," he paused, staring at his gloved hand. "The mistakes your parents made and what they did does not define who you are. They may have abandoned you, but no matter the reason, you are training to become a Jedi now. And Rey,"

Drawing a deep breath, she looked up.

"You're very good at it," taking her by the arms, he sat her up straight and then returned to his feet. "However, those inner defenses you've built up surviving alone are holding you back. Because you've lived almost your entire life never relying on anyone else for anything, you refuse to let the

Force guide you completely. You command it well enough; but strength alone won't create the balance which is needed." He offered his hand to help her to her feet.

Taking it, she stood and breathed deeply. "I'm not sure I can change that…" she sniffed, "But I will try."

Luke smiled. "Try?" he chuckled, memories of his past returning to him. Resisting the urge to quote his old Master he said, "No Rey, you have the strength to do more than try."

"Pulling and pushing things are quite different than...blocking blaster fire. It's not like I have the ability to see the future," she stopped midway through the thought, remembering her encounter with Kylo Ren on Takodana and how he'd deflected her shots aimed at him; it never occurred to her she could do the same thing effectively.

Luke removed his cloak and set it to the ground. At his side were two lightsabers, the one she'd brought with her and another with the end shaped like half of an hourglass. He removed both weapons, his mechanical hand holding the lightsaber of his father. The blades ignited, one outlined in blue light and the other in green. The droning hum emanating from each seemed to drown out all other sounds around them. Nine remote droids hovered towards Luke Skywalker and began to circle him. Crouching down into a back stance and closing his eyes he whispered, "I am one with the Force, the Force is with me,"

Blaster fire rained down upon the Jedi Master.

His movements were minimal as he stepped side to side and back and forth between the barrage. The lightsabers whirled around in intricate patterns, each blade brought up, dropped low or pulled across to absorb or deflect every attack. The Jedi's movements looked choreographed, always blocking, ducking, sidestepping and turning a half moment before he needed too.

When the demonstration was finished, Luke turned off the sabers and returned them to his belt. He walked over to Rey and planted his index finger on her forehead. "Stop letting this hold you back." He backed away and waved his hand forward. A single seeker droid floated to where she stood and hovered around her. "Remember. Do. There is no try."

Rey blinked, staring at the Jedi Master in awe.

After a few moments she nodded. Picking up the helmet, she fitted it onto her head. Instead of taking a stance, she stood still with her head bowed. At her side, the saber-staff ignited.

When she breathed, she imagined inhaling the very essence of the Force into her lungs. She pictured it circulating into her bloodstream and melding into her muscles and bones. More than anything however, she focused on giving up control, on letting go of her thoughts of where she needed to move and what guard she needed to take.

She heard the training droid shift from behind.

Resisting the urge she stayed rooted in place, telling her body to remain still.

The steady, droning hum of her lightsaber began to block out every sound around her. The weapon's song flooded her mind, enveloping and then canceling out all other thoughts.

Closing her eyes beneath the helmet, in her mind she saw the droid hovering quickly to her left before firing a thin bolt of energy at her.

She saw herself bring the weapon across at four different angles before moving it to where it needed in order to block the attack.

And then she was in the present. She heard the remote shift and immediately brought the blade to where she knew it would fire.

For an instant, the weapon became an extension of herself.

She didn't even flinch upon hearing the familiar sound of the blaster bolt being shot. Energies clashed from the lightsaber intercepting the blaster fire. Rey couldn't help but smile in triumph. "I did it! Master Sky—" the remote fired again and hit her in the stomach. She let out a cry and jumped away, bringing the weapon up to a guard.

"And now you understand how duels are won and lost," Luke said. "All it takes is the tiniest openings in one's concentration to be either victorious or dead." he picked up his cloak and put it back on. "Continue with the remote for another hour. When you are finished, meet me on the North side of the island." Walking past the astromech he said, "Come on Artoo."

The droid responded with three beeps and a short whistle and then leaned forward onto its third wheeled foot to follow after the Jedi.

Rey immediately returned to concentrating, barely aware of the two leaving her behind.

*        *        *        *        *        *

The sun was just above the horizon by the time Rey felt comfortable enough with the training remote to take a break. Luke had given her an hour, most likely knowing she'd stay as long as took for her to master—to some extent—the exercise. After taking a few minutes to rest, she began her trek to the North, using the Force to hasten her pace across the rocky terrain. It wasn't long before the ground beneath her started to shift down toward lower elevations. Caught up in the Force, she quickened her pace as she sprinted down the island.

    On her descent she skidded to a halt and almost pitched forward into a roll upon seeing an X-Wing starfighter sitting on a stone plateau jutting up from the island. Though it made sense the ship Luke arrived in should be on Ahch-To, initial scans from the Falcon indicated no other vessels were present on world. Taking extra care not to lose her grip on the slick rock, she climbed up to where Luke, Artoo and Chewie worked on the old T-65 model ship.

    "Where did this come from?" she asked.

    Luke turned to face her. "I flew it here." he took a plastifibe agitator Chewbacca handed him and scrubbed at some rust and barnacles covering the underside of the ship. "I had to hide it where it would be difficult to scan from orbit."

    Rey walked by a box of tools, picked up a hydrospanner and then dropped it just as she understood what the Jedi Master implied. "Did you lift this up out of the ocean using the Force??"

"Well I certainly didn't swim down to retrieve it."

As Luke and Chewie continued to scrape the underside of the vessel in order to get to the panels covering vital parts of the engine, Rey started to circle the X-Wing, inspecting it closely. Climbing up the ladder on the side, she swung herself over into the pilot's seat. Reaching under the steering mechanism, she pulled on a lever and a panel came off.

"What are you doing to my ship?" Luke asked.

Ignoring him, she pulled the wires down and unplugged two of them. Holding her hand out to the side she called out, "Chewie, hand me a diagnostic pad please?"

The Wookiee looked at Luke. The Jedi shrugged in response. Chewbacca pulled a small pad out of his satchel and tossed it up to Rey, who caught it with ease.

After attaching the exposed wire of the ship to a small clamp on the back of the diagnostic device, she studied the layout of the T-65 X-Wing briefly before pushing buttons and flipping switches in the cockpit. Dim lights flickered to life and around her. Seconds later, data began to flow into the pad.

"Much to my surprise, this relic will still fly." She said as she scanned through the test results.

Luke nudged Artoo. "See, I told you."

The droid rocked back and forth and beeped rapidly.

Chewie remained silent at first. He looked up to Rey and then back at Luke before he howled and chuffed.

Rey continued. "Though you probably die the moment you left the atmosphere. I think I can fix the hyperdrive motivator, but the inertial compensator is completely fried." She pulled the wire from the diagnostic pad and stood up. "I think I saw some spare parts on the Falcon; that is of course," she descended the ladder and faced the Wookiee. "If Chewbacca approves."

Chewie nodded without a verbal reply and continued to scrape away at the bottom of the ship.

Luke studied Rey for a moment and then held out his hand to look at the diagnostic. "This ship is older than you, how did you know where to attach the datapad?"

"I guessed where it would be based off other models I've worked with. Whether it's a transport vessel, freighter or star cruiser, after you've worked with them long enough you eventually have a good idea where everything essential is located for them to operate."   

Luke looked intrigued. "In any ship?"

Rey shrugged. "I repaired ships under the Corlutte who bought me, Unkar Plut. For nine years I learned how to sabotage ships, what makes them run and what makes them valuable. After that I scavenged for another five. And being on Jakku," she shook her head. "Repairing ships and scavenging is what you do whether it's for fun, if you're working or because you're bored....so yes, any ship."

    "Your life sounds almost as exciting as mine once was,"

    Rey smiled. "What could possibly be duller than scavenging for parts on a desert planet?"

"Ever been a moisture farmer on a desert planet?" he asked.

"I don't even know what that is."

"Not many do." Reaching inside his cloak, he pulled out the metallic, cube-shaped object she'd heard voices coming from the first night they met. "I didn't meet you here so you could repair my ship." He held the intricately-designed metal cube out to her. "This is a holocron; they were once used by both the Jedi and Sith Orders to store ancient lessons or valuable information in holographic form." he pressed it into her hand.

Taking it, she studied the markings engraved on to each side. "How does it work?"

"Through the Force, though this one in particular is different. Not only does it contain information from multiple Jedi, it holds some of the mysteries of the Sith as well."

    "Is it uncommon to have both sets of knowledge in one?"

    Luke nodded. "The creator of that holocron was first a Jedi. He kept it when he became a member of the Sith and finally he and his wife continued to transfer their knowledge to it after he rejoined the Jedi Order. Contained within the holocron are vital lessons in understanding both the Light and the Dark side of the Force. Do not lose it, for it will offer you guidance in my absence."

    Rey froze in place; eventually her eyes drifting over to where Luke now stood, looking out over the ocean. "Are you going somewhere?"

    "Not now," Luke replied in a quiet voice. "Soon though."

    Rey slid the holocron down into one of her vest pockets and joined her teacher at his side. "I am nowhere near ready in my training Master Skywalker."

    "Unfortunately for us, whether you're ready to help lead the resistance or face my nephew again makes little difference to Snoke."

    Moments of silence passed by between them as they looked out over the waters.

    Feeling a peace that could only be accompanied by the Force, Rey looked to Luke and asked, "What must I do?"

    In a somber tone the Jedi replied,

"What I could not."