The Away Team - Part 2

"Wait!" Mom says. "Ben was telling the truth. We're willing to give you the location of the sword, in exchange for the crystal weapon."

Snoke laughs out loud, his throat gurgling in a disgusting way. His laugh turns into a cough.

"Go," he commands Hux once he's done with his hacking. "Kill them all."

"No!" Rey says. "I'll join you. Anything you want. Just don't destroy the fleet."

A silence falls over the room. Is Rey trying to carry out our original plan of pretending to join Snoke?

"Belay that order," Snoke says to Hux. "For now. Disable the ships but don't destroy them."

Hux opens his mouth to say something but then shuts it again.

"Go on then," Snoke says.

Hux nods then leaves.

"You'll join me, will you?" Snoke smiles at Rey and my hand goes out in front of her.

"We'll give you the red light saber," I say. "The all-powerful sword. It's what you want isn't it?"

"Perhaps." Snoke curls his fingers at Rey. "But perhaps I want more. Come forward child."

Rey doesn't move.

Snoke tilts his chin down and glares at her with menace in his eyes. "I get you, in exchange for the safety of the fleet. Is that not the agreement?"

My heart races. I knew Snoke would twist everything around.

"The young man," Snoke continues. "The Stormtrooper that left us, to go find you. He's one of the pilots in the fleet, is he not?"

"He didn't leave the First Order to find Rey," I say, unable to help it. I'm letting him get under my skin.

"He was destined for her Kylo, not you," Snoke says. "To give her children. Twin boys if I'm not mistaken."

Rey gasps.

"That's not true," I yell.

"Quiet." Snoke locks me in a choke hold and Mom raises her hand.

I tell her.

She lowers her hand. We agreed she wouldn't reveal her abilities to Snoke unless absolutely necessary.

"Now, as I was saying." Snoke turns his attention back to Rey. "Let me give you some fatherly advice, seeing that your own father is not around to give it to you."

  I say to her thoughts, but I can't tell if she hears me.

"Kylo Ren will soil your destiny, your heritage as a princess. You've already broken the Jedi code by this senseless attachment to him, and it will bring only pain and suffering upon both of you."

Rey raises her hand at Snoke and my Force hold releases.

Snoke smiles. "You're strong. Join me then, and I'll let the Stormtrooper live. And then maybe there can still a chance for you and him, and your future children. He would join with me in an instant, if you do."

"Never," Rey says in a low voice.

"As you wish. I'll have the fleet destroyed."

Rey is about to answer when I stop her.

"You're lying," I say, suddenly remembering Connor's conversation with Chewbacca after our debriefing yesterday. They were discussing how Chewbacca's team discovered that all the crystals in the crystal weapon had been used up to target Ahch-To. They couldn't have generated enough new synthetic crystals this fast for the weapon to be ready once again today. I can't be sure, but I call Snoke's bluff.

"The crystal weapon is inoperable right now. There aren't enough synthesized crystals." I step forward to the bridge, my light saber in my hand. What else is Snoke lying about? Could he be lying about me dying if he does? Is it a risk I'm willing to take in order to find out? If I had no doubts about our deaths not being connected, I'd kill him instantly.

"You will all drown in the oceans of Ahch-To, even this very day," Snoke says. His had twitches. I've irritated him. Good. "I've just now foreseen it," he continues. He has to be lying. "A senseless death really. Unnecessary, when you could just join with me and avoid such a tragic fate."

"You're lying," I say.

"My premonitions are never wrong. Your Uncle Luke is about to be buried in the catacombs of the Temple at any moment, on Ahch-To, place where you are hoping to lure me. Am I wrong?"

Mom and I exchange a glance.

I tell her.

"The First Order is on its way now to destroy the Temple and sink it into the ocean."

"You can't destroy it," Rey says. "You'll bury the red sword too. It's there, in the catacombs."

Snoke doesn't reply right away but only looks at her.

I tell Mom.

She answers,

"Bring Hux," Snoke says to one of the Stormtroopers stationed at the door. Our Away Team Resistance fighters that came with us were immediately disarmed upon arrival and taken away. Probably to be killed.

"You want to save your Force Sensitive friend," Snoke says to Rey. "Luke Skywalker. And so you're lying to me about the red sword. No matter. I won't waste fire power on the Resistance fleet. We will aim all our resources at FN2187's fighter plane."

"I'm not" Rey yells. She pushes her hand forward. "I'll "

"Rey, no!" I cry out, but it's too late. Rey and Snoke are locked in thought. He can no longer control my mind and he could never reach Rey's thoughts, without a connection through me for some reason, as long as she kept up her walls.

"Yes." Snoke smiles. "I see it. So it is true."

I look to Mom.

She nods and we focus our Force energies forward. Snoke glances at Mom, then pulls out a large crystal that glows dark blue. He sets it onto his lap then turns his attention back to Rey. "You've seen the sword and where it's been contained. It's under a spell that can't be broken. But Luke can do that for me. I have my ways."

  I try to communicate to Rey, but she's lost to me now.

Mom is trying harder to affect Snoke and I do too. But he's impenetrable somehow. He sets the dark blue crystal on the arm rest of his throne.

"," Rey says between clenched teeth. Tears stream down her face.

"I see... how disgraceful... You've already been soiled by Kylo," he says. "At a cave... on Yavin_4."

A sick feeling settles into the pit of my stomach. But now I can't move, or speak. Snoke runs his contorted fingers over the blue crystal, searching Rey's thoughts.

"Your grandfather warned you to stay away from Kylo Ren," he continues. "But you've ruined yourself now. Dukath would be so disappointed in you, if he were still alive. He would strip you of your heritage and disown you."

I see the pain on Rey's face and it grips my heart.

.  Mom tries to reach her. She too is unable to speak. 

We should have never come here. The large blue crystal in Snoke's hand is either giving him more power, or incapacitating us.

"You've mistaken your dark desires for love," Snoke says, enjoying his torment of Rey. "And now you have done what is forbidden, an unlawful union, with a Sith Lord no less, the very leader of the Knights of Ren. And for that, you will suffer greatly."

Rey's face crumbles into sobs but she still can't move to cover her face.

"Come here my child," Snoke beckons her. "What a mess you've become, how dark and twisted. You've ruined everything that your parents wanted for you. They are alive. But they won't want you back now."

Rey continues to walk forward, still crying.

"Supreme Leader," Hux says behind me again. "You asked for me?" 

I want to turn around and kill him, with my bare hands, but I'm locked by Snoke. There must be a way to disarm him of that dark blue crystal.

Rey steps onto the narrow bridge.

"Belay the order to destroy the Temple, for now," Snoke says to Hux, his eyes still on Rey. "There's something I want form Ahch-To first."

"Yes, Your Supreme Leadership."

"Give a new order to the fleet commanders. Find FN2187's Fighter plane and have it destroyed."

Hux gives the order to Phasma who I only now realize is also behind me. I hear her footsteps retreating.

"Take Kylo and his mother to the special chambers we have prepared for them," Snoke says to Hux.

"Gladly." Hux walks over to me with a smirk on his face. He holds up a shining dark blue crystal in front of my eyes. "Meet your worst nightmare, Ren."

He pushes the crystal against my chest and I cry out in pain, a pain unlike any I've ever felt before. It shoots into my body, to my very core.

I hear Mom cry out too. 

Stormtroopers carry her away, the light of another dark blue crystal in their hands. Hux waves other Stormtroopers over, to come for me. Then he presses the crystal harder into my chest and everything goes black.