Star Wars: Apparitions -- Scenes from The Last Jedi

Chapter 5 - The Cave

Rey spluttered and gasped as she surfaced from the cold water. She panicked as she shakily treaded water and groped around for something to hold onto.

Cold rock was all she found, and she clambered up onto it. The only sounds for the next few seconds were her rapid breathing and the steady drip of water from her hair and clothes. For whatever reason, the sound of the storm outside the cave was inaudible.

Rey fumbled on her belt for Luke's lightsaber and shifted it in her hand until she found the ignition switch. The sudden flash and hum of blinding blue light made her jump.

As Rey looked ahead through the light of the saber and the dark, dripping passageway before her was relieved, she began to hear the voices again.

"Rey."

"Rey."

"Rey!"

Rey shivered, more from foreboding than the ice-cold water. She got to her feet and proceeded cautiously, each of her footfalls echoing on the wet stone.

"Rey!"

The voices were beckoning her down the passage. Rey lifted her saber and walked on, her teeth rattling in her skull.

The longer Rey walked, the louder the voices grew. Eventually, she began to see shadows moving on the walls. Terror pricked her spine but desperation propelled her feet forward. It wasn't like she'd never walked alone through dark passages; she was experienced with it. But even while knowing little about the Force, she could tell the Dark Side was strong here. Every bit of her common sense told her to go back, to run as fast as she could away from the looming, taunting shadows on the flickering cave walls. But common sense looked awfully far away from where she was standing.

The voices continued to grow in volume and clarity, until Rey whipped around, fully expecting to see the speaker whispering over her shoulder. No one was there, but when she turned around once more, she couldn't stop herself from screaming as she came face to face with a lone pale figure.

She raised her saber, only to find the figure was herself, reflected in glassy crystal. Rey's heart was pounding, and it was only slowly that she lowered her saber. The Rey in the mirror did the same.

Rey raised her left hand, and was simultaneously imitated by her reflected likeness. It truly did seem to be just a mirror.

Rey stepped to the side to look for another passage, but as she did so, she saw an endless line of reflections, stretching on far, far beyond the first, each one looking directly at her.

Rey frowned, raising and lowering her saber. The reflections copied her in a graceful, flawless wave. Rey snapped her fingers, and the reflections copied her, making a smooth, resounding wave of click click click click click.

"Weird," Rey whispered.

Weird weird weird weird weird weird weird. The word slithered down the chain of reflections.

As Rey kept staring into the depths of the mirror, new figures began to stir in the shadows, milling about and between her own reflections as though they each had somewhere to be.

Rey's lips parted as her eyes fell on two shadows, standing side by side, a man and a woman.

"Come closer," Rey whispered, not sure they could or would hear her.

Closer closer closer closer closer closer closer closer closer, echoed the reflections.

The figures didn't walk; rather glided toward Rey, agonizingly slowly. Rey stepped as close to the mirror as she could, her breath catching as the figures approached, drawing past her reflections one by one, until they stood just in front of her.

Rey did not dare to move.

"Are you...?" she whispered.

Are you? Are you? Are you?

Rey lifted a quaking hand, and touched it against the ice cold crystal. Immediately, the mist beneath her hand cleared, revealing the faces of the figures before her.

Except... only one figure stood there now.

Another reflection of Rey.

"No," the reflection whispered, mirroring its source on the far side of the mirror.