Sequel Trilogy Rewrite

Chapter 2

TW: depression and suicidal thoughts

A young scavenger was inside a downed star destroyer. She had been in there all day, and she found quite a few valuable parts. Once she found another one, she became satisfied and made her way out into the blistering late afternoon sun. Thankfully, her outfit protected her from it. She pulled out a water flask and pulled off her scarf. She drank what little water she had left and hopped on her speeder.

She rode off to Niima Outpost without any hiccups, which she was grateful for. Sometimes, other scavengers would try to ambush her. Luckily, she's pretty good at fighting, so she didn't have to worry too much.

Once she arrived at Niima Outpost, she brought her stuff over to a table. She cleaned them up and started fixing them, making them usable. The scavenger had had to learn how to repair parts at a young age, so this was second nature to her at this point.

After she was done, she brought the parts to Unkar Plutt. He was an ugly alien who practically owned the outpost. Because of this, he had a lot of power over the scavengers, including her. Unfortunately, he didn't like her in particular.

When she showed him the parts, he glared at her in annoyance. "These are worth..."

He looked at her again, and the scavenger knew what was going to happen. In fact, she could practically hear the petty thoughts in his head. "One-quarter portions."

She sighed as she knew the parts were worth more than that. Normally, she'd fight him on it, but she wasn't in the mood. So, when he slapped the pack down on the counter, she took it and walked away.

The scavenger walked over to her speeder, only for someone to come up behind her. She sensed the presence and instinctively swung her staff as she spun. The staff struck the other scavenger across the face, causing them to fall. Another scavenger grabbed her from behind, but she headbutted them. They let her go, and she wasted no time. She smacked him multiple times with her staff, knocking them down.

With both assailants down, the scavenger quickly got on her speeder and rode off. As she did, she slowly exhaled, calming her pounding heart. After riding for a good hour, she arrived at her makeshift home.

It was a downed AT-AT, but only a small part of it stuck out of the sand. On top of that, it was in a very remote part of the dunes, away from prying eyes. It was the only place she truly felt safe on this desert rock she called home.

She parked her speeder and walked into the AT-AT, and cooked her meal. It wasn't much. It was just a piece of bread, a small scoop of vegetables, and a small cup of water. Despite this, she was grateful. After all, earning food was hard work.

She picked up her plate and cup and stepped outside. She sat down beside the door of the AT-AT and ate peacefully. As she did, the scavenger spotted a shuttle flying through the sky.

A pang of sadness and pain shot through her heart. Her parents had left her here on Jakku when she was a child. She didn't remember them at all, but she missed them. She often wondered if they missed her, too, wherever they were.

If that was true, why would they leave you here?

She sighed as she shook her head, trying to get rid of those thoughts. Unfortunately, they persisted.

They left you because they didn't want you. You were a burden to them. You're worthless. No one will ever love you.

Tears formed in her eyes as she sniffed.

You should just die.

Suddenly, the sound of a distressed droid disrupted those thoughts. She stood up and grabbed her staff. She followed the sounds up a sand dune and saw a BB-8 caught in a net by another scavenger.

"Hey!" she yelled, running over to them. The other scavenger cursed at her in another language, threatening her. "Leave this droid alone, or I'll beat your arse," she shot back.

The scavenger cursed at her again but released the net as he stormed off. BB-8 looked up at her as she watched him leave. Once he was no longer in sight, she kneeled down and pulled the net off the little droid.

"Are you alright?" she asked. BB-8 beeped, confirming he was. "Good, because you are lucky. Most off-world droids only last few minutes on their own."

BB-8 let out what sounded like a gasp. She chuckled, and BB-8 beeped again.

"My name is Rey, and you're welcome. What's your name, by the way?"

He beeped, telling her his name. "It's nice to meet you, BB-8. Now, mind telling me why you're out here by yourself?"

BB-8 beeped in response. "'Top secret', huh? Well, that's interesting." Then the little droid asked her something. "I live here as a scavenger."

BB-8 let out what sounded like a hum as Rey stood up. "Well, I better head back. Good luck." Rey turned and was about to walk away when BB-8 chirped. "What? Why do you want to stay with me? You just met me."

BB-8 beeped, telling her that it wouldn't be good for him to be alone. Rey sighed as she realized he had a point. "Alright, you can come, but I'm taking you to Niima Outpost in the morning so you can find your owner."

BB-8 beeped, making her chuckle. "You're welcome."

                             ****

Up in the star destroyer above Jakku's atmosphere, Poe was in a restraining table, exhausted. He had a black eye, a split lip, and a large bruise on his left cheek. He wanted to just go to sleep, but he couldn't. He was too on edge, and on top of that, Kylo Ren had just walked in.

He towered over Poe with a menacing aura, and Poe swallowed hard. "I didn't know we had the best pilot in the Resistance on board," he replied in a mocking tone.

Poe let out weak chuckle. "Comfortable?" Kylo Ren asked sarcastically. "Not really," Poe admitted. Kylo Ren stepped closer, and he said in a low voice, "Where's the map?"

"What map?"

Kylo Ren responded by raising his hand. Suddenly, Poe felt claws cutting through the barriers of his mind. Pain surged through his body as a force slammed his head back onto the table.

"Where is it?" he growled. "The Resistance... won't be... intimidated... by you," Poe managed to say. Kylo Ren ignored the statement as he clawed his way through Poe's mind. It became so painful that Poe screamed in agony.

As he did, BB-8 flashed through Kylo Ren's mind, and his heart dropped. Why of all droids did it have to be little BB-8?

He lowered his hand, and the pain instantly went away. Despite this, Poe passed out from exhaustion. Kylo Ren walked out of the cell where General Hux was waiting for him.

"The map is in a BB-unit on Jakku," he informed him. "Good. Then, my men should have no problem retrieving the droid." Hux turned to leave when Kylo Ren said, "I want the droid unharmed."

Hux turned back to him and said, "Careful, Ren. Don't let your personal interests conflict with orders from Supreme Leader Snoke."

"Who said I was?"

Hux frowned but walked away. Kylo Ren gritted his teeth behind his mask. Hux really loved to get on his nerves. Kylo Ren turned and walked in the opposite direction of Hux, unaware of a certain stormtrooper watching them.