Who Ben is Now

Kylo Ren

Neither one of us spoke for a long time. The only sound in the small cabin was the low hum of the ship's engine and the occasional whimper as I attempted to compose myself. No matter how much seeing Ben's face upset me, crying would do me no good there.

"Allevra," he called out, breaking the silence. I slowly brought my gaze back up to his dark, familiar eyes. My voice didn't feel strong enough to speak, so I simply stared in hopes that he would continue.

"Do you know why we've brought you here?" he asked.

I got a little angry hearing that. My jaw must have visibly clenched as a let out an angry laugh. "Do I know why you've brought me here? You mean why you kidnapped me, knocked me out, and have physically restrained me until I cannot leave? No, I have no clue."

He did not looked surprised at my response. Instead, he slowly reached towards me and undid the straps that attached me to the table. Weakly, I stepped off, rubbing at the small indents that had been made in my wrists.

"Better?" he asked.

I looked away, still upset, but nodded. It felt much better to be free from that damn contraption.

Ben sighed. For a moment, he stayed quiet, as if he was thinking of exactly what he wanted to say. The silence in the room suddenly became too much to bare, and I found myself desperate to end it.

"Are you going to kill me?" I asked.

He looked confused, as if I'd shocked or insulted him. "Of course not," he spoke, his voice low and strong.

I felt my body relax. I needed to hear that. "Then what?"

He turned to his helmet, which he had placed on a chair in the corner of the room. It was as if he was examining it; searching it for answers. Did he even know why I was there? Was it even his choice to bring me there in the first place?

"You've been fighting to hide your abilities for a while. Have you not?"

I didn't understand how he knew that information, but I nodded nonetheless. His words were correct.

"It must be hard, always fighting to keep that power deep down within you."

I didn't like the way he talked to me; the way he seemed to somehow know every thought that went through my head. He spoke so confidently.

"You know nothing about what I go through." I was mad now.

Once again, he let out a slight chuckle. It was strange to watch the ghost of a smile on his lips. "Don't I? Allevra, you remember what it was like when we were children. I saw you struggle to hide your abilities from the world as I struggled with the pull between the light and dark."

"Don't you dare bring up the past, Ben."

And then, a truly sinister grin appeared on his face. He closed his eyes and let out a deep laugh. When he opened them back up, his face was dark and serious.

"Ben Solo no longer exists."

There they were again, the hot tears falling instantly. I hated the way that he could make me break so easily. My voice was cracked and shaky when I argued.

"Of course he does!"

. . .

I watched, terrified as he unsheathed the lightsaber that hung at his side. With a simple press of a button, the device turned on, a bright-crimson set of three deadly blades erupting from the end. I shrunk back, nearly petrified by the power of the object. I had never seen a lightsaber before, but he held it so easily, like it was second nature.

He let out a humongous yell and slashed into the wall behind us. Sparks flew out and I couldn't help but scream, running to the opposite side of the cabin. This man couldn't be Ben Solo. He was not the boy I remembered.

This man -this stranger- continued to slash at the wall, blind with anger. It took what must have been several more minutes of rage before his saber was finally turned off and back in its place on his hip. He turned around to stare at me, gasping for air.

"Do you see now?!" he yelled. "Would your precious Ben Solo do this?!"

Pathetically, I shook my head. I was still crouched down in the corner of the room, cowering and tearful.

He approached me, black boots clanking on the hard floor as he did so. It was all I could do to push myself farther into the corner of the room, wanting nothing more than to seep into the walls and escape. He crouched down to my level, our faces so close that I could feel his hot and labored breaths land upon my cheek.

"Kylo Ren. That is my name. That is what you will call me. Understood?"

I felt so defeated. So worthless, as if I'd watched the old Ben die right in front of me. I bit my lip in order to stop its uncontrollable quivering, and nodded.

Be- . . .Kylo rose to his feet, causing me to then realize just how tall he had grown. Even his height was intimidating. He outstretched his hand, waiting for me to grab hold.

"Join me, Allevra. I can end the torment within you. I can stop the pain if you just let me teach you how to control it."

I stared at his outstretched hand for a moment, unsure of what to say. There was so much turmoil going on inside of my head; so much to process. Would Kylo kill me if I didn't take him up on his offer?

At that moment, it just didn't matter anymore. Gradually, I slid my way up the wall until I'd reached a standing position. Kylo retracted his hand.

"Is that what you want from me? To turn me into another one of you?! You would never be able to do anything but cause me pain. If you're truly not the boy I once knew, you can do nothing for me. I want nothing to do with you!" I was screaming now, pushing bravely on Kylo's chest in order to back him off.

It was like trying to push against a brick wall. He made no effort to move, nor did he attempt to stop me as I beat at his chest. The tears turned into violent sobs as I continued to hit, my punches growing weaker and weaker.

"I hate you!" I yelled, trying to use the force to push him away. It was no use, though. My powers were too weak to do so much as slightly shake his torso.

And suddenly, Ben Solo . . . Kylo Ren looked sad. There was a twinge of emotion in his eyes, one that gave me a slight bit of hope. Surely, there was a bit of Ben in there somewhere.

Without warning, the door on the opposite side of the cabin opened up, revealing a redheaded man wearing a black uniform and cap. As he stepped into the room, Kylo backed away from me. As quickly as the twinge of emotion in his eyes had appeared, it was gone, along with any traces of Ben that were left in the room.

The redhead glanced at the sparks flying from the set of slashes that Kylo had put in the wall and immediately rolled his eyes. I wondered if a tantrum like that was common for Kylo. He then quickly looked at the two of us.

"Kylo," he began, reassuring me that the individual beside me was no longer referred to as Ben Solo. "I see you've not made much progress with the girl."

A/N: Oh my gosh! Hey everybody J. Thank you so very much for all of the amazing responses that I've gotten for the story. You all have no idea how much it means. This chapter was surprisingly difficult to write, as I found it hard to write the scene I was imagining in my head. If you perhaps have any ideas for this story for the future, even though it's just started up, feel free to tell me about it. Again, PLEASE review, follow and all that jazz (reviews make me especially happy). I love you hear what you guys think about it! Thanks again. I can't wait to write more!