THE APPRENTICE ➛ Kylo Ren

⁽ ¹⁸ ⁾ ❝ ᴀ ғᴀᴍɪʟʏ ᴀғғᴀɪʀ ❞

Kylo sat completely still, bent over with his elbows on his knees and his gloved hands clasped.

His helmet lay a few feet away, carefully set on the metal bench.

He sighed, opening his eyes.

"What am I to do?" He asked quietly at last.

Only silence met his question.

His eyes grew moist.

"Please tell me."

If he listened carefully enough...he could hear the scuff of Stormtrooper's boots in the hall.

But that was not the response he desired.

He stifled the urge to let his emotions drag him to sobs. He would not want that.

"If I cannot complete this task," he spoke softly. "Then I will have disappointed you."

He raised his gaze to the warped black helmet resting in sinister quietness across from him.

"But if I succeed..." He continued, voice barely above a whisper. "I swear to make you proud! And to be every bit of the Master you want me to be!"

He placed a hand on the mask, feeling the surge of cold energy enter his flesh like electricity.

He heard the approaching Troopers outside the door.

He abruptly stood, swiped up his own helmet and donned it in one swift gesture. His back straightened, and his hight and intimidating aura returned in an instant.

Kylo Ren returned in an instant.

The doors slid open, revealing two Troopers.

"Sir," the one on the right said with a salute. "General Hux has demanded to speak with you immediately."

Behind his helmet, Kylo sensed the man's stoic expression. But under the facade, he was nervous. The fear gave him power.

"You can tell General Hux that I have an engagement otherwise. He'll have to wait."

With that he strode past the two Troopers.

"But sir!" The other one called out. "The General has demanded it!"

Kylo halted, turning at a menacingly slow pace to face the idiot Stormtrooper.

"And you think that that should mean anything to me?"

Even from yards away, he could hear him gulp.

"N-no sir," he replied quickly, giving another salute.

Kylo cocked his head slightly to the side.

"I didn't think so," he commented warningly before proceeding to leave.

✧ ✦ ✧

So, Kylo thought as he entered Jana's quarters. This is what grief looks like. He refused to believe that he had ever experienced the emotion as he stared down at his 'Apprentice'.

He could barely see her in the shadows of the corner, but her features were still distinguishable.

Why did he suddenly feel sorry for her?

"So," she rasped, her voice octaves lower and rougher than usual. "After two weeks...I've finally got a visitor."

Kylo didn't respond.

"Let me guess," Jana said, leaning her head off the wall and looking directly through the eyes of the mask. "You've got orders from Snoke. More seducing? Or are you just gonna kill me already?"

Though he didn't care, Kylo was surprised at how much she'd changed over a mere fourteen days. She looked completely defeated. But at the same time, her voice and her words were sarcastically hostile.

"I'm not here on orders."

She clearly hadn't expected that.

"So this is a social call," she observed, shifting her body so that she sat up a bit straighter, wincing at the movement.

Kylo walked forward some. "No," he replied. "This is me here to tell you something that I think you will find most interesting."

Jana scoffed. "Ren," she started, closing her eyes. "You could kiss me right now and I wouldn't find it interesting."

Then she opened one eye.

"But I can't have you wasting your valuable time by not doing what you came here to do, so...what do you want?"

Kylo was satisfied - albeit a little irked - by her words, and halted his slow pacing to remove his mask and stand in front of her.

He noted how she swallowed and pressed herself a little closer to the wall at his approach. He couldn't tell if this pleased him or not.

"You've probably never heard of the Sith Lord, Darth Maul," he began.

Jana quirked an eyebrow. "No."

Kylo made a face that said he expected as much. "Go on," Jana prodded. Kylo could feel a feeble flicker of curiosity in her.

"Darth Maul lived during the reign of the Galactic Senate, before the Clone Wars," Kylo explained. "He was a very powerful Sith. In fact he was one of the greatest that ever lived. But all men have weaknesses. He was killed directly before Chancellor Palpatine rose to power. No doubt you've heard of him?"

Jana have him a deadpan nod. Of course. Everyone had heard of The Emperor.

"Why are you telling me this?" She asked hoarsely. "What's this have to do with me?"

Kylo grinned ever so slightly.

"Before he died, Darth Maul had taken the measure of ensuring that his line would continue, if he should die. He had two children by a human named Karlise. She raised them on her own after his death, and through them, Maul's line was continued."

As he paused, he saw that Jana's expression was quite different from a moment ago.

"What does this have to do with me?" She asked again.

"Jana," Kylo said, staring her in her bloodshot eyes. "You may not know who your parents were, but I do. You just happen to be the last remaining member of Maul's family."

A slow wave of shock washed over her face, settling there.

"So I am the last surviving member of a family of Siths?" She questioned bluntly. Kylo was beginning to get frustrated, but he nodded nevertheless.

He watched as Jana's head fell back against the wall once more, a shaking hand running through her mangled hair.

There was one thing that Kylo left out, but the rest was true. She was Darth Maul's great-granddaughter. And that was why she was so exceptionally strong. She was the direct descendant. This he had discovered in the archives, just as Snoke said he would.

Jana still looked as astounded as she could in her dilapidating state as Kylo retrieved his mask and began to leave.

"Just thought you would like to know," he said before departing.