The Pull to the Light

Chapter XIV

Chiara woke much sooner than Kylo Ren had expected. It was no matter though, he was prepared for such a thing. She was restrained by iron cuffs at just below her elbows, wrists, and her knees against a metal slab that was tilted upwards. For a moment, she believed herself to be alone, until spotting the man facing her, almost completely hidden by shadow.

"Where am I?" She asked immediately after trying to free herself from the restraints. As far as she could tell, the man did not move at all as she awoke, nor did he shift when being addressed by his prisoner.

"You're my guest," he replied, his robotic voice causing her blood to freeze.

"Where are the others?"

"You mean the thieves, cheats, and murders you call friends?" He asked in response, disgust all too present in his voice. "You will be relieved to hear that I have no idea." He paused for a second, then cocked his head to one side, "You do not remember me?"

Chiara stared back at him, confusion in her eyes. Yes, she recognized the mask but the voice did not belong to one she knew, at least not after having been altered by the mask. Noticing her lack of recollection, the man reached up and, with a small hiss, the mask was removed from his face. For the briefest second, she failed to recognize him. His black hair had become luxurious, falling upon his shoulders. His once boyish features had grown more masculine, an air of confidence oozing from him. Her heart stopped for a second at the sight of who he had become, a man who could not even be called perfect for it was too weak of a description.

"Ben," Chiara gasped, the memories flooding back to her. Tears pierced her eyes as she realized that she had lost her closest friend, he was truly replaced by this monster. He may have grown more attractive, but he had killed hundreds, she could fell the darkness radiating off of him.

"Very good, Amara Semir," he sarcastically praised, with a mocking smile upon his lips. "That was a clever trick you pulled back there, but it is something I should have expected from you."

"Ben-"

"No, it isn't Ben anymore. My name is Kylo Ren," the man who used to be her best friend replied, coldness in his voice.

"To me you will always be Ben," Chiara replied, not losing any of her confidence. Yes, it was true that he could kill her easily but she had succeeded in keeping everyone else away from him. He was going to get no information from her.

"Then you are stuck in the past. Ben has been dead for years now, surely you can feel the change."

"Very well, it you insist on being a monster, Kylo Ren, I shall call you by your pseudonym. Now either let me go or kill me, there is no point in keeping me here for you know well enough that I will not open up to you."

"You would open up to me back then. You would be willing to tell me anything, why the sudden change?" Kylo Ren inquired, stroking her jaw with his gloved finger.

Chiara mentally cursed herself for enjoying his touch, enjoying the pleasurable shivers that it sent down her spine, and collected herself, "That naive little girl is also gone. I will do anything to protect my true family."

"You are referring to that woman who you despise for abandoning you as a child? I see no connection between her and the Resistance, unless there is something more that you are not telling me."

"That woman may have carried me as a baby, but she has no ties to me now. My true family are those who you left behind. Your uncle is my father, I will not let you get to him."

"Ah, so you are aware of my current predicament. Rest assured, I will find Luke Skywalker, with or without your help. This foolishness will not help you in the slightest," Kylo Ren spoke, turning from her and facing the opposite wall. "But that is not why I am here before you. Since the moment I identified you, I knew it would be furtive to try to extract information. Instead, I am offering you a spot at my side. Join me, and together we can bring the balance to the force that my grandfather had created, before it was destroyed by Skywalker."

"Why would I join you?" Chiara spat, finding the mere thought absurd. "I will never turn to the dark side, I will never become a monster such as yourself."

"We shall see," he sighed before picking his mask back up and returning it to its place on his head. He then left the room without another word and she sat far a moment trying to process what had just happened. She could not believe that he truly thought he could change her to the dark side. Yes, she was friends with that little boy back at the training camp. But he was gone, and she would never betray her father in that way.

Chiara's thoughts were interrupted by the door opening again. For a moment she surprised to see a group of stormtroopers instead of Kylo, but she quickly his her momentary confusion. Without explaining themselves, they undid the bonds that restrained her and began to escort her from the interrogation room.

...

What is happening to her? Is this some rescue mission or are they bringing her somewhere worse? I do hope that you like this chapter, although it was on the short side!

Are you a Sith, Jedi, or Gray Jedi?

And it has been officially announced that Harrison Ford will not be returning to Star Wars from beyond the grave 😭