Conflicting Forces

Choices and Decisions

The darkness that had consumed me for hours now dissipated, leaving two blurry silhouettes. They stood in a large room that was empty of anything, with the exception of the two people. One figure was significantly shorter and leaner than the other, clad in black, tight-fitting robes. Judging by their physique, they appeared to be female. The other had broader shoulders and seemed to have more muscle, leading me to believe that he was male. His white robes hung loosely off of him.

The two people draw their lightsabers, circling around each other. The female's weapon is red, and the male's is green, apparently symbolizing their opposing sides: the Light Side and the Dark Side. The same darkness I felt when I was near Kylo Ren returned when the female was closest to me and diminished when her and the man circled around again. This continued for what seemed like ten minutes, but in reality, was probably just over a minute, the darkness pulsing in my head like a throbbing headache.

Striking first was the female, lunging at the man and catching him off guard. Acting fast, he deflects her blow at the last second and forces her away from him using his lightsaber. He strikes this time, aiming for her head but instead cutting a few inches of her brown hair off when she twists out of his range. He swings again and she hits the ground, scrambling out of the way.

Seconds later my eyes spring open. My chest heaves up and down with my attempts to catch my breath. I could feel the thick layer of sweat collecting on my face and I wipe it away on my dirty shirt sleeve, surely leaving streaks of dirt on my forehead.

Once I have composed myself to the best of my abilities, I try to make sense of the dream I just encountered. If it even was a dream. I wasn't able to make out either of the two people's faces, so identifying them would be nearly impossible. Somehow, I knew, however, who they were, especially the female. For some reason I was drawn to her in the same way I was drawn to Kylo Ren, but I couldn't put my finger on why. The only thing I had to go off of was the fact that I experienced the same sense of fuzzy darkness that I have when around him.

I didn't have anymore time to ponder anything else regarding the dream as the familiar darkness I was just thinking of returned in my head. This time it was him. I made sure to clear my mind of the dream, to hide it deep in the back of my mind where he couldn't reach it. I may not know the meaning of it, but I knew enough not to let Kylo Ren see anything that he might be able to use against me.

Kylo Ren stalks through the door of the cell I was being held in, waving his hand to dismiss the stormtroopers who had been standing guard on either side of my door the whole time. I had almost forgotten that they were there the whole time. They never said or did anything since I was first locked in here many hours ago. If they noticed the panicked state I awoke in, they didn't show it.

Remembering the last time I was in Kylo Ren's presence, I take a shaky breath and try to slow my racing heart. I refused to give him the satisfaction over the fact that I feared him, and feared for my life when around him. If he knew he had this effect on me, I knew he would be more inclined to use it against me. He types in the door pin on the panel in the wall, standing closely in front of it to shield it from my view, as if that would prevent me from escaping.

Turning to me after the door closed with a hiss, he slowly walks over to my side. "You've had enough time to decide. Tell me now," he demands in his muffled voice.

"You make it sound like I have a choice," I scoff, trying to hide the sweat accumulating in my palms. Had it not been just yesterday where he was making a big deal out of the fact that he was my leader now and I didn't have a choice in this? However, I did feel less unsure against the training, but I would never admit that. There was just something about that dream that screamed at me to be less narrow-minded... I couldn't put my finger on it, though. Nor did I want to. My loyalty was to the Jedi.

"How am I supposed to train someone who insists on acting like a child and therefore needs to be chained up all day?" he growls, the anger showing clearly in his tone. "Your choice is to be trained by me or to stay locked in here until you rot to death."

"Well," I pretend to think about it for a moment. "In that case I'll take the imprisonment." I give him a smug and sarcastic smile, which probably wasn't the smartest decision to make.

I wince at the sound of his lightsaber igniting, squeezing my eyes shut and feeling my body go tense. I waited for the searing blade to slice around my neck, but it never came. I heard the sound of it slicing through the air, but I felt nothing. Reluctantly, I open my eyes to see Kylo Ren slashing at the wall, melting away the metal and leaving arbitrary streaks across it. And just as abrupt as it was ignited, he deactivates it and lets out a cry of frustration.

Not being able to help myself, I smirk at his annoyance, finding pleasure and amusement in it. My smile dissipates almost immediately and I hear the familiar click of my restraints being released. Before I could ask what was going on, I was lifted from my chair by the same invisible hand wrapped around my neck as last night and am forced against the wall.

Despite my hardest attempts to not let my fear show, I was certain that it did. My face was an open book right now, which is why I poured all my energy into making sure that my brain wasn't, too.

"Now this time I'm not asking," he says, clearly pleased to see the fright in my eyes. The grip on my neck let go finally, and I fall to the ground, sputtering. "I can already tell you're warming up to the idea." I could practically see the sadistic smile on his face.