The Chosen One: A Reylo Story

Chapter 16: The New Knights

"Look. I did exactly as I was told. It isn't my fault Zax lead me to the wrong place."

A deep voice scoffs. "I understand that. Here's what I don't understand. Once you realized you were in the wrong room, why didn't you turn back to find Solomon?" An accusatory tone cuts through the air.

Ben's head moves slightly as he slowly regains consciousness... He has no idea how long he's been out. Suddenly, he hears what sounds like a metal canister crash across the room.

"You're not listening, you blue-faced ass!" The other voice grows more shrill. "The moment I stepped into that room, Zax took over. You know what it's like when he gets in your head. I was just along for the ride at that point."

The deeper voice sighs, exasperated. "I just don't understand how he could have gotten it wrong. He never gets such things wrong."

"Well..."

"What?" The deeper voice probes.

"Haven't you noticed how edgy he's been? Ever since the funeral. I think this guy really shook him up. In fact, if you ask me, he didn't make a mistake at all. I think he intentionally lead me to this guy and not Solomon."

"Lies!" The deeper voice rumbles. "Zax was very clear. Takodana was a rescue mission.

You know he would protect us with his life. You've seen that with your own eyes. He'd never intentionally leave one of us behind."

As the voices continue to argue, Ben remains absolutely still as though he's unconscious. His body is limp. His eyes are closed. But his mind is alert. He feels cold metal against his back. His wrists and ankles are restrained. He's latched to a device similar to those used in First Order interrogation chambers.

He reaches out with his senses. The room is cluttered and disorganized. It's relatively large with a tall ceiling and hard, concrete walls. It smells musty... if he had to guess, he'd say this structure was an abandoned military base of sorts, or maybe a shipping depot.

Suddenly, he hears several others enter the room. There are six of them now. "Who's that?" A female voice asks from the right. "Where's Solomon?"

"We don't have him, Anh." Ben hears footsteps walking towards him. "Vikander got the wrong guy."

"Zax got the wrong guy!" The shrill voice retorts in anger.

"SHUSH!" A second female voice directly in front of him cries out forcefully. The room falls eerily silent. The only thing Ben hears is light shuffling as several more footsteps approach him. He can sense them gesturing to each other. Then hears a chorus of a familiar sound—the whirring and clicking of masks.

"This man is awake." A distorted voice announces in a menacing tone.

Ben opens his eyes slowly. A tall robed figure in a mask stands before him. Five other black-clad figures stand in a semi-circle behind her. Their body language belies the impassive blankness of their masks. They shift nervously. They are tense and alert.

The lead figure cocks her head as the tallest one behind her steps forward.

"Who are you?" the taller figure asks.

Ben relaxes against the metal behind him and stares evenly into the black mask addressing him. As he does, he unlocks the restraints at his ankles with the subtle wave of his middle and index fingers.

He purses his lips and looks up at the figure with a hint of challenge in his eyes.

"If you don't know who I am, then why did you kidnap me?" Ben asks the question in a mocking tone.