Belonging. Star Wars story. Episode 10 X. Sequal to TROS.

14. Dust

Rey was lying on her back on hard surface. Slowly the Jedi Knight opened her eyes. Nothing hurt. Everything was quiet, there was only the sound of dust flying down from ceiling of the place.

Rey sat up and looked around. She was in huge room with simple brown walls and brown ceiling, only everything looked.. like it had been strike by a lightning. The dust around was thick as mist.

"Was it me? The lightning was all me? Did I almost destroyed this place and myself in it?" Rey slowly stood up.

There was voice from nowhere, like all of the voices here really.

-"You stopped. You remembered your purpose.
Really curious how you stood for your goal. But you will have to tell me why.
Rey of Jakku. Why are you here?!" Asked the voice that surrounded her.

-"I'm here to bring back someone, who is my other half." Rey felt little bit dazed like she just woken up from a long dream.

-"Who are you?"

-"We are dyad in the Force. Two that is one.
I know he is not gone. He's just changed. I want to change him back."

-"You could choose to accept it. Accept what destiny deals for us. But you chose another path. You stood against your fear. And you kept true for your goal.
Remember you can have everything- the Light, the Darkness. Truly, you should have both for there to be a Balance. But this path isn't for you to embrace the Light or the Darkness. This path is for you to walk in between. This path leads to your goal.
You already chosen your path and you will have to walk it through the end.
Before you enter the last trail, what you'll see around you, are from many before you, who thought they could have their souls back."

-"Did they succeeded?"

-"Hmm..", the voice answered the question with the question: "What if in the end he's still too dark for full redemption?"

-"Then I would have done everything I could. But we still be one." Rey answered calmly.

Dust started to settle and she could see walls of the temple in front of her. There were carvings in many handwritings and those in the languages she knew, she could read. She came closer.

Maybe I'm heading to die but I'm still gonna try
I guess I'm going alone
To the ends of the galaxy, I would follow you
There is a world that was meant for our eyes to see
I am ready to die for you

It was so sad and so powerful. It felt as if these people had known each other for a long time. "All of these, all of them that have written this, they must have been dyad. They were ready for everything to reclaim their souls." She turned to another text.

I will ask you for mercy
I will come to you blind
What you see is the worst me
I am the last of my kind
I won't fail you now and put my arms arounds you
Save you now

There was another that Rey found in known language.

Some people want it all
But I don't want nothing at all
If it ain't you
If ain't got you
Everything means nothing if I ain't got you

These texts broke her heart, the words echoed in her mind and brought pain and wonder. She didn't know why, but it was so powerful. "I wonder how many of them met. How many of those who had brought back the other one really got to walk out of this temple. I wonder if I will. But it is worth it. Ben, If you are really coming back. Anything that happens to me next is worth it." Rey searched for another in language she could read.

It comes and goes in waves
It always runs back but it's never quite the same
I think there's something wrong with me
Without you
Got nothing to believe anymore

Rey looked around, there was nothing here, that she could use as a writing tool. And she didn't take anything with her, she was here only in her clothes. There were debris everywhere and Rey looked to her right, there were bigger pieces of ceiling that have fallen off, so Rey took large, sharp rock and carved on the wall.

She stood in front of the text and felt full of sadness and pain. While some of the dust were still slowly flying from the ceiling, Rey read the written text loud.

-"The Dust will set and the Sun will shine on Us again."

There came light that shone on her from the wall of the texts. It came from the cracks between the lines. It surrounded Rey and flew through her. The light felt as life itself, it was so focused but Rey felt in harmony with it.
-"Be with me." Rey heard a voice.
-"Be with me!" She answered.
Then the light started flowing back from around Rey into the wall, into the cracks between the lines. Rey felt as if the life force had mingled with her own and now left with the light.
The light stopped flowing but feeling of life didn't leave her. Rey felt as if the life in herself has changed.

Something catched Reys attention. There was archway to the left of her. She went closer to the door. The archway was few steps up the stairs.

There was text written in dark grey letters next the entrance:
There is no light
Without the dark
Through passion
I gain focus
Through knowledge
I gain power
Through serenity
I gain strength
Through victory
I gain harmony
There is only the force

It felt as mantra. Rey read it few more times trying to understand it more. And then she looked in the archway- she couldn't see much, the brown wall curved around the corner.

All of this time she had felt so alone. But she did choose it, when she switched herself off the Force. She used not just the simple technique that Luke used on the island of Ahch-To by emptying her mind and loosing the touch with everything around. She had renounced it completely. She meditated on the thoughts that the Jedi, that were with her on the Exegol, wasn't there anymore. Basically she told everyone to go fu*k themselves. And it really had worked. For what price she didn't yet know. Maybe those Jedi won't ever be with her anymore. But this loneliness would bring Ben back. It was worth it. Every single thing that she had done was worth it.

There was quiet voice behind her, that seemed to guide her in.

"These are your final steps, Rey. Rise and take them... Rey... Rise."