Force Destiny

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The feeling of his Force projection rejoining his physical body was a jarring and disorienting sensation, and not one Ben had expected to live through. He had intended to use the Force projection to carry Rey to the Force Destiny, giving himself enough strength in his meditative state to save her, before succumbing to exhaustion as his uncle had before him. Only, Ben hadn't. Not that it mattered; he had failed, there would be no saving Rey. The machine was destroyed. Rey would be proud of him, he hoped, when they saw each other again.

"He's alive!" Finn shouted to Rose and Blue. There was a wall of white behind them in the flickering darkness, and he realized they were stormtroopers. Finn had done it, the stormtroopers had rebelled. Ben's vision was out of focus, but he could see the fear and hope in their eyes. Finn's hand was on Ben's shoulder, where he had broken him from his meditation. Blue was beside them, asking questions about the woman who was on all their minds.

"Get back on the Falcon, this place could go any second," he rasped. He knew it wouldn't be that simple when Blue beeped and whirred at him angrily for leaving him behind. Finn and Rose were of a similar mindset.

"Where's Rey?"

Ben knew it was coming, but he hadn't counted on how much it hurt to hear aloud. He looked away, so her friends wouldn't see the sorrow that bore tracks down his cheeks. He swallowed his emotions, puffed out his cheeks and exhaled slowly. "Rey is...."

Then he felt it. There was a reverse in the flow that was slowly draining his lifeforce in the bond. Her side of the bond, which had grown dark in her unconsciousness, was slowly brightening. He could feel her life returning, her body healing. It was impossible. Her wound was fatal; the bond couldn't do this, the bond wasn't doing this.

If Ben wasn't doing this, then that meant...Sidious.

He should have known Sidious wouldn't be so easily defeated.

"Rey is at the Force Destiny, with Snoke, who is actually Darth Sidious; but he doesn't look like Snoke, because he's inside my body. Not my body, but a clone." Finn and Rose exchanged a weighted glance before Finn mumbled something about how much he hated the Force. "The machine is broken, but he has her as his prisoner. He won't hurt her, because he needs her to get off this ship. Go. Do whatever you have to do to get her back. Kill him."

Instead of leaving, Finn stepped toward him and offered his hand to his old adversary. "No, you have to leave me," Ben ground out. "I'm not strong enough, I'll slow you down. Save her, and tell her—"

"Tell her yourself; you're coming with us," Rose insisted firmly as Finn grasped Ben's forearm and pulled him up. "In our family, no one gets left behind."

Finn laid Ben's arm over his shoulder, supporting most of his weight. In his uniform, the height difference was less drastic, but Ben didn't mind hunching over in his weakness. Another stormtrooper stood on the other side, assisting in keeping him upright.

"Do you need me to hit you again?" Finn huffed under his weight.

"Please."

Rose stood off to the side, arms crossed, glaring between them. "There's something seriously wrong...with both of you." Finn chuckled as she pushed past him muttering, "No, really, you two are made for each other."

Ben used the Force as a crutch as best he could in his weakness, choosing to block himself from the bond rather than risk draining the life that had been returned to her. He knew he wouldn't make it, but he would fight as long as he could.

They made a painstakingly valiant effort, but when they reached Weapons Development, Ben's legs gave out. It was an inevitability, he knew, that the poison would impair his nervous system, but he regretted dragging Finn to the ground with him. He had hoped he would see her one last time, but the Force had other plans. He wasn't afraid; he trusted her friends would save Rey.

Finn knelt over him screaming something, but he couldn't hear him over the ringing in his ears. He could barely see Rose standing behind her fiancé, her hand covering her mouth, as the darkness seeped into the corners of his vision. His connection to the conscious world was fraying. Death would be swift.

Ben. Not yet.

He opened his eyes in search of the owner of that voice. "Mom?" She was not there, of course. Only Finn, Rose, Blue, and the stormtroopers looked back at him.

Ben had fought against the building waves of unconsciousness just long enough, however, to feel the change in his body. The numbness faded to cold, and, in turn, the cold faded to warmth. The pain subsided. The heaviness of his weakness lifted like a weighted blanket. His chest rose and fell without the strenuous effort that had plagued him seconds before. Ben sat up slowly as the viscosity of the contamination bled away. He looked down at his hands, and watched the black weaving through his pale skin begin to recede. The most telling sign was the flood of energy that crashed through his senses, making him whole.

The Force.

"No," he whispered, his stomach churning in understanding. "No!"