Darkness Within

That's Your Name

There's an awkward silence on the transport and Rey refuses to look in Kylo's general direction. Following the seizing of the force-sensitive children, Rey made the decision that she would visit the slave community, particularly the stables to seek out any more force users. Despite her efforts to not inform Kylo of her plans, he had hijacked her afternoon by insisting he accompany her and assist.

She can feel his eyes on her from the other side of the small room, but she's thankful to have Vicrul and Kuruk with as extra presences to deter him from creating a scene.

'Are you just going to ignore me all day?' Kylo asks through the force connection and she curses herself for forgetting about that pesky trait they both unfortunately possess.

Scanning her eyes across the roof of the transport, she pretends she didn't hear him and holds out hope that he'll stop trying.

'Rey, stop being stubborn.'

'Stop,' Rey warns in a simple tone back to him, still not meeting his eyes.

The two masked men shift uncomfortably between them, probably able to sense to some degree the change in the air between Rey and Kylo. Rey shoots a look at Kylo in warning to leave her alone and to not press anymore which he silently responds to by leaving the connection quiet.

The ship shakes and Rey immediately moves into action, waiting for the door to lower in front of her, the hydraulics hissing and dispelling steam around them.

In the afternoon sun, the ground radiates heat causing Rey to sweat in her dark and heavy boots and pants. Kylo stays a few paces behind her as she walks, effectively causing the Knights to also follow her and she attempts to lose them by taking frequent turns down alleys.

The civilians of the community watch them with caution, fear, and curiosity pouring off them as they duck into their homes. Rey observes the children in particular as she passes them, trying to quickly assess them and make rash judgments about their potential sensitivity to the force.

A large hatch hangs open to the track and Rey walks up the ramp to the door, peering in the musty barn with large doors. A low grunt catches her attention and she looks up at the top of one of the doors to the source of the sound.

A large creature with a flat face and horizontal ears protruding from the side of its head peers down at her over the massive door. Rey approaches it with caution, her hand outstretched, which the creature leans forward to sniff.

"It's a Fathier," Kylo says as he walks up next to Rey, allowing the creature to sniff him as Rey starts to pet it timidly. "That's what you could hear racing on the tracks the night of our wedding."

Rey doesn't respond to him, instead fights down the annoyance that he's bringing up the fact that they're married and she can't stay mad at him forever. With a sigh, she turns and observes the rest of the room, which is empty, obvious signs of struggle present probably from the morning.

As she walks, her feet crunch on the straw, until her boot is met with resistance and she takes a step back to look at what she just stepped on.

She squats down to the ground and digs her fingers into the straw, digging out a small ring with a round face. At the sight of it, her hands shake and her vision blurs for a second as she flips the small switch revealing the Reistance insignia. "Rose," Rey whispers and closes her eyes.

She sees the ring, this time on her friends olive skin as she animatedly tells a story to the table of her friends over lunch. Poe and Finn sit across from her, and Rey feels a pang of sadness mixed with homesickness at the image of their smiling faces laughing with Rose, almost able to smell the scents of the base mixed with the food int the cafeteria.