Kidnapped by Kylo Ren (Star Wars)

Chapter Thirty-Two

General Organa stared at me serenely and maturely, as if she knew more than me and she was sure of it. I didn't like the slightly-condescending way she gazed at me. She nodded, as if to reassure me, before speaking. 

"Because Kylo Ren is my son." 

I didn't respond at first. So many thoughts zipped through my head at once and I could barely process them. What? How? How did they become enemies? Why are they separated? Did General Organa switch to The Light Side, or Kylo Ren to The Dark? Who's Kylo Ren's father? 

"Why are you not with him, then?" Was the first thing that popped out of my mouth from all of the confusion that speedily swirled around in my mind. 

She sighed again. "It all started a long time ago. We realized Kylo Ren was strong with The Force when he was very young. We weren't originally going to take action. I'm strong with The Force myself, but I'm untrained, and we had the same plan in order for Kylo Ren. Ah, I hate that name. His real name is Ben Solo."

Ben. Hmm . . . I like the name Ben. 

"Well, Ben began displaying certain characteristics that were affiliated with The Dark Side. We didn't want him to go to The Dark Side. We knew that couldn't happen, so we put him into the hands of our good friend Luke Skywalker. Luke was in the midst of teaching a Jedi program, and we submitted Kylo Ren. My husband and I then had to change our wish for Ben living untrained to a need for him succeeding as a Jedi Knight."

So Kylo Ren switched to The Dark Side, I thought (somehow I was not surprised), but how? Who made him, or convinced him? 

"His training went quite well at first. For a while, The Dark Side in him was nowhere to be seen or sensed. It was like it vanished completely. But then Ben started acting strange. We found out he was following the separate guidance of Supreme Leader Snoke right before he joined The Knights of Ren and gave himself the name Kylo Ren. Almost immediately after he joined up the new gang-like organization he, well, I don't know how to put this nicely, but he slaughtered everyone in Luke's program. Luke left. Luke didn't know what to do. He had created a monster!

"Ben hasn't come home since. His Darkness has deepened since his departure. He's done things that have shaped him into the villainous figure he is right now. Part of it's Snoke's training but a lot of it is Ben's own mental dedication to The Dark Side. I used to be able to feel him wavering between The Dark Side and The Light all the time, but now the fluctuation has almost vanished completely. I only feel The Light in him every once in a while and I know he's soon going to slip away completely."

I almost couldn't comprehend some of her words because of the question that I couldn't get out of my head.

"What all has Kylo Ren himself done to make him this way?" I asked; part of me needed to know all of Kylo Ren's crimes. The other part of me was completely disinterested in the topic. The need overpowered the distaste for the knowledge of his cruelties. 

General Organa's eyes turned wet for a moment, but she forced the tears back down before they spilled and answered my dreaded question.

"He's murdered countless people. He completed his training with Snoke. He tortures people to get information out of them. He has given commands that have destroyed entire planetary systems and all of their inhabitants. He wants to kill all of the Jedi on his own. I mean, I'm sure that The Light is almost gone from him. He . . ." 

She closed her eyes and slowly shook her head. General Organa took a deep breath. "During the last battle between The Resistance and The First Order, Ben k--"

Her eyes opened suddenly. She looked at the ceiling, covered her mouth with one hand as if she was still in disbelief, and shook her head. She took her hand away from her mouth, and still looking at the ceiling, told me the news that would forever change my opinion on Kylo Ren.