The Prettiest Star - Star Wars - Kylo Ren

XXI

Up until this point, The First Order had remained undefeated. But, as it appeared, anything was possible. They were being beaten. they were being beaten badly.

The ice planet was colder than the reports had anticipated resulting in frozen stormtroopers and an enemy with the upper hand. They had also misjudged the numbers they were fighting against hugely. Outnumbered by 5:1, they were struggling to hold their ground. Aya and Kylo had been called in along with reinforcements to salvage what was left of their troops. A reckless captain had taken on too much and caused the massacre of his own division. Few remained when they had arrived.

Knee-deep in snow, and soaked in blood. Kylo and Aya stood beside each other, swiftly taking out dozens of their attackers at a time. Their enemy wielded deadly spears and were shrouded in large white fur coats that the stormtroopers' bolts struggled to penetrate. A few of them rode on the backs of enormous white, wolf-like creatures. They bore three rows of razor sharp teeth that could rip the head off a man in seconds. The numbers of stormtroopers surrounding them were dwindling. However the number of bodies that lay slumped on the ground were increasing.

Aya swung her sword upwards in a large arc, slicing the stomach of one of the wolf-creatures that was in the process of jumping over her head towards Kylo. It crumbled to the ground sending billows of snow up into the air. Instantly she quickly skewered the rider through the chest using the spear she gripped in her right hand. As she pulled it out of the lifeless body she shouted over the incredible noise. "Lord Ren, you must call a retreat whilst we still can."

Kylo stood a few metres away. His anger was fueling his skillful, violent movements. He almost didn't hear her over the sound of the blood boiling in his ears. A wave of emotions and thoughts were building up inside of his chest. It threatened to break as it drove his actions, heartlessly ripping out the lives of dozens of creatures. Instead of replying, he screamed out in frustration. His roar was accompanied by the death of yet another. Beside him, a stormtrooper fell to the ground.

Seeing his lack of response, Aya leapt closer to him, slicing the neck of an attacker in the process. "Ren!" She shouted by his ear. "You must call a retreat."

After slicing another life in two, he paused for a second. She could feel the conflict raging inside of him; he hated to back down. In that second, he watched one of his troops fall. They were suspended by the spear that went right through them, like a suit hung up by a coat-hanger. He stiffly nodded, anger against himself lacing his throat.

Instantly, Aya turned and shouted towards a commander to her left and screamed the word. "Retreat."

Over the sound of screams and conflict, the word echoed about the battlefield. In no time at all, the troops surrounding them fled towards the remaining ships. Aya turned to face Kylo once more, he was taking his anger out on yet another horde. "Lord Ren. We need to go. Now." She shouted, her eyes were streaming in the cold and she couldn't feel her fingertips. Still, sweat dripped down her back along the inside of her armour that was now sticky with red liquid.

He peeled himself away from the attackers to glance in her direction. He saw a large gash on her forehead burning red in the cold, her hair was plastered to her head, covered in a thin layer of snow. Pain laced her every pore however she didn't acknowledge it at all, he could feel it radiating from her. Anger and regret gripped his throat but, at seeing her in such a state, he turned and began to run towards his command shuttle.

Trailing behind him, Aya leapt about the uneven ground that was painted in reds and browns, littered with the fallen remains of stormtroopers and blasters. They swiftly climbed up the steep hill, taking out any assailants on the way. Before long, they were striding into the open landing ramp of the command shuttle. As soon as it closed behind them, the ship lowered its wings and lifted away, escaping the disaster that lay behind them.

Kylo roared and raised his lightsaber, bringing it down upon the walls of the ship. For a second Aya froze, stunned by his reckless actions. He started to slice up the wall, causing it to spark and glow in streaks of orange. He was letting his frustration and anger dominate him, it was out of character and quite frankly terrifying. Normally, he could easily control his actions and his emotions. This was new.

"Stop." Aya said loudly, but without shouting. Ignoring her, Kylo continued. "Lord Ren, stop." She said, louder still. This time she gripped his upper arm.

He stopped under her touch. It halted his movements and brought him back to reality. Part of his mind cleared just as she had commanded it to. Almost embarrassed, he shrugged off her hand and strode towards the living quarters of the ship. Sighing, Aya followed him, relieved that he had stopped.

She sat opposite Kylo and instantly removed her mask. Her hands were beginning to thaw out and they burned in the process. But she ignored it and placed the mask gently on the seat beside her. Silence set in between them, Kylo had his masked head in his hands, Aya was leaning back with her eyes closed. His thoughts were unbearably loud. In his opinion, the disaster was nobody's fault but his. He shouldn't have allowed them to be defeated. Out of nowhere, he slammed his hands on the table, causing Aya to jump forwards. "I shouldn't have let that happen." He exclaimed loudly, anger laced his deep, metallic voice as it bounced off the walls.

"There was nothing we could do. We had lost the battle before we even arrived." Aya said somewhat calmly.

Kylo dismissed her comment, almost ignoring it entirely. "We should have been there from the beginning. Then none of this would have happened. Then we would have taken the planet just as we had planned." He growled, his hands were clenched in fists.

"You cannot oversee everything. That captain was wholly responsible for the disaster." She hissed, leaning forwards slightly.

"It was a critical battle, without it we cannot continue." He shouted towards her, standing upright from his seat. His hands were pressed against the surface of the table as he leant towards her. "I should have been there." His voice filled the room violently, teeming with anger.

Aya stared at him, unfazed. She knew that his anger was directed towards himself and not her. "Captain McKenzie knew what he was doing. General Hux sent him to that battle in the belief that he would excel in the temperatures due to his background. You had no input in the skirmish until they called us in." Her voice was stern and loud but not quite at the point of shouting. "Sir, will you please sit down." As she spoke, a single drop of blood escaped from the still raw cut on her forehead. It dribbled down the side of her face and into the collar of her armour.

Kylo watched it in horror and regret. Slowly, he sat himself down once more, placing his head in his hands. "My apologies." He said quietly, he sounded defeated. Over the years there was a build up of mental strain in his mind, had he been weaker, he would have snapped years ago, crumbling under the weight. But he wasn't like most people in his resilience, he was much stronger. However, even he was beginning to strain underneath it. "That planet was supposed to be the location of a new base. A base that would develop a new superweapon that would be critical in the destruction of the New Republic."

"I wasn't informed of that." Aya said, intrigued. "How could it help destroy the New Republic? It lies thousands of lightyears away from any notable planet."

Kylo lifted his head up, her curiosity amused him. Slowly he withdrew his hands and leant back in his chair, looking at her. She could feel the weight of his gaze. In his mind he was deciding whether or not to tell her. Taking a breath, he reached towards the table and lightly pressed a button on the side. A hologram sprung up, showing the planet that they had just been on. Aya's eyes widened as she realised the extent of its modification, and its size.

"It will be called the Starkiller Base." He said from beneath his helmet, amusement now lining his words.