What She's Worth (Reylo)

Chapter 34

She'd seen the saber's plasma blade go through him. Felt the heat of it as it glowed above her before Casthre pulled the lightsaber out from behind Ben.

Then Ben had fallen to the ground, and she had screamed like a wounded animal, shocked and in despair.

Then, despair had turned into anger. Into fury that raged through her body like wildfire, consuming her until nothing was left except surrender.

And so she had given in. Given in to the anger and unleashed a power she never even knew she had.

A power her mother and her father had imbued upon her so long ago.

This was her. The real her. The daughter of Dark Siders. Dark Siders who had met their demise by Luke Skywalker's blade.

This was her. The girl who loved and lost Ben Solo to Luke Skywalker's students.

This was her. The girl whose darkness covered the academy and killed every last one of Luke's students.

This was her.

She was...

...screaming. At the top of her lungs, she was screaming, fighting off whatever it was that was covering her. She needed to get away. She had to get away! She had to...

"Rey!"

Rey stopped struggling and opened her eyes to see Ben, kneeling beside her, his hands gripping her shoulders, his face a picture of concern. "Calm down, Rey. It's just me."

She stared back at him in silence before sitting up from bed and looking around. The quarters, with its durasteel walls, blinking control panels and the bunk bed she was currently on was familiar, but she hadn't been in one of these rooms since her last academy trip to Coruscant. "We're...in the academy's shuttle?"

Ben nodded. "We are. Now, just lie down and rest. I don't know what else was in that drug. How are you feeling?"

"Drug?" She blinked and took a moment to think before it finally hit her. "Lennett."

She saw Ben's jaw tighten. "Yes. Lennett."

She swallowed. "Did I...kill her too?"

"No," Ben quickly cut in and rose from the floor to sit on the bunk with her. "I killed her. Not you."

"But everyone else..." Rey tried to swallow back her sobs but failed, her shoulders shaking uncontrollably. "I killed everyone."

"No, no Rey. This is all my fault." She felt Ben's hands grip her shoulders again. "Hey, look at me. Sweetheart, look at me. You weren't in control of yourself. Alright? I was. This is my responsibility."

"No, it's not." Rey shook her head, tears coursing down her cheeks. "I killed them. All of them!"

"No, you did not."

"But I did, Ben!" she shrieked, pushing his hands away from her. She didn't deserve any comfort. Not from him, not from anyone. "I killed everyone. Those padawans...they had families! Siblings...parents..."

The sleeping quarters grew quiet as Rey continued to sob. Ben remained still by her side.

After a time, she wiped her tears away with the sleeves of her robes. "My parents...you knew."

She saw him shift his eyes away. "Yes. I knew about it."

She felt anger spark inside of her, and it put an edge in her voice. "Since when?"

"Since the trials. Rey, I'm sorry I didn't tell you," he quickly added. "But I didn't think it mattered."

"Yes, it does," Rey said, her words still sharp. "I'm a Dark Sider. That does matter."