Dawn of a new Force

Chapter 58 - The final clash (2).

Rey had managed to make her way, despite the battle, to the control center. Alone, she fought like a lioness against the stormtroopers she met. Letting her anger guide her, she made her double laser sword dancing as fast and well as her old combat stick, but much more aggressively. She developed her own fighting technique on the job.

She entertained the vision of the dislocated bodies of her team members, the fear of losing those she cherished. She no longer curbed that anger that was growling in her and she had tried to contain it. It was her ally, as long as she knew how to control it. The "monster" in her helped her and allowed her to touch her opponents for sure every time.

Arriving at the entrance of a huge forecourt, she squats to avoid being seen by the special guard waiting for the resistance fighters. The forecourt was a hundred yards deep, and filled with elite stormtroopers. Their black armor contrasted with that of the "usual" stromtroopers. Rey was facing a big problem. She might have been talented, but she knew she would not be a match for these seasoned soldiers.

Suddenly she heard an explosion behind her and turned. She saw black smoke rising from a building behind her back. She understood that it was not an attack of the First Order. The Resistants provoked them, tried to attract them to this point. And it was clear that it worked. She saw a detachment move towards the battle, where baster fire was beginning to be heard, but a large part of the elite contingent remained in its position. Still too many men.

And finally, as she stood up to try, against all caution, to make her way through the mass, a series of explosions echoed in front of her, sending waltz men in black. Looking up at the source of the shots, Rey found Tevar speeders in action. The ancient inhabitants of the city struggled to retake their old research center.

Taking advantage of the debacle caused by the speeder, she rushed into battle and responded to the shooting of the stormtroopers. Her double saber fired, and like a feline hunting, she leaped to avoid enemies. Tailladant closest to her, she found herself soon surrounded, about ten meters from the main gate of the complex.
She stooped slightly, putting herself in a fighting position. She saw the soldiers lift their blasters. And it was then that she closed her eyes and relied entirely on the Force. She could die, or fight. Time seemed to freeze, and she then saw her Force bubble. 

She was surprised to see that it had become gray, almost silver. She could not cover all the shots, but she could do something else. Blowing slowly, she felt the energy build up in her bubble, then she opened her eyes again. Her gaze was hard, and determined.

She released the accumulated energy in one fell swoop, and it was as if all around her an explosion was taking place. The soldiers around her were projected as if a violent wave hit them hard. And the entrance was there, in front of her. She was there.

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Ben and Poe were out of breath. They arrived on the forecourt as the speeders turned around and prepared to make another pass over the battle. Ben took little time to locate Rey. The purple glow of her sword indicated her position, and as he looked anxiously at Rey's image disappearing behind the multitude of soldiers, he suddenly saw the wave of Force sweep them away.

- Wow! shouted Poe. Did you see that?

- Yes I saw! Come on, we're almost there!

Both impressed, they rushed on the forecourt and Ben opened the way with his sword. Poe was shooting without missing his target and they made quick progress towards the door. Strangely, once they arrived at it, they had no trouble crossing it, and closing it behind them.

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In the center, Rey began to move cautiously. But the atmosphere was heavy, silent, dark. The light came from outside, through huge windows overlooking the surrounding vegetation. It was gradually covered with a thick strain of white ash.

Rey was lost in this ancient desert building, from which no sound was heard, except that of external combat. Her saber still lit, she walked down the stone corridors. Something drew her to a room, at the end of a very long corridor. She felt that she had to go there. But she strengthened her hold on her sword. She was faced with a heavy wooden door, which she touched first with the fingertips, so this door seemed to have lived stories. The wood was worn by millions of hands that had touched it before it. She felt a quiet force come off, and impregnate this living material.

She finally gave a knock in the door to open it and saw jump technicians. They were busy in front of consoles, and at the sight of the holograms, Rey knew she was where she wanted to go. Still some effort and she would have achieved her goal.

- Stand aside from the consoles! she shouted.

But none of the technicians moved. She insisted, and saw them look up. She followed their gaze and saw in horror what they were looking at.

Above her was a glass observation platform. She saw Finn, threatened by Hux himself. In rage, Rey clenched her fists and instinctively, threw the Force towards Hux to try to disarm him. But nothing happened. The surprise had to be read on her face because Hux started a bad laugh, while Finn, the brow bone in blood, let roll a tear on his cheek.

Rey heard the sound of a switch echoing in the room, and Hux's voice filled the speakers.

- Rey, what a joy to see you again! In truth, I was waiting for you!

Rey did not answer, but she stared at Hux.

- I feel surprised ... I followed your exploits with attention. I immediately understood that the Resistance would not attack without you, the famous Jedi! And who to send for this suicide mission, other than you?

Rey still did not answer. It did not seem to bother Hux, who was jubilant at the top of his platform, the blaster still pointing at Finn. This one, fists tied in the back, said nothing either.

- I presume that Ben Solo is not far ... But what does it matter! See, I'm one step ahead of you. This is FN-2187. A traitor, a deserter. And deserters deserve death. But I did not kill him because he has so much more value as well. I'm going to ask you to lock that door, my dear. And now.

Rey refused.

- You are going to do it, because otherwise the next resistant man who goes in will die, said Hux coldly. So, lock this room.

Rey finally agreed and placed two heavy wooden bars on the door. Then she looked up again at Hux.

- And now, what do you expect from me?

- Look ... Hux insisted. You see, this window? he said, tapping the window between them. It's Koznian glass. Do you know what this particular glass has?

- No, but you'll teach me.

Hux laughed again.

- Koznian glass blocks all radiation and all waves, my dear! And better yet, it blocks the action of the Force! I have waited so long for you to reach here. My troops were ordered not to make your work easier, but to make sure that you reached me alive. For this moment.

It was Rey who forced herself to smile this time.

- To be able to teach me a lesson in technology? You should not give so much trouble to my culture, Hux.

- No, Rey. Not for your culture. To see you suffer ...

And at these words, he tugged at Finn's back. Screaming, Rey saw Finn slump against the window, leaving a great trail of blood on it.