Bonded in the Silence: A Reylo Fanfiction

Chapter 10: Arrival

Turning a corner, she stumbled upon some street younglings, playing a game amongst themselves.

Seeing them drudged up old familiar feelings she experienced as an orphan on Jakku. Did these children have slave owners? Did they have parents that cared about them?

The expression on their faces was her only answer. Some looked lonely, sad, afraid...but one little girl with a single ponytail waved at her, which was surprising. She could be a bounty hunter in her ensemble, yet that didnt seem to strike any fear in the small girl.

Rey continued walking past, and thought the girl had the faintest smile on her lips.

She continued on her observational journey, but stumbled when a familiar, almost magnetic pull in her chest slowed her to a stop in front of a shop. Her heart was pounding, but she hadn't felt this specific pull before. Ducking inside the shop on her left, the hard beads that were strung in the entrance frame made loud clacking against the helmet on the way in. The store was incredibly dim and dusty, with only four small windows on each of the walls. It took several moments for Rey's eyes to adjust behind the visor before she could see clearly.

"Can I help ya?" a gravelly, aged voice inquired from the corner.

Rey could barely make out a broad figure sitting on the far side, but she'd had enough with the helmet. Reaching behind her ears, she stretched apart the springy fabric molding and ripped it off desperately. She gasped in relief as the cooler air filled her lungs; the breeze wafting her moist skin and drenched hair.

As her eyes adjusted to the dimness of the shop she observed an older, heavier Drovian perched on a stool, spinning an amber object in its palm.

"I'm just...looking around" she breathed, and then shivered as a trickle of perspiration traveled down behind her ear.

The aged eyes of the Drovian studied her for a moment, a flicker of worry passing over them in a single blink, before dipping his large head forward in a gesture of allowance. The amber object continued to rotate.

With the helmet in the crook of her arm, she took two slow steps to her left to start on the opposite side of the room from him, listening intently to the noises outside the door.

The Force is stronger in here, she mused.

Tables and shelves displayed an assortment of unique objects in various conditions. Some appeared to be ancient objects retrieved from old temples, and antique weapons laid out to catch the eye of a collector. Gray, dusty curtains hung at the back of the room in one corner, and as Rey gingerly took steps near that corner, she halted when the Force thrummed loudly.

There's something right in this shelf.

She bent over to get a better look in the dimly lit area, examining a shelf filled with small figurines composed of a glossy, black rock. The vibrations in the force seemed to be coming from this location.

A dull glint of silver caught her eye behind the figurines and she carefully moved them aside one by one.

She inhaled sharply.

A lightsaber, showing age on every part of its surface, had been hidden behind. Stretching her hand out to take it, she hesitated momentarily, conscious of the alarming vision that rocked her the last time she touched a strange lightsaber.

Closing her eyes, she put her palm against it quickly and met with the cool metal but nothing more. The ground didnt shake, there were no voices, nor was her name echoed.

She was almost disappointed.

As she examined it in her grasp, the sound of the stool sliding on the floor nearly made her jump. She had forgotten she was not alone.

The owner made his way over to Rey, slow in his steps, and stopped to see what Rey had in her hands.

"It's from an ancient war, that one," he began, "a jedi owned it long ago."

She turned it over, and noted that it too had a cross guard akin to Kylo Ren's.

"In the ancient wars, they built lightsabers out of what kyber crystals they could scavenge, no matter how fragmented their state was. The blades that have been recovered from that generation are often of this cross vented version, due to the use of imperfect and unstable stones."

Rey nodded in response to him, noticing his eyes wet with a sheen of pity. She wondered if it was for her.

"Does it work?" she politely inquired instead of simply turning it on and scaring him right into the afterlife.

He shook his large head very slowly. "The kyber crystal died in it long ago, it's only an old relic now."

A few moments passed as Rey considered the lightsaber, turning it over in further examination of its state of repair.

"What's the price you're asking for this?"

He leaned back on a long inhale, his eyes staring down at her, and proceeded with an equally lengthy exhale that ended with a peculiar noise.

"It's worth nothing here." He shrugged. "If you like it so much, it's yours."

Rey lit up with a smile. She put her hand lightly on his shoulder to thank him, but he flinched and turned away quickly.

"Thank you..." her words trailed off, but he hurriedly exited through the shop entrance, the beads clicking together wildly.

She held up the lightsaber one more time.

If the crystal is dead, then why is the feeling so strong in here?

The Force filled her body instantaneously as she completed her thought, but it wormed it's way through her body, working against her muscles and limbs. Invisible restraints closed tightly around every joint, locking them in their present position; her mouth was frozen partially open in the beginning of a surprised gasp. Only her eyes were free, blinking in rapid succession as she searched the room from her locked cervical spine.

The rustle of the curtain behind her, and then footsteps drawing near caused goosebumps to rise on her neck.

It approached slowly from the left, the sound of a boot heel scraping the hard, sandy floor with every step.

Her heart froze for an instant when a tall figure in black appeared in her peripherals, donning a helmet similar to Kylo's.

"Oh, no my dear," a synthetic voice lightly spoke, "I'm afraid I'm not him."

Shield yourself, she commanded from within, and the Force wall went up.

The figure faced her, and she was able to see the detail of his helmet; a vertical slit divided the face, and a black hood shrouded the rest. An ebony chest plate peaked out from the robe, followed by black linens lashed tightly around the torso.

"You are infinitely more fascinating than I anticipated. An untrained Jedi at face value, but willful and defiant beneath. Snoke must have been caught off guard by you."

She let out a faltering breath in her frozen state.

"Unfortunately," the voice hummed, "The Supreme Leader has requested you be dealt with."

Darkness washed over her, covering her from head to toe, suffocating her along with the panic and despair of being caught by the First Order.