Double Agent |Kylo Ren|

Epilogue

Snoke takes his time approaching both of us. He's not using the Force to his advantage, though he easily could. So could Ben and I. The three of us wait to see who makes the first move.

Ben does.

He charges for Snoke, and I tail behind him. Ben lands a sloppy attack against the Supreme Leader, who blocks it with incredible ease. I circle around the outskirts, waiting for my in to possibly take Snoke down.

As Snoke tosses Ben away with the Force, that's when I decide to leap into battle.

For someone who is hunched over and looks shriveled, it doesn't affect his skills any. He parries just as quickly as I attack. He doesn't reach out with his legs to hurt me, though I do. My saber just nicks one of his sleeves. It creates a tear in the clothing, but not in his prune-like skin. A snarl creeps onto his face, and he attacks with rigorous vigor.

"Even if you do succeed, you won't leave Starkiller base," he shouts at both of us. Ben is currently trotting back to the duel while I am trying to not sustain injuries. "You will be forever hunted, both of you. They will find you, and they will kill you. Surely you know that."

"Yeah, well, I've ran on fool's luck most of the time I've been here, so what's a little more of it?"

"Stupid girl. You think it was fool's luck that got you here? Oh, no, I knew you were up to something the moment you stepped before me. I was hoping Lord Ren would help you see the error of your ways. Unfortunately, the opposite happened. For that, you must die."

"Not if we kill you first!" With a shout, I go for Snoke, aiming for his legs. My former saber blocks my current weapon. Ben again is tossed away from Snoke by using the Force.

My arms begin to strain and tremble from the exertion. Think of Cayden. Think of all the fallen. Fight for them. Fight for Ben. Fight for you.

"Kill me, and you will become the very thing you've been fighting this whole time," Snoke mocks me. "They will not accept you." With a hard shove, Snoke and I separate. With added Force in his shove, I'm sent flying off my feet. I hit the cold floor hard, sliding a bit. My saber cuts up the floor as I skid.

I toss my hair away from my eyes to see Ben now engaging his former manipulative snake of a master. I leap to my feet, connecting my saber with Snoke's. Ben's is also connected. The three of us are in a deadlock.

Until Ben decides to make a move.

Someone hits pause on time, because Ben doesn't carry out his movement. His muscles, limbs, body, and lightsaber and locked in position. My mouth parts, and with a grunt, I shove Snoke away. He's sent stumbling backwards, unfortunately not leading to him falling on his ass. I stalk towards the man behind all this pain and suffering.

"We will not give up," I hiss to Snoke.

"No, but you will be defeated."

The breath is stolen from me, but not by a Force chokehold. It leaves my lungs the second I feel Ben collide with my back, and his saber penetrate through me. He screams in outrage in my ear, sending me into almost instant deafness.

Snoke watches with a shit-eating grin on his face.

Tears start in my eyes.

"Amara, Amara, don't go," Ben panics in my ear. "Fight. Please. I-I—he pulled me towards you. I-I couldn't stop him. I couldn't—"

A choked sob hiccups from my throat. All this time, Snoke has played me in hopes of gaining another Dark Side user. Instead, he's destroyed one girl's life, and he is about to shatter another's all over again.

"Don't believe the lies, girl," Snoke sneers. "He wanted to kill you."

"No, that's not true!" Ben's shout made me think he's a young boy again. The scared desperation, to want to be believed. "Mar—"

Snoke approaches, disfigured face held high in triumph. I turn my head away faintly when he reaches for under my chin. "Goodbye, Amara Galavan."

Ben's saber is ripped from my body, and I hear his loud bellow of anger. As my body hits the floor, I look through hooded eyes as he makes a mad rush for Snoke, putting all his effort into attacking. My vision is starting to go, the noises of battle fading, like I'm heading through a tunnel.

I don't want to go. I need to see how this plays out. Ben needs to stand his ground and escape Snoke's grubby clutches. He needs to denounce Kylo Ren and become Ben Solo.

I tap in and out during their fight, which tells me I'm closer to my inevitable demise. The last time I come to, I hear silence. The scary silence nobody wants to hear.

And then, footsteps. Footsteps in a mad dash—and they're heading my way.

"Amara." Though his face is blurred to me, his voice sounds very clear.

"Ben."

"I-I did it, Mar. He's—Snoke is dead."

Ben's body blocks my view, so I can't get a visual confirmation. But I believe him. "You did it. You're free."

"We're free. Hang on, we can still save you."

My eyes close, but I feel my body off the floor and into his arms. His heartbeat is frantic under my ear.

"Amara."

"I'm here. Dying is slow."

"I'm going to stop it. You're not dying today, Amara Galavan. You're not."

Though Ben speaks more to me, his words fade into silence.