The Monster Behind the Mask

Chapter Four - Trapped - Part 1

Nova

Kylo Ren leaves me in the dark room. Alone.

I shoot off the ground and rush over to the doors. They dont open at my approach. I shove my nails in the crack between the slabs of cement and try to wrench them apart. They dont move.

Moving to the wall, I feel along it, searching for some sort of button that will open them if I press it. The walls are bare. I keep moving, running my hands along every inch. I find nothing. There is no grove in the cement, no panel that juts out.

I step back from the wall and turn toward the door. I brace my shoulder and run full force into the concrete slabs. Tremors run through my body after I collide with the cement. Damn, I think, that hurt

I pound on the doors in desperation. I cannot be trapped in here. Kylo Ren will come back, and he will hurt me even more. No matter how much I resist, or how hard I try to keep his fingers out of my brain, he will find a way in. It is only a matter of time.

The Jedi way is through the light. Its about thinking positively and working toward things that bring good to the galaxy. The way of the Jedi is through the light. Its through decency and common ground. A good Jedi is thoughtful and never angry. The Jedi way is through the light. I am not a good Jedi.

I can feel anger rising in me. Every time I look at Kylo Ren, anger becomes me. I am angry at him for keeping me here. For causing me pain. For hurting so many people. But I am also angry at myself. I find that the more I sit and think about what I have done, the more furious I get at myself for being selfish. That was not the way of the Jedi.

This is not the way of the Jedi.

I shake off my regret. I should not be dwelling on the past. Instead, I should be looking toward the future. I will myself to get up off the ground. My legs push me up. I stand at the front of the door. I know what I must do. I should not reveal myself. I must not let them know of my strength with the Force. But I must get out.

I look toward the corners of the room. The cameras sit there, invisible in the dark shadows, but they are there. I can feel their little circuits pulsing with electricity. I focus on the cameras. I picture the bolts holding them to the walls. I feel the energy that surrounds them. With one quick motion, I clench my fists, and the cameras explode in on themselves. They crash to the ground, sending glass and shards of material everywhere.

My attention goes to the door. I reach out my hands toward them and place my palms on the cold concrete. Focusing on the cement, I feel a power pulsing in the doors. They are being held shut. By the Force.

Kylo Ren must have done this.

I close my eyes, drawing energy into me. It comes from the air. The ground. Gravity. And it comes from the power that already pulses through the doors. I tug at the energy from Kylo Rens power.

I take it all in, and with one strong shove, I wield all this power back onto the door. The concrete shifts slightly, and a crack opens between the doors. My heartbeat accelerates. My body fatigues quickly. I ignore the burn in my chest and push even harder. The crack grows wider. I could fit my hand through.

I strain against the force. The longer I take, the closer the doors inch together against my will. My determination does not falter. I summon all the energy in the room and push one last time against the dark power. The doors move open a few inches more, and hope rises within me. Until they slam shut and I am thrown backwards across the room.

My head strikes the glass window and I crumple to the ground. Red hot pain courses across my vision. The world swirls. I reach back and touch my head with my fingertips. It stings.

I wince and yank my hand back. When I look at my fingertips, I see that they are covered in blood. Dark red blood. A pang hits me, and my arms cannot hold me anymore. They give out, and I fall onto my chest.

I face the loading bay. I look toward the only way out. Im so close, yet I am so far away. Past the forcefield that protects the exit, stars shimmer lightly. I wonder how distant they are. I wonder what planets lay out in the void – uncharted, unknown, and free

My vision fades to black.