As sage entered the abandoned Death Star she felt a twinge of fear creep into her. It was as if she could feel every ounce of pain this structure had once caused.
The structure creaked as she struggled to climbed up the rusted walls. She almost fell a few times but eventually climbed up to a landing that turned into a long hallway. As she walked through the flooded area she could see the armor of dead storm troopers lying all around.
She felt a pull to turn around towards another walk way were she saw a small opening that lead to a larger room. She crept through it looking at the disastrous room before her. There was lots of wholes in the walls and windows everywhere, but thats not what gave sage the chills. No, it was the dark ominous throne that sat at the end of the room. She could hear screams and a certain iconic robotic breathing noise in her head.
Suddenly a door to her left opened up as a cold gust of wind blew through her. She felt herself being compelled to walk through the doors, as she did however, they closed behind her forcing her to follow the feeling.
As she walked through the dark halls she turned a corner and saw the wayfinder floating above a podium. She grabbed it and suddenly the air around her thinned and all the noises she was hearing before halted.
When she turned around she gasped seeing herself but in a dark hood and with a double sided red lightsaber starring back at her.
"Don't be afraid of who you are" the doppelgänger said as she stepped forward lunging at sage. She quickly ignited her family's lightsaber fighting back against herself. The doppelgänger paused and hissed at sage, and force pushed her back which caused her to go flying out the door she had originally came from.
When sage landed on the ground, the wayfinder flew out of her grasp and rolled back stopping at someone's feet.
Kylo ren picked up the item and examined it before looking back up at sage, who quickly got to her feet and ignited her lightsaber once more. She looked at him ready to attack, she felt so much anger towards him in this moment
"Look at yourself" ren said "you wanted to prove to my mother and your father that you were a Jedi, but you've proven something else" Sage didn't move a muscle, she continued to look at him with disgust "you can't go back now... like I can't"
"Give it to me" sage said in a terrifyingly angry whisper
"Surrender to it... you wanted to take my hand sage I saw it"
"Give it.... Give it to me" she spat out through clenched teeth ignoring him
"The only way your getting to exegol...." ren said as he crushed the wayfinder "is with me"
"NO!" Sage said violently swinging the saber at ren who dove back blocking sages swings.
The two fought each other all the way out of the room and onto a platform outside the Death Star. Waves crashed around them as the two swung there lightsabers through the air.
"Sage!" A voice said running through the crashing waves up to the fight. Sage recognized the voice in an instance as her heart sank. she realized Poe had followed her all the way out here.
"No!" She yelled out quickly turning around and force pushing Poe back away from the fight. Sylvie ran up from behind Poe helping him up.
Ren swung at sage, but as she blocked him she looked up to see a ginormous wave coming straight for the pair. She quickly turned around and ran in a different direction and force jumped onto another structure.
Ren followed suit as Poe quickly got up trying to follow the fight but Sylvie held him back. "We can't follow them!"
"I can't leave her!" Poe yelled out
"Poe we cant!" Sylvie tried to ration with the man, pulling him back "she's on her own now come on! We need to get you and Finn back to your base"
"Sage!" He yelled out but it was no use. Sage could no longer hear his screams over the sound of the lightsabers hitting one another. The two fought hard until suddenly kylo felt a shift in the force which caused him to stop, dropping his grip on the red saber. Taking the opportunity sage caught his weapon and impaled the man straight through his abdomen with it.
In that moment sage felt cold and empty as she could feel leias life force slip away. "Leia" she whispered as kylo fell back onto the floor.
She stood there for a moment, taking it in. Her eyes began to flutter and swell up with tears. she looked down to her cousin who just sat there hunched over in pain. She knelt down to him, immediately regretting what she had done. Even after all this time, he was still like a older brother to her.... He was still family.
She put her hand over his wound as tears streamed down her face. Kylo looked up to her in shock as the wound seemed to heal completely.
"I did want to take your hand" sage said through soft sobs looking at kylo "ben's hand" she got up turned around and ran towards Rens ship that sat on the abandoned structure.
Sage quickly took off and headed for batuu, she needed to go back to base and see Leia. She needed to make sure what she felt was true, or if it was just another one of Rens tricks.
When she landed on batuu she saw the falcon was already there. She suddenly felt a pit in her stomach, she knew Poe would be angry with her for leaving them again. But she also knew that he wouldn't take the news of leias death lightly either, Leia was like a mother to him.
When she got off the ship, she had no time to say anything or see anyone before chewie ran to her giving her the biggest hug she has ever received
"Sage! Your okay! Thank the stars your okay!"
"Where's Leia?" Sage asked immediately. Chewie didn't say a word he just looked at her with sad eyes. "Chewie.....where's Leia?"
"She's...shes.... Shes gone" the wookie chocked out
"Oh Chewie" sage said hugging the crying wookie as tears streamed down her face. They stayed like that for a moment before sage realized something "Poe.... Where's Poe?"
The wookie pointed towards the base as sage ran into it. On the way in she ran into Finn who gave her a hug and pointed her to a room. When she walked in she saw Poe sitting on a chair next to a bed that Leia laid on lifeless.
"Poe..." sage whispered walking up behind the man
"I gotta tell you, I don't really know how to do this......I'm not ready"
"I know" sage put her hand on his shoulder. He suddenly stood up facing her with watery eyes "I'm sorry Poe, I know what she meant to you"
"How'd you do it?"
"What do you mean?" She asked
"I mean you've lost everyone you've ever loved..... your mother, your father, your uncle..... and now her. You have nothing left how-..... How are you okay?" he couldn't continue as he began to choke up
"Poe... I didn't lose everyone I love, i still have Finn and chewie and most important I still have you......So don't say I have nothing left because I do." sage said pulling Poe into a deep embrace "and I'm not okay. Not in the slightest" she whispered, tears began to slowly fall down her face. "There's something rotten inside of me"
"What do you mean?" Poe looked slightly concerned. He wiped her tears and held his hand to her cheek
"For so long I tried to fight off the constant voices in my head telling me that 'I am evil'....And now...." She broke down into tears "now I know why"
Poe held her close as she sobbed into his chest "shhh, it's okay. baby talk to me"
"Palpatine...... he's my grandfather...."
"So.... Vader" Poe said pulling back and connecting the dots
"Yes"
"And the emperor?"
"Yes" she said confirming his suspicious
"Fuck" he blurted out. He was scared for sage, Not only for her safety but her sanity. "Talk about terrible in-laws" he said as they both chuckled through tears
"Im going to exegol to confront him.... And poe, the chances of me coming out of this one.... It's not looking to good" she wanted to prepare him. She was ready to confront the emperor, but she wasn't ready to say goodbye to the man she loved, and neither was he
"Don't say that.... You will, you have to survive" Poe said gripping onto her tight "I won't let you go"
"Poe...."
"NO!" He yelled not daring to lose his grip on her "You don't have to do anything, you can stay here with me and we can be happy" he began to tear up as he yelled at her desperately "please, I can't lose you too"
Sage wiped away his tears now and rested her hand on his face. She admired it for a moment "I have to" she whispered "he won't stop until I'm dead and has complete control of the galaxy..... let me buy you all some time"
Poe stepped back in anguish, running his hands through his hair "no no no" he mumbled "we can figure this out"
"Poe we don't have time.... He's about to unleash the final order. I have to face him and stop him while you all take down his army. I can save today and you can save the galaxy"
Poe looked at her with tears flowing down his cheeks "you Better come back Skywalker or I swear" he took her face in his hands cupping her wet cheeks
"I love you Poe dameron" she wept out
He looked at her for a moment closing his eyes and pulling her into a deep and passionate kiss. They stayed like that for a moment before sage pulled away and walked out the door as tears continued to stream down her face. She knew that if she stayed any longer neither one of them would be able to let go.
When Poe opened his eyes she was gone. Nothing left but the memory of her lips on his "I love you sage Skywalker" he whispered to himself