Rey sat slumped against the prison cell wall, head in her hands, her elbows perched up, resting on her knees. How long had she been here? The dim lights in her cell never went off to give a sense of day or night. There had been no real food either to provide a time frame once some basic rations and water had been delivered. The agonised distant cries had been another constant, at times, there had been breaks, and Rey had tried to reach out with her feelings to check if Ben was still alive, but she was still numb, and she couldn't sense a thing. Sometimes, the screams came with a furious shaking of her surroundings, Ben's abilities returning, Rey guessed, but the roars of pain that followed were just that- roars. They were keeping him deadened from the Force during his torture; no risks were being taken. During one break in the howls, she'd meditated and started to feel that same awakening sensation she'd felt on Ahch-To, shortly after though the chrome stormtrooper had entered the cell with two other stormtroopers. Rey had been restrained against the wall, and the sharp prick on her arm and the numbing sensation confirmed the drug had been re-administered.
Several times, the chrome woman had entered with Hux and a Knight of Ren or a contraption- a dark metal globe that hovered on its independent repulsors. Metal arms protruded from its side, each equipped with delicate but barbaric instruments. With the Knight present, they had asked questions, and every time Rey had remained silent, the Knight had hit her- ribs and stomach mostly but also her legs and back. When the contraption was present, her silence had invoked its monstrous purpose. She had managed to restrain her outcries to muffled sounds against that particular interrogation. Her body ached now, and her face was moist from her tears; however, the tears were not for her physical pain. She'd been considering a way to escape, but everything involved being stronger or having the Force to trick a guard and then what? She felt hopeless even if she had the Force rescuing Ben, and the two of them escaping while injured, him badly, seemed utterly impossible. She'd escaped before but had used the Force. Poe had escaped before, but with Finn. She needed help. Would Poe come for her? Were resistance members on this ship? They were her and Ben's only hope.
It was quiet around her cell now, eerily so and had been for quite some time. No more screams, no roars, no vibrations, and Rey feared the worst. Her breath became unsteady as she tried not to panic. As if in answer to her unasked question, the door to her cell opened. She looked up and then stood. What was it this time? More injections? Maybe some food and water? She was hungry and weak, she had to admit, but that, indeed, was the least of her problems.
Two stormtroopers stood in the doorway, holding Ben, his legs dragged behind him, his head hung down, and his arms were being held above him by the troopers who were gripping him at the elbows. They unceremoniously flung him into the room, then another trooper from behind them placed a tray of food and water into the room and then closed the door.
Rey rushed to his crumpled body, "Ben? Ben?" she cried as she gently swept the hair from his face. He was unconscious but breathing, though it was shallow. Looking from his face, she permitted herself to look at the extent of the damage to his person. What she saw was worse than she had imagined seeing him from the other side of the screen, attached to that table with the machine above him. His body was a map of torture: deep red and yellow sores and blisters from the acid. Multiple puncture wounds riddled his arms, torso and legs from the needles and the dark purple veins were painted across his entire body, making his already fair skin seem translucent. A sizeable, angry red wound ran up the length of his back, weeping slightly. At least it didn't look infected; it had been stitched, although unskillfully. They'd also made a weak attempt to redress him, having only partially dressed him in simple black trousers; nothing was covering his torso, and his feet were bare.
Rey stood and retrieved the rough sheet from the metal platform. There was no way, even if she wasn't injured that she'd get him onto the bench- he was not a small person and lying on the floor, Ben's body seemed even more significant as his unconscious form filled the cell floor. Rey would have to do what she could for him where he lay. With a considerable effort, she managed as gently as she could to flip him over onto his back with the blanket beneath him. She rested his head upon her lap to support his head. Rey moistened the edge of the blanket with some water from the beaker and smoothed it across his face. Surprisingly his face was the one thing they'd left untouched, though his one eye was swollen from the fight in the hangar. She moistened the sheet again, parting his lips and squeezed the water in. She did this a few times, and eventually, he opened and closed his mouth on his own. Pulling the blanket over the top of him, cocooning him, she now brought the beaker to his lips and allowed small trickles to enter his mouth. It continued like that for a while, and then his eyes fluttered, and he looked up at her.
"Rey." It was a hoarse, dry sound, nothing like his normal voice. He tried to reach a hand to her, but all he managed was a shift beneath the blanket. "Are you OK?"
"Am I OK?" she replied incredulously, "let's worry about you, alright?"
He didn't argue, closing his eyes again. "They didn't even ask me anything," Ben whispered, "not that I had anything to tell."
Rey stroked his hair. "It'll be ok; the Resistance will come for us." She hoped she sounded confident, but if she was in Poe's position, would she rescue her? It seemed a considerable risk.
"They'll come for you," Ben answered, reopening his eyes and giving her a sadly resigned stare.
"I told you already; I'm not going anywhere without you."
There was no more talking; she just held him as he slept. Rey must have fallen asleep, too, because she woke with a jolt to the noise of the cell door opening, but it was only a stormtrooper with clothes, boots, food and water. Regardless, she clung to Ben protectively, not that she imagined her presence would make much difference if they planned to remove him.
"You'll be escorted to the Supremacy to stand trial in the morning."
Rey had no sense of time since being in the cell. How long they'd been there or what time it was now.
"How long till then?" she queried.
"Twelve hours." Without another word, the stormtrooper left, the door closing behind them, leaving Rey and Ben alone again.
With some effort, Rey managed to heave Ben up some more so he was still resting but was more upright; his head lay upon her chest now rather than her lap. He stirred, and she offered him the food and water. While she did this, she became aware of a familiar feeling on the back of her neck, like she was cold, like her hair was standing on end - the Force. The injection must be wearing off. Where Ben leaned against her, she could feel his muscles tense slightly. Struggling slightly, he sat upright and turned around to face her.
"Do you feel it?" she whispered, afraid that maybe someone was listening in on them and the chrome stormtrooper would return with her vials.
He nodded, "Give me your hands".
Rey obliged, placing her hands within his. His enveloped hers.
"Close your eyes and focus on the Force; reach out with your feelings".
She did, and with his hands covering hers, that same sensation of awakening struck her. She could feel it rising within her, and behind her closed eyes, she could sense a light getting brighter and brighter, just as it had when they had kissed before everything had gone so awry. Her eyes flung open, and Ben was gazing at her, an awestruck expression on his face.
"Keep holding on," Ben said as he shrugged the blanket off his shoulders and straightened his posture; closing his eyes, he focused, taking long, deep breaths. Rey watched in avid fascination as the yellow and red sores across his chest faded and the swelling around his eye reduced. As she watched all this, she noticed the ache in her ribs and face reduce. Ben's breathing became laboured, and his exhales harsh; whatever they were channelling through the Force was taking its toll on him physically.
After a few moments or possibly a few hours, Rey couldn't tell, Ben opened his eyes and allowed the grasp on her hands to relax. She was looking at him directly, intently, searching for answers or at least acknowledgement that she'd not imagined it. She could feel his large thumb stroking the top of her hand as he looked down, apparently studying every detail of her hands in his.
Ben could sense her questions, but he wasn't sure he had any answers or at least not any he was sure of, so avoided looking at her directly. He observed the remnants of food, water and clothes. He reached over for the plate and placed it between them, taking some and then nudging the plate towards her. He sipped the water from the beaker on his own, letting the water swill around his parched mouth, then swallowed. Again, he placed it between them for her to help herself. Had she forgone her individual needs for his sake? It was her nature, but they both needed to be capable and competent. He reached for the clothes, then, with some effort, leaning back, on the one hand, he got into a crouched position and then finally stood upright. He pulled the boots on and then, with increased effort, lugged the top over his head, though not without a few rumbles and grunts of pain. When he was finished dressing, he looked over to her. Rey was standing too; she'd taken the opportunity to change when he had- she was dragging the top down over her bound torso, and as she did, he caught a glimpse of her bruised ribs. The sight of her injury caused him to inhale sharply as he felt that familiar anger rise in him. She turned to him when she heard his breath, noticing that he was gazing at her, a mournful expression on his face but his eyes fiery with rage. She stepped towards him and reached her hand up, sweeping hair out of his eyes and bringing her palm to rest against his cheek. Ben allowed his face to relax into her hand, nuzzling into it. Closing his eyes, he sighed and brought his hand up to encompass hers. He leaned forward slightly, resting his head upon her shoulder.
"We should get some rest," he breathed into her neck.
They'd argued about who should take the bunk, and then when neither of them would succumb, they agreed they'd rest on the floor together. Rey had argued that as she was in the better condition, out of the two of them, she would lean against the wall, and Ben could lean against her. He was too exhausted to disagree anymore, and he agreed. Despite Ben's large frame, he managed to curl up neatly between her raised knees as he leaned upon her chest. Despite all that had happened, Ben fell asleep quickly, listening to her heart beating while she stroked his head. A memory stirred into his subconscious as sleep took him, of his mother stroking his hair, soothing him whenever he had been ill or awakened from a nightmare curled up on her lap. A memory of a time before his training, before Snoke, when he'd been young and innocent; it was so long ago, another lifetime it seemed. It was a sweet memory, and instead of fleeing from it as he would typically have done in rage and anger, he allowed it to consume him, and Ben slept peacefully, dreaming of his mother, an island, Rey and their son.