There was a bite to the wind as they neared the cliffside. It pushed the tall grass down and shook any residual sand from Aria's braids.
She followed after Rey with Finn, Poe and Chewie just behind her. Behind them were the droids who had a hard time navigating the uneven hill.
When they reached the peak Aria understood the cold wind. The cliff dropped off at their feet, tumbling down a tantalizing thirty feet to tall, malignant waves that crashed into the sharp, jagged rocks at the base of the cliff.
Aria had to pull her gaze away from the bleak water and aggravated waves to see the reason for their trip. Through the salty misting that lingered just above the ocean, she found the astronomical piece of an old Death Star. She looked at the semi-circle at the top of it- the eye of the old moon. She could still picture it all pieced together and hanging in the sky, ready to obliterate any planet it wanted.
The sight gave her chills- maybe it was something to do with the ominous, low hanging storm clouds that draped over it like a loving coat, or the history engraved in every morsel of its cold metal. Whatever it was, the chill never faltered.
"Wh-wh-what is that?" D-O asked as he rolled up to view the sight.
"It's the Death Star," Rey's voice portrayed her own distaste for what laid ahead. "It's a bad place from an old war."
Aria gulped as the darkness radiated off the old weapon. It reached out for her longing, just waiting for her to return its embrace.
"It's gonna take us years to find what we're looking for." Poe stepped up beside Aria to look over the massive structure.
Being close to Poe helped fight off the darkness. She still felt it lingering, but it weakened.
"Only this blade tells...." Rey whispered as she looked into her satchel. She rummaged through it before she found the dagger and pulled it out. She looked at the outline of the blade then to the hilt. She ran her finger across it and felt a slick nick along one of the edges. Something gave, and she pulled it out to find a thin, curved compass with black ticks marked every few millimeters.
"What is it?" Aria asked as she stepped away from Poe to join Rey's side.
Rey held the blade up towards the Death Star to compare the blade's unique carving to the weapon's horizon.
Aria squinted as she watched Rey slowly move it across the length of the old moon. She slowed as she found a part of the Death Star that perfectly lined up with the dagger's grooves.
Finn and Poe slowly walked up to Rey's back as she lowered the blade to fill in the gaps. The compass came to a triangular point, which landed on a small black room extending out of the old weapon. It was too much a coincidence to mean nothing.
"That's it." Aria decided as she looked from the dagger to the room. "The Wayfinder's there."
Their rush at the revelation was cut short by the foreboding sound of stomping and animalistic growls.
"Head's up," Poe warned the others as he pulled his blaster and aimed it at the strangers.
They all turned just as obraks rode up behind them. The obraks were huge, horse-like creatures with tusks extending up from their frothing mouths. On the backs of the orbaks were humans all without weapons.
Aria grabbed her pistol from her thigh holster and raised it in her right hand. She pressed her finger against the trigger despite the pain it sent through her palm.
"Rough landing." A lady with beautifully chaotic curly hair mused. She had goggles placed along her hairline to keep the wind from pushing her curls in her face. Her clothes were well worn and loose enough to fight in- that was the first thing Aria noticed about her.
"I've seen worse." Poe defended his landing as he kept his gun pointed at her.
"I've seen better." She quipped.
"Me too." Aria grumbled.
Poe gave Aria a sharp look that made her shut her mouth.
Both turned back just as the lady asked, "Are you Resistance?"
Aria narrowed her eyes at the intrusive question. While she knew the Falcon was easily recognizable across the galaxy, it was known for smuggling, not the Resistance.
"That depends." Poe's voice hinted at his own apprehension of the question.
The obrak carrying the woman took a few steps towards them. Aria lowered her gun to the animal, but decided against it and trained it back on its rider.
"We've picked up a transmission from someone named Babu Frik-" She explained her reason for asking.
"Babu Frik, oh he's one of my oldest friends." C-3PO's happy tone made Aria close her eyes and give an apologetic shake of her head.
When she opened her eyes she saw the woman looking directly at her, then her eyes flickered just over her shoulder to Rey. "He said you'd come. He said you were the last hope-"
Aria's head ticked to the side at Babu Frik's enthusiasm towards her and Rey. Still, the story panned out, so she dropped her weapon and took an assured step towards the woman. "We need to get to that wreck-" She turned to the side to look back towards the Death Star. "There's something inside we need."
"I can take you there by water." She offered.
Aria nodded enthusiastically at the offered help.
Finn, however, was not nearly as excited. He stepped up beside Aria as he said, "You see the water?"
The woman shook her head. "Not now... too dangerous. We can go first light tomorrow."
Aria's shoulders sagged as she looked over at the equally disappointed Rey.
"We can't wait that long. We don't have the time." Rey explained to the woman as she stepped up beside Aria.
Aria nodded in agreement. "We're willing to go now and risk it if you-"
"Aria-" Poe stepped in front of Aria to block her view of the woman. "It's too dangerous." He reiterated.
Aria huffed in annoyance at his interruption. "This is all too dangerous, Poe." She reminded him as her bi-colored eyes flicked between his worried, brown ones. "But if we don't do this... millions could die." She whispered.
Poe gave the smallest shake of his head. "Let's fix up the Millennium Falcon." He proposed instead.
Aria deflated at his deflection.
"We'll fix her up then go- together." He stressed. "Okay?"
Aria chewed on her cheek as she contemplated whether to lie to him or not. He would never let her go alone, and she would never do anything that intentionally put him in danger. The only logical answer was to lie- just this one. "Okay."
Poe gave a nod before he turned to look at the woman on the obrak. "You got any spare parts?" He asked as he holstered his gun and walked towards her.
"Some. I'm Jannah." She introduced herself as she tugged on the reigns of her obrak to get it to turn.
"I'm Poe."
Aria turned towards Rey who was just as frustrated as she was moments ago.
"We're not really waiting until first light are we?" Rey whispered as Chewie and Finn lingered behind.
Aria gave a discrete shake of her head. She waited a few more seconds for Chewie and Finn to leave before she spoke. "We don't have time to wait and we won't get the Falcon operational before first light-" She shook her head at the preposterous idea. She looked out to the angry waves. "There has to be a way out there. How would Jannah take us?"
Aria walked up to the edge of the cliff and peered over it. "There-" She pointed down to a skimmer. She shook her head as she took in how janky it looked. "This'll be fun." She looked back to Poe's retreating form. Her heart ached for lying to him, for what it'll do to him when he realizes they left without him.
But if she wanted to have a future where they could go to celebrations of life and have babies and grow old, she had to do this.
She took in a breath and held it as she looked back to Rey. "Ready?"
"Ready." Rey nodded.
Aria looked down on the cliff. The skimmer nestled along the rocky shore. It was still a far drop, but at least there was a break from the tantalizing rocks.
"If we jump-"
"We can do it." Rey assured her. "Let's go." She took a single step back, then launched herself off the side of the cliff.
"Shit-" Aria hissed as she jumped without thought. The unforgiving, icy wind nipped at her skin like tiny, malicious cuts. She waved her arms through the air aimlessly and watched as the skimmer grew larger and larger under her. When she was right on top of it, she bent her knees for impact and landed gracefully next to Rey. The unsteady, rusted skimmer bounced under her sudden weight, which Aria thought wasn't a good start to their adventure.
She barely had time to breathe before Rey grabbed onto the side of the skimmer then used her Force to push them off the wall and into the water.
Aria grabbed onto the side of the skimmer as it touched the water. The first small wave kissed the side of the skimmer and rocked it as the Millennium Falcon would when pushing out landing gear.
"Maybe this won't be so-"
A second, slightly larger wave hit the side at just the right angle pop the left stabilizer arm. Without the left arm they were too heavy on one side and almost lurched over.
Aria turned and used the Force to shove the left arm back down just as the skimmer started to tilt.
"Never mind!" Aria screamed as a third wave hit and rocked them. "This will be very bad." She looked over to Rey as she bent over the engine to try and start it.
Aria hobbled over with an extra wide stance to try and help Rey start the old, rusted engine. She pushed buttons that Rey didn't and then pulled a string with flat head on the end. As the string pulled back, the engine roared, then died.
Aria's eyes widened at the hungry sound. She pressed a button to feed more gas into it, then pulled the string again. The engine roared, then stalled once more.
Aria shook her head as she fed even more fuel into it.
"Don't flood it-"
"I know." Aria snipped as she pressed it once more, then gripped onto the string and ripped it backwards.
The engine roared, then fell into a loud, steady rumble that shook the back of the skimmer.
Aria laughed as she patted the top of the engine lovingly, then she grabbed the tail and shoved it over the back end and into the water.
"We're good." Aria turned to yell over her shoulder at Rey.
Rey, who stood by the wheel, gave a nod and pushed a double lever up to start the rotors.
Aria gripped onto the back as they skimmed over the peaks of the small waves. Each bounce had enough force in it to push her off, but she held on tight and stumbled side to side with the rocking.
Aria turned just as she noticed one of the overhanging levers swing around towards Rey. Despite the rocking waves, Aria pushed off the butt of the skimmer and took two long strides to stop the lever before it hit Rey. She grabbed onto it with her left hand and grabbed a rope to secure it to another pole so it didn't swing back around.
"Grab that and pull!" Rey pointed towards a rope connected to the tail.
Aria moved around Rey and grabbed the rope. She waited for them to get over a medium wave, then she jerked the rope down. She turned sharply to watch as the tail lifted just as they hit the peak. Without the tail they were top heavy and dove down over the wave to reach the other side instead of falling backwards.
When they scaled down the other side, Aria released the rope to drop the tail back into the water. The lurched forward and drove towards the dip of the wave.
A shadow fell over them, and Aria looked up to see what stole the little light they had to guide their way.
"Uh... Rey!" Aria swatted blindly at Rey as she spotted the gigantic, dark, menacing wave before them. The top of it curved over them, covering the angry storm clouds from view. Aria's throat dried at the terrifying sight ahead. "Rey!"
"HOLD ON!" Rey warned as the skimmer tilted straight up.
Water rained down over them from the wave, and as Aria looked up toward the frothy peak of the monstrous wave the water stung her eyes but she was far too terrified to blink or look away.
She felt her heart jump into her throat as the nose of the skimmer lifted from the wall of water.
Aria looked towards Rey as she lifted the right stabilizer arm.
"What are you doing?" Aria screamed over the raging wave.
"Just ready to lift the tail!" Rey ignored her as she focused on the tip of the wave.
Aria let out an unsure breath as she wrapped the rope around her forearm and watched as they neared the peak.
Without the second stabilizer arm they teetered off to one side, and the left arm dug into the water, but it helped spring them forward towards the peak.
Rey dropped the second arm to straightened them out. As the arm bounced against the water's surface Aria yanked the rope down with all her might. The tail lifted from the water, making the nose much heavier and plummet over the frothy, foam of the peak.
They went from almost standing parallel to the wave, to laying against it as the skimmer drove down its backside.
Aria used their height to her advantage as she scouted out possible ways into the Death Star. The walls were taller than the humongous mountain they just climbed with little to no breaks along it. "There-" Aria found a slim slit among the dense wall. It was barely the length of their skimmer, but it would work. "Head that way!"
Aria let go of the rope and wobbled her way to the back to mess with the tail. She pressed her palms against the side of the tail and looked back towards their destination to try and gauge how far to turn it.
She ground her feet into the rusted bottom and shoved the tail to the left. As it turned, the skimmer started the cut diagonally across the water.
"Straighten out!"
Aria gritted her teeth as she wrapped her fingers over the top of lever and pulled it back to her. The harsh waved pulled and pushed against the tail, making it extremely difficult for her to find its center again.
"Hold it!" Rey screamed as they neared the mouth.
Aria squeezed her eyes shut as she tried to hold the tail exactly where it was. It was an odd balance for her, one second she was pulling, then the next she had to press the butt of her palms into the side to fight against the push of a wave.
The second they broke through the Death Star's wall, the waves died down. All of the resistance Aria felt in the tail dissipated, and she fell to her butt as her arms shook straight out in front of her.
She leaned her head back to rest against the inside of the skimmer and looked up to the looming wall in front of her. The dark metal had no holes or dents in it, no way for them to penetrate it to get deeper into the moon.
Aria's brows furrowed as she pushed herself back to her feet and turned around to look at the other wall but found it was equally empty of ways inside.
"Rey..." Aria took a step towards her partner. "I don't know how we're going to-" The skimmer lurched forward as the nose hit against one of the walls. The skimmer turned sideways and rammed the right stabilizer arm into the other wall. It bent the arm and forced it down into the water. The skimmer tilted sideways and filled with water.
Aria's eyes widened as the water gathered around the soles of her boots.
"We gotta jump." Rey told her.
Aria looked over at her with alarmed eyes. "Where?" She stressed as she looked around them.
Rey pointed up to a broke catwalk that only had half a foot extended over the wall's edge.
Aria looked up to the catwalk and shook her head. "There's no way. It's too high! Too small! We can't-"
"There's no other option!" Rey warned her.
Aria looked back down at Rey while shaking her head. "You can't-"
But Rey didn't hear her as she bent her knees and looked up towards the catwalk. She gathered up her strength and pushed herself first to her feet, then projected herself up into the air.
"REY!" Aria's voice echoed off the walls and showcased her true fear all the way up to the top of the Death Star.
Aria panted as she watched Rey land on the very edge of the catwalk. Her toes gripped the edge, then she teetered backwards and almost fell back down. Aria's breath caught in her throat as a icy fear blanketed her.
Rey pushed herself toward and disappeared over the edge.
Aria released her breath when Rey didn't fall, but the lack of sight of her didn't lessen the fear.
"Rey?" Aria croaked as she squinted to try and see better.
Rey's head popped over the edge of the catwalk. "Your turn. You can do it!"
Aria took sharp breaths that hollowed her cheeks before puffing them out. "I can do this." She whispered to herself as she bent her knees. Her strength built up in her thighs and traveled down to her calves. When she felt it swimming inside of her she pushed up and leaped straight up into the air.
Just as Rey had, she caught the edge of the catwalk and stumbled back as her heels hung over. Just as Aria started to fall, Rey reached out and grabbed her hand to pull her into the Death Star.
Aria stumbled forward as her arms flew around Rey's shoulders. Aria panted as she rested her forehead on her forearm and closed her eyes for a single second. Then she pulled herself together, lifted up from Rey and gave a nod. "Let's keep going."
Inside the Death Star was bigger than anything Aria had seen before. All the floors and dividers were stripped, making the inside a vast void of history. Wind whistled through the cracks and water dropped from the open dome.
Aria craned her neck all the way back but still couldn't see all the way up. There was so much more before it began to curve around to form the sphere.
"This is... horrifying." Aria's whisper echoed through the shell, mixing with water droplets and the whistling to create a menacing hiss.
"All the lives lost..." Rey added as she began to walk the walkway. "I can feel their trapped souls."
Aria nodded as she felt it. She mistook it as her own fear inside, but it was slightly different. While her own fear was ice cold, this was void of all things except for a deep ache in her sternum. It throbbed with a pulse unlike her own. It was slow, agonizingly slow. She tried to shake the feeling but it clung to her, desperate to feel her life force.
"We'll have to climb up that-" Rey pointed to a giant cylinder that drove up at a slant. Aria looked up along the shaft of the cylinder to find there were no steps, only small rivets that were barely the size of her feet.
"Okay, you go first." Aria nodded for Rey. "If you fall, I'll catch you." She promised.
Rey moved towards the base of the cylinder and grabbed onto one of the first rivets. "And if you fall?" Rey hoisted herself up before she looked back at Aria.
Aria gave a smile. "I won't fall."
When Rey was a almost a whole level up, Aria started her ascent.
Their heavy breaths echoed throughout the old Death Star as they climbed several levels up the slanted cylinder.
Aria's neck began to kink from all the looking up, but she was glad she did as she caught Rey's footing give as a rusted piece of metal broke from the shaft.
Rey screamed as she fell past Aria, but Aria reached out her hand and grabbed Rey's dainty wrist with her right hand. Her shoulder pulled under the sudden jerk and threatened to dislocate from the rest of her.
Aria clenched her jaw as she dug her nails into Rey's arm to keep her grip. "Told you I'd catch you." Aria hissed as she looked down at her partner. Rey grabbed onto Aria's hand, pushing into the road rash that had just started to settle.
The tight grip made Aria dizzy, and her hold on both the wall and Rey loosened.
"I can't hold you for long-" Aria warned her as she looked up to try and find a place to put her. "There's a groove there, I can swing you up to it, okay?" She looked back down at Rey to see her nod. Aria licked her lips and let out a breath as she started to swing her arm back. As she slowly pulled her forward she looked back to the groove. She swung back again, then put all her strength into the last swing forward. "Go!" She loosened her grip on Rey for her to pull her hand away when she was ready.
Rey gripped onto the small rivet with both hands and pressed her feet into the metal to hold her place.
Aria quickly grabbed back on to her own groove to relieve some pressure in her left hand. Her right hand throbbed with a fresh heat from Rey's viper grip.
"We can jump to that-" Rey stepped over and pushed her back into the side of the cylinder as she looked five feet in front of her towards a broken beam.
"Do you think it's steady?" Aria asked as she pulled herself next to Rey.
Rey tilted her head as she examined it. "One way to find out." She pushed off of the cylinder and jumped towards the platform.
Aria side stepped to take Rey's place. When Rey pulled herself onto the beam, Aria jumped next. She grabbed onto the thick metal pieces in the belly of the beam. She swung her legs up to the left and caught her toe on the bottom of the beam to help push her way up.
When Aria was on top of the beam, she looked around them to find where to go next.
"There-" Rey pointed to a square whole in the wall at the end of the beam. "It looks like a hallway."
Aria nodded as she started to make her way towards the hall. She kept her eyes on the beam to make sure she only stepped on solid metal pieces. She tested each step before she took it. It was a slow process, but she really didn't want to fall.
Aria and Rey walked in a straight line as Aria tested the footing. When they reached the end of the beam, Aria jumped to grab onto the edge of the square hole. With nowhere for her to put her feet, it took all of her arm strength to pull herself up.
The sharp edge of the discontinued hallway dug through the thick layer of padding along her palm and the strain of her forearm muscles stretched the torn skin, tearing it even further.
Despite the pain, Aria lifted herself up and leaned forward into the hall, then she turned over and scooted the rest of the way into the hall. It wasn't necessarily graceful, but she made it.
She stood and quickly bent over to offer Rey her hand, but the younger Jedi in training was actually graceful with pulling herself up.
"I did a lot of climbing on Jakku." She explained when she stood next to Aria.
Aria nodded in understanding and turned towards the depth of the hall. It wasn't level, instead it tilted to the left which made Aria have to stagger her footing and lean to the right to keep herself steady.
Rain poured in from the top of the cracked open hallway and created a stream in the lower left corner. Worn Storm Trooper helmets littered the ground and created barriers for the stream to weave around.
I hope the helmets are empty. Aria pleaded with herself as they walked down the hallway. But I don't think they are.
Rey walked down a hallway along the right side of the hall. It slanted up and became more steep with each step up.
Aria looked of them to see sky. Whatever laid up ahead, it opened up to the sky. "We're almost there." Aria told Rey with confidence. "I can feel it. Can you?" Aria looked over at Rey's grave face. The set brows and pressed lips told her all she needed to do: she did feel it.
The Sith Wayfinder called out to them. It was like a calling song, luring them towards it with its lethal siren's voice.
The end of the hall didn't match up with the room, the explosion that destroyed the Death Star must have knocked the legs out from under the hall.
More climbing, Aria groaned internally as she grabbed onto the beam and hoisted herself up. She only had to climb a few feet before she reached the floor that was suppose to connect to the hallway.
She pulled herself up and didn't even try to help Rey. Instead she dusted her hands off and stepped further into the room.
Aria stood in the 'eye' of the weapon. The giant circular window was all smashed out, but she could imagine what it all looked like put together. There was a darkness lurking in the room. A presence one stood within the room that was so dark it stayed decades later.
"I don't like this place." Aria's whisper echoed as she followed Rey even deeper into the room. Something that caught Aria's eye, the darkness wove around it, seeped into it, like whoever was in the room, touched that one thing- the throne. "I really don't like this place." She reiterated as she stared at the broken down, smashed chair. It leaned forward on its front legs and the head of it was bashed in, but she knew what it was. The was the chair he sat when he made the calls to destroy entire planets.
The floor under them vibrated, making Aria turn to see a vault door slide back into the wall. She crept closer to the door to peer into the darkness within. Dust poured out of the room from years of being stuffed up inside.
The dust made Aria's nose itch, and she felt the onset of a sneeze building up inside. "Oh no-" She raised her arm to cover her nose and mouth just as the sneeze blew out. The loud sound magnified in the room, and echoed down the hall and into the belly of the beast.
Aria dropped her arm from her face and gave Rey a horrified expression as they still heard the echo of her sneeze a full minute later. "I hate this."
Rey just gave a breathy smile before she turned to walk into the dark room.
Aria's head ticked to the side as she followed after Rey.
More dust clung to the air inside. Each steady breath coated Aria's lungs with unsettled dust. As the feeling of a sneeze crept up on her again, she raised her arm to guard her nose and mouth so no more dust could get sucked in.
She kept her arm there as she walked further into the vault. Small planes of glass were stationed every few feet, but the reflections were too muddied to make out any discernable figures. Instead they just refracted the light to give the room an eerie glow.
Aria didn't need to see where she was going to find the Wayfinder, and neither did Rey. Once they were in the room they could feel exactly where it was. It's siren call echoed in their very soul. It lulled them forward until they stood in front of a stand that stretched floor to ceiling. There was a small break in the stand, about a foot tall, that held the Wayfinder. It floated between the two pieces and gave off a slow, comfortable glow.
Aria looked into the pyramid to see entire systems within its construction. It was truly a map- their map.
Rey grabbed the Wayfinder from its home and pulled it towards her.
Aria tensed as she looked around them. She expected it to be booby trapped, but when the room didn't start to close in on them and the ceiling didn't crumble, she found herself slightly disappointed.
Until she felt a darkness behind her. There was something oddly familiar about the darkness, almost like coming home.
She turned to see a figure step out of the darkness. With the darkness she almost expected it to be Ren who stepped out, maybe even Palpatine. But when she saw dull, blue and hazel eyes staring back at her she locked up.
Her chest heaved on its own as she stared at herself cladded in a black robe with the hood pulled up. The hood created a shadow that hollowed her cheeks, but the hood wasn't responsible for the paleness of her face, or the deep purple bags under her eyes.
"No-" Aria's voice trembled as she watched her own red lips curve up into a knowing smirk.
"Don't try to fight it..." Her voice was hollow as her cheeks. "He's your brother. You belong by his side." She lit her saber to show two bright red beams shoot out of either side.
Aria took a step back as she grabbed Leia's saber and ignited it. She lifted hers to block a shot from her dark sister. But her fear weakened her, and her sister had darkness to add to her strength.
Aria stumbled backwards under the sheer force of the hit, and she watched in an unmatched horror as her sister twisted the base of the saber to separate the two beams of energy until she held two independent lightsabers.
"Impossible-" Aria shook her head in disbelief.
"Nothing is impossible. Just give in and you'll see that." Her dark sister hissed as she raised both arms and slashed them down diagonally.
Aria raised her saber to catch both red beams at the 'x'. She gritted her teeth as she pushed back against her own darkness. As her feet began to slide back, Aria had the fleeting thought that she was no match for the darkness within herself.
She backtracked and caught sight of Rey fighting with a more malicious version of herself.
"We have to go-" Aria grabbed the collar of Rey's shirt and yanked her away from her hissing dark twin. "We have to-" Aria's heel caught on something and she fell backwards, bringing Rey with her as they fell from through the vault door.
Aria landed on her right shoulder with half of Rey's weight on top of her. She gave a pained groan as she pushed Rey off and rolled over onto her stomach.
She heard the Wayfinder clattering across the ground, but it suddenly stopped short. Aria's head snapped up to see what stopped the Wayfinder's tumble. She saw a black gloved hand wrap around the Wayfinder and slowly pick it up.
Aria pushed herself up and stood tall as she watched Kylo Ren look at the Wayfinder.
Rey's shoulder brushed Aria's clavicle as they stood close.
Aria's eyes skirted between the Wayfinder and Ren's calm face. There was something about the look on his face that made Aria reengage her saber. Rey's lightsaber sparked on at almost the exact same time as hers. Aria narrowed her eyes as she gripped the saber tightly in her left hand. She watched an annoyed expression flash over Ren's face as he let his hand and the Wayfinder drop to his thigh. The small action reminded her of Ben whenever he was irritated at something she did.
"Look at yourselves..." He shook his head at their childish tantrum. "You both wanted to prove to my mother that you are Jedis, but you've proven something else." He looked directly into Aria's slitted eyes. "You can't go back to her now, like I can't."
Aria shook her head in disbelief. Leia told her there was nothing she could do that would break their love. She knew that. She knew that.
But... Leia didn't see what she just saw inside the vault. Leia didn't know the strength that the darkness inside her had. If she saw that, if she saw the powerful, fun smirk across her paled face, would she still say there was nothing Aria could do to break their love?
"Give it to me." Rey's hiss broke Aria from her racing mind.
She pulled herself back to the moment just in time to catch Ren's face rear back in surprise at the malice laced through Rey's words.
He quickly recovered and took a small step forward with his left foot.
Aria's eyes lowered to watch his feet. One more step and she would strike.
"The dark side is in our nature. Surrender to it."
His voice pulled her back up. There was a confidence so strong in it that she momentarily believed him.
"Did she not tell you?" Ren tilted his head as he caught the conflict in Aria's soft eyes. "Did she not tell you who you come from?"
"Give it. To me." Rey interrupted before he could ruin Aria's image of herself. Aria didn't want to know who she came from, and Rey would protect that with her life.
Ren turned away from Aria at Rey's insistence. He could see the determination in her eyes, the anger building just beneath the surface. It mixed with Aria's own anger until it sucked all the oxygen out of the room.
"The only way you're getting to Exegol... is with me." He crushed the Wayfinder in his grasp, demolishing it until it was nothing but shards of glass and metal.
A saturated anger drove through Aria as the object they spend the last day looking for crumbled to the ground. "NO!" She screamed as she lashed out at Ren. She sliced her saber up diagonally across her chest to dig into his sternum, but he leaned back to avoid the block.
She stepped forward and sliced high as Rey aimed for his waistline. As her arm cut across, she spun around and loosened her saber in her hand to drop it and hold it upside down. As she turned back towards him she twisted her fist so it was parallel to the ground and rammed it back towards Kylo Ren.
Finally, he pulled out his own saber and lit it to catch Aria's saber. He stopped her attack and threw his arm up to drive her saber up and force her back.
She stumbled back a few steps as Rey delivered her own heavy blow.
Aria drug her heels into the ground to stop herself from tumbling backwards, then she pushed forward and brought her saber over her head and slashed down at the exact same time Rey did.
Ren caught both sabers with the hilt of his. Aria's slid into the left crook with Rey's was in the right. Aria's shoulder rubbed against Rey's as they both shoved towards Ren.
Aria clenched her jaw as she pushed to her toes and put her entire bodyweight into forcing Ren back.
Kylo Ren's feet began to slide back on the smooth tile. Aria was able to gain a step as she and Rey's combined force overpowered Ren.
Aria sensed his fear as he lifted his saber to push them back. When they tumbled back, he ran to a whole in the ground and jumped through it.
Aria ran up to the hole and jumped without thought, Rey was half a second behind her.
Aria landed into a crouch onto the thick metal beam that stretched out into the horrifying ocean. Waves crashed over the leg, drenching it with salty water. Mist and thick drops of water beat against Aria, soaking her in mere seconds. But with her free-flowing anger all she noticed was Ren as he stepped back towards the lethal waves.
Aria leaped forward as she sliced her saber out towards Ren.
He lifted his lightsaber to block it, but Aria's anger fueled her power and she almost knocked his saber from his hand. He took another step back as he marveled at her power. He knew she would be strong, but he didn't know how strong.
Aria advanced again as she spun on her toes to bring her lightsaber around. The movement was so quick water flew off of her and propelled through the air.
Ren stepped back to avoid the tip of her lightsaber. He slowly led her out towards the edge of the leg- towards his fighter.
Rey leaped over the top of both of them and landed behind Ren.
He pivoted on his heels to face out towards the waves. That way he could see both of them from the corner of his eye.
Aria flicked her wrist to make the saber slice the air to her left. She took a small step and used all of her strength bring her saber up. Her bright blue blade cut through the rain and mist and met Ren's red beam with a loud clash.
She lifted her right hand to grip the lightsaber with both hands and lifted it up to point the saber down towards his chest. When it was positioned at just the right angle, she pushed down to slide the beam against his lightsaber.
The tip almost scorched him, but he pushed her back then jumped backwards over Rey.
Aria snarled as she shook out her right hand. The throb echoed all the way up to her shoulder, to try and appease it she rotated her shoulder as she slowly circled around to Ren.
Rey walked the opposite way until they had him trapped in again. Aria and Rey struck out at the same time. Aria cut up while Rey sliced down.
Ren lifted his right hand and Forced Aria back while he blocked Rey with his saber.
Aria flew them the air and landed on a jagged corner of the metal leg. The corner dug into the space between her shoulder blades and drew blood. Aria's head lobbed back as the pain shot up to the base of her skull. Black dots littered her vision, but slowly ebbed away with each blink.
She pushed herself up to her elbows, then stood to jump back into the fight.
She landed beside Rey and brought her lightsaber down just as Rey's saber connected with Ren's. The combined force was enough to cause all three sabers to dig into the metal under their feet.
"ARIA!"
Aria's head shot back at the voice- Poe's voice. She turned to see Poe, Finn and Jannah running towards them from the base of the Death Star. True terror chilled her blood at the thought of Poe being anywhere near Ren.
"NO-" She raised her right hand and pushed her Force out towards Poe. It knocked him off his feet and shoved him back towards the Death Star.
There was a second of clarity as she realized she used her Force on the man she loved, but then she heard the hum of Ren's saber. She turned back around and used both hands to drive the saber towards him.
Ren caught her blade and arched both their weapons up. Aria looked at Ren under the light of their sabers. The blue and red reflected in his eyes, mirroring the conflict between the light and dark side.
Rey swiped her lightsaber towards Ren's torso, which made him jump back and break his connection with Aria.
"We have to get him away from the others." Aria told Rey as she kept her eyes on Ren. "He can't touch them."
"Agreed." Rey snarled as she jumped over Ren's head.
While Ren turned towards Rey, Aria allowed herself time to breath. Her entire right arm shook as it laid helpless beside her and the cut between her shoulder blades stung with each drop of salt water that beat against it.
As Rey and Ren hit sabers, they froze. At that exact second the hairs on the back of Aria's neck stood on end. She slowly turned to see a large, looming wave rise above them.
Aria's jaw threatened to fall as she let her head fall back to look at the top of it. She shook her head and looked back to Rey with wide, terrorized eyes. "Rey- we gotta jump-"
Rey nodded and turned to sprint towards the giant tear in metal leg. She flew gracefully through the air, going farther than Aria had ever seen her.
Ren followed a second after, leaving Aria by herself. She looked back, but not to the wave. She looked toward Poe, who had started to sprint towards her with Finn right on his heels.
She gave a sad shake of her head before she turned and sprinted towards the ripped edge. She pushed off the bent metal and soared into the sky just as the wave crashed into the side of the leg.
The force of the wave threatened to topple her over, but her determination and sheer strength kept her steady course.
She landed hard on her feet on the far side of Ren so he stood between her and Rey. She turned towards him as she adjusted her grip on her saber to point it behind her. She took a strong step towards him and pulled her saber around.
Her blade met his, then he turned it to catch Rey's. He tilted his saber up until Rey and Aria's clashed. The bright light made Aria squint, but she didn't give in as she tried to force Ren back.
Ren tilted his saber even more up and used their strength to push Rey's blade onto Aria's. As Rey's lightsaber slipped it nudged straight towards Aria.
She jumped back just as the lightsaber drove through the spot she just occupied.
Rey's eyes widened as she realized how close she had just come to hitting Aria. She shook her head and jumped up and slowly fell back to soar through another wave.
Aria turned back to Ren as Rey got lost in the misty rain.
He stepped towards her and pushed his saber straight out towards her midsection. She swiped it away then swiftly brought her saber up and around his to try and nick his shoulder. He lifted his arm and blocked the shot with the hilt of his saber. He used the block and shoved her backwards towards Rey.
Aria walked backwards as she moved her saber through the air haphazardly. She kept trying to land shots on Ren, and the second he blocked them she tried for a different shot.
Their lightsaber blurred through the air with their speed. The hum of their deadly weapons grew louder than even the crashing waves and their heavy pants.
With the sixth consecutive strike of their sabers, Aria's arms began to tremble. Her freezing fingers ached as they gripped onto the shaft of her weapon. But as Ren kept forcing her back she knew she had to keep going.
She moved from offensive to defensive as she tried to catch her breath. She raised her saber to block his straight shot then twirled her blade to get his under hers and forced the tip of his red blade into the ground. It sizzled as it cut through the thick metal. Steam built up between them as the stench of burning metal stung her nose.
When Ren's saber was stuck in the metal, she released her hold over him and jumped backwards just as Rey had down before.
Aria soared feet over her head through the heavy mist. She kicked her legs up into the air and summersaulted to land on her feet beside Rey. She stood from her crouch and rolled her shoulders back as Ren advanced on them. He changed the grip on his lightsaber so he had it positioned behind him.
He brought his right arm up to his chest and threw his elbow out which brought the tip of his lightsaber towards Rey and Aria.
Both girls raised their weapons to block the shot, then they dug their heels into the ground to push back against him. He only lasted a second before he tumbled backwards under their combined strength.
Aria and Rey followed after him. Aria had her saber in her left hand while Rey had hers in her right Their close proximity made their other shoulders brushing together with each step they had him cornered. They lifted their hands to strike simultaneously, but Ren lifted his hand and used the Force to stop Aria's lightsaber. The beam vibrated against his Force, but ultimately hung in suspension.
While Ren held Aria's saber in place, he blocked Rey's with his weapon. When she shoved him back he lost concentration and Aria was able to pull her lightsaber back. She twirled it around in her palm and brought it around low towards his thigh.
He stepped back just as the tip sliced through the fabric of his pants but didn't touch the skin.
Ren raised his lightsaber and tried to bring it down on Rey, but she used his trick and stopped his saber with the Force, then she and Aria sliced around towards his midsection.
He jumped back as both cut through the air right in front of him. He watched as Aria and Rey quickly bent their blades to keep from hurting one another. He took another few guarded steps back to catch his breath. He pointed the tip of his saber to the ground but kept it close to him defensively.
Aria's chest heaved with pained breaths as she watched him closely. She loosened her grip on her saber to give her fingers a slight reprieve.
While she recovered, Rey struck out.
The cold started to seep in, burning through even the heat of her rushing adrenaline. She fought past it, and stepped forward as she drove her lightsaber up abruptly.
Ren frozen Rey's lightsaber as he blocked Aria's hit but as he deflected it, she turned around and brought her saber around with her to slash out at his side.
He Forced Rey to the side as he used both hands on his saber to block her next attack. He caught her lightsaber and quickly lifted his blade towards the sky to pull her towards him. As her saber stuck between the crock of his two protruding beams, Aria stumbled backwards until her back almost hit his chest. He brought his elbows up and dug it into the fresh cut along her upper spine. He forced his elbow into the cut and shoved her forward.
Aria let out an agonizing scream as she tumbled forward. She lost her footing and dropped her saber as she crashed face-first towards the soaping floor. She caught herself at the last second and rolled over just as Ren's saber drove into the ground. She lifted her left hand and pulled her saber towards her. As soon as it hit her palm so laid it horizontally over her and blocked Ren's next shot, then she lifted her right hand and Force pushed him away.
He flew backwards a few feet but stopped himself before he went flying over the edge of the ledge.
Aria stood up and moved to stand by Rey. Both girls were gasping for breath as the long fight wore through them.
Ren's own chest began to heave violently as he stalked back towards them.
They all raised their sabers at the exact same time and came down together, creating a triangle of blue and red. They all pushed into one another, but the lightsabers never moved or faltered.
Aria clenched her jaw so tight the muscle began to beg for relief but she just put the pain into her power and used it as fuel. It seemed to work as Ren's lightsaber began to crackle and the unsteady beam wavered.
Ren's eyes widened as he watched his lightsaber start to give out. Before they broke through, he pushed up, which made them all stumble backwards with the broken force.
Aria's left wrist tensed from the extended pressure put on it. She switched to her right hand and shook her left wrist out to try and soothe the tension. She watched as Rey and Ren took slow jabs at one another. Both were becoming more sluggish, their feet dragged and arms wobbled with each shot taken. With each strained hit, they slowly walked backwards towards Ren's fighter. They were closer to the fighter than Aria.
Aria took in a deep breath and closed her fingers around the saber. Her palm screamed at the contact but she knew she had to get back into the fight. She took a step towards them just as Ren hit Rey's saber with just the right amount of force to knock Rey to her knees.
Aria froze as the second hit knocked Rey's right leg out from under her. Rey dropped her saber, and it clambered across the metal floor out of her reach.
"NO!" Aria screamed as she took off at a dead sprint towards the two.
She slid between Rey and Ren just as he brought his lightsaber down over his head. Aria caught it with her saber and tilted her blade down to lock in the corner of his connecting blade. She raised her left hand to hold the sabers steady. She bared her teeth as she pushed back on him. She stood protectively over Rey, with one leg over her to block her completely from Ren's view. Her anger towards his attempted assassination was enough for her to force him backwards. As he stumbled she followed eagerly and sliced her saber straight out towards him.
He blocked it and sent the tips of their sabers into the metal. He held it there as a feeling swept over him.
Aria could feel the apprehension fill his body. It was almost like indecision, but she viewed it as hesitation.
His lightsaber cut and fell from his grip as he took an unsure step back.
The sudden lack of Resistance made Aria tumble to the side. She secured her footing and watched as Ren turned halfway away from her. There was a look of confusion on his face, and of longing. But Aria didn't see that. All she saw was opportunity.
She gripped her blade with both hands, tilted the blade up towards his chest cavity, and forced her weapon through the bone, muscle and flesh of her brother. She pushed until her fists hit his cloak, then she held it there as she watched his mouth drop open in silent agony.
She looked down at her hands and noticed that her saber wasn't the only one in his chest. Rey's were just below hers as she held onto her own saber that she drove through his side.
Aria let out a painful breath as Ren's agony clenched her heart. But his pain wasn't the only one she felt. The warm presence and scent of flowers wrapped over her shoulders, but just as quickly as it warmed her, it pulled away, almost like a blanket being yanked off of her. A chill filled the void that was once Leia's presence.
Aria searched for Leia, she reached for her life Force to feel her warmth and scent of flowers, but all she found was the freezing cold.
"No..." Aria cut her lightsaber just as it fell from her hands. The cold soaked into her, filling all parts of her with the sense of death. Death.
She blinked as she watched Ren stumbled back from her and fall to the ground. Tears swelled in Aria's eyes as she felt Leia's presence leave the living world. Her knees gave out as she fell beside her brother. She blinked the tears away and reached out for his hand- for the hand of the only living family member she had left, and the only living family member she had just sentenced to death.
"I'm here," She assured him a she looked over his pale, scarred face. She tried to imagine him how he was before: her brother with young, hopeful eyes and a smile that could get him out of the worst trouble. All of that was gone now, but if Aria looked really hard she was sure she could find it again. "I'm here." She croaked as she felt his life force slowly drain just as she had felt Leia's.
Ren's hand was weak in hers and shook as the pain riddled through him. His bottom lip dragged as he gave a short, rigid breath. His eyes met her and told her more than he had said to her in an entire decade.
"She's waiting for you." Aria nodded as him as she brought his hand to her pounding chest. "Go," She rested her chin on his knuckles. "Go be with our family, but wait for me. Okay? Wait for me and we can all be together again one day." She pleaded.
He gave a shaky, unsure nod of his head.
Aria closed her eyes as she felt his presence leaving her too, just like her mother, her father, and Leia.
"I- I- I always loved you." His fingers curled around her wrapped palm. "Y-y-you were always enough."
Aria sobbed as she squeezed his hand even tighter. With her eyes closed, she didn't see Rey lower herself beside her, but she felt her presence. She opened her eyes and looked just as Rey pressed her hands against both wounds.
"What are you doing?" Aria's voice cracked as she felt a shift in their connection. The tether connecting them faltered, the blue velvet ripped and ripped until it was holding on by a string. Aria dropped Ren's hand and pushed herself to her feet. "What are you doing?" Aria's voice carried through the rainy air as she watched color flood Ren's cheeks. "Rey!"
Rey snapped back and pulled hands away from Ren's body. Through the black shirt Aria could see fresh, pink skin right where the scorch mark use to be.
"What... what have you done?" Aria's voice lost all confidence as she looked at Rey with red, tear-filled eyes.
Rey stood, but Aria took a step back from her. She lifted her palm and called her lightsaber back to her. It wasn't intentional, but it sent a message to Rey- stay back.
"We... you ruined everything." Aria shook her head at Rey as the tears fell from her eyes and mixed with the rain and mist. "We had it." A horrified sob broke up the last word. "What- I don't-" Aria stumbled away from Rey and Ren. Her head unconsciously kept shaking side to side as she tried to think of a logical reason for Rey to do what she had just done. But nothing could explain the utter betrayal she just felt.
Rey took her own step back, then turned to look at the fighter they had slowly been making their way towards.
Aria's eyes flickered over towards the TIE as well. She understood Rey's plan too late, as the young training Jedi had already began her sprint towards the vessel.
"REY!" Aria's voice cracked as she stumbled towards her partner- her sister. "REY! DON'T!" Her throat ripped open as her emotion poured out.
Rey loaded into the vessel and lifted herself into the air, not even sparing Aria one last glance.
Aria turned in her spot to watch Rey fly away from her. She felt Rey's presence fleeing, faltering, before it disappeared along with her.
Aria's heart dropped as she suddenly felt so alone. So very, very, very alone.
"ARIA! ARIA! WE HAVE TO GO!"
Aria blinked slowly as she stumbled blindly towards the voice. She didn't know who was calling her. She didn't know anything anymore. She just kept walking until she reached the crack in the thick metal beam. She looked down over the edge to see the deadly, crashing waves rip through leg.
"You have to jump, Aria! Jump!"
Aria lifted her head to see Poe on the other side of the of the crater. He held his hand out towards her and waved her forward.
"Please! Please just jump to me, baby. You're so close!" Water sprayed his face and soaked his curls until they flattened against his forehead. "Please, baby, come back." His voice cracked- or maybe it's the sound of the crashing waves.
Aria turned and looked back at Ren. He stood in the same spot she stabbed him. His lightsaber hung loosely in his hand. It wasn't engaged, he wasn't even holding it properly. It looked on the verge of slipping through his fingers.
"ARIA!" Poe's voice pushed into hysterics. "Please," he pleaded.
Aria turned back to Poe and took a step back. She let in a breath before she pushed herself forward towards the crater. She pushed off the tattered edge with her right foot and propelled herself towards Poe.
He opened his arms and caught her in the air. He staggered a step back at her sudden force, but didn't let his grip around her falter.
"I got you-" He whispered as he turned and rushed towards the Falcon. Her entire body trembled under his touch and her toes caught on any dip or groove in the flooring. Her movements were sluggish at best, but they made it to the Falcon's ramp.
As soon as they stepped onto it, Poe stopped and looked down at Aria, but her eyes were caught on something behind him.
Aria blinked as more tears fell from down her cheeks. She pressed herself into Poe's chest to try and tame her quaking bones, but death and destruction were too strong, too strong for Poe's loving embrace.
She looked back out at Ren. He was barely visible now, through the crashing waves and misting, but somehow her eyes found his.
She gulped as she looked into his eyes- the same eyes he inherited from their father, the same eyes she use to look into and laugh with, the same eyes she saw stories building in. All the hatred that darkened them before was gone.
No, the eyes she looked into were not the eyes of Kylo Ren, the budding Sith Lord.
They were the eyes of Ben Solo, her brother.
A.N.// I just have to say that this was by far one of the hardest chapters for me to write. Three different people were fighting, so I had to make the choice to focus solely on Aria's actions or else it would have been too much to try and keep up on. So I'm sorry if it's not as good description or if you're confused by what Rey is doing in some parts. This was very difficult and took days for me to fully write out.