You can feel him. The force is pulling you towards him.
He's here. It tells you.
But, that can't be true. Kylo can't be here on Exegol.
You can't believe it. Not till you see him. There's no way he can be here.
It's like the force knows you're skeptical because you then hear two guards talking right outside your cell.
"Have they caught him yet?" One asks a tone of panic laces his words.
"Not yet. Ren is smart but he can't outrun us forever. The Emperor will see to it that he's caught and killed for his crimes against the Order." The other one replies in a more confident tone.
Killed. That's the word that strikes you like a knife. He'll be caught and killed. Oh Stars. This can't be happening.
You inch closer to the bars of your cell, hoping to hear more of what's being said.
"Do they know where he is now?" The first one asks.
"Not at this moment, no. He lost the initial trail that was put on him but the Emperor has his best guards trying to find him. He won't be lost for long." Guard two answers.
You try not to panic. If Kylo has been able to outrun them so far, then all hope is not lost yet.
"Where is he trying to go?" Guard One keeps pushing for answers and you're grateful because you want the same answers that he does.
"Not sure. We think he's trying to find her, but he's outnumbered if he tries to come here." Guard Two answers, and you know the 'her' he's referring to is you.
He's coming for you and he might die trying to do it. What a stupidly brave man.
"I don't understand, why would he ruin everything for her. He's Supreme Leader. He has everything." There's an edge of jealousy in Guard One's tone.
"I bet the Emperor is asking himself the same question." Guard Two responds, sighing in annoyance. You can sense that he's tired of his partner's questions and Guard One might sense it too because he stops questioning his partner.
The interaction between the guards makes you laugh. It's so amusing that something in your brain refuses to let you stop laughing. Maybe it's the exhaustion kicking in or the fact that it's finally hit that you and the man you love might die today but it's just so hilarious to you.
"Fucking Hell." Guard Two says and you hear two sets of footsteps inching towards your cell.
That doesn't stop you from laughing though. In fact, it makes you laugh even more. What are these two measly guards going to do to you? They should both know by now you could easily overpower them.
"Stop that." Guard One says, his tone is harsher than before but still holds some hesitation, like he's not sure he should be the one giving orders.
You don't stop. You look directly at him and even the thought of him trying to order you around keeps your laughing going.
"Hey! Shut up Bitch." Guard Two yells, and he grabs his tazer stick from his holster and pushes it through the bars as he tries to taze you.
But you're faster and grab it, holding it before he can reach you. The tazer sizzles as you hold it steady just beside your head.
You stop laughing. All humor is gone. These men will die, you'll be sure of that.
"Or what." You deadpan, knowing these men couldn't even put up a good fight even if they tried. You may be bound with a cuff that reduces your power to use the force but you're still skilled at hand-to-hand combat and you've got unbeatable instincts that have never failed you.
Both guards have lost their bravado. Know that you've shown them that you're not to be fucked with they're scared.
Sad. You were hoping they'd put up a fight.
"The Emperor doesn't care if you live or die. We've been ordered to kill you the second you try anything." Guard Two finds his voice, but he's shaken. You can tell there's no real threat here.
"You can try, but you wouldn't last a second in a fight with me. You're weak." You push the tazer back through the bars at him and he trips backwards.
When he finds his footing he tries to come back after you. Guard One pulls him back, mumbling something to him to try and calm him down but you don't flinch.
The doors to the dungeon open and you can't see who it is but whoever just entered makes both Guards stand in an orderly position.
"What the hell is going on here?" The new person asks. He seems to be a man with a much more confident tone than Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb.
"She's acting unruly sir." Guard Two, Tweedle Dee, answers with false confidence.
"I can't trust you two to handle anything, can I?" The leader of the Tweedle's answers, clearly annoyed.
"My apologies Sir but-" Tweedle Dumb, Guard One, tries to step in but quickly shushes when the third man puts a hand up, motioning for him to quit talking.
"No. Don't give me any excuses. Just take her down to the Emperor's Chambers. He's requested to see her immediately." The third man orders.
Now you know you can take Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb easily but dealing with the Emperor is not an easy task and you know he's also currently in the mood to kill you so you better give one hell of a fight.
You know that this meeting with the Emperor will likely be your last, so you better make it count.
"Yes Sir. We will bring her to him now." Tweedle Dee answers, his voice sounding more confident now that he's been given a direct order.
You mentally prepare yourself because you know this will likely be the end for you and you can do nothing but hope Kylo gets away unscathed.
"Alright, time for you to go." Tweedle Dumb says, opening the cell and all you can do is comply. You know if you try to run you won't get far before the Emeperor's guards will catch you.
Both guards grab each of your arms harshly and drag you out of the cell. You stay silent but just to yourself, you vow that you will come back and kill them both if given the chance.
They lead you out of the dungeon and out towards the Emperor's lair. This environment is one that you are all too familiar with. You could run blind and still find your way around. This will hopefully be useful if you ever need it.
The Emperor is smart and will do anything to make sure you don't run but you also know you've got some tricks of your own that you could use.
You just need to be patient.
Once they finish dragging you to the Emperor's lair they drop you off and leave you at the entrance. They must have been given orders to not enter.
This can only mean that whatever is past this door is something the Emperor would want to keep private. This is not good.
You slowly turn your head, trying to get a full view of your surroundings even though you know this lair and its surroundings like the back of your hand, there is no harm in planning an escape but it seems that the Emperor is a step ahead of you because you spot guards stationed all around you, waiting for you to try and run.
Okay, so it looks like running would not be the best option right now. So whatever the Emperor has planned you will have to face it.
You can do this.
You slowly push the doors open and the first thing you see is the Emperor, sitting on his throne as he always is.
This time there is something different. He's more smug than usual like he's just won a war you didn't know you were even fighting. He hasn't won yet though. Maybe he thinks he has but you still have some fight left in you and it might just be enough.
But that fight disappears as soon as the Emperor speaks.
"Ah yes. She's here! Ren, you may come out now." The Emperor's words feel like a saber to the chest.
He's got Kylo. It's over.
You can't even look at him. You don't have to. You both know this is the end.
"Yes, Master." Kylo's voice is strained and you can feel him walking behind you, inching closer with each step, and with each step you break bit by bit.
Kylo reaches you but you don't have the heart to even look at him.
You choose to look at the Emperor instead and as soon as you look up he begins the speech that will ultimately be the last words you ever hear from him.
"You two thought you could trick me." The Emperor scoffs like the idea is impossible. "You both thought you were so clever. Sneaking around, ignoring your responsibilities, and wasting your potential."
You can feel Kylo stiffen beside you but your gaze stays steady on the Emperor and your face betrays no emotions. You will not let the Emperor rattle you.
"It's pathetic. I've grown the both of you into powerful forces and this is how you repay me? By completely wasting your potential and becoming my worst disappointment." The Emperor continues. "I thought that maybe I could fix these habits so I decided to have my apprentice come home and try to fix these habits she had picked up and I was shocked to find out these habits might be a much larger problem than I thought." It had gotten bad, he was moving his hands when he talked and emphasizing words. That was never good but you stayed silent and let him finish.
"This problem wasn't just forgetting a few training sessions or sneaking around to get laid. No. Oh no. It was much much worse than that." You could hear the anger in his voice. "It was love. Love was the reason my apprentice had lost sight of everything I had worked so tirelessly for her to achieve, and now it was all for nothing."
So this was it. The worst of the worst. He knew you were in love and he was going to kill you for it.
Kylo must have reached the same conclusion. He reached for your hand, seemingly not caring if the Emperor punished either of you for it because he was going to kill you both anyway.
The Emperor noticed the movement and this seemed to enrage him more. "Oh look. How adorable. The two love birds are showing a united front. We'll see how long that lasts when I tell you both how I decided to deal with the two of you." He smirks and his face is so tight from anger that you fear his face might freeze up completely.
"Why don't the two of you turn and face each other? Then I'll tell you what the plan for the both of you is." The Emperor orders and the both of you comply.
Once you're facing him your nerves seem to double. This might be the last time you'll see him so you have to make it count. It's almost like Kylo can sense what you're thinking because he squeezes the hand he's holding in reassurance.
At least if you're going to die you will die with Kylo at your side. Looking into Kylo's eyes has made you feel more prepared for whatever the Emperor tries to throw at you, but nothing could compare you to what he tells you is your punishment.
"I thought long and hard about what to do with the both of you but I finally came to a choice. I have decided that neither of you can live up to your potential while the other is dragging you down. Now of course this leads to another decision, which one of you would be the right choice to keep and this is what led me to choose your punishment." He pauses for dramatic effect and continues. "In order to find out who's worthy of my time, you will fight each other and whoever is alive at the end will get the honor of staying."
You thought it couldn't get worse but it just did. A million times worse. You drop Kylo's hand and look at him in a panic but he's more reserved about his facial expressions but you can tell he's thinking the same thing because he's the first one of the two of you to speak.
"I won't do it. I won't kill her." He says.
"One of you will die and it will be at the hands of the other." The Emperor then smirks like something just came to his head. "If you two want to be together, then die together. It doesn't matter to me."
"We don't have any weapons." You say trying to stall.
"Oh don't worry I've got just the weapon for you." He uses the force to summon a saber and it's not just a saber, it's Kylo's saber.
The Emperor uses the force to send it over to Kylo and he catches it but looks to you for the next move.
"And what about mine?" You ask, faking confidence in your voice.
"Oh. That. Well actually, I had your saber destroyed." Palpatine is smug because he knows he has just given you the final blow to shatter you completely.
He knows what he's just done and he's proud. He's just told you that you will be the one to die and instead of just putting you out of your misery he's going to make Kylo do it.
You turn to Kylo, making your face blank because if he's going to kill you then you're going to make it easy for him.
"I guess that makes it easy for me then," Kylo speaks up and it's almost impossible to read his expression.
You go to speak but he interrupts you. "If this is the only way one of us is getting out then I'm taking my chances." He's talking like he's planning to kill you but you know him better than that, he's planning something.
"Yes. Ren, you were always the smarter one." Emperor Palpatine cheers on from his throne. He's ready for the fight.
You fix your stance to be straighter and you put yourself in the ready position to fight. You have no idea what the plan is but you might as well make this part look convincing.
Kylo ignites his saber and gets into position. If he's faking he's being convincing, so much so that you're even worried.
Just trust me, please. You hear his voice in your mind and you realize he's using the force to communicate.
You show you understand him with a slight nod of your head and once he gets the cue he reaches up to swing at you. You reach your hand up, going to block your face and you wait for the impact.
The impact never comes. Instead of a saber hitting you, one comes flying into your hand. One that looks identical to Kylo's and you realize it's the one that's been sitting in your closet from the moment you got to Starkiller and he brought it here because he knew that you would need it.
You don't think you just react. Once the saber flies into your hand you pivot your stance to be facing the Emperor and as if you're moving as one, Kylo moves in synch with you.
"You fools!" The Emperor screams and he uses the force to try and propel you and Kylo back but you both stand your ground.
With Kylo and you connected, you both are stronger than the Emperor. You can defeat him. You turn to meet Kylo's gaze and once you do he gives you a knowing nod. You are both on the same page.
You join hands and suddenly the ground begins to shake. Lighting comes from your joined hands and shoots towards the Emperor. The Emperor is forced up from his chair and you can hear lightning from overhead.
The Emperor is yelling, trying to get you to stop but everything else feels like background noise. The only thing you can focus on is the raw power you possess right now.
You and Kylo pull the Emperor further towards the two of you and once he's in range you drop him to his knees. Holding him there so he won't move.
You can feel the Emperor try to push back using his powers but your hold barely falters.
The lighting is getting lower and it seems to be lighting up the whole sky. The earth has stopped shaking but it seems that the Emperor is losing power and fast. He must be trying to fight back too hard because his fingers are turning black and fading. He's losing his power.
"This is it. We have to do something now. We can't hold all this power on our own." Kylo says to you and he's had to raise his voice over all the noise from everything else.
"You're right. We need to end this now." I say it's time to kill the Emperor once and for all.
"This one's yours. You have the power to do it. I'll hold him in place." Kylo's giving this to you. This symbolic moment of freedom is yours to take and you're going to relish in it.
You nod and Kylo lets go of your hand. As soon as he does he uses the force to hold the Emperor in a standing position. The Emperor is fading quickly, there's no chance he will fight.
You take the first swing and stick him right in the heart. Just like he'd been doing to you. He opens his mouth and screams in pain but as soon as you pull the saber out he goes quiet.
The Emperor is dead.
Once his body falls to the floor Kylo drops his force hold and suddenly it's like the world goes quiet. The thunder and lighting stop, the raw power fades from your body and you silently watch as the man who raised you and ruined you fades away right in front of you.
He's gone and you're free.
But just because you're free, that doesn't mean you've won yet. The war isn't quite over.