Heavy boots thudded against the floor in an ominous rhythm, their vigorous pace indicating action. As they hurried along the darkened corridor towards the reinforced blast doors at the far end of the hallway, their pace lessened and gave heed to caution. Dal Garrett, the man to whom the boots belonged, attempted to calm his nerves as he approached the blast doors breathlessly—dreading what lay beyond.
"Kylo Ren," he whispered to himself, a bead of sweat forming on his brow. "No..." he corrected himself. "Supreme Leader Ren...”
The man held his breath as the blast doors slid open, revealing a dark chamber beyond them. The dark abode was only illuminated by a single streak of light that shown down upon a motionless figure sitting contemplatively in front of a shrine. Dal couldn't make out who or what the shrine was dedicated to due to the poor visibility inside—but if the dark forces pressing against his very soul were any indication of its nature, then it was most likely a force he did not wish to trifle with. Dal quickly swallowed a lump in his throat and started forward, careful to keep a steady pace so as not to interrupt too rudely.
"S-Supreme Leader!" called the officer meekly, bowing as though the Knight of Ren's back was not turned. "Our forces have just slipped out of hyperspace in the Unknown regions. General Hux has requested your presence on the bridge. He says it's urgent, sir."
The man in front of the shrine made no effort to reply. Instead, a long silence follow the report until the dark knight finally bothered to answer.
"Is that all?" asked the Supreme Leader in a neutral tone.
Dal took an uneasy breath and answered in a shaky voice; "O-our scanners picked up a slight hindrance in the trajectory of our fleet. The general thought it best that you assess the situation for yourself on the bridge."
To the utter dismay of the terrified officer, The Supreme Leader’s reaction was the same as before—silence. When at last he did reply, he replied with nothing more than a firm, "Go."
Dal quickly bowed once again and hurried to do as he was told. When the blast doors closed behind him a few moments later, he breathed a deep sigh of relief and wiped a bead of sweat from his brow.
"I need a holiday," he muttered to himself. Then he fixed his uniform and hurried down the corridor to attend to other duties on the ship, thankful that he was still alive to do so.
Kylo Ren heard the chamber doors close behind him. He was alone in the dark room once more. Kylo Ren adverted his gaze from the mask in front of him, unable to look it in the eyes. The once terrifying mask of Darth Vader glared at him from its shrine aboard his personal Star Destroyer The Finalizer—it's charred, deformed appearance seared into his mind as clearly as his own heartbeat.
"I've failed you, grandfather," Kylo Ren whispered, almost too quietly to hear. "I've failed the dark side. I gave it everything that I had, and it's given me nothing in return." he lifted his eyes; their weight in their sockets almost too much to bear. "What more do you want from me? Han Solo is dead. Skywalker's dead. Snoke is dead..."
Kylo Ren bit his cheek and looked away.
"And so are you. Where were you when I needed strength? Hmm?" he asked, his eyes nearly welling with tears. "When I needed guidance? I was promised a path to tread upon, but now that path is even more unclear. You showed me the power of the dark side, but now you’ve forsaken me.”
Kylo Ren locked his eyes onto the charred lenses of the mask and stared for a long time.
“Say something,” he whispered eagerly, an intensity rising in his voice.
When the mask made no effort to reply, Kylo Ren cried out and stood up.
"SAY SOMETHING!" he screamed at the top of his lungs.
But there were no words in the mask to be said. The disembodied voice of Darth Vader that had once offered him twisted words of wisdom was there to comfort him no more. It shouldn't have been a surprise—the voice had gone mute ever since the death of Kylo Ren's former master, Supreme Leader Snoke. In his heart of hearts, Kylo Ren knew why. The mask was a lie—just like everything Snoke had told him. The dark side had manipulated his mind... tricking him into hearing the voice of a dead man that wasn't really there.
Darth Vader wasn’t in there.
Nobody was.
“AHHHH!” screamed Kylo Ren in a fit of rage. He snatched his grandfathers mask off its shrine and smashed it against the surface with the force of a sledgehammer. The charred remnants of Darth Vader's mask splintered off into pieces and covered the floor in a thin layer of dust and charcoal. Kylo Ren continued to smash the remains of the fearsome mask into the shine until there was nothing left except his bruised and bloodied hand. When at last the mask had been completely destroyed, the young man slowly recomposed himself and stared at the broken pieces on the floor, contemplating the deed he had done.
It... was over. It was truly over. The soulless lenses of Darth Vader's mask would haunt him no more. Whatever secrets it had offered him, whatever power it had once possessed, was now nothing more than a thin layer of ash resting beneath his boots. Kylo Ren stared at the remnants for a long time. The feelings swelling up inside of him conflicted with each other so strongly that he didn't know how to process them. He had once thought his future was certain—that his destiny was fated—but now he did not know what to become.
Kylo Ren closed his eyes and attempted to gather the whirlwind that was his thoughts. As his emotions bubbled to the surface—a turbulent mixture of anger, depression, and guilt—the answer began to manifest in the form of a dark premonition. Kylo Ren had to bite his lip. He knew the feeling all too well. In the past, his premonitions had served to guide him in the ways of the dark side—but would they do the same now in light of his mentors passing?
Kylo Ren opened his eyes. The dark side was ready to reveal its answer. At first he wondered if perhaps the answer was that he was nothing, but then he saw his reflection on the floor and he knew his answer. There, beside a broken piece of Darth Vader's mask, his reflection stared back at him—a haunting reminder of a truth he had long forgotten. Darth Vader wasn't in that mask. He never had been. The spirit of the dark lord lived inside of him—inside of Kylo Ren. The mask had never been his guidance. The only guidance he had ever received was from within, and now that force had awakened inside him once more.
Kylo Ren lifted his chin solemnly and turned to exit the chamber. As he walked through the doors and started down the corridor towards the bridge, he made a detour to the his personal armory and stepped inside. There, his followers—the Knights of Ren—emerged from the shadows and gathered around the place where the shattered pieces of his old mask were kept. After exchanging looks with the other knights, Kylo Ren waved his hand and ordered one of them to step forward: The ape-like creature known simply as The Forger.
"My lord," said the alien with a bow. "The pieces have been gathered. The forge has been set. You have all but to say the word, and what was once broken will be remade. Tell us; does our master live?"
Kylo Ren nodded and answered solemnly, "He does."
With that; the creature chuckled, took another bow, and got to work.
The Finalizer cruised silently further into the vast nothingness that was the unknown regions. In its wake followed two identical star destroyers fully equipped and prepped for combat. General Hux stood on the bridge of the lead ship, staring at the ion-field that gradually filled his viewport with every passing second. It was truely an amazing sight, but the furthest reaches of the known galaxy were not to be taken lightly. General Hux knew this well, as did all sentient lifeforms with half a brain. Out here there was nothing but the unknown—a frightening prospect to some, and a glorious concept to others. To the ambitious young General, it was glorious indeed. The concept of extending ones reach beyond what is known and shedding light upon that which is not? It was an intoxicating feeling. One that filled him with a sense of pride and vigor. And yet, as he stood there staring at the ion-field in his path, he couldn't help but feel his thoughts drifting elsewhere.
‘Ren, you fool,’ Hux thought to himself as he gazed at the far-off stars beyond the ion-field. ‘You've taken us here—to the furthest reaches of the galaxy—to do what? Meditate? And all the while those of the Resistance that remain flee and gather their allies to oppose us. What is this if not madness? The right of the First Order should have fallen upon my shoulders! But... I am a patient man. While we wait out in this remote place, soon others in the ranks will take notice of your madness. Soon others will see the error of your ways. And then I will take my rightful place... my only regret being that I will not have taken it sooner.'
"Sir," came the voice of a bridge officer behind General Hux, tearing him from his thoughts. "We've reached the maxiumum safe distance from the ion field in our trajectory. Do you mind my asking what we're doing here, sir?"
General Hux chuckled and turned around to face the officer.
"It isn't what we're doing, Lieutenant." the general replied with a smirk. "It's what he is—our Supreme Leader. Ever since his failure at the abandoned outpost on Crait, he's behaved as nothing more than a mewling child searching for a place to find purpose. I assume he hopes to find that out here—though I do not know where. There's nothing out here but space and dust."
The officer gave Hux a look of surprise. Clearly he had not been expecting General Hux to be so open about his disdain for their newly crowned Supreme Leader.
"Forgive my saying so, sir," the officer replied. "But that sounded treasonous."
General Hux's answer was a laugh.
"And what has our Supreme Leader done for this first Order if not treason? The New Republic is in complete shambles, and yet we've only managed to rally a few hundred star systems to our cause. Supreme Leader Snoke had the galaxy bending to his will! This man? The one who leads us? He's nothing more than a child with an ancient sword from a bygone age. Mark my words, the time draws near for—"
"For what?" came the demonic voice of Kylo Ren amplified through a voice modulator.
General Hux wheeled around and found himself staring into the lifeless lenses of Kylo Ren's fearsome mask. The reforged apparatus bared a remarkable resemblance to the one he had destroyed only a few months earlier; though now it had a much more hellish appearance.
General Hux gulped and forced a smile.
"S-Supreme Leader. I see the Knight's have completed your new mask."
Kylo Ren replied with a quick, "Hmph" and strode past the General to the nearest view port.
"We near the place of my visions, General," he said calmly. "And yet... I sense a disturbance in the force. Why have we stopped?"
"An ion-field, Supreme Leader," the officer that had questioned General Hux earlier answered promptly. "Our scanners have detected the presence of a large ion-field in our trajectory. General Hux thought it best to consult you about our next course of action before proceeding."
Kylo Ren turned to the now-shaking General Hux and glared at him, menacingly.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, Supreme Leader," the officer who had just spoken continued. “It would seem this particular ion-field is abnormally charged in virtually every area of the cloud. Our initial analysis of the field has determined it to be of an extremely volatile nature, though its kind is not uncommon to the unknown regions. Pushing through the ion-field without the proper protection could inflict serious damage on our ships that would be impossible to repair. Commander Tariff has advised us to hold at a safe distance until—"
"No!" Kylo Ren snapped, turning to the view port angrily. "It's out there—the power I came for—waiting for me to claim it. The force guided me to this place—but I am not the only one it has called. If we do not act now, that power will fall into the wrong hands. I'm not interested anymore in excuses. I need results."
General Hux and several of the officers on the bridge exchanged glances.
"S-Supreme Leader," came the voice of one of the annalists going over data on the holoprojector in the middle of the bridge. "I-I may have found a solution."
Kylo Ren turned around and strode over to the annalist.
"Show me."
The annalist bowed and pressed a button on the panel in front of him. A blue hologram of the ion-field immediately popped up on the holoprojector along with a trio of red triangular symbols that represented the First Order fleet cruising silently towards it.
"I've been studying the data we collected on the initial scans of the ion-field and I believe I may have found a small opening right... here." The annalist pointed to a small spot on the hologram. It began to blink as soon as he touched it. "The opening is still somewhat abnormally ionized, but it doesn't appear to be as volatile as the rest of the cloud. A small ship, perhaps a fighter, could theoretically squeeze through the opening without sustaining fatal damage and reach the other side relatively unharmed. It's a risky maneuver, sir, but it could work out."
Kylo Ren studied the hologram quickly and regarded the officer with a neutral expression.
"Very good. You've done well. General Hux," the Knight of Ren turned to the General. "Prepare my ship. I will take the Silencer through the ion-field and investigate what lies beyond. Ensure that the fleet stays here until my return."
The general swallowed a lump in his throat.
"S-Supreme Leader, with all due respect, are you sure this course of action is wise? The ion-field is extremely volatile. We don't even know if our ships are truly safe at this distance. Perhaps, given a little more time, we could find another way to—"
Without warning, General Hux felt his windpipes clench shut as if an iron hand had gripped his throat. He immediately dropped to the floor on his knees and began to claw at his throat as an invisible force slowly strangled him to death.
"My ship," Kylo Ren growled, glaring down at the General with the fury of a thousand swords. "Now!"
With that, Kylo Ren strode past the rest of the officers and disappeared through the exit to the bridge. When he was gone, General Hux felt the grip around his throat release and allow him to gulp in large quantities of air.
"Sir, are you alright?!" One of the other officers asked promptly, rushing to his side.
General Hux growled and pushed him away.
"Of course not, you fool!"
The officers on the bridge exchanged glances as Hux rubbed his throat.
"Well, what are you waiting for?" General Hux muttered, glaring back at the eyes that stared down at him as he struggled to get to his feet. "You heard the Supreme Leader—prepare his ship!"
"Yes, sir!"
As the officers scrambled to do as they were told, General Hux muttered to himself and clenched his fist.
"That's the last time I let you humiliate me, Ren," he whispered to himself as he glared at the exit to the bridge. "My time for revenge has come at last. You will not survive your quest to discover this so called 'place of power.' I will see to it personally."
With that, General Hux made his way off the bridge and headed for his private chambers. He didn't stop for anything—he had an important call to make.
Kylo Ren entered the hanger bay with an escort of stormtroopers following in his wake. The technicians working on his fighter regarded him promptly and immediately stepped back from his space craft to offer him a proper salute.
"Supreme leader," the senior technician—an old man from the time of the Empire—said with a bow. "Your fighter has just passed the final inspection. She should be ready to fly whenever you're ready."
"I'm ready," the Knight of Ren replied quickly. "I trust your technicians have already outfitted my ship with the necessary equipment I will require to make my journey through the ion-field?"
"Yes, Supreme Leader." The old man replied. "We've placed additional rations into the compartments aboard your ship as well, just in case of a prolonged ionized power failure."
"Excellent. You may go."
Bowing, the technicians quickly vacated the area along with Kylo Ren's escort of stormtroopers. When Kylo Ren found himself alone, he climbed into the cockpit of his TIE-Silencer and ran his fingers over the controls. Immediately a slew of memories flashed through his head. He quickly shook them out and grasped the controls with his hands.
"Captain Teda, I'm ready." he said into the ship's intercom.
"Very good, sir." crackled the familiar voice of the deck officer over his ship's intercom. "Hanger bay doors are opening now. Good luck on your mission. Captain Teda, out."
Kylo Ren pulled back on his control-yokes and felt his ship lift off the ground. After swiveling it around into position towards the hanger doors, he pushed the throttle forward and launched the ship into space towards the ion-field looming ahead of his fleet. After setting a straight course for the interstellar phenomenon, Kylo Ren adjusted his positioning slightly and began to head for the small opening he learned about from the bridge officer aboard the Finalizer.
"Kylo Ren to General Hux," Kylo Ren said as he approached the ionized opening. "I am entering the ion-field now. Run diagnostics on my ship until the field disrupts my signal. I want to make sure my ship can handle the strain."
"As you wish, Supreme Leader." General Hux answered promptly.
Kylo Ren guided his fighter into the opening of the storm, navigating it through the maelstrom of ionized energy as it leaped around his ship. Every now and then a bolt of energy struck his ship's hull like a lightning bolt, but thankfully the bridge officer's prediction regarding the volatile nature of the energy was correct.
"General Hux, what's the status of my ship?" Kylo Ren asked after a few minutes inside the ion-field.
"All readings appear normal, Supreme Leader. Your shield's are recycling at an exceptional rate."
"Good. I'm nearly halfway through the maelstrom. I'll try to contact you on the other side."
Kylo Ren opened up his throttle and pushed his ship forward. In almost no time at all, he had navigated through the majority of the iron-field without a scratch. Suddenly, a current of ionized energy surged through his ship, visually electrifying the control panel in front of him. Kylo Ren took his hands off the control and tried his com.
"General Hux?"
"A minor energy surge, nothing more." the general replied. "You should still be at full power when the system comes back online."
Kylo Ren waited for a total of two minutes until the panel came back online. When it did, he took the controls once again and continued to navigate his fighter through the ion-field. Eventually he found his ship nearing the end of the maelstrom where a bright white light illuminated the opening like an otherworldly portal to another dimension.
"I'm nearing the end of the storm," Kylo Ren said over his intercom. "There's something here... something... odd."
Ren's TIE-Silencer approached the end of the ion-field rapidly. Eventually, Kylo Ren's fighter disappeared into the light and emerged on the other side into a vast open region of space. Kylo Ren shook his head and blinked twice. There, from his viewport, he could see a planet coming up on his visual scanners. In virtually no time at all it went from being the size of a pinprick to filling up have his viewpoint as if he were traveling at lightspeed.
Kylo Ren stared in astonishment. What he saw was almost too fantastic to believe.
"Impossible." he whispered, breathlessly.
And it so was. Utterly, unequivocally, and completely impossible. Kylo Ren resisted the urged to gape in wonder. There before him was a small blue planet, accompanied by two large celestial bodies with more mass than a hundred of the system's put together. Kylo Ren quickly turned to his scanners and began to read the data coming up on them. Apparently, the local star was the one orbiting the planet while the moon operated on its own accord. Kylo Ren had to do a double take after reading that. How was that even possible? Stars needed a critical mass before the nuclear chemicals within began firing. Everything about this planet was wrong—it violated scientific laws like bee's violated their own body mass or resistance bombers violated the laws of gravity in space.
And yet.... there it was. A planet where it shouldn't exist, in a system that defied reasoning, in a part of the galaxy previously unexplored. Kylo Ren pushed the ship forward and grinned beneath his mask. Yes, this was the place he had been searching for. In all his dreams, in all his visions... this was the place they had been leading him to. The force had called him out here for a reason. Now at least he was closer to learning why. Surely this system held secrets that no other being in the galaxy had ever uncovered. Kylo Ren couldn't wait to learn them all.
Kylo Ren pushed his ship forward and darted towards the planet. He was nearly there when suddenly, out of nowhere, an explosion of rocked his ship.
"What?!" Kylo Ren cried out in surprise. The surface in front of him as well as the rest of the cockpit became electrified with a blast of ionized energy even though he was already miles away from the ion-field. Kylo Ren could only watch as his ship began to spin out of control. He tried to frantically regain control off the fighter, but it was no use. All systems were completely offline and his ship was set on a permanent course for the planet at full speed. As the fighter continued to toss and turn, Kylo caught glimpses of the world his ship was screaming towards through the viewport. The planet landmasses appeared to be lush and fertile—though that mattered little to Ren because he was about to crash into it at top-speed.
Eventually Kylo Ren felt his fighter break through the atmosphere of the world and allow gravity to take affect. The fortunate side-affect of this happening was the fact that he didn't have to worry about slamming into the ground at top speed. The entry into the atmosphere had slowed him down significantly, although he had already begun to speed up again because of gravity's affect. Kylo Ren had to think of something fast, or else he was dead.
"Enough!" he growled, extending his hand towards the viewport. Suddenly, his ship stopped spinning out of control and stabilized itself in the air. Then, very slowly, it began to slow down as it neared the ground. Kylo Ren did his best to cushion his fighter through the force, but the effort wasn't enough. He was was still going to crash—and hard.
The tree tops of a large forest loomed below the ship. It's ever-growing canopy grew larger and larger with every second. With a final moment of horror to settle in, the Silencer touched down, and Kylo's world went black.