Rey smiled and laughed softly at the stall owner who was trying to cajole her into buying a trinket that had caught her attention.  She was in an open market on the planet Onderon with Rose, while Finn and Poe went to meet with a Resistance supporter in the town, who had some critical intelligence on the First Order.  They were to mingle in the market until Finn and Poe were done, to see if they could pick up any additional information.

The stall owner was a native inhabitant of the planet, with a silvery cast to his skin, was very friendly, as well as eager to make a sale.  Suddenly, the atmosphere around them seemed to come alive as other shop owners hastily began packing up their things and departing.

"What's going on?"  she asked in Basic, confused and more than a little nervous.

He was looking around and shaking his head.  "I don't know...."  His eyes landed on a spot up the street before widening in fear.  Rey turned to follow his gaze and gasped.  She knew he was hunting them......

Two dark clad figures were purposefully marching up the street.  Both were caped, and wore masks suspiciously similar to that of Kylo Ren.  From beside her she could hear Rose whisper "There's more than one of him?"

"No, neither are him.  They're Knights of Ren."  Rey told her, as she studied them out of the corner of her eye.

The Knights of Ren – Kylo Ren's elite soldiers.  All had the Force, and all were trained by him.  For all intents and purposes, they were his personal death squad.  One of their informants had let Poe know that Kylo Ren had ordered them to find the Resistance.  That was two months ago, so they were probably here in search of them.  Rey needed to tread very carefully to get out of this without any bloodshed.  She'd have to keep her mind carefully focused.  If they sensed that she was trying to keep them from certain thoughts, they'd be in deep trouble.  She glanced over at Rose, most worried about her.

Not wanting to call unnecessary attention to themselves, Rey turned her focus back to the stall owner who was packing up his wares.  He whispered to them  "You should leave, now."

"Its too late!"  she hissed.  "We're the last ones here.  If we try to leave now they'll see us and detain us.  Please."  She begged.   "Let me buy the jewel I was admiring.  At least it will look like we had a reason for not running off!"

She considered using the Force to mind trick him to allowing them to complete the purchase, but she was afraid that they'd sense it. "I'll pay double for it."  she quickly told him.

He nodded, and turned behind him to retrieve the small, galaxy shaped pendant while Rey pulled out her small money purse.  She could hear them coming up behind them. "Rose, don't say anything."  She told her under her breath.  "Just keep thinking We need this gift over and over.  Nothing else. Okay?"

Rose nodded, eyes wide.

"Well, well, well – what have we here?"  Rey was surprised that the voice was female.

Immediately assuming a subservient attitude, Rey cleared her mind of everything except the gift, looked down at the ground and began to stammer. "I...I'm sorry."  She took a breath.  "I...I just need to finish buying this gift and we'll be on our way."  She paused, then pleaded.  "Please. We'll be just a minute...".

Vitka Ren leaned closer to the little mouse of a girl standing at the market stall, shaking like a leaf, and watched her cower before her.  "Poor little mouse.  Did you get caught?"

Rey continued to focus her thoughts only on the proposed gift and the notion of her fear.  She could not afford for them to read her thoughts and learn who she really was.  As she opened her mouth to speak, the other knight cut her off.

"Don't get distracted Vitka – leave them.  We have a mission. T he Master is expecting success!" he growled.

"Must you ruin my fun, Vicrul?"  her modulated voice purred through the mask.

Sounding angry, he commanded, "Let's go – now!"

She continued staring at Rey for another minute before turning back to the other Knight.  "Fine. Let's go."

Rey breathed a sigh of relief as they walked away.  When they were far enough away, she reached for her communicator.  "Finn, Poe, come in!"

Poe's voice echoed over the link. "Yes Rey, go ahead."

"We've got to get off this planet NOW!  I just ran into two Knights of Ren who, based on the last intel we received, I am pretty sure are looking for US!"

"Shit. Copy that. We'll meet you at the Falcon in fifteen."

Turning to Rose she told her. "Get to the Falcon.  I'm going to make sure Finn and Poe can get out safely."

"Rey –" Rose started to say something, but got cut off.

"Just go! Finn and Poe are no match for those two if they run into them. Please!"

Rose just looked at her for a second, then nodded and left quickly.  Turning to the Onderonian, she took the pendant and waved her hand in front of him. "You didn't hear any of our conversation. The two girls left with their purchase and were chatting happily as they walked away."

The Onderonian repeated the words back to her, and she turned to enter a side alley heading in the direction of their supporter's location, where Finn and Poe should be.  As she made her way through the maze of alleys, she reached out through the Force and could feel them more closely. Just then her communicator went off.   "Where are you guys?"  she asked impatiently.

This time it was Finn who responded, clearly in a whisper. "Uh, we might be a bit longer than planned.  We're kind of trapped."

Rey sighed. "Don't move. I'm on my way."

"Rey, wait, no-" she clicked off the communicator and continued towards where she could feel them.

When she rounded a corner she could see the two Knights up ahead.  She stopped and backed up a step, putting up a mental shield to try to prevent them from sensing her.  The two knights were stalking around an open area, and from her vantage point she could see Finn and Poe crouched behind a stack of crates on some sort of platform that had been set up for a festival.  It was only a matter of time before the Knights found them.  She needed a diversion, but what?

**

Poe looked over at Finn from where they were crouched behind a stack of large crates. "This is bad, buddy. T here's no way we can blast our way out of here against those two."

"I know.  Rey's on her way though, and if anyone can help, she can."

Poe nodded. "Yes, but what can she do? She doesn't have a lightsaber, and without one, anyone except for Ren is unmatched in a fight with them."

Putting his hand on Poe's shoulder, he told him.  "I know Rey. If anyone can figure something out, she can."

Just then, they could feel a rumbling begin nearby.  Eventually, the rumbling intensified and an explosion could be heard in the alley behind them, a large cloud of dust rising into the air with it. The larger of the two Knights immediately began running towards the commotion, while the smaller one stayed behind for another minute, before turning to follow her companion.  Once she was out of sight, Finn and Poe jumped up and began running.  Rey stepped out from her hiding spot and motioned them toward her.

At that point, the smaller Knight returned to see the three fleeing and began chasing after them. "We're not going to make it!"  Poe shouted.

"Yes we are! Look!"  Rey pointed to the sky where they could see the Falcon.  Chewie, whom they'd left on the ship, was bringing her to a closer spot in an open area for them, and they veered towards it.  However, both Knights were now chasing them, and were rapidly gaining on the trio.  Sprinting with as much speed as they could muster, they got to the ramp, which was lowered and waiting, with seconds to spare.  Being the last to hop on, Rey turned as the ramp began to close, and watched as the smaller knight came to a stop, lightsaber still blazing.  Rey could feel the Knight's hatred of her through the Force, and shuddered as the ramp finally closed, and she was no longer able see her.

**

Vitka Ren seethed as they made their way to the main conference room to give their report to the Master.  She had known there was something about the girl!  But Vicrul had been too impatient to let her try to explore it!  Now the Master would be angry.  She hated it when he was angry with her.   However, she loved it when he was angry at others – especially the Resistance. His dark anger at them was glorious to behold, and clearly fueled a passion within him.

She hoped that one day that passion would be directed at her.  In the past she had tried to tempt him into her bed, but he had always rebuffed her, never seeming to be interested in her that way. And when Snoke had found out about it, he had punished her severely, raging that Kylo must not be distracted by lust until the time was right.  She would never forget that pain.... It felt like her insides were being fried.  Snoke did however promise that she would be the one eventually chosen for Kylo, and the thought made her blood sing and her mouth water.  He pulse sped up merely thinking about it.

Now that Snoke was dead, the time to act would likely soon be upon her, and so wanted to be the one to please him – to finally lead him to the Resistance.  Instead, it looked like she would be the focus of his anger.  Maybe she could redirect the Master's anger towards Vicrul instead of herself.  It was a bit of a dangerous game, but she could handle Vicrul well enough if necessary.

When they entered the conference room, he was standing with his back towards them, looking out over the marshalling area.   They immediately took a knee behind him, heads bowed. "Report."  He commanded.

Vitka immediately spoke, before Vicrul could start. "Master.  There were members of the Resistance on Onderon, but they slipped through our fingers."

"How many?"  he asked.

"Four, Master.  Two women, more like girls really –"

He spun around so fast she was taken aback. "What girls?"  he practically shouted.

Vicrul was silent, and kept his head bowed.  Since Vitka had started this, she could finish it.

Vitka didn't know what to make of his sudden reaction.  "I'm not sure what you mean Master?" she paused, but he just continued to stare down at her intently. "One was short, with very dark hair, and the other was normal height with brown hair."  At this, his eyes flared, but again, he continued to stare, waiting for her to continue.  "She.....she had the Force, Master."  Vitka could practically feel the storm begin to rage within him.

"What. Happened?"  he growled through gritted teeth, body tense, barely restraining himself.

"We had the two men trapped, but the girl with the Force – she created a diversion, Master, and they were able to get away."  Vitka could clearly feel his rage, and was now uneasy with the path she had chosen.

Quicker than she would have thought possible, he stalked away from them, ignited his lightsaber and began hacking away at the conference table and one of the chairs.  He ended the tirade with a roar, and disengaged his saber.  Turning back to them, he took two strides back toward them, looking at them pointedly.  "You failed me today. I expect better in the future, or there will be consequences."  He stopped, letting them absorb that before continuing. "But know this. The next time you encounter the girl, you are to bring her to me – unharmed – at any cost. Do you understand?"

At this, Vitka's head snapped up. Unharmed?  She thought to herself. What is this?  He looked down at her, his anger and displeasure obvious in his gaze. "Do you have a question Vitka?"  he asked, his tone impassive.

She could hear Vicrul hiss quietly beside her.  Bowing her head once again, she replied  "No, Master."

"Good. Leave me."

Both Knights stood in unison, bowed their heads once again, and exited the room quickly before either were forced to bear any more of his displeasure.

**

Kylo Ren sat on the bed in his quarters and ran his hand over his face.  Breathing deeply, he tried to clear his mind, needing to banish the thoughts of her that he couldn't seem to get rid of today. It was because of the news his Knights gave him.   He'd almost had her!  After all these months! The thought nearly stopped his heart.

He kept thinking of what he intended to do when he finally had her.  His breathing sped up. S he would see – would learn that she shouldn't have rejected him!  Closing his eyes, he imagined the fear and regret he'd see in her eyes the next time they met.  Her eyes...those beautiful, mesmerizing eyes.

He inhaled sharply and groaned, as his body began to respond. Stop!  He thought to himself, hating this feeling, this weakness that came upon him every time he thought of her like this. Desire and lust were feelings to be shunned and avoided at all costs.   Running his hands through his hair, he clenched his fists and pulled at the strands, using pain to channel his undesired feelings for her from lust to something else.

Suddenly, he could feel the air – the very atmosphere around him - begin to change.  His head snapped up and he began looking around in a panic.  The sound of air rushing around him became a roar... No.....he thought, closing his eyes. Its not possible – not after all this time...

Opening his eyes once again, he looked across the room, and his heart froze in his chest.....