After accepting General Organa's invitation to join the Resistance, Finn was encouraged to share as much knowledge as he could that was relevant to the First Order. While he had regretfully informed them that his connections with the Order were merely transactional. Finn obliged them with what little knowledge he could in regards to the notorious General Hux. After being involved with numerous business dealings with the General in question, Finn was surprised to learn how very little he knew about the First Order in its entirety.

After a week of debriefing mission plans within the rebel base, Finn and Jess agreed to a secret scouting mission, onboard a stolen Upsillion-Class Shuttle, regarding the Order's new secret weapon on a planet called Starkiller Base. With what little intel the Resistance had received regarding the weapon, it was nothing remotely capable of describing what lie before Finn and Jess' eyes the moment they came out of hyperspace to breech the shields of the base, pulling just into atmo as they did so. Anonymous sources confirmed that the weapon was comparable to the Galactic Empire's Death Star, which in design it was. But the size, on another note, was on an entirely different measuring scale of its own.

While the Death Star had been compared in size of a small planetary moon, Starkiller Base was an entire planet with the weapon drilled directly through the center of its core. However, judging by what they could see in front of them, it looked as if the Order's weapon was still undergoing the early stages of development. For a prolonged moment of silence all Finn could do was gape in staggering amazement as Jess reached across the dash for the miniaturized circular holo-recording device.

"Alright, let's get this over with so we can get back to base," Jess urged hurriedly, fiddling with the holo device in her hands before holding it before the viewport to record the planet's entirety.

Biting his lip, Finn narrowed his eyes in thought as he further scrutinized the base before them. "Don't you think we should bring back a little more besides a hologram?"

Jess glanced at him skeptically from her peripheral. "Like what?"

"We're in a First Order shuttle," he retorted stating the obvious. "They'll never know otherwise. If we could sneak inside the base then maybe we could find out how far away this thing is from being operational."

"Are you crazy?" Jess countered, quirking her brows in exasperation as she stared dumbfounded at the man occupying the pilot seat next to her. "General Organa specifically ordered for us to do just this – nothing more until we get back to base. Anything else beyond that might as well be considered suicide." Ending the holo recording, she proceeded to transfer their newly acquired content back to their base.

"Okay, just at least hear me out on this one; alright?" Finn pleaded assertively.

Rolling her eyes, Jess sighed heavily in acknowledgment. "Alright, explain." She demanded in annoyance, although additionally curious as to what sort of plan he was conjuring.

"All we need to do is disguise ourselves amongst the stormtroopers," he proceeded to explain. "If we can get inside any of their networks and see how this place works, any weaknesses or anything that could further help the Resistance then now is the perfect opportunity." Finn urged, holding her inquisitive gaze to enhance the seriousness behind his plan. "It's just the two of us; nothing more out of the ordinary that would alert their security. Our initial sources couldn't even get this much detailed information. Now is our chance to provide what we can."

Apprehensively, Jess considered his motives. It really was the opportune moment for them to get all the intel they needed if the Resistance was to plan an assault against the First Order base. Without an idea as to how far away this thing was from being fully operational was a risk Jess was willing to take as far as going against the General's orders. Shaking her head, Jess sighed heavily in submission. "I have a really bad feeling about this."

-----------------------------------

Breathe. Just breathe.

For Rey, connecting with the Force had almost become second nature. As easy as breathing. Especially when compared to the non-force sensitives in the galaxy. The moment she closed her eyes, she could easily be lost within the Force for hours. While initially struggling with the concept of having to remain focused for prolonged periods of time, Rey found it to be a welcome distraction from the constant ebb and flow of thoughts in her mind.

It had been nearly a week now since the evening in the rose garden with Kylo. Although he insisted on continuing her training Ren managed to keep their hours together as meticulously professional as he could. The hanging tension between them only grew worse than it had ever been since the evening of her arrival at the palace. His demeanor more intense and easily frustrated over her not grasping concepts as simple as rock levitation. On more than one occasion both of them had walked away more frustrated than before the initial lesson. Kylo would stalk off towards his western chambers and Rey found herself mingling with Chewie in the hangar bay - antsy to get her hands dirty in engine grease in hopes of maintaining focus on anything else besides the Force and the confounding man, Ben Solo.

The only moments Rey felt less anxious within his proximity were the times they'd spend the afternoons sparring in the training room. Today was one of those days and she couldn't have been more relieved when he suggested during breakfast that they cancel Force lessons and focus on single combat.

After managing to grasp the first few forms of lightsaber combat in previous sessions Rey couldn't help but feel ecstatic when Kylo informed her they would be training with real lightsabers, formally putting aside the training sabers that they had been using days prior. What made her feel more eager was the fact that Kylo offered his family's legacy lightsaber to use since she currently lacked one of her own: Luke's lightsaber that had been initially crafted by his father Anakin Skywalker.

For the rest of the morning she spent her time meditating, in the training area awaiting her teacher, keeping herself calm and contemplative as she let the Force become her only awareness. Rising barefooted from her meditative position on the padded flooring, Rey welcomed the burning sensation coursing through her muscles as she stretched her bare arms behind each shoulder blade. Sporting a pair of charcoal gray leggings and a cream mid-length sleeveless tunic, she couldn't have been more grateful when Maz presented her with the articles a few days prior. The simplicity of their overall design made it lighter and cooler for days of rigorous physical training.

With her legs straight and feet firmly planted to the floor, Rey inhaled a deep breath as she lowered her body into a downward dog position; her palms flatly planted on the cool padding below her while marveling in the feeling of exertion.

Feeling a familiar presence at the room's entrance Rey held her position for a moment longer before rising to glance over her shoulder. Their gazes momentarily met as Kylo passed through the doorway. Raising a brow in amusement, she couldn't resist the taunting smile playing across her lips. "Enjoying the view back there, your worship?"

Kylo snorted in retort before wordlessly extending his hand yielding the hilt of the legendary Skywalker lightsaber. With a giddy smile Rey happily accepted it, noting the weightless feel of it in her grasp as she admired its seamless crafting.

"We'll begin using the low power setting since this is your first time wielding a saber," Kylo started. "I'd prefer if neither of us lost a limb today."

Rey rolled her eyes in response. "And what are the rules of the objective?"

"Anything goes this time, scavenger," he stated as a matter of fact while further reverberating the lightheartedness behind his jab. "The objective is to not let me win."

Cocking her head, Rey couldn't resist further riling him up. "That won't be too hard," she chuckled while quirking a brow. "I beat you yesterday pretty easily."

"I wouldn't get too cocky. I merely let you win." Gripping the hilt of the crossguard at his side, Kylo thrummed the crackling blade to life. "Let's see what you got," he urged with a casual twirl of it at his side, taking his position at the opposite end of the room.

Familiarizing herself with the weapon in hand, Rey inhaled heavily in anticipation as she ignited the famously renowned sword: revealing its blue blade upon activation. A knowing smile played across her face as she felt the churning emotions of excitement rile within her. Spinning the saber in a fluid gyro of a figure-eight Rey fell into her chosen offensive stance as Kylo stood on the defense. Both held the other's gaze across the room as Rey contemplated her options for a weakness in his defenses before swiftly advancing to make the first strike.

Kylo abruptly blocked her attack. Raising his crimson, crackling blade up to meet her blue, the sparks reverberated across the floor instantly upon impact. Rey pressed forward with her attack: striking again and again as Kylo continued parrying her surprisingly powerful blows. Their dance continued across the padded flooring in a rapid pace of parries and strikes interspersed with spins and flourishes. Letting Rey perceive that she had maintained the advantage, Kylo held back in anticipation for spotting a weakness in her form.

Blocking one of her incoming attacks, Kylo slid Rey's blade from his, pirouetting in a quick dodge around her as he shifted her quickly into defense; the incoming downward motion of his blade at her side immediately prompted her to intercept his attack.  At one point, Kylo caught her blade into the crossguard of his hilt, pressing his weight forward until Rey unwillingly found herself backed to a wall. The blending colors of the crossed blades illuminated into that of a violet luminescence between them.

"Do you yield scavenger?" Ren taunted; unable to hide his arrogance in concluding himself the winner of the round.

Rey grit her teeth, rejecting the idea of submitting so easily to defeat she decided to use the wall for her advantage: propping the sole of her foot against the wall's stone surface in order to heave her weight into him. The unexpected change in tactic forced Kylo's footing off balance. He seized her wrist that wielded the lightsaber in hopes of holding his ground. With his weight pushed too far backwards, Rey yelped in surprise as he brought them both tumbling down; their lightsabers sheathed automatically upon contact, sliding a few meters from them across the floor's smooth surface.

Realization dawned on her that she was now straddled across his waist, Rey pushed herself from his chest, a hand planted there for balance. Her eyes gazed into Ren's visor as she moved, positioning her hands to the floor on opposite sides of his helmet.

Aside from the sounds of their labored breathing and the staccato heartbeats reverberating through their ears, they both stayed silently motionless in fear of what the other might say or do next.

Apprehensively, Rey swallowed down the rising tension of nerves in her throat; unwilling to break the stare down between them while she waited for Kylo to respond with something, anything.

It wasn't as if they had not touched each other before. Ren always had his hands on her in some way while correcting her posture during saber forms without him showing any conflicting signs of their close bodily contact. But now – something loomed over them that made this feel entirely different. Something that made those intense moments of fantasy seemed all the more realistic. But this time he was real – and touching her in person. And she realized in that singular moment that reality deliciously eclipsed the fantasy in ways that she'd never recover from.

Despite every attempt of denying her tenacious efforts and his own desires, Kylo silently submitted that he could no longer ignore the prolonged feelings for her. Propping himself up on his elbows, Ren gradually rose into a seated position while furthermore forcing Rey to fully sit astride his lap. His hands rested casually at the sides of her thighs with uncertainty flooding his mind of how much, and where, she would allow him to touch her.

Unsure of what to do with her hands or where to put them, Rey insisted on clenching her fists tightly before slowly, and hesitantly, allowing herself to place them upon his chest. A barely inaudible gasp crept through her lips as she felt Kylo's hands ghost up the sides of her thighs, placing them stiffly at her hips as if he feared her fleeing from his touch. But he found himself furthermore coaxing her closer to him, carefully inching her hips forward before very little space separated their distance.

Rey's lips parted as a soft gasp escaped her. Her body burned where they touched. A sensation in the Force wrapped around them then, an electricity rising between them that crackled and hummed as they continued to stare each other down, wrapped salaciously around one another. Desire coursed through her veins and she wished more than ever that she could take the helmet off of him and look into his eyes and see the effect she had on him as much as he could see his effect on her.

Unaware of how to enact on this newfound set of emotions, Rey cautiously slid her hands to his shoulders; pausing briefly to study his reaction before enveloping them around his neck as her face became dangerously close to his mask.

Within his mind, Kylo cursed himself at the mask being the only barrier holding him back from pressing his lips to hers; his cock growing hard with her hips pressed against him, the heat of her body giving him every indication that the attraction between them was entirely mutual. He wanted her as much as she wanted him. And yet there was something more to this than simple primal biology. It surprised him more now than ever he could ever feel such intense emotions towards someone else when for so long he'd thought himself incapable.

Grimacing at the unpleasant hardness between them, Rey shifted her weight against him while inadvertently eliciting a pleasurable moan from the back of his throat wholly unaware of what the friction of her movement was doing to him or that what she was pressing against.

"Rey..." he growled. She moved again only this time instead of grimacing, she gasped as the movement felt undeniably good, only for the discomfort to return once she stopped. Unable to get the warning in his tone across as another moan of gratification at her incessant motion, driving him over the edge of madness. Swallowing thickly, all Kylo could do was maintain a firmer grasp on her waist in hopes of halting her movement. As much as he wanted her to continue, he knew that this was neither the time, nor the place for such lascivious delights. "Rey, you need to stop."

Rey scoffed, suddenly feeling awkward of her position yet she remained ignorant of the meaning behind his reactions. "I'm sorry, Ben, but your lightsaber is making this a little uncomfortable."

Considering the lightsaber in question was somewhere across the room from his person, Kylo couldn't have been anymore grateful for the mask in that moment as he felt his face flush red with embarrassment. Apprehensively, Ren went to protest her accusation before the familiar robotic sound of a protocol droid's voice announced its arrival, bringing both him and Rey to freeze on the spot.

"Oh, goodness, Ben So - I mean – Master Ren!" The gold-plated droid exclaimed in as much excitement as his electronic vocals would allow him. "It is I, C3PO. Oh, it's been so long you probably don't even recognize me with my red arm and all," he stated proudly while gesturing with the arm in questioning.

Ren felt his muscles tense in both annoyance and resentment at the presence of the infuriating droid. Angered at the intrusion he gripped Rey's waist, a little harder than he realized making near inaudible squeak in protest fall from her lips. That simple sound made him snap out of his murderous mind frame even more so of the fact that Threepio was wholly incapable of realizing the intimate moment he had initially interrupted.

All the while an embarrassed – and equally mortified - Rey felt her cheeks turn red as she pushed away from her awkward position on Kylo. Picking up her saber from the floor's padding she attempted to hand it over to him with an apologetic stare.

"Keep it," he grumbled, but further asserted with an offhand remark. "And I still won that round."

Making a mental note to dismantle the droid in waiting at some point Kylo gestured his hand out towards the direction of his saber: issuing it a silent command to his hand from its former position not far from where they were sitting. Rising with a graceful ease from the floor Kylo returned it to the holster at his side before wordlessly exiting the room, knowing full well that Threepio's company only meant that his mother had arrived.

Rey snorted at his remark, rolling her eyes in acknowledgment before fixating them on the spot where Kylo's saber had been. It hadn't been between them as she'd thought. If it had not been on him at the time, then that only meant... Her eyes widened and her cheeks flamed in realization of what she had inadvertently her body against.

The expressive tone of the droid's mechanical voice abruptly jerked her attention towards his stance at the door. "Excuse me, Miss, but I believe we haven't met before?" Threepio considerately stated with genuine curiosity.  "I am C-3PO of human-cyborg relations."

Rey smiled nervously, attempting to forget the brevity of the situation that had just dawned upon her. She was surprised to hear such modesty behind the usual deadpan voice of a droid. "I'm Rey."

"Oh, goodness me!" he nearly exclaimed. "Lady Rey, it is such a delight to meet you." He expressed delightfully. "I wasn't aware that Master Ren had a Lady within his homestead. And it's about time - if I do say so myself."

"Oh, no it's just Rey." She quickly added to rectify his assumption, feeling slightly uncomfortable with what he had presumed. But, truthfully, Rey had no idea how to describe the earlier occurrence between her and Kylo; or what would have happened had Threepio not inadvertently interrupted.

"Oh," Threepio stated shortly. "I thought – oh – well, I suppose it is none of my business then. I never did quite understand the odd mating rituals of human behavior."

Watching the droid leave with a look of embarrassed amusement, Rey chuckled at Threepio's unpretentious boldness. Shaking her head, she waited momentarily before falling in suit towards the palace's main lobby. Entering the area, Rey could hear Kylo's distinctively low, modulated voice and the soft, gentle voice of a woman preceded in reply not long afterwards. As usual when he was disinclined to acquiesce in a situation, Kylo stood tense before the woman with his fists tightly clenched at his sides.

While the primary dialogue of their conversation remained mute to secrecy, Rey directly took note of the woman, standing with poise opposite of Kylo flanked by two dark figures adorned with helmets in resemblance to Ren's on either side of her. The woman was petite in size, dressed in a magnificent floor-length, sapphire gown seemingly in comparison to the roses in the garden; her graying hair elegantly styled into a mass at the top of her head. She looked beautiful: elegant and fit for the role of a queen.

Upon her approaching Kylo turned his head in acknowledgment of Rey's presence, stopping mid-sentence as she stole his complete, undivided attention. Unsure as to whether she was interrupting anything sensitive, Rey took pause momentarily in her strides. Crossing her arms self-consciously over her chest, she realized she was still wearing the sparring attire from earlier; hardly appropriate enough to meet that of royalty. Apprehensively, she proceeded to approach them when Kylo noticeably cocked his head in approval for her to join; his posture perceptibly relaxed at her welcomed company.

The woman before him turned her head curiously in acknowledgment as well, issuing a warm-hearted smile at the girl she had briefly heard so much about. "You must be Rey?" She inquired with certainty.

Rey blinked, an equal feeling of surprise and flattery coursed through her at knowing the queen was already fully aware of whom she was without a proper introduction. Apprehensively, she cleared her throat before remedying her suspicion. "I am. It is such an honor to meet you, your highness," she affirmed, gesturing her hand out in an attempted proper introduction.

"Please, call me Leia." She reassured, cupping her hands over Rey's as she too felt equally honored to meet the girl who exclusively withheld her son's interest. "To tell you the truth I hate that proper royal bullshit anyways."

Rey couldn't stifle the laugh upon hearing Leia's vulgarity. In fact, it made her feel at ease to know that she wouldn't be frowned upon for looking, and acting, against those holding higher noble-class standards. Rey looked to Kylo then, who remained silent with a stiff set to his shoulders.

"I wasn't sure of proper protocol. I'm not used to dealing with royalty," she remarked, nonchalantly placing her hand to Kylo's arm in a light-hearted attempt to put him at ease. In return, Kylo acknowledged her gesture with a near indiscernible nod as he relaxed his stance.

Leia smiled knowingly whilst silently scrutinizing the profound, casual intimacy already between them. Internally she marveled in at the sight of her son's renewed benevolence after being led astray to darkness for so many years.

"Anyways, Rey," Leia started, "your friend Finn has talked rather highly about you since his arrival at the Resistance base."

Ignoring Kylo's near inaudible growl in resentment upon mentioning his former prisoner's name, Rey's eyes beamed in sheer disbelief, her hand falling away from Kylo's arm. "Finn!" The tone of her response rendered more of sheer disbelieve than a question. "Is he alright? How did he find you?"

Leia quirked a brow with a look of amusement, further observing her son's abrupt change in demeanor upon mentioning the other man's name and losing physical contact with Rey. Kylo went from relaxed to an uptight stance in posture once more. Undoubtedly, Leia perceived jealousy roiling within her son, something akin to Han's on the forest moon of Endor many decades prior when Luke had left to face their father just moments after revealing their shared parentage. Ben appeared to not have fallen far from the tree when it came to projecting jealousy like his father.

Returning her attention back to Rey, Leia discreetly winked an eye in her direction. "He just happened to be at the right place at the right time. He's on a mission right now, which – in fact - is why I'm here. "She paused, glancing briefly with an assertive expression in her eyes towards Kylo's direction, "I need to debrief my son over some findings."

Sensing the seriousness behind Leia's remark, Rey curiously issued an imploring look to Kylo. His concrete silence furthermore confirmed that, whatever Leia had to say, it was meant to be addressed for his knowledge only.

"We'll continue this discussion elsewhere," he stated placidly in response, clearly not looking forward to whatever it was that his mother had to say. Before turning to leave towards the stairwell, Kylo paused briefly placing a hand to Rey's waist, speaking in a  meant for her to hear only, "I'll find you later."

A barely visible blush crept across Rey's cheeks. Smiling subtly, Rey silently acknowledged his assurance with a curt nod before Ren made his way to the stairwell. Her gaze remaining on his back at his departure before it was met with that of Leia's.

"It was so nice to finally meet you, Rey." She declared genuinely, allotting the warmth within her timbre to shine through her words.

Smiling admirably at the woman before her, Rey nodded in acquiescence. "It was nice to meet you also."

Begrudgingly, Rey found herself being pulled into that of a motherly embrace; stunned momentarily before returning unanticipated the gesture. "Thank you," Leia stated shortly.

Rey scoffed, pulling back in observance as she stared skeptically upon hearing Leia's sudden merit. "For what?" she questioned with uncertainty.

Leia smiled knowingly, giving her forearms a gentle squeeze in assurance. "For restoring hope for my son again. He's kept himself in darkness for so long it's comforting to see he's acknowledging the light within him. No matter how slight it may seem."

Rey blinked, uncertain as to how she should respond when, truthfully, it was his courageous act in the woods that prompted to change her initial impression towards him. With a momentary pause of silence, Rey furrowed her brows in deliberation of the right words to say in response.

"I think it's always been there, your highness," she assured respectively with a sympathetic smile. "I believe that. And he's proven it on his own."

"Either way," Leia added gratefully before taking her leave, "I'm glad he has you."

Rey held her gaze quizzically. Still feeling she wasn't deserving of such praise, she further conceded Leia's flattery with a nod. After watching Leia take her leave with the guards trailing behind her, Rey ascended towards her own chambers to clean up from the morning's stress of physical endurance. All the while, she found her thoughts winding their way back to what had happened between her and Ren; a brief but profound moment where lines had been irrevocably crossed and a mutual feeling had passed between them. Both scared and entirely unprepared for what it was and the untold promises that lay in it - a journey into the unknown that they would undertake together.

-----------------------------------

"Do you even realize what you're asking of me?" Kylo sneered, sitting directly across from his mother inside the hyperbaric chamber.

Holding a holoprojector out in the palm of her hand, Leia presented the holographic image of Starkiller Base the Resistance had received days prior to her arrival on Chandrila. Her initial intent had been set on coaxing Ben into accepting his birthright to the throne. But it appeared that it was going to take a lot more effort than she'd thought. Thinking herself a fool for believing it was going to be so easy for him to accept his rightful place.

"And do you realize what it could mean for the galaxy if you did?" She countered, her eyes holding his glowering gaze as she proceeded with determined assertion. "Snoke fears you, Ben. Why do you think he's been so determined to gain your alliance within the First Order? He doesn't want you as an enemy. You're too powerful in both royal and Force lineage to not pose a very large threat to his agenda."

Ren snorted, "Always so focused on saving the whole damn galaxy rather than thinking about what's best for those in front of you." He retorted, his voice cold with resentment as he leaned back with arms crossed over his chest. "And I refuse to be a pawn in this game of yours."

"Let's not compare this to a game of Djarik." Deactivating the hologram with a heavy sigh, Leia narrowed her eyes in protest. "This isn't about fighting who we hate, Ben. It's about saving who we love." She added with a little more gentleness within her voice, gently placing a hand on his forearm.

Ren swallowed deeply, fully aware of what she was implying with her words and he found his thoughts drifting back to Rey. He thought about what had transpired between them in the training room earlier that morning: a mutual, sentimental feeling that never seemed to exist until then. What he wanted more than anything was to push himself into her, to make love and prove to her that he was only hers alone. But despite his own selfishness, the nobility within told him to wait; that now was neither the time nor place. Nor did he think himself worthy of her. Not in this mask. Not with this curse.

Before anything more physical could come between them Kylo silently vowed he'd allow her to see his true self: to finally let her see his face without the mask. And doing so only meant that he was finally acknowledging how he genuinely felt for her: he loved her. And to deny it any further only meant he'd be lying only to himself.

Leia smiled knowingly, gently rubbing her thumb along the fabric of his sleeve. "You love her, don't you?"

Ren's eye twitched at the initial thought of having to formally admit his feelings out loud. Begrudgingly, he found himself curtly nodding in admission. "It doesn't matter. She could never look at me the way she did when you mentioned his name."

"Who, Finn?" Quirking a brow in amusement, Leia snorted in dissent. "Finn is about as close to a family that Rey has. I saw the way she looks at you, Ben. And it's not even close to that of a platonic look. You need to tell her how you feel."

Kylo scoffed at her words. "I will when the time is right," he assured softly.

Leia cocked her head to consider him. "There is never a right time. Love is something that just comes naturally; without having to be planned or forced. If you love her then you need to tell her." Pausing briefly, Leia smiled subtly as she remembered those initial moments between her and Han. "But then I was that way of course, and your father was the ever-so-persistent scoundrel that he always proclaimed himself to be. Just as equally stubborn, but he never thought anything through until he had done it." Her expression fell solemn as her thoughts drifted back to the earlier years with her late husband. Glancing briefly down at her hands in her lap, she continued with a subtle smile. "No matter how many times we fought, I always hated watching him leave."

Kylo felt his throat swell upon the mention of his father. Here his mother was giving him advice on love when he had been solely responsible for taking love away from her. Closing his eyes to force back the tears, his Adam's apple bobbed noticeably as he worked up the audacity to tell her what he should've said years ago.

"I'm sorry," his voice cracked slightly at the barely audible confession. "I'm sorry I took him from you."

Leia smiled knowingly, "I know." Her admittance prompted Kylo's gaze to revisit hers. "I made my peace a long time ago, Ben. You deserve this happiness. It's time that you make your amends as well."

Kylo scowled momentarily at her remark. What had he ever done to make him deserve such contentment – when all he brought upon his family was darkness and sorrow?

"So, you're asking me to forget every repelling act I've ever done?"

"No, Ben," Leia countered. "I'm asking you to let go."

-----------------------------------

Finn jerked abruptly awake, gasping in heavy inhales of air as his eyes darted around his unknown surroundings. Where in the hell am I?

His hands were cuffed at the wrists directly below the white stormtrooper armor he had stolen from a trooper within the base. His memory drifted back to his and Jessica's initial attempt to sneak into the First Order headquarters on Starkiller Base. Both managing to knock two stormtroopers unconscious with the rear end of their blasters, they proceeded to encase themselves in the newly acquired armor to ensure ease of going unnoticed during their mission.

Unfortunately, something had gone wrong in their somewhat brilliant attempt; rendering themselves unconscious as, they too, felt the butt ends of blasters hit the back of their heads. Speaking of Jessika...

Where is she? He questioned wordlessly, unable to see her anywhere within the holding cell's vicinity.

His head was throbbing. His eyes strained against the bright lights along the obsidian-painted walls as he sat perched on the steel bench within its close quarters. The abrupt clearing of a throat snapped his attention to the far shadowy corner near the cell's doorway.

"Well, well, well – I must admit this was far easier than I initially expected," the taut voice stated in amusement with a chuckle. The familiarity behind it abruptly sent a wave of nausea through Finn's stomach as he puzzled the voice to its notorious owner.

"General Hux." Finn sneered in retort. "What do you want? And where's Jessika?"

The General snorted in utter amusement, approaching Finn with his hands firmly clasped behind his back. "Never mind her. The question is, Finn - or should I call you FN-2187?" He added with a quirked brow upon his rigid face. "After all, it was the given name of the stormtrooper who you so cleverly stole that armor from."

Gritting his teeth, Finn proceeded to add for safe measures, "Whatever it is you want, Hux, I'm not telling you anything."

Hux chuckled. "Oh, no need to worry there. I believe I already have what I needed from you," he stated victoriously whilst revealing the homing beacon that had been initially clasped around Finn's wrist, unable to suppress his smirk as the look of mortified realization played upon Finn's face. "I knew she was with Kylo Ren somewhere, but now we may know precisely where."

An uneasy feeling rose from the pit of his stomach, Finn scowled at the smug grin playing across Hux's face. "You son of a bitch, I swear if you hurt her – "

"Oh, it shouldn't be me you need to worry about," Hux boasted, "More on the contrary of whom she is with." The General now stood steadfast before him haughtily, taunting with vague implications of what was to become of the woman in questioning. "I can assure you that I have every intention of not killing her; it won't be me delivering the cruelest stroke of all."

Finn glared, disgusted that the man was actually enjoying the idea of having her tortured in some relevant way to fulfill his unwarranted pleasures. He had to get out of there - to make it back to the Resistance - and to get to Rey before it was too late.