The Rising of Rey

Chapter #1 - Case #2364

Not so long ago in a galaxy far, far away, the wind blew from the South to North, causing some leaves to swirl and flying creatures to flock graciously whilst swerving into the second sunset. There was not a more silent planet at this corner of the universe, be it due to the proximity of some wormholes or the secrecy of who made a living at the islands that comprised Ojnask, the green planet unknown by The First Order, and barely touched by The Resistance.

Two silhouettes can be spotted and distinguishing them isn't, at all, a difficult job. One, a woman, has got legs and the lower abdomen on the ground at the edge of a lake, while holding the torso over the water; the second, a more robust and male figure, stands close and observes the one who is undoubtedly applying extreme effort to maintain the upper body from maculating the water surface.

"Boop boop - beep bip." The silence is broken by the chiming sounds of a flying droid that hovered next the second person at the location - as a parrot stand at the shoulder of a pirate. It reported that the fatigue levels of subject number one were increasing, and both of the humans there present could comprehend it.

"Endure so you can expand your limits. Try to push them and you will probably fail. Again." The message seemed as dubious as it sounded, especially when the man let it out in an authoritarian way - that was definitely a master-student situation. They were again at that terrible practice, for the third time that day, 11th within the last 2 days.

"Expand, don't push!" A female voice echoed on the horizontal person's mind, seemingly fearful and focused. Maybe the message - which resembled a riddle - was that by trying to take a step further, one would probably lose it. But maybe, by just letting things be, more could be accomplished; merely by not striving for it, or focusing on something else, perhaps?

"The only thing preventing it from happening is you." The man spoke again, checking on a monitor of the droid before turning his eyes to the person standing the torso above water. From that perspective, all he could see was the dark hair tied up on buns and the gray, worn out robes.

The woman, on the other hand, could only see her reflex on the still water surface, sometimes disturbed by the drops of sweat falling from her face and neck as she tried to keep her back and abdomen still. It was harder than the fighting and telepathic routines - that were also challenging, but not so exhausting - in a way she couldn't manage to find her cool and work with the energy that is always surrounding all the living things. She couldn't get that intimate with the Force when being able to handle it would, actually, save her life.

She breathed in heavily, clenching her teeth and aspiring for serenity, for the needed tranquility to use the power emanating from the wind moving, or the stationary water in a helpful way. Thinking about the possibility of converting that force to herself made her think less of how hard that setting was to her fit legs and knees until her thoughts made her think of this as well and deviate from her target. Next thing she knew was water coming inside her head through her nose, and the back of her clothes being pulled so she wouldn't drown, again.

The droid had lifted her a bit, enough to leave her laying on her back while contemplating the dark purple sky, the orange strokes from the dusk and the greenish shadow of a full moon. The woman was breathing in a very intense way despite trying to keep it as silent as possible, for failing again and not being into dramas. Nobody would have to say anything, as there was nothing left to be said.

*

Being in Ojnask had its ups and downs. Ever since she had gotten there, all Rey knew was training and being prepared to face unsaid things. At first, it had been thrilling but now, months later, it seemed dull. She had, after all, been engaged in much activity prior to meeting the last Jedi Master. She went from being a hopeful scavenger to a talented pilot prone to fighting and using the Force. Her skills didn't go unnoticed by anyone who crossed her way, from a former stormtrooper to the grandson of Lord Vader. Undergoing resistance training had been turning into a nightmare day after day, week after week. Did she really need to go through all of that, anyways?

Unhappy about her poor results on the latest endurance challenge, Rey found it better to eat alone, away from Luke Skywalker and D-1Z. In that way, she could appreciate the silence of the Universe while having important conversations in her mind. Thus, she rested against a wall and took a deep breath whereas trying to silence her self-critic thinking when she heard something unusual in the air. It sounded like the wind was changing, being changed. And that couldn't be good.

"... Wh..?" Her voice wouldn't be heard as she reached outside of her hut to join her master, who had a hand over his eyes to block some rays of blue lights coming from a spaceship. Rey did the same, holding her lightsaber at one hand and looking at the droid, as it should identify what that meant.

"I'm sure that if we were to be killed, kid, this planet would just have been exploded!" Luke said in a calm manner as if he truly believed that they would be better dead than held prisoner by space pirates or other kinds of threat. Rey found that lack of options disturbing, but kept it to herself just in time for D-1Z to break the good news: it seemed to be a friendly, unharmful visit.

The ship was smaller than the Millennium Falcon that had brought her there, which, now that the lights were dimmed, made sense. There were no cannons or guns attached to that, in a way it could only be used for transportation. Rey took her lightsaber away as a door slid to a side and three human-like creatures could be spotted and made their way towards the three of them.

"Greetings from the Resistance! I'm Captain Korden and these are the Lieutenants Tyla Keenward and Kurt Halcyon. They are here on a mission to access the improvement of case #2364." The man in the middle started talking. They were all dressed in the same dark-green uniform but had visibly different characteristics. The spokesperson seemed to be at a far more advanced age than his fellow companions. The woman analysed their impeccable posture so attentively that she didn't even notice the was she was being addressed.

"Access improvement?" Luke spoke in disbelief, slightly outraged by what that vocabulary choice implied. "Since when does the Resistance or anyone, as a matter of a fact, thinks it's possible to interfere in..."

"General Organa has anticipated your questioning, Master Skywalker. We are here under her command, due to case #1308." His words seemed robotic and lacking emotion, setting a difference from Luke who was clearly shocked and hit by that news and numbers. That's when Rey snapped from her deviations and looked from her master to the newcomers.

"May I ask what's your job here, exactly?" She had fought Kylo Ren, been offered a job from Han Solo and sent to train under Luke's tutoring by General Organa. Nonetheless, she sounded like the girl who was left in Jakku nearly 20 years ago. That's when the person on the left, a red-haired woman, broke the silence.

"We are here to check on your progress, case #2364. We shall report back to duty within 10 sunsets." She had a hoarse, kind of harsh voice or way of imposing it despite seeming less robotic, thus more relaxed, than Captain Korden.

"I'm here for upgrading and analyzing D-1Z data, leaving tomorrow with Captain Korden." The male on the right had spoken as well while Luke, Rey and the droid remained in silence. There was some kind of tension in the air, especially between Luke and Korden - and, honestly, it didn't seem to be of any importance to Rey, in a way she had just looked at everyone once more before adjusting her lightsaber on her robes and making her way towards her hut.