adarkergray | Kenoma

Kenoma

Previously:
Escape From Starkiller Base
At the Monuments of Madness
A Living Weapon

To Jacob's surprise, they made it to Ahch-To's system without incident - but then, it was clear now that the Force was on their side. As per his calculations, they'd dropped out of hyperspace a few hundred thousand kilometers away, just beyond its outermost moon's orbit, and as they headed toward the planet at sublight speeds, he tried to ignore the way his protective instincts were going into overdrive.

However, the closer they got to the planet, the more he couldn't help being aware that everyone there, everyone they were going to see, was someone who'd hurt Kylo terribly, and Force, how could Jacob even begin to justify taking him down there? To put him in that level of danger, in the kind of condition he was in--

He made himself take a deep breath, though the fingers of his free hand were clamped tightly around the hilt of one of his lightsabers. The urge was incredibly strong to tell Kylo that he couldn't in good conscience do this, that there had to be another, better way to defeat Snoke, and they would find it - but, deep down, he knew that if there was, the Force would have shown it to Kylo instead. He had to have faith in his master, and in the Force.

Instead, right now, he had more sympathy than ever for why Snoke wanted to destroy the Force's will - not that he had any sympathy for Snoke himself. That thought was enough to settle his nerves slightly by reminding what they were here for, why it was important, why they could all work together just this once.

Snoke had to die. That was the one thing they all could agree on.

Finally, he calmed his mind enough to push his senses outward through the Force, to see whose presence he could detect. Even this close in, he still couldn't pick up Skywalker, but he could sort out Rey and General Organa from the background energy of the planet. He turned to Kylo. "...Your mom's still here. Do you want me to ask her to leave?"

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As Jacob had said, he wasn't going to keep anything from her, and it was better that she understood all the factors that were in play here a little more fully. We already know that you're only our ally while we're on this world. Jacob sighed softly. When this is over... we're all going back to our respective corners, because Lord Kylo Ren still believes in the vision behind the First Order, and I don't care about anything except being there to keep him and our children safe. I spent too many years destroying myself for what I thought was the greater good, and I'm through with it - my family is the only thing that matters to me now. But as long as I live, I will never allow our children to be turned into weapons or killers or monsters the way Kylo and I were, and I know he feels the same. Maybe once Snoke is gone, we can make the First Order's methods into something less reprehensible, too. Something you could get onboard with, one day.

Speaking of Kylo, Jacob needed to make sure he was taken care of before he started practicing with Rey. He pulled the bottle of water and the thermos of thala siren milk from his bag, pouring a cup of the milk and diluting it before giving it to Kylo. "You might recover a little better with some nutrients and fluids in you. Let me know if there's anything else you need from me in the meantime, okay?" Slowly, so as not to shock his system, he decoupled his vitals from Kylo's, and created the equivalent of a small insulating gap in the Force between them - so that when he tanked his heart rate, or ratcheted it up to near tachycardia, to teach Rey how to correct for both, her lesson wouldn't suddenly get a little too real.

Rey jumped, hands covering her mouth when she realized that Jacob (and likely Kylo as well) had heard everything she just thought. It was a futile gesture, unable to even hide her surprise. She consciously clamped down on her mental defenses for a moment.

She highly doubted anything they could do to improve her opinion of the First Order. Finn had more than enough horror stories about the current regime as Leia did the previous one. What happened after they bought down Snoke would depend on a lot of things - things she would need to carefully consider.

But joining them? Beyond this uneasy alliance? That wouldn’t ever be in the cards.

She had a lot to learn about all of this. Kylo added when he felt her mind disappear. She is a fast learner, though. From what I observed on Starkiller...

He accepted the cup, sipping on it slowly.

And thank you. For everything. A single thought encompassed many ideas. From working with Rey and his dedication to his craft to unwavering loyalty, care and concern for both master and progeny. No one else in the galaxy had ever cared this much.

By the time Jacob was done seeing to his master, Rey had opened her mind up again.

“We will cross those bridges when we come to them. You have my trust until you betray it.” She announced aloud, turning to Jacob. “Let’s get started.”

The first question on her mind, besides how he actually did it, was what made the technique itself so deadly.

Jacob had to blink back tears when Kylo thanked him, at the feelings behind it. I love you more than anything. And I am so, so proud of you. Don't ever forget that.

He tucked the excess of emotion away as he felt Rey beginning to open her mind again, settling back into a state of calm and balance; then, he returned his gaze from Kylo to Rey - from the irresistible force, to the immovable object. "Don't make it sound like I have any desire to betray your trust." He returned to sit back to back with her again. "Now, the first and easiest part of this is to bring our heart rates and respiration into synchronization."

He brought their minds back into synchronization as well, so that he could instruct her without speaking, and help her feel what he was talking about. For slow changes, it's more like a guided meditation than anything. We'll start by lowering our heart rates. He let her feel what he was doing to lower his own, and her body began to follow along automatically. After a moment, he brought them back to baseline. Now, you try. Raise our heart rate a little. After a moment, she succeeded, and they went back and forth until Rey had gotten the hang of the basics.

It gets more difficult when you're trying to counteract changes in your partner's vitals. Raise your heart rate again and I'll show you. As soon as her heart rate started to climb, he sank back into a state of absolute calm and focus, one that acted just as much on her pulse as his own, using their telepathic connection to keep them linked together, and anchored at their baseline. Do it again as many times as it takes for you to understand the technique, and then we'll switch roles.

Once he showed her how difficult it would be to contain even small fluctuations, let alone major ones, he was sure she'd understand why a technique that required this much focus couldn't safely be executed while he was already trying to rupture one or more of Snoke's major blood vessels, a delicate task even in targets that weren't Force sensitive.

It took the better part of an hour for Rey to fully grasp the concept well enough to respond to minor fluctuations in Jacob's heart rate. But she was indeed a fast learner and thanks to their earlier work diving in, she was catching on quicker.

Every few attempts, she found herself glancing back at Kylo Ren. She knew that Jacob had been doing the same.

Kylo finished off the Thala siren milk and was meditating, but the look of exhaustion never left his face. It was about that point when Rey noticed that Jacob was having her correct drops in heart rate more often than the other way around. And that with each successful attempt, it was dropping just a little bit farther and a little bit faster.

Is that what projecting does to him? she finally asked what had likely already been through their shared mental link several times already. Makes his heart rate drop?

Little did she know how far and how fast it had plummeted the first time he accidentally performed the technique.

Jacob was starting to feel a little better, as quick as Rey was getting at reacting to the changes in his vitals, and how well she was anchoring them both against them. Still, he didn't feel good enough about her abilities to readily put Kylo's life into her hands - but he was starting to realize that he never might. The most important thing was to be able to objectively recognize when she was skilled enough.

At the question, he nodded. And makes him stop breathing. The first time it happened, I almost lost him. He tried, but he couldn't keep the emotions from bleeding over - how much not only the memory upset him, but how unfair it was, that Kylo had to bear this burden on top of everything else. Instead of trying to deny how he felt, though, he acknowledged it. ...I hope that one day, you find someone you care about this much - and when you do, that you never have to watch them suffer like this.

He took a moment to re-focus, to center himself in the Force. Anyway, let me show you how bad this can be. Once he was certain that she was paying attention, he dropped his heart rate, hard, down to almost what it was in his sensory deprivation tank's deep meditation mode. How she reacted to that would help him gauge where Rey's abilities really were.

It was an unusual Force technique, lost mostly to time. Kylo had performed it several times, and he was hardly any closer to understanding exactly how and why it worked. They’d theorized that it mimicked part of the dying process. With Kylo’s health as poor as it was, it would be all to easy for hs body to simply shut down.

And that was something Rey was about to get a small taste of.

all right. I’m ready. She braced herself. The shockwave she felt through the Force was harder, faster and deeper than she’d expected.

For a moment, she panicked. Her hands shot out, as though she could catch his falling vitals telekinetically, and she swore she could feel them slip right through her fingers. She gasped, trying to focus on what they’d been practicing over and over. Synchronize? No... could she still do that? Or would he bring her vitals down with him instead of the other way around? She knew she needed to anchor him, but his heart rate just wasn’t coming back up fast enough.

“I’m not ready!” She shouted aloud as she fumbled in the Force. “I’m trying! I’m sorry!”

Jacob took a few deep breaths to stave off the dizziness as he pushed his heart rate back up. "...Yeah, that's kind of how I felt the first time, too. The most useful thing to do under circumstances like that is to deepen the connection, so you're directly manipulating not only your own heart rate, but mine as well." It would be a challenge for him, too, placing that much trust in someone he barely knew - it had taken years for him and Kylo to develop the kind of bond they had, and they'd been through so much together along the way. They knew they could rely on each other, and Jacob didn't place that kind of faith in people readily. However, neither did Kylo, and if he believed Rey was the best person for this...

He went back to speaking into her mind. For now, just synchronize your heart rate and breathing with mine. Let me know when you're ready to try again, and I'll try to give you a little better guidance. A lot of this is completely instinctive for me, because I'm so attuned to Kylo that it's natural for me to just... do whatever he needs.

Deepen the connection, he said - as though that was the most natural thing in the world. And again, she found her gaze drifting to the medittaing Kylo Ren. She couldn’t quite put the bond the two knights shared into words, but she felt it. For a brief moment, she even envied it, but she immediately turned her mind back to the task at hand.

If I synchronize with yours as they plummet, what keeps mine from falling too? Couldn’t we both die?

Jacob sighed softly as they both settled back into the meditation, relaxing at the feeling Rey's breathing and pulse against his back, and helping to bring his own into line with them. Because you have nature on your side. It will be a little bit more difficult than normal for you to stop me from crashing, because I'm doing it deliberately and my body is somewhat adjusted to that process, so my reflexes are a little different. However, in general, from the most primitive level, the bodies of living things view death as a profoundly unnatural process and are wired to prevent it in any way possible - that's why this technique works at all. If you had a serious health condition, you would have to worry about being dragged under, but otherwise it's almost impossible for this to kill you.

Just to be absolutely certain she didn't have reason to be concerned, though, he very carefully, delicately examined her heart through the Force. He knew what electrical and valve abnormalities felt like - he'd used used them more than once before to kill targets - and he detected no sign of either. You should be perfectly fine. If you're ready to try again, I'll see if I can do it in a way that's a little easier for you to correct.

Edited 2018-09-24 22:45 (UTC)

Jacob’s touch on her body was so gentle, so delicate, that she didn’t even know he was there. Indeed, she wouldn’t have even suspected it had their minds not been connected and had he not confirmed her physical fitness.

In an instant, she understood why Jacob would be the one to attack Snoke. Kylo was the only one who could bridge the gap between them, and that left her to keep them both alive. It reaffirmed her place in all this.

All right. I’m ready to try again.

This time, she was better prepared for the drop, and after a bit of struggling, did manage to synchronize the rhythm and hold him steady. She could feel him testing her, pushing her to hold it longer - becsuse while he could pull himself out of this at any time, Kylo couldn’t. And she had to be able to hold his vitals for an entire battle, if necesssry.

After several long minutes, though, she felt her control slipping.

“I can’t hold it any longer...” she squeaked.

Kylo’s voice replied, “Yes, you can. You have a galaxy’s worth of energy to draw on... you’re fighting it. Don’t fight it.”

That energy was not just in the cave, but also within Kylo. He was actively meditating on the Force wound and giving them something to tap into. With his help, Rey held Jacob’s vitals steady for another three minutes before she completely lost her grip.

“Good...”

Rather than immediately slam his heart rate into an alarmingly low gear again - something that wasn't good for him and much less helpful for Rey than he'd hoped - he dropped it slowly and steadily before attempting to imitate the patterns he noticed when Kylo started crashing. As Rey figured out how to counteract it, he pushed her harder, making it as close to the real thing as he could; he had to know that they would be able to rely on her completely when the moment came.

Doing this was nearly as taxing on him as it was for Rey, in a way that the Force didn't make any easier, and he slumped slightly, taking deep breaths, as he finally returned his heart rate to normal. "You're doing well. Let me know when you're ready to try again." While she was definitely getting there, he didn't have faith yet that she could support them through an actual battle.

He glanced back over at Kylo. "You too, sir." If he was going to be running point instead of support, after all, he needed to know what Force projection felt like, what it would do to his command over his own abilities. In particular, he wanted to make sure he was prepared for the contingency he didn't even want to have to think about - the one where he'd have to teach someone else to use wound transferal similarly to how he'd taught it to Kylo. Because if anyone dared hurt his kids, they were getting it all back.

The fact that he was actively coaching and assisting Rey meant that Kylo felt ready to continue practicing himself. However, he realistically only had the energy for one more solid attempt today.

“All right. Are you prepared to come with me this time?” He asked Jacob. “And Rey... are you ready to focus on my vitals?”

It would be taking quite a risk to move forward on both accounts, but given the time they had, it might be a risk they were all willing to take. Jacob needed to test his skills in projected form. But to truly focus on that, Rey would have to ground herself here and keep Kylo alive.

Rey hesitated, looking at Jacob. Kylo didn’t voice his concern aloud, but the thought was firmly planted in the forefront of his apprentice’s mind.

If you have to... Can you do both?

I can do whatever you need me to. I will always do whatever you need. If he had to do both, however, he wouldn't be able to fight - he'd have to extract them from the situation if they ended up... somewhere he definitely wasn't going to think about right now.

Not having to do both, though, would be preferable, and judging by Rey's reaction, she didn't think she was quite ready for it yet. "A bit more practice, first. Then, we'll rest briefly... and we'll try again."

This time went much better - despite her hesitation when faced with the real deal, she was definitely more confident, more sure of herself in supporting Jacob this time, and she managed it for what he figured would be enough time to complete the projection. "I think that's about as good as we're going to get, today." He took a few sips of water, then passed the canteen around to Kylo and Rey. "...Ready when you are."

Kylo drew a deep breath, and settled again into a comfortable position.

“Sit beside me, like we did before... Rey, do just what Jacob has been showing you. Feel my heart rate, focus on it, get accustomed to it... But whatever you do, don’t get distracted by the Force wound.” He warned sternly. “Don’t try to manipulate it... It’s going to be drawing in a lot of energy. The last thing I want is for your life force to be caught in that pull. Because I may not be able to stop it from killing you.”

Rey was still nervous, especially after a warning like that, but she sat closer to him anyway. Closing her eys, she reached out with the Force. She knew that he was sick. His gaunt appearance was a far cry from the man she once fought against. But as she looked inside, she was surprised with how solid his vitals felt. His determination to survive this, to win this fight, was bolstering a dying body. Or perhaps, the Force wound was doing that... no, it was devouring him...

“Rey! Focus!” He grunted. Rey jumped. “I mean it.”

She glanced between both of them. “I promise. I’m ready.”

“Jacob, sit behind me, as Rey did. Follow my energy. I don’t know if I can do it on command or even direct it, but I’m going to try. If all goes well... you’ll have prisoners on Xashiri to test on.”

Kylo eventually closed his eyes as well, meditating as he had done before. For a while, nothing happened. But just before someone could break the trance, it happened. Kylo let go, and felt himself traveling through the vastness of space. His heart rate shot up and quickly turned erratic, spurring Rey to focus on it with everything she had.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t Xashiri that the Force had brought him to. It was Mustafar, one of the many training grounds the Knights of Ren often used. And said grounds were currently occupied - by one of the knights that was definitely loyal to his Supreme Leader.

This was not the test any of them were wishing for...

Hopefully this wouldn't turn into the test Jacob thought it might - he didn't feel like killing one of his fellow Knights today, especially when he'd been hoping more than he realized that after Snoke was gone, Kylo could bring them all back into the fold. "Asher Ren. It's been a while."

"Not nearly long enough, traitor," Asher grated out. Their sudden appearance had clearly thrown him for a loop, but he was falling back on instinct until such a time as he could figure out what the hell.

"Do you know what Snoke has done, Asher?" Jacob, meanwhile, was mentally nosing around the edges of Kylo's Force wound, gauging whether he could take control of it, whether there was any wielding it precisely enough to interfere with the other Knight's connection to the Force - and then, he realized what the flaw in his earlier suggestion had been. Against an isolated target, that could work, but Snoke wasn't isolated. The moment he felt something start shutting down his connection to the Force, he'd begin ripping power from the children to break through it. And that would expose them almost directly to the Force wound.

"I know what he's going to do. He's going to bring us freedom - true freedom, for once in our lives - and with it, unimaginable power. What I don't get is how you can possibly stand against him."

"Snoke's plan is fatally flawed, and you'll never live to see the results of it anyway. He's already got your replacement in his clutches - do you realize that? But none of that is why I've turned against him. It's because, in the future he's building, there's no place for our master. Lord Kylo Ren is the only one I care about, and the rest of the galaxy can go burn. You included, if you don't stand down."

Kylo stood beside Jacob. His incorporeal form wasn't burdened by the limitations of his physical body in its current state. But his appearance hadn't changed. He still looked sick, weak - essentially unfit to lead the Knights of Ren.

"Our master is the one who should stand down." Asher replied quickly, glancing at Kylo. "It is the Supreme Leader's way. It is our way!"

Kylo rose his hand, enraged enough to choke the other man, but he stopped. This was not meant to be a battle, simply a test to see if Jacob could use his abilities in projected form. If they got carried away...

Asher Ren, however, grinned malevolently.

"Let the Supreme Leader find a replacement for me. It's only because I'll be taking his place!"

The other knight ignited his lightsaber, ran at them and swung straight through them both. To his complete and utter surprise, nothing happened.

We may not get many chances to test this. Do what you need to do. he told his apprentice with a brief glance. Kylo needed to be the anchor. He needed to maintain control. Jacob was the one who needed to fight.

"Snoke has poisoned your mind deeply if you would dare forget your place and presume that far." Jacob reached out for the Force, and was shocked to find how responsive it was - and he wasn't sure if that was just because he was drawing on his master's power as well as his own, or if it was because of where they were, physically. Ahch-to was an incredibly deep wellspring of the Force, and that made many things easier.

Rather than going straight in for the kill, he struck like lightning with the Force, picking Asher up and slamming him to the ground hard enough to break bones, almost before the other Knight could even realize he'd been attacked. Then, Jacob kept him pinned there. "This is your last chance, Asher. You can either die for nothing, here and now, or you can remember where your loyalties ought to lie. I promise that in our First Order, there will be a place for you."

Asher glared up at him defiantly for a moment, but seemed to be weighing the decision. Finally, though, he spoke. "No. I can't in good conscience take the side of someone who would allow us all to remain slaves of the Force!"

"Speaking of consciences," Jacob gave a derisive snort at the thought of Asher claiming to have such a thing, "it will weigh heavily on mine that I had to do this. Goodbye, Asher."

A moment later, the other Knight clutched his chest - and for the first time, Jacob could sense fear in him. He could also sense that Asher had immediately stopped fighting the Force hold. "What have you done?!"

"I've ruptured your aorta. Don't worry, it's quick. You'll bleed out in a few moments." And it had been just the same process as always - maybe even a little easier, the same as that Force throw had been. "I'll stay with you." He reached out mentally to the dying Knight, needing to see if that part was the same was well. He was counting on it to find out just how far Snoke's plan had progressed, and how to dismantle the pieces that he had no doubt laid plans to continue even despite his death.

This part, on the other hand, was more difficult than usual - probably because of the nature of his connection to Kylo and Rey, since he knew Asher wasn't powerful enough to resist him this well. Finally, though, he was in, and he could sense the other Knight's fear, his pain, his anger.

It isn't fair, the thought found its way up from the depths of Asher's mind.

Of course it isn't. You know who I am. You know I don't fight fair - I fight to end the battle. Though, in turn, he let Asher feel that he really did regret having to kill him. Don't worry - there is nothing but peace waiting for you.

Jacob followed him down the spiral, and it was only once Asher was gone that he realized the kind of mistake that might have been. He broke the projection, snapping them back into their bodies and hoping like hell that Asher hadn't managed to drag Kylo down with him.

Back in the cave on Ahch-to, Kylo was laying across Rey’s lap. Rey’s hands were on his chest, visibly glowing as she struggled to hold Kylo’s vitals steady.

As soon as Jacob as much as blinked, Rey was shouting frantically. “It was all fine until just a couple of minutes ago. I had him! I swear, I had him! Where did you... did you run into Snoke?!”

Jacob didn't answer, didn't even acknowledge she'd spoken - he was too busy probing Kylo in the Force to see if somehow a part of Jacob's attack had snapped back against him, or if there were any complications to this other than exactly what he thought. Finding nothing, he reconnected forcefully with Kylo's mind, and though he'd never tried to pull someone up and out of a death spiral rather than simply following them as they went down, instinct showed him the way. Finally, he and Rey were able to pull Kylo back enough to stabilize his vitals, though they were both panting and shaking with exertion by the time they felt confident enough to let go a little.

"...It's my fault. There was something I had to test, and I didn't realize how dangerous it was going to be to him, with the state his health is in... I don't know how we're going to work around it next time, because it's one of the most important parts of the plan." He pulled Rey in for a hug, one permeated with relief that for the moment they'd weathered this crisis. "You did amazingly. Thank you so much."

Their mental link was strong. When Jacob connected with his opponent's mind, Kylo felt that too. And with his spirit separated from his body, it was all too easy to fall into the spiral. His mind rightfully occupied, Jacob hadn't even noticed Kylo's silence until it was almost too late.

He jerked with a powerful breath. Terrified eyes darted around wildly as Kylo wasn't yet sure whether he was back in his real body or still on Mustafar. His sense came back to him quickly. But he was profoundly exhausted from everything that just happened.

"That... you... It worked..." he gasped. "Felt it... Felt him die... The absence in the Force... It really happened... We'll know. If we kill Snoke, he's not coming back. We'll know."

Whether Kylo could survive said battle to say those words again, however, was still up for debate. But fortunately, they'd learned a few very valuable things from this experiment:

1. That Jacob could fight and kill in projected form.
2. That Kylo was unaffected by the physical affects of Jacob's attacks, or anyone else's, but that the required connection itself was something to be feared.
2. That Rey, as an outside observer, was not affected by either. And that when push came to shove, she was capable of keeping Kylo alive.

As Kylo regained consciousness, Jacob moved to help him sit up. "Thank the Force you're okay. You scared the hell out of both of us." He leaned his forehead against Kylo's. "I'm sorry for putting you through that. It's always part of my process, so I didn't even think..." Since Rey had been too busy holding Kylo's vitals steady to observe the results of the projection the way Jacob had when he was the one supporting it, he turned to her to fill her in on exactly what had happened. "I... had to kill one of my fellow Knights. He'd completely bought into Snoke's lies, and I couldn't change his mind. And whenever I have to kill someone, I'll pull whatever information I can from their minds, so we can gain every advantage possible from their death. This is going to be especially crucial with Snoke, because he's hidden so many things from us, and there's no doubt he has failsafes lined up to ensure his plans continue after he's gone. However, it involves staying inside the victim's mind until they're almost completely gone, which... you've seen the results of."

The information he might pull from Snoke would be unbelievably important. However, there was nothing in the galaxy that was more important to him than Kylo's life - except, potentially, the lives of their children, and anything he didn't know might jeopardize them. He sighed, too tired to handle the dilemma right now. "Anyway, we should start making preparations to get back out of here and return to the surface. If either of you have sensed a way out that's easier than the one we took in, I'd definitely like to hear about it."

"We won't... be able to prevent that..." Kylo forced himself to admit. He was still struggling to catch his breath. "You can't hold back against Snoke. And we have to stay connected... Or else your projection... it would disappear..."

Rey nodded. This meant that she could not falter in her task. Not even once. But while she might have been eager to practice, she was definitely fighting fatigue. Jacob and Kylo, who had just been in a projected battle with another Knight of Ren, were definitely showing the strain. (Kylo, far more so.)

There would be no more training today.

"Kylo? Is there another way out?"

He closed his eyes, the map coming alive in his mind. He tried to share it, but was exhausted enough that he wasn't sure if he managed it or not. "Yes... Not far to swim... There's a cave with a large underground lake... But a long... a long walk back..."

Jacob was closely connected enough to his mind to pick it up anyway, at least, and he made sure to pass it on to Rey. "Whichever way is going to be easier on you, that's how you and I will leave. Rey, you can take whichever way is easier for you." If that meant they split up, then at least he wouldn't have to go to as great a length to protect Kylo's dignity - because, right now, he strongly suspected he'd be carrying his master back up to the hut. In fact, he'd probably insist on it, because even if he wasn't Force sensitive he'd still be able to tell how utterly done in Kylo was, and he didn't want to push him any further until he'd at least had a chance to get a decent night's sleep.

Today had been much more difficult than Jacob had expected. Tomorrow, at least, they would get a slight reprieve - but only because Jacob would have to be on call to meet with the slicer Leia was bringing in, to make sure they had an adequate defense prepared in the event that the Finalizer showed up here with its superweapon fully functional. After that, it was back on the stick.

Unfortunately, splitting up wasn’t going to be in anyone’s best interest. While swimming wasn’t as tiring as hiking on land, the way they’d come in was far enough that he didn’t think he’d be able to make it under his own power. Rey, on the other hand, was more concerned about holding her breath that entire distance when the people guiding her through the techniques were exhausted as well.

The best path out of the sacred cave was the one yet traveled - just as Kylo predicted before they descended.

Without his mental map, they would have surely drowned. Although this path was much shorter and had a few pockets of air now that the tide was out, it had at least double the amount of twists and turns than the previous maze. But the Force was with them. The way was clear.

As they emeged from the lake, it was immedistely clear that this was the real entrance to the cave. The walls were adorned with intricate carvings that had weathered with time. Not much of the writing could be made out, but the aura they produced was still strong. The water was calm at the surface - inviting, yet hiding the difficulties that lay beneath.

“The sun is setting.” Rey observed, giving a moment of privacy to Jacob as he helped Kylo out of the lake. “I’ll run ahead. Make sure Luke has saved you both some supper... or get something started if he hasn’t.”

Kylo nodded, reading between the lines. “...thank you.”

There was no sense in fighting it. He knew fully well that the only way he was getting back to camp was on his apprentice’s back.

Jacob got the thermal blanket back out and wrapped it around Kylo; they both rested for a moment, sharing the remaining water in the canteen. As soon as Rey was out of earshot, Jacob informed his master, "While we're down here, I'm going to grab a sample of that lake water. The type of cancer you have is one that leaves your immune system suppressed, so I need to know if I'm going to have to preemptively dose you up on antibiotics - or antihelmynthics."

As he refilled the canteen, he heard a surprisingly nearby rumble of thunder. "...You have got to be kidding me." Sure enough, when he looked outside of the cave, most of what he could see of the sky was clear, but dark clouds were massing over the island. Returning to Kylo's side, he informed him, "It looks like we're both going straight back to the ship. I won't have you sleeping practically outside when it's pouring down rain - and either way, you could do with being somewhere warm for a little while." He could crank up the temperature on the ship's environmental controls and run the dehumidifier for a bit, and probably Kylo would feel a lot better for it.

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