Star Wars: 30 Years Later The Real Story

Phindar Planet - Outskirts of Helanmip city.

BURN!

His face was burning as it usually did. Since the day he had been defeated and marked by Luke Skywalker and he had implants put into his face and eye, the pain was a permanent companion for Kylo Ren. It was ironic that he had admired Darth Vader since now, he also had something more in common with him. His once fair and handsome face was now scarred and looked more machine than human, and his helmet was now a preferable sight to that of his face. A constant reminder of his failure and a constant fueling of hatred and revenge which had made him look for more brutal and unrelentless methods of training.

- "Remember that scar and use it in your search for power"- had told him Snoke without showing any affection or care, after all he was scarred and deformed himself.

In this mad search, he had spent the last three years taking suicidal missions when the times he had almost died had even been forgotten. He only had his rage as fuel to get power. He needed to embrace the dark side even more if he wanted the power to fulfill his destiny.

- "I'm running out of time!"

The constant series of battles between the Republic and First Order had been the perfect environment for his growth since Dark side users fed from negative emotions and bloodshed. However, not even the most zealous Sith lord would throw himself in such mad way into the fires of destruction like Kylo Ren who had no qualms in fighting against batallions of soldiers or skirmish in aerial battles alone against dozens of veteran pilots. All of them were just steps on his ascencion and food for his hunger of power. It was a tortuous and stressful existance which he had chosen to follow many years ago since the day he decided to abandon the mantle of a Jedi knight.

- "Master Solo, I wonder if you could help me with this..."- said a small padawan who admired him in that time.

His life was peaceful and happy in those days. He spent his days training and meditating in the ways of the Jedi being loved by his parents, trained by his master Luke and admired by his peers who looked up him as an example of a talented Jedi knight who would without a doubt obtain the Jedi master title and would succeed Grandmaster Luke in time and would lead the next generation of Jedi to keep the peace and harmony in the galaxy. Or at least, that was what they saw in him. His feelings were not so harmonious and they could be described as chaotic even.

- "Is this my full potential?"

Even though one could say that he had everything in his life: love, talent, admiration, a future full of promise and success. The truth was that he always felt the need of something else even in his childhood. He was a talented child without a doubt, and many would call him a prodigy and genius who could easily successed in things others would find extremely strenuous, as if he just were reviewing something he already knew. There was no better feeling than breaking the walls of obstacles that previously stopped his advancement. He felt elated every time he could master a movement he could not before or when he could finally surpass his instructors in their own game. He grew arrogant for a time, until Luke Skywalker, his uncle and living legend decided to take him as his apprentice in the ways of the Force. He was very talented also in this and soon he was already competing against people who had spent years training before him.

- "Keep training and you will be fine"- Ben Solo had told the small padawan who looked at him with a radiant smile and who went away eager to train harder and give his best.

However, Ben Solo felt conflicted for those words he had told the young boy, since in his heart of hearts he knew that even though hard work would help that small child, he would never reach his level even in a hundred years. Many would call it arrogance, but he knew this for a fact. The talent he had was simply too much and he felt like a hypocrite saying those words as lip service. Those days, he noticed his own frustration was making him angrier and more impatient. Luke had noticed and he had tried to talk to him.

- "Anger will lead you to the dark side, Ben"- he had said- "keep it in check."

Ben Solo knew his emotions and thoughts were not correct, but they were appearing more and more and he knew why... he perfectly knew the source of his frustrations. His previously rapid advance had been slowing down. Not only that, but there was this dooming sense of finally having found a giant wall which he could not breakthrough like the others and its pending arrival was getting on his nerves. He tried new methods of training and had increased his meditation sessions, but it simply did not work as intended. He was stuck in place and would soon drown.

- "You can't force enlightment, Ben"- Luke had told him with a worried tone about the obssession in his nephew grow- "sometimes we have to accept that we are humans with limitations. You are far stronger and talented that many Jedi masters and soon you will also surpass me. Forcing things will only make you fail and it can be dangerous."

He had tried to accept his situation and for a time, he recovered the peace he had had before, but then the nightmares started... they were not like any normal dream, they were like visions... visions of destruction and death, visions of a future so dark and terrible that most would have become crazy. Something was approaching to this galaxy, something so vast and hideous that not even if you could gather every single sentient being and armed them with all the guns and ships in all the galaxy would be able to stop it. At first, he had tried to believe it was just a bad dream; but then, they became a constant and horrifying iteration where he would wake up screaming in the middle of the night. He had told these visions to his uncle and the council but they were also confused. They advice him to meditate on these visions to try to extract more information, and with the help of Luke, the visions became clearer and he could finally see the only way to save the galaxy. He saw a powerful figure stopping the destruction and vanishing it from the universe. Ben saw this figure and he felt touched to see the vast and incredible power this being had as he manipulated the Force in ways that seemed impossible.

- "Your visions come from the Force"- Luke had told him trying to reassure him- "and I think it is also telling you that in time, there will be someone powerful enough to stop the catastrophe you saw."

And just like that, the council put the visions aside and continued with their lives peacefully. However, Ben was not relaxed... he had found something familiar in the figure in his dream and then one night something clicked and he had a revelation.

- "It must be me! I... I must be the figure who will banish the destruction that is coming"- he had said incredulous at first but with a growing sense of belief as he repeated himself- "Why would the Force reveal such important piece of the future to me specifically?"

He wondered about who could be if not himself. Even though there were many powerful Jedi masters in the council, including his uncle Luke, he was not even near the level of the figure he saw in his vision and he was already old and would not have the potential to grow much in power anymore. Ben was the most talented person after Luke, and he had the bloodline of the Skywalker family, which would have the chosen one of the Force. He started to believe that the prophecy about bringing balance to the Force may be attained with him. .

- "I am the chosen one... I must save the galaxy... and for that, I need power... I need to become as strong and powerful as I was in my vision!"

Since that day, he seemed like a possesssed person with a mission and tripled his efforts to study the Force and all his aspects. He also practiced better and more refined ways to control his powers and light saber skills. Once again, he started to see results, but they were still slow and Ben started to have doubts about the teachings of the Jedi. The New jedi Order allowed the apprentices to study the Dark side in order to not repeat the mistake the previous Jedi council had committed by prohibiting all access to knowledge of the Sith and the dark side, which only made them be absolutely unprepared against their enemies when Sidious and his apprentices came and literally could trash the Jedi of that time.

- "Be very wary of this information, Ben"- had warned his uncle when he gave him access to the holocrons that had information about the Sith- "the dark side is seductive and it could poison you even before you realize. Come and talk to me every time you feel doubts or dangerous feelings."

Luke had been very firm about this since many apprentices had fallen to the dark side and almost lost, but there was no doubt whatsoever that these people had become more powerful after the experience and were better prepared to fight those who followed the dark side. There were even those who became famous Sith hunters like Jaden Korr or Rosh Penin. There were even some rumours that said that even his own uncle Luke had fallen for a time into the dark side and returned stronger to the light side. He started to research about the relationship between those powerful Jedi who had touched or at least experienced the dark side in contrast to those who did not since ancient times, and the results were extremely revealing. The conclusion was that most of the Jedi who had touched the dark side had experienced a significant boost in their power, while most of those who never had experienced the dark side, were average Force users who did not achieve any kind of important merit. He wondered in curiosity how powerful was himself in comparison with a Sith lord and what the result would be if he met one in battle... this question had been answered in a brutal way some months afterwards.

- "You are weak..."- The first Sith lord he had met had told him while he pointed a red lightsaber to his face- "you have such potential and deep connection with the Force, why do you waste it in the weak path of the light when you could be invincible in the darkness?"

He had been sent to a mission with a group of Jedi knights following a dark user of the Force. They had hunted him for weeks, but when they finally found him, he had dispatched all the members of the group so easily that he felt as weak as a padawan trying to fight a master.

- "What have I been doing all this time?"- he wondered as he saw the dark lord approaching him and then, he let his frustration and anger take control and attack the Sith who seemed suprised and even somehow thrilled to see his reaction.

Ben Solo's rage saved his life and gathered the interest of the dark lord who saw the great potential of the young Jedi..

- "You also know this..."- the Sith lord had told him trying to coax him into following him as he kept him immobilized under his boot- "you're stuck due to the short sighted teaching of the useless Jedi and there is only a way to break through and gain the power you so desperately seek!"

Ben wondered how he knew all of this, he did not reply since he was painfully aware of the truth of the words of the Sith lord. He could feel his lack of progress and he knew that he had finally reached his limit.

- "I can help you reach your true potential"- offered the Sith- "and a power you had no idea existed."

He had rejected the offer, of course, he was an extremely naive and stupid Jedi in that moment. However, the Sith lord had detected a tint of doubt and knew the seeds of interest had taken root in the young man's heart.

- "I will never join the dark side..."- said Ben in a tone that seemed to be trying to convince himself- "I will fight you until my last breath..."

- "So you say, yet you still are not convinced, and I feel your conflict"- said the Sith lord with a wide grin- "I see you are still of interest so I'll let you go and ponder about my proposal... Remember this feeling of weakness, remember my boot on your face... remember the anger and how it saved your pitiful existance... remember that you have the choice to be stronger if you only abandon your childish conceptions branded into you by the Jedi. When you finally realize the truth... come and seek me."

He just fainted as he felt the enemy go away as silently as he had arrived. He woke up in the medical room of the Jedi academy and it was the first time he had cried non-stop in his life. However, it was not due to grief for his lost Jedi comrades, but the shame and the frustration of his defeat. His encounter with the dark side user of the Force had opened his eyes completely. He may be considered a prodigy in the Jedi Academy, but he was just an insect in the eyes of true powerful beings.

- "How can I even dream about stopping the great destruction if I can't even defeat a mere Sith?"- he felt an overwhelming anger and dėsɨrė of revenge and he did not try to stop those emotions since they had given him a strength he did not imagine he could have and at the same time they had given him a tint of hope for the future- "If I can use these emotions I can become more powerful than I am now..."

He had told Luke what happened except of course his use of the the dark side and the proposal of the Sith lord. He threw himself into more training and missions, but he also started to study the dark side in a deeper way. In some months, his attitude and even light saber style changed into one which was more agressive and he learned to rely on his emotions to infuse more power into his attacks. At the beginning, he felt guilty about this, but he noticed his stress also diminished as he let his emotions off. As time passed, the feelings of guilt and remorse had vanished and he noticed the big leap in his strength and soon he started to have a clear mind about what he had to do.

- "If this is the power I can obtain with a superficial knowledge of the dark side, then..."- he started to relish in the possibilities- "what if I studied the dark side even more..."

It started as a fleeting idea, but the thought became more and more tempting with every day that passed and so he started to hunt the Sith lord that had opened his eyes some months ago. He found him not long after and the fight that insued was definitely more decent than what it had been before.

- "Yes! Finally you have touched the boundaries of true power"- had said the Sith lord as he battled the young Ben Solo who definitely had grown stronger than before- "And yet... you have just entered the skirts of the mountain and have no idea how far away you are from the pinacle.

- "So much power!"

His first steps into the dark side had been enlightening and he felt as if all the knowledge he was receiving, filled the holes left opened by the Jedi teachings. Soon, his power soared once again and his hope in having a chance of saving the galaxy also grew. The answer to stop the great devastation was in the dark side and he would exploit it as much as he could.

- "You are prepared now for the next level"

It was after some months of training that his new master told him of a secret which would give him an explosive advancement in his search for power. It was a secret for most people except for those with access to ancient knowledge. His own uncle Luke knew about it and he, had no doubt, taken advantage of them.

- "He hid it from me!"- said Ben as his hatred for his uncle and former master, which already existed before due to his frustration for his lack of improvement, became even bigger- "he saw me as I suffered and begged for help and he decided to not tell me..."

He was talking about Jedi and Sith temples which were spread all over the galaxy. They were hidden in different places mostly inaccesible and deadly for most mortals and only those with the suffcient insight, power and connection with the Force could find them. These were training grounds which the Sith lords and Jedi masters of old had used to polish themselves and get the upper hand against their eternal enemies.

- "Now you understand what true power is"- had said his master as Ben had just finished his first training session in the Sith temple they had gone.

The results were almost instantaneous and his power increased by leaps and bounds. He had doubled his strength in the first month. However, this was absolutely nothing in comparison with the harvest he had when he entered a Sith temple for the first time. It was a low level basic temple but the results were shocking. Two months in a Sith temple had given him more power than a decade in the Jedi academy.

- "I know..."- Ben said before pointing his lightsaber to his current master- "and that's why I know you are weak... and not worthy of being my master anymore."

- "I have been waiting for this"- said the Sith lord as he ignited his own lightsaber and ready himself to perform the ancient custom of the Sith- "You are finally worthy to be my stepping stone."

The battle that ensued was difficult, but Ben had relished in his new found powers and had unleashed every ounce of power he had. He had never felt so much alive and ecstatic in a fight. All the time he had this sick grin on his face knowing that no matter what his opponent did, his victory was ȧssured. In the end, Ben Solo had managed to slay his former master and take his red lightsaber which had a synth crystal which gave the lightsaber enhanced damage power. For some reason he started to laugh histerically and he only stopped when he heard a voice behind him.

- "It seems I underestimated you..."- had said a cold voice who seemed to be amused behind him- "I thought it would take you more time"

It was a tall and thin figure with a golden robe who seemed to be ethereal and out of this world. Ben panicked and tried to attack him, but the figure stopped and submitted him with a mere wave of his hand. Ben could not move and knew this thing was vastly superior to him or his former master. He was an insect in his eyes and could crush him in the moment he wanted.

- "I've been taken note of your development young one"- the robbed figure said with a collected voice- "you have talent and could be even greater, but you still hold certain link with the light. Until you destroy those shackles, you will not reach your full potential. I can help you, but you must accept me as your master and leave behind everything else. Are you willing?"

He had kneeled that day and had accepted him as his master. Under his guidance, he got even more powerful and soon he was ready to rise as a powerful dark lord and even created a group of followers strong in the dark side under his name. His baptism as a Sith lord had been the erradication of the Jedi academy where his peers and even many veteran jedi masters had not been a match for him or his Knights of Ren.

- "Why...? Why did you do this...?"

He even slayed that young padawan who had admired him. He did not want admiration nor a common life. He wanted power and the most effective way to get it was by erradicating those he held dear before. That day he had received the name of Kylo Ren and his quest for power became even more fanatical than before.

- "I am the chosen one... I need power to save the galaxy!"

After this, the hunting of surviving Jedi and the search for more Sith temples had become his main objectives and he had made himself a powerful reputation all over the galaxy, but when he lost against Luke Skywalker in Starkiller base, he had realized how delusional he had been. He was still weak. All the strength he had was just garbage unless he could defeat Luke Skywalker and his current master. Only then, he could have a chance to stop the catastrophe that was coming. His search for temples had given him two results, the first one two years prior and the last one six months ago. The last temple had been by far the most brutal he had trained in and as a result it was also the one which had given him the most results.

- "Juggernaut trial completed! End of trial and new Sith heavy armor."

As soon as he left the Sith temple in his ancient Sith armor, he had felt the presence of his hated foe and had started the next phase of the plan. He had calculated that the old Jedi master would be in his lowest after various days of non-stop combat and he also took in consideration the surprise he would have when he showed his new technique. If he calculated correctly, there was a high chance to eliminate his fomer master and use him as a stepping stone.

- "You won't have the chance"

When they finally fought, Kylo Ren could feel the exhaustion in the old man and he even managed to have an opening to kill him. However, who would have thought that a mere Republican trooper could dare to attack him directly? This annoying act had given Luke the chance to recover and turn the tables on him. He knew he had failed, but all was good since he could clearly feel his advancement. He had learned to be patient and so he decided to retire for now. He sent the signal and soon the area was bombed by TIE fighters.

- "You choose, chase after me and your allies die or try to save them and lose me"- Kylo Ren escaped from the area to the pick up point.

(...)

"Damn!"- Luke swore since he knew he had to let Kylo Ren go.

The attack was swift and brutal. TIE fighters and bombers ravaged the battlefield without care about the Republic forces or the First Order stormtroopers which found themselves in the middle of the destruction. Luke also was affected and soon he was evading blasters. He noticed the TIE fIghters were rounding them into a specific area, Luke jumped in front of the republic forces and raised his hand in the direction of the TIE fighters which opened fire and covered the area of explosions and dust. Once the dust went away everybody saw the giant blasters of the TIE fighters immovilized in front of Luke who seemed to be sweating a lot. He then roared and sent the blasters back to the TIE fighters which received them and exploded.

- "They are retreating!"- shouted a soldier seeing that the TIE fighters as long with many transportation vessels were abandoning the area.

Luke fell to the ground exhusted and saw as the airships where Kylo Ren was without a doubt, left the planet.

- "I failed again..."- said Luke feeling an ill foreboding sensation.

Luke was shocked for the advancement of Kylo Ren. His control and power were in another level and even though he had managed to get the upper hand, it had been due to the valiant action of a soldier. Otherwise, he would have been defeated.

- "He is growing too fast"- thought Luke as he remembered how more polished and sharp his attacks were and how his phisical prowress was at the top level- " I need to hurry with Rey and Finn..."

He realized his age was taking a toll on him and he wondered if the next time they faced each other, his nephew would finally beat him.. This battle was his loss and maybe the next time it would not be just a temporary but a permanent one.