It hurt. The scars. It felt like they were on fire. Once, they were; I remember the flesh bubbling and melting and my own screaming and the fading of my vision into nothingness. That was how it had been ever since: vast, merciless nothing.

Ben had blinded me. The evil in him had blinded me.

I had fled to refuge with a friend, a trader named Maz Kanata. She took me in, protected me and gave me a new purpose in life. I was surviving the best I could.

"Can you hang up notices around the bar saying we'll be closed tomorrow? Per Maz Kanata's orders," I instructed a nearby droid.

"Certainly, Miss Cadwell," the droid replied.

"Thank you," I acknowledged. The droid's mechanical body whirred as it produced a stack of sticky-backed flyers. The droid prodded me with a metal feeler and handed the pile of notices into my arms.

I shuffled along, sticking flyers randomly along the walls of the hallway, hoping they were upright. Reaching the bar, which was filled with raucous laughter, music, and conversation, I felt my way to the bar and handed the papers to the bartender.

"Put these up around the bar, per Maz's orders," I said. The bartender was a gruff Andonian alien named Hondini who wasn't the nicest soul but without a doubt made the best drinks in the galaxy.

Hondini grunted in reply. There was a shuffle of papers and footsteps and then a pause. "Why's she closing?" Hondini grumbled.

"Special buyer coming. Very important people. She doesn't want to be disturbed," I replied.

Hondini grunted once more. "I'll get it done. You run along and tell that droid F67 we're running out of sherry." He said, and resumed his bar-tending.

Making my way out of the cluttered bar, I couldn't help but hope that this was not what I would be reduced to for the rest of my life: A candy-striper. I was more than this, I had more purpose than this... but the fact that I hoped at all, I knew, would be my downfall if I decided to stray from the dull but safe work Maz had given me.

~~~

The night was filled with strange nightmare-esque dreams.

I was standing in a oval-shaped room overlooking a spiral galaxy. I recognized it as the Raxicc System. With a start, I realized I was seeing it.

My breath hitched. I felt hungry for more- I needed to see everything I could while I still had the ability to. I observed my hands, and was surprised again to see that they were as big as dinner plates and pale, in contrast to my usual tan skin. Growing steadily more confused, I looked at my clothes: all black, and that of a man's. I turned to face the rest of the room and gasped.

Smooth, glossy walls reflected the light emanating off the galaxy. A messy, unmade bed sat in the middle of the room. It wasn't that that suddenly scared me so, though; it was the pedestal shrouded in weak light resting to my right, which held the decaying helmet of Darth Vader.

I whirled around and ran towards the bed. Once again my breath hitched and I felt an intense fear; it couldn't be more than a dream, it was too real, too intense-

But I couldn't deny the fact that Kylo Ren's helmet and lightsaber were lying on the bed right before me.

Then, with a painful tug in my brain, a voice entered my head that wasn't my own:

It's so dark.

"Who are you?!" I cried, and I was surprised yet again when my voice came out as dark, silky and strangely malicious.

Shaking off the shock of being disconnected from my own body, I focused on the voice. I knew somehow that this voice was connected to my dream, or vision- whatever I was experiencing. "What is this?!" I cried.

I can't see...

"Answer me!" I roared. I was startled by the anger that I heard in my voice.

The voice seemed to finally acknowledge that I was there. I don't know what's going on.

"Who are you?" I repeated, hoping by some lucky chance that I was not in the room- and body- of Kylo Ren.

I'm- The voice hesitated. I'm.. I'm no one. Who are you?

"If you can't trust me to tell me your name then there's no way I'm giving you mine," I snarled.

Silence ruled for a moment.

My name is Luke.

"Luke," I repeated. "And your surname is...?"

Once again the voice hesitated.

Organa.

I snorted. "Ironic name."

Yes.. yes, so I've been told... and you are?

"A-" I paused. Should I give this stranger my real name? "My name is Vivian Thorne," I finished, deciding against revealing my true identity.

Luke seemed to think for a moment. What do you see right now, Vivian?

I looked around again. "A dark room," I reported. "With a bed. It smells like ozone." I wrinkled my nose. The room indeed feel like it was over saturated with energy, like someone was trying to contain lightning in the space but failing to keep it under control.

What else?

I wondered again if I could trust this stranger.

"Darth Vader's and Kylo Ren's helmets," I blurted, subconsciously deciding to trust the voice against my better judgement.

I was alone, and scared, I realized, and Luke Organa was the only thing I had that came close to an answer.

I don't see anything, Luke relayed. Are you... in your own body?

"I don't think so," I admitted with a small laugh.

Luke was silent for a moment. I don't think this is just a dream,

"No," I breathed. "I think it's the force connecting us,"

I took a deep breath, feeling electricity race along my windpipe and throughout my lungs. "Can you feel it?" I asked.

Yes

"Its almost electric here.. it's stronger than I've ever felt it, except for when-" I stopped myself before I could reveal more than I had to.

It's the same here, too. Luke replied.

"I-" I felt a tug along my spine. The room started to fade; the walls and furniture became more and more hazed until they were blurred blobs sitting in my limited sight.

"I think I'm waking up..."

The room went dark.

~~~

I opened my eyes. Nothing.

"Luke..."

"Get up!" A sharp voice commanded. It was Maz. Panic laced her voice.

"What? What is it?" I questioned, sitting up. I was relieved to find that I was once again myself.

"The buyers are here."

I stood up. Wobbling in my feet for a second, I braced myself against the wall. A sharp pain penetrated my brain and cold flooded my body. "Maz... These buyers... I don't think they're safe." I frowned. "I feel a great disturbance in the Force."

Max placed a hand on my arm. "Unfortunately you are correct, Ada. I cannot apologize to you enough for what I've done, and I can only hope that you have faith in my character. I had no choice but to sell to them, to keep this place safe."

A sense of growing dread gnawed at my stomach. "Maz, Who are the buyers?"

Maz took a deep breath. "The First Order."