Episode 9: Nemesis of the Force Part 1

Skywalker Saga

The Shadows of the Past Trilogy

Episode 9: Nemesis of the Force Part 1

                Movie opens with the following crawl:

                The galaxy is torn apart by senseless warfare!  No longer afraid of the First Order because it was crippled in the days following the destruction of the Hosnian system, and with the New Republic and Resistance forces severely weakened, new factions have seized key systems, fortifying their own power bases and establishing all new realms. 

                Meanwhile, led by Chancellor Organa and General Poe Dameron, the last embers of the Resistance and New Republic military have united in an attempt to once more rebuild and restore peace to the galaxy.  The once-centralized government, however, struggles just to maintain its own borders against the seemingly unending assaults from their enemies on every side.

                Bent on destroying his mother and her people no matter the cost, Supreme Leader Ren finds himself struggling to maintain order in his own ranks.  Having sacrificed countless lives and resources to accomplish his goals, the son of Solo finds himself surrounded by conspirators…

                The typical star field remains.  Then it drops to the Star Destroyer Finalizer.  The ship hovers over Corellia.  There are two other star destroyers in the system as well that can be seen, and they all launch their siege transports with TIE escorts.  Aboard the bridge of the Finalizer, Kylo Ren stands, staring out the viewport.  An officer approaches.  He is Captain Traisl.

                “My Lord,” says Captain Traisl.  “The reports appear to check out.  Chancellor Organa is at the main military base near Corellia’s capital city of Coronet.  As reported, she is here with only a handful of her people on a diplomatic mission to try to gain the support of Black Sun.”

                Kylo seems unhappy, however.  “Where is Hux?” he says in frustration.  “He was supposed to arrive with us to ensure there would be no escape.”

                “Perhaps his portion of the attack fleet was detained mid-jump, Sir,” says Captain Traisl.  “We are too far Core-ward, My Lord.  Black Sun is the strongest government here in this region of space, and the Zyn Empire is the Republic’s neighbor just off to the galactic northeast.  Then there is the Hapes Consortium…any of these governments could have waylaid him.”

                Kylo says nothing to this, raising his hand to his chin in concentration.  “Interesting,” he replies.  “I can sense Organa below, on the planet.  I can sense others as well.  It’s just…Something is wrong.”

                And just as he says this, a large number of capital ships drop out of hyperspace all around Kylo’s small fleet.  They are not as large as the Star Destroyers, but there are many more of them.  Immediately, they launch their fighters.  

                 Kylo turns to Traisl in alarm.  “Black Sun!”  He then storms off to exit the bridge.  As he does, he orders, “Notify all ground troops to return to their ships at once!  All fighter craft are to provide cover for our transports and then attack Black Sun.  Hold them off as long as you can.” 

                “Where are you going, Sir?” asks Traisl.

                Kylo pauses at the entranceway.  “You are in charge here, Traisl.  Don’t fail me.”  Then he continues on his way.  “It ends today,” he says under his breath.  “It has to!”  The last he says almost growling.

                On the bridge, Traisl stares after him, a smile spreading slowly across his face.  Then he turns to his communications officer.  “Notify Hux.”

                “Yes sir!” says the officer.

                Kylo races in his TIE Silencer out of the hanger bay, followed by a dozen other TIE Silencers.  He and his small force weave their way through the battlefield.  Kylo ignores the whole battle.  His main objective is obvious.  Flipping a few switches, the small craft suddenly cloaks, vanishing from view, and the other TIE Silencers follow suit.  

                They reach the planet, therefore, with no issues, and Kylo lands at an unoccupied dock large enough to hold a big freighter.  His guard follow suit.  A custom’s officer sees the ships as they uncloak, and he comes rushing to confront Kylo, only to find himself frozen in place and unable to move.  Kylo walks by him and runs him through with his lightsaber.  He continues as the man drops to the ground.  Kylo’s elite guard follow hot on his trail, dressed all in black, as he is.

                Hux’s attack fleet then arrives in system.  It consists of three more destroyers and another dreadnought, similar to the Fulminatrix.  On the bridge, Hux stands before a holo-image of Traisl.  “Ren is on the ground now in Coronet City, Sir.  He took the bait, just as you said.”

                Hux’s air of triumph is felt.  “And so ends the last of the Skywalker bloodline,” he says.  “Give the order.  Decimate Coronet City and everything in it.  Notify the Knights of Ren.  Let them know he is on his way to them.”

                The image of Traisl disappears, replaced by an image of a Falleen male, appearing much like Prince Xizor.  “Do we still have a deal?” says Hux.

                The Falleen smiles and bows slightly.  “Black Sun would only benefit greatly from this alliance, Supreme Leader.  I would not dare throw that away, especially with the Zyn Empire being the threat that it is.  Someone has to stop them or the entire galaxy will be replaced by clones.”

                Hux nods.  “Agreed.”

                Then the entire fleet of Star Destroyers, including the Finalizer, and all of the Black Sun capital ships, begin firing upon Corellia, targeting Coronet City.  The energy shield holds for the moment, but it is being pounded relentlessly. 

                On Coronet City, alarms sirens blare everywhere.  Kylo Ren pauses.  “Traisl!” he cries into his comlink.  “What are you doing?  What’s happening?”  He looks up again, alarmed that the planetary shield is being pummeled so heavily.  “Traisl!”  There is no response.  Growling, Kylo hurls his comlink away from him.  Reality dawns on him.  He shakes his head in disbelief.  “I will hunt you all to extinction,” he curses violently in low tones. 

                Then the sound of gas is heard.  Kylo spins around to see green gas pouring out of the helmets of his elite guard.  They gasp and choke as they crumple to the ground.  Kylo backs away.  He stands there a moment as if pondering what he should do next.  Then he spins back around towards the military base and proceeds to pick up the pace, running through the city towards his destination.

                The people of Coronet City are frantic as they try desperately to flee.  Kylo weaves his way around them and to the military base, which is being flooded by panicked civilians.  Ignoring them all, Ren bounds over the wall, landing on the other side without anyone noticing.  Then he continues on up to the base’s main entrance.  Two guards see him, but he throws one into the other immediately.  Making sure they are dead, he stabs them with his saber.  Then he grabs a key card and swipes it on the door.

                Kylo winds his way through the base.  Anyone he comes across dies.  Finally, he grabs a servant by the throat.  “Where is Organa meeting with the Vigo?”

                The servant points, and he tosses her to the ground.  He bursts into the dining room, and there, dressed all in white, is Organa, and a dozen Republic bodyguards, though you can’t see Organa’s face.  Her back is to him.  Also present is a Rodian Vigo of Black Sun, Dammo, and about a dozen of his guards.  

                They all spring to action, the moment he arrives, and Kylo slashes his way through them as if they are nothing to him.  The Vigo escapes immediately out one of the entrances, but when Organa tries to as well, Kylo uses the Force to slam the door in her face.  He then pins her to the wall with the Force.  Still, you cannot see her face.

                Finally, Kylo approaches and throws her onto her back against the wall so he can see her.  But it is not Leia.  Instead, Altaria, the Mirialan Knight of Ren who Luke had unmasked in Snoke’s throne room smiles at him, laughing.  Kylo tries to run her through, but one of the guards, who had feigned death, leaps up and uses the Force to fling Kylo away from her.  Kylo slams into another wall and recovers just as the guard comes at him again, along with Altaria.

                Kylo fights off the two as he makes for the nearest exit.  “You will be happy to know,” Altaria says as her and her brutish Barabel ally, another Knight of Ren disguised as a Black Sun guard, exchange attacks against Kylo.  “Your mother is indeed on the planet.  She also fell right into our trap.  She took a risk, and…well…it has cost her.  Now she and her son will die today.”

                Furious, the Dark Side comes to Kylo’s aid, and he unleashes a wave of Dark Side that sends them flying backwards as fire dances around Kylo… as if generated by him.  The two Knights of Ren roll to their feet, dazed but not out.  As they do, Altaria shouts to the other, “Where is our backup?  They should be here by now!”

                In another part of the doomed base, the Knights of Ren have surrounded Leia.  A fight has ensued, and Leia's guards are all dead.  Leia battles them with a lightsaber and Force powers, showing that she has also trained under Luke over the last 30-some years.  After a few intense seconds, however, she is beaten when one hurls a stun rod and hits her in the back of the head.

                “It’s time,” one of them says.  “You two stay here.  We’ll help Altaria and Gnoza take out Kylo.”

                 "We'll take it from here,” says one of the others in response.  “Just make Kylo pay.  Make him suffer.”

                “But do it quick,” says the other.  “Those shields aren’t going to hold forever.

                The rest of the Knights turn towards the door.  The leader opens it and is about to step through it when there, standing like a dark tower, is a black armored assassin droid.  A sudden host of stun grenades drops into the room.  They detonate, and the Knights of Ren fall to the floor.

                Only the leader remains conscious as another figure strides into the room followed by the terrifying, black assassin droid that looks like a sleek, armored human.  One black boot of the unknown figure pins the leader of this group of Knights to the ground by the throat.  “B…but how?” he gurgles.  “The Force…”

                “It didn’t warn you?” says a cold, female voice - the voice of Saydra, though her face is hidden in shadows.  “No, it wouldn’t have.”  Still all you can see is the Knight of Ren on the ground.  “You rely too heavily on the Force, and it has blinded you.”  

                She says the next line mockingly.  “Simple stun grenades were enough to bring down the fierce Knights of Ren.  Do you know why?  You cannot deflect them with lightsabers.  Drop enough of them and they will overwhelm even the most powerful Force-users AND your targets will have no place to dodge or flee to.”  

                A beam of red light can suddenly be seen running down the wall and stopping on the Knight's helmeted forehead, just like that of a sniper rifle’s laser sight.  Then the camera cuts to the hallway.  There are red flashes coming from the room through the still open door, and the sound of a blaster firing over and over again.

                And with this, the planetary shield fails.  The blasts from the ships in space rain down on the city creating devastation and havoc everywhere.  Speeders and starships are shown attempting to escape the city, but they are blasted down by waiting TIEs and walkers.  Ground assault troops have circled the city at a safe distance, only there to ensure no one escapes by land.

                Back in the dining hall of the military base, Kylo, Altaria and Gnoza are tossed about like dolls as the base takes blast after blast.  It is the first and primary target.  Realizing that it is now too late to kill Kylo, Altaria and Gnoza escape out a different entrance, and Kylo heads out the way he’d come in.  However, Kylo still rushes around, looking for his mother.

                The black droid with Saydra, ST-01, also known as Stalker, follows behind her flowing black cape.  Over its shoulder is the limp form of Leia.  He carries her green lightsaber in his left hand.  Saydra seems unconcerned about the city and military base blowing up around her.  A Black Sun guard rushes into view and attacks her.  She deflects the blaster bolts with her left hand.  Then she launches a single blast of lightning.  He falls backwards, clutching his face.  You then see her face, the red, cybernetic eye shifts.  Then you see the red beam on the guard who had just attacked her.  A moment later, the shoulder-mounted laser pierces him with a red bolt.

                “I have the Chancellor,” says Saydra as if into a comlink.  However, she does not make a move to even activate one.

                A tinny voice replies from somewhere.  “The ship is ready, M’Lady.”

                Kylo continues through the facility as fast as he can, but it is blowing up, cascading debris and huge chunks of duracrete down around him.  Only with Jedi reflexes does he avoid getting pinned alive.

                Then he bursts through a final, open door and out into a courtyard beyond.  There, he sees a sleek, red transport.  Saydra and Stalker arrive at the ramp just as Kylo bursts onto the scene.  “No!” he gives out a cry of frustration.

                Saydra pauses and stares back at him as if he is a pathetic insect.  “Stalker,” she orders the droid.  “Put Organa inside the ship.  I will deal with Solo.”  The droid doesn’t even speak.  It just complies, vanishing up the ramp with Leia.

                Kylo rushes Saydra, lightsaber flaring.  Saydra merely stands there, an emotionless pillar of darkness.  She doesn’t even ignite her lightsaber.  Instead, as Kylo slashes out at her with his blade, her right hand, the cybernetic one, snaps up and catches the energy beam, holding it fast.

                Kylo is jarred.  “What?” he says, blinking.

                Saydra doesn’t even reply.  Instead, her red eye focuses on Kylo’s head.  The laser beam from her shoulder fires.  Kylo’s left hand extends at the last second, stopping the beam right before it hits him.  Saydra doesn’t hesitate, but she kicks upward with her right, cybernetic leg.  A spike extends from her boot, and Kylo takes the hit in the left knee.  He screams and falls to the ground, the laser beam being released and nicking him in the side of the head as well.

                Saydra rips the lightsaber out of his hand and tosses it.  As he crumples to the ground, she turns and walks up the ramp of the ship as if uninterested in Kylo any longer.  The ship then takes off as Kylo desperately tries to retrieve his saber and escape.  As he watches, Saydra’s ship cloaks and vanishes from sight, replaced only by the sight of more and more turbolasers blasting the military base and city.

                Looking around, Kylo realizes that there is no hope for him in sight.  Everything is burning.  He has been left in a hellish world where the screams of the dying are all he can hear, silenced by the explosions from the turbolasers.  He slumps to the ground on hands and knees, clenching his hands into tight fists as he breathes heavily.  Shaking his head, he says, “It…it cannot end like this.”  Tears begin to stream down his face.  “It cannot end like this!”

                A blast strikes incredibly close to him, tossing huge chunks of debris at him.  Still, he does not move.  The tears keep falling as he weeps openly and bitterly.  Again and again he pounds his fists on the ground. 

                And then, it is almost as if Jacen Solo returns.  His expression softens to one of deep loneliness and regret.  “I’m so sorry,” he mutters as another blast devastates the ground not far from him, bathing him in smoke and debris.  “Mother…Father…Uncle Luke...Forgive me…Please forgive me."  Then he pauses as he looks around him.  Another person comes to his mind.  He closes his eyes.  "Rey.  Hear me!”  The last he gurgles out as he chokes and sputters from the dust and smoke swirling through the air as another blast hits near him.

                That's when, as clear as a bell, Rey’s voice suddenly pierces the air, cutting through the noise.  “No Chewie,” she says.  "Just be ready on my mark."  As Kylo looks up in shock, there is Rey, standing in her once white Jedi combat attire, double-bladed lightsaber at one hip and blaster at the other.  She smiles at him warmly with her hand extended out to him.  Then, teasingly, she says, “Would you like to go now, or are you looking to make this your new home?”

                Kylo reaches up for her outstretched hand in disbelief.  “Are you really here?”

                Rey pulls him quickly to his feet and suddenly hefts him over her shoulder.  “What do you think?” she says, and then she races across the blasted courtyard, past the smoking, flaming ruin.  There, just a short distance away, the Falcon sits idle, ready to lift off.  More and more, explosions tear the place apart.  Then she darts up the ramp and slams her fist against the switch.  “Go!  Go!  Go!” she cries, and Chewie lifts off.  R2 and 3P0 are also seen aboard the Falcon, as is Rose and Finn.

                “This was a little too close for comfort!” says Finn as he helps pull Kylo off of her shoulder.  As Finn continues, they carry Kylo, half conscious, to one the medical beds.  “Are you crazy?  Do you realize you just risked all our lives to save the First Order’s Supreme Leader - not to mention the guy who killed his own father and who has tried to kill us all for the last half a decade?  And on top of it all, by doing so, we let the kidnappers get away with the Chancellor!”

                Rey meets his gaze with a sharp look.  “Finn, think of Leia.  Who do you think she’d rather have us rescue; herself or her son?  Besides, think for a minute.  Why is the Supreme Leader half dead on the surface of the planet while his own people are bombarding it?”

                “Wait,” says Finn, the situation finally hitting him.  “Are you saying Kylo’s just been seriously demoted?”

                “That’s an understatement,” says Rose.

                A blast rocks the Falcon.  Chewie roars in alarm.  Rey then finishes strapping Kylo down, and she races for the cockpit.  “Enemy fighters approaching.”

                “I told you what the fighters were doing,” says Finn as he climbs into one of the turrets.  Rose takes the other at the same time.  “They’re not letting anyone escape.”

                “I can’t believe they’d destroy an entire city just to kill one or two people,” Rose remarks as she twists the turret and fires at the first wave of fighters.  “I swear there is no limit to how evil they are.”

                “Two fighters!” cries Rey.  “Port side.”

                “I got ‘em,” says Finn.  “Man!  I wish Poe was here right now.  We could really use his X-wing.”

                “We could use a whole fleet of X-wings,” Rose adds.  The Falcon then dives closer to the ground as swarms of fighters pursue, tearing up everything around them.  

                Back in the cockpit, Rey flips a few switches.  “Hold on to something.”  The Falcon spins wildly as its cannons continue to spray energy beams in every direction.  TIE fighters continue raining death on the freighter.  And then, it suddenly stops spinning and sharply climbs at a ninety degree angle straight for the sky.  As a result, Finn and Rose continue to fire behind the ship, and it tears up the ground, sending stone and earth flying in massive clouds. 

                From the view of the leading TIE pilot, he suddenly sees the Falcon climb and ground being torn up.  A massive dirt cloud spews into the air and engulfs his ship momentarily.  There is a roaring of engines as the Falcon is barely seen flying right over the TIE.  

                Then the Falcon flies into the wave of fighters, spinning violently.  As it does, the tips of the Falcon swat the TIE's wings, sending a vast number of them careening out of control.  Several crash into one another and the ground.  Others get torn apart by shots from the Falcon’s lasers as they shoot off behind it.  Only a few of the fighters actually recover from Rey’s maneuver.

                “There’s our gap,” says Rey, righting the Falcon and aiming it straight for a gap in the cloud of fighters circling like vultures around the city.

                Chewie roars at her angrily, dizzy and obviously scared.  Near him, his pet Porg, Kuranraha, mimics his cry.

                “Oh, don’t be such babies,” Rey says as she jams the thrusters to full throttle.  “Finn!  Rose!  Full forward.  Keep any that are noticing us from closing the gap.”

                “On it!” cries Finn.

                The Falcon races for the opening, and indeed TIEs begin closing the gap.  The Falcon’s guns pound fighter after fighter as Rey weaves about, maneuvering the Falcon with as much skill as Han ever did.  “I don’t know if we’re gonna make it,” Finn comments.

                “The Falcon’s already taken a beating, Rey!” Rose snaps.  “I don’t know how much more she can take.”  Then, to herself, as she continues firing endlessly, she mutters, “Always pushing her to the limits.  Always pushing ME to the limits, and I'm the one who always has to fix it.”

                As the gap closes, Rey suddenly dives.  Chewie roars a warning.  “I know!  I know!  I see them.”

                3P0, who has been in the seat behind her the entire time, chimes in.  “Mistress Rey, those are heavy walkers!  They’ll tear the ship apart.  The odds of surviving a direct assault against a line of heavy artillery walkers AND a swarm of over fifty TIE fighters is nine thousand, six hundred and twenty to one!”

                Rey, simply ignoring him, punches a few switches.  Heavy missiles launch from in front of the Falcon straight at the line of walkers.  They detonate upon impact, and waves of electrical energy bloom outward.

                “Ion missiles!” Rose shouts happily.  “Are those the new MR-16s?  When did we have those installed, and why didn't you tell ME?”

                Rey continues straight towards the shockwave, unafraid of it.  The blast dissipates just as she zooms through the enemy lines.  Fighters that were descending, begin strafing the area.  Only a few shots actually hit the Falcon as Rey continues to jerk and twist the ship like an expert.  “Back when we did that mission on Raltir,” Rey answers.  Then teasingly, she adds, “while you and Finn were playing around, I was doing something useful.”

                “Playing around?” Rose laughs, unable to keep from smiling.  “We were being chased by Zyn troopers.”

                “Dozens of them,” Finn adds.

                “Well,” says Rey as she spins the Falcon towards the mountains in the distance.  “You weren’t exactly nice to them.  You did start it.”

                Rose snaps off a few more shots.  “I started it?  They were slaughtering civilians.”

                “They always slaughter everyone,” Finn puts in.  “And I thought the First Order was bad.”

                “You could have helped us,” Rose adds.

                Rey spins the Falcon again.  Chewie and the Porg roar angrily.  “Will you stop doing that?” asks Finn.  “I can't hit anything with you spinning us like that.”

                “If I stop, they'll hit US,” she snaps back.  “And we've been over this.  I couldn’t have helped you.  I had other things I had to do.”

                “Force things,” Finn adds, and there is a note of bitterness in his comment.

                “Yes,” says Rey as she jerks the controls again, bucking the Falcon.  “Force things.”

                And with that, the Falcon enters the mountains, staying low and narrowly avoiding collisions.  Behind, the TIEs are not so lucky.  Many of them pull up to try to get a better shot from above.  Others just smash right into the rocks.

                Then, all at once, Rey cries out, “R2!  Have those boosters recharged yet?”  R2 squeals from somewhere in the back of the ship.  “Just what I wanted to hear.  Punch it!”  She then jerks back on the controls and forces the Falcon into another ninety degree climb at break-neck speeds.  The ship’s interior groans from the strain.  

                Suddenly, four panels split open near the back of the ship, and four of the same boosters from the Battle of D’Qar that were on Poe's ship lock into place.  A moment later, they ignite, and the Falcon skyrockets towards space at incredible speeds.  TIEs twist and swerve away, some just in time, as the Falcon flies like a missile, punching the atmosphere and shooting off into empty space.  With most of the TIEs on the planet below, the Falcon loses its pursuers temporarily.

                “Chewie,” Rey orders as she veers the Falcon towards some of the capital ships.  “Set course for Mimban.  R2, recharge the boosters again.  We’ll need them one more time before we can get away.”

                “Why Mimban?” asks Rose.  “That’s Hutt space now?”

                Rey, still focused on the task at hand, replies, “There’s something there I have to do.”

                Finn shakes his head.  “A Force thing.”

                Rey grits her teeth.  “No.  Not this time.  There was another reason Leia wanted us to come with her here to Corellia.  There was someone here who gave me a lead - to my parents.”

                "What about Leia?" asks Finn.  "We need to follow those kidnappers."

                Rey stares sadly out the viewport.  "That was a Zyn ship, and it immediately cloaked.  We'd never find it now.  There's only one hope of getting Leia back.  We'll contact Poe mid-jump.  I think the Felderra Dragons are working in Zyn space currently.  Maybe they can do something."  (Note: NOW individuals can communicate even while in hyperspace, showing that technology has advanced since the original movies.)

                Aboard his new flagship, the dreadnought Valiant, Hux receives a report from one of his officers.  “The Millennium Falcon was seen escaping the planet, Sir,” he says, terrified.

                “What?” says Hux.  “How?”

                “They somehow tore through our blockade,” the officer replies.

                “That’s impossible!” Hux snaps angrily.  “Forget bombarding the rest of the city.  Hit that ship.  Don’t let it get away.  It is likely carrying the Chancellor!  All weapons fire on the Millennium Falcon!”

                Then turbolaser death fills space all around the Falcon.  Calm and collected, Rey continues to maneuver the ship.  Chewie roars.  “Good,” says Rey.  “R2?”

                R2 chirps.  Rey shakes her head.  “That’ll have to do.  Do it.”  The Falcon’s boosters roar to life again, catapulting it straight at a cluster of Black Sun ships.  As it approaches at tremendous speeds, the boosters begin to fizzle out.  “Just a little more.  R2, just a little more.”  R2 squeals.  “Just do it!”  Then R2 switches off the safety.  

                “As usual, you are trying to get us killed!” Rose screams.  “I’m convinced of it!  You had him turn OFF the safety measures?  Do you not remember what happened at the Battle of D’Qar when those bombers’ boosters overheated?”

                “We have to take the risk.  We’ll never make it otherwise,” Rey replies.  Then the Falcon reaches the jump point.  “Disengage the boosters,” Rey orders.  “Chewie!”  The Wookiee throws the switches, and the Falcon disappears into hyperspace.

                Aboard the Valiant, Hux watches the ship vanish like a twinkling star.  His lip quivers in fury.  “Let it go,” he says, barely controlling his temper.

                “But sir,” replies one of the officers.  “Our hyperspace tracking systems…We...”

                Hux turns towards him.  “Enough of our resources have been expended.  Forget them.  They are no longer of any consequence.  We have achieved our objective.  Supreme Leader Kylo Ren is dead, even IF Chancellor Organa escaped.”