Rey kicked and pushed herself to get back to the surface once she jumped into the pool of water. She had never been a good swimmer due to the fact that she had spent all her life on Jakku, a desert planet where there was no beach or lake in sight, and even though she struggled now, she tried her best. Because that was what she was best at, surviving.
As soon as she broke through the surface, Rey gasped for air as her lungs burned from holding her breath under water for longer than she was used to, and as she sighted the mirror she had faced long ago, she began fighting her way to it, kicking and splashing in the water until she grabbed hold to the rocky surface and pulled herself on top of it.
Once she was out of the water, Rey slumped down on the hard wet floor, exhausted and breathing hard, her hair having escaped her buns from the impact of breaking the surface when she had jumped in the pool and her clothes were soaked through. She took a couple of more breaths to give her strength and pushed herself off of the floor to face the mirror.
Rey stared at the foggy reflection for a while. It looked just like it had the last time she had come here and she took a step back and pondered anxiously, What if this isn't the way to Ben? What if I just end up being reflected again?
What if I will never find him?
Rey eyed the mirror in front of her as a nasty feeling spread through her veins, paralyzing her as it pumped through her body. She was afraid again. Afraid of finding out she was going to fail. Afraid of losing hope.
Afraid of losing Ben forever.
Yet before Rey could turn her back and leave the cave, she pushed away the fear gnawing at her heart and remembered the vision she had had. She remembered that the Force had led her here, that she needed to be here.
And she wasn't going to turn her back on a possibility of getting Ben back, even if she was afraid she couldn't.
Rey held her breath and shut her eyes, reaching out with her hand to touch the foggy surface of the mirror in front of her hoping that she could go further while her thoughts were focused on Ben.
And as soon as her fingers brushed against the icy glass, she sensed that she was in a different surrounding. Rey was now somewhere very cold but also very close to something very strong with the Force.
She opened her eyes and saw that she was engulfed by darkness. There was no floor, no walls, no one. Just her. All alone in a dark void.
Rey felt herself starting to panic, the venomous claws of fear scratching at her insides as there seemed to be no way out of this strange place.
"Hello?" she called out, praying that someone would answer her but instead she was met with a deafening silence.
"Is anyone there?" she tried louder, but she wasn't even met with her own echo.

Rey truly was alone,
She began to think that she had made a mistake, that maybe the mirror was not going to grant her access to the world between worlds and therefore sent her here to decay.
"No, no, no," Rey muttered to herself as she kneeled down and wrapped her arms around herself while blinking away tears. "This can't be it. This can't be where it ends, it just can't!" she pleaded shaking her head.
"I need to find him," she whispered desperately, clutching herself as if she were protecting the last bit of hope that remained in her body when she felt a strong pull in the Force behind her that caused her to glance over her shoulder to see a wooden door framed with gold runes in the middle of the darkness.
Relief surged through Rey as she got up and wiped traitorous tears from her cheeks before she began to make her way to the only thing that existed in the darkness besides her.
Yet as she stood in front of what could be her way out and was about to open the door, she heard a devious cackle surround her. A cackle that only brought back bad memories. Memories of her parents dying to protect her, memories of a war not having ended long ago. Memories of Ben dying in her arms.
Palpatine.
Rey turned around and ignited her lightsaber, the yellow blade glowing brightly in her fierce face as she searched around for the Emperor. She wasn't going to hesitate to fight him once more. She wasn't going to hesitate to end his life again.
Yet no matter how hard she tried to search for his grim and fragile figure in the darkness, she couldn't find him. She was still alone, so with a sigh, she decided to turn back to the door and open it, retracting her saber and latching it back to her hip, but instead of facing the door she was standing in front of a huge, broad creature with yellow eyes and horns. It's body was black, almost like a shadow and it's facial features were similar to an animal, yet it's body looked human.
It was something Rey had never seen in her entire life.
It was something she couldn't even imagine in her wildest dreams. Or nightmares.
Rey felt herself holding onto her breath as it eyed her suspiciously, blocking the door she had tried to open just moments before.
"Who are you and what is your purpose here?" it asked in a deep dark voice that filled the void around Rey, causing the hair on the back of her neck to stand.
She stared into it's eyes and sensed the power the creature possessed. Power that was similar to the Force, to her and Ben's powers, but they were also very different to theirs, as if the being in front of her was not just strong with the Force but something else, something she had never sensed before, though she could not figure out what it was.
All she could do was sense that the creature was powerful and that she did not sense that she was in danger, yet, so she answered confidently, "I'm Rey, Rey Skywalker, and I came here to look for the world between worlds."
The horned creature stared at Rey, his eyes glowing brightly as if it were staring deep into her soul.
"You lie," it accused Rey. "You are no Skywalker. Not by blood. You chose that name to hide your true bloodline, a family name that spreads fear throughout the galaxy. But you can't hide that you are a Palpatine. Not from me, the protector of the Vergence Scatter."
Rey swallowed hard, a bitter taste on her tongue as she tried to fight back tears from frustration. She didn't want to be reminded of her grandfather, she didn't want to be reminded that she was a part of his family.
The creature began to circle around her like she was it's prey. "Years ago, your grandfather Emperor Palpatine tried to find the world between worlds to become the most powerful being in the galaxy. He wanted to abuse the plane for power..."
"I am nothing like him. And I never will be," Rey spat angrily. "I'm just trying to bring someone back. I'm here to bring my dyad back."
The being stopped in it's tracks and faced Rey again. "You may say you are nothing like your grandfather, but I'll be the judge of that," it began, "To prevent a Jedi or Sith accessing this place for power, I'm going to need you to make a sacrifice only one who is strong with the Force can make."
"What kind of sacrifice?" Rey asked, her emotions churning inside her stomach. She had a bad feeling about this.
Her question caused the creature to smile deviously and reveal it's sharp teeth. "You may enter the plain under one condition. Once you found your dyad, and brought him back, you must give up your connection with the Force. Once and for all."
Rey took a step back from the monstrous being in front of her. She didn't know if she could live without the Force, without training Jedi, without the power that existed in her ever since she had been born. Yet her connection with Ben had existed just as long, even though both of them had only realized it not long ago.
She had always wanted to help people with the Force, she had wanted to do good, to bring peace and balance to the galaxy and teach others with the Force how to maintain that balance. But ever since Ben faded away, Rey had been feeling as if a part of her was missing, as if someone had taken half of her soul. And she couldn't live for the rest of her life feeling like that.
She couldn't live for the rest of her life feeling torn apart.
Even if that meant she wouldn't have the Force anymore. She could still help, just not like she could before.
"I'll do it. I'll give up my connection to the Force once I bring Ben back," she told the being determined, yet she still felt sad. She was still going to give up a piece of her to retrieve her other half.
The creature grinned, it's yellow eyes gleaming. "As you wish," it noted and opened the door, letting Rey pass through.
As she was about to step foot through the gate, the monster stopped her and reminded, "I'll be watching, Rey Palpatine."
She flinched at that name, her insides burning from having been reminded of who her ancestor was. Who caused so much death and destruction to the galaxy.
It was something she wanted to forget.
And it was something she didn't want to be associated with.
Rey passed by the creature and walked through the door, being engulfed by a bright light causing her to shut her eyes until the brightness faded.
Her eyes fluttered open and she gasped at the sight in front of her. She was in a place where she could sense the Force flow all around, a place that was surrounded by darkness, but had many pathways that were traced with light which led to huge circles.
She was finally in the world between worlds.
Her heart began to hammer in her chest. She was a step closer to finding Ben, to bringing him home.
She was hopeful.
Yet even though she had hope, eyeing the different paths in front of her, she began to feel unsure which one to take.
She could spend years in here looking for Ben if she didn't take the right path.
Rey shut her eyes again, remembering what she had read about the Vergence Scatter.
A plain that exists within the Force.
Inhaling, she decided to try to reach out to Ben again. If he was here and she was here, there may be a possibility of her finding him.
"Be with me," she began chanting, searching for his familiar presence in the Force. "Be with me."
"Be with me, please," she repeated and felt a sudden tingling feeling in her chest. Rey quickly opened her eyes and saw one of the paths in front of her beaming brightly.
She smiled, feeling a little lightheaded, yet still determined. She knew what she had to do now. She knew which way to go.
And so she started walking down the glowing path to find her dyad.