Ben felt the moment she was gone.

He took a labored breath in and pushed it out. He could no longer feel her life-force, but the only thing that mattered was getting back to her. He pushed his aching body while it protested every movement, and when he finally clawed his way back to the throne room he stumbled to his feet. He searched till he saw her: the broken figure among the rubble. Nothing else existed except Rey, and even though every step brought pain he stumbled on till he was at her side.

Pain blossomed in his chest as he dropped to his knees and cradled her lifeless body in his arms.

He took another breath in, this one more painful than the last.

The eyes that had exerted such power over him were empty. No longer did they hold the same spark that had both ignited and cleansed his darkened soul.

His arms tightened around her.

This couldn't be happening. After all they'd been through and endured: the pain, the misery, the absolute agony of getting to this place, to finally being free…

She couldn't be dead. Not his Rey, his angel. She was the light that had guided him, who had not given up on him even when she was on the brink and could have let him take the final fall. He closed his eyes, remembering the pressure of her healing hand, of the force flowing through her to heal his body when she could have left him for dead.

"I know what I have to do."

It was instinct that led him to place a hand on her waist and slow his breathing until there was nothing but him and Rey and the thoughts that bound them together. He brought forth memories of the force bond that had allowed them to see each other at their most vulnerable. Two lonely souls who found each other, the dark and the light playing against the other and testing convictions. It was Rey who'd caused him to begin to question the path of the Sith, and he who had opened her eyes to seeing herself as more than a name.

"I know what I have to do, but I don't know if I have the strength to do it."

The world became quiet, he could feel his life force ebbing, taking breath from his lungs, beats from his heart, and energy from his soul.

Come back to me Rey.

He knew in his heart it was not his destiny to live, for he could never match a light as bright as Rey even if he lived a thousand years. He'd done too much, caused too much pain. He knew he must die, but all he wanted was to have just one more moment with her, to bask in the warmth of her glow and be together till his last breath. Rey possessed an indistinguishable spirit, one that was strong enough to defeat Palpatine, bring down The Final Order, and bring peace to his damned soul.

With all the will he possessed, he channeled his power through his outstretched arm until there was none left.

Come home.

He felt Rey start in his arms and he opened his eyes. She looked disoriented for a moment, then their eyes met and she stilled. Her face softened.

"Ben?"

Her hands came up to cradle his face. He could feel himself slipping away, but he willed his soul to stay for a few seconds more.

Their lips met. He kissed her desperately, memorizing the softness of her lips, the way his hand fit perfectly into the curve of her neck, and the comfort of having her in his arms.

He reveled in the life force that burned within her once again as vibrant as the stars.

They pulled apart, and he smiled.

At last he could rest. His last selfless act had earned him redemption, and that bright look of love in her eyes that he'd seen so few times before. And in the short moments he had left, he never looked away from his angel. How brightly she burned, her halo soon consuming the darkness. He was forced to shut his eyes when he could hold them open no longer, but when they re-opened he felt renewed.

He got to his feet. He was unsure of where he was, but he was no longer in the throne room on Exegol. Before him stood familiar figures, their expressions achingly familiar to a desperate soul. His father flashed him a crooked smile, and his mother's eyes shone, and he knew at long last that all was well. He was at peace.

"Welcome home son."