Rey Beniko

* Masc-Presenting
* Femme-Presenting
* Dark Jedi
* Debut

Rey Beniko was a human Dark Jedi who was active during the First Order-Republic War. Their contributions to the war caused severe and catastrophic damage to the First Order that they never recovered from. They, along with their wife, effectively put an end to the last remnants of the Galactic Empire, the old Jedi Order, and the Order of the Sith Lords.

# History

Born to junk dealers, who resented the burden of raising a daughter, Rey was sold to Niima the Hutt when they were five years old. They spent years toiling in the hot sand of Jakku to earn ration packs to survive while they fruitlessly waited for their family to return for them. At some point, the Force bonded Rey's spirit to that of a Jedi named Ben Solo. As a result of this connection, Rey felt a sense of impending doom shortly before Darth Mayrik was killed.

Rey's Force Sensitive talents and affinity with the Force was discovered by a Sith Lord named Darth Amorosa. As the First Order-Republic War was starting, they escaped the planet with Amorosa and a Stormtrooper named Finn, and fled to Takodana. While on Takodana, they developed a close friendship to Amorosa, who kept her status as the Dark Lady of the Sith secret from them out of a fear that Rey would be reviled by her.

During the assault on Takodana, Rey witnessed Amorosa using her lightsaber against the First Order and was mortified by the revalation. They were later captured and taken to Starkiller Base, where Kylo Ren attempted to pry information about BB-8 and Amorosa from her mind. Though Rey didn't relent and eventually reverse-engineered the technique to turn Kylo Ren's powers back onto himself, they were nonetheless traumatized by the experience. They eventually escaped by throttling and killing the guard, only to encounter Amorosa on their way out. Initially hostile, they eventually agreed to trust her until they escaped.

During the escape, Rey and Finn encountered Kylo Ren in the wilderness of Ilum while Amorosa was delaying the base from firing. In the ensuing fight, Finn was incapacitated. Rey wielded Amorosa's lightsaber against Kylo Ren and overpowered him with the Dark Side of the Force. In her Dark Side-induced rage, they briefly considered leaving Amorosa to die. They quickly dispelled the notion and retrieved her. During the flight back, they demanded an explanation from her. Amorosa explained who she was, why she lied, and that she loved Rey dearly. Rey decided to tentatively forgive her, but told her she would have to earn back their trust.

Rey encountered Luke Skywalker on Ahch To and, with Amorosa's assistance, convinced him to train her as a Jedi. Rey didn't take to the training very well, especially as Luke started teaching them about the dangers of the Dark Side. The Dark Side felt cold to her on Ahch To, where before when they embraced it to defeat Kylo Ren it felt warm and comforting.

During her training, Rey felt torn between her attraction to Amorosa and her desire to keep the Sith at a distance until she'd earned their trust. They caught themself staring at the woman, and at times actively seeking out her comfort and wisdom. Rey and Amorosa soon patched up their friendship, and a few months later began a romantic relationship after Amorosa exerted a great deal of effort to block the Force Bond with Kylo Ren. Amorosa's care and considering for how Rey felt about their mind being probled was what ultimately won back their trust. Rey would later learn that it had been Luke Skywalker who had murdered Darth Mayrik, and confronted him about it. They lectured him about his insistence on goading his family toward redemption, yet murdering a woman in front of her daughter just because they were Sith, despite not being hostile.

They returned with Amorosa to the Resistance in time for the battle of D'Qar, where they boarded the Supremacy and disabled it's Hyperspace tracker. They duelled with the Knights of Ren alongside Amorosa, killing Supreme Leader Snoke, but Amorosa was mortally wounded in the fight and had to be evacuated. Wracked with concern and grief, Rey remained outside the medbay for several days waiting to hear about Amorosa's condition. Upon learning she would be comatose for at least four months, Rey tried to push on without her.

During Amorosa's coma, Rey brought the Resistance to Oddessen to set up a new base inside a canyon. They also travelled to Coruscant to meet with the Senate. During this time, Rey realized her behavior toward Amorosa bordered on abusive at times, and resolved to make amends for it. When Amorosa woke up, that's exactly what they did.

Rey would later learn the Force Bond with Kylo Ren was actually a Dyad in the Force. Much more powerful and difficult to shield. Upon learning the Force had stitched Rey to Ren, Rey's faith in the Force was irreparably shattered and they fell to the Dark Side.

As the war reached it's apex, Rey and Amorosa married shortly before Rey travelled to Naboo with their wife to discuss the Republic's blockade of the planet over a First Order Sidious hoax. They weren't involved with the negotiations, preferring to let Amorosa pursue her ambitions of a new Sith Empire. Later they snuck aboard a First Order mobile planet killer and detonated it from the inside before it could be deployed, though they were injured by a tricobalt device before being vented into space.

Comatose from her injuries, Rey was unable to participate in the Naboo Kaggath, though they instead had a vision of a mirror of themself trying to convince them to accept the Dyad. They instead convinced this mirror to search for her Amorosa instead. Upon awakening, Rey found the Dyad had been broken by their wife and they were free. Despite being free of both war and Force Bonds, Rey found themself growing melancholy about the damage they took and the scars they would carry with them. After some soul searching, they realized that if Amorosa could carry her mother's absence with her and still find happiness in her life, that they could too.

A year later, Rey moved into a house on Naboo with Amorosa. During a quiet moment, Amorosa asked her about how they were falling into her shadow, and Rey assurred her that for now they simply wanted to enjoy what they fought to attain: Their freedom and agency. They had no ambitions to pursue, and they were okay with that.

# Personality

At first, Rey was a volatile Jedi, with an explosive temper and a tendency to jump right to violence when threatened. This attitude is discouraged by General Leia, but treated as understandable by Amorosa. Rey is extremely strong in the Force owing to the feedback loop created with their bond with Kylo Ren. The bond's existence has caused them to become cynical about the Force, and treat it like a tentative ally.

After completing her training and Amorosa awaking from her coma, Rey relaxed considerably and coasted through the war by working on technological projects. They took a very hands off approach to war planning and deferred to their wife in regards to the First Order, preferring to plan what they would do after the war and work on their personal technological projects. This continued to well after the war had ended, where Rey had far less ambition than their wife, preferring to live in the moment and enjoy having a family that loved them.

# Trivia

* Rey's married name, "Beniko", is an anagram of "Kenobi." It was a popular theory in the film that Rey was a descended of Obi-Wan Kenobi. This silly connection was the reason Orchard and Turkleson settled on making Amorosa a descendant of Lana Beniko.
* Rey is often criticized for having no agency in the story, owing to her lack of ambition compared to Amorosa. However, Rey's canon motivation in the Sequel Trilogy Films was to find a family that loved her, and that remains their motivation in The Sith Resurgence.