Star Wars Reveals Kylo Ren’s Secret Reunion With Luke Skywalker After The Last Jedi

Marvel’s Star Wars: Legacy of Vader series has been busy filling in the year-long gap between the events of Star Wars: The Last Jedi and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, revealing how Kylo Ren consolidates control over the First Order even as he continues to try to kill the past. Already, the series has revealed fascinating new insight into Ben Solo’s history with the Knights of Ren. And in the latest issue, we learn that Ben’s fateful battle with Luke Skywalker on Crait isn’t the last time these two characters meet.

How does Kylo Ren reunite with his Uncle Luke, and what happens when he does? Read on to find out, but beware of spoilers for Star Wars: Legacy of Vader #10 ahead!

Having recently clashed with Tava Ren, the new leader of the Knights of Ren, Ben returns to Fortress Vader on Mustafar in this issue. Ben’s quest to kill his past has taken on a new sense of urgency, as he can sense the presence of his uncle watching him through the Force. He wants to put a stop to that by any means necessary.

Vaneé, the cybernetically enhanced former servant to Darth Vader, suggests that his new master try to enter the secret vault at the heart of Fortress Vader. Vaneé hints that this vault contains Vader’s greatest secret power. But when Ben tries to enter the vault, he only becomes disoriented and emerges through the same door he entered.

In order to placate his angry master, Vaneé instead suggests that Ben take a rest in Vader’s Sith Meditation Chamber. No sooner does he begin meditating than Ben undergoes a disturbing vision. He finds himself in a haunted swamp where the heads of his former friends and family taunt him for his failures. Ben manifests red and blue lightsabers and begins chopping at the heads, only to then find himself in a valley outside a temple.

Somehow, Ben has managed to travel through the Force to the afterlife where Force Ghosts congregate. These Force Ghosts are none too happy to be paid a visit by someone so infused with the Dark Side, but it’s not long before Luke himself appears to intercede.

Ben knows that his uncle died shortly after their encounter on Crait, but not how he died. He demands to know who killed Luke, to which Luke replies, “No one killed me. I sacrificed my life for others, in service of something greater.” He reminds Ben that this was the purpose of his life, before inquiring what Ben’s purpose is.

Not in the mood for lessons and with his jealousy on full display, Ben then asks why Luke agreed to teach Rey. Luke’s answer is simple – “She wanted to learn.” Angrier than ever, Ben orders his uncle to stop watching him and threatens to find a way to destroy him, even in this place beyond death.

Unfazed, Luke reminds his nephew that he can’t destroy him without destroying the Force itself. Luke also points out that Ben has achieved something special by travelling to this plane. His real concern should be figuring out how he managed it and what it means.

And thus ends the reunion between Luke Skywalker and Ben Solo. Ben promptly returns to the swamp, where he’s attacked by a vengeful spirit who wishes to remind him of the pain and darkness that drives him. Soon after, Ben emerges from the meditation chamber covered in saber wounds. Vaneé helps his master by placing him inside the same Bacta tank where Vader spent so many of his pain-filled days and nights. Like grandfather, like grandson.

Thanks to this issue, we know that Ben and Luke had at least one encounter following their final duel, and there certainly seems to be room for more Luke appearances in the series down the road. We also see clearer signs that Ben isn’t as consumed by the Dark Side as he’d like everyone to believe, paving the way for his return to the light in The Rise of Skywalker.

But perhaps most importantly, this issue teases the mystery of the secret vault in Fortress Vader. What dark power did Vader place there, and how will Kylo Ren access it? Is this the ultimate endgame of the series?

Let us know your thoughts on this unexpected family reunion and your theories about Vader’s vault.

In other Star Wars news, here’s what little we know about the plot of Star Wars: Starfighter.

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on BlueSky.