Hmmm… that ordering is probably the least problematic way to include the Republic/Resistance tension you brought up, though I share your reservations about it, but it might be okay to be away from Rey for a while if it sidesteps the other problems.
Meanwhile, here’s an earnest attempt at an earlier, alternate solution to this problem:
https://vimeo.com/244748972
password: snoke
I don’t know. That seems to have Ren getting from A to B to C almost unrealistically quickly. Granted some amount of time could occur between cuts, but the music doesn’t even change so the scenes flow together suggesting they’re relatively close timewise.