Chapter Text
Rey woke by a splash of cold water.
Gasping and shaking her head free of water, she caught sight of the redheaded general.
Though she hadn't seen his face in the throne room, she was sure that it was him.
His appearance was now composed and powerful. His wounds were treated, and his hair strictly combed to the back of his head.
"I owe you thanks, girl."
"This is a weird way to show it." Rey snapped, once again trapped in an interrogation room and with water dripping from her nose.
"It is a necessary precaution." He assured her. "I do not usually conduct interrogations."
"Then why start now?"
"As I said," the General uttered, "I owe you thanks."
Rey waited, he obviously wanted something from her and she was not going to ask what it was.
"Where is Ren?" He asked.
A tiny spark of hope lit in her heart and she immediately reached out through the Force.
There, somewhere on the vessel, was a tiny spark of something familiar, something right.
The feeling was like finally breathing air after suffocating.
He was alive!
Exhausted, but alive.
"So he really is alive." The General looked disappointed, as her facial expression revealed her feelings. "where is he?"
The General didn't seem to have any physical strength and he wasn't force-sensitive, still, he had the attitude of a leader.
"I don't know, General," she answered, truthfully.
"Don't you dare call me that!" He barked at her. "I am the Supreme Commander of the First Order!"
Rey crossed her brows and looked him up and down. "You have a weird way of asking for a favor, Supreme Commander." She didn't know where the title put him on the chain of command, but she figured that it was pretty high. "Because that is what you are doing, right?"
He leered, unwilling to admit that she was right.
"You... you want me to protect you from Kylo?" It sounded ridiculous, but she felt the fear in him, as strongly as if it was her own.
Rey snorted at him as he didn't deny it. "Don't you know who I am?" She asked, truly wondering if he really wasn't aware.
The Commander stood tall. "Ren is bound to come after me."
"Good luck." Rey's eyes were cold.
He continued, ignoring her comment. "You have a choice, Scavenger; you either stay at my side, save my life and leave the Supremacy in one piece. Or you wait for him here and fight until you are both dead."
"You are pretty conceited," Rey stated. Though he was trying his best, she was unable to truly be intimidated by him. That might be a side-effect of spending so much time with Kylo. "What makes you think that I won't kill you myself?"
The question seemed to surprise him a bit, "aren't you a hero?" He asked as if it was something disgusting. "I thought you were part of the Resistance and their self-righteous little uprising."
"No," Rey answered with traces of a sad smile on her lips. "I am no one."
"Make your choice!" The Commander barked impatiently.
Rey closed her eyes. Kylo was still there, on the outskirts of her mind.
Rey felt weak.
If it hadn't been for Kafia, Rey could have easily freed herself from the chair.
Kylo was probably even more drained than her seeing as Kafia literally erased his existence for a short while.
"Okay." She agreed, "free me."
"You will stop every attempt on my life until the second you leave this vessel." The Commander declared. "Do I have your word?"
"And you will not try to harm Kylo in any underhanded manner." Rey looked him right in the eyes. "When I leave, Kylo leave with me."
The Commander frowned, he was clearly unhappy with her demand, but still nodded.
"Say it."
"You and Kylo will leave together."
"Unharmed." She was not letting him go that easily.
The Commander clenched his fists. "Unharmed." He agreed.
Then a thought emerged in her mind, "and..."
"Don't push it." He warned her.
"I want to see Kafia's body." Her voice and eyes showed clear determination.
"Why?" He croaked.
"It doesn't concern you."
A nerve twitched at the Commanders chin as he, once again, forced himself to stay calm. "Very well. It seems we have an agreement."
-
Rey didn't even glance at the red armor, which was laid out on the bed in the tiny room. She only cared for her lightsaber.
With limited control of the Force, it felt reassuring to have it in her hand once again.
After leaving the interrogation room a medic-droid had treated her wounds and worn out body, making her able to walk and stand on her own.
Now she only needed to change out of the wet officers-uniform, then she was ready to take the position as the bodyguard of Supreme Commander Hux.
"Hurry up," Hux ordered through the door.
He and a brigade of officers and guards were just outside, waiting for her.
For some reason, he seemed determined to be near her. She wasn't sure if it made him feel safe or if he was using her to trap Kylo. It was most likely the latter. She hadn't forgotten the trap on Amania.
The fear of Kylo had been real enough, but she couldn't decipher the real plan in his mind. He was far too strong-willed for that.
If she played the part of a bodyguard, she could at least move freely and maybe get some information on the First Order.
There was something unsettling about the Commander's smugness and strict manner. Surprisingly, she felt no anguish at the thought of killing him. She knew that if he did anything to hurt Kylo, she would really do it, and she was fully at peace with it.
Slipping out of the uniform, she shoved the scarlet armor-plates to a side and only took the black trousers and the inner tunic.
The armored boots were too heavy for her, so she settled for the officers' boots and fastened the belt from the uniform to keep the tunic together around her.
Dressed all in black she felt less like herself than ever before.
When her hair was once again tied in her usual buns, she took a deep breath, as she went for the door.
I'm doing this for Kylo, she reminded herself, clinging to the faint feeling of him.
The Supreme Commander frowned when he saw her appearance, but he didn't comment on it.
With long steps, he marched down the hall and the rest of the party hurried after him.