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He gritted his teeth as the battle before him turned for the worse. Never before had he seen a battle turn this sour, but then again he had never fought a whole Resistance fleet of this size nor with this few ships. General Hux was a tactical genius, not a miracle worker and this battle would surely take a miracle for him to win. Some part of him had known one day he would meet his waterloo, but he had never expected that this day would come so soon.
“Sir the shields are--”
“I know!” Hux snapped, stopping the Lieutenant’s report before it could even fully begin.
He knew that the shields were failing, he knew his TIE squadrons were decimated, he knew they were losing, he knew. He was beyond frustrated, beyond frantic, and beyond his limit. Only the faint flicker of exhaustion haunted him now as he stood as an ever present statue on the Finalizer’s bridge. There was only one solution to this mess and he knew it. His mind examined the solution he had concocted thoroughly and came to the firm conclusion that this was the only way. He clenched and unclenched his fists at his side as he weighed his options.
If he failed here, the Supreme Leader would surely have his head. Any good soldier knew that too many errors equalled termination and it was not as if the First Order simply fired you if you failed. He was well aware of the fate that would be left to him if he returned with yet another loss. The leather gloves groaned at the amount of strain he was putting on them as he curled his fingers tighter. He did not like this plan, but he had nothing else. This victory was needed if the First Order wanted to succeed.
You cannot fail here or he will be in danger, his mind whispered.
His expression softened slightly as memories rose to the surface of his head, unbidden. Before they could fully form he clamped down on them and shut them away – now was the not the time. He knew of all that was riding on this mission and he knew if the fallout was a failure then—
He turned sharply to bark orders to a nearby officer, cutting his own train of thought short – not letting it grow. He would not entertain that thought and those memories. As he watched the officer scuttle away, he returned his attention to the battle raging on the other side of the transparisteel in front of him. The exhaustion he felt was swallowed by rage and determination. He would see through this plan of his; no matter the repercussions.
He side glanced at the officers who were madly working around him; the men and women who were loyally dedicated to the First Order’s cause. They had not made the choice he had made and, while they would follow their leader into this hellish scheme he had created, they did not deserve to suffer for his crimes. Not that he thought if he changed any of his previous orders or battle plans this battle would have ended in a clean victory for the First Order, even he knew when he was out gunned, but he felt they did not deserve to wear the weight of his decisions.
Taking a minute, the General closed his eyes and breathed in and out as if to calm himself before he schooled his face into his usual stern expression.
“Give the orders for evacuation of the ship.”
The General did not need to turn to tell that his men were looking at him like he had just grown a second head. To them, these words meant surrender and General Hux was not a man known for surrender. After a few seconds, he turned to face the officers who were gaping at him. He met the eyes of a few before snapping his attention back to the battle that raged in front of him.
“I do not mean we are going to surrender.” The General stated, surprised at how he was able to keep his voice even despite the plan he was about to implement. “I will remain on this ship and I will finish this battle. This will be the First Order’s victory I promise you.”
He turned his attention back to his crew and found them all watching him, some with curiosity, others with panic mingling with relief, and a few had steely gazes. Those who were watching him with firmness understood what his words meant – they knew what plan he had in mind.
“Sir you don’t mean to tell us that you are--”
“Yes Lieutenant, it is the only way.” The General stated, his words surprisingly soft as he met the gaze of the man named Mitaka. The dark haired Lieutenant’s mouth snapped closed and it rested in a hard line as he met the General’s determined expression. The silence that had descended the bridge was almost deadly; the only noise came from the frantic battle taking place around the ship. Hux couldn’t help but feel slightly amused at how his words could silence what had been a bustling bridge in the matter of seconds.
“Well?” the General asked, an amber eyebrow gracefully travelling upwards towards his hairline. “Implement my orders.”
Hux watched as an officer gritted their teeth before pressing the emergency evacuation button; immediately red lights came on and the call to evacuate sounded. The General marvelled to himself quietly at how the sounds of evacuation had become so commonplace amongst his life. He had heard them for the first time on Starkiller about a year ago and now he was hearing them again on his prized ship. He had thought he would never hear those blaring sirens and see those harsh lights, but as it seemed they would haunt him. Well after this they would haunt him no more. He laughed bitterly at that thought as the officers fled the bridge around him. They paid him no heed as they raced to escape.
Someone tapping him on the shoulder caused Hux to snap out of his morose thoughts.
“With all due respect sir, I would rather stay.” Lieutenant Mitaka stated, his voice firm and his eyes sharp.
Hux frowned at the man and was startled to find there were a few officers lingering behind him, all of them wearing the same determined expression. The General’s attention snapped back to the Lieutenant and he searched his countenance quietly.
“You know what my plan is? And you few would still prefer to stay?” Hux asked, not just to the Lieutenant but to the few officers lingering as well.
“You are going to need someone to keep the shields running.” stated one officer, a blond man who looked no older that twenty-five.
“Yeah, and someone is going to need to activate the tracking beam.” called a female officers who looked older than Hux himself.
More noises of assent sprung up and Hux quieted them all with the raising of his hand. The General removed his cap and ran a hand through his red hair, upsetting it’s usually perfection, as he sighed to himself – weighing out whether he should accept this help or not. After a few seconds, he nodded quietly and watched as the smattering of officers who had remained retook their usual positions upon the bridge. A small smile slipped upon his features as he realized how those who remained had figured his plan out to a T; they were truly amazing men and women.
How depressing it was that they had chosen to join him.
With a dark chuckle, the General strode towards the tip of the bridge and threw his commanders cap down by the mechanism that controlled the thrusters. He clasped his hands behind his back as he stared down the thruster controls – it was now or never. His hands slipped into his pockets as he pulled out his commlink and he quickly contacted Captain Phasma, who was undoubtedly running the evacuation procedures.
“Report Captain, how is the evacuation going?”
“Only your evacuation ship remains sir.” Phasma stated, her voice almost muffled by the sound of the blaster fire the Finalizer was taking. “I am currently on the last ship that has departed. The TIE’s are currently protecting us from fighters, but the attacks from the Resistance command ship is causing us slight difficulties.”
“Thank you Captain.” Hux stated, then turned to the few officers who were with him on the bridge. “Draw the command ship’s fire!”
The officers on the bridge instantly jumped into action, activating the Finalizer’s weaponry to assault the Resistance command ship in an attempt to draw their fire. The plan must have worked because the Resurgent-class ship swayed slightly from some sort of attack.
“You are welcome sir. When will you be--?”
“I will not be coming Captain.” Hux cut Phasma off swiftly, then killed the connection as to not hear her response. He shut his commlink off so the Captain could no longer reach him; he did not need the thing constantly peeping trying to gain his attention. He smiled bitterly as he thought of how furious the Captain would be after she had heard his response. Hux knew the Captain probably would have stayed with him here, but she did not deserve the fate awaiting him. Captain Phasma was too brilliant to be lost. His smile turned more pleasant as he figured the Captain would have said the same about him.
The ship careening slightly to the left snapped Hux out of his thoughts, this was no time for sentiment.
“Forward all the power to the front shields.” Hux stated, he did not turn to see if the officer’s controlling the shields were listening. “And activate the tractor beam once we are in range of the Resistance command ship; we don’t want them moving or else this will all be for naught.”
There were no sounds of assent, just the frantic sounds of people moving to fulfill their General’s orders. Hux glanced back down at the thruster’s control in front of him and rested his gloved hands on the levers. He may only be the commander of this ship, but he did know how to work it. When he had first received the ship, he had learned all about it and how it worked, what controlled what, and which personnel were in charge of said controls. Without his men, he could have probably managed just fine, but he did admit it was nice having them with him – it certainly was more effective.
“Thrusters on full speed.” Hux stated, pushing the levers forward with everything he had.
The ship stuttered forward, stumbling over itself as it fired on all cylinders. The Finalizer never had been pushed to its limits and Hux smiled a feral smile as the ship performed just as it was supposed to despite the beating it had taken.
“Tractor beam is ready sir.”
Hux nodded in acknowledgement. “Prepare to activate it when we are in range.”
Hux ground his teeth together as they moved ever closer to their goal. The Resistance ship did not catch on to their plan until it was much too late and the General let a smirk of victory dust his features.
“Activate the beam now!” The General called. He watched as the Resistance command ship was caught in the beam and the Resistance fighters flitted around the Finalizer trying fruitlessly to foil Hux’s plan. While the tractor beam was not strong enough to hold the ship in place, it was strong enough to halt its movements. This gave the Finalizer enough time to reach the ship and send it to its demise. What an eloquent destruction this was; a death in reaching the Order’s goals, a death chosen by the General’s own hand, and a death of metal and flame.
Hux pressed the thruster controls forward with all his might and as they hurtled through space, gaining speed, he slowly counted down the point of impact.
“Five.”
“This has to be the fifth thing you’ve damage this week alone Ren.” Hux put as much vitriol in his voice as possible as he glowered at the Knight of Ren who watched him behind the transparisteel visor embedded in his mask.
“I don’t see why such things matter to you General.” The Knight stated, his voice as impassive as always.
“Ren, this is my ship you are ruining. Of course I care about these things.” Hux hissed.
“Hmm, if I remember correctly we both control this ship General.”
Hux knew his right eye had twitched slightly at the Knight’s words. He hated how he had to share control with Ren. No, hate was not strong enough of a word; he absolutely detested the fact that his thoughts and plans could be so easily ruined by a simple word from this aggravating Knight of Ren. The Knight never dismissed Hux’s plans per se, but he certainly like to step in and cause all sorts of issues where none were traditionally found.
“Just because we are co-commanders does not mean you had the right to destroy this ship Ren. If you damage the functionality or--”
The Knight of Ren snorted, snorted, at Hux’s sentiments and this caused a wicked scowl to pass across the man’s features.
“Drop the act General, we both know that you love this damn ship to death and me touching it is like me defiling your child.”
Hux’s scowl turned into an outright livid frown and he had to clench his hands into fists to stop himself from decking the masked Knight in front of him. It wasn’t that Ren was particularly wrong, but the fact he said it so bluntly and with so much hatred Hux found he was beside himself with anger. Hux did not speak for a few seconds so he could regain his composure and, after a minute of silence, Hux pinched the bridge of his nose and emitted a sigh.
“Not everyone is as childish as you Ren.”
The Knight scoffed, the mask garbling the sound and warping it.
“Find a better outlet for your affection General; a hunk of metal is not going to love you back.” With that said the Knight of Ren slipped out of the room and Hux did not stop him. He already had a headache and calling after the Knight would just make it worse. Hux rested a hand to the palm of his head and closed his eyes, if he hadn’t known any better he might have thought the Knight of Ren jealous.
“Four.” Hux’s mind was a whirlwind of thoughts, but he did not calm it as he continued his count down.
He was pinned to the wall roughly, the weight of the power holding him there was certainly strong but it did not faze him. He was trained a soldier and a soldier did not cower from petty displays of power like this. The Knight of Ren was watching Hux, his hand outstretched and shaking with rage from the words Hux had flung at him only moments before. Frankly, Hux was shocked he was not being choked. He had seen many officers choked at the hands of Ren for speaking out of turn and he silently wondered why the Knight was not choking him now. He used his ability to speak to his advantage.
“I did not know you were this sensitive Ren. I thought the Lord of the Knights of Ren would have better control of his emotions.”
Hux felt his throat constrict and his ability to speak fall away as the Knight reached a new level of rage.
“Shut up!” he practically screamed as he pressed Hux to the wall more furiously and cut off his supply of air with zeal.
Hux did not flinch, and nor did he struggle. That was beneath him and it was not like he could move anyways – Kylo was restricting his ability to even twitch. So he choked as the Knight watched. It was not until his vision was starting to tunnel and he was hearing a high pitched buzzing in his ears that the Knight released him. He fell to the floor as the Knight relinquished all power he had been hurling at him.
After a few seconds of coughing and trying desperately to get air back into his lungs, Hux found himself being lifted up by gentle hands. Correction: Kylo’s gentle hands. The Knight seemed to be lifting Hux up with some sort of fervour, as if he was terrified by his own actions.
“What are--” was all Hux managed to wheeze about before the Knight hushed him and drew him closer.
“Shut up.”
“Three.” Now Hux’s heart was on fire, he was burning with longing, with regret, and something like sadness. In any other situation he would have crushed the emotions down before they could bloom, but now he indulged himself in these simple pleasures. His end was hurtling closer by the second; protocol could be damned for all he cared.
He stared at Ren’s face. His real face. The one hidden behind the hideous mask and he could hear his own breath catch. It was not what he had expected. His face was so young and so gentle and Hux wanted to reach out to touch it. So he did. The Knight leaned into the touch, a small sigh escaping his lips as he watched the General with his deep brown eyes.
“You are beautiful.” Hux whispered before he could stop himself.
Kylo chuckled softly and the sound of it had set Hux’s heart on fire in an instant. If someone would have told the General that the love of his life would be Kylo Ren a month ago he would have laughed them off of his ship. But now as he stared at the Knight he felt something unbidden draw up inside of him, something he never thought he had. Love. An emotion he had been running from all his life was now taking root in his own heart. The thought scared him and thrilled him all at once.
“I feel the same.” The Knight said, breaking the heavy silence. “I feel those emotions too.”
The Knight was rather breathless and pulled closer to Hux; Hux’s hand still resting on his cheek. Usually, Hux would have snapped upon discovering Kylo had slipped into his thoughts, but this time he smiled slightly.
“Out of my head Ren.” He stated, but the words were gentle and soft and were quickly captured by Kylo’s lips.
Hux had never kissed before and nor had Kylo. It was a clunky sort of thing that was rather poorly done on both of their parts, but they gripped at each other and clung to each other as if they were the only ones left alive. When they finally broke away, panting, they stared at each other as if gauging each other’s reactions. Both of their expressions were mirrors of the other – countenances caught between contentedness and joy.
They fell together again, this time they gently matched each other’s rhythm before the kiss turned into something wild and full of pent up longing. When Hux had to break for air, Kylo moaned slightly and took the General into his arms – hands circling his waist. After a few seconds of gasping for breath the General managed to speak. His words were muffled by the cloak he was being pressed into, but the Knight heard them nonetheless.
“Hells I needed that.”
“Two.” Hux’s words were choked now, sadness gripping at his throat and cutting off his ability to breathe. He felt something warm and hot travel down his left cheek and realized he was crying. A small pained laugh escaped him. This would be the first and last time he cried over Kylo Ren.
Hux traced the moles on the taller man’s chest and followed the line of them down until his hand rested at the Knight’s stomach. Kylo was breathing evenly, but Hux knew he was awake as every time he stroked the Knight’s stomach his breath would catch ever so slightly. Each and every time they did this Hux could not help but marvel at Kylo’s body. So much strength and so many scars – each one holding a story he had yet to learn. The Knight chuckled slightly.
“You don’t want to learn each scar’s story Hux, trust me.” Kylo stated rather breathless from the events that had just recently transpired between them. The knight nuzzled the General’s neck softly as Hux laughed gently.
“I do want to learn their stories though.” Hux stated, a slightly firmness in his voice. “I want to know them because they are a part of you.”
The words caused Kylo’s breath to catch slightly and he gripped the smaller man close to him as if the smallest of spaces between them would be too much. Hux chuckled again, pleased by his lover’s reaction. He rested his head on Kylo’s shoulder as the two of them lay in Kylo’s quarters.
“Next time I will tell you about them, I promise.” The Knight stated after a few minutes of silence.
“Mm I will make sure you keep your promise.” Hux stated, closing his eyes.
He was going to be sent off planet and into battle in no less than two hours and he figured all the stories would take much too long for them to complete before he had to slip away. Frankly, Hux would have much rather stayed in this warm bed with Kylo wrapped around him than head into a naval battle against the Resistance. It was not that he disliked battles; truthfully, he enjoyed the rush of success he felt when he crushed the Resistance, but the idea of parting with Ren made him slightly hesitant.
The hour he promised Kylo he would stay ended much too quickly for Hux’s liking and he huffed in annoyance as he untangled himself from Kylo’s arms. The taller man disliked Hux’s leaving and tried to keep him there, but Hux had managed to pull himself free. As Hux went about redressing himself, he realized Kylo had not given up his attempts to keep the General in his quarters. Hands snaked out from under the bed covers and grabbed Hux’s waist when he dared to walk near the bed.
“Kylo.” He stated, his voice was low and rather gentle but a warning was there.
“Promise me you will come back in one piece.” The Knight stated, words muffled as his head was pressed into Hux’s now wrinkled uniform.
A small sigh escaped from Hux’s lips and he stroked the Knight’s hair softly before removing Kylo’s arms from his waist. He placed a kiss on the top of the Knight’s head and ran his fingers through the soft locks before slipping away towards the door.
“I promise you Kylo, I will return.”
“One.” The word came out like a whisper. It was quickly swallowed by the sound of ship colliding with ship and the loud explosion that followed. As Hux’s world turned black he thought of Kylo, the Knight whom he loved and the Knight who loved him.