Fandom Fight for Control [closed]

[cleopat]

Kylo strolled alongside Reveille on the way back to the Bridge. He paid attention to the briefing she provided for him, but it would be light to say he was unhappy with the situation.

All of this, because he refused to let go of Lothal when Tarkin threatened them. And damned if he allowed the planet to slip through his fingers without a fight.

“Good.” But if it Tarkin did continue to be a hindrance in their plans, then they will need to do what it took to take a step back from Lothal and reexamine their situation. “Hopefully it should not have to come down to firing on Lothal, but if Tarkin continues to be a pest, then we’ll have no choice.”

And if they did have to fire on the planet while the general was still down there...Kylo wouldn’t be upset. An irritating setback? Yes. But they’ll continue on. “How much longer until we reach the planet’s orbit?”

~~

Lavinia had wanted to sit for the meeting, as she didn’t know how long to expect it to go on. But, in her observation, it seemed that everyone else were more content with standing around the table. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Men.

But when Pandion asked his question, she was the first to answer. “Due to the presence of our academy, as well as businesses and schools Sienar Fleets may want to establish, the First Order will have outposts stationed where we would see fit to ensure optimal protection for the people of Lothal.”

Tybalt was the one to speak up first. “But you have been proven to have a weak spot. It wasn’t a clear victory in your...little skirmish against Tarkin’s fleet, was it?” His hands remained clasped behind his back, slightest bit of amusement evident on his face.

At that, Lavinia didn’t know how to answer. She was only aware there was a skirmish, and that Tarkin fled the battle, but any other details she left for Armitage to answer.

 

[Lucyfer]

Reveille half-expected that Kylo would be more enthused about a fight. Perhaps the losses of earlier had made him a bit more reasonable, in that regard. Reveille certainly didn’t want to risk even more damage or losses. She knew this was already going to be an expensive endeavor, even with Sienar Fleets owing them.

If they’d consider it that way, given the First Order brought them into this mess.

At his query about their closeness, “The Bridge will have that answer,” she had known it some minutes ago, but the exact number now eluded her.

And indeed, when they stepped into the Bridge, the first thing that greeted them was that information, “Admiral, Supreme Leader – we’re approximately ten minutes from Lothal.”

~***~

“It was a clear victory,” Armitage answered Tybalt with no hesitation, “As I was informed, Governor Tarkin fled the battle after Absanz had information to fire on Tarkin’s ships, and after his own flagship had taken significant damage. It seems Governor Tarkin is not prepared to deal with a battle from both space, and the ground.”

‘With your own forces, with the weapons we’ll put on Lothal, you can fight him off.’ That was what Hux wanted to say. Instead, it could only be implied. He still hoped the implication was enough.

Pandion’s own gaze flashed to his, and then, again, to Tybalt. He was afraid of Tybalt. That much was clear. “But what do you know of war and combat? What do you know of this battle?” Hux pressed instead of addressing Pandion.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo said nothing over the given information for their arrival, but his head nodded in acknowledgement. They now played a waiting game: not only waiting to see what awaited them in Lothal’s orbit, but what awaited them down on the surface, in some undisclosed meeting room in Governor Pandion’s mansion.

His arms crossed over his chest and eyes staring out the viewport, though his mind focused far more on the possibilities of the various scenarios on Lothal.

Even if the meeting comes out in their favori, they were still down numerous TIEs and a dreadnought. On top of everything else they had already lost, it will just add on to their recovery efforts.

After a few minutes of silence, Kylo interrupted his silence. “Are we to wait here until we hear from General Hux?” It wasn’t an idea he was eager to go along with, but preemptive fire would also be a foolish decision.

~~

Lavinia’s inquisitive gazed concentrated on Tybalt, on every twitch of a muscle, in every way his expression may have betrayed his true thoughts. He certainly didn’t appear upset in the slightest.

So she came to her own conclusion. “He knows everything,” she breathed. He had to be Tarkin’s ally, manipulating Pandion any way he could to ensure that the First Order didn’t get a grasp on the planet.

Tybalt didn’t appear the least bit troubled by her observation. “Just as astute as your father, aren’t you?”

Lavinia refused to answer him, but the way her jaw and fists immediately clenched tightly spoke for her.

“Besides, General,” he continued, focusing back on the aforementioned man, “Do you really think Governor Tarkin would’ve stationed his entire fleet over Absanz? It’s not a clear victory until someone’s dead.”

The entire situation left a bad taste in Lavinia’s mouth, but she was powerless to do much – unless he tried to speak of her true name.

 

[Lucyfer]

Admiral Reveille had intended to do just that, until need arose to leave for the surface. It would be frustrating, but she would do less good down on the planet. Kylo, of course, was impatient as ever. Reveille looked over to him.

Rather than deny his desire outright, she inquired, “What else did you have in mind, Supreme Leader?”

This would give him a voice to speak his thoughts, and a way for her to consider them – or point out the errors of it, and why it wouldn’t be a good idea that he may not be considering. Of course, he may have considered something that she didn’t.

Reveille doubted it, but it was worth humoring him.

~***~

Armitage Hux was not surprised by the deduction that Althea made, though he had wanted to hear it come from Tybalt first. As it was, Tybalt didn’t deny it. He was quite pleased with his own station and situation, but Pandion, evidently, was not.

He asked questions looking for hope, looking for a way out of Tarkin’s control.

He would align with them.

“You’re right.” Armitage agreed with Tybalt. There was no victory until someone was dead, and it was enough for him to reach into his coat, pull his blaster, aim it at Tybalt’s chest and fire. He assumed he’d be the quicker draw, assumed he’d strike true enough – or if not, at least wound him. The chest was a larger target than the head. Even if Tybalt moved a bit, he was likely to get hit, and Hux’s second shot could put an end to it.

Besides, he was at war with Tarkin. Killing Tarkin’s minions was no longer a concern. He didn’t have to play things peacefully any longer.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo spared Reveille a glance when she inquired about his thoughts. A small surprise, but he bothered to not try and put too much thought into it.

She was probably just looking for ways to mock him.

Still, he spoke what was on his mind. “If we are to wait until we hear from him, then it may be too late to do anything. What if he is being distracted or already disposed of? We have no way of knowing.”

His worry didn’t stem from concern over the wellbeing of the general. Rather, Kylo refused to let Tarkin have the upper-hand again. Should anything happen to General Hux on Lothal, then they’ll be doing just that. “Surely someone should be sent to scope out the situation.” Before a worst case scenario happened, and they were helpless to stop it.

~~

Tybalt reacted in a rapid succession that belied his age. As Armitage pulled out his blaster, Tybalt was quick to dodge the blaster bolt, though he didn’t emerge entirely unscathed. The bolt grazed his arm, and with a grimace, he pulled out his own blaster with the opposite arm.

The man maneuvered behind Pandion, the blaster pointed at his temple. “Really now, was that so wise?”

In the scuffle, Lavinia pulled out her blaster, but kept it at her side so as to not be so obvious with her intentions, if Tybalt hadn't already noticed.

“Just as wise as thinking that the First Order has what it takes to establish control over the galaxy. You can’t even see the infiltration within your own ranks, under your own nose, general.” Tybalt concentrated on General Hux, the man he believed posed the greatest threat at the moment, so Lavinia took that slight distraction to her advantage and sprung into action.

His words resonated with her. She knew what he wanted to lead to. Who he wanted to expose. A quick rolling tumble, Lavinia took aim at his exposed side, and she effectively silenced him.

 

[Lucyfer]

Reveille listened to what Kylo had to say. He wasn’t necessarily advocating for one of them to go down, but someone. “It runs the risk of also upsetting the meeting, just as well,” Reveille noted.

A compromise was needed, she understood that. “We’ll hail the planet we arrive, and I’ll send another message to my brother. If we don’t hear back in five minutes from him, or if the response to our hailing seems questionable, we can dispatch a party to the surface at that time.”

It didn’t offer much time for anyone to scramble, prepare, or cover-up. And if Tarkin’s forces were already there, that would change things as well, though someone going planet-side might have to wait until the air was cleared. It wouldn’t be good to have a transport shot out of the air.

“Is that agreeable, Supreme Leader?”

~***~

Tybalt fell, not at Armitage’s hand, but at Althea’s. He let his blue eyes find her after the man had fallen, a nod of approval following when he met her gaze, as Pandion seemed visibly shaken by all of it. He also had blood on his attire thanks to the shot that silenced Tybalt.

Hesitantly, the man took a step back from the corpse, before collapsing into a chair he’d refused to taken earlier.

No one was going to fault him for it. “Tarkin…he’ll…he’ll….”

“He’ll make Lothal a target,” Armitage said, keeping his voice even. “We can protect you. We are willing to protect you. I can assign guards to you. We will make Lothal a priority of the First Order, if you agree to join us.”

A bitter laugh came from his lips, “I don’t have much of a choice, now.” He was dragged into this. He could perhaps plead to Tarkin, but he didn’t want to. He had wanted out…just not in such a way that irritated Tarkin. “He has a military base on Lothal – Tarkintown,” he spat the name. “He may…he may do something from there once he knows Tybalt is…,” a deep breath, “once he knows Tybalt Vosh is dead.”

“We’ll eliminate it before that. Admiral Reveille is en route already. I can have her destroy it from orbit.”

Pandion briefly looked panicked, considering the innocents there, the indentured workers for it.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo considered the option Reveille gave him. It wasn’t exactly what he wanted, but in the moment of anticipation before their arrival, he had a little more time to contemplate. And he knew that would be a better course of action.

And if the worst awaits them on Lothal? Then they would just have to be prepared for another immediate battle.

“Yes, it is.” Reveille provided valid reasoning for the compromise, and he had to accept it, lest he wanted to risk losing any more ships or offers. Or completely give up the chance to acquire Lothal.

“What do you think are the odds Tarkin decided to station some of ships above Lothal?” He thought back to earlier of when Tarkin teased the possibility of a distraction, and it still bothered him. His gut instinct was to believe that he was merely tooling with Kylo as a way to get inside his head, but still, he couldn’t let his guard down.

~~

Lavinia felt nothing as she looked down at the fallen body of the disingenuous man. Pure nonchalance, even as she watched the steady stream of blood stain what had to be an expensive shirt. There was a time in her life when Lavinia may have been shocked that she did such a thing, but those days were far behind her.

Her gaze met Armitage’s, and at his approving nod, she felt a shimmer of pride at her action for a reason she couldn’t explain. Now’s not the time to think about it.

She pulled herself back into the conversation as Pandion and Armitage discussed what will happen next for Lothal. The govrnor had no choice now but to accept the First Order’s help, unless he wanted to remain vulnerable for a retaliation strike from Tarkin, which she saw as inevitable.

The look of momentary panic did not go unnoticed by Lavinia, and she frowned. An entire town destroyed? It wasn’t feasible that only Tarkin’s military officials worked there. Innocent people would perish, and she wanted to voice her objections, but she couldn’t find a way to do so without completely objecting to Armitage’s plan. “Does Tarkin have any other presence on the planet, governor?”

 

[Lucyfer]

“I personally think the odds are fairly good. He knew General Hux was here,” Reveille answered, “however, he may have also wanted to avoid such an open threat. In that case, he may have intended to wait until he was certain of our response before he sent anyone.”

They could arrive ahead of anyone he sent. Or they could be arriving after. That remained to be seen.

“Coming out of lightspeed,” one of the lieutenants spoke up, and the stars turned to white lines, before becoming pinpricks once more as the planet loomed ahead of them. No starships of Tarkin were above it.

“I’ll send a message to—” Reveille paused as she lifted her datapad, a message coming through right before she could send one. She arched a brow at the information there, before a smile curved onto her lips, “Prepare to fire on Tarkintown.” She directed, and the ship began to move through, finding the coordinates for it and prepping to fire.

She added, “General Hux has come to an accord with Governor Pandion, and it seems Tarkin’s presence is to be eradicated from Lothal.”

~***~

Pandion shook his head under Althea’s query, “No – not that I know of,” he kept to that town. His officials and his soldiers were there, but so were so many regular people. He tried to think of alternatives to it, “General – it’s not just his army, it’s not just his people, Tarkintown is where many – a lot of displaced citizens of Lothal go there.”

It had started as something of a refuge. The Empire supposedly took care of those who needed it, there. The Empire had fallen, but it remained viewed in such a light – a hated light, given the poor conditions, but all the same, people lived there out of necessity. “Couldn’t we—isn’t it possible?”

But Armitage shook his head, “Warning the citizens gives Tarkin’s military time to react, as well.” In a word, they all had to perish. He had felt nothing in destroying the Hosnian system, but he felt a bit here. These were the sorts he was trying to protect. He hadn’t cared about the elites, or even the children of the elites in the Hosnian System, but the displaced who suffered because of the greed and ambition of people like Tarkin?

He cared a bit.

It wouldn’t stop him from winning, though. War wasn’t easy – and someone had to be willing to make those hard decisions.

As such, he took out his datapad to inform Reveille of the situation.

 

[cleopat]

The question of Tarkin would have to wait until they arrived. There was a good chance for either scenario, and thus they had to prepare for anything.

And it seemed for now, fortunate favored them. No presence of Tarkin to be detected, but Kylo knew not to let his guard down. The chance for a situation on the planet was still present.

That is, until Reveille made her announcement. Kylo looked over at Reveille as she issued her command, followed by the reason. “Good, one less pawn in Tarkin’s game.”

The command for the destruction of Tarkintown initially sent a jolt of sorrow through him, but it was a sacrifice that had to be made if they wanted to completely rid Lothal of Tarkin’s influence. Lothal will be his. “And it’s good to know that General Hux didn’t completely screw up with this visit.”

~~

Lavinia looked over at Armitage with great concern in her eyes. Had she known sooner that Tarkintown housed not only Tarkin’s officers, but displaced people, she would’ve voiced her concerns earlier.

And in that moment, she realized who was standing beside her. The monster the galaxy knew him as, as the architect of the Hosnian Cataclysm. The man who was willing to do whatever it took to achieve his goals.

She had to at least try to convince him of another option, even if it may be futile at this point.

“General, please. There are refugees. These are people who had already lost everything. Surely there isn’t something else we can try? This can’t be our only option.” More emotion shined through in her words than Lavinia anticipated or wanted, but the thought of more civilians needlessly dying was too much for her to simply stand by and do nothing. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself knowing she didn’t try. “Not to mention, if the rest of Lothal hears about this, it could lead to insurgencies.”

 

[Lucyfer]

It was indeed one less pawn for Tarkin to use. It would mean they’d have to maintain security on Lothal, while spread across the Core. Reveille would have to run numbers and likely figure out how they could recruit more people with military backgrounds, but it would come together soon enough.

Either way, her brother hadn’t failed. That was what truly mattered.

“Locked,” a lieutenant said from the pit, “turbolasers will be fully charged soon.”

“Good,” Reveille stated, “Order our TIE squadron Cacophony out, to follow the turbolasers and make sure of the destruction.” She added. They couldn’t risk any of Tarkin’s followers surviving. That innocents might perish occurred to her, but this was far better than something like Hosnian Prime.

This was an attack on a military base. Targeted, and controlled. Innocents would die – but that was the cost of war.

~***~

Althea spoke up in favor of the refuges. She had a soft heart. Pandion, too, he could see, but Pandion had resigned himself to the necessity of it already. It was clear enough by the way he looked at his hands.

All of those in Tarkintown are doomed.

The message was already sent. He wouldn’t send another to delay it, “And do you have something that can be pulled off in five minutes, Lieutenant?” His voice was quiet, soft – too soft, but to speak louder would threaten a loud response from her.

He recalled what Tybalt had started to say. He recalled his own suspicions, but he tried to ignore those in the moment. Kos’tel’lanni had cleared Althea. It was possible he referred to another, or thought to mess with Hux, to save his own hide from death by pretending to have information. “The rest of Lothal will hear that this was the fault of Tarkin. The rest of Lothal will be told another story.”

There was no need for them to know anything. Some may suspect otherwise, but the truth would be hidden.

A bomb went off.

A generator exploded.

No matter what, it would be told as Tarkin negligence.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo waited for the moment the turbolasers fired on Tarkintown. After that, then maybe they could finally be done with dealing with Lothal for the time being and focus on their next step. Or rather, his next step.

Which largely depended on if he could manage to get information on the whereabouts of the Knights of Ren.

He still hadn’t received word back from his contacts about them, but he didn’t expect it so soon. Maybe a few days. Maybe even a few weeks. But he’ll have that, eventually.

“And we need to ensure that those on Lothal believe that there was either an accident, or this was Tarkin’s own doing. We don’t need a reason for them to grow restless.” There was still the Resistance and Tarkin to deal with. Kylo did not wish to add something else to the growing list.

~~

Lavinia forced herself to calm down. She had to, before she said something she would truly regret later on. The round was already lost, but she could spread word of what really happened to Tarkintown. She could get the truth back to the Resistance, who in turn would be able to get the word to the citizens of Lothal.

Then they could see how long the First Order’s influence lasted.

“No, sir,” she responded, her voice calmer than what it had been. Nothing could be done in the span of five minutes, and to try and convince a general to cancel his orders would not bode well for her.

Lavinia had to lose this one.

So she put an end to her attempt. “I apologize for my outburst, sir.”

 

[Lucyfer]

The question of how to cover it up wasn’t a large concern of Reveille in the moment. She nodded to Kylo’s statement, but that could come after they’d already cleared the area. After they had seen it, and knew what to do about it, knew how it looked. The lies would follow easier if they more closely matched the scene of the destruction.

Not that it would stay a wasteland, or ruins.

Hiding the truth could also be done by cleaning it up and rebuilding. Placing a Sienar Fleets factory over Tarkintown seemed a fitting end for the area. Housing for the employees could be added there. Stores and markets to supply their lives, an academy to teach the skills necessary…if anything, this could be looked at as renovation.

But first would come the turbolaser strike, and the hit was confirmed as the TIEs zipped away from the Exigency to lay Tarkintown to rest. “We will be certain to inform them all this was Tarkin’s fault.” It was a truth in the lie.

Had Tarkin not acted against them…it never needed to come to this.

~***~

Althea had no ideas.

Armitage hadn’t expected her to have any. He didn’t deny her apology or claim it unnecessary, as it came. In this instance, in front of Pandion, it was necessary. Even if the governor might understand better, her desire to see lives spared, it had come at a poor time, and without any thought behind it. “Do not forget, we are at war. Casualties are a part of this,” his voice remained quiet.

Only moments later would his datapad chime, and he looked down at it, “It has been done,” he announced, and he watched Pandion’s shoulders slump forward with a sigh. “TIEs are going to make sure there are no further complications. I believe we’ve cleared ground, then, for Sienar Fleets to build a factory?” He looked over to Darrin, who had been silent through all of this.

If he approved, or disapproved, it was difficult to tell.

He nodded, though. “Yes. We can make use of the space left behind by Tarkin and rebuild on it.” He agreed. That was all that was needed.

Governor Pandion managed, “I’ll see to it that formal documents are drawn forth to sell the land to Sienar Fleets,” he said, “to be used for a town and factory.”

 

[cleopat]

Good. The destruction of Tarkintown merely meant for him the end of Tarkin’s influence on Lothal, and now they could start looking past that and establishing their own control and influence there.

One step closer to rebuilding their numbers. One step closer to total galactic control.

“Perhaps we can spread the word that there was a weapons malfunction.” Accidental misuse of blaster ammo packs. Experiment of a new bomb gone wrong. He didn’t care, as long as word didn’t spread that this was caused by the First Order.

He didn’t need to worry about rebellions on Lothal.

“And I assume that General Hux is finishing up negotiations with Governor Pandion?” Since Reveille hadn’t heard anything else concerning the matter, Kylo believed that everything was finally falling into place for them. Not even Tarkin could stop him.

~~

There was nothing else to be done, and Lavinia had to accept that Armitage was right. And he was. They were in the middle of a war, and unfortunately, war meant civilian deaths would happen, most often needlessly so.

But she wasn’t ready to admit that the Resistance have made a few errors that resulted in unnecessary deaths. She only focused on the crimes that the First Order committed.

Lavinia only nodded her head, saying nothing more of the incident. Not even when the report came in that Tarkintown was destroyed. A stab in the gut and a wave of nausea passed through her, but she remained as composed as any other First Order officer would.

“Maybe if we’re to continue to negotiate, we should take it to a different room?” Lavinia eyed Tybalt’s slain body on the floor, and while she didn’t have a weak stomach for bodies, casually discussing future plans on Lothal was it was laying there felt...odd.

 

[Lucyfer]

A weapons malfunction could work, and Reveille shrugged her shoulders a bit, “I am sure that would be a plausible story. Tarkin’s name is synonymous with planetary destruction,” more than any of theirs, despite what they’d done. A weapons malfunction of a large enough scale to destroy an entire town wouldn’t be a surprise in the least.

As for her brother, “I am certain that he is,” there was no need of them down there. “We should remain here in standby. Governor Tarkin may yet arrive, late, or something else may show up,” she imagined Kylo was antsy to do something.

She didn’t exactly blame him.

Standby was boring, however important it could be. And it was important as the matters got hashed out below, and Lothal was more firmly taken into their grasp. Tarkin wouldn’t be able to take it back so easily. They would all make sure of that.

~***~

Darrin was the one to comment, “Are you afraid the dead might here?” Some of his son’s irreverence apparent in the tone and query, but Armitage shot him a look, as Pandion rose.

“It would be better to discuss this elsewhere, if only so we all have some comfort to sit and discuss, without the scent of him.” He hadn’t begun to rot. He wouldn’t begin to rot over the course of the meeting, but there was still something to be said for working in a clean room.

“I can take us to another,” Pandion was only too quick to cross the room, tip-toing over the body, to open the door and show them out. Darrin moved first, though his exasperation was apparent, and Armitage followed. When all had cleared the area, Pandion would take them to another, cleaner room – with enough chairs this time for everyone to sit.

This time, the men wouldn’t hang around and wait. They would sit.

 

[cleopat]

The wait for any news was irritating, and indeed, Kylo Ren became antsy for something to happen. But there had to be a agonizing wait period until new information came to them from the planet, and what was going on. Did General Hux get killed? Were they simply in lengthy negotiations with the governor of Lothal?

Not soon enough, communications finally came in for the end of the meeting with Governor Pandion. There was a minor step back with an ally of Tarkin’s, but he was soon dealt with by the wrong end of a blaster.

Good. Kylo didn’t want anymore set backs for Lothal than they already had.

Now with General Hux headed for the Exigency, Kylo’s wait will soon finally end. He wasn’t very good at it, even if that was half of negotiating with other planets. His volatile nature was evident in how he always yearned for something to do.

Just as long as it wasn’t standing around and waiting.

Yet now they had secured Lothal, Kylo Ren already contemplated on their next steps and which planet to focus on next.

~~

Lavinia had not been impressed with Darrin’s attitude in what she considered a serious situation. Like father, like son. But the meeting went back on track after they abandoned the room, much to her relief, and utilized another one that didn’t have a slain body laying in it, with the stench of blood slowly permeating their space.

Once focused on the topic at hand, their actual meeting didn’t last very long.

Lavinia mostly remained quiet, only speaking up when there was a question or to add in her own suggestion to a proposal.

After it was obvious that the meeting was coming to an end. Lavinia requested to make her own way back to the ship to ensure that everything was prepared for immediate departure. In that time between the conference room and the shuttle, she sent a message to Poe Dameron detailing the truth of Tarkin town.

On Lothal, there will be a rumor spread that Tarkintown was destroyed in an accident due to the carelessness of Governor Tarkin and their weapons research. Make sure that the citizens of Lothal know better. The First Order orchestrated the attack.​

She normally would’ve been ecstatic to return to the shuttle, but in that came the knowledge that they’re making their way to the Exigency first. And on that ship were two people she would’ve preferred to avoid, Admiral Hux and Supreme Leader Kylo Ren.

Once back on the shuttle, Lavinia took to her normal spot on the bench, reading through updates that had happened in the Firsted Order while they were away on the planet.

 

[Lucyfer]

The shuttle was departing Lothal after no longer than an hour since they had arrived, the details falling together. Reveille made sure there was space in a hangar for it, before deciding she was going to greet her brother there.

He may have succeeded in obtaining Lothal, but he had still ruined their relationship with Tarkin, and she remained unhappy with that. Kylo likely remained unhappy with that, and she certainly wouldn’t allow Kylo to be the only one to greet Armitage and Althea,

The shuttle did not take long to get into the proper hangar, either, and once it had landed and the ramp fell, Armitage was the first off – rising from the bench where he’d lingered besides Althea once again. He tried not to linger on that thought and how easily closeness had come to them.

He just shook it out of his head as he saw Reveille standing in the hangar, arms behind her back, a glare etched on her face. He may have succeeded in bringing Lothal under control, but he knew that he had fucked up in other areas, “General,” her greeting was cold, “We need to discuss plans to protect this out of the way planet, immediately.” Reveille was not going to maintain the Exigency here.

She had more important things to be doing.

It was also a way to make sure they got out of the hangar before any arguments began.

“I agree,” he consented. That much, at least, would need to be done no matter what had happened before. Lothal was now theirs, and would require watch, given who they had pissed off.

 

[cleopat]

It hadn’t surprise Kylo that Reveille accompanied him to the hanger that General Hux and Lieutenant Storax would arrive in, but he did wish he had one minute alone with them.

He could work with what he was given.

Lavinia followed Armitage off the shuttle, the incident with Tarkintown momentarily forgotten in her mind. It was easy to forget when the entire time she sat by Armitage, she was reminded of how she woke up that morning, and how at ease and comfortable she felt in his arms.

It was so easy to forget about the blood on his hands when he was so damn warm.

Kylo looked as equally pleased at them as Reveille did. Lavinia did not wish to deal with either of them, but it was too late to remain in the shuttle, not when both of them had already seen her.

“A foolish mission that resulted in the termination of any potential alliance with Governor Tarkin.” He had to deal with that insufferable man for nothing.

With a spark of foolish courage, Lavinia stepped up first. “Supreme Leader, I-”

Kylo’s cold gaze snapped over to the lieutenant, and with no hesitation, one hand reached out. She immediately grasped her neck in response, expecting the force choke she heard so much about through rumored whispers, but nothing happened at first.

A strange sensation started in her chest, one she recognized as panic. A feeling she hadn’t experienced much, but it threatened to consume her mind. The sensation encompassed her very being. She didn’t realized she had fallen to her knees, gasping for air and hands grasping the strands of her hair.

Kylo silently watched the lieutenant succumb to the power he tested. The power he had yet to test out before now. He was pleased with the result he saw, and although something within Althea begged him to abandon his current pursuit and expose, he continued down the current path, smirking cruelly at every whimper of terror she emitted.

Lavinia wasn’t aware of anything around her save the overwhelming desire of pure terror. Of the potential of being killed. The potential of a slow, painful death. The potential of anything going wrong and her suffering as a result. She didn’t noticed how she begged for mercy, but Kylo did. And Kylo thrived in it.

 

[Lucyfer]

They had barely stepped off the ramp.

Althea hadn’t said two words, and Kylo snapped. The choke was what everyone expected, but that was not the case. Althea fell to her knees, her hands leaving her throat, before she started to beg. Armitage froze to the spot, baffled at first, looking between Althea and Kylo, “Supreme Leader, stop this!” he demanded.

There was no call for it, and he dropped to his own knees to try and comfort her, or shake her out of it, a hand going to her shoulder. “Lieutenant, Lieutenant!” his fingers were nearly white-knuckled as his grip on her shoulder intensified. Not that anyone could tell beneath his gloves.

Reveille could.

And Reveille felt nothing but a cold anger towards Kylo Ren. As he stared down at Althea whimpering, she turned on heel, and walked off. Let Armitage call for the Lieutenant. Let her whimper and beg. Let Kylo smile at her fear.

This was her goddamn ship, and Althea had done nothing. She had tried to make this private, but now her mind buzzed to one thing she knew: Order 66.

If Palpatine knew the Jedi couldn’t stand to a thousand armed Stormtroopers, then she knew it, too.

She didn’t have evidence of his treason any longer, but she was done.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo reveled in the pained whimpers he brought forth from the lieutenant. It didn’t even cross him that what he was doing to her far exceeded the line of acceptability of punishment, even if she did nothing wrong to begin with.

But he didn’t see it that way. As far as he knew, both the general and the lieutenant acted against his wishes, and since he couldn’t punish the general in the way he wanted to without inciting further anger from others.

Too bad he just didn’t see that doing the same to Lieutenant Storax seemingly incited the same anger from Reveille.

He did noticed when Reveille started to storm away. For the moment, Kylo ignored the general’s reactions to his lieutenant cowering on the floor. Instead, he turned his focus away from Althea, relinquishing her of the torture, and reached out to stop Reveille in her tracks before she walked too far away. “Admiral, you’re missing all the fun. Don’t you wish to see what happens to those who can’t follow simple requests?”


~~

Lavinia didn’t recognize that it was Armitage who came to her side at first. What she did notice was someone grabbing onto her shoulder, and she struggled to get away from the unknown presence, but she couldn’t move. Not because of the Force, but because her body trembled far too much to crawl away.

This level of fear was something she had never experienced before, and her mind completely shut off save for natural instinct to protect herself. But her body refused to cooperate.

Kylo’s attention turned towards Reveille, and with that, his control over Lavinia dissolved. Her hands fell on the floor before her, and it was then she grasped onto the wrist connected to the hand gripping her shoulder. Her chest heaved as she took deep breaths, a failed attempt at calming herself.

Dark eyes were still wide as she struggled to regain some control over herself. The other hand flew to grip right above where her first one was. Lavinia yearned for some attempt at grounding and returning to normalcy, even if it felt like that would never happen. It wasn’t even until her breaths were calming down when she noticed the tears falling down her cheeks.

 

[Lucyfer]

Admiral Hux felt the Force take hold of her, and she was forced to stop. That was all she was forced to do, however. She did not attempt to look back as Kylo’s taunting question lifted into the air.

She kept her gaze forward.

She held her silence.

It was a purposeful act of defiance. ‘Go ahead. Show me what happens.’ A silent challenge as the hangar seemed to hold its breath. ‘See what happens.’ Her gaze sought familiar cameras, and she hoped Kos’tel’lanni was looking through one vantage. ‘Make your fucking move.’ It would be his last. Whether by her screams, her death, or her order, it would be his last, and so she held her silence.



Armitage didn’t know what happened to Althea, so he had little indication of how to respond. He was aware of how activity stopped in the hangar, and how all eyes had moved towards them – split between Kylo and Reveille, as well as himself and Althea.

The air was tense, and Armitage knew why.

This wasn’t the Finalizer, that knew Kylo Ren. This was the Exigency, and it knew Reveille.

He was aware of that tension through his own panicked worry of Althea, though he held that in. His grip relaxed as she seemed to return, her hand grasping at his own. “Deep breaths,” he said, knowing her heart rate and breathing rate weren’t good.

He wanted to get her up to her feet, and pull her into the ship. He was aware enough of how easily the tension could explode into violence, from his dealings with both Kylo and Reveille. However, he didn’t want to increase her panic, either – and it may not.

Her breaths did at least start to come in more calmly. “It’s okay now. We should get up.” Not only because it was odd for him to be on his knees like that.

 

[cleopat]

Reveille either chose to ignore him, or simply had nothing to say to him. Lieutenant Storax was long forgotten. He had only want to make an example out of her, as well as test what he learned over the holocron, and he accomplished his goal.

The corner of his lips quirked into a smirk at her seeming defiance. “No words, admiral?”

Her thoughts were loud to him. The smirk turned into a dissatisfied frown as he casually tutted. “You attempt that, and it may just be your last.” His voice lowered, and only those in the parameter heard, which may have included Armitage and Althea, but no one else.
Kylo could kill Reveille right then for her mere thoughts of ordering his death, but he gave her the benefit of the doubt for now. There was no way she could overpower him.

“Normally you’re more monosyllabic than this.” He continued to prod at the beast that dwelled inside for reasons he didn’t think on. As if he just enjoyed her aggravation.

~~

Deep breaths. Lavinia had enough sense to focus on that simple command. She had to regain control of her body, and the way she was near hyperventilation did not allow for that. At the moment, she wasn’t even sure if she could stand up by herself.

She was completely oblivious to anything else in the hangar except for the small bubble that encapsulated her and Armitage. Her hands still retained a tight grasp of his lower arm, but she was slowly returning to the present.

His suggestion didn’t register in her mind at first. Lavinia had only focused on herself and how helpless she felt through the entire ordeal, and it was a sensation she feared would never go away. A silly thought, but a very real fear brought forth with the power of Kylo’s Force.

Once she did realize Armitage had said something, she slowly nodded her head. “Okay, yeah.” Her voice was a whisper, and her grip didn’t waiver from him as she hesitantly rose to her feet. Legs shook, but they didn’t buckle under her weight, a small mercy for her.

“Please get me out of here,” she begged, voice not once rising. If Armitage wasn’t paying attention, he may not have even been able to hear her. Never had Lavinia felt so vulnerable before. Never did she wish to return to this moment.

 

[Lucyfer]

Kylo thought she feared enough for her life right then. It was almost hilarious. She had already considered her death would be his end, and yet he seemed to think she cared. Despite the hilarity of it, she didn’t laugh. Her lips didn’t so much as twitch to smile.

“You are right,” came instead, three monosyllabic words.

‘I’m sorry.’ She couldn’t say that, not to her brother, not to Althea, as two other words left her lips, “Kill him.”

As she thought, Kos’tel’lanni had been listening, and watching.

The hangar doors went down with a sharp shuttering noise, and blasters were pulled from every direction, as some of the pilots ran to ships, thinking they’d have better odds in them. A moment later, her voice was speaking over the comms: “All personnel – the Exigency is on lockdown, anyone who attempts to leave will be shot. I repeat, all personnel, the Exigency is on lockdown to deal with a traitor to the First Order – Kylo Ren, who executed Supreme Leader Snoke.”

Reveille could imagine the apology only too easily in Kos’tel’lanni’s voice, too. She had condemned herself to death…but it was for the good of the Order.


Armitage himself had just gotten Althea to her feet as Kylo spoke to Reveille, mocking her silence, clearly unaware of what a fool’s move that was. Whether it was her lingering panic, or sense of the situation, Althea wanted to leave.

He didn’t blame her, but his concern for Reveille kept him rooted for a few seconds.

A few seconds too long, as her words slipped, and action moved around them – as Kos’tel’lanni spoke. ‘Does she still have it?’ He wondered about the file Garmuth sent him, the facts Reveille had been forced to delete. Likely not – but he did.

He moved his free hand to Althea’s arm to pull her back into the shuttle, where they’d be free from the crossfire, uncertain how he might contribute beyond getting that file quickly into Kos’tel’lanni’s hands, and then finding his own damn blaster.

It might be too late for Reveille by then…but she’d made the decision for them all. First he had to see to the one life he could at least manage to protect a bit, and get Althea in the ship.

 

[cleopat]

Kylo wasn’t surprised that Reveille had issued the command. She hated him from the very beginning and would do anything to end him, even if it meant her own undoing.

Still, as she issued the commands, and as everyone in the hangar sprung into action, Kylo himself reacted. While the Force still had its grip on Reveille, he pulled her into him, utilizing her body as a shield against any blasters that may head his way. Simultaneously, he pulled out his lightsaber and ignited it, holding it out to deflect any stray blaster bolts that may head his way.

He wasn’t looking for Reveille’s death just yet. She’s much more useless to him dead than alive right then. “A pity it had to come to this,” he hissed, grip tightening on her arm as he backed towards the shuttle Althea and Armitage just escaped to.

If he went to his own ship, Reveille may decide to play the martyr and order them to fire on them. In a shuttle with Armitage? Things could pan out differently.

So he ascended the ramp, Reveille still tight in his clutches and lightsaber blocking anything that may hit him. Did he have a plan? ...Well, that remained to be seen.

~~

Lavinia was only acutely aware of what was going on around her. She registered the words of Reveille’s followed by the swift action of Armitage to get her inside the shuttle, but she couldn’t exactly register what was going on at first, or what Kylo did in retaliation.

But once inside the shuttle and out of sight of Kylo, as if there was a switch in her mind, she seemed to snap into action. “We need to get out of here.” Her voice still held evidence of what happened only a few minutes prior, but Lavinia struggled to push pass it, if only to save her own skin. And Armitage’s.

No, impossible. She didn’t care, right?

One hand still gripped his arm, the only indication that Lavinia still wasn’t fully recovered from Kylo’s abuse. “Before he-” but her words were silenced as the man she alluded to boarded their shuttle, admiral in arms.

 

[Lucyfer]

Reveille knew it was fairly pointless to fight back when Kylo pulled her towards him. She had already cast the die; it was only a matter of time, really. It was for that reason she didn’t struggle, and quite a few shots that came would have killed both her and Kylo.

She suspected Schaeffer, or other Cadets.

Assholes.

“You did this to yourself. I warned you.” Reveille did at least respond now. There was little to lose at that point. She had told him fear would get him the same thing as Snoke. She had given him chance after chance, but he refused to be reasonable. He refused to be even halfway decent. “And you know it, from all your whimpering in your sleep.”

At least she slept soundly.

She wasn’t terribly surprised that Kylo sought a ship. Kos’tel’lanni had clearly predicted it, thus the order that any ship leaving would be shot down. If it could even get out of the hangar.

Reveille did see Armitage and Althea in it, though, and felt a brief moment of panic.


Her brother clearly felt much the same. He had been planning to sit Althea down on the bench and dig out his datapad to send the message, but she held onto him and tried to beg him to leave. “We can’t, the hangar is closed, we just have to—”

To wait.

Except waiting drew Kylo in, with Reveille.

Armitage felt a moment of relief, before it set in that this was damning him and Althea both. He made a move for the ramp, intending to get out with Althea before it shut on them both and locked them all in a ship now being peppered with blaster fire.

 

[cleopat]

Her swipe at his nightmare that she had unfortunately witnessed had him tightening his grip on her arm in retaliation. “All you had to do was keep your damn mouth shut.” Just as she saw it as his fault, Kylo saw the situation as her fault, for daring to defy him.

A sneer crossed his face when he felt that spark of panic. Good. Once on the ship, Kylo reached out to shut and lock the door before Armitage and Althea could make their escape, effectively trapping them all on board. He pushed Reveilled towards the cockpit, lightsaber still humming by his side.

“Order them to open the hangar and cease all fire immediately.” This time, his hand reached out to cut off the air supply for Armitage. “Unless you wish for his slow, excruciating death.”

Lavinia didn’t once let go of Armitage, not even when Kylo entered the ship. It helped to provide her some semblance of security when the doors closed without warning, trapping them in there with the madman.

So this is how I die.

She didn’t even let go when Kylo’s grip took hold of Armitage, threatening to choke him to death. Wide-eyed, she once turned towards the general before back in the direction of Kylo and Reveille. Lavinia didn’t dare say anything, though her eyes screamed at Reveille to appease his request.