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Fandom Fight for Control [closed]

Reveille’s choice in drink did not surprise Lavinia, though she did come to regret agreeing to order the drink. It was quit strong and bitter, and now she had to drink the entire glass.

Or maybe she could pour out some of the contents while Reveille wasn’t looking her way. But she suspected the alcohol would burn a hole into the floor.

She chuckled at Rani’s antic. “Maybe the burn is just what I crave right now.” After the day, it was almost needed, even if she did yearn for something just a little bit lighter. Like whiskey.

“It almost reminds me of my family,” she mused lightly, taking another sip of the drink. “What did you even get, Rani?”

~~

“I am,” Kylo simply replied. It has been some time since he’s had need to do the simple tricks, but they were basic enough. Any Force user should know the mind manipulation trick if they wish to do anything more. Even the Jedi used it.

The palace came into sight, and his eyes quickly gazed over the security they had. It would be best for them to try and take the front entrance, but he and Discord weren’t exactly inconspicuous individuals, with their colors, their clothes, and their weapons.

The security would try to deny them.

“And it seems like we’ll both need to use it to get inside. No use in finding an alternative entrance. Be prepared to do what is necessary to let the guards wave us in,” he warned, strolling up to the steps of the palace. As expected, the guards looked at the two of them as they approached, and Kylo sensed the denial they were about to receive.
 
Somehow, Althea continued to sip at the drink. Reveille certainly would expect her to finish it, though her comment on family caused her to arch a brow. She sincerely doubted Althea’s own family could be so bad, and Rani looked aghast at the thought, too.

“There is no way anyone’s family can be that bad!” She stated, before backtracking, “This is just a Bespin Fizz, or that’s what they call it here, anyways. Some sort of sugary rum drink,” she answered, “but really, how bad was your family that a drink as bad as that reminds you of them?”

Kos’tel’lanni considered deflecting, but opted not to. Rani would want answers. She’d want bonding. So, for the moment, she would see how Althea chose to address the matter of her family. How she’d try to suggest it was so bad, and what details she would or wouldn’t lie about.

~***~

Given that Discord came to make an ally, she had no thoughts of finding an alternate entrance. That was often misconstrued as being threatening. So, she walked with confidence up the steps, and as the guards approached, she did pause, and forced a smile to her lips. “Ma’am, I’m going to have to ask you to state your business – your partner, as well,” his gaze caught Kylo in his look.

“We are here to make an appointment to meet Baron Carric Danthe. We are still within operating hours, are we not?”

“You are, but,” he seemed to try and glance around her robe, “I’m going to need you to step aside so we can make sure you don’t have any weapons on you.”

“That won’t be necessary,” she said, again pulling at the Force, “We don’t have any weapons.”

A pause, before he nodded. “You’re right, go—”

“On come on, Jax, that’s the most obvious trick in the book!” That came from a security guard a bit higher up, at the doors, who scowled down at them. The Force moved around the human in a way that indicated his own sensitivity, and why he hadn’t been impacted.
 
Lavinia mentally berated herself for the slip. Her family was the last thing she wanted to discuss, and yet she had allowed herself for the petty comment.

And so she would attempt to deflect, and hope Reveille and Rani would take the bait. She figured Kos’tel’lanni would be on her side. Or, she hoped. “Really, are we here to talk about about?”

Another sip. “We’re here to have a good time and relax!” Lavinia quickly thought of a way to divert the subject, before Rani could prod further, or before Reveille could further wonder.

“Rani, weren’t you talking about some drinking games? I believe you mentioned Never Have I Ever?” A game she hadn’t played in some years, but a good one to learn about the others.

~~

Kylo followed besides Discord, and immediately the guards proved to be a problem. He felt not panic as the one guard approached them, and Discord was quick to manipulate him. Good. Now the other-

Oh, that’s interesting. Kylo glanced at the guard who resisted their manipulation, who the Force moved about in an unusual pattern that hinted at his own Force sensitivity.

He walked up the steps towards the guard, and seeing at the physically imposing man approaching, the guard scrambled for his weapon. Before he had a chance to draw it out, Kylo waved a hand over his head, and the guard slouched to the ground, unconscious.

The other guard looked startled, but Kylo pulled the Force on him again. “Your friend overheated. He needs a bit of rest.”

The guard straightened and nodded. “It is rather hot outside today, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is.” Light clouds dotted the sky, and the weather was temperate, but now the guard was convinced his friend simply got overheated. A simple enough solution for their little problem. Kylo looked back at Discord and motioned her to follow him inside the palace.
 
Rani lit onto that easily enough, “Mm!” She swallowed the drink she had, and set it down, “Yes, I thought we might play it – that’s why I got the line of shoooooots~,” she gestured at the untouched line, and Reveille rolled her eyes, “Gotta make sure we hit hard to start, so I got 12! After that we can just sip our own drinks!”

“You really were hoping to play some game, weren’t you?” Reveille arched a brow, but wasn’t phased.

“One rule: nothing about First Order secrets or hinting too strongly at them. Let’s not forget where we are,” Kos’tel’lanni chuckled.

“I know, I know,” Rani rolled her eyes, and then gestured, “You should get to start, since you’re the new one!” She told Althea.

~***~

It was not hot, but the guards bought it after the one fell over – sleeping. Now that was a trick Discord hadn’t learned, and she was curious how he brought it on so easily over someone with the Force. She tried to follow the flow of it, to understand it, but it was lost on her – done too quickly.

However, they were able to walk through the doors after that, though some people were staring out – suits about government business, or likely, nothing.

Discord approached the secretary behind the main desk.

“How may I help you?” She looked up, a bit chipper, not as intimidated as the guards outside.

“We would like to set an appointment with Baron Danthe.”

She pursed her lips, “The Baron is a busy man…what is the agenda? Who do you represent?”
 
Lavinia could have sighed in relief when Rani took her bait. The topic moved on easily enough, as the excitable woman latched on to the line of shots on the table.

But then she suggested for Lavinia to start. Easy enough. Maybe. "Me? Okay then."

She leaned back, pondering what statement to start with. But as her gaze flickered to the red-head, a statement immediately popped into her head. Was it petty? Sure. Did she care? Not really. Not at the moment.

“Well then, never have I ever fucked Sienar.” And she knew Reveille had. It wasn’t exactly a secret.

~~

The secretary’s cheeriness immediately irritated Kylo, but he realized it could be used for their advantage.

Cheery people tended to be more agreeable than those who were always serious.

While he didn’t offer a smile, Kylo didn’t show any contempt on his face. Not even when it became obvious here was where he needed to start using his family name.

“I am Ben Solo, the heir of the House of Organa,” he spoke. “We are here to request an audience with Baron Danthe concerning an urgent matter related to what is happening to the Core Worlds.”

And here he hoped she knew what the First Order was doing, and that she quickly latched on to what he insinuated.

Or maybe they could just manipulate everyone along the way to the Baron.
 
‘Goddamnit Sienar.’ Reveille reached for the shot, “So this is how we’re going to play, is it?” Reveille could return the favor, as she was the only one who shot it back.

“You do need better taste in men,” Rani noted.

“He’s a good fuck, I’m not in love with him.” Reveille set the empty shot glass down, “Never have I ever learned Bocce fluently.” She said right back, a reveal, of course, but also to make sure that Althea drank – and to make it somewhat clear she was very, very good at bluffing.

Kos’tel’lanni raised her brows, wondering how that even came up. She didn’t take a shot, of course, nor did Rani reach to drink. They could sense the war coming in game. They’d have to be a bit more moderate in their own words, but…well, it was going to be interesting, that much was clear.

~***~

The name Ben Solo earned recognition, and the secretary’s brows raised at it, gaze drifting briefly to his companion, before returning to him. “Ben – well that’s – we haven’t heard any news of you in ages.” She was flustered, but didn’t attempt to call a bluff or question it. No one knew what became of Leia’s son, except those close to her – or those with good spies.

They knew what was going on in the Core.

Baron Danthe considered joining the First Order; he was an Imperial sympathizer. Obviously, a son of Organa wouldn’t be, but he couldn’t be denied audience. “Um, I think he has a free point between…well it’s a bit aways, but 5 and 6 standard today, is that all right?” It was only an hour away from the current point.

The haste the name Ben Solo inspired was actually surprising to Discord, but she was hardly going to say that. He’d used the name, and now they were in.
 
Lavinia offered nothing more than a half-smirk and an arched eyebrow as Reveille asked her rhetorical question and took the shot. Yes, yes it is.

And Sienar was very pretty to look at, but she wasn’t about to vocalize that thought.

Reveille’s own statement did cause a reaction from Lavinia. “I fucking knew it, you lying bitch,” she hissed, but she complied in grabbing a shot. The alcohol burned beautifully down her throat.

The claws came out. “Never have I ever been choked by Kylo Ren.” A low blow? Maybe. But Lavinia had a lot of pent-up aggression towards the woman.

~~

Kylo raised his head as the secretary recognized the name. He wasn’t that surprised it elicited such a response, but it still felt...nice. In its own bizarre way.

Of course you wouldn’t have heard of me in some ages. Not when he’s effectively been Kylo Ren for almost two decades.

The wait wasn’t long by any means, but it was still longer than he planned. But maybe actually sitting and waiting, and not demanding an immediate audience, would play him into the baron’s favor. He glanced at Discord before reshifting to the secretary. “That will be fine. Thank you.”

One last nod to the woman, Kylo walked away from the secretary’s desk to find somewhere they could sit for the hour. “I’ve never been a fan of waiting, but it may aid in getting the baron to like us.” This way, they weren’t demanding him to do anything. Politicians loved to think they’re the ones in charge.
 
‘This is fucking bullshit.’ Reveille didn’t want to think about that. Not to mention the fact it had been more than once but she silently grabbed the shot and downed it. Kos’tel’lanni and Rani didn’t grab for a shot, either.

“Uh—” Rani considered interjecting, and was denied.

“Never have I ever begged and cried before Kylo Ren to spare me.” She’d been choked, she’d been tossed into the wall, but she hadn’t done that. Everyone knew that Althea had – it was the turning point of all this, after all.

Now weaponized against her, but no matter. That was how they were playing.

Kos’tel’lanni looked towards Rani with a small shrug. A ‘let them alone’ gesture. One of them would get too drunk eventually.

~***~

Discord nodded agreeably to the wait time once Kylo consented. She followed after him, and took a seat when he did, thinking she might have preferred to go out and see a bit more of Corulag. All the same, she took her seat.

“Anyone with power likes to use it.” Discord noted as she settled, “Whether it be by making others wait, or giving them gifts to indebt them…people like to use their power.” She let her hands rest in her lap.

“Playing into their foolish belief is always best to win them over. To let them think they have control,” when really, they did not.

Nyx had taught her much about how to take power from others without it being known, but she was still not quite the master of it. Not like Nyx.
 
Lavinia visibly flinched. The incident was still fresh in her mind, and she could still feel the lingering effects clawing at her mind.

But per the rules of the game, she grabbed and downed a shot, ignoring the prickling of tears at the memory. The alcohol hadn’t hit her yet, but she welcomed its warm embrace.

The other two were temporarily ignored as her line of focus remained solely on the red-head. “Never have I ever used my position to belittle someone just to feel important or relevant.” It was her first impression of Reveille back on Crait. In the corridor on the Supremacy.

And she knew Reveille held a position below her brother. At some point she had to have felt that inadequacy in comparison.

~~

Kylo had to nod in agreement. The way she described how people loved to exert their power reminded him of the way Snoke did the very same thing. The ways he exerted his control and power over Kylo for years.

And that was exactly how he met his demise. By letting him think he still held power of Kylo, thinking that Kylo would continue to follow his command to kill the scavenger, yet he managed to trick Snoke. Mind manipulation against mind manipulation.

For one second did Kylo not regret that action. He just somewhat regretted the course of actions he took afterwards.

But it will all change soon. It had to.

“People love thinking they have control, no matter where in society they stand. They love to think they have freewill, when the reality is, is that they always bow to someone more powerful.” Including monarchs like the baron. And one day Kylo will answer only to himself
 
Reveille very much wanted to call Althea out on that being a lie, even with her tears glistening and the emotion raw. She was fairly certain Althea had done so, as her brother’s aide, or even as a lieutenant, at least once. At least once. But she didn’t have the proof of that, and so she reached for the shot – as did Rani, as did Kos’tel’lanni, an admittance of pettiness in the upper ranks all around.

That, at least, eased some of the frustration as she shot it back, and she gave a smirk to Althea as she likely thought she would only get Reveille with that one. “Damn I am feeling called out,” Rani muttered. “Not my fault flyboys are assholes.”

Kos’tel’lanni snorted at that but shook her head.

Rani had to throw some weight around to be important – to be relevant – or those flyboys would indeed drown her out.

“Never have I ever been given a position for no reason, just being in the right place at the right time.”

‘I had to earn mine, bitch.’ She set her own shot glass down a bit harder than necessary.

Kos’tel’lanni did reach for one at that, and Reveille did give her a look to that. Kos’tel’lanni didn’t answer, just shot it back.

~***~

Kylo Ren wasn’t wrong, and Discord agreed with the sentiment. “The illusion of power traps them all. Everyone here thinks they have real power,” they didn’t. Not even the Baron. They could all fall so easily, so quickly. “They’re so distracted by things they’ve given power to – money, bloodlines, positions…but that’s good. It’s easier that way, for us.”

They would soon bestow power on them, imagine power stemming from them, and so wait on their every whim to be granted another breadcrumb of power. They’d fight with their neighbors over that, the way the joint chiefs of the Empire had. They weren’t a unit.

Palpatine knew better than that.

It was best if everyone was distracted by petty bits of redundant power. Then they couldn’t do him any real harm or get in the way of his plans. It was just a shame so much destruction happened all at once.
 
Lavinia raised an eyebrow at the sight of all three of them reaching for a shot glass. It ultimately didn’t surprise her; she’d heard of the pettiness within the ranks of the First Order. She’s seen what some of the higher officers have done.

But she did chuckle at Rani. Lavinia knew all about flyboys. A little of the First Order’s, and also many of the Resistance’s. They still very much shared the same personality at times.

Reveille’s statement knocked her back down. “That’s not what he was saying last night,” she mumbled as she reached for the shot glass.

Then came the moment when she realized what she said. Lavinia quickly downed the shot, praying for the alcohol to numb her soul.

And it hit her that she could lie about her past information that none already knew. Except for Kos’tel’lanni, but would she call her out? “Never have I ever hotwire a door panel.”

~~

It was easier. It would be easier for them to fall, and for Kylo to rise. They just had to discover their weaknesses and exploit them in every way they could.

Take away the artificial power, and what are they left with? Nothing. Nothing, while he still had the Darkness on his side.

And the Light.

No, not the Light. The Lightness was a weakness that had to be exterminated, and Darth Nyx would help him with that.

You are destined for the Light. You need to see that.

He shifted in his chair, willing the intrusive thoughts to disappear. And he attempted to direct his thoughts away from where they were spiraling. “How did you and Darth Nyx meet?”
 
Reveille at first mistook the ‘he’ for Kylo. After all, Kylo was the one who promoted Althea. A moment later, she understood she meant her brother, “I told you, he’s a lightweight,” she reminded, a reminder to herself, as well. Armitage’s words meant nothing if he was inebriated.

‘In wine is truth.’ Some said, but she didn’t believe that, not completely.

Though she didn’t like that her head was getting a bit fuzzy already. Not that she was going to lose the game.

The ‘hotwire a door’ caused her to roll her eyes, “Only because you can’t,” but she took the shot, all the same. She took a moment to assess Althea after that, part to get her head back on, part to try and think of something else to say.

She noticed her shoes – the stupidest thing to focus on – and noticed how the strap really seemed to be digging in. “Never have I ever had to wear too-small shoes for an outing.” Absolutely stupid, but also true.

Rani groaned, but grabbed one of the last two shots. “It’s your fault, your feet are stupidly small, Reveille.”

Kos’tel’lanni laughed at that, but didn’t drink. She didn’t have this problem, either.

~***~

Discord noted his shifting. Noted his discomfort was hardly from where he sat. She couldn’t help the slight smirk, “The same way all outsiders meet Chiss. I pretended to be exiled on a planet, and she happened by. Chiss like myself and Kos’tel’lanni – we’re sent out to take a look at the wider galaxy, and determine if we want to get involved as a whole, or avoid the mess you all have made of your galaxy.”

Perhaps she shouldn’t be saying so much, but Kos’tel’lanni had certainly already ratted her out, and she wasn’t following the rules of her people any longer.

Nyx wouldn’t care if she spoke the truth. “Even Mitth’raw’nuruodo was nothing more than a spy for the Ascendency – our government. But Nyx knows this…she’s shown me a better way. I still wonder how long it will be before Kos’tel’lanni is told to blow the Order to pieces.”

If that Order would come.

But wouldn’t that be a nice doubt to put in someone’s head?
 
Lavinia smirked, but said nothing else on Reveille’s comment. Of course she could hotwire a door, but the woman didn’t have to know that. It was better that way. She didn’t have to know of the many things Lavinia did know how to hotwire.

The effects of the alcohol blurred away the edges of her mind, but she attempted to shake it off and focus on the present. She snorted at the statement Reveille gave. It may have been ridiculous, but it was obvious Lavinia had to drink to that one.

And so she grabbed the last shot. “We can’t all have dainty feet,” she mumbled, tilting her head back as she took the shot.

Her mind was growing hazy, and so she blurted out the next thing that came to her mind. “Never have I ever had short hair.”

~~

Kylo’s eyes snapped to Discord. That was certainly news to him. Did Reveille know of the orders and power Kos’tel’lanni held? If she did...then the Chiss certainly wouldn’t hold such a powerful position in the First Order.

Or was that a way to appease her?

Not that it mattered to him anymore. He didn’t care what happened to the First Order now, now that he was no longer involved.

Still, he was curious to see how things would end.

“So you’ve decided to get involve in the galaxy?” As she was training with a Sith, it would be impossible for her to still act as a spy, but there could still be some lingering doubts that Darth Nyx may try and completely rid her of.

He had several questions he wished to ask Kos’tel’lanni. Too bad their paths weren’t likely to cross anytime soon. Discord only provided him more questions than answers.
 
With no shots left on the table, Reveille took a hearty gulp instead from her own beverage. She’d likely need another here in a bit, but at least she had the satisfaction of knowing that Althea was going to have to try to take down more than a sip in a moment. It eased the sting of her targeted words.

She was still more than a little sensitive about the short hair. If her hair didn’t curl so stupidly when she let it grow…. “Never have I ever known both of my parents,” she said, fairly certain that would get everyone to drink, but herself.

“You can’t use that one every time!” Rani grumbled, taking her own hearty gulp of the sugary substance, as Kos’tel’lanni also tipped back her own drink.

“There are no rules against me using it once a game,” Reveille couldn’t help the laugh that came with the words, though she hated herself for it afterwards, for the lightness that wanted to follow on the heels of all those shots.

She wanted to stay angry.

~***~

Kylo Ren’s shock was apparent. ‘You don’t know.’ But she hadn’t forgotten the woman who spoke to her in cheunh. If anyone might know, it would be her. What, then, did Kos’tel’lanni have in mind for her if the Chiss opted to destroy the First Order?

She didn’t ask about that woman, though, but kept to the focus of his questions. “Yes.” Obviously she had opted to become involved. Did his question require elaboration? She didn’t think so. She wouldn’t have known how beyond what they already seemed to agree on – the organizations and governments around them were wrong.

Did she know what Kylo Ren wanted, though? No – and so she asked, “Why did you go to the First Order, Commander Ren?” Snoke and the Order seemed to her to be obviously flawed, stars knew what Kos’tel’lanni saw in it, but she had learned of them under Nyx’s teachings.
 
Lavinia could’ve laughed at the poor attempted by Reveille to get her to drink. But still, she took a large gulp of her drink, lightly wincing at the difference in taste and alcohol content compared to the shots. Fuck I shouldn’t have done that.

There’s probably a lot she shouldn’t have done that night.

But the alcohol allowed for her mind to loosen up around the woman she wanted to punch. And yet, Lavinia found herself smiling and laughing, so she decided to go with something they all will drink to.

“Never have I ever worn a white uniform.” Lavinia considered herself lucky for that. I do not like wearing white.

~~

Kylo noted her curt answer, but he didn’t push the subject any further. If she wanted to elaborate on anything, she would do so, and he knew he couldn’t force her, lest he make an enemy of someone he needed to be close to.

That didn’t mean he wasn’t curious to know more about her. So he figured a good way to try and win her over would be to answer her question the best he could.

“Snoke had found me and offered to show me the truth. Train me in ways Luke Skywalker couldn’t.” And now both were dead. “I joined him in the First Order under the promise of extinguishing the last of the Jedi Order. Plans changed over the years, as eventually the First Order became a way to see myself as the rightful heir of Darth Vader.”

And now he still yearned to see that image, but simply without the aid of the First Order.
 
Reveille laughed openly as Althea winced at the drink, “I knew you didn’t like it!” As if anyone actually liked the drink. Still, she felt smug to see that wince as Althea transitioned to having to drink it, and wasn’t even phased as she had to drink a bit more because of the white uniform.

As did the other two naval officers, although Kos’tel’lanni finished her own drink with that and set it down, picking up the water that Rani had also remembered to bring. That would be the last of it for her, but she knew right then no one really cared if she drank or not.

She was just there to moderate this strange game as Althea and Reveille got to know each other through it, and started to relax a bit. Rani wasn’t even trying to interject any longer.

“Never have I ever had a civilian job,” she said, tilting her drink slightly. Again, Rani groaned, and took her shot, before looking to Kos’tel’lanni, who didn’t drink at all.

“I know you did things a’fore the Order,” a bit of accent slipped in Rani’s tone, trained Core accent fading a bit.

“Of course I did, but never a civilian job,” she shrugged, “I’ve been lucky, I suppose.”

~***~

The Jedi Order, “It is a good thing they are gone,” Discord noted. She knew that Luke was dead, and she heard rumors of someone strong in the Force, whispers of a Scavenger, but no Jedi. The Jedi were forever gone, with their structures lost. The Sith would rise in their place.

Kylo, it seemed, was preoccupied by being Darth Vader’s heir. It seemed strange, given his loathing of the past, that he was so obsessed with that. It was a question that Discord would sidestep, for the time being.

“What does being the heir of Darth Vader mean to you?” Though Nyx was trained under Darth Vader, not everything she had to say was praiseworthy. After all, Vader had only, ever, been second to the Emperor at most, and most of the time he was Third. The Emperor constantly set people over Vader and told him to listen to them, for a set of time, be it Tarkin or Mitth’raw’nuruodo. Vader was not trusted.

Vader knew that, too.

As he believed in the Rule of Two, but sought Nyx, so that when he on day displaced the Emperor, he would already have his heir – until Luke showed up. But he continued Nyx’s training. Nothing was guaranteed.

Nyx rather despised the Rule of Two, thankfully.
 
Lavinia scoffed at Reveille’s accusation. “There’s no way you enjoy it either! This shit is for people who want to numb feelings.” Which is what Reveille wanted. Which is what Lavinia wanted.

Her dress shifted as Lavinia squirmed in her seat, no doubt the increasing effects of alcohol, and she was quick to straighten out the fabric.

She hesitated a moment, inwardly debating on what constituted as a civilian job, but she did eventually took a swig of her beverage.

“Okay, okay, okay,” she started, bracing her drink on the table as her mind attempted to shift past the haze alcohol had created. “Never have I ever had a sibling.”

~~

“The Jedi aren’t all gone.” It was a harsh whisper, a reminder to himself of how the Scavenger was still out in the galaxy. As long as she was alive, therein lied the hope that she would recruit others gifted in the ways of the Force and teach them the archaic ways of the Jedi.

His eyes snapped over to Discord, considering her question. It was one no one had asked him before, and so Kylo didn’t know how to immediately answer it. His gaze wondered to the opposite wall, where a large stained-glass window filtered in light from the setting sun.

“To be able to hold even a fraction of the power he held,” Kylo began slowly, his words low as his mind scrambled to piece together ideas. “To succeed where he had failed, in extinguishing the Light. That was where he had failed, and without that lightness in him, the old Empire may have prevailed.”

And that’s what he strived to succeed in. Creating that immunity to the light and allow nothing to stop him. He would not be weak.
 
“Does a half-sibling really count?”

“Drink.” Kos’tel’lanni ordered, and Reveille rolled her eyes, as again, she drank, and so did Rani.

“Ugh…I’m gonna need another one, hol’on, I’ll go get us all some more. Althea, you want somethin’ else?” Rani asked, rising to her feet. “I know you want more of that, Reveille.”

“Thank you,” she nodded, pleased to continue drinking the beverage if it bothered Althea so much. “We’ll wait for you to get back,” she promised, as Rani waited for Althea to offer her drink of choice to Rani before she’d head off to get more.

~***~

‘One young girl isn’t going to be able to restore the Jedi.’ Discord didn’t say that. His snap was reason enough to avoid touching on it again. Leave it to Nyx to work his issues out.

Just like his issues with not recognizing the power of the light. For so easily forgetting the foundations of the ‘Jedi Mind Trick’ earlier. Again, another thing Discord knew better than to mention. He would learn, soon enough, that a Sith cared not for sides – just power.

The Force was power, to be used and bent however suited their purpose.

Still, she opted to play dumb, “I thought Vader just wanted to extinguish the Jedi and the system that was dependent on it?”
 
Wait, a half-sibling? That Lavinia did not expect. They looked too much alike in her eyes. Or maybe it was just because they both had the same red hair. Wonder if they’re both naturally red-heads. Her mind began to wonder in places she quickly had to pull herself out of, lest she wanted awkward thoughts later on.

As Rani asked the question concerning her drink, Lavinia didn’t know what more she wanted. Did she want to cave and order a whiskey? Or suck it up, and not let Reveille win, by ordering another one?

Oh fuck it.

“The same as before,” she answered. Like hell she was going to allow Reveille the opportunity to be smug over their drink choices.

~~

Kylo wanted to laugh at Discord for thinking about Vader’s ambitions in such simplistic terms. He wanted so much more than that.

“He believed it was his destiny to rule over those weaker than himself.” And Kylo sought to do the same thing, but without the same weakness Vader held, which is why it was so important to him to eliminate that lightness.

“Vader’s weakness was exposed with Luke Skywalker, and he wasn’t able to bring himself to kill Luke, thus all his plans failed.” And Kylo will succeed where Vader failed. He will.

Kylo Ren had no weakness like Darth Vader had. Except for your mother.

When the time comes, he had faith in himself to do what he needed to do.
 
Reveille couldn’t help but raise both eyebrows as Althea asked for the same as before, Rani moving off to fetch it, “Really, it’s flattering you’re trying to match me,” Reveille said, taking a sip to finish off her current drink before she set it aside, “but it’s already obvious you don’t like it. You don’t have to keep drinking it.”

Kos’tel’lanni wasn’t drinking it, nor was Rani.

She barely bit back the comment that she couldn’t think that much less of Althea. She was aware enough of Kos’tel’lanni being there that she knew better. Though perhaps suggesting Althea was trying to impress her was already a wrong step.

Oh well. It was already said.

~***~

Discord showed no offense at Kylo’s open laughter, as he tried to explain what he imagined was Darth Vader’s goals at the outset. ‘Then why didn’t he kill Palpatine sooner?’ She wondered if Kylo had considered Vader’s state for long, the apprentice to a master he didn’t kill until his change.

“I see,” that was what she said instead of any question, or angry reaction. She gave a nod, committing Kylo’s view to memory. It may yet be useful for Nyx to understand what Kylo sought. “Then do you plan to kill Nyx one day, as Vader should have killed Palpatine to take over?”

That question might be dangerous. Or make Kylo feel too much on the spot, or even threatened to admit it, but she didn’t speak it in a threatening fashion. It remained simple curiosity that was in her tone, an attempt to grasp at an understanding, of how he imagined things would go with Nyx. How he viewed the relationship, if he feared her domination over it all, or if he thought something else could be gained from it.

After all, Nyx wasn’t calling him apprentice. He retained his own, separate title of Commander.
 
“Flattering?” Lavinia repeated, biting back the bark of laughter that threatened to escape. To her, it was ridiculous for Reveille to suggest that she was continuing with the drink to merely impress her.

But, then, why did she continue ordering the drink she clearly didn’t like?

Because I can’t let her win. “This drink is doing it’s job well enough, so I don’t want to switch to another drink right now.” And that it was. Somewhere deep within her subconscious, Lavinia knew she had to stop drinking, yet she didn’t.

She enjoyed her loosened inhibitions. She enjoyed the full relaxation she felt in the moment, even if her body would protest the next day.

~~

Discord asked a bold question. Did she really expect him to give her a truthful answer, when it concerned how own Master?

But, what would he do to accomplish his own goals? Would he succeed where his grandfather had failed to ensure a complete transformation and galactic domination over the galaxy?

Kylo wasn’t sure of his own answer. He didn’t know what he would be willing to do, at that moment. For now, Nyx was a useful ally, and he didn’t possess any immediate plans to kill her.

“You’re very bold to ask me that.” It was all he said. He didn’t answer her question, nor did he plan to. Instead, he directed it back at her, “Do you think I will kill her?”
 
Asking Althea what she needed blocked out would have been a stupid question. Not even petty enough to consider. She’d seen what happened to her, at Kylo’s mercy, heard her cries and her begging. She may not like Althea, but it was a step too far. She didn’t quite know what Kylo did, and she didn’t need to know.

If it caused that much pain, it was too much.

Rani returned with the drinks, and Reveille took hers up, “Here’s to Kylo Ren,” she said, putting her drink towards the center, “may he be dead or worse the next time we see him,” for all his crimes, for all the pain and suffering, for everything he was, and everything he had come to represent to the Order.

For the fear that both he and Snoke had represented – something she had not wanted the Order to stand for.

“I can get behind that,” Rani laughed, lifting her own cup.

“I told you we should have just done it immediately,” Kos’tel’lanni would never let that one go, apparently.

“You’re right, you’re always right, just let me have time to catch up to your vast rightness, ‘Tel,” the sarcasm was there, but not biting, as Reveille addressed her.

~***~

Discord shrugged slightly as the question was turned back to her, “I don’t know you well enough, and I don’t know Vader well enough,” she offered, “I know that Darth Vader didn’t kill Emperor Palpatine until he became good, but if his goal was as you said, then it sounds like that would have come to pass no matter what.”

It sounded like Vader wanted to be the Emperor.

“Unless he was going to wait for him to die of natural causes, of course,” like a prince and a king, a natural following that needed no hastening. “I still have much to learn about him. His influence on my Master is why I wanted to know more about you, and your thoughts on it.”

It was easy enough to wave it away as that, a mere curiosity based on the common linking factor – Vader – and the different lenses that he was seen through. “I apologize if the question was a bit too bold, my thoughts just followed along what seemed to be Vader’s goals.”

And so, Kylo Ren’s goals.
 
That was one thing she and Reveille could agree on. Who knows where he was now, but as long as it kept him far away from her, Lavinia did not care one bit.

Although General Organa may want to know that her son was no longer in the First Order. Shit maybe I should send a message to Poe.

Tomorrow. For now, she took up her drink, lifting it up in cheers. “Here here!” She offered her own cheer, immediately taking a sip.

“I will say this about Kylo.” Lavinia slung one arm over Rani’s shoulder, leaning into the twi’lek. “Without him, I would’ve never met any of you guys. I would still be hunched over a computer, squinting over every little number.”

~~

Kylo knew little of the relationship between Vader and Palpatine, nothing more than what was already common knowledge. He had nothing more to say concerning that matter, as he knew nothing more to say.

“I suggest you do be more careful on what you ask in the future,” he warned. Kylo didn’t wish to deal with questions such as that one, or others he may not fully know the answer to. Or concerning subjects he may not fully understand himself.

How much longer did they have to wait? Not much time could’ve passed just yet.

“There is probably very little I will answer about him. Your Master knew him. She may be able to provide better answers.” He shifted some in his chair, eyes flickering to a passing couple walking down the hall, immersed in their own private conversation.

“How long have you been with Darth Nyx?” If she wanted to ask her own questions about him, he would do the same to her.
 
Rani leaned right into the pull, so she wouldn’t topple over as a bit of Althea’s weight came upon her. She giggled as she drew her own drink back to take a sip from it, the others doing the same. It seemed the one thing they could agree on was that it was better with Kylo Ren gone, a sentiment the entire Order was celebrating, across its many ships.

“At least he did that much for us!” Rani agreed, and Reveille managed not to say anything to that, glancing around the bar instead. “So are you really staying on with Hux as his aide? I mean – I’m sure you can – I don’t doubt you! Just, just, if you were into that data analysis stuff, you sure you want all this?”

Kos’tel’lanni noted, “Some people end up in jobs they don’t necessarily want, Rani. I’m sure you didn’t want to be a waitress before all of this.”

“Ew, no,” she said, shaking her her head immediately. “I guess….” It could be similar with Althea.

~***~

Discord nodded to his statement to be more careful, silent agreement to his sentiment. She would indeed see how far she could go, but she would be more careful in dancing up to those points of conversation, if she dared to venture there without Nyx present.

Nyx was a bit better at navigating it. That was already plainly obvious. “I will speak to my Master of Vader in the future,” she agreed, and did not voice that her curiosities had been his interpretation of Vader. He did say that Nyx would have better answers.

It was a quiet admittance that he did not know everything he needed.

She knew it had not been terribly long, she was not so concerned with that. People around them weren’t paying them much mind, at least, not right now. “Only six years,” she said. She had gone out later than Kos’tel’lanni, though not much. She had not stumbled on the First Order or Resistance, just Nyx.

Thankfully, just Nyx.
 
Lavinia noted Reveille’s silence, but she didn’t comment on it, nor did she feel hurt. She knew the feelings the woman held towards her, and they were mutually shared.

Her arm fell back to her side as she took a sip from her drink. “It was something we had actually discussed, and we decided that we actually liked the current arrangement.”

Though she knew it meant she would have to squash that silly infatuation she had for him. To her, it was obviously not mutual.

“And I must say, it’s a far more interesting job than that data analysis shit. I get to actually interact with people.” A sober Lavinia would’ve thought on how that wasn’t necessarily a good thing. More opportunities to talk to people meant more people learning about her. “You can only talk to data so much before you lose your mind.”

~~

Kylo nodded along to Discord’s agreement. Good. She wouldn’t question him any further about that, and they would all be happier for it.

And her answer to his inquiry of the length of her training thus far with Nyx didn’t surprise him, not after she mentioned what she did with the Chiss and their backstory together.

It was a much shorter time span than many other apprentices and masters though, but they both had to know that.

“What has your training been like under Darth Nyx?” She had already provided a brief glimpse into it, but he wished to learn more about what she was willing to reveal. Some points of training may remain a secret under those who do not wish to divulge any into what they were doing.

But Kylo wanted to know how much Discord would tell him.
 

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