The Light seared him. Burning. Blinding. Through the haze of pain he looked up at the glowing figure standing over him. She was carved from durasteel. Colder than the snow at his back. The blue reflected in her eyes held no hope of mercy. She studied him like he was insignificant; a bug to be squashed. How was this even possible? He was Kylo Ren, Lord of the Knights of Ren and Chosen One of the Supreme Leader Snoke! He was as inevitable as the First Order itself! No one could defeat him!

Kill him.

He twitched in surprise, recognizing the voice. It was the Supreme Leader, the one who had rescued him from the chains of obligation his family had tried to wrap around him. The family who refused to recognize that he was destined for greatness. But now… now he was speaking to someone else.

Kill him and join me!

Realization spread like ice through his veins. The filthy little scavenger girl. The Supreme Leader was talking to her. Telling her to kill him!

Do this and accept your destiny!

His side throbbed and the burn across his face pulsed white-hot in his rage. Those were the words Snoke had spoken to him at the Jedi temple! He struggled to make his limbs work, willed his saber to jump to his hand so he could strike down this pestilent little fraud. Sparks flashed through his right eye, but nothing happened.

He saw the curl of her lip, heard the hum of the lightsaber- mineminemine- as she raised it. The ground itself trembled with her rage. And then he was falling. Falling, just like- like-

"Daddy, help!"

"It's okay, Benny, I've got you."

Strong arms caught him, pulling him into hug before tossing him up and catching him again. Laughter bubbled out of him, joined by the warm, familiar chuckle of his father.

His father, falling...

Darkness. Pain. Both were familiar.

You idiot, a voice hissed in his head. It, too, was familiar. You kriffing spoiled-brat little idiot! How many times? How much evidence do you have to see before it gets through that thick, arrogant head of yours? Even your father can see it! Everyone but you!

His father. His father, falling, grief and pain etched on his face. Kylo pushed the thoughts away, pushed the voice away, too, and struggled to wake up. He had to get out of there.

"...a bacta tank. The doctor says anything less won't be enough."

Hux's voice. It was as crisp as ever, although lacking the contempt that flavored it whenever he spoke to Kylo. He tried to draw a breath to respond, but knives sank into his side, freezing his lungs.

"No."

His master's voice. Their master's voice. He managed to breathe in and out.

"He hasn't earned it," Snoke continued. "Let him suffer the pain his weakness has caused. Maybe it will serve as a lesson to him."

Kylo went numb. Only his side and his face still burned with heat. The Supreme Leader was furious.

"He could still lose the eye," Hux said, as matter-of-fact as if he were saying the kitchen had run out of caf.

"He should be grateful not to lose more, after that embarrassing performance. He failed to do as I ordered, failed to stop the destruction of my weapon, and couldn't even stop an untrained savage from besting him in combat."

Silence. Kylo struggled to speak, but his jaw felt wired shut. He tried to open his eyes and felt the pain flare on his right side. Nothing was working.

"I will not tolerate any more failures, General. Is that clear?"

"Perfectly, Supreme Leader."

"Good. Take Kylo Ren away until he is fit to be in my presence and continue with Phase 2."

"Yes, Supreme Leader."

Something jostled him. He was prone on his back but could feel himself moving. He made one last effort to make his presence known, but the darkness swallowed him again.

Poor little Ben, the voice in his head mocked. Lost and alone in the dark. If only someone could help him!

He hated that voice, always sounding off in the back of his mind during his weakest moments. He willed himself wake up again, but the darkness prevailed.

Too bad he pushed away the only people who ever cared about him. Pushed them away… or killed them.

He fought to block out the voice, concentrating on the meditations Snoke had taught him.

Your grandfather would be so proud, wouldn't he? You'd like to think so, anyway. You've built this whole ridiculous life around it.

Breathing. In through the nose. Count. Out through the mouth. In. And out. He was a stone, solid and unbreakable.

Except it isn't true.

He was a stone and the words would pass over him like water, unable to affect him.

Your grandfather isn't Darth Vader, he's Anakin Skywalker. And in the end, right at the end, he was was sorry for what he did! He chose his family over power! Because family is-

Kylo yelled. He forgot the breathing, the stone, the water, and just let rage fill him. He burned with hatred intense enough to drive away the pain and, more importantly, drive away the voice. He pushed with his mind and heard things crash around him.

This time he managed to get his eyes open. He was in a sterile white room full of medical equipment, most of which was now against the wall and broken. There was a groan and clatter to his right as a white and black blur rose from the floor.

"Sir!" The trooper wheezed. "I'll go and get General Hux immediately!"

The shape- the trooper- wobbled towards a dark rectangle in the wall and disappeared. Kylo could hear his footsteps retreating. He blinked a few times, but his vision didn't improve. He managed to push himself upright, but the effort almost made him pass out again. He swallowed his nausea and swung his legs over the side of bed he was in.

He was dressed in a hospital gown. The cheap fabric made him feel raw all over. And it was white. They'd dressed him in white. He yanked it off and crumpled it in a ball on the floor. He wanted to hurl it across the room, but he was already getting tired and needed to conserve his energy.

He prodded the bandages around his waist and felt a stab of pain from the bowcaster wound. That damned Wookiee. How dare he shoot at him? Kylo vowed to kill him the next time they met. His mind wandered, reminding him of times he'd ridden high on furry shoulders, snarling in what he was convinced was perfect Shyriiwook. He jabbed the wound again, using the pain to wash away the intrusive memories.

This was unproductive. He needed to get out of here, get back to his quarters, and then work to convince Snoke that he was still strong and dependable. Much more so than eopie-faced brat from Jakku. He braced himself and pushed off the bed.

His feet hit the floor, but his left leg buckled and he wound up crashing to his knees, biting back a yelp of pain.

"What the kriffing hell do you think you're doing?"

"Hux," he growled. Of course the prissy general would arrive in time to see him looking undignified. "I am leaving this pathetic excuse for a medical facility and going back to my quarters." He lifted his head, turning it slightly so he could get a good look at him.

Hux was in his uniform, but the sharp, military-grade creases were gone and his hair looked slightly mussed. For the first time Kylo wondered what time it was. And how long he'd been out.

"You're doing no such thing. You can barely stand!" Hux sniffed, then wrinkled his nose like he smelled something unpleasant. "Trooper, get him back on the bed."

"...Yes, sir!"

Kylo turned his head to glare at the trooper, who hesitated, glancing at Hux.

"I do not need any assistance," he said, enunciating each word with exaggerated care. He pushed off the floor, got his legs under him again, and stood without mishap. He glared at Hux, who rolled his eyes.

"For Hell's sake, Ren, what were you going to do, walk through the halls of the Finalizer stark naked?" He waved a gloved hand at the gown on the floor. "Put that back on and stop playing games!"

"I'm not staying here," Kylo said. "If you don't want me to upset the delicate sensibilities of your precious stormtroopers and staff, then bring me my clothes!"

"I'm not bringing you anything. And before you ask," he continued as Kylo opened his mouth, "you will not order this trooper to do it for you. JB-007 is here to act as your guard."

Kylo glared at the trooper. He knew that designation. The one who'd allowed the prisoner to escape. JB-007 took a step back.

"Do you trust your crew so little that you need to assign a babysitter to protect me?" He sneered, lip curling. "And not a very competent one, from what I hear."

"Actually he's here to make sure you don't hurt anyone else," Hux said, as the trooper took another step back. "Although from the look of this room you've already managed to destroy some valuable equipment." He sighed.

"I was unconscious." Kylo yanked the sheet off the bed. It, too, was white, but he was starting to get cold. "Bring me my clothes." He glared at Hux, adding a slight push from the Force to make him obey.

"No," Hux said, watching as he wrapped the sheet around himself. "You look like shit, Ren." Even more than usual.

He didn't speak the last part, but the thought was so loud he might as well have. Kylo straightened and stared down his nose at him.

"How kind of you to be concerned about my appearance, General." He ignored the scoffing noise Hux made. "I assure you that once I'm out of this glorified nursery and back in command I'll be just fine." He took a step towards the door.

Hux lifted his chin. "It's a good thing you favor that ridiculous mask of yours. It might serve a purpose, now."

Fury blazed through him. How dare this pale little worm insult him? "What did you say?"

The trooper had managed to make it out into the hall. Hux merely twitched his shoulders, dismissing the threat Kylo so clearly posed.

"You haven't looked in a mirror lately, have you?"

"I hardly see what that has to do with anything."

Hux smirked. "'Hardly see' is right. How many fingers am I holding up?"

He held up his left hand. Kylo could see an indistinct blur and automatically turned his head to get a better look.

"As I thought." Hux dropped his arm. "If you want to make even more of a fool out of yourself by leaving, I won't stop you." He stepped aside, making a sweeping gesture at the door.

Kylo hitched the sheet around his shoulders and glared. He could feel the burn across his face pounding, but refused to acknowledge it. Any damage was temporary. It could be fixed. And what didn't kill him made him stronger.

"I'm glad you're finally deciding to be reasonable about this, General," he said.

"Reasonable would have been reporting the location of the intruders rather than stomping off after them by yourself," Hux said. "And reasonable would be staying here until you've been cleared by the doctor. I am, however, resigned to the inevitable. You've never listened to common sense before, so why would you start now?"

"Be careful not to anger me, General Hux." Kylo strode over to glare at him with his good eye. "You would not want to feel my wrath."

"I'm sure that will go over well with Supreme Leader Snoke. He's already furious with you for letting the intruders escape."

Kylo blinked. "They escaped? How could you let that happen?"

"Me?" Hux's eyes widened. "You were the one who went charging after them. Why didn't you stop them?"

"I…" He flashed back to the fight, to the way his grandfather's lightsaber flew to the girl instead of him. Remembered the blazing fury of her strikes and how easily she countered his moves. He frowned. "She was stronger than I expected."

"Yes. Despite all of your training you let a frail piece of scavenger scum with a stolen lightsaber best you in battle."

Kylo went rigid. He pictured himself strangling Hux, ignoring his pleas as the life slowly drained from his eyes. He imagined flinging the body across the room to fall among the rest of the garbage.

"You let her escape, too." He managed to choke the words out. Lights flickered in the blur on his right side, but he was gratified to see color bloom in Hux's cheeks.

"I didn't let any of them escape," he said, his accent getting more pronounced. "I had my orders. Unlike some people, I actually follow them."

A figure moved in the corner of his vision and he twisted to look, but no one was there.

"As you say, General." Kylo stepped away from him. "This isn't over."

"Try not to destroy anything else on your way back to your quarters," Hux said, pivoting to stalk out the door ahead of him. "Trooper! Clean up this mess!"

"Sir!"

The trooper gave Kylo a wide berth as he reentered the room. Kylo sneered at him and walked out, using the Force to give the damaged equipment one final shove, adding more to the fool trooper's task.

He'd show Hux, he'd show all of them that Kylo Ren was not someone to cross! He'd prove himself to his Master no matter whom he was ordered to kill.