He was alerted to the disturbance by Captain Phasma who had informed him that there was a situation in the main training room; the doors had been overridden and as a result no one else was now able to enter. His years of experience and natural intuition, plus the fact that Phasma had been the one to deliver the news herself, led him to conclude that there was only one possible source which could have caused such a disturbance.
Sighing deeply, he wondered what form of trouble Kylo Ren had created for himself this time. His distaste for the younger man had lessened somewhat since they had started fucking on a semi-regular basis a few weeks previously. A vicious bust-up in one of the private conference rooms had ended with the pair tearing each others clothes to shreds as they worked out their differences in a much more pleasurable, but by no means less aggressive, way. Ren however was still the biggest cause of trouble on this base and since he was the general, Hux was unfortunately tasked with the difficulty of being the one who had to control him. Particularly in this instance since Hux knew that he was the only one who possessed the codes to reopen the doors in the private sectors.
Marching quickly to the training room in question he found the nearby hallways deserted and assumed that the staff were wise enough to avoid the area and stay out of potential trouble. Typing his own override codes into the keypad he was instantly granted access and as soon as he entered the room he couldn't stop the huff of displeasure which escaped him. The room was an utter shambles with many of the training robots torn to shreds and littered around the floor, a floor which was now marred with suspicious marks which Hux suspected were the result of a lightsaber.
Spotting the source of the carnage curled up in the center of the room and surrounded by debris, Hux walked beside him. "What a surprise. Had a bad day Ren?" Hux asked coolly as he stared at the lump of dark fabric and although he couldn't see Rens' face he could hear him breathing so at least he was definitely alive. After a few moments of silence he grew irritated with the lack of response and he used his foot to push Ren onto his back and force him to answer. "Well?"
As soon as Rens' face became visible, Hux pursed his lips as he realised that the younger man was unconscious. His usually pale face was completely colourless aside from the small trickles of blood which were falling steadily from his nose and split lip. Wondering what the hell had actually happened he abandoned the body momentarily as he strutted to the side to examine the training simulator. After adjusting a few of the buttons he scoffed lightly as he read what Ren had subjected himself to. The idiot had selected the most difficult setting and had also somehow overridden the safety protocols on the simulator which meant that the robots were not able to detect how much damage they were inflicting on their target. Essentially he had made himself a walking target for the skilled robots who had clearly succeeded at their jobs.
Returning to the unmoving body, Hux kneeled to more accurately determine what damage had been done to the fool. The first thing he noted was the awkward angle which Rens' shoulder was jutting out from beneath the thin dark fabric of his shirt, a definite sign of dislocation. As he more closely examined the handsome pale face he was pleased to see that none of the features were broken and that the split lip was probably the worst thing there. Training his gaze further down Rens' body he spotted a deep gash in his upper leg which was bleeding enough for Hux to feel a twinge of real concern.
He needed medical attention but as Hux considered his options he was too curious over what had inspired this act of self-destruction to allow him to be sent to the medical bay. The staff would keep him isolated for the remained or the day and that was unacceptable. Coming to a decision, Hux placed one of his arms beneath Rens' neck and the other under his knees as he scooped the unconscious man into his arms bridal-style. He had enough medical knowledge to deal with these issues himself but now he had the difficult task of getting them both into Rens' private quarters without being detected.
Mapping out the layout of the base in his mind, he realised that he could use the private hallway to the rear of the room to make it to Rens' quarters in under two minutes. Since it was a private hallway there was a very slim chance that they would be detected by an unsuspecting passer-by. Hux knew that if he was caught carrying Ren in his arms that it could lead to speculation which would result in casual gossip, which he was keen to avoid. His reputation was everything to him and as much as he felt mildly possessive of the younger man he would not allow their dangerous games to interfere with his work.
Ren was surprisingly light in his arms as Hux hurried quietly down the empty hallway keeping an ear out for any approaching footsteps. He felt the unconscious man stir at the unexpected movement of his body and he estimated that he only had a few moments before he started to wake up. Finally reaching the entrance to Rens' rooms, Hux used his override code again to allow for entrance and as soon as the doors sprung open he slid inside and deposited Ren none-to-gently on the small couch which sat against the nearest wall. Panting slightly at the effort, he pulled a chair up beside the couch and waited for the stirring Ren to come fully to his senses.
Watching as Ren opened his eyes fully, Hux was pleased to note the sudden panic which entered the other mans eyes as he took in his new surroundings. His gaze darted around his room before finally landing on Hux and a small spark of relief appeared inside them. At the obvious relief Hux felt an odd twinge in his chest, he couldn't remember the last time someone had seemed legitimately pleased to see him. What a depressing thought, he mused. Clearing his throat, he addressed Ren. "You have a dislocated shoulder and a profusely bleeding leg wound. If you want me to attend to these injuries then I need one thing from you?"
Using his sleeve to clear the blood away from the corner of his mouth, Ren answered and the hoarseness of his voice suggested that he was in some amount of pain. "What could you possibly need from me?"
"How about your excuse for this utter stupidity?" Hux asked plainly. "And be quick about it because I will leave you to bleed out until I am satisfied with your answer." He added thoughtfully. Truthfully, he had no intentions of allowing Ren to die but at the same time if he refused to answer him then he was also quite happy to wait until he re-passed out from the blood loss before he started to fix him up.
Scowling as he realised that Hux would not assist him until he had explained himself, Ren bit his answer out from between gritted teeth. "She made contact with me again." He sent Hux a look which was loaded with meaning.
There was only one 'she' which could have elicited such an extreme response."Your mother?"
"Yes. She reached out to me via the force again." Ren admitted, a small hint of shame entering his voice. "She would not leave until I forcibly expelled her and I had some," he paused, "frustrations to work out so I upper my usual training regime."
Hux snorted. "No what you did was willingly alter my programs like a fool. Those programs are designed the way they are for a reason and as you have now discovered, they are not supposed to be altered."
"I made a small misjudgement. Nothing more." Ren argued. His vague attempt to sit up further was stilled by the sudden burst of pain from his shoulder as he irritated the dislocation.
Accepting Rens' reasoning behind his destructive behaviour and deciding that it was an argument for another day, Hux accepted that he should probably do something about that shoulder. "Sit up." He commanded suddenly and realising that the simple act was too difficult for Ren to achieve in his current state, he used his hands to help move him to an upright position. "Remove your shirt." Ren quirked an eyebrow at his tone but complied as well as he could, managing to free one arm but was soon stuck as he was unable to move his shoulder to free the other.
"If you wouldn't mind?" Ren asked wryly as he gestured vaguely to the half-off shirt. Hux leaned forward and ran his hands up the muscled chest as he grasped for the hem of the shirt. As his warm hands made contact with Rens' torso he heard the other man gasp, whether it was from pain or desire Hux didn't know as the torso was also littered with faint bruising. He recognised some of the older marks as ones he had put there himself, but the ones which had been inflicted earlier that day were bright and clearly defined. He ignored the gasp in favour of slipping the fabric free of the injured shoulder. Now shirtless, Ren tensed up his body in preparation of what he knew was coming next.
Placing one hand in front and one hand behind the damaged joint, Hux spoke evenly. "I will relocate the shoulder at the count of three. And when this is complete I will clean and stitch the gash in your leg. Prepare yourself." He tightened his grip slightly. "One. Two." And on the count of two he jerked the misplaced bone back into its appropriate socket and felt mildly satisfied as he heard the comforting 'pop' of success. As the shoulder slid back into place, Hux felt Rens' body go as rigid as steel at the sudden agony.
Panting for a few seconds to allow himself to acclimatise to the pain, Ren finally admitted. "This is actually the first time I have ever dislocated my shoulder." Why he felt like sharing that information Hux didn't know but he appreciated it regardless.
"Easy enough to fix." Hux shrugged as he placed his gloved hand on top of the swollen flesh, the leather glove instantly helping to cool the angry skin and causing Ren to relax slightly.
"I am curious as to how you acquired these skills." Ren asked, allowing Hux to continue his ministrations against his shoulder as he enjoyed the soothing coolness. "It is a well known fact that higher-ranking soldiers, particularly generals, are not given medical training on the basis that if they are injured in battle then they are obviously lack the skills to be leaders."
Hux tensed his jaw as a faint memory of being struck to the ground forcefully by his father after he had failed to complete one of his advanced lessons in the appropriate time surfaced in his mind. His own first experience with a dislocated shoulder. But he was quickly brought out of the memory by a faint 'oh' from the injured man whom he was continuing to attend to.
Looking up from the shoulder he was mending, he made immediate eye contact with Ren whose eyes were tainted by guilt at the newly stolen knowledge he had just inadvertently acquired from Huxs' mind. Knowing what had happened, Hux sighed deeply. From his basic knowledge of both the Force and the man before him, he was aware that Ren had less control of his powers when he was physically injured and that due to this his thoughts had not been deliberately intruded on.
Not that this knowledge pissed him off any less. "Stay out of my head." He hissed as he backed away from Rens' shoulder to examine the still-bleeding wound on his leg.
Ren nodded in response, his eyes clouded by some unknown emotion. "I did not-" He broke off before finishing and instead occupied himself with gently prodding his newly-relocated shoulder. Hux vaguely wondered how he had planned to end that sentence and concluded that Ren was either going to admit he did not mean to invade his thought or worse, reference the fact that he did know about his fathers very hands-on method of child rearing. Neither would have been appreciated and he was glad that Ren had held his tongue.
"Do you have a medical needle and thread?" He inquired to gloss over the awkward tension which now hung in the air. At Rens' gesture, he opened one of the small cabinets and discovered a medikit which would be sufficient for the task. By the time he turned back, Ren has pulled his dark shirt back on and was avoiding eye contact. Ignoring the petulance, Hux noted that the tear in Rens' black trousers was long enough to justify simply tearing the material away in order to gain better access to the bleeding wound.
Pulling the stopper of the disinfectant out with his teeth, he gave Ren a moment to prepare himself before pouring a generous amount on the gash. He had the foresight to hold the lower leg down to prevent it from being able to move away and as the disinfectant did its job he heard Ren hiss in pain as his leg jumped from the sudden sting. Proceeding professionally and wiping away the old blood, Hux finally had a proper look at the gash and he was pleased to note that it was not as deep as he had initially thought.
Quickly threading the medical needle, he gave Ren a small apologetic nod as he started to insert it into his outer thigh. He knew Ren wouldn't want any anaesthetic so he didn't bother to ask. As he pulled the first stitch together he felt the leg flinch and he was aware that he should probably do something to calm the injured man to prevent any further damage. He removed his hand which had been resting tightly on the back of Rens' leg and moving it below the knee, he started to rub the lower calf with enough pressure to give Ren something else to concentrate on aside from the needle which was disappearing into his skin at steady intervals.
The room was silent aside from the small pained breathes which escaped Ren and the content humming of Hux as continued his work. His attention was fully on the task at hand but as he settled into a rhythm his mind started to wander. This was the first time he could recall actively making the effort to provide medical attention to another human and he had to ask himself why? His orders from Snoke were to keep Ren alive but he could have easily handed him over to the very proficient medical staff which lived in the base. Deep down, he knew this decision to treat Ren himself was a selfish one, a possessive desire to discover what had affected him so deeply while also getting to use the opportunity to place himself in a position of power over the injured man. Each of their sexual encounters had been marked with a struggle for dominance which Hux enjoyed more than he would ever confess. The accidental mind-reading which had occurred earlier was a unforeseen nuisance however and he cursed the fact that Ren was now aware of a part of his history which he would have preferred to have kept buried.
Breaking free from his musings as he applied the final stitches, he cut the thin thread and tied it to prevent any of the stitches from slipping loose. Upon finishing he twisted in his chair to the side to give Ren his full attention again. The thin sheet of sweat which covered Rens' grey-tinged face gave him pause and he briefly swept his gaze across his entire body again to ensure that he had not missed out on any obvious injury. "Anything else you wish me to look at?" He asked in a falsely pleasant voice.
Ren shrugged. "My ribs are bruised but unless you have the ability to heal at will I doubt you will have any success with them." He gently ran his fingers across the sealed wound on his leg, silently impressed with how cleanly Hux had managed to sew it together. Realising that he owed the redhead a small debt, Ren turned to face him fully before speaking. "Thank you Hux."
"I am sure I can think of ways you can make it up to me." Hux replied instantly, sending Ren a heated glance to make the younger man aware of exactly what he had in mind. Tilting his head, a flash of desire flared in Rens' eyes as he considered the generals words.
"We shall see." He smirked wryly.
Having concluded his medical assessment, confident that Ren was not going to die on him during the night, Hux placed his hands on his lap before standing swiftly. Unwilling to leave without making a parting impression, he raised his ungloved hand and started to run it through the dark hair which sat limply atop Rens' head. He was a little surprised to notice how Ren subtly leaned into the gentle touch and considered that perhaps the events of today had affected the younger man more than he was willing to admit. But still, a lesson had to be learned.
"And for future reference!" He offered sweetly as he tightened his grip to a painful level before using the hair as leverage to force Rens' head upwards so that he was forced to look at him. "Do not be so foolish as to get yourself in this state again. If you are in such desperate need to punish yourself for some foolish and misplaced notion then I would recommend you seek me out instead of destroying one of my training rooms." Keeping the hair knotted in his hands, Hux bent down and placed a gentle kiss on bruised lips, knowing that the combination of pain and pleasure would leave the younger man in a restless state of arousal for at least the next hour or so as he slowly healed.
Breaking the kiss suddenly, he drew himself to his full height and swept out of the room before Ren could respond to his suggestion. If there was one thing which he enjoyed above everything else it was working Kylo Ren up and then leaving him dry since the pent-up aggression always made the eventual results all the more satisfying.
Traversing the hallways again, he quickly added up the extent of the damage which Ren had done to himself and guessed that, with his earlier help, he would probably be back to full health within two days. Hux smirked as he re-entered the main command station, Ren had entered his mind without permission and as he settled in to his usual chair he amused himself by creatively imagining the various ways he could remind the foolish man that his mind was not to be messed with.
After all, such a blatant infraction of their unspoken rules could not be ignored.