Surveying the battlefield, the unmasked expression which graced the face of Kylo Ren held an odd passiveness. The only hint as to his mood was the fire which was raging in his eyes as he watched his troops continue their advance across the war-torn grounds. The acrid stench of smoke invaded his senses and he attempted to calm his racing heart by concentrating his thoughts on his current position.
His war with Snoke had been ongoing for less than a year and, despite a few setbacks, his plans were finally coming to fruition and his innate senses told him that an end to the bloodshed was approaching. Within a few months he expected that his previous master would be dead and he would be without any true opposition throughout the galaxy which would be of any concern to him.
The Resistance was no longer an issue. Snoke had seen to that. Those very few who had survived the sudden attack had scattered to the winds and the majority resigned themselves to a life in hiding.
His own family, those who had birthed him and raised him in his infancy, were among the first to be lost and in one fell swoop his entire history had been destroyed. His mother. His father. Childhood friends.
All gone.
The only exception to the cull had been Luke Skywalker, his self-imposed exile had prevented him from facing any danger, and Ren felt pity for him.
In the dark void of his awareness which had once housed his family, the only light spot which remained lit in that moment was his uncle. The uncle he had betrayed above everyone else, who had taken him in and trained him only to have his teachings turned on him in the most painful of ways.
He had no doubt that Skywalker felt the deaths as keenly as he himself had and it did not take long for that last remaining spark of light to fade. Whether he took his own life or died from heartbreak, Ren did not know, but with the loss of his uncle the last of his connection to the light was extinguished and he was finally free to allow the darkness to consume him.
Snoke would eventually come to regret that move as his disciples new baptism in the darkness had allowed him to see things as they truly were. He had always been aware that Snoke was using him for his power and Ren had been willing to tolerate that awareness as he drained as much information and skills as possible from the humanoid figure.
But things had changed.
He had changed.
Where he was once divided and weak he was now whole and possessed the strength and resources to rule the galaxy with the only obstacle left for him to overcome being his master.
Had he still been torn between his potential destinies he may have made a rash decision, attempted to take on Snoke immediately with no thought of consequence, but that course of action seemed foolish to him now.
So he waited.
And he schemed.
In such proceedings, when insidious plans must be put into place, it is necessary to have a silver tongue and the strength to back up the whispered promises. These needs are significantly less important when the individual is in possession of the ability of mental manipulation and a strong willpower to see such manipulations through.
It was a mixture of these activities that had allowed him to amass a strong gathering amongst the First Order of those he could depend on to follow him to victory when he eventually made a leadership challenge. Quite the achievement given that it all occurred directly under the nose of the Supreme Leader himself.
He understood that Snoke was aware that his pupil had embraced more of the darkness but he had been foolish to live under the false assumption that it would only improve his loyalty.
The small flicker of resentment which he held over Snoke murdering his family had been overshadowed by a bitter, unpalatable relief that he had not been made to complete the task himself.
Still, the insult could not go unavenged.
He would take the galaxy and rule. Not for his lost family, or for his ex-master, but for himself and he would succeed where everyone else had failed. He was not pure of heart like his uncle and he now had no familial conflict which was the only weakness of his grandfather.
He had no weakness and he would prove it to the stars themselves.
The Skywalker line, which had held the fate of the galaxy itself in its grasp more than once, would finally achieve its destined goal of bringing peace to the galaxy and Ren would be the one to oversee it.
His defection had went smoothly. All it took was months of planning, a simple signal, and the small militia which he had whispered away from Snoke had seized the key points which he knew would be necessary for his own survival. The collection of supplies which his followers had amassed had been vital in ensuring that the first few months of his defection did not end in an embarrassing defeat and his base of power had only prospered since then.
The fate of Captain Phasma, leader of the stormtroopers, was one of the few questions which was still unanswered for him. As a warrior, she was one of the most skilled in both combat and strategy and she would have been a wonderful asset to his cause. But her loyalty would be with the First Order above all else and that meant that she was still a puppet of Snoke, for the moment at least. However, he suspected that if he were successful in his takeover and Phasma still lived after the final blow was struck, that she would be willing to offer her loyalty to him instead.
He had proven himself as a leader. While Snoke cowered in his stronghold and sent out troops as cannon fodder to protect himself, Ren made certain to put in an appearance at each of his major battles. It was a two-fold success. It allowed him to hone and improve his skills in the field while also creating a sense of loyalty to his troops which he hoped would strengthen their desire to fight for him.
His face was known to them. The helmet which had been the crux of his identity while he served under Snoke had been the first item to be abandoned in his new emancipation. He would face his troops and his enemies alike with his true face and they would know that he had no reason to hide. Those who mistook his boyish features as a sign of weakness would soon understand the gravity of their error.
Even in the unlikely event that his ground troops should begin to fail, he always had his final line of defence to ensure that he was victorious.
His Knights of Ren.
Their loyalty to him was unquestioned. They may have been formed at the behest of Snoke but Ren was their teacher, their master, and he had spent many years crafting them into a single unit which was unparalleled in its ferocity and skill.
When deployed in the field they were like a plague, sweeping across the battlefield and destroying everything in their path with little effort. Their black robes and masked faces were a terrifying sight to behold as they cut a bloody path through his enemies and he knew that rumours of their exploits were exaggerated behind enemy lines.
Snoke would be erased from existence and from the ashes of his empire, he would rebuild the First Order with virtually no opposition.
His musings were cut short as he registered the excitement of the man to his side as he also surveyed the chaos which was raging below.
General Armitage Hux.
Bastard son of his fathers line who had achieved more in his youth that his father ever could in his entire lifetime.
Hux was an...interesting aspect of his campaign.
He had been taught from a young age by his mother that it was important to know how to read people and he had never allowed his skills to blunt as he progressed through life. But he had always found that when he cast his attention across the ambitious redhead he found a similar gaze being reflected back at him. In the bright eyes, Ren had always noticed a dense hunger for power battling an awareness of how expendable he was in the grand scheme of things and as he skimmed the General's thoughts he felt the willingness to fight to the top to survive.
Hux possessed a keen intelligence and the ability to be diplomatic when necessary, a skill which Ren lacked.
The fact that Hux had been the first high-ranking official to privately defect to his side was a positive indicator of his potential for success since he had never know his General to back a losing side. The redhead possessed further connections which he did not and had been able to swell the ranks of those who would defect with him. His power and levels of access had also been vital in accumulating and hiding the supplies which would be needed to challenge Snoke.
One of his very few weaknesses which afflicted Hux was his lack of skill or practical work on the battlefield but Ren had many warriors and troops whom were willing to take on that task for him. Hux's skills as a master tactician were more suited to a war room than a war zone anyway.
Due to these factors, his General had proven invaluable at furthering his cause and had been rewarded as such. There was the added complication that somewhere between the secret meetings and scheduled rendezvous away from prying eyes to plan their revolt, their relationship had taken on a physical aspect. An unexpected development but relatively pleasant nonetheless and he would continue to reward Hux with all that he desired when his position was fully secure.
But Ren was no fool.
Despite what they had shared, he did not doubt that Hux would eventually entertain the notion of betraying him and seizing power for himself but he found that he could not hold it against the slightly older man. The power which fueled and drove them both to succeed would not allow them to coexist peacefully for too long.
When Hux made his eventual attempt at betraying him, be it with a private coup or an attempted murder in their shared bed, Ren would not allow himself to be bitter towards his General. He would destroy the means with which Hux had attempted to use to remove him and once he had succeeded in proving how foolish such types of actions would be, he would refrain at the last moment from killing him.
Instead a choice would be offered.
Accept Ren as leader and he will be adorned with power which would be unmatched throughout the stars aside from that which was wielded by Ren himself. Their various skills were complimentary, their partnership excellent, and Ren was loathe to discard it simply due to some misplaced ambition. However, if Hux would not accept his offer then he would be eliminated.
Ren would be willing to compromise, particularly given Hux's loyalty during their current struggle and the pleasure which they had shared, but he would never allow himself to submit to him.
He would submit to no one.
Never again.
When Snoke and his forces were nothing but ash and Ren held dominion over all he was under no illusion that resistance of some form would find its way to assemble. That was the nature of man and he accepted it.
But he would not be cruel.
His enemies would be vanquished and his rule would see peace in the galaxy. Societies which had suffered under the mixed regimes would be allowed to flourish. He would see to it that those who were loyal to him were shown his appreciation and those whom he conquered would be offered a similar choice. If they chose to oppose him then they would be crushed but that was not the path which he wished to stride, their peaceful submission would always be preferred to open aggression.
He did not seek war.
It held little appeal to him but he was willing to meet any conflict with all the force he could muster and, in the absence of mercy, would not stop his attack until his enemy was torn to shreds and unable to survive.
In order to be a good man one must be willing to be as cruel as the cruel man in order to overcome.
To his side, Hux cut into his thoughts, speaking quietly as his eyes flickered over the ongoing battle, "Does it care? The Force?" He paused for a moment to allow the words to sink in before continuing, "Does it tremble to encounter carnage such as this? To know that the fates of so many hang in the balance? That is had allowed such acts of brutality to endure?"
Ren was silent for a moment before he shook his head imperceptibly, "The Force will never tremble at the actions of men. Those it gifts with the ability to influence it are given the free will to choose what they will do with it. It is not that the Force itself does not care, it just does not want."
His voice softened slightly as he further explained his thoughts, "To want and desire is the curse of humanity and the Force only serves to power that curse. Desire is the true power which rules all."
A raised eyebrow from his General, "And what of you Ren? What have you been cursed to desire?"
"Everything."