This Masquerade
Chapter 3
Rey got ready for her work shift expecting Kylo would be waiting for her. She actually had butterflies in her stomach at the prospect. From the moment she awoke, a sense of anticipation was building within her. She wasn't sure if it originated in her or in Kylo. Perhaps they were both feeling it. Through a series of images, he communicated what she took to be his gratitude for the first peaceful night's sleep he'd had in forever. The bond between them appeared to be stronger the closer their proximity. He was able to block her out, except when his emotions got the better of him. She suspected she was less successful at doing the same. Luke often cautioned her that her feelings betrayed her. Rey was no longer certain of exactly what she felt for Kylo. Her mind went back to the first time she ever saw his face. It was shocking for her to see he was, if not conventionally handsome, attractive in a way that fascinated her. Even with the scar she gave him, his allure was not diminished. Quite the opposite, she found. It took a while, for her to be honest with herself about her attraction towards him. His behaviour was often monstrous and that's what she wanted to see behind his mask. Not Han's soulful eyes, Leia's proud chin, his full sensual lips and lustrous raven tresses. His sheer wickedness should have rendered him unattractive to her. Rey burned with shame at her private acknowledgment that it hadn't. Not that she could ever allow herself to fall for a murderer. It was abhorrent to her to even contemplate it after what he did to Han and Finn.
She anxiously glanced around while waiting for her work assignments. Kylo was nowhere in sight and she both longed to see him and dreaded it at the same time.
"RK-1992, you will proceed directly to H42 in the officer's quarters. Lieutenant Mitaka has reported a fault with the sanitation unit in his fresher."
Rey stared in confusion at the administrator as she was handed a maintenance datapad.
"Won't MT-1983 be accompanying me today?" She inquired unable to deny the stab of disappointment at the prospect he wouldn't.
The stern-looking woman in black uniform peered down at the information on her screen.
"He is attending to other duties."
With that, Rey was promptly dismissed.
As she made her way over to the turbolift feeling oddly crestfallen, Kylo's voice rang clearly in her head. The way he spoke her name, even distorted by the metallic rasp of his mask, made her heart skip a beat.
"Rey, I know you can hear me. I have important business to attend to, but I will catch up with you later. Don't do anything foolish or I will know."
It was the opportunity she had been waiting for to snoop around unhindered. There had to be something in Lieutenant Mitaka's room that might be of use to the resistance cause. Perhaps she could sneak a peek at some of the other restricted areas as she passed through them. Kylo had prevented her from gathering any intelligence thus far, but he wasn't there now. It was worth the risk of defying him to find out what the First Order was planning.
Firstly, Rey tried to find a terminal she could access. With the tools she was carrying, she hoped to hack into the mainframe. Unfortunately, there were too many officers milling around and her activities were in danger of attracting unwelcome attention. She hoped for some privacy once she reached her destination. Time was of the essence because her nemesis could return at any moment and thwart her plans. The entry code to H42 flashed up on her data pad and she keyed it in.
"Oh," she gasped, at finding Lieutenant Mitaka snoozing on his bed in a state of undress.
Her cheeks burned with embarrassment, and his did likewise.
"I'm sorry, I thought, that is - - I'm here to fix the sanitation unit," she squeaked, turning her head so he could put on his robe.
Once the young dark-haired officer was decent, he attempted to put her at ease.
"No harm done, I must have dozed off while I was waiting," he said, directing her towards the fresher, "I would like to take a shower before I'm due at the Command Centre."
Rey scurried past him to attend to the sanitation unit, hiding her face to avoid having to make eye contact. The fault was relatively straightforward and she was thankful for that. Mitaka loitered in the doorway, watching her work.
"I haven't seen you around here before," he said, adopting a flirtatious tone, "I'm sure I would have remembered such a pretty face."
His attempt at flattery made her uneasy, but she sensed no ill intent. She had to seize the opportunity to get some information from him. Reaching out through the force, Rey tried to get an idea of Kylo's whereabouts; it wouldn't do for him to interrupt her efforts. All she could detect was a strong feeling of anger, which pretty much seemed to be his default setting. She would have to take her chances and hope he was still otherwise occupied.
Finishing up her repairs to the sanitation unit, she turned to Mitaka.
"You will input your security clearance code into your terminal," Rey instructed with a wave of her hand, hoping the Jedi Mind Trick would work.
To her relief, he sat down at his workstation and did as he was told, so she pressed on.
"You will show me the current status of all First Order operations."
As she leaned in to get a better view of the data screen, she could see Mitaka's fingers hesitating above the keys as if he was attempting to resist. Rey repeated her instruction, keeping her focus on channelling the force. He soon relented and began calling up the data. The planet they were on was called Regnian; it was the First Order's main base. There were a few other outposts scattered around the Outer Rim territories, but they appeared to be nothing more than storage facilities. The only other item of interest was something codenamed 'Operation Shadow Wing'. Unfortunately, it was evident that the lieutenant didn't have security clearance to reveal anything but its name. With a grunt of frustration, Rey released him from her control.
"You can take that shower now," she informed him, "Your sanitation unit is fixed."
Mitaka was disorientated and as he stood up he stumbled into her, knocking them both onto his bed. He was apologetic, but his face lingered a little too long and close to hers. She squeaked with alarm as the door unexpectedly flew open. The next thing she knew, the young officer was lifted into the air while making choking noises and gasping for breath. When she saw the dark looming figure in the doorway, she immediately realised what was happening.
"Release him, right now," Rey demanded as Mitaka's lips began to turn blue.
Kylo was wearing his mask. It stared blankly at her as he maintained his invisible grip.
"Stop it," she shrieked as the hapless lieutenant's eyes started to bulge and roll back in his head.
Ren ignored her pleas, and so she turned her powers on him. With a forceful hand motion, she threw him hard against the door. It was enough to break his deadly grip on Mitaka who dropped to the ground. To her relief, she could see the young man was barely conscious but alive. Kylo looked set to resume his chokehold and so she hit the door release button and pushed him out into the corridor. For a moment, they were locked in a standoff; their hands held aloft as each tried to gain the advantage. The purring of a ginger cat broke their concentration and the stalemate. It stared up at them with disdain before slinking away. Ren anxiously glanced around for its owner, mindful of them being exposed to onlookers. He stomped off down the hall and gestured for her to follow him.
"Don't defy me," he growled through his mask when she didn't comply.
Rey didn't want to go anywhere with him. Her next maintenance job flashed up on the datapad providing her with a timely excuse to refuse his order.
"I have to report to Hub 3 right away," she said, catching up to him to show him the screen.
He ripped the device from her hand and inputted a code to override the command.
"Now you have nowhere to be but where I tell you. Follow me."
Kylo marched off leaving her little choice but to comply. He was leading her to his quarters, she recognised the route. A shiver ran through her. Whether it was fear or something else, Rey could not afford to dwell on it. Making sure she entered the room ahead of him, he secured the door.
"Tell me exactly what happened with Lieutenant Mitaka or I will get the information from him," Kylo demanded, his voice detached yet menacing through the mask.
"I won't tell you anything until I can see your face."
Her defiance caused his already fiery temper to flare but he complied all the same. The release mechanism hissed as he lifted the helmet from his head. His tousled dark locks fell free, framing his angular face. Rey blushed as she imagined running her fingers through his hair.
"I warned you not to do anything foolish," Kylo fixed her with a penetrating glare, "How far were you prepared to go to get information from him?"
Rey was outraged. "The force is my ally. If I wanted to get Mitaka to reveal First Order secrets, I wouldn't even have had to lay a hand on him, let alone anything else."
"And yet, he was on top of you."
Kylo's mouth twisted into a grimace of disgust.
"It was an accident, he fell," she argued.
"Onto your lips?"
His retort would have been comical in other circumstances, but he was shaking with barely contained rage. Rey knew he was jealous at the thought of another man touching her. A distraction was needed to keep him from delving any deeper or unleashing his temper. She warily eyed the lightsaber hanging from his belt. Not that she thought he would use it on her, but the poor lieutenant might suffer his wrath. Letting her gaze fall to his sensual pout, she contemplated the previously unthinkable.
"I did not kiss Mitaka," Rey said, hoping he would know it to be true.
With no attempt to shield her intentions, she took a step closer to him.
"You want to kiss me?" Kylo questioned with his eyes full of wonderment as he read her thoughts.
It was true, she did. No matter how much her brain was screaming that it was wrong. He wanted her so badly, the sheer depth of his yearning took her breath away. Desire overtook common sense and she grabbed him by the collar, yanking his mouth down to meet hers. Her lips moved sloppily over his, betraying her inexperience, not that he appeared to care. The shock of her boldness rendered him unresponsive at first. Rey slowly pulled back to find an expression of utter bewilderment on his face. After a moment of hesitation, Kylo peeled off his gloves and tentatively reached up to touch her face. His fingers gently brushed her cheek, caressing her skin reverentially. She mirrored his action, tracing carefully along the line of the scar she gave him. He moved to close the small gap between them, covering her lips with his. Neither of them had the confidence of experience, but it wasn't needed as instinct kicked in. Their tongues were soon duelling as fiercely as their lightsabers once had. Rey threaded her fingers through his thick wavy hair as they hungrily devoured each other. He held her tightly in his arms as if he feared she was an illusion that would fade away. Pausing to draw breath, Kylo's gaze fell upon the relic that was his grandfather's mask and he froze. Snoke had repeatedly taught him that Darth Vader's weakness was his compassion. The Empire fell because Anakin Skywalker could not destroy his son. Rey was the embodiment of the light that called to him. She was the temptation and the seduction made flesh. As the Supreme Leader's past warnings about giving into weakness echoed through his mind, Kylo recoiled from her.
"What's wrong?" Rey questioned, immediately wishing she hadn't enjoyed kissing him so much and afraid he was unimpressed by her novice technique.
It felt good to her, but he was her first. She didn't know he was similarly unpractised. Celibacy was expected, if not outright demanded, by Snoke.
"This is a distraction," Kylo said, unable to look her in the eyes for fear he would lose himself again, "Tomorrow, I will take you back to Zanddu. I assume you will be able to make your own way home from there."
Rey was left confused by his sudden coldness. His emotions had been placed firmly under lock and key. However, she was sure he could feel her hurt because she wasn't even attempting to conceal it. She mentally chided herself for being Bantha-brained enough to kiss him in the first place. Not to mention allowing him to return the favour. She certainly didn't want to think about how pleasurable she found the experience. Flirting with the dark side was bad enough, but his rejection was worse.
"That's it then, is it?"
Her clipped words dripped with ice.
"What did you expect would happen? Did you think we were going to walk off into the twin sunset together?" Kylo mocked, moving closer to the plinth which held his grandfather's mask as if to draw strength from it. "We are not on the same side."
"We could be," Rey argued, taking a step closer to him.
He retreated further from her.
"No," he insisted, "I will not be seduced."
"You already have been," Rey snarled, "This isn't where you belong. Snoke has been poisoning your mind since you were a defenceless child. But you're not a child anymore. Come with me."
"NO, the Supreme Leader is wise," Kylo echoed what he'd told his father, defiant denial blazing in his eyes.
With a weary sigh, she thrust her datapad into his hands.
"Fine," she snapped, "If that's the way you want to play it, you might as well let me get back to working on things I actually have a shot at fixing."
He was about to input a code when a shrill beep signalled there was someone at his door. The display screen revealed it to be General Hux. Kylo shoved the datapad back into Rey's hands and jabbed his finger towards the closet, indicating she should hide inside it. Once she was out of sight, he unlocked the door.
"What do you want?" He inquired, making his impatience clear.
The ginger-haired General bristled over the flagrant lack of respect shown for his rank. He pointedly glanced around the room and at the lightsaber hilt on Ren's belt.
"No need to call maintenance after all, then?" He jeered.
Kylo was alarmed for a second, fearing one of the General's spies had seen him with Rey. After reading Hux's surface thoughts, he was satisfied that wasn't the case.
"I said all I wanted to say to the Supreme Leader," Ren growled.
Hux rolled his eyes. "I will admit, I was against a clone army, initially," he said, "But thanks to that resistance scum, we have a lot of vacancies to fill. The pitiful waifs and strays we've picked up from all those backrocket planets will do for jobs where we don't want to waste good droids, but they won't be any use in setting the galaxy to rights. The reports from Project Blue Harvest are encouraging. It is proceeding well; you can be assured of that."
Kylo sensed for the second time that day the General was withholding vital information from him. His suspicions were raised during their daily audience with Snoke's hologram. Hux was expressly against him visiting the cloning site on Kamino. The Supreme Leader concurred, saying that Project Blue Harvest was in its infancy and the regular progress reports from the Kaminoans were more than satisfactory. He was sure they were purposely hiding something from him and he intended to find out what it was.
"If that's all, General, I have work to do."
Ren was mindful that Rey was hiding out in his closet. The fact she had heard information valuable to the resistance was a problem.
"There is one last thing before I go," Hux paused at the door.
"If you're about to ask me to take care of your nasty little pet while you're away, you can forget it."
Kylo hated it when that cat's ginger hairs got all over his black clothing.
The General was appalled by the idea.
"Lieutenant Hidalgo will be taking care of Millicent," he retorted, "I wouldn't trust you and your tantrums anywhere near her."
Ren still hadn't forgotten or forgiven the time the foul creature soiled the ash pit in his interrogation chamber back on Starkiller Base.
"No, I want you to keep an eye on Captain Zenon," Hux requested, "He's got ideas above his station, that one. I suppose it is only to be expected, he is my second-in-command, after all, and he learned from the best."
Kylo regarded his unwelcome guest with open contempt.
"Get your spies to watch him, I've got better things to do," he barked.
As soon as the General left, he locked the door.
"You can come out now," he called to Rey.
Throwing open the closet door, she appeared red-faced and perspiring.
"How many pairs of black leather trousers does one man need?" She inquired, gesturing at the garments hung on the rail. "I thought was going to suffocate in there."
Kylo was distracted. His loyalty to Snoke demanded that he should take her straight to him. She was a threat to everything, and yet, he knew he couldn't destroy her. Rey thought his distance was due to the kisses they'd shared. Her attempt at humour had been her way of trying to deflect attention from the awkwardness of the situation. Instead, she was left feeling even more humiliated.
"Fine, well, if we're done here," she huffed, "I ought to get back to work."
He silently took the datapad from her and inputted a code to reinstate her job schedule.
"We should not be seen together again," Kylo muttered as he checked the coast was clear outside his quarters. Hux is departing for his mission first thing tomorrow, and I have certain arrangements to make for our journey to Zanddu. I will signal to you through the force when it is time to leave."
Rey paused at the door; she had to try again. It wasn't what she'd be sent there for, but for Han, for Luke and Leia, for him, and maybe even for herself, she couldn't give up on him.
"Han wanted you to go home to the people who love you," She pressed on despite feeling his anger flare. "Forget Zanddu, why don't you take me to where your mother and uncle are?"
"Han Solo was weak and foolish, and now, he's dead," Kylo hissed.
She was the fool, vainly hoping that he would embrace the light he'd been fighting against for years. Rey turned to leave, the crushing realisation made her breath hitch as she tried to stop her tears from falling.
"I was right in what I said before," she sniffed, "you are a monster."
Peering down at the datapad through misty eyes, she read the words on the screen.
RK-1992, Report to landing platform 3 to assist in maintenance checks on General Hux's command shuttle.
There are numerous random Star Wars references scattered throughout this fanfic, such as "Blue Harvest" which was the production name for Return of The Jedi. No prizes for spotting them, I'm afraid, just the satisfaction of being a geek. ;D
Thank you to Pablo Hidalgo for helping me with a list of Star Wars specific cursing words, some of which are also sprinkled throughout this story. In gratitude, I have named a character in this chapter after him. As the creator of Millicent, I hope he will find it a fitting tribute.
Thank you to everyone taking the time to read this fanfic and leave reviews. Please do keep the feedback coming. - Mrs. P