It seemed like a series of sinfully wonderful nightmares she couldn't wake from, each of which ended with her falling asleep. Fall asleep, wake, screw, fall asleep. She had most definitely lost track of the days and it wasn't a good thing.
Fall asleep, wake, screw, fall asleep. There was all that other nonsense in between - eating, showering, etc. - but those were the most important parts. Fall asleep, wake, screw, fall asleep.
So you can imagine Manna's surprise when she woke the next morning and found something new: her work clothes, clean and pressed, folded at the foot of the bed.
Ren was nowhere in sight. She looked around the room for a moment before touching the clothes delicately, afraid they might disappear before her eyes.
Another thing occurred to her in a lightning-quick blast; the door was open.
He'd left the door to his room open. For her.
At least, that's what she had to assume, right? That it was for her?
Hurriedly, Manna put on her uniform. She shoved her feet into their boots, worked her long messy hair into something of a bun. She moved as though there were an unseen timer on the door and that at any moment it might slam shut, keeping her trapped in his stuffy quarters. The outside world beckoned like a friendly hand and as soon as she was half respectable Manna bolted into the hallway.
Once she was outside she laughed to herself and took in a deep breath of stale air. It didn't matter that the air was stale, just that it was new, something different from the prison Kylo Ren had kept her in.
It was 0600 hours, but Manna wanted to get back to work as soon as possible. She hurried to the cockpit, settled at her station, and started working. It appeared whoever had been assigned in her stead had advanced the project quite a bit but it wasn't so much that she couldn't follow their lead; she picked up right where they'd left off and anticipated how she could make it better.
Soon, other techs filtered in. There was some quiet fluttering talk between them about her absence but she ignored it and kept working.
The tides turned when Hux stalked in, saw her at her seat, and favored her with a tight smile.
"MN-8486," he murmured. "It appears your reconditioning period has come to an end."
Reconditioning, Manna thought drily.
"Yes." She focused on the hardware ahead of her and tried to forget what she'd been through in the past few days. "Glad to be back to work, sir."
As soon as the last word left her lips, Manna felt a soft, feathery touch between her legs.
No. No, damn it. She'd done her time. He was done with her. He had to be done with her.
Before she could even cope with the intrusion two thick, invisible fingers thrust themselves into her womanhood. Manna jerked, barely choking back a cry of pleasure.
General Hux regarded her with a suspicious look.
"Are you feeling all right, MN-8486?" he asked stiffly.
The work. She had to finish her work. Manna tried to ignore the fingers between her legs and continued assembling the tech that would help Starkiller Base function as it should.
"Yes. I'm sorry. I'm not... myself today." She gritted her teeth and decided not to let Ren have the upper hand... or any hand at all.
Hux furrowed his brow and nodded in a surprising act of mercy.
"Ah - yes. Reconditioning can be a difficult experience. Do the best you can."
Do the best you can. Yes. She could do that.
He began to turn from her when the phantom fingers started pumping in a shockingly hard rhythm and sent waves of pleasure through Manna's body. She threw her head back, biting her tongue, trying her hardest not to let Hux know she was being controlled...
He's too stupid to know what's happening right in front of his face.
The thought had been broadcast into her head pretty as a picture. Manna paused, her hands stilling at their work, and waited to see if there was more. The fingers between her legs stopped.
There was.
Let your hair down.
What? Why?
I won't.
She went back to focusing on her work as best she could. The phantom hands stroked her once, twice, almost more to let her know they were still there rather than eliciting a response.
Go on. Let it down. See what he does.
So he could hear her. Manna found she was breathing heavily. The 'he' in question was most likely Hux, but why would Ren be fooling with him? He'd already said he didn't want her on display on front of the General, but maybe it was some sort of sick fantasy?
It was ill-advised and yet she pulled the tie from her straw-colored hair, letting it fall over her shoulders. She acted as though she were thinking over the tech; she knew she was probably falling right into the Commander's trap, but she had to admit... it was an interesting idea.
Hux, who had been busy at another station, flicked his gaze towards her. But sure, people tend to look at sudden motion - it meant nothing. To test the theory, she very slowly ran her hand through her loose hair.
He swallowed, looked back at the station he was inspecting. Looked back at her. Ran his tongue over his lips in a brief, compulsive gesture.
Ren's voice was in her brain again.
Good. Now. Play with your hair. Near your ear. Like a schoolgirl.
Manna paused, considering this, then shook her head. There was too much to lose.
No. I'm not going to play your game.
A brief moment passed and she could almost hear him chuckling inside her head.
Oh, but you should. It's so much fun. Play with your hair, silly thing.
Manna wanted to shut him out. She wanted to say no. But at the same time, she wanted to see what Hux might do.
She went on with her work and twirled some of her blonde hair along her finger, wrapping it along the digit slowly. Hux sidled closer as though he had business there, watching her.
It had worked. Ren was somewhere, who knows where, and he was watching her play with Hux. And in all honesty... it was exhilarating. It felt like having two men at her disposal.
Ask for his help.
Manna wondered if the Commander was touching himself. The very thought ignited a fire between her legs; she crossed them tightly and put a hand in the air.
"General Hux," she murmured, even though he was basically hovering behind her. Hux moved to her side, stiff and formal as always.
"Yes, MN-8486?"
She paused, drawing out the moment, still playing with the lock of hair she'd wrapped around her finger. In all honesty, she was waiting for more instruction.
He seemed to get the memo.
Bite your lip when you speak to him.
"I know I've been away some time," she began carefully, and then chewed her lower lip in uncertainty. It seemed Ren had some sort of intimate knowledge on what the General found attractive because even she could see the redhead responding - subtle as it was, it was more response than she'd ever seen from him in her work on the base. "I'm sorry you have to catch me up but - what is this new piece?"
She pointed at an unfamiliar bit of tech and her breath caught as Hux leaned in to inspect what she was indicating. He smelled good, woodsy, different from Ren. Manna hoped that thought didn't upset him but nothing came through so she took it as a win.
Turn to him. Put your lips near his.
The thought felt decidedly scandalous - he was definitely taking some sort of pleasure in this, whether it was sick or sexual - but he was telling her to do it. He was telling her to seduce Hux so she was going to do it, partially because it felt exciting and partially because she knew he'd end up regretting it.
Manna turned her face towards Hux's so their lips were nearly touching. She took in a breath, then whispered,
"I'm not sure what to do. Can you help me... General?"
There was a long, tense beat that passed between them. She could feel Kylo's anticipation for the reaction. And then -
The General jerked backwards, his face a mask of stiff disapproval.
"MN-8486," Hux barked, "you will accompany me to the interrogation chamber."
Wait. What?
"I'm sorry," she was already babbling, but they all knew her as a troublemaker so no one even looked up as he seized her by the arm, dragging her away. It wasn't too far before Hux had her in front of a door that looked a lot like Ren's bedroom; he put in a code and the heavy thing lifted.
No. Not again.
She struggled wildly, trying to break free but it was no use. Hux dragged her through the door and thrust her onto the floor before his bed.
"What do you think you're doing?" he demanded in a loud, clipped tone. "That sort of behavior in front of all your fellow technicians? What's your game?"
Game. She almost wanted to laugh. Fully clothed in her work uniform, released from her prison, and she'd been tricked into playing Ren's game. Again.
Manna flexed her hands, scraped from their impact on the cold floor she'd been thrust against. She thought about how to respond.
Tell him you want him.
Her breath caught in her throat. Did Ren really want her to do this, or was it a test? It seemed... dangerous.
I don't, though.
There was an almost amused pause before she heard:
So? Tell him you do.
Another pause, then almost a laugh in her brain:
Silly thing.
Ren was an impossibly confusing beast to tame, something that seemed to want her all to himself and then somehow be excited by lending her out to another. Apparently her dissection of his character resulted in a decisive action on his part: her sex was being stroked by two soft, slow fingers in a devastating rhythm.
Tell him. Tell him and I'll stop.
Manna closed her eyes. She tried, she really did, but when it came down to serious punishment from Hux and phantom pleasure from Ren it just became too much.
"I want you," she blurted, and the fingers between her legs stopped. The General stiffened, regarding her with a stony sort of silence.
Then, slowly, he approached her. With one hand, he grabbed her from the floor, threw her on the bed.
"You do, do you?" Hux murmured.
A long moment passed. He regarded her on the bed, let his eyes scan her form.
Without use of the Force he ran his hands along her thighs. Manna shivered as he used his palms to spread her legs wide. She had to admit, his icy stare had something to it.
And perhaps there was something to that - the fact he hadn't used the Force on her.
He was still fully clothed. He stared at her, icy eyes questioning.
Well, there hadn't been any more requests. And Manna admitted to herself... she wanted Ren to hurt, for his twisted plan to turn against him. He'd pushed her so hard for this...
Not to mention the fact that Hux was an attractive man.
The other thing she noticed was that Hux waited for an invitation. Like a gentleman.
He's a gentleman.
The thought was particularly hurtful but she didn't care because it happened as she started to tug off her work pants, her underwear, the things she'd been so happy to put on that morning and now mattered nothing at all. She didn't care that it was hurtful because Hux was shedding his clothing too, there was an equal exchange and so it didn't feel so bad that she was giving in to his desires. And as he sank into her warm, wet sex she just kept thinking:
He asked for this. This is what he wanted.
Hux was thrusting into her, grunting quietly, and she gripped his shoulders in ecstasy. She was almost there, so very close, ready to come -
No. It didn't happen.
Manna inched her fingers along his shoulders, pulled him close. Any moment now, she could feel it.
You think you can come without me?
How like Ren. She could practically feel his anger. A cruel little boy who sets the rules of the game and then pouts when he loses.
She shot back:
I expected so, yes. After all, this was your twisted idea.
A brief pause as she kept bucking her hips into Hux's, trying to wound Ren at this point, hoping her actions were hurtful towards him.
In the meantime Hux, a decidedly quiet lover, leaned his forehead against hers. She felt bad that he seemed so passionate, so raw, and that it may all be just a move in the chess game of her relationship with Kylo Ren. Manna attempted to make up for this by increasing the thrust of her hips, trying to make him come.
The response to all of this was a hard, unforgiving thought:
No. This was not an exercise in you fucking other men. I'd expected you to return to my chambers.
Too bad, she thought with abandon, and then raked her fingers through Hux's hair, moving her hips liquidly against his. Hux let out a cry and came hard, bucking into her, his slim body trembling.
On his last thrust Manna came - the combination of knowing what Ren had expected and the mere physical contact had been enough to push her over the edge.
She let the peachy afterglow settle over her and dissipate before trying to tune into what Kylo Ren felt about the whole thing. As she lay naked next to General Hux, Manna chewed her lower lip nervously.
At last it came through, one hard angry thought:
You'll get what you deserve.