TishaLiz: Thank you for the review as always. I agree that the choice to pull of Takodana with just Rey as a captive was an incredibly bad decision. It was going to be a problem keeping up with Kuvira's military skills if she was the one who ordered it. Thankfully Kylo Ren's impulsiveness allowed a legitimate reason for the First Order to withdraw and the rebels to escape. It has been hard at times finding ways for Kuvira to maintain her status as a military genius like Thrawn and yet allowing the 'heroes' to survive due to more than just protagonist powers. Sorry this was not out before the New Year but you know what this time of year is like. In regards to Han's legs, well it will affect some things in the story but the Star Wars universe has some really advanced medical technology, so we will see. I also thought about removing Kylo's helmet for the tension scene but I decided that was moving too fast and too obviously for these particular individuals. And given how much he wants to be Vader if figured he would only take it off when needed and that meeting did not qualify. Anyway, hope you enjoy this new chapter.
thasinger123: Thanks for the review. I make it a point to respond to reviews so if you have any questions or suggestions feel free to let me know.
ex-ellent: I knew that the romance path was going to be a bit cliché. That is why I asked for readers to let me know whether to add it in or to not bother. Everyone who responded was in favour of the romance so I added it. Admittedly it makes the writing harder while trying to keep true to the nature of these two characters but it also adds a new dynamic in the story and it gives another option to those who are not a fan of Rey or the 'relationship' between her and Kylo Ren in the movies. In regards to you point that this has followed the movies so far. Well a lot of OC fanfic's do the same and I still thoroughly enjoy them. Also given how fast the events take place in the 7th and 8th movies there is not a lot of time for other things to happen. Still you have reminded me that it is important to explore original events. I have some plans for diverging from the film in upcoming chapters so I hope you will enjoy them.
Chapter 14 : The Admiral and the Scavanger
Starkiller Base – Holding Cell
Rey - POV
Rey slowly crawled her way back to consciousness and opens her eyes as she tries to fight through the disorientation swirling in her skull. As her eyes adjust to the dim light she begins to take stock of her surroundings. She is in an angled, upright restraining rig that looked very much like it was designed to be unpleasant for the restrained individual.
She recognised this place. She had seen similar rooms during her many days of crawling in the bowels of wrecked imperial star destroyers on Jakku. Though clearly this one was not an abandoned ruin and was clearly state of the art. Which was defiantly not good news for her.
As she turned her head she heard/felt another person in the cell with her. When she looked over she was startled to see Kylo Ren, mask in place, was standing there like a terrifying dark spectre in the darkened corner of the interrogation room, silently observing her.
Once Rey got over her shock she asked the question that was foremost in her mind. "Where am I?"
For a second she thinks that he will not bother answering her. But after a few seconds he does. "You're my guest." He states simply as if it should have been obvious.
She glances at her manacled arms and legs and considers making a sarcastic remark about guests being allowed to leave as they please. After all if he was going to kill her he would have already done it. But she thinks better of it as she is not so confident in her theory that she wanted to test it.
As the memories of the attack on Takodana came flooding back she asks her next question urgently. "Where are the others?" She demanded, and could almost imagine him scoffing under his mask.
"You mean the murderers, traitors and thieves you call friends? You'll be relieved to hear that I have no idea." He says flatly but with a definite hint of mockery in his voice. As he finishes speaking he reaches out with the Force and studies her thoughts. She was clearly fearful but that would have been obvious to anyone attuned to the Force or not. But she was also curious and a subtle but definite current of vengefulness.
"You still want to kill me." He stated, and it was clearly not a question.
Rey's eyes take on a flash of anger and indignation that had not been there in the opening stages of this interrogation. "That happens when you're being hunted by a creature in a mask!" She practically snarls.
Kylo considers her for a moment as if he was considering a particularly difficult choice that was laid out before him. Then after a few seconds he reached up to his face and activated his mask's mechanisms to unlock and then he proceeded to lift his mask of his head. Rey was stunned. She was not sure what she had expected the real him to look like under his mask. But it had not been this. She had expected something along the lines of a horrifically deformed monster with eyes that blazed of evil and a mouth that was permanently into a diabolical smirk.
Instead she was staring at a young man roughly her age or maybe a little older. His eyes were a colour of brown that she was certain she had seen somewhere before. They would have been a warm chocolate shade if they were not staring at her with a cold and remorseless gaze. His face was narrow but not gaunt with a skin tone was pale probably from being hidden beneath his mask for so much time. His long black hair was very fine and fell down to his shoulders concealing his ears. It takes a moment to get over her surprise before she regains her own mask of defiance as he menacingly steps forward.
"Tell me about the droid." He demands. And with that tone of voice Rey begins to remember what her situation is and feels her resolve beginning to crumble.
"He's a BB unit with a selenium drive and a thermal hyper scan vindicator….." She begins but he soon interrupts her.
"He's carrying a section of a navigational chart. We have the rest, recovered from archives of the Empire. We need the last piece. And somehow, you convinced the droid to show it to you. You. A scavenger?"
Rey feels her body instinctively tense up and a cold feeling seeping through her stomach. 'How does he know?'
Kylo Ren takes another step closer as he remembers Admiral Kuvira's words to him on the star destroyer and remembers that he is on a tight time limit. "You know I can take whatever I want?" Trepidation flashes across Rey's eyes. Kylo Ren moves closer, his hand rising toward her. She recoils, but has nowhere to go.
Kylo Ren nearly touches her face... and they both find themselves surprised. They react to a feeling that passes between them, an energy they recognised in each other. And then it's gone. Adversaries again. Rey can't move and she quietly strains in agony, trying desperately to resist Ren's probing. Kylo Ren was once again rummaging through her memories and feelings in an act of utter violation.
"You're so lonely... so afraid to leave..." He states in a quiet voice. "At night, desperate to sleep... you imagine an ocean. I see it - I see the island..." he mutters as tears stream down her face as she resists. She tries to break free, but she can't budge from her position on the rack.
Suddenly Kylo Ren's previous impassive demeanour is gone as he uncovers more of her feelings. "And Han Solo. You feel like he's the father you never had. He would've disappointed you." He almost snarls.
His hand still on her face, and her eyes become fierce through the agony. "Get out of my head" She grinds out through gritted teeth but this just makes Kylo lean closer. "I know you've seen the map. It's in there... and now you'll give it to me. Don't be afraid. I feel it too." He states with utter certainty.
"I'm not giving you anything." She retorts.
"We'll see." He peers into her eyes intensely. She meets his gaze. On Ren's face his confidence begins to melt away. He has slammed up against a barrier in her mind. He looks less certain by the moment as Rey seems to grow in strength. He pushed hard with his mind, but the probe went nowhere. The ferocity of confrontation builds until it hits critical mass.
But what Kylo Ren did not realise until it was too late was that the bridge that he had created between their minds worked both ways.
A look of amazement replaces the fear on Rey's face as she discovers herself in his mind. She finds herself passing through his memories and a speed that seemed only to be rivalled by hyperspace travel. She witnesses his years of training with the use of the Force and his skills with a lightsaber, not full understanding what she was seeing but drawing that information into her own mind. She also sees something else she feels Kylo Ren's surprise as he realises what is happening and she senses his attempts to shut the bridge between them.
But before he can, she sees what is in his mind.
"... You... you're afraid... that you will never be as strong as... Darth Vader!" She whispers belatedly.
Kylo Ren pulls back his hand from her face as if she was on fire. At the same time the shock that reverberated through him at those words forced the link between their minds to shatter like glass against stone. She is released and breathes a sigh of relief as he stumbles back from her, clearly rattled to the core as he stared intently into her eyes.
She didn't know it at the time, but he was observing a change in her eyes. Something behind them, in her stare and in her posture had changed. Whatever it was, he wasn't sure. But it was unmistakably powerful.
Before she could say another world he turned on his heel, re donned his mask and swept from the room, his black cloak snapping as if in indignation. He paused only to send a blast of invisible power directly into her, forcing her back against the rack she remained fastened too.
And with that he departed as the door slammed shut again, leaving Rey alone.
She signed as she closed her eyes, hoping that she could now rest and gather herself and her thoughts on what had just happened. And then once she had recuperated a bit she could focus on finding a way out of this seemingly hopeless situation.
But she was not going to be given her wish quite yet. Less than ten seconds after Kylo Ren had left the room.
The door opened.
Kuvira - POV
Kuvira was actually forced to press herself against the wall as Kylo Ren stalked past her after he exited the interrogation cell that the Jakku girl had been placed in. She watched in silence as he hurried past her without uttering a word. She was not even certain he had even noticed she was there.
For reasons she did not want to consider, that bothered her more than it should have.
She had come to speak to him about the upcoming attack on the Resistance base. Though it had been part of the overall strategy. She almost could not believe it when the communication and intelligence officers had informed her only an hour ago. The Resistance had understandably been desperate to know the origin of the apocalyptic energy blast that had turned the Hosnian System and all of its lifeforms into space dust. And so they had sent a recon ship to investigate Starkiller base.
That, in of itself, was not surprising. Tracking the origin for the blast that had been witnessed across the galaxy would have been child's play. It was inevitable that once the weapon had been fired the entire galaxy would soon know the location and existence of Starkiller base.
What had been surprising was that the recon ship the Resistance had used to scout out the planet had been careless enough to let itself be tracked back to the Ileenium system! For an organisation that she had spent years trying to ferret out of hiding, it almost beggared belief!
In most other situations she would consider the possibility that it was some form of trap. But after carefully considering the military situation and the data provided from the Ministries of Logistics and Intelligence, she realised it was no trap.
The Resistance had revealed themselves. Once again she almost could not believe it. But as she had reminded herself many times while monitoring delta source. It only took one slip up.
It was like Life Day had come early and she had almost broken out into wild laughter in the planetary command centre. Thankfully she had reigned herself in and simply allowed a smile to escape her usual stoicism.
After making the necessary orders, she had permitted Hux to be the one to inform the Supreme Leader and get final authorisation on the upcoming attack on the system. Although that was more an act of keeping the Supreme Leader informed as Kuvira had all the necessary authority to order the attack on her own. Neither the Supreme Leader nor the First Order had any use for commanders who could not show initiative.
The 1st Fleet (her fleet) was ready and waiting for the order. All that remained was to coordinate their own reconnaissance craft in the area in order to lock down the specific location of their base. Once they had that, they would move into crush the Resistance in a single stroke.
She had been informed of Kylo Ren's location upon her inquiry and had gone to see if he had obtained the map to Skywalker yet, as he was not responding to his com link.
She had almost been at the door when he had exited and stalked past. She was confused but intuitive enough to know that he was not in the mood to talk military strategy. And if he did have the map he was likely going to inform the Supreme Leader.
As she turned back to the cell door he had just left. She allowed some of her own curiosity to force its way to her mind. She walked up to the door and entered the cell.
For a long moment she and the clearly tired Jakku scavenger girl simply observed each other as Kuvira stepped into the cell and stood a few paces away from her left side, allowing the girl to turn her head and face her directly.
Then after a few seconds of silence, Kuvira broke it. "What is your name?" She asked simply
For a few seconds the girl simply looked her. Then she started to giggle, which eventually became a full on laugh. Kuvira raised an eyebrow, of all the reactions she had expected, that was not one of them. She began to wonder if Lord Ren had been so forceful in his interrogation that her mind had snapped.
But then the girl seemed to get a grip. "Sorry, but of all the questions I thought you would try to torture out of me, I didn't expect that one". She said while still giggling.
Kuvira realised that the reaction had not been laughter but some form of hysteria. "I have no intention of torturing you. You have nothing that I want. I am simply enquiring." She replied flatly.
The girl glared at her in response. "You can stop with the lies. I know you, Kylo Ren and the rest of the First Order want the map from BB-8!" She snapped
"That is Lord Ren's prerogative, not mine." Kuvira countered. "While it true I would like the map recovered or destroyed. I have no personal interest in the map and I could not careless about that pathetic coward Luke Skywalker. The mysteries of the Force are an anathema to me and beyond their practical applications I have no interest in them. My concerns are more based in the physical world. I leave the rest to the philosophers."
The scavenger girl stared at her while Kuvira studied her body language and facial twitches, which even while restrained shown through. She clearly did not think she was lying but that was countered by the fact that she felt she had no reason to trust her.
Kuvira signed "Very well then, I will take the first step. My name is Kuvira, commander of the star destroyer Reclaimer, Admiral and Commander in Chief of the First Order." She said in a simple tone with no evidence of arrogance or grandstanding.
She saw a flash of recognition pass along the girls face. She had clearly heard of her. After a moment, she responded.
"I'm Rey, a scavenger from Jakku." She said reluctantly. "It's not quite as impressive as your introduction. But at least I gave a homeworld." She said snidely
Kuvira ignored the tone in Rey's voice. "I do not know what my homeworld was. At least not for a fact, beyond what is in the First Order's records. But from what I understand it was, unpleasant there." She paused. "Rather like Jakku in that regard I suppose. We have that in common, if nothing else."
Rey's brows furrowed in confusion. "You don't remember your family or planet?" She asked. Despite herself, she found herself curious about the imposing woman before her. She remembered Finn had mentioned that he was taken from a family like all stormtroopers. Did even the great Admiral Kuvira have that tragic past as well?
Kuvira shook her head with a small shrug. "I have some vague memories. Images, faces, places, scents, etc. I was given away to the First Order at a young age. When I was four, I think." She said and interrupted as she saw the indignation rise on Rey's face.
"And before you ask, no I was not 'kidnapped'. In the impoverished Outer Rim and Unknown Regions the First Order rarely needs to resort to that. I was, 'purchased'." She stated emotionlessly.
At this Rey's curiosity increased. "You were a slave? Where you parents slaves as well or here you taken from them before coming to the First Order?" She asked.
Kuvira shook her head. "It was my parents who sold me to the First Order." She clarified to Rey's shocked expression. "According to the records they were very poor and in need of funds with no ability to care for a young child. In exchange for a sum of credits I was traded to the First Order. From what little I know of Athulla. It is a common enough practice."
Rey simply stared at the woman in disbelief. She was trying to wrap her mind around the idea that someone would willingly had over their daughter for a fistful of credits, as if she was an old droid or speeder they no longer wanted. She knew from a life of living on Jakku how desperate people made strange decisions. But it was still hard to hear about it. It was made even stranger by the fact that the Admiral spoke about her parent's abandonment of her so uncaringly. In a way her apathy made sense. She had confirmed she didn't remember her parents so she had no emotional ties to them good or bad.
Rey was just thankful that she remembered her parents, if only faintly. She also remembered she needed to get back to Jakku. Because unlike the Admiral, they loved her and were coming back for her. She knew they would. She knew it.
With that in mind she refocused her suspicious gaze on the Admiral. "So why are you here? If you don't care about the map why have you come here to see me? I doubt the Grand Admiral of the First Order visits all the prisoners personally. What is so special about me?" She demanded.
Kuvira was silent for a moment. Then she answered. "Until yesterday there was nothing special about you beyond your ability to aggravate our efforts. I didn't care about you, in fact I would not have cared if you have lived or died on Takodana." She clarified as Rey's eyes narrowed at her words.
"But when Lord Ren brought you back to us, even going so far as to recall all our forces on the planet once he captured you alone. Well, that forced me to review you a bit more thoroughly." She said as Rey got the unconformable feeling as if she was being studied under glass like a bacterium.
"You, intrigue me." Kuvira summarised as if that explained everything. If Rey was confused before she was now completely mind boggled.
"Why? I'm nobody, I am just a scavenger from the Kelvine Ravine regions. You're an Admiral in charge of a massive fleet and army, what am I to you?" She asks puzzled.
Kuvira crossed her arms and leaned back on the wall of the cell as she began to relax. It was not often that she got to have such an open conversation with someone who was not under her command. "It is precisely those reasons that interest me." She replied.
"You came from quite literally nothing. Our new colonists and subjugates on Jakku have confirmed that you have survived on that hellish planet virtually unaided from an early age since your parents abandoned you there…" She was interrupted as the girl flew into a fury.
"They didn't abandon me!" She yelled. "They will be back, they will come back for me. Which is more than your parents did. Mine actually care about me so you can shut up about them!" She spat breathing heavily. She had seemingly forgotten that the person she was spitting vitriol at could easily order her executed or just kill her right now.
But Kuvira just raised her hand in a placating gesture as she gave a small nod. "As you wish." She said simply as if refusing to get dragged into an argument with a child about the existence of the angels of Iego. Clearly Rey recognised that tone and did not appreciate it.
"As I was saying. Despite your situation you managed to recover the BB droid with the map. You managed to pilot a ship that by all rights should have been scrapped years ago. You also managed to avoid me in the chase off Jakku, a feat not many have achieved…."
"That was you in that TIE?!" Rey interrupted again. "You nearly killed us!" She accused.
This time Kuvira's gaze turned cold. "And you succeeded in killing one of my pilots. You made your choice to be on that ship, Rey. If you have turned the droid over to us in the first place, you would have never been in danger and you would have received a substantial reward. Do not attempt to play the victim in this situation." Kuvira scolded.
Rey looked annoyed at the chastisement. But she had to admit the Admiral had a point. She had chosen to help BB-8, Finn and the Resistance from the get go. She leaned back and remained silent.
Kuvira nodded and continued. "After that you managed to avoid an assault from a pack of hungry Rathtars, according to our sources. And then you managed to survive a battle and an encounter with Kylo Ren. An achievement that is very rare indeed." Kuvira paused as she studied Rey again before she finished.
"Simply put Rey. These actions and achievements point to either phenomenal luck. Or immense natural talent. I am curious to see which it is." She concluded.
In the silence that followed Rey didn't know what to say. She was caught between fears at what her imprisonment might lead to. But she was also feeling pride in Kuvira's description of her. She had not been credited with much in her life up until now. And the fact that someone of such importance was providing that recognition made her feel, proud.
But then she got her head on straight and asked the question that had been burning in her mind since she had woken up. "So, what will happen to me now?" She asked.
Kuvira straightened from her leaning position. "For now you are in the custody of Lord Ren. When you have provided the information he seeks we will see. I would advise that you provide the information quickly. It will increase your chances. And believe it or not there are much worse things than Lord Ren that can be used to gain that information." She warned.
While Rey tried to look brave, the cell door opened and Nephitina walked in. She looked briefly at the restrained Rey before snapping to a salute. "Admiral." She greeted while waiting for acknowledgment.
Kuvira turned away from Rey to face the Twi'lek. "Yes Lieutenant, what is it?" She asked calmly. Rey also turns to regard the Twi'lek and she seems surprised. She had probably been told by the Resistance and the ignorant, that like the Empire before it, the First Order wanted to enslave or murder all aliens bar humans. Kuvira's mood darkened at both the memory of the Imperial policy and the blatant propaganda used by the Resistance. Still it was good to correct Rey's assumption right off the bat.
Nephitina continued. "You have two priority messages. One from the Supreme Leader and one from Commander Hask aboard the Retribution." She reported dutifully.
Kuvira nodded. She turned to face Rey briefly. "Excuse me Rey, duty calls." With that she was turned and followed the Twi'lek (who also looked surprised at the Admiral's cordial tone to a mere prisoner) and shut the door behind them.
As soon as they had left Rey began working her right wrist. Using her fingers to carefully pull a small device about of her wrist wrappings. She had been crawling through damaged and crumpling machines for years. She had learned long ago the skills and necessity of keeping a backup slicer spike close in case of emergencies.
This certainly qualified as an emergency.
As she pulled out the spike she began to work the mechanisms of her wrist cuffs. Prayer to whatever cosmic force cared to listen that she would free herself before anyone came back.
Outside the Cell
Kuvira listened as the message from Supreme Leader Snoke came to an end. She was not surprised but a little disappointed. The Supreme Leader had determined that they could not afford the time needed to pinpoint the location of the Resistance base in the Ileenium system.
Therefore he had ordered that the Starkiller weapon be prepared to fire at the system's star. If the weapon hit that it would cause nothing less than a supernova that would wipe out every planet in the sun's gravity sphere.
It was an effective plan and it would achieve the result needed. It would also not result in additional collateral damage as the rest of the planets in the system were uninhabited. But it lacked a finesse that military strategy required and was more again to swinging a big heavy blunt instrument at your enemy. The order had come from Snoke, but she could defiantly sense Hux's hand in this plan.
Still orders were orders and this would at least free up her fleet to be deployed elsewhere in the galaxy. She turned back to the Lieutenant. "And the message from Commander Hask?" She inquired.
Nephitina consulted her datapad before answering. "He reports that he has completed his operations on Vados and that Project Resurrection has been completed and all matters settled. He claims that you left orders to be informed of this when it was completed. He also asked if you could rendezvous with him aboard the Retribution." She finished
That made Kuvira's eyebrows rise in question. "For what reason?" She asked directly. Nephitina shrugged, her Lekku twitching as she did so. "He didn't say. He just claimed it was a delicate matter." The woman said.
Kuvira was puzzled. It was not a feeling she was used too.
For Hask to request her personal presence could indicate that something had gone very wrong. Project Resurrection had been given top priority. Overseen by herself, Kylo Ren and Hask directly. But Hask's message indicated that the project had been completed successfully. The fact that he had been so cagey about the reasons also hinted that whatever it was could not be communicated via holo.
She disliked this situation immediately. But with the new plan to wipe out the Resistance with the Starkiller weapon she could afford to place her fleet on a temporary standby around the planet for protection. She could also afford to travel to meet the Retribution, which was already en route to return to Starkiller base. She would be away for a few hours. Besides she had an entire army of officers and sub commanders beneath her. She did not have to constantly hold their hands.
"Very well commutate to the Commander Hask that I will be travelling to Vados to meet him. Prepare my shuttle to depart." She commanded.
Nephitina looked up from the datapad she was typing on. "Not the Reclaimer Admiral?" She asked.
Kuvira shook her head. "There is no need to prep an entire Star destroyer for what should only be a brief trip. Attend to those instructions I will be along shortly." She ordered. Nephitina nodded and after a quick salute headed off down the deserted corridor.
Kuvira watched her leave for a few moments as she began to categorise her needed amendments to their overall strategy with this new plan. Then she turned back to the cell and opened the door. The next thing she saw was a metal bar swinging towards her face!
Rey - POV
Rey swung her pole staff (which she had recovered from the evidence stand against the wall of the cell) at Kuvira's face the moment the door opened fully and she saw who it was.
If she could knock out the Admiral or maybe even take her hostage she could possibly escape the planet and get back to Han and Finn. And what a prize that would be for the Resistance to have Admiral Kuvira as a prisoner of war!
But first she had to escape and so she sent the staff swinging with all her might to the surprised woman's face.
But despite the surprise Kuvira was clearly not an Admiral for nothing. Acting on instinct from years of intense training she ducked out of the path of the weapon and thrust out with her right hand. Her hand gripped Rey's throat which had been left wide open with the follow through of her attack.
Rey's expression turned from triumph to shock, and then fear as Kuvira looked at her knowingly.
Then before Rey could attack again Kuvira lashed out with a kick to the torso that sent Rey hurtling back to come crashing to the floor in the centre of the cell, narrowly missing the rack she had just escaped from. The burned out slicer spike on the floor by her head explaining just how she had done it.
Rey staggered to her feet gasping for breath as she raised her staff up. Looking up in dread as she expected Kuvira to sound the alarm and call for a hundred guards. Or for her to just pull out her blaster pistol and shoot her dead right then and there.
But she did neither.
Instead Rey watched as the Admiral took off her blaster from her belt and threw it out the still open door of the cell. Then she shrugged off her black great coat and tossed it into the corner. Then as Rey watched in confusion, she closed and locked the cell door and adopted a fighting stance.
Rey's confusion soon turned to anger at what she perceived as the Admiral's arrogance and she lunged forward with her staff again.
She swung at Kuvira's feet hoping to trip her up. But the Admiral simply jumped over the metal rod and once she had landed on her feet she thrust out with a jab that connected with Rey's jaw. The girl staggered back as she felt the force of the blow and tasted blood in her mouth. But before she could do anything to stop it, Kuvira was beside her.
The Admiral took hold of the hand that managed to keep hold of the staff and wrenched it in a way that made it impossible for her to keep a grip on the weapon which was pulled out of her hands. Kuvira wasted no time in following up the disarming motion into a low sweep that took Rey's legs out from under her, and she once again fell to the cold floor.
As she looked up through her hazy vision she saw Kuvira casually lean the staff against the wall before she turned her attention back to the prone Rey lying on the ground.
Fighting through the pain in her body and calling on her rage and frustration at how badly this escape attempt was going, Rey jumped back to her feet.
She lashed out with two kicks at Kuvira mid-section. But the other woman merely stood her ground and proceeded to slap the attacks away with her forearms. Rey changed tactics by sending a lunging punch towards Kuvira's jaw. But Kuvira simply tilted her head out its path while once again slapping the basic attack to the side.
Rey tried to kick the Admiral in the shins, only for an almost identical counter attack to nullify the blow and send the leg back to its previous position.
For a moment they simply stared at each other. Rey's face an expression of shock, awe and desperation. While Kuvira's face had not changed from its typical stoic expression since the fight had begun. Further enraged by the clear lack of effort that her opponent was putting into this fight, Rey attacked again with a scream of frustration.
She tried to land a brawler style swinging punch to Kuvira's face. But the punch was so wide and obvious Kuvira could have brushed her teeth in the time it took to come near to its target. She simply ducked while she spun on her heel and used the back of her left leg to sweep Rey's extended left leg out from under her. For the third time in almost as many seconds, Rey was sent crashing to the floor.
Rey found herself once again on her back looking up at Kuvira who was standing at ease just next to her.
"Don't force it, your forcing it." Kuvira chided as if Rey was a trainee in the training room, instead of an attacking prisoner.
Snarling Rey leapt back to her feet and proceeded to send punch after punch at Kuvira's face. But just as before Kuvira, slapped them harmlessly to the side with calculated blocks and parry's.
Finally Rey sent another swinging punch at Kuvira, only for the woman to duck out of the way while spinning round to seize Rey's outstretched arm with both of her hands.
Ignoring the horror on Rey's face as she realised her mistake. Kuvira bent the arm in such a way that Rey was quickly forced to her knees in pain from the pressured joint. Just before her arm proceeded to break, Kuvira released her from the hold. But before Rey could even sigh in relief she saw a black booted leg come crashing into her sternum sending her on to her back in a way that almost forced her to fold in half as her legs shot out from her previous kneeling position.
Kuvira stood over her, ready to strike again if need be. But there was no need. Bruised and battered, the fight seemed to have leaked out of Rey by this point.
The scavenger simply lay on the cold metal floor of the cell. She was clearly fighting back tears at how clearly outmatched she was and how her escape had turned to ash in the space of thirty seconds. She just stayed were she was, and did not put up any resistance as Kuvira called for the prison guards to place her back on the rack, after scanning her to make sure she had no additional escape tools hidden.
After they left, Rey found herself once again alone with Kuvira and a newly placed guard as the Admiral put her black greatcoat back on and placed her blaster pistol back in its holster. Once that was done she turned to face Rey once more.
"After seeing your escape from your restraints I am satisfied that luck has had little to do with your previous actions. I am very impressed with your performance Rey." She complimented.
Rey could not decide if she was mocking her after the humiliating defeat she had handed to her or not. There was no mockery in the other woman's tone but she was not making any sense. "What are you talking about?" She asked through her bruised and bloody face.
Kuvira finished adjusting her blaster belt before she answered. "You have a natural talent that is far too precious to waste. With some proper instruction you could be honed into a remarkable individual. Therefore I am issuing orders that once Lord Ren has the information he requires. You will be released from this prison and placed in our training program." She stated.
"Congratulations Rey, welcome to the First Order." She proclaimed as she turned back to the doorway.
As the door opened Rey called out. "I will not join you. You can try to justify what the First Order does however you want. But you just murdered billions and destroyed whole planets. You see murder on an unimaginable scale as a fair price for victory. You're just trying to seize power!" She called out weakly.
To her surprise Kuvira did not deny her accusations. "Your right Rey. We are determined to seize power. And with that power, we will create a galaxy where no little girl will ever be left to rot and die on a nightmare of a planet."
With that Kuvira walked out of the cell and the door slammed shut. Leaving Rey alone her new guard and her thoughts churning at the recent words and events.
Hux - POV
General Hux watched the command console that showed the Upsilon-class command shuttle carrying Admiral Kuvira, jump to lightspeed out of the Starkiller system.
He smiled as he watched his plan unfold before him.
It had not been hard to convince Commander Hask to request Admiral Kuvira meet him over Vardos. While Hask was personally loyal to the First Order and Admiral Kuvira above all others. He understood the damage a superior officer could do to a career. He knew from experience that vengeful commanders could end both a successful career and a life just as easily.
When Kuvira arrived she would not be happy with whatever feeble excuse Hask had managed to come up with in the short space of time. Even if he told the Admiral the truth there would be no evidence to prove it.
At the same time he had let it be known through certain sources that the operation on Vados was taking place. The Resistance or their allies would be moving to investigate the situation. While he hoped they might actually be able to kill Kuvira, he found that very unlikely.
But it did not matter. As long as Kuvira was absent for the firing of Starkiller base and the eradication of the Resistance. The command, the responsibility and more importantly, the glory for the coming victory would belong to him.
The Supreme Leader had approved his plan to use the weapon. And with this victory under his belt while Kuvira was running around Vardos for no good reason. It would be an important step to diminish her position and power. And it was an equally important step to seeing her finally removed permanently.
He turned to the comms officer. "Order the fleet to disperse out of the system. I do not want anything to get in the way of the weapon charging and firing process." He commanded arrogantly
The officer looked abashed for a moment before responding. "General, Admiral Kuvira's orders are for the fleet to remain in defence formation around the planet in case….." the officer trailed off as Hux turned his blazing eyes to face him.
"Admiral Kuvira, is not here and therefore I am in command of all forces in this system. Now relay my orders or I will have you executed for insubordination!" He yelled.
The aide flinched at both the words and the shrillness with which they were delivered. He quickly began to relay the orders to the fleet. Soon one by one the assembled star destroyers of the 1st fleet began to jump out of the system.
Before long the space around the planet was clear and looked on in satisfaction that nothing would be able to interfere with the weapon that was about to smash the Resistance, just as it had destroyed the Republic along with the Hosnian System.
General Hux smiled as he watched the weapon pull the star's power into its system. After this day and this victory, he would go down in history. His name would be deathless. Which was more than he could say for the Resistance. He thought as he chuckled at his mental joke.