(Finalizer)
Having been one who has spent years upon years of examining various "new" arrivals, it quickly became apparent to all who resided in the First Order that General Hux was quite possibly the hardest man to get to smile or at least show some degree of surprise whenever he entered the sterile but reasonably wide weapon test room which for the most part was usually quite packed with all manners of Stormtroopers who every time he'd enter the room would stop to give their salute before moving back into their daily routine of shooting down moving targets or triggering the next model of whatever new jetpack or gizmo they had cooked up which for the most part despite how many times they'd seen all of this before, it always seemed to incite at least a half-smile or a quick blink of the eye showing that they were at least still moderately impressed.
Unlike Hux who'd always keep the same look of contempt or boredom from the beginning of the inspection to the end.
For most, they might feel inclined to call this type of behavior rude or uncaring but as far as those who knew the man and exactly how much of his life was just wasted away in these sessions of viewing what was almost always just another blaster or design concept for a ship or piece of tech, they found that it was best not to get too wrapped up in it all since they knew he still appreciated the tech and the effort that went into it regardless and that when the time comes that he is actually surprised, they'll know it when they see it. It was also the main reason why they didn't let themselves get wrapped up in the little ridiculous plans constructed by the troopers who were looking for possible ways to surprise the general whether it be through their skills in training or antics so unbelievably reckless that you wonder how they even were allowed into the Order in the first place, especially since despite all the times they were scolded and/or warned by their superiors, they just turned their heads in ignorance and just kept going in the hopes that special occasion where their general's eyes would light up would eventually come forth, despite how impossible it seemed.
And against all odds and after years of waiting, the Force finally seemed to work in their favor the moment they saw Hux, Phasma as well as a new recruit with an... unknown creature of some sort walking through the doors, during which they could see what looked to be a woman with bright blue hair carrying an unconscious boy through the small crack behind them. Their attention would not be locked on this for long however once the chat began with the single staffer present, that person being the rather old, somewhat senile but still very competent and knowledgeable head designer of the First Order's weapons division Veval Newell who had been for the past few days examining the small purple crystal that was present on the desk behind all the blast-shielding, that item having been procured from FN-2199's unconscious body once he was brought back to base and it was here where despite not being able to hear anything, they could tell in the minutes that followed a red crystal being set down right beside the gem which seemed to be slightly pulsing with light and energy that this most certainly had the general's attention the moment they saw his eyes starting to widen.
"You're kidding me." Hux let out with disbelief. "They're actually the same exact mineral?"
"General, while I may not be as in tune with all this Force jargon as you are, I know for a fact with the descriptions superiors have given me from that these are both the exact same type of crystal." The designer replied, stroking the small patch of gray stubble on his chin, stopping only every so often to take a glance at the colored items, taking mental notes of any difference there was in how the energy pulsed through them. "Or at least... I would say that in terms of the type since clearly the color and energy levels are completely different." The general's brow cocked for a moment with confusion before slowly lowering back down upon giving it a few seconds of thought.
From what he could gather from Snoke's words, Vitiate was one who lived and followed in the footsteps of an age where sorcery and artifacts were the more preferred and often commonly used method to enhance a Force-wielder's strength which was such a stark difference in comparison to the age of those who followed the Rule of Two who had borrowed the Jedi idea that power should be naturally gained through training and practice which even rang true for those who were natural prodigies like Vader so of course the Sith Emperor would've risked his life and used an unstable crystal if it meant his weapons could become far more powerful and that a sensible mind like the one who constructed the weapon the purple mineral belonged to would use something far more stable just to be safe.
Still didn't quite answer the question he had about how it was even possible for another planet to be able to produce the same type of mineral as Ilum let alone where it was initially discovered or why there seemed to be this sort of natural instability with it which only served as proof that while trying to balance the molding of Seryu into a reasonable replacement, when he could discuss the news from Zeroes and Phasma about Nines's... "moment" as well as millions of other issues that needed his attention, he really needed to start furthering his studies in the Force.
But like all things in life, that had to wait and hopefully not for as long of a time as Veval who for just that brief minute seemed to be so still and so patient that you'd almost mistake him for a statue or at least swear that his muscles were getting sore until eventually, it seemed as though they did as he was the one to break the silence.
"I take it you're surprised by the news?" His gaze stilled locked on the two items, the general's head swayed with indecision as his gloved mitt rose to clasp his chin.
"More or less," He replied. "I was told a bit about these by the Supreme Leader though I freely admit that I didn't exactly pay attention to every detail." The older specialist's mouth curved into a smirk.
"Really now? Well this is a first, the great General Hux, one who along with his father are known all throughout as being those types of staffers that stay up for multiple days and nights just to make sure that the organization is running at peak efficiency actually is admitting to not paying attention to a detail." Veval stopped for a few seconds to let out a light chuckle. "I guess the First Order should toss you out now and spare us the trouble." The general's expression didn't move a single inch and judging by his peripheral vision, Phasma had the exact same mentality as instead of the previous occasions where she'd let out a comment about how the old man should watch his mouth, she seemed to just let out a small mental sigh or at least that's what her movements hinted towards and if Hux had to be honest, he couldn't help but share the sentiment what with this being possibly the thousandth or so time that he had to hear Veval take a crack at the few moments of humanity he showed which despite being as lighthearted as they were, they still irritated both him and the captain greatly.
And now, he could effectively add a certain girl to the list once she stepped forward seconds later, pushing Hux to the side in a manner so polite that had him mentally chuckling especially at how she seemed to mouth an apology to him as the action went on, an act that certainly wasn't unwelcome but rather it was just odd seeing as though in these recent years, he hadn't been receiving quite the amount of respect or formalities that he used to, especially when it came to Kylo Ren.
"I'll have you know that the general has put in far more work than you ever had and will put in your entire life." She began harshly. "It's the reason why he's our commander so I think you should show him a little more respect." Taking a few moments to glance over both the girl and the dog-like creature by her ankles which let out a small bark of agreement, the old man's smirk remained especially when he brought up the painfully obvious.
"Well, I never exactly thought you'd actually be that type of man Hux." He said with a laugh. "I mean I knew you'd keep your bloodline going at one point but not once did I expect it to be this soon." Soon after noticing the faint hint of pink that poked through the general's face, looking incredibly out of place when coupled with his rather stone cold countenance, Veval's smirk formed into a grin. "But then again, she looks to be closer to your age which in that case, I guess that means Ren wasn't the only one who had family stranded on he-"
"She's not at all related to the general." Phasma cut in. "All Imperial records clearly state that Brendol Hux only had one child, not two."
"That and my father had always put the will of the Emperor first above all other things so him hiding a possible sibling from both me and the Empire would make no sense." Hux quickly added, his eyes calmly and briefly darting towards Seryu with the specialist still watching with that same lighthearted grin.
"Regardless, you've got to admit that there are at least some similarities." The general rolled his eyes.
"If by similarities you're referring to the most basic and unintentional parallels between our hair-color, ages and passion then yes I guess we are similar." Hux's tone then shifted into something a bit more sarcastic. "And by that logic, I guess we might as well say that a Bantha and a Dewback come from the same animal bloodline because they walk on four legs or that Jakku is a cousin of Tatooine because of them being desert planets." The specialist shrugged.
"It's just a thought, I mean no harm by it."
"Coming from a man who has casually joked about me being such an ineffectual commander many times before, I'm honestly just waiting for the point when you do actually mean something by it." Veval gave off a playful frown.
"Why? So that your troopers can brutalize a withered old man like me?"
"It would at least provide me with something more interesting to watch. That and we'd be sparing the Order of weakness."
"Need I remind you that this 'weakness' was the one who equipped your soldiers with those things outside?" The general looked to where the old man's thumb was pointing and sure enough, he couldn't help but let out a sigh at the sight of the blue-marked TIE Fighter outside which was held up rather neatly alongside similarly marked versions of other famous models like the TIE Advanced, TIE Bomber and another tarp-covered ship that looked flatter than the others which he knew was going to be the one they called the TIE Specter and indeed he had to give the man credit when it was due. If it weren't for his ingenuity or leadership skills, the Order would've definitely not been able to advance as far as it did and especially not at the rapid pace it managed.
"You make a good point," Hux said, nodding with acknowledgement. "but now let's move back to the crystals and most importantly..."
"Why was the Empire in possession of minerals that are clearly of your galaxy and not ours?" Seryu cut in, inciting a small glare behind the mask from Phasma, a glare that Hux didn't exactly share as much as he just looked on with reasonable surprise as did Veval. "I mean he did explain to us that these can also grow on other worlds but that doesn't explain why the prime minister would even have one, let alone two." Newell set a bony, wrinkled finger on his chin and began to ponder.
"To be honest young one," He began seconds later. "I have not a single idea why this is. Either this planet was a breeding ground at one point or some fool ended up losing a whole supply that your ruler just took advantage of but those are just guesses on my part. And to add onto that, they're not my main interest, especially now that you've mentioned to me yet another group that called itself the Empire." The general's brow raised with confusion but only for a brief second as the answer came rushing through his subconscious with ease and judging by the change in expression, the specialist seemed to know.
"General? Was there something you forgot to tell me?" Hux nodded.
"My apologies for not explaining it sooner, I was a bit too caught up in trying to negotiate an 'alliance' with this empire and from what I can tell, Vitani only seemed to give the main troopers she took with her the intel, not the whole cruiser."
"I expected about as much," Veval said. "the Galactic Empire never really was that good with informing everyone about what was going on and I guess some things never change." The general did nothing but nod, paying no mind to the sudden growing coldness in his soul. "But with these pressing matters of order and peace in the galaxy, I can't really blame anyone but now that I have your attention, can you please explain what exactly this organization is?" Just as Hux's jaw lowered, a chilling eerie tone cut him off.
"Only after I finish up with my duties here will he be able to." The small gathering turned with only one looking on with surprise at the cloaked figure standing in the doorway, his metal mask showing hints of the faint red lights which were reflecting off of it about as well as they were with Phasma's chromium plating and when combined with his voice and the growing coldness that overwhelmed the senses, it took only a few seconds of thought for Seryu and Koro to realize just who exactly it was they were looking at with the utterance of his name seconds later only serving as further albeit unneeded confirmation.
"I didn't exactly expect you to be paying a visit so soon Ren." Hux said. "But then again, that might as well be the summary of all our interactions, just what exactly are you doing here?" His gaze moving straight past the three and towards the two crystals with absolutely no mind being paid to the group of troopers outside who were now moving back into their usual training routines, the Dark Lord began to slowly traverse the length of the small room towards the desk, his hands seeming to casually loosen the small gold ring from one of his fingers.
"Just checking out our other new find," Kylo replied, his tone showing very little if any emotion. "I can only imagine how long Vitani has waited to reunite with that boy so I thought it best to not keep her back any longer." Once the ring was slipped off completely, Ren without as much as a second thought casually flicked the small object towards Hux as though it were but a simple credit. "That and I knew you'd throw a fit if I didn't return this."
"Indeed I probably would have," Hux said sarcastically and with a roll of his eyes. "if you feel so inclined to believe that." Paying no mind to his cohort, the captain or anyone else for that matter, Kylo slowly lowered his gaze towards the two minerals with the silence that followed quickly becoming quite unnerving, especially for Seryu whose internal thoughts seemed to be completely at odds as she wasn't sure whether to be terrified or impressed by the man she saw before her and to make matters even worse, it seemed as though he was already completely aware of it if the split-second glance towards her was of any indication.
"Interesting," Kylo uttered after a long bout of silence. "so that fat fool was actually in possession of one of these?"
"At least that's what the general tells me." Veval said, his tone quickly becoming deathly serious, a shift that the girl couldn't help but feel unnerved by. "He also told me that he found it in a gigantic suit of armor that he believes was the weapon of the Sith Emperor."
"Vitiate?" Kylo's voice and head perked up with interest, interest that Veval didn't quite share judging by the motions he made seconds later.
"Whatever you call him, I could personally care less. The point is that he found it, he believed that it belonged to this Sith Lord and now we have it he-what in blazes are you doing?!" The moment he heard the Sith Emperor's name was the moment Kylo had already begun to lower his hand towards the crystal, not even bothering to listen to whatever drivel the old man would throw out and by the time he noticed, the red object was already being held up just inches away from his watchful eye, carefully nestled in-between his gloved index finger and thumb.
"But how could this have belonged to Vitiate?" He asked. "He was one of the most powerful Sith in history both in power and mind, why would he even with his lust for strength decide to juggle his life over this thing with how unstable it looks and for what reason would he need a gigantic suit of armor?"
"Funnily enough Ren, I asked myself that exact question when I found the thing." Hux replied, his tone soon shifting into that of concern and maybe, just maybe a slight hint of fright. "But regardless, now is not the time to be a curious little child, please set that thing down before you kill someone!"
"As much as I would like to support you commander, I have to say I agree with the general." Phasma chimed. "You mentioned it yourself, it lacks in any sort of stability."
"And yet you believe that Vitiate might've used it and in that case, I'd rather have my time to look." Hux's brow furrowed.
"And risk our lives?"
"I'll be cautious."
"Kylo Ren, you and the word cautious have been and always will never be something I pair together."
"Funny you say that as though you're the one in charge." The general sighed with annoyance.
"I am in charge, I'm the one who holds the leash to your bothersome carcass."
"And one that just so happens to be a master of the Dark Side." Kylo quipped. "Now please, do remain silent." Despite his mind already scrambling through over a million different responses with some being far less professional than others, Hux reluctantly agreed to the warrior's orders and kept his lips sealed tight as did Phasma and Seryu, their eyes now being locked on the unstable crystal as their minds started to brim with every possible accident that could occur if their commander wasn't careful enough as well as all the things they wanted to say but couldn't in fear of what exactly the man might do.
Fear that unfortunately despite being shared by Veval who was someone that had lived through the days of Vader and thus has bared witness to at least more than one altercation between a Dark Lord and a staffer, wasn't being suppressed. Whether it was through the man's sensitivity over discoveries or concern for his own safety, the specialist without any warning found himself vocalizing just about every concern he had much to the trio's and by extension Kylo's chagrin.
"I might've been supportive of the decisions you made in the past and silent about those I didn't quite agree with but I just have to say that this is ridiculous commander!" Veval called, his voice only getting slightly louder once he noticed the Dark Lord's attention still being locked on the mineral, the metal on his mask shimmering in the crimson glow. "I know you and the Supreme Leader have put all your trust into the Force but that doesn't give you the right to come barging in and start toying around with materials that could lead to outcomes way out of your control!" Remaining silent and still for a few seconds, Kylo turned his back to the desk and began to move away, his actions causing an eerie sensation to start manifesting in the pit of the general's stomach, a sensation that lead to him ordering Phasma and Seryu to start moving away from the desk themselves, leaving Veval to more of what their commander might've considered worthless rambling. "Ren this is incredibly serious, if you were to drop that thing, if you were to make the most minor of mistakes or impacts, who knows what will happen!" With about as much care as one would have for a dead Tauntaun, Kylo casually nudged his head forward, leaving the specialist to watch as the purple mineral shook and squirmed for a split-second before moving through the air and into the warrior's free hand, causing his frustration to grow even more. "Commander Ren, for once can you let go of that arrogance and just listen to me?!"
"How odd," Kylo thought, carefully analyzing the two items. "I thought the stability would be the only difference but just the feeling, the energy, it just seems so different..." As his mind tried its hardest to cycle through any and all possible answers to this small plight, his annoyance with Veval only grew more and more very much like his raising voice.
"Ignore me all you want but what I'm saying is the truth! Please set the red one down, be logical about this!" Feeling as his anger began to boil as well as his curiosity, Ren's mind soon set its sights on an answer that wouldn't just provide confirmation for at least one of his possible hypotheses but it would hopefully whether it be through either temporary or permanent means, silence the old man whose yells were quickly becoming more than just a minor irritation and more a throbbing migraine. "Commander!" Soon after that one word was uttered, the Dark Lord with as much subtlety as he could manage shut his eyes and took in a deep breath, feeling the Force beginning to course through his body and soon after the air all around him. In just under two seconds, Hux could feel the familiar sensation of unease settling in the moment he spotted the shutters rushing down, stopping with a loud "THUD!" right as the room went dark with the only light sources being the crystals and the two faint red lights that lined the ceiling with the feeling it gave off being less a room for testing or discussion but rather a prison cell.
More specifically, a cell for someone who was on death row.
Despite his best attempts to hide it and press forward, both the trio and Kylo could sense as well as see the fear that was beginning to bubble through the cracks of Veval's flesh in the form of the viscous beads of liquid that came trickling down his forehead or in the latter's case, the steadily increasing pace of his heartbeat.
"What's happening now?" Seryu asked quietly. Without taking his sights off the specialist for even a second, the general gave his answer in a tone that was as direct as it was emotionless.
"Just a showcase of what happens when you disagree with our commander." Feeling chills that bit all the way down to the bone, Seryu looked down to see that even her best friend/weapon Koro was feeling the exact same way, his position now being completely different as instead of standing by her ankle, his stubby little body was seeming to cower and whimper behind her leg with his paws tightening their grip on her flesh with every passing moment. After a few more seconds of staring, the girl looked back towards the specialist who had just finished taking in a long deep breath.
"C-Commander?" He asked, voice quivering with fright. "Are you al-a-a-alr-"
"Thank you for all your years of service." Kylo cut in, his tone cold and lacking in any sort of care. "I hope your life as well as your final test have been eventful thus far." It wasn't even a full second when Veval realized what it was that his commander had planned for him.
And as it turned out, the realization came just a bit too late and in just a flash, the man went from having his fearful visage met by Kylo's cold presence to everything going a complete pitch black with the last sound that he heard before losing consciousness being that of an explosive discharge as well as the shocked gasps and howls from those present in the room with the only ones he didn't hear being obviously General Hux and Phasma.
Speaking of whom, even with all that they had experienced before all this, the two officials either through the shock of the new recruit or just how sudden the chain of events were, found themselves being filled with the once long thought to be forgotten sensation of surprise and in Hux's case, a hint of anger when the smoke from the red Kyber crystal turned makeshift explosive cleared, revealing Veval's now burning corpse with the state of the injuries being very comparable to how they found Syura judging by how part of his skull poked through the festering, blistered flesh and the arms and legs which were now completely separated from the body and strewn haphazardly around the room, the tattered clothes and finally the desk which just mere seconds after it was caught by the Dark Lord was thrown back, the impact of which both caused it to shatter and the brain to splatter along the walls and shutters with the three watching as pieces of both bone and flesh slowly slithered down, leaving a horrific trail of red as it did so.
"So it does exist." Kylo said quietly, his unfeeling gaze not even bothering to lay eyes on what was left for one last time as he began to make his way towards where he came, not even bothering to acknowledge the trio who he just casually shoved his way past while Hux let out his expected call of confusion.
"It does exist? What do you..." As quickly as the doors whirred open, they were soon clicking and rattling shut with the very last thing they heard from the Dark Lord being an extremely basic utterance that not even Hux with his knowledge of the Force could figure out.
"Think back to your talks with Snoke and you'll understand."
Meanwhile...
On the very few occasions that a First Order Stormtrooper had free time, it was usually spent reading approved holobooks, viewing approved videos or what has now become a favorite in these difficult times, firing up a combat scenario of varying difficulty in order to keep skills as sharp as they could be. When asked which series used it the most, many would instantly point to the FN line-up and more specifically, the trio of FN-2199, FN-2187 and FN-2000 who all found that it was the perfect way to relax their minds after an especially difficult mission or a good hearty re-energizing meal.
With the latter especially recalling the amount of times he ended up using it following Eight-Seven's desertion, it should've come as no surprise to anyone that the first thing Zeroes did aside from reporting to Captain Phasma and General Hux about what exactly happened between Nines and Mez was rush to the simulation room and switch on a random battle on whatever difficulty was available at the time, hoping that maybe the rush of adrenaline he'd gain from shooting down some New Republic soldiers would be more than enough to relax his nerves and in the first minute or so, it seemed to be working.
However as time went on and as the trooper started to advance more and more towards his main target which was a bunker and a heavy repeating blaster, every shot that he made on the enemy, virtual or not, seemed to cause him more and more pain from within his soul with his focus seeming to settle on how their faces contorted and deformed in response to the hits until eventually, he had forgotten about the main objective entirely and instead let his mind replace every face with that of the innocents they killed recently and with every time he tried to shake it, the effect seemed to not only grow but his stomach also churned and bubbled with disgust. Soon once he was inches away from completing his objective, just a couple maneuvers away from destroying the bunker, the sickness soon spread to his head which was now throbbing with pain and the faces he saw his targets morph into soon weren't just copying the looks of his recent kills but just about every other victim in the First Order's past, including those that Zeroes hadn't even been the cause of such as Lor San Tekka, countless Resistance soldiers, who he assumed was infamous smuggler turned rebel fighter Han Solo and finally the entire Gungan race with each image possessing what he guessed was a freeze frame of their final moments before they met their end with every time he landed a direct hit inciting a bloodcurdling, drum-piercing screech of pain that only seemed to get louder and louder to the point where the soldier was surprised that he wasn't even deaf or at least bleeding from the ears. Still trying his best to ignore it all, FN-2000 could see just from behind the last portion of cover the currently unmanned repeating blaster, the same blaster which had torn through his virtual squadron just a few minutes before. Trying his best to work through it all, Zeroes began to feel as fearful as he was frustrated as his shaky hands continued to fumble with trying to release the thermal detonator from his belt, an action that he remembered was pulled off effortlessly by FN-2187 back during the exact same exercise. After about a minute or two of hassle, the soldier had finally gotten a tight grip around the cylinder and was now raising his head slightly over the cracked the wall with arm drawn back and ready to toss, only to then feel his very being freeze at the sight and sound of a familiar face and voice, one that caused him to be overtaken with emotion.
"Zeroes..." Paying no mind to the incessant beeps and buzzes of his helmet's warnings of incoming fire, Zeroes instead felt his heart and mind race as Eight-Seven's almost ethereal sounding voice kept playing itself back and just like the screams from before, it only got louder and louder with every passing second even after he was sent flying back by the repeater, causing the illusion to fizzle and whir until eventually, he was back in the sterile combat room he had become all too familiar with. As he slowly picked himself up off the ground, the trooper felt his condition worsening by the second with the churning in his stomach now startling his gag reflex as his migraine evolved to the point where it was just unbearable with the throbbing now feeling as though as a fist buried deep beneath the skin was just repeatedly punching his brain or that a whirlwind and/or hurricane was threatening to rip his head in two. Working as quickly as he could, Zeroes hooked his fingers underneath his helmet as quickly as he tore it off of his head and without any hesitation sped away from the room and down the halls, desperately trying to keep it together as he searched for his sleeping quarters, paying no mind to any nearby soldiers who might've been left staring at his sickly pale complexion. Finally after what felt like an eternity, FN-2000 found his room and with all his might after the door slid open, he tossed his dome and blaster onto his bed and locked the door all in the span of a few seconds it took for him to reach his washroom where upon reaching the sink, he just couldn't hold it in and for the second time today after bracing himself, he unloaded the last of the meals he had in large discolored clumps.
"Zeroes..." There the voice was again, playing back just moments after he had finished wiping his mouth clean of the mess, showing that regardless of whether or not it was the Force or his conscience, it became clear that it had quite the penchant for persistence as it just would not shut up for even a second no matter how much he yearned for it to. After a few more minutes of staring into the mirror and taking in his pale almost ragged appearance, Zeroes was just about to turn on the sink when he felt one thought enter his mind.
"Was this the reason Eight-Seven left?" Being a thought that had popped up not too long ago, it wasn't the least bit surprising to the trooper though that didn't exactly mean he enjoyed it what with how he already agreed to give his life for the Order but unlike the last time where it lingered for the length of time it took for him to regroup with his fellow officers, the fact that he was alone combined with what he just went through seemed to have allowed this particular question more time to really grow and develop until eventually, it started coupling itself with various flashbacks to some of his most memorable moments with Eight-Seven and the rest of his firing squad.
At first it started out harmless enough with the question repeating as expected during the occasions he saw Eight-Seven with either a look of hesitation or regret throughout his life but as time went on, that was when things started to get far more "interesting" to say the least as it soon started seeping into even the happiest or even thoughts that didn't involve his squadron which included but was not limited to when him and the squad were chatting in the mess hall, their sparring sessions with the FO and FL series, his struggles with the Resistance, his reaction when Nines first came into sickbay after Takodana and possibly what was bound to become a permanent staple or scar on his psyche, the sight of that young boy pleading for mercy before he was shot dead and before he knew it, his simple answers of "These are all risks we must take to bring peace to the galaxy." or "Eight-Seven left because he was foolish and possessed too much empathy." were starting to sound less and less concrete and possibly were delving into the realm of being considered lies.
"What the hell is wrong with me?" Zeroes mentally asked, still gazing into the mirror. "I'm an Officer, an extension of the Supreme Leader's will, I followed every piece of advice given to the letter and so far it has all succeeded in liberating the galaxy from that loathsome Resistance." It was at that moment that the trooper looked down into the palm of his hand, remembering all the brothers he lost in all the battles prior to this moment, all of the brothers that they lost during their time as the Galactic Empire and finally all that Hux had told them in regards to the Resistance and their desire for chaos and conquest. It didn't even take a minute for when Zeroes finally looked up at his reflection for his rage to flare up, signified by the tightening of fists and the bulging of veins.
"Why..." After a few more breaths both through his mouth and nose, FN-2000 felt as both his hands were now balled up, the tension being so rough and so tight that he could swear his nails were digging into his palms through the gloves.
"Why is it that I can't..." Feeling his anger take full control, the soldier let out a frustrated growl and threw his fist back.
"Why am I still possessing these doubts?!" He roared right as his knuckles made impact with the glass, causing it to shatter a few seconds later. After a few more pants, Zeroes could've sworn that he was done when suddenly, he felt his hatred take control once again and before he knew it, he just started swinging like a maniac, not caring about the possibility of getting cut or anything along those lines.
"Why is it that I can't shake this from my mind?! Why can't I follow Phasma's advice?! Why is Eight-Seven still haunting me?! Why..." While his punches did start to slow down after about a minute, that did nothing to stop the increase in power.
"can't I..." Taking in a deep, deep breath, FN-2000 drew his fist back for what he hoped was going to be the last time and without any further hesitation, he released all the rage he had built up.
"be the perfect soldier every fucking person wants me to be?!" With that final blow, FN-2000 found himself feeling all the more relieved that he locked the door when he did and turned on the soundproofing since not only was he certain that the captain would've had his head for using language that wasn't remotely professional or tolerated but she would've most definitely not taken kindly to the fact that the mirror in his room had gone from being a perfect stainless reflective pane to being nothing but a bunch of shards that had fallen in piles either to the floor or inside the sink.
And finally, she especially would've chewed him out for his next few thoughts that came after taking a moment to breathe and calm his nerves before proceeding to move back towards his helmet and weapon which upon taking one glance at it, he felt as his emotions shifted which he had fully expected considering that with every time he set his sights on the armor, he took a significant amount of pride in knowing that the armor he wore was a representation of all the purity in the galaxy, that when he put on that bucket, he wasn't just wearing a stainless white uniform but it was also said to be a symbol of all the peace and order he would bring to all worlds once they ended the Resistance's tyranny.
His thoughts now? Instead of having the sensation of honor and pride grace his expression, he instead felt a significant amount of reluctance and disgust and with every passing thought, all FN-2000 could find himself thinking about was just how nice it would feel to get out.
How pleasant it would feel to possibly to get away from the Order and assist in watching it burn.
Author's Addendum:
Yep, as you can see, I'm borrowing a little concept from another series and re-purposing it for use in this story and yes there is an explanation for this... but as Maz said in response to the question about how she found Luke's lightsaber.
It's best saved for another time.
Oh and as far as the requests are concerned, I do like them all but so far, I think I'm going to hold off on doing them.