Notes: Palpatine's Teachings by John Williams, for obvious reasons. ;)

Chapter 13: Puzzle Pieces

He was desperate for something, anything he might have missed. The incident on Tatooine had been a troubling reality check for him, he couldn't afford to wait. One way or another, his master was getting closer to the Jedi, closer to Tython, closer to her. Personally, he could care less about the first two things. The Jedi could rot for what they did to him. Eighteen years and no answers, what were they doing? Surely Mortis wasn't that hard to find, just go raid the archives of the Sith tombs. For a time he had heard excuses like, "maybe they're out of comms range" and, "it would be too risky to contact him with his master watching his every move." All nonsense his mother fabricated just to make him feel better. No more. Over the years, he had learned to abandon all hope Luke was going to arrive with the answers and save the day. If he wanted to keep himself and Jaina alive, he was going to have to do it on his own.

The bright side was his master granted him access to his private collection of artifacts after proving himself loyal to the Sith. One day this collection of rare items would belong to him and Jaina as they continued the tradition of the Sith. The difference being that once the Jedi were destroyed, they wouldn't need to betray each other. Together through their force bond he and Jaina could teach an entire generation of young ones to embrace the dark side to enhance their potential. To shape things in the way they wanted them to be. The Jedi, the Republic, the Ascendancy, even the Empire were just white noise compared to the new Sith power the two of them would forge. All he had to do was get rid of the old fool leading the Empire before he got ahold of Jaina. And to do that he was going to need to flow-walk.

Flow-walking was an advanced form of psychometry only few could ever hope to achieve. Whereas psychometry only really allowed you to feel past events in a hazy fog for a split second, flow-walking let a user see entire conversations play out halfway across the galaxy. You could stand next to famous figures as they discussed how they would dictate events of major importance. While psychometry had been latent abilities in him and Jaina, flow-walking had been a forbidden area of study at Luke's academy. His explanation was that since the technique could also be used to see possible futures, he didn't want the Order to become obsessed with things that might not even happen. He insisted it was a trap the old Order fell into at their peril. Luke was probably just too afraid of everyone looking into the future to see how spectacularly his Order fell. Although, he had never been able to see the future even after years of practice. The harder he tried, the force would only show him two red holographic view screens connecting to his eyes via a cybernetic mask. Despite the images coming to him from his own perspective, as if it was showing his future, he had to guess he was seeing his grandfather become who he was supposed to be.

Kylo took the burnt, twisted, crippled mask in his hands with a slow exhale of breath. "Show me again, the power of the darkness. Show me, grandfather, and I will finish what you started."

He didn't have to say the words, it wasn't as though anyone was going to answer him, it just made him feel better. The constant affirmation he was going to succeed in his ultimate goal was a powerful tool. His grandfather had ended one half of the rule of two on Endor for reasons that could be debated, it was his destiny to eliminate the other half. All he really had to focus on was that night. The way the choir let out a low, deep, chilling hum. The way that the floating antigravity pools of water vibrated when a fish would jump from pool to pool just to breath. And most importantly, the way his grandfather finally started to see the truth about the force. Albeit from an unreliable source with their own motivations for opening his eyes.

Even after Snoke made him watch this moment over and over again, he was always amazed by just how relaxed Palpatine was sitting next to the chosen one destined to kill him. "Good is a point of view, Anakin. The Sith and the Jedi are similar in almost every way, including their quest for greater power."

His grandfather made him sick replying with, "The Sith rely on their passion for their strength. They think inward, only about themselves."

"And the Jedi don't?" Palpatine retorted having history on his side to back up his claim.

Anakin's voice was defensive yet a little shakey, "The Jedi are selfless... they care only for others."

Kylo had to be careful not to have his anticipation for what happened next to cloud the scene playing out before him. If his concentration broke long enough, he would have to start the process over again. While not particularly hard after years of torture from his master to get it right, he didn't have the time to keep watching what was effectively the pre show constantly. There had to be something in this memory he could use, a hint, even a trace of a lead. Part of him knew nothing was going to be different about the scene now after a dozen times of listening to Palpatine tell the tale yet, he had no choice other than keep trying. His life depended on him discovering the secret soon. Where was the dagger old man?

Palpatine shifted in his chair to try a different tactic, "Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagu-"

An electronic voice from the outside world cut in, "Sir, are you available now?"

The opera house faded away to the room of artifacts his master had collected, "What is it Terrion?! I gave specific instructions not to be interrupted!"

His desire might have been to let his rage boil over to attack Hux's second in command. However, Kylo couldn't let the anger he was feeling turn into an explosion. Snoke would ask too many questions about why he was angry, questions he couldn't answer without risking discovery. As far as the fragile Sith Lord knew, he was willing to sacrifice his own body and that of his sisters so that Snoke could return to his former glory. Until he had found a way to kill him permanently, he had to keep believing that fantasy. Still, something was going to have to be done about Hux. The nosey Admiral was growing suspicious what side he was fighting for after Tatooine. Killing him directly felt like the best option, he didn't need subordinates who would spy on him when he eventually took control of the Empire. Although tempting, his hesitation came from the fact that he had no idea if Snoke was putting him up to the spying. Killing Hux might be the last piece of evidence his master needed to lock him up while the Empire retrieved Jaina.

Yupe sounded as terrified as she should be, "A...apologies sir but, there's been a development in Operation Warhammer. Admiral Hux thought you would want to be in the loop before the Supreme Leader requested an update."

After a few seconds of silence Kylo stared at the ceiling, "Well?! What is it?"

"I've been told it would be better for you to see this for yourself. We await your arrival on the bridge." She was quite afraid he was going to choke her to death over the call.

Keeping his emotions in check was going to be key, "Very well, I'll be there shortly."

_o0o_

Hux knew he had been lucky to survive the debacle that was Tatooine. He was convinced the only reason he was still standing right now was because the Supreme Leader became distracted with Kylo's failings throughout the mission. Staring at the view screen for what felt like hours, but was probably only thirty seconds at most, Armitage understood he wasn't going to get the same luxury again. Greef Karga had done what he was told in putting a bounty on Oyeyh Ottolah, the problem was he wasn't offering the ten million in New Republic credits they had given him to do so. The credits themselves weren't the issue since the Supreme Leader was made of them. It was the principle behind the credits. Such a reward was supposed to allow the Ascendancy to trace the credits back to Coruscant. Instead, Karga was offering up a baby of all things. Not only that but, one having been put under the protection of Dyn Fett. He was already growing tired of seeing that name on his desk.

As of right now, the Chiss were going to be under the assumption that the life of their defense minister was put on the line for some sort of Mandalorian sport. And despite being powerful warriors in their own right, the Chiss going to war with one system wasn't the kind of political shake up Operation Warhammer required. He had put his trust in a pirate who turned around to stab him in the back, what a surprise. The Empire needed to control the galaxy once again so they could put criminals like Karga back in his place. His top priority was trying to come up with a way this wouldn't throw Snoke's plan back by years, maybe even decades and he wasn't coming up with anything quickly. Instead of the grand sweep of the Core Worlds, the best this would accomplish was the extinction of an already dying race.

With all that in mind, his failure wasn't the reason Hux decided to contact Ren. During his eavesdropping, Snoke had mentioned the possibility that a child could eventually threaten his rule over the Empire. It was hard for him not to at least want to notify Ren in case this was the same child. Like Snoke, he had never seen anything like the green baby staring back at him from the holo image. Nothing about it matched any current species living in known space. On the other hand, Yupe had been helpful enough to inform him that the child appeared very similar to the old wanted holo's for Grand Master of the Jedi, Yoda. Dyn Fett protecting a force sensitive youth immediately after aiding the Xwing pilot to slip through their fingers was a big enough coincidence to inform Kylo Ren. This also gave him the opportunity to see how the dark side user would react when they had the chance to eliminate a threat to the Supreme Leader. He was still trying to come up with specifics while he waited for Kylo on the bridge.

Phasma seemed amused watching him pace back and forth, "You know I would protect you if he tries anything."

He gave her a forced glance, "I appreciate the loyalty but, stopping Ren from killing me would only be delaying the inevitable. If Snoke feels I am no longer benefiting the Empire, I will be removed."

Yupe tapped his shoulder with a frown, "Snoke isn't the only one you have to worry about sir, Grand Moff Pryce has been requesting to contact you ever since we jumped out of hyperspace around Geonosis. After our third jump towards Imperial territory, I don't know what to tell her."

"Tell her the Admiral is still in pursuit of a terrorist. Just like what he told Rogue Squadron." Phasma offered as if it was an easy choice.

Pryce had no real power over him. As long as Snoke knew he was making the correct decisions for the Empire, it didn't really matter what she thought of him. Ignoring her completely though could make her turn to the rest of the Moff Council to try and get rid of him that way. The former governor of Lothal didn't have the sway over votes like Natasi Daala did, however, trusting the Moffs to vote the same way they had previously was Daala's ultimate failure. Given the near collapse of years of the Supreme Leaders work, it was tempting to just ignore her. Unfortunately, not only would that make him look worse, it would leave him vulnerable to whatever she had planned to take him down.

"Patch her through Yupe, we probably have a few spare minutes before Kylo arrives." He said with as much calm determination as he could muster, this conversation could be critical to his future in the Empire.

Her elderly voice was full of barely controlled anger, "Admiral Hux, good to see your communications disruption problems are finally taken care of after three extra jumps to lightspeed than was estimated necessary. Would you like to explain to me what you were doing on Tatooine?"

Armitage stayed still for just a few seconds debating how he was going to handle her, "Well I...I apologize for the misunderstanding but I assumed Supreme Leader Snoke would've informed you of the assault on Mos Eisley before you departed for Coruscant."

Pryce's frustration with him was obviously increasing by the second, "Of course he didn't say anything, otherwise I wouldn't have gone to that party to show our...support...for Leia to begin with. Do you know how embarrassing it was for me? What it we had gone to war?! Did you think Leia would have just let me go back to Lothal if you had fired on Rogue Squadron?!"

He took the opportunity to show her he had all the power right now, "Perhaps, if you weren't so willing to make friends with our enemies Snoke would be more inclined to let you in the loop."

The way she almost spat at him through the comm told him he hit a nerve, "Are you trying to suggest I'm working with the New Republic?! How dare you! I have been in this fight since before you were born boy!"

He couldn't help himself from letting out a smug reply, "I seem to recall Admiral Piett having to retake Lothal just prior to the Battle of Hoth because someone lost it. Hmm, I wonder who that could be.. Regardless, I am very busy at the moment following Leader Snoke's commands. I'd tell you to do the same instead of yelling at me about something I had no control over."

Before she could go on another rant about her experience, Hux cut the call. That didn't go as diplomatically as he might have planned yet, he was still positive the situation was in his favor. While it was true no one in their right mind would believe Pryce was a spy, her stay on Coruscant wouldn't give her many sympathetic listeners among the Moff Council. In the last few years the Moffs were hungry for New Republic blood so any gesture towards peace was frowned upon. If it wasn't for his unlimited resources the Council might have even tried to remove Snoke because in their eyes he was moving to war too slowly. Hux could relate being impatient to reclaim what was rightfully theirs as well but, he understood just charging into a war without a plan for victory would result in failure. Operation Warhammer was that plan, and he had been the reason it could potentially fall apart.

Yupe gave him a skeptical glance, "Are you sure that was the best idea sir? She has friends that aren't going to like what you just said."

Phasma shrugged coming to his defense as always, "Does it matter what she thinks? It's not like he was lying. She really was in the heart of enemy territory and expected us to tell her the plan. Any talented officer knows what kind of security risks that could open up."

He was about to agree when Kylo's helmeted voice stopped him, "You wanted to see me Admiral?"

Hux pivoted on one foot to face him, "Yes, it appears our intelligence is indicating Greef Karga went against our plans. He hasn't used the New Republic credits as a reward for Ottolah's death like we told him to."

"You dragged me away from my personal chambers, when I told you I was not to be disturbed, just so you could ask me to clean up your mess?" His tone made it clear it was a rhetorical question yet, he just turned around to leave the bridge.

Hux quickly followed him leaning over to whisper, "No, I'm well aware you wouldn't aid me in the eyes of the Supreme Leader. Karga has changed the reward to a baby. One that supposedly belong to Dyn Fett as well as having a striking resemblance to Master Yoda. Since your discussion with-"

Kylo cut him off in a monotone voice, "You can't help but spy on me can you? Even when its during my private meetings with Snoke. I have gained his trust, why isn't that enough for you?"

That was a hard question to just come back from, why didn't he trust Snoke's judgement? Was it just the jealousy he had for Kylo since the Supreme Leader listened to him more? He had to admit that was part of it although, Armitage just didn't like Ren. Where did he come from and how was he so proficient with the force? His age of around thirty five years old implied he had to have been a part of Skywalker's academy. If he was right, that alone was a strong enough reason to keep him far away from the top of the Imperial hierarchy. His gut always became upset at the possibility Snoke had just been charmed by the force users' abilities not thinking logically about where they came from. And with Snoke ranting about the Solo's dead daughter as if she was alive, he was starting to worry he was losing his touch.

He dodged the question continuing to follow him into the elevator, "I just think it would be a good idea to inform Snoke this child is in a vulnerable position. Eliminating a threat to his safety should be our top priority."

Kylo had an edge of annoyance in his voice, "Where do you think I'm going Admiral...?"

It was the second time in a week he was going to contact Snoke directly about a failed mission. Surely Snoke would be reminded of his father and begin to reconsider putting him in charge of the Finalizer. At best, Armitage would be sent away back to the mines on Kessel. Pryce would love to see him fail so hard that her excursions into New Republic Space just looked like she took a wrong turn. At least he was starting to get comfortable watching Kylo kneel in front of the commlink device. This time when he answered the call, Snoke appeared to be walking through his library nonchalantly. Seeing him walk with a slight limp highlighted how vulnerable he really was. How he needed to be protected in his estate on Muunilinst.

His boney hands came to a stop over an old scroll as he glanced back at them over his shoulder, "What is it my apprentice?"

Not wanting Kylo to make him look worse than he already felt, Hux spoke first, "It appears as though Greef Karga may have interfered in our plans to frame the New Republic for the assassination of Oyeyh Ottolah."

While there was a pause, Snoke resumed walking through his library once more, "I thought you said Karga would be desperate enough to keep power that he would do whatever we told him?"

Armitage braced for the inevitable explosion of anger, "I thought that was the case Supreme Leader however, it is apparent Karga is putting a potentially force sensitive child previously belonging to Dyn Fett as a reward.

Snoke's voice came across dangerously sweet, "I'm sure you are aware Operation Warhammer requires the New Republic be implicated in the killing of Ottolah. What solution have you come up with to remedy this situation...?"

Kylo was the first to speak, "Send me, my master."

Several seconds passed with Hux trying to process what Kylo just said. He had volunteered to kill the defense minister after Snoke demanded the New Republic needed to be seen as the murderers. Kylo wouldn't just throw that out there without it being a legitimate solution to the problem, meaning he was right to assume he was a former Jedi. Despite not having a good answer himself at the moment, he hated the idea. He was the entire reason they were in this mess to begin with. If Ren had actually been focused on finding the map to Skywalker the first time around, they wouldn't have had to rush into Warhammer so quickly. Hux still wasn't even convinced Kylo hadn't purposely let the map slip through their fingers given what he had done on the ground.

For his part, Snoke actually laughed at the proposition, "You two always seem to pull each other out of trouble despite your hatred for one another. It is...interesting to watch. Very well, you can go."

Armitage just couldn't stop himself, "Supreme Leader, I must object! Kylo Ren failed to acquire the map on Tatooine and I see no reason the Chiss Ascendancy would view him as a member of the New Republic."

Snoke's smile spread into that of a grin, "Admiral, we all have our masks. Some, more concealing than others."

As if to make his point, he waved a hand in front of his face. His first assumption was there had to be something wrong with the comm device, he had seen Snoke in person before. When the image staring back at him wouldn't change no matter how many times he squeezed his eyes shut, Hux had to come to the realization he really was looking into the eyes of an old Muun. Perhaps Snoke stepped out of the way to trick him yet, that was impossible since he had the exact same expression as a second ago. It explained why he had always viewed his features to be so inconsistent. Armitage just became uncomfortable with all the questions such a reveal created. The fact to come to mind, how could an alien become Supreme Leader of the Empire?

Snoke stared down at Kylo, "Go my apprentice, and be sure to get that reward. We may be able to complete two goals because of the two of you."

Notes:

Regular debrief time! Flow-walking is not a new force power having first been introduced in the legacy of the force novels. Although, I feel this is what happened in tfa when rey first grabs Anakin's saber. That said, I have tweaked it here to fit with psychometry.

On a side note, 1,000 hits in a month wow! Obviously not everyone has stuck around but, I just want to thank everyone that has continued along for the ride. You can't imagine how touched I am that so many people bothered to click at all. Just know I'm taking this seriously as a responsibility. While I continue to upload the rest of 7..drafting the finer points for 8 is underway.