"Look at what she's done to you. Making you beg. Your grandfather would be ashamed."
Kylo ignored Snoke's remarks. Somehow, he knew Darth Vader would understand. Or at least, Anakin Skywalker would. But his decision was made. He would hold his promise to her this time, whatever the cost.
"She is still useful to us. The work she has done for the Order is outstanding. Even her powers have grown lately," he argued, looking up to Snoke, perched on his knees.
Snoke laughed, the sound resonating through the hall. "You're not fooling me. I know about the young ones she snatched away from the stormtrooper program. The girl is not working for the Order, she is working for herself. Are you that blind?"
Kylo shook his head. "I will punish her and correct those mistakes."
"It's too late for that. You healed her. You shouldn't even be able to do that. And everybody, everybody on this ship knows about your activities with the countess by now." Snoke balled his fists.
Kylo flinched at the words coming from Snoke's mouth. They hadn't been discreet, but why the need to? He was one of the most powerful men in the entire galaxy. He could take whatever he wanted, in whatever way he pleased.
"I'm using her for my pleasure. I own her. I am forging her, molding her into a disciple of the Dark."
"Yet you did not notice the shadows of the past protecting her and providing her guidance? You would have noticed if you weren't such a lovesick fool."
Kylo shook his head. Of course, he had suspected her visions might not just be a gift but influenced by someone else. But why would Athena keep it a secret from him?
"Now you see it," Snoke growled.
Dooku. How could he even become one with the Force? But if someone would protect and guide Athena, it would be her own family.
He cleared his throat. "There have been minor setbacks, but it won't happen again. It's all just a game. She's nothing to me."
"LIAR! Remember I know your true intentions, your true feelings. Maybe in the beginning it started as a game, but it is has become far more. That bond the two of you share is a noose around both of your necks. Why would you risk everything you worked towards? Dooku's granddaughter isn't that powerful. She isn't that beautiful. She isn't even that smart."
Snoke leaned forward, almost spitting as he sneered: "Athena of Serenno is walking the line between light and dark. She is using both simultaneously. It's an abomination! She's impure! Maybe, if she had been formed in the shadows from the beginning, maybe then she could truly become more like you… but her mother has hidden her from me. Women like them use the Force as they please, indulging it only for their own needs, but they are disloyal and fickle. Kill her, boy. Kill her before she betrays you. I promise you, she will."
Kylo registered the new information. So, Athena's mother had known about Snoke somehow. Another hint that the remains of Dooku were guiding his progeny. Athena could almost have been at his place. He blinked, focusing on Snoke again.
"Didn't she pass your test? She could have killed the Knights of Ren. Dooku's grandchild still has potential. I can break her. Just give me more time, master," again, Kylo pleaded
Snoke laughed, a coarse laughter without any humor. "She passed. You failed, though. I have made my decision. Kill her and kill her soon, Ren. Do not dare disrespecting my orders again. Soon, we will launch Starkiller and with it, all that remains of the New Republic will perish. Get rid of what's holding you back and the Order will become a true Empire," Snoke ended the conversation.
OoOoO
Red sparks flew around, accompanied by the sound of the roaring lightsaber and the crashing metal. He couldn't do it. Kylo could not look into Athena's eyes and kill her, and so he avoided her the whole day until Hux called them all to the command center. No one dared to look at him as he walked down the halls after raining down his lightsaber on a control panel repeatedly, screaming wholeheartedly. He had promised his grandfather to finish what he started. All he needed to do was to resist the pull to the Light, the pull to this girl.
Seeing Athena, dark shadows over her face cast by her worries, it was almost too much for him to handle. He didn't deserve her compassion for him. He could feel how upset she was even though her features remained as stern as usual. Kylo's eye caught the crystal he gave her. Athena had put it on a golden necklace around her neck, the gem sparkling as it caught the light. He knew he should tell her about Snoke's orders, about the launch of Starkiller.
Kylo didn't care much about the lives on the Hosnian system. But Athena did and he knew her well enough that it would certainly become her breaking point. What if she knew he was meant to kill her? Would she trust him enough to know that he was working on a solution, trying to save her at all costs? On the other hand, Snoke had a point. Kylo owned her, but if he was honest, he was as much owned by her.
Again, he felt something odd about her presence. Something he'd never felt in another person. The Force felt a globe filled with grey smoke, hiding something else, afloat between the Light and the Dark. Was this the influence of Count Dooku?
"A scavenger girl?" Athena echoed.
"From Jakku, yes. She is helping the Resistance and has fled with the droid."
"Maybe we can find her and buy her off," Athena suggested and shrugged, standing right between Hux and Kylo.
"Buying her off? The First Order does not negotiate with the Resistance! We need to find her and question her. The Order has to show what its capable of and crush the Republic for once and for all," the general explained with outrage, his pale skin turning red.
"It was just a suggestion. Give her a decent meal and she'll probably tell you everything you need to know," Athena added unbothered.
"Not every problem can be solved with credits," Kylo sneered at her. He knew it was wrong to push her away again. But she was part of the problem. If only she could truly turn to the Dark, Snoke wouldn't want her dead. Maybe he wouldn't feel distraught like that all the time.
Neither can every problem be solved with a trail of bodies. Athena signaled him telepathically, raising her eyebrows at him. He would confront her with Dooku given the time.
Stop doubting me. His answer was clear. Now that they were close to finding Skywalker, he couldn't risk his success because his emotions clouded his judgment. He felt her confusion about his ever-changing mood.
"We have located them on Takodana," Hux interrupted the silent exchange. His blue eyes darted between them, suspecting an exchange he didn't follow.
"My apprentice is going to find the droid and take him to us," Kylo decided, his tone commanding. Sending her on the ground would be a welcome reason to delay executing Snoke's order. But the clock was ticking.
OoOoO
Trixi Korr let out a curse between her teeth. The communicator was not working. Trixi shook the object, hearing a worrying metallic sound. She kneeled before the vent, having opened the grid with a screwdriver. In only a few minutes, someone would notice she wasn't at her post. From the tiny supply room, she still needed to walk back to the bridge. And now this pesky little thing wasn't working anymore, the only connection she had to the outside world.
She felt him before she heard him. The sound of his breath, reinforced by a metallic mask. Her heart seemed to stop. Her limbs froze.
Of course, it had been an immense risk to show herself to Countess Athena. But it was a sacrifice she was willing to make. Trixi had always known she would probably die for the Resistance. It was something she had prepared for, a fact accepted years ago.
Countess Athena was powerful enough to turn the tides, valuable enough to become a threat to Ren and the Order. Maybe it had been female intuition, but Trixi could have sworn Athena Toussaint was ready to be turned to the Resistance. When the woman let Trixi walk away, she had been sure it was only a matter of time before the Resistance could use Kylo Ren's most prized possession against him.
Now, the dark presence exuding terror and violence, proved her wrong. What a deadly mistake. Obviously, the Dark Countess earned her nickname.
"Trixi Korr," the voice purred. A flash of red light lit up close to Trixi's throat. She gulped, sure even this small movement would burn the tender skin of her neck.
"I uhmm… I am fixing the…" before Trixi could end her sentence, she was violently turned around and pressed against the wall of the supply room. In front of her, it was no one else than Kylo Ren himself, looming over her with his tall and broad figure.
"Don't," he said, almost softly. "I already know."
Trixi felt her heart sink to her stomach. Athena told him about her. But instead of acting herself, she sent her lover to do the dirty work. Maybe the Countess was far worse than she thought.
When Kylo Ren reached out his hand, Trixi felt like a hand reached literally inside her head, groping, and digging without remorse, bringing everything to the surface. The young woman let out a cry of pain.
"Shhh," he shushed, slowly dropping his hand. "We don't want to be heard, don't we, Trixi?"
"A spy for the Resistance, right in front of me. How could I not notice? You look so innocent," Ren commented calmy.
Trixi felt tears run down her face. This was how it ended. Murdered in a supply room, with no one ever knowing about it. All of it because of her misjudgment of the countess.
Ren tilted his head like a hunter eying his prey.
"How foolish of you to think you can turn my apprentice. I can tell you one thing about her – she rarely does what someone expects her to do," he explained. His eyes were hidden to her, but Trixi Korr felt like he was still invading her thoughts.
"Countess Athena told me about you. Then she suggested to keep you around, to feed you false information and use you against the Resistance. She asked me to spare you. I admit, she can have a soft heart at times…but I don't."
Trixi felt her throat tighten. She closed her eyes, waiting for her last moment to pass.
Extra long chapter for you! You'll have to wait for the answers you want ;) But thanks again for reviewing, it's so kind and sweet of you!