And I've never loved a darker blue

Than the darkness I have known in you, own from you

You, whose heart would sing of anarchy

You would laugh at meanings, guarantees, so beautifully

When our truth is burned from history

By those who figured justice in fond memory, witness me

Like fire weeping from a cedar tree

Know that my love would burn with me

We'll live eternally

Better Love- Hozier

Despite the display to purposely disgust his father, both Lucilla and her General felt the scrutinous piercing until they parted; even then, the revilement was palpable. Damten was no better. The other officers dutifully ignored the uncharacteristic actions directly but curiosity bubbled in the ranks. Hux felt complete; his weapon was a success, he had the woman of his dreams at his side, the Republic was gone and he had shown up his father. He gazed longingly at the beautiful creature beneath the hood who looked back at him with shy, lowered lashes; as if his despicable actions had been some sort of declaration of undying love. If his propaganda was to be believed (the kind he whispered to her at night), he had done the ultimate to secure a safe place for their (and other) children to be born and raised.

"Come, little dove. Let's get you inside, it's far too cold for you out here." Lucilla's arm was slipped into her General's and an ushering gesture granted the officers permission to start disbanding from the podium. Hux held his father's appalled stare for a moment (Lucilla openly resisted it), defiant while black uniformed staff milled out around them and Captain Phasma took her place on the companion's other side, blaster at the ready. "I will escort Lucilla back to our quarters." He spoke to Phasma now while the cloaked female gratuitously embraced the wave of heat waiting just beyond the curtain. "We must make a detour first but when we get there, I expect two Stormtroopers outside the door and I would request that you make that corridor part of your patrol. Dismissed."

"Where are we going?" The gentle tickle of curiosity in her voice enticed him and strengthened his resolve in his secretive intentions. In the same fashion as when he dressed in his formal uniform, he opted to make her wait for an answer. Lucilla was led to a deserted corridor and before she could ask again, her space was invaded but she more than welcomed it. He had kissed her on Starkiller in front of his men and his father but this time was for them and only for them. He was already riled; the weapon, the power, the control…. It all clicked into place and seemed to infect her too. Slowly but surely, the female found herself being backed towards the wall and in those few seconds, their lips never separated.

"I promised you a later." Hux breathed, barely controlling himself for long enough to pull away and speak though he didn't stray very far.

"You did." She agreed without bothering to veil the spark of lust he'd ignited, grinding her hips lightly against the wall but he was close enough to feel it. Gods, she was beautiful when she was corrupted. "Am I going to get it?" That was all the encouragement he needed.

A sanitation equipment supply closet would do. In fact; it was exciting, lewd and erotic. To giggle would shatter the illusion of danger and intrigue but luckily, he didn't give her too much time to tempt fate. The supply closet was cluttered and dimly lit with just enough room for the couple to stand and light to see. It was a different and thrilling venture mirrored by the resumed, animalistic kiss when Lucilla's back hit the wall with more force than before. Though the companion had been kept somewhat sheltered by her General, she threw herself into the new experience with enthusiasm which she vocalized in a quiet, contented sigh as her hood was tossed back and her ruby-adorned neck was attacked with eager lips. Heaven forbid an unfortunate sanitation Trooper should come to collect equipment and find their General in such a compromising position with a woman who was not (yet) his wife. Or at all, in fact.

"I want you." Came the stirred murmur from against her collar bone where the ivory skin was flushed from the suckling; he'd congratulate himself on the bruise later.

"So take me." The dare sent him into a passionate frenzy. Her lips were reclaimed (in a less than gentle way), her tongue was tinkered with his while his hands roamed with little concern for his staunch and conservative exterior: She had reduced him to an animal once again. The hat was swiped from his head and the greatcoat was shrugged carelessly from his arms and shoulders before he pressed her further into the wall, as if the second it had taken to disregard his coat would make her change her mind. It seemed not to be the case, however, when those delicate arms encased his neck; they urged him to continue in his borderline dominant role, aching to give in to the growing discomfort growing in his trousers.

Several layers of the expensive, blood-red Shimmersilk were pushed up, the rapidness of his actions were born of frustration when the slippery material would drip through his hands and their repeated fumbling. Of course, Lucilla writhing against him only tormented him further in the delay to get to where he wanted to be. Her arms slithered from his neck and dropped to his slacks, unhooking the small metal clasp above the zip and watching for the contortion of his face when she stole the first naked touch. Eventually, he was able to return the favour and the mutual panting of wanting and greed was quietened when their lips moulded again to fit the other's.

"Take me for I am yours and only yours." The rhetoric never failed to drive him and now was certainly no exception. He struggled against the raw touch of her hand on his shaft and while he had been tempted to restrain himself until they returned to Finalizer, he knew now he couldn't. So he heeded her. With the last barricades of fabric removed and an ivory thigh grasped to lock one leg around his waist, her General arched his hips and found the wet heat he longed for. The physical connection caused him to collapse into her, holding her smaller form within a protective hold while his forehead dropped to hers in an effort to be as close to his salvation as possible.

He felt her arms enclose his neck again and his comfort raised. No matter where they were or how they did it, there was no question that this meant something different to when she arrived on Finalizer. The development had taken time and Hux couldn't begin to think of where he'd be now if he'd sent her away like he'd initially intended. Chest to chest, hips to hips, forehead to forehead; his thrusts started with something akin to gentility but they both knew such consideration wouldn't last. In truth? Neither of them wanted it to. Mouths sealed to each other's only muffled the sounds of enjoyment, they weren't stemmed completely.

"Guardian of my heart." Hux dragged himself back to pepper his beloved's face, to rumble the devotions as she became more vocal when his movements inside her intensified; the ritual promise. "Keeper of my soul." His grip tightened to hold her to him as he dug deeper, harder and faster; of course she provided him with the accurate responses, all of which naturally occurred to her out of hunger. "Mine for the rest of my days; Queen of my Empire, mother of my sons, everything I have ever wanted." A single alabaster hand moved from the wall beside her to cradle the side of her master's face, guiding him back to her where their lips met for the umpteenth time.

"They were looking at me, watching me." She murmured, her voice on a sultry edge; lips hovering just enough away after separating them from a brief reunion. The revelation just seemed to spur him on, waking his possessive side that provoked him to dive for her neck again, continuing to marking his way along it. He reveled in the gasps and the groans he extracted with both his teeth and hips, in the way they fitted so perfectly as if she had been made just for him. Lucilla's back slid up the wall with every harsh thrust delivered with merciless pace and gusto.

"Let them look, let them watch; you know if any man tries to take you from me, I will personally separate his head from his shoulders!" The erotic snarl was testament to the woken beast inside. The stannic wall against Lucilla's exposed buttocks had warmed from the continuous movement but her General was working himself in a primal frenzy. The noises she made, the way her stunning features contorted, her heated breath on his face…. It wouldn't be long for either of them. In an impulsive move fueled by aroused temper at the very thought; a large, gloved hand held Lucilla's neck from behind while the other released her thigh, grabbed the necklace and yanked with everything he had; the adrenaline made short work of it. Stones skittered and the ruins of the platinum collar were tossed aside, leaving her neck bare and free; expense be damned.

"Nothing and no one will take me from you, I promise you." That action cemented it for her, the symbolism of it even if it had been mildly painful. Everything was about to change. Rubies crunched under Hux's foot as he pressed in towards her again to reclaim her; his Empress, his queen, his Lucilla. His hips started to stutter but her General didn't want it to end; there were too many pure and too many filthy aspects that they had never had before but his work still played in the back of his mind, the next step that must be taken. A strangled moan itched in his throat and passed it to hers in the exchange of oral fluids that, like the rest of her, tasted like something a mere human wasn't worthy to try. Sweat soaked and tousled, her pale fingers threaded into his hair in a vain attempt to tame it before they even finished though he was confident no one would question his appearance.

"Lucilla…." The amorous gasp came forth like from a desert-scorched throat, she knew he was close. His pace and his rhythm changed, his thrusts were no longer fluid but rather hammering; deep, bruising and purposeful. The angle provided by her leg around his waist edged her further until her forehead was rested against her General's shoulder as she whined her way through a sweet, deserved orgasm. One more demanding plunge was all it took and a low thunder of obscenely sensual agony for the redhead to spill everything he had into his blue eyed beauty. An unnumbered kiss followed as they panted into each other; soaking, literally and metaphorically in both bodily fluids and the glorious feeling they only seemed to get from each other. Hesitantly, Hux withdrew and carefully tucked himself away after he had placed her leg down and let the silk fall with it.

"Lucilla." Hux dipped his forehead to hers, his voice low and serene but serious and reverent. The post-coital calm soothed them like the pool on Naboo and though the companion still panted lightly, she still clung to her General but nuzzled him with the utmost affection when his face came close to hers. With his eyes half closed and his speech dimmed, he may have fallen asleep on his feet with Lucilla still against the wall. "My darling, my angel, my Empress. We haven't won yet. The Resistance must be dispensed and only then will the galaxy be ours. I'm going to escort you to our quarters, you are not to undress for we will be returning to Finalizer with little delay."

"Little dove, when we get there, I have a gift for you." With a playfully arched eyebrow and an arched eyebrow, she was about to jest the phenomenon of him giving her gifts that were clearly luxuries which he claimed were necessities and not gifts at all. However; he stopped her, his tone unchanging though uncertain while he tried to word his sentiments correctly. "This gift…. It will change things and you are not to think of my feelings when you accept or reject it. I want you to choose based on your own thoughts and desires as a free woman, not as a companion or a slave. Whichever way you choose, I will respect, acknowledge and abide by. Can you do that for me?"

Lucilla's eyes drifted to the mess of rubies and platinum decorating the dull floor of the supply closet. Should some Stormtrooper defect, they would find a means of setting themselves up for a significant time simply discarded like rubbish. It had been beautiful, that necklace, that collar. But it had been heavy and restricting; without it, she felt lighter. That aside, curiosity burned with his request. A gift? Not just a gift but a gift that would change things? Naïve and clueless, Lucilla simply nodded with the ghost of a reassuring smile. Satisfied, her General went about locating his hat and his greatcoat before they left but it wouldn't be that easy. The corridor outside wasn't as empty as when they'd entered the closet. Even if it was only one person more crowded. Lucilla spotted him first and when she froze, Orion did too.

"They're waiting for you on the bridge." The Admiral greeted the pair coldly but mockingly, relishing the all-too-obvious blush creeping into the companion's cheeks when she realized – He'd heard everything. She almost reverted to her previous self; as if the close and direct presence of her purchaser, the one who had scanned her naked at the compound, had broken a year of progress. However, her lover wouldn't entertain it.

"Tell them I will be with them shortly." Hux Junior barely refused to acknowledge his father bar the careless and dismissive retort he might give to an inferior officer. Lucilla's arm was given a very gentle tug with his to get her walking again and away from the Admiral's predatory leer but the eldest male had already seen her fear. Her General maintained a brisk pace, slow enough for Lucilla to keep up but quick enough to get her away from the invasion but it wasn't to be when the Admiral's regimented footsteps followed behind theirs. "Remember my promise." He told her quietly; casting her back to Starkiller, reminding her that his father would be left nowhere near her.

The Stormtroopers were in place as ordered; one on either side of the door and both armed, it seemed Captain Phasma had taken it upon herself to upgrade their weapons from standard issue blasters. It was a gesture Hux both noticed and appreciated. Lucilla was brought in, subtly wrought and distressed but he did his best to comfort her though it was short-lived; he couldn't keep the bridge waiting. Pledging to return as swiftly as possible, he found it difficult to pry his lips from hers before sweeping out into the corridor again. He had hoped that his brief absence would deter other (fading) redhead but no.

"Anyone trying to force their way in is to be shot on sight." The order was delivered with vigour and viciousness, aimed particularly at the man that now trailed after him. The crackling affirmation of the Stormtroopers radio communicators set his mind at ease, for now at least.

"I'm curious as to why you dressed it in more than it's worth." The icy reverberation that haunted a tormented childhood gained on him, moving from behind to stride beside him instead. The son bit back the urge to physically retaliate, to repay a past of torture but by some miracle, managed to restrain himself. Standing at more or less the same height and strutting at the same pace, they would have been a remarkable team with unlimited resources, discipline and experience but some things were too deep to forgive and forget. "The Colonel is willing to forgive your indiscretion. Reconsider. A date will be set and you may keep your who-"

"Allow me to give you a valuable piece of advice, Admiral." No serpent alive or dead could have spat its venom to equal General Hux's when he faced his father. He stopped and cut in front of the other male to block him; the very image of himself and squared his shoulders in a display of dominance and a challenging curve of his lip. It seemed the usual cowardly respect he held had evaporated. "I would be very cautious when you speak about your future Empress. And she won't be just an Empress. She will be my wife, the mother of my children so I would suggest that you watch how you speak. My threat still stands as I'm sure does yours."

"You still hold that ridiculous pipedream." The observation was made with chilling condescension but the younger Hux held his nerve while the elder's cheek muscles worked together to pull into a wolfish smirk. "Do you really think I would bow my head to that? Truly? You think the woman I heard moaning like she was being paid for it is fit to be an Empress? Then again, I suppose you could say those rubies were payment enough though I noticed she had them leaving the podium but not leaving the supply closet?" His son's lip twitched but he bit back a response for now. The Admiral took that as an invitation to continue to the bone with his goading. "She is not an Empress. Nor is she wife or a mother. She is a whore. A prostitute. A thing to be used and discarded. And believe me, General; she will be discarded."

"I swore I would wipe out the Republic and their fleet and I have." Orion growled, the twitch had frozen high into a furious snarl like some magnificent predator readying himself to take on an alpha male. "I swore the Resistance would crumble and in a few short hours, they will do just that. I swore I would take over this galaxy and that is next on my agenda with Lucilla at my side." A pregnant pause bubbled between the two; one reminding himself of his posture and composure in the presence of rage while the other remained haughty and smug. "Now Admiral, it would be much appreciated if you and your officers would vacate my base. You had no interest in aiding in the demise of the Republic so it is safe to assume that you have no intention of aiding with the rest. Good day, sir."

The General never underestimated an enemy. It was a bad habit some officers made that led to embarrassment and so Hux tried to avoid it. This particular time, however, he found himself getting carried away. Confidence was one thing but cockiness was another; he was far too sure in the design and foundation of Starkiller Base to worry about a primitive threat from the Resistance. But when he turned and saw the entire fleet of the X-Wings diving straight for Precinct 47, his blood ran cold.

"Dispatch all squadrons."

This couldn't be happening. It wasn't possible. He saw it from the bridge, the devastating shockwave from one particular X-Wing taking advantage of an unknown explosive and into the oscillator; he saw it but didn't believe it. The bridge was in a frenzy; explosions erupting and sirens blaring so Hux turned and ran. Stormtroopers clamoured past him on full alert as the lights began to dim and the ominous rouge of the emergency lighting kicked in while he could practically taste foreboding in every time he forced himself to breathe. Several pieces of rock within the base that he had insisted on keeping for aesthetic crumbled around him, narrowly missing him and instilling even more panic as he tore towards the projection room.

"Supreme Leader." Hux's usually cold, calm demeanour had been discarded and in its place was discord and strife. The projection was already alive when he entered the room at a petrified jog as if it knew. His head whipped to the side and his sprint seemed to skew as another chunk of rock collapsed nearby, the urgency only intensified when this usually quiet room came under attack. The General stopped and gazed up at his master; panting, at a loss and craving guidance. Everything was slipping through his fingers; everything he'd worked for, fought for and striven to build. Pushing out the words just reinforced this terrible situation and made his fears a reality. "The fuel cells have ruptured. The collapse of the planet has begun."

"Leave the base at once and come to me with Kylo Ren." Snoke's response was grim and desolate, almost thoughtful. He imparted no wisdom and Snoke's priorities became clear. "It is time to complete his training."

Lucilla. His mind focused on one thing and it was Lucilla. Kylo Ren could wait, the Knight was more than adept while his companion was defenseless, locked away in his quarters with no means of escape. Hell for leather, he bounded as quickly as his heavy regulation boots would allow him towards the open corridor where his quarters were stations. Just as he rounded the corner and it came into view, a sinister rumbling almost didn't register in his ears. Had he been a few meters closer, Orion would have been killed when another cluster of boulders gave way and shattered into the entry point of the corridor. Hux froze; stopping dead and open mouthed for a moment, riddled with disbelief. Another alarm nearby woke him.

"No." The horrified whisper didn't sound like his own. Instead of looking up to check for more crashing debris, he trundled forwards to the wall of rock and armed only with his strength, grabbed at a protruding piece and tried to push it with everything he had. The planet had begun to quake, the lights became dimmer and the sirens became more frantic. He tried several pieces of rock, hoping that one would be the key to pry the rest free but each one failed. "No, no, NO!" Hux choked back a terrified sob and backed up a few steps as if assessing, racking his brain for something, anything to get to her. Even if he died, he would have died with her; clinging to her, comforting her.

Something seized him, nothing physical; something else. Duty, responsibility, practicality. He didn't know what made him do it and he would hate himself once he regained his senses but practically robotically, Hux turned and left the stone clogged corridor behind him.

Kylo Ren, for all his injuries, remained quiet and still on the bed at the back of the shuttle; Hux and Lucilla's bed. The General knew Ren was awake; if his mind had been more focused, he would have noticed a change in the Knight but would have been unable to pinpoint why. No one knew why, only Kylo Ren. However, what the redhead did know what that he had never hated Ren more than he did now. Had he not been sent to fetch him before the planet collapsed, he might have had time to go around and enter the corridor from the other side…. He might have been able to save her.

Still numb, dead and with an inability to process any of what had happened, Hux sat silently in the pilot's seat, letting the coordinates and the autopilot do the work. Staring ahead to the endless diamond-studded blackness, there was a heartbroken incomprehension in that blood-drained face. He tried to think, tried to grasp but his brain didn't want to work; it was listless and useless. There were no words he could put together to illustrate or even try to understand this loss, this horrendous depravation he was responsible for. Or had it been him? Nothing and no one will take me from you, I promise you. Starkiller took her from him. The Resistance took her from him. Before progress on a thought process could be made, the light beeping told him their arrival was imminent.

Several small creatures waited for them at the bottom of the dropped ramp with a primitive excuse for a stretcher though Ren was able to descend with Hux's (grudging) assistance. They took him, lay him down and with a strength it didn't look like they had, heaved him over their shoulders by sticks of bamboo. The General turned to leave but a sudden snatch of his wrist halted him and the scurrying creatures stop with the taut resistance. Hux stared down incredulously at the weak but insistent clamp of Ren's hand. He had never seen anything more distraught or harrowing in all his life, certainly not in the legendary leader of the Knights of Ren.

"Tat…." Ren coughed, tightening his grip and searching for Hux's eyes with desperation in his own. "Tatoo…." As if about to launch a mouthful of mucus, the injured male felt a tighten in his chest before he hurled the third and final attempt at a disembodied word. "Tatooine." As if the attempt at speech had rendered him incapacitated, Ren's hold loosened until his hand dropped bonelessly and the creatures started to carry him off again. Confused, unnerved and still in shock, the General stood there for a moment and watched Ren be carried away, it appeared the Knight returned the favour with what little consciousness he had.

He needed to get off the planet. He needed to be away from the causes of his loss. So far, he had fought to ignore the flashing red dot on the control panel. One new recording. He couldn't bring himself to push it before now and still he stared at it, half convinced to listen to it, half convinced to delete it. For some unfathomable reason, Hux decided he needed to torture himself and so pushed the button. Nothing could have prepared him for what he heard. A feature of the shuttle paired with Starkiller allowed him audio access to their quarters, like a black-box, once a certain alarm was triggered and would cut off when….

Hux curled up on the floor, lying against the wall in the fetal position as the traumatic sounds washed over him, sinking in and physically agonizing him. Glass shattering, sirens blaring, the distant firing of X-Wings and Tie Fighters, the rumbling as everything started to come apart. Then the screaming. Then the crying. The sobbing, the begging, the weeping, the weak thumps as she hopelessly hurled her delicate body against the door. The clip lasted less than a minute before it cut out, presumably with the explosion. That was it. That was her last minute. Terrified, alone and desperate. And he didn't even have a body to cling to. His companion, the love of his life, his little dove, his Empress….Gone.

He refrained from playing it again despite the deep-seated need to punish himself. Instead, he plunged his hand into the pocket of his greatcoat and withdrew the data stick. He turned it over in his hand, her gift. Pushing it into the nearest drive, he bit his lip in a vain attempt to hold his composure but when the image of a dark haired little girl of no more than six years old, teeth missing but grinning regardless opened in front of him, he could hold it no longer. The staunch, unfeeling and heartless General crumbled like his base.

Missing presumed taken

Lucilla Bey

Six years old

Last seen in Undercity of Coruscant

Please return her unharmed, no questions will be asked

The com details to a Keir Bey were included despite the age of the pleading holo. He had already been in touch. Her father was still looking for her.

I was the moon. She was the sun.

I was war. She was peace.

I was disaster. She was beauty.

I was sorrow. She was happiness.

She was my salvation. I was her destruction.

To be continued….?

((Let me know if you think I should continue or not!))