Chapter 13

Rey and Ben walk hand in hand together towards the detention cells an hour later. She has tried smoothing her hair out as best she could from her passionate lovemaking with Ben. Her eyes glance up at him walking beside her and she blushes, fighting a giggle as she looks at his hair. It is roughed up from her fingers combing through non stop as he pulsed in and out of her like a starved man. She squeezes his hand and melts as she sees his lips curl into a smile. Ben squeezes her hand back as they arrive at the detention cells. Rey places her hand on the control panel and the door opens immediately. They step inside and move towards the cells holding the traitors.

The first cell they stop at holds Thysva. Rey peers through the clear glass and can't help but feel her heart break over how he looks inside. He has been her most trusted general, confidant, and friend. Putting him in the cell gives her no pleasure but she reminds herself of the hurt he has caused. Her eyebrows narrow and she moves onto the next cell over holding Hux. Anger bubbles inside Rey as she looks at him, fighting the urge to spit at him as he glares back at her. Ben holds her hand the entire time, squeezing it gently or massaging the back of her hand with his thumb letting her know he's with her. The comfort Ben gives Rey warms her heart as she begins addressing the Generals.

"General Hux. General Thysva. You are here because you have conspired to overthrow the throne. What have you to say?" Rey begins, trying to keep her voice steady and without venom.

Silence falls on the detention area. Thysva stills looks down towards the floor, ashamed of his actions. Hux continues to glare at both Rey and Ben, spitting onto the floor. Ben snarls and rushes at Hux's cell, banging his fist on the glass just before Rey pulls him back. She smiles to herself at how he protects her. Rey places her free hand on his arm and pulls him close to her. Her eyes flick towards Hux and his glare falters from the poison in her eyes.

"You were trusted with great power, Hux. To be truthful, now that everything's out in the open, I never liked you from the start. The only reason I kept you around is because Thysva thought so highly of you. But the question I have now is why he wanted me to keep you around if you were always planning on betraying me?" Rey asks.

Thysva slowly raises his head and looks at Rey. His face is red and splotchy from the tears he was shedding. Rey's face softens a bit when looking at him but still keeps her stance firm, not letting down her guard. Her trust with him has been shattered more than he can possibly imagine. His body shudders with another sob as he tries to speak.

"My Empress, there aren't enough words to express my deepest apologies for this crime. I was blinded by my love for this man. It is no excuse and I will serve my punishment, whatever it is you wish upon me," Thysva chokes out, his throat closing on some of his words as fresh tears pour out.

Hux whips his head to look at Thysva. His anger boils over and his fists clench in the shackles around his wrists. He stands from the cell bench and lunges towards Thysva's cell but is stopped by the chains from his shackles locked to the floor.

"You spineless rat! If you truly loved me, you would have succeeded in dispatching the dirty smuggler so we could be together! You ruined EVERYTHING!" Hux roars.

Thysva in turn stands up and faces Hux as best he can from where his own shackles bind him. His whole demeanor has changed and his body ripples with fury. A ping of fear rushes through Rey as she looks at Thysva. She leans into Ben and feels comforted immediately when she feels his arm wrap around her waist. They both watch the generals face off verbally.

"You goddamn manipulator! If YOU loved ME, YOU would have just run away with me so we could start our lives together. We never needed the empire! I never needed anything but YOU!" Thysva shouts back.

"As crazy as it may be to believe, I DO love you. But there's no way we can truly live a successful life without the power of the Empire in our stead," Hux counters.

"You don't know me at all if you believe I could actually agree with you on this. You are the love of my life and I only want to be with you. I don't need 'the power of the Empire.' I just need you!" Thysva explains, a pleading edge to his voice as his body trembles with fury.

"You lack real vision, my love. We could have had it all together. But noooo. You're too far inside the Empress's pussy like that damn smuggl-eck!" Hux spits but stops short when he feels his throat constrict.

Rey's eyes widen as she sees the reason Hux stopped talking. Ben's hand is stretched out towards the bluthering general. His fingers squeeze the air, closing the gap ever so slowly towards making a fist. Thysva's anger washes away as he is completely taken over by panic. He looks to Ben and pulls at his chains, tears streaming down his face.

"Please! Please don't hurt him! Let him go!" Thysva begs at the top of his lungs.

Ben continues to squeeze the air. He doesn't stop until he feels a gentle hand from Rey on his wrist. His eyes look to her and they stare at one another as Hux chokes and coughs in the background. She can see his face swim with emotion for her and his desire to keep her safe. Her heart swells with love and pride for this man. Ben cups her face and brushes his lips tenderly against Rey's before turning his attention back to the traitors.

"He may be your lover, but NO ONE talks to my Empress this way. The fact you allow your lover to speak this way before her…you should be ashamed," Ben snarls at Thysva.

The general is about to speak but thinks better, simply lowering his gaze to the floor. He sits back down on the bench as Hux continues taking deep breaths to slow his coughing fit. Rey stands tall as Ben holds her close, protecting her at all costs.

"For treason against the Empire, you are both sentenced to spend the rest of your days on the planet Hoth. You will receive food rations each week but will otherwise be closed off from the rest of the galaxy," she states, looking from one general to the other as she lays out their punishment.

A squeeze from Ben encourages her to keep going as she takes a breath. It pains her to have to punish her once close friend. But an attempt on Ben's life and her own cannot be without consequence, no matter who is at fault. She steps a bit closer to the cells and eyes the generals carefully.

"There are no ships, no communication towers, nothing to help you get off world. Hoth will be your home for your love. Be thankful I am merciful," Rey finishes, a little venom dripping into the last few words.

"Thank you, Empress," Thysva replies softly after a few moments of silence.

There is more he wishes he could say. How he will spend the rest of his days regretting his decision to overthrow her. How his one true friend will never trust him again. How he'll never feel anything but the pain of hurting her. Before he can open his mouth to speak, he hears the doors of the detention area close.