Hux tore his eyes away from the boy and stared again at the light before him. There was little doubt in Hux's mind that it was Tico. Who else was stumbling through the tunnels? But he hadn't survived this long by relying on assumptions… besides - if it was her, there was a high possibility that she would try to overwhelm him.
"Captain, Lieutenant - take the Private and lay low," he whispered and put the toddler down, despite the body clinging to his labels. He reached down to his blaster and slowly pulled it out.
"Halt, identify yourself!" he said loudly.
If he shot now he could claim that he thought that it was somebody else than Tico, the children wouldn't question his actions…
He should shoot the rebel, right here and now. And yet he hesitated.
"It's me - Rose Tico," a voice rang out.
He exhaled and lowered his weapon. He just couldn't pull the trigger. It would have been a waste anyway. Yes, she would be a valuable source of information about the Rebels. It didn't matter that they were all but finished after the last battle. He had to be diligent.
"Rose!" The girls jumped up and ran towards her, leaving the Private with Hux. He put the weapon away and crouched down to the boy who was still crying silently, panting slightly.
"It's just Sergeant Tico, Private," Hux said in what he hoped was a reassuring voice. He reached inside the pocket of his greatcoat and took out one of the stones the Private had given him a while back. "Here," he gave the stone to the boy, "come on, Private. I need your expertise on this gneiss."
The Private took the stone and pressed it against his chest. Hux lifted him up and slowly walked towards Tico and the girls who were talking to each other. Tico was busy hugging the children, she had dark bags under her eyes when she looked up and glared at Hux.
Hux lifted his chin and scanned her for weapons, he couldn't see any. Had she hidden one somewhere? It would certainly make sense, she couldn't take him head on with the cadets in the way.
Well, he was ready - his hidden blade up his sleeve would surprise her when she tried to kill him. She would probably focus on his blaster and try to get it away from him, and try to shoot him with it - after all she wouldn't stand a chance in a physical fight considering her short height.
"Sergeant Tico, how good of you to join us," he said in an icy voice. Best to establish his superiori-
"There you are!" she beamed.
Seeing her smile up close made his breath falter. So open, beautiful-
Tico reached out and took the Private out of his arms, laughing and lifting the boy up in the air. "I swear you have grown since I last saw you!"
The Private stared at her with big eyes, still holding the stone in his tiny hands. She took him in her left arm and wiped his tears with her thumb away, giving him a kiss on the forehead. "Don't worry, honey. I'm here now."
Hux pressed his lips together. Silly. Letting himself get distracted by her smile, a smile nonetheless that wasn't even meant for him.
He cleared his throat. "We should get going."
She put the boy down and reached into her cargo pants, Hux casually reached for his hidden blade - he was ready for any att-
"Here, fresh water," she said and produced a bottle with a clear liquid.
Stars! His throat was parched. He took the bottle and hesitated; it was the perfect trap to poison him. "Perhaps the cad- children should drink first," he said slowly while observing her reaction.
"Of course, but they didn't seem to be thirsty."
He cleared his throat. "Captain, Lieutenant - are you thirsty?"
The girls nodded and Hux handed them the bottle. They handed it back and Hux helped the Private to drink while Tico was holding him. Then he wiped over the opening of the bottle and took two big gulps, the water was not cool but it was refreshing nonetheless. His throat was so dry that the gulping burned. Only after he finished and wiped over his mouth he noticed that his lips were rough and dry.
"Where did you find the water?" he asked and allowed himself another gulp.
"There was an abandoned post, two bottles were hidden away in a closet."
He wiped again over the opening and screwed the lid shut. Tico put the Private down and put the bottle back in her cargo pants.
The boy sat down and took a stone - he had probably lost the one he had held onto moments ago. He looked from Tico to Hux and laboriously got up to bring the stone to Hux.
He hesitated, Tico already knew that he was weak, if saw him being- then he saw the Private's big brown eyes looking at him expectantly. Hux crouched down and presented his palm, the boy put the stone in it and watched him with mouth agape.
"Thank you, Private. It is indeed noteworthy that the gneiss has a different composition than the ones in the lower level." He stared at the stone, it was covered in red dust and was completely unremarkable. "The sediments seem to be the same, but I assume that a spectral scan would reveal that this stone is much younger than the other examples you collected." He put the stone in his pocket and lifted the boy up.
He cleared his throat. "We should get going, Sergeant Tico." He glanced at her, expecting her to flash a knowing smirk, a sign of scorn but to his surprise she just looked taken aback.
"Captain, please take the flashlight and light the way," he said in a calm voice. With Tico's flashlight, the way was illuminated enough so that he didn't need to carry it himself anymore.
The girls walked ahead, giving Tico and Hux the opportunity to talk.
"What's with the ranks?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I needed to implement a structure and distract them from the situation. And I have only experience in leading soldiers - so I improvised."
"And seeing as you want to put them into the Stormtrooper programme you could teach them to obey orders as soldiers," she said quietly.
"E-exactly."
"So, what purpose is there in collecting pebbles for a toddler? You plan to put him in the geology unit or something like that?"
Why was she always asking such complicated questions? He didn't know what to say and remained silent. What was the point of her questions anyway?
"Nothing to say?"
"I don't understand your need to talk about plain and simple actions."
"Plain and simple, huh?"
"Yet again you doubt my ability to adapt to a situation. You still think that all First Order personnel are bound to be needlessly cruel," he retorted. "I didn't come this far by-" he broke off. Why was he even talking to her? Because she is interesting, supplied an unhelpful little voice in his mind. Because she sees through you.
She was silent for a moment, then she said "Do you want me to take him?"
Hux shook his head. "I'm not tired yet."
About an hour later, they took a break. Hux checked his chronometer and noticed that it was already late.
"How far is it to the exit, Sergeant?"
"My sense of time is off, but I would guess another five hours?"
"It's well past midnight, I suggest that we take a break and continue in six hours."
"Alright, why not? If it takes longer we'll at least be rested." She called out to the girls. "Chenia, Lil, wait. We'll pitch camp here and sleep a little."
The Captain and the Lieutenant returned to them and sat down on the floor. Lil yawned and rubbed her eyes. Hux put the Private down and reached into his pocket for the ration bar. His fingers brushed against Sergeant Tico's pendant. He distributed pieces of the last ration bar.
After a moment of reflection, he handed the pendant back to Sergeant Tico.
"I didn't think that you still had it," she said and put it around her neck.
He noticed how she caressed the silver surface with her fingertips. It seemed to mean a lot to her.
"I'm hungry," said Lil. "When will we get out of here? I want Auntie Niv."
Tico petted her head. "Only a couple of hours more, alright? Then we can drink and eat as much as we want."
"Can you tell us another story, General?" asked Chenia.
"I'm certain Sergeant Tico can tell a better story than I," he said and waved off.
"Tell us a story, Rose," said Lil and clapped with her hands while she bounced up and down.
Tico shifted a little. "Uh, okay, I'll try."
"Yay!" Chenia came closer and sat down beside Tico, leaning against her. The Private followed her example and crawled on Tico's lap. Hux exhaled and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes for a moment. His eyes snapped again open when Lil settled next to him and lifted his greatcoat to cover herself with it.
Tico cleared her throat. "Once upon a time there were two girls, they were sisters and they loved each other very much."
"Were they pretty?" interjected Lil.
"One of the sisters was funny, a great rider and very, very pretty. The other, younger sister was smart and uh, well, she was smart."
"Were they princesses?" asked Chenia.
Tico shook her head. "No, they were just ordinary girls. Their parents had to work so they were left alone at home. The older sister was bored and wanted to go on an adventure, she had heard that there were … dragons in the mountains."
The children were now listening with rapt attention.
"The younger sister was scared and said: 'Don't go there, Pei-Pei. Dragons are dangerous, they will burn you with their hot breath and hurt you with their sharp claws.' But Pei-Pei didn't listen to her sister and started to pack her rucksack. The younger sister watched her, she was smart enough to know that it was dangerous but not smart enough to know how to stop her headstrong sister."
Hux noticed a slight tremble in Tico's voice, Lil shifted a little and leaned against him.
"Pei-Pei set out to go into the mountains, but her sister eventually caught up to her," continued Tico. "'Why are you here?' asked Pei-Pei, "I thought you were scared of dragons.' 'I am', replied her younger sister, 'but it's too dangerous for you to go alone. I'll come along, we are safer together.' And so they continued their way high up into the mountains."
Tico's eyes seemed moist now. Hux realised that it made him uncomfortable… seeing her like this.
"The way to the mountaintop was hard, and as they came closer to the dragon's lair they noticed burnt trees, trampled bushes and dead cattle, slaughtered by the dragon. The younger sister saw that the dragon was even more dangerous than she had thought. 'Let's go back, Pei-Pei,' she begged. 'It is too dangerous.' Her sister only laughed. 'What is the point of an adventure if it isn't scary? And don't you see the damage the dragons inflicts? We need to slay him.'"
Hux realised that he too was captivated by the story. Beside him, Lil pulled up the hem of his greatcoat to cover part of her face, almost as if she was hiding.
"They found the lair and ventured in, the walls were black from soot, the air was hot and sticky. Pei-Pei took the lead and crept closer and closer to the center of the lair. There they found the big, black dragon - it had dark scales that seemed to swallow all light, all hope. It had blood-red fiery eyes that shone in the darkness like two burning suns."
Chenia now looked scared, sitting completely still on Tico's lap, the Private was sucking his thumb, staring at Tico with big, glassy eyes. Lil had turned and pressed her face against his ribcage. Instinctively, he put his arm around her.
"Pei-Pei reached into her rucksack and pulled a slingshot out of it. Her sister said: 'You can't hurt it with a slingshot - look how big and scary it is!' Pei-Pei smiled and said: 'I won't shoot at it's body but at it's eyes, if it's blind it can't hunt anymore and we will be safe - and the animals and trees will be safe too.' 'But what if you miss?' asked the younger sister with a trembling voice. The beautiful, strong Pei-Pei smiled. 'I won't miss, I never do.'"
The children were now hanging at her lips, mouths agape, hands clenched to fists.
"Pei-Pei took a small, sharp rock and aimed her slingshot at the right eye of the dragon. She pulled the elastic band so far back that it creaked. She let go and the rock hurled itself into the dragon's eye, the beast roared and screamed. The whole lair trembled before its fury. 'Who dares to lay a hand on the mighty dragon?' it howled. 'Show yourself if you're not a coward! Show yourself and bow before me and I might spare you!' Pei-Pei stepped forward, her slighshot ready for the second shot. She lifted her chin high and said: 'My name is Pei-Pei and I came to stop you!'"
"No, she needs to hide", whispered Lil, she was now completely covered by the greatcoat.
"The dragon laughed. 'You fool! You are just like every hero before - brave and stupid. Now that I can see you, I'll burn you to a crisp.' It took a deep breath, it's black belly becoming red and hot with fire. Pei-Pei realised that she hadn't thought about the fire, hadn't thought about the dragon striking back. She knew that she had to act before the dragon could spit fire and raised her slingshot to take out the other eye."
Tico blinked a few times. "She pulled the rubber band back with all her might, and in the very moment that the dragon spewed fire she let go. The stone hurled through the air, through the dragon's fire and hit its mark. Pei-Pei was about to be hit by the fire but her younger, smart sister had hastily made a shield built out of burnt wood and bones of the cattle outside. She boldly threw herself between the dragon and her sister, deflecting the fire with the shield. Then she grabbed her sister's hand and they ran out of the lair as the dragon raged and howled behind them."
The children gasped and Lil peeked out of the greatcoat.
"Together, they returned to their home; they had trapped the dragon in the lair because without his eyesight he could never find the exit. The animals and the plants were safe again - all thanks to the two sisters."
Chenia beamed. "They made it! They won!"
Tico blinked again and petted her head. "Of course they won, the good guys always win."
Hux shrugged his greatcoat off and put it on the floor, Tico watched with some surprise how the children crawled on it before he folded it to cover them.
"Are you not sleeping, General?" asked Chenia.
"Of course, Captain," he said. Then he gestured towards the Sergeant. "I will stay over here, perhaps you can join them on the other side." He didn't need to say it - that way she could keep her distance from him.
She nodded. "Agreed."
Tico went over to the children and lay down next to them. Hux settled down on the other side of the tunnel. He wanted to stay awake to observe the Sergeant, this was a prime opportunity for her to kill him. He watched the children and her fall asleep, soon soft breaths could be heard. He was feeling tired too and after a while he gave up and fell asleep too.
-o-
The chronometer beeped and he jerked up, reaching for his weapon while activating his flashlight to scan the tunnel for Tico. He saw that she was still laying on the other side of the tunnel, sitting up slowly while wiping her face.
Only now he realised that the Private was sleeping in front of him. He couldn't help but smile a little as he saw the toddler yawning. He sat up and stretched his back.
Then he checked the Private's makeshift diapers and discovered that he needed to change them.
"Sergeant, do you have some cloth we could use as a diaper?"
Tico stepped closer and pulled a rag out of her cargo pants. Hux took it and wiped the Private with the last of his shimmer silk handkerchiefs clean before throwing it and the old diaper away. Then he wrapped the new cloth around the boy and pulled the boy's pants back up.
They started walking, the girls again up front with a flashlight.
"I didn't even think to change his diapers," Tico said after a while. "Thank you for taking care of him like you did."
"It's nothing, I just didn't want to hear his whining," he replied.
She glanced at him from the side. "You really care about the children, don't you? I mean… you are kind to them."
He didn't like the topic, it was bound to expose his weaknesses even further. "I just wanted them to keep quiet."
"Why can't you just admit that they have grown on you? Come on, I have eyes - they like you, children don't like people if they're not kind to them."
He scoffed. "I was just the only adult around, they're fixated on me for that very reason."
"Okay, I give up. You are too stubborn."
Silence settled in between them. His thoughts returned to the captivating story she had told the evening before.
"Did the heroine really survive the encounter with the dragon?" he asked in a low voice.
Now it was her turn to scoff. "Of course not. And the sister didn't come up with a shield either, perhaps she wasn't so smart after all."
He didn't know what to say to that and remained silent.
After a few steps she spoke up. "I don't celebrate Lifeday anymore."
"I don't understand," he said slowly. "You said-"
"I used to love it, the family coming together…" she trailed off. "There is nobody left but me now. I pretend that I still like it, I even got presents for my friends in the Resistance. But the truth is… it feels hollow. But I guess I thought if I pretended long enough it could give me joy like it used to."
Why was she telling him this? What an odd thing to say to an enemy.
She sighed. "Do you ever feel this gnawing doubt, this hollow feeling like you are empty, a mere shell of who you are supposed to be?"
He thought about the question for a moment. "Perhaps. There are times where I-" he broke off. "It feels like something is missing. Even after everything I have accomplished, it's not enough."
"I guess we're both lonely in our own way."
"Perhaps it's because we are both survivors. Others are more courageous, bolder, but in the end, they lose."
"We all lose," she said in a firm voice. "I lost my sister, friends, everybody I ever cared about. And it's because of you - you and your ilk." She glared at him. "And you are not even a dragon, just a man. And it really gets to me, you know? Seeing you here - seeing you being a rational human being. Being nice to children who you want to steal away to become soldiers." She exhaled. "It would be so much easier if you were just a dragon."
"I thought you wanted me to be human?" he said.
"I did, but I'm exhausted, I just want to rest - I want to close my eyes and sleep. I don't want to wake up again because we lost, everything is lost. But seeing that even you can be compassionate forces me to go on." She licked her dry lips. "I can't give up, even if I lack the strength to do so. Because there is still hope."
He frowned. "I don't understand."
"I can see you clearly, Hux. There is still good in you - even after everything you did. You can still do the right thing, you can still make sure that the children don't have to die in a pointless war." She put her hand on his arm and the touch made him flinch, the warm sensation startled him and he took a step back, pressing the Private closer to him.
"Don't touch me," he whispered.
She pulled her hand back. "Why not?"
He stared at her, how could her touch be so warm - even through the fabric of his coat, his uniform jacket? How could she even stand to touch him? He realised that he was holding the Private very close to himself; the toddler radiated the same warmth as she did. Just like the children when they had slept next to him.
A warmth that almost burned him, a warmth that reminded him of something he could never have. And the way Tico looked at him, not with disdain, disgust and despair but like she really saw him.
"You are mistaken," he pressed out.
She looked at him with a hurt expression on her face. Seeing her like that gave him a stab in the heart but he didn't know why - perhaps he didn't like that a strong woman like her showed weakness?
She turned and continued to walk. Hux followed her shortly after.
-o-
A couple of hours later they could see a bright light at the end of the tunnel, Hux sucked air in. This was it! It had to be the exit! Finally they could get out of this death-trap!
He also realised that he hadn't tried to reach anyone with his comm for a while now. He would certainly be able to reach the FO network from here. He glanced at Sergeant Tico who was walking in front of him. He couldn't just call his troops in front of her, he would wait until they exited and find a quiet spot to make the call. Yes, that was sensible.
As if she could read his mind, she glanced over her shoulder at him. There was determination and fear apparent on her face.
Chenia and Lil got excited and were about to run off, when Tico called them back. "Stay with us, girls!"
They jumped up and down and ran back to Tico and Hux.
"I'll eat so much ice cream when I'm home!" exclaimed Li and tugged at Hux's sleeve. "Auntie Niv always says that I'm supposed to eat more vegetables but now she will be so happy that I'm back that I can surely eat ice cream for dinner!"
"The nutritional value of ice cream is far below vegetables," he replied. "I agree with your aunt."
Chenia took hold of Tico's arm. "Have you seen my dad, Rose? Will he wait outside for me?"
"Let's- let's get out of here first," replied Tico haltingly.
They continued walking at a fast pace; Hux felt uneasy as they drew nearer to the exit. What was the best move? Should he pull his blaster on Tico? But wouldn't that scare the children? No, no it didn't matter what they thought. He was a General of the First Order. He had a duty. He felt Lil tugging at his sleeve and looked down.
"You can have ice cream too, General. I will even give you some of mine."
He gulped, he had to bring them in. He had a duty as commander to these children, they were his soldiers, weren't they?
Just when they were about to reach the blinding, bright exit, a dark figure stepped into the light. The girls gasped and Tico stopped in her tracks. Hux straightened his back and could feel his hackles rise. He would know this cape, this mask everywhere - Kylo Ren was standing in front of them.
Ren pulled the lightsaber with one fluent motion from his belt and activated it; the dark tunnel was illuminated by the blood-red light of his blade. The glow also reflected from the silver lining of his mask, painting his face in a dark red light.
"The dragon," said Lil and grabbed Hux's hand with all her might. The Private on his arm said "shut up" in his garbled way.
"Supreme Leader," said Hux calmly, "I take it that you defeated Skywalker?"
A rattling breath could be heard, the sound seemed to bounce from the walls, becoming somehow louder than it was supposed to be. "I almost didn't recognize you with all that mud on your uniform," he said with a voice distorted by the vocoder. He put the lightsaber out and stomped towards them. "I see you have captives, General."
"Yes."
Ren looked down on the children and then back up at Hux. "You were gone for days, Hux. Some in High Command had hoped that you were dead, but they don't know you. You are much too cunning and resilient to die on some backwater planet, aren't you?"
Hux had little doubt that Ren himself would have been glad if he got rid of him. Of course, this was the perfect opportunity to off him. But there was a reason why he kept him in the first place - he needed someone with intimate knowledge of the military structure to help him rule. Yes, Hux was safe, all he had to do was be careful and bend his knee to the man before him. He was a survivor after all. "I live to serve, Supreme Leader."
Ren tilted his head. "Why are you carrying that disgusting thing, Hux? Hand it to the wretch and join me."
"Of course, Supreme Leader."
Hux peeled the tiny hand of the toddler off his labels and handed him carefully over to Tico. She was pale and a thin film of sweat covered her face.
Chenia and Lil stared at him with wide open eyes. He gulped. "Stay with the Sergeant."
Hux straightened his dirty, crumbled uniform and stepped in front of Ren. He clasped his hands behind his back. "The cadets should be integrated in our Stormtrooper programme, Supreme Leader. I bought them along so that-"
"I'm not interested, Hux. We have to hunt the Rebel scum and eradicate every last of them."
He wanted to let them go? Against his will, Hux was relieved. It had been harder and harder to convince himself that the Private would make the cut.
"Yes, sir."
"Now step aside so that I can take care of them."
He froze. "I- Supreme Leader, they are valuable cadets-"
"We need to kill their offspring too, General."
Hux grimaced. "Ren, listen to me. We need soldiers and they proved to be resilient. It would be a mistake to waste their lives like that." Cold fear had taken hold of him, but he suppressed it as well as he could.
To his surprise, Ren started to laugh. It was a raspy bark. "Stars, you are getting soft. Are you really going to tell me that the half-witted boy can be a Stormtrooper? I can even sense it from here that he is damaged goods." The laughter stopped as suddenly as it had started. "Step aside, Hux." He ignited his lightsaber again, the humming seemed almost ear-deafening now.
Hux felt a shiver of fear running down his back, but he lifted his chin. "That's not true, he just lacks stimulation. I assessed-"
An invisible Force threw him against the wall, dust rippled down on him as he slid down the muddy tunnel wall. Breath was knocked out of him and it took him a second to realise what had happened.
He lifted his head in time to see how Ren lifted his hand and clenched it to a fist. The dry sound of bones snapping rang through the tunnel as Chenia went limp and collapsed where she had stood.
"No!" Hux screamed. "Stop!"
Ren lifted his hand again and started to choke Tico, she let go of the Private who fell down on the ground. The toddler started to cry as Tico was slowly being suffocated. Thoughts were racing through Hux's mind - Ren would kill them! He was unhinged, whatever had happened with Skywalker had clearly sent him over the edge. His every instinct told him to stay put, to lay low so that the madman would spare him.
He had to be smart, he had to survive.
Tico's stertorous breathing pierced through his thoughts and through his heart. He saw Lil holding the bawling Private, both covered in red mud. Tico clawing at the invisible hands around her neck.
He gritted his teeth and jumped up, in a fraction of a second the monomolecular blade had slid out of his sleeve. He grabbed Ren from behind and drove the sharp, thin blade into his cold dead heart.
Ren screamed and let go of Tico. Hux let himself fall backwards, pulling Ren down with him, using his legs and arms to take him into a chokehold. Ren's breath started to rattle but with one last push he proved his superior strength and freed his right arm with the lightsaber.
"Traitor," he panted and drove the weapon into Hux's leg.
The burning pain was so overwhelming that he let go and almost blacked out. Ren… Ren… he would kill them. He almost lost consciousness, the tunnel growing darker… no, no - not like this! He gritted his teeth and tried to reach his blaster, only to discover that it wasn't in his holster anymore. Before he could swear a shot rang out and Ren drew his last breath, an uncanny, otherworldly sound thanks to his mask.
He dimly recognized Tico standing over him with his blaster in her hand; tears were streaming down her face.
Suddenly, she was gone and he thought he could hear crying and screaming. The Captain…
The next thing he knew what that he was laying outside, in the bright sun, the white salt blinding him after all the time in the darkness. He had trouble focusing, felt lightheaded. He turned his head to the side and saw Chenia lying next to him, her eyes were closed and she looked oddly peaceful.
"Captain?" he whispered. "Captain?" Then he felt a tug at his leg and looked down. Tico was wrapping clothing around his leg, the burning pain returned and he groaned. There was blood, so much dark red blood on the bright white salt ground.
Tico lifted a bottle with water to his lips and he took a small gulp before starting to cough. His chest felt tight, for some reason it was hard to breath. Almost if a heavy rock was weighing him down.
"You need to lay still, Hux. You lost a lot of blood," said Tico as she leaned over him. In the warm light of the day she looked even more beautiful than he could ever have imagined. Such a strong, willful woman - how had he not seen it on the Supremacy?
"How is- Chenia?" he said in a low voice. He could feel tears forming in his eyes, no doubt from the pain in his leg.
Tico cupped his cheeks and smiled sadly, smiling at him. "Don't worry, she is fine." Something wet and warm fell down on his face, it was hard to focus. Everything seemed to be muffled, his thoughts were slow and sluggish… was it rain? "Chenia is fine," Tico repeated with a throaty voice. "You are going to be fine too."
"And the Lieutenant and the Private?" his own voice was so quiet that he wasn't sure if she had heard him.
Lil's face appeared above him, she was crying. Tico lifted the Private so that he could see him, the boy was holding a flat salt rock. The toddler reached out, presenting Hux the stone. Hux used the last bit of his strength to take the stone. "Thank you, Private," he mumbled.
He felt tired, his eyes started to fall shut. The last thing he felt was Sergeant Tico's hand on his face, caressing him.
The stone fell out of his hand as he drew his last breath.
The End