Armitage Hux may not have been gifted with The Force as the newly appointed Supreme Leader was. He couldn't read or manipuate minds or assault people without touching them, but he hadn't gotten to where he was by being as dense as Ren believed.
Unlike Ren, who got to where he was by riding the coat tails of his grandfather and the obession Snoke had with him, Hux had built the First Order from the ashes of the Empire, and clawed his way to the rank of General. He'd earned that title of Supreme Leader, and yet, it had gone to Ren.
When Hux found him unconscience on Snoke's throne room floor, surrounded by ashes and gore, his first instint was to kill Ren where he lay. Ren had come to as soon as Hux touched the hilt of his blaster and nearly crushed Hux's larynx with The Force after claiming that the scavenger from Jakku had murdered Snoke.
Ren's first act as Supreme Leader was the Battle of Crait where they'd suffered a devestating loss, including several ships in their fleet, and spent half of their remaining ammunition on a ghost.
Ren had returned to his ship a broken man, and threw himself into finding Snokes murderer and the remaining rebels, storming around in his heavy boots demanding any news, but, then, after a month or so, he seemed to lose interest. He'd instructed them to abandon their efforts in finding her, and the resistance, claiming he no longer wanted to waste resources.
When Hux insisted that they proceed, Ren sent raiding parties to crumbling rebel bases, long abandoned, acting the part of Kylo Ren when they returned empty handed by flying into a tantrum.
But Hux saw it for what it was: an act.
Hux also saw that to make Ren's story plausible, the girl would have to had bested Ren, for the second time, and single handedly fight off eight Praetorian guards before killing Snoke. Yet, she'd spared Ren's life, also for the second time, before fleeing in Snoke's escape craft.
And absolutely none of that made any sense.
More concerning, was in these past months, Ren seemed to be completely disconnected, as if his mind was elsewhere. He would disappear for hours on end, emerging from his chambers or his throne room with no reason whatsoever for his absence. He'd missed nearly every meeting and briefing and hadn't shown any interest in ruling or being involved in the strategics of his army.
It should be Hux on that throne.
He'd have to find a way to kill him. Find a weakness and drive a dagger so deep into it that The Force couldn't save him.
Hux had found him in the snow on Starkiller Base with wounds that would have killed anyone else, leaving Hux to believe that Ren had somehow used The Force to keep himself alive.
The memory made Hux stop and think.
Starkiller base was the first time the scavenger bitch had bested Ren and spared his life but it was more than that.
Ren hadn't been the same since that fight, and Hux had always assumed it was because he was humiliated by being beaten by someone so completely inexperienced. But, Hux searched his memories. No, Ren started acting peculiar the second he'd carried that woman onto the ship. His mission had been to find the map the droid carried, but had abandoned his orders, saying she was all they needed.
Then, Hux wondered if Ren's change had nothing to do with the battle that was lost, or the humiliation on Starkiller Base, and everything to do with the scavenger. What if Ren wanted them to abandon their efforts in finding the Rebels because Snoke's killer was amoung them?
Hux felt his jaw go slack as he realized the only way anyone could have bested Kylo Ren was if he refused to fight them. Refused to protect Snoke as he'd sworn to do. And one person couldn't have taken out eight guards unless...
Unless he fought them with her.
And kept Hux and his army away from the rebels to protect her.
Hux smiled at himself.
He'd find that scavenger whore. And when he did, he'd bring Kylo Ren to his knees.