…Neera…

It had been so long since she heard her name. There were few who knew it, probably one a couple of people who knew it before it was taken from her. She lay on her back in the meditation room, staring at the ceiling. There were really only three living people who knew her name. One of them – Speak of the devil. The doors slid open after a rapid punch of the override code.

"And he shall appear…" She muttered darkly.

"What was that?" the crisp tone of a surly red-head filled the room. She smiled a bit, he was one of her few visitors and as unpleasant as he could be, she really did enjoy toying with him, a small retaliation perhaps for his involvement in her induction into the order. He had no force ability and when she used her gentlest touch, he couldn't feel her enter his mind. Despite his lacking in that arena, he was relatively brilliant and she didn't find him totally uninteresting like the brainwashed trashcans that patrolled the halls. Perhaps it was a mild case of Stockholm syndrome or just a case of knowing him for so long but even she had to admit she didn't find his company totally abhorrent.

"Good Evening General" She said brightly, not sitting up "How have you been?" He strode over to her his hands clasped behind him, the cap from his formal dress affixed to his flawless ginger coif.

She looked up at him, offering a hazy tilted smile, he frowned down at her. "Get up" he said shortly before turning to walk into her private chambers. It was almost exclusively her fault that he had a certain opinion of her. She used his visits and his familiarity with her to be slightly more relaxed in her interactions. He couldn't read her mind and although he wasn't particularly amiable most of the time, he was generally amusing.

She got to her feet and followed him, her gait almost dance-like. He strode over to the holo-screen and, pressing a few buttons. He backed up against the edge of the sofa and starting bringing up galactic maps and other troop data.

"Have you eaten General?" She asked hoping his intrusion wouldn't keep her from a decent meal. The food was marginally better when the grumpy general was in attendance.

"Dinner is being brought." He said dismissively, concentrating on the data before him. She frowned a bit and sat down on the sofa behind him.

"This is not your office, nor is it your personal quarters." She pulled her cloak from her shoulders and leaned against the back of the sofa "Did you have a reason for this visit?" She waited ten long seconds as he continued to concentrate on the screen. "General Hux if you refuse to amuse me I'll have you removed from my quarters." She joked sternly, becoming petulant at being ignored, especially by him.

Finally he turned around and looked down at her a mildly horrifying smirk on his face. "Smiling does not suit him…and what is he so happy about anyway?" She thought, cringing inwardly. She wiped the pleasant look from her face and glared up at him. "What?" She asked flatly.

"Our work, your work, is coming to fruition." A chill ran down her spine, they were going to use the weapon. She had known they would, she knew what would be destroyed, the lives the entire worlds. She hated herself for blocking it out, it consumed her if she thought too long about it, and she certainly couldn't let him see any condemnation of a core initiative of the First Order.

"You are pleased at the recognition though." She said her gaze more serious as she continued to watch him.

She felt a presence in her mind and almost laughed. It seemed Commander Ren was aware of the General's location. She could see him stalking down the hall towards her chambers. With little concentration and a lot of distance, all she could perceive was indistinct rage. It seemed as though she was destined to annoy more than one man-child today. She allowed Ren the luxury of some vision into her discussion with Hux and returned her focus to the General.

"It's not just the big picture, your dedication to the order that makes that pale chest of yours swell." She smirked and his face flushed. She felt she was bordering on going too far but upon glimpsing into his mind, she felt retaliation was unlikely. She crawled forward to kneel at the edge of the sofa before Hux. "You're just a tiny bit selfish." She whispered, reaching one hand out to straighten a pin on his uniform. She glimpsed into his mind once more. He had liked it, being knocked down a bit, and by her, by someone who he did have control over in so many ways. She suspected he was probably a bit of a masochist but refused to dive so deep into his consciousness, he would definitely notice that.

"I'll thank you to keep out of my thoughts." He said curtly.

"Oh General, I've known you for many years," She boldly lifted her hand to his neck, trailing one finger along his stiff collar "I don't need to rummage around to know your secrets." She taunted. Kylo Ren's mind was failing gloriously in maintaining any semblance of silence, becoming downright distracting.

"You will be there." He said firmly.

"No" She said simply, her fingers running along the seams along his collar bone.

"That is an order" He snapped his pale blue eyes becoming fierce. She glared back at him with equal fervor, holding back her instinct to mentally stab him in his frontal lobe. He seemed to catch the warning and opened his mouth to speak "The Great Leader has requested that you provide a more public presence for this event." She climbed down off of the sofa and crossed the room to the window.

"Remove him or I will have him removed." The threat came directly to her, Kylo Ren's voice clear in her head. He is getting better, she mused.

"Of course, General" She said gently. Hux crossed the room towards her standing just behind her.

"You were with me in my first battle, my first taste of victory." He rested one hand on her upper arm, his thumb pressing into the scar on her arm, his cool breath on the back of her neck, "You'll be at my side in this as well."

"I believe your interpretation of your first taste of victory may be slightly different than my experience there." She said, keeping the spite from her words as best she could.

He could hardly open his mouth to respond before a fuming masked and hooded Kylo Ren passed through the meditation room doors and without announcing or asking, and swept into the lounge. Hux stepped away, turning to Ren. "Commander Ren." He said curtly.

"I believe you are meant to be making some vital arrangements General." Kylo said pointedly. They could both feel the General's embarrassment and the retaliatory rage that was building inside him. He was however, at a gross disadvantage with both Ren and the Oracle.

"You will be collected in the morning; I expect you will be appropriately prepared." Hux said with finality, glancing back at her, breezing past Kylo on his way out the door.

She turned her gaze on Kylo "I assume you had a purpose in coming here other than to annoy the General?" She said tilting her head at him.

"Not particularly." The mechanical voice responded. She smiled and turned back to the window, she heard the mechanical hiss as he removed the helmet, tucking it under his arm.

"You're selfish too." She said gently feeling his presence grow closer until his reflection appeared beside her at the window. "Passion requires a certain amount of selflessness." She saw him turn from her reflection to aim his startled gaze directly at her. "To achieve what you seek you have to be willing to lose a part of yourself, to sacrifice for your cause." She explained.

"How will I know what that is?" His voice was steady but she sensed great conflict in his words.

"You must first be sure of your cause." She said turning to face him. She took his hand in hers for a moment and he returned her grasp. "You need to be sure." With that, resisting providing further council, holding back her sympathies, she turned to leave. He did not release her hand and she paused.

"I believe you have some vital arrangements to make Commander." She said looking back at him "And I have a planetary massacre to prepare for." After a moment he released her and turned to leave considering her words, what would he be sacrificing by following that which called to him most? She could feel the deep seeded conflict in his heart as the distance between them grew, solid metal doors finally separating them. It took every fiber of her restraint to guide and not direct. He had to choose his path; she could only affect so much change before he rebelled against it. She did realize now though, she wanted to be there to be a part of whatever path he was taking, and whether it was in light or in darkness, she would remain..