It had been a very long time since the medical bay had housed a full emersion bacta tank but now its gentle pulsing hum filled the silence of the room around her. Aneep at her desk now, found herself darting glances up from her paperwork and staring for a fleeting moment at the figure submerged in the glowing tube. She couldn't deny that she found him extremely attractive. Professional guilt gnawed at her from the thought. He'd been brought here to be healed not to be ogled at when he was at his most vulnerable. The treatment, however, made it necessary for him to be completely disrobed except for undergarments to preserve the patient's dignity. Even with that being the case, very little was left to the imagination. Perhaps things had been different if she'd been able to set up the tank in the main body of the medical facility. However, due to the secrecy surrounding this particular patient it had become necessary to erect the treatment tank in her research laboratory away from prying eyes. The only issue now was that the eyes that wanted to pry were her own.

She sighed heavily and threw down her data pad with frustration. She'd never be able to concentrate with him in the room. He was facing away from her but that didn't seemed to matter, her gaze was drawn to his muscular frame wherever he was in the room.

Perhaps I should put the equipment into slumber mode. Then at least I won't be able to see him.

It had been hours since he'd been brought to her but it wasn't quite recreational time yet. But he was in bacta so she supposed it wouldn't matter too much if she gave him an early night- he'd been through quite a bit today after all.

Aneep rose from her desk and walked over to the front of the tank. There he hung, suspended in time like some dark angelic creature. The breathing apparatus concealed half of his face but she'd seen already what lay beneath- youth and beauty. She glanced with a professional eye at the side wound- the bacta emersion would have that healed within a day or so. The facial wounds however, that was a different matter. She'd done her best with what resources she had on hand but the truth was she had no precedent in treating lightsaber wounds and very little research to consult. It would have to be her bedtime reading this evening it would seem if she was going to plan a course of treatments that would work effectively. She knew that they would have to work efficiently too as Hux had stressed the important of timeliness.

Her eyes traced the curves of his chest in a less than professional way. She chastised herself again for her wondering thoughts and addressed him.

"Sir?"

He had his eyes closed but she knew he could hear her- he had refused the sedative before going in to the tank.

"I'm going to power down the lights and put you into slumber mode. I hope that's alright?"

His eyes did not open but his head nodded in acknowledgement. Relieved, Aneep punched in the order and the lights slowly dimmed in the tank to the point that the figure was completely obscured in the inky black liquid.

"Time to finally get some work done." She thought as she returned to her desk and picked up her data pad once again.

One fascinating thing she had learnt about lightsaber wounds was that they continue to burn even after the cut had healed. The energy emitted from the kyber crystal at the heart of each lazer sword is so powerful that it almost permanently effects the nerves of the flesh it comes into contact with. The pain is said to wear away after some years have passed but it never leaves completely. It just becomes more bearable.

It would seem then that Kylo Ren would live with the reminder of these injuries for the rest of his life for Aneep could not find any records of lightsaber wounds that did not leave permanent scarring. Though she may be able to modify the severity of the scar by adapting healing tape to host live bacta. That way the wound may continue healing from the inside out while the patient was free to move around away from the bacta tank. No treatment it seemed would be as effective as full bacta emersion, but Aneep knew that the General would not react well to the news that a whole half cycle might be needed to see Ren fully healed.

She found her eyes drawn again to the darkened cylinder that hummed gently at the end of the room. She could not see him but she felt him there. He was an invisible looming presence in the room. The lights in the office had automatically dimmed some hours before- she had worked through her shift and now it was late. Her eyelids felt heavy but there was still more research to be done if she wanted to develop the healing strips' cultures enough to support bacta cells. Aneep sat back in her chair and rubbed her eyes with the palms of her hands. Her head ached with a pulsing throb that matched the hum of the bacta tank. The tight regulation bun that her hair was scraped into felt like it was attempting to pull her scalp from her skull. Since she was technically off duty she felt no concern about tugging her hair free of the band that held the bun in place and allowed her white blonde hair to tumble down her shoulders. The pain relief was almost instantaneous and she found herself sighing in contentment at the liberation of her hair. She shook it out with her finger, untangling knots as she went and instantly felt less wound up. Now all she needed was some caf to wake her up. The drink was off the nutritional rations for most personnel but her rank meant that she was privy to luxuries that most First Order officers were denied.

She rose from the desk and walked across the room with her hands still massaging her hair. She stood and made herself a cup of the hot steaming liquid, she stirred in one portion of sweetener and enjoyed the sound of the metal clink of the spoon. She took a small hot sip of the bitter sweet beverage and sighed with contentment at the small luxury. What she hadn't realized was with each step she had been staring distracted at the darkened tank. As she crossed back to her desk with the steaming hot beaker cupped between her palms she found herself pausing by the tank, staring mesmerized into its inky depths. She took another sip of her caf and wondered what possessed someone to choose to wear a mask. The stormtroopers did not have a choice, it was regulation combat gear and designed to prolong their lives. Kylo Ren however did not need to wear a mask, so why had he adopted one?

The First Order flourished on youth and ambition. Exposing his face to show his age would not have meant that others would not respect him, many of the highest ranking officers in the Order were under 40 cycles. The Order appreciated youth and beauty. Beauty in particular was the epitome of order and symmetry, this was something that The Supreme Leader himself was very insistent upon. Why then had Ren chosen to hide his face?

Aneep found no answers as she stared into the darkness of the tank, but she did find its gentle hum very comforting and relaxing. Her hand reached up to her collar and undid the shoulder clasps of her tunic. Freeing her throat from the confines of her uniform felt wonderful and freeing. Her hand went to her throat and collar bone and she gently rubbed the tension away from tired skin. The sensation of it made her sigh with relaxation but the tiredness stuck in her throat and the sound was guttural and raspy. Perhaps she was kidding herself that she could stay up any longer. She needed sleep, the work would have to wait.

Aneep finished her cup in two gulps still staring into the darkened bacta tank. She turned to leave but stopped suddenly. Taken by a strange impulse she turned to look back at the tank. That inky black abyss seemed to be looking back at her, it was as though she had brought a tiny black hole into the heart of her office and it was pulling everything including her into its darkened void. She almost didn't want to leave, she wanted to stay here and keep it safe. She shook the thoughts away.

"Tired. Damned tired." She told herself, but she did not turn away from the tank. Instead she stepped closer to its cool curved surface. She kissed her hand and pressed it onto the glass.

"Cold and distant like the vacuum of space."

She looked up into the abyss, she looked deep, she tried to see him but could not.

"Good night Kylo Ren." She whispered, and then swept out of the room without a second glance.

From the dark depths Kylo watcher her go bemused.