The guards exchange skeptical glances with each other after Ap'lek passes by, but they don't stop Anika or Darial. The detention cells are mostly empty, the force fields left deactivated. They do pass one occupied cell, the man inside whistling a tune while he drunkenly urinates on the wall. He's dressed shabby, like a smuggler that has seen better days.
Anika raises her eyebrows, but says nothing. More than likely, his ship has been detained due to contraband after a random search. She wonders what the future holds for him.The First Order isn't exactly known for going light on the sentencing.More than likely, he's probably looking at forced enlistment for a few decades.
Wouldn't be the first person I've known to be forced to work without a paycheck.She'd once known a custodian who was approaching his ninth year of service, all for a petty gambling crime.
As they approach the end of the long corridor of cells, Anika finds her mouth stuck in a frown. There is a lot she finds herself disliking about the First Order, a lot she knows is morally wrong. And yet here she is, collecting her paycheck and accepting what they do.Does Kylo ever second guess them?she wonders, the corners of her mouth sinking even lower.Not like it would do much good to stand up to them…
Ap'lek slows suddenly, letting Darial pass him by so he can come alongside Anika. Her eyebrows furrow when he gets closer than he ever has before, his voice pitched low.
"Watch what you're thinking on board the Supremacy," the Knight warns.
Her breath catches, eyes darting over to him in worry. But he is already leaving her side, approaching the last holding cell on the right. The force field sealing it off is tinged blue, the smallest flickers giving its existence away.
What the fuck does that mean?Her mind wants to run away with worry as she comes to the inevitable conclusion that there is only one reason she'd need to control her thoughts on board this ship.Snoke.
Cold chills wiggle along her spine as she realizes just thinking his name might be a mistake. But she finds herself in a quagmire, unable to stop her anxious worrying long enough to stop thinking about the Supreme Leader.Thinking about him listening to what I'm thinking is probably going to make him listen to what I'm thinking. How the fuck do I stop thinking about what I'm worried about thinking about? I can't just stop worrying. I'm me.
"Anika."
Ap'lek's cold voice captures her attention. She focuses on the Knight, noticing that both he and Darial are looking at her expectantly.
"This was your idea," he reminds her. "If you've changed your mind, we can leave."
"No," she insists immediately, trying to refocus. Her eyes slide to the side of him, where the pair of Zachs are waiting beyond the force field. They look exhausted, dark circles beneath their eyes. "Let me in."
Ap'lek accesses the security terminal, and a minute later the force field flickers and dies. The identical pair of men perk up slightly, their expressions growing curious as Anika hesitantly joins them. They step back, however, when Ap'lek looms protectively over her shoulder.
"Um, Ap'lek, could you…maybe wait in the hall?" Anika ventures, giving him a hopeful grin.
His mask is locked on the pair of prisoners. "No."
She heaves a sigh, focusing her attention back on them. "Hey, guys."
One Zach raises an eyebrow. "Hello, Anika. What is a girl like you doing in a place like this?"
"He means to say, what's Commander Ren's girl doing in our prison cell?" the other one chimes in.
The first Zach shoots his copy an annoyed look. "Obviously she knows what I mean. It is funnier how I said it, because it is a twist on a standard pick-up line."
"I don't need you to explain humor to me."
"Obviously, you do. Perhaps leave the jokes to me."
Anika's eyebrows raise higher and higher as they continue bickering. Clearly, their friendship has hit a sour note. "I thought you two were getting along," she interrupts.
"We were," one Zach answers. "But you try being locked in a cell with someone who snores just as loud as you do, nonstop. Neither one of us is getting any sleep."
"Ah," she replies, unsure what else to say.
"Ah?" Ap'lek muses. "This is going so well."
"Did your boss think sending her in would work? We know good cop, bad cop when we see it," a Zach points out.
Anika grits her teeth at how quickly her approach has been figured out. "Kyl-Commander Ren didn't send me," she corrects herself. "I wanted to talk to you myself." The Zachs both look intrigued.
"Why?"
"Yes, why?"
"You don't have to chime in if all you're going to do is repeat what I said."
"I said it better."
"You said it exactly the same as I did!"
"Can you two have your couples spat later?" Anika interrupts, watching identical men grimace. "I was hoping we could actually get somewhere, come to an understanding."
"What is there to understand?" She is pretty sure the Zach asking is the human one.
"Well… For starters, what do the blobs want? Obviously things are hostile, we're at war…but, like… why?" she ventures, shrugging. She tries to ignore Darial wincing in the hallway, clearly unimpressed with her attempts.
The two men share a look, but say nothing.
Anika heaves a sigh. "Look, its just obvious that things aren't going anywhere, right? Ky-Commander Ren," she catches herself again, "probably comes in here and pokes around your heads with the force-"
"Unsuccessfully," one Zach interrupts with a nagging sort of pride.
"-and I'm sure there's a lot of threatening," Anika continues. "But-wait. Can he not read either of your minds?"
It's Ap'lek that answers. "No. There is something strange happening. It is as if they are both alien, despite us knowing one must be the human. Neither is accessible to force probing."
As kinky as the phrase force probing is, I'm going to focus on more important issues at the moment."That… is strange," Anika remarks uncertainly. Both Zachs look smugly proud of themselves for it. "Well as unsettling as that is, is just means we really aren't getting anywhere with the interrogation thing."
"Are we supposed to want to get somewhere with that?" a Zach points out.
"I just…" Anika flails for words, ignoring yet another wince from Darial at her flailing interrogation techniques. "I have to believe there is something that you want. You being whichever one is the blob. There has to be some reason your-your people, government, whatever, are doing this."
"There is," they answer in unison.
"Okay! Okay, that's progress," Anika says, relieved.
"It is?" Ap'lek asks doubtfully.
She ignores him. "So why don't you tell me what it is, and maybe we can figure something out? I mean, why be at war and keep this hostility going if it's unnecessary?"
"I am afraid it is very much necessary," one of the men insists. The other nods in agreement.
Anika frowns. "Why is that?"
The Zachs once more catch each other's gaze, seeming to share some kind of telepathic communication. She waits expectantly, even as it drags on. Finally, they seem to come to a conclusion. One of them walks over to the bare bunk, sitting down. The other faces her.
"We needed to expand our territory. We were doing just that when we encountered the First Order, and they refused to let us continue our search."
She can feel the shift in Ap'lek behind her, now that the blob Zach has exposed which one he is.Don't,she chants in what feels like his mental direction.I'm getting somewhere.She doesn't need him suddenly getting more aggressive with the blob and derailing things.
"Your search for what?" Anika asks.
He takes a deep breath, letting it go. "C six, H twelve, O six."
What… the fuck?"I'm sorry, is that code?" she asks stupidly.
Darial, however, perks up from the hallway. For the first time since the force field went down, she steps into the cell. "Sugar? That's the chemical formula for sugar, isn't it?"
Oh. Random.
"It is our primary food source in our natural state. We do not have calcified nubs to grind up food stuffs, nor do we possess the enzymatic action necessary for the more complex amino acids or lipids that are rich in your diet. We must absorb sugar."
Anika blinks. "Oh. Okay. So, um… You were just searching the universe for…sugar?"
"We exhausted our sugar resources in our home star system. Our civilization is at the brink of collapse if we cannot locate new sources, our next generation of polyps perhaps never to be born. We've found many suitable planets, but the First Order controls them."
Shit… This crock of nonsense seems easy enough to fix.
"Can't you just… um… grow some more?" she ventures.
"Grow sugar?" he says mockingly. "We cannot simply grow sugar! Can humans grow sugar? I think not!"
"But… isn't that what plants do?" Anika looks at Darial questioningly, doubting her own understanding.
Darial nods. "Yeah? Sunlight, water, and carbon… equals sugar."
The blob Zach looks stunned. "You mean… plant life can produce sugar for us?"
Darial nods again. "That's the premise of agriculture, yes. You plant crops that produce fruit or whatever for you. It's basic plant science."
The blob Zach rounds on the human Zach, pointing an accusing finger. "You buffoon! Why do you not know basic plant science!?"
He holds up his hands defensively. "Hey, man. I can fix a droid or rewire a modulator better than anyone, but I never claimed to be good at biology."
Anika smiles though, pleased with herself. She turns to Ap'lek. "This is a big deal, isn't it? We know what they want now! Can't we just help them out with some gardening 101 tips and call it a truce?"
Her smile falls quickly, however, when the Knight of Ren shakes his head. "I fear we are overlooking the obvious."
"Which is?" she prompts.
"Many of their blobs have impersonated our personnel and gained access to their knowledge. Perhaps our maintenance officer is lacking in the understanding of plant metabolism that this particular blob would have found useful, but surely at least one other person copied by the blobs would know how to cultivate sugar."
Darial's face turns grim. "If that's all they needed to know, why are we still fighting?"
Anika turns accusingly on the blob. "So what is it, then? What else aren't you telling us?"
But he shakes his head, frowning. "I… I don't know. I swear to you, I was only told that we must do this to save our species. That if the First Order would stop us, we must destroy them to continue our search."
Anika finds her expression mirroring his. Her big breakthrough has turned up only more questions and it doesn't seem she will get answers. She had been hoping to have good news for Kylo when he returned, to contribute in some way other than lounging around watching holovids. Now, she just gets to mention that the blobs have a sweet tooth.
"That's enough for today," Ap'lek says suddenly. "I will share what we have learned with the Supreme Leader."
The mention of Snoke again makes her feel uneasy. His existence casts a creepy vibe to everything on the ship. Not to mention, it seems to make Kylo even more tense and wound up than usual. She'd prefer to forget Snoke was lurking around this giant space city, potentially listening in to anyone's traitorous thoughts.
Anika follows Darial and Ap'lek back out into the hall, watching the Zachs both plop onto their bare bunks in defeat as the force field goes back up.
When they get to the end of the row of cells, however, Ap'lek pauses by the guards. "Take ear plugs to the prisoners in cell F4," he orders without explanation.
She's surprised by his act of kindness.Look at you, being a big softy.
He corrects her immediately. "If they were easily swayed by your tactless approach, then a small reward now for talking may greatly incentivize future cooperation."
She mentally fumbles over what he said for a moment before understanding. "Oh. Got it."You talk like a freaking thesaurus, by the way.
"Do you think there's another reason they are leaving their home star?" Darial ventures curiously, looking lost in her own thoughts. "Maybe something a lot of the lower grunt blobs don't even know?"
The thought seems ominous to Anika, so she just shrugs in response.
Later, Night
The door opens and shuts quietly enough that it shouldn't have woken her. Yet Anika's sleep was so light that just the brief flash of light from outside the suite was enough to drag her back awake. She lays beneath the blankets, listening to Kylo softly crossing the suite. He pauses in the living quarters, and she knows he must have taken his boots off when she can no longer hear his steps.
She can sense him in the sleeping quarters, but he doesn't turn the light on. The only clue he's undressing is the audible unzipping of his pants, which makes her breath catch.
"I know I woke you up," he says.
"I couldn't sleep very well," she admits, voice muffled by her pillow.
The sheets move as he lifts his end, and a moment later she can feel him sit down. "I'm sorry."
Anika rolls onto her back so she can peer at him, but the room is too dark to make out his expression. "Why? It's not your fault."
"I know you don't like this ship," he says quietly. "I don't either."
"Is the base operational? Can we go back?"
"Soon," he says.
Anika feels like her spirit deflates. Some part of her had been hoping he'd say yes, and that they'd be leaving in the morning.How sad is it that I miss that frigid ass base?
Kylo moves, and a moment later she can feel him beside her. He must see better in the dark than her, because his hand finds hers easily. His long fingers trail over hers, turning her palm over to trace patterns on it with his thumb. "It's not sad. You need something to do," he reassures. "Something other than chatting with my prisoners."
"Ap'lek told you."
Kylo moves closer, his body warming hers. She swallows, not forgetting the effect being close to him has on her. His fingertips trail up from her hand, skimming over the sensitive skin of her inner wrist.
"Of course," he says lowly. "Ap'lek follows my directions, unlike you."
His hand skims higher, running into the fabric of her shirt that is bunched around the crook of her elbow. "You never explicitly told me not to interrogate blobs while you were away," Anika points out, hearing a bratty tone sneaking into her voice.
Kylo makes a noise of disagreement, however. "Not that. I told you to be naked in my bed when I got back."
Anika's heart quickens, and for a moment she is caught off guard. "I-I forgot," she admits.
"Mm?" Kylo murmurs, his hand sneaking across her chest. He grazes the hard bud of one of her nipples, and she feels the first jolt of arousal shoot through her core. "You forgot that I wanted to touch you?"
"Um… Not that, I just… forgot that particular request," she says, trying to save the moment. His murmur of acknowledgement is low in her ear, making her swallow heavily again. "I was tired," she points out defensively.
"Should I let you sleep?" he asks immediately, his hand retreating as if to assure her he would.
Anika immediately shakes her head. "Obviously not."I'd much rather take the touching, please.
"Please?" he repeats, acting as if he hadn't heard her thoughts quite right.
"Yes. Please," she confirms, her voice turning a bit bratty once more. His hand quickly finds her nipple again, pinching it. She hisses at the touch of pain mixed with pleasure, swatting away his hand. He laughs again, voice husky in the dark.
"Why don't we work on your taking directions, then," Kylo suggests.
She rolls her eyes. "I don't need to work on taking directions."
"You do need to work on your attitude," he quips, sitting up suddenly. She feels him shift to lean against the wall behind their pillows. "Come here."
Anika rolls her eyes again but complies, sitting up. "Where is here, exactly?"
Kylo grabs her and pulls her between his legs. "Here," he growls. The sharp retort that had been lingering on the tip of her tongue is stolen by his lips, his tongue quickly catching hers in a possessive dance. She twists to get a better angle, pleased when he kisses her deeper.
He pulls away to nudge at her neck, and she turns her head, giving him access. He nips with his teeth, working his way to the spot that makes her spasm. Her hands find his thighs, nails traveling up his skin until they are stopped by fabric.
His mouth leaves her neck, and he pulls her back against his chest. She is about to protest when his hands slide under the bottom hem of her shirt, distracting her.
"Take this off," he orders, his voice breathless enough to take the bite out of the command.
She leans forward to comply, tossing the top aside and leaning back against him. The air in the room is cold, but his chest is more than warm against the bare skin of her back. She holds her breath when his hands explore her chest, touching her gently at first, playing with her nipples until she is squeezing her thighs together.
"I wanted to do this on my ship when we crash landed," he admits, his voice a whisper she can barely make out.
She struggles to focus, her arousal now undeniably growing as he keeps teasing her, finding what she likes. A moan escapes her when he squeezes her nipples, and it seems to make him content to drag out the foreplay. The next time, he gets a bit rougher, and she moans a little louder, her body sagging back against his.
"Kylo," Anika breathes.
"What? You don't like me touching you here?" he asks, feigning confusion.
She licks her lips. "I like it."
He nuzzles down into her neck, his nose trailing up to her ear. His lips graze her earlobe. "Good."
She scratches her nails up his thighs, trying to distract him. A little wiggle of her butt backward, and she can feel the hardness of his erection. "I think you like it too."
"I love it," he admits, capturing her chin for another hungry kiss. His tongue strokes hers, and she twists around to try to get more of him. But Kylo retreats, instead murmuring, "Spread your legs."