"Yes," Ren says tersely. "We were attempting to negotiate a peace treaty with their empire when the relationship…soured."

"With the blob empire?" Anika clarifies. When he nods, she smothers a snort of laughter that tries to escape. The tranquilizer seems to be affecting her oddly, and she feels loopy. "I'm sorry, there is a species actually named the blobs?"

"Of course not." He stands and begins pacing the sleeping quarters. "They have a proper name, but it's a mouthful. So we just started calling them the blobs, because in their natural form… Well, they look like blobs."

"With blobby feet and blobby heads?"

"Anika."

Her lips twitch as she attempts to force them into a serious expression at his warning tone of voice. "It was a serious question," she insists, shuffling over to the side of the bed. She stretches her legs down off the side, but stops before she can stand. She feels woozy still, and ends up staying seated.

Ren stops his pacing to fix her with a stern look. "This isn't funny. Their true form might be amorphous, but they can turn into anything, disguise themselves as any species they want."

"Oh." She doesn't know what else to say, still drowning in disbelief. This is absolute nuttery…

"When the sabotage first started, I thought perhaps one or two had infiltrated. I took up the disguise of a technician hoping to find them out," he continues to explain. "But now, I think the problem might be much worse. The entire First Order is at risk. Our ranks could be overrun with blobs."

"Blobs pretending to be people, you mean?" Anika says slowly.

"Yes."

"That sounds bad."

"Very."

Anika frowns as she considers that, the sinister implications shaking the silly feeling she'd been experiencing. If he wanted me to take things seriously, maybe he shouldn't have drugged me! She sighs, looking away from the commander. If they could look like anyone…

"Fuck!" She sits up straighter, eyes widening with horror as she realizes… Darial!

"What is it?"

Anika raises her eyes to Ren, any trace of humor now gone from her mood. "My friend-Darial- she was acting weird the last time I saw her. Kind of like how…how fake Matt-fake you, was acting. Before you stabbed him. And he melted."

"Darial…" he repeats, looking thoughtful. "Is she your medic friend?"

Anika nods. "Yes."

"That's the one Hux is enamored with…" Ren says, his pacing restarting. Anika follows him with her gaze as he makes laps back and forth in front of the bed. "First her, and then you…"

"When she was acting weird, she kept asking me questions about you," she admits.

He stops again, eyes darkening intensely. "What kind of questions?"

"…If I was going to…Um. Sleep with you," Anika answers, having to look away from his narrowing eyes. Her cheeks warm with a blush. "She seemed like she was really pushing it, and mentioned how you were high up and powerful."

"That makes sense."

"It does?" she raises her eyebrows. On what planet does any of this make sense?

"Darial would be in a position to get information from Hux, as you would be in a position to get information from me," Ren explains quietly.

"Oh…" Anika swallows nervously before venturing the question that's been hovering in her mind. She almost doesn't want an answer, fearing the worst. Please, no… "Darial… I mean the real Darial, is she…?"

She can't bring herself to complete the question. She doesn't even want to say aloud the worst outcome, that her friend is dead. Ren's eyes turn sympathetic as he seems to understand what she's asking. He comes forward, kneeling in front of her to study her face. Anika tenses up at the sudden proximity, nervous to have the Commander so close to her while his eyes look so soft.

"I don't know. I'm sorry," he admits.

Anika drops her gaze, chewing at her lip in an attempt to not begin crying. What if Darial is dead? What if she's been dead, and I didn't know something was wrong? Why didn't I say anything after she was behaving strangely at the cantina, why didn't I-

"Stop," Ren says gently. Her breath catches when he reaches out, taking her hand in his. "We don't know much about their biology, or how they mimic the people they copy. But one of our top scientists thinks there might be a mental link, something that allows them to access memories or information."

Anika stares at her hand, looking small and weak in the vastness of his. While she's looking, Ren strokes her knuckles with his thumb. Slowly, once, twice. It reminds her of when she'd admitted she liked him, when she thought he was just a newbie radar technician. That was the first time they'd kissed… Something about the memory makes her squeeze his hand with hers. When she looks back up, his eyes are darkened with a mixture of emotion.

"If there's a mental link…" she muses quietly. Then…

"Then it's possible your friend is still alive," Ren confirms.

"If she is, we have to save her," Anika pleads, searching his gaze. "She's my only friend, and she's a really good person, and-"

"We'll do everything we can," he assures.

She's taken aback at just how tenderly he speaks to her, despite the fact that she's seen this side of him before. Matt had spoken to her like that, it was only Commander Ren who was always impatient and gruff. How strange that it was two sides to the same person. He acts so different when he doesn't have that helmet on…

"I'll go now and have the imposter taken into custody," he decides. He drops her hand, pulling her from her reverie.

She realizes she's been staring into his eyes for too long, and looks away quickly. "Jorran mentioned the head doctor in the medbay was acting weird too. You might want to grab him also," she suggests. "Do you think blob Darial will tell you if real Darial is still alive?"

"I doubt she'll cooperate, and I haven't had a lot of practice getting into their minds," the commander admits. "It's…difficult. Their mental framework is different from most species. But if I can break through, I could get something from her."

Anika nods. "If Darial's alive, she has to be somewhere on base still. If we even knew a general area to search…" she gives up, sighing.

"I'll have my Knights search the base," Ren offers, standing. "For now, I need you to stay here. They've targeted you, you can't be out on your own."

Anika looks around, frowning. "Don't I have my own quarters?"

"I'd prefer you be here, where I know you're safe. No one can access my suite without me," he insists, tone growing almost business-like. "I'll be back. Try to get some rest."

She nods, watching the commander retrieve his helmet and gloves and start for the hallway. "Wait!" she cries out, suddenly panicking.

Ren stops, giving her a questioning glance. Anika fidgets under his scrutiny, searching for a way to explain her sudden fear of him leaving. What guarantee does she have that the person walking back through the door will really be him? She's already terrified that she might have lost Darial forever. She doesn't want to lose…whatever he is to her, as well.

"How do I know it's you when you get back, Sir?" Anika asks finally.

He frowns. "You know, you don't have to call me Sir in private anymore..."

Anika gulps. Somehow, the prospect of not calling her commander Sir anymore makes her even more nervous. Perhaps because she's sitting on his bed while he blushes again, looking down sheepishly at the helmet in his hands. Who knew Commander Ren would blush so much…

"Um. What would you like me to call you in private?" she asks.

He shakes his head minutely, before raising his eyes to hers. She takes a quick breath at the guarded look he gives her. Force, he's pretty…

"Just Kylo is fine."

"So how do I know it's really you, and not another freaky, fake blob-you?" Anika pushes. The last thing she needs is to kiss another alien imposter pretending to be him. The thought nearly makes her gag.

"They can't use the force," Ren says after a moment, gesturing with his hand towards where she sits. The blankets that were left in a crumpled pile on the bed straighten, back into smooth layers on the mattress. "Therefore a fake me wouldn't be able to use it, either."

Great. I'll just demand you force juggle with your mind to prove it.

Night on Base

Anika can't sleep. She tried laying down on the couch, but couldn't seem to relax. Too much has happened in too little time. And some part of her is resistant to just taking a snooze in Kylo Ren's bed, even with what she now knows. Her brain can't stop running over every memory of her and Matt, trying to shove Kylo Ren into his place. Her experiences with Matt were nothing like what she would have imagined being around the Commander to be… Had he let his guard down when pretending to be a technician like her?

Her face feels hot as she realizes all the times she'd talked about Ren…to Ren. Kriff, I told him that I thought about him to get off. In detail. Her cheeks are scorching as she makes a miserable face. Only she would somehow get herself into this situation. She'd always had a knack for being oblivious, but this…this was next level.

Literally the only human being in the entire base that I talk about Commander Ren to…and he IS Commander fucking Ren. Brilliant.

Suddenly the absence of Matt's device from the hangar bay access log makes so much more sense. Did he even have a separate device for his "Matt" persona? Or had she been messaging Ren directly every time she thought she was talking to her fellow technician? Matt's sudden disappearances make sense now, too…

He might as well have slapped me in the face with his lightsaber. I can't believe I didn't figure it out…

Then again, who in their right mind would assume a lowly technician to secretly be the Master of the Knights of Ren, in a blonde wig? Anika has to admit she much prefers his natural hair color to the blonde. Though she might miss those oversized glasses. Somehow, they had looked adorable on him… Is it okay to call the commander 'adorable'?

Anika gets up from the couch, wandering randomly through Ren's quarters. The dizziness is abating enough that she feels steady on her feet as she explores. His quarters are fairly expansive, complete with a sitting room, a small dining nook, and a kitchenette off the hallway. It might even be nice, if it weren't for the fact that everything was in shades of black.

She opens his bathroom door, only to let her jaw practically hit the floor. He has a fucking tub!?

Never has a plumbing fixture looked so magnificent. It isn't just any tub, Anika nearly groans with arousal at the sight of it. It's a soaker tub, deep and glorious in its capacity for relaxation. She wants nothing more than to fling her clothes to the floor and dive into Ren's tub, especially after everything she's been through recently. But she resists, loath to make this entire bizarre experience any stranger by having Ren return to find her passed out in a bubble bath.

She forces herself to shut the door again, roaming out to the living area. There's a console near the hatch door that the cleaning droids must access the suite through. She approaches it, tapping her finger on the screen and waiting for it to load. Anika's surprised to see a…menu.

Not only does he get a tub, he also gets room service? She's been eating gruel and soggy sausages with the rest of the masses, while the officers and commander apparently get the gourmet treatment. Bullshit.

Anika swipes through the options, her eyes widening as she goes. No wonder he'd been so disgusted with cafeteria food. She chews at her lip, debating her options before selecting the special. If Ren had a problem with her ordering food to his quarters, maybe he could try some tranquilizers himself. She'd be happy to stab a needle of them in his ass, as some form of petty payback for the panic attack he gave her. He at least owes me dinner after lying to me for so long…

Of course, if she is being honest with herself, Anika has to admit she understands why he'd kept up the disguise. If he was undercover to discover who was secretly a blob, he couldn't just out himself the first time a girl kissed him. And yet, she can't help but feel cranky with him for his deception. Whatever, I can be petty if I want to be petty…

Later

The hatch opens, and a serving droid rolls through with her food on a fancy platter. It smells delicious, and Anika thanks the droid when she takes the tray from it. Only to scowl a moment later when she lifts the cover and sees…

"Mushrooms," she spits out the word like it's the worst swear word imaginable.

This has to be the universe telling me to go fuck myself. The food looks fantastic, except for the fact that her least favorite fungus friend is sliced and sautéed over the top of it. Anika grumbles under her breath, carrying the plate to the trash can to scrape off the offending topping. She'd actually enjoyed mushrooms in food, but that was before her nightmarish crash landing on their home world. I may never eat another mushroom again…

When she's thoroughly picked them off the meal, she curses as she plops down at the little dining table. The serving droid gives a sad dwooo-ing sound.

"It's not your fault," she reassures it, looking up to see it still hovering there by the hatch. Anika cocks her head however, noticing something odd when she looks at it more carefully. She abandons the meal to approach it, dropping down in front of its tread.

"What's that wired into your chassis?" she asks curiously, following the wire. It's hanging loose, clearly indicating either something unusual or poor maintenance.

The droid gives a series of beeps and whirs, and she drops her hand at what it says. "A camera!? Where?"

A moment later, and she's identified the device. It's been wired into the poor droid's battery, but she's able to get it loose without damaging its operating system. The camera is small, and as soon as she disconnects it from the droid, the light in the corner of its lens dies to black. What the hell…

Much Later

Anika deactivated the droid, keeping it and the camera to show to Ren whenever he returns. It's ridiculously late at night. Despite her best attempts to keep herself up waiting for him to come back, she's starting to yawn more and more frequently. She finally gives up, shuffling into the bedroom and staring at the black sheets on Ren's bed. Kylo's bed.

Anika sighs. Kylo. It's going to take some getting used to thinking of him that way. He is no longer her intimidating masked supervisor, nor is he her awkward but cute coworker. Now, he is some mish-moshed amalgam of the two.

She shuffles over towards the mattress, sitting at the edge. Nothing to see here. Just crawling into Commander Ren's bed…perfectly normal thing to do…She lays down awkwardly on her side, as close to the edge as possible. She can practically feel the indent where Ren must sleep, dead in the center of the bed. Wonder what he wears when he sleeps…

There's a mechanical noise as the door to his quarters slides open, and Anika jumps up so fast she tweaks a muscle in her side. She rushes towards the door, faltering to a stop when Ren rips the helmet off his head and hurls it into the wall of the living area. The black paneling is left dented, his helmet clattering to the ground. Uh oh... he is pissed...

The barrage of questions she was about to pepper him with suddenly seem less important, as Ren fumes, fists clenched. "We grabbed the medic, she's locked up now in interrogation. But we weren't able to catch the head doctor. He somehow got tipped off and is hiding out, somewhere on base. The Knights are searching for him," Ren snaps out.

"O-oh," Anika stutters nervously. He looks murderous, and she definitely should not find that as attractive as she does.

"I confirmed it is a blob impersonating your friend, but I wasn't able to break into its mind," he continues ranting. "I can try again in the morning-Why are you still up? It's 3 am and you're still recovering. You should be resting."

Her eyes widen at how quickly his voice changed from angry to concerned. Anika fidgets under his sudden, worried scrutiny. "I couldn't sleep."

Ren's brow furrows. "Do you feel okay? I can get another med droid in here."

"N-no, that's alright-"

"Why is there a deactivated serving droid in the corner?" he asks suddenly, and she follows his gaze to where the poor droid that brought her dinner is crumpled over.

"Oh! Right, I forgot. I ordered food, and the serving droid that brought it had a camera planted on it."

Ren's expression shifts right back to furious within a second. "A camera?"

Anika walks over to the table she'd left it on, holding it out to him. "This."

Ren snatches the small device from her hand, growling with irritation. "They failed to mimic you, so now they're going to attempt to spy on me. This just keeps getting better."

"It looks like they were using the droid to broadcast the signal, so-" Anika is cut off when Ren squeezes his hand, crunching the camera into pieces in his fist. Her jaw drops when he opens his fingers, releasing the broken bits in a shower onto the floor. …Please smash me like that…

Her cheeks redden at the depraved thought in her mind, as she drags her eyes away from the pulverized bit of technology. Surely that thought was just leftover from the mushroom toxin… Yeah, the mushroom toxin…that's it… Certainly not the fact that he is sinfully hot when he's angry.

"We'll have to find out who worked on that droid last in maintenance," Ren growls, yanking his gloves off and hurling them at the couch.

She nods, mutely agreeing.

"You should get some rest for tonight," Ren declares, grabbing a datapad off the table before letting himself drop heavily onto one of the chairs. "Tomorrow I'll see if we can get a track on the device the droid transmitted to."

"Right…" Anika agrees, hesitating. Perhaps she'd been foolish, but she had been hoping the imposter would confess if Darial was still alive. Now she just feels disappointed at the lack of news, and still worried for her friend.

He must sense her mood, because he looks up, expression softening. The anger fades from his features. "You look exhausted. Are you sure you don't need a med droid? Some sedatives might-"

Anika narrows her eyes, glaring at him at the suggestion. "I don't need sedatives. Or tranquilizers," she complains. "You can't just drug me every time I'm upset."

Ren, surprisingly, lowers his gaze. He almost looks self-conscious. "I apologized for that. But you were hyperventilating, and I don't want you to relapse. You were very ill not that long ago," he replies carefully.

Anika sighs. "I could use a drink. Maybe that'll help me sleep."

Kylo sits down the datapad, heading over to the kitchenette. She watches him curiously, surprised when he pulls a bottle of Tarisian ale from one of the cupboards. It's unopened, but he cracks the seal and pours it into a small tumbler.

She raises her eyebrow curiously when he hands her the drink. "Thanks…"

"Of course."

Anika takes a sip, examining Ren as he stares down, studying the bottle. He looks awkward, as if he's not quite sure what else to say or do with her here in his quarters. Then again, even as Matt he'd been a little awkward with the small talk, she thinks. She bites her lip, suddenly wanting to help put him at ease.

"Aren't you going to have some? Might help you to relax, too," she suggests.

But Kylo shakes his head slightly. "I don't drink."

Anika opens her mouth, about to ask why he would have a bottle in his room if he doesn't drink alcohol. But the thought fades as something much more urgent takes its place. Neither did blob Darial…

She takes a quick step back from Ren, followed by a second, suspicion blooming at the coincidence. He looks up, confused. "What's wrong?"

"I'm going to need you to use the force on something. Or take a drink," Anika demands cautiously. "Or preferably, both."

"What? Why? I'm not a blob," Kylo argues.

"That's exactly what a blob would say."

"Anika-"

"Kylo."

His first name alone sounds a little weird on her tongue, but she fills it with determination. She meets his disgruntled stare with challenging eyes, holding out her own glass. Please, please just drink it…

For a moment there's tense silence, but then he shoots his hand out to take the tumbler. Anika watches as he downs it in one gulp, shoving the empty glass back at her hand.

"And the force?" she presses.

Kylo's eyes narrow, and he holds his hand out. When he crooks his fingers in a beckoning motion, she slides forward. Anika's feet slip right across the shiny black floor, until she nearly falls forward at the loss of balance. He catches her before she tumbles into his chest, leaving his hands on her shoulders after she regains her footing.

"Content?" he demands quietly.

She looks up at Ren's face, swallowing heavily. His brown eyes flicker between hers, searching, his full lips in a terse line. Her own gaze can't stop twitching downwards, wanting to linger at his lips. Anika's palms feel sweaty, clammy with sudden nerves as she can feel something grow between her and Ren. There's a sudden tension as he holds her close, grip unrelenting. It reminds her of that night on his shuttle, when he'd attacked her mouth like a hungry animal.

"Fake Darial wouldn't drink with me," Anika rushes to explain. "Do you think that's a coincidence, or could it be a blob thing?"

Kylo is silent for a moment, long enough that she's beginning to really feel nervous. Her eyes dart again to his lips, remembering how gentle they'd felt in the storage room, and how brutal they'd been in the dark shuttle. I don't even know which I liked more…

"Let's find out," he suggests.