Taking Command Book 2 (Kylux)

Chapter 15: True Suffering

Hux PoV

Kylo had been gone for hours now. There was no sight or sound of him. There were no sounds of commotion in the forest either. I started getting worried. Kylo should have been back by now.

I got up from the leafy ground and made sure I had my blasters. Then, I set off to find where Kylo had gone.

I followed where I had seen him disappear into the woods to get firewood. There were no signs of him. Against my own wishes, I did not call his name. Alerting potential enemies or predators to my presence was far from prudent.

Instead, I lurked around trees and skulked my way through the woods. I found a definite sign of Kylo's presence about five kilometers away from my starting point. What was more disconcerting was the pile of sticks on the ground. I walked a little bit farther to find footsteps leading to the area where the kindling laid. There were steps going back for the one who had gone to the area, but none for Kylo.

He had been captured. I knew it. I also knew what I had to do. I could not do anything other than this, even though I knew what would happen to me if I did so. I was going to find Kylo. I set out following the footsteps leading farther away from the campground.

As I walked, I replayed in my mind the scene before he had left. I knew I should not, that it was morbid and would not help matters, but I could not help it. I replayed in my mind the fact that I had not told him that I loved him and the fact that I had not even wished him safety. I knew that it would not have helped him in the long run, but I still felt responsible.

I finally found a sign of habitation after almost three hours of nonstop walking. I saw a speeder bike parked outside of a cave. I heard screams of pain coming from the inside of the cave. It was Kylo. My heart dropped into my shoes as I quietly ran to the mouth of the cave, drawing my blasters as I did so. I peered around the opening and saw Kylo curled up on the ground, gasping for breath, remnants of blue electricity emanating from his body.

"You will regret betraying me. That is guaranteed, but you will regret even more not telling me where the other traitor is!" Snoke yelled, firing another blast of lightning into Kylo who did his best to roll to the side. He still got hit on the shoulder and cried out in pain.

"I won't tell you where he is. You will not touch him!" Kylo gasped through clenched teeth. "If he has any sense he will be long gone by now. He will realize what has happened. I have faith that he can disappear." His eyes flicked in my direction. I choked back an outburst or sob. He knew I was there, and he was trying to tell me to get out.

I wanted to run, more than anything I wanted to run, but I could not. I would not let Kylo die here, tortured to death by Snoke. I drew my blasters in one smooth movement and let out at least a dozen rounds at Snoke.

"Sorry, Kylo, but I can't leave until I rescue you." I said, stepping into view. "You see, like the Naboo man said. We are one now, meaning that you can't go off and die and face your mentor without me." I knelt by him and tried to get him to his feet. He stumbled, and I caught him.

"I... You can't....." Kylo was struggling to articulate as he endeavored to stand. "Get out of here." He murmured before collapsing to the ground in a heap of shredded clothes and burnt skin.

"Kylo?!" I yelled, horror shooting through me. If he was dead I would be beyond distraught. I removed a glove and put my finger to his neck. I could feel a faint pulse. I sighed in relief.

"How adorable," Snoke's voice echoed ominously through the chamber. "It's touching to see how much you care for him, and it is a pity that you did not care enough about the well being of the First Order to leave him alone and keep to your own duties." He spat out the last half of the sentence.

"Why?!" I shouted, all my anger and fear flowing through me like a conduit. "Why did you harm him?! Why wouldn't you just let us stay together?!" I was furious, I wanted to hurt him. "We would never have plotted against you if you had not kept us apart!"

"You stood in the way of Kylo's rise to power! The Sith could have once again ruled the galaxy!" Snoke shouted back at me, drawing his lightsaber. "You were just a tool, good General. That's all you were. And now, you will both regret your betrayal. You'll die soon enough, but I will make these final days the darkest days of both of your lives. You will know what true suffering is." He grabbed me with the Force and pulled me towards him. And then it all went dark as his hand came into contact with my face.