First Order Adventure- a Hux X Reader fic

Chapter 45- New Orders

            General Hux, despite being notoriously strict when it came to matters of order, was being noticeably stricter than usual, Elsie noted. She has assisted Hux plenty of times—and he had never said anything about her tinsel boas. They were made of a metallic tinsel material popular on Coruscant, which had a dark, almost holographic quality. It was a material popular with wealthy, Empire-adjacent aristocrats during the days of the Old Republic, which actually matched the First Order's uniform aesthetic quite nicely. And despite the pleasure Hux took in exerting power over others, Elsie knew the fashion of the First Order was not something he felt was necessary to criticize, unless it was explicitly distracting him.
            No, Hux didn't reprimand Elsie because he cared about her breaking uniform, but because he was nervous—nervous about dissension among the ranks, and nervous about whatever Kylo Ren had in store for him.         And if the Officers were going to accept [Y/n] back into their midst, Hux needed to be sure they knew who was in charge.
A few minutes later, the doors to the bridge opened once again—only this time, it was none other than Kylo Ren himself. The Officers fell in line, maybe a little more precisely than when Hux had.m, asked them to, and Hux adjusted his posture.
"Supreme Leader," he said, nodding.
            "General," Kylo replied casually—Maybe a little too casually.
            "What is it, precisely, that you requested my uninterrupted presence for?" Hux asked.
            Kylo made a face.
            "Your presence, General, is required because we are heading to the Outer Rim."
"The Outer Rim?" Hux questioned, thoughts racing a mile a minute "Where in the Outer Rim? For what purpose?"
Kylo only smiled.
"That information is need-to-know, General. And currently...as Supreme Leader...I have decided that you don't need to know."
Hux could feel the Officers below him giving each other looks. If everything hadn't been at stake, he would've given Ren a piece of his mind...
"Hmm... Alright then, Supreme Leader... I suppose I don't."
Hux was sure he heard a whisper that time...
            What were those Officers talking about?
"Set the course for sector 5 of the Outer Rim, and I will give you further instructions once we get there," Kylo continued, "but there has also been Resistance activity in the area, so keep your bridge team on high alert."
Hux looked down at his Officers, who stood up straighter than seemed humanly possible as they met his gaze.
Well, all except for Darley...
"Yes, Supreme Leader..." said Hux.
"We shall regroup later, once I have a clearer view of what needs to be done. Set the course."
And then, Kylo was marching out the door, dark cape swirling in his wake.
"Ren! Er— I mean—Supreme Leader!!! Wait!!" Hux shouted after him, as discreetly as he could, "May I have a word with you for a moment?"
Dramatically as ever, Kylo turned back again—his face stern.
"What is it, General?"
Hux felt those same Officer's eyes on him again. Normally, what underlings did didn't bother him.
            But this time, it made him nervous.
            He had to shake that...
"I need to speak with you...privately."
Kylo rolled his eyes.
"Since when did I ever care about what you need?"
"Ren I'm serious—"
"If it's about further battle plans, or strategy, we can discuss it during the High Officer's meeting later. Otherwise—"
"It's not about battle strategy, Ren, it's about..."
"You shall address me as Supreme Leader"
Jeez, Kylo was being difficult. More difficult than the usual level...which was high.
"Supreme Leader...it's about First Order business that we must discuss amongst ourselves."
"Just the two of us, General?"
Hux's breath caught in his throat.
"Y-yes Supreme Leader. Just us."
For a moment, it was clear Kylo was in deep thought.
"How secretive," he said finally, "You can do that later, after you finish bridge duty. I will send you a location you meet, and then you'll tell me whatever secret knowledge you have to bestow."
Hux shivered.
"Yes, Leader."
"And General?" Kylo said as he turned again to leave.
            "Yes?"
            "This had better be good!"
Hux swallowed hard.
"Yes, Supreme Leader."
And with the doors shut, Kylo was gone. Hux turned back to his Officers, and became strict all over again.
"You heard Leader Ren," he spat, "Set the course for the Outer Rim..."
"Yes, General!" The Officers sounded.
Hux glared at Darley:
"....and stand up straight. I need my officers to be perfectly obedient, and demotion has never been off the table. Understood?"
            Darley grimaced.
            "Perfectly."
And so, the Officers began plotting the course..