Force Destiny

Kylo's Plan

"General Hux!"

The general's face appeared from the holovid projector. He cleared his throat nervously as he waited for Kylo to issue his command.

"Yes...Supreme Leader."

"Have your troops had success locating the Resistance?" Kylo knew he shouldn't attempt to undermine the general. He knew he needed him as an ally, but he more desperately needed a distraction. The reemergence of the bond had created a nagging curiosity in the back of his mind, one he didn't want to ponder. Arguing with his subordinate was far less destructive than destroying his quarters with a lightsaber.

"We believe they have fled to a planet on the outer rim. They are of little consequence now. Our flotillas have seized control over more systems as we speak. My army will..."

Your army?

"Your army of traitors and incompetent slaves?" Kylo sneered through gritted teeth. His disdain was evident, as was his general's. He knew it was a sore point of contention between them, but he continued to prod it.

"I will have you know, my father..." Hux began, but Kylo promptly interrupted him.

"Your father recruited the top of the class at the academy on Arkanis. They were strong, capable and loyal, as much as men of free will can be. But what you have done... you have enslaved children. You have indoctrinated them with propaganda, but that does not make them an impermeable unit. You are more foolish than I had previously assumed if you believe that servility prevents betrayal. We need to begin developments of a clone army; a clone army would be more efficient."

Kylo suppressed a smirk as Hux's face pinched in contempt. "You are impossible to underestimate, Ren."

"And you're wasting my oxygen, General."

"Open a holobook for once and read imperial history, before presenting your illogical desires for another clone army as some homage to your grandfather," Hux spat. "The clone armies failed due to their genetic weakness. Biological weapons can easily destroy an army that shares the same DNA."

Kylo's anger seethed. He knew he was losing control over his volatile emotions and would likely regret it later, but he wouldn't stand for Hux's insubordination. "You want a historical holobook? Which one?" he began summoning thin, crystalline boards from an archive shelf in his quarters. "Pre-Republic Era?" The cerulean glowing holobook crashed into the wall, shattering as he threw it at Hux's image. "Expansionist Era? Great Manifest Period?" He shoved them at the projection with aggressive force. The general sighed. "No? Indecta Era? Kymoodon Era? Pius Dea Era? Ductavis Era?" Each holobook fractured as it hit the wall. "Rianitus Period? Subterra Period? Manderon Period? No? Post-Manderon Period?"

Irritation fractured through Hux's haughty and calm facial expression. "Old Sith Wars? Inter Sith Wars? Draggulch period? Fall of the Republic era? Ah, here is your favorite: Imperial period," Kylo mused, examining them for a moment, before throwing them at the projection as well. "Or what about this one, Hux? This one is a bit more specific. The Clone Wars. Years 22 to 19 BBY. Why don't you take a look at that!" The general rolled his eyes at the shattering sound of more destruction at the hands of the Supreme Leader. "If you had bothered to read any of them, you would know that there have always been armies, because there have always been wars. There will always be wars! Enslavement and indoctrination of armies is no new concept, Hux; let there be no mistake about that. I would rather have an army whose sole weakness is a genetic susceptibility to biological weapons than an army with the weakness of potentially overthrowing the very leadership that commands it. An infallible army is what the First Order needs..."

As the rage simmered, Kylo remembered himself. He straightened, tempering his breathing.

"I know what the First Order needs... Supreme Leader," Hux growled.

Kylo slowly paced the floor, his hands behind his back, restraining himself from lashing out at the general again. He knew he had to maintain the upper hand with Hux, so he struggled to regain control. "Then you agree that the First Order and the civilizations we rule over require stability to progress. The army is the First Order's fist, used to crush anarchy. We need a strong hand of law. Clones obey the commands of the law. They are impartial. They ensure order. Anarchy, created by traitors like FN-2187, breeds disorder. If we wanted disorder, we could have remained under the stagnant, unstable, weak Republic. They were easily overtaken by their enemies because they could not maintain law. Without order and stability, you have no law. Your army is an infection on the underbelly of the First Order. Treason and mutiny breed in their ranks. That is not what the First Order needs."

The general was silent, his face reddened in anger. He swallowed his immediate reaction. "My army has its grasp in every star system in the galaxy. We will find them. And don't underestimate me, Ren. I have taken precautionary measures to protect the First Order from mutiny and betrayal."

"Ah, and what are those, Hux?"

"I will not bore you with the intricacies of forming an impermeable military unit, Ren, as you know little of how a dominant military is actually operated. Though I will have you know, I have taken great care to install certain redundancies. A mutiny inside my destroyer is impossible. The stormtroopers cannot access any of our systems. I have security cams everywhere. Someone is always watching your every move." His tone insinuated that his statement was a warning...or a threat directed at Kylo.

Perhaps I should create my own redundancies.

"The possibility of a mutiny from another ship has also been eliminated. The Finalizer has master control over the computer systems of our entire fleet. If one of our destroyers attempts to commit mutiny, I can lower their shields and disable their internal weapons and defense systems. They would be defenseless against our counterattack. Do not underestimate me, Ren. I cannot be betrayed!"

Careful, Hux, those were Snoke's last words before I cut him in half.

"And my army is everything that a clone army could not be. We have outgrown the capabilities of the Empire. Their clone army was outdated and weak. My army will fight for our cause because they believe in it. They will search every star system until that ship is found; I promise you that, and then they will destroy them all, because they are the real power behind the First Order!" Kylo was pleased that they were not having this conversation in person, as he was positive spit was flying out of the other man's mouth in his frenzied state. Ignorant fool. He chose to drop the subject with him; the general was too blinded by pride in the army he created to appreciate their weaknesses. Having lost interest in arguing with his subordinate, Kylo extended an overture of truce.

"There is an easier way," he said. "You can track them, General."

"Ren – Supreme Leader – We do not have the capability of tracking them through hyperspace! In the aftermath of Crait, we were unable to track their trajectory, and their ship does not have –" Kylo's composure had been worn down by his condescending tone. Who do you think you're talking to! He slammed his hand on his desk, the Kriin-wood fracturing under his palm from the Force released.

"We do not need your technology, General! They escaped on the Mil... on a Corellian YT 1300F Light Freighter...Han Solo's ship. The Girodyne SRB42 sublight engines were modified, yielding multiple transponder codes. That makes it almost impossible to identify and track."

The general was quick to interrupt. "Exactly, which is why –"

"Unless," Kylo said, staring at his subordinate conspiratorially as he walked around his desk, "you've worked on that piece of garbage, and you can recite every single one of those codes by memory."

Hux grinned in understanding.