Off Record

Chapter 1

Hux honestly doesn't know whether he's looking forward to or dreading the immanent confrontation he's currently striding down the corridor towards. On one hand, if the ship damage reports he's still signing off paperwork on are anything to go by, he's walking into a shitstorm. On the other, Ren's absence from the tactics meeting provides him the opportunity to criticize Kylo's complete lack of discipline, if only implicitly, as well as to question exactly why the ship, his ship, once again looks like the ripped-up chew toy of a particularly large, exceptionally stupid dog. Honestly, the knight's behavior earlier that morning seemed out of place and erratic, even by Ren's standards. He had been known to use the Finalizer's nearly priceless console tech as a saber punching bag in the past, but only after a particularly harsh training session with the Supreme Leader or a failed mission. Today, however, he was indiscriminate between trooper blasters and overhead light fixtures, among other things, all of which had burst suddenly at his abrupt, unprovoked shrieks, according to witnesses. 

Hux doesn't know what to make of it, but he's definitely not surprised. How is he supposed to bring order to the galaxy along side a man who does nothing but wreak havoc, even within the confines of something as relatively small as his command ship? Hux reaches Ren's door and knocks curtly. No response. He waits, sighs, and knocks again. Ridiculous Hux thinks, entering the override codes to Ren's private quarters without hesitation. His location doesn't register on Hux's Padd, so he must be here. The lights are down, and for a second Hux considers the possibility that Ren is off board. Then, he hears it. Faint, raspy breaths keep an unnaturally slow but steady rhythm. Hux exercises restraint and stops himself from rolling his eyes for his own safety. Vader wannabe. He's not in the mood for this melodramatic nonsense.

"Ren, the tactics meeting you failed to attend was mandatory." Aside from the wheezing, Hux is met with uncharacteristic silence. "I've come to brief you, as it is imperative for you to know this information if the First Order is to continue on track." He pauses, still void of a response. Perhaps this is a tactic meant to unnerve him, he muses. If he knows Ren, though, his co-commander won't be able to keep his mouth shut for long. "Don't expect this every time you decide to display your astounding lack of responsibility. I'm not your babysitter, Ren." The breath doesn't so much as pause, and Hux is beginning to feel genuinely disarmed. He's done playing games. "Lights full capacity!" he snaps. The lights flash on, and all at once Hux is standing before a scene so bizarre his hand jerks toward his blaster on instinct from sheer surprise. 

He is instantly grateful for the breathing that irked him before; without it, he would believe what he's found to be Ren's corpse. The Knight lies unnaturally still, sprawled between tangled black bed sheets. Force knows how, but he's managed to turn shades paler than his usual lily white, drained of all signs of life besides his heaving chest and the rattle that accompanies it. Hux orders an emergency medical droid before taking another step forward. Then, he's beside the bed, resting two figures firmly against Ren's carotid artery. Hux is caught off guard yet again, this time by the burning heat of Ren's skin. Just below that, he can feel the flutter of Ren's heartbeat, so rapid he doesn't even bother to count it. Now that he's closer, he notices the sweat beading along Ren's hairline, the sunken purple circles under his eyes, and the red chapped skin along his damp nose. Hux wills his brain to process this. Force users, he remembers, are resistant to disease. An ill Ren is not an impossibility, but it would have to be a hell of a strain. Hux removes his hand at once and takes several steps back. Poison, he realizes, is still on the table. He finds himself actually hoping that he's been exposed to some godforsaken plague instead of having walked in too late on the assassination of Snoke's greatest asset. His Padd sounds a soft alert; the med droid has arrived outside the door. Thank Force! Ren remains unresponsive, even through the poke of IV and blood sampling needles. "Report diagnosis!" Hux barks.