bakerstreet | OH BABY, IT'S A LONG WAY DOWN TO THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER

It was too much of a coincidence. She was far too powerful to be an untrained scavenger from a backwards desert planet. Kylo was a fool for not seeing it before.

"I have a feeling that depends on Skywalker."

If their suspicions about Rey were correct, then the change of leadership within the Knights of Ren wouldn't happen while she was "training" under Skywalker. But Snoke would not be beyond orchestrating the destruction of all of his foes at once - and watching another student betray his teachings would break the old Jedi Master. Kylo was sure of it.

"There's a strong possibility we may encounter him as well. And sooner than we'd like. Watch his movements. It may be the most reliable warning we'll get."

His brow creased a little at that, "You think he'll have her kill Skywalker and then you? Or bring Skywalker along to the convergence?" And his brow furrowed a little more deeply, "Or have the rest converge on Skywalker and the girl?"

That last one would be easier for their plan to succeed, because it would be unfamiliar territory for everyone involved, instead of giving Snoke and the nights a home-base advantage. And from what he knew, seemed like Snoke's sort of melodrama, to have Skywalker's newest student turn against him the same way Kylo had, and killing Kylo on top of it would just compound the issue, shatter the man instead of just breaking him.

The Force was not always clear to him, but the visions he had took place in Snoke's citadel, not in Resistance territory or the island he lifted from the girl's mind. And he was not fortunate enough to play the role of collateral damage in the exchange.

"I believe she is meant to lead Skywalker into a trap." he replied. He glanced down at his hands as he curled them into fists. Pain radiated down his left shoulder.

He wanted so badly to hope Supreme Leader would sense his desperation and offer him absolution from his failures if he was able to finally kill him. But he knew that his next summon would be for an execution, not a second chance.

"He is through with me. So he will crush me." he whispered, using his late father's own words. "In a way that will wound the last Jedi the most. But if we act at the right time... perhaps... Skywalker himself would be temporarily on our side..."

He nodded once, "In that case the plan remains the same." Which was to say that he would be going along with Kylo. Hux might not have had a saber of his own, but he had his well-honed ability to keep hidden -though doing so against multiple Force-users would be a strain- and a sniper's skill and precision. They knew, of course, that Kylo was far from the only one who could stop a blaster bolt in midair, but they would have surprise on their side.

Now, perhaps, they would also have Skywalker, though aside from adding further confusion to the situation, Hux wasn't entirely sure that was an advantage.

"At the very least, there may be a distraction that isn't..." Kylo's voice trailed off a little. The words stuck in his throat as the gravity of the situation truly hit home. "...that isn't my execution."

No sooner had he finished speaking, there was a chirp from Hux's datapad. Most of the lieutenants were hesitant to deliver any news to Kylo Ren by now, so they often let the General handle it. This time, however, they unknowingly did the opposite.

'We've received communication from the Supreme Leader requesting Lord Ren make contact with him immediately.'

"Make your preparations and wait for me on my personal shuttle." Whatever the Supreme Leader's actual orders were, he knew they would be leaving soon. The Force vision was too strong, and the feeling of dread in his gut far too real. "This is it."

His jaw tightened just briefly, but he nodded once. They'd known that they weren't going to have much time, but this soon was still a surprise, "Go then. Contact him and I'll meet you at the shuttle."

Luckily most of Hux's own plans were already in place and he just had to leave orders to have them implemented, which was easily done. Other than that he had to change clothes, leaving his greatcoat draped over the back of his desk chair, and collect his sniper rifle from where it was stored, and had been for the past few weeks in anticipation of having to leave quickly.

He approached the hangar with the gravity of the situation weighing down his every step. However, he managed to keep his unmasked face appropriately calm, for once. And he boarded his shuttle without a word to any of the surrounding personnel.

He knew Hux would be waiting for him, but he still found relief in the General's presence.

"Skywalker and the girl have teamed up." He relayed the obvious, quoting the Supreme Leader exactly. "The victory on Starkiller has made the Resistance arrogant, and with the last Jedi back among them, they seek to launch what they believe will be the final blow. I am to rendezvous at the citadel with the other Knights of Ren to ensure they do not succeed. And I am to inform you that I do not know when, past that point, I will return..."

Those were the orders he was to follow without question, and it was all too simple to read between the lines. He was being baited. Skywalker was being baited. Things were proceeding exactly as Kylo both foresaw and feared.

Fortunately, they would have nearly a day in transit, even at hyperspace, to finalize their strategy and make Snoke fall for his own bait.

"I don't imagine either of us will be returning quickly." He replied, which was if they even returned at all. It wasn't defection, really, they weren't going to go running off to join the Resistance, there was no point in it, the same as there was no point in staying with the tattered remains of the First Order.

No, if -when- they succeeded at this, they were moving on to something bigger, something better. Or at the least something else, no matter what it was they were going together, and that was the important part.

His weapon was already stowed, and he wasn't going to say where, just in case that knowledge leaked when Snoke rifled through Kylo's mind as he was bound to do. The same theory went for Kylo helping Hux imprint the Citadel's layout onto his mind but letting Hux pick his own path and his own vantage point to pick the rest of the Knights off from.

It was a sound strategy that Kylo wouldn't dare question. While he may have wished he could seal his mind off from the Supreme Leader, this was the master who taught him everything he knew about breaking through such barriers. There was very little he could hide should Snoke truly wish to pry. Instead, Kylo would have to give him every reason not to.

He would play the obedient part one last time. He would appear in denial of his fate in belief that he was still needed.

"It will be chaos down there..."

It was an ironic sentiment, given that their goal, at its core, was to bring order to the galaxy.

"...May the Force be with you."

"And may that chaos bring harmony." He replied, snaking a hand up against the back of Kylo's neck, drawing him in those bare few inches, brow resting against the other man's for a moment, Under normal circumstances that invocation would have been met with a snort of derision at best, but instead he just replied with a quiet, firm: "And with you."

He stepped back then, cocking his head towards the gangplank, "Go. Trust that I'll be there." He needed a few minutes to himself to be able to find the minds in the Citadel he should be masking himself from before he even left the shuttle.

He didn't quite follow Kylo's path to the throne room, but nearly so, knowing that Kylo's echo in the Force would make it easier to hide his own, veering off almost at the last minute to get to the vantage point he wanted, well out of visual line of sight of anyone in the room -at least he was hoping as much- and still keeping himself hidden in the Force, though he knew he wouldn't be able to hold onto it much longer, not with the way the headache was already starting to encroach.

Their foreheads moved as Kylo nodded. This was it. It was do or die (or possibly both).

There were no Knights of Ren to escort him to the throne room, but he knew the way by heart regardless. His strides were quick, but confident, and when he reached his master, he knelt before him.

"I came the moment I heard your message." he announced. "Skywalker and the girl..."

"Silence." The Supreme Leader bellowed, and Kylo's mouth clamped shut. "We have no time for pleasantries. Can you not feel them approaching now?"

He reached out with the Force, identifying with a shock that their shuttle was touching down right next to his. They had cloaked themselves from his instruments, and his mind had been too distracted to even consider...

"Just as expected. You are still weak!"

Four of his knights stepped out of the shadows.

"No!" Kylo shouted. "By the grace of your training, I will defeat them both here! I will prove to you that I am capable of..."

"Your fear betrays you! You know why you are here!"

"To protect you, Supreme Leader!" Kylo stuttered.

"To prove your worth!"

He felt Snoke's claws in his mind, and he instinctively tried to shut them out. He focused his mind on Skywalker, on the girl, on his failures - all strong, powerful thoughts and emotions that would mask Hux's presence at the citadel even more. Kylo didn't notice he was screaming until he heard Luke Skywalker, of all people, shouting, "Let him go."

The initial order of silence from Snoke was enough to have even Hux's jaw tightening even in the upper alcove he'd settled himself in. The tension only lasted briefly before he shook it off, reminding himself that if the man, the creature didn't know he was there, it couldn't control him, even by accident.

It only took him a brief moment to realized that the girl's presence unsettled the other knights more than Skywalker's did, and it was Skywalker's order that gave him the opening he needed. He fired off three shots from his current vantage point, one for each of the knights he could see -the fourth was behind one of the massive pillars- as he knew that firing directly upon the Supreme Leader would fail spectacularly. He didn't wait to see if any of the shots hit before he was moving, because he knew that if they hadn't, if they were stopped as Kylo did when he was shot at, he was going to have to take them again from a different angle.

His next vantage point was almost behind Snoke's immense throne, another shot for the Knight he hadn't been able to see before, and two for the girl. He wasn't ignoring the already growing chaos below as much as he was just not letting it distract him from what needed to be done.

The knights dared not intervene in the punishment of their master. They too had pledged their lives to the Supreme Leader and would follow his orders without question. It was highly probable that most, if not all, of them knew Kylo was to be replaced. However, it was possible that they did not know by whom. The appearance of their last knight, unmasked and at the side of Luke Skywalker was, therefore, quite a shocking sight.

Kylo, too, wasted no time. Even with his mind hazy with pain and his limbs trembling, he activated his lightsaber. He charged toward his former master and current rival with an angry scream, masking the sound of the blaster. .

It was chaos as well as shock that allowed two shots to make their mark. The third knight managed to see it coming, deflecting it with his hand and moving quickly to scout for the would-be assassin. From his new vantage point, Hux was able to pick off the fourth Knight of Ren.

"This is a pointless fight." Luke attempted to persuade. "I can sense the fear in your mind. You cannot fight both of us!"

Kylo's lightsaber vehemently disagreed.

He should have known, really, that firing on the girl would be nearly as useless as firing on the Supreme Leader, she hadn't deflected the bolts as the other Knight had done, but had caught them the way Kylo did, leaving them hanging in midair, buzzing like angry insects. She, unlike the others, was able to pinpoint his location easily, and while the ripple of sheer Force, like a seismic wave, she directed at him was enough to stagger him, it wasn't enough to knock him from his perch.

It did have him moving again, however, though what he was most aware of -aside from the fact that the girl and one other Knight still stood- was the fact that the Supreme Leader was laughing, a sick, rolling cackle that set Hux's teeth on edge, had the back of his neck prickling as if he was being watched.

Kylo focused on Rey, trying to keep her between himself and Skywalker. His former teacher was right. He couldn't fight both of them, not when he needed to save his strength for...

When she stopped the blaster bolt, his dread was palpable. He knew Hux's presence was out in the open. The Supreme Leader, even Rey, were simply toying with both of them. She scoffed at him, but he didn't catch the words.

"You are not through with me and will not be crushed!" He snapped, turning on his heels and brandishing his lightsaber against his own master. He pushed his closest assailant back, and reached out with the Force to shield him as he charged the throne.

Now, it was Skywalker's turn to be shocked.

Hux finally let go of his masking, there was no point in trying to stay hidden now, not if the girl knew where he was, and there was every chance that the Supreme Leader did as well, and if the revelation of another force-user in the area would be enough to surprise anyone, he was going to press that advantage.

He just had to get down there to actually be able to help. The girl threw another wave of raw Force ability at him -now that she knew for sure where he was- and that at least solved his problem of how to get down, because it had been enough to knock him off his feet, sending him skidding off the edge of the observation balcony he'd been lurking on.

He knew the landing was going to hurt, even if he caught himself with the Force, and he was braced for that, surprised to find that he had assistance from Skywalker, his landing still heavy, but not enough to do any real damage, and his warning of: "The girl is one of his!" was unnecessary, as Skywalker was already rounding on her which meant that they could keep each other busy and only left the remaining Knight between Hux and being able to assist Kylo.

He felt Rey on his heels, and what he once thought was untrained raw talent reaching out to seize him. It stopped just as suddenly, and Kylo glanced over his shoulder to find Skywalker turning on his new student. It was as if he knew, as if he'd always known, and had used her just as fiercely as she believed she was using him.

He didn't have time to ponder the treachery though, just take advantage of it. And the fact that the last knight was too much of a coward to come after him. (Hux, though, the weaker masked warrior thought he could eliminate with ease.)

"Kylo Ren!" The Supreme Leader bellowed. "You continue to disappoint me."

"Not for much longer!" He growled.

"No. Not for much longer indeed." The ancient being narrowed his eyes, staring into the mind of the failure-turned-traitor. Kylo tried to keep him out, engaging in a battle of willpower as each step became increasingly forced. What happened around him was inconsequential compared to what was happening just below the surface. "Kura Ren, kill Skywalker and the poor excuse for a General. It appears Kylo Ren is insistent upon dying by my hands alone."

Kylo's screams echoed in the chamber, but he had yet to fall this time.

Hux hadn't had much training, nothing formal at least, but what he had gotten was sufficient, and the fact that not only the remaining Knight and Kura Ren, but Snoke himself saw him as the lowest threat in the room was going to be their downfall, especially in the face of Kylo's fury.

It wasn't going to be easy, and Hux knew it, knew that even being underestimated, even with Skywalker's unexpected help, they would be lucky to get out of this unscathed.

Even despite the lack of lightsaber of his own, he was relentless in going against that last Knight, getting in under the arcing swings time and again until finally felling it with a vibroblade up under the jaw, not slitting its throat, but plunged into soft tissue and twisted mercilessly, following the body to the ground before ripping the blade free.

Kura, still fixated on Skywalker didn't seem to realize that Hux still survived, which was something else he was going to use to his advantage, just collapsing against the body of the Knight he'd felled, bringing his focus around to bear on Kylo instead. There wasn't much he could do to help, already racking his mind for anything he could do, finally just sending tendrils of his own ability across the raw scores Snoke had left in Kylo's mind. Not mending them, he didn't have that sort of power, but covering them over, a shield of sorts, not unlike the way he usually masked his own abilities, keeping anyone else from getting in.

A shield was just what Kylo Ren needed, and exactly what Snoke was not expecting. Hux was a master at hiding his own abilities, perhaps even better than Emperor Palpatine had once been. Having access to even a part of that gave Kylo an edge.

No longer paralyzed by Snoke's mental attack, he lunged forward. His lightsaber would have cleaved his master in half were it not for a force field that sprang to life around the Supreme Leader. Snoke simply laughed.

"Impressive." he cackled. "But a fruitless attempt."

Kylo stretched out his hand, tapping into all of his anger to pull apart the force field, but it wouldn't budge. Snoke didn't lift a finger in his own defense.

In the back of his mind, Hux could hear Kylo grunt, Is there a power source somewhere? Depending on how strong Hux's mental protection was, the other Force users in the room may or may not have heard it too.

If the increased shield was backed up by mechanical means and they could short that out, they might have a shot at weakening Snoke's defense enough for Kylo to break it.

Following the flow of energy was definitely something that Hux could do, and even with a heated duel going on to one side of him, and Kylo's simmering anger on the other, he could still map out the room by where the energy went and where it was coming from, he just needed a moment to concentrate, one that he wasn't sure he was actually going to get.

Which was why it was a surprise to have the quiet brush of Skywalker's voice against the back of his mind: 'She thinks you're downed, stay where you are and whatever you're doing, keep doing it, I'll keep her occupied.'

Hux was beginning to re-think his opinion of the Jedi Master's abilities, but stop holding himself quite so rigidly, if the girl thought he was dead, and Snoke was preoccupied mocking Kylo, they had a chance, even though Hux's own energy was nearly at its limit. He did, however, manage to find what he was fairly certain was the power source, practically right at Kylo's feet, humming away beneath the floor. He imprinted the location of it the same way Kylo had imprinted the Citadel's layout to his mind earlier.

Hux realized, dimly, that the throbbing pain behind his eye that had started with having to hide himself from so many active minds was back, and was worse, and only barely registered that his nose was bleeding before he passed out even despite his determination to see this through to the end.

Kylo felt the vague impression float through his mind, and then nothing. Silence. Naked vulnerability. The Supreme Leader didn't get the message, but he sensed Kylo's sudden shock.

"Hux!!"

Heartbeats felt like eternities. Lightsabers clashed behind him and one went flying. Kylo screamed as he shoved his own weapon through the floor as far as it could go before Snoke's taunt rang in his head. "Gone so soon?" And suddenly, just as abruptly, that mental shielding was back - but it wasn't coming from Hux. It was actually coming from Luke Skywalker.

"You shall not interfere!" Snoke actually rose from his throne, intent on destroying the Jedi master himself.

But Kylo was there, seeing only red. Passionate rage fueled every muscle in hs body. His saber tore through stone and back out again, piercing Snoke's defenses and cleaving him apart.

Hux was still alive, just utterly burned out. While he'd been very well taught to do one thing with his powers -hide them- he hadn't really been taught anything else, and while he had the ability to do everything he'd done, he didn't have the training to know how to properly cycle the power he'd been using and had ended up blowing himself out like a fuse in a power surge.

He'd be fine, or fine enough, as long as he got a chance to recover.

Kylo would be unbelievably thankful for that. But at the moment, what he preceived as the death of his comrade just fueled his rage. No sooner had the Supreme Leader's body fallen from that throne, Kylo turned to face the others.

Luke was kneeling beside Hux's body. Kura Ren was going after her fallen lightsaber. Kylo shoved both of them into the stone wall so hard that it actually cracked.

"Don't touch him!!" He screamed at Skywalker, but kept his attention primarily on the woman he met as Rey. "And you... You tricked the wrong Knight!!"

Luke's abilities only went towards cushioning himself so that no bones broke upon impact, and he managed that much, though the pressure was still enough to knock the wind out of him.

Kura, on the other hand, hadn't even managed that, too focused on getting ahold of her weapon again, and something, more than one something by the sound of it, crunched when she hit the wall, though that didn't stop her from snarling at him like a feral animal, spitting blood a moment later as she replied: "But it was so easy to do."

"I should have killed you on Starkiller!" He growled, closing the distance between them in large angry strides. "But I won't be making THAT mistake here!!"

Hand outstretched, he gripped her body with the Force. Hux was laying there dead. She deserved no mercy, nor the ability to even move to defend herself.

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