[open/closed]

[therewillbeorder]

WHO: Armitage Hux & various
WHERE: various places
WHEN: April 7th- 14th
WHAT: training, board games, etc
WARNINGS: mentions of spoilers for TLJ, etc



i. closed to ahsoka tano

He was fairly sure her last blow was going to leave a good bruise on his side but he managed to stay on his feet nonetheless. It was only when she suggested that they take a break did he finally lower the wooden practice sword that she had given him for their practice.

It was early in the morning so they had the park to themselves which was ideal for their training despite the chill in the air. He set the practice sword on the nearby bench as he looked at Ashla. He didn't know a great deal about her aside from that she clearly was trained very well in lightsaber combat. Her movements were precise and practiced.

"So where were you trained?" He wasn't going to beat around the bush. Given what information he had found out about her, she seemed to be from around the time the Jedi Order existed or shortly after it. However, he had a feeling she was something different than a Jedi.

ii. closed to kylo ren

"I can't believe there isn't a Death Star or...something."

He frowned as he looked at the board in front of him. This game was primitive and simplistic after he had spent almost a lifetime conquering entire star systems but given they were stuck on this primitive backwater planet, they just had to make do with a simple board game.

"Otherwise I could just take out Australia from orbit which would wipe out a significant portion of your forces." He had never heard of Australia before now but the thought of destroying an entire continent wasn't exactly something he would mind. It wasn't as if he had heard of Australia before today anyway.

iii. open: de chima- around the city

As busy as he was, errands were a necessity. He often spent late afternoons around the city, it helped clear headaches after long meetings earlier in the day.

He also had several projects that he was working on that meant needing to get supplies. It's totally normal to be buying jeweler's tools and other bits of electronic tools and equipment, right? Oh yes.

Feel free to run into him around town doing his totally normal, not at all odd errands as he downs the large coffee he always seems to have in hand.

iv. closed to ash

"Alright, I believe you have my accent down. Have you been studying the history of the galaxy I sent you?" He sat on the couch, leaning back with legs crossed as he looked at Ash standing before him. With what he had planned later, he needed to know that the droid would be prepared for what he had planned. The last thing he needed was the rebels suspecting that he was anywhere else and trying to find him.

"And I assume you have a working knowledge of important planets and systems, as well," he added as he raised his eyebrows with a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Remember, if you win this game there is a prize in it for you."

v. wildcard

[live on the wild side, choose your own adventure. feel free to hit me up at illuminations if you want a prompt of your very own.]

Comments

iv

[subroutined]

Ash stood with his back to Hux, spine straight, engaging the "Empire" protocols, as he's come to label them, adjusting his tie in the mirror. He caught Hux's eye in the reflection, and turned. The movements were still a little too stiff, a little too precise, but he carried himself with more confidence now that he'd been under Hux's careful tutelage. He could probably fool anyone who wasn't looking too closely.

"I have. The Core Worlds are where the wealth and power lies. Coruscant, Corellia, Chandrila, Hosnian Prime. Well. Formerly."

His voice, too, had taken on a more confident air. Not haughty, but formal. Close enough to Hux's that Ash thought he had a chance at winning the little game they'd set up.

"I can do it. I'm sure I can."

He wasn't sure, could never be one hundred percent sure of anything he did, but the Hux persona would be sure. So he was sure.

[therewillbeorder]

"Good. I have every confidence you'll win this game," he said pleasantly. No one in the Rebel Alliance or Resistance had spent any significant time with him, he was sure that little things would go unnoticed.

"And why was the New Republic destroyed?" He had to make sure Ash knew this information backward and forwards. It was more than memorizing facts and dates, he wanted to make sure Ash could convey his own attitudes and repeat the correct vocabulary.

[subroutined]

Ash frowned, contorting his face as though he'd just seen something truly disgusting. "The New Republic was corrupt. They spread chaos and disorder throughout the galaxy. Things will be better, with them gone."

Or so the histories Hux gave him said. K-2SO said something slightly different, but as Ash had told the other robot, Hux was his friend. K-2SO was not.

[therewillbeorder]

"Tilt your chin up a little bit more when you talk about the New Republic. Remember, they are beneath contempt, nothing better than a festering rot. You are the embodiment of the best of the old Empire and the future of the First Order," he instructed as he watched Ash.

"We need to go over known members of the Rebel Alliance and the Resistance. You need to know what they are capable of, even here."

[subroutined]

Ash corrected himself instantly, raising his chin and narrowing his eyes. Hux's words seemed a bit harsh, but he supposed it was normal, in a war, to really hate your enemies. And what Hux had said about the New Republic did sound fairly awful.

He turned and began a slow pace across the living room floor, clasping his hands behind his back as he recited the names of the enemies he'd been given.

"In terms of the Resistance, there are only two known members present: Poe Dameron, and FN-2187. The former is a pilot, who made an ill-guided attempt on your life and tried to trick TK-622 by impersonating an Imperial officer. He is dangerous, charismatic. The latter, a stormtrooper who defected and joined the Resistance." He paused in his pacing, looked down for a moment. Then revised himself. "A traitor."

i

[ashla]

So much for Fulcrum being on top of information, right? She still hadn't heard about the Hosnian System or what he had done, but then again, she had been keeping her head down for some time now. There were too many things she didn't know about and too many people from home from the wrong timelines.

Perhaps she should get out more. Break her routine. And she did have a daily routine now. She would get up far too early in the morning, come out here to run and train a bit with Hux, out in the park. She would then head to her favorite coffee shop, get loaded up on Caf and Sugar, and then either go to the Ink Parlor or to NeoJedha, depending on the day. From there, running again, and.... home. Alone.

How sad was it that she actually liked mornings best?

Moving to take a seat on her laid out sweater, she stretched as they took their break, a brow raising at the question. "Mmm, the Jedi Academy." She said, deciding that, though she was in Ashla's form, she hadn't been hiding that she was Force sensitive. "And my Master. I think I learned a great deal from him, even if my style differs greatly."

A faint smile pulled at her lips. She needed to bother Anakin more, while she could. Perhaps losing Obi-wan had kept her from trying to open up more to Anakin as well.

[therewillbeorder]

He assumed that Ren was aware of what Force users were present and so far she hadn't posed any kind of threat. If she was a Jedi, she certainly didn't act like one. There was none of the typical arrogance, at least.

"Who was your Master?" he asked, curious as he took a seat opposite of her. He was going to be sore later but he didn't care. The bruises would heal, these sessions helped him keep in shape since he wasn't walking several miles on his star destroyer per day anymore.

"You don't refer to yourself as Jedi though," he pointed out. He was aware he was prying but it was too intriguing for him not to comment on.

[ashla]

Look, not all Jedi were arrogant! Though she could admit that there was arrogance in a lot of them, to the point that it became their downfall. Not a topic she cared about.

Still, sitting there, looking over at him, she considered for a moment to not tell the truth or... do so? Perhaps it didn't really matter here, and she wasn't ashamed of her Master. At least not here. Even back home it wasn't shame but heartache.

"I believe you know him. Anakin Skywalker. He was my master until I left the order." Which also answered the next comment. Blue eyes turned to look at what she was doing, which was reaching out to her feet and stretching more. You should stretch too, in order to keep from being too sore later. "If I were still a Jedi, I would refer to myself as such, but as I decided to leave, it is best for me to leave the title behind."

[therewillbeorder]

He nearly responded to her advice before stopping at her mention of Anakin's name. He had never heard of her from Anakin but then again he was still getting to know the man.

"You were Skywalker's padawan?" he asked, not hiding his surprise. Though, if he thought about it, he could see how Anakin would be a good instructor. He had seen Anakin training with Ren and he had been patient with Hux, even allowing himself to be burned in the process. It was still strange for him to try to reconcile that Anakin Skywalker was the same person who would become Darth Vader in the future.

"Why did you leave? From what I know, padawans are trained to be loyal to the Jedi from an early age so it must have been something significant that made you walk away," he pointed out. He had learned about the Order from his father who had used the Jedi training program as the basis for the First Order's training program. As horrible as the Jedi had been for the galaxy, there were still things that could be learned from them.

iii

[jadus]

Alchemy is not undertaken without preparation. Ideally, a world of proper temperament would be selected. Artifacts of power were required, or else one began the arduous process of bending the universe to agree: your will demanded an object's importance.

This was no ideal world, and there were no ruins to plunder. And yet some measure of alchemical endeavor was still possible. Experimentation was required. And raw materials still had to be gathered. Without agents at his disposal, he would do so himself.

A Sith Lord in a consumer electronics store is certainly not normal. But he is there. Any time another shopper draws too close, the sensation of his aura causes them to accelerate away from him to escape the discomfort, like a comet flung from a star system's gravity well.

A shrink-wrapped memory stick detaches itself from a rack next to Hux, floating sedately across the aisle and coming to rest in Jadus' hand. Woefully insufficient specifications, but he would adapt.

[therewillbeorder]

Well, that was something. He followed the object to the Sith Lord, pausing as he took in the man's appearance.

Mask...lightsaber. Granted, Hux knew little of the actual differences between Jedi and Sith but he had a feeling this was not one of the Jedi. He glanced at the lightsaber again- that was a clear indication that they were at least from the same galaxy but most likely not the same timeline.

"So what are you?" he asked, deciding to be direct. Perhaps he should have been warier- he had grown up on stories about the terrifying and mysterious Sith Lord Darth Vader- but he refused to be intimidated by anyone anymore. If he was going to be Palpatine's successor he had to prove that he could face down a Sith if he had to.

[jadus]

A face he'd seen as he made a first skim of the archives. "General Armitage Hux." Anti-Jedi sentiment. Claims of a dominion held that the search had not yet corroborated. Possessed a blaster and a datapad.

And death. Like echoes of a grand choral finale.

He ignored the question. "How many died at your command?"

[therewillbeorder]

"Actually, it's Supreme Leader Hux now," he corrected without hesitation.

Yes, he liked the sound of that. He had only been able to say the words silently for so long that being able to speak them aloud and with confidence made him feel as if it were really true. It was true here at least.

"Billions." He didn't flinch when he answered, there was no shame in his voice or expression. "They call me the Destroyer of Worlds."

ii

[photophobic]

"If you fired on Australia, wouldn't that make the entire planet uninhabitable?" He asked lightly, amused- there was a particular expression that found its way onto Hux's face whenever he contemplated using superweaponry that Kylo couldn't help but be strangely fond of- here, at least, where it wasn't actually something he could do.

"You'll have to face me in battle instead."

[therewillbeorder]

"Depends on what weapon I decided to use and the magnitude of the blast," he said thoughtfully as if he was really weighing the options before looking up at Ren.

"I suppose I do," he said with amusement as he idly rolled the dice in the palm of one hand. Ren had held his own so far but it was clear to Hux that Ren was definitely not Supreme Leader material. Military strategy was not his strength. "What would you do if I cornered you in Australia and Southeast Asia?"

[photophobic]

"Personally?"

He smiled, looking down at the board for a moment before locking eyes with Hux.

"I would seek you out, cutting my way through whatever forces you put against me, and destroy you. But there doesn't seem to be a game mechanic for that, either."

[therewillbeorder]

"Oh?" Hux rolled the dice without any warning, hoping that Ren wasn't using his abilities to manipulate them.

"Well, then you'll just have to.... conquer me and destroy my forces," he said as he picked up his cards and looked over the board, biting his lip slightly as he looked at Ren from the corner of his eyes. "That is...if you're able to," he added as he moved his pieces closer to Ren's territory with amusement.

errands!

[cleptes]

Hux is not the only person running around De Chima on an errand run. Bela is out and about this afternoon, looking for supplies to apply finishing touches to her new store location. It has been a lengthy and tiring experience, but with help from others and a lot of hard work, Bela is almost ready to re-open Herodotus Antiques.

She just needs to buy some paint.

Which is why Bela finds herself in a hardware store thirty minutes before closing, hurriedly looking around for the perfect colour to match in with the look of her shop. In her haste, Bela had forgotten to take a picture for reference, so anyone who came across her would find Bela grumbling to herself and saying something along the lines of 'all of the colours look the bloody same.'

[therewillbeorder]

He hated that he had to basically find a primitive way to build a workspace that would be suitable for his projects. He would never be used to how backward the technology was but at least it gave him a chance to set up something that was to his specifications and without interference.

He wrinkled his nose as he put down a power drill, not sure why the natives here just didn't use droids. It was far more efficient but here he was, looking at something that could be used for his project. He had his list opened on his datapad as he walked through the store, mentally ticking off items that he needed. It wasn't until he turned a corner, nearly going back when he realized he wandered into a paint section (labs did not need paint, that would just be distracting) before he recognized her. He looked up, raising his eyebrows.

"That's blood orange. A bit bright."

[cleptes]

Bela glanced over at the source of the voice, immediately wondering why Hux would be in a hardware store of all places. He must have had a good reason for it.

"Definitely too bright for my tastes." She was aiming for a striking colour, but nothing that would hurt the eyes of her customers. "I need something more subtle." Bela picked up the pot of paint next to it, inspecting it for a few moments before putting it down.

"I know I could've hired someone to help me choose colours and the design of my new shop location, but I decided that my money could go elsewhere."

She hoped that the amount of investment she put into everything would pay off in the long term.

"Any suggestions on colour?"

[therewillbeorder]

"Interior decoration wasn't something taught in my training," he remarked, raising his eyebrows. He just knew he would never paint anything so bright, it was so distracting.

"So it's not exactly something I have any interest in," he added. He had no intention of painting the lab space he was setting up, the last thing he needed was a distraction or something that would throw off the results of what he was trying to do.

the coffee shop where hux gets that giant coffee maybe?

[kanyounot]

"...and one of the scones. The orange and cranberry one," Kanan requests, carefully counting out money. He's not bothered with the mask today, just visiting his De Chima friends and needing a bit of a Caf fix. And also pastries, because pastries are awesome.

As he turns from the counter with his purchases, someone rushing along bumps into him, knocking the scone out of his hand. "Oops -" he says, and the pastry halts, midair, halfway to the floor, so that Kanan can snatch it up. "No harm done," he says cheerfully, waving off the guy's apologies. "Sometimes it's good to slow down a bit, though," he adds a bit of advice there, because Jedi gonna Jedi.

[therewillbeorder]

He had ignored the blind man in line while checking his emails on his phone. When he made his order at the counter, the clerk seemed rather concerned when Hux ordered a large coffee with five shots of espresso. Black, no sugar, no cream.

He only looked up when someone bumped into Kanan, making no move to help especially as he saw the pastry halt in midair. It didn't take him long to recall that Ren had mentioned a random blind Jedi though Hux hadn't asked for details. This seemed to be that Jedi and Hux wrinkled his nose slightly as he looked at Kanan.

"Is it the Jedi way to go around lecturing people?" he asked as soon as the other guy went on his way.

[kanyounot]

Interesting. A cold voice, that. Cold, and condescending. Knows enough to recognize a Jedi - or perhaps has seen him on the network, since Force knows, Kanan hasn't been secretive about himself.

So knows about Jedi, but clearly doesn't like them, and wants him to know it.

"You think that was a lecture?" he asks, unable to stop himself from chuckling. Ezra could tell him that wasn't even close. "I'd never waste a good lecture on a total stranger."

[therewillbeorder]

"I suppose that is how you normally talk then. I've noticed that's a trend with Jedi." Granted he had only met...two but both were insufferable so he figured he could assume it was something all Jedi had in common. He nearly

"So which one are you?" he asked directly. "I can't say I've seen you around."

Yes, that was deliberate.