This chapter serves as an interlude of sorts, explaining how Brendol (and Ren) rise through the ranks of The First Order. It also introduces bby!Finn (about 15 or 16) and his budding friendship with mentor Ren. ------------------------------------------------------------------- After the death of his father things moved fast for Brendol Hux II, which meant things moved quickly for Ren as well. Brendol was allowed to take his final examinations the day after his father was buried. He passed with flying colors and became the youngest person to graduate from the academy. A genius is what his tutors called him. Ren wasn’t surprised, this boy had shown he had the strategic foresight of a man five times his age when he was only nine years old.
The vast majority of the officers commanding Star Destroyers at the time were more hesitant. Brendol had just killed his father in cold blood, that technically wasn’t the truth but they didn’t know that, any officers with skeletons in their closet wouldn’t want a man as perceptive as Brendol on board their ship. He was finally placed on the ship of a promising lieutenant, and given the rank of captain. Ren would remain close to Brendol but could no longer serve as his personal guard in an official capacity. It didn’t matter that Brendol would now oversee the entire Stormtrooper training program, per his father’s will, no exceptions could be made for such a young officier. Ren would still be stationed on the same Star Destroyer and assist with training Stormtroopers in their last stages of education before they entered combat.
Their new positions made it difficult for Brendol and Ren to see one another. They passed each other regularly and Ren would report to Brendol on a weekly basis but it was less personal and nowhere near as often as when they lived in the Hux compound. They didn’t even see each other at night with Ren was sleeping in the Stormtrooper barracks and Brendol in the officer quarters. The death of his father made Brendol more careful, less brazen. He would rarely address Ren by his designation, he’d rarely address him at all because he would often struggle not to call him ‘Ren’ the way he had that night.
They became like two planets whose orbits occasionally led them to pass one another. Close enough to feel each other’s pull, but not close enough to touch. It remained like that for months, years Ren finding solace in training younger Stormtroopers and watching Brendol ruthlessly cut down those he found less than worthy on his way up the ranks. By the age of nineteen he was named lieutenant. He was granted his own Star Destroyer, an older model, with promises of a better one should he continue to move up. His new position provided him with new freedom and their first night on board the old ship Ren found himself being called to Lieutenant Hux’s personal quarters. “Lieutenant Hux, you called?” He spoke quietly, his voice modulated by his helmet.
Brendol smirked, a delicate red eyebrow rose before he pulled Ren into his room. “Indeed I did Ren.” He pulled off Ren’s helmet and set it on the counter of the miniature kitchen his rank provided him. “I missed seeing your face. You’ve grown tall, you’re finally going to be taller than I am.”
Ren shook his head, his emotions hidden behind an impenetrable mask. “It’s what you wanted isn’t it?” Hux froze. At first he thought he had said too much. They never spoke about their initial meeting or the conditioning Ren went through.
“That’s true enough. You were going to be tall anyway. They took x-rays when they brought you in. Had you been given a different supplement combination it would have stunted your growth.” Hux explained. Ren had no idea if it was true or not, but Brendol had never lied to him before. “Now, Ren, there was something I wanted to do, something I couldn’t do before now. I think it’s something you want as well but if I’m wrong… you can stop me if I’m wrong. I won’t be mad.” Brendol leaned in a kissed the Stormtrooper who had been his closest companion since childhood.
Ren returned it. It wasn’t what he expected when he came here but it didn’t mean it was unwelcome. Brendol was the only person he felt more than a casual comradery or distain for. He saved him because Brendol was his friend, his ally, and perhaps more than that. Kissing the other man was pleasant. His mouth tasted like mint. “I wasn’t expecting that.” Ren admitted.
Hux frowned. “Did you not enjoy it?”
Ren shook his head. “I think I did, but I can’t be certain. May we try again sir?” he asked hesitantly.
This time Brendol kissed him with more force than before. Their tongues twined in a dance that Ren found strange but enjoyable. He allowed Brendol to win dominance, it was only right that he lead. That night Ren spent the night in Brendol’s room, discovering the changes in one another’s bodies. Brendol’s face was rough, almost invisible hairs were beginning to grow on his face. They would be gone in the morning, shaved away in a daily ritual. Ren had more freckles now, or at least Brendol thought he did, perhaps he was just seeing more of him then he had before.
The next morning they hesitantly returned to their given roles. Both guarding a new secret, something precious. Having Brendol lead a ship wasn’t that different from being stationed under someone else. The main difference was the nights. Now half of his nights were spent in a bed much comfier than his own. A bed that belonged to Brendol Hux.
Time moved faster for them with the added responsibility. Brendol began working on a project that would help him reach his goal of general. The idea seemed strange to Ren when he first heard it. A weapon more powerful than the death star. Built into the core of a planet to harvest energy from nearby stars. It seemed like a fantasy but Brendol ran the numbers, calculated the cost, and determined what resources would be needed three times over before presenting it to the supreme leader.
The plan was approved contingent on finding a suitable planet. Brendol lead his rusty old ship into some of the deepest reaches of space before finding a cold forsaken wasteland that fit the necessary criteria in terms of size and distance from the star that served to warm it. He was twenty four years old when his final approval was granted and Brendol was given a new rank to go with his new project. As general, Brendol was granted even more freedom if that was even possible. He had huge ships full of Stormtroopers that had not been trained in combat. These troopers would manage the facilities while Ren, and a new trooper, a woman by the name of Phasma oversaw them and trained them in the combat skills they were lacking so that the new base would have a dual purpose operational and defensive force.
“She trained them at the facility.” Brendol explained one night in bed. “She really is impressive. I mean she’s not you.” Ren was much taller now and his body curled around the red-head’s smaller form. “She’s impressive though. Powerful.” Ren’s eyes were unfocused. He started to hear distant voices around the time that they arrived here. At first he thought that they were caused by troopers outside their rooms. The base was still under construction after all. They were infrequent at the start though and they didn’t come on any set schedule.
The voices were the least of his concerns however. The new troopers were a handful. They ranged from bad to great with a variance unlike others he trained. He wondered if perhaps this was what it was normally like, that some troopers that would normally be weeded out during combat were allowed to live when facilities work needed to be done. One in his group stood out to him. He kept his squad under control despite the caustic personalities and weak link. His designation was FN-2187 and something told Ren he was different from the others.
Ren was surprised when he found himself offering to train the younger trooper after a particularly bad day of voices ringing in his head. The trooper was trying to learn to shoot better, something Brendol ensured Ren excelled at and an all too often overlooked skill among troopers. They spent a lot of time together and formed a bond that was similar to friendship. It was the second of such bonds Ren had formed. It would never be as close as his bond with Hux but it was nice to have someone to speak to on nights when Hux was up all night filing reports and Ren had to sleep in the barracks.
Re: FILL | RN-001 [3/?]
-------------------------------------------------------------------
After the death of his father things moved fast for Brendol Hux II, which meant things moved quickly for Ren as well. Brendol was allowed to take his final examinations the day after his father was buried. He passed with flying colors and became the youngest person to graduate from the academy. A genius is what his tutors called him. Ren wasn’t surprised, this boy had shown he had the strategic foresight of a man five times his age when he was only nine years old.
The vast majority of the officers commanding Star Destroyers at the time were more hesitant. Brendol had just killed his father in cold blood, that technically wasn’t the truth but they didn’t know that, any officers with skeletons in their closet wouldn’t want a man as perceptive as Brendol on board their ship. He was finally placed on the ship of a promising lieutenant, and given the rank of captain. Ren would remain close to Brendol but could no longer serve as his personal guard in an official capacity. It didn’t matter that Brendol would now oversee the entire Stormtrooper training program, per his father’s will, no exceptions could be made for such a young officier. Ren would still be stationed on the same Star Destroyer and assist with training Stormtroopers in their last stages of education before they entered combat.
Their new positions made it difficult for Brendol and Ren to see one another. They passed each other regularly and Ren would report to Brendol on a weekly basis but it was less personal and nowhere near as often as when they lived in the Hux compound. They didn’t even see each other at night with Ren was sleeping in the Stormtrooper barracks and Brendol in the officer quarters. The death of his father made Brendol more careful, less brazen. He would rarely address Ren by his designation, he’d rarely address him at all because he would often struggle not to call him ‘Ren’ the way he had that night.
They became like two planets whose orbits occasionally led them to pass one another. Close enough to feel each other’s pull, but not close enough to touch. It remained like that for months, years Ren finding solace in training younger Stormtroopers and watching Brendol ruthlessly cut down those he found less than worthy on his way up the ranks. By the age of nineteen he was named lieutenant. He was granted his own Star Destroyer, an older model, with promises of a better one should he continue to move up.
His new position provided him with new freedom and their first night on board the old ship Ren found himself being called to Lieutenant Hux’s personal quarters. “Lieutenant Hux, you called?” He spoke quietly, his voice modulated by his helmet.
Brendol smirked, a delicate red eyebrow rose before he pulled Ren into his room. “Indeed I did Ren.” He pulled off Ren’s helmet and set it on the counter of the miniature kitchen his rank provided him. “I missed seeing your face. You’ve grown tall, you’re finally going to be taller than I am.”
Ren shook his head, his emotions hidden behind an impenetrable mask. “It’s what you wanted isn’t it?” Hux froze. At first he thought he had said too much. They never spoke about their initial meeting or the conditioning Ren went through.
“That’s true enough. You were going to be tall anyway. They took x-rays when they brought you in. Had you been given a different supplement combination it would have stunted your growth.” Hux explained. Ren had no idea if it was true or not, but Brendol had never lied to him before. “Now, Ren, there was something I wanted to do, something I couldn’t do before now. I think it’s something you want as well but if I’m wrong… you can stop me if I’m wrong. I won’t be mad.” Brendol leaned in a kissed the Stormtrooper who had been his closest companion since childhood.
Ren returned it. It wasn’t what he expected when he came here but it didn’t mean it was unwelcome. Brendol was the only person he felt more than a casual comradery or distain for. He saved him because Brendol was his friend, his ally, and perhaps more than that. Kissing the other man was pleasant. His mouth tasted like mint. “I wasn’t expecting that.” Ren admitted.
Hux frowned. “Did you not enjoy it?”
Ren shook his head. “I think I did, but I can’t be certain. May we try again sir?” he asked hesitantly.
This time Brendol kissed him with more force than before. Their tongues twined in a dance that Ren found strange but enjoyable. He allowed Brendol to win dominance, it was only right that he lead. That night Ren spent the night in Brendol’s room, discovering the changes in one another’s bodies. Brendol’s face was rough, almost invisible hairs were beginning to grow on his face. They would be gone in the morning, shaved away in a daily ritual. Ren had more freckles now, or at least Brendol thought he did, perhaps he was just seeing more of him then he had before.
The next morning they hesitantly returned to their given roles. Both guarding a new secret, something precious. Having Brendol lead a ship wasn’t that different from being stationed under someone else. The main difference was the nights. Now half of his nights were spent in a bed much comfier than his own. A bed that belonged to Brendol Hux.
Time moved faster for them with the added responsibility. Brendol began working on a project that would help him reach his goal of general. The idea seemed strange to Ren when he first heard it. A weapon more powerful than the death star. Built into the core of a planet to harvest energy from nearby stars. It seemed like a fantasy but Brendol ran the numbers, calculated the cost, and determined what resources would be needed three times over before presenting it to the supreme leader.
The plan was approved contingent on finding a suitable planet. Brendol lead his rusty old ship into some of the deepest reaches of space before finding a cold forsaken wasteland that fit the necessary criteria in terms of size and distance from the star that served to warm it. He was twenty four years old when his final approval was granted and Brendol was given a new rank to go with his new project. As general, Brendol was granted even more freedom if that was even possible. He had huge ships full of Stormtroopers that had not been trained in combat. These troopers would manage the facilities while Ren, and a new trooper, a woman by the name of Phasma oversaw them and trained them in the combat skills they were lacking so that the new base would have a dual purpose operational and defensive force.
“She trained them at the facility.” Brendol explained one night in bed. “She really is impressive. I mean she’s not you.” Ren was much taller now and his body curled around the red-head’s smaller form. “She’s impressive though. Powerful.” Ren’s eyes were unfocused. He started to hear distant voices around the time that they arrived here. At first he thought that they were caused by troopers outside their rooms. The base was still under construction after all. They were infrequent at the start though and they didn’t come on any set schedule.
The voices were the least of his concerns however. The new troopers were a handful. They ranged from bad to great with a variance unlike others he trained. He wondered if perhaps this was what it was normally like, that some troopers that would normally be weeded out during combat were allowed to live when facilities work needed to be done. One in his group stood out to him. He kept his squad under control despite the caustic personalities and weak link. His designation was FN-2187 and something told Ren he was different from the others.
Ren was surprised when he found himself offering to train the younger trooper after a particularly bad day of voices ringing in his head. The trooper was trying to learn to shoot better, something Brendol ensured Ren excelled at and an all too often overlooked skill among troopers. They spent a lot of time together and formed a bond that was similar to friendship. It was the second of such bonds Ren had formed. It would never be as close as his bond with Hux but it was nice to have someone to speak to on nights when Hux was up all night filing reports and Ren had to sleep in the barracks.