A General's Mind

[tiedonastring]

WHO: Hux and You
WHERE: Hux's calibration room
WHAT: Exploring Hux's mind.
WHEN: During the Calibration Event [ June 3rd - July 10th ]
WARNINGS: This is going to be heavily labeled with many warnings. Hux's life was not pretty. If any of this makes you uncomfortable I advice that you don't interact with this post. Cw for death, violence, alcohol abuse, physical and mental abuse, and discussions of war.




It's a simple office that Hux had back when he was on the Finalizer. It had a metal desk with a data pad perched on it. A name plate on it with his title an full name. On the wall was a large painting of a sunset over Arkansis. There were two other doors, one leading to his living quarters, and the other a simple refresher. His Great Coat was hanging on a coat rack in the corner. His Officer's hat hung on another hook. Gloves and a cold half filled mug were also on the desk.

If someone continues to dig through the office they can open the drawers in his desk. Inside the top drawer is a bottle of expensive whiskey. It looks as if it hasn't been opened yet. There's also a couple of bottles with various painkillers inside. In the second drawer there is a bunch of very old books.

Inside the coat pockets are a pack of cigarettes and lighter and a stylus pen. In the other pocket are a hand full of credits.

Hux had made sure to keep the office as sparse as possible and not much in the way of personal stuff that can be used against him. The doors to the other rooms will not open at this time.

Comments

Way less clutter

[backoff]

Maybe it's his luck that he appears in offices. This one isn't as packed to the brim of anything and everything that came out of a nightmare. Cloud looks over the office carefully. His lips are pressed tightly as he's really not one to snoop into people's lives. However, he is curious to know them. The more he takes in of the office, it feels as if it belonged to someone in the military or they liked very expensive furniture.

Cloud notices that whoever's room this is, they weren't in the office at all. He frowns deeply at that wondering if this was a trick. He walks towards the metal desk. The name plate catches his eyes and he doesn't recognize it. But he'll hope to remember it in case he encounters them. Cloud reaches out a bit hesitantly towards the data pad. His fingers curl in before he does touch the edge of the data pad.

CW for abuse

[tiedonastring]

Cloud is taken onboard a star destroyer and is standing alongside various officers among a bridge. Hux is among them an appears to be a little nervous as he's told that the Supreme Leader is trying contact him. Hux attempts to take the call in his private quarters, but is denied as a halo image of his Supreme Leader appears in a large form and begins to reprimand him in front of his peers, humiliating him.

When Hux tries to explain himself, the Supreme Leader is not pleased and proceeds to use the Force to throw Hux across the bridge and chokes him as well. Hux only manages to save himself from being killed there by explaining he found a way to track people through hyperspace....a feat that unknown at the time. The image then fades and returns Cloud back to the office.

OOC: For the video linked go up to :55 to get to the scene.

[backoff]

Cloud watches as a giant ship gets taken down. What? It's a bit confusing being inside a memory quite as this one. He glances over at the com-link woman at the mention of a General.

The halo image of this General Snoke made his eyes widen. Cloud wondered what had all this man been through. Upon seeing Hux taking a nose dive into the floor, Cloud winces on sight while trying to keep himself quiet. It was hard enough to hear what had been said. The motions of Hux being flown around by what appeared to be nothing confused him.

He raises a hand as if that'll answer a question. Cloud raises an eyebrow while trying to figure out what any of that meant. "What? I..." He tilts his head. Maybe he needed to touch a few more things.

[tiedonastring]

There can be the sound of someone talking outside the room, but it's distant. The voice seems to carry as it's coming closer, but no one enters. Cloud may recognize the voice belonging to the general he just saw being thrown about.

[backoff]

He hears the voice coming from outside the door. It seemed strange but he went over to what he felt would be the next best choice. Maybe it would help fill in something. The painting is still on his mind but there's a coat rack. Cloud reaches out to touch the Great Coat.

[kallig]

That this space belonged to Hux was easy to see. That great coat was striking after all, and Altair could recognize it anywhere.

Thing is, whatever game the Agrii are putting them through this time, this chance to look at lives that are not their own, Altair doesn't want to play it. Especially not with Hux.

The two of them are good at one important thing- communication. If there's anything Altair wants to know, he'd ask. Hux could answer, or he could not, and Altair would never hold that against him. Altair has secrets too.

Ones he wouldn't want anyone to see.

He did move to take a look at the painting, looking at it without touching it. It looked similar to some of the art he'd had in his apartment on Dromund Kaas.

[tiedonastring]

Quietly, Hux walked into the office. He was surprised to see Altair standing before the painting an realized then that this had to be a dream.

"That's what my home planet looked like before the Rebels took over. This was toward the end when the Empire had pretty much lost the war and they were just regaining what land the Empire had." Hux explained as he moved to stand beside him.

[kallig]

"I see. The painting reminds me a little of the ones I'd keep in my apartment on Dromund Kaas."

That was long ago now. Five years he'd spent in carbonite, and then he'd been woken to a very different galaxy, and the war. What had happened to his apartment, his artwork, his relics, all that once had been his, he didn't know.

Perhaps it had been looted.

Or perhaps it was still there, locked up, waiting for him to come home to it. However unlikely that was.

"Do you want to talk about it? Or is it okay if I touch it?"

[tiedonastring]

Hux gave a nod in understanding. "I recall you saying what Dromund Kaas was like and it reminded me a lot of my home world. So it's interesting to learn how you connected the two."

There was a long pause as Hux debated on what to say. This was a topic he didn't talk about much, but he was comfortable enough to share it with Altair. Only, it was extremely hard for him to tell it.

"It'll be easier if you touch the painting. It's not exactly a story I enjoy telling."

[kallig]

"No sunsets on Dromund Kaas though. It's always dark there. Always raining."

The first time he'd set foot on the planet, Altair hadn't known what to think. It had been so different from Ziost, and extremely different from the frozen desert that was Korriban. While Ziost remained a nightmare for Altair however, Korriban and Dromund Kaas had felt like home. To the point where he preferred them over his own Empire's home planet Odessen.

"Are you sure?"

He had said it was, sure, but Altair just wanted to ask once more- in case he changed his mind.

"I'm sure I can manage to keep my hands to myself if you'd prefer that."

[doubled_speed]

Worst room choice ever. Tommy hadn't really CHOSEN it, he'd wandered in, okay? That's how he's defending himself being here, defending that he was prying into the mind of someone he didn't want to be anywhere near.

Bad life choices, the name is Tommy Shepherd.

Still, with no sign of the resident or whatever, Tommy absolutely pokes around, opens drawers, shuffles through stuff, considers touching things and doesn't. It's not until he finds the bottle of whiskey that he really reaches out for real. Tommy could TOTALLY stand for that. Did drinking in someone else's mind get you drunk? Time to find out.

CW for child abuse, and alcohol abuse.

[tiedonastring]

As soon as Tommy touched the bottle, the room began to blur. The office was replaced with another one.

A young Armitage Hux could be seen in a grey uniform that looked too big on his thin frame. He was standing before his father, who stood before him. Brendol Hux appeared to be broads shouldered and heavy set, but sported the same red hair. He wore a black uniform that seemed to be straining around his waist. He appeared to be angry, his face blotchy with anger and a bit too much alcohol intake.

They were standing inside his heavily furnished office. On the desk was the same bottle of expensive Whiskey that Armitage kept himself later in life. Armitage kept his head lowered and fearfully refused to make eye contact with his father. His body slightly trembled.

In a blurry motion Brendol slapped him hard cross the face. Armitage knew that was going to leave a mark. He bit his own lip to keep from crying out knowing it would encourage him more. Another followed and Brendol paused to take a long drink from his glass.

Brendol made Armitage take his shirt off and turn around. Brendol slipped his own belt off and began to hit him several times across the back with it. There were already old scars from before and some that were just starting to heal.

"How, am I supposed to shape you into the leader of an Empire?!" He shouted.

"Look at you! So weak and spineless. You let those boys gang up on you and beat you up. When you should be the one putting them into place. What a disgrace! The only child I get and it's a weak thing like you. I'm better off taking someone in who could do a better job then you!" Brendol continued his tangent as the belt proceeded to fall on him.

Armitage could feel his face burn with humiliation and failure. He could never fight them. He didn't have the build for it. He found other means to dispose of his bullies. Later he would put that into action making sure nothing lead to him. It was always how he handled things. What he couldn't make up in physical strength, he made up with his intelligence.

Yet, it didn't seem that his father didn't appreciate it. Even with his high marks and constant praise from his teachers, his father was never satisfied.

He kept silent and waited till Brendol finally dismissed him. He quickly slid his shirt back on before his father could change his mind. As he left he could see his father pouring another drink.

[doubled_speed]

Shit. Tommy knew what was going to happen the moment the scene shifted and saw the way Hux was holding himself as a kid. It was a posture Tommy knew well. Very well. Too well. He knows the blow is coming before he sees it, and he's half sick with the knowledge of it.

You learn, quickly, that the tears do nothing. They don't stop the blows. You learn not to let them hear you cry out, because what's even the point. You learn too many things.

The belt thing... Tommy cringes and looks away, because dammit, he knew that too. The weight and sting. The way it left your body raw and aching was brutal. You carried that with you forever.

It's all familiar. But different. For Tommy the violence had just been because he was there. He had been a disappointment just by being born. And revenge was something he could never have.

And when it ends and he's back in Hux's mind room, Tommy settles on the floor, shaking just a little.

[tiedonastring]

Hux quietly stepped into the room, a little surprised to see that the person before him was Tommy. Of course he would be intruding on his personal space. Judging by the way he sat an the bottle left on the desk, he figured out what happened.

He didn't say anything for a while, but merely opened up the drawer that had the bottle and pulled out two tumblers. He filled the glasses half way with the whiskey and offered on to Tommy, not particularly caring if he was old enough or not. After all, wasn't he trying to drink the bottle originally?

"That was probably one of the worst memories you would have found here." He quietly spoke.

[doubled_speed]

Fuck, yeah, the alcohol is readily accepted and Tommy throws it back quickly. If only this was real. If only it could truly burn going down. Once it’s consumed he goes back to sitting on the floor, completely unwilling to touch anything else.

For a long moment he’s quiet. And when he speaks, he’s not looking at Hux.

“Frank always started with shouting, but the fists came really soon after. After he told me I’m a worthless shit he never wanted. After he reminded me I was absolutely useless. I’d be black and blue everywhere, but my bones were already stronger than a human’s. Guess that’s why he never broke any bones, why I healed so fast. But when it was serious, there was always the belt.”

[heeeyadora]

This place reminded her of the Fright Zone, and Catra looked about curiously, not taking the greatest care. She turned the name plate to read it, dropping it back out of place before trying her luck with the doors, pounding on them and trying to force them open with a sigh before turning her attention back to the office.

She wandered over to the coat rack, nudging it and making it wobble before reaching for the hat to examine the insignia.

CW for war and destruction

[tiedonastring]

Upon touching the hat, the room changes and she's suddenly standing on a military based surrounded by men in white armor. There are a bunch of important military officers standing before him and before them were red banners sporting the First Order symbol. A young man steps up wearing the same coat, hat, and gloves that were in the room.

The young man then proceeds to give a heated speech before Catra witnesses an entire system being destroyed by the red beam of light.

The image vanishes and brings her back to the office.

[heeeyadora]

It's very much the sort of world Catra is used to, those red banners, the soldiers. This is some military operation, and that man there is their leader. She's heard these sorts of speeches before, she's delivered them, but she isn't quite prepared for what follows, eyes widening and stumbling back in shock as the weapon takes out whole worlds.

And then it's gone and she's left wide eyed and pale back in that office, reaching to smooth down her tail with a disturbed expression, and maybe...a little guilt.

[tiedonastring]

Hux quietly stepped into the room, the hiss of the shut sliding shut was the only real thing to announce his presence. He didn't recognize the stranger in his room and assumed she was one of the new arrivals.

"That had been one of my greatest triumphs and in the end it also led to my downfall. Judging by the fact your reaction wasn't out right hate, I'm assuming you had a similar military experience?" Hux greeted in a neutral tone.

[heeeyadora]

She started the the arrival, back straightening, and she shot him a glare for seeing her in that state, reaching to smooth her hair back as well.

Similar. Her mouth twitched into a disinterested frown, trying to distance herself from that guilt. "You write that speech yourself?"

[beholding_archivist]

It's another remarkably clean office the Archivist finds himself in this time. Why is everyone else having such immaculate office spaces that aren't located in dingy basements? Well, maybe better not try to dwell on that, right?

What else is odd, is the lack of an occupant, and yet the name plate isn't hard to spot and the Archivist frowns a little. But then again, maybe it does fit this man. And maybe he isn't around because he isn't too keen on meeting Jon. So he takes to wandering the place silently, for now settling to look with his eyes rather than his hands. Of course there will be memories hidden here as well, but does he really wish to trigger any?

[tiedonastring]

Footsteps could be heard approaching and a brief pause as the door hissed open and Hux stepped into his office. He raised an eyebrow seeing the occupant and only then realized that this was indeed a dream. Jon wasn't from his world and nor could he get into his office with out the proper codes.

"I see you have discovered my old office. What do we wish to find here?" he questioned. He clasped his hands together behind his back as he stepped in, his old habits returning.

[beholding_archivist]

Jon turns to meet the General's greeting and sure enough, this office fits this man even more now that Hux is present. "What can I say, I just. Fell asleep." He replies with a little shrug. That's how these dream come to be, right?

"And I wouldn't say I'm wishing for anything. But for now I'm here. I will try not to touch anything, if that works for you." To claim he isn't curious would be a lie.

[tiedonastring]

He couldn't help but eye roll at the statement.

"Considering it seems to be the point of these dreams?" Hux gave an idle shrug. "I'll simply say none of these were pleasant memories. I wouldn't really judge what you saw with out fully understanding what was going on."

[beholding_archivist]

"It may be the point, but I still don't think it's right." And to him it feels hypocritical to try and not use his compulsion outside of these dreams and let his decision slide only because it's the point.

"Do you know if there are any around you feel comfortable talking about? And I understand your request. I have seen some of the ones in my own... Mind, I suppose. Without context those scenes are even more dreadful."