13Hello readers! For those who don't know me, I'm Panda Bear Lover. I've written a handful of stories in the TRON community and one for Transformers. While I'm technically supposed to write a TRON fanfiction as my next project, well, The Last Jedi came out and shoved previous ideas aside for this one.
Cover art originated from the Tumblr page Basiliskos.
So, this story was conceived when I asked myself what the heck is preventing Kylo's Knights from joining in this galactic battle for dominance? I don't believe that they're dead, so my rationale is that they're... preoccupied with something else. The entire book will be narrated by Kylo's First Knight complete with her thoughts, feelings, and even her own biases. At first I just focused on humanizing her and making her a three-dimensional character while only lightly developing her relationship with others but before I knew it, I also conjured up backstories for all six Knights that we will get to know soon. This story will portray the Knights in equal ways to be brutally monstrous yet also very caring and human.
Here's the warnings: violence (obviously), minor body horror, language, and some suggestive adult themes (specifically... mentions of nudity and hints at sex - none of which will be graphic). These make my choice of a T rating quite suitable for the time being. There will also be some character death near the end. If we get to a point in my story where my rating is questionable for the content, shoot me a PM and let me know your thoughts.
My last warning! There is some Reylo content in this story. I ship it, I write it. It's not quite at the forefront of the story since it's mostly about the Knights, but it'll be there. A lot of this story ending will likely diverge from canon depending on how Episode IX goes (maybe I'll borrow some content from it if this story is dragged out long enough for me to see it).
My thanks to the Beta Reader I got to help with my writing: KumquatAssassin. She is amazing at spotting weird mistakes and is a wonderful person to bounce ideas off of. As it so happens, we both have jobs at the same workplace and once we both started talking fanfiction, we've become buddies! Funny how life works.
THIS STORY BEGINS SHORTLY BEFORE THE EVENTS OF EPISODE VII! Without further ado, I present the Knights of Ren!
Chapter 1 - Peacekeepers
Something felt wrong. I couldn't shake the feeling since waking up, but today felt like a perfect time for the monotonous routine to change.
The Force was shifting, as if preparing for a significant change to occur.
I stood at the bridge of the Assault ship Genesis with my hands clasped behind my back.
"Ma'am," I was broken from my reverie and turned from the large window to the Officer approaching me. "Our scanners have picked up a foreign ship in proximity. It appears they're heading in our direction this time."
"Not trying to maneuver past us?" I inquired. My voice carried a metallic edge to it as I spoke through my mask. "Are they pirates?"
"Not pirates or a patrol craft," the Officer said nervously. "It appears to be a Tauran Capital ship."
I clenched and unclenched one of my fists. "The Taurans are looking for a fight this time."
It's been five years since the Knights of Ren had been sent away. Supreme Leader Snoke had insisted on how important our mission was, but there's more at play than what he's claimed. The mission seemed an odd one to say the least - exile disguised as a long term imperative task. We're given an exemplary crew and assigned to patrol from outside our home galaxy in deep space. We've since monitored ship activity from neighboring galaxies - particularly the Taurus galaxy, which is governed by democracy. As far as the First Order is concerned, the Tauran government would likely side with the Resistance and the New Republic if word got out about our civil war. The last thing we want is for the affair to become an intergalactic conflict… especially when the First Order is near victory.
In the past couple of years, we've encountered several scout vessels and system patrol crafts that belonged to the Taurans. They would come around often to investigate our presence in the space akin to No Man's Land. Sometimes they would check in with us over communications like a friendly neighbor to inquire how our First Order crew fared, and others would ask why we imprison or destroy ships that attempt to leave our galaxy.
As time went on, their welcoming facade has faded and now their true intentions show. They know we're hiding something - we're not friendly about it - and the Taurans want to know what our business is about.
The last time we encountered our good neighbors, their ship tried to pass us and came far too close to our territory for comfort. I had commanded the Assault ship's pilots to engage, our gunners to lock on, TIE fighters to stand by, and the Communications Chief to patch in the other ship's Captain. I kept the exchange short and sweet to order the foreign ship's retreat and to stay away. The cherry on top was that my mask made my feminine voice sound just a bit deeper, and that metallic edge it provided had practically sold the intimidation factor. The ship had left without further ado.
This approaching Capital ship is the first legitimate sign that the "good cop, bad cop" game is up.
In hindsight, it looks like we've given them exactly the response they wanted from us. It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that our job here is to buffer ship activity to and from our galaxy.
We're definitely hiding something; and if we're willing to kill anyone who tries to enter or leave our galaxy, then it's a serious situation. As a child raised by parents who had been members of the New Republic Senate, I had an inkling on what the Taurus galaxy's democracy was being fueled by.
Intel says the Taurus galaxy hasn't had war in a millenium. I'd imagine for their elected government to stay popular, they step onto their soap boxes and preach about other conflict and suffering beyond their domain. And the only way to make good on proving how great of an elected official they are, they'll spend their people's tax money and use significant resources to explore past their boundaries to interfere with other sovereignties. After all, nothing makes one look better to their own people than to be the perfect example of "big brother." It's very common political garbage: that the freedoms and opportunities people have in their system should be everyone else's right beyond and that everybody should bask in such a government's greatness.
The New Republic has done that - even the First Order is guilty of it sometimes. But what troubles me about the Taurans is that they're not pushing this agenda on a system scale within their galaxy, they're pushing this beyond their own domain entirely.
If their military high command is as smart as I presume, this may become a very real issue. After all, what better time is there to occupy another galaxy than when it's in turmoil and being ravaged by civil war?
Suddenly, the lights went out and all our engines shut down. Nobody on the command bridge moved or dared to make a sound until I decided to.
I slowly turned around as I sensed a tractor beam pulling our vessel onboard the Tauran Capital ship, and I glanced back at the officer whom I hadn't dismissed yet. "They're definitely looking for a fight," I said in a low, dangerous tone. Today was already not going the way I'd hoped. But I plan to make something clear to the Taurans for pulling this particular bold move in the vacuum of space between our galaxies - in neutral territory where all consequences are delivered unchecked. With no accountabilities.
The Knights of Ren are not very forgiving, especially when we're caught in a bad mood like this.
I could sense the tension in the crew and my fellow Knights. The First Order officers are nervous and afraid, but stiffly try to show nothing outward. It's clear that they're used to being in total control of their enemy and not put in a vulnerable situation like this. The Knights on the other hand are just as irritated as I, and have been itching for a fight lately.
I reached out with the Force in a way I rarely did. I focused on the hundred something minds that were onboard, and fed some positivity into them to raise the morale. It was an old Jedi technique used often in wartime to help provide more courage to their own soldiers while also attempting to demoralize their enemies.
But in this case, I'm only doing it for comfort and reassurance to the crew. Nobody but the Knights will be getting their hands dirty today.
I felt the Officer next to me stiffen momentarily before he began to relax again. Given how I haven't completely mastered the Force yet, my efforts aren't seamless. The crew could feel it every time I did something like this. The Captain described to me how it felt like a palpable change in atmosphere.
Unlike the rest of the First Order, this crew has spent so much time around the Knights of Ren in close quarters that they've grown more accustomed to us using the Force around them. They've become less surprised but that doesn't mean they didn't still feel momentary uneasiness - especially when I opt to pull tricks like this.
I started to leave the bridge and headed toward the elevator that would take me down to the belly of the ship where the ramp was. The other Knights were already heading there, eager for an excuse to get off the ship and see where this goes with the Taurans. I felt the Officer follow me, datapad tucked under his arm and comlink in his ear. We both boarded the lift and descended.
I looked over his uniform momentarily, and spotted a name tag: Dan Biggs. A first Lieutenant, probably fresh out of the First Order's training academy before he was sent away with the rest of us.
I studied his face. He was quite young too - likely the youngest person on board the ship.
The crew were all proficient and experienced in some way, so he must have been quite an all-star student to qualify here.
And for someone so young, he was very good at demonstrating the perfect military discipline in standing straight and facing ahead. If he knew I was giving him a once-over, he showed no outward indication.
"Lieutenant Dan or Lieutenant Biggs?" I asked his preference of title. It was a horrid attempt at a light, humorous conversation and the only change in behavior I noticed was a rhythmic bobbing of his adam's apple.
He's nervous now. He's not familiar with my change in demeanor.
I adjusted the cuffs of my sleeves so they remained tucked underneath my gloves. "In case you can't tell," I spared him another glance through my mask. "I'm not very good at lightening the mood," I finished dryly.
I could tell he was searching for an appropriate response, but was feeling at a loss because it wouldn't be considered appropriate by any means in the First Order.
"Seriously though, what would you like me to call you?" I inquired. "I suspect we'll be spending more time around each other."
"Whatever you wish to call me, Ma'am," he replied firmly as he continued to stare straight ahead.
I should have figured he'd go for the safest response to my question. I skimmed over his mind for a moment and concluded that the only time he'll possess a more assertive and decisive nature is once he's lost his patience.
Perhaps that's an understatement. From what I can see, he's a passive Officer who never found a healthy outlet in his cadet training and has now become someone with very aggressive tendencies once it's built up enough.
Sadly, it's typical with most soldiers these days.
Right now I could still sense his fear first and foremost, despite my efforts to calm everyone on board. His mind is the most erratic of anyone on board the Genesis as of now, and it's not just because he has to share the elevator with me.
"You're a very insecure man," I observed. "Let's try to remedy that later on."
As the elevator doors opened, there was a thud and small tremors ran through the ship to indicate we've been set down in one of the hangars aboard the Capital ship.
I stepped out and began to approach the other five Knights by the ramp. It looks like they hadn't been waiting long and all of them were masked for this occasion. The ramp had not yet lowered and the Officer's comm buzzed as we got closer.
He silently followed me while he listened to the other end, the corners of his mouth turned downward. "Ma'am, intel found something noteworthy about the other vessels in the Capital ship's hangar."
I stopped walking for a moment, and looked at him again - he caught the interest of the other Knights as well.
"Most of the other Tauran ships in the hangar have matched the previous vessels we encountered before," he paused to let his words sink in. "Both friendly and unfriendly."
I didn't reply as my fists clenched again. It's not something I would have liked to hear right now.
Zander Ren spoke up, "So the orders given to their scouts came from the same command center. Their mixed messages toward us were intentional." His mind swirled with frustration. Anger.
Darkness.
It's true. He said what the rest of us were thinking.
The chilling tension in the air was palpable, and the poor Officer next to me was petrified. Afraid the other Knights would take it out on him.
I allowed my hands to relax by my sides and I took a deep breath. "Thank you. You're dismissed."
Lieutenant Dan scuttled off without reply upon hearing my words. He forgot to salute, but it's not worth telling his Commanding Officer.
This is a trying day for everyone. But we plan to make it even worse for the Taurans.
They set us up for this from the start, and we played right into their hands. I didn't need to try reading the other Knights' minds to tell that we all felt like fools. And now that we're set up to look like the bad guys, they have the perfect opportunity to fight us like any good heroes would.
A Knight hit the control buttons with his fist, and the ramp began to lower.
I reached down to rest my gloved fingers on my holstered lightsaber. If the Taurans are prepared to take on the role of righteous peacekeepers, I'll be sure to give them a good reason for it.
For those who are worried they won't see my promised TRON fanfiction for a while, don't worry. It will be out once I'm finished refining the chapters I had written back in my middle school years (there's a bit of work to do). And I plan to break my vow of working on no more than one story at a time to post it.
Now, about my posting schedule; I write irregularly due to my classes and work schedule. Updates will be sporadic and unpredictable, but I intend to post well-written chapters to make up for it. I've uploaded this first one a handful of weeks ahead of schedule, but I've had a bad day and working on this has cheered me up.
Let's see where things go from here.