Private Jack In The Box Part 2

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Just after to the events of Jack In The Box Part 1

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” Dallon Drayle whispered to himself in the empty interrogation room. He was an overweight man with a moustache, covered in many navy tattoos, and wearing a greasy military-grey cook’s apron that was standard issue in the First Order navy.

He had been sitting there for hours at the steel table and he simply didn’t do well when left alone with his own thoughts for too long. A million conspiracy theories spun through his head. Every scenario as to what was going on spun out of control in his mind and got worse every time he thought about it. Now he was on the verge of hyperventilating and was already sweating.

He had panicked when he heard that the ship he was serving on, the Lord Phonyx, was going to attack a star destroyer on the edge of the Red Nebula. A kriffing star destroyer! His old survivor instincts had kicked in and he’d concocted a plan with elements that he had already set in place prior for his own survival.

Pretending to be a spy for the Elysium Empire, an organization he had heard about from some militia veteran in a cantina somewhere, he tried to gain their favour and escape in an escape pod. But he had been captured, and his charade hadn’t seemed to gain him any favours.

But he had some cards he could play. He knew that the Elysium Empire was struggling to find talented personnel for their military. That’s what the old veteran had told him at the cantina as some drunken recruiting attempt. He could help the Elysium Empire recruit a fair number of people from the Lord Phonyx and that would buy his freedom. He hoped...

Elysium Eternal

 

[Elysium Eternal]

Post: 1
Tags: Grand Shepherd Burtch

Admiral Cousins let out a deep sigh of relief. He had just received news that The Fighters deployed by The First Order had surrendered. Furthermore, the few escape pods that had deployed were now intercepted...only one passenger was found, and he was now in custody, where Cousins would interrogate him.

The "Battle" had taken hours....from the first random signal, to the end, where the ship was shot out of the nebula, its' crew unconscious. Cousins was tired, but it seemed everything was concluded now and he could relax. "Enter hyperspace, set course for The Elysium Fleet."

He worked his way down to the holding cell where he found his first prisoner. It was the one from the escape pod...a large man with a dirty uniform and a mustache. This was a cook. The First Order would never allow someone to have a filthy uniform and serve in such poor physical conditions. It also happened to be the "Elysium spy", another obvious mistruth.

Cousins stood straight, keeping a professional posture for the time, and spoke. "Alright. I am Admiral Cousins of The Elysium Empire, but I suppose you knew that, didn't you, "Spam-slinger"?"

Cousins smirked, giving the man no time to respond before saying "You aren't with The Elysium Empire. However, your trick worked, so I'm going to allow you to explain yourself while the memory is fresh. Speak now, or forever hold your peace."

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Elysium Eternal

“I… I…” Dallon Drayle stammered, “I would like to thank you for saving my life. You are mm-mmost gracious and honourable!”

“I…” he struggled to remember the details of his story. He was a talented conn man, but this situation was a lot more tense than he was used to. He wouldn’t lie today, things were too tight for that this time. But he was definitely going to stretch the truth as far as he could to save his own life, “I am so glad you saved me from the First Order. The Elysium Empire has always inspired me and I couldn’t be more honoured to be in your presence now, sir. I admit, I was bluffing with the whole ‘spam slinger’ bit,” he nervously laughed and wiped his forehead with the least greasy part of his apron. He then swallowed hard and pressed on, “but in the heat of the moment, I allowed my own deepest inner fantasies flavour my scheme to bring you an incredible asset in exchange for the opportunity to serve with the honourable Elysium Empire.” He was beginning to speak too fast and he couldn’t slow himself down, “if you will hear my offer and accept my fealty to you, of course.”

Shakily he bowed his head and kept it there, trying hard not to shake.

 

[Elysium Eternal]

Post: 2
Tag: Grand Shepherd Burtch

The man was a mess. Cousins didn't know if it was drugs, nerves, or both, but the man was shaking like a twig in a storm. He was sweating up an ocean large enough to fill Mon Cala, and he was shooting a barrage of words so fast that the admiral could barely understand them. Today had been too stressful for this conversation. Cousins sighed, saying nothing for a moment. As he thought, he unconsciously lowered his posture into a typical, if not more hunched over than usual posture.

Finally he spoke, "I am going to take you to our fleet. There, you along with the others will be interrogated by Admiral Keatoch." He said no more. He was exhausted. Instead he just walked away, finding the Admiral's Chair and falling into it. Maybe he could catch some sleep before they arrived....

6 Hours later
The Elysium Fleet
​

Cousins woke up startled, expecting to be under attack. Instead they were home safe. He stood up, straightening his outfit out and looking around. Everyone looked tired. It had been a long day for the whole crew...he would have to boost their morale. He thought for a moment. There were a few bars throughout the fleet, one was on The Utopia, One was a civilian ship that was open 24/7 named The Great Escape. Then there was a smaller one that travelled and was not in the fleet currently.

He cleared his throat, then called out, "Drinks are on me at The Great Escape today. First let's get these prisoners over to Admiral Keatoch."

The news was greeted by some light cheering, but the crew was moving much quicker, obviously excited for the treat to come. Cousins smiled slightly as they got to work. Soon he would be free for the day.

Poor Keatoch​

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Dallon Drayle and several other enlisted personnel were “encouraged” to remain quiet by some rather energetic Elysium Empire guardsmen as they were ushered into an unknown troop transport that seemed fit to hold 30 troops - or in this case - 50 very uncomfortable captured crewmen from the FIV Lord Phonyx. Armed guards were stationed just inside the cockpit and just outside in the main hold to prevent a hostile takeover. The door to the cockpit was closed and most likely locked. When the whole ship lurched and everyone nearly fell on top of each other, Dallon had no way to tell where they were going. There were no viewports.

Whatever this transport was, it was not built for comfort. In the corner of his eye, he saw Lieutenant Dorthea Dobson with a vacant sullen expression on her face and what appeared to be tears on her cheeks. This surprised Dallon, as he figured if anyone would be willing to complain about their circumstances in spite of the guards warnings, it would be her. But she was clearly petrified by something. That wasn’t like her at all. Strange.

The transport eventually, and abruptly, stopped jerking and lurching and a moment later the rear hatch opened up. They were herded out by more armed guards into a large bright hangar bay that appeared to be under some kind of construction or overhaul. There were three more stalls around them like the one their transport was sitting in. Dallon risked a casual look around to get the layout. The hangar was “T” shaped with two entrances out to space on one end and another entrance at the other that ran straight out into the void beyond the mag field. Flanking the sides of the one entrance looked to be empty unfinished fighter stalls and racking. In between the two other entrances were two cargo bays on the back wall and in between those appeared to be a machine shop on the hangar floor level and above that appeared to be some kind of control room judging by the large windows that overlooked the whole hangar. In between the cargo bays and on either side of the machine shop were two personnel doors with signs above them saying “THIS WAY TO TURBOLIFTS FOR: 1 LOADING RAMP, 2 VENTRAL CREW CABINS, 3 MED CENTER, 4 FLIGHT CONTROL, 5 DORSAL CREW CABINS, 6 - 10 BRIDGE LEVELS.”

They were taken through the doors and lead around the back of the machine shop to the turbolifts bank. Then they were taken to level 1, VENTRAL CREW CABINS and led aft to the back of the ship according to more signs that Dallon could see on the way. They were then taken up a set of stairs to a dingy, if clean, brig. There they were sequestered into cells randomly in groups, but Dallon was taken to an interrogation room.

He sat down in the uncomfortable steel chair behind the table away from the door and the guards left, locking the door. He prepared his mind for the imminent interrogation that was to come. He had some tricks up his sleeve, and he was a little more focused this time.

 

[Keatoch]

Vice Admiral Keatoch walked down the hall inside the Victory-I Class Star Destroyer, The Utopia. He was walking toward the holding cells to interrogate several prisoners from The First Order. He was confused as to why he was given this job and not an agent, or lower-ranking official. But here he was, called in by Admiral Cousins to take over the assignment personally.

He was wearing a black uniform, which he had chosen personally. The Elysium Empire didn't have a uniform yet, but Keatoch hated the lack of professionalism that came with this shortcoming, thus he bought this custom uniform until The Empire created one. Hopefully it would show the First Order prisoners that he was a man of high ranking.

Mentally he couldn't stop thinking about The First Order. His Mother and Sister were still there, stranded and surrounded by those that wished them harm. He was still uneasy about joining The Elysium Empire. They were a rag tag group of wannabe Imperials in his eyes...and they had killed his brother in their attempts to rescue him. However The First Order had ruined his family and held them back for years.

But he had to play the cards he was given. The Elysium Empire was becoming more powerful every day now, and with the power, they became more professional. Besides, it wasn't like he could return to The First Order, he was a traitor now....and who else would take him? He was known to be a traitor and he was known to be an Admiral of The Elysium Empire, a nation hated by most other powers.

Finally he arrived at the prison cells. He was familiar with the place, having spent at least a month as a prisoner there before making a deal with King Heath Valhoun.

He took one deep breath, then entered the room where Admiral Cousins stood. The man was tired and it showed. His eyes had shadows, his face was at a constant frown, and his posture was terrible. Keatoch quickly spoke, "Admiral Cousins. I am here, you may leave."

Cousins simply nodded, no salute, nor any words were given. Then he left in a hurry, leaving Keatoch with a hallway full of prisoners in their cells. He approached the first one, and inside he found a chef in a filthy uniform that made him wonder if the man had more grease in his hair, or on his uniform.

"You are the chef that disabled the crew?" ​

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

“Yes sir, I am. And I did so with the fullest intentions of proving my worth to the Elysium Empire in the hopes that you’ll accept my pledge of fealty.” Dallon Drayle replied shortly. He was just barely containing his nerves just now and felt as though he was succeeding in keeping his cool this time. At least he could focus now.

He decided to add, “Anything you wish to know, I am at your disposal, and you’ll find I have much to offer you.”

Elysium Eternal

 

[Keatoch]

Keatoch offered no emotion on his face. This man was pathetic, the type that could be found in cantinas of Nal Hutta and Nar Shadda. Keatoch wondered if he was a prisoner recruited to earn his freedom, or perhaps punished by being forced to cook for The First Order ship. Regardless, he had won the battle for Admiral Cousins according to the report, and thus deserved some respect. Or rather leniency, not respect.

"You are a chef from a patrol. What could you possibly know that could benefit the Elysium Empire apart from rumors and half truths?"

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Keatoch

“On the contrary,” Dallon replied with as much calm as he could muster, “a chef knows more about his ship than his own officers. Especially the ones that take special orders like I do. Do you ever think about your eating habits when you’re stressed out? The amount you eat? The types of food you crave? The amount of water you consume? Some species have no outward tells as to what’s going on in their heads, but everyone eats something, and everyone has a habit. Chiss for example,” he gestured as respectfully as he could at Vice Admiral Keatoch to illustrate his point, “when your people are bothered by something, a typical thing that most of you will do is take very direct control over your diet and nutrition. Your special orders become more specific and are usually tailored for exact calorie counts, proteins, vitamins, etc. Not that all Chiss do this as I’m sure you’re aware, but everyone has a pattern and this is typical for your people. I also have… other tricks for learning things about my crew, but suffice it to say that if you want to know more about that, a written report would be a more efficient use of everyone’s time,” he chuckled awkwardly, “This whole crew could be of incredible use to you, and I know that you need people. Badly. And I know how to recruit them. If you want that knowledge, I ask that you accept my fealty, or at the very least, my parole.” He forced a smile. He tried to ignore the sweat dripping down his face. Was it hot in here?

 

[Keatoch]

Keatoch nodded as he listened to the man. He could not deny that the chef was clever and observant. Now he was offering information on the crew, claiming they could be recruited. The Chiss Admiral put his hands behind his back, thinking for a moment, before replying.

"Very well, give me what you have." He caught himself, "O-one at a time, if you will please."

He would take notes mentally. No need to have a droid store the data yet, he just wanted to get this over with.

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

“Not so fast, Admiral. What is your guarantee that I will be granted my parole or my fealty will be accepted by the Elysium Empire?”

Dallon Drayle never pretended to be the smartest man in the room. But he was an ex-conn-man from Correllia. He knew how to keep an eye out for an angle and he knew when someone was pulling a fast one on him. Chiss were honourable people, even if they were deadly or calculated. But he had learned never to totally trust “honour”, unless an honourable being placed their word openly on the line and on the record, “You Chiss are tough customers in anything you choose to do, but you are honor bound. But I also know that ‘manipulating the truth’ doesn’t hurt your honour if you’re doing it for what you consider to be a higher cause. I want it on record that you will accept my fealty if I give you my information.”

 

[Keatoch]

As expected, the chef was worried about saving his own skin. He wanted a recording of Keatoch accepting his oath of fealty. However Keatoch was not of the proper authority to accept such an Oath. Citizens had signed documents of citizenship and fealty, while military officials had to be sworn in by the King, or, now, his son or daughter-in-law.

However, he could have the man take a temporary oath of service. That should suffice for now.

"Very well. There are cameras above, as this is the holding area of the ship. Please repeat these words: I, Dallon Drayle, swear allegiance to The Elysium Empire, and offer my services to the Empire."

The key here was he swore allegiance to The Empire, not to King Heath Valhoun. Nor did he offer his services for a set amount of time. Therefore it was a temporary oath, designed for times like these. There were traitors everywhere, and when they turned, there had to be a system in place to accept them until a proper recruiting could be done. It was a smart move by The King, and Keatoch hoped it would be enough for the chef....

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Dallon Drayle smirked under his greasy moustache. He had taken other oaths before, especially one for the First Order. He wasn’t trained as an officer, but he had learned the basic formula which oaths were written on. So that’s how it is then.

“So the Elysium Empire even has a special oath tailored for parolees, eh? Very efficient. I did offer you my parole, so this works nicely.” He said to show that he was aware that Keatoch didn’t openly indicate whether he was accepting Dallon’s parole or his fealty but that it was implied that parole was what he picked. He then straightened his back and raised his meaty hand in the air in mock formality, “I, Dallon Drayle, swear allegiance to The Elysium Empire, and offer my services to the Empire.”

He then slumped his large form in the chair again, attempting to appear comfortable in his steel chair and asked, “Do you formally accept my parole? I’m assuming you have parole conditions of course.”

 

[Keatoch]

Keatoch sighed, giving a single nod, "Yes. he conditions are you show complete and unconditional loyalty to The Empire. Very straightforward."

The actual conditions were more complicated but Keatoch skipped the technicalities for several reasons. First, he had forgotten the exact words of the code. But secondly, he had neither the time nor the patience to go through them formally. Thus what he had said would suffice.

"You are now in service of The Elysium Empire. As your first order, I, Admiral Keatoch, order you to reveal the information we discussed earlier regarding the other prisoners."

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

“Yes sir!” He saluted stiffly. He figured that he could maybe request the literature on Elysium oaths later, “first thing you need to know is that this crew is just loaded with the perfect people for you. The First Order uses the Lord Phonyx as a sort of storage unit for talented officers that have loyalty strikes against them in the navy. It’s not official policy, but a way to keep problematic-yet talented personnel out of the way while keeping things off record. Specifically, the crew is mostly composed of people that are damaged goods by higher officers in the First Order navy. People who have be wronged by higher officers and would become disillusioned with the First Order. But these guys are too good at their professions to sit in a base somewhere, so they are kept on patrol on small ‘nothing’ ships like the Lord Phonyx. I can’t tell you how many ships like this there are out there, for all I know, Lord Phonyx could be the only one. But they are recruitable if you have the right files on them.

“I have my own files of course. I even have files on most of the newer staff that we brought on a few weeks ago and they also fit the bill. I am a professional conn man after all and while I’ve left that behind me, some habits never die. They are in my quarters if you haven’t scrapped the ship yet, and I can help you get those no problem. But there is one man in particular that you want to talk to before you start running recruiting pitches…”

Dallon Drayle leaned forward as a force of habit to speak secretively, “The chief NCO, Ableman Alro Doreen. Everyone calls him Bubba. I made him out as a conn man like myself, but the real reason I have been watching him is because he walks and talks like a cop. I looked into it right away and confirmed my suspicions. He’s a top-notch detective from Cor-Sec! I’ve had to take pretty durastic measures to keep him from catching my scent. But I also know he’s a conn artist like myself and I know for a fact that he has been hiding from the Hutts. That’s why he joined the First Order as an enlisted man and deliberately maneuvered to be stationed on the Phonyx. If anyone has files as good as my own, it will be him. He would certainly be using his skills as a cop to help run this crew and his views would offset my own in a way that gives you a fuller picture.”

He leaned back, smiling under his greasy moustache, “That should be enough to give you at least a hundred experienced navy personnel. By cross referencing my files with his, and then go into the ship’s computer and pull what you can, you could have enough information to know how to buy loyalty from almost everyone from the Phonyx” he then scratched his stubble chin, “as for Chief Bubba, you probably just need to offer him asylum from the Hutts. Tell him you know what I told you. Is that enough to complete your order, sir?”

 

[Keatoch]

Keatoch listened to the chef's words carefully. It turned out that the man was going to be an incredible asset to The Elysium Empire. If he was being honest, which was a big if. Keatoch continued listening until the end, remembering everything, every detail, every name, and all the information within the dialogue.

"If what you have informed me is correct, then you have proved yourself to be a valuable asset. You will be free within a week, there is some paperwork to be done."

With that, Keatoch stepped away, moving to find the one they called "Bubba". He couldn't help but be excited about the ordeal, and his heartbeat proved his excitement by providing a quick Thump Thump Thump, almost matching his footsteps. This was his chance to snatch a promotion, and become a hero of The Elysium Empire. It was no secret that The Empire lacked leaders on every front. If this ship had men and women with the skill necessary...even just a handful of people...it would be a huge gain.

However he needed to be prepared for this to be a false hope. Something to give the chef time to plan an escape, or to give The First Order time to attack....

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Chief Bubba was brought into an interrogation room. His eyes were sharp, and his face was older than his years, despite being in his fifties. Up until now, he had been respectfully chitchatting the guards in the prison cells to limited success. As an ex-cop, he knew it didn’t hurt to build a rapport with your jailers so that you could learn things about them later.

His success had been better than he predicted when one of the guards asked him if he needed a water or cafe, or a cig. He thanked the man and accepted a cig and a light. Then as the guards left the room, and the air began to fill with acrid blue smoke, he calmly moved to the cheap steel chair on the other side of the table and did his best to give the impression that he was comfortable and relaxed as he sat down.

He took another acrid drag and waited for his interrogation to begin.

Keatoch

 

[Keatoch]

The Admiral entered the room, immediately noticing the blue smoke from the man's cigarette. He ignored it. The guards had likely given it to the man, and it was doing no harm. Keatoch pulled out the other chair, taking a seat across the table from the man. He looked old, clearly a man of experience. Experience of course, did not always equate intelligence. He could not allow himself to have any predetermined opinion about the man apart from the knowledge that he was a cop, and even that was uncertain.

"Ableman Alro Doreen, Chief NCO, Lord Phoenix. The First Order"

The Admiral's hatred of The First Order was surely apparent in his pronunciation of the nation's name.

"I will not lie to you. You are very likely to be executed. In fact, if I slip the news to our King, I'm sure you'll find yourself being executed not by The Elysium Empire, but by The Hutts. So, I ask you, what are you willing to do to alter your fate?"

It was incredibly direct, not always the case with Keatoch. It was a side effect of his anticipation. He wanted to recruit every single member of the crew, and it started here, with this Cor-Sec cop seeking refuge from the Hutts....

 

[Grand Shepherd Burtch]

Chief Bubba couldn’t contain his smile. The fact that the nameless “Chiss playing dress up” had mentioned the Hutts told him that he already knew the “big secret” of the crew of the Lord Phonyx. It gave him a pretty good idea of what the Chiss was after. This whole outfit that had captured him was clearly lacking people and was a fledgling navy at best. Still, he couldn’t let this navy boy have it easy. He took another drag.

“Well, kiddo. What does the “Lazy-man Empire” want from me? I’m just humble NCO.” He said through an exhaled puff of smoke.

He wasn’t about to tell him that it wasn’t his own life that he was worried about. Not unless there was a way the Elysium Empire could help him…