Private Short Leash

[The Arkanian]

Interrogation Chamber 1 in Cellblock C of the Tarkin Initiative vessel Entropy sported an anonymous red glowing light above the door.

Occupied.

Inside, an Imperial Security Bureau agent stood in a uniform that did not even show his rank. The twin scars across his face drew the eye immediately, nearly crossing from one temple to the opposite side of his jaw, diagonally. He was an Arkanian, that much was clear when he discarded his cap on the table in the middle of the room with a casual toss, revealing a shock of white hair. It matched his ice-white eyes and chalky skin.

"Well, well, well," he began sighing theatrically.

"This must be my birthday. Nuh uh. No. Don't look there. There's no one behind the glass."

The one-way mirror at the opposite end of the room was empty, though a recording device was active. The holocamera in the upper corner of the interrogation room had a green light.

The Arkanian started to roll down his uniform's sleeves as he spoke to the only other occupant of the room.

"An Imperial Knight? You must have worked some favors to get that position. Did it piss mommy and daddy off? Oh I bet it did."

He jut out his lower lip and cocked his head.

"Unless... they orchestrated this whole thing. You aren't spying for them... are you, Inara?"

Eyes pale as snow looked down at the woman in the chair.

Inara Ashina

 

[Inara Ashina]

"This must be my birthday. Nuh uh. No. Don't look there. There's no one behind the glass."

An unimpressed gaze slid from the mirror to meet the man squarely. Hands folded neatly across the table, Inara relaxed into the steely chair beneath and watched as he made himself at home. No good cop? Curious. Both insults washed over the woman as water did a stone, but the accusation merited reaction.

“I am a loyal servant to the Emperor.” Inara stated, eyes narrowing. Only a slight Atrisian accent colored the words. “And if you had reason to suspect anything but, I think this meeting would be more than pleasant conversation.”

Every word was true, though she did not hide her disdain. Inara’s Jedi education had informed her to what tactics an empire’s not-so-secret police force employed. A firm hand was necessary for security, but a rabid dog’s snarling was not.

“If your intelligence is good, you show know my family have disowned me, and I have had no contact with them since I have left my home.” Dropping her hands into her lap, the knight’s tone became lighter. “I do not even know if they are aware of the Initiative’s existence. We are likely written off as some Warlord’s remnant, knowing my mother.”

 

[The Arkanian]

"Oh please."

The Arkanian chuckled.

"The most lethal and effective Jedi family out there, completely unaware of what their daughter is doing?"

He rolled his eyes and took the chair opposite her in one hand. Spinning it around, he sat down and crossed his arms over the back, chin resting atop his forearms as he stared at the Imperial Knight.

"Why else do it then? Why are you running away from home, Inara? To play knight, is that it?"

She was right about the Bureau having nothing on her aside from mere suspicion, but telling her that would seem such a shame. The Arkanian hated giving away the game too early.

Inara Ashina