Ugohr Amid Jedi

[Ashin Varanin]

SULLUST
JAIL

The visitation room was stark white, adorned with two metal chairs and one chrome table, all of it rounded off and bolted to the floor. There were ysalamiri behind the walls: their overlapping and amplifying bubbles covered the entire room.

Ajira wore what Naboo's palace would consider simple clothing, all purple velvet with silver trim. She'd been searched and scanned in depth, as had her cargo: a care package from Otoh Gunga. The package took the form of a fruit basket containing native Gungan produce, as well as hard copies of Gungan literature - the Binks memoirs and so forth.

The door opened, and she looked up, expecting the guards to bring in the prisoner. He was, or had been, a Jedi Knight, convicted of negligence and manslaughter after he took a battle tank to a hostage situation.

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

 

[Ugohr Poof]

Ugohr served just one year (and a few bits more) in his 25-year sentence for manslaughter following the misuse of military assets, which was due to his complete lack of experience in special operations. After serving as the commanding officer of the Army of Malastare for almost two years, during which he served as the chief minesweeper of the Alliance, his crime on Chandrila caused him problems. He was to deliver the products of the dark-siders baking cookies back in the Galactic Moon Festival to the other inmates. During the festival all the users of the dark side of the Force that were imprisoned under the New Jedi Order's care on Sullust Across the galaxy, as their contributions to crafts, since dark-sided chefs were rumored to make the best cookies in the galaxy. The guards were used to handling Force-users, including but not limited to, Ugohr; they announced to him the purpose of this visit to his cell. The Gungan was known as a person that is not afraid to push the big red button in military/Jedi circles, despite not falling to the dark side. He might have killed a few hostages but he also killed one Galdur Smok and a few of his lackeys. But, while he had ysalamiri in his cell, it wasn't one of those magma cells.

"Ugohr Poof, you have a visitor"

"Do yousa have an idea what disen visit issa for?"

"For security reasons I cannot disclose the reason for the visit until you are face-to-face with the visitor"

"Issa dat visitor relaten to Chandrila?"

That is, was the visitor someone related to Ugohr's crimes? A victim? The operator of the crime scene? The Chandrilan authorities? He would be tempted to ask about the visitor's relationship to Cathul. Last he heard about her, she was doing things with his old corporation that he never would have dreamed of doing, because it was a quick and easy path to the dark side. And rumor has it that the Chandrilan authorities made attempts to negotiate a compensation to the families with Ugohr through IGR but they failed to realize that Cathul had no involvement whatsoever in the crime, and neither had IGR as a corporate entity.

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

Ajira looked up as the Gungan was led inside. "Jedi Ugohr Poof? I'm Lady Cardei from Theed Palace." Her eyes flicked to the guard. "Excuse us."

The guard looked back and forth between them: the young, tall, bulky Gungan soldier and the unarmed Naboo noblewoman. "Think I'd prefer to be in the room, miss."

"There's a camera. Come in if you feel the need. Excuse us." Ajira placed her focus visibly on Ugohr. After a moment, the guard grimaced and stepped outside.

"So," said Ajira. "Jedi Poof. I happened to be here on consultative business for the palace's starship engineering corps -- Theed Hangar, as we're known -- when I received a request from authorities in Otoh Gunga. I was asked to deliver this care package in person."

A microscopically tiny droplet of her blood had been applied to several pieces of fruit. That was the extent of the trick at work here. Should Poof ever be moved outside of ysalamiri fields, she would be able to sense his whereabouts through a modified Nightsister blood trail technique. That, in turn, would help her find him regardless of where the Alliance put him. She didn't foresee a need for such an eventuality, but one had to keep one's options open. Only a blood trail's creator could sense the trail as anything more than a tiny brownish spot, too, so she had no fear of the measure being detected through the Force by Poof's jailers -- even if he should be moved outside a ysalamir field.

 

[Ugohr Poof]

"A care package? Disen people in Otoh Gunga still feel dat mesa recoverable as a Jedi. Mesa hopen dat mesa could maken good usen of theirsa care package"

The ysalamir field was covering the entire area of the prison. He never seemed to be that much of a troublemaker as a Jedi Brute. Last he saw the visitor, he was making an attempt to sell her some property in Rellias, close enough to both Theed and the Gungans to be able to do business with both groups within commuting distance. Theed Palace Space Vessel Engineering Corps had a number of reasons at the time to be dealing with the Gungans. As he inspected the contents of Gungan-grown fruit and the reading material written in Gungan script, he was immediately reminded of Rellias and why he first dealt with the visitor in the first place. His unpleasant memories of that crazy, purple-ish Zeltron that wanted to eat Gungans surfaced back in his mind. But he was relieved that there wasn't any mention of Chandrila in anything the visitor came for: by now any mention of Chandrila makes him uncomfortable.

"Speaking of Naboo, do yousa find yoursa-self comfortable in yoursa secondary home in Rellias? Or if yousa actually own una such home?"

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

"I don't have one, no." Ajira leaned back in her chair as he perused the basket. "I've had chronic trouble putting personal initiatives and pursuits -- the everyday things -- in their appropriate place. The company is everything; you know how it is. That said, I'm doing quite well lately, and I'd be amenable to purchasing that empty plot by the waterfront. I confess that nothing else you showed my assistant was of interest to me: I prefer to build my own homes.

"Diplomatically," she added after a beat, "your friends in Otoh Gunga asked me to come here as an intermediary. You're one year into a quarter-century sentence. That's an unusually intense payload for negligent homicide to be carrying, even if you're subject to military law in a militaristic regime like this one. There are some who feel your sentence might have been more lenient if you were human. Obviously that's a general feeling that could cause issues in the balance of power between the Gungan and Naboo peoples. There have been sharp words on occasion, in private and in public. As a co-worker and concerned friend of certain agencies within the Palace, I'm here to examine options, on an unofficial level."

 

[Ugohr Poof]

"Yousa talken about 620 Golf Drive. May disen realtors in Moenia process dat transaction for dat one-acre vacant plot in mesa stead"

Oh, for some reason the Gungans found other areas in Rellias to build their McMansions: such waterfront properties were often perceived as being a tax trap for the non-Gungans by the Gungans living in that city, and Rellias is not at the top of the Gungan real estate food chain. But upon hearing that suspicions of judicial racism arose in Ugohr's trial on Chandrila, Ugohr's mind was racing with thoughts about these options. He pleaded guilty because he was the CO of the Army of Malastare at the time. He refused to provide help because he knew that it was next to impossible to get the victims to accept aid from the perpetrator immediately after the fact. It was a tale all too familiar to him: humans/Near-Humans given more lenient sentences than other species with similar lifespans, if they committed similar crimes. Especially as far as the Firct Order is concerned. Oh, obviously the crimes have nothing on Korriban (Korriban being a name that had circulated around the prison only because it appeared in the news) and the only things they had in common were that 1) the perpetrator was inexperienced in the context of the crime (hostage crises and fleeting respectively) and 2) they were both grave miscalculations.

"Mesa expecten da First Order to punish Gungans more harshly dan humans or Near-Humans. Mesa not knowen whether or noah da Chandrilan judicial system containen racists, because mesa trial took place on Chandrila. If yousa thinken of appealen on Naboo, as applied to da sentencin stage, would allow for a sentence reduction... mesa would liken to know whether dat issa in da list of options. Because mesa guilty plea will stand. But mesa open to exploring all of them-sa"

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

She had to admit his memory for the details impressed her. Here, by all accounts, was someone who had lived for his company. Since she wasn't often in the business of giving compliments, though, she only nodded and smiled. "Yes, that's the place. I'll address the purchase as soon as I'm back on Naboo."

Her forehead furrowed as he spoke of judicial options. "I'm sure you know your case better than I do, but I'm not certain about that course of action. You're a Naboo citizen by default, as a Gungan, but Naboo doesn't have jurisdiction over the crime. I also have a hard time imagining His Majesty making a formal request for your extradition or re-sentencing. As a retired Jedi and military officer himself, he might want you held to a high standard of accountability. I can't speak for him or his office, don't get me wrong. What I can do is...arrange for experts to look into the circumstances of your trial. Chandrila is ninety-six percent human. Your actions were excoriated during a time of extreme public agitation. It's possible the severity of your sentence stems from your convenience as a scapegoat."

 

[Ugohr Poof]

Naboo not having jurisdiction over the crime is one thing, but to think that re-evaluating the circumstances of the trial is a good idea did cross Ugohr's mind. Maybe the Gungan Rep Council or the Crown could ask for a re-sentencing based on the findings of these legal experts? But Chandrila being 96% human, it was all too tempting that a Gungan be a scapegoat for a crime that was excoriated planet-wide but caused no outcry away from Chandrila or Botor, he thought.

"Mesa accepten da offer of having experts arrange da circumstances of mesa trial. Mesa accept with da understanding dat disen experts will maken a visit hair once theirsa work issa completen so dat wesa can act based on theirsa findings. But would yousa not think dat, if there-sa grounds for a re-sentencing, da Gungan Rep Council ask for issa? And what power do Hisen Majesty hold over da Gungan Rep Council?"

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

"The Gungan authorities, while separate from and equal to the Crown, generally look to His Majesty to spearhead the collective interests of Naboo in the galactic diplomatic scene. That's why I'm here, in part, rather than a Gungan representative. The Galactic Alliance has only the most basic of relationships with Gungan authorities, so far as I'm aware. The palace's engineering corps, which I represent, has a much broader interstellar presence, and a larger footprint within the Alliance. We make and repair a good fraction of their ships. I believe the Gungans hoped that my connections, such as they are, could work in your favor."

She sat forward, elbows on the table, and scrutinized him.

"Simple question in search of a simple answer. When you fired that weapon, what did you believe was in your immediate line of fire?"

 

[Ugohr Poof]

"Mostly hostile combatants in da immediate vicinity of da door being blasted. Mesa expecten back then dat theysa would keep hostages deeper inside da agricenter, and exploit theirsa surprise to catch them-sa off-guard and move in for rescuing da hostages" Ugohr told Ajira, crying.

Clearly Ugohr was away from Naboo for so long that he didn't realize that the Gungan Rep Council had only the most basic relationships to galactic diplomacy. He killed one Galdur Smok (although not instantly in Galdur's case) and a few more hostage-takers, but his command of the Force was still a little poor back then, and hasn't improved in the slightest. Plus he knew that, if she offered to help, he would rather tell her relevant information that could be of use for whatever she intended to do.

"Theysa not asken for disen information when mesa trial was held: theysa only asken for a plea and then mesa sentence came"

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

"If I understand the situation correctly," she said, patting his hand in an attempt at sympathy, "you were driving a RingoVinda StarYards Zamboni-class main battle tank with a standard sensor package. You have a good deal of experience with that model. What degree of information did the sensor package give you about the interior of the building? Was it able to show you individual lifesigns through the walls, and if so, what information did that give you? What I'm asking is this: did you have valid and demonstrable reason, apart from guesswork, to believe that the hostages were being kept outside of your dual laser cannons' line of fire? For that matter, would your tank's sensor data have been preserved?"

She didn't much care about the Gungan, though she was good at faking it. But the situation presented an interesting puzzle. If there actually had been some kind of miscarriage of justice, a Naboo citizen served up as a scapegoat, the diplomatic side of things could yet turn to Naboo's advantage.

"What precise charges were you convicted of, Ugohr? I understand you were arrested for reckless endangerment, but the trial clearly snowballed for you to have been given a twenty-five-year sentence after a guilty plea."

 

[Ugohr Poof]

"Mesa charges were reckless endangerment, excessive use of force, reckless operation of an armored vehicle and manslaughter. Da last one wasen da most serious. There-sa were serious problems with how da trial wasen conducted"

Ugohr was almost as if questioned for an appeal. But he couldn't remember just how many counts of manslaughter there were: all that he did know was that there were as many manslaughter charges as there were dead hostages. Yes, there was an infrared sensor in that tank but the walls reduced the accuracy of what one could get on infrared. Oh, if it was to be done all over again, he would use his lightsaber to breach the lock, or use the E-Web, rather than the main artillery, and then he would stun the hostage-takers once the door could open. His command of the Force was insufficient to determine friend-or-foe with the Force back then, and hasn't improved in the slightest: the whole prison complex cut him off from the Force. But from the moment he is set free, he will fill in the gaps in his Force-knowledge as appropriate for a Brute, or perhaps rethink entirely what he wants to do as a Jedi - he didn't fall to the dark side all right, just that he has to use the light side of the Force for something other than combat.

"As for da sensor suite, issa only gave telemetry information about lifeforms, that is, how far theysa situated, in what direction theysa move and at what speed. If lifeforms had transponders attached, like tanks would, their affiliation, but there were no transponders attached to any of them-sa. Theirsa precision decrease da thicker da walls or, for that matter, da further away theysa situated. But sensor data only have a limited lifespan: theysa retain da last duey hours of information"

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

"Twenty-five years for manslaughter? Even the Sith Empire's judicial system rarely saw that kind of disproportionate response. No, I'd imagine there's something that can be done here, even without the sensor data. I'm going to look into that some more. I have a hard time believing that nobody would have thought to back up that data before it was purged. And even if that's the case, even if my associates can't find the data...well, that tells us something too, doesn't it. Interesting puzzle," she murmured, standing. "Very interesting. Well, Ugohr, I'll see what can be done within the limits of my position."

The pieces were coming together in her head. Ugohr's peccadillo had come at precisely the wrong time, when the Alliance was doing its best to assimilate Chandrila. An Alliance officer going radically off script could have thrown a wrench in the fate of an entire sector -- and would have, if not for the punitive sentence. A detail floated up: a mandatory minimum of twenty-five years due to the deaths of foreign nationals. And the circumstances had been strange: Chandrilan political authorities had sat in on the court-martial tribunal, though the official verdict had come from the GADF.

And there'd been a murder charge thrown in as well, at the last minute, one he hadn't mentioned just now. He'd pleaded guilty to everything but that one. And he'd been sentenced for it regardless -- the murder of foreign nationals charge had been the one with the quarter-century mandatory minimum. The more details floated back, the odder and uglier the trial looked.

She looked down at him with something like sympathy. "Speaking confidentially, Ugohr, there's little doubt in my mind that you were a political scapegoat. You were hung out to dry in order to fix the political problems your mistakes created."

 

[Ugohr Poof]

"Mesa grateful for yoursa visit. May da Force be with usen"

By now Ugohr acknowledged that the very presence of the Chandrilan political authorities in what was supposed to be a fully military affair was a tell-tale sign of what he previously called serious problems with the conduct of the trial. Certainly the Gungan Rep Council was angry at the Chandrilan authorities, and to think that there has been serious problems of law; his lawyer recommended, at the time, to plead guilty to precisely these charges and plead not guilty to the charge of murder. It's obvious to him that the Gungan Rep Council will formally request a re-sentencing, if this information was presented to the Gungan Rep Council: several breaches of procedure are part of the case, and the trial was conducted under ugly conditions on Chandrila itself. May the Force be with us all. May justice truly be made and, while Ugohr's guilt for the four crimes he pled guilty to is painfully obvious to any expert willing to examine the conditions of the trial, perhaps an appeal can successfully reduce the sentence, the guard thought, upon collecting Ugohr.

"Ugohr, your visit allowance for today has been exhausted" the guard told Ugohr.

[member="Ajira Cardei"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Ugohr Poof"]

With a nod, Ajira left the room. There wasn't much more to be done here. Frankly there might not be much to do anywhere. The Alliance military had its own flawed but powerful judicial system, apparently more accountable to foreign civilians than to the civil rights authorities of the Alliance. Not that she felt any actual outrage, of course: in their shoes she would have sacrificed a hundred Poofs for Chandrila. But still, between Gungan dissatisfaction, Poof's Naboo citizenship, and the skewed trial, there were opportunities here. Chandrila might be far from Naboo, but it boasted comparable size, wealth, and stature. Influence over Chandrilan authorities could work in the Palace's favor on any number of subjects.

 

[Ugohr Poof]

Once Ugohr left the room, he was herded back into his cell, thinking about the contents of the meeting he just had with Ajira, the employer of that crazy sentient-eating Zeltron. What Ajira told him was overloading his mind: to think that a serious miscarriage of justice could have been the case here may mean that several options are now on the table, especially if the experts commissioned by Ajira conclude that the breaches of procedure were serious enough to warrant a re-sentencing or an appeal. And also the social climate on Chandrila could have calmed down by now. He could readily imagine the reactions of the Gungan Rep Council, whoever they were at present. But no longer were Gungans strictly a Naboo system thing: there were some on Dagobah (ca. 100 million) and 5-6 million on Ringo Vinda, mostly in its mountains. Yes, Ugohr was a Naboo native, but he was one of those who were displaced by the Netherworld event.