Private Where the Heart Is

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - En Route to Debriefing Room
Tags: Mischa Korvan

Imperial Knights have many duties, from the implacable and at times heavy-handed manner in which they would spearhead military operations on contested worlds, to the inquisitor-specific role of hunting down hidden yet dangerous threats to the Empire, and even the seemingly menial but no less important task of occasionally aid in the debriefing of soldiers who need extra attention by the ISB. Many cases requiring Knight involvement end up being suspected of some form of collusion with enemy forces, or may be under some other form of suspicion. On occasion, such suspected service men and women require the skills of a knight simply because of some trauma they've experienced wherein they cannot themselves recall the details of the engagement. ISB agents at times call upon the services of an Imperial Knight to avoid misremembering anyway, if the mission was important enough.

Considering the bits of Intel Varos was privy to coming from the Empire's operation on Ilum, as well as its latest operation code named 'Operation Scimitar'; Varos was inclined to believe this was due to the latter reason. Dark Side force cults seemingly crawling from the woodwork within worlds thought secure, primal force entities awakening from the bowels of entire planets only to destroy anything in their path; the Order of Imperial Knights was busy indeed following up with these reports on the back end as much as on the front line. Considering Varos was among the newest of Knight Errants to ascend to full Knighthood, it would seem as though he was among the busiest of Knights in this specific regard.

But thus far, he did not mind. His former master had done much to impress upon him the need to be decisive; to "Be a Man of the Empire - whatever that means. Service is service, and order is what matters most." Proverbially burying his head in the sand that was combat was not something like to do that. The Order of the Imperial Knights was, as its name suggested, focused on maintaining order. Much of that was done in tasks like this, in perhaps an even more meaningful way than on the front lines. At least, that was what he told himself as he made his way through the spartan corridors of the starbase to meet with an ISB agent by the name of 'Euron Livanac'.

'A strange name.' Varos thought to himself almost immediately after reading it on his datapad's display. But, agents with odd names typically had more to prove than those named otherwise. Ruminating over the name was hardly the best use of Varos' time as he strolled through the corridor, adorned in a form-fitted black-hued suit of armor with a waist-cloak trailing behind him slightly with each step. His slightly overgrown hair was quaffed neatly, and overall carried an air of authority as he made his way through up to the debriefing room door - where the agent awaited him outside. Varos had taken some time prior to his arrival to this starbase to read up on a list of soldiers requiring his presence, and had become familiar with them all on a basic level; at least as much as one could in a shuttle ride.

"Lord Korvan, a pleasure to meet you in person." Agent Livanac bowed at the waist respectfully. He appeared close to Varos' age, give or take a few years by Varos' summation. He nodded at the agent, a faint smile on his lips.

"Indeed. We are always ready to be of service to the Empire of course." Varos' voice carried a smooth texture, as if laced with silk of the highest quality, and carrying a slight Serennan accent. It often commended himself well in more diplomatic or delicate situations he found himself in, which proved to be the case here as he responded with a dutiful and well practiced manner. He pulled out his datapad at the agent's indication, wherein the pair scrolled to the service record of a 'Mischa Aiden'. This was a simple enough task to begin his 'deployment' with - a corporal who was deployed on Ilum, and of whom Livanac wished to perform a more detailed psyche evaluation during the debriefing.

"Any questions before we proceed, sir?"

"No, thank you. I'll follow your lead."

At that, the pair would ender the room - wherein the good corporal would be waiting.

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

Mischa hated procedures.

It had been hard enough to have gotten back to the base. And that's when the reports started. What had happened to her entire squad? How did she survive? Does anyone else know of the whereabouts of the base?

She had gotten through that well enough. It was still early enough that the true trauma had not sunk in properly yet. And of course, there was the rest of the platoon to keep her mind off it. But like Sunshine said - it was standard procedure for a soldier to get debriefed by ISB before taking medical time off. She had protested, but the Lieutenant, for the first time since serving under him, had been emotionally sincere in his reasoning.

She was a psychological liability on the op in her current state.

Mischa had been covertly transported back to Imperial space, where she was taken directly to the orbital base above Nirauan to meet with whatever Agent was to do the debriefing and to handle her transfer. She was at least given leave on the station to clean up properly - wash away the last of the jungle sweat and grime.

And with it, reality started to catch up to her.

She was given standard military base camo-civvies to wear and was led to the debrief room. Mischa felt caught up in a whirlwind that she had no way of escaping. She'd been awake well over 36 hours. She was exhausted but needed to keep thinking straight if she were to get past ISB without getting herself or Aiden Rennek killed.

She was staring at the opposite wall, lost in thought, when the door finally opened, revealing not only an Agent, but an Imperial Knight as well - dressed in the typical Inquisitorius-armour no less.

Shiiit.

She drew in a breath, rising to her tired feet, mustering a salute. Save face, Misch.

"Corporal Mischa Aiden, at your service, Sirs."

 

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - Debriefing Room Besh
Tags: Mischa Korvan

"Corporal Mischa Aiden, at your service, Sirs."

"At ease, Corporal." Agent Livanac responded with a disarmingly casual salute in return. The ISB agent tossed his datapad onto the desk between them and pulled the chair out from his side of it. "I am Agent Euron Livanac, and this is Knight Templar Varos Korvan from the Imperial Inquisition. Please, have a seat." With a cadence reminiscent of simply meeting a friend at the cinema, Euron smiled jovially at Mischa and sat down opposite of her. Varos on the other hand strolled over to the wall between them, giving her a polite nod as he leaned against the wall and folded his arms across his chest. His piercing blue eyes met hers for but a moment until they shifted to glance at Euron as he once again began speaking.

"I would like to reassure you, Corporal Aiden - that this is simply a routine debriefing of your most recent assignments. Lord Korvan is only here to help provide support during this conversation, as from what I understand you've experienced a rather traumatic series of events leading to the death of your squad - you have my sympathies of course." His tone was not disingenuous, but seemed rather purposeful despite the casual way in which he reached for one of three glasses placed next to a pitcher of water at the center of the table and poured. He glanced up as he was about to continue, his eyes flicking over to Varos: "Don't feel as though you must hold anything back - Lord Korvan possesses sufficient clearance for now, but I will intervene if that changes." He replaced the pitcher, then tapped his datapad awake. After a few more taps and scroll motions, he leaned back in his chair and let out a sigh, his eyes leveling with the trooper before him. "This debriefing will cover both your deployments on Ilum and Camaas. Let's begin with Ilum - please start with your mission parameters, and a summary of the events experienced by your unit up to your exfiltration and redeployment."

Euron's eyes were a dark green, almost uninterestingly dark - approaching the shade of brown more so than green. Varos' eyes casually skimmed across them both. Clearly, Euron was well practiced at this, for he went to great lengths to try and make Corporal Aiden feel more comfortable. To his credit, it would seem such efforts were needed given Mischa's current state of mind. Varos barely needed to reach out with his senses to determine that, bluntly; she was scared out of her mind. He could speculate as to why, but the reason was rather obvious judging by the way her muscles tensed upon seeing Varos enter the room. Imperial Knights were known for a lot of things; while their chief responsibility was to establish and maintain order throughout the Empire and its territories, their means of doing so were as diverse and, in some cases, heavy handed as thought could conjure.

While Varos at first entertained the thought that this indicated she had something to hide, that wasn't quite fair to her - at least yet. She had hardly said anything, and for now he was content to chalk up any such physiological reactions to circumstance for now. That was one thing he had learned over his years of training, and he thought it rather fascinating really - discerning the truth when 'interviewing' subjects. The holovids taught the general public that certain cues would indicate deceit by their own merits - such as if someone looked up and to the left, or if if they touched their face, used word murmurs like 'um' or 'uh', licked their lips too much; the list literally went on and on, and was complete and total rubbish. During his training as an inquisitor, he was taught that despite the rather notable biological differences between sentient races, a nearly universal truth all of them shared was that there was no single, or collection of physiological occurrences that in and of themselves indicated deceit. Instead, there was benefit to utilize a tactic even non-force sensitive experts practiced; to begin the discussion as casual and light as possible to try and ascertain what that individual's baseline of actions, mannerisms, and cues were.

How did they talk under normal circumstances? How did they gesture? What is their memory like on basic and seemingly insignificant facts? Divergences from those normal 'markers' in and of themselves didn't indicate deceit, but instead could open a psychological window into that person and provide insight as to how they are handling the general interview when it inevitably approaches more sensitive matters. If they frequently touched their face during normal conversation, but actively refrained from doing so when penetrating questions were being asked, that was significant. Perhaps they were trying to hide the cues their body was giving, due to being conscious of the same line of thought Varos was considering now. If they gestured a lot from the start, but throughout the course of the conversation began to physically 'close' themselves off and fold their arms across their chest, it could mean a lot of things - but the divergence itself was significant. Perhaps their arms were tired and they wanted to rest them. Or perhaps it indicated that the person was trying to 'self soothe' themselves due to a question that made them uncomfortable. No one divergence meant much, but several divergences on a consistent and trackable basis and line of questioning, was very significant.

Varos spent years learning the ins and outs of such methods of reading the physical cues all sentients give off, even if they tried to avoid it. It made him, and others like him, all the more effective at what they did before they ever even had to involve their abilities in the force. So, for now, it was clear that Mischa was nervous. But what she was nervous about...

That remained to be seen.

So, for now, Varos instead did his best to support Livanac's efforts to put Mischa at ease, instead giving her a soft and reassuring smile as his mouth creased into small dimples on his cheeks.

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

"At ease, Corporal. I am Agent Euron Livanac, and this is Knight Templar Varos Korvan from the Imperial Inquisition. Please, have a seat."

"Thank you, Sir." Mischa said, a slight relief in her voice before her legs gave way and she collapsed back into her seat. Just then, her dark eyes found the piercing blue pools of the Knight which captivated the exhausted soldier for just a moment before the Agent spoke again.

"I would like to reassure you, Corporal Aiden - that this is simply a routine debriefing of your most recent assignments. Lord Korvan is only here to help provide support during this conversation, as from what I understand you've experienced a rather traumatic series of events leading to the death of your squad - you have my sympathies of course."
It made her heart clench ever so slightly.
She cleared her throat. "Thank you, Sir." she said hoarsely. The true reality of it all had started to sink in properly.
"Don't feel as though you must hold anything back - Lord Korvan possesses sufficient clearance for now, but I will intervene if that changes. This debriefing will cover both your deployments on Ilum and Camaas. Let's begin with Ilum - please start with your mission parameters, and a summary of the events experienced by your unit up to your exfiltration and redeployment."
That was the easy bit aside from Grimmy getting killed.

Mischa drew a heavy breath before she launched into the report.
"Ilum was standard deployment. My platoon deployed with the rest of the 501st in a full frontal assault. Our flank got ambushed by Alliance marines and some Jedi, but we were able to hold them back well enough. We lost...many good men and women in doing so, including my squad's Sergeant Ralph Grimshaw." she told them, her voice going hoarse at the mention of Grimmy. "Exfil was standard too. General Vandron's order to disengage reached us, we followed that order as well as we could under heavy fire."

She drew another breath, crossing her hands on her lap.
"It was in the gunship en route back to the ship, that our Lieutenant Paul Jameson got our next set of orders - we would not return with the rest of the Legion, but instead got deployed to a quiet jungle world within the Core." she went on.

She then looked from the Agent to the Knight before looking back at the Agent.
"The mission was highly classified, Sirs. It still is." she started, sitting up straighter. "I may have...lost my entire squad, but the rest of the platoon's secrecy and safety is still paramount. I have to ask, Sirs - how much of it do you need to know?" She had already risked the platoon enough by letting Aiden go.

It would be irresponsible to risk them more.

 

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - Debriefing Room Besh
Tags: Mischa Korvan

‘Her muscles seem to relax slightly, and her thoughts begin to uncloud...’ Varos began to gently prod with the force, primarily exuding a sense of calm as Livanac made his introduction, with a slight hiccup at his mention of the death of her squad. Then, she began her retelling of the events on Ilum. Despite the loss of her squad sergeant (which could be expected given the toll often exacted by war), Corporal Aiden’s composure remained relatively intact throughout the report. Varos had heard much of the events that had transpired on Ilum - including the actions of his own father, which had caused quite a stir of controversy throughout the Imperial hierarchy. He had his own thoughts and reservations about it all, but now was not the time to explore those thoughts.

Instead, Varos concentrated on Mischa’s words, as well as the tone carrying them forward. After the brief summary of Ilum, her back straightened and her guard appeared to raise noticeably. Varos could feel it himself, although he doubted she was aware of his gentle presence on the fringes of her mind.

"The mission was highly classified, Sirs. It still is."

Varos ever so slightly - almost imperceptibly - raised an eyebrow at Mischa’s remark.

"I may have...lost my entire squad, but the rest of the platoon's secrecy and safety is still paramount. I have to ask, Sirs - how much of it do you need to know?"

On the surface, Mischa’s hesitation to disclose more than she should appeared somewhat appropriate, if not commendable given the alternative. While not an expert, Varos imagined one of the greatest threats to any covert operation was the premature, if not inappropriate disclosure of information. But underneath, Varos couldn’t help but wonder. ‘Is she truly concerned about operational integrity? In an interview? With ISB?’ He studied her for a moment, unsure what to think at this stage.

As if mirroring his thoughts, Agent Livanac cleared his throat and responded, with a hint of light-hearted dismissal in his voice evidenced by a soft chuckle: “As we stated at the beginning Corporal, please don’t hold anything back. But I just realized I forgot procedure-” Whether it was accidental or otherwise, he was right. When they entered the room, Agent Livanac had neglected to present his credentials to the Corporal. One could make the argument that this minor lapse was in and of itself an explanation for Mischa’s hesitance, but Varos wasn’t so certain.

As the agent reached into his pocket and placed his ISB credentials on the table for all to see (which plainly showcased that he did, indeed, have sufficient security clearance to avoid any further red tape), Varos observed Micha's reaction intently. But rather than remaining silent, he opted to chime in. He could only remain a silent observer for so long before she began to clam up once again. “I could show my credentials as well, if that would make you feel more comfortable.”

He once again cracked a smile, this one a touch warmer and more light hearted to mirror the approach of Euron. Adorned in his signature Inquisitor armor and regalia, one could hardly doubt his position within the Imperial Hierarchy. Inquisitors themselves, were often privy to more sensitive information than their other counterparts - a detail many within the armed forces would be well aware of despite being otherwise shielded from the majority of other duties and nuances surrounding the knighthood.

Picking up on Varos’ cue, Euron allowed a short laugh to escape his lips, to which Varos smirked as well. But after the brief moment of indulgence, Varos directed his gaze once again at the soldier before him, adding on just before Agent Livanac spoke again: “But before we move on... I do have a question about what you’ve described regarding your experiences on Ilum...”

He let his words hang for a moment as he shifted slightly and let out a slight sigh, as if he were adjusting to make himself a tad more comfortable. “You mentioned that your unit suffered casualties in your engagement on Ilum, including your squad sergeant. If you had to approximate the casualties resulting from that alone - at what combat strength did your squad leave Ilum? And as a followup - in what capacity did your responsibilities expand upon the death of Sergeant Grimshaw?” As he spoke, Varos began to slowly emerge from his perch and pace around the table, his route taking him behind Mischa until he stopped on the other side of her, his back facing her and his hands clasped behind him. At his last statement, his eyes would once again find themselves locked with hers. ‘Her eyes possess a... an interesting quality about them.’

While his expression possessed a hint of his previously relaxed manner, it shifted to a fairly neutral and professional stance. He did not wish to commit overmuch one way or the other, lest he inadvertently sabotage Agent Livanac’s approach to the interview. The questions themselves would be asked in a seemingly unobtrusive manner; as if Varos was trying to gather a firmer grasp on the inner workings of Micha’s unit. But despite all of the attempts to put her at ease, and all of the effort put into appearing as nonchalant as possible; the answers to those questions would provide a certain level of insight to Varos moving forward.

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

Spooks creeped her out.

This one was no different. Mischa was no idiot, even in her exhausted state. He tried too hard to be friendly. Friendly spooks were red flags.
“As we stated at the beginning Corporal, please don’t hold anything back. But I just realized I forgot procedure-”
He placed his credentials in front of her. Her dark eyes looked back up at him.
"That may be so, Sir. But how do I know you aren't an Alliance plant?" she asked him. "No offence, Sir, but us grunts don't really trust you Bureau spooks." she said a bit more shyly.
“I could show my credentials as well, if that would make you feel more comfortable.”

Her eyes flicked toward the Knight - it was the first time he actually spoke. It was plain that he didn't have to - he was an Inquisitor after all. But he still offered.
"That won't be necessary, Sir." she said, though he would still feel her hesitance in revealing her platoon's actual mission. "I just want it on record that I'm divulging it under duress." That was exactly what this was. She was blunt, exhaustion throwing protocol out the window.

“But before we move on... I do have a question about what you’ve described regarding your experiences on Ilum...you mentioned that your unit suffered casualties in your engagement on Ilum, including your squad sergeant. If you had to approximate the casualties resulting from that alone - at what combat strength did your squad leave Ilum? And as a followup - in what capacity did your responsibilities expand upon the death of Sergeant Grimshaw?”
The question struck an emotional blow to her. She swallowed heavily before answering.
"Aside from our Sergeant we lost one other from our squad. I don't know how many the rest of the platoon lost that day. The entire platoon left for the mission at about 75%." she said. blinking slightly to clear the glassiness in them.

The Knight moved to her back, her eyes following him. "As for...command - I mostly took on most of Grimmy...Sergeant Grimshaw's responsibilities. I was the one that received orders from our Lieutenant to hand out to the rest of my squad, at least. There wasn't active command on Camaas like there would be on a battlefield." she went on before catching his eye again, her own still slightly glassy at the memory of her squadmates dying left, right and center. His were truly captivating, to say the least.

She finally looked away and back at the Agent.

"All right, what do you need to know, Sir?"

 

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - Debriefing Room Besh
Tags: Mischa Korvan

‘Interesting... most interesting.’ Varos mused as Mischa maintained her resistance to speak further about Camaas. Whether she intended it or not, she was not helping her case, ISB spooks or no. What was she hiding? Or better yet, what was she afraid to divulge? To go as far as to suggest that an agent of the ISB was an Alliance plant, without evidence, was enough pretext for Varos to clap her in binders and subject her to a more forceful mental probe to pull the information from her one way or the other. Yet, Varos was not in a particular hurry to go about things in that manner. He could feel the pain radiating off of her... the loss. Regulations and decorum aside, he could not dismiss the fact that people reacted differently when experiencing such emotions. He was probably among the few inquisitors who believed that, and refrained from such heavy handed measures where at all possible.

For now, he had to accept the fact that she was uncomfortable talking around Agent Livanac, but appeared more receptive to speaking with him directly based on the easing of her posture when he decided to speak up - if only marginally. Despite Livanac’s considerable training, Varos could tell that he had taken exception to Mischa’s words, and that his composure was dangerously close to shifting to a more hardline approach. Once again, Varos spoke before Euron had the chance to. “I... believe I can take this interview from here, Agent Livanac.” Varos’ eyes remained fixed on Mischa for a moment longer, eventually shifting over to the Agent who gaped back in a momentary lapse in his carefully cultivated persona thus far.

“This... is highly unusual, my lord.”

“Is it?” Varos questioned, a hint of mock curiosity in his voice. “Correct me if I’m wrong Agent, but the Inquisition has ultimate jurisdiction to intervene as it sees fit during the course of any interview, interrogation, or investigative operation... yes?” An edge laced his voice, a hint of distaste over being challenged revealing itself for but a moment. The Agent cowed, his lips closing as soon as they began to part in protest. “Forgive me, agent.” Varos began” “It would appear as though this interview will take longer than we both expected, given the circumstances surrounding Camaas. Perhaps it would be best for you to move on to the other interviews on the schedule for today whilst I see this through. Plus -” He glanced back at Corporal Aiden, a slight smirk present on his lips as he seemingly pulled her into the conversation: “It would seem you have some explaining to do about being an Alliance plant.” His tone carried a momentary light hearted sense of humor. “I can take it from here, thank you agent.”

Varos’ hand raised toward the door, his tone pleasant but clearly not providing any room for protest. The door opened abruptly, without anyone being in range to trip the sensor - the implication being quite clear that Korvan was providing the means for which the Agent to comply. Euron’s gaze lingered upon Varos, his earlier manner all but abandoned as he was clearly not in agreement. Yet, he had little choice but to comply. He picked up his datapad and left the room without further ado, after which Varos flicked his fingers to beckon the door to close and lock behind him.

The entire exchange was a calculated affair, to be sure. Varos knew well that Livanac would take no genuine offense to the exchange, and the agent played into his part properly. The primary rule for any interview was to gain the trust and comfort of the interviewee, and only an imbecile would believe that Livanac’s tactic had worked. To his credit, the Agent saw enough of that to concede, but not without playing into Varos’ hand in doing so. He would have to give him credit for that when they met up again. But for now, he needed to get this interview back on track.

The exchange was not meant to put Mischa at ease. Instead, it was meant to be a clear demonstration of the situation she was presently in, without overtly threatening her in the process. Livanac played that role, and Varos had softly expressed the role he played in all of this. Mischa was now alone in the room with the one man who actually mattered of the former pair, and perhaps she would feel more willing to speak with him without the so-called ‘spook’ in the room. “I apologize for Agent Livanac’s impertinence, Corporal. I will address that at a later time, but he should not have pressed further. That said...”

His eyes locked with hers again, with both a softness, and an edge present at the same time. “I hope you feel comfortable enough to continue.” Whether or not Mischa noticed that Varos was no longer ‘asking’ for her to do so, the fact was he did not despite the clear effort he was making to meet her half way. His shoulders relaxed, and he slowly stepped over to the chair Livanac had abandoned in his earlier departure. He sat within it, and kipped his right leg over his left knee, leaning back. His fingers folded together, and he craned his head slightly to the side. “I find it interesting that you were so concerned about Agent Livanac’s trustworthiness.” Although his words could be construed as accusatory, his tone bespoke a sense of... pleasant surprise instead, or perhaps... a hint of admiration?

“Most soldiers of your rank would immediately speak about such things when asked by an agent of the ISB, or even a member of my order. But you... didn’t.”

“Have you had prior experience? In dealing with... Alliance agents?” What was it called when a yet-to-be-revealed murderer divulged too much information? “I didn’t kill my wife with an axe!”

“Who said anything about an axe...?”

Varos didn’t say it, but the only thing that made sense in his mind as to why Mischa was concerned about divulging secrets to a GA Agent...

Was because she had encountered one before.

It may well have been a leap, but something deep down made him wonder; be it intuition or otherwise.

But, he couldn’t let her freak out too hard.

He chuckled softly, reaching into one of the pouches along his belt and pulling a pack of cigarettes from within. He tapped the top of the pack against the table, then opened the flap and pulled one out. He set the pack on the table, open end facing Mischa in a clear invitation if she so desired. He then placed the cigarette in his mouth and produced a small lighter, priming its igniter a few times before raising it to his lips and catching the end. He tugged on it a few times, smoke building in his mouth - of which he pulled deep into his lungs and exhaled. “I won’t tell if you don’t.”

He was definitely talking about the cigarettes.

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

“I... believe I can take this interview from here, Agent Livanac.”

The exchange that followed between them just raised Mischa's guard. This was starting to feel more like an interrogation than a debriefing. She just wanted to go home and sleep - maybe cry - but definitely sleep.

She did not need a space wizard poking around in her mind to get to the bottom of something - the fact remained that her entire squad was dead. No amount of interrogation was going to bring them back. They were gone because of a freak accident that had caused a shit ton of other problems.

The door finally clicked shut - the Agent gone. Leaving her alone with a space wizard - which didn't put her much at ease. He definitely was the more dangerous of the two.

When he looked at her again, it was evident what was happening. As a 501st Legionnaire, she had received training against this type of stuff with space wizards. She wasn't some 313th grunt.
“I find it interesting that you were so concerned about Agent Livanac’s trustworthiness.”
She looked him dead in the eye and this time, it was different.
"I don't trust yours, either, Sir. But here we are. Let's get this other with." she deadpanned him.

“Most soldiers of your rank would immediately speak about such things when asked by an agent of the ISB, or even a member of my order. But you... didn’t. Have you had prior experience? In dealing with... Alliance agents?”

He was smooth - offering her a cigarette in the process. He was taking a gamble and hit close to the mark, but not on it. She took a cigarette, be it exhaustion or something to do other than shiver in the cold room, was unknown. She took a deep breath of smoke while spoke before he finally concluded.
“I won’t tell if you don’t.”
She shook her head, exhaling smoke as she went.
"Let's cut the tape, Sir. I'm a 501st Trooper. I've been trained against the Force and its disciples since joining the Academy." she said with another tug at the cigarette. "But I know I ain't getting out of here before tell you what happened on that planet, so let's just get to it so I can go to bed." She ashed the cigarette onto the floor with the lack of an ashtray in the room.

"My platoon was tasked to establish an FOB within the Core - on Camaas, to be specific, because of it's low Alliance presence as well as low population while still being withing striking distance. It is both a high risk op as well as a low one. If anyone else knew, it could compromise the entire mission. But on the planet itself, there wasn't an Alliance presence - the closest local village was about 40 klicks away from the base we established. As far as I know, it's still unknown, unless someone talks." she started. another tug of the cigarette. "We were to conduct daily patrols just in case - eradicate anyone withing perimeter klicks. We didn't encounter anything on these patrols. The local wildlife, however, posed a big problem." Her voice grew slightly hoarse at the mention. "But we learned how to combat them - sort of."

"Behemoths are shit to combat and they hunt in packs." she went on, face growing darker. "My squad and I were on patrol duty the day things went down." Stick to the truth - just omit Aiden. "We were just past the halfway mark between base and the closest village when some kind of shuttle malfunctioned and...came crashing down...on top of us." It was difficult recounting it - Mischa ended up crushing half a cigarette against the table. "When I woke up, I was half crushed underneath some trees. My squad...weren't so lucky. And neither were the Alliance Marine passengers on the shuttle." Except one. "It was getting late, the predators started to roam, and with...no backup...I knew I had to find some shelter before them behemoths showed up. I...had broken ribs...so I looked for the squad medic's pack within the wreckage as well as an intact rifle before taking off to a nearby cave where I could heal myself." She drew a heavy breath.

"Can I skip over my escapades with the wildlife en route to the village, or do you need to know that as well?"

 

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - Debriefing Room Besh
Tags: Mischa Korvan

Varos remained silent as Mischa accepted a cigarette and began, for the first time, actually talking. His silence was palpable, even avoiding any real response when she added her comment about her training to resist force users. Not everything required a response, and he saw her words for what they were - an attempt to regain composure and control, when she herself was desperately in need of it. He was comfortable enough in his own skin to allow her that dignity, at the very least. There was no question that if he wanted to, he could break her. Everyone broke, eventually. But there was something about her... something that urged him to avoid that course of action. He wasn’t sure what it was.

The silence continued as she began retelling the details around Camaas. Unsurprisingly, the Imperial military was attempting to establish a foothold within the Core, which explained why she felt tight-lipped about the whole operation. It still tugged on Varos’ intuition that a Corporal - within the 501st no less - would hesitate to discuss such mission parameters with an agent of the same intelligence agency that likely had dispersed intelligence leading to the operation in the first place. But as she continued, Varos’ senses began to focus on a detail that felt quite significant.

‘Some kind of shuttle?.’ Varos thought to himself. ‘A vaunted member of the 501st legion, who has seen more than her fair share of troop transports, and was probably briefed on Alliance military craft, chose the words “Some kind of shuttle”?’ Further, he found himself pondering the entirety of the tail end of her story. She survived being crushed by trees and all manner of debris, had found a way to extricate herself from underneath them, searched through the medical supplies of a squad that was crushed by a shuttle (which conveniently had crushed in such a way to kill all hands within, yet at the same time not result in some explosion or otherwise), then find a way to traverse wild terrain to take refuge within a cave and heal up.

To be blunt, Varos didn’t believe the story. Notwithstanding the earlier difficulties experienced... too many variables just didn’t add up. While he didn’t wish to downplay the Corporal’s abilities, she was either the second-coming of Irveric Tavlar himself, or she was not telling the whole truth. He suspected the vaguery rested within the details surrounding the shuttle. His face remained neutral, his eyes appraising her as he reached out with the force whilst simultaneously pondering over the details mentioned. When she finished speaking, he held her gaze for a prolonged moment, taking a puff of his cigarette. His thoughts drifted to the details he skimmed over prior to the meeting. As best he could remember... this was her first destination after the events which had transpired on Camaas. She had submitted to a field exam by a medic prior to exfiltration, which had ascertained her vitals and superficial wounds. And there were no pictures, or recordings of the crash site, nor was there any report on file from a rescue team. All Varos had was her word to go off of. His former master would be itching to be let at her right about now.

“Thank you for your candor, Corporal... as well as exploring the details around your deployment.” He gave her a genuinely sympathetic smile. Despite the questions and inconsistencies floating around in his mind, he still recognized that she wasn’t lying about the whole thing. While Varos had never served in the military proper (despite his father’s insistence he do otherwise), he could only imagine the level of mental trauma by his ability to sense the fringes of her emotions now, sitting across from her. Almost accidentally, his free hand drifted on top of hers; his fingers barely touching the back of her hand in a warm and sympathetic caress. As soon as the moment had arrived, the moment faded as he pulled his hand back and sighed with the discharge of a deep cloud of smoke from his lungs.

“In exchange for your candid retelling, allow me to be equally so with you.” He began, his lips pursing as he took a moment to choose his next words carefully. “I believe most of what you’ve told me, but I don’t believe you are telling me the whole truth.” While he could not remedy the earlier stated mistrust she held for him, there was every indication that he was being straightforward with her. He stared straight into her eyes, and his expression was even and seemingly natural.“I could elaborate about the details that give me pause, but I... I think you know which ones they are.”

He flashed a knowing look before continuing: “I am aware of the reputation my order has amongst the rank and file of the military, and I think we are both aware that reputation is well earned. You, and all other servicemen and women in the Empire, are trained to resist mental probing. But only to a certain point. The Inquisition gets the information it wants, one way or the other.” While again, his words were deadpan and direct, they carried no malice or threat behind them. He was simply stating facts.

“But-”

His tone changed slightly, and a very subtle twitch along his cheek broadcast something within him that he probably did not intend to project - not with an interviewee at least.

“Contrary to what you may think... we aren’t all monsters.” He held her gaze again, hoping he could see the truth in his words. “Many of us weaponize the fear our reputation projects to get results. But I don’t believe in that; at least, in weaponizing it liberally. The fact is, I am here to discern whether or not any of our operators have aided and abetted the Empire’s enemies in undermining our national security. I take no issue with the fact that you were obviously injured by the crash that occurred and killed your squad. But I take issue with what your fear is causing you to do, and I can’t help you if you don’t see that for yourself and allow me to disabuse you of it. You are a survivor, Mischa.” This was probably the first time he used her name out loud.

“Their death was not your fault, and your survival was also not your fault. And despite the current political climate our Empire sees itself in, I highly doubt the Alliance marines who may-” He paused, his voice adding a certain inflection on his next words: “Or may not - have all perished from the impact - I highly doubt they intentionally crashed their shuttle into your squad. This appears, at present, to be a massive series of events that resulted in the untimely death of your friends, and in the near-compromisation of your mission. That... is what I plan on telling my superiors... at least, currently.”

Once again, his eyes locked with hers. It was hard to describe the expression on his face. It included both empathy, but also a measured restraint; separation, yet warmth. It was as if he were perfectly expressing every emotion, but none of them fully at the same time. “But I can only do that for certain if you tell me everything. And I do mean everything. So, I am going to ask you one last question, and your answer will decide your fate.” The pause was deafening, but would punctuate his voice everymoreso.

“Were you the sole survivor of the crash? And did you really extricate yourself to a cave in uncertain terrain with a badly injured rib cage alone?” The situation was at a crescendo, balanced on a knife’s edge. It was both the most dangerous the situation could be in, but also the most vulnerable. There was a chance that Micha could fall back on her laurels and try to bullshite her way through this again, but Varos hoped she decided not to do that. Because he would not - no... could not ask nicely again. Despite the fact that... he found her quite captivating.

‘What the frag?’

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

"Thank you for your candor, Corporal... as well as exploring the details around your deployment."

The hand that touched hers, brief as it was, caught her completely off-guard. That ain't standard. All she could do was nod.
"In exchange for your candid retelling, allow me to be equally so with you. I believe most of what you've told me, but I don't believe you are telling me the whole truth. I could elaborate about the details that give me pause, but I... I think you know which ones they are."

Shitfuck.

She should have known. It ain't easy fooling a space wizard. She could have gotten past the Agent. Not the guy in front of her now. She let out a sigh as she gave a small nod while looking at her hands. He went on to talk about the reputation the Knights have among the troops, her prospects sinking lower and lower with each word. I'm sorry, Aiden.

"But-"

She looked up at him then, the smallest bit of hope fluttering in her heart.

He launched into a telling that tugged at her heartstrings. Empathy was the last thing she had expected from the debriefing of the Empire. She fought against the tears that threatened to well up.
"But I can only do that for certain if you tell me everything. And I do mean everything. So, I am going to ask you one last question, and your answer will decide your fate. Were you the sole survivor of the crash? And did you really extricate yourself to a cave in uncertain terrain with a badly injured rib cage alone?"

Mischa drew a shuddering breath to steady herself. This was it.
"No, I wasn't the sole survivor." she said hoarsely before finding his eyes again. "Everything I told you was the truth. I just left out the injured Marine." She drew another breath.

"They didn't know about the base. The team of Marines had been sent to Camaas for survival training before getting deployed. Their shuttle malfunctioned, crashing them onto the planet and...us. I was only alive because two trees had crashed against one another over me. I didn't know my ribs were broken until much later." she started once more. "I hear movement in the wreck and went to investigate. There was one alive - also badly hurt. I extracted him from the shuttle - as prisoner to get what intel I could. But the wildlife had other ideas. We ended up making for the cave with my squad's medic's pack." Another breath.

"One thing I can say about our medic - he always kept his pack stocked. It's because of his diligence that I am that I am alive right now. It was only when we got close to the cave that I truly realised I had broken ribs - I was coughing blood." She looked Varos right in the eye then. "The Marine helped to heal me. He didn't have to - he would have had his freedom if he didn't. But he helped me anyway. Time and again. The jungle threw everything it had at us - nearly killing us. It's only because we worked together, that I am sitting here right now. I would have been a mess after seeing my squadmates torn apart by the predators, if the Marine hadn't kept me focused on surviving. So I..." She closed her eyes for a second, drawing another breath to center the emotions that were threating to spill over. "I got him to a village instead of the base so he could get off-world. I never told him anything about the Empire's plans. I just...couldn't hand him over to ISB after all the surviving we did. He...vowed not to say a word about my presence either."

Her eyes were pleading with him, her heart beating in her throat.
"I didn't mean to commit treason, Sir, I really didn't. I just..." Her voice failed then, her throat tightening.

And that's when a tear escaped the fortresses that she had in place, falling onto the table.

 

[Varos Ignacious Korvan]

Location: Orbital Starbase - Niruaun - Debriefing Room Besh
Tags: Mischa Korvan

There it was.

The truth.

Pure, unadulterated, unfiltered. Truth.

He knew it almost as soon as she began speaking again. There was something about the ring truth had to it, almost like the sound of pure duranium when thumped a certain way to test its integrity. Solid, and consistent.

This version of the story more or less proceeded as Varos had expected; or more accurately, had hoped it would. There was a sliver of doubt in the back of his mind that Mischa was indeed held captive by a larger contingent of Alliance soldiers, be they survivors to a crash or otherwise. He had also entertained the possibility that there was no crash at all, but rather an ambush by Alliance soldiers who had killed all in her squad save her, and who had tortured her until she had revealed the details of her mission.

Yet, neither of those ideas carried the same weight as did this one. In the brief span of time in which Varos had known Mischa, she didn’t strike him as someone who broke easily - even when considering the ministrations he would have had to apply to her to extract information. But with using conventional tactics alone? She would probably have been in worse shape, or even dead, he wagered. He increased the feelings of calm that he was projecting as her emotional state began to deteriorate further, as if to punctuate the end of her account. That was when tears began to overwhelm the dam that was her attempt to be strong. Korvan had already flirted with the line of propriety during this interview once, and he had no intention of crossing it outright despite the instinct to wipe the tears from her eyes (he was a gentleman, after all).

No, instead he would produce a kerchief from one of his pockets and hand it to her gently, his free hand more deliberately grasping her other hand in a more purposeful and sympathetic gesture.

"I didn't mean to commit treason, Sir, I really didn't. I just..."

“You didn’t mean for the ship to crash amongst your squad, nor to break your own ribs. You survived, and the marine who aided you... deserves credit for that as well.” That was one trait that Varos had inherited and learned from his father; respect for one’s enemies. There were rivals, and in some cases bitter rivals. But then there were enemies, who in almost all other cases could be allies had a handful of events turned differently. Just because a man was your enemy, didn’t mean he didn’t deserve respect, nor recognition when it was due. “Whether or not your actions amount to treason however...”

He paused, again clearly weighing his next words carefully. There were hardliners throughout the Empire who, had they been sitting in Varos’ position right now, would clap Mischa in binders and have her conveyed immediately to post-interview detention. But those same hardliners often accused each other of treason on a regular basis. And there was the fact that the Empire was not in a formal state of war against the Alliance, so under the strictest rules of war, there was no more treason as if she were deployed on a surveillance mission against the Ashlan Crusade or Eternal Empire. At worst, Varos suspected the repercussions of what she admitted being the snuffing out of her career within the 501st. Or at best...

“I think there are enough mitigating circumstances for me to rule that, no treason was committed on Camaas.” He gave her a nod, then continued: “Whether or not the events that had transpired has compromised your mission remains to be seen. It may well have already been a forgone conclusion that this forward operating base would have been discovered over a span of time anyway, but we shall see if anything becomes of your chance encounter with the Alliance marines. I cannot attest to the thoroughness of the Alliance’s debriefing process... but I would be lying if I did not say there is a risk that your former companion would not be forced to confess what he saw either. I will handle that separately, so no need to worry about that on your end.”

It was probably best to keep ISB out of any potential apprehension of this Alliance marine, which limited Varos’ options. If he left Imperial space himself to do so, that would raise a lot of unwanted attention. But... he had one person he could approach, who in turn had a few methods at his disposal to tie up any loose ends that remained from this situation. Regardless, consigning a traumatized soldier to death would not resolve this, so he saw no need to aid that outcome either. His eyes would drift into hers again, and he held her gaze as he gave a seemingly relieved smile.

“I... I think we can consider this debriefing concluded, Corporal.” He pulled up his datapad and entered in a few commands. “With the authority granted to me, I have arranged for an extended leave for you to get... some much needed rest. I would recommend you get checked out at the med bay, and maybe take a shuttle planetside to take advantage of some of the amenities in the city. But that’s you prerogative of course...”

He tapped his datapad off, and slid it back into his place. “You’re free to go, Mischa. Do you... have any questions for me?"

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
ORBITAL STAR BASE | NIRAUAN
TAG: Varos Ignacious Korvan

WAR​

A handkerchief suddenly appeared in front of her.

As she looked up at him with surprise, a comforting hand gripped hers.
"You didn't mean for the ship to crash amongst your squad, nor to break your own ribs. You survived, and the marine who aided you... deserves credit for that as well."
Mischa swallowed before taking the kerchief to wipe away the few tears that have escaped.
"Thank you, Sir." she said hoarsely. The kindness shown to her was jarring to say the least. It was out of ordinary for the Empire to show any emotion whatsoever. But after the ordeal that she had survived, she was grateful for at least some kind of kind word.

But then...

"Whether or not your actions amount to treason however..."
Mischa's heart sank. This was it then. Despite the kindness shown, she was still doomed. She was a nobody still - not someone where stuff like this gets swept under the rug for, because the services she gave to the Empire were replaceable by another Corporal.

But he surprised her with saying there were enough mitigating circumstances to the contrary. The relief flooding through her, left her lightheaded enough that she nearly missed the words that followed. Nearly, but she caught them.
... but I would be lying if I did not say there is a risk that your former companion would not be forced to confess what he saw either. I will handle that separately, so no need to worry about that on your end.”
Of course she'd worry. She didn't help Aiden off world only for him to get murdered somewhere in an alley on Coruscant or Denon or somewhere. But saying anything against it now, would definitely get her tried for treason then.
"Thank you." The relief was still evident in her voice, the worry in the pit of her stomach not reaching the vocal chords yet. "I...really appreciate your help in this thing, Sir." she added, meeting his eyes again. They were no less captivating than before, despite being guarded, which still confused the hell out of her.

He finally concluded the debrief then, relief having her head completely spinning. She desperately needed sleep.
“You’re free to go, Mischa. Do you... have any questions for me?"
She was about to say no in order to get the hell out of the confusing situation, but then her mind caught up with her somewhat.
"I do, actually, Sir. When would I get assigned to a new squad and cleared to return to active duty, Sir?" she asked him. "If it's within your knowledge or at your liberty to say, that is, Sir." she added.

She really needed to know how long she'd be rendered useless by Imperial standards.