Private The List

[Jon Hojkstra]

Undisclosed Location,
Dark Imperial Space

During the whole blindfolded journey to where the Bureau had set their meeting with him, Jon Hojkstra's mind was brimming with doubt. The intel they had sent him anonymously of the convention of corrupt moffs and warlords on Carlac had been solid; putting men and women, whose sick ambitions had brought ruin to his nation, in the grave was, as far as he was concerned, a righteous act.

But the ex-storm commando was no idiot.

The Bureau was no charitable organization, handing out free hits in the name of virtue. It had a ruthless agenda and interests to follow. Now, whose interests was a question with divergent answers. His past experiences had taught him that every officer looked out for their own interests, and personal gain often outweighed any sense of duty.

On Carlac their interests had aligned.

And they wouldn't be bringing him in if they didn't feel they might have some mutual interests down the line.

Let's see about that...

As the blindfold was removed by one of the two imposing ISB enforcers, Jon blinked against the sudden brightness that flooded the room. Squinting, he made out the outlines of the departing enforcers, leaving him alone in what appeared to be an interrogation room. No guns on him, but no restraints. But then again every Bureau room looked like an interrogation room.

For all he knew, maybe these creeps' own homes looked like torture chambers.

With a grim frown on his face, the veteran waited for whoever it was to join him.

Kazian Blackwood Sabine Korvan

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Jon Hojkstra | Sabine Korvan​

As the enforcers vacated the room, I studied the man face-to-face for the firs time. Of course I had read his file, but those never really did justice like observing a man in action. He was a big guy, fitting for an ex-stormtrooper. Seems he had never lost that, but psychological and loyalty evalutions had sharply declined over the years to the point at which the ISB was scared of him. Though they would never admit it, I could read it clear as day in their reports, right up until he'd dropped from our crippled organization's radar. Now that we had returned him to the fold, we would put him to use. Carlac had been a test for Jon, one that my superiors had assured me he passed. With the plans that were now in motion, Sabine and I stood before him as test number two.

The room was bare save for the chair we had put him in. He had size on both of us, and we sure as hell weren't going to give him anything more to use against us if he freaked. Though that case had been brought up, I was sure we could avoid it if we just talked.

"Hello, Mr Hojkstra. My name is Agent Vigilant, and joining us is my commanding officer Ms. Korvan," I gestured to Sabine at my side, hoping the mention of her name scared Jon as much as it scared me.

"I must ask that you remain seated and that we conduct this meeting with civility. I would say no hard feelings, but I know that is simply not true. Being as forward with you as I can, I want you to understand that your past transgressions against the Empire do not outweigh your services. The collapse of the Barran regime was not to the interest of any true Imperial. Mistakes were made that we are now in the process of rectifying. The new Empire has a place for its veterans, Jon, and we have the opportunity for you to earn that. I'm sure you want that, don't you?"

 

[Sabine Korvan]

Objective: Establish Contact with the Krath
Location: Cinnegar, Empress Teta
Tags: Kazian Blackwood | Jon Hojkstra

---

INTERROGATION​

She was more than content to have Kazian take the lead in the... meeting. If anything, her presence here was more to add a level of gravitas to the meeting - assuming Jon was aware of her. Sabine had spent a lot of her time trying to work within the shadows, but even the most successful of agents had a hard time of truly remaining unknown, particularly when their father had made it a point to become a public figure. It complicated her job a bit, particularly when she had to go on assignment as they were about to do. But it did aid in other ways, such as communicating to a spurned agent who had been ‘red noticed’ that the ISB was taking him seriously.

She stood at the edge of the single light’s cone of illumination, where the shadows partially obscured her face - but it would be obvious who she was with her snow white uniform and platinum blonde hair. After appraising Jon for a moment, her eyes drifted to Kazian. He had a good talent for professionalism in spite of the nerves he undoubtedly felt, being roped into this operation on the heels of an abject failure on Onderon. But in her experience, dedicated officers who failed on an operation either bounced back with gusto, or washed out. Kazian didn’t give Sabine the impression of someone who was going to wash out; but if he did on this upcoming mission, those at risk included herself and this ‘Jon’.

If there was more time, Sabine would have vetted the pair a bit more cautiously; but they had to move fast. Operation Shadowhand was in motion, and she could not afford to fail in favor of her normal methodical approach. They had to move fast and loose, and that meant dealing with a few wildcards. It grated against her gut instinct, but she couldn’t very well tell her father no. And neither could Kazian.

 

[Jon Hojkstra]

Leaning back on his chair as comfortably as the sturdy chair allowed, Jon Hojkstra sized both spooks up and down. Both carried their facades well enough, and without the aid of torture the veteran couldn't really take their masks off. What was clear as day and night was the rank separation between the two—it looked like a lieutenant sitting next to a general.

But what struck him was the man had introduced himself with a codename and his supervisory officer with allegedly her real name. Korvan. He let his piercing gaze linger over the blonde for a little longer. The Grand Moff's... daughter? In the Bureau? You'd think a man so far up the food chain was setting his dynasty up on cushion-comfortable positions within the government. Not that the ISB got their hands as dirty as grunts like him did, but neither was it a place that passed the time under the sounds of champagne bottles popping and small-talk.

Whatever Agent Vigilant's play was with introducing the Grand Moff's daughter to him, it went over the ex-storm commando's head. The web of conspiracies, plots and schemes these creeps could masterfully weave were far beyond his comprehension.

"...your past transgressions against the Empire..."

The frown on Jon's face grew deeper, but he said nothing, letting Agent Vigilant continue without interruption.

"The new Empire has a place for its veterans, Jon, and we have the opportunity for you to earn that. I'm sure you want that, don't you?"

"Earn?!" Jon's voice rumbled, the growl vibrating through the air as he leaned forward over the table. Shadows danced in the corners of the room, the dark silhouettes of figures lurking just out of sight behind the two ISB officers. Noticing their movement, he leaned back in his chair with a snort, allowing the simmering wrath beneath his surface to be contained, but no less potent.

"I've done my service to the Empire, agent." he said, disillusionment pushing back against the last embers of patriotisim somewhere within.

"What I want is names. Names of everyone involved in the murder of my unit. Especially, the one from your rank who formed us—"

"—but you already probably know that, so... what's the offer, agent Vigilant, Mrs. Korvan?" he shifted his gaze to the blonde superior officer. Let's see who was running this parade.

"You wouldn't have me brought here if you didn't have one in mind."

Kazian Blackwood Sabine Korvan

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

​

"You wouldn't have me brought here if you didn't have one in mind."

"Correct. Simple quid pro quo, and believe me when I tell you its the best deal we have to offer." I knew there were higher ups on the chain seething that we didn't have the upper hand in negotiating with Jon and his type. To them that was the fatal flaw of piecing the Empire back together, making the pieces fit even when they shouldn't. How simple this transaction would actually turn out to be remained well up in the air, but we could make a start.

"The Bureau is willing to consider your incarceration by the Alliance a sentence served in full. A peace offering, if you will. Now, the matter of names is more complicated. A hypothetical list includes active service members and civil servants of the Empire that have a right to a certain degree of protection by the ISB. I know that isn't what you want to hear, but the Empire is making amends where it can. Letting bygones be bygones is a sacrifice we've had to make. What we need from you, in order to approach the possibility of justice for your comrades, is a trusting relationship. The Bureau has noted your history in undermining government authority through vigilantism. We believe we can make use of that for a planned operation into Alliance space, the first step towards that trust we're looking for."

Though I could be as coldly bureaucratic as the ISB wanted me to be, I couldn't fool a man of action with just words. We both knew the ISB's leg to stand on was short, and no amount of posturing was going to completely hide our desperate need for agents. In the end it came down to using him as a tool and paying him with the desired information. Unfortunately for Jon the list of names he wanted wasn't something the ISB was ready to give up. I would have liked to believe he knew that, but I couldn't say for sure. Hope was an intoxicating thing, especially when it was a means to the end of vengeance. I wasn't even allowed to know its contents, but the way I'd been told to relay it to Jon gave it a level of undeniable gravity. If Sabine knew who this guy was after, she had no right to tell me, and every duty to tread carefully.

 

[Jon Hojkstra]

Hope really was an intoxicating thing, especially when it was a means to the end of vengeance.

It blinded clarity of thought, of mind, and before you know it--you're tangled in the Bureau's web of schemes and machinations.

A tool to use.

A pawn.

Jon's eyes were open, but his sight was shut.

He remained silent for a while, acting as if he was considering the deal, when his heart and mind were already made.

"You scratch my back--I scratch yours." the veteran finally said, then grumbled. "I'll do your little operation. You just make sure you give me names, agent. All the names."

"... or I'll pull 'em out of your throat."

Kazian Blackwood Sabine Korvan

 

[Kazian Blackwood]

Jon Hojkstra | Sabine Korvan
​

I had no doubt in mind Jon's threats would be made good upon. I just wondered if when the time came he would realize it wasn't my throat he'd find his answers in. Then again, collateral damage wasn't a concern to this guy, so it seemed.

"Let's play ball then." I clasped my hands together,

"Your first task will be accompanying us to the Alliance world of Empress Teta. It's a deep cover assignment, all arrangements and falsifications provided by the Bureau, ideally it won't last more than a few weeks if everything goes as planned. The good thing about the Alliance is they're lax on who they let in, so we expect no issues engaging with the target. MO is clandestine meeting with Imperial aligned elements known as the Krath, and in case things do go sideways, we want your abilities. If the Krath meeting goes well, embedding into their organization will be step two. Following that, plans will converge with other branches on a need to know basis, but we expect your skills will be most valuable then."

The third act of our foray to Empress Teta was supposed to be something big. I'd heard whispers of it, something called Operation: Shadowhand, but it was beyond my clearance to know the details. Whatever it was I was happy to a part of it, and to me it seemed as though Jon was going to get a bigger opportunity to serve the Empire again than he realized. First, we just had to make things work with the Krath...