Last time: Kyr apologizes to Sasha and she comforts her brother.
Now: Cordova returns.
Chapter 7- Cordova's Interrogation
"STS-one-five-niner-niner this is TRW-one-nine actual, authentication code seven-five-three-three-eight-cresh-dorn." Admiral Sulam said into a handset that was wired into the situation table. She glanced up at the Xiv clan around her as well as Scamp who was also at the table with her. There was a momentary pause.
"TRW-one-nine actual, code and voice print confirmed, stand by to receive guest. Be advised we will jump into your AO in approximately… thirty four seconds."
"Acknowledged." Admiral Sulam said as she put the handset back into the cradle. She turned to the Defiant's Captain, who was at her command station a few meters away. "Captain, our guests are on their way, the transport shuttle will be making a brief jump to meet us in about thirty seconds."
"Thanks for the heads up." She said as she turned to talk to a subordinate.
"Okay, kids." The Admiral said, turning back to the Xiv's. "The marines are going to escort the prisoner into his new apartment, and we'll go down and talk to him as soon as they can take him to the sitting room."
Kyr nodded, his face hidden under his buy'ce as he stood there with his arms crossed, too agitated to sit still.
"How do we want to approach this?" Viran asked as he scratched at his chin.
"We never got anything out of him." The Admiral said, glancing between them. "We do not have the ability to coerce him into giving us any information, and even if we did he'd probably just tell us a bunch of useless information hiding any truth." She said, looking between them, and letting her gaze rest on Kyr for a slightly longer moment.
"Then we need to figure out how to get him to spill," Viran said, biting the inside of his lip. "He knows something and we will get him to tell us." He looked at Oppie and Kait. "Kait, do you have any good tricks to get someone to confess?" He asked her.
"We can definitely give it a shot." She said, glancing at Op. "I wouldn't mind having a crack at this… guy."
"'Piece of osik', I think, is the phrase you're looking for." Kyr spoke up, finally.
Sasha glanced at him at that and couldn't help but nod in agreement.
"This guy is trained intelligence." Kait admitted. "He's obviously not the kind of guy that is going to break from a stern session of questioning. We can interrogate him, but it doesn't sound like that has worked for the last couple of months."
"Scamp." Kyr spoke up. "What if we pulled a Citadel Switch?"
Scamp blinked at that and thought for a moment. He slowly nodded. "That could work. We haven't used it in years, but it does have a way of making people talk," he said. "Yeah, that could definitely work."
"What's that?" Oppie asked as Admiral Sulam started rubbing her eyes.
"Chief Maysen is not going to be happy about this." The Admiral stated.
"No, but you know it'll work," Scamp said, looking at his wife. He looked back to Kyr. "Do you wanna take point this time with it?"
"Yeah." Kyr said, his arms still crossed as the situation table hologram showed the incoming shuttle jump in.
"Uh, do you guys want to share with the class?" Viran asked, very confused as to what they were talking about. "What the hell is the Citadel Switch?"
"I thank you for this little vacation from my dreary cell," Cordova said exasperatedly, "but if you actually want something from me you have to offer me something in return." He stated as he leaned back in the chair.
Kait stayed upright in her seat, not showing any exasperation or tiredness even though this was coming up on two hours in the interrogation room. On the other side of the mirror the Xivs were watching, and she was trying to do her best to get something useful out of him. "This isn't a negotiation." She stated.
"All interrogations are negotiations." Cordova stated. "Just like last time we talked, I offered you a job and you turned me down." He glanced at the mirrored transparisteel. "Or at least that's what they think, still, right?" He asked with a very, very slight smile.
"If this is a negotiation, then you need to work with me." Kait said, ignoring the suggestion that she had taken up his job offer. The family on the other side of the glass knew that. "You cannot have your freedom, you know that's too much to ask."
"Then you have nothing to offer me that is of interest." He said with a cutting motion of his hands that was cut short by the chain his binders were attached to. "I'm the one with information that you want, and something tells me your circumstances have changed if they suddenly pulled me out of my little cell and whisked me away back to the Defiant just to ask me the same questions more vehemently. Though I will say it's much more pleasant talking to you than that sweaty fellow they have had interrogating me the last thirty-two days." He leaned forward in his chair as if he was saying something conspiratorial to Kait. "He smells quite strongly of cured meats." He said in an almost whisper before leaning back again.
"Fine." Kait said, leaning back in the chair, relaxing as he did, trying to mirror his pose. That was an opening, if he viewed her as an upgrade from whatever intelligence officer was at the prison that had been interrogating him for the last month. "That's a good start then. You don't like your interrogator? I can speak to his supervisor, maybe get you someone you might work with better."
"Oh, no, don't get me wrong." Cordova said. "Lieutenant Ordrivan is a fine fellow, I quite look forward to our little chats. They're the highlight of my afternoon."
"This is going around in circles." Kyr said under his breath. His helmet was kind enough to amplify the sound so those standing around him could hear.
"I agree," Viran grumbled as he took a sip of his cup of caf. "Should we try something else?" He suggested.
"Kait definitely looks like she could use a break." Oppie noted.
Kyr glanced at Scamp, then at Sasha. "You feel up to trying, still?"
Sasha met his gaze and nodded, confidently. "Yes. I'm ready."
Viran nodded and gave her arm a squeeze. "May the Force be with you." He assured her.
Scamp looked at her. "Alright. I'll give the signal," he said. He tapped a button on the wall and signaled into the other room.
"I also quite enjoy the walks in the yard. You know, as high ranking as I was in the Empire the other prisoners all defer to me. Except for this one colonel who appears to have no sense of humor." Cordova rambled on. Kait glanced up as she suppressed any sort of reaction to Cordova's latest attempt at chit chat when she saw the indicator panel recall her back in. Sounded like it was Sasha's turn.
Without any preamble she stood up and picked up her datapad that she had put on the table.
"Oh, has our time come to an end Captain Messan?" Cordova said, obviously trying to show that he was suppressing a smirk.
"Unfortunately, yes." Kait said as she looked him down for what she hoped was the last time. "It would have been so much better for you if you had seen this as a negotiation where you might have gotten something out of it, rather than an opportunity to ramble for no reason." She said with a saddened shake of her head as she turned her back on him and started walking out.
"Ah, so now someone scarier than you is going to come talk at me in a menacing manner? How droll." He told her back as she walked out of the room.
After the door closed she leaned back against the wall to relax after having to keep up her emotionless facade for so long for such an annoying prisoner. Sasha walked out of the observation room and over to her.
"You okay?" Sasha asked as she handed her a bottle of water.
"Yeah, thanks." Kait said, stepping away from the wall and taking the bottle. "Nothing's more annoying than trying to interrogate that kind of person." She commented. "You okay in there by yourself?" She asked Sasha more quietly.
"I'll be fine. I've done this a couple times now. And with Viran and Op nearby, I can draw on their strength," Sasha said then smirked. "I just hope I have as much control as you to not slam his head into the table the moment he annoys me." She chuckled.
"I'll be in there rooting for you as well." Kait said as she started walking towards the observation room, "I might tell you to break a leg but that might not be best if you're going into an interrogation." She said over her shoulder.
"Thanks," Sasha said, watching her go. She looked at the door once Kait was out of sight. Taking a very deep breath, Sasha focused and put on a neutral expression. Reaching out, she opened the door and entered the room.
Cordova's friendly meign melted away as she walked in. He regarded her with something that approached a glare. "You." Was all he said.
"A pleasure to see you too, Cordova," Sasha said as she walked over to the table and sat down across from him. "Comfortable? Need anything? Water?" She asked. "Because this might take a while."
He just leaned back in his chair, subtly moving his hands back from her and said nothing.
"Alright, then right to the questions then," Sasha said. She glanced at his hands. "I see you have learned a thing or two since we last chatted. But what else have you learned since last time? Anything interesting?" She asked almost too casually.
He continued to regard her coldly, not saying anything to the witch in front of him.
"You know. Last time, we couldn't get you to shut up," Sasha said, looking him over. "You asked for so much from us and in return you gave us information. Well now, we need something from you. We need information." She stood from her chair and started to slowly make her way around the table. "You've been playing this game for too long. Now you are going to give us the information we need. No more keeping secrets. And you know I can make you talk." She said as she stopped on the other side of the table, right next to him. She looked down at him as she leaned against the table.
He held his ground, he didn't lean away. He followed her with his eyes and said nothing as he looked back towards the center of the featureless wall behind the now empty interrogator's seat. "I'm curious where the Mandalorian is." He commented.
Sasha tried to not react to that as her jaw twitched slightly. She leaned down and tried to look him in the eye. "Who's to say the Mandalorian isn't here? Maybe they are just waiting their turn at you? Letting the Jedi go first," she said, smirking slightly.
"You and her always go together, and she's the far, far better interrogator. This doesn't suit you, Sasha Monroe-Zeb-Xiv." He said pointedly, finally looking up at her. "You don't separate unless there's an army between you. Did something come between you?" He asked pointedly.
Sasha didn't break her facade. "Not that I know of, but you seem to know something. Do you think something has happened?" She asked him pointedly as she slowly inched her hand on the table towards his as she held his gaze.
He stifled a sigh as he turned back to looking straight forward at the blank wall. "Not until you just revealed it to me." He stated.
Sasha dropped her smirk and stared a burning hole into the man before her. She clenched her jaw. "You don't scare me Cordova. I will get the information we need and you will tell me. You don't know me," she hissed into his ear as she reached over to grab his wrist.
He didn't try to move his hand away, and he steeled himself for what was to come next.
There was the roar of an explosion, and the lights flickered as the ship shuddered from an impact. Alarm klaxons could be heard going off in the halls outside as the lights recovered. Sasha straightened up and released Cordova's wrist in shock. She looked around in confusion before running over to the window.
"Don't move," she ordered Cordova then turned her attention to the glass. "What's going on?" She asked incredulously at the glass as if expecting a response from the other side.
There was another explosion, and the ship shuddered. The lights flickered for a few moments, and then only half of them came back to full brightness.
"We can resume later if you are otherwise occupied." Cordova said with the hint of a smile as if he knew what was happening.
Sasha shot a sharp glare at Cordova as she turned to face him. "Shut it."
The door shuddered open as the ship rocked from another explosion, and klaxon alerts blared through into the interrogation room from the corridor beyond. Flames were visible, and they could see crew members trying to fight the fires and running to their action stations. Kyr stood in the doorway in his full menacing armor as he came in, bracing himself in the doorway.
"The kriffing Imps jumped us." He growled as he stalked into the room. "Op and Sport went off to help fight off a contingent of those Deathtroopers." He turned to face the coldly smirking Cordova. "I'm here to make sure they don't recover him."
Sasha looked at Kyr in shock then at Cordova. "What do you need me to do? We still need the intel," she asked Kyr.
Kyr looked between Cordova and Sasha, seething with anger at the situation. They were so close, yet so far. "I can't let him escape." Kyr said, unholstering his blaster.
"From my perspective it seems like more of a rescue." Cordova said, though he eyed the Mandalorian a little uneasily.
"For you, I presume," Sasha asked rhetorically. "Fierfek." She cursed. "Alright, if that's the case we have no time for this. Enough dodging Cordova. Answer our questions now!" She demanded.
Cordova merely glanced at her, and then stared straight ahead at the wall, but this time with a small smile curling at his lips. "I would prefer to wait and see how this plays out."
Kyr stalked across the room and grabbed him by the front collar, shooting out the chain that held him to the table and shoving him back against the wall with a resounding impact. "You don't understand, you piece of osik." Kyr growled, his buy'ce mutilating the sound of his voice so it sounded like something that had crawled from the depths of hell. "You are not going free this day. I need you to tell me where your commander is, where the rest of your kriffing Imperial cell is. And if you're not going to tell me, you don't have any reason to walk out of this room."
Sasha stared at Kyr, her mouth slightly agape and looking unsure of what to do, but wasn't going to stop the Mando.
"I guess we'll see what happens when Deathtroopers come through that door." Cordova said with a slight snarl to his voice as he tried to stare the Mandalorian down. "Are they here for me? Or was this just a happy coincidence?"
"They are here for you. Which is why I won't let them win." Kyr used his gauntletted forearm to shove Cordova against the wall. And he brought his blaster pistol up.
"Kyr!" Sasha shouted. "We need him alive." She admonished.
"No, not if they get him back." Kyr growled over his shoulder at her.
"Is she missing?" Cordova asked. "Is that why you are so desperate, why she wasn't here to interrogate me properly?"
Sasha glared at Cordova as she tried not to snarl.
"Shut up." Kyr yelled in his ear as shoved him into the wall again.
"Let me go and I'll give you what you need." Cordova said over his shoulder, a bit of desperation edging into his voice as Kyr held the blaster up to him. "Let them rescue me and I'll tell you where she is."
"No kriffing deal osik'kovid." Kyr said.
Sasha glared at Cordova. "That's not how this works, Cordova. You will give us information before you can ever set foot outside of this room," she informed him sharply. "Now talk."
"I'll take my chances." Cordova said.
Kyr's comlink crackled. "Colonel, things are getting out of hand. We are being overrun. We need back up," Scamp's voice called desperately from the other end as the sounds of blasters and lightsabers were in the background.
"Acknowledged Commander." Kyr growled into his commline. His voice was filled with indecision.
"If you don't let me free, you'll never find her." Cordova said quietly. "They're here to rescue me, if they're being overrun, they'll find me either way. Let me go and you can still save her." He bargained, his voice trying to be reasonable.
"SHUT UP." Kyr yelled. His fingers around the grip of his blaster flexed with indecision as he raised it up.
Sasha looked on in horror as tears burned her eyes. "Cordova, for your sake, please tell us. Or he will shoot… and I don't think I can stop him in time to help you." She offered.
"You're a Mandalorian, you're supposed to have honor, you don't do this kind of thing." Cordova said, fear edging into his voice.
"I'm a Mandalorian, this is exactly what I do to Imperial scum." Kyr said finally bringing the blaster up.
"I'll tell you!" Cordova said, "I'll tell you if you give me your word you'll give me to them and let them rescue me."
Kyr froze. "On my word?" He asked, his voice dripping with disdain. "Why the kriff would you trust that?"
"Because she gave hers and she honored it." Cordova said, twisting his head to try to look at Kyr out of the corner of his eye, and he was able to just meet Sasha's. "Both of them did."
"We gave you our word and you still betrayed us. Betrayed me. You may have not placed the bounty, but you are particularly responsible for nearly getting me killed," Sasha seethed. "I doubt you will honor that again, you ass."
"I kept my word. I gave you what you needed and we kept our bargain." Cordova said, his voice edging on pleading. "Give me your word you'll let them take me and I'll tell you what you need to know."
Another explosion shook the ship and the lights flickered, only one sole light remained in the room as the ship shuddered around them, casting them in a horrifying darkness as the din of the battle outside continued like rolling thunder.
Kyr looked at Sasha though his T-visor, looking for guidance, trying to see if she had a sense of if he was telling the truth or just playing them. Around them the ship shuddered as if from another grievous explosion.
Sasha met Kyr's gaze and then moved over to Cordova. "Look me in the eye and promise me that you will tell us everything. No tricks. No betrayals. Just the information and if you do then I'll give you my word," she said evenly as she looked sternly at Cordova.
Kyr shoved him against the wall, and Cordova flinched. "I will tell you what you need to know. I give you my word if you give me yours."
Sasha stared deeply into Cordova's eyes for a moment before looking at Kyr. She gave him a nod to ease up. She looked back at Cordova. "You have a deal. Don't make me regret it."
"And his?" Cordova said. Kyr was still seething behind him, holding him pinned against the wall and flicked his head behind him to gesture at the Mandalorian.
Kyr hesitated for a second and then shoved him against the wall one last time before easing up. "You have my word. I'll let them take you if you tell us what we need to know." He lowered his blaster slightly as the ship shuddered around them.
Cordova took a split second to recover himself before he turned around to face them. "The Etando system. The Taipan." He said.
Kyr stared at him for a moment. "The Taipan?" Kyr repeated, his voice deathly chill.
"Yes." Cordova said.
Kyr stared at him for a moment. "The lost squadron?"
"Yes." Cordova repeated. "That was all. I received orders from them, from Jiardon, and I triangulated it back to the Etando system. They didn't know I knew." He said, regaining his composure. "Now, if you'll kindly let me escape to my rescue?"
"Is that everything? Is Jiardon the one who placed the bounty on me? Who was pulling your strings?" Sasha asked.
"I don't know any of that. He just had me act as a go-between to fetch data or carry out his whims. All I know is that I decrypted that the message source was the Taipan, and the messages were transmitted to me from Etando. Now keep your word." Cordova demanded.
Kyr looked at Sasha in the darkened room. Outside the klaxons still blared, and the sounds of battle echoed through the ship. Sasha met Kyr's gaze for a second before looking to Cordova.
"Very well," Sasha said. "We shall." She snapped her fingers towards the mirror. "I think that's a wrap." She said, suddenly very calmly at the mirror.
The lights returned to normal. The sounds of battle cut off abruptly. The door opened to admit Scamp, Op and Viran, and outside they could see the crew calmly going about their business, though there was a crew with a fire extinguisher that appeared to be putting out a smoldering mess, and there was a purple haired girl that waved at them through from the distance as she supervised her pyrotechnic being snuffed out.
Cordova looked at the scene in the corridor, then between all of them in shocked confusion, and then with growing understanding as he looked back to Kyr and Sasha. "Very clever." He growled at them.
Sasha smiled at him. "And it worked like a charm. Thank you for your time and intel. You'll be returning to your cell now," she said a little too sweetly.
"Thanks vod." Kyr said nodding as a marine fireteam walked in to take Cordova away.
Sasha stepped away and looked at the others.
"I informed the Admiral," Scamp told them. "As soon as we get rid of him, then we will move out."
Kyr looked at Cordova being taken out, and then back to Scamp. "Thank you."
"Of course, brother," Scamp said as he looked at Kyr.
"Are you both okay?" Viran asked them.
"I'm fine," Sasha said with a sigh. "I just wanted to deck him… again."
"I think you did." Kyr said, "in a far more lasting way than a simple punch would have. That's twice now you've bested him."
Sasha blinked at that. "I… thank you," she said, stunned by the compliment. "But I couldn't have done this without you, vod."
"Nor me without you. Thanks Sash'ika. You were what sold it to him and got him to crack." Kyr said as he turned to leave the room.
Sasha watched him go, stunned. "Really?" She asked the others.
"Well you did better than I ever did with this move," Scamp complimented with a shrug and a smirk. "So yeah, nicely done."
Kait walked in at that point after she had a chance to smirk at Cordova in the hallway as he was hauled away. "Yeah, Sasha, if you ever decide to retire from saving the galaxy, I have an old acting professor I can hook you and Kyr up with. That was awesome." She said.
Sasha smiled, bashfully. "Thanks, Kait. I'll keep that in mind."
"Come on, let's get to the bridge and meet up with Sulam," Scamp said as he gestured for the door. "We should get a plan together to take down Jiardon once and for all."
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