Pass / Fail

[Matatek Sel Vissica]

"I expect him to tell us the truth, Cadet Rayner."

Vissica replied matter-of-factly without turning her attention to her student.

"I have given him a taste of consequence. Just a taste. An obstacle formed in his mind to any deception he may choose. Cadet Khoovi is correct, torture alone is a clumsy tool to extract a secret, but it is useful to upset a man's composure. When you shake the foundation, even the most sturdily-built lie can crumble."

At her periphery, the Selonian could see Colonel Stroft's impatient glower. She intended to demonstrate that her pupils were fast learners.

"Cadet Khoovi."

Vissica turned, gesturing to Captain Orgern, who pressed a datapad into her paw. She paused momentarily to read a few lines, then glanced back to the Shistavanen.

"Ask the prisoner who he works for."

[Khoovi Wan]

"Cadet Khoovi."

He snapped into a straight stance, eyes tearing from the man's shuddering chest to stare at a point on the wall.

"Ask the prisoner who he works for."

"Sir!" he responded, and turned to the prisoner. A pang of sympathy shot through him at the sensations of confusion and fear and pain coming from the prone form, and it deepened at the realization that it was only going to get worse for the man from here; he was reminded of home, and the documentaries where he was told the ancestors would hamstring or nearly kill their prey and leave the deed itself to the cubs; a method of training and preparation, much like this. He moved to stand next to the man. He was short enough that he didn't need to lean forward to reach his ear.

"This is only going to get worse for you, and for that I am sorry," he said, pushing his sincerity to the man through the Force. It was crude and inefficient perhaps; an exploitation of his own good nature, but it didn't mean it was not true. "It will end all the sooner if you simply tell me the name of your employer."

[Matatek Sel Vissica]

The expression on Khaas's face softened for a moment. It seemed as if he might have been persuaded to see Khoovi's point of view...up until the point that his face turned back to a defiant sneer. The prisoner spat a thick spray into the Shistavanen's muzzle. Khoovi had all the answer he was going to get - for now.

There was no rebuke from Vissica as she watched the exchange. No chiding the cadet for failure.

"Focused empathy. Good."

The Selonian nodded in approval.

"Mercy is a powerful incentive. Don't withold it out of pride or ego, but likewise, don't lavish it generously. Show the prisoner only what you are prepared to deliver. We expect the prisoner to be honest, therefore we must also maintain this position."

Returning her attention back to Khaas, Vissica flicked her tongue along her muzzle.

"Question asked. Question refused. The prisoner has chosen his consequence. Set the board to level ten."

The torturer adjusted the controls for another round, and nodded when they were recalibrated.

"Begin."

The chamber once more filled with bone-chilling screams of agony as Argenth Khaas convulsed violently against his restraints. Though the board itself caused no damage to it's victim, a struggling man could quickly injure himself against the restraints. Raw skin at his wrists, ankles, and neck began to bleed as he thrashed, until at last Vissica ended the latest demonstration of pain with a raised paw. She turned to the Nehantite this time.

"Cadet Rayner, perhaps the prisoner will listen to you."

[Halajiin Rabeak]

Hal watched with blank expression, though inside his stomach turned at the sight. He only managed to remain calm on the exterior thanks to some of the things he'd seen while undercover inside the Merestri crime syndicate, and he hated the fact that he had such monsters to thank for his next move.

"Your knife, please, Captain," he extended his paw to Orgern while staring at Khaas's face.

When the handle of a combat knife was pressed into his palm, Hal wrapped his fingers around it, and tested its edge with the thumbpad of his left paw. Razor sharp, Imperial standard. Hal could even shave with it, if he wanted to look like a fool. The Nehantite edged toward the center of the table, nudging Khoovi out of the way, and he let the tip of the knife drag backwards along the prisoner's thigh, its point able to be felt through his trousers, but not cutting the fabric. Then he put the point somewhere far more sensitive, and he pressed in until he heard a whimper.

"Your left one is bigger, I see," Hal said in a conversational tone. "Makes a nice target. Now, I should tell you that, yes, you can lie to me once and you'll still be able to have kids, buuuut.... I wouldn't recommend it." The knife twisted slowly, eliciting another whimper. "Soooo, who do you work for?" Hal smiled as his voice adopted a sing-song quality.

[Matatek Sel Vissica]

"Knight Vissica!" Colonel Stroft objected angrily, "This is an interrogation, not a gang initiation. We have standards!"

For her part, the Selonian was inclined to agree with her ISB adversary. Standards of Imperial interrogation were high and the practices were meticulous. Not out of sense of compassion for the prisoner, but because the process reliably produced results. Kyle Rayner was upping the ante in a dangerous way. He'd presented the prisoner with consequence that was as tangible as it was painful. Was it a bluff? The Selonian could not tell from merely observing her student. The way he engaged with Khaas reminded Vissica of Comrade Alexia's style - dangerously unpredictable.

Khaas didn't reply. Instead his eyes were fixed to the Selonian, as Stroft had unintentionally intervened to her on his behalf.

He'd find no safe harbor with her.

"Proceed, Cadet."

"Wait!"

All eyes turned back to Khaas, whose eyes were back firmly on Cadet Rayner, where they ought to be.

"Sabol Wurrg. I work for Sabol Wurrg."

[Reikkel Orgern]

It was a name unfamiliar to Vissica, but one that Captain Orgern knew. He stood beside his superior, muttering within earshot.

"A Ubese gangster in the lower levels. Runs weapons. Peddles information."

[Matatek Sel Vissica]

The name meant nothing to the Selonian, who growled neutrally in response to it. Turning her datapad over in her paws, she glanced to the two Cadets.

"Is he telling the truth?"

[Halajiin Rabeak]

Hal shrugged. "Well, I did threaten to stab one of his nuts, so, I'd say he's telling the truth. If he's not, well, like I said, he can still have kids with one," he replied, then handed the Captain his knife back.

[Khoovi Wan]

Khoovi shrugged.

"I want to say yes, but I don't really have enough information to tell if he's trying to give us a run. Torture can be notoriously unreliable, even in the face of pain and death. I don't have the skill to tell if he was being truthful yet either," the canid grimaced slightly. "Too much pain and fear muddying the waters, so to speak."

[Matatek Sel Vissica]

Her students had given their answers, but they had neglected to show their work. Vissica crossed her arms, her tail thumping audibly against the floor with impatience.

"Don't let your surroundings blind you. Don't fall prey to a hunch, and don't limit yourselves to the methods of a simple interrogator."

The Selonian's dark eyes skewed to fix on Colonel Stroft, who took the insult in silence.

"The answer is here. You can't hear it. You can't see it. It's beyond smell, taste, or touch, but you know how to find it."

Vissica turned suddenly to Khaas, pressing close to the prisoner as she splayed a paw across his face. She turned his head to the side, pressing his cheek against the cold durasteel as her fingertips dragged roughly along the other cheek.

"In the air and under his skin and in his sweat, it is there."

The musteloid turned on a heel, pressing her sweat-dampened fingertips under Khoovi's nose.

"The most powerful weapon a Knight of the Empress holds is not a lightsaber. It isn't a weapon at all. It's the sense that guides you to the truth."

She fixed her eyes on both students in even measure.

"Now, use it."