Continuing from here, since that post was getting rather long even with the readmores.
It really is a case of having a beginning in mind, an end in mind, and a lot more question marks in the middle than is ideal. Where I want Kyrian to end up is alive and a member of Jezari’s crew. The problem is the Empire isn’t exactly incompetent. Or slow to act.
Which brings us back to what people want:
The Sith Lord wants Kyrian to suffer and wants to improve his own status, power, etc. If Kyrian’s actual misdeeds aren’t bad enough, he’s not above finding other things to blame him for.
Keeper wants to protect Intelligence as a whole, keep things quiet, and properly investigate the Sith Lord’s allegations.
Kyrian, once he finds out he’s in trouble, mostly just wants to not die.
(At this point in time Darth Zhorrid is the Sith in charge of Intelligence. As far as I can see, she’s of absolutely no use to anyone. Her own status is too iffy for the Sith Lord’s aspirations, and I can’t see her being of help to Keeper’s goals. I’d mostly expect them both to quietly leave her out of this, since there’s about even chance she’d give Kyrian to the Sith Lord, order some horrific execution, or just Force Lightning whoever dared bother her about something so unimportant.)
If the Sith Lord sticks to the truth, I’m not sure what he gets out of it - unless he’s able to deliver Kyrian to Intelligence for the rest of Keeper’s investigation. Probably not what Keeper would want. Possibly not something he could prevent. (However, Intelligence HQ is probably the hardest place in the Empire to rescue someone from. Also, the window for rescuing is going to seem very tiny - even if Keeper wants to investigate and won’t have him immediately executed, his would be rescuers are going to assume the worst. Not that that’s bad for drama.)
If the Sith Lord tries to pin unsolved acts of treason on Kyrian...it might not make any difference. Or it might make the wrong difference and Keeper might want Kyrian executed on the spot. Unless it gave him leverage to trade not making matters more public for, I don’t know, having him delivered to Korriban to be practiced on by Sith Apprentices. (Which reminds me: what the hell was up with those prisoners on Korriban at the beginning of the Sith Warrior story? How were they Sith business instead of Imperial Intelligence’s?) (Though Korriban is pretty high on the list of hard to escape from places, too. Potentially even worse, since Sith might sense that something’s up. Or easier, since Sith are a bunch of arrogant bastards and that’s a good way to leave holes in your security. Also, Jezari is terrified of Sith. That could be entertaining.)
Alternatively, Kyrian is held where he is, while the Sith Lord and Keeper work out what becomes of him. Less good for escape drama, unless I make it a more secure place than I was originally going to (false sense of security for Kyrian’s arrival there and all), but maybe good for race against time drama with the rescue party needing to get there before he’s moved to somewhere harder to rescue him from. (Problem: I don’t think it would take long enough for that decision to be reached.)
The Sith Lord was just supposed to get to be in at the capture, but pulls Sith rank and absconds to Korriban with Kyrian to try to get more out of Keeper (some kind of pull with Intelligence? ???). (This still leaves the holy fuck how do you rescue someone from a planet of Sith problem.)
The thing is, I want it to be very clear to Kyrian that he is in trouble with Intelligence/the Empire, not just the Sith Lord. He needs to know he’s been found out. (Even if Keeper actually just wants to investigate, Kyrian would assume the worst, because he fears that and because everyone keeps telling him to run away before he gets himself executed for treason. And, since Kyrian wouldn’t want to be a double agent or be used against Jezari in some way, an investigation isn’t going to end up anywhere good anyway.)
And I want his rescue to be plausible. Yes, Jezari can come up with a pretty good Mission Impossible team (herself, her bounty hunter friend Savler, Mako, Risha, Bowdaar, Corso) but they’re still basically amateurs going up against the Sith Empire. (And, no, Jezari can’t go to the SIS for help. They’re not going to rescue an Imperial Intelligence agent from the Empire on the word of a petty criminal. Even one who does occasional work for them. (Well, okay, they might, but Jezari wouldn’t think so, and there’s going to be significant time pressure no matter what. No waiting around for bureaucracy. Not even when you wish you could borrow Havoc Squad and a handful of Jedi to go save your friend.)
I can get them into Imperial space. I even have an idea how to get them on any planet they need to get on. And, probably, how to get into - and maybe out of - wherever Kyrian is being held. As long as wherever it is is vulnerable to subterfuge. And possibly Mako.
I really fear that Intelligence HQ is just too implausible. And Korriban... I don’t know. That kind of depends on whether Sith would notice them or not. (And possibly, unless this is entirely too messed up an idea, whether its possible to use glitterstim or some similar form of spice to temporarily “read” as a Force User.)
(Okay, I admit the evil author in me kind of wants to make them rescue him from Korriban because Jezari is terrified of Sith. I just don’t know if I can make it work. Though if glitterstim boosts telepathy even in ordinary people, might there be a variety that would allow one to blend in as a would-be Sith? Especially since people of any Force Sensitivity at all are sent there. But is there a plausible reason for poor Kyrian to end up there? Urgh. Plots are hard.)
