11-26-2019, 11:10 PM
(Written with [nation]Shuell[/nation])
Unknown IntSec Facility, Shuell
Alina Kaufer woke slowly. Her head was pounding, like she’d hit it repeatedly against a wall. She groaned as she woke, and moved to put her hand to her head… only to pull against a restraint on her wrist. Immediately, she froze, her heart beginning to pound. Slowly, carefully, she moved each of her limbs slightly, ascertaining that both her wrists and ankles were restrained.
Only then did she slowly and carefully open her eyes, confirming her fears: she was in a cell. She mentally swore. Closing her eyes again and steadying her breathing. She waited until the memories flooded back to her. She had thought she was going for a job interview, but it had clearly been a trap. Discrepancies in her records had been found. She’d been captured.
Okay, this is not good, she thought. She had very few options. They wouldn’t believe what she said, and they wouldn’t let her go. If she didn’t talk, they would try to force her. She thought she could get through this, as long as she remembered her training. She blamed herself, if she was honest. The first thing they teach Shuell-assigned Auroras is do not get taken alive.
She lay still, not bothering to struggle, as there was no point. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, running through her interrogation resistance training in her mind and preparing herself for what was to come. The rest of her life would be painful, she was sure. She had failed, and she would suffer for it. But she would not betray her country.
A series of clicking noises emanate from the cell door across from her. A few seconds after they stopped, the metal door slid open with a harsh scraping noise. A man in a dark jumpsuit entered, clad in what appeared to be a kind of riot armor, with a helmet and a mirrored plexiglass visor concealing his face. A belt with multiple pouches was on his waist, and she was able to notice an occupied holster and baton hanging from it.
Approaching her bed, he fished out a key. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he drew a red canister from his belt and sprayed it in her face - she was able to tell it was pepperspray through the pain. Alina coughed and closed her eyes, as she felt her face and throat begin to swell. She began to hyperventilate and feeling of panic shot through her. She heard her shackles unlock and she was roughly pulled out of bed, before she felt a pair of handcuffs close around her wrists.
Through her swollen and puffy eyes, she realized she was being pulled out of her cell by the guard, and tried to get a feel for the layout of the facility she was in. A short while later, the guard stopped and forced her inside of a small room with a plastic table and two chairs on either end. Judging from the one-way mirror on one side of the room, it was quite obvious to tell she was going to be interrogated. She was sat down onto one chair, before the man exited. A few minutes later, a differently dressed nondescript man entered the room and took his seat at the other end of the table. He pulled out a device and fiddled with it, before placing it on the desk. "Are you Alina Kaufer, born on May 6th, 1993?"
"I am," she said, warily.
He nodded. “Why were you detained by Internal Security forces?”
"I..." she hesitated, deciding what to say. "I am unsure."
”What were the circumstances leading up to your arrest?”
"I was... well, I thought I was being invited for a job interview. They found discrepancies in my parents' records that I couldn't explain. And then someone kicked me in the head, so thanks for that," she said sarcastically.
”Noted. How long has your family lived in Shuell?”
"Many generations, I don't know the exact number," she lied.
"What is the name of the oldest known ancestor of your family? Grandparent, great-grandparent, so on.”
"Oh..." she pretended to think for a moment. "Well, my family were rather, um, impoverished so we have a tendency to die young... I don't honestly remember the names of any of my great-grandparents. My father's father was named Luis, though."
"I see. Luis Kaufer? Got any heirlooms?”
"No, they were all sold to pay my mother's medical bills. Like I said, impoverished."
"Mhm.” The man grunted. She got the impression he didn’t believe her. “Why did you decide to be an officer in the IS Army?”
"I wanted to serve my country," she said as if it was obvious. "As all loyal Shuellians should."
"As usual, then. Same applies for IntSec?”
"Of course," she nodded.
”Have you or any of your family members been associated with the Matriarchy of Kerlile or rival powers of Shuell?”
"Not to my knowledge," she said, keeping her face and tone steady even as her heart rate spiked momentarily.
"Are you supportive of Kerlian ideals in any way?"
"I am going to assume you mean the misandry, and not things shared with other nations. In which case no, I am not," the lie came easily, she was well practiced in telling them. But the sentiment behind it, claiming she did not support the Matriarchy... that was much harder for her to do.
He pauses, moving the device closer to her. "Can you recite a sentence for me? 'Kerlile is a failure of a nation and has evil, immoral ideals. The rulers of Kerlile deserve nothing but death.' Quickly, now."
She hesitated, looking down at the device. She considered it for a moment... and made her decision, shrugging and leaning back in her chair.
"I'm not going to do that. You won't let me go anyway."
"Excuse me? Are you not a loyal patriot of Shuell?" He asks. Oddly, his tone of voice was not annoyed - more intrigued.
"What is the purpose of making me insult Kerlile? What does that have to do with my parents' files?" she laughed. "If you believed me, why this exercise, this pointless game? I get the feeling you won't let me go anyway."
"An aurora would hestitate or refuse to insult Kerlile, no? They are fanatics. They would kill hundreds to protect their country. That is why they must be hunted down. By refusing to answer, you are further implicating yourself. We seize and release multiple Shuellian citizens with errors in their papers every day."
"You think I'm an Aurora, those agents I saw on the news?" she raised an eyebrow. She remembered watching that news report. She'd downed half a bottle of vodka to give her an excuse to vomit. "I'm flattered, but I don't think I'm capable of that. I just don't approve of insulting one's enemies. It seems cheap and dishonourable."
"Honor." He puts up air quotes. "Do you not remember the Ehrenkodex all officers are given? Section 8, line 27."
"I do. 'Any and all actions taken in defense or service of the State and Fatherland are inherently honorable.' But how does my insulting a country in an interrogation room fall into that category of action?"
"You know the words after it, no? A true Shuellian patriot does not hesitate or refuse an order by a superior. Being a prisoner, I am your superior. While the outdated morality of higher-ranking officers may have rubbed off on you, you should know that here in IntSec, pragmatism is key."
"'A true Shuellian patriot does not hesitate or refuse a lawful order by a superior' is the correct quote," she replied.
He frowns. "Yes, yes." The questions continue for hours, before a beeping noise is heard from the device. "Thank you for answering our questions, Ms. Kaufer. As your allegiance cannot be confirmed, among other concerns, you will be kept in IntSec custody until further notice."
"How wonderful," she said sarcastically.
He grunts, before hitting a button on his suit. The door slides open, and two guards clad in the same armor as earlier entered the interrogation room. To her relief, there was no pepperspray this time. After being marched to her cell, she was shoved onto the cold metal bed she woke up on, and had her restraints re-attached. The only items in the room were a toilet, lightbulb, and a camera too high up for her to reach. She was shocked out of her internal monologue with the harsh noise of the cell door closing, leaving her utterly alone.
She groaned as she lay there, pulling against her restraints a single time in frustration. She thought over her performance in the interrogation room, trying to think if there had been a way she could have kept up the act more fully without doing as he'd asked. But no, there hadn't been. She hadn't admitted anything, at least, but she was certain there would be no way out. It would only get worse.
Unknown IntSec Facility, Shuell
Alina Kaufer woke slowly. Her head was pounding, like she’d hit it repeatedly against a wall. She groaned as she woke, and moved to put her hand to her head… only to pull against a restraint on her wrist. Immediately, she froze, her heart beginning to pound. Slowly, carefully, she moved each of her limbs slightly, ascertaining that both her wrists and ankles were restrained.
Only then did she slowly and carefully open her eyes, confirming her fears: she was in a cell. She mentally swore. Closing her eyes again and steadying her breathing. She waited until the memories flooded back to her. She had thought she was going for a job interview, but it had clearly been a trap. Discrepancies in her records had been found. She’d been captured.
Okay, this is not good, she thought. She had very few options. They wouldn’t believe what she said, and they wouldn’t let her go. If she didn’t talk, they would try to force her. She thought she could get through this, as long as she remembered her training. She blamed herself, if she was honest. The first thing they teach Shuell-assigned Auroras is do not get taken alive.
She lay still, not bothering to struggle, as there was no point. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths, running through her interrogation resistance training in her mind and preparing herself for what was to come. The rest of her life would be painful, she was sure. She had failed, and she would suffer for it. But she would not betray her country.
A series of clicking noises emanate from the cell door across from her. A few seconds after they stopped, the metal door slid open with a harsh scraping noise. A man in a dark jumpsuit entered, clad in what appeared to be a kind of riot armor, with a helmet and a mirrored plexiglass visor concealing his face. A belt with multiple pouches was on his waist, and she was able to notice an occupied holster and baton hanging from it.
Approaching her bed, he fished out a key. Suddenly, out of nowhere, he drew a red canister from his belt and sprayed it in her face - she was able to tell it was pepperspray through the pain. Alina coughed and closed her eyes, as she felt her face and throat begin to swell. She began to hyperventilate and feeling of panic shot through her. She heard her shackles unlock and she was roughly pulled out of bed, before she felt a pair of handcuffs close around her wrists.
Through her swollen and puffy eyes, she realized she was being pulled out of her cell by the guard, and tried to get a feel for the layout of the facility she was in. A short while later, the guard stopped and forced her inside of a small room with a plastic table and two chairs on either end. Judging from the one-way mirror on one side of the room, it was quite obvious to tell she was going to be interrogated. She was sat down onto one chair, before the man exited. A few minutes later, a differently dressed nondescript man entered the room and took his seat at the other end of the table. He pulled out a device and fiddled with it, before placing it on the desk. "Are you Alina Kaufer, born on May 6th, 1993?"
"I am," she said, warily.
He nodded. “Why were you detained by Internal Security forces?”
"I..." she hesitated, deciding what to say. "I am unsure."
”What were the circumstances leading up to your arrest?”
"I was... well, I thought I was being invited for a job interview. They found discrepancies in my parents' records that I couldn't explain. And then someone kicked me in the head, so thanks for that," she said sarcastically.
”Noted. How long has your family lived in Shuell?”
"Many generations, I don't know the exact number," she lied.
"What is the name of the oldest known ancestor of your family? Grandparent, great-grandparent, so on.”
"Oh..." she pretended to think for a moment. "Well, my family were rather, um, impoverished so we have a tendency to die young... I don't honestly remember the names of any of my great-grandparents. My father's father was named Luis, though."
"I see. Luis Kaufer? Got any heirlooms?”
"No, they were all sold to pay my mother's medical bills. Like I said, impoverished."
"Mhm.” The man grunted. She got the impression he didn’t believe her. “Why did you decide to be an officer in the IS Army?”
"I wanted to serve my country," she said as if it was obvious. "As all loyal Shuellians should."
"As usual, then. Same applies for IntSec?”
"Of course," she nodded.
”Have you or any of your family members been associated with the Matriarchy of Kerlile or rival powers of Shuell?”
"Not to my knowledge," she said, keeping her face and tone steady even as her heart rate spiked momentarily.
"Are you supportive of Kerlian ideals in any way?"
"I am going to assume you mean the misandry, and not things shared with other nations. In which case no, I am not," the lie came easily, she was well practiced in telling them. But the sentiment behind it, claiming she did not support the Matriarchy... that was much harder for her to do.
He pauses, moving the device closer to her. "Can you recite a sentence for me? 'Kerlile is a failure of a nation and has evil, immoral ideals. The rulers of Kerlile deserve nothing but death.' Quickly, now."
She hesitated, looking down at the device. She considered it for a moment... and made her decision, shrugging and leaning back in her chair.
"I'm not going to do that. You won't let me go anyway."
"Excuse me? Are you not a loyal patriot of Shuell?" He asks. Oddly, his tone of voice was not annoyed - more intrigued.
"What is the purpose of making me insult Kerlile? What does that have to do with my parents' files?" she laughed. "If you believed me, why this exercise, this pointless game? I get the feeling you won't let me go anyway."
"An aurora would hestitate or refuse to insult Kerlile, no? They are fanatics. They would kill hundreds to protect their country. That is why they must be hunted down. By refusing to answer, you are further implicating yourself. We seize and release multiple Shuellian citizens with errors in their papers every day."
"You think I'm an Aurora, those agents I saw on the news?" she raised an eyebrow. She remembered watching that news report. She'd downed half a bottle of vodka to give her an excuse to vomit. "I'm flattered, but I don't think I'm capable of that. I just don't approve of insulting one's enemies. It seems cheap and dishonourable."
"Honor." He puts up air quotes. "Do you not remember the Ehrenkodex all officers are given? Section 8, line 27."
"I do. 'Any and all actions taken in defense or service of the State and Fatherland are inherently honorable.' But how does my insulting a country in an interrogation room fall into that category of action?"
"You know the words after it, no? A true Shuellian patriot does not hesitate or refuse an order by a superior. Being a prisoner, I am your superior. While the outdated morality of higher-ranking officers may have rubbed off on you, you should know that here in IntSec, pragmatism is key."
"'A true Shuellian patriot does not hesitate or refuse a lawful order by a superior' is the correct quote," she replied.
He frowns. "Yes, yes." The questions continue for hours, before a beeping noise is heard from the device. "Thank you for answering our questions, Ms. Kaufer. As your allegiance cannot be confirmed, among other concerns, you will be kept in IntSec custody until further notice."
"How wonderful," she said sarcastically.
He grunts, before hitting a button on his suit. The door slides open, and two guards clad in the same armor as earlier entered the interrogation room. To her relief, there was no pepperspray this time. After being marched to her cell, she was shoved onto the cold metal bed she woke up on, and had her restraints re-attached. The only items in the room were a toilet, lightbulb, and a camera too high up for her to reach. She was shocked out of her internal monologue with the harsh noise of the cell door closing, leaving her utterly alone.
She groaned as she lay there, pulling against her restraints a single time in frustration. She thought over her performance in the interrogation room, trying to think if there had been a way she could have kept up the act more fully without doing as he'd asked. But no, there hadn't been. She hadn't admitted anything, at least, but she was certain there would be no way out. It would only get worse.
LIDUN President 2024 | she/her | Puppets: Kerlile, Glanainn, Yesteria, Zongongia, Zargothrax