Jido Cen

"'But now he knew what it meant. And he would find others who did.' - 'Loyalty And Purpose'"Jido Cen was the former Lieutenant and primary officer of the Imperial Installation on Dirakan.

Appearing spritely at first, when Hikaru and Duna ambushed him, he proved to be fairly weak and unfit on closer inspection. Despite this, he was very resistant to intimidation, refusing to divulge any information about the facility, his superiors or what the prison they were searching for is.

Blamed for the infiltration and declared a traitor for his failings, he was imprisoned by his superior, Moff Vandon. Tortured in the weeks that followed, including having his hand severed, he was used as propaganda and as a tool to draw the Party out of hiding and back to Dirakan.

Rescued by a returning Duna and Yeni, he explained what had happened, as well as declaring his own innocence in the events of the Occupation because of being imprisoned the whole time. Offering a way to bring down Vandon in the form of blackmail, Cen was otherwise left to fend for himself, Duna unable to overcome her hatred for him.

Escaping with the rest during the firefight, he then journeyed back with the Party to the station, spending the next few days being treated for his injuries and drinking to forget.

He has since recruited some like-minded individuals and now acts as leader of a strike squad should the Party have need of him for such an act.

The Unlucky Lieutenant
He was quickly overpowered during the infiltration, though he was left alive afterwards, albeit heavily bruised and with damaged pride.

What happened to him afterwards was unknown for many weeks, as a mysterious Imperial commander seized command of the facility in retribution for the attack.

The Year Of Trials
As the Party spent the next year hunkering down in expectation of war, gathering funds and investing in the station, Jido went on a personal quest of atonement, seeking out individuals like himself.

The Lieutenant And The Tech
By his own recollection, this started with returning to Dirakan in search of any survivors from his old unit. It took some time, but he happened upon a makeshift camp in the woods home to 11 people from various positions within the old listening post. Some were soldiers, others were technicians or regular staff and maintenance crews. They said there were originally 12 of them, though Tono Kanter had since wandered off further into the woods and is believed missing.

Everybody recognized him, with the soldiers raising their weapons, while the rest made it clear he wasn't welcome. Jido then noticed that two of those present were members of his squad when he was first assigned here - Vidarr Desyk and Kesi Kale. He appealed to their sense of honor and belief in the Empire, which naturally received a few scoffs in return due to his false labeling as a traitor. Some of the other soldiers began to call for his death, as he was to blame for all of this in the first place, but Jido retorted that he had never spoken about the Moff, he had even given a false name when under questioning. He had been a scapegoat because Vandon was too damn proud to accept he maybe should not have added such large vents to a facility on a planet teeming with life that was the same size.

This standoff continued for some time, with the soldiers forming a firing squad in a circle around him. Eventually he simply surrendered, though he lamented dying at the hands of blind fools that wished not to save the Empire from similar corruption. He closed his eyes, and shots rang out. Yet, he felt no impacts himself, as a few heavy forms hit the ground around him.

As he opened his eyes, he saw Kesi and Vidarr still standing, their rifles smoking, and the remaining soldiers contorted in shock, bearing the telltale marks of plasma bolts. The non-combatants were terrified, raising their hands in surrender almost immediately. Jido thanked his old friends, who simply responded with "Don't make us regret this boss". Jido then explained fully the nature of his imprisonment, being called a traitor to cover up the Moff's embarrassment, and the Moff's willingness to torture and mutilate him for months despite having done nothing wrong and years of spotless service. If this was the Empire now, he said he wanted no part of it. He wanted the Old Empire, which rose on meritocracy, skill and loyalty. Not this corrupt, bloated beast that was a slave to irrationality.

He said he had a ship that could take them to a save haven, to the people who rescued him, if they wanted. He said they were not betraying the Empire, as without that Jido was indeed nothing at all. But he wanted to help change it for the better. They were going to be rogue operators, but for all intents and purposes they were still loyal. The plan? To find yet more like them and help mend this broken system. They all agreed to come along, as without protection and an actual plan, the wildlife here was likely to claim them before too long.

And so his quest had begun.

The Specialist
Over the rest of the year, Jido infiltrated numerous facilities across Imperial Space in search of like-minded people. He rescued Horo Shulo from an Imperial Academy on Malastare, where she was the top of her class in infiltration and destabilization, only to be refused graduation based on her species, only being offered a lesser certificate.

The operation was instigated during the lead up to graduation, with Jido using his position as a superior to act as a messenger for Moff Vandon, Kesi providing falsified credentials to prove it. He told the Academy Commander that his Moff had sent him to collect a promising student with intent to make her a DeStab Agent. The Commander tried to tiptoe around promoting Horo, instead offering up a number of other, more "acceptable" candidates from among the Human or Sith population. Jido then used this chance to launch into a tirade against the Academy Commander, humiliating him and promising retribution from his own superior should the Commander continue his foolish ways. After all, if the Moff heard a lowly commander questioning his decisions he wouldn't be too happy.

Terrified, the Commander granted leave to Horo, whereupon Jido promptly explained their real mission. He admitted that he wasn't happy he had to use the broken system as a leverage point, but if it got him his squad so he could truly begin his work, he would use it.

The Scout
The squad then followed the rumour trail of a squad of Jedi Hunters who used as Gotal as their main hunter. After some time they found the squad, hot on the trail of a Padawan fleeing a battle, with the Gotal chained and muzzled like a common pack animal and driven into a frenzy whenever they were needed. Sensing the fear and disdain the Gotal held for its captors, Jido and his squad waited until nightfall before assassinating the entire squad.

Unlocking the cage the poor figure was locked away in, he introduced himself. The Gotal was distrusting at first, but eventually warmed up to them and introduced himself as Qurtal. When offered a place in the protectors, he obliged after making sure it was as an equal.

The Slicer
Their final stop during the year away was following the dust-covered breadcrumb trail of an imprisoned cybernetics-infused scholar named Ioran, jailed for promoting "Anti-Imperial Slander" with their recent articles calling old Sith Lords tyrannical. Lucky to not have been executed immediately, Jido leapt at the chance and began putting together a plan.

Hijacking a shuttle already en-route and posing as a supply run, they were able to gain access. Kesi then pilfered an ID from a nearby captain, scanned a quick mock-up for their own use, and returned it before the captain noticed. Exploring further into the facility, they saw countless individuals locked up for minor crimes, before descending into the bowels of the complex for the "Solitary Confinement" area. Knocking out the guards, they came to a cell where a figure in once-luxurious robes sat chipping away at the stonework in the corner. They were very jumpy when first spoken to, but when they figured out what was happening they were eager to leave.

Unfortunately the group weren't expecting the facility to require a regular check-in via voice signature from the main door guard. As a comm technician on the other side began to call out for the check-in, the squad tried desperately to find a solution, only for Ioran to approach the console and speak in a voice not their own. Explaining away a little huskiness to the voice as "boredom watching these wastes made me a little sleepy", the tech on the other side agreed and accepted the check-in ID.

As Ioran turned around, they saw Jido's squad stood in confusion and shock. They then explained that they were a Gank, filled to the brim with cybernetics, one module of which was a voice synthesizer and recording apparatus. The guards hadn't noticed it when they were brought in, so Ioran spent his time learning how to speak like them.

Suitably impressed, Jido invited Ioran along, with the cover story being that they were re-locating the prisoner for trial against the families they had besmirched.

The Chaotic Khanate Rises
By the time of the events on Charros, Jido and his squad were running drills within the Besradii Nova.