explosive_artist | (no subject)

Entry tags:

oom: your voice is a weapon

(no subject)

After completing the mission, Sabine goes in search of Hera. The galley is a bust, which means she's likely in the cockpit.

As she climbs the ladder, she can't help the clench of fear in her belly. She knows it's silly--she's bringing good news--but she can't help the thought of what happened back on Mandalore, when she thought was delivering good news and instead it was used to betray her friends.

Back stiff, she enters and removes her helmet, holding it under her arm.

(It's totally not a comfort thing.)

"The mission was a success."

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"That's always good to hear."

Hera's still finishing up something with the nav computer, but after a moment she looks up from it, smiling.

Her smile flickers, barely, at Sabine's stance, and she nods to the co-pilot's chair. "Do you want to take a seat?"

She nods, setting her helmet on the back of the chair before turning in the seat to face Hera.

"We got the long window, rather than the short, and I'm pretty sure we were convincing in our withdraw. Our firing lines could use some tightening, but I guess that's a conversation for Kanan."

She pauses to take a short breath and let it out. "There's something else, something Kanan though I should talk with you about. You know how I leave art behind at each mission?"

Hera leans back in her chair, listening. She nods a couple times, but doesn't speak while Sabine does.

There's another brief, small smile before Hera answers, evenly, "I've heard of it."

Edited 2017-07-12 02:43 (UTC)

"Probably from Kanan complaining," Sabine says with a wry smirk. "I know it's frustrating, but I don't let it interfere with the mission objective or its success. It's just..."

Sabine pauses to take a breath and steady herself.

"Back at the Academy, I studied propaganda for a while. I learned all the ways art can be used to influence political views. I...was good at it and I believed in it, mostly. But the Empire has a very narrow view of what they will allow with art and propaganda. I was told what to create, and no matter how much I suggested or improved on their designs, it was only their way."

"They silenced me."

Sabine lets out another breath and looks up to meet Hera's eyes. "The tagging is a way for me to prove I still have a voice. That the Empire didn't silence me."

"I know I should've told you this before, but I was afraid you wouldn't care how important it was for me."

There. Now it was out and up to Hera. Sabine is startled to find part of her is expecting to be kicked out and the thought scares her. She's found a home here and she would miss it terribly.

Hera looks away for a moment, ahead to the blur of hyperspace beyond them. She's frowning, slightly, her eyes sharp and focused, but with no hint of anger.

"The Empire works ripping whatever it can use from those living under it, and then leaving them with nothing. Or worse. Anything else is a nuisance, or a threat."

Hera looks back to her, her gaze becoming gentler.

"We don't work like that, Sabine. We don't see you as some set of skills to exploit, and I'd never want you to feel that you don't have a voice in this crew."

Yet her voice is tempered by the knowledge of what she'll say next. "But we do have to be careful."

Sabine nods, blinking a few times, and totally not to hid any tears that might be threatening. Eventually she has to turn and get her helmet to cover a surreptitious wipe at her face with a hand.

"How about I check with Kanan if there's time to do a tag on missions? Other times, well...I'll keep checking to make sure there's no surveillance or bucketheads around. "

Leaning forward as she speaks, she hooks her helmet up to the holocomm. "There's more though. Someone else is speaking out, too," she says as she projects the recording she took of the other person's graffiti. "We saw this as we escaped today. That's not mine, which means someone else is speaking out against the Empire."

"We aren't alone."

Edited 2017-07-12 16:38 (UTC)

Hera's eyes fall to the hologram. She lifts her hand, covering her mouth for a moment as she looks at it, and takes a deep breath before lowering it, and smiling again. "No, we're not."

She looks back up to Sabine. "I trust you to put the mission first. I know you can make those kinds of judgments, though –" Her mouth quirks slightly "- it might be helpful to make sure the others know what you're up to.

"But it's not just that." Hera speaks a little more slowly now, almost as though she has to convince herself of what she's saying. "We have to keep a low profile for now. If the Empire can identify us, they'll come down hard, and we're not ready for that yet."

Her hand shifts, as though she were thinking of reaching out to Sabine, but she stops herself. Instead, she looks to the projection again. "Believe me, I know how important this is. I learned a long time ago that morale's as powerful as any weapon. All I'm asking is that you keep that in mind. I'm sure you can make it work."

Sabine chews on her lip thinking about Hera's words.

"So less shouting, more subtle?" she asks finally, her mind racing to ways to make the tags more subtle. Painting them above or below 'trooper sight lines would be a start.

"Something like that."

Hera leans forward in her chair, also thinking it over.

"You'd probably know what to do better than I do. But if you've got an audience, maybe think about what will catch their attention, but not necessarily the Empire's."

Sabine leans back in thought. It's an interesting idea and challenge.

"Do you mean suggesting or leading the art? Like directing a discussion?"

It occurs to her that the graffiti could even be used to exchange information, if all parties understood the codes.

"If you think you could do it without getting unwanted attention..."

But Hera smiles - a small, quick grin. It seems like a fair enough compromise.

"If anyone could pull it off, you could."

"Definitely something to think about but I have a few ideas and can definitely see the merit in it. If it works."

"I'll be sure to keep you and Kanan posted. I should tell Kanan and Zeb what sort of things to look for as well. Chopper too, if he ever joins us in town."

She disconnects and grabs her helmet in thought and is half standing before realizing Hera hasn't ended the briefing. Not that she big in protocols, but still. "If there's nothing else you'd like to discuss, I think I'd like to brainstorm some ideas."

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