#vanto

Lysatran culture is very rigid and the parents dictate everything about their children and their life paths. Eli's elder sister runs the day to day of Vanto Freight and Transport, Eli's 'job' was switched from cargo master to Imperial Academy student, putting him in a position to send those lucrative Outer Rim and Wild Space contracts to his family. It did not go as planned, and his family was furious about it.

Eli is the middle boy of three and the middle child of five. All of the Vantos are mathematically gifted, so he never really stood out for that reason. Myomar's focus was shipping, logistics, supply chain management, civil engineering, and shipbuilding.

He was admitted to the Myomar Academy when he was fourteen, before it was integrated into the Imperial Academy system. He was held back a year to meet the minimum age for his shakedown cruise as he was seventeen and the Imperial system required that he be eighteen.

While Eli resented the hell out of Thrawn at first, but they bonded largely over being two pariahs - a Wild Space yahoo and a near-human alien.

Over the years, Thrawn saved Eli from his Angry Middle Child spicy temper many, many times. Sometimes a quiet "Eli." Sometimes a hand on his shoulder and a good grip. Sometimes picking him up and carrying him off over his shoulder.

Eli is cursed with a baby-face. He never appears to age as much as one expects. Even in his late twenties and in uniform, he still has to pop his chain code to get into a bar.

Eli gets murderous hangovers. Shoot me now hangovers. Thrawn keeps a supply of Fly-Rite on hand and a lot of I-Told-You-So. He can't understand why Eli drinks enough beer and k'ila to fill the pilot area of a standard TIE fighter and expects a different outcome.

He has a serious case of potty-mouth. Curses like a sailor. He's calmed down a lot as he gets older. He says that's because Thrawn has burned out his WTF button.

From time to time, he can still be heard to mutter, "Good day, Lieutenant Vanto?!"

5/5.

Horatio Figg edition

Vaquero inspired eli for my Star Wars thrawn AU

thank you to @qyrhan for doing the background

Summary: The ISD Chimaera's crew is granted liberty (shore-time leave) on Coruscant while the ship undergoes routine inspections. When Commodore Thrawn decides to join First Officer Faro and Lieutenant Commander Vanto for a wild night out, they realize they have no idea what they've gotten themselves into. Will this be the end of their careers or a night to remember?

Part 1

Eli Vanto knew deep down that Thrawn was not joining this outing merely for leisure. Did he even understand what having a good time meant to the average person?

It had been a long time since the Commodore had done anything tactical without consulting with Vanto first, but since when did he ever go out just to go out? Never. And as much as Vanto wanted to pester him for more information, he wouldn’t let Karyn Faro’s night be spoiled by interrogating Thrawn for further details. There also existed a possibility he was overanalyzing all of this.

Extracting himself from his thoughts, he took in the cityscape of Coruscant from where he stood on the Imperial Navy Yard retrieval pad. Flashing lights and vehicles zipping through the controlled chaos made the ecumenopolis look less like a planet and more like the galaxy itself, with billions of lives merely existing as the stars around them. He glanced to his left and saw Faro observing the view just as he had been, lost in the enormity of it all. 

For the first time in weeks, she appeared less of an imperial officer and more like a civilian. A pearlescent dress framed her figure tastefully, the semi-translucent sleeves reaching her wrists. Her legs, usually covered by Imperial-issue trousers, were toned and well-defined under shimmering layers of fabric. Faro’s matching low heels only heightened their definition, and Vanto was already calculating the amount of people who would be approaching her to see if they had a chance.

If they only knew they never would. 

She met his gaze and smiled as she said, “You know Thrawn’s presence is going to limit the free drinks, right? People will think we’re a threesome of sorts.”

Vanto chuckled, “Yes, but considering how generous he is when it comes to this kind of stuff, we should be fine.” Faro looked at him with a small amount of uncertainty. In return, he gave her a reassuring smile. He knew she would come around eventually. Thrawn always encouraged morale-building activities on the Chimaera, even if he had to pull from his own pay, which was usually the case. This would be no exception.

“So, you’re saying it’s okay for us to look like a threesome? You wild space folk really are different,” Faro said with sly look, and then pretended to look scandalized. “I could have sworn you didn’t partake in such activities.” 

Vanto blushed as he realized what she was insinuating. He was about to retort when he noticed movement in his peripheral vision. Looking over, he saw Thrawn walking towards them, his leisurely gait making the hairs on Vanto’s neck rise. He felt himself freeze in place as the realization hit him that he was right. 

Something was off.  

Thrawn was not wearing his usual green shades to shield the glow of his red eyes. Instead of donning a cloak to conceal himself, he had opted for gray trousers and a white long-sleeved dress shirt. A moss-green scarf was elegantly draped around his shoulders, and as he approached, Vanto swore he smelled an earthy fragrance emanating from the Chiss’ clothing. Oh, he was definitely up to something.

Thrawn smiled, almost as if he had deduced Vanto’s alarm bells were ringing. He paused when he reached them and his eyes immediately darted to Faro. As he appraised her appearance, he broke the silence, “Commander, you look lovely tonight. Are your adornments and garment from your home planet?”

Faro smiled tersely as she said, “Yes, sir. It’s quite nice to be dressed in this after being in uniform for weeks on end. I almost feel naked.” She paused, pink staining her cheeks at the mention of nudity in front of the Commodore.

Thrawn smirked, arching his eyebrows. “Fear not, Commander. Speak freely and enjoy your evening,” he assured her. “If you are propositioned by an individual, and desire to be in a true state of almost-disrobement, Vanto and I will ensure that you are coherent to make a clear decision regarding consent.”

If Vanto could have choked on air, he would have.

“Ah…thank you, sir,” Faro replied, appearing somewhat relieved. Vanto was impressed by how Thrawn implied he would not be using tonight as an attempt to hook up with a subordinate, yet he would ensure she stayed safe regardless. 

As if on cue, an air taxi landed in front of them, the droid driver beckoning them in with a wave of its robotic arm. Thrawn approached first to open the rear compartment door for Vanto and Faro, and then slid into the front passenger seat. As Vanto and Faro settled in the rear and the door sealed shut, he observed the setting sun. Behind thousands of supertowers, beams of amber light shined through the partitions. An incredible view to start off a hopefully incredible night, he thought to himself, feeling the air taxi begin its ascent to merge with aerial traffic. As his eyes shifted back to the vehicle, he caught Thrawn’s stare in the passenger rearview mirror. The Chiss’ familiar expression of calm would look normal to an average onlooker, but Vanto caught a hint of edge in his eyes.

The look of a warrior mentally preparing for battle.

Thrawn suddenly averted his gaze, and Vanto prayed that what he had seen was all in his head. Maybe he was nervous and was strategizing how to avoid any embarrassment tonight. Maybe he was regretting coming out at all. Maybe this wasn’t just an outing, but an elaborately schemed excuse to-

Vanto stopped himself from going any farther. This wasn’t the time, and he was probably worked up from weeks in combat. This was his time to finally decompress, and he would force himself to enjoy it, even if Thrawn looked like he knew something they didn’t. Even if the Commodore was in civilian clothing, and had a blaster tucked into a shoulder holster conspicuously hidden beneath his scarf. Yes, absolutely delusional.  

Vanto looked at Faro and watched the strands of her hair rustle around her lovely face as the taxi sped through the congested skies. Thrawn would never ruin this for her- would he?

It didn’t take long for his question to be answered.

Approximately 10 minutes later, their taxi was grounded in the seedy district surrounding the Imperial Navy Yard, smoke rising from its drive engine. Their droid driver swiveled to face Vanto, “Apologies, sir. This issue is not in my programmed repair database, and due to high demand, another taxi won’t be available for the next 82 minutes.” 

Vanto sighed and made eye contact with Faro, who now stood beside Thrawn outside of the downed vehicle. Her expression did little to hide her displeasure. Thrawn, on the other hand, observed their surroundings as if assessing their survival rate. The area was run-down yet bustling with activity. Bright signs illuminated the street, identifying various bars and other nightlife venues. Vanto noted the amount of both lower-ranking enlisted military personnel and navy yard employees in the crowd. Well, at least if they were stuck here, they could save credits on cheaper drinks and still have some fun until they were retrieved.

“Maybe we should find something to do around here,” he said over his shoulder, still observing the droid as it reserved their next transport.

He heard Faro sigh in resignation, “I mean, I guess that’s fine. But where are we supposed to go?”

Vanto turned and walked up to his group, noting that Thrawn was watching a hooded individual saunter in their direction, but returned his gaze to Faro, “There are all sorts of bars and whatnot around here. Maybe we landed here for a reason.” 

“Maybe you did.”

Vanto was startled by the unknown voice, and whipped his head to the side, realizing that the hooded figure had already reached them. They removed their hood, and Vanto’s eyes widened as he took in the beauty of the Twi’lek in front of him. 

Her skin and lekku were leafy green, the rest of her body concealed under a dark cloak. Her full lips only enhanced her breathtaking smile as she said, “I didn’t mean to intrude, but I noticed your predicament and thought to be of some assistance.” Her Corusca-gem hued eyes roved all over Thrawn, and Vanto held back a laugh as he noticed Thrawn doing the same, only in a clinical manner. The Twi’lek’s attempt to check out the Commodore probably went over his head, as most other attempts had in the past.

“Yes, we were on our way to the Tian District until our taxi had a mishap,” he replied, motioning to the downed vehicle. 

The Twi’lek assessed the situation as she said, “Interesting. By the way, my name is Aditria.” She glanced at their trio and tugged part of her cloak to the side, revealing shapely legs and not much else covering her curvaceous body. “Considering the issues with your taxi, how about you join us at our club for some…entertainment?”

Vanto felt his entire face flush, and he was sure his neck had joined the party as well. This was not how he expected this night to commence, and as much as he liked what he saw, he was an officer of the Imperial Navy. He would conduct himself as such. “Respectfully, we- “

“We would be honored to join you until we are retrieved,” Thrawn interrupted, his eyes gleaming with excitement. Vanto’s eyes darted to Thrawn, scrutinizing him to see if he had misunderstood the inuendo. It appeared he hadn’t, as a coy smile met Vanto’s seconds-long assessment. Aditria smirked and swiftly turned, her cloak swishing behind her, “Follow me.”

 Thrawn appeared to heed her instruction until Faro grabbed his sleeve. He stopped and looked back at her. “Yes?”

“Sir,” she whispered, “why would you agree to this?” 

The Chiss winked at her, “Commander, did you not desire to have a good time? Are you shying away from a challenge so early into our adventure?” Oh, he was going there.  

Faro glared up at Thrawn but begrudgingly let go of his sleeve. He gestured with his chin towards Aditria’s direction, and both Vanto and Faro began to trail him. Faro gave Vanto a bewildered stare, and he shrugged in response. He wasn’t sure where this version of Thrawn had crawled out of. However, he was intrigued. 

It wasn’t until they turned the corner and approached their destination that Vanto’s reservations about all of this returned with a vengeance. There was no way Thrawn was going in there. 

Except he was. 

As Aditria approached the building, the automatic doors slid open to reveal pulsing lights, artificial fog, and the kind of activity that would make Vanto’s mother keel over in shock. Faro slowly rotated her face to look at him. Her bulging eyes bore into his own, even with a tight-lipped smile locked in place to avoid gawking. He shook his head in disbelief but continued to follow his superior officer like the loyal aide he was.

There was no kriffing way this was real. Thrawn had led them to a strip club. 

Broke this up into 2 for clarity and also because as I was browsing through my screenshot folder and some passages I just rewritten for lulz (mainly stupid thranto shipping). Boi, that was fun hehe Part 1