Box

"Before we begin our first challenge let me say there is only one rule inside the Box: there are no rules."

―Moralo Eval, to the contestants of the Box^[1]

The Box was an enormous, cubical structure designed in the midst of the Clone Wars by criminal mastermind Moralo Eval on Serenno. Its interior was capable of shifting into numerous configurations ranging from ray shields to flamethrowers, and was designed to test the skill of the galaxy's best bounty hunters, in order to decide who would aide in the mission to kidnap Supreme Chancellor Palpatine.^[1] It later inspired the design of the Imperial Academy's testing ground, the Well.^[2]

History[]

"Do not fear, Count Dooku. I will show you who is weak."

―Moralo Eval convinces Count Dooku that the Box is dangerous enough to be effective^[1]

In 20 BBY,^[3] during the Clone Wars, Confederate leader Count Dooku held a tournament on Serenno. It was there that Dooku and Moralo Eval invited several bounty hunters; Cad Bane, Bulduga, Derrown, Embo, Jakoli, Obi-Wan Kenobi (disguised as Rako Hardeen), Mantu, Onca, Sinrich, Sixtat, Kiera Swan, and Twazzi. Only five survived the Box: Bane, Derrown, Embo, Hardeen, and Twazzi, while the rest were killed. Dooku urged Hardeen to finish off Eval after he had beaten him in a fight, but Hardeen spared his life and said he was just there to do his job and get paid. The five who survived would work with Bane as part of his group, along with Eval. Together, they would attempt to kidnap Supreme Chancellor Palpatine.^[1]

During the competition, Dooku and Eval disagreed about the effectiveness of the structure. Because Kenobi was, unbeknownst to Eval, competing in the Box, he could help the rest of the bounty hunters survive. This lead to a fatality rate that was, in the beginning stages of the competition, far lower than Dooku had hoped for, as he only needed 5 bounty hunters to help kidnap Chancellor Palpatine.

Construction and Operation[]

The construction of the Box was likely very expensive - it was a huge, ingeniously designed structure. Contestants first entered through a sleek platform elevator, which brought the bounty hunters up to the levitating structure. Inside, many different rooms could be found, all of which utilized uniform squares that covered the walls and the floors to create obstacles. These squares were different in each room - in the first, white squares could raise out of the floor to create platforms used to escape toxic dioxis gas. They also served as video screens, projecting Eval's face onto the walls as he explained the challenge. The exit is actually hidden in the floor below the gas. In the second, darker squares could thrust out from the wall and open to reveal orange laser spikes that jutted out of the front. The trick is to follow the pattern in with the blocks thrust out and use them like stairs to reach the exit located on the ceiling. In the third, there was button that one simply needs to push in order to escape, however it is shielded by an electric barrier. In the center of the room was a pedestal with a syringe sitting on it; it contained an electrolyte that would allow one to pass through the barrier harmlessly, however it is toxic to all but one of the competitors. As platforms rise from the floor, the lower steps electrocuted anyone standing in them.

There was also a control room, where Eval and Dooku could watch the escapades of the bounty hunters, and Eval could tweak the controls of the Box. Eval also held a smaller remote control that could change the internal structure of the final room of the Box by raising or lowering square columns.^[4]