Prognie walked down the long corridor of the Church on Kuat. It was a place he had known of, something his hand had helped set the foundation for prior to his transferring. While Prognie did not neglect his ability to foresee the future, he had a knack for being devious and planning, part of it having to do with his visit today.
The clicking of his cane was rhythmic, a beat that flowed with his step as he looked at the grandeur. There was a guard posted outside of Praxeum's door, it was almost a foolish attempt to dismiss the unworthy but Prognie was not going to be dismayed in this way. He hadn't told Praxeum of his arrival and while he never stated his purpose it surprised the Grand Inquisitor that he was not prepared.
"Open the door," Prognie's voice was demanding yet calm.
"I am sorry, but the Supreme Prophet does not wish to be bothered today. You may schedule a vis-" Prognie did not waste a moment. He grasped the man with the force almost as if he were nothing but flimsi and hurled him at the wall to his right.
"You misunderstood me, I did not pose you a question." Ignoring the groans of the guard Prognie moved forward and forced the door open as if attempting to tear apart paper. With no apparent respect Prognie closed the door in the same way and made his way toward Praxeum's desk.
"Do not rise on my behalf Prophet, but you know my business here is simply--business." taking out a small device Prognie scanned the room. He didn't like being recorded and the device would allow him to detect those that would. Understanding the Prophet's need for deviance, Prognie pulled out another device that transmitted a sound that disrupted recording devices but did not interrupt conversations. It was a natural practice, one he would always do no matter what.
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
Praxeum had moments ago concluded his conversation with one of his agents in the field, Matra, his Dark Warrior to be exact, when Prognie came into his study. The Dark Lord brought his ring to his lips as he awaited the Grand Inquisitor to concluded his task, keeping his eyes on Prognie every moment. Once he saw his fellow Dark Lord return the devices to belt, Praxeum stood from his large chair and allowed his purposely dirty, white robes to fall to his boots. He turned away from Prognie, staring out the window from the top of the Church and his eyes locked on the capital city.
"What do you want, Prognie?" Praxeum asked in a stern tone. "You should know how busy I am these days."
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
The grin that formed on Prognie's face revealed amusement, except the Prophet assumed by turning away from Prognie he would lesser him. But he would not play the small one, but he would humor Praxeum for now.
"Disrupting an Empire can cause many lost moments, I would know firsthand." The inquisitor took a seat not minding that Praxeum wasn't looking at him, it normally demonstrated either a fear or a superiority complex.
"I am curious as to how far you've gotten. I've made vast improvements on our situation and have even made some secure decisions that will boost if not give us the ability to achieve our goals." Prognie had come together with Praxeum to create a plan to oust the Emperor. It was perfect, almost ingenious but the Grand Inquisitor didn't make it this far by being a fool.
He was testing the man, he was curious as to how far he'd bend before he'd snap back into place. It was obvious, almost certain and if the force worked in mysterious ways it's parlor tricks were not improving. Without the prophet Prognie would admit he wouldn't have made it this far, but there were failsafes for those that were failures and one had to be ready in all cases, even the worst.
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
Praxeum was fighting to not let his eyes slip down to his ring in front of Prognie, the ring of Lord Kaan...the ring Lexicon gave him, the ring Shadow gave him. He turned his head, keeping his body away from Prognie before he said "Funds have been sent by six royal families from Hapes and Courscant. Eight planets have reported large-scale riots, which has requested immediate reinforcements. And I had dinner with Shadow two nights ago." Praxeum turned his body as he finished and sat back in his chair. "Credits, distractions, and trust. All I was 'ordered' to do." Praxeum said as he met the gaze of the Grand Inquisitor. "A group of your men will find the corpse of our little issue laying beside the Athren river." Praxeum finished.
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
Prognie smiled, so the Prophet wasn't acknowledging his place in the group. He believed himself to be a pawn, and while that was true it was critical to know how the man placed himself beside Prognie.
"You have completed your tasks, how prepared you are. I almost thought that the guard out there was meant to keep me from finding out you had failed." A smiled formed on Prognie's face, battering Praxeum's defenses was like sending a capital ship to take licks off another. Testing the shields, looking for anomalies that will make them fall.
"What happened at this dinner with the Emperor?" Prognie was inquisitive, such was his job and the dinner thing he wasn't aware about. The fact that the Supreme Prophet was willing to work outside the box was meaningful and a possible disruption.
Lord Aequitas
Aequitas was really confused. As High Prophet, it washis job to review all the paperwork. As he was going over the accounts, he noticed that they were quite alot of payments to and from a few planets. Odd, the High Prophet thought to himself, very odd. He decided to leave it aside for a while. However, then he noticed a letter from a friend in Naboo, saying there were riots and that he was begging for the Moff to call for re-inforcements. Aequitas shook his head. Naboo was peaceful planet. Riots never happened. He had to go there. He decided to go to the Supreme Prophet to tell him that he was leaving for a few days. As he rose, he decided to bring the account papers with him. Perhaps Lord Praxeum could explain.
As he turned at the end of the corridor to knock at the Supreme Prophet's door, he noticed a guard, knocked out, against a wall. He rushed over and shook the guard. "Hello? Are you ok?" The guard coughed and opened his eyes, "High Prophet, hello. I'm sorry, I don't know what happened" Aequitas sighed, "Have the rest of the day off." Now the High Prophet was determined to ask the Supreme Prophet what was going on.
Turning around, he rapped, quite quickly, on the door of his office. He went to open the door, but it was locked. "My Lord Praxeum, it's Aequitas. We need to speak, immediately." Praxeum never locked his door. Aequitas was very confused.
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
The Supreme Prophet outreached his hand and allowed the Force to unlock the system to the door and watched it slid open. Aequitas slowly walked into the room as he kept his eyes switching from Prognie to Praxeum and back. "Ah, my High Prophet." Praxeum said in the cheerful tone he displayed while working with others, "Lord Prognie and I were discussing the latest alchemy creation of Jorran." Praxeum looked at Prognie and said, "The Grand Inquistor doesn't like the idea." Praxeum said to keep the situation light-hearted to ensure his friend did not see what was really happening.
"So, please make this quick." Praxeum heard Prognie say to his High Prophet, which he would normally scold someone for, but he knew Prongie was right. The less Aequitas got in the way, the better chances for living for.
Lord Aequitas
Aequitas sighed. "Lord Prognie", he said acknowledging the Grand Inquisitor's presence. He then turned his attention to his friend, the Supreme Prophet. "Lord Praxeum. I shall be going to the Naboo Chapter for a few days. There seems to have been some...riots. Most unusual, yes." Aequitas nodded and turned to leave but remembered something. "Oh yes, these accounts. They seem to be out of order. The Coruscant Chapter seems to be sending money to the Kuat Chapter, but I don't see why. As well as some money going to Onderon. Most unusual indeed." Aequitas looked at the Grand Inquisitor and then back at Praxeum. "Perhaps it would be best to discuss this another time."
Aequitas strode to the door. Turning to the Grand Inquisitor he smiled. "There seemed to be an incident with one of the guards. You couldn't ask one of your Junior Inquisitors to investigate, could you? A guard getting knocked out while on duty outside the Supreme Prophet's office in broad daylight would...look bad."
He opened the door, "Good Day to you both." Closing it behind him, he shook his head. He knew Praxeum well enough to know when he was putting on his "fake" smile.
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
Prognie stared in the direction of the high prophet, the lack of respect in the Grand Inquisitor's eyes was demeaning for the prophet. He was a simple child interviewing in adult affairs, ones he could never understand and ones he would never even know.
When the man walked out of the room he turned and smiled, "I see the contempt in your Prophet's eyes try to insult me. If I were any other sith lord he would have been flying out of the highest window on Kuat. But I figure you might need him, he seems useful and loyal. Perhaps loyalty will be his downfall." Prognie was already coming up with ways to use the High Prophet, outside of Praxeum's permission as well. All it took was one simple nudge, a push and the man could set off reactions that would benefit him in the end. Praxeum might be too weak to sacrifice the High Prophet, but to Prognie they were all expendable as long as the end result was still capable.
"I am thrilled to know that your subordinates have an almost condescending lack of respect, if that is the angle the church wishes to walk in so be it but under your predecessors it was a place of respect." Another whip at Praxeum, it almost became second nature for the dark lord.
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
"They do have respect." Praxeum said, making the anger he felt obvious in his voice. "For those worthy of it." Praxeum stood from his chair and began to pace, a habit he had developed when he began to concentrate. He knew this recent development with his High Prophet would make his chances of surviving the coming war will be slim, or even before the war began. He looked at the closed door as if Aequitas still stood right there.
His entire life, things had been stolen from him. Friendship, dreams, ...love. If it weren't for Praxeum's diplomatic skills in hiding his emotions, he knew Prognie would have seen the wince he felt at the thought of Elicia. He had often consider all of his losses to his benefit, that perhaps it made him stronger and able to easily let things go. But now, with the thought of all those he knew perhaps to have fall at his own blade. Perhaps, his loss had made him hold onto all that he cared for even more. Perhaps he was...weak.
Praxeum could not hide the scowl shown on his face at that thought. He slowly walked to the Grand Inquisitor and eased right into his face before saying, "So, did you just come here to insult me or is there a meaning for something you did for once?"
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
If Prognie could stare into the Prophet's eyes he would probably have been afraid, but all that he could feel was the warm breath, a hint of ale hidden in the back of the mouth. "There is always a reason for my presence, that you cannot see it or understand is none of my concern."
"I am curious as to what you've been doing. Communication is going to become tighter so I would prefer to personally come see you." Prognie just didn't trust the supreme prophet, he would use any way to expose him and by communicating through comlink he exposed himself to a variant of surprises.
"Plus what better way to express my gratitude to your work than to see you personally."
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
The Supreme Prophet put on a grin that was obviously sarcastic and full of irritation, "Well, I am ever so humbled." He walked around his desk once again, sitting down in the chair, and glaring at Prognie. "But back to the question you asked about the Emperor." Praxeum knew that he couldn't let anger or discontent overpower his desire for the throne, which he planned to assume once the current Emperor and Prognie were gone. But for now, he knew he had to work with Prognie to see the plan work.
"I was overseeing the preparations for the annual conference for the Prophets on Kroprulu when I was in need to speak with Shadow about something." He knew not telling Prognie what the conversation was about might irritate him, but that was the idea - keep him off balance. "He informed me he had been taken to the Winter Palace to have a private meeting with his Shadow Protector. And yes, before you ask, I found out what they were talking about." Praxeum lowered his gaze somewhat, knowing that he was know spying on his dear friend and his mentor whom he saw as a father-figure. He knew these attachments were making him weak, but emotions fueled a Sith, right?
His mind was in a constant battle - all sides driving towards what they saw as right, but none agreeing with another. "They were merely speaking about security regulations of the up-coming economic discussion with Courscant. He asked if I wished to eat with the two of them, though...Keeper spent his time in the halls patrolling."
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
Rubbing his fingers against his chin he appeared to be thinking, really Prognie knew what he wanted and his true goal was to make Shadow suspect treachery was everywhere. It made it easier for him to goad Shadow into things, because the Emperor expected things and if Prognie played it all just right the Emperor would be preparing for all the wrong things. It was easier to surprise someone who was ready for one thing and completely throw them off guard than to surprise them and allow them to plan for it then. Shadow was conniving, if Prognie had appreciated friends he suspected the Emperor and himself would have been comrades. But like all sith, Prognie desired the greatest power and some times it didn't always come from the force.
"Keep an eye on the Shadow Protector, but also let things slip. I want them to be ready for something, what they'll be ready you leave up to me." Reaching into his robe he pulled out a small disc. Sliding it halfway across Praxeum's desk he waited for him to grab it.
"In this chip lies some information regarding rebellious groups, they are in no way associated with us but the chip makes it seem like there is. Read its contents and be ready, the Inquisitor's network will begin preparing to find these groups and shut them off but I want the Emperor to think there's a larger picture: the wrong picture."
Supreme Prophet Praxeum
"Very well." Praxeum said, setting the disc back on the desk, appearing uninterested. The Dark Lord waved his hand to bring his hood over his head once again. "I must go meet someone." Praxeum said as a dismissal to the Grand Inquisitor. When Prognie remained where he was, Praxeum continued with a snarl, "Someone I actually consider important. I assume you know your way out." Praxeum said, making sure he watched Prognie walk out the door and down the hall before he used the Force to shut his door.
Then he reached out his senses, wondering where the High Prophet was - hoping not to have to have another awkward conversation with him where he has to steer his suspicions on Prognie. He breathed a sigh of relief when he sensed the High Prophet in a vessel outside of Kuat, he assumed about to make the jump to Naboo. Then he made sure to keep track of Prognie through the Force even after he left the Church Chapter. With a sigh, Praxeum walked into his own speeder and said "To the Palace."
Grand Inquisitor Prognie
After his meeting with the Prophet Prognie had indeed left the Church but not before making a few changes. He would keep a closer eye on the Church now that his trust in Praxeum was dwindling, if it meant betraying the agreements between the orders so be it, it wouldn't bother him much as Emperor.
His escort stood outside the Church, a loyal man who if Prognie didn't watch him well, could betray him at any turn. He liked those games, he liked it when people played them with him. With only a simple nod the man understood Prognie was ready to leave, showing him to the speeder the two got in and the driver sped off.
"The Church is full of surprises, I don't like any surprises that weren't planned by myself." Prognie said coldly.
"Under Praxeum it seems they have turned a new leaf, going in new directions. There aren't rumors like there were back in the days when the Emperor was one within their ranks." the escort's response was true, the Church under all of Praxeum's predecessors had been a place of power and secrets. Now it was simply a Church, a place for visions of failures.
"I still don't trust what could happen there, if any of the organizations has learned to keep its secrets safest it's the Church. While Praxeum is no Shadow, he's learning and adapting from me. I'm going to curve his perception a bit more."
"How will you do that" the man's voice was inquisitive.
"You leave that to me," Prognie's smile widened. Dismantling an Empire was fun, he treated it like a sport.
