No One Expects...[Imperium Inquisitors]

[Sinistra]

The ecumenopolis of Gerrenthum was thrumming with activity lately with the birth of the Imperium right in their very midst. The establishment of an Imperial capital on the planet had been welcomed as some vacant locations and headquarters had been repurposed for the Imperium. Away from the hustle and bustle of the seat of military power, in a tower of glass and light were housed the shadows of the Imperium, the ones who would serve in secret.

The Inquisitorius was a necessary evil, one that Director of Imperial Intelligence understood all too well. Decimus and Joran could argue their case until the stars burned out one by one. She knew that the regimented efficiency of the Empire would draw force users to them. The Supreme Commander and the Grand Moff could afford to believe that they would build an empire of military might. However, when the greatest threats to your expansion happen to be force users, you could not turn a blind eye to those threats forever.

The force was simply another weapon in the arsenal but to one untrained and uninformed of the potentials of it, it would lay dormant and unused. She could also understand their hesitancy when those not gifted were often bullied or dismissed by the gifted simply because touching a mystical energy happened to be present at birth for them. Decimus and Joran were soldiers and soldiers believed in things they could see and touch.

Regardless, Director Corsai quietly made arrangements to form the Inquisitorius, naming a particularly zealous woman named Anaris to the position of Grand Inquisitor.

It was Anaris that took the directive given to her by Madame Corsai and ran with it. Facilities were obtained, and word spread. Soon, it bore fruit.

The sun was just setting over the horizon, the sky streaked in ribbons of orange, crimson and indigo as speeders moved in and out of the towers of the skyline. The room was a vast meeting room, a waist high, round holoprojection console in the center. There was plenty of floor space to pack a few dozen people in, but there would not be that many for this meeting.

They were still young. That would change soon.

Grand Inquisitor Anaris stood in the room, watching a star map flicker above her head. She wore a black flowing headdress that covered her hair and neck, her chalk white face deeply wrinkled by time. Her red eyes reflected the blue projection, giving them a purple appearance for a moment, until her attention was drawn elsewhere. The rest of her attire was a collection of black armor plates, and a wide flowing skirt, her skin covered by the outfit.

She looked to the door, expecting company.

[member="Sumiko Tanaka"] [member="Ishmael Verd"] [member="Silas Ren"] [member="Milo Ren"]

 

[Darth Metus]

The Remnants of an old Empire once kicked with life. They thrived in the unknown regions for quite some time, amassing strength and support from the native worlds. It was thought that they would become a major player in the territorial wars that waged across the Galaxy. It was thought that they would bring stability, growth, and peace to countless systems. Ishmael Verd once stood alongside this remnant. He cast his lot in, hoping to achieve some semblance of that glorious vision.

Yet, the Remnant faltered. The vision was no more. Ishmael became a Knight without a cause to champion.

He could have simply become a mercenary, as was the ways dictated by his sire's people. He could have spent months on Mandalore, adding a new voice to the growing Clan debates. But instead, he listened. He waited. The dream of the Empire was sure to live again, championed by another...and sure enough, it was. When word reached Ishmael's ears, delighted was an understatement. The former Imperial Knight wasted no time in making contact with the new regime and set out to meet them.

He was greeted by some new faces, some old...and a different way of doing things. The Imperial Knights were absent from this regime, and in their place was an order founded upon secrecy. To best serve the dream he had come to love, Ishmael was to adopt the mantle Inquisitor. He was...to keep his title a secret...and "officially" was here on business pertaining to Clan Verd.

First to arrive, Ishmael entered the meeting room and took a glance about. His attire was not the grand, Imperial Knight Armor of old, but rather civilian clothes. The young clone strode confidently towards the center projection and came to a halt before the Grand Inquisitor himself. A respectful inclination of his head was given, followed by a brief introduction.

"Ishmael Verd, at your service."

 

[Figure In White]

The halls here were no different from the ones that he had left. His apprentice had gone uncared for. Silas had found little substance in his efforts to do what his Master could not while he'd been with the First Order. The goal was there and a sensible one, but the fanatical nature was too much for him. He needed order with an iron fist, not order with mass explosive potential. And that was exactly why he'd left them when he heard of this new Imperium.

Now he was recruited into the ranks of their Inquisitors. Most curious. He kept his signature diminished to mid-rank strength such that he did not appear to be overly powerful, and could blend in with the others without drawing too much attention. Most of all, he did not want the Grand Inquisitor to think that he wanted her position. He did not.

So it was that the Hapan man walked into the room, dressed as he had been when training with his Master, and moved through the room, following after the one named Verd. He did not know this man, but could sense that he was capable. What he was capable of remained to be seen, but Silas would not underestimate even the least of their members. It was true what they said: even a mouse could fell and elephant if he knew how to strike.

He approached the Grand Inquisitor and bowed.

"I am Silas Ren," he said, "of the Knights of Ren. It is a pleasure to be here to serve."

That said, he would step back and maneuver for a seat near the front.

[member="Ishmael Verd"] | [member="Kira Corsai"]

 

[Sinistra]

Anaris grinned, yellow teeth against the pale, sallow skin of her face as the former Imperial Knight greeted her. It was true, there was no Emperor here to safeguard, but there were other things that could use his talents. For the time being they would be a secretive order, but that would not always be the case. Eventually, they would be the terror of the Imperium, the nightmare that their enemies would fear coming. All in good time.

"Greetings, Mr. Verd. I trust we can come to a satisfactory arrangement for your involvement here. I would not put your knighthood on a shelf just yet."

Her voice was strange, creaking and breaking with a hiss on the ends of her words. Anaris seemed extraordinarily informed on the attendees who would be joining them. It would seem that Madame Corsai had passed along her notes to the Grand Inquisitor.

Her attention fell upon Silas as he introduced himself to her, a harsh look in her red eyes as he bowed to her.

"You greet the dawn of a new Imperium and your inclusion into a group that is tasked with unflinching loyalty by openly announcing your allegiance to another. Am I supposed to be impressed?"

Anaris' devotion to the Imperium was absolute and she would expect nothing less from those who were to be it's quiet enforcers in the shadows.

[member="Silas Ren"] [member="Ishmael Verd"]

 

[Figure In White]

"It is a means to an end, Director," Silas answered as he sat in his seat and looked at her. "No different than were I a Darth, and I suspect there will be a few of them at some point in time."

Sitting back, he watched her coolly, unfazed by the questioning. She would have to try harder to bother him. In truth, he knew why he was there, and it wasn't really to serve the Imperium, but to serve the ideals that the Imperium was founded upon. He felt no loyalty towards these people unless they expressed loyalty to the ideals. If they did that, he would be loyal to them. If they slipped, they would be nothing to him.

If she wanted unrequitted obedience she would have it, but he would not falter in his upholding the ideals of the Imperium, not even if she commanded it. He was a Hapan, but more importantly, he was an outcast Hapan of a society that looked down upon his gender and she was a woman. He would not cow tow himself to her just because she demanded it. He would respect her, nothing more.

"You'll find my loyalty not in question as long as we serve the Imperium."

[member="Kira Corsai"]

 

[Sinistra]

Anaris turned to see if there was someone behind her, but the decrepitly old looking woman saw only empty space. She shrugged and turned back to Silas, her face calm amid a mass of wrinkles.

"It's Grand Inquisitor Anaris, of the Inquisitorius. I do not know what Director you are referencing but there you have it. Perhaps you are confused about what the Inquisitorius is. We have inquisitors. There are no Sith here. No Darths to be found. No Rens. If you require, there are history books that will catch you up on what the Inquisitorius is. However, for acceptance to the Inquisitorius, all of you will be required to demonstrate your skill and reliability."

She walked forward from where she stood, keying up an image of the planet Sullust.

"We have it on reliable intel that the Galactic Alliance is headquartered here. As of late, they have been putting in a lot of time and effort into shoring up the trade routes. We have managed to get our hands on a wayward member or two of the Alliance. The interrogations are over. The Imperium has no further need of these two. However, they will function perfectly as your tests."

A pair of faces was shown on the holoprojector.

"You will convince these Jedi to embrace the darkside and join the Inquisitorius. Should you fail, you will kill them to ensure the Imperium remains a secret. Questions?"

Anaris waited, the silence stretching out in the room.

[member="Silas Ren"] [member="Ishmael Verd"]

 

[Darth Metus]

Now there was one hell of an entrance examination.

The former Imperial Knight held bearing whilst the Grand Inquisitor doled out the first assignment...And quite frankly, it clashed with the doctrine that had been once fed down Ishmael's throat. The Knights were a militant order, yes. They were unafraid to cut down enemies in the name of the Empire. However, they were neutral...not quite Light, but Damn sure not Dark. But...Their time had come and gone. Their chance to bring order to a trembling cosmos had concluded.

Ishmael believed in the vision of the Empire: one of Order and Stability. Adherence to neutrality in the Force would simply have to be set aside; especially since he was to stand amongst the Inquisitors. This was his challenge, and he would undertake it. After all, he was born from Darkness. Ishmael locked eyes with the woman in command before placing the side of a fist upon his chest. "Questions, I have none. It shall be done, Grand Inquisitor." he said, rather firmly.

 

[Figure In White]

Silas said nothing in response to the woman. He didn't know her, and though he'd introduced himself, she didn't know him. All she knew was his name, and she didn't know anything about him. That said, he didn't trust her as much as she didn't trust him. That was the nature of this. Though she was his superior, and he would honor that, he would not give her trust, or even respect, until she earned it. For all he knew, she was just a bureaucrat appointed to the position.

So he said nothing as he listened to her layout their initial mission. Converting Jedi. There were much easier things to do, he knew, but Silas wasn't truly concerned. The surest way to get a Jedi to fall was to find his weakness, the one thing he valued greatly. Find that, and any Jedi could be broken. If not, he'd have no problem killing them. Service to the Imperium was the only honorable path this galaxy had to offer.

"No questions," he said when they were called for.

[member="Ishmael Verd"] | [member="Kira Corsai"]

 

[Ula Kaddo]

Ula wasn't feeling very good. The interrogations had beaten her up pretty good. There was a cut on her bottom lip, and she had deep circles under her eyes from where she had not slept for days. She and Jarrah had been sitting in the small dark room for force knows how long. The pair of padawans had been out by themselves on a short run, checking out a nearby planet, and Ula was teaching Jarrah how to fly. So far, this was not going well.

She had no idea who they had fallen afoul of, but they ran into what looked like training maneuvers. Before they could beat it back out of the system, they were captured and questioned. According to Jarrah, there had to be rules or laws about holding people or torture, but these people didn't seem to know anything about that.

Ula reached over and touched the arm of the Togruta.

"Jar, you awake? I think I hear something."

[member="Silas Fox"] [member="Ishmael Verd"]

 

[Darth Metus]

The interrogations had managed to not dull the hearing of the Jedi Padawan, for she indeed heard something coming. Echoes. Long, pronounced thumps of leather meeting cold pavement. Each louder than the previous. Someone was coming...someone who had a need to prove himself worthy of the Inquisitorius. It was unfortunate, really, that things had to play out this way; for Ravager once held no animosity for Jedi. As an Imperial Knight, he saw their repeated defeats as shameful, but outside of that he didn't really give a hoot about their Order.

But they were like cousins, the Jedi and the Knights. Both on a similar team.

Alas, those days were done and Ishmael was adding the final nail to said coffin. With this interrogation, he would forevermore shrug off his past and adopt a new future within the Imperium. It did not take long for him to make his way down the dimly-lit corridor, only to blink in surprise when he was met with blinding light. The Interrogation Room was lit. Ridiculously well lit. This was to rob the "suspects" of any hope of slumber, he came to realize.

Smart. Brutal, but smart. he thought.

Upon entering the room, Ishmael was greeted with the sight of the aforementioned Jedi. And, as he was the first to arrive, he got the first pick at who he was to convert to the Inquisitorius. Before him were two choices: a Togruta that seemed unconscious and a woman who was shaking his arm. Ishmael went with the latter.

"You there. Girl. Tell me your name." he said.

Bold strides bore him directly to her and he lowered himself to a knee so that he might look her straight in the eye. This was, admittedly, new territory for Ishmael...but he had suffered enough at the hands of Emperor Krag to have a general idea at how to properly interrogate.

[member="Ula Kaddo"], [member="Silas Fox"], [member="Kira Corsai"]