Struggle. Taste of power

— Imperial Minister Donghor to see you.

— Send her in.

Almost immediately, Donghr walked in. They had become true friends as of late. Now they had no points of contact where they had to share loot or budgets, and after Bluh had helped him with the transportation of several units, and Donghr had returned the favor by helping him restore the Broz's personal mansion and his far-flung security circle, their relationship had become quite mutually beneficial.

The Minister only nodded, went to the table, sat down beside it and sipped from the glass of whisky that was immediately handed to him. His gaze relaxed a little:

— Buddy, times have gone fucked…..

Bluh, who was already a little tipsy, just relaxed more in his chair and played with his whiskey glass:

— No, it's not. You know… When I heard something like this before, my first thought was that the Maquis had blown something up or killed someone somewhere, but now….

— And now the Inquisition and the CCC are fighting like wolves… Have you been informed about the incident in the Corsa sector?

— No. What else is there?

— Metropolitan Samokh paid a visit. In person. With a storm of unspoken resources. And what do you think?

— Oh… Did he execute someone?

— Not someone, but the head of the CID for this sector. For heresy. Burned alive in the reception hall.

Bluh gulped down the glass, which he was still rubbing from side to side. The liquid poured in like fire and immediately vaporized his inner anxiety:

— And here I was thinking it was SCK that had no edges….

— They both have no edges. I've just been informed that the SCIU have taken one of the priests in the center on suspicion of treason. It's unclear what they'll charge him with next, but they won't give him back so easily. They've charged him. If there's no evidence, they'll create it themselves. They've never had a problem with that…

— And what of this Metropolitan? Heading for Anahr now?

— Everyone thought that's where he was going. To blame him, to intimidate him. Maybe make them punitive penance trips to church once a week for a year. As they like it there… Of course, the chances of that were not great, but still the Metropolitan went there….

— What did they do to her older brother that they needed her so badly? — Bluh poured them another round.

Donghr looked inside the glass: this liquid must have cleared his mind. Just a few minutes ago, he hadn't known what to do or how to react to everything, but now he was completely calm.

But he didn't have any more thoughts:

— I don't know, my friend… Maybe it's not about her, but about the fact that no plague can be punished in the entire Donetsk-Makeyevka group except for the JCC. There are almost no my soldiers there, and what kind of a fool would touch them now, when the Maquis are attacking so much… Well, if there is no one except for SCK, then we have to use the most important thing there.

Maybe it's all just a coincidence…

— I'd agree… But it's too hard a coincidence. They've certainly thought about the consequences. What's in it for them if they succeed? I'm guessing they've got a lot more going on than just taking down SCK…

The Minister shook his head only slightly affirmatively. And, really, in the event of a complete victory over the SCK, what would be left for the Sacred Sejm but to take power into its own hands. All the power in the Empire. After all, it was founded for the benefit of the Black Stone and its forces… But who knows now what this boulder gives to all the plagues?

— Have you ever thought about it? — Bluh asked. — What does the Black Stone give us now? 150 years ago, it opened a portal to us and shut down all human electronics. Before that, according to the records, we lived like we did for several thousand years. No portals or anything… Let's say he waited until humans were fighting each other to open the way for us… But what's he doing for us now? Like when we didn't even get to Earth yet?

— You know, I have very little information… All these chronicles are kept by priests. There may be some data in the central archives. But that central archive is only 100 years old. What it can store there… I do not know… As for me, all this is nonsense, and these priests are only noodling on our ears with their stone. I personally haven't seen any miracles from it… About the portal… You know, it was so long ago that you can't even tell if it really happened… The story itself is vague. So he opened the portal, we all came here, and who was left behind? No one? Or did only a few of us move here for fun? It's such a lot of questions, and none of them has a normal answer… Only the priests keep repeating the same thing about sanctity and customs. Even the Inquisition has come to what… It is, you know, more serious than any portals, when at one moment brothers with sacred dignity come and melt your fire hotter… As for me, I'd rather let the SCK tighten the screws than these. At least you can negotiate with them. But the churchmen are sick in the head… You should stay away from them, but you can't. They'll get in everywhere and smell their heresy… No, the SCK, of course, are not cowardly either. They can fabricate cases in a heartbeat. But at least they know their limits. And the Inquisition are fanatics with a bad temper. They'll burn anyone… That's what we saw….

— Dhoni, the CCC gives people power… They invented these chiwis quietly at first. And once they were made, no one dared to stop them. And now they've given them the power to govern…

— Admit it, you wouldn't be saying that if that grouping wasn't in your column.

— Maybe. Maybe… But that doesn't change the fact that there's already an entire faction in the hands of a man. The Mountain. Have you heard anything about him?

— Only that he's an SCC mutt. That's pretty clear to everyone.

— Yeah… Everybody understands… But you know what… I don't like it… I don't like it… He's been running it for too long. It's dangerous. Having the same person running the place for so long.

And growing.

— Is he bothering you? As long as he serves well. And satisfies the secret police…

— This is my faction! — pounded on the table Bluh. — My column! And they're doing what they want… No, Doni… I don't want to put up with this….

— It's so late already, buddy… Under the roof of the CCC he…..

— Well, that's how you say it, Doni, how you say it… How you say it….

Prefect

Gora sat and reread the innermost letter that had come to him two weeks ago. The letter, in which some Church minister had warned him against the future appearance of Samoh, first in his neighboring sector and then in his personal stronghold. To his credit, the letter had come in good time. And although some preparations had already been made, the most important thing — to form a defensive line on the staircases of the Korsa sector leading from the surface to the mine itself — was done only after the letter, and just a day before the Inquisitor's appearance.

As expected, first they tried the freight elevator, which was blown up by the Mountain Man along with himself. And then they tried to pass through the staircase, but the cut-off lights and tear gas did their job — the plagues didn't go any further, and in the end the only way to leave the sector was also by surface. If they had not made these preparations, it is quite possible that this inquisitor would already be in the Diza sector and would have done what he wanted here. It would have been a surprise to the CCC to see him emerge from the mine, and would have probably put an end to any further plans for Ananhr herself.

It's worth noting that even now, Anandhr's chances are not good at all. It's not even clear why she hasn't personally left the place yet. She's backed up by a personal storm of SCK guards and some chiwi units on the outer perimeter of the sector. It's enough to counter the Maquis, but the Inquisition operates legally, so it's not appropriate to use it against her, as the case in the Korsa sector showed.

Too little information. Gora once again thought that for a long time his weakest point was the lack of necessary information for analysis. And often he had to make bets almost blindly and only on the assumption that other options looked even worse…And yet some conclusions were obvious to him.

One. Expanding his influence will certainly not please those who have ceded theirs. That is, the former plague administration. The main trump card here was the SCK, which created this system and, obviously, needed it for some time.

Second. Maki. If even they haven't learned about the increase in coal production and transportation yet, things will change when they do. No matter what they think of the miners, the fact that the recent changes are making the plague empire richer is clearly not going to make them happy. And those slogans about the welfare of the people, which they have been proclaiming for the last hundred years, will be forgotten and remade in a flash. And at the head of their new idea they will put the war against collabrationism, as they will certainly call it. That is why it was so important to get them away from the Deese sector as soon as possible.

Three. Inquisition. If they are not interfered with, at first they will not have any claims to self-government. But in the event of the defeat of the BCC, soon enough, everything will really go back to the old version of governance, which was so warned about by the very minister of the church in the letter.

Fourth. Heavey. There are a lot of questions here, especially since there was even less information about them. It's absolutely certain that they're somehow connected to the SCK, since they were here so quickly. But it's obviously not the same kind of connection as he has with the CCC. They clearly have a lot more leeway. And even more personal vendetta against the Maquis. It's even surprising that the Maquis have never mentioned them, and it seems as if they're covering up the fact of their existence… It's hard to say what the prospects are, but at this point they're powerful allies, and it's not worth it to interfere with their use of underground communication routes, especially since it would really help them in eliminating the Maquis in this area… Let the Maquis operate somewhere else. After all, they should have enough targets. At least the column's headquarters in Rostov-on-Don… The sector's karak was once removed, and they could also try to remove the column's broz….

There was a knock at the door. It was Tikhomirov. Lately he had been looking very tense and with a very concentrated look. It was evident that he was very much enjoying what he was doing, and that his appetite was apparently growing no less than that of the prefect himself.

— Mr. Prefect. It's urgent.

— Come on in. Report. — Gora was very pleased with his work, and sometimes even thought about how he had once successfully chosen such a man for his personal service.

— The first piece of news doesn't smell good. Our informant from Unit 14… — Having first recruited the plague, Tikhomirov had taken to the business of recruitment with real professionalism, and was now doing his best to infiltrate his men everywhere. Even before the transfer of the six mines to the prefect's jurisdiction, Tikhomirov's trusted men were already there, and in addition, there were such men in several Maquis units, including his most important, Unit 14. — The informant reports that Ranierov was released. He was held for two days and then released. In view of the fact that they found the real traitor. Grisha Listov.

Gora remembered the name perfectly well, and how he deliberately did not look at it, checking the lists of those who had escaped and comparing them with those who had stayed at the mine. Surrendering didn't suit him for two reasons: first, he was from the same soma as Maria, and if they found her, then with one traitor already in the same soma, they could obviously mistake her for a traitor as well. Of course, the chances that she was still alive and that she would come to them were slim, but even the slightest chance of that did not satisfy Horus. And secondly, it was not at all favorable to the prefect that the real informant in Squad 14 would stop snitching right now, when he could have such complications with the Maquis. Still, he didn't need a strong Squad 14 right now, and it was not a good idea to help him. The outcome was disappointing: somehow the Maquis had found out about the real traitor themselves, and knowingly or unknowingly denouncing an innocent man would obviously tarnish Gora's reputation. On the other hand, time had been gained, and the Maquis were no longer near Deez's sector, and that was the tactical objective.

However, the prefect was very unhappy. With himself. It was not the time to win tactical challenges when there were strategic ones. And strategically, the Maquis would only get unnecessary suspicions, if they hadn't already. And in the short term, there are no mechanisms to fix it.

— Any more bad news? — The prefect asked.

— The Inquisitors, including their battle drills, left the sector by surface. There's no definitive data on which way they went… Analysis of the railroad tracks indicates that the movement was back towards the Krito sector, but I wouldn't rely on that. There's a detour, and it's likely we'll see them somewhere near us soon….

— It is logical to think so… If I were them, I would not stop halfway, and even with such successes… And what interests me most of all is another point — they must be sure that the BCC will not forgive them… So what are they trying to achieve?

— I have no doubt, Mr. Prefect, that their plans are more than ambitious. And they are not made from nothing… Remember that plague I recruited?

— Shinhra.

— Yes, Shinhra… I did promise him protection from the Inquisition. Protection from everyone, especially the BCC. And it worked… How afraid of the Inquisition are they that they're willing to snitch on the CCC… I think that's just the tip of the iceberg. The Inquisition is far more dangerous than the CCC or the Imperial Army. The plagues themselves are afraid of it. And I think we have to be especially careful with them… — You're right. You're right.

— One last piece of news, Mr. Prefect.

Gora looked more closely into his eyes, and saw something unexpected in them. Apparently, this news Tikhomirov did not really want to give out, but assumed that it was obligatory.

— Go ahead.

— Mr. Prefect… Looks like we didn't just let the man who was going to kill you pass….

Such things can't be surprising when you're gaining power, and at such a rate. He'd thought of it himself, which was why he'd had a personal guard right out front and under the control of the person he trusted most six months ago. It's even natural, because there will be plenty of applicants for your place, especially secretive ones. But when it comes down to it, it's not what you'd expect.

— Speak more…

— He said he was coming from the Maquis… That immediately aroused suspicion. They rarely send anyone, usually just notes. But this one just showed up. Somehow he got past the hivy checkpoints, then up the stairs. They stopped him at the bottom of the stairs. He said, "I'm here to see the Mountain." He was examined, of course, and they reported him to me. And while I was getting there, there was an explosion. Those who were standing farther away said they found something there, they started asking questions, and then he clicked something… I have no doubt why he was coming here. That this "case" was definitely personal… But there's no indication of whose he really was.

— So you've decided it's not from the Maquis?

— It's possible. There's also this information that they've released Ranierov… But it doesn't seem like a good time. It doesn't add up… I wouldn't do that if I were them, even if I wanted to… There are many fugitives among their contingent, including those from our mines. Not many relatives left, but plenty of friends and acquaintances. Who knows what they think, but most of them want us as friends, not enemies. And making assassination attempts like this… And what will they say to their own people that the plague did it? Who would believe such a thing… In short, logical in a way, but not in time. It's not like them. Of course, there are guys of ramming type, but those who are smarter should be more cunning… They would rather shit us with something, so that the plagues really lynched us themselves… And to kill. To kill is, rather, to kill the plague administration… But their chief is Zubkov now. They say he's as cunning as a fox. He doesn't act directly… In short, nothing points to the Maquis.

Gora shook his head affirmatively. He was thinking exactly the same thing. That it could have happened, but it wasn't the time for it yet. And that if they wanted to hurt him, they would destroy the infrastructure, not him. Especially since, truth be told, someone else from the miners could nominally replace him, and it wouldn't make any difference. For them.

And if it's not the Maquis, it's the chiwi. There's not much else. And I wonder what's going on inside the Hivis that's gotten in their way. Cobra's unit transit agreement is very favorable right now. Without the Mountain, that agreement is gone. So maybe someone wanted to interfere not with him, but with Cobra.

Metropolitan

The Korsa sector had a very convenient location in the Donetsk-Makeyevka grouping. It had access to four different sectors at once, and was second only to Diza in terms of labor productivity. Guzokh was not too surprised that his fellow metropolitan had chosen this particular sector for his visit before the main strike. And that the main strike was aimed at Ananhr was no longer in doubt, since her older brother is one of the members of the Empire's Central Committee. The Church is aiming for supremacy in the Empire….

Guzokh was now in the reception hall, the one where the local chief of the SCK, Bazankhra, had been burned alive for heresy just yesterday. The hall was enormous. Marble in white, coral, green and chestnut. Someone had clearly had fun exercising their design skills in this place. Tall columns on either side of the aisle and a large pedestal with a sculpture of the founder of the SCK. This piece was a bit out of place with its surroundings, neither in color nor in manner. If everything around was bright and refined enough, the sculpture was gray and bulky. It should have been made twice as big or depicted an SSchekist sitting in an armchair instead of standing with a gun in his hand. The columns around him seemed to be pressing on him, and it seemed that he was too weak for all this.

Well, that makes sense. Someone else was there before. And they brought him in at the moment when a few months ago they received six more sectors in addition to Diza.

— We are honored by your arrival. — The former deputy and now chief of the CPS in Korsa sector, Divinhr, proclaimed.

— And to my predecessor, did you say the same? — There were only two novices behind Guzoch's back, and though they were quite stout and very manly looking, they were not at all intimidating in the way that the punitive drill of the Inquisition had recently been.

— Yeah, we had a little bit of that last time.

Guzoh stopped and turned around. It was a bit surprising. How could an SSchekist say such a thing so easily. But, on the other hand, there was no point in humoring him now. He wouldn't make the same mistakes as his former chief, especially about things that the church wouldn't like. After all, the church doesn't like the silent ones like SCK, it likes those who speak in moderation. It is the quintessence of the clerical sphere of life to see the measure of permissible and forbidden things, because, in fact, everything around us is both permissible and forbidden. The only important thing is how to approach it. The Church has been proving for thousands of years that it knows how to do this better than anyone else, and no one has ever been able to prove otherwise.

— There is no point in denying the obvious. — Whoever was burned here for heresy certainly deserved to be punished. But it was too harsh. And then his mind went blank….

"I wonder what side he's even playing for," thought the Metropolitan. After all, he was now admitting those things that could be argued with. Then still accuse Samokh of it, and then strike back quite legally at the Inquisition itself. The same punitive battalion, for example. Of course, Divinhra isn't a high-flying bird, but he's no stranger to career advancement, especially since he's grabbed his new position. So, what's his agenda? Is it to take the blow away from himself once again, to realize that he has nothing to lose, or to get something more than just a few more quiet days?

The Metropolitan looked at the ashes. A black, staining mass, which with every new breeze of wind only spreads to more and more spaces. It was original that no one had thought to clean it up until now. Maybe this way they comfort themselves with the thought that since it is still fresh, it won't happen again any time soon? A bit unconventional behavior for a special service, whose adherents mostly boast of their luxury and unlimited influence, the kind that no one else has….

Guzoh began to speak somewhat quieter:

— My son, tell me, what's on your mind? Your associates are very reluctant to talk to a churchman. It is all pretense and flattery without action… And you confess to me that your chief was really wrong.

— Don't you recognize me, Your Eminence?

The Metropolitan looked at him even more closely, then began to recognize facial features, then a look. But nothing. Nothing familiar or similar to anything he had seen before.

Escheckist noticed that his interlocutor was slow to answer because he couldn't find that answer, so he said himself:

— You don't remember my name because I never told you my name before. And my appearance, because I was too young… But that does not take away from the fact that twenty-two years ago I was your novice… You said to me, "My son, you are firm in the faith, but I do not see how you can confirm others in the faith as a priest.

Guzokh remembered him instantly. Indeed, back then he had been the rector of a church parish with an orphanage for homeless children. The children themselves, of course, were difficult, and only nuggets like Divinhir could enter the seminary and become priests. The only thing required to enter the seminary was a recommendation from the priest superior of the orphanage. Which for Divinhra, Guzoh had not given at that time, having said that phrase. He was really sure that Divinhir was firm in his faith, already knew the ways of Jah at the priestly level, and fit all the criteria, especially considering the available space in the seminary that the orphanage was supposed to have at that time. But the gift of convincing others in his faith, using a full understanding of the power of the Black Stone for all chums, not for one particular one — this favorite novice did not have. And Guzokh, by virtue of his fundamental conservative principles, could not allow himself to become a priest of such a plague… Fate had decreed that in its place he became an eschekist.

— Ah… It is you, my son… What a pleasant meeting. — Guzoh smiled. In a way, he was pleased that the once homeless child had achieved something in his life.

— Yes, I understood what you said about me not being able to strengthen others in the faith by being a priest. It really would be inappropriate… So I decided to defend the faith as best I could. Interesting twist. Up to this point, all the information that Guzokh had about the burning of Bazankhra included just a few simple points. One, the chief of the SCK had ordered the chapel to be equipped on the fly without the sanction of the holy Church, which was an attempt by an unordained chum on the holy sacrament. Second, the chapel turned out to be equipped, in fact, in a just-abandoned lagoon, which was a sacrilege. And, third, intimidation and threats to the

Metropolitan Priest himself by an official of the Empire, which was the highest degree of apostasy, not counting sorcery. Guzokh was more than sure that Samokh had simply brought the SSchekist to the last point, and the second was a coincidence. But now it didn't seem to be a coincidence in the choice of a place for the chapel, because the one who was responsible for the choice was obviously the one who, among all the S.S.C. men here, and maybe not only here, could choose the ideal place, not to mention not to choose the inadmissible one. Divinhr knew all the peculiarities of religious rituals too well.

So there was more to Samoh's visit than that. He didn't rely on intuition and improvisation alone. And he's not as simple and battering ram as he seems. Looks like a worthy student of his teacher…

— Divinhr, my son. — Putting his hand on the shoulder of the SR, the Metropolitan said. — You are seriously exposing yourself to danger… You must realize that you also have your own superiors…..

— I made my choice a long time ago, Your Eminence. — And I have never once regretted it… And the fact that I will have to wear worldly clothes for the rest of my days, I have long since accepted that….

— Realize, my son, that if anything wrong happens… And even I can't help you…..

— With all due respect to you, Your Eminence. — Divinhra's gaze changed and became somewhat menacing. — I only said all that to make you realize that it is you who should be careful, not me.

One didn't even have to go on. He was obviously in direct communication with Samoh, and maybe even with Nevroh. They'd obviously promised him full protection for service, information, or whatever. In a way it was even a surprise — it turns out not only the SCK has its plagues among the priests, but the Church has its plagues among the SCK, and in a way that is not even rumored.

It was not for nothing that he had once shuddered at the idea of Nevroch becoming patriarch. He was too powerful and ambitious. Too much on his own mind, no matter what others said or thought. He wanted too much even for the head of the Church. And the result was this: the Inquisition has its punitive units, so that a week of repentance is not even necessary. Instead of bending the plagues to the faith with subsequent forgiveness — immediate burning. And the employees of the SCK in reality are themselves failed priests. Is that what the Jah faith was aiming for when we affirmed the faith of the Black Stone?

And now he, the metropolitan, who all his life was faithful to the holy rules, fulfilled them and carried them everywhere in the world. Now he's being warned not to poke his nose into other people's business… Other people's business. This word alone means what it means… The affairs of faith can be called "alien" for the metropolitan…..

He used to think he'd just be removed if anything happened. Given some non-serious position away from the Center to keep him out of the way. Now. Everything looked completely different… Now, at best, he would be killed quietly and blamed on some personal score or accident. And at worst… Neuroch and Samokh's imagination is not lacking. And they have enough tools… They can trade him in the war with SCK, pretending to be a valuable figure, but in fact just getting rid of the ballast. They can also leak "compromising" materials to the SCK through their own chums, and he will be accused of high treason. And maybe something else….

And how well I remember that look in Samoh's eyes when he said that he would find "the heresy that he had overlooked" and "that it was something to think hard about." Yeah. It really is something to think about. And to take a few more steps, not to moderate the fervor of the Inquisition, but to protect oneself from the Inquisition.

Chief SCK