Chapter 12

Dusty and Suzan reached the double doors that lead to the council chambers. They had passed a few offices that the council members and others made their own. Now they were at their destination.

There was a single desk outside the council chambers, and at it sat a very striking and attractive red haired woman. She looked to conceivably be in her mid-thirties, but with mages that didn't mean anything. She was dressed in similar robes as the guard out front with the same sash over her shoulders. It made it hard to judge her figure.

Walking up to nice wood inlayed desk the woman was seated at, Dusty stopped and waited for the woman to look up from the papers she was reading. She had a pen in one hand and was bent over working on something. Dusty refrained from trying to read what it was because the papers looked official.

Finally the woman finished whatever was on the first sheet and started to look up.

"May I help ... oh it's you Dusty! How very nice to see you again," started the woman in a bored tone that switched to a bright one as she fixed Dusty with a toothy smile once she realized who it was at her desk. She even batted her eyes at him a few times for good measure.

"Hey Macy, I need to talk to them," said Dusty as he hooked a thumb and tossed it over his left shoulder in the direction of the double doors.

"Dusty, I'm sure you know that they don't like to be disturbed when they are discussing things. Whenever you decide to contact them in the middle of a session I hear about it for weeks and then I have to type up the meeting notes full of nothing but complaints at the end," said Macy as she giggle at him.

Suzan stood by and tried to not be irritated by this woman making a play for her husband. She looked to old to be doing the girlish giggling thing. Did she always do this every time he came here Suzan wondered?

Suzan remembered their earlier conversation about how desperate Dusty was to be with her because of how long he would out live her. She knew she had nothing to fear, but it still grated on her to watch that woman flirt with her husband.

"Macy, this is my beautiful wife Suzan. She came with me on this trip," said Dusty almost as if he read Suzan's mind, and he stepped to the side and reached for her hand as he shallowly bowed in Suzan's direction.

Suzan was startled by his action, but she then smiled as she looked at Macy.

Macy seemed to be looking Suzan over in a way that only another woman would when sizing up her competition.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you. I have to say, you're very attractive aren't you?" said Macy matter of factly as she just lightly nodded in Suzan's direction.

Suzan smiled tightly at her and Macy then turned back slightly, as if she was only looking at Dusty before she spoke again.

"I see that Suzan isn't a mage," said Macy matter of fact to Dusty.

"No, will that be an issue for them to see us?" asked Dusty suddenly concerned.

He would force the issue if they tried to exclude Suzan.

"No, it's not an issue. It was more of a personal curiosity. It just means for a non-mage she's a tough act to follow, but I've got lots of patience and plenty of time on my hands, so I can wait," said Macy with her toothy smile at Dusty again.

"Not if I have anything to say about it," said Suzan softly through he gritted teeth and under her breath so that the woman wouldn't hear.

She remembered her conversation with Dusty and how long mages lived. She knew that Macy was telling both of them indirectly that she would be willing to wait until Suzan died off before she went after Dusty. It was surprising how boldly she was stating the fact of what her intensions were.

"So what do you need hon? Without a good a reason they won't open the doors for anyone including you, and no matter how powerful you are you won't be able to open them yourself," said Macy smiling as she switched back to the purpose of their visit.

"Tell them I just came from Wolfgang's house. He's gravely wounded and may soon die from the injuries," said Dusty neutrally.

Macy started like she had been slapped with extremely wide eyes as she stared at Dusty.

"Wwwwait just an mmmoment," said Macy as she quickly turned and touched the crystal behind her.

Dusty was already a legend. Killing Wolfgang would make him such a legend that they might just rename the city after him. She was deciding if she wanted to make a play for him now and not wait until Suzan was out of the picture.

Once this got out saying that women would throw themselves at him would be the supreme understatement of the season. She would need to get her bid in well before that happened.

After a few seconds a gruff voice was heard from the direction Macy had turned.

"The building had better be on a type of magical fire that can't be easily put out!" said the voice.

"Dusty is here and he said that he's come from Wolfgang's home and he's close to death," said Macy in a hushed tone.

Suddenly the sound of the doors opening on their own could be heard to Dusty's left as he was still facing Macy's desk.

Macy quickly turned back around to face him. Dusty could see the awe she had for him as she stared at him with her bright blue eyes. He smiled and nodded at her right before he reached for his wife's arm.

Linking arms with Suzan he headed into the room.

"Oh what heights we'll hit, on with the show this is it," sang Dusty softly in a strange tune Suzan didn't recognize.

She just smiled at his antics and walked with him into the room.

Entering the room Suzan was again in awe at the surroundings.

Seated in a semicircle were seven people, four men and three women. They all looked to be far older than either Dusty or Suzan, and they gave the two of them questioning looks.

The area in which they were seated looked to be a half circle great desk with maple paneling inlayed into a blue marble frame. Along the edges were what looked to be carved leaves and vines, and the designs had a bluish crystal look about them.

There was also a mage's communication crystal on its stand right in front of the bench they were all behind.

The bench was a tight enough circle that there was just enough room around it to allow the occupants to be in sight of each other. It was designed to allow someone to stand in front of the bench and face the council.

As they entered Dusty noted the looks of joy on all their faces. That bothered him greatly.

"Dusty you say you've gravely wounded Wolfgang? Really? Did you have a falling out? Did you see him for what he really was? We hoped when you made friends with him seasons back that you would see him for what he was eventually. So tell us, what did you do and how long he has left," said Theo the council president.

"Who said I was the one who did it. Last week it was one of you that did it. I'm here to find out why," said Dusty quietly.

The council members grew quiet and looked stumped.

They had been trying to kill Wolfgang for centuries but never remotely got close. He always killed everyone who tried. Now Dusty was saying that one of them actually did it?

As Dusty watched, everyone looked around in question, everyone but one older man. He was a smallish looking man in his robes and he was looking nervously around to see if anyone was watching him. Dusty picked up on his movements as did Suzan a half a second later as she watched her husband watch the people in front of him.

"Dusty my son, what are you talking about," asked Melkin as he looked at Dusty.

"Why don't we ask Mikel? He seems to be having problems looking at everyone," said Dusty as he and Suzan fixed him with a stare.

"Whaaa, what are you talking about? I've been here the whole time. Others can vouch for me. I've had nothing to do with Wolfgang," said Mikel.

"Dusty..." began Greta from her seat on the council bench.

"No, see that isn't entirely correct. You've not actually done anything. What you did was hire an assassin to indirectly do it. He assaulted Wolfgang in his home while he was with someone and she was caught in the line of fire and almost killed as well.

"What, feel the need to break a few eggs as long as you're able to take him out as well? Her life didn't matter as long as you got Wolfgang in the end? Suddenly go into the justified whole sale killing industry?" asked Dusty while watching him.

"Watch your tone whelp! I can still smell the mother's milk on you from her tits on your upper lip! What you say is just preposterous! Galvin wouldn't have ever hurt anyone else but his target! He's a profes..." trailed off Mikel as it registered what he had just started to say.

He looked around as he realized everyone was now staring at him.

"You hired Galvin? Are you INSANE!?" shouted Theresa

As Dusty watched the dynamic shifted from the members staring him down to them all going off on Mikel for what he had done.

"What does it matter? According what Dusty has said he did his job and now Wolfgang is as good as dead soon anyway! Isn't that what we've always been after all this time anyway? So what does it matter how it was done!" said Mikel exasperated to the room.

"It matters to me how it was done! What's to say that if I don't do what you want you won't have me or my children assassinated? What's to say that you won't do something like this to me?

"I had more respect for all of you because you all have always said that you were above this! But to do something like this makes you no better than any other two bit, petty, and malicious tyrant that you send me to deal with! It makes all of you just as corrupt and no better than the ones you send me after, you just hide it better!" said Dusty in anger.

The silence in the room was deafening as the members almost all the members stared back at him in anger of their own. Melkin was the only one who looked back at him with sadness.

Suzan looked from them to her husband and wondered if maybe he might have gone too far in his anger.

"Son, this action wasn't sanctioned by the council. Galvin is a mistake that was made well before I was a member of this current council. He would normally kill many of us as soon as look at us. He is someone who has a lack of remorse but a strange code he lives by.

"While all records around him are sealed, it's safe to say he was hoped to be what the council found you to be. You are someone with morals who would help us when we needed it. But Galvin went rogue and started killing others for money and fame when he thought we didn't know what he was up too. We, the council, had nothing to do with this," said Melkin as he looked at Dusty.

Dusty could feel the sadness in his statement.

"Ok, prove to me that you had nothing to do with this. Tell me what was the Black spell used on the knife that stabbed Wolfgang," said Dusty softly speaking to Melkin.

The confusion started as everyone started talking. While there was no love lost between them and Wolfgang, someone who used Black magic to attack someone else was something they needed to know about.

Uncatalogued Black spells were dangerous.

There were quite a few spells it could be, but they all were debating what it was as they had no way to know what was used. As if they were one person they all stopped talking and looked at Mikel. He was the only one who wasn't talking along with the other six were and they suddenly realized that only he knew what it was. Mikel's affinity was Black magic.

"No. I'm not saying. If he's almost dead because of the spell then he needs to stay that way until it runs its course," said Mikel as he looked defiantly at Dusty.

There were murmurs again as the rest of the council softly debated making him talk. While making Mikel talk was dangerous, this was Wolfgang they were talking about. Mikel was a very powerful Archmage.

Finally Theo looked at Dusty as if gauging him by his next response.

"Why would you even help him? Don't you know what he is?" asked Theo.

His question to Dusty cut through all the surrounding chatter and everyone stopped to listen to Dusty's answer.

"He is my friend and someone who seems to be persecuted by this council for a long time for doing what I've been doing. Trying to make this world a better place for everyone no matter if they have magic in their bodies or not," said Dusty as he looked at Theo.

The barking laugher caught him off guard as Theo looked at him.

"Your friend? YOUR FRIEND?! Boy, do know how many Battlemages your FRIEND has killed before you were ever BORN!? You ever ASKED him about that? Have you ever asked him what happens to people who get in his way?! Let me give you a quick history lesson since you seem to want to side with this killer over those who have your best interest at heart.

"First there is the fact that in his youth he overthrew and assassinated a king and every one of his nobles in one night at a party thrown by that king. He and his people snuck in as servants, drugged them all, and went to hacking the people apart while they were still alive. It didn't matter to them if it was men or women, no one was spared.

"The reports from that time said that they threw all the bodies over the wall and left them there to rot in the sun. The island that he lives on now is the very same kingdom he overthrew. I bet Wolfgang never told you that did he?

"Then there was Athol. He was the world's first Battlemage millennia ago. Yes he was out to conquer the world. Yes he was trying to do it through murder and violence, but you know what your friend did to stop him since he wanted Athol gone?

"It wasn't enough that the first time they fought Athol lost badly and was confined to his bed for weeks. No, later Athol was found dead. He was naked in his room lying next to one of the women who was helping Wolfgang build that new kingdom he stole from its king.

"By all reports she was a very attractive young woman, with her whole life ahead of her, and for some reason she gave it all up and managed to somehow poison Athol along with herself at Wolfgang's behest. How's that for an assassination?" asked Theo vehemently.

Dusty could feel the hate for Wolfgang washing over him as Theo spoke.

Theo didn't look to be lying and the rest of the council was also now staring at him as Theo spoke. Looking around at the others Dusty focused on Melkin and he could see that once he did Melkin looked sadly down. It was as if he wanted to keep this from Dusty at all cost.

Dusty felt dread starting to fill his heart at that action by him. It was like a confirmation that what Theo was saying was true, meanwhile he continued listening to Theo speak in shocked silence.

"But that young woman's death wasn't enough for him was it? He just kept his head down until the second Battlemage named Richard showed up. For him Wolfgang had one of his trusted lieutenants secretly become one of Richard's best friends and trusted lieutenant. You know, just like how the two of you are now. Then he had his man kill Richard in the middle of a meeting in front of his men because Wolfgang didn't like how Richard ran things.

"Talk about involving others in your plans. His best friend, someone Richard trusted to watch his back was the man who literally ran a knife into it when he turned it to talk to others. Richard never saw it coming and right after he was killed the agent turned and took his own life.

"Then there was Sardonus. Him Wolfgang did special. For him Wolfgang had one of his agents, similar people who I'm sure he has watching you at all times, marry Sardonus and pretend to be his loving wife for over a season. Sardonus was suspicious of everyone, so the only way Wolfgang could get close enough to kill him was to have someone even closer than his friends betray him.