by Travis Kerr
Damn.
It seemed that keeping that information to himself wasn’t going to happen after all. Still, the madman did have a point. While Bloodheart felt certain that those he planned to employ could find the man, he was still a human in a sea of them. A feral, on the other hand, would be like looking for a large gold brick in a haystack, instead of a needle. Also, the news of the dragonling was new to him. A human with a dragonling was a rare enough sight that even the most slow-witted of his guards should still take note of it.
“I will keep your information in mind,” Bloodheart assured the man. He didn’t want to commit to too much, lest the madman decide that some sort of compensation might be in order for the information he was being given. Bloodheart wasn’t even certain if he would have a use for it. He certainly wasn’t about to part with any of his gold for knowledge that he had no use for.
“I know you will find some way of using it,” Mordock replied. “Perhaps in the future you might have information that I might need, and I hope that you will be as open with it as I have been now.”
Bloodheart did not bother to disagree with him. After all, his suggestion had left an opening as to the worth of the information, and could be interpreted in different ways. Should Bloodheart have information to offer, he could decide for himself if further compensation would be needed. He would never have been so foolish in his dealings. He would have agreed upon a price before the information was passed on.
Normally Mordock would have done so as well, he knew. Perhaps it was because, by giving it freely to Bloodheart now, it meant that Bloodheart could take care of a dangerous adversary, one that could be dangerous to all of them. If their situations were reversed Bloodheart might have even done the same thing. It was more likely that the mage simply wanted to avoid a dispute with Wolfere, who had already ordered him to tell them what he knew. Bloodheart could understand that as well.
He looked over at Mordock, noticing the sly smile on the mad mages face, and immediately became cautious.
Was he aware that my guards were already looking for the additional people he had described? he wondered.
He suspected that it was likely. There was little that the mad mage didn’t uncover. Why he decided to keep that information to himself instead of passing it on to the rest of the council, however, was a complete mystery. Mordock didn’t have any loyalties to anyone. Something that painted Bloodheart in a bad light could only further his own cause, whatever that might be.
More likely he plans on exacting a price from me privately later on, he decided.
“Very well,” Wolfere spoke up. “Unless someone else has something else to add, I will bring this meeting to a close. Bloodheart, I’m trusting you to deal with this situation for now. We will meet again in three months, unless someone has additional business that requires the council before that time. As always, I will send word to everyone beforehand should we need to meet again.”
With nothing further to discuss, Bloodheart kept his mouth shut, looking around the room to the other mages seated at the table, wondering if anyone else had anything further to add. Slyvax opened his mouth as if to say something, but a glance from Wolfere in his direction caused him to promptly clamp it shut again. Apparently, whatever it was he had thought to say he decided was not important enough to mention, for now at least. Bloodheart was certain that he had not heard the last of Slyvax. The man’s ambitions were far too bold for his liking.
For now, it was wiser to wait. If Slyvax moved too soon or too foolishly, he would destroy himself, or Wolfere would do it for him. Either way, it was not anything that Bloodheart needed to concern himself with yet. He had more important things to worry about. He needed to find this man, this unknown element who claimed to be the long lost son of Fallon Goldstone, and put an end to him and whoever traveled with him, including this battle mage.
This time I will not fail, he promised himself.
He considered the hunters he would be sending. They had never failed him before, and would not do so now. They would track down Goldstone and his companions. Once he had finished with that, perhaps he would send them to deal with Slyvax as well. The thought brought a smile to Bloodheart's lips, which stayed with him as one by one the council members seated around him winked out.
As the image of Bloodheart faded out as well, Wolfere stood up from his chair. He had appeared as nothing more than an image to the others, but the council had been held in the replica of his chamber hall that evening, projecting its image into the empty halls of the other council members. Tomorrow, he would have a few of his peasants remove the cold, grey suits of steel armor that gleamed dully around him.
Perhaps I’ll have them bring in a few ferns to decorate the room before the next session, he thought absently as he walked out of the room.
In a dark corner of the room, a small figure, hidden in the shadows behind one of the empty suits, stood up from the crouched position he had held during the meeting. He had not been seen, he knew. He never was. He did not speak. He did not make a noise or a sound. He didn’t even leave any footprints behind, as he had no need of walking to get to where he wanted to go.
Instead he watched, and he listened. He had to return to his ruler, who would want to know what he had learned. They would be coming, the small man knew. Like the mage Wolfere, he knew exactly who Bloodheart had been referring to. With those creatures hunting the battle mage, he would need to be warned. With a noiseless pop and a slight whoosh as the air rushed in to the space that he suddenly vacated, he vanished.
