Darkness and Hellfire

Chapter 13 Responsibility.

“I’m going to teleport into his office.” Isaac declared.

Lenna glanced over at him while they finished closing the distance to Sir Michael’s office. The Office of the Magistrate was on the first floor of a two story rectangular building attached to the side of the duke’s manor. The order the pair had done all of their interactions had been on purpose. This was the one that Isaac was the least excited for and their most recent stop had been informing his aunt-in-law that her twin was dead. “Is that going to help anything?” Lenna questioned rhetorically.

“No, but it’s a good reminder.” Isaac commented and vanished. Isaac appeared just inside of Sir Michael’s office and turned around while opening the door from the inside to let Lenna in. “Michael.” Isaac greeted the young magistrate who’s eyes took him in with no expression whatsoever.

“Lord Wexler, or Darkness, I suppose, what brings you to my office? I have not been here very often recently.” Sir Michael replied diplomatically.

“A few questions and an escort.” Isaac replied directly.

“I see.” Michael replied.

“Duke Arbencroft and Aria Tre’bor both sent us to you.” Lenna explained.

Michael sat up a little straighter. “For different reasons I assume?” He asked

Lenna nodded but it was Isaac who answered: “The prisoners from the Mr. Nobody incident, specifically the small scout from Outpost Charles, I would like to know what their punishments will be.” He explained rather than questioned.

Michael nodded and got up from his chair, that he had inherited from his predecessor, the predecessor that Isaac and Lenna had killed, and walked over to a filing cabinet. “I was informed that you had taken special interest in one of the prisoners.” Michael commented while he searched for the information on the prisoners in question.

“I have a tendency to be as ruthless as Lenna is direct.” Isaac responded easily. “The girl still cooperated with us even though she had been on the receiving end of both.”

“I see.” Michael replied and Isaac scowled at the slightest hint of a smirk on the slightly older man’s face. “Here it is.” He said and handed Isaac a small stack of papers. “I would prefer if those do not leave this room.” He hurried to inform Isaac before the mage could vanish into the shadows with his only copy.

Isaac nodded and started looking through the pages. He skipped past most of them and only bothered to look at the few that he cared about. “That’s fine.” Isaac commented and sat on the armrest of one of the chairs in front of Michael’s desk.

“You mentioned an escort?” Michael asked to continue moving them along.

“Yes.” Lenna replied while Isaac was still busy. “To see Macken Cla’Cen.”

Michael sighed and slowly sat back down across from the pair. “I would prefer to wait a few more days.” He told the duo. “I am fully aware that, if you really wished to, you could just go see him yourselves which is why I am still going to agree to escort you there.” He continued. “It is clear that there is still more that he is refusing to tell us about but as far as I can tell it is only newer information.”

“How are you questioning him?” Lenna asked.

“If it is anything like how bad these punishments are then there is nothing to worry about.” Isaac commented and tossed the stack of papers onto Michael’s desk. “Lisa is getting banished from the duchy, her father is losing his position, the rest are being shipped off to Sapphirestone with nothing but the clothes on their back. No violence or imprisonment at all.”

“What?” Lenna asked, completely dumbfounded at how light their sentences were.

“All of their assets were seized and used to repay everything that was stolen.” Michael explained. “They are all incredibly lucky that no one was actually hurt by their actions. In the end it was nothing but petty theft and mislabeled goods.”

“Even though they were working with Mr. Nobody?” Isaac questioned.

Michael nodded. “Most of them didn’t know or understand what was actually going on, I made sure of it.” He leaned back in his chair. “This was a case of the left hand not knowing what the right foot was doing. The guard in Outpost Charles only knew that the scout was acting weird so when she started bribing him he stopped asking questions. The smith was aware that the items he was receiving were from his former clients and assumed that they had been stolen which was why he sold them back to the smithy in Safeharbor in the first place. It was an incredibly disorganized mess.”

“What about the drow involvement?” Isaac asked.

“Simple manipulation of a naive girl, just like your assessment.” Michael replied. “One of the guards from Ben’s End was not listed with the rest of those I gave you.” He continued. “That is because his file is in a different category. He had been approached by a drow informant. At some point he started selling information for diamonds. They were found in his apartment. He is to be executed in front of the others so they are aware of exactly how lucky they are that none of what they did was coordinated.”

Isaac nodded. “I guess that is that then.” He said. “This was a lot cleaner than I was expecting.”

Michael nodded with a slight smile. “Yes, and honestly, I am glad for it. This was my first incident as Magistrate and it could have been incredibly messy. Thankfully most of those involved were smart enough to keep their noses out of each other's business.”

Isaac eyed him cautiously. “Yes.” He replied skeptically. “Lucky.”

Michael took a deep breath. “I know how it might look, but I assure you that I am not the type of person to let traitors off the hook, at all.” He explained. “Traitors deserve to be-” He cut himself off before he could finish his thought as the realization of what Lenna, and potentially now Macken, were to the drow empire.

“To be what, Michael?” Isaac asked.

“Judged on a case by case basis.” Michael replied diplomatically. “Now, about an escort to the prisoner, would you mind waiting a few more days?”

Isaac watched him like a cat watched a mouse that had gotten caught out in the open. His predatory gaze seemed to watch for the slightest slip up, the smallest shift in the wrong direction. “I will be seeing him today, but we can wait a day or two to actually talk with him.” Isaac stated emotionlessly.

Michael swallowed hard. “I see. Well, in that case, allow my aid to walk you to his cell.” Michael said and flicked a small bell on his desk. A moment later the same younger soldier, that Isaac had seen with Michael before, arrived.

“Yes, sir?” The aid asked.

“Please show these two to Cell A.M. Zero One.” Michael ordered.

“Yes, sir.” The soldier replied and gave Isaac and Lenna a salute. “Right this way, my Lord, my Lady.”

Isaac and Lenna shared a look of surprise at the extreme formality and respect. He looked stiff as the stone they walked on like he was afraid a single slip up would tarnish his family name for a hundred generations. The pair moved to follow him but Isaac stopped at the door. “Michael?”

“Yes, Lord Darkness?” Michael replied.

“I do not trust easily. It is even harder for me to trust those in power. Always be completely sure that your decisions will be accepted by both the king you serve and the children on the street. Keep doing a good job,” Isaac said and walked out the door while he called over his shoulder: “and don’t let me down.”

Michael was silent as he stared out the door where Isaac had just been. “Yes, Lord Darkness.” He agreed before he took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He took another one and then sighed. “I wish he would have closed the door on his way out at least.” He grumbled to himself and then the door abruptly swung closed by itself right before his eyes. Michael swallowed hard as his mouth became drier than noon in the Dishantee desert.

—

Isaac and Lenna were led down into the basement and through more complex corridors than a building of that size and shape deserved. Isaac had this habit of memorizing new buildings like his life depended on it. He was sure that he could have made it out blindfolded but the multiple abrupt direction shifts were still grating on his nerves. Lenna memorized everywhere she went to a slightly lesser degree than Isaac, but unlike Isaac, she did this even when they were out in the open, at least as out in the open as they could be underground.

“They are meeting with the prisoner.” The aid, Isaac never bothered to get his name, said to the pair of guards standing outside of a solid iron door.

The guards shared a look. “We are under orders to not let anyone except for Sir Michael or yourself inside, sir.” The one on the right replied. He was four inches taller and at least fifty pounds larger than the aid but rank still applied it seemed.

“I am aware.” The aid replied. “I was there when the orders were given, soldier, Sir Michael instructed me to guide them to the prisoner. If anything happens I will take full responsibility.”

The guards shared another look. The one on the left nodded and the one on the right grabbed a keyring off of his belt. He seemed to know which key was the right one, even though they all looked almost identical, and quickly unlocked the door for them. “Understood, sir.” The guard said to the aid. “We will be awaiting your return. Is there an estimated time for the… visit?”

The aid looked at Isaac and Isaac looked at Lenna who was suddenly put on the spot. “Just five minutes will be enough, for today.” She replied.

The guard nodded and opened the door for them. The aid walked in with Isaac and Lenna right behind. Once they were inside the door was closed and locked behind them. “Is that really necessary?” Isaac asked. He played it cool but on the inside his anxiety had just spiked to the moon. He hated being locked inside places even if he knew that he could teleport out. What made him even more uneasy was the awful feeling he was getting from some of the cells. The five cells on the left all had permanently active anti-magic fields.