The Wizard and the Void - Chapter Twenty-Eight
Author: Milady Dragon
Maria fidgeted, itchy in a way that felt like ants crawling along her skin.
She'd had a chance to read Master' John's journal, and had been struck by the basic truths it had held. He'd once been in the same position she found herself in: thinking that the Cardinals and Voids were doing something wrong when they used other forces besides just magic to work their spells. He'd been quite adamant about that.
But he'd come to change his mind over a decade of being friends with Grand Master Ianto Jones and the Deathless, Captain Jack Harkness. He'd also written about conversations he'd had with the Avatar of Gateway, as well as Void and Cardinal students he'd had the pleasure of knowing. He'd seen first-hand that the Great Wizards had gotten it all wrong, and he'd apologized for his attitude over it.
Maria could see the points he'd made. She could also see why her order had destroyed whatever copies they could find, as it went against the old scrolls that they'd recovered from the Torchwood Archive, and from other sources. All of that knowledge…so very wrong.
However, she could see how it had happened. By the time many of those treatises had been written, Cardinals and Voids no longer existed. The Great Order had done their best to help their dying out. Oh, it had been a rather bloodless coup, but it had still occurred, and the Greats had taken full advantage of the situation by painting Cardinals and Voids both with the same brush of sacrilege.
It had given her a lot to think about.
Now, what was bothering her was the Quorum.
In a lot of ways, what Hydra had perpetrated had done damage to what the Grand Masters had tried to fix. Maria could see it. They'd gone off on their own and had practically lived down to the reputation that had been forced upon them by the Greats. She had to wonder if they would have done it if there had been more of a level attitude between the orders. Would they have even considered kidnapping and what amounted to murder to get what they'd wanted if that sort of reputation hadn't already existed?
She thought they might never know.
But, the Quorum.
It all had to come out. There wasn't a choice, not if they wanted to clear away the rot within the orders. Still, Maria wished it could have been kept a little quieter. Even though it had been several Voids behind the plot, it made every Wizard look bad. It needed to be exposed, and this was the best way to do it. Rumor had already gotten a head start, and what her fellows had been assuming was, in ways, far worse than what had actually occurred. That sort of thing needed to be nipped in the bud before it tore a rift through the entire Wizard community.
Well, more of one at any rate.
Also, she still wasn't sure of Master Phil Coulson.
He'd been succinct when giving evidence, but he hadn't said a thing about being the Dark One. That didn't surprise her one bit; that wasn't the sort of thing that needed to be revealed now, it would have simply muddied the waters even more. Still, it would get out. That the primary witness in this case had been one of the worst of their number, and Maria had no idea what sort of ramifications that would bring.
It didn't stop her from voting for the immediate repudiation of all the known Voids involved with Hydra.
It was unanimous.
That wasn't a surprise.
The Wizard Guild took such things seriously. They had to police their own. Each and every one of them had more power than normal people and there was always the chance of misusing that power.
Prime example…the Dark One.
Nick had informed her of all the details about Buda-Pest. They'd all done the right thing in that circumstance, even if Maria didn't agree with the horrendous loss of life. Guilty life, but it was still life, and many of those the Dark One, Marcus Johnson, the Hawk and the Widow had taken down should have been brought to the courts for justice. She'd said as much, and Nick had simply shaken his head and pointed out to her that, sometimes, the justice system was just as corrupt as the criminals that escaped it, and then things had to be done differently. Perhaps so, but Maria still believed that they could have done things differently, even if she completely believed it all.
Nick had also pointed out that she hadn't been there, hadn't seen it, and to get off her 'damned high horse and to at least try to understand'.
That had led to such a row that she hadn't been back to Triskelia since.
Still, in the four days since Hydra had emerged, Maria had been busy…and taking a second look at her preconceived notions about her fellow Wizards. She'd vowed to start changing some of her learned attitudes, but it wasn't going to happen overnight. There was just too many ingrained prejudices to get through, and that was without the stress of the Quorum.
Once everyone had regained their seats after the vote, both Grand Masters remained on their feet. Grand Master Stephen leaned over and said something in the Cardinal Grand Master's ear; the man nodded, stepping to the front of the dais. His eyes looked out over the Quorum, and Maria actually missed Grand Master Stephen returning to his seat, so caught up was she in Grand Master Ianto's gaze, calmly staring over at the gathered Wizards.
"The proclamation will be sent out, outlawing this Hydra cabal and putting their members on the wanted lists of every Barony, Kingdom, and Country in the world," Grand Master Ianto said. "However, this criminal action has left Void Order without proper leadership, and now that you have the majority of your members here, you should consider who you would want as your new Grand Master. As we are not Void, Grand Master Stephen and myself will recuse ourselves from your deliberations; however, if you would seek advice or answers to questions you may have, we will make ourselves available to you. Also, the other Orders will stand down from this, because this should be your decision alone. However, please be wary…we don't have any real idea just how far this conspiracy goes. There could be Hydra members we don't know anything about as yet. Elect someone you trust implicitly." He bowed to the Void section of the Quorum. "Thank you all for your service. Grand Master Stephen and I abide by whatever your decision will be, and will support your choice." With that, he went back to his chair, settling into it comfortably.
Leaving the Voids to converse amongst themselves.
Someone had thoughtfully put up a Privacy spell, one that wouldn't allow any of the two other Orders to eavesdrop. Not that Maria would; whoever they chose wasn't any of her business. Still, she was glad that the two Grand Masters had left the Voids to handle the nomination; their choice was far too obvious.
She was hoping the Voids who were currently conferring would choose someone other than Master Phil Coulson.
"You do realize there isn't really anyone else they could choose," Mistress Pepper whispered, startling Maria out of her thoughts.
She turned to regard the other Head of Order. She'd been expecting Mistress Pepper to look smug, that her choice for Head of Void Order would mostly likely be the one they nominated. Instead, the other woman looked resigned, as if she really didn't want them to pick Master Phil, either.
"He doesn't want it," the Cardinal Head went on, "he just wants to go home with Daisy and Clint. But, he understands that it's his duty at the moment, and he'll accept, but he'll put a caveat on his acceptance that a new Grand Master be chosen as soon as Hydra has been cleared from their order." She gave Maria a small smile. "He's not as power-mad as I believe you think he is."
"I never said he was power-mad." She hadn't, not in so many words. "I'm just saying he shouldn't be rewarded for getting us the information on Hydra."
"That's just it…he doesn't see it as being rewarded. He sees it as just one more punishment, one more thing he has to do in order to make up for his past."
Maria glanced over at the Voids, seeking one among them. She located Master Phil easily, standing straight, his arms across his chest almost defensively, as he was obviously arguing with several Voids who were confronting him.
As she watched, his shoulders slumped, and his expression turned from serious to resigned, and he nodded his head, speaking to the group who had apparently just nominated him.
He certainly didn't look like someone who wanted the power he was being handed.
But, just how good an actor was he?
"Not that good," Mistress Pepper said, when Maria raised that very question. "He's quite the horrible liar, according to the Hawk. Really, he hasn't had much of an opportunity for it, if you think about it. He's been Master Phil for over a decade. He got out of practice."
One of the Voids – Maria recognized her as Mistress Elena Rodriguez, the Head of Order for the Southern Confederacies – waved her hand, and the Privacy spell fell, a sign that their conference was complete. One of the Voids, obviously a Novice judging how young he was, glanced toward someone on the Cardinal side and gave a surreptitious thumb raise.
A Void with a friend on the Cardinal side…Maria had to wonder if this was one of Daisy Coulson's friends. A look in that direction confirmed it; Daisy had a bright smile on her face, which she stifled as soon as she noticed Maria's eyes on her. Instead, she glared, and the Great Wizard stiffened at her obvious disrespect.
She turned away, and Mistress Pepper was shaking her head. "Is it any wonder Daisy's upset with you? I'm sure it's gotten back to her by now just how you feel about her father. She's going to be bothered by that."
Alright, she did have a point. Maria would have been pissed if someone had been said anything against her own father. But the difference was, Phil Coulson was technically a wanted criminal and Maria's Dad was a decorated Naval officer.
"We've come to a consensus," Mistress Elena spoke, hushing the last of the conversations going on in the Quorum hall, her accent sharp but her words clear.
Both Grand Masters stood. "And what have you decided?" Grand Master Stephen asked.
"We have nominated Master Phillip Coulson as the new Void Grand Master, although he has said he –"
"Stop!" a sudden shout came from the back of the hall.
That had everyone either standing, or craning their heads in the direction of the voice. Maria saw a young man, a student not yet old enough for an individual teaching Master, by one of the doors leading out of the chamber, being manhandled by one of the ushers who guarded the ways into the Quorum when they were in session. He had light brown hair, and was dressed in head to toe black, but…the Great Wizard frowned. She wasn't getting any sort of magical signature from him.
He wasn't a Wizard.
How did he even get into the chamber, if he wasn't a Wizard?
"Bring him forward," Grand Master Ianto commanded the usher, who grabbed the young man by the elbow and led him down toward the dais. The boy came willingly, his pale eyes fiercely angry in what Maria thought was a slightly weaselly face. "And who are you to interrupt the Quorum?" he demanded as soon as the intruder was at the steps leading up to the dais.
The youngster shrugged his arm out of the usher's grasp, then haughtily meet the Grand Master's eyes, his back straight and his face proud. "I am Werner von Strucker," he announced, as if that name meant something, "and I've come to denounce the so-called Master Phillip Coulson as being the Void Wizard known as the Dark One."