Anyone who regularly passed by the Council Halls could attest to the ruckus nature of their arguments. The circular stone building sat in the center of Haben, surrounded by a stonewall and the river behind it. Two other smaller buildings sat by it but this one towered over them, both physically but also in import. There were two floors to the building. On the second floor were great windows that allowed sunlight to stream in.
Everyone was welcome on the first floor of the Council Halls. A foyer of marble was lined with doors to different municipal offices. In the center of the foyer was a marble staircase with a banister crafted in the shape of dragons. Columns of marble-lined the outer walls of the building with iron doors at the four cardinal points. These doors were rarely locked, the first floor was always open to the public.
Only councilors, servants, the mage Dialmar, and approved guests were allowed on the second floor. The stairs led to a small antechamber that was connected to the Council Hall. A brazier sat in the center with ten fine wood chairs surrounding it. Each one was crafted in a different style, elven, dwarven, and human. The tenth chair, smaller than the rest; for the newly elected Hodrim Councillor
All ten councilors were in the chamber this morning. They only gathered when the issue on the agenda was serious enough. Often they allowed their vote to be done by proxy. On the agenda for them was a topic they all knew would be heated. Haben was the largest town in the region of the Northern Hills and as such was considered the ruler of the land. Their soldiers patrolled the lands and protected the outlying villages. Therein lied the issue for a few of the Councillors.
As people continued to spread throughout Earador the villages were becoming further and farther from one another. Fielding a larger force of soldiers was expensive. Several of the councilors felt the villages could be more responsible to shoulder this cost. Allegros Whitebeard, one of the three dwarven councilors, was the most vocal for the villages to contribute to the cost
Contrary to his name, his beard was a dark brown like the earth he worked. He stood just over five feet tall and one of the tallest dwarves in the town. Unlike the other Councillors, he shunned wearing the robes of his rank. Instead, he dressed in the same gear he did while he worked in the tunnels in the southeastern hills. He had no hair on the top of his head but wore a pair of goggles.
"Why are we shelling out our coin and receiving little benefit. Even worse our boys are dying out there on the roads, far from home." He directly addressed his nemesis on the council. The human stood across the chambers his thin eyes glaring at the dwarf.
"Why must you be so small thinking Allegros?" He said in his smooth voice. When Allegros flew into a rage the human always countered by remaining calm. The man had unnaturally long fingers which often tapped on his beard-less chin when he contemplated. The two of them, while being nemesis, also starkly contrasted one another. Tremont stood almost six and a half feet tall and was lankier than a pine tree. "Secure roads and neighbors ensure trade which promotes growth. If our traders can't reach Bayedge then who will buy the iron you dwarves craft." Most of the other councilors hung their heads in boredom. These arguments had been thrown out several times in the last few ten days. Neither side refused to budge, but in a way that Tremont Allens won by default. The soldiers still patroled the roads until Allegros could change the agreements.
"Tremont, even you must agree that there is a need for some change. Every year there seems to be a new hamlet or settlement popping up." Allegros smiled as he considered this new argument. "Why just last month, Lord Woodhome ordained a new lord and rulers of his family's holdings in Briar Lake. How long will it be before this Lord N4 and the Adventurers of the Briar demand protection *
"I have heard they have several dwarves as guards and the Proudborn family plans to move there to start farming," piped up the hodrim representative, Olivay Quickfoot. All of the councilors looked up at him; it was rare for the demure halfling to speak up unless directly spoken to. "It seems that they will be able to take care of their own lands. Weren't they the ones to stop the Blood Witch from ruining the Levell Family?"
That comment took some of the bluster from Allegros. Most of Haben was discussing the strange events of that night and those involved were being lauded as heroes. Bringing them up in his argument may have spoiled Allegros' chances at initiating change.
"We have not yet voted at all to change deployment. I say all receive a reckoning of the cost From Tilman the Clerk. Then I put forth for a Blind Vote".
"I shall second this motion. Once it gets voted down we won't have to listen to it for six moons," agreed Tremont. Both councilors were confident that the less outspoken ones would side with them.
"Call For Dialmar." As with all votes of the council, it was presided over by the town's Sage, Dialmar.
When Allegros announced this, the doors of the chamber swung open and in strolled Dialmar. Some of the newer councilors were stunned by the prompt arrival of the wizard, the others were used to his unusual ability to appear when needed. It was often rumored he used magic to hear when his name was spoken by anyone.
The flowing robe of a Sage trailed behind him as he swept into the chamber. He was a taller man, just above six feet but also muscular. This was unusual for a wizard, especially one who spent so much time in study. No one could doubt he was an effective sage, at only thirty-eight years old he was the youngest to serve as a Sage to a settlement.
In the hands of the mage were dozens of parchments and as Dialmar entered the room they flew from his hand to each one of the councilors. They took a few minutes to read over the figures on the parchment, which detailed the expenses of the town's guard force. Allegros harrumph and grunted at the numbers he was reading, making sure everyone knew exactly how he felt about them. After a few minutes of analyzing, the councilors looked up to the mage.
"Councillors, we will now be holding a blind vote on if the Statute of Protection will be revoked, amended, or upheld," the clear voice of Dialmar rang through the chamber. "Please take your seats and I shall enact the spells". Once all of the councilors sat Dialmar spoke the words on a scroll he unfurled in front of him. When the spell finished the effect was not immediately noticed.
Dialmar turned to Allegros the dwarf. "First Councillor of the dwarven citizens, How do you vote?"
"Revoke"
Turning to Tremont, the wizard posed the same question. "First Councillor of the human citizens, how do you vote?"
"Upheld"
Dialmar went through each councilor in the same manner. Only he could hear the responses. His modified silence spell allowed him to speak and only those who he allowed speaking could. Releasing the spell, he looked to the councilors. "Three for upheld, Three for revoke, four for Amend. An amendment for the statute of protection must be presented in one ten days time".
A small bow and a quick turn to leave the chambers was all Dialmar gave. It was his job to advise and help enforce the laws, not create them.
Silence hung over the chamber once the mage left. One would expect the councilors to burst into an argument once more. That was not how it was done on the council. Once the vote was cast the councilors would work civilly with one another to ensure the completion of the law.
