Awakening - The Last Science #1

Chapter 10 - The First Summit of the End of the World - III

  "Rachel, look, you're a great help around town but this is different," Neffie Bowman said, her eyes still transfixed by the fire. "We don't know what this is—"

  "It's magic," Cinza spoke up, her voice serene. "What else do you need to know?"

  Neffie faltered, which was a first for her.

  "Bullshit," Robert spoke up finally. "This is a dumb prank."

  "Bob, they even knocked out my phone..." Gordon Merrill started meekly, but Cinza cut him off.

  "Prank, is it?" She brought one arm up, and in a stunning reversal, Robert Harrison was the one to flinch. A hulk of a man with the thick muscles of a lifelong lumberjack, afraid of the thin stick of an arm pointing in his general direction owned by a girl shorter than five feet and probably only cresting a fourth of his own weight.

  With a wicked smile, Cinza flicked her fingers in a simple motion at Robert. A three-foot butterfly with glowing purple wings fluttered into life directly in front of the man's eyes. He ducked and howled, and the butterfly swooped straight at his face, sending him tumbling backwards. It vanished in an explosion of shining specks that flew outward and faded away.

  "Anyone else need a demonstration?" Cinza asked, looking around the crowd calmly.

  "Rachel, please, help me understand," Rowan called from the front, sounding suddenly exhausted. "This cult of yours—"

  "She's no cultist, to use your vulgar term," Cinza cut in sharply. "Rachel is just an elected leader for us all, follower of mine or otherwise. The other mayor of the town, you might say. Meet your real competition."

  "'Us all'?" Gordon Merrill spoke up, having pulled out a paper pad and pencil. He was a resourceful journalist for sure. Rachel nodded in response.

  "We have a council for resolving disputes and making decisions that affect us all as a community. I represent the head of the council at this meeting." She paused, trying to find the best way to phrase her request. "I must ask you not report on anything that happens in this room today, Mr. Merrill. I'm sorry."

  Gordon Merrill looked like she had asked him to chop off his own arm. "I'm a journalist, girl. That's what I do."

  Cinza snapped her fingers, and her companion threw out his arm with a twisting motion in the wrist, followed by a quick snap-flick. Gordon's notepad caught fire instantly, and he dropped it in shock. Rachel was quietly impressed by the guy's precision. She could never have summoned a flame at the opposite end of the notepad from that distance with so little time and effort, if she could even manage it at all. Rachel resolved to figure out all of Cinza's followers at a later date when she had the opportunity, before the cult surprised her with something truly unpleasant.

  "Take a break for the afternoon," Cinza said cheerily. "I'm sure Rachel would be pleased to give you an exclusive someday. It'll be the most important story of your life, trust me."

  "This 'community' of yours," Rowan began again. "They can all do... magic?" His mouth seemed to have trouble giving voice to the concept, as he clearly still couldn't believe what he was saying. Rachel nodded, trying to instill confidence in the mayor. She was going to need him if they were to control his half of the town and keep the peace. She closed her palm gently as she released the fire from her control, letting it free. In an instant, lacking any fuel, the flame puffed out of existence.

  "Mayor Rhistler," she began, with more formality than she'd presented so far. "I'd like to offer our assistance in tracking down whomever committed the murders on the outskirts of town." There was no reason to reveal Jackie had already asked her to do just that. The mayor and sheriff needed to be on the same side; there was no reason to drive a wedge between them if she didn't need to. Yet. "I have strong reason to believe the murders were carried out with magical means and that we are best suited to investigating the crime."