Awakening - The Last Science #1

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

  "She puts it a bit dramatically, but yeah, we can do some crazy stuff," Ryan said calmly. "And like she said, it's all inside. You can take a gun away from someone when you arrest them, sheriff. What are you gonna do when I can break handcuffs just by thinking about it?"

  "People still obey rule of law, though," Rowan replied, settling back in his chair once again. "Just because someone can do it doesn't mean they will."

  "You're not the one who's gotta arrest them," Jackie muttered, righting herself with rather less grace than the mayor.

  "We're in uncharted territory," Neffie said. "There's no precedent to rely on here. We're the first."

  "What would you suggest, Rachel?" Rowan asked.

  "I..." Rachel hesitated. Truth be told, she hadn't really considered problems of law enforcement thus far. "I'm not sure."

  "Well, you have your own council and rules to enforce, do you not?" Rowan asked. "How do you enforce them?"

  "We don't have to," Rachel replied. "Everyone knows the consequence of breaking what few rules we do have, and we've never really had an incident yet."

  "Not once?" Preston asked, looking skeptical.

  "Well, the last time anyone had a major disagreement we nearly blew up the town," Ryan said flippantly. Rachel looked at him sharply, and he recoiled in his seat.

  "What?" Jackie asked in a low growl.

  Rachel took a quick breath before answering, shuddering at the memories that sprang forth. "Remember the night about a year ago, when the old abandoned library burned down?"

  "That was you?" Rowan asked. Gordon seemed to stop scribbling on his notepad for a moment, eyes wide.

  "Not me, but someone with magic, yes."

  "Christ, I thought we were in a war zone that night, but we never caught anyone," Jackie murmured. "I assumed some kids had gotten ahold of a shit-ton of fireworks or something. Thought we were going to have a forest fire to end all fires."

  "What happened?" Rowan asked.

  "Two people had a... disagreement. On how our Council should proceed in terms of interacting with the outside world. They were both very influential voices, and some took sides in the argument." Rachel paused. The flashes of light and the explosions, Omega's minions advancing against Alpha's hurled bolts of ice and torrents of water, the lightning strikes from the sky and the bursts of fire. She took a deep breath before continuing.

  "They took it too far, and both sides called a truce before it turned ugly. But neither of the individuals in question wanted to stop, and we collectively decided to intervene. If we hadn't, it might have been the entire town that burned instead of just the old library."

  "What happened to these two individuals?" Rowan asked, while Gordon's pen scratched incessantly.

  "They both left town, by mutual agreement. Neither plans to return, and both are in agreement to keep utmost secrecy about our world. We have nothing to fear from them anymore," Rachel lied smoothly, as memories of terrifying golems gliding across the forest floor sprung unbidden to her mind. The room looked satisfied at the answer.

  Rachel looked across the room to the one person who hadn't spoken yet. Boris Morozov, the old bookshop owner and Russian expatriate, was gazing with eyes unfocused, his head turned slightly to one side as if he were listening to something. After a moment, his eyes shifted back to the room so subtly that she doubted anyone else could have noticed. Who is he talking to?