After a mildly exhausting conversation with Christian Zito and an apologetic Mateo Rivera, Mitzi and Alan were accepted as guides—leaders of the Fisher Expeditionary Force—by the whole of the Electricity Commission.
Mitz had the distinct feeling that they’d just been hazed, with the level of detail the Commission members had given them into their plans. Then again, she also suspected that, as with hazing, the in-depth discussion of future plans had won them a level of acceptance to the group that they could not easily have come by in any other way.
During the conversation, she had noticed that Mina had emerged from the community center and peeled James away from the Electricity Commission.
James was standing, talking to her, while Mitzi and Alan continued getting to know their future travel companions. Mina didn’t seem to like what she was hearing. She had a nervous look on her face, as if James had proposed a plan to do something dangerous.
That feels a little ominous.
As Mitzi and Alan separated from the Commission and walked back over to where James and Mina stood, the conversation between the King and Queen seemed to stop—which only gave more evidence to support Mitzi’s feeling that something was wrong. James’s expression was unreadable, while Mina still looked a bit worried, though she had brought her face under control. Mitzi could only see what Mina was feeling because she was looking for it.
Mitzi looked up at Alan’s face. He seemed pleased, basking in the afterglow of the conversation with the Commission members and confident that things were going well. They had formed a connection with their fellow future explorers. But that meant he hadn’t noticed anything.
Assuming there is anything to notice, Mitzi told herself.
“Everything all right?” she asked as they got close to James and Mina.
“I was just going to ask you how things went with them,” James said. “I guess I don’t need to, though. I can see from your faces that you’re going to do just fine with the other members of the Fisher Expeditionary Force. I’m not surprised.”
Alan nodded and smiled, but Mitzi sensed an alertness in his eyes. Now that Mitzi had spoken up, he was looking for signs of anything wrong.
“Things went well,” Mitzi agreed. “They’re nice people, once you get to know them. Maybe a little long-winded. You could have warned us.”
“I probably should have,” James said, “but now you’ve had the chance to really get to know them.”
Mitzi gave him a hard look. “That is good. What else are you planning right now?”
James let out a short laugh. “Well, I think we need a little more recruitment,” he said.
Mina cut in. “James has summoned the monotheists for a meeting like this,” she added in a flat tone. “Though I think he plans to do most of the talking this time.”
Mitzi frowned. Why is she so worried if that’s all that’s happening?
“What’s the purpose of this meeting, James?” Alan asked.
“I want to tell them a story,” James said. His face flashed with a surprising anger for a moment, then was calm again.
Things began to fall into place for Mitzi. Oh, he wants to tell them that story, she thought.
“Is it the same story you told us?” Mitzi asked.
James nodded.
“Are you certain that’s wise?” Alan asked.
“This conversation has to happen eventually,” James replied. “Would you guys be willing to come with me?”
Mitzi nodded immediately, and Alan joined in a moment later.
“It’s going to be a fiery speech,” Mina said. “Are you sure you want to be there?” She spoke in an unmistakable cautionary tone.
“That sounds like a reason we should show our support,” Mitzi said gently.
Mina gave her a small smile. “I’m glad the two of you are part of this Kingdom,” she said quietly.
The four of them walked off through the courtyard and past the community center.
After a couple of minutes of walking, Police Chief DaSilva joined them. The large man stepped in so casually, without a word, that Mitzi knew immediately that James had summoned him there with his communication powers.
As they walked, Mitzi had time to wonder how far they were going from the center of the Kingdom—whether this conversation would be near the swamp or the woods that she knew bordered Samuel’s swamp. They were going away from the former Haunted Forest, which was on the opposite side from the swamp, and away from the bat-squirrel jungle that was on the opposite side from the woods.
Mitzi had forgotten how much open space there was in the Fisher Kingdom, though.
Between the ever-growing apartment complex and the swamp and woods that were the least navigable parts of the Fisher Kingdom, there was a large open field. There, the monotheists waited. Dozens of people gathered in a large crowd.
From twenty yards away, Mitzi could hear them nervously chattering among themselves. The sounds were indistinct, a low rolling buzz.
As the group drew closer to the monotheists, the words began to grow clearer.
“What do you think—”
“—know why we were called here—”
“—what does the King want—”
“—something happen with Cyrus?”
“—are we in trouble for something or—”
“—Kingdom under attack?”
The fragments Mitzi caught were almost all speculation about why the King had called them there.
Since Mitzi knew, more or less, what this gathering was about, she was confident that they weren’t going to like it when they found out the answer. She did not regret going, though. Mitzi was also curious how James would handle this. Why had he decided to discuss his problems with the monotheists directly to their faces? Did he just prefer a confrontational style in dealing with challenges like this?
James stepped to the forefront of the group, and people from among the monotheists immediately stepped toward him, formulating questions, trying to be the first to talk to him.
He offered a smile but raised a hand, palm out, signaling everyone to wait.
“Could everyone please step back a bit?” he asked in a raised voice. “I have something to say, and I want to make sure everyone can hear me.”
Stolen story; please report.
After a moment, everyone moved back a bit to give him room.
He turned his head to look at Mina, Alan, Mitzi, and the Chief.
“Not you guys, you guys get closer,” James said.
They stepped in alongside him.
Then he bent down and touched his palm to the ground. A large platform of earth rose from the ground, large enough for a dozen people to stand comfortably—but they wouldn’t need to, because the platform also had four stone seats formed on it, behind and off to the right of where James stood.
James’s four guests obligingly sat down.
He stepped forward and cleared his throat. It was the only sign of any kind of nervousness that Mitzi saw from him during the short speech.
“I’m sure you’re all wondering why I asked you to come out here this afternoon,” he said. He spoke loudly, firmly, but gently at the start.
Then James began to tell the story of what had happened to Moishe Rose, and his voice became sterner, more impassioned, as he went on. Mitzi’s eyes scanned the faces in the crowd. She saw looks of fear and understanding dawning on the listeners’ faces.
It was the classic expression, universal across cultures, of humans who recognize that they have done something wrong.
Mitzi heard quiet whispers, though the words were less comprehensible now than they had been when she was far away—and there were far fewer people willing to whisper during a speech from the King.
Despite her inability to make out any words, she could feel the expectation of punishment begin to take hold in the air. It wasn’t pure guilt that gave rise to that. As James discussed the innocents who had burned to death, there was fire in his voice. His personal anger was palpable.
“In effect, Cyrus and his ilk used this Dungeon as a trap to lure in innocent people, test their religious faith, and recruit followers for their religious movement,” James said after he had gone through all the facts of the story. “The Dungeon’s trial was a test of religious affiliation, not one of character. I know for a fact that the so-called angel was not only burning evil people. My friend, who was horrifically burned in the Dungeon, is not an evil man. In fact, he is phenomenally selfless, kind, and brave. Yet he is lucky he survived that experience. Most troubling of all, none of Cyrus’s followers helped him. None of them helped any of the people who burned to death in that Dungeon.”
The audience shifted nervously at this.
“I don’t bring this up because I want to blame anyone here for wrongdoing, exactly. I believe that many of the people here were lied to by the leaders of the religious sect whose representatives recently fled the Fisher Kingdom. I want to state unequivocally that those men and all their ilk are now criminals and enemies of the state. As far as I am concerned, they should be killed on sight, though I will not force others to adopt that policy if they’re seen outside the Kingdom, given that combat is always risky—and especially risky outside of my territory. The important point is that anyone who burns others to death for being unbelievers of their faith could not possibly be good. I know that, deep down, those of you here today know this. Your moral centers have not been so corrupted by the fall of our society that you’re incapable of recognizing this evil extremism for what it is. I’m asking you to think about that.
“Reflect on it. Remember, we have thousands of years of human history behind us. We have seen fanaticism and theocracy and religious tyranny in the past. In this country and in countries throughout the world, innocent people were burned as witches or heretics—or because they were just a bit different. This is a backward, superstitious ideology. We must never return to that worldview, especially not when we have had reason to learn that the world is more magical and contains more deities and supernatural powers in it than we ever could have imagined in centuries past.
“I’m speaking to you today not to assign blame, but to warn you. We must stand together against religious tyranny. I am preparing an Expeditionary Force to scout the land to the West and an army to conquer the land to the East. This is a plan I made today, in consultation with my council, and I am still accepting volunteers for both of these endeavors. We will secure Florida against theocracy and religious oppression. We will bring peace, justice, and order to the land around us. You may join if you like, but no one is required. As stated previously, as long as you make yourself useful to my country, you are welcome here.
“But my warning to you is this: one day, and the day may be soon, you may be forced to choose. If that day comes, you will be forced to choose between someone who shares your beliefs about religion and the nature of the universe—and wishes to impose that ideology on anyone and everyone around them—and someone who wants people to be free and to worship freely or not at all. Do you want to live in a time of Crusades? Or another Thirty Years War? That’s a real choice you might have to make. That’s what happens when we decide to make religious identity the most important part of our identity, above our common humanity and other common causes. If that moment comes, remember our history. Think about it. Think about which side you’re on.”
James paused to take a breath, and a voice in the crowd piped up suddenly in that opening. Mitzi had to admire the courage that person had, to interrupt James’s sermon at the moment when he was shifting from anger toward a gentler style. It was foolish, but courageous nevertheless.
“Why us?!” the voice seemed to cry out in an aggrieved tone.
James paused mid-sentence, processed, and then replied to the voice in the middle of the crowd. His eyes seemed to search for the person, but Mitzi doubted he could find them. The speaker had really taken refuge in anonymity and was either short or ducking down to avoid being seen.
“Could you please clarify what you’re trying to ask me?” James said, slightly quieter.
“Why are you giving this speech to just us, if you don’t want to blame us?” the voice asked. “It seems to me—”
“Oh, that’s easy,” James said, easily cutting the speaker off. “Because, although I did not come here to blame anyone, I know that some people here must be complicit in what happened in the Valley of the Shadow of Death. Arguably, many of you are probably complicit. If you watched what happened and did nothing in that Dungeon, you were part of the problem there. If you stood alongside Cyrus and those with him and did not lift a finger to help those his so-called angel was incinerating, you are an accomplice. Since I know many of you were recruited in that location, it follows that those people are complicit in some sense. I wanted to give the speech to just the monotheists in the Kingdom, because I know you need to hear things presented as they are, starkly, and because I wanted to preserve your personal safety.” He dropped each of these increasingly shocking sentences with a breathtaking nonchalance, simply, as if the truth of what he was saying was almost self-evident.
“Our safety?” asked the same voice, surprised.
“Yes,” James said. His voice was gentle now, but he raised the volume to project as much sound and authority as he had through the earlier parts of the speech. “There are many people here who know my friend Moishe as a hero from Orientation, and there are many others who have seen friends or loved ones killed by religious extremists or sacrificed to supposed divine entities. Frankly, I was afraid that if I gave this rather emotionally charged speech in front of the entire Kingdom, some of you might be killed. As I said, some of you are arguably complicit in what happened. Even though I am willing to assume that those people were misled, others might not be so understanding.
“The passions of our thousands of citizens could be aroused by a story of the sort of barbaric behavior that is unacceptable in our civilized country. Since Cyrus and his closest allies fled the country, they can’t take out their anger on the people most responsible for what happened. And their emotions might be sufficiently kindled for them to murder some of you. Given the sheer number of my citizens, it could be difficult for me to protect you. Mob violence is as dangerous as anything. I will have to announce a summary of what happened to other citizens of the Fisher Kingdom soon, so they are aware of the threat of violence from people like Cyrus, but using more careful language. That way, I hope to avoid any religiously—or anti-religiously—motivated violence.”
The murmurs of the crowd had turned quite emotional as James spoke. Mitzi heard a mix of emotions, ranging from fear to regret for sins of the past to gratitude.
Detached from the crowd, Mitzi was able to assess the speech at a slight emotional remove.
James is much scarier than I ever realized, she thought. She looked around behind her, checking to make certain that no other Fisher Kingdom citizens had come out from the complex to observe his speech. Because James was right. If the word of what had happened got around, and it wasn’t managed carefully, she could imagine other citizens wanting to take matters into their own hands. Mob justice would be an ugly probability.
He gave an angry sermon in which he convinced them—and even me—that his primary goal was to prevent violence. For any of them who might have still sympathized with Cyrus, it’s a warning. For the rest, it’s a promise of protection. And perhaps more…
“Now I have fully explained the situation to you, my dear citizens,” James said. “I hope you will help me. If you see any sign of danger, either from the religious zealots or from the mob, please say something.” He gestured at Chief DaSilva. “The Chief of Police is right here.” DaSilva raised his hand awkwardly, as if he wasn’t sure if he was the right person. “If you are interested in working with the Army, I believe most of the people here know what Dave Matsumoto looks like by now.” There were nods from a lot of people in the crowd. “If you are interested in joining the Fisher Expeditionary Force, that will be led by Alan and Mitzi Roget.” He gestured at Alan and Mitzi, and they both waved awkwardly, joining DaSilva in feeling like they weren’t certain they really belonged on this stage.
“For everyone else, please continue contributing as best you can to your community,” James finished.
Mitzi didn’t know who started it, but someone in the crowd began to applaud, and the gesture quickly caught fire and spread to everyone else, fueled by the strange and powerful brew of emotions that had taken hold over the group as a whole. James bent and touched the earth beneath his feet, and the stage descended back into the ground again.
Then, smiling and waving, he turned from the crowd and began to walk back toward the apartment complex.
Mina rose quickly and put her arm around him before he had made it three steps. She hung off her husband’s shoulder lovingly as they walked away from the place where the stage had been. Mitzi heard a tiny snippet of what Mina was saying to him as the two passed
“That was amazing, skapi,” Mina whispered. “I don’t know what I expected, but…”