“In other news, a group of doomsday activists shut down Metro lines this morning as they claimed. . .”
“Oh. My. God,” Maddy’s technician whispered to no one in particular.
Phones across the offices began ringing incessantly. For a moment, no one seemed able to move to go answer them. They all stood stock-still, remaining in disbelief.
*
The shockwaves from the utterly astonishing revelation that Archangel Charles Churchson had been behind the mysterious deadly bombing of the Angel offices quickly spread out from Angel City and across the world. The idea that an Angel himself – especially an Archangel – could be behind something so odious was deeply troubling to even those who had been consistent defenders of Angelkind and their rights. And the anti-Angel groups found their claims about the corruption of the supposedly perfect Immortals vindicated.
Bizarrely, A! and ANN and some of the other Angel fan networks kept running normal Angel coverage, including specials on Maddy, while most of the regular news stations were running non-stop coverage of the Churchson scandal, interviewing family members of the victims, running profiles on Churchson, and cutting together exposés on other high-ranking Angel figures. The Angel networks were pretending like nothing was happening, even though the presidential election was mere days away. Poll numbers showed the public flocking to support Senator Linden, the Immortals Bill, and the Senator’s proposed Global Angel Commission, known as GAC. Maddy didn’t know how it was all going to end up. The Council of True Immortals had promised swift retaliation if humans trespassed on the rights of Angels. Everyone was on edge. But, in the wake of this devastating scandal, Mark had told her the “show must go on”.
And so it did: Maddy soon got her second wave of Protections, bringing her up to her final number. Like the first batch, they all were very well-to-do and had a sense of entitlement clinging to them. But this time she tried to not let it bother her as much. Because, as Jackson had said, sometimes change took time. Soon, she assured herself, she’d be able to start advocating for some changes, but after she got really settled.
Maddy also didn’t want to kid herself: with the shocking revelation of Archangel Churchson’s corruption and violence, she was secretly hopeful there would have to be some kind of reform on the way. People were demanding it.
Jacks had been very busy recently, and he wouldn’t say much about what he’d been doing. But she thought it had to do with his treatments, which seemed to have increased in frequency.
Then Election Day came. Maddy went over to the Godspeeds’ house that evening to watch the results. Jackson, his mom and his sister were there. Mark was at the NAS offices, preparing to start manoeuvring around whatever might happen politically.
A strange pall had hung over Angel City that day, a morning mist that lingered far into midday, lending the afternoon a grey cast. People seemed to walk or drive around with their heads down. The beautiful Immortals were what Angel City knew. What it thrived on. What it felt pride in. And now a large part of the rest of the country might vote against them?
The public revelation of Archangel Churchson’s crimes had been catastrophic for the pro-Angel political cause in the final days before the election. Everyone who had been infuriated by the threats of violence from the Council, everyone who had been calling the Angels “fallen”, all those who had pointed to the existence of someone like Maddy as a sign that Angels had been hiding things – they all felt a victory that day.
“We cannot let
one bad apple ruin an entire system that thrives on goodness and the principle of service to mankind,” Mark had said in a press conference. But for many humans across the country, that was not good enough.
At 7:43 p.m., hours before anyone would have predicted, the news networks were already able to call the winner of the election. They cut quickly to footage of the acceptance speech: the man on the screen had a shock of lustrous politician hair, with only a bit of grey starting to show through. His smile was meant to inspire confidence. Confidence in yourself that you’d made the right decision by voting for him.
It was Senator Linden, now president-elect Linden.
“My fellow Americans, I wanted to speak directly to you, the men and women of this great country of ours, the United States of America, the greatest country this world has ever seen. As one of our earliest citizens said, we are indeed a light upon the hill.”
The president-elect cleared his throat and continued:
“I want to thank you for the confidence you’ve put in me. I will do my best to serve you and this country as your next president. Now, I don’t think it will surprise you to hear me say that I’m proud to be an American. But it might surprise you when I look westward to Angel City and see something as un-American as the institution of the National Angel Services on our own shores. Well, I want to do something about it. The Angels don’t want you to hear about this. They’ve got their fancy cars and fancy homes and fancy lives to think about. I know many of you have followed these so-called Immortals your whole lives. They’ve thrilled you, moved you. You might even remember important events in your life around Commissionings, or a particularly memorable save. There is nothing wrong with that. We are all human Americans, allowed to spend our time and liberty however we see fit. The Constitution guarantees this. However, when the Constitution was framed, the Angel question was not on the table. As you know, I’ve been spearheading the special committee on Capitol Hill over the past nine months that has been investigating Angel affairs. And what I’ve discovered would shock – yes, shock – you. Much of it I can’t disclose right now, but, when the time comes, it shall be made public.
“But even without this information, just ask yourself: What is American about conducting all your training in secret? What is American about keeping our own government and military away from the secrets that you hold? What is American about creating yourself as a separate class from the rest of us hard-working humans?
“Recent events, such as threats by Gabriel and the NAS Council, Archangel Churchson’s disgusting mass murder and deceit, and even Jackson Godspeed’s apparent injuries and inability to recover, have raised grave questions about the claims of Angels to having a divine right to be on earth. Scientists and philosophers have been debating such things for decades, but recent research suggests that Angels may not be what we think. What you think. We truly stand at a crisis moment.
“Before I go any further, let me say that I stand here today to promise that I do not condone, nor would ever condone, violence against any Angel.” His eyes twinkled. “Yet I cannot stand by as our sacred institutions of liberty and fairness are trampled on by the Immortals, True and Born alike. My Immortals Bill, which I plan on enacting as soon as possible with the help of the sitting president, will promise imprisonment for any being performing supernatural acts, and dewinging for flagrant offences. This will stay in effect for as long as it takes to review the current position of Angels in human society. Our allies across the world are ready to honour this bill in their own countries as part of the Global Angel Commission, which will spearhead all human efforts to reform the Angels.”
The TV suddenly went blank. Kris had turned it off. She had tears in her eyes.
“He’s lying! He doesn’t want reform! He’s just the polished front for the HDF,” Jacks spat out.
“I don’t understand,” Maddy said. “They won’t really ban Angels. Will they? And taking wings? Isn’t it just some kind of strategic ploy to transform Protection for Pay?”
“He’s serious. Don’t you see? He just wants us dead. They have allies across the world now, there’s no place for us to go. They want our power and our money. That’s all they see. They don’t see the good we do.”
Maddy looked worriedly at Jacks.
“You’re part of this too, Maddy. Whether you want to be or not,” Jacks said. “You’re a Guardian now.”
“But, Jacks, you know there are things I don’t like about how the system works,” Maddy said. “And what Churchson did with his bombing, how many were killed. . .”
“I don’t like those things either, Maddy. You know I don’t.” Jacks looked at her with his steely blue eyes. “But there are right ways to deal with reform, and there are wrong ways. The right way is with Angels, by Angels, from Angels. Not from outsiders. Not this way. Not Linden’s way.”