Birth of the Alliance (12 page)

Charles’ contribution had been the development of the ability to record the audio and video signals transmitted by the devices that Will and others were developing and miniaturizing. It would be critical that they record the video signals inside cells, as none of them expected to see any effects in the instant they happened, nor to know exactly when the changes might start. Charles’ affirmation to seeing the video of Franklin and the printing shop was one in which he’d played back the video signal transmitted through Will. That meant that the test was a rousing success.

They’d traveled to Philadelphia for the test because Hope was returning to the Outside for several years, and they could use one submarine to accomplish both goals. Will’s direct ancestors would be in danger due to the upcoming wars, and Hope would be there in Philadelphia to ensure they survived. Will was able to select as their video and audio test subject one of the key figures in American history, and the fact that the recording aspect worked meant they had the man’s face and voice recorded for posterity.

“Will? I think I've got a chance to do that change thing you always talk about.”

The mantra,
be the change you want in the world
, had stuck. All members of the Alliance had unique opportunities to go out into the world—referred to as the Outside—and make small, incremental, but meaningful changes in people's lives that altered those lives for the better. Over the course of years, decades, and centuries, those changes would add up.

Will shook his head to refocus his thoughts, and wiped the sweat from his brow. “How so?” He pulled the spectacles off and put them in a pocket. They were getting in his way at this point.

“A horse just knocked a kid over and it looks like he's hurt pretty badly. I think I can help him out. What should I do?”

Will hesitated. “Are you… safe?” That meant Charles needed to both be wearing scutarium clothing, keep his Energy shields up except for the few brief instances when his Energy was directly needed, and had checked to make sure there were no Aliomenti nearby.

“I'm good.”

“Do you need me to come to you… just in case?”

“Come on, Will,” Charles whispered through the transmitter. “They're not going to swoop down on me in the middle of a crowded street.”

“We don't know that, Charles. We know they're going to get here eventually. Just… keep it as basic as possible. I'll head that way just in case, though.”

Will maneuvered his way through the streets back to where he and Charles had separated earlier that morning. He knew where Charles was stationed; he'd left Charles there before heading to purchase the copy of
Poor Richard's Almanack
. Will enjoyed seeing the sights of one of the formative cities in United States history. He enjoyed hearing the clop of horses' hooves, a sound that still surprised him after a childhood spent with automobiles. The smells were different; horses and dirt and sweat, which would eventually be replaced by gasoline fumes and asphalt and artificial food fragrances. The occasional powdered wig was a novelty to him; he wasn't sure he would ever get used to the idea of covering his own dark hair with a white wig, not after he'd been so thrilled to eliminate the few white hairs on his head following his initial Purge.

He could imagine what Charles was doing. He'd approach the injured boy, appearing to be nothing more than a concerned citizen. He'd discharge large amounts of Energy into the child, which would aid tremendously in the healing process, and then, once others had moved to the child's side, offer to go find a doctor. The child would recover miraculously, Charles would be long gone from the scene, and nobody would remember his presence hours or days later.

Will rounded a corner and found the scene just as Charles had described. The horse was tied to a tree, pawing at the ground. The rider was kneeling over a small boy, who was unconscious and pale. Charles had reached the boy, and was talking to the rider about what had happened.

Will grinned, looked up… and froze momentarily, before moving quickly and quietly behind a crowd of people heading to see what had caused the commotion.

How had he missed
them
? Had he been that inattentive, so certain they still had decades more to wait that he’d ignored hidden clues and wisps of Energy signatures that had announced their arrival? Had Hope tried to contact him, and he’d not listened.

It didn’t matter now. They were here.

“Step away, everyone!” Sebastian announced. “The man kneeling near the child is a thief. He has stolen from me, and I demand that he be thrown into prison until he returns my stolen property!”

Sebastian's words weren't terribly convincing, but his Energy moved to those in the crowd, influencing them until they were glaring at Charles, the accused thief. Even the handful of men helping Charles tend to the injured boy began shifting away from him.

“This man is lying,” Charles said. “I've stolen nothing from him, or anyone else. Leave us be! We are attempting to aid an injured child. Your false claims can surely wait until proper care is delivered.”

“There are plenty of people here who can help the injured boy,” Victor replied. “I witnessed the theft myself. Let the others help the child. Come away with us, as any honorable man would when confronted with evidence of his crime. Don’t make a scene.”

Charles shook his head. “I have no reason to go with you. I've stolen nothing. And I'm rather busy at the moment. Go away.”

But the crowds were heavily influenced by the push-empathy efforts of the trio. Tacitus, who wore the top hat Will remembered from future encounters, looked quite excited at the possibility of seizing the Energy-wielding stranger. He rubbed his hands together, a wicked smile upon his face.

Charles stood. “I'm not leaving.” He folded his arms in a defiant gesture. He was trapped; though he could easily teleport away, he'd made a promise not to demonstrate impossible skills in front of humans, no matter what the personal cost. By calling attention to their conflict, the Aliomenti trio had ensured Charles couldn't run without being tracked down by others. He wasn't yet strong enough to overcome the push-empathy efforts of the trio.

But Will was.

He dropped his Energy Shield and walked out onto the street, watching as Sebastian's head nearly came unhinged as he snapped around to look at Will. Will's Energy, far stronger than the trio's combined efforts, cast doubt about the truthfulness of Sebastian's claim.

“Sir, what is it that you claim this man has stolen? If your claim is true, he ought to have stolen goods on his person, wouldn’t he? Tell us what goods were allegedly taken, and the crowd can search him. If he is found guilty, so be it. If he is not, then you owe this man and this entire group of people an apology for your false accusation.”

The tension mounted, as the crowd sensed a potential physical conflict. None of the men who had spoken had presented weapons, but several of the spectators in the crowd quietly moved handmade muskets and rifles from holsters to their hands, ready to stop any shots before they started. Will could smell the gunpowder from the muskets, feel the nervousness as those in the crowd wondered if the accused man was guilty, and whether the accusation would lead to violence. Will proactively dispatched nanos to surround Charles and a second batch around himself. Just in case. He also activated an Energy shield that would prevent the Aliomenti from teleporting anything on to Charles, planting evidence of his guilt. He felt the mental nudge as one of the men tried just that… and failed.

Victor’s face suggested he was the one who had failed to breach Will’s Energy shield, and that his evidence was now a matter of hearsay. Both accused and accusers were strangers in this town, and none of the men had a reputation to enhance their claims.

“He has stolen… money.” The pause was quite evident, a definite verbal cue that Victor was lying. Still, he’d chosen well. Victor recognized that Charles would have at least
some
money on his person. It might be sufficient to cast suspicion on Charles; could Charles prove the money
hadn’t
been stolen from Victor?

“How much do you allege this man has stolen from you?” Will asked. Even as he spoke, he removed all coins and other valuables from Charles. He could teleport the goods to his own pockets, and Charles would appear a penniless target of a cruel prank.

“Four pounds!” Sebastian shouted, just as Victor simultaneously shouted “two pounds.” They recognized their mistake immediately.

Will arched an eyebrow and pounced on their mistake. “You accuse this man of theft, yet the alleged victim and witness can't agree on the amount stolen?”

“He stole from
both
of us,” Victor replied quickly. Sebastian did his best to look as if this story wasn’t a surprise. “We would naturally give different answers.”

Will glanced at Charles. “Sir, if you turn out your pockets, we can determine if there is any truth to the accusations against you. Apparently, you should have somewhere between two and six pounds worth of money on your person, if these men’s claims are to be believed.” All eyes moved to Charles, who put his hands into his empty pockets, in preparation for turning them out. All eyes had swiveled to Charles

“He has already dropped the money off elsewhere!” Victor said, shouting the words before Charles could complete his move.

Will stared at Victor. “Sir, there’s a problem now. You claim this man stole from you. Your little friend there claims the same. You come after him as he’s aiding an injured child. You claim that he’s dropped the goods elsewhere. But I must ask you: if we go to the spot you claim is the drop point for the stolen money, how do we, here in this crowd, know that the accused is the one who put that money there? How do we know that you’ve not done so yourself ahead of time? You might do just that, accuse those you suspect have money, and accept repayment over jail. An effective scam, perhaps. But I for one believe that
you
are the ones lying. This man is innocent.”

The crowd was swayed to Will’s points. In part, that was because Will was overriding the Energy efforts from Victor, Sebastian, and Tacitus meant to convince the crowd of Charles' guilt. With no witnesses and no stolen contraband, and no ability to force the crowds to their viewpoint, they were forced to back off their accusations. Glaring at Will and Charles, they turned and walked away. Those who'd been tending the injured boy returned their attention to the youth, and most of the crowd began to move away.

“I'm concerned,” Will said as soon as the trio had moved out of earshot. His voice was raised, meant to be heard by the slowly dispersing crowd of spectators.

“What are you concerned about?” Charles whispered. “Weren't they…”

“Yes, they were acting in a suspicious manner,” Will said, and Charles had the sense to act as if this was exactly what he'd expected Will to say. “It's almost as if they themselves had stolen from one of the fine residents of this fair city, and attempted to deflect attention from themselves by accusing another.”

“Wait… you think they've stolen from someone
here
? In this group here?" Charles sounded stunned, and pulled his pockets out. “My money is gone!” He looked panicked.

“Well, they couldn't seem to decide on the crime you'd committed,” Will said. “And then as soon as we attempted to show your supposed possession of stolen property, they tried to stop us. Clearly, those men didn’t want there to be any evidence shown that not only did you not steal a thing…”

"I was the victim!” Charles shouted. “They knew there was nothing for me to show, nothing I could have stolen, because they’d snuck my money out of my pockets!”

“I think if I thought I had anything worth stealing, I'd want to see if those men had it, before they're able to leave town.” Will started walking slowly in the direction the Aliomenti trio had moved, but the crowd around them surged past him. They were quite convinced now that the three Aliomenti had stolen from some of their number, and they intended to put a stop to it. After the crowds passed them, Will and Charles turned and headed in the opposite direction, stopping to help the now-recovered boy to his feet and sending him on his way.

“Nice job,” Will murmured. “You did a fine job healing him.”

“I had no idea what to do when they showed up.”

“I gave the crowd a suggestion. They’re going to see if it might be true. In the interim, we can leave the city.”

“Why do we need to leave, though?” Charles asked. “No one thinks we’re guilty of anything now.” He gave Will a shrewd look. “I’m guessing they don’t even remember seeing us.”

Will nodded. “We need to leave this place quickly, before they have a chance to start tracking us again, and the only thing stopping them is the fact that they'll never reveal their abilities in a crowd of humans like that. The longer they're distracted, the better our chance for an untracked escape.”

Charles was concerned. “Those were the men you've always told us about, weren't they?”

"They were," Will said. "The man who initially accused you, with the longer hair, is Sebastian. He's the one who can Track Energy. The dark-haired man is Victor, who can detect the truth in anyone; he’d know you were innocent immediately.” Will grinned, and Charles laughed. “The third one was Tacitus. Don’t let him touch you; he drains your Energy stores and can leave you pretty helpless.”