Page 78 of Incipient

“I’m afraid this is an all-hands-on-deck situation. If you’re already putting in twenty, you’re going to have to put in more. It’s as simple as that. Protective sigils must be put up around town, consistently, especially in vulnerable places. Hospitals, schools, local bars and discotheques, as well as every square inch of land that borders this town.”

My mind snagged on the worddiscothequesjust as Morgan leaned in and whispered, “Did he really just saydiscotheques? What year is this?”

I bit down on my lip to stop myself from laughing.

“What’s more, we’re going to needallactive Rigs patrolling, starting immediately. Please check in with your Handler for your new schedule if you haven’t already been given one. We want to make sure we have teams out there around the clock, especially with the kind of numbers we’re seeing right now.”

“What kind of numbers are we talking about exactly?” called someone from behind us.

“We don’t have a specific number at the moment, but it is substantial.”

“Relative to what?” asked a different man from the audience. “With all due respect, Magister, how do you expect us to prepare if we don’t know what we’re dealing with? You haven’t even told us what’s drawing them here in the first place.”

An outburst of applause sounded around the room as other people shouted out their agreement. The crowd was hungry for details and they were not leaving here until they got what they wanted.

My gaze returned to William who appeared flustered, as if debating how much he could actually share with them without eliciting mass hysteria. Turning to Bennett and another man, he covered the mic and whispered something to them. After a brief exchange, he nodded and faced the crowd again.

“Ladies and gentlemen, come to order please,” he stated firmly as the room once again quieted. “Thereisindeed a reason for the increased demon activity we’ve been seeing, and while I’d wanted to withhold this information until we gathered all of the necessary details, I can no longer do so without putting the rest of us at risk,” he said pointedly as he smoothed the front of his cassock, eyebrows puckered. “Most of you are already aware of the circumstances surrounding Lucifer’s visit to our realm. What you do not know is that he appears to have left behind more than just his mark on our world. A parting gift if you will.”

An eerie hush fell over the crowd as everyone waiting for the big reveal.

“It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that Lucifer’s progeny is upon us.”

Gasps and frantic chatter erupted all around the meeting hall as I turned and met Morgan’s nervous gaze. She was probably wondering the same thing I was: Was William going to call out Nikki by name?

“Rest assured we are monitoring the mother closely and already have a team in place,” continued William, speaking over the buzzing crowd. “The Son of Perdition will not be permitted to draw even a single first breath in this world. The wellbeing and safety of all mortals and Anakim alike is of the utmost importance.”

“Does that mean the child hasn’t been born yet?” asked someone else, though at this point, I wasn’t even sure which side of the room the question was coming from let alone who was asking it.

Too many people. Not enough brain power.

“That is correct,” answered William as he wiped the bead of sweat that had formed above his eyebrow.

“How can it be drawing in so manyunderworldersif it hasn’t even been born yet?” asked a man, standing up in the crowd near the front of the podium. “If it’s already strong enough to do that, what’s going to happen if this thing is born?”

More disruption and chatter from the audience.

“We aren’t going to allow that to happen,” assured William, though I had no idea what he was basing that confidence on. “As I said before, we already have a full team in place. The risk will be eliminated before it can become a real threat to any of us. In the meantime, we ask that you all stay vigilant and do your part to keep our town as safe and steady as it has always been. Life will be business as usual except for the inconvenience of putting in a few more hours of work each day...”

My thoughts drifted inward.

As much as I appreciated William’s calmer-heads-will-prevail schtick, I knew it was just that. A schtick. The truth of the matter was they had absolutely zero control over Nikki. Not to mention their “team” was really a trio of Horseman who needed a teenage girl to join them in order to be able to have any power in this world at all. Things were definitely not looking as good as William wanting everyone to believe.

“We are imploring that all factions work together to ensure things go as smoothly as possible,” he went on at the front of the room. “Again, your Handlers as well as the Faction Elders will be available for further instructions at the end of the meeting should any of you need further assistance. Bennett?”

The younger man rose from his chair and exchanged places with William at the podium as the three elder men watched on closely. After introducing himself as a recent transfer from Seattle, he spent the next forty-five minutes briefly reiterating everything William had said and then providing a little more detail about the new safety measures in place. He spent a good part of the meeting explaining the different types of protective sigils that would work best against these sorts of demons as well as the ones that wouldn’t. It was all very boring and monotonous, except for the part where he announced that they would be offering basic Sorcery Apprenticeships and advanced close-quarter combat training sessions for all factions, which would be available in the Lab downstairs starting tomorrow.

The fact that they felt the need to up everyone’s skill level sent a pang of trepidation through my belly. I was no expert, but it seemed that these demons were much more of a problem than William was letting on.

After Bennett was done with his part of the meeting, William retook the podium and adjourned the meeting. Chatter immediately swept through the hall while others rushed to make it to the doors ahead of the line.

“Well, that was…long,” I said, suppressing a yawn as I stood up and stretched my arms. It would have been nice to be able to say that it was an eventful meeting, but I had hardly learned anything that I didn’t already know beforehand.

“I don’t even know why we come to these things,” whined Carly as she joined our newly formed circle.

“Well, for one, they’re mandatory,” reminded Caleb, flopping his arm around his sister’s shoulder.

“Maybe someone should tell that to Trace and Nikki then,” she answered, clearly irritated that the two of them had somehow managed to get out of this bore-fest.

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