Take a chance, Fallon told herself. Her mother trusted Arlys absolutely.
“I’ll be sending for the recruits. The more who know they’re coming, where they’re coming from, the less security they have.”
“Scouts and supply teams are going to catch wind of them,” Jonah pointed out.
“Not until they get closer. At that point we can send people out to help ensure their safe arrival. I have some names for that detail. Poe and Kim, Flynn, Starr, ah, Maggie Rydell. If you have other or different suggestions, I’d appreciate the input. Some of the recruits are really raw, won’t have serious training. Some are coming as families, with young kids.”
“All right. Off the record,” Arlys agreed. “Until.”
“Okay. I’m asking that Colin continue to work with the younger recruits, but there’ll be too many for him to handle when the new ones get here, so I’d like suggestions on that.”
“Denzel.” Duncan said immediately. “He’s good with kids, and he’s better in theory than execution.”
“I agree with that,” Will put in. “Bryar and Aaron have plenty of experience with instructing. What about the other bases?”
“I’ll wait for Mallick, Thomas, Troy, Boris to tell me if they need more instructors. If they do, are there any in New Hope who are qualified and would be willing to travel, to spend months away? Maybe longer?”
“I can give you a list of names.” Katie looked at Arlys, got a nod. “Those who don’t have families, or who’d be willing to take their families outside of New Hope. I’m going to be straight with you, Fallon. There’s some concern in the community that you’ll just order people to train or fight or uproot to one of the other locations.”
She’d seen the looks, heard some whispers. She’d sensed some fear. “Hannah doesn’t fight.”
“I—I take combat training,” Hannah began.
“You’re a healer, not a soldier. You have a skill, a calling. Why would I push a sword into your hand?”
“She’s pretty decent with a bow,” Tonia put in. “You’re better with a tourniquet,” she said to Hannah.
“And others are better at providing food, at building, at caring for children, at making weapons rather than using them. Or with …” Fallon waved a hand toward Chuck. “Technology.”
Chuck tapped his chest with his thumbs. “I’m that guy.”
“Why would I demand anyone fight? That doesn’t accomplish anything but resentment. Why would I demand someone uproot their life, or the lives of family?” Frustrated, she paused, looked inward. “I haven’t proven myself yet.”
“Change comes hard,” Arlys pointed out. “We found that out when we first introduced rules and laws, and the town council. We’re bigger now than we were, so you’re going to get some pushback, proven or not. You’re so young,” she added. “That’s already a problem for some. Among the Uncannys, there’s more unification. But even there.”
“People get complacent.” Bill patted his hands on his knees. “We’ve got a kind of routine around here, and anything that changes it gets some worked up. Hell, a few years after we got settled here and voted on mandatory recycling, composting? You’d’ve thought, for some, we’d instituted indentured servitude. But we got through it, and now it’s just the way it is. Not everybody’s happy right now you’re bringing so many people in.”
“Plenty of complaints coming in,” Katie confirmed. “A lot of rumors. You can leave handling that to me and the town council for now.”
“If we have more soldiers, Hannah can focus on healing, someone like Petra can concentrate on child tending. A cook like …” She searched for the name.
“Sal,” Eddie provided.
“Yeah, her. She can cook, and so on. But more? Those who complain and push against change ignore what happened to the world that was, and learn nothing from it. They forget, choose to forget, what happened here on July Fourth, and those who died that day, they take for granted those who risk their lives to rescue others, to fight back against destroying everything you’ve built.”
Katie nodded. “You’re not wrong, but some won’t want to hear it said just that bluntly. And it’s hard, Fallon, it’s brutal for a parent to accept their child, whether that child came from them or came to them, is training for war. Hard for some of them to accept a child is going to lead them.”
She held up a hand. “Don’t say you’re not a child. I’m aware, as is everyone in this room. But you’re young, and you’ll find pockets of people who’ll see you as a child.”
“They won’t, after I prove myself.”
“You said that before,” Lana chimed in. “What do you mean by prove yourself?”
“It starts tonight. I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I am your child, and I know the sacrifices both of you’ve made already.”
Simon took Lana’s hand, linked fingers. “What are you going to do tonight?”
“I’m going to eliminate some nuclear weapons.”
“For God’s sake, Fallon.”
“I know where and how. Mom, the Book of Spells is in me. I know how. This is necessary, and it’s a show of power, of strength, of commitment to the light. We’ll start with five locations tonight.”
“ ‘We’?”
She glanced toward Duncan and Tonia, then back to Katie. “I’m sorry. I need them.”
“Whatever your powers, you’re three teenagers going up against nuclear weapons. We need to find an expert, someone with experience on nuclear weapons, on disarming—”
“I said before, we won’t disarm, but eliminate. They’ll cease to be.”
“Radiation poisoning—”
“Mom.” Duncan cut her off, gently, before addressing Fallon. “Magick’s still a science. You can’t eliminate matter without replacing it. Magick 101.”
“But you can alter the matter.”
“An alchemy spell?” Intrigued, Duncan hooked his thumbs in his front pockets, considered. “Now you’re talking postgrad work.”
“They’ll cease to be and become something else, something harmless, and we destroy the harmless. We’ll also eliminate the means to launch them, or fire them.”
“Wait, wait.” Chuck waved a hand. “Computers, electronics, components. Oh, baby, and the data in them. We can use those. You can’t just change them into daisies or puppies. Take me along, I can shut them down, then we need to bring them back. Jesus Christ, what I could do with … Sorry, ladies, but it gets me hot.”
“You could tell us what’s most useful, what to bring back—and we could transport some of it to the other bases. Would you help set up communication centers outside New Hope?”
“I’m your man. I got a couple people I’d want with me once we have the goods. In fact, you’d save time if you spread us out. They’re not as good as me, but, seriously, who is?”
“You’re in,” Fallon said. “Mom, he’ll need an energy tonic. Poe and I found out—”
“Boy, did we,” Poe confirmed.
“Flashing’s draining and disorienting for non-magickals,” Fallon finished.
“Ton … holy shit.” Grin spreading, Chuck did a chair boogie. “This is freaking awesome.”
“Prepare for a head rush,” Poe warned him.
“You need me, too.”
Will’s jaw dropped as he turned to Arlys. “Why? Come on.”
“On-site reporting. With my own eyes. People trust me, Will, to tell the truth. People here and wherever we can broadcast. Fallon’s right, this is a huge show of power—and intent. Will, this is what I do, just like you go out, take on Raiders, PWs. You need to do this, Fallon, but you also need people to know and believe you have.”
“Yes, you’re right. But some of what we do will have to be kept out. Like the details of the spell itself.”
“Off the record. Absolutely agreed. Make that tonic a double, Lana. Chuck and I will split it.”
“On the road again.” He winked at her.
“I’ll get the tonic.” Pale, Lana rose. “You’ve calculated the risks?”
“I promise you.”
“You’ve calculated the risks,” Lana repeated, “factoring in that without you, the dark wins?”
“I promise you.”
“I need to go to the office, get a couple things. Video recorder, which will be off,” Arlys assured Fallon, “during your spell, and whenever else you say.”