Epilogue

I was back in the ready room where the lawyer and I met everyday during the trial. No light came in through the window so I guessed it was nighttime. The door opened and a man walked in. I recognized him--The Director of The Department of Procreation. He sat across from me.

"I prefer the Institute," he told me.

"You're not..." I said.

"No, Elaine likes to pass what people are thinking to me, especially when they are thinking about me." He looked at the door. "Even when it's not necessary!"

"Sir, I'd like to apologize for what happened," I said.

"Please," he said with a dismissive wave. "It went according to plan."

"With no disrespect, sir," I said. "I took over a courthouse."

"Like I expected you to," he replied.

"I don't understand."

"I've been waiting a few months for someone like you, Michael," he said. "I was beginning to think I would have to fabricate the incident."

I sat back. "The rape?"

"It didn't matter what incited the attempt to control a Positive," he said. "I needed a clear illustration of what would happen."

"Control," I said with a nod. "It's an interesting word for imprison."

"In this case, it's the same thing," he told me. "I'm guessing you had a few government-sponsored visitors. Influential people who want to pass on their genes."

"You wanted to show them only you can 'control' us."

"I don't have the illusion of control," he replied. "Only you can control yourself!"

"I think the boy and Eleanor did a good job."

"Telepathics can serve as limitations," he said. "There are always limits, Michael. In this case, the limit is rather simple--serve humanity with your power and you will be rewarded with many liberties."

"And if I don't, Telepathics will limit me?"

"They'll kill you." The smile didn't reach his eyes. "Not you, of course! You're a good soldier, Michael. It took you all of one weekend to earn your first monthly baby bonus."

"You wanted to send a message to the Positives who haven't come into the fold," I said. "Join or die!"

"We're not to that point yet," he replied. "There are going to be a lot of indiscretions with this generation of Positives. No socialization! Hopefully by the time the next crop is ready, I'll have something in place. Only a small part of the message was for Positives."

"Then?"

"Certain people in the government need to understand that they can't stop you. I've been trying to beat that point into some very hard heads for over three years now!" he said. "If they can't stop you, they'll never control you. You have a physical element to your power, and it would only take a minor mistake for you to escape. Of course, it might not even take a mistake if we consider your female friends."

"They were very effective."

"The water balloons were my favorite part," he said smiling. "Elizabeth is something special; you're a very lucky man. I'm going to try to replicate that luck elsewhere."

I nodded. "So..."

"The choices are simple," he said. "Humans can go war against your kind. Maybe we'll win! For sure, we'll make ourselves extinct though. I shudder to think the damage Elaine and Santos would do in a real fight. There's another Telepathic, Simon, he took over a county without really intending it. He was just trying to get through his day."

"And if they don't declare war on us?"

"We can work together," he said. "But working together means compromises."

"The Institute," I said. "Both sides have to accept its authority."

"It's sole authority over Positives."

I nodded.

"A few other things obviously," he said. "I can't have a Positive accused of rape when he's doing his duty."

"I..."

"Raped the girl," he finished for me. "By this time next month, nothing resulting from the use of your power will be illegal. The Institute will decide when you've crossed the line. This isn't going to be a line! There is no sex without a Positive. We cannot consent because we cannot decide to do it for ourselves. We're empty; you are life! The girl was blind, so how exactly is it that she could decide the light is evil?"

I watched him as he got up. The Director stopped at the door. He turned his head back to meet my eyes.

"It's hard for me too, Michael," he told me. "You're right to feel guilty but carry this burden as quietly as you do the others. We're trying to save ourselves. If that's what it takes, I'll hold the next one down for you. I'm sure if I had to send you out there again, you wouldn't hesitate to put a few more men up on crosses."

The Director got it wrong--it took three months to make everything legal.

A Constitutional Amendment.

The battle would have been fiercer except the other side didn't fight as passionately. They wanted to lie down and die; we wanted to stand up and live.

I sat in the cafeteria.

They released me on a Thursday afternoon. Elizabeth called me to say she expected me at work the next day. Nobody had come to my desk to congratulate me on being released. Ana said 'hello' and rushed off to meetings.

I thought maybe six months in jail had been too much. It might be better to find a new job somewhere else. Those security jobs were still out there. From the documentation Ana sent me, it was obvious the company didn't need me. All my responsibilities had been handed off and Ana had the Institute's environment well in hand.