More talking heads, I'm afraid. This novel will have a slow build to action.

Part Two

Melody looked up as Aaron approached her open door, seeing him even before he knocked on the frame. She rose, smiling, to welcome him.

"I am very glad to see you. I've tried to keep up with what's happening to you and your town and clinic, but you people are all pretty quiet."

"I think that's understandable," said Aaron, as she escorted him to a seat, "even without the problems we have from bigots. I have also - as you can understand - been busy. When I got your request I realized it would be a good opportunity to catch up. In both directions. Though I suspect you have something specific to ask about."

"I knew you were doing a lot more about problems in this world than most people realize when you organized that brain trust so quickly," said Melody, plunging straight in as she dropped into her chair. "They're all contacts you access regularly, aren't they? Along with many of the others who responded to the call for help."

"Old friends and new, united in a desire to make the world a better place."

"Just... What is it that you do? Why doesn't anyone know about you?"

"Many know about us," he said, addressing the second query first. "Including many governments. However, our efforts work better on the QT."

He sighed and favored her with a tired smile.

"Doing something extraordinary once is generally easy if you're empowered, and you'll probably get away with it, though there may be problems afterwards. Do it twice and various bureaucracies sit up and take notice. Start to do it a third time and there will be significant efforts to block you if you haven't already made, shall we say, arrangements."

"That sounds all too familiar," said Melody, just as wryly.

"There's also the matter of where best to apply our limited resources," said Aaron. "Which are limited, despite having many empowered involved. As for what we do... As just one example, in any war, many more civilians die of privation than all the direct casualties of military action. We send relief missions into combat zones, which provide food and medical care and evacuate those who are most endangered. These missions will have empowered along, to help in multiple ways. Including reducing the likelihood of someone trying to prevent the relief group from doing their work."

He looked off, into the distance, his plain but strangely compelling features displaying both an ineffable sadness and inhuman patience.

"People are always dying. The question is not 'Do we save them?' or even 'Who do we save?' but 'How do we save as many as possible?' Money which might bring relief to hundreds now can be used in preparations which will save thousands in five or ten years. Not interfering in a particular ethnic cleansing might make the new government which forms after the violence settles more accepting of future efforts which prevent far more tragedies in that entire region over the next few decades. Not even empowered geniuses can say for certain which is the best path, even when they can accurately predict which course of events will follow which decisions. So much of what we choose to do depends on experience and judgement, and nearly every choice is difficult to justify. However, compassion must pay a part. Cold equations are cold comfort to the cold and starving."

"There are those who say that you empowered could make the world a paradise, if you were only bolder in your actions," said Melody, somewhat reluctantly playing devil's advocate.

"What would they have us do? Overthrow dictators? That wouldn't last long. Not only are there always more potential dictators waiting, but other governments don't like people displacing their allies and puppets. Even most governments have learned not to do that."

"I remember, there were empowered who intervened like that in the past," said Melody, quietly. "Back in the Twenties and Thirties, then a few more in the Fifties. They stopped very quickly. All of them. Some were never heard from again."

"Yes. After one or two dramatic, decisive actions, either they were killed, or they received credible threats against loved ones. Not always from totalitarian rulers, either. Even legitimate governments get worried when someone starts killing national leaders. I believe that concern is valid. Once someone decides that killing a tyrant is justified, how much longer until they decide that someone honest but politically disagreeable to them gets the perhaps literal axe? Most active empowered will also try to discourage such behavior. Out of enlightened self interest, if nothing else."

"I can understand that... but what about taking action against people like the Butcher of Uganda? The government he operated under was overthrown by locals and replaced by a - unstable and corrupt, but still internationally recognized and gradually improving - democracy, and he escaped into exile. Won't someone make him pay for his crimes?"

"He only committed crimes in Uganda," said Aaron, sounding downright weary, "and as far as we know he only operated as an agent of his government. A government whose actual leaders were all killed or captured during the revolution, with many of those captives later executed. He was banned from entering several countries, but there were never international warrants against him. He is protected by the government of the nation he sought shelter in, which has no extradition with Uganda. Largely due to him making substantial contributions to the ruling party there for many years before the regime he worked for fell. He is living out what is left of his life - in luxury, admittedly - in an isolated mansion, where he's not hurting anyone. Those of us in this group you are so curious about focus on improving the world, long term, rather than extracting vengeance for things already past. We leave that to the government agencies concerned about such people."

"You are entirely too complacent about that situation," said Melody, angrily.

"Melody, I was declared a war criminal by the International Court in the Fifties," said Aaron, suspecting she had some personal connection to that situation. "That declaration was never rescinded, but it has almost always been ignored. I am still banned from several nations, though I doubt any would act against me if I went there and saved multiple lives. Well, not until afterwards. There are even active international warrants against me, though from countries few take seriously in such matters."

He shrugged.

"One man's devil is another man's saint."

The reporter shifted uneasily in her seat, obviously brought down a bit but still wanting to make a point.

"Okay, here's something you should take more personally," she said, angrily. "The recent use of chlorine gas against civilians in several civil wars."

"They get away with that once," said Aaron, tone dire. He sighed, and when he resumed his voice was normal. "In fact, we have prevented several first applications. Once we know someone will do that, we take special pains to make sure such attacks won't be repeated, and in some cases not made even the first time. Through whatever method we think works best for the specific situation. Sometimes simply by replacing the chlorine with something innocuous. The problem is knowing ahead of time. We aren't fortune tellers."

"It's just... with all the power some of you have... you could be doing so much more!"

"No-one is all powerful," said Aaron, pointedly. "Remember, even the Supreme Socialist - arguably the most powerful transformed on record, and certainly the most powerful one in Nazi Germany - was brought down by a military coalition of Great Britain, the Soviet Union and the US, with no empowered directly involved in his death. So, we pick our fights carefully."

"Okay... I can see that," said Melody, though with obvious reluctance. "What sorts of things are you actually doing, though? You've given a few examples, but they're vague. I want details; at least some."

"Even just helping victims of famines is complicated," said Aaron, with a weary, humorless smile, not answering her directly. "For decades, hunger has been primarily a political problem. There's plenty of food, in large part thanks to efforts by several of the earliest empowered savants, who created fantastic plants and methodologies for improving the sustainable production of food. With modern communications and means of transportation, learning about a drought or insect plague or storm and collecting food for a relief effort have become relatively easy and quite quick. Unfortunately, many governments have little motivation to help their citizens. In some cases, powerful individuals feel they have valid reasons to harm those they are supposed to represent; or at least to put their own benefit first."

"As a reporter I know about things like that," said Melody, nodding. "Though none of my assignments have been on any of them, so I guess I'm short on details."

"Even when governments are officially committed to the purpose of providing relief, there can be problems," said Aaron, spreading his hands in a semi-shrug. "Often due to the individual foibles of someone in power. In the late Forties there was a famine in a region of the world where the primary religions were Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. One politician here in the US had the perfect solution: Ship them the Spam left over from the war."

"Wait," said Melody, startled. "Those all..."

"Yes. Even after this was explained to the man he waved the objection away, saying 'They get hungry enough, they'll eat it.' Unfortunately, despite this and several similar gaffs he continued holding office for nearly two more decades."

"God..." said Melody, astounded. In part that she didn't already know about this.

"Exactly," said Aaron, with an impish smile. Which quickly faded. "There was another, more recent case - one in which we empowered became involved - where a huge storm caused mass hunger and privation. There was a combination of crop damage, loss of shelter and the inability of medical aid and supplies to easily reach the area. We organized the relief, obtained the food and other supplies and moved them quickly to that nation. Unfortunately, we handed them over to the local government agency for relief; admittedly at that government's insistence. The head of that agency delayed distribution for two weeks until he could relabel all the containers with his name and personal logo."

"God..." Melody repeated, eyes wide with astonishment.

"We have learned to act as quickly and quietly and directly as possible, then get out... but to keep an eye on the situation. In some cases no-one outside the area we aid even knows we were involved, beyond vague rumors, until much later. However, I expect the biggest case we're working on currently will be an exception.

"Thousands of endangered people will be moved very quickly and thousands more in several countries are invested in helping them resettle. We just finished overseeing the construction of the villages where the refugees will be housed until they can find their own places."

"Are you talking about the relocation camps in Libya?!"

"They're death camps, actually," said Aaron, sourly. "Trust me on this. In the two years since the new regime took over, they've not only forced huge numbers of 'undesirables' into several isolated camps, they've deliberately starved the occupants. Physical and emotional abuse is rampant. It's only a matter of time - and not much of it - before the overt massacres begin.

"Diplomacy and even economic sanctions have had little effect; those in power want these people dead, not helped or even evacuated. So some of us empowered have decided to take direct action. We'll be moving the occupants of those facilities into several smaller camps in neighboring nations which have agreed to help. Most of the infrastructure - including food and other supplies - is already in place. You'll understand if I don't give any further details. Even this much should be kept confidential until the operation is completed.

"Since the new regime has declared all these people undesirables, if they do complain about the evacuation they will be exposing their own hypocrisy. Though I doubt that will keep them silent."

Melody remembered that Aaron - not always as Malak - had rescued many thousands from Nazi death camps and other such institutions through the decades. She also realized, with a start, that whatever his other reasons for revealing all this, he was also looking for her approval. The awareness that he didn't just trust her, but respected her opinions on his activities was rather... humbling.

"How did you get so many different governments to agree to take those refugees?" said Melody, recovering after a moment.

"We paid them," said Aaron, flatly. "Not necessarily in money - though that did happen - but we bargained in various ways for refugee camps to be prepared and guarded. As well as for the effort needed to find permanent homes later. All of this providing a significant boost to the local economies. We also made clear that while some redistribution of resources was tolerable, most of what we brought was for the refugees."

"Where did you folks get that sort of money?!"

"Just because I prefer a modest lifestyle doesn't mean I don't know where and how to get funds." said Aaron, firmly. "There are many groups willing to fund such work. There are also many treasures which were hidden by people who are no longer around to collect them. Many of these caches were simply lost in antiquity, through storm or war or disease. While I will not apply such things as melted-down dental gold from Nazi victims to such efforts, and will return stolen property to the rightful owner when I can, that still leaves a great deal available. Also, I am far from the only individual willing to fund this effort. Several very wealthy people feel a need - for one reason or another - to help others. However, they prefer doing so quietly, for what I feel are good reasons."

"So why are you telling me this?" said Melody, pointedly. "Also, why now? Why not after you've succeeded?"

"While we normally prefer to work sub rosa that won't be possible with this current effort. It's just too large. We want at least some of the press informed ahead of time, to get a jump on the enemy's propaganda."

"There will be propaganda against the effort and those involved," said Melody, nodding. "If only because it will highlight the neglect of those who are supposed to be acting to help in such cases."

"This will be one of the largest operations we have ever carried out," said Aaron, quietly. "As well as one of our boldest. We want representatives of the international press present at the refuges and our command center as we perform the rescue."

"Not on the operation itself?"

"No. Not only will that be too dangerous, we have very little margin. No-one will be involved who isn't strictly necessary for the operation."

"I can understand that," said Melody, leaning back in her chair and fiddling with her pen. "I am also very definitely interested. Though you better have good security at the refugee camps to keep the reporters from getting in the way. Simply from trying to get closer to the action."

"Of course," said Aaron, with a tired smile.

"What do you call this group, anyway? You keep saying things like 'we' and 'we empowered' but I'm pretty sure only a small percentage of the empowered even in the US are involved and I bet there are non-empowered helping with your projects."

"We very deliberately do not give ourselves a group name," said Aaron, straightfaced. "We also avoid giving information on who is involved. Well, that is all the news I had. Since you are interested, I will personally contact you when the time for our evacuation approaches. So unless you have further questions..."

Melody shifted position, leaning forward again, elbows on her desk.

"Oh, yes. While you're here, I'd like your help with a concern of mine."

"Ask away."

"I tried to contact Blackpool, but they said he doesn't work at the Empowered Matters Agency any more," said Melody.

"A bit of dissembling. He's on detached duty, overseeing the destruction of the chemicals stored at that repository. He's actually living there, currently."

"Why doesn't anyone seem to know this?! Is it secret, or something?"

"Since the federal government still hasn't officially acknowledged that the repository exists, they won't tell anyone that he's working there," said Aaron, sounding amused at this useless deceit. "So, yes; it's secret. At least officially, if not in reality. If you want, I can get word to him. That will be easy. He is allowing the group I mentioned previously to use part of that facility for another project, one in which I am also involved."

They spoke for a while longer, of world affairs and mutual acquaintances. Soon, though, Aaron announced he needed to be somewhere and said his goodbyes.

Melody walked with him to the elevator. As she returned to her office she idly speculated on how long he'd wait; how far he'd walk and to where before changing and flying away, most likely invisibly.

Angels are immortal beings who can move among humans without being seen or felt, she thought, remembering the folklore Arielle - gentle, mighty Arielle - had told her. They can pass through any barrier without hindrance. They can heal the wounded and cure the sick. They can understand and be understood in any language. They can travel at incredible speed.

All that and more had shaped Aaron Labelle's form and psyche during his empowerment. Most of it coming from stories told to him by his French immigrant mother. Melody felt a brief surge of gratitude towards the woman. She might have - completely innocently - created a monster if the tales she had told her son had been different.