Archangel - Chapter Thirty-two

Author owns no rights to Firefly, and no copyright infringement is intended. Fanfic only.

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The eleven men and women in the meeting room where perhaps the most powerful group of people in the history of mankind. For these eleven people were the power behind the Alliance Parliament. They made the decisions that affected the lives of almost every citizen in the ‘verse.

“The operation is progressing nicely,” the man at the head of the table rumbled in his deep baritone. “We are nearly at the point where we can begin our cleansing campaign, in an effort to restore order.”

“Who will command that effort?” the woman next to him asked.

“That has yet to be determined,” the man informed her. “We are, as you know, using the present crisis as a test, of sorts, for those in leadership positions. Several have caught our attention, though no one of them has risen above the others, as yet.”

“How long will it be before we can began?” another man asked, his voice betraying his eagerness.

“I suspect it will be between two and five weeks, depending on reactions from the public,” the Information Minister replied, smiling. “We are controlling what IPN releases of course, but the various other agencies are running wild with the story.”

“Are we set to. . .handle, the reaver issue, once this is finished?” a woman at the far end of the table asked hesitantly.

“We are,” the chairman nodded. “All is in readiness.”

“Then why not start now?” the over eager minister asked, leaning forward, his eyes alight. “Why not move now, and be done with it?”

“We need to let public opinion come to a head, first,” the chairman informed him. “Your time will come, Az. Be patient.”

Az nodded reluctantly, and leaned back into his chair.

He paid scant attention to the nuts and bolts his fellow ministers argued over during the next hour. His mind was ranging far from the board room.

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As the meeting broke up, the man known as Az walked down the hallway to his own offi