Not a trailing thought, not a question. A statement.

“We believe in using every resource we have to do the greatest amount of good,” Jeanne said.

Gary Nieves stood from his seat. He picked up the book, holding it by one corner. He looked like he was going to say something, then stopped. When he did speak, it was with a different expression—sadder than angry.

“Sitting at this table, being a part of discussions with other Earths, talking to the Wardens, everything else, it affords us a privilege the people don’t get. We have to hear how bad it really is.”

Sierra spoke, “I’d phrase it as ‘we get to hear’, not ‘have to hear’.”

“It’s an opportunity to help,” Jeanne said.

Mr. Nieves shook his head. “Every time I come here, I hear about new disasters. Machinery that should never have been built, now with dead owners, still running. People that snapped with the end of the world. Broken quarantines. Every time I come, three to five days a week, something new. Today I hear about a war outside of New Haven, and innocents will die, many will come out in body bags.”

“The straw that broke the camel’s back?” Mr. Buckner asked. The media mogul sounded more casual than anything.

Nieves didn’t sound casual. “It’s one more thing. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred, it’s the parahumans. It’s wolves people like me are trapped in a cage with, and they’re gathering into packs and reverting to their feral programming.”

“Wolves were domesticated to become dogs,” Jeanne said.

“These wolves killed billions,” Gary Nieves said. “I don’t think we can afford to give them more power over us. We don’t have that much left to spare.”

“What would you propose as an alternative?” Jeanne asked. “If you’ll read the booklet, I think it’s sound and there’s nothing especially strange in there.”

Gary’s smile was tight, fighting to become a sneer, because of the feelings he was holding back. Disgust. “I’ve talked to people about it. Ex-PRT, police, scholars. Those conversations were back when I thought I could get a foothold here, when I thought people might see what you’re doing and where it comes from.”

‘What are we doing?” Jeanne asked.

“Using powers. I asked about these proposals and I got a lot of answers and information about powers, the push toward violence and the dramatic, the loss of the human in the midst of it all. There was a time when many people with powers wanted to use their powers for mundane things. Rogues. It kept going wrong, didn’t it?”

“We could have a discussion on that,” Jeanne said. “If it’s a concern, I’d like to address it, because it’s nuanced.”