The emergency meeting was exciting for Markus. He had learned to live with the relative peace of the area, but the smell of battle always gave him a rush. It had been too long since the last campaign.

Now the minister had taken the first step toward escalating the battle. He had effectively served notice that he intended to take the slum area. This was something that Markus couldn't allow.

The only question was how to proceed. Should they take the offense and attack? Or should they wait for the preacher to make his move, then defend? Those were the decisions that Markus had to make tonight.

The setting was mystical. There was no floor or walls, only cloudlike surroundings. The only visible item was a large round table surrounded by ten creatures from various races, the brightest and most capable leaders under Markus's command. Each was responsible for a general area of activity, such as the control and leadership of children. Under Markus's leadership style, these commanders operated their division as an independent department with five hundred to eight hundred troops.

"Okay, let's get started," Markus said, taking charge of the meeting with his normal forceful, aggressive style.

He stood up and paced through, the room watching each of the leaders with one or the other of his eyes. He had served with everyone in some previous conflict. He knew them very well. Some would avoid a fight until it was forced on them. Others would charge into battle for the fun of it. Each leader had a place and quality that was useful.

"Pinklin, what did you find out from our records?" Markus asked.

"We got pretty lucky," Pinklin responded. "This minister has a relatively thick file considering his twenty-three years of age. The first entry was from California, where he dropped out of high school to become a preacher. He apparently taught a Sunday school class for a while, then became an evangelist. He has traveled across the country holding revivals in small churches for the last three years. This church is his first pastorate."

"Interesting. So we are dealing with an upstart with limited education and experience. Did anyone ever report on his personality?" Markus asked.

"Well, his first supervisor described him as a manic-depressive personality. In his manic state, he is prideful and arrogant. You know the typical 'I can save the world' type of stuff. He tends to rely on his own ability and strength. However, in his depressive state, he doesn't think he can do anything. In other words, when he is excited, he is a dangerous force. On the other hand, when he is down, he's harmless."

The area commanders were becoming restless.

One of the higher ranking members stood up. He was a member of a lizardlike race called the Swishers, who stood on two feet and were between eight and nine feet tall. The most famous characteristic of the Swishers was the tail, averaging around four feet in length. It could kill in a single stroke. Today Lizzie let his tail lie quietly behind him as he waited patiently to be recognized.

Markus allowed him to wait a moment before acknowledging his movement.

"Yes, Lizzie, do you have something to say?"

"Yes," he said in a half-hissing tone. "I don't understand the problem. We've got a snot-nosed kid here, and you're acting like it is Armageddon. I mean, I will be the first to fight a battle if there is something to be gained. However, it looks like we are getting all stirred up over nothing."

"This snot-nosed kid, as you so eloquently describe him, has created more excitement in my church in these few weeks than anyone has done in years. I think that is a problem. After all, he entered the slums and reached several of your small children. Lizzie, the children are your major responsibility, correct? Don't you think that a preacher is a little dangerous if he can invade your area so easily?"

Lizzie just stared. He knew that the pastor's surprise attack had been too successful. The pastor shouldn't have been able to enter the slum without notice. The fact that he had actually brought the children to church without any warning was inexcusable.

There was no doubt that Lizzie's troops had been goofing off. Markus had taken it in stride, giving only a verbal warning. Now he was forcing Lizzie to recognize either a threat or his own incompetence.

Lizzie quickly sat back down.

"Okay, now that we have that settled, let's continue," Markus said. "Do we have anything else on this guy's history, Pinklin?"

"No, not really. He has been recorded as a Flag One, the lowest danger ranking."

"A Flag One? Why?" Lizzie asked.

Markus gave Lizzie a dirty look for the question but turned to Pinklin to hear the answer.

"Well, according to several reports, he is like a flash in the pan. He burns very bright for a little while, but then he runs out of steam. Also, his converts don't stick very well."

"What do you mean?" Markus asked, taking the question right out of Lizzie's mouth.

"For example, in a revival in North Carolina, he was credited with ten converts. Then, as soon as he left, we were able to reclaim eight of them."

"Did the church have a good follow-up program?" Sliadata asked.

Sliadata, a member of the Isaical race, was one of four female council members. In ancient myths female Isaicals had the ability to control males of any race. Markus had often wondered if the myths were true. He knew that for this reason many other Level Six Supervisors had discriminated against the female Isaicals in promotions.

However, Markus had decided that Sliadata was too capable to be denied a chance. About two years ago when she was up for a promotion, Markus promoted her to Area Commander in charge of physical sexual activity. From that post she had coordinated everything pertaining to sexual sin. Sliadata had been so effective at her job that she was recognized twice by the Big Boss himself. Markus had received enormous praise for his fight against racial and sexual discrimination.

There was no denying that Sliadata was a beautiful creature. A soft human-shaped body showed plenty of delicate curves. Her long blue hair with matching eyes made the picture perfect. However, her voice may have been her most attractive quality. It had a deep, haunting, almost-hypnotic quality to it. Listening to her question, Markus wondered if her voice could be the source of her mythical power.

"Yeah," Pinklin responded. "The church's followup program is very well rated. In fact, the church has an impressive ninety percent retention rate, but there have been a lot of other reports from all over the country that confirm this minister's low retention rate. Several commanders have explained their large successes because the new converts have such an idealistic view of being a Christian."

"Well, I am beginning to agree with Lizzie," Sliadata said.

She paused for a moment, then continued in a lower business voice, "I mean, this guy is a loser. He hasn't stayed in any place for any length of time, and even where he does preach, he can't retain anybody. Why even bother with him? He will probably stir up trouble for a few months, then leave. With his low retention rate, we will probably be able to retake everything in just a few weeks."

Across the table Kiladad, a Swisher like Lizzie, spoke up.

"Okay, let's say that Lizzie and Sliadata are correct. This pastor will flare really big, then leave. We will be able to recover our losses. Given that as fact, I ask who wants to be the one to send the reports of the initial losses to the Big Boss? Do you want to report to the Boss that you have lost fifty percent of the children in your charge, Lizzie?"

The room was silent. Kiladad had a good point. The Big Boss required monthly reports from each Area Commander. These reports were used to determine promotions or demotions. Everyone in the room knew that giant losses were generally followed by changes in personnel.

"Yeah, that reminds me of a seminar given at headquarters last month," Liketon said.

Liketon was a Decaton, a small octopuslike creature with dark green skin and flaming red eyes. He was in charge of prison and hospital areas. The Decatons didn't eat nutrients like most creatures. They had the unique ability to transfer emotional energy from or to other life forms. They literally lived off the emotions of those around them. However, one could also channel emotional energy directly into the mind of another creature. If the Decaton sent anger, the target creature would feel a moment of anger for no apparent reason.

"It was a lecture given by the Boss himself," Liketon whispered almost to himself. "He told us ... um, let me see if I can remember...."

He paused, solemnly scratching the top of his head with one of his ten long arms. The audience knew that the pause was strictly for dramatic effect. Decatons had remarkable memories, almost to the point of being perfect. One rarely forgot a fact. Further, he would never forget something as important as a speech by the Boss himself.

Liketon continued, "Yes, the Big Boss told us about a recent research project, studying the long term effects of allowing a temporary conversion to Christianity. The initial results were very impressive. Something like sixty-five percent of all humans who convert to Christianity will eventually die as Christians. The conclusion was that recapture is not as effective as prevention. This research is not complete."

Liketon's speech made a deep impact. If they did lose a large following, then they could all be replaced.

The entire room became deathly quiet. The only sound was Lizzie's tail swishing slowly back and forth. Markus watched each leader carefully. Each one was deep in thought.

It was really a toss up. Do we wait and hope that the pastor is a flop, or do we attack now?

Lizzie accidentally let his tail swish to the left a little too far. It hit Hemolin, another Decaton, in the head, knocking him to the floor.

"Hey, watch your tail, Lizzie! Why do you always have to be moving that thing anyway?"

Hemolin slowly used his ten arms to lift himself back into the chair.

Lizzie was about to respond with even more hostility when Markus interrupted.

"Commanders, we have work here. If you will please keep your personal and racial problems to yourselves, then I think we could be more effective. Agreed?"

"Yes, sir," Lizzie responded with a little hiss.

"Understood," Hemolin answered.

"Okay, let's hear the rest of the report. Pinklin, how well is the pastor connected to the Guy Upstairs?"

"It appears to be quite limited. He doesn't read his Bible or pray on a regular basis. He seems to believe that he is a genius or something. From our studies so far, it appears that we will have very little opposition from the other side."

"Great. This should be a snap," Hemolin sounded out. "I mean not only an upstart, but an unconnected upstart."

"Also, his record doesn't show much of a threat, but he has never been a pastor before either," Pinklin responded.

Markus stood up and closed his eyes. There was no order for silence, but everyone knew that it was best to be quiet. Markus was about to make a decision. He was sorting out the information and comments to build his conclusions.

Finally he opened his eyes and asked, "Pinklin, did you get any feedback on that physical confrontation request?"

"Yes. The Big Boss tried to get the Guy Upstairs to approve the request, but no luck. We were given limited rights to emotion and indirect activity but not much more. Headquarters will be sending the full document in the next mail delivery."

"Okay, Commanders, I hereby declare this region to be an active war zone. This minister will be considered a major threat. I want to knock him out of the picture as quickly as possible. Pinklin, draw up the battle proposals. Let's meet tomorrow night to decide on the specifics. Any questions?"

The atmosphere changed from a business meeting to a military strategy meeting. The attitudes were hard and aggressive. No matter how bitter the discussion before the decision, there was nothing but cooperation now.

Markus looked over the group.

When he saw no response, he said, "Let's do it."