The New Order by Sean Fay Wolfe

vote in favor of it.
    â€œLet me start off by casting my vote,” began Stan, “which is for Pro-Constitution. The country of Elementia was founded on our constitution, and the present situation is not bad enough that we should start ignoring it.” Stan turned to the person sitting to his right, Charlie.
    â€œI also vote for Pro-Constitution,” said Charlie, his voice steely as he shot a quick dirty glance at Blackraven. Thankfully, it went unnoticed.
    â€œMy vote is for Pro-Constitution as well,” added the Mechanist, glancing at Stan and giving him a warm smile, which Stan returned. As tired, depressed, and angry as he was,Stan couldn’t help but take a moment to notice how very wise and kind a person the old Mechanist was.
    â€œI vote for Pro-Emergency Powers.”
    That voice caught Stan off guard. He tore his glance away from the Mechanist and looked, to his horror, to see Gobbleguy, sitting in his chair, looking timid and afraid.
    â€œWhat?” Stan couldn’t help bursting out. “Why? Why would you support emergency powers?”
    â€œShut up, Stan!” yelled G. “He doesn’t have to justify anything to you, it’s his vote, not yours!”
    Stan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, furious with himself for his outburst, but he now felt incredibly uneasy. He had completely forgotten about Gobbleguy, the former mayor of Blackstone, who had remained completely silent throughout the debate. Why would he of all people want to support the emergency powers?
    â€œWell, I, for one, am all in favor of keeping Elementia true to what the country was founded on. Pro-Constitution all the way, man!” yelled DZ, a little louder than he ought to, but it made Stan feel a little better. Just one more vote and they would have a majority, and the entire issue would be resolved.
    The feeling did not last, however, as one by one, Blackraven, Jayden, and G all cast their votes for the Pro-Emergency Powers. The votes were now tied, four to four, and the finalvote would decide. All eyes at the table were now fixed on the last council member.
    In his entire life, from the minute he had first met her, Stan had never seen Kat look as uncomfortable as she did at that moment. Her reluctance to enter the NPC village during their trek through the desert months ago seemed like nothing compared to the girl that Stan saw now. Kat was squirming in her seat, trying to shake the feeling that all the power was now in her hands.
    â€œWhat’s your vote, Kat?” asked Stan carefully, after the silence and staring had gone on for well over a minute.
    â€œWell I . . . um . . . I think that they both have their positives and negatives,” Kat stammered. Stan couldn’t believe it. She was still undecided? Now was his chance to ensure that the constitution was upheld.
    â€œKat, why are you even debating this?” he asked. “The state of emergency is over, this deserves to be done right!”
    â€œDon’t listen to him, Kat!” replied Jayden. “Having an election now would be stupid! It would only allow time for the Noctem Alliance to regroup, which would lead to another attack, and more people being killed!”
    â€œKat, you were with me and Stan the entire time we were on the journey to take down King Kev,” said Charlie, a note of pleading in his voice. “We fought so hard so that we could have a constitution. Do you really want to ignore it now?”
    â€œYou’re not ignoring it, Kat!” said Blackraven. “You’d be doing the best thing for our safety, and everyone else in Elementia, by getting this done as quickly as possible!”
    â€œArchie wouldn’t have wanted us to ignore the constitution, Kat!” shouted DZ.
    â€œBut he can’t say that for himself, because the Noctem Alliance killed him!” cried G, grabbing Kat’s shoulders and turning her to look him straight in the eye. “Think about it,