Read The Shadow of the Progenitors: A Transforms Novel (The Cause Book 1) for Free Online Page A

this as a declaration of war.  Haggerty didn’t care, and she was right.  The simple exposure of the Eskimo Spear was in itself a declaration of war.  Half of my arguments against Haggerty fell away in my mind before I stated them.
    I fought anyway.
    I had to.
    I’m an Arm.
     
    I’ll spare you the rest of my sorry humiliation.
     
    “Don’t worry,” Haggerty said.  My cheek lay on her right boot-top.  Ever since she went to Europe to fight in the takedown of Europe’s baddie Crow, and learned Eissler’s tricks, she had been the best fighter of all of us.  Fighting wasn’t everything, though.  “I learned from the rookie mistakes I made the last time I was in charge of you.  We need to keep being friends, and I won’t try to micromanage you and your people.”
    Friends!  Aargh.  Arms can’t be friends.  She deluded herself into thinking we were friends, or had ever been friends.
    There was something wrong with Arm dominance contests, and this was good proof of the problem.  We did them wrong nearly every time.  Only I had no idea what we needed to do to improve them.
    “You’re going to back-burner Keaton’s top projects,” Haggerty said.  “You’re working for me, now, of course, not her.”  Keaton’s top projects were ‘re-establish the Arm hierarchy’ and ‘get Hank to figure out why I (Keaton) popped my cork and how to fix it so it doesn’t happen again’.  Hank made slow but steady progress on his end, and I made some progress on mine.
    Keaton was going to ream me for this, but if she wanted me to give those projects a higher priority, she would need to beat Haggerty and tag her.  Fat chance of that.  We all knew Keaton would win if Haggerty challenged her, and Haggerty would win if Keaton challenged Haggerty.  As I said, the Arm challenge system didn’t work.  “To start with, though, I want you to use your charisma and get everyone who attended today’s meeting back together.  I’m going to be getting them to help push the Cause.”
    “Yes, ma’am,” I said.  “May I stand now, ma’am?”
    Amy helped me to my feet and put her arm around my shoulder, giving me a hug.  “We’re going to win this, Carol,” she said.  “We’re going to change the world!”
    Both Hank and I thought heroism was addictive for Major Transforms, and Haggerty was our number one addict.  “Yes, ma’am,” I said.  What else could I say?
     
    ---
     
    “Okay, now that I’ve got you here, we need to talk about where we’re going with this,” Haggerty said, back in Room D.  I stood behind her, the dutiful lieutenant.  I doubt anyone missed the livid bruises on my face and arms.  I had managed to corral all the attendants to the presentation except the Madonna of Montreal.  To balance my failure I managed to find Sky, who hadn’t attended the presentation, instead ministering to the fallen from the quest.  “I see two possibilities.  On one hand, we can force the Cause, do the research and development we’ve all been putting off, and convince the Transform community our way is not just the right way, but the only way.  On the other hand, we can declare victory in the Cause and slink off into the corners to do our own preparations for the Transform Apocalypse.”
    Lori stood.  “Who put you in charge, Arm Haggerty?”  Boss of the Cause was her position.  She liked Amy as a peer and follower, but she hadn’t liked Amy the last time Amy thought dominance over me gave her the right to order Lori around, and, well, she still didn’t.
    “This did,” Amy said.  She picked up the Eskimo Spear and went into a stalk, threatening to shove the pig-sticker into Lori.  Lori settled into a defensive combat stance, met Amy’s eyes, and dueled, Arm dominance style.  After twenty seconds of non-verbal dueling, Lori relaxed out of her combat stance.
    “Fine.  Good point,” Lori said, humbled.
    I wanted to shake the two of them.  ‘That’s my Focus you’re messing