Consensus: Part 1 - Citizen

007

Lukas sat back in his chair and let the other students file out of the classroom. Rena had been the first one to leave, followed closely by her friend Dal. The two were inseparable as far as Lukas could tell, confirming what he'd read in the documentation from Director Terrell.

To date, Rena was the most interesting assignment Lukas had been given. She wasn't the typical ignorant citizen, blindly following the rest of society. She'd put some thought into her questions. But there were gaps in her logic. Her position wasn't fully developed. If she was an Outlier spy, she hadn't been indoctrinated thoroughly. On the other hand, she had the passion of someone who'd been influenced by Outliers. She'd become agitated during the course of their discussion, indicating this wasn't the first time she'd considered this topic. And in Lukas's experience, citizens rarely ever considered the why of their beliefs unless someone forced them. So what other explanation could there be?

Perhaps she represents a new level of subtlety. Outlier spies who are able to influence others with ideas not yet fully-formed? Perhaps her questioning is a way of undermining the system without it coming across as a direct assault.

It was possible. But Lukas had a difficult time believing the Outliers were capable of such sophisticated psychological warfare.

"Great input today, Lukas." Mr. Yan was smiling.

The classroom was now empty.

"Thanks," Lukas replied, getting up from his chair. "I'll see you Monday."

"Have a good weekend."

Lukas walked out into the hall and headed toward the main entrance with the casual, undisciplined gait of the typical teenager. Unlike previous operations, playing this part gave him ample time to think about his assignment. No split-second decisions. The puzzle of Rena's identity was going to take time to assemble.

I think I'm going to enjoy this one!

o   o   o

"I can't stand that guy!" Rena growled.

Dal tilted his head forward. "I believe we have reached consensus on that point, Ms. Waite," he said in his best, mockingly authoritative voice.

Rena took a deep breath as soon as she stepped outside. Buildings always made her feel smothered. The front of the school campus was crowded with students heading toward the street. She threaded her way through several groups before finding a pocket of open space.

"He said agreement and truth are the same. But if truth has to be discovered by consensus, then at least some people have to change their perspectives in order to conform to it ... which by definition means it's something outside of us, not within us."

Dal shrugged.

"And if it's outside of us, how can he say it's whatever we agree on? What if we're wrong? Lots of people can agree on something and still be wrong."

"Yeah. I suppose."

"That's what I should have said," Rena realized. Then she dodged another group of students and turned onto the sidewalk. As soon as Dal caught up, she continued. "What if I did something and then lied about it to a bunch of people? You could ask all of us what happened, and everyone would answer the same way. If I repeated the lie, I'd be with the majority. But if I told the truth, I'd be alone. Right?"

Dal nodded.

"So consensus is not necessarily interchangeable with truth."

"I guess not."

"You guess?"

"I haven't really thought about it before."

Rena realized she was taking out her frustrations on the wrong person. She was also walking way faster than normal. "Sorry. It's not you. It's just ... I wish I could have said what I meant."