Chapter One Hundred and Fifty Six
...
"Thank you for inviting me to the party, dear. It was... interesting," Edith said, glancing over to the elevator and higher levels of the Sanctuary building where the apartments and children were.
"You're welcome, Aunt Edith. They're all asleep now and you don't need to worry about them. Not tonight, at least," Honey said with a brief smile.
Edith frowned at her words. "What about tomorrow night, and the night after?"
Honey sighed. "You don't need to worry for a few weeks, then. They need time to settle in and recover. Doc's here and there's enough people living in Sanctuary now that they won't be alone anymore. I'll let you know if you need to worry, okay?"
"Hmm." Edith didn't know whether she believed Honey entirely. She blinked rapidly when a few flickers of blue in the side of her vision. Obviously, she was tired and needed to go home and sleep.
"Are you all right, Aunt Edith?"
"Fine, dear. I just need to go home and sleep. Victor's finally moved into his new home and he's taken Elliot and Elijah with him, of course. They'll grow up well there, won't they? That old bitch didn't poison the ground or something before she left, did she?"
Honey shook her head. "No, Mrs. Quinton didn't do anything like that. Elliot and Elijah will grow up just fine, Aunt Edith, I promise."
Edith wasn't the only one who was tired, though it was for very different reasons, and Honey was looking forward to crawling into the bed of one of the empty apartments to sleep.
"Well, all right. I'm all alone in that house again, so come visit soon, okay?" Edith said, squeezing Honey's hand briefly before heading to the elevator to go down to the underground parking.
Honey knew Edith wouldn't be in her home alone for much longer, but she couldn't tell her that. Not yet, at least.
Waiting until the elevator had started to descend, Honey glanced between this elevator and the one on the other side of the floor. She could wait for this one without moving, but walking over to the elevator on the other side would take the same amount of time as waiting, and they'd both technically arrive at the same time. The advantage of this elevator would mean it was closer, but the advantage of the other... Well, the extra walking would be worth the future benefits, no matter which way she looked at it. Honey headed over to the elevator and pressed the up button, waiting for the six, five, four, three, two, one...
"Ah, hello. You're just the person I wanted to see," Honey said with a smile as she stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the floor she was heading to.
Indigo frowned. "Ms. Hourglass?"
"Yes, that's right. You can call me Honey."
"All right, Ms. Honey."
Honey grinned and there was a moment of silence before she looked at Indigo. "You were close to graduating, weren't you?"
Indigo tensed. "Yes. Next month."
"And your graduation present?"
Indigo swallowed hard. "I haven't... I wouldn't... I mean, I couldn't... They were - they weren't pleased with my progress, and I needed to give them something or they'd torture the others, and I - " she struggled to breathe, her hand clutching the elevator rail tightly.
"Hey, no, Indigo. It's okay, breathe. That's it, good," Honey murmured. "I'm sorry, I should have been more tactful. I know your target's still alive and the planning you did to kill them wasn't anything you'd actually implement. You did a good job of protecting your target and the kids, okay? You did what you had to do, and at least twelve of them are alive because of you."
Indigo was trembling hard, and Honey slowly and carefully wrapped her arms around the trembling girl, enveloping her in a hug and hoping it would help. Damn it, this wasn't the thread that had meant to happen. Goddamn, she was bordering on exhausted if she'd missed this thread as a possibility. It was clearly too soon to talk about the orphanage and their "graduation" process.
Looking ahead to a different thread with a somewhat better outcome, Honey murmured soothing noises to Indigo until she finally stopped trembling. The elevator had stopped, too; they'd already stopped and continued past her floor, so that meant another delay for her sleep, but this needed to be done first.
"Now, since you're calmer, why don't we have a chat about Deimos?"
Indigo sniffled in her embrace, her voice quiet as she responded, "I don't know anyone called Deimos, Ms. Honey."
"Subject 368."
"Oh. He chose a name, then?" Indigo asked, a small smile on her face.
"Yes, he did. Deimos misses you."
Indigo swallowed hard, pulling away from Honey's embrace gently. "368, Deimos... Is he all right? Deimos graduated and I haven't seen him since. Well, I never did in the first place, but... he left and he didn't come back. He promised he'd come back," she said, her voice trembling.
Honey stepped back to give Indigo some more space, but kept her hand over the young girl's and squeezed gently. "I'm so sorry, Indigo. He failed to graduate and it's my fault."
Indigo bit her tongue to stop the flood of questions escaping.
"If we can go to your apartment, I can explain and answer all of your questions," Honey promised.
"Yes, please, Ms. Honey," Indigo said quickly before she could change her mind.
Honey nodded and looped Indigo's arm through hers to guide her out of the elevator and to her new apartment. She could sleep when this was done. In fact, she was going to treat herself and sleep in.
...
"A report on Project Family, Mr. A, sir. Rather, what remains of it," Agent H said, symbols covering the report they handed over to Mr. A before sitting next to Agent G.
Mr. A glanced at the report, skimming the symbols and ensuring to keep his composure until his secretary had closed his office door. When it shut with a click, he looked between the two agents sternly. "Project Family has been running for nearly ten years, and in one day - in less than two hours, in fact - we lost every single candidate for this fiscal year, not to mention the whole damned building itself. This project has cost us nearly $12 billion and no one knows a thing!" Mr. A snapped, the report crumpled in his hand.
"We arrived after the fact, sir. We found Matron's body - "
"I don't care about her. What about the Wardens?" Mr. A asked. "Their modifications cost nearly $2 million this year alone."
Agent G looked uncomfortable. "We cleared the rubble and found them in pieces, sir. There was significant fire damage and not enough remained for collection."
"Fire damage? They were constructed out of soapstone and calcite for a reason; the graphene coating was a significant amount of the $2 million modification costs. There should have been no fire damage. Certainly not enough to leave them as rubble!"
"If you'll remember, sir, the graphene coating didn't coat them entirely. It was a base coating since the scientists didn't make enough, so it wasn't as strong as it could be."
"Yes, I remember," Mr. A said coolly. "Leave and don't tell anyone about this meeting."
"Of course not, sir."
He ignored both agents as he returned his attention to Agent H's report, reading through the list of what was found. "Wait."
"Sir?"
"The collars were destroyed by acid? Not fire?"
"Yes, sir. They were left at the side of the rubble, though some were scattered through the forest due to what looked to be a stampede. All of the collars were collected and accounted for," Agent H added.
"Animals should have been repelled by the forcefield. How many were there? Fire, acid, animals... This had to be a professional team for a strategy like this. It was planned and they were prepared. Has there been any chatter of super mercenaries getting new jobs?"
Agent G shook his head. "Nothing we've heard in Maxville, sir."
"And outside of Maxville?"
"We'll look globally, sir, and report to you by the end of the day."
"You have an hour. Now, leave."
...
Honey woke up and breathed a sigh of relief. She'd slept for a full nine hours, exhausted after everything that had happened at the Strayward Orphanage, and then the party afterwards with probably too much sugar than she should have consumed, as well as the emotionally exhausting discussion with Indigo on top of it all. Finally, after so long, the kids were safe from the organisation. Minor injuries and mental trauma aside, they were safe and would stay that way as long as she had any say in it.
An alarm went off on her phone and her relief soon turned to annoyance. Covering her face with her hands, she groaned loudly, then reached out and grabbed her phone. Turning off the alarm, she sat up and looked ahead to see if she could delay this phone call. It was only just 10am and another hour or two of sleep wouldn't be unwelcome. Knowing the answer even before she finished seeing the future thread ending horribly, Honey navigated to her contacts, pressing a name and waiting for the call to connect.
The possible future faded before her eyes in the same second that the Mayor of Westville answered the phone.
"Hourglass, it's a weekend; is it an emergency?" he asked, his tone just skimming the edge of politeness.
"It is, and it is." Waiting a moment and grinning with his confused silence, Honey continued, "You saw the fight between Airborne and Earthstone, as well as the disastrous consequences - "
"I'll say; Westville's Historical Society has been saying it will cost millions to repair the buildings alone. Do you know how much stained glass costs?" the Mayor of Westville asked incredulously.
"Incidentally, I do. Not to mention the cost that will come from the citizen that was crushed by those buildings, of course."
Stanley stopped his rant mid-sentence. "What cost?"
"Doctor and anaesthetist fees, physiotherapy, psychologists, hospital appointment fees, private room fees - "
"All right, all right, I understand that part. What I don't understand is why I will be paying. The Council is not responsible for citizens' injuries from supers. That's Maxville's responsibility."
"The National Citizen's Protection Act states that local governments are responsible for citizens' injuries from supers when outside of Maxville. As you often state, Stanley: Westville is outside of Maxville," Honey said pointedly.
Stanley cursed heatedly under his breath. "It was the building that crushed that idiot girl, not supers! Never mind that, it's why we have lawyers on a retainer."
Honey was so very tempted to end the call right then and there. "And the next time it happens?"
"Next time? When? Why?"
"You think this will be the last fight between Airborne and Earthstone? You refuse to fire one of them, so they will continue to butt heads and break buildings. That one citizen will become tens or even hundreds of citizens. Riots and protests will occur, and the fallout from the police response will be far more expensive than one citizen now."
Stanley gulped audibly. "Airborne is known for having a temper, just like his father. I don't know about Earthstone, but being fired is never a good thing. I'd rather not lose my head."
"Then agree to the camera and booking system. It was added to the agenda a week ago for the next Council meeting, wasn't it? It includes stipulations about citizens' safety and wellbeing when involved in super fights - or in the nearby surroundings. You obviously looked it over before the meeting, added it to the agenda, and will be pushing the camera and booking system out to ensure no one else is hurt. The fact that it comes with a month of legal coverage on either side of signing the contract is a bonus, really."
Stanley bit the inside of his cheek, not liking the idea of taking up the cameras and booking system just like Maxville - everyone would assume it was to follow in Maxville's footsteps, of course, and he didn't want to be remembered as the Westvillean Mayor who copied Maxville. He supposed it was better than being the Mayor who incited riots over one idiotic girl being crushed by a building. Not to mention, the Westville local election was coming up soon and he needed to be seen as a Mayor who was doing things, not wasting taxpayers' money on citizens who got hurt in the crossfire of a super fight.
"How does the legal coverage work? Are you sure it's watertight? We can't afford a court case against a citizen this close to the Westville elections," Stanley said; the actual cost was irrelevant if it did come to that, of course, but the cost to his reputation and polls could be disastrous.
"I promise it's watertight, Stanley."
A promise from a seer was worth its weight in gold. But getting a promise in writing would be even better.
"I'll send you an email regarding the legalities, would that suffice?" Honey asked, starting to get a little frustrated.
Like Stanley had complained, it was the weekend, and she was starting to regret making this call before coffee.
"All right. My personal email, please, I'd rather not have that leaked out, if it comes to that."
"Of course. The bill will be sent to the Council email. In fact, as an added bonus, I'll even find the perfect assistant for your new booking and camera system. At a discounted price, of course."
Stanley almost sighed in relief at her words; hiring someone was always a lengthy process at Westville Council and if they came with Hourglass' recommendation, there was no way other Council members would refuse. Getting a new hire and a discount on the booking system was just the cherry on top. In fact, if he didn't mention the discount to the rest of the Council, he could add it to his own funds and finally be able to afford that new Mustang he'd been saving up for.
"They have to be a Westvillean citizen, the Council won't accept anything less," Stanley said as sternly as he could.
"Oh, I know. I'll send both of those emails to you shortly. Enjoy your day, Stanley. Oh, and don't wear the red shirt to golf today," Honey said, ending the call before he could question why.
Stanley muttered under his breath about goddamned seers, and went to change his shirt.
...
Will flew up to Sky High early on Monday morning. He wanted to arrive before Larry and make sure everyone knew the truth about their fight. More importantly, they needed to know who had won.
Arriving far too early in the morning for anyone else to be there, Will found himself waiting outside the building and wondering if he should do a loop around Europe to avoid doing his homework. They always had burglars, didn't they? And it would still be night time there, which was the perfect time for burglar-ing.
A car arrived at the parking lot and Will straightened up, eager to see who he could regale with his thrilling tale. He recognised the car - it was hard not to, since it was a limousine - and Will faltered. Did Pad still consider him a friend? They were friends once, weren't they? The whole thing with his mother attacking Mrs. Morton was just a misunderstanding, anyway.
Figuring that Pat would at least listen to him about the fight with Larry, Will headed over. Another car was arriving in the distance, so Will knew he would have an audience soon enough. As he neared Pat's limo, he heard a gasping sound and shouting coming from the back.
"No! Don't! Stop!" Pat's voice cried out, obviously hoarse from disuse.
Eyes wide, Will wrenched the door open to save Pat. Maybe Pat would forgive his mother for attacking Mrs. Morton if he saved him.
Pat almost fell out of the car as the door was wrenched clean off the hinges. Najair straddling his hips and Lorcan's hands on his chest stopped him from falling out entirely, and their attack on his sensitive and ticklish skin ceased as they all looked over to see who had destroyed the door. Maleah and Kiara both set his feet down, one shoe lost to the other end of the car.
"Master Patrick, this... this human tore my door off."
"I can see that, Nigel. What the hell are you doing to my property, Stronghold?" Pat snapped, sitting up and straightening his clothes.
"I thought... I thought you were in trouble?"
"With soundproof windows, why would you think that?" Pat asked, barely able to contain the derision in his voice; if Nigel had been screwing with the sound settings again, he was going to lose more than a door.
"I heard you! You were screaming for them to stop. What were those frogs doing to you?" Will asked, eyes narrowed as he glared at them.
"It was a tickle fight. We were winning," Najair said, even as Maleah tried to soothe poor Nigel about his damaged door.
"Miss Maleah; my frame, I can't bear to look. Is it beyond repair?"
Will frowned and looked to the front seat, frown deepening when he saw the driver's seat empty. "Who's talking?"
"Nigel. Give me that door, you've probably ruined the hinges completely!" Maleah snapped, even as she got out of the car and checked on the damage to Nigel's frame. "The hinge is bent, but it could be repaired if you've got a skilled mechanic."
"Pa has several skilled mechanics employed," Pat said, even as he dialled a number on his phone.
Remembering the cease and desists he'd received from Chad, Tad, and Brad, Will clenched his fists in a combination of fear and outright terror. The car door handle crumpled in his grip and the door itself fell out of his hand completely, smashing onto the asphalt at their feet. Pat jumped backwards to avoid having his bare foot crushed by the door, scowling at Will.
"My door! My lovely door! That paint job is going to cost your grandchildren their inheritance!"
Will frowned. He didn't even have any grandchildren.
Najair muttered something low and offensive in Spanish, even as he got out of the car with a flourish that smacked Will in the side.
"Ow! Watch it!" Will snapped.
Mr. Medulla had had a very pleasant morning and didn't want to ruin it with teenage melodrama quite so soon, but Will looked ready to punch several people - and after that disaster of a fight between him and Larry on the weekend, Maxwell didn't know whether he should provide pointers or simply take bets on which frog he thought would kick Will's ass first. He sighed and headed over to the noise reluctantly.
"What is going on here? Mr. Sylvan-Colores. Lorcan," Mr. Medulla added when both Najair and Lorcan looked to him, "please explain what happened," he said, glancing from the damaged car to the door at Will's feet.
"We arrived at school and Will tore the door off Pat's car for no reason. At least, none he's given that makes sense. The car's soundproofed, sir."
"I heard Pad screaming!" Will said, glaring.
"Was he screaming for help?" Mr. Medulla asked.
"Well... sort of? No, don't, and stop all mean help, that's what Mr. Bowie taught us in English for Heroes."
"I believe he was screaming no, don't stop. We arrived early for some privacy, which is rare in a family of nineteen, sir," Najair said, brushing off his skirt.
"Well... He just kicked me!" Will added, glaring and pointing at Najair.
"I got out of the car abruptly. You were in my way."
Turning to Mr. Medulla to argue, Will frowned when he saw that the Mad Science teacher was an odd shade of red. "Are you okay, Mr. Medulla?"
"I'm fine," Medulla replied with a cough, and glad that Donny wasn't around; Beth had said 'no, don't stop' just that morning, and from the hickey forming on Pat's neck, he doubted tickling had been involved here, either.
"I can get you some water," Will offered, ready to do whatever he had to for Mr. Medulla to believe him.
"I said I'm fine. Now, you heard screaming from a soundproofed car. Is there a way of demonstrating this ability now that the door's been ripped off?" Medulla asked, trying not to add 'barbarically' at the end of his sentence.
"Nigel can close the driver's partition and play music in the front, can't you?" Maleah suggested.
"Ooh, can I pick the song?" Kiara asked, already clambering into the front seat to sit down, closing the door behind her.
The classical music that had started to play changed to a rock song that made the car shake. The partition finished closing and the song cut off, though Kiara was still playing air guitar in the front seat.
"This is why Pepe won't let you drive!" Najair called at his sister, Lorcan snickering beside him.
"If she heard you, you'd be dead, Naj. Is that enough evidence, Mr. Medulla?" Lorcan asked.
Will opened and closed his mouth, stepping forward to argue his point. There was an unfortunate crunching sound of smashed glass and fibreglass, everyone gathered looking down at Will's footprint through the fallen car door and now-cracked window.
"Ah, finally. I know you charge by the hour, but being put on hold for five minutes shouldn't be included in the charge. It's not my fault that the intern didn't recognise my name," Pat said, rolling his eyes at whoever was on the other end of the call. "Put through a notice of vehicle damages and send the bill to Will Stronghold. There's footage available from Sky High's parking lot, talk to Principal Linda Powers for access. The repairs will have to go through AAA Contractors since they have a super mechanic employed there as well as Nigel's original designer," Pat said, glancing over at Nigel's wrecked frame and Maleah tutting over the new damages.
"Of course, Mr. Morton," Ms. Martin said, writing down her instructions and the name of the soon to be unemployed intern who didn't know who Patrick Morton was even when he'd said his name.
"I suggest you go inside before you incur any more expenses this morning, Mr. Stronghold," Medulla said.
Face burning, Will took his foot out of the car's door as gently as possible - glass shards tinkling as they fell to the ground off his shoes - and stalked into the school. He wasn't even sure they really were having a tickle fight!
Medulla sighed and looked at the mess around them. "I suppose I'll have to write up an incident report. Stay here so I can get your testimonies."
"Yes, Mr. Medulla."
Maxwell went to leave and then turned back. "I highly suggest you don't have any more... tickle fights in the school parking lot."
Najair snorted and wrapped an arm around Lorcan's shoulders. "Why, I don't think he believes us, Lore."
"Watch out for the glass, Pat. You're still only wearing one shoe," Maleah called out.
Pat smiled and walked around the other side of the car, opening the door and sliding into the back. "Who's going to help me find my shoe, then?"
Kiara saw her brothers and sister getting in the back with Pat and, yawning widely, decided that a few more minutes to nap was a better idea than joining them. She snickered as a lullaby sounded on the radio. "Thanks, Nigel. Got any rainforest sounds? Reminds me of home."
"Of course, Miss Kiara."
Kiara was fast asleep before the first frog even croaked.
...
Warren felt like he'd been dragged over gravel, hit by a truck, then dragged over glass, and then had a building crush him. Oh, wait, that last one had actually happened. Fuck, everything hurt. Looking at his surroundings, he determined he wasn't in a hospital, but he was hooked up to an IV drip. A curtain was closed around his bed, but he didn't have the energy to sit up, let alone try to move.
"Layla?"
The curtains opened and Ida looked in, a smile on her face. "Oh, good, you're awake. It's sooner than I expected, how are you feeling?" she asked, glancing at a few of the machines before turning her attention back to him.
Warren took a moment to assess himself. "Sore, but not as bad as I expected. Where's Layla? Is she okay? What about the others?" he asked, struggling to sit up now.
"Layla's alive and in recovery, just like you," Ida assured him, gently pushing Warren back on the bed. He went back down without an ounce of resistance. "Everyone else is fine. They all went home yesterday, but I'm sure they'll be back sooner rather than later. Now, I'll ask you a few questions to see what your memory's like, okay? Not the standard ones, I promise," she added, doubting Warren knew what day it was since he'd been unconscious for two days straight. "Full name and date of birth?"
"Warren Nikolayevich Peace, 23rd March, 1986."
Ida blinked. "Nikolayevich, really?"
Warren shrugged. "My parents are Russians with a sense of humour."
"All right. Three teachers at Sky High?"
"Jared Bowie, Mr. Medulla, and Coach Boomer."
"Your parents' powers?"
"Mother, emotional manipulation. Father, pyrokinesis."
"Two plus two times seven?"
Warren took a moment to think. "Sixteen, and adding an order of operations to a spoken maths equation is a cruel and unusual punishment, Dr. Spattle."
"I know; I had to check your numerical ability somehow, but I think that's enough, don't you?" Ida said, smiling gently. "Your bed is next to Layla's," she added, nodding to indicate Layla's bed. "I'll open the curtains for you."
"Thanks, Dr. Spattle. What drugs did you give me?" Warren asked, looking to the drip beside him. The drugs he'd had in hospital as a child after being kidnapped by his father had done little more than ease the sting of a few bruises; this felt like he was floating or sinking, or perhaps both.
"It's super strength morphine. Alcohol doesn't work on supers the same way it does for citizens, so what makes you think any medicinal drugs would, either? It's another reason Sandsapien's work is so vital; his sand works on both citizens and supers. As well as CEOs and members of the Board, and now they know it," Ida added with a grin.
Warren snorted, already drowsy and eyelids drooping. "Mmkay, good night."
"Good night, Warren. I'll let your mother know you're alive and awake; she just stepped out for a coffee with Honey," Ida said, shaking her head.
Warren snored in response, already fast asleep.
...
Larry's mother had been furious about his fight with Airborne. She was indignant that Airborne thought her son couldn't be a Hero, too, but was also just as upset about him fighting one of the esteemed Stronghold Three. It had made for an awkward weekend where she spent half of the time muttering about Airborne and the other half berating Larry.
His father had made him watch all of the news reports - even the media were undecided as to who had won the epic fight: Airborne or Earthstone? You decide! - and Larry hated that this was the reason he had his parents' undivided attention. Then his aunts and uncles and cousins and second cousins and grandparents had called.
After a day and a half of back and forth between seemingly every member of his extended family, Larry was only certain about one thing: every person in the Levinsky family was positive that he had won the fight. So, if that many people believed he'd won, then that meant he'd won, right?
His mother had decided to drive him to school early on Monday morning, chatting away and ensuring he had a plan to tell as many people as possible that he'd won the fight on the weekend. If they weren't going to be the Stronghold's friends, then they would beat them at their own game.
"So now you want me to be a Hero?" Larry asked incredulously as they landed at Sky High.
"It's the Levinsky dream to be a Hero; I just thought it would be easier if we were with the Strongholds. They have connections we could never dream of having," his mother said.
Larry sighed and looked across the parking lot, seeing a limousine sitting near the entrance. "Well, the Morton family has more connections than the Strongholds have ever dreamed of. That's Patrick Morton's car. I can let him know I won the fight," he said.
His mother's eyes widened. "Go, go. Now, before Airborne arrives; we don't know if he'll try to do the same thing."
Larry hurried out of the car when he saw his mother's hand hovering over the eject button - it had cost nearly a full month's salary to get it installed, and it was his parents' favourite threat while driving - and shouldered his bag as he started towards the limousine. He could see Kiara in the front seat, her face pressed against the glass as she slept.
Looking back over his shoulder to his mother, Larry felt like she was watching his every move and judging him. He could practically hear her voice in his head, telling him to be more confident and walk straighter and be the kind of Hero the Levinsky family would be proud of. Straightening his posture - shoulders back, head high - Larry reached out to knock on the door.
"Oh, no, you don't!"
An electric zap stunned Larry as his knuckles connected with the door and he shied away, his hand turning rocky defensively and his hair sticking up.
"What the fuck?" Larry cried out in surprise.
The window slid down smoothly and Lorcan looked out with a frown. "Oh, it's Larry. Hi. Why were you attacking the car?"
"I was just going to knock on the door!"
"Why?"
Larry didn't know how to answer that without sounding like he was trying to get the Morton heir's attention and praise, and come across as bad as his parents. He couldn't really say: I wanted to tell you about the fight I had with Will on the weekend and make sure you knew that I won the fight even though not even experts have really determined who won, and your influence could make others believe I won it, too. "I wanted to see if you were okay," he finally said, seeing a broken door through the window and nodding towards it in explanation.
"Oh, that. It's nothing. I'd be better if people stopped interrupting," Pat grumbled.
"Who's interrupting? What are they interrupting?" Larry asked, curious at Pat's dishevelled state.
"Will interrupted last time and ripped the door off," Najair said, rolling his eyes.
"Will's here?" Larry asked, eyes wide.
He promptly forgot about talking to Patrick, and forgot about his mother watching, and ran into the school to find Will. Larry needed to stop him from talking about their fight and claiming to have won when it was so obvious that Earthstone was clearly the winner.
...
End of the hundred and fifty-sixth chapter.