Thea ignored their faces, which were dark with humiliation, and continued, "Even if I send you back, you'll still be in your current state. This is the power of science, not myth or magic. You won't be able to report to any Minister or President because you are too small; you won't even register in their world."
"Telephones will look as tall as mountain peaks to you. Your size might be just slightly larger than a microorganism; even ants would be countless times larger than you. Do you still want to go back?"
Thea looked at them with a faint, mocking smile and spoke again, "Your families are all in the city, right? General Lane's daughter, Senator Harris's mother and son, and Ms. Emily's husband... Surely you don't expect them to spend their lives reduced to microbes."
The group fell into silence. Thea actually had one more point she didn't say, but they could figure it out themselves: power! Becoming like this, all their authority would vanish. After all, an army couldn't possibly obey a general who could only be observed under a microscope. The same applied to the government officials; voters wouldn't go out carrying high-powered lenses just to watch them give a speech.
"Then do you have a way to restore us to our original state?" someone asked Thea.
"First, I need to find the wavelength that shrunk us. Then, using the isotope principle, I'll set up a reverse matrix. At that point, by stimulating the atomic structure... There's Ehrenfest's theorem in modern quantum mechanics..."
"Alright, alright, we get it!" Several people hurriedly interrupted Thea's long-winded speech. None of them cared what the hell quantum mechanics said; they just wanted to return to their original state!
Unfortunately, their voices during the dispute were a bit loud. The remaining people, including those bodyguards, also leaned in, wanting to hear what they were saying.
Thea savored the moment quietly. Prestige was forged in moments like this—turning the tide in a crisis. This event was perfect; she could solve it using the Atom's theories without exposing any superpowers.
"Everyone, listen to me!" Today wasn't a formal meeting, so Thea wasn't wearing that tacky business suit. Instead, she wore a stylish V-neck white shirt paired with a navy blue short skirt and strapped high heels. Now, putting away her lazy demeanor, she radiated the cold edge of a drawn blade. Her gaze scanned everyone, and those who met her eyes couldn't help but quiet down.
"It's what I said just now: all of us, including this city, have been atomized. We need to maintain order in the city and then find a way to save ourselves!"
An old man in the crowd stuttered, "Will Superman come to save us?"
Thea almost laughed. Ten minutes ago, this old man was eloquently calling for Superman to obey the "Constitution"! He wanted to develop weapons to deal with him, and now that there's a problem, he remembers Superman again? Talk about biting the hand that feeds you. The thickness of this man's skin was astounding.
"Can Superman handle everything for you? If a house catches fire, Superman goes to save it. Because of Superman's existence, we no longer care about fire safety, because there's Superman. Crossing the street without following traffic rules? Superman will come to save people, surely won't die from impact, because there's Superman."
"Everyone, I haven't seen where Superman is today. We can only rely on ourselves!" Thea looked coldly at the crowd. Scattered applause rang out at the scene. These people hadn't completely abandoned their integrity; after all, they were here for an Anti-Superman conference. Relying on Superman to save them at the first sign of trouble was just too ironic!
Even the conceited Luthor reluctantly clapped twice. Between being rescued by Superman and death, he might swallow his pride to survive, but it wasn't a life-or-death moment yet. He agreed with Thea's words, only regretting that he wasn't the one who said them.
Actually, Thea wasn't deceiving them. She really didn't see the Man of Steel in the city. She saw quite a few acquaintances, like Lois Lane, who appeared wherever there was danger; like the wife of the big guy beside her, A.R.G.U.S.'s Lyla Michaels; and her own subordinate Poison Ivy. But Superman? Sorry, really didn't see him.
"Miss Queen, do you really have a way to solve the current situation?" Luthor asked somewhat skeptically.
"Although it's not a hundred percent certain, my plan is this..." To boost their confidence, Thea laid out her anti-atomization process and principles to the group.
The group of politicians and generals looked like they were listening to gibberish, their expressions blank. But Luthor truly understood! Although Thea didn't discuss the details, he knew this plan was feasible, and it was technology deduced from Earth's current scientific level.
This made Luthor extremely unhappy. Superman was stronger than him, but he could say that was because the opponent was an alien. But now, Thea, an Earthling, was suppressing him in his most expert field of science. He couldn't tolerate this no matter what. Proud as he was, he couldn't lie with his eyes open. He only understood forty to fifty percent of Thea's theory, and he was calculating in his heart if there were any parts of this technology he could perfect.
Luthor lowered his head to calculate, trying to find flaws in her theory to salvage some of his dignity. Thea wasn't prepared to let him off. She asked slyly, "Mr. Luthor, I heard your scientific research ability is extremely strong. Do you think there are any problems with what I said?"
At this moment, Luthor had his fingers on his temples. If he were sitting in a wheelchair, he could go play a young version of Professor X. But no matter how fast he spun that brilliant brain of his, he couldn't find any deficiencies in Thea's theory.
Facing Thea's question, it was like he was backed into a corner. His head was thinking so hard it was about to smoke. Combining his own knowledge, he could only judge that what Thea said was completely correct. As for improvements, or going a step further, that was just a pipe dream. No matter how smart he was, without a year or so of time, he couldn't reach Ray Palmer's level.
Luthor forced a smile that looked more painful than a grimace. "I have no issues. Miss Queen's theory is feasible."
"Huh?" Several people who knew him all let out confused sounds in unison, looking at Thea and then at Luthor.
One had to know that relying on his intellect, Luthor viewed this bunch of politicians and generals like imbeciles. Sarcasm and mockery were common occurrences, and he would occasionally tell dry jokes that left these people hanging. Now that he actually publicly admitted Thea's theory was feasible without offering any new opinions himself, what did this mean? It meant Thea's scientific research ability also had merit!
If the timing wasn't wrong, several of them were ready to pull Thea aside to talk about new weapons. They had really had enough of Luthor showing off his superiority every day.
Thea felt incredibly good watching the silent Luthor right now. Physical elimination wasn't true skill; knocking him down in his area of expertise was what gave a sense of accomplishment. As for this knowledge coming from the Atom—Ray Palmer—and not belonging to her, Thea didn't care. No one would expose her anyway. Moreover, at this point in time, the Atom was still out there roaming around. If she said it was Thea's theory, no one would have an opinion!