[Liz]

The rickety chair creaked as I put my head in my hands. Hope now seemed like a flickering candle in the wind, one too far away to reach. We huddled around a single view screen set up in an open reception area of the space elevator ground-port. The huge rounded climbers sat locked down a short distance away on each side of us. Since the EMP took out the satellite control room, this was all we had for a command center.

The news from Freehold was not good. The proud and independent-minded people who rose up in armed defense of their community were no match for the invaders. Each resistance met an overwhelming response, whether from ground troops, airships, or orbital bombardment. There were many casualties among our people and few of the aliens.

Even over the low fidelity short-wave radio transmission, I tasted the venom in Brinne's voice. Her home town was essentially wiped out and she lost some of her family. I could sympathize with her anger, but now was not the right time to dredge up the weapons development debate. Right or wrong, it was much too late for that. The only good news was that once the people scattered to the evacuation sites, the aliens were reluctant to follow.

I lifted my head. "Gan, is there any way to restore the wired communications with Freehold?"

Gan leaned forward in his equally rickety chair. "The damage to the system is on their end. I've sent a repair crew along with a security team, but we do not know how bad it is yet." He shook his head. "Except for Freehold, the aliens have essentially stood down. Why is that?"

Jack answered, standing beside us. "One reason is that their forces are spread thin. There are just not enough of them to mount multiple campaigns. I believe these forces were sent to secure the planet and put down organized resistance."

I took a deep breath. "You think more are coming?"

"I am certain of it."

"Jack, what is your assessment of our chances if we do mount a resistance effort?"

"We do have contingency plans and hidden weapon caches at some sites. Based on what we have learned so far, projectile and laser weapons are ineffective except at close range. Our stunners do work on them, although non-lethal. A coordinated guerilla campaign has a good chance of succeeding against their limited number of ground forces. However, we have no answer to orbital based forces. And then more of them will come, likely many more."

"So, possible short term success but long term failure."

"Yes."

I turned to my assistant. "Get Mora on the line."

Gan put on a smile as his wife's image appeared on the viewscreen. Despite disheveled hair and dark circles under her eyes, her face lit up with her own smile. He said, "How are you holding up Mora?"

"We are doing okay. There have been no signs of the aliens here. Your daughters are driving me nuts, though."

I said, "Good. You are aware of the situation around Freehold?"

Mora nodded. "Yes. We have sent food and medical assistance to the town and the surrounding evac sites. There are a considerable number of wounded. It's chaotic there. I've told my crews to assist with evacuation but not to go into active conflict areas. We have had some brushes with the aliens, but for the most part, they let us pass."

"What of Zion and Westfield?"

"They have needed no help. In fact, some people have gone back to their homes with little interference from the aliens. That is, as long as we don't threaten them."

Mora pushed her fingers through her hair and shifted her eyes to Gan. "Have you heard from Ben?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. With the comm satellites down, he has no way of contacting us. He may not even know that anything is happening. I doubt the aliens would have any interest in him and Kie anyway."

A dark haired little girl jumped up on Mora's lap. Her mouth dropped and her eyes sparkled. "Daddy!"

Gan grinned. "Hey, my little star. Have you been helping?"

She nodded vigorously. "Yeah. I helped Eve and Luna with the sur-plies. They are in trouble, though, 'cause they were arguing."

"I see..."

Mora shook her head. "Without Ben here to tease they have turned on each other." She set the little girl down. "I have to tell your father and grandma some things now, Nova."

An explosion interrupted the conversation. We all ducked as glass and structural plastic remnants of a destroyed cargo door rained down on us. A cloud of dust and smoke billowed up, obscuring our vision. Jack and one of his security officers jumped up, drawing stunners from holsters on their waists. They were the first to fall. Yellow pulses caught them both in the chest. They shuddered and slumped to the floor. Gan rose up to suffer the same fate.

I stood slowly. Six aliens clad in their black uniforms and dark helmets leveled their lance weapons toward me. I glared at them. I was not about to show any fear. One of them fired.

My body painfully convulsed and darkness overtook me. The last things I noticed were Mora's wide-open eyes and quivering lip on the view display. A little girl screamed in the background, her voice laced with terror, "Daddy! Daddy!"