With a slight shrug, Yamagata said, "Then there will be no option except allowing the kamikazes to blow up as much of Moonbase as they can."

"But that is lunacy!"

"A clever play on words," the young man said, although his expression showed no humor.

"You can't let them blow up Moonbase!" Rashid yelled.

"The forces are in motion," said Yamagata. "How they will play out remains to be seen. Even if Moonbase is entirely destroyed, it can be rebuilt."

"But… but-"

"Patience is a virtue, Mr Rashid. Yamagata Industries will receive the U.N.'s mandate to operate Moonbase, no matter what condition the base may be in when the fighting is finished. If necessary, we will rebuild it. The important thing is that Moonbase will be in our hands."

It was not until that instant that Rashid realized he had put his future into the hands of ruthless men.

Only a few miles away, Joanna paced restlessly through the living room of her home.

"A new exercise regime?" Lev asked, stretched out on the big sofa across from the unused fireplace.

"How can you just sit there?" she blurted. "The Peacekeepers have already started their march to Alphonsus."

Her husband made a wry face. "What can we do about it? The decisions are in Doug's hands. Working ourselves into heart seizures won't help."

"If only we could get there…"

"And give Doug two more useless people to worry about?"

She whirled and rushed toward him. "Lev, call him. Talk to him. Make him understand that he's got to surrender! He can't fight the Peacekeepers! They'll kill everyone in Moonbase."

Slowly, like a weary old man, Lev swung his legs off the sofa and sat up. He grasped Joanna's wrist and pulled her down onto the cushion beside him.

"Listen to me, dear one. Doug understands the situation as well as we do, or better. He knows what he can do to defend the base-"

"Against missiles and nuclear bombs? You saw the news broadcast!"

Lev put a finger on her lips, silencing her for the moment.

"It isn't our decision to make," he said softly. "If I called him, not only would it distract him from the thousands of vital things he must think about, but I would end up agreeing with him—victory or death!"

Joanna stared at him as if he had gone mad. "Victory or… what are you saying?"

"Doug believes in Moonbase with all his soul," Lev replied. "To him, it is his world, his life. He won't want to live in a world without Moonbase."

"No," Joanna said, feeling weak with shock. "That can't be. Doug can come back here. He can live with us. I'll protect him, guard him…' Her voice faded into silence.

Lev shook his head. "Not all the fanatics belong to the New Morality, my darling. In his own very rational way, your son is a fanatic, too. That's what it takes to fight hopeless odds."