"Mrs Brudnoy is willing to accompany you back Earthside," he was saying as he reached for the keyboard and began typing. "She's a member of the board of directors of Masterson Corporation, and its former chairperson. She could negotiate this problem directly with the secretary-general."

On the screen to his right appeared his message: COUNT THE TROOPERS. MAKE SURE NONE ARE MISSING. THEY COULD BE TRYING TO FIND THE EMERGENCY AIRLOCKS.

Hansen was saying, "I will have to communicate with my superiors. I don't have the authority to make such a decision."

"Of course," Doug said. Anything, so long as they don't get the notion to cut the power lines from the solar farms, or damage the farms themselves.

The mercenary watched Doug's performance with grudging respect. He just might pull it off, he told himself. He just might get the Peacekeepers to haul ass out of here and leave us alone.

The mercenary looked at the faces of the people gathered around Doug. Anxiety, plenty of it. But there was hope in their perspiration-sheened faces, too. And more than hope: admiration. Unadulterated admiration for this young man who was shouldering the burdens of leadership for them, and succeeding at it.

Deep within himself, the mercenary felt a tangled skein of conflicting emotions. He admired Doug Stavenger, too. But he knew that the more successful Doug was, the closer he was moving to death. If he really does drive the Peacekeepers off, then I'll have to kill him, like it or not.

It was strange. For the first time in his life he approached an assassination reluctantly.

But then he realized that it was Stavenger himself who would force the issue. Like all prey, Stavenger was moving willingly toward his final moment. The mercenary wasn't stalking him; Stavenger was coming to him, seeking death. If the kid would just let the Peacekeepers come in and take over I wouldn't have to touch him, the mercenary told himself.

But no, he's going to outsmart the Peacekeepers and make himself a hero. A dead hero.

"Hey, what's that?"

Doug caught the flicker of movement in the upper right screen and jerked his attention away from his dialogue with Lieutenant Hansen.

A spacesuited figure was running into the garage. A kamikaze? Doug's heart clutched in his chest. A suicide trooper clutching explosives to blow the hatch to one of the corridors?

"I'm Edie Elgin from Global Network News!" the figure shouted as she ran clumsily toward the hatch to corridor one. "I'm not a soldier, I'm a news reporter and you've got to let me in!"

"Get out of there!" Doug yelled. "The nanobugs will eat out your suit and kill you!"

"No!" Edith shouted back. "I'm a reporter and I want to talk with you people face-to-face!"

She reached the hatch and skidded to a stop.

"The nanobugs are already chewing on your boots," Doug said. "Get back outside while you still have a chance!"

"No! You come and let me inside the base."