He smiled a savage smile. “When someone pushes me, I push back.”

“It’s a good feeling,” admitted Cain. “But...”

“But what?”

“I’m tired of losing.”

“Then join me, and fight on my side,” said Santiago.

“You’ve already admitted you can’t win.”

“But that doesn’t mean I have to lose.” He paused. “Hell, I wouldn’t want to overthrow the Democracy even if I could.”

“Why not?”

“First, as I said, because I don’t want to become part of the establishment that I’m fighting. And second, because the Democracy isn’t truly evil, or even especially corrupt. It’s simply a government that, like all governments, makes its decisions based on what will result in the greatest benefit for the greatest number. From their point of view, and given their constituency, they’re a moral and ethical institution. They undoubtedly feel that they have every right to plunder the Frontier and abrogate the rights of its citizens—and in the long run, if it strengthens their position in the galaxy, they may even be correct.” He paused. “On the other hand, those of us who bear the brunt of these abuses don’t have to stand idly by and hope that everything will work out for the best. We can fight back.”

“How?” asked Cain, staring intently at him.

“By understanding the nature of the enemy,” said Santiago. “This isn’t some planetary military machine we’re talking about. This is the Democracy. It encompasses more than a hundred thousand worlds, and it’s not going to change—not overnight, not ever.” He paused. “But if we harass and harry them enough, we can convince them that it’s less expensive in terms of money and human life to leave us alone than to continue to oppress us.” He took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly. “After all, what do we really have that’s worth such an expense? We’re a mass of insignificant, underpopulated worlds.”

“To say nothing of disorganized,” commented Cain.

“That’s part of our strength.”

Cain arched an eyebrow.

“You look skeptical,” noted Santiago.

“I never thought lack of organization was a virtue.”

“It never was before. But if we organized, if we had an army and a navy and a chain of command, the Democracy would know where to strike, and we would be decimated within a week. In fact, the nature of the enemy makes it impossible for a leader to emerge from the masses and rally men to his banner.”

“Except for you.”