amazing, alien thing, rising evilly from the green Earth. For an instant his
plans seemed transparent, ghost-like, futile, before the civilization which had
raised that astounding metropolis in so short a time. Then he thought of Anne,
and the hate-lightning blazed in his eyes.
“Yes,” he said. “I’ve seen the city. And there are certain things about it that
are very significant to me. According to your story, and from what I’ve seen
it’s all too true, all effective resistance to the invaders has been destroyed.
Yet that city, built after the battle was all over, is fortified like it was
expecting Attila the Hun any minute.”
“I know what you mean,” Barret agreed. “They’re scared of us, sure. I told you
our early counterattacks panicked ’em every time. The little suicide ships
toward the end did it, too. But that ain’t goin’ t’ help. Them forts just make
it worse. They make bein’ scared a luxury, and a safe one.”
“Besides,” Leland followed, “you don’t realize just how few of us there are.
Barret’s eighteen men and three women make up the largest community in these
parts. Mostly we think it too dangerous to collect together like that–too easy
for the turnies to spot us. Most everybody picks their own spot and lives alone.
There’s ten people in my bunch.”
“That’s good,” Marshall said instantly. “This is going to be guerilla
warfare–striking at weaknesses and disappearing again.”
“The invaders ain’t got no weaknesses,” Barret retorted.
“On the contrary. That fear psychosis is one. It’s all out of proportion to our