A chuckle traveled through the seats. Yes, they could all guess. Laura had sent her message to Earth four days ago, offering to open negotiations for a permanent armistice and peace treaty with WestHem. In the request Mars offered to immediately resume food and steel shipments and to begin negotiating a POW exchange. Mars' terms for such actions were public WestHem recognition of Mars as an independent nation and the extradition of General Wrath and General Browning on war crimes charges. Instead of responding right away WestHem had cut and edited the message until it seemed like Laura was taunting the WestHem public, expressing hatred for all things Earthling, and threatening to kill even more hostages. This edited tape had been playing non-stop on all three of the big three for three days now.
'In any case,' Laura said, 'I'll go ahead and play that reply now for the record. I'll also release a copy to MarsGroup so they can start playing it as well.' She tapped a few buttons on her podium screen and the video file opened up, both before her and on the large screen behind her. She pushed the 'play' tab.
The face of Loretta Williams appeared, looking years older than it had in the beginning of the conflict. 'This is in reply to the offer of negotiation of armistice that was sent to us by the terrorist leader Laura Whiting of Mars. I will make this short and very clear. There will be no armistice of any kind with you thugs that are holding Mars hostage. To even call this conflict a war is insulting to all those brave marines who participated in it. You are illegally holding a WestHem colony against the will of the people who live there and we will not rest until Mars is liberated and its people allowed to live out their lives in democratic peace. All terrorists we captured during Operation Martian Hammer are being returned to Earth where they will be tried for their crimes and executed if found guilty of murder or treason. In addition, when our next task force arrives and liberates that planet Laura Whiting, Kevin Jackson, and any soldier who picked up arms against us will also be tried on charges of murder, treason, and crimes against humanity. You would be well advised to spare your people further bloodshed and surrender yourselves now. Only if you agree to this term and to unconditional surrender of Mars back to WestHem rule will we agree to speak with you in any way.'
The screen went blank as the message ended.
'So then,' Laura said, sipping from her tea, 'the usual WestHem blathering bullshit. I'm afraid that is pretty much what we were expecting all along. It looks like we're going to have to fight them again at some point.'
This caused some tittering among the legislature. One of the members, Steve Hotbox of Eden, asked to be recognized. Laura did so.
'Like all of you here, I'm extremely proud of what the MPG did to keep this planet in our hands during the war,' he said. 'I myself have a son who has been in the MPG for years. He served with the 5th Heavy Artillery Battalion in Eden and was nearly killed when the WestHem air strike took out his gun. We lost a lot of people in this war and we just barely hung in there. As General Jackson said in his briefing, the marines were within thirty minutes of taking Eden from us when they decided to turn back. It was only their loss of morale that saved us.'
'That is true, Steve,' Laura said. 'What is it that you're trying to say here?'
'I'm wondering what's going to happen the next time they send troops after us. We beat them because they underestimated us and because we had some pretty good tricks up our sleeve. I'm not trying to take anything away from the MPG or General Jackson. Both performed brilliantly. But now the WestHems know just how they should estimate our abilities and they know all of our tricks. Won't they send twice as many men and machines next time? Won't they focus on a single city instead of splitting their forces? I'm wondering whether it's wise of us to take such a hard line with WestHem on this armistice.'
'I take it that Jack Strough has been visiting your office?' Laura asked.
Hotbox sputtered a little. 'Well... yes, but I had my doubts about this long before Mr. Strough entered the picture.'
Laura sighed. Jack Strough, the president of the cargo handler's union, the man who had been a constant thorn in the side of the revolution ever since they first took the planet from WestHem, was now expanding his pain- in-the-ass status into Martian politics. In the past two weeks he had organized nearly every labor union on Mars into a loose alliance of laborers and was using this power to project his wishes into the Governor's office and into the offices of the remaining legislature members. 'I have listened to Mr. Strough's proposals myself,' she said. 'He is suggesting that we accept 'de facto' independence from WestHem but that we allow their corporations to retain control of the various industries on the planet.'
'That is correct,' Hotbox said. 'And I believe that Mr. Strough makes a lot of sense. WestHem is never going to accept losing Mars. They are going to keep sending more and more troops here until they take it back and condemn all of us to an ongoing military occupation. Those of us who fomented the revolt will be tried and executed.'
'Our troops did not fight and die out there for de facto independence, Steve,' Laura said angrily. 'They fought and died so we could be free — completely free — of the WestHem system of government. What he is suggesting puts us right back under WestHem control.'
'No, that's where you're wrong,' Hotbox argued. 'We get to elect our own leaders and the MPG gets to stay intact. They won't send any more troops to Mars to try to liberate it. The corporations get to keep their holdings but the Martian Federation of Labor that Strough is proposing will set all wages and working conditions for every Earth based corporation. In addition, we'll be free to continue trading with EastHem, something we were not allowed to do under the previous system. This will allow the expansion of the agricultural fields and the steel fields and open up a prosperity that will last for generations.'
'And we would still be on WestHem's system of currency,' Laura said, 'and subjected to their corporate mentality.' She shook her head. 'That is not what we were fighting for, Steve.'
'I understand that, Laura,' Hotbox said. 'Honestly I do. But I don't think we're going to be able to hold this planet indefinitely. A lot of the workers out there are in favor of this plan — more every day.'
'We will hold this planet forever if we remain unified,' Laura said. 'As we speak right now, our factories are churning out tanks, guns, APCs, bullets, aircraft, and every other supply needed to fight a war. General Jackson plans to increase MPG manpower by more than two hundred percent in the next six months and to beef up every aspect of our defensive capabilities. If this is allowed to go forth, the WestHems will be soundly defeated out in the wastelands again no matter what they send here. Their one chance to take this planet back from us has come and gone — unless we fail to remain unified and that is exactly what Jack Strough is trying to do. He is pitting our vital labor force against those of us who are trying to keep them free. And when you allow him into your office and bring his seditious drivel into these chambers you are helping him.'
Hotbox looked like he'd just been slapped across the face. He literally couldn't come up with the words to reply to her.
'We don't need to open an issue on this or vote on it right now,' Laura said. 'Strough is out there trying to turn our labor force against us and to give our planet back to WestHem because it suits his needs. I have more faith in our workers than that, however. If it becomes a truly divisive problem, we'll talk about it then. In the meantime, how about we move onto the next item on the agenda?'
Hotbox gave no protest to this suggestion. Neither did anyone else.
'Very well,' Laura said, taking another sip of her tea. 'You mentioned trade with EastHem, Steve. Coincidentally enough, that happens to be the next item we're dealing with. We received the following message from the EastHem ruling council yesterday regarding a possible expansion of trade. If they are suggesting what I think they are suggesting, some of these shortages we've been experiencing might just be coming to an end. Let me play it for you.'
She pushed the play tab and the face of Anthony Billings — the Chief Executive Councilmember of EastHem appeared. Unlike Loretta Williams, Billings was actually looking quite spiffy compared to the first time they'd contacted him, and with good reason. The influx of Martian food products in exchange for fuel had revitalized all of the EastHem corporations and their economy was booming for the first time in generations. 'Good evening, Ms. Whiting and honored members of the interim Martian governing council,' Billings said, smiling pleasantly. 'We have been following the events on your planet and I would like to be the first to congratulate you on your brilliant victory over those who tried to derail your new democracy in its beginning stages. Several members of our joint chiefs have been much impressed by how you fought your military campaign and have expressed a desire to buy your General Jackson a stiff drink if they should find occasion to run into him.
'Now that you are completely free from WestHem tyranny and it appears you will remain so, it is my suggestion that our two nations establish formal diplomatic channels, including the stationing of an ambassador and
