At the dump site, load after load of armored corpses are tumbled into the burial pit to begin the long, slow process of decay; the pile of broken bodies grows higher and higher until finally the last dozer dumps the last load of human detritus on top with a clatter. The third, the tall, long legged teen, lies curled up on his side, writhing and twisting in agony, bravely trying not to cry out again as he starts to lapse into unconsciousness. Out on the street, she sees one of the armored troopers blazing away with his laser rifle at the advancing Zadons and she lets out a gasp. Small teams of troopers detach themselves from the main body, ducking into buildings along the village’s main street, turning them into miniature strong points. Starting with their two targets at either end of the front rank, the Zadons start a rapid fire salvo of their shock wave weapons, each of them working their way down the line of armor clad bodies until they meet in the middle, delivering
