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The Kurgan stopped in front of the assembled prisoners, looked everyone over, and then began to speak through her translator.
    “Good morning, I am sorry to take you away from your studies; however, I have received a message that must be read to all of you without delay. As prisoners of war, you have been treated with the utmost respect by the Kurgan Empire. It was our deepest desire that you would see the path to peace through the Kurgan religion and join us as citizens of the Empire. This regrettably has not been the case. In this camp and others like it spread throughout the Empire, you have all proven to be stubborn and less than receptive to our teachings. I am to give you one last chance to join us. Any man or woman who feels that they can find peace in the Empire will move off to the far side of the gymnasium and wait for me there.”
    Tarina looked around. Not a single person moved.
    The Kurgan female shook her leathery head. “This is your last chance. Join us or face the consequences.”
    Tarina’s stomach began to churn with fear. Were they going to be shot ?
    “Very well, you have chosen your path. You will be in Kyseth before me.”
    Tarina held her breath. Kyseth was the Kurgan word for heaven. They were going to be killed.  
    A young soldier standing near Wendy heard the word and began to cry.
    The Kurgan female stepped forward. “It is not too late.” She held out a hand. “Come with me, my child, and I will save you.”
    The soldier took a step back, hurried to wipe the tears from her face, and tried to look as defiant as the others.
    “Fools, you are all fools.” With that, the Kurgan female turned and strode out of the room. As she was leaving, a platoon of well-armed Chosen warriors ran in and lowered their weapons at the prisoners.
    Wendy reached for Tarina’s hand and held onto it for dear life. Both women held their breath and raised their heads. They weren’t going to cower in fear at the end.
    The Chosen’s officer, a Kurgan in full armor, walked between his men and the prisoners. “You will not die here,” said the officer in understandable English. “You will go to a new camp to work for the Empire.”
    A Chosen sergeant walked alongside the officer and smiled. He placed his hands on his hips and said, “I want all of you to take a seat and not try anything foolish or you will be shot for attempting to escape. A transport ship will be arriving in the hour to move you to your next and final camp.”
    “Where will that be?” called out one of the prisoners.
    “Klatt, it’s a prison planet. If you’re not used for target practice, you’ll spend the rest of your miserable lives mining perlinium for the Kurgan war effort. Now, no more questions. The next person who bothers me will be beaten for insolence.”
    Wendy held Tarina’s hand so tight that it hurt. Tarina leaned over and said, “Let go of my hand before you break it.”
    “Sorry,” whispered Wendy, releasing her grip
    Together they sat down on the wooden floor of the gymnasium. Tarina wrapped an arm around Wendy and pulled her close. “I guess we knew this day would come. As we always say, at least we’re still together.”
    “I’d hoped to be rescued by now. I guess no one’s coming for us.”
    “Wendy, you can’t think that way. You know that if our friends knew where we were, they’d risk their lives to free us.”
    “I guess so. It just seems that we’ve been out here for so long and things just keep getting worse.”
    Tarina squeezed her friend in her arms. “I need you to keep up your spirits. As long as we’re alive and together, there’s always hope. You’ll see, something will turn in our favor. I know it will.”
    “Can I have your word on that?”
    “Yeah, you can have my word on it.”
    Tarina knew she was just saying what Wendy wanted to hear. The rumors she had heard about Klatt were horrific. Brutal guards, starvation rations, disease, and overcrowding all combined to give a prisoner there