Witch Chronicles

The new guy walked towards the bar in the room and asked, "Can I get
you anything? The bar is fully stocked."

"No, thanks."

"Do you mind if I?"

"Would it matter if I did?"

"If you had a real problem with it, I could hold off."

"No, I don't mind."

He went behind the bar and poured himself a drink. As he filled his
glass, he said, "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ford
Kerrigan. I have recently been placed in charge of the North America
occupation force, thanks in some small part to you."

"Me? How do you figure?"

"Your escape and evasion of capture did not shine favorably on my
predecessor, although I think his attempt to cover up your actions
was more harmful than anything you did."

"Goody. So what's this? You thanking me?"

"Not exactly." He came out from behind the bar. "I'm offering you a job."

I was so stunned that it took me a few seconds before I could say,
"You must be kidding."

"I rarely kid, lieutenant. The Dark Alliance appreciates ability.
You managed a spur of the moment escape, and then, despite a dragnet,
managed to avoid capture for two weeks. That impresses me. I want
you working for me."

"Forget it, I only work for the U.S.A."

He took out a disk the size of a small plate. He held it out
parallel to the floor and it hovered there. He touched the edge and
a glowing hologram of earth appeared above it. There was a big, red
spot covering a good chunk of northeast America, Europe was entirely
red, and the Orient was almost entirely covered, but in a series of
small red dots rather than one big spot. He told me, "The red shows
what we've taken. Most of that was taken in the last week.
Conservative estimates say the war will last six more weeks at most.
Your U.S.A. is doomed."

"I wouldn't count the United States down and out quite yet, and even
if America was doomed, I still wouldn't betray my oaths and join you."