What is it?” she asked Dan, staring at him. She tried to conceal her agitation. The rebuilding committee was becoming as big a cluster fuck as the ruined city.

“I’ll tell you when everybody arrives,” he said.

The rest of the committee filed into the tent and sat down at the table. Dan was the unofficial leader of the group and called the meeting to order.

“I recently made a discovery that this committee should be the first to know.”

“Just spill it, Dan,” Octavia said.

“The Draconian consulate was the one building to survive the Mulgor bombing,” Dan said.

“We all know that already,” Octavia said.

“I drove by there early this morning on one of my scavenging runs and went to speak with the secretary. He told me that the Draconians are implementing a reconstruction plan starting next week. They brought in some of their best people from their home planet. New York will be the first city to be reconstructed.”

“Are they going to consult with us?” Octavia asked. The Draconians had already been so irresponsible in their dealings with Earth. It was high time that they started working more closely with the humans in order to create a better future for the planet.

“As far as he knew, no,” Dan said, his voice disappointed.

“So we’re out of a job,” one of the other committee members said.

“It’s not my job I’m concerned about. I’m concerned about the fact that the Draconians have no fucking idea how to deal with humans, our customs, or our society. What the hell do they know about city planning and development? They expect us to live in these places but don’t plan to consult us about how to build them? I’m sorry, but that’s completely ridiculous,” Octavia said, her anger boiling in her gut.

She’d spent the last several months devising a plan to rebuild New York for the good of everyone. The Draconians had been nowhere to be found. The survivors had depended on their own wits and will to make it through the worst part of the year. Now the Draconians were going to swoop in and force their ideas and their cities onto the refugees? That just didn’t fly with her.

“At least they’re planning to help,” Dan said.

“It’s too little, too late as far as I’m concerned,” Octavia said. “And I intend to do something about it.”

“I think it best if we don’t anger the very people who can help us, Octavia,” Dan said.

“I can’t believe I’m hearing this,” she said, growing angrier by the second.

“If you think that you can get more information than I did, then be my guest. Go down to the consulate yourself and talk to the secretary.”

“That’s exactly what I intend to do.”

The rest of the committee members were quietly talking among themselves. Some of them were relieved that the Draconians were finally helping. Others were just as irritated as Octavia. She didn’t intend to wait around to listen to their opinions.

The Draconians had screwed up. They’d screwed up the Earth’s economy with their irresponsible offer of technology. They’d screwed up the world even more by luring their enemy to her planet. They’d probably screw up again when trying to rebuild. For an advanced race, they certainly were stupid when it came to dealing with other civilizations.

“Can I borrow your truck?” she said to Dan. He sighed and handed her the keys.

“Don’t piss them off, Octavia,” he said.

“I’ll do my best,” she said, turning out of the tent.

The clouds had already moved back in and the wind was picking up again. At least Dan’s truck had a heater. The refugees had fuel they scavenged from ruined gas stations, but for the most part, they had to rely on burning wood from the ruins to survive the cold.

A few of the buildings constructed in the refugee camp were made out of recycled materials from the ruins, but the rest were just tents scavenged from material and outdoor supply stores.

Octavia walked towards the parking lot where Dan’s truck was parked. There were enough cars left to get around the city on scavenger runs, but most of the refugees did not leave the camp.

She got into the truck and turned on the motor. A CD left over from before the invasion began to play through the speakers. Dan would have to be a country music fan.

She turned it off and pulled out of the parking lot. The Draconian consulate was in the middle of downtown Manhattan. Almost every other building in New York had been flattened or blasted wide open, but not the Draconian consulate. The dome was like a white spot in a sea of black, twisted metal.

The road between the camp and the consulate was clear enough to drive through if she wove around the debris blocking the way. She made it to the consulate a few minutes later and parked the truck, thinking about what she would say to the secretary when she got inside. The Draconians had made a royal mess of everything and they needed to get their act together.

She took a deep breath and got out of the car before storming up the stairs and pulling open the front door. Inside the huge dome was a single desk with the Draconian secretary sitting behind it. What did this guy do all day?

“Have you come to enter the mating lottery?” he asked as she approached his desk. The secretary was seven feet tall and impossibly good-looking, like all Draconian males. His perfect features and shining blue eyes made it difficult to remain angry at him. Difficult, but not impossible.

“I have not come to enter the lottery. My friend was here earlier. You told him about the Draconian reconstruction of the city. I would like to be involved in the planning. After all the stupid mistakes the Draconians have made in their involvement with Earth, it’s about damn time that you start taking our needs into consideration.”

“It was not our intention to mate with a civilization at your level of advancement. It is highly unusual for us to be involved with a race who is not either in a very low level of technological advancement or a very high one similar to our own. It was unfortunate that this happened to your planet. But rest assured, the Draconians are committed to making reparations.”

“Committed to making reparations? What the hell does that even mean? You can’t just leave our opinions out of it if you intend to rebuild our entire planet from the ground up.”

“The president has sent our best architect. Housing for Draconian civilians has already been built. Your city will be reconstructed within a few months. You should be pleased.”

“Has this architect of yours been studying human history, human culture, human society?”

“He is the Grand Architect of Draconia. I’m sure he is equipped to provide your species with all you require.”

“Don’t talk down to me. Just remember you need our DNA to survive,” she said, ready to get into a serious debate with this snobby secretary.

“Is there anything else can I do for you today?” he asked, as if dismissing her.

“I told you, I want to be involved in the planning of the reconstruction of New York City. This is my city. I’ve lived here my entire life. I don’t trust some alien to make all of the decisions about how we’re going live.”

“I’ve told you, that is impossible. Now, if there’s nothing else I can help you with…”

Octavia groaned angrily and turned away, storming out of the consulate. She should have known they would blow her off like that. Typical Draconian behavior. They thought they were so much better than humans because they were more technologically advanced. But if they were so great, then why didn’t they think before messing up the Earth? They weren’t even taking responsibility for their mistakes. She got in the truck and gripped the steering wheel, growling angrily at the windshield.

There was nothing she could do except go back to the refugee camp and wait for the Draconians to mess up again. She turned on the engine and pealed out of her parking spot. She hadn’t felt this angry since the weeks after the bombings when she was still grieving the loss of her parents. Everything felt so bitter and hopeless.