The Cartographer Read Online Free PDF

a bite. The meat was bland and tasted like average fast food, but it was indeed an edible burger and not hamburger-shaped feces. My rumbling stomach accepted it and I swallowed it so fast that I almost choked myself in the process. Satou grabbed a drink from the Sustanant and held it out for me. Cold, stale water washed away what remained of the burger.
    “Thank you,” I sputtered.
    Satou turned to walk away but I grabbed his arm, forcing him to look at me. He turned back and cocked an eyebrow.
    “Wait a minute, I want to ask you something,” I blurted, inadvertently spitting hamburger bits on his tentacle beard.
    He showed no reaction to the little specks of cheese dangling off his chin, and I found that his indifference made it hard for me to read the emotions of an octopus.
    “Calypso showed me a video of a planet being attacked. The planet looked like Earth, but he said it wasn't. I know it sounds crazy, and I hope I'm not just rambling like a scared kid. I guess if I'm going to be spending time aboard this ship, exploring the galaxy with you people, I will need to put on my big boy pants but I need to know the truth. It looked like human beings jumping out of those burning buildings. So what's the deal Satou, was it Earth ?” My emphasis on the word highlighted the panic creeping into my voice but I didn't care. I just wanted them to be straight with me.
    Satou looked at me through sorrowful eyes. “Calypso was not lying to you, Nathan. What you saw was not Earth.”
    “But?” I prodded.
    He sighed, heaving his peacock-like chest. “You are correct, they were human. What you saw, however, happened a long time ago when they were attacked by an ancient force that the Consortium is afraid to mention. They dare not whisper their name even in the darkest shadows of the deepest cave under Mount Varnok.”
    I had no idea where Mount Varnok was and I didn't care, I needed to get to the bottom of the mystery.
    “Why are you afraid?”
    Satou crossed his arms and fixed me with a fearless gaze, despite his claims otherwise. “They were evil, which is all I can say at this time.”
    I threw up my hands in exasperation. “OK, so where did we come from?” I stood and pounded my chest dramatically, driving the point home with each thrust. “If not Earth, than where? I think I deserve to know the truth.”
    Satou looked away and hovered over the Sustanant. “Your race came from a planet not far from where Earth is now. It was close,” he added cryptically. “We were afraid there was no compatible planet nearby.”
    “Jesus Christ, will you stop being so damn mysterious and answer the question!”
    “Mars,” Satou whispered. “You were watching the initial invasion of Mars.”
    I slumped into my chair. I was speechless and thoughts fed upon what remained of my sanity like vultures on road kill. Everything I had ever been taught about the evolution of man and life on Earth just flew out the window. The textbooks; hell, even the Bible, you might as well just toss them out too. It's spring cleanin' time for the ol' noggin, Nathan .
    Satou sat at the end of the bed and studied me. “I know this is a lot for you to process, but if you are to understand the Explorer's League then it is best that you know everything. Thirty one days after the initial attack, the hostiles launched chemical weapons, scorching the planet surface and creating holes in the atmosphere, eventually leading to total atmospheric loss. Initially, the Consortium received reports of the invaders entering Martian airspace and the Consortium launched support efforts, but our technology was archaic during that time period. Unfortunately we were too late, Nathan. The Defense Fleet managed to rescue just under 10,000 survivors before they destroyed the planet.”
    I swallowed hard, trying to remove the sandbag that returned to my throat. “Rescued?”
    “The population of Mars at the time of the attack was over 2.7 billion. Millions were destroyed during