The Cartographer Read Online Free PDF Page B

the first wave of attacks. We had no idea of the extent of their viciousness and had been caught unprepared.”
    “Who was responsible?” I said, my voice barely a whisper.
    Satou's eyes shifted nervously side to side and his chin tentacles matched the movements. Rubbing his hands together he hesitated, as if speaking their name would cause the ship to spontaneously combust in the middle of space.
    “The Lumagom,” he muttered. “A hostile force of alien beings, a collective of various races throughout the universe with one mission—the destruction of all sentient life.”
    “Why?” I asked.
    The bed creaked as Satou stood up and he suddenly made his way to the door. Without turning to look at me he said something that made tiny icicles poke the base of my spine. “Sometimes, Nathan Chambers, ignorance is bliss. Unfortunately, to be a part of the Explorer's League, I am afraid it is a luxury we cannot afford. When the time is right, you will learn a lot of things about the universe, including the Lumagom, but you can rest assured with the knowledge that we have not had contact with them for centuries.”
    A puzzled look crossed my face. “What are you trying to tell me?”
    “I spoke with Calypso before he took you on the tour,” he said without turning around. “We agreed, based on your background, that you would be good fit with the Explorer's League. You have an explorer's spirit, Nathan, but to adapt to our way of life, you need to access the information that we have accumulated during our travels. That includes information regarding your roots, alien races, hostile forces, the Consortium hierarchy and others pertinent to our cause.”
    “My background?” I snorted. “What background is that; my wonderful cave diving failures or my ability to kick ass in Guitar Hero?”
    Satou shook his head, stepped out of the room and was gone. I was alone with my thoughts inside my makeshift bedroom among my makeshift belongings. The longer I stared at the closed door, the more I believed I had been imprisoned rather than accommodated.
    I switched on the computer and watched it start with the familiar Windows jingle. Apparently Microsoft's dominance in the operating system world extended to space. Familiar icons mixed with the unknown on the screen but it was the desktop wallpaper that caused a lump to form in my throat. It was a picture of me flanked by my parents during a trip to Corpus Christi last year. My father had his arm around me and I was frozen in an eye roll between him and my mother with the Gulf of Mexico providing the backdrop. It was one of the rare times that my overly busy parents had some free time and decided to take me on vacation. Although our relationship wasn't the greatest I still felt a warm wetness rim my eyes, and fought to beat back the tears.
    I wiped the blurriness from my eyes and stared at the screen. One icon stood among the rest: Helios Protocol . I clicked on it and watched paragraphs and diagrams splash across the screen. Despite the enormous amount of data, it was only the first section that interested me.

Evacuation Protocol
    *INITIATION
    -In the event of invocation of Helios Protocol, source planet must be deemed total catastrophic loss. Upon initiation, repopulation of indigenous species is priority one. Consortium High Prince to be advised of situation. Defense Fleet and Explorer's League will be dispatched for reconnaissance, protection and relocation of assets. Direct interference in events on the planet surface is prohibited unless absolutely necessary to fulfill mission. Always verify compatibility of host planet to make sure assets will adapt and survive.
    *RELOCATION
    -As soon as host planet is identified, relocation of source assets will begin immediately. The Science Unit, under the direction of the Head Ambassador, will work with assets in establishing a functioning culture, basic survival skill training, insertion of wildlife/flora and rudimentary industrial skills.