The Cartographer by Gaydas Craig

Author:Gaydas, Craig [Gaydas, Craig]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Creativia
Published: 2014-01-19T16:00:00+00:00

Meet and Greet

I stared at the computer screen, swallowing the remaining lukewarm pizza and washing it down with root beer. The computer was off, but I could visualize the map. Sitting here staring at the blank screen seemed to be my daily ritual ever since leaving Planet X (officially named Xajax by the Explorer's league). I located the map disk on the side of the computer but refused to remove it, as if the act alone would set events in motion that could not be undone. It was as if I was the biggest procrastinator aboard the ship.

Gard had kept me company the entire voyage, offering witty banter to break the silence and occasionally joining me in games of chess. Their game was different than I had become accustomed to because they had two levels to the board with more spaces on each board and contained two kings and four queens. It took me awhile to get used to it, but once I did, I managed to steal a win or two, although Gard may have let me win.

“Gard, how long until we land?” I asked.

“Estimated at our current speed: forty-five minutes.”

I sighed and picked at the glass as I finished my drink. A dull pressure was building at the back of my eyeballs and I wasn't sure if it was from an incoming headache or my body getting acclimated to space travel.

“Is something wrong?” Gard inquired.

“Yeah, Gard, my eyeballs are about ten times too big for my skull right now,” I groaned.

“They appear to be the same dimensions as before.”

“Never mind.” I was about to make my move on the chess board when I thought of something. Since Gard was a robot and analysis was his specialty, I decided to toss the question out there.

“Gard, if I had the opportunity to save a planet from destruction should I do it, no matter the cost?”

He hesitated for an eternity. The clicks, buzzes and whirrs coming from inside his mechanical brain drowned out the noise coming from the hall beyond my room. His racket stopped abruptly and he looked at me.

“I am not sure I can fully answer that question with the data provided. I would need to know the cost.”

“What if I knew someone who could go back in time to save Mars, but in order to do that I would have to turn the Universal Map over to them?” I clarified.

“That feat would be impossible, Nathan, because all wormholes on Mars had been destroyed.”

“Not Mars. Earth. They would go back in time on Earth, build a ship capable of reaching Mars and attempt to warn the Martian Marines, or Buzz Lightyear or whoever the hell was there at the time of the impending attack.”

“That is an impossible scenario.”

My frustration level increased and I made the decision to tell Gard everything. While I retold the story I became exasperated, animated, agitated and many other `eds' but Gard remained stoic throughout it all. Instead of responding to my many emotional states, he continued to fixate on me with his usual emotionless stare.

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