Reborn (The Cartographer Book 2) (10 page)

I was about a foot away, close enough to reach out and grab the weapon. “What do you mean?”

“You will find out that it is not me who's lying, Nathan. The Consortium is one big lie. They will be revealed as the true betrayers.”

I narrowed my eyes and fury rose from deep within my soul as I remembered all the people who had done nothing but help me. Lianne, Satou, Embeth, Wraith—they were no traitors. Then my thoughts drifted towards those that had been killed as a result of Calypso's treason—Madoc, Crag'Dughai as well as Lianne's father, Captain Jasper. Unable to contain my rage anymore I opened the compartment and reached for the gun.

Calypso's eyes went wide. “
NO
!”

I managed to get a shot off but had no idea who or what I hit. Natronix, however, was a former captain of the Explorer's League with military training. The first neutralizer dart hit me square in the chest. The second pierced the soft flesh at the bottom of my throat. I dropped my weapon and crashed to the floor. Drool fell in droplets from my mouth before it went completely dry.

“Urk you.” The statement was unintelligible, but judging by the pained look on Calypso's face the meaning had been understood. I collapsed in a heap at his feet.

“
Nathan, can you hear me
?”

Satou voice beckoned me from the communication panel. He sounded frantic, but I wasn't sure if it was due to my lack of response or trouble inside the United Nations. It didn't really matter anymore, it was over. Calypso grabbed me and hoisted me over his shoulder before I passed out.

Game over
.

Satou

“Nathan, are you there?” He shoved the communicator into the belt clip. “Damn!”

He placed the antidote dispenser carefully in the pack and strapped it to his back. Scattered around them were the unconscious bodies of humans who were infected by the virus. Satou dispensed the cure with zero casualties. The news would please Nathan as well as satisfy Meta.

“Where the hell is he?” Lianne demanded.

Satou wondered the same thing. Lianne and Kedge were looking at him, wide-eyed. They sensed something was wrong back at the shuttle. He felt it as much as they did.

“Come on, we are going back,” he barked.

It's happening all over again
. Memories of Vaire came flooding back. Not the good ones either. Events led him back to his days before the Explorer's League. His son, Darus, had desired to be a member of the Vaire Royal Security Forces—a powerful militia who were held in the highest regard on the planet. He begged his son to reconsider. He had urged him to join the Order of Chemists instead like his grandfather. Darus had laughed at him. “
I am better with a weapon than a beaker
,” he said. The underwater empire required that all of their recruits travel to the surface to pass the Trial of the Sands. Traveling to the desert villages to slay a Shreen warrior had been considered a rite of passage. It proved the recruit's worth in battle. The Shreen were a violent race and their scorpion-like carapaces hard as steel. Every one of them had enormous claws three feet across which could snap a full-grown man in half. Each recruit had the opportunity to select a
Ka
, or protector, to guide them to the villages. The job of the Ka was primarily that of a guide and they could not interfere in the battle in any way or the recruit would be disqualified. The Ka were required to bring along video equipment to document the recruit's journey and discourage cheating. At the time of selection, Satou insisted Darus choose him, and he agreed reluctantly. His reluctant acceptance was the last words passed between father and son. They encountered a group of Shreen as soon as they surfaced from the ocean. They rarely ventured so close to the desert-ocean passageway. Normally they shunned the water. Battling one Shreen was a difficult encounter, a group of them were virtually impossible.

Satou looked at his communicator and remembered the claws of the Shreen warriors. The image haunted him. Darus' beheading had been quick, thank the gods. The sound had been louder than cannon fire and echoed across the desert. Its reverberations still resided in Satou's nightmares. He swore to protect Nathan just as he swore to protect Darus.
Have I failed again?

They reached the shuttle and hurried aboard. After searching the cockpit, Satou slumped in the pilot's chair. He noticed the storage compartment door open and the gun lying on the floor.

Kedge saw it as well and picked up the gun. “He fought back.”

Lianne ran into the cockpit. “There is no sign of him anywhere.”

Satou's foot brushed up against an object. He scooped it up and pinched it between his fingers.

“A neutralizer dart,” Lianne remarked.

“Which means his abductors took him alive,” added Kedge hopefully.

“And I swear we will recover him that way,” Satou growled. He closed his fist, snapping the dart in half.

Lianne jumped in the co-pilot's seat and punched in coordinates.

“I will not fail again,” Satou whispered.

Perceptions

“
How long will he be out
?”

“
The neutralizer has run its course, it should be any moment now
.”

“Satou?” The word fell from my lips as nothing more than a croak. My mouth failed me and my eyes felt like they had been welded shut. Neutralizer venom was potent and Satou mentioned that its victim could remain unconscious for hours.

“
What was that? Do you think he is coming out of it
?”

My eyes opened slightly which granted me the pleasure of Natronix's grim expression. The last of the welds faded from my eyes and they flew open. I leapt out of the bed but fell to the floor with a crash. My legs failed me and I panicked, thinking I was paralyzed.

“Relax, Nathan.” Calypso revealed himself from a shadowy corner of the room. “You are suffering after-effects from the neutralizer venom so you need to give your legs time to regain their feeling.”

He helped me into the bed gently. The room resembled the one aboard the Cirrus when I first came into contact with the Consortium. Several fluorescent lights lined the wall, however only two were on yet dimmed, giving the room an eerie torture chamber vibe. Besides the single bed, there was a monitor in the corner and a large unmarked cabinet beside it. Unlike my previous encounter I was not bound by writhing, disembodied tentacles which was a relief.

“What do you want with me?” Panic crept in when I remembered the Universal Map and I immediately looked at my wrist. The bracelet remained with the map nestled in the socket.

Calypso followed my eyes. “Do not fret, Cartographer. Your map is safe.”

“Where am I?”

Before he could answer there was a knock at the door. Natronix opened the door and let in a familiar face. It was Zeek, the communications officer that used to serve on the Cirrus under the Explorer's League. Just another traitor to add to the list.

“Our guest was just wondering if the Cartographer was awake yet.”

“Yes he is, but give me a few minutes with him,” Calypso replied. Zeek left and closed the door. Calypso glanced at Natronix. “Alone, please?” With a grunt, Natronix followed him.

Anger started to bubble to the surface. “I won't join you so you might as well get this over with.”

Calypso fixed me with a sorrowful stare. “Get
what
over with?”

I glanced at him suspiciously. “Aren't you going to kill me, like you killed Kell?”

His expression changed to shock. “What makes you think I killed Kell?”

“You sent him on that scouting mission. He was doomed from the start. You betrayed him as well as the Consortium by stealing the map. Everything you did up to this point is dripping with betrayal.”

Calypso shook his head. “I did no such thing. Kell was killed in an accident. The scouting mission turned out bad. Everything I have done is for the future of the universe. I betrayed no one.”

The sincerity in his eyes only served to enrage me further. His words, dipped in charisma and uttered with grace. I was well aware that his power resided within the spoken word. I refused to let his charms work on me.

“You murdered Captain Jasper. You killed Crag'Dughai and Madoc! Do you still want me to believe you're some sort of savior of the universe?”

“Shai murdered Captain Jasper. A most unfortunate incident, I'm afraid. The Lumagom killed Madoc and Crag'Dughai in their haste to loot your base camp. I had nothing to do with either of those incidents.”

The feeling came back to my legs and I stood. “You have everything to do with those incidents. Those people are now your buddies…your friends….your amigos!” Tears of rage streamed down my cheeks but I no longer cared. “Am I reaching you yet? You are guilty by association!”

I could tell that my words cut because his smug expression shifted to sorrow. His genuine look of emotional pain caught me off-guard. My anger receded and I sat on the edge of the bed.

He turned away and paced to the door. His hand fell on the door handle and his head lowered. “You're wrong about me, Nathan.”

“Wait a minute!” I tried to stop him but he was gone.

My thoughts raced while I studied the closed door. Was I his prisoner, cursed to stay here until I believed him? Before I could answer my own question the door opened and a man stepped through. His appearance shocked me.

“You're human!” I exclaimed.

When the stranger laid his eyes on me he froze with a look of shock. His lips parted slightly and a sliver of drool trickled onto his well-manicured goatee, merging with the gray strands that highlighted it. He fidgeted with one of the oversized hoop earrings that dangled from each ear and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “Oh my God, Nathan, you're alive.”

I studied him suspiciously. “How do you know my name?”

The stranger let out a dry cough and rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand. “Sorry, I'm being stupid. I should have known you wouldn't recognize me. To you it's been just a few months, but to me it's been several years.”

“What are you babbling about?”

The man took a deep breath and strolled across the room, toward the cabinet. From inside the cabinet he retrieved a large metal disk, about six inches thick and carried it over to me. I flinched, expecting something horrible to happen but instead he pushed a button alongside the disk and four metal legs unfolded from the bottom, making it nothing more than a stool. He placed it on the floor and sat next to me.

The man placed his elbows on his knees and wrung his hands nervously. I studied his face but his expression revealed no details of his motives or what he was thinking. Fear tickled the hair on the back of my neck.

“The media reported you dead when you disappeared. I tried to find you, but you were nowhere to be found.”

I chewed on my fingernails nervously while I studied his face. His expression and tone seemed sincere but I wasn't sure if this was another one of Calypso's tricks. I needed to tread lightly and remember that they were the enemy.

“What are you trying to get at?” I asked defiantly.

“I ran into the cave but I was a fool and knocked myself out. I wanted to go back inside but the police wouldn't let me.” Tears welled in his eyes. “I swear Corvus never told me your name when I returned.”

“Who the hell are you,” I croaked. My mouth was as dry as the area surrounding the Richat Structure.

“I'm Sam.” he moaned. “I'm your best friend.”