Reborn (The Cartographer Book 2) (14 page)

Relief washed over me when I realized they were safe. My concern switched to other matters. “This couldn't have happened quickly. How long was I captured?”

“Six Earth days,” he replied.

I rubbed my temples and felt the beginning stages of a headache tugging at the recesses of my skull.
Six days
. A lot could happen in that time and judging by the expression on Wraith's face, a lot had. Suddenly my lips felt dry and I ran my tongue over them but there was not a drop of moisture to be had in my mouth.

“I need you to tell me everything,” I croaked and cleared my throat in an attempt to regain my lost voice. “How could Corvus do this?”

Wraith sat down and folded his hands in his lap. “I better start from the beginning,” He wiped a thin sheen of sweat off his brow. “Satou's mission was successful with zero casualties. They managed to cure the few people left at the United Nations building who had been affected by the curse. When they returned to the shuttle they realized you were gone. They thought you had left to follow them into the building and they were about to go in after you but that was when Satou realized you had been kidnapped.”

“How did he know?” I asked.

They found the hand cannon on the floor and the compartment door open. There was also a neutralizer dart on the floor.” He winced when he stood up and rubbed his chest. It appeared the wound he suffered during our first visit to Xajax still affected him. He placed his hands on his hips and stared off into space. “They ran scans in an effort to locate you but ran out of time when Meta ordered them off the planet.”

“Ordered them off the planet?” I repeated.

“The Astral Spirit was attacked by the Scarlet Moon. The Defense Fleet forces we sent to Mauritania met resistance from the Lumagom. It was a two pronged attack and we were unprepared and overmatched. Meta panicked, despite reassurances from Embeth that he had the situation under control.”

“What do you mean, 'panicked'?”

“That was when he initiated Helios Protocol,” Wraith said somberly. As he recited the events, each word seemed to cause him physical pain. “It was the beginning of the end for the humans.” He turned away from the window with a sympathetic look. “Embeth refused to lead the Defense Fleet against Earth. He was removed from the Council and court martialed.”

“Why?” I shouted and my cheeks flushed with anger. “This doesn't make any sense!”

Wraith lowered his head. “Embeth thought as you did, as did most of the Council. But in the end Embeth stood alone. Men abandoned their posts and chaos took hold among the Consortium commander ranks. In his rage, Meta ordered the absconders to be put to death for treason.”

My breath caught in my throat. “
Death
? Has he gone insane?”

“Embeth escaped with defense fleet forces who were still loyal to him. A battle ensued aboard the Astral Spirit between loyalists and absconders. The battle raged between former colleagues and former friends. Eventually the loyalists gained control of the ship at the expense of their former crewmembers. Meta proceeded to lead the attack against Earth.”

I stared past Wraith, toward Xajax and the space beyond. I tried to imagine the planet was Earth but the vision escaped me. In my grief it was like my mind guarded against the memory. “Why did he have to attack? Humans weren't a threat to the Consortium.”

Wraith shook his head. “As soon as humans from the future came through the time hole, they became a threat. Corvus' forces defeated the Defense Fleet on Earth but fled shortly after. It was rumored that they were bringing technology from the future through the time hole and that sent Meta into a frenzy. Blinded by rage, he made the decision to attack.”

Mortified, I had the sudden urge to vomit. Wraith viewed my discomfort and softened his gaze. He leaned against the wall. I had never seen him look so exhausted.

“Your people fought valiantly,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I'm not sure what comfort that news would bring.”

I chuckled derisively as I stared at my feet. “I'm sure their spirits are dancing in the streets.” When Wraith didn't respond I looked up into his eyes. They were nothing more than two orbs filled with sorrow. “Are there even streets anymore?”

Wraith shook his head. “This is a path you do not want to travel down right now, Nathan. There will be time to explain what happened Earth in detail, until then we have important work ahead of us.”

Vayne stepped into the room but remained silent when he glanced at the furious look on my face. My rage had built to its boiling point, however upon the sight of my rescuer I felt it ebb a bit. Before it completely vanished, I wanted release my final thought on the matter.

“I want to go back there.”

Wraith and Vayne exchanged puzzled looks. It was Wraith who finally responded. “Go back where?”

I slammed my fist on the table. “Earth! I want to see what those sons of bitches did to my planet! I have friends and family there.”

Wraith looked uneasily at Vayne, who remained stoic. It was hard to read the emotions of a man with a helmet of goggles covering half his face. “We do not have time for that,” he barked. “My orders are to deliver you to the Insurgents on Xajax.”

Confusion replaced my rage. “The Insurgents?”

Wraith rubbed his hands impatiently. “A lot has happened since you were taken. In due time you will understand the consequences of our actions.” He looked uneasily at Vayne.

Vayne's mouth formed an unreadable white line. The inability to read his expressions frustrated me. I had a feeling the mysterious stranger was much more than a cosmic pirate flying a fancy ship around the universe saving teenagers from the clutches of bad guys.

“What my ashen companion over there is trying to say is
you
are the Insurgents,” Vayne grumbled as he pointed to each of us. “The Consortium branded you as such.”

“You are as well, Vayne,” Wraith corrected.

Vayne brayed like a donkey. His laughter was dry and humorless and sent chills up my spine. “Oh, I needed a good laugh. It amazes me how little you know about us. We held no part in your rebellion.”

His usage of the word “us” intrigued me. I saw very little of Vayne's crew since I came aboard, I assumed he flew solo. Judging by Wraith's clenched fists, I knew there had to be more to story regarding this uneasy alliance.

“Our goals are the same, Vayne. Don't mock me like I am some rock grinder that just emerged from the Charr obsidian mines. Never forget I was a member of the Explorer's League.”

Vayne bowed low in mock admiration. “Excuse me your eminence. Pardon my intrusion in a room aboard my own ship, but I wanted to advise your highness that we will be making our descent to Xajax shortly. According to ground forces, we are clear to land.”

Wraith seethed. His pale face was outlined in red. He was not used to this brand of insolence. Instead of verbally retaliating he offered Vayne the pleasure of a curt nod. With one last glance he was gone.

“Who is he?” I asked.

Wraith turned to the window as we broke through the planet's atmosphere. We passed a large, snow-covered mountain range which opened up into a grove of familiar pink trees. It wasn't until the hastily constructed landing strip became visible that Wraith responded.

“A pain in my ass.”

Xajax

It wasn't until we landed that I started to see signs of Vayne's crew. They scurried from various rooms performing different tasks. Some monitored control panels, others were busy polishing his numerous trophies. Each of them looked exactly like Vayne. Well, not exactly. Some were different shapes and sizes—a few were short, almost dwarfish, others were a bit taller and stocky but in the end they were all miniature replicas of Vayne. From their goggle helmets to their ebony cloaks, they were spitting images of him. Wraith explained they were clones and I laughed at first, assuming he was playing some kind of joke on me. Vayne confirmed it, however, when we were descending the landing ramp. Vayne had seventeen crew members and they had been cloned from Vayne. They may have been as narcissistic as their host, but they were equally dangerous. Seventeen cloned fighting machines in total. As we passed one of his clones near the exit ramp, I shuddered, despite the warm air of Xajax drifting in.

Wraith followed me down the ramp with Gard taking up the rear. Vayne remained on board to conduct “diagnostics”. I pictured him looking at himself in the mirror and patting himself on the back for a job well done. I rubbed my eyes when we reached the bottom. In my haste I forgot how bright the dual suns of Xajax could be. Before my vision cleared, I felt strong arms wrap themselves around me, sucking the breath from my lungs.

“Nathan, you're alive! Thank the gods!”

The sun spots faded from my eyes and I gazed upon the smiling face of Lianne. Tears of joy tickled the corners of her eyes and her fine whiskers tickled my cheeks. Behind her stood Embeth, Satou and Kedge. Their expressions were bleak. Behind them, a makeshift camp comprised of tents, mobile labs and campfires provided the backdrop. Several crew members scurried around moving things such as scanners, weapons, food, medicine and other supplies to several large pavilions in the center of camp.

“Headquarters,” Embeth grumbled and eyeballed the pavilions. “This is what we have been reduced to.”

Lianne let go and her smile faded. The mood around the camp was grim. The past events weighed heavily on their hearts. One could read it in their tired faces.

Kedge stood next to Embeth and leaned against his staff. “I know what it's like to have your home stolen from you.”

Satou wandered over with a grave look. “I am sorry, Nathan. I never knew what the High Prince had planned. He promised me Helios Protocol would be the last resort.” He twisted uncomfortably as if the memory made him ill.

“Tell me everything.” I growled. I felt a drop of water trickle down my cheek. At first I thought it was a tear but when I wiped it away another fell on my hand. I looked up to see the clouds darkening. A storm was coming.

Satou nodded and directed us to the closest pavilion. Inside, a metal table sat in the center of the makeshift room with a glass partition. Surrounding the table were several folding stools similar to the one Sam had back on the ship. A three dimensional map had been called up on the glass and I realized it was a view screen. A Defense Fleet soldier slid his hands back and forth on the partition as he navigated through galaxies. Standing next to the soldier was a man of average height, with flowing curly blond hair. A brown vest covered a plain black shirt. The vest intrigued me, because it was made from some sort of animal pelt. The hollowed head of the animal extended from the back and lay on top of the stranger's head. In the dim light of the tent I couldn't make out what sort of animal it was but it looked like a saber-toothed tiger. The rest of him was ordinary. His plain brown denim pants were battered with dirt and grime. He was unarmed and adorned only with a silver bracelet chiseled in the likeness of a falcon head. His eyes, blue like the sea, sparkled like diamonds. Underneath each eye was a tattoo of a triangle with the point facing down. The stranger tore his eyes from the monitor and fixed me with a steely gaze.

“This is not the place for children,” he grumbled.

“This is no child,” Embeth admonished. “This is the Cartographer.”

The stranger seemed unimpressed. “That means nothing to me,” he said, each word dripping acid. “The title may have held meaning before the Consortium decided to turn their back on the universe.”

Satou stepped between us. If the stranger's statement bothered him, he did not show it. “Nathan, this is Vigil.” He gestured toward the man.

“Vigil the Surveyor,” he stated gruffly.

“The Surveyor?”

Vigil grunted but it was Satou who clarified. “He is Vayne's ally, and they are here to assess the situation.”

Vigil held up a hand. “Let's not get carried away. I am not Vayne's ally. How many times must I explain this simple fact to you people?”

Satou folded his arms across his massive chest and shrugged. “Maybe you should explain it to us again,” he grumbled.

Rain battered the outside of the pavilion as the two squared off. Several tense moments passed in silence before the flap of the tent blew open violently, startling everyone. A storm was brewing inside as well as outside. I looked uneasily at Lianne and she returned the look. I decided to interrupt their staring contest before the tension boiled over.

“How about explaining it to me since I just got here.”

Vigil turned his head with such force that I thought it would roll off his shoulders. His narrowed eyes fell upon me.

“Ah yes, the human child who unlocked the Universal Map, destined to restore balance to the universe,” he mocked. “Instead, your people brought the universe to the brink of destruction.”

“My people?” I shouted, fury bubbling to the surface. I barely felt Lianne's hand on my shoulder.

“Stay calm, Nathan,” she whispered. “He is only looking to provoke you.”

“Provoke me?” I roared, shrinking from her touch. “Well, he's doing a pretty good job.” I fixed my gaze on Vigil, who smiled wryly, which only served to stoke the flames of my rage. “What's preventing me from leaping over this table and strangling the life out of you?”