Free The Cartographer by Craig Gaydas

around like a spastic neophyte .”
    I wasn't sure what a pygmy grell or spastic neophyte was, but I knew he threw a couple of veiled insults my way. Nevertheless, I told the computer what I needed and the file on Earth popped up on the screen. The information they had on Earth amazed me and I began to wonder how long we had been under observation. The file headline was actually an aerial photo of our planet with a description below it:
Earth - Discovered during routine inspection of Martian transceiver. It is the fifth largest planet within its solar system and is classified as a terrestrial planet. The planet is comprised mostly of oxygen, iron, silicon and magnesium with trace amounts of various other materials. Approximately 70% of the surface is composed of water. Upon discovery, the planet had complex life above and below the surface of the water. Land, sea and air animals were abundant, however, they were of limited intelligence.
    I skimmed through the file and the information they had on the planet impressed me. Their historical records seemed to accurately reflect what I had been taught in school (with the exception of the battle on Mars and subsequent relocation of humans, of course). There had been very little mention of the relocation process, but more of a summarization of events which didn't really tell me much. I wasn't particularly proud that the League categorized us as “war-like” and there was no comfort in learning that were “barbaric, but improving”. I sighed when I came to the end of the file and a single question located at the bottom: “ Ready to accept into the Consortium ?” and the answer next to it, accentuated by my disappointment, was a painful “no”. Our own shortsightedness held us back from achieving more, and our concentration on mundane issues prevented us from growing universally. I set aside my disappointment and accessed another file.
    “Mars,” I said to the computer.
    The Mars file popped up on the screen with its current status listed as “Currently Uninhabited”. I read through the history of the planet and it covered everything Calypso told me, including the human relocation to Earth. I focused on the section covering the Lumagom attack.
    “Lumagom,” I said to the computer but it did not respond. Gard, who sat in the corner of the room dusting off my dresser for some odd reason, turned toward me.
    “ Did you need something, Nathan ?” he asked.
    “Well I'm not sure. I wanted to know more about the attack on Mars and hoped we had more information on the planet Lumagom.”
    Gard's eyes flashed in quick bursts before settling in their normal solid azure state. “ I am sorry, Nathan, but there is no planet Lumagom. The Lumagom are not from any specific planet .”
    “Well you seem to be pretty knowledgeable, what can you tell me about them?”
    Gard's eyes flashed for several minutes like they were strobe lights and I was about to enter the strangest disco ever seen. I was about to ask if something was wrong but stopped when his eyes ceased flashing.
    “ I do not have any information available within my memory drives. All access to information regarding the Lumagom requires Defense Fleet command-level clearance .”
    Gard's response only served to heighten my curiosity and I wondered if Calypso had the clearance needed. I decided to file that away for another day and turned toward the computer. Over the course of the next several hours I poured through several planets (with Gard's assistance) and learned more about alien technology, various ecologies and several alien cultures in the universe. I browsed through the list of inhabited planets and their various ecologies—some covered completely in water, others with very little water, a few that were mostly gas, others primarily forest, a couple that were mostly desert—until they just made me so exhausted that it all morphed into one big blur.
    “OK, I think I have had enough for today, Gard,” I groaned.
    I