Tom Gomez : Emperor of Mars

(based on Ray Bradbury´s "Night Meeting")

Tom Gomez stops for fuel at the station. Looks up at the Cydonia Hills in the distance. The twin Martian moons glowing, suspended high in the purple twilight sky. The hills seem to gobble up the dusty old Martian highway that stretches far off into the distance.

"Folks say its been there for a million years. Dang! Them Martians sure knew how to build to last. Sorta creeps you out dudn´t it?" says the old fuelling attendant as he slowly walks out from his dusty living quarters onto the hydro fueling pad. The old man gives Tom´s pick-up a sharp-eyed glance. He sees the Martian Institutes of Science logo on the door.

"Going out to the ¨towns¨ I see"

Tom smiles politely and glances at his watch.
"From the ¨institutes¨ are you, son ?
"50 - 200 D-H2O in her please" - Tom interrupts
"Some young folks from the ¨institutes¨ come a rollin´ by here couple of months ago, never saw ´em again" the old man snorts wrinkling his nose as he looks up at the purple twilight now blanketing Mars.

Tom´s face crumples into a frown. His stare does all the talking now : No Q & As thank you. Stick to your pumping sir.

"Fresh deuteruim ?" asks the old man snapping the pump gun from the holder
"Fill ´er up" orders Tom as he pulls out his micro-tablet. Fingers doing an elaborate tap dance as the touch-screen lights up.

-If only people stuck to their jobs- Tom thinks - and not asked stupid questions al the time. I wouldn´t be here on this so called ¨mission¨. No, I´d back in Constant City, in my office grading papers on Martian terraforming -

It was 20 years ago today that Tom Gomez had landed on Mars aboard the USS GODSPEED. Came over as a construction worker. Helped build New Town, the Shimago-Dominguez settlement, and even a few suburbs in Constant City herself.

-20 years ago- He pauses , looks out at the empty Martian road. An icy shiver runs up his back. Still remembers that night well : 19 going on 20, headed to the New Town Festivals that evening. Not a care in the world. His trusty old Shimago pick up rumblin´ down the same Martian road, kicking up a storm down what the locals now call The Lost Highway...