November 2005: The Off Season Summary

Sam Parkhill, one of the men from the fourth expedition to Mars, has opened the first hotdog stand on Mars. Convinced that a hundred thousand workers from China and Mexico will arrive in a month, and unaware of the war on Earth, Sam and his wife Elma have opened the shop directly in line with the mineral deposits. While talking to his wife about the trustworthiness of Earth men, a Martian visits the store. Sam, having seen him before, demands that he leave. The Martian claims to be in telepathic contact with a settlement across the dead sea, and that he has information Sam will want, since his radio is broken and he is not receiving news bulletins. He also has information about the land Sam has chosen for his store. When Sam threatens the Martian with...