inevitable-expansion

In this chapter, Sam and Elma attempt to escape the Martian presence on Mars using a sand ship, but Sam kills a mysterious blue-tinged girl who warns him to return. They are soon surrounded by the remaining Martians, who instead of punishing Sam, grant him a vast land territory on Mars and urge him to prepare for the arrival of thousands of Earth settlers. The chapter explores the tension between human colonization and the ancient Martian civilization, culminating in an uneasy truce and a foreshadowing of massive human expansion.