The Children of Mars

By Norbert Mercado

Written by Norbert L. Mercado, The Children of Mars is novel about an unusual friendship that took place between a Filipino guerrilla and a Japanese Captain in the darkest days of the Japanese occupation of the Philippines during World War II.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Norbert Mercado
• Release date: Jul 14, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476373041

Norbert Mercado

"In this age of revolution, the contemporary writer should utilize the pen for the preservation of peace," Norbert Mercado, a Filipino author, stressed. The books he has written and published, including his anthologies, unapologetically assert the indispensability of peace in a nation’s progress. The author has written more novels than any Asian writer had in just a brief period of time. In fact, he has surpassed the number of novels written by world-renowned novelists like Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn (winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, 1970) and American authors Ernest Hemingway (winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, 1954). Solzhenitsyn has four novels to his credit, while Hemingway has eight. His style of writing is simple and succinct, but poignant and colorful like Hemingway’s THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA, and Solzhenitsyn’s ONE DAY IN THE LIFE OF IVAN DESONOVICH. "The simpler the novel, the better," he said. In line with Japanese Yasunari Kabawata’s writings about the Japanese way of life, most of Norbert’s novels focus mostly on the current situation in his country. Kabawata is the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968. His books present hope to the Filipino, especially to the "economic exiles" in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan whom he has spent most of his time with, in their daily struggles. But most of all, his novels lucidly show the futility of war and violence in the resolution of political-economic-class conflicts in the Philippines. "War should not be used as an instrument in resolving political conflicts. Writers who abet wars and revolutions must think of the widows and the fatherless, the chaos, destruction, and suffering of the people whom they claim to be concerned about," he said. What if, like Solzhenitsyn, Hemingway, and Kabawata, he eventually wins the Nobel Prize? What will he do with the US$1,000,000 award? "I will use the prize for establishing a Peace Foundation that will assist in the formulation of policies which will resolve the current shooting conflicts in the country and help alleviate the continuing poverty of our countrymen." He will take charge of the foundation and personally campaign for a peaceful settlement of the conflicts in the Philippines. "The insurgency and the secessionist rebellion have foreign support. A Nobel title will give me the personality to approach the leaders involved in the conflicts," he explained. Born on March 25, 1955, he is the youngest among the children of Mr. and Mrs. Aurelio Mercado, Sr. of San Manuel, Tarlac. He graduated from the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, with two degrees, Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Communication. Voted Outstanding Campus Journalist in 1974, he was a columnist and associate editor of the Philippine Collegian, the campus publication of the University of the Philippines. He has also written articles for various newspapers and magazines in the Philippines, as well as abroad. He also won the 1981 National Essay Writing Contest sponsored by SIDESTREETS Magazine. Norbert is a graduate of the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP), the topmost armed forces school in the country, where he was conferred a Master’s degree in National Security Administration (MNSA) and the rank of Lt. Colonel in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). He graduated from the NDCP at the age of 32, the youngest in Class 21 which had already produced several generals in the Armed Forces, and the youngest graduate in the history of the National Defense College of the Philippines. He was elected one of the fifteen directors of Class 21. He was conferred the degree of Doctor of Divinity (Applied Servanthood), Honoris Causa, for his almost 30 years work in Christian literature. His batch mates include Senator Robert Barbers, Undersecretary of Trade and Industry and Bulletin Columnist Nelly Villafuerte, Actor and Producer Fred Galang, Rev. Peter Vasaya, and the His Royal Highness Sultan of Sulu and Sabah Ishmael Kiram. A sports lover, he was a rifle marksman in his UP ROTC days, and a winner of the 1988 and 1989 5,000 meter-run sponsored by the National Defense College Alumni Association. His sports include swimming, basketball, volleyball, boxing, karate, cycling, and marathon among others. A traveler, he has attended various international conferences and trainings in Asia and Europe. His travels have widened his insight not only of places, but also of people he has constantly observed and empathized with. He is the youngest graduate of the Singapore Haggai Institute for Third World Leaders in 1980 at the age of 24. "Let us work for peace in our country, in any way we can," Norbert stressed. Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers." Ria M. Mercado

Book preview

THE CHILDREN OF MARS

by

NORBERT L. MERCADO

Also by Norbert L. Mercado

NOVELS

72 Hours in Moscow

After the Summer Rain

The Children of Mars

Chrysanthemum

The Days of an Empire

Even the Grass Bleeds

I Don't Need A Throne

The Last Romanov

One Love, Three Summers

Some Winds Blow Forever

Unchained Melody

Wind Flowers

The Winter is Young

The Korean War

In The Shadow Of The Roman Empire

Farewell Darkness!

The Roman Governor of Judaea

OTHER BOOKS

Cambodia's Children of Sorrow

The Future and Your Family

Jerusalem: The City of Destiny

Ronald Reagan: Profile of a President

For more information on Norbert L. Mercado, visit

http://norbertomercado.blogspot.com

THE CHILDREN OF MARS

Norbert L. Mercado

Copyright © 2012 Norbert L. Mercado

Norbert L. Mercado has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work.

This book is a work of fiction, and except in case of historical fact, any

resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

This book is sold, subject to the condition that is shall not, by way of trade or otherwise be lent, resold, hired out, or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent in any form or binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition, including this condition, being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

ISBN: 978-1-47-6373041

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

VERSION: 2013-11-02-0700

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PROLOGUE

CHAPTER 1

CHAPTER 2

CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 5

CHAPTER 6

CHAPTER 7

CHAPTER 8

CHAPTER 9

CHAPTER 10

CHAPTER 11

CHAPTER 12

EPILOGUE

ENDNOTES

DEDICATION

A HISTORICAL NOVELIST FOR PEACE

YOU CAN ALSO CONNECT WITH ME ONLINE:

DISCOVER OTHER TITLES BY NORBERT L. MERCADO

"You are the children of

Mars, a people who love war,

gladdened by the sight of blood

and suffering of those you

have vanquished!"

"No … we are the

children of Mars,

and as such,

we are brothers.

And because we are brothers,

We should not fight…"

To my father and to Hiroshi,

to those who know what

it means to be a friend,

and to men and women

who have patiently and passionately

worked for peace

either in great or simple ways,

this novel is humbly dedicated…

They shall not grow old

As we that are left grow old

Age shall not weary them

Nor the years condemn

At the going down of the sun

And in the morning

We will remember them

"Neither time, nor war has enough power to destroy the memory of true friendship. Such memory glows within the tapestry of time, and the gentle hands of history will preserve it. If you know what friendship is, then you know what is life."

Norbert L. Mercado

Back to Table of Contents

. . . PROLOGUE . . .

November 26, 1992. Hong Kong.

It was past eight o’clock in the evening when I invited Ria to have dinner with me in a Korean restaurant in Jordan. We were at the Worldwide House in Central. I want you to taste the Korean food in that restaurant, especially the Japanese salmon and barbecued lamb, I told Ria, who was hesitant to spend so much for a meal.

Let’s just eat at McDonalds, she said.

C’mon, I insisted, You don’t come to Hong Kong every month. You’re here once in a blue moon, so why don’t you enjoy yourself? After all, what’s the use of earning money if you don’t spend it?

Ria nodded. Okay, let’s go, she said.

We went to the MTR¹ station just below the Worldwide House, and took our train tickets. A few minutes later, we boarded the train which took us to Jordan in Kowloon.

This night is for you, I told Ria. Don’t think about what we will spend. Just enjoy the night. After dinner, I’ll take you to the night market.

Where is their night market here? she asked.

Just a few minutes from the restaurant, I replied.

The restaurant is situated on the second floor of a building about seventy meters away from the MTR station in Jordan, along Nathan Road. It is beside a Singaporean restaurant.

Good evening, sir, a waiter greeted us.

Good evening, I replied.

Table for two, sir? he asked.

Yes please, I replied.

The waiter brought us to a corner beside the glass window. Then he showed us the menu for the night.

I chose Japanese salmon and barbecued lamb. After I gave him our orders, he immediately proceeded to the kitchen.

It is nice here, I told Ria. Not so crowded.

She nodded, pleased at the sight of the place.

The waiter was back in a few minutes with our orders. He lighted the barbecue grill on the table, and left us to enjoy our meal.

As we placed the raw Japanese salmon and the lamb on the barbecue grill, a man occupied the vacant table beside us. Calling the waiter, he also ordered food.

I looked at him and wondered whether he was Korean.

Are you Korean? I asked. I had been to Seoul, South Korea before. I tried to recall some Korean words I learned just in case he was really Korean.

No, he answered in English. I’m Japanese.

Oh, I mused. Upon learning that he was Japanese, flashes of history came to my mind: the Second World War and the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, the guerilla years of my father, and a Japanese military officer who became almost like a brother to him.

The waiter was back with his order. As the Japanese was grilling the venison, he asked us in return, Are you Filipinos?

Yes, I replied. I introduced my wife and myself to him. I’m an author of novels. We market my novels in Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. I have a Chinese business partner in Hong Kong.

I’m Ted Tsunuyama, he introduced himself. He said that he was engaged in a computer business. His company had a factory in mainland China.