Planet Magazine No. 3

8/14/2019 Planet Magazine No. 3

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Planet

MagazineWild SF, Fant asy, Hor ror, Humor , Poet ry - Online Vo l. I. 3 FREE

INSIDE THIS FICTION-CENTRIC E-MAG:

Science Fiction by Rick Blackburn, Brian Burt, George McCann.Fantasy by Romeo Esparrago.Poems by Peter Alejandro Cortes, Kevin McAuley.Humor by Steve Ross.

Planet Magazine 3 Page 1 Sat , Apr 8 , 199 5


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MastheadCirculat ion for t his mind-bending e-mag at 10 / 9 4: Ct hulhu Knows

STAFF

Ed i t o r & P u b l i s h e r

Andrew G. McCann

Copy Ed i t o r

Doug Houston

WHAT IS PLANET MAGAZINE?

Planet Magaz ine is, believe it or not , a free quart erly (or t hirdly) of science fict ion,

fant asy, horror, poet ry, and humor writt en by beginning or litt le-known writ ers, whomwe hope to encourage in their pursuit of the perfect story. Planet is nat ionally

dist ribut ed in electronic form v ia American Online, CompuServe, Acorn, and NVN, as well

as in printed f orm via t he editor and his pals. Feel free t o pass t his magazine along, in an

unalt ered st ate, elect ronically or as a print out . We welcome submissions ( read below for

det ails on t his and other mat t ers). Send any questions or comment s to Planet [email protected].

SUBMISSIONS POLICY

Planet Magaz ine accepts short stories, poems, one-act plays, and odds-and-ends (use

t he lengths in t his issue as guidelines). We pref er original, unpublished SF, fant asy,

horror, poetry, humor, et c., by beginning or lit t le-known writ ers (but no porno, gore, or

ads from immigrat ion lawyers, please). Because this e-mag is free and operates on a

budget of $0.39 per annum, we can't afford to pay anything except the currency of free

publicity and life-enhancing good vibes (of course, that and $2.50 will get you a

double-tall cafe mocha wit h powdered mesquit e ash, but it 's st ill a head rush to see your

name in print ). To send a submission: query first , what ever that means, then send st ories

or poems as St uff it - or ZipIt -compressed ASCII text files t o [email protected].

WHERE TO FIND THIS MAGAZINE IN OTHER FORMS

Planet is dist ribut ed as a B&W print ed magazine and in t wo elect ronic versions (simpleand fancy). The e-zine varieties can be downloaded from t he following sources:

The Am er i ca On l i ne Writ ers Club Forum ( keyw ord: WRITERS; look f or t he Writ ers

Club E-Zines folder in t he Writer s Club Libraries folder) carries a st uff ed, or .sit, t ext

file ( which can be read by Mac or IBM, using some version of St uff It and a

word-processing program) . The WC fo rum also carries a st and-alone, read-only



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DOCmaker file t hat incorporates f ull color, graphics, and a suit able layout (Mac only);

t his f ile is also available in AOL's Science Fict ion & Fant asy Forum ( keyword: SCIENCE

FICTION; look f or t he Sci-Fi Library in t he Science Fict ion Libraries f older) .

The CompuServe Science Fict ion & Fant asy Forum (go: SCIENCE FICTION; look in t he

Science Fict ion lit eratur e library) has a .zip f ile version, which can be read by Mac or

IBM using some form of ZipIt and a word-processing program.

The text file is also available in the A c o r n BBS's "newsst and," in t he NV N fandom

library of t he SF fo rum ( go: science f ict ion), and Ct hulhu knows where else.

No In t e r n e t sit e for t his magazine exists yet , but we haven't t ried very hard t o find

one. St ill, we' re open t o suggest ions.

The t ext f ile t akes a few minutes to download at 240 0 baud. The DOCmaker file t akes about

15 -20 minutes t o download at 2 40 0 but only about 5 minut es at 96 00 . The lat t er option

is the coolest (hint : click on t he illust rations).

COPYRIGHTS, DISCLAIMERS

Planet Magaz ine as a whole, including all t ext , design, and illust rat ions, is copyright

19 94 by Andrew G. McCann. However, all individual sto ries and poems in this magazine

are copyright 1994 by their respective authors, who have granted Planet Magaz ine

t he right t o use these works for t his issue in bot h elect ronic and printed forms. All people

and event s port rayed in this magazine are entirely f ict it ious and bear no resemblance to

actual people or events. This publicat ion has been registered wit h t he Copyright Off ice of

t he U.S. Library of Congress. You may freely dist ribut e this magazine elect ronically on a

noncommercial, nonprof it basis to anyone and/ or print one copy fo r your personal use, butdo not alt er or excerpt Planet in any way without direct permission from the publisher

(Planet [email protected]) . Planet Magaz ine is published by Cranberry St reet Press,

Brooklyn , N.Y., Andrew G. McCann, publisher.

C O L O P H O N

Composed on an Apple Quadra 60 5 using DOCmaker 4.1. Text set in 10 point Geneva and 12

point Helvet ica; t he logotype is Times. Illustrat ions done in Color It ! 2.3 .



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Editorials andLettersWild SF, Fant asy, Horror, Poet ry , and Humor Online Vol. I. 3

T HE "CONT ROVERSY" CONT ROVERSY

Like other publications that wallow in the very thing they condemn, we take exception to

t he unchecked availability of f ree elect ronic magazines that focus on SF, fant asy, humor,

and t he like. And it' s this very comment of ours t hat is part of a larger, recurring

problem in journalism t oday all of t he so-called edit orialist s who have not hing bett er t o

do t han manufacture some " cont roversial" issue when t hey actually have, as I just stat ed,

not hing bet t er to do. It 's t he proverbial sto rm in a t eacup masquerading as, say, a

nor'easter in a Frost Giant 's t ankard. (An act ual sto rm in a t eacup, though, would be wort h

writ ing about : lightning like broken t oot hpicks, clouds like a kitt en's hairballs, rain like

a spritz from a bottle of Calvin Klein's Maternity ["One Spray and You're Pregnant forMen or Women" ] .)

Of course, t he most egregious example of j ournalist s who manufacture opinions are t he

Noze-Boxians of t he Tahbloyd st ar system, who, as everyone must know by now,

communicate solely through ant i-celebrit y gossip on an all-band t elepathic signal. I

mean, who appoint ed t hese self-appointed expert s? These " exo-journalist s" spend t heir

days pretending t o be in a st ate of high dudgeon over t he act ivities of whatever act or du

jour , solely because t hey feel t he compulsion to " fill space." Perhaps these

over-commentat ing windbags believe what t hey are doing is all in fun ( t he editorial

"wheeee,"as my young nephew says), or maybe t hey believe it 's all t rue and necessary.

Whatever the Noze-Boxians' reasons, I say their sort of activity must stop.

This brings me to the real issue at hand I hereby call upon the combined

member-planets of the Galactic Council to quickly set up a task force to begin looking into

whether or not t o recommend considering some sort of non-binding suggest ion t o encourage

t he diminishment of t he aforement ioned behavioral manifest ations, eventually even looking

into t he Noze-Boxian problem, perhaps. As such, I humbly add t hat I would be available to

chair t hat august body and am more t han willing t o set down t he t ask force' s conclusions in

a brief quint ilogy of novelized autob iographies filmed in 4-D VR t hat I envision complet ing

by my 65th birthday.

I think I've m ade my point.

Andrew G. McCann, EditorSeptember 1994

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

(Editor's not e: Lett ers will be edit ed for clarit y, brevity , and because of our deep-seat ed



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need to control the thoughts of others.)

Dear Ed i t o r : Really enjoyed t his last issue. In part icular, I really liked Brian Burt ' s

"Climbing Jacob's Ladder" and would like t o see more of his work. The ot hers t hat st ood out

were t he bizarre lit t le st ory by St eve Ross, Cort es' poem wit h t he reincarnation t heme,

and Andy McCann's story on Konen's t herapy session.

Way t o go,

Brian M.

via AOL

Dear Ed i t o r : I t hought your f irst issue was great ( t he best S.F. on-line magazine I've

seen yet ). Is issue No. 2 out ?

John

via AOL

[ Edit or' s note: See "Where to Find This Magazine" in the Masthead section.]

Dear Ed i t o r : NICE ZINE!

Tony

via t he Int ernet

Dear Ed i t o r : Great second issue guys! I am still impressed. I also have a t hought on how

t o improve t he 'zine just a bit. (It 's f ree, so I am sure not complaining, believe me.)

From t ime to t ime I've seen programs with bookmark capabilit y. If it 's not t oo t ough to

do?... It would sure be a benefit t o someone like me who is t oo busy to sit down and read t he

'zine all the way t hrough. I put it down and pick it up a week later... and can't remember

which story I left of f wit h. Anyway, just a t hought . Great job!

KingJohne

via AOL

[ Edit or' s note: This suggest ion was passed on to Mark Wall, author of t he DOCmaker

software program that Planet uses.]

Dear Ed i t o r : Brian Burt 's " Climbing Jacob' s Ladder" was a really f ast -paced st ory t hat

was disturbingly realist ic. If we don't all want t o live in t hat world, we'd bet t er st art

t rying t o make changes right now. Re Margaret McCann's "Hints From Hazel," my f avorit e

was " The neighbor's t hree rambunct ious boys...." I enjoyed your second issue very much,

and am looking forward to No. 3.

Rick

via AOL

FAKE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dear Ed i t o r : Given Jupiter' s enormous mass, I think it 's quit e likely t hat t he denizen's

of t hat planet' s ancient and dist inguished democracies are quite w ide and low in t erms of



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body t ype. Thus, it is doubly a t ragedy that , given t hese individuals' large "areas," so many

were no doubt slaught ered in that t errible, brief reign of Carmaker-Chevy, t he comet ary

body whose f ragments sewed death and destruct ion everywhere amongst t he Golden-Espired

Cit ies of t he Great Bruised Spot . Now I imagine t hat, in t he wake of t his horror, a ty rant

usurper has gained cont rol of t he Jovian Imperial Senat e. I ask you, t hen, who bet t er t han

t he citizens of t he U.S.A. t o cont ribute cash, via me, t o help t hese suffering Freedom

Fighters of Jupiter in t heir just cause t o t opple the Dict ator Or-Tegah (or whatever it s

name is t hat' s probably in ruinous power). OK? So send your money via e-cash to

[email protected].

Yours in Galact ic Personhood,

Fay Kappeal

Howdy , K id (shifts stance slightly and squints into the rising sun; a bead of sweat rolls

down furrowed forehead t o drop of f left eyebrow; right hand hovers light ly over holst ered

pisto l; fingers flex once, st op. Far overhead, a lonesome dove calls fo r t he mate it will

never find. A young boy, standing near t he door of McGoon's hardware store, suddenly

crunches down loudly on a mouthf ul of Ruff les pot ato chips.): Didn't mean no harm. Yuh

made yerself real plain. Ahm jes' t alkin' t o th' lady. I understand she's wit h you. I got

no problem wit h that . I'm a happily relat ionship-ified man. Now, I'll jes' be movin' along

and git t in' outt a yor' n way. No hard feelin's. I underst and. Oh, yeh, 'n' here's muh piece

(ext ends gun handle-first , but spins it suddenly and shoot s, hit t ing t he Kid squarely in t he

heart at nearly point -blank range and killin' him stone-daid). Oh yeh, ' n' t here's muh

bullet , t oo. Har-har.

Backin' slowly away,

Pork Cit y Slim

The West

Est eemed Edi t or (scatt ered, throaty chuckles from t he audience): As one of t he st age's

great est actors ( sudden, respect ful silence), it was most interesting t o receive yourreject ion lett er (abrupt roar of laught er). I have given some thought s to your comments

(single bark of mirt h from balcony, dropping to sustained t it t er) on my autobiography

(general applause rises and fades; sole t it t erer cont inues). However, I am angry ( body

t opples from upper t ier; a scream is suddenly cut of f) . And don't t hink for one, bloody

minute t hat I'm enjoying any of t his (t ightens t ie wit h a swift jerk; face reddens). Aft er

all (hush set t les over audience; faint whimpering recedes as usher hust les out wounded),

WHO ARE YOU? (Thought ful, sustained applause, segueing t o standing ovation) . Thank

you, t hank you ( roses, handkerchiefs, book contract s, brat wurst t ossed onto stage;

curt ains close, house lights go up, and audience depart s, with armed guards emerging from

the wings to clear out stragglers.)

As Ever,

M. Point d' Epe

Dear Ed i t o r : You might not believe this, but last night I saw President Clinton in my

living room. He just walked in, st ood in front of my red couch from Ikea, and began

discussing his vision for universal healt hcare. Af t er a while, he left . That 's it . Anyway,

charming as he is, it was just as well he took o ff because I wasn't in t he mood for t echnical



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details about anything, as I was in the process of coming down from a two-day binge of

vodka and Despair, t he new designer-drug for t he mid-90 s. However, I t hink I did hear

our President say somet hing about ret aining funds for low-Eart h-orbit det ox wards, a

notion t hat I strongly support .

Earnestly ,

Ava Goode-Weekend

Hell's Kitchen, New York

M y Dea r M aha r a jah : Thank you for the amusing letter written in the Cockney Style.

Your "Leopard" alias seems most fit t ing, as it brings t o mind our "big cat " hunt of

November last , which, excepting t he t ragic loss of Fiona and Crispin in the Vale of

Mosquitoes, was absolut ely grin-f illed. Your missive also recalls t he infamous Feat her

Incident back at Et on no, but I shan't embarrass you with t he details!

With Kindest Wishes for t he Health of You, t he Royal Family, and Court iers,

Junior Lance-Corpor al Lancelot Korpirell, Jr., HMRAF

Dear Ed i t o r : Thank you for your recent let t er and resume. At t his t ime, we do not have

any administrat ive positions open in any of our prefect ures on Mars or the Moons of

Sat urn. For t hese jobs, in part icular, we prefer t o promot e from wit hin, as a cert ain

combinat ion of judgment and diplomacy, t empered by unique experience (such as the

recent, successful repression of t he cyborg revolt at t he Tit an ammonia mines) is a must .

Nonet heless, wit h your experience, we encourage you t o apply directly t o t he Out er Planets

Division of United Galaxy Inc., where we could very well f ind somet hing administ rative for

you in t he Division's Planetary Governing Bureaus. In t his way, aft er a few years of grit

and det erminat ion, you might be able to work your way up t o a governorship on the Moons,

or perhaps even a small-town mayoralty on t he red planet it self. Good luck and best

wishes.

Holographically,

Magneto X. Henchperson, Asst . Direct orUGI Personnel Div., Cent er Cit y, Phobos, Mars M00 10



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Science Fiction

NO MAN OF WOMAN BORN

by Brian Burt

Kar y l Ca r son d ipped t he w ings o f h i s s o l ar s k i m m e r and dropped low over the

field of pherns. The photoelectric plant s flashed beneath him like an emerald sea, t heir

fronds tw isting wit h indiscernible slowness as t hey t racked the suns pat h across the sky.

This field covered four hundred square kilomet ers, it s intricat e root netw ork supplying

power for t he surrounding farms and the capital cit y of Olygius. He leveled t he skimmer

and sighed. So lush. So beaut iful. To the west , a stand of met huselah trees rose above thepherns, one of the few species native to Verdis that remained untouched by the

bioengineers. Trunks as t hick as buildings st ret ched gnarled limbs in all direct ions,

dangling leaf-webs t o catch t he golden rays of Promet heus. From t his distance the

met huselahs looked like an army of g iant , hairy ogres. Some were older t han humanity

it self. When he gazed at t hem, Karyl felt cert ain t hat t hey were t he guardians of Verdis,

ready to cast t he human invaders back int o space at t he slightest off ense. If he did not



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handle the next few days just right , t heir wrat h would be upon him.

He lift ed t he skimmers nose to clear t he forest and cont inued westward t oward Olygius,

eyes t wit ching heavenward. Somewhere far above him, the mot hership from Tit an orbit ed

Verdis like a third moon. It s cold shadow followed him wherever he went. He tr ied to push

his thoughts beyond the darkness, to enjoy the graceful cityscape approaching beyond the

t rees. Olygius grew out of t he fert ile soil of t he Makarri Plain like a sculptured oasis,

filling him wit h a pride that t emporarily burned away t he shadows. His ancest ors had

shaped t his place, nurtured t he int erconnected web of green towers and living struct ures

t hat made Verdis unique in all t he galaxy. His great -grandfat her, his grandfat her, his

fat her all brilliant biochemists, all wise leaders in their t ime. Now t he mant le of power

passed t o him as t he only son of Gabriel Carson, a right of succession guaranteed by

planet ary charter. A great honor. A greater burden.

He banked t he skimmer t oward t he city center, landing on t he pad beside t he Minist ry

complex. One of his aides Curry, or Curren, he couldnt remember rushed t o help

him from t he craft , wide-eyed and breat hless. The Tit anians have confirmed the meeting,

but for nine oclock instead of t en. Minist er Bailey says they want t o show us whos in

charge.

Karyl nodded. For once, I agree wit h him. Let s move, we dont have much t ime. The

t wo of t hem st rode briskly t oward the private ent rance t o t he Central Ministry , stepping

t hrough the securit y membrane wit hout pause. Karyl winced as t he veil of prot oplasm

recognized his tissue and oozed around him to permit him ent ry. Anyone not aut horized

would find t he membrane as impermeable as a wall. Safe and reliable, but t he gooey stuf f

st ill made his skin crawl. He hurried down the main art ery of t he complex aft er Curren,

his foot steps muff led by the pliant skin of t he corridor.

A f ew minutes lat er Karyl and his aide passed through a second security membrane int o t heCont rol Cent er. Karyl quickly scanned t he wall of screens and monit ors, a marvel of

bioelect ronics. Security Minister Jepson t urned t o meet his gaze. Morning, sir. We

received t heir t ransmission about t went y minutes ago. Mallow and t hree of his deput ies

should be shut t ling down from t he mothership any t ime now. It s one mot her of a ship, all

right . Twice t he volume of our ent ire complex, five t imes t he mass. More armament s t han

a whole squadron of St ar Pat rol. Signal beacon ident ifies it as t he C.S.S. Titanic.

Karyl let out a staccato burst of laught er. The Titanic! There are no st udents of ancient

Terran history on board t hat ship.

Excuse me, sir?

Karyls grin faded and he shook his head. Never mind, Jepson. I can see you flunked

hist ory too. He saw the mans face t ighten and instant ly regret t ed the barb. Why did he

bait t hem? Why did he alienat e them all? They could not always hide t he mockery behind

t heir eyes, t he pat ronizing smirk beneat h a smile. Somet imes t hey did not even t ry. A tiny

voice echoed in his head, shrill and chiding. Youre a freak, Mr. President . Any man



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brought t o term in his mot hers womb inst ead of in a gestat or is not f it t o lead. Any man

who has not been genet ically enhanced must be inferior. In a world of perfect people, he

stood out like a mut ant wit h his rounded belly, his balding head, his hooked nose. The

eccentric back-to-nature beliefs of his parents made him an outcast on the planet he

commanded, filling him with bile.

Karyl abandoned his dark musings and t urned t o his aide. Have Ministers Bailey and

McMahon report t o my conference chamber.

His own problems would wait . The Tit anians cert ainly would not .

* * *

K ar y l s l i d t h r o u g h t h e m e m b r a n et h a t s e c u r e d h is i nn e r o f f i c e , grateful for a

moment of privacy. Pacifico lay curled beside his desk, one orange eye fixed on him. He

bent t o pick up his pet glitt er-dragon, st roking the creatures iridescent scales wit h

affect ion. Nerve t oxin on the scales quickly paralyzed the dragons predators in the wild,but it had a delicious soothing effect on humans. God, how he needed that t oday! Wit h great

reluct ance he released Pacifico and passed int o t he President ial Conference Chamber.

Science Minister McMahon was already seated behind t he long conf erence t able, while

Diplomacy Minister Bailey paced in f ront of it . Karyl gave Bailey a curt nod and ret urned

McMahons smile. Evan McMahon was one of t he few people inside t hese walls who t reated

him like an equal. The young science minister was also a genius wit h phyt omet allics, a

fusion of plant chemistr y and met allurgy. Bailey, for all his intransigence, was breaking

new ground in phyt opolymers. They were all scient ists by choice, administ rators by

necessity. Science had built t his world. Karyl always felt f ar more comf ort able in his

private lab t han inside the somber walls of t he Minist ry. He t ook a seat beside McMahon,

lowering himself ont o the form -fit t ing pet als of t he lily-chair. The elegant chairs wereMcMahons own creation. They usually impressed visit ing dignitaries, but Karyl doubt ed

t hat Aldous Mallow would even not ice. He mot ioned t o Bailey with annoyance. Sit down,

Quentin, before you bruise t he floor.

Bailey glared back, his voice edgy and a t ouch condescending. You might want t o do some

pacing yourself , Karyl. This new Premier of Tit an is not one for negot iation. Youll have a

much more difficult t ime of it t han your father did.

Karyl winced. The wound caused by Gabriel Carsons death was f resh and painful. You re

right . Old Killian was t ough but fair. He wasnt out fo r conquest . Mallow is a diff erent

breed. My cont acts on Arsenia say hes eff ect ively annexed their planet . Theyre calling

him t he Wolf of t he Out er Rim. I wish t o god Killian was st ill alive.

Bailey sighed. I wish t o god your father was.

McMahon shook his head in disgust . Youre way out o f line, Bailey.



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Karyl smiled t ight ly. Forget it . That s somet hing else Quent in and I agree on. But right

now, t he t hree of us have to present a unit ed front . If Mallow senses weakness, hell chew

us up. And Verdis wit h us.

Karyl s comm badge beeped before either man could answer. Mr. President, t his is

Jepson. The shut t le is down. Premier Mallow is on his way.

Karyl and his minist ers set t led into t heir lily-chairs and wait ed in tense silence until a

security t rooper appeared out side t he ent rance t o deact ivate t he membrane. Aldous Mallow

stepped inside, followed by t hree burly deput ies. The man was even more menacing in

person than on the holovids. Like all Tit anians descendant s of t he first human colonist s

who had sett led Titan centuries ago Mallow had been genet ically engineered t o endure t he

frigid climat e of his homeworld. He stood at least t wo met ers tall, his face buried beneat h a

shaggy mat of hair, must ache, and beard. Tuft s of body hair curled over the edges of his

purple dress uniform. His smile unleashed a feral vision of f angs gleaming in a dark

forest . The Premier of Tit an looked like a myt hical Terran werewolf f rozen halfway

t hrough his t ransformation.

Mallow extended a beefy arm, his growl a perfect complement t o his appearance.

President Carson, a pleasure. My condolences for t he loss of your fat her.

Karyl rose and off ered his hand in ret urn, watched it disappear int o Mallows massive paw.

Bot h parties found t heir seat s, the Tit anians not wit hout t repidation as t he lilies strained

t o support t heir bulk. Thank you, Premier Mallow. Congratulat ions on your new off ice.

I underst and your vict ory was a landslide.

Yes. The people of Tit an need help. I of fered it , and they responded. That is why I am

here. In the past we have relied heavily on food import ed from Verdis to support our

growing populat ion. The shipment s you send are much appreciat ed. But we f ind ourselvesin a crisis situat ion. Tit an is a cold, harsh planet . The narrow agricultural belt along our

equat or cannot support us. Hydroponics cannot support us. Current import s from Verdis

cannot support us. We need more, and will gladly pay for it .

Karyl nodded warily. I see. How much more?

To meet our immediate needs, let us say twenty t imes the current level of grains and

veget ables.

McMahon whistled. With all due respect , Mist er Premier, you cant be serious.

Mallows lupine smile faded. I am very serious. Children are st arving on Tit an. It is myduty t o feed t hem.

Karyl stared at t he Premier wit hout blinking. It is my dut y t o feed my own people.

Verdis depends on a delicately balanced network of ecosyst ems to keep it s biosphere intact .

We have limit ed our populat ion t o t he Maximum Planet ary Load, per Galact ic



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Commonwealth direct ive. When we have crops in excess of t hat required to support our

population, plus a cont ingency fact or, we export t hem t o Titan. We will cert ainly continue

t o do so, but we will never be able t o supply twent y t imes our current export s. Your

children are starving , Mr. Premier, because Titan has allowed it s populat ion t o expand

well beyond it s cert ified MPL. That is t he problem you must f ace.

Mallows face darkened. Whether we have exceeded some Commonwealth bureaucrat s

arbit rary limit is irrelevant . My people are dying. We must have food.

I repeat , we cant give you any more wit hout endangering our own people. However, we

have developed some advanced agricultural t echniques that may prove useful on Tit an. The

det ails of t hose t echniques are freely available via STARNET f or your bioengineers to

review. I suggest you make use of t hem.

We have no t ime to learn t echniques. My people need t o eat now, today! I had hoped you

would appreciate our sit uat ion. However, if y ou refuse to compromise, we are fully

prepared to t ake what we need. The choice is yours. You can be paid for it , or not .

Karyl stood, propelled t o his feet by growing anger. My ancesto rs spent cent uries

creat ing Verdis. They wove a living, breathing technology into t his planet . Im not about t o

let Tit ans greed strangle it .

Mallows glare became a snarl. I wont t ake insult s from a freak who was carried in his

mot hers belly. I bet she squealed like a pig when she squeezed you out !

Karyl bounded around the t able, his fist curving up into Mallows shaggy f ace with a t hud.

Mallow roared in rage. Befo re he could raise his own fist s, the pet als of t he lily-chair

clamped his arms against his sides. He st ruggled to b reak free, but t he phytomet allic

t issues of t he chair held him f ast . He bellowed useless orders t o his deputies, who weresimilarly shackled. Karyl cradled his bloody hand and smiled. My science minist er

designed t hose chairs well. St ruggling will only make t hem bind t ight er. He pressed his

comm badge and a dozen security t roops slipped through t he membrane. Gent lemen,

please escort t he Premier and his part y back t o t heir shutt le.

One of t he troopers deact ivated the chairs to release the Tit anians. Aldous Mallow looked as

if he were about t o spont aneously combust . You sealed your own fate, freak. Verdis will

get not hing from us. Nothing!

Karyl nodded. We ask not hing but t o be left alone. Verdis has it s own defenses, Mr.

Premier. Remember t hat .

Mallow st ormed out , escort ed by Jepsons security t eam. When he was gone, Karyl sank

int o a chair. Evan, get a medic in here. I t hink my hand is broken.

Bailey shook his head in disbelief. Losing your t emper is one thing, Karyl, but you... you

had t o punch the most dangerous man in this part of t he galaxy.



13/58

Karyl st udied the red smear on his knuckles. Mallow decided t o swallow Verdis long

before today. And I needed to draw some blood.

You drew it , all right. Was it wort h a planet?

Karyl Carson st udied his bloody hand. It might be, Quent in. Well see.

* * *

K a r y l w a s w o r k i n g i n h is p r i v a t e l a b o r a t o r y when the comm badge beeped.

Through a haze of exhaustion he realized that Prometheus had risen above the tree line,

t hat he had worked all night. He st rained t o put authorit y into his voice. What is it ?

McMahons voice sounded as lifeless as his own. Karyl, it s Evan. Mallow hit us t his

morning hard. We need you at t he Ministry .

Karyl s innards burned as if digest ing broken glass. Did he kill anyone?

No human casualt ies, but ... Look, just get here as fast as you can.

Karyl nearly ran t o the skimmer. When he t ouched down outside the Ministry complex

t went y minut es later, McMahon and Bailey were there t o greet him personally. The fact

that Quentin Bailey seemed too shocked to fire a verbal salvo told Karyl enough to make his

chest hammer with dread. What s happened?

Bailey could only shake his head. McMahon grabbed Karyls arm and pulled him toward t he

ent rance. Wait unt il were inside. Karyl did not even have the energy t o shudder as

they squeezed through the gelatinous membrane and hustled down the corridor into theCont rol Cent er. Securit y Minister Jepson st ood in his usual place, t ight -lipped and

somber. Morning, sir. Come t o survey your handiwork?

Karyl saw it t hen, in Jepsons face, in nearly all the f aces. The unspoken accusat ion.

McMahon spared Karyl t he need to answer. Give him a break, Jepson. He doesnt know

yet . Just put t he aerial view on t he monit or. Karyl st ood silent ly, a condemned man

await ing his execution. The main screen shimmered, coalesced into a birds-eye view of an

immense crater. As the camera pulled back, he recognized t he surrounding scenery and

moaned.

McMahon whispered as if at a funeral. At around eight oclock t he Tit anians oblit erated

t en square kilometers of the Galayo Forest . The heart, where the oldest st ands ofmet huselahs grew. Jepson t hinks they used some kind of ant imatt er beam. Theres nothing

left , Karyl. They even vaporized t he first t hree met ers of t opsoil.

Karyls knees nearly buckled beneath t he weight of his despair. A t housand centuries of

living history gone. Just... gone.



14/58

Bailey finally managed t o find his voice. You challenged him to at t ack, and he did. It looks

like he figured out how t o hurt you t he most . He sent a transmission thirt y minutes ago t o

say t his was just a demonst ration. If we dont comply wit h his demands, hell st art t aking

out t he phern fields next . Hell cripple us.

Karyl closed his eyes t o escape t he night mare image. I cant believe it. I cant believe

even Mallow could do t his.

Baileys t one grew shrill. He might not have if you hadnt baited him like you bait

everyone around here. Damn it , Karyl, you dared him to do it !

McMahons voice rose t o meet Baileys. You were pret t y invisible during that meet ing,

Bailey. Didnt have t he gut s t o say a goddamn t hing, but youre the first t o criticize t he

man who stood up t o t hat hairy bast ard.

Karyl struggled t hrough a fog of exhaustion and misery. St op bickering over what s done.

Let s decide what t o do next . Jepson, is there any way we can neut ralize t he Titanian

beam?

Jepson shook his head. What ever it was, t he beam left no t race, no radiation signat ure.

We have nothing to analyze, so theres no way we can stop it.

What about t he ant i-meteor defense net . Could we adapt t hat for an offensive strike

against t heir mot hership?

Jepson frowned. Good idea, but it won t work. The sat ellit e net is designed to deflect large

met eors so that t hey pass by Verdis, not t o destroy t hem. The Titanian ship is made of some

alloy we cant identif y, but it s t ough and scanner-proof. The worst we could do is shaket hem enough t o make a few of t hem spacesick.

Baileys voice broke t he silence, his words edged wit h panic. Look, were a sovereign

planet, a registered member of t he Galactic Commonwealth. Were entit led t o protect ion!

Why dont we just contact Star Patrol?

Karyls laught er came hard and britt le. Were on the Out er Rim, Quentin. Thirt y

thousand light-years from the galactic center, fifty thousand light-years from Terra.

Were part of t he wild front ier. Theyre not sending St ar Patrol out here unless it s a

full-fledged war. If it comes t o that , well be gone before t hey get here. No, were on our

own.

Bailey could not keep the fear out of his voice. All right , Karyl, you t ell me. What on

Verdis do we do now?

The chamber suddenly grew as silent as a tomb, disturbed only by t he hum of t he

bioelectronics. Karyl scanned t he faces, some filled with hope, most wit h resignation.



15/58

Silent ly he cursed his father for dy ing. What we do now is cont act Aldous Mallow on t he

Tit anic. We invit e him to a parley t omorrow morning.

Security Minist er Jepson did not flinch. What do I t ell the Premier, sir?

Tell him we want t o discuss his t erms.

Karyl left t he chamber wit h as much dignity as he could muster amid the angry buzz of t he

Securit y staff . He saw a new look in t he faces now, even in McMahons. He was no longer

just a freak. He was t he f reak who had sold t heir herit age. With ponderous st eps he made

his way back t o t he skimmer and t urned it s nose toward home. There was work t o do.

* * *

Aldous Ma l low s t a r ed ac r oss t he t ab le wit h bright, predat ory eyes, as if he had just

eaten a fresh kill. Or was about t o. A pair of deput ies flanked him, while McMahon and

Bailey sat on eit her side of Karyl. Mallows gut t ural voice rasped against t he walls of t heconference chamber. So, President Carson, we tr y again. He bared his t eet h and leaned

closer, his words pit ched low. You have no insult s for me now, eh, freak? No fists?

Karyl swallowed t he urge t o swing at him. I just want t o end this lit t le disagreement ,

negot iat e a treaty t o benefit bot h Titan and Verdis.

Mallow leaned back, smiling magnanimously. That s what Ive want ed from the st art . My

deput ies and I have draft ed just such an agreement. We are prepared t o establish Verdis as

a Tit anian prot ect orate. The Out er Rim is a dangerous place, far from t he security o f Star

Patr ol. We will furnish a port ion of our fleet for a base on Verdis, t o insure your planet s

safet y. In exchange, we will accept fif t y percent of your agricult ural product ion.

McMahon looked angry and slightly sick. Half our crops? What are our people supposed

t o eat ?

Mallow smirked. They can eat met huselah mulch for all I care. You had a chance fo r a

bet t er bargain several days ago, but you chose to spit in my face. Now your people suff er

t he consequences. We can build an operat ive orbital base in t wo standard mont hs. We will,

of course, begin taking our agricult ural allot ment imm ediat ely. That is our off er.

Karyl t ried t o keep the t ension from his voice. Fift y percent would expose Verdis t o

ext reme hardship. Can we compromise at , say, fort y percent?

The percent age is not negot iable. If you quest ion it again, our share will be sixt ypercent.

Karyls head drooped and his shoulders sagged, t he picture of a broken man. He hoped

Mallow would see it t hat way. He t urned to Bailey and McMahon, but neither said a word.

There was not hing t o say. He t urned back t o his hulking adversary. It w ill t ake t ime to



16/58

discuss t his wit h the rest of t he Minist ry. If you could give us a few days, wed be

grateful.

Mallows eyes glowed. You have unt il t omorrow. If we do not hear from you, we will be

forced t o dissolve your government. The Titanians stood in one mot ion. Karyl rose as

well, ext ending his hand. Mallow smiled quizzically before t aking it, pressing hard enough

t o grind the bones t o powder. Unt il t omorrow. The Titanians lumbered from t he

chamber wit hout anot her word.

McMahon slouched forward, all color draining from his face. Well... t hat s it , Karyl.

Verdis is finished.

Karyl smiled a t hin, desperate smile. Not quit e yet. Ive just begun a litt le experiment

wit h our f r iend t he Premier.

Bailey shook his head sadly. This is one you cant bluff your way out of, Karyl. What can

we possibly do?

We can wait, gent lemen. And we can hope.

* * *

K ar y l C ar s o n w a s si t t i n g i n h is o f f i c e wit h Pacifico in his lap when Jepson hailed

him. Sir, weve got a priorit y visual transmission fro m t he Tit anic. Premier Mallow

demands to speak to you personally.

Karyl gave the glitt er-dragon one last stroke f or luck before set t ing it aside. I hear you,

Jepson. Tell t he Premier Im on my way.

When he stepped t hrough t he membrane into t he Command Cent er, McMahon and Bailey

were already t here. He moved onto t he holovid plat form and faced the ghost ly image of

Aldous Mallow, who looked less t han his usual int imidat ing self. Mallow slouched in a

chair, apparent ly unable to st and, and glared at Karyl with tangible hat red. Karyl not iced

t he unnatural cant of his head and felt a rush of t riumph. Mr. Premier, how convenient

t hat you contact ed us. We were just about t o t ransmit our response t o Tit ans off er.

Mallow t ried to scowl as spitt le oozed from t he corner of his mout h. Carson, what have

you done to me and my crew?

Are your personnel experiencing a slight loss of muscle cont rol? He had never seen

such a pure embodiment of rage as Mallow st ruggled t o reply.

You know what were experiencing! Half t he crew are complet ely paralyzed, the rest

shuff ling or crawling t hrough t heir dut ies. What kind of poison is t his, fr eak?

Karyl shook his head. Im afraid your people are suff ering f rom a virus that affect s some



17/58

of our livest ock populat ions. It at t acks t he cent ral nervous syst em, gradually disabling

neuromuscular control unt il t he vict im is litt le more t han a veget able. It s harmless t o

us, but we suspected it might mix poorly with Tit anian physiology. Im afraid you and

your deputies must have cont racted it when you shutt led down here.

Mallow raised his shaggy head with what looked like immense effort . I consider this an

act of war. We could vaporize your cit ies in a mat t er of hours.

Karyl nodded, his stomach t wisting into t ight, hard knots. You could. But t hen youd be

destroy ing t he anti-viral serum along with us. Without it , the Tit anic will be a ghost ship

by the end of the day.

Mallow st ruggled t o sit up, his words slurring int o a barely comprehensible st ream. If

you can cure this accursed sickness, Carson, t hen this may be your lucky day. Id be

willing to spare the life of your planet for the lives of my crew.

Im afraid t hat s not good enough. Weve reviewed your treaty off er and that s not good

enough either. Weve drawn up our own agreement whereby Tit an guarantees t he

sovereignt y of Verdis and agrees not t o pass within five light -years of t he Promet heus

Syst em without t he express invit ation of t he Verdisian government. It furt her stipulat es

that Titan will furnish Verdis with complete, detailed specifications for its antimatter

beam t o promot e mutually beneficial sharing of t echnology. If you would just affix your

electronic signat ure to t he treaty and t ransmit t he specs for t he ant imat t er device, well

make bot h available t o STARNET. Well shut t le up a medical crew to the Tit anic

immediat ely aft erward.

Mallows reply dissolved int o obscene st at ic. You cowardly, blackmailing son of a pig. If

I give you the antimat t er beam, it will be one blast at a t ime!

Karyl forced a grim smile, fight ing to conceal his t error. What if Ive misjudged t his

maniac? What if his t emper is st ronger than his instinct f or survival? He ignored t he

shrieking anarchy in his mind it was t oo lat e for second t hought s. That s your choice,

Mr. Premier. Feel free t o discuss it wit h your deput ies. But Id suggest you do it quickly.

In a few hours, I doubt t hat any of you will be capable of t ransmit t ing a response.

Karyl could only stand t here as the seconds stret ched, st aring into Mallows rabid eyes. He

saw t he accusing ghosts of his own people reflect ed in t heir fevered light . Dear God, hes

crazy. Hed rather die t han lose. Karyl felt his own sanity eroding in t he silence. When

Mallow f inally spoke, it t ook Karyl several seconds t o comprehend t he words. We accept

your terms. I underestimated you, freak. I wont do it again.

As the image of Aldous Mallow vanished, the Command Center erupted into bedlam. All

around Karyl people cheered and clapped. Evan McMahon nearly shook his arm off , and old

Quent in Bailey act ually hugged him. Tears of relief welled in Karyls eyes.

It was Bailey who first regained t he power of speech. Brilliant, Karyl. Brilliant ! How



18/58

did you do it?

It didn t t ake a genius t o figure out t hat Mallow would come aft er us sooner or lat er. For

t he past several mont hs Ive been studying Tit anian medical records on STARNET, looking

for a weakness in their struct ure, a way t o exploit it wit hout harming us. Pacifico gave me

t he answer. Glitt er-dragon t oxin soothes us, but with some adaptat ion it can be made to

ident ify and att ack Tit anian neural t issues. I was fairly sure it would work, but I needed a

t est. That first meet ing, when I so diplomat ically slugged the bastard, I drew enough blood

fo r analysis. Af t er a few t rials I refined t he chemist ry as much as I could and spliced it

into a quick-acting ret rovirus. I made sure my skin was coated with enough of t he st uff t o

guarant ee Mallow would be infected during t hat last meeting. Like us, t he Tit anians have

been enhancing fet al genet ic st ruct ure for generat ions. Theyve produced a planet of

near-duplicat es wit h very litt le genetic different iat ion. That made it easy to come up with

a plague that would affect virtually all of them.

Bailey blanched. My god... the same t hing could be done to us.

Karyl did not say a word. There was no need. He saw something new behind the eyes of t he

men and women in t he Cont rol Center. The voice in his head no longer t aunted him. We

underst and now, we who are so alike, so perfect . The same thing could be done to us... but

not t o you. McMahon grinned and pat t ed him on t he back. Youve given us something else

t o discuss when t his is over. I t hink it s t ime you had some company.

Aft er an hour of hugs and handshakes, Karyl excused himself t o t he privacy of his office.

He stroked Pacifico and let waves of t ranquillit y wash away t he terror of t he past f ew days.

For t he first t ime, he was truly t he President of Verdis. For t he first t ime, he did not f eel

alone inside t hese walls. For t he first t ime, he fully appreciated why his mot her had borne

him the way she had. So did ot hers in t he Ministry. Things would change on Verdis. There

would be more human variety, good and bad. Evolut ion instead of st agnat ion.

There would also be changes on Tit an. Designing a virus t o at t ack the Titanians had been

diff icult . Creating an ant i-virus t o cure all but one of t hem had been nearly impossible.

But he had done it. The crewmen aboard t he Tit anic would respond well t o t he serum, but

t heir commander would grow sicker and sicker. Aldous Mallow was already a dead man. He

was just t oo dangerous to be left alive.

Karyl could only pray t hat t he next Premier of Tit an would be more benign. If not , Karyl

would arrange to meet him.

And Karyl Carson would be sure t o shake his hand.

Story copyright 1994 Brian Burt.

(Edit or' s Not e: This stor y has appeared in AOL's Fict ion libraries.)



19/58

T HE BOMBARDMENT :Prologue to "The Star Nomad Chronicles"(Vol. II, Part II "Tales of Casa Alto")

by Rick Blackburn

St ardat e: 6903 .30

Casa Alt o, 70 Ophiuchi

[ Editor' s note: " The Bombardment " is the second inst allment of a t ale of invasion that began

in Planet Magazine No. 2 .]

Af t e r t he i nt e r cep t o r s had gone ove r head , t he neighborhood children had waited

excit edly for more t hrilling sights. But when half an hour had passed wit h no furt her

action, while the children t alked excit edly about t he possibilit y of invasion, Bobby, David,

and several of t he neighborhood kids had gone to t he mini-park at t he end of t he cul-de-sac

court where they lived and began a spirited game of kickball. It was said that kids on

ancient Terra, since before the advent of space flight , had also played t his game. It always

gave David a sense of awe, t hinking of t hose dozens of generat ions of kids playing kickball

since the dawn of time.

When t he Vipers had again f lashed overhead at supersonic speed, everyone had st opped

playing for a moment t o look up. Their view of t he St arport was obscured by dist ance and a

glade of t rees, but when the "Wodin's Beard" blew up, it was heard all over the city .

By t he time t hey got into t he st reet , t here was an enormous cloud of dense, black smoke



20/58

t owering into t he sky. As the kids watched, the cloud was shot t hrough several t imes by

hints of red and orange flame. From a long way off came the warble of f ire sirens.

"David," one of t he older kids said, "You're an expert , your dad works at t he St arport .

What do you think it was?"

" I don' t know," he said slowly. "Maybe a CRASH!" he said excitedly.

The last crash at t he St arport had happened several years ago, when an ill pilot had lost

cont rol of a giant freight er during landing. It had plowed int o one of t he large

mono-hydrozine st orage t anks at t he edge of the St arport . It had caused a fire that had

raged for several days before being brought under cont rol by t he Fire Department . The

possibilit y of a crash at t he St arport caused much excit ed conversat ion.

Janice Everett , 29 , long brown hair and hazel eyes, pulled t he family jet car up t o t he curb

and leaned out t he window t o yell at her son in the park. "DAVID!" she shout ed, a litt le

exasperat ed because David was being stubborn and pret ending not t o hear her calling him.

"DAVID!" she shout ed louder. Thankfully, one of his playmat es nudged him and pointed at

her. David came running up to t he jet car.

"Come on, David. Get in."

"Aww, but Mommy, we...."

"David," his mother said, in t he tone of voice t hat said she was cross and in no mood to

argue. " I'm not going to t ell you again."

"Aww," David whined, but t urned t o wave good-bye t o his playmates, unaware of t he fact

that this might be the last time he saw them alive, and climbed into the jetcar next to hismother.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

" To your fat her's off ice," Janice said, try ing to remain calm. Eric had sounded grim as he'd

out lined what t he Saurian Admiral had said, and now she was fright ened for her child's life.

"Leave everyt hing that isn't already in the car," Eric had t old her, " and you and David get t o

t he St arport at once. There's still a chance that I can get us safely offworld and out of t his

mess."

"The St arport?" David asked excitedly. This wasn't so bad aft er all, he thought ,considering t he ext ra st atus he would have in the gang by being able to report on whatever

had happened at the Starport, first-hand.

T h e T e r r a n I m p e r i a l M a r i n e s at t he St arport gate recognized t he car and came to

present arms in salute. They both grinned despit e t he seriousness of t he sit uat ion as the



21/58

Port Captain's small son ret urned t heir salute. At t hat point, neit her of t hem were aware

of t he deat h sentence hanging over all the children of Tarsus.

David jumped out of t he jet car before Janice had complet ed t he landing cycle, while the

skids were st ill six inches of f t he ground. She wished that David had not seen his father do

the same thing countless times, leaving the car on auto to complete the landing cycle.

Janice mistrust ed automated equipment of all kinds and insisted on ret aining manual

control of the jetcar at all times.

Thankfully, Eric was wait ing for t hem out side the Port Capt ain's bungalow, and David

streaked up to him, yelling at t he top of his lungs, "Daddy, daddy!"

Eric effortlessly scooped up in one arm the twenty-seven kilograms of affectionately

squirming litt le boy. " Hiya, Brat!" He said, grinning down at his young son.

"Can I go if you have t o go up an inspect a starship?" David asked eagerly.

"Yes, I promise. You and Mommy are going wit h me everywhere I go now," he said.

David was puzzled, the words sounded great and promised great things in the future, but

t here was an undercurrent of t ension in his fat her's voice that David was not used t o. For a

moment it bot hered him, but t hen he happily put it out of his mind as he walked into t he

off ice and realized t hat t here were ot her kids here today.

He recognized several of t he ot her kids; there was Christopher and Laura Random, age eight

and eleven t he son and daughter of his father's chief lieutenant. Christopher and David

delight ed in t easing Laura, who was just beginning t o discover boys in a whole new way.

Laura, although she dearly loved her little brother (and could stand David the little

snot) considered both younger boys to be almost unbearable pains in the behind.

As far as Laura was concerned, t he single most import ant person in t he room was

t welve-year-old Michael Bryhers much cut er t han her last boy fr iend. Taller t han

average for his height , Michael had chocolate brown hair and green eyes. Laura t hought he

was the most delicious-looking boy she'd ever seen.

Michael, searching the faces in t he room was glad to see his friend, Tyrone Sanders and a

litt le dist ressed to see Laura Random. He knew that Laura had t he hots for him and she had

already let it be known at school t hat she would very much like to go st eady. For t hree days

the youngster had been trying to duck her it wasn't that she was unattractive (just the

opposite, in fact ) but he simply was not ready t o get t hat serious wit h any girl yet . Wit h

Tyrone here, he'd have an excuse to pest er his friend's dad in the cont rol t iers....

It was less t han a half hour later t hat t he adults, by unanimous vot e, decided t hat t he

children should play out side in the small, grass-filled park area across the access road

from t he Port Captain's complex.



22/58


23/58

wit h his bare hands. Crying bitt erly, he finally uncovered a hand sticking out of t he

rubble. The signet ring he recognized as his fat her's.

Gradually, David managed to uncover most of his father's upperbody the man's legs were

st ill pinned under a huge steel joist beam.

Eric was semiconscious as he lay t rapped in the rubble of what had been t he seat of St ar

Nomad power on t he planet t he Port Captain's off ice. David was shocked at t he weakness

of his father's grip as the man took his son's hand.

"David," he croaked, and suddenly blood began to trickle out of the corners of his mouth and

from his ears. " You have t o list en carefully to me, I don't t hink t here's much t ime left ."

"Don't t alk, Daddy. You're hurt . I'll try t o get you out . I I haven't been able t o find

Mommy yet ...."

" David," Eric said soft ly. " You remember I t old you t his morning that you might be called

upon t o be brave braver t han any nine-year-old should have t o be this is that t ime."

David began t o cry soft ly.

"Mommy is dead," Eric said blunt ly, "And I'm dying. There is not hing that you or anyone

else can do about t hat now...." Eric paused t o pant and try t o clear his lungs.

Out side, t he at t ack was still going on. Michael Bryhers, t he only ot her survivor of t he

group of care-free kids who had played toget her a short half hour ago, staggered into t he

ruined building, and aut omat ically began t o work at helping David dig Eric free.

"David, I'm dying, and t he next few days are going t o be very hard for you but alwaysremember t hat you are a St ar Nomad. Someday t his will all be over and the Star Nomads

will ret urn. YOU must go t o Valhalla, and stand before t he Eagle Clan. I am sorry t hat I

will not be t here on your t hirt eent h birt hday to see you part icipat e in the TEST, which will

be your passport t o Nomad citizenship." Eric took t he heavy gold signet ring from his

finger and handed it t o David. "Always safeguard this," t he Nomad said. " It is the symbol of

your birt hright ... and your proof of right , should any challenge your right t o st and before

the Eagle and take the TEST."

David's sobs had turned to sniffles, but the boy managed to say, "I promise, Daddy."

Eric used t he last of his life f orce to t urn to Michael. " I'm sorry about your parent s," he

said. "You and David must wat ch over each ot her ... Spaceman's Luck...."

And wit h t hose words, Eric Everett , Lord Commodore of t he Fleet , Knight of t he Realm, and

small boy's hero, departed from this corporeal, three-dimensional existence and entered

infinit y. Deep st ar probe had always been Eric' s favor it e assignment.



24/58

Michael looked at t he man and knew t hat he was dead. Poor David, he thought .

His own relationship wit h his father had been st rained at best , and now t he 12 -year-old

found that he could not cry over t he loss of his parents. David had buried his face against

his fat her's chest and was weeping uncontrollably now. Awkwardly, Michael t ried to pull

the younger boy away.

"No! NO!" the nine-year-old cried.

Finally, Michael managed t o pull David away. " You heard what your father said," Michael

t ried t o scold him. " I'm suppose t o watch out f or you now ... you're gonna be like my lit t le

brother now...."

He could do worse for a brot her, Michael ref lect ed. He'd always liked David because he

wasn't a showof f or a crybaby ... like most kids his age.

"Yeah," David said, sniffing and wiping his nose on the sleeve of his shirt. " I I guess

you' re right . Where are we gonna go?" He looked up at Michael. David was an only child,

and t he idea of having an older brot her was a new and excit ing concept. David comfort ed

himself part ially by observing t hat Michael looked a bit like what he imagined his fat her

might have when he was a boy.

KKAAHHH BOOOMMM OMMM! OOMM!

The shock wave of exploding mono-hydroz ine washed over t hem wit h a painful pressure on

t heir ears.

"Come on," Michael said, heading straight for t he jetcar park. " The St arport is going to be

a major t arget for t he aliens."

They reached the jetcar park. It had not t aken a direct hit , but t he debris of several

buildings close by had piled up in the park. Brushing shards of blast ed, blackened

permaplast off a sleek sport s car t hat still looked in good shape, t he two boys climbed in.

" I've always want ed t o drive one of t hese," Michael said with authent ic enthusiasm.

Michael fired up t he ignit ion cycle, and t he jet car rose into t he air. He nosed it out ont o

t he vast expanse of St arport Avenue and headed east, opening the t hrot t le wide. The boy

kept t he car low t o t he ground t o provide the worst possible t arget for t he prowling Vipers.

The jet car howled up t he avenue at 3 00 kilometers per hour, half a met er above t he

high-density concrete.

The a i r ove r head sudden ly f l ashed , and t hen a flickering yellow-gray replaced t hedeep indigo of the Tarsan twilight as the city's defense screens were switched on.

Immediately, it came under bombardment f rom t he alien fleet . A

several-square-kilomet er patch of t he screen shift ed up t he spectrum from yellow to

green and finally t o blue-whit e as a volley of phot on t orpedoes smashed into t he screen,

detonat ing against t he int ense counter-energy field generated by t he cit y' s defense.



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The Vipers who had been caught inside t he screen were, of course, living on borrowed t ime.

One by one, that t ime ran out as the city 's ack-ack cannons caught t hem or t hey ran out of

fuel. The Saurian pilots knew this and were at t empt ing to cause the maximum amount of

damage.

The PAC's had landed and disgorged hundreds of t roops and armored vehicles that were even

now being engaged by t he Armed Forces of t he planet Tarsus. Luckily for t he boys, t he

Saurian main at t ack had centered on the power-generat or complex, far t o t he sout hwest of

t he cit y's center, where the St arport was locat ed. As they drove through the

six-kilomet er-wide expanse of Grand Cent ral Park, t hey could see t he flashes of

high-energy weapons exchanging fire t o t he sout h.

Michael breat hed easier when they had crossed the open expanse of t he port . The smoking

corpses of several dozen vehicles marked where others had not been so lucky. It would

have been easy for a Saurian fight er to swoop down on t hem. Here among t he skyscrapers

that lined Starport Avenue, the boy felt more secure less chance of a successful staffing

run in here.

Neither Michael nor David were aware of t he Viper coming up f rom behind, t raveling

faster than sound. Suddenly, it was upon them and firing.

ZSWOWW! ZSWOOW!

The pulsar cannons f ired on the Saurian Viper. There was f ire and smoke everywhere as

t he st reet around them burst into a preview of hell with a sharp

CRACK.

The jet car t urned over. David was t hrown clear as t he car skidded into t he safet y rail on

t he side of t he st reet . Michael managed t o pry himself out of t he wreckage and ran t oward

David. The jet car burst int o flame wit h a dull

FFWUUMMPPHHH .

The concussion of the explosion threw Michael to the ground, almost on top of David.

"You okay?" The older boy asked.

David strugg led to get t o his feet . His left arm, shoulder, and hip were badly bruised, and

it hurt t o breat he or to move his left arm. His favorite playsuit , faded blue cott on/ nylonweave with one of his father's old unit patches sewn on the sleeve, had a long rip up the left

out side seam, and was torn in ot her places and st reaked wit h sweat , blood, and soot .

"I'm okay," David said, and went over to stand beside Michael to watch the wreckage of the

jetcar burn. Michael's clothes were no more t han t att ered rags now, and he shivered as an



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especially cool breeze warned of t he near-freezing t emperatures of midnight in Casa Alto.

As the two youngsters stumbled down the street, their muscles loosened and it became

easier to move.

"You live close to here, don't you, David?" Michael asked.

"Yeah, we'd bett er get t o my house, or we'll freeze out here. I live about a kilomet er down

t his way and a couple of blocks over." David indicated a direction.

"Okay, let 's go. There doesn't seem t o be any smoke over there maybe everyt hing'll be

okay."

A h a l f h o u r l a t e r , t h e b o y s a r r i v e d i n Da v i d ' s n e i g h b o r h o o d . All the t rees in

t he park were shatt ered like t hey'd been hit by a to rnado. All the houses were rubble, and

some were st ill burning. The st reet light s were out . What light t here was came from t he

stars and the half-lit bulk of t he planet Awesome, now t wo-t hirds set in the west . There

was no sound except f or the far-off barking of a dog and t he howling of the wind. The t wo

boys felt very alone and st ood close to each other with t heir arms around each ot her for

mut ual warmt h and compassion. They turned up the driveway t o what had been David's

home. Two walls and a corner port ion of t he roof were st ill standing int act t he corner

where David's room had been. Slowly and carefully they picked t heir way t hrough the

rubble and entered what was left of his room. By some miracle t he power was st ill on.

"Tom Zimmerman, who used to live next door, was about your size," David said. " Maybe

you can find some of his clot hes."

"Okay, I' ll go look." Michael said, and quiet as a shadow slipped out of t he ruined house.

David stripped out of his dirt y clot hes and reluct antly t hrew his favorite play suit in the

corner. The autowash was st ill operational, and t he youngst er stepped into it and let it s

soot hing warm water and ult rasonic sound wash over him. The autowash's medicomp

scanned his body and injected t he proper ant ibiotics into t he spray t o deal wit h David's cut s

and bruises.

Five minutes lat er, as he stepped out of t he unit , Michael was stripping. He'd found a

playsuit and thermal jacket that fitted him.

" I t hought you' d never get out of t here!" Michael chided the younger boy good-naturedly,

and brushed past him on his way to the healing spray of the autowash.

While Michael was in t he autowash, David found one of his playsuit s and a t hermal jacket

he'd need for t onight and shivering in the 20 C cold he hurriedly got dressed. When

Michael was out of t he autowash and dressed, the t wo boys f illed their pockets wit h t he

emergency ration st icks his fat her had kept for emergencies.



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Of t he t wo dozen children in David and Bobby' s playgroup, only six, including David and

Bobby, had survived t he initial at t ack. The oldest of t he surviving children was

eleven-year-old Debby Carson. She and Michael immediately t ook joint command of t he

small det achment of children. Debby' s nine-year-old brot her, Daniel, and t en-year-old

Marcia Valdez rounded out t he survivor's band.

Of all the lit t le girls in the neighborhood, David was glad t hat Marcia was st ill alive,

because he liked her the best . She was slim and athlet ic, with brown hair and jade-green

eyes. Alt hough she was st ill t oo young t o have lost her "lit t le-boy" build, except for an

almost impercept ible beginning of a bust -line, David t hought she was perfect . Alt hough

older t han David, Marcia also liked him, and on t wo occasions had allowed t he

nine-year-old to think that he had 'stolen' kisses from her, and once had surprised the

younger boy by passionately kissing back. They had also played 'doct or,' t aking t urns as

t he physician examining each ot her's body.

" It 's get t ing cold," Michael said. " I t hink we'd bet t er find a jet car and start looking for

someplace with four walls and a roof t o sleep in t onight. We might t ry my neighborhood,

it's further from the Starport on the north side ... most of the fighting seemed to be to the

south. Maybe my neighborhood is in bet t er shape."

"Yeah, I agree," Debby said. " But first we should have some supper. I've got a fire going

and some hot dogs roast ing that Bobby found. It might be awhile before we get t o have

anything again."

For a brief happy moment , t hey were able to shut out t he sight of t he blasted buildings and

dest royed environment ; t he st ench of cordite and t ylium f umes; t he chaos of bat t le around

t hem. They pret ended t hat t hey were on a camping t rip all by themselves. They cuddled

t ogether under a large bedspread and some blankets, and wat ched the dist ort ed glory of t he

galactic hub regions through the defense screen rising over t he tops of t he ghostly silentbuildings around them, while t hey ate t heir hot dogs and planned for a drastically alt ered

future amid the blasted ruins of civilization.

* * *

(See t he following two chapters for Glossary and Appendixes t o the St ar Nomad

Chronicles.)



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THE BOMBARDMENT Glossary

1) CLASS M PLANET As t he human race expanded into t he local stellar neighborhood

right after the discovery of the Stutter Warp Drive in 2014, many different classes of

planetary bodies were discovered. In 20 30 , t he Solar Alliance Explorat ion Directorat e

issued a classif icat ion scheme in which Class M was Terra-norm. The crit eria for a Class

M planet is mass = 1.15 to 0.85, radius 1.4 to 0.75, oxygen-nitrogen atmosphere with a

surface air pressure of 1 10 0 mb t o 95 0 mb, abundant hydrosphere covering at least 35 %

of t he planet, surface temperature range = -30 C t o +3 0 C.

2) TARSUS The only Class M planet in the 70 Ophiuchi st ar system. Tarsus is

identical to the earth in mass, radius, surface gravity, atmosphere, and hydrosphere.

Tarsus is remarkable only because it does not orbit 70 Ophiuchi direct ly, but t he star's

brown dwarf companion (at 1.65 AU from t he primary), and it does not receive as much

energy input from 70 Ophiuchi as Terra does from Sol. The climate on most of t he land

area of Tarsus is semi-arctic, only because t he brown dwarf, Awesome, is close enough t oTarsus to supply t he energy deficit by direct infra-red radiat ion and t idal heating. Because

of t he intense t idal heat ing, Tarsus is very t echtonically active.

3 ) 7 0 OPHIUCHI 17 .1 light years away, this was one of t he first star systems set t led

by humans from Terra (c. 20 57 ). It is a double st ar, t he primary being a KO dwarf, and

it s companion, separated by 38 AUs, is a faint M6 dwarf. From Terra, these stars appear

t o be magnit ude 6.0, barely at t he edge of v isibilit y.

4 ) A MERICA N A RM At t he dawn of t he St ellar Age, when only t he St ut t er Warp was

available t o humanity, t his drive's peculiarit ies mandated an explorat ion patt ern of leaping

from one star to t he next in a branching fashion. Alt hough the discoveries of t he

Hyperwave Warp and Transwarp Drives eliminated t hese rest rict ions, several dozenworlds were already inhabit ed and t hree major exploration " arms" ( t he American, t he

French, and t he Chinese) already were f irmly est ablished in a t rade-route configurat ion.

Because of t his, t he archaic " American Arm" is st ill used t o describe t he "pat h" of explored

and inhabited planet s from Sol t o Mu Hercules.

5 ) ION GUN ( CANNON) A part icle-beam weapon employ ing a dual-part icle beam

array. The inner, or core, beam is composed of posit ively charged ions normally iron

nuclei; while t he outer ( or " coaxial beam") is composed of neut ral part icles. The neutral

particles interfere with most designs of ship's defensive shields, while the inner beam of

charged particles is normally of sufficient energy to produce total destruction of most

t argets with a single shot. (Aut hor's not e: Think of t he Bat t lest ar Galact ica t wo-part

episode t it led "Gun on Ice Planet Zero." )

6 ) PLA NETA RY DEFENSE SCREENS Most civilized worlds have some form of

planetary defense network. Among t he best (and most expensive) are Defense Screens.

These are multi-layered force-f ields similar t o a st arship's combat shields. But unlike a

st arship, which has a limit ed amount of power available t o pump int o it s shields, t he

Planetary Defense Screens are powered off the planet's primary power distribution net.



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Thus t hey are t housands of t imes more pot ent ( and harder t o break t hrough) t han a

starship' s shields. Defense Screens are incompat ible with mat t er, and any mat erial object

coming into cont act wit h them is instant ly vaporized. On Tarsus, a PDS was deemed to be

t oo expensive, but a smaller version WAS installed in t he capital cit y, Casa Alt o.

7 ) ORBIT GUARD Performs t he same funct ion for a planet as the Coast Guard does for

t he United States.

8 ) JET CAR A combinat ion of a jet and a car, just like its name says. It is basically t he

same size and shape as any 2 0t h Cent ury American car, except it has a more complex

wheel-skid arrangement for landings. It depends upon t he use of elect ro-gravit ic fields

for lift and a rat her conventional turbojet engine for t hrust . It can operat e at alt itudes

from inches off t he ground t o about 6,00 0 m eters, wit h " normal" jet car corridors in

metro areas like Casa Alto being 10 to 20 meters for east-west traffic and 40-50 meters

alt itude for nort h-south t raffic. The turbojet engine in a st ock jet car can accelerate at

about 6 gees and reaches its maximum (controlled by a governor) velocity of 0.95 Mach in

about 2 0 seconds. Alt hough it is illegal, t he power plant/ propulsion package on most

jetcars can be "souped up" substant ially.

9 ) COM M - W EB A communicat ions device combining video-phone, computer, f ax, and

locator file in one piece of equipment about t he size and shape of a standard phone (albeit

wit h a three- t o seven-inch LCD video screen at t ached).

1 0 ) A UT OV O N ( n e t w o r k ) A dedicated sub-space communications network reserved

for t he military. It can be used both f or off icial t raffic and for "personal" messages to help

boost morale on isolated milit ary bases or st arships on pat rol.

11 ) The TEST The coming of age ritual t hat Nomads go through as t hey leave childhood

behind and embark on their adult lives. The TEST is apsychological/ ment al/ physical/ psychic experience, which has it s closest analog in some of

t he Amerind t ribes of t he West and Sout h West. In these tribes a boy who wished t o become

a man purified his spirit by f ast ing for a period and then was left in t he wilderness to

experience a " vision." In the Nomad version, sensit ive psionic amplif iers and sent ient

comput ers are used t o delve into t he TESTee's unconscious and create a "vision." The

results of each TEST are confident ial, unless t he TESTee chooses t o reveal the details. It is

a draining experience, bot h physically and ment ally, and only by t he possession of a

superior mind can one "pass" t he TEST. The age at which an individual takes t he TEST

varies great ly, wit h girls t ending t o qualify in t he pre-screening a lit t le earlier t han boys

(as wit h pubert y) . The average for girls is 12 , while for boys it is 14 . A person who

does not pass the TEST on t he first t ry can t ry again, as many t imes as he can pass t he

pre-screen qualificat ions. Those who are unable t o pass t he pre-screen qualificat ionsnever take the TEST and hence are never full citizens. Alt hough the Government at t empt s

t o squelch discriminat ion against t hose who are unable t o pass the TEST, t hose people have

a status similar t o t he vict ims of ment al ret ardation in the mid-20 t h cent ury on Terra.

1 2 ) V I P E R An interplanetary interceptor carried on a mothership, similar to the way



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fight ers are carried on aircraft carriers. These are single-seat fight ers, mount ing two

pulsed phaser cannons and capable of carry ing ext ernal ordnance such as rocket bombs and

guided missiles. The Viper's home environment is t he vacuum of deep space, where it can

accelerate at up t o 12 gravit ies wit h combat t hrust ers and achieve relat ive velocities in

excess of 1,5 00 km sec-1. Vipers can also operat e in planet ary atmospheres, where they

can att ain speeds in excess of Mach 3.

13 ) PHASER A class of energy weapon widely used in t he United Federation of Planet s.

It can be as small as a book of matches or as large as a convent ional art illery piece.

PHASER stands for PHased Array laSER. Its operat ional beam consists of t wo component s, a

visible beam of charged part icles which gives t he phaser it s charact erist ic cyan-blue

beam and an X-ray laser component which does the actual damage t o t he target. Phaser

energy can eit her shock into unconsciousness, t hermally f ry, or disint egrate a material

t arget, depending upon the power level and frequency of t he X-ray laser. At maximum

output , t he phaser generat es a beam of closely focused X-rays wit h a wavelengt h of 17 5 ;

while in the stun setting, the X-ray laser portion of the beam is disabled and only the

particle beam is used, producing a t aser-like electric shock t o any organic mat erial.

1 4 ) T RI- D ( T r i - d e e ) The 24 Century descendent of TV, it is used bot h as a

t hree-dimensional f orm of recreat ion and as a met hod of displaying dat a in milit ary,

business, or comm ercial applicat ions. The display unit is usually a globe-shaped unit

from 10 centimeters to 3 meters in diameter, but it can be displayed with semi-3D from a

flat LCD display.

15) SAURIAN A reptilian race of 45 Delta Aquillae, sometimes also referred to as

"Dracs." They are t he technical and military equal of t he Terran Empire, and some say t he

philosophical bet t ers because of t heir complex and logically grounded philosophical work.

The United Federat ion fought a war with t he Saurians in the 22 nd Century, and aft er nearly

a decade of undecisive batt le a peace t reaty was finally signed. The Dracs have been st aunchsupporters of t he Federat ion's ideals since t hen, but have remained the commercial and

economic rivals of t he Terrans in several sectors of t he Federat ion, especially in t he

Federation Out er Territ ories. It is unknown why they choose to align t hemselves with t he

self- st yled King of Perseus.

16) TARMARAK The Tarmarak t ree is native t o t he home world of t he Pentapods

(DM+43 1953); it is tough, nearly indestructible, and is used in the Pentapod "organic"

starships as t he outer hull and for radiat ion shielding. It is a t enacious plant and can

survive in a wide variet y of environment s, from glacial to subt ropical. Because of it s

hardiness and extreme ut ilit y, it is the " cash" crop of more t han one front ier planet .

17) CROM The male half of t he neo-pagan dual-deit y Crom/ Mitra. Aft er theInt erregnum and the f all of t he Theocracy on Earth, billions of people t urned their backs on

Christ ianity , believing it t o be " demon-inspired" wit h its purit anical credo of " If it gives

pleasure, it MUST be sinful." The worship of Crom/ Mit ra is the primary religion on t he

Nomads' home worlds, and since it has many of the same tenets as Christianity, it was

eagerly accepted as a replacement for t he discredited Christian religion. It should be not ed



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that although the term "Christian" is used here, it should rightfully be restricted to the

fundament alist , evangelical "Believe MY way or I'll KILL ya!" t ype of Christian. That kind

of " Christ ian" will be in fo r a terrible shock when Judgment Day arrives.

1 8 ) MONO HYDROZINE Mono Hydrozine is an inflammable liquid used in rocket

propulsion. Mixed with liquid oxygen, t his art ificially creat ed fuel yields a specific

impulse of over 9 ,00 0 seconds, t hus rivaling the f ission nuclear rocket but wit hout t he

radioactive contamination problems associated with fission drives.

19 ) LABYRI NTH The Labyrint h which surrounds Casa Alto's St arport is among t he

oldest parts of t he cit y. The st reets here are narrow and mostly wind back upon

t hemselves or lead t o cul-de-sacs. The Labyrint h from t he air resembles a giant maze

(t hus the name) and is primarily composed of warehouses and light industry wit h

low-income housing and skid row hot els. Deals are negot iated here t o import hundreds of

t ons of exot ic drugs, or t o export prost it ut e/ slaves of all ages along with t he more

mundane legal import / export business found around any starport .

2 0 ) TERRA N IMPERIAL MARINES The Marines t race their origin t o a number of

pre-space Terran milit ary organizat ions, including The Unit ed Stat es Marine Corps, t he

United States Army, the Red Army, the British Army of the Rhine, the French Foreign

Legion, and so on. The Imperial Marines are divided into two major commands, t he Fleet

Marines, which are direct ly at t ached to St ar Fleet ships and serve as securit y personnel

and weapons specialists/ gunners, and the Line Marines, who inherit all t he dirt y lit t le

jobs of war. They get very lit t le glory and a lot o f slogging through alien mud fields under

fire or att acking armored bunkers on some frozen ast eroid in full vacuum armor . The Line

Marines also pull St arport Securit y. Under t he Charter o f t he UFP, st arport s are

interst ellar port s of call, t hey serve a specific planet, but like an embassy, t he planet' s

jurisdiction ends at t he st arport ' s gat es. Inside a st arport 's perimet er, Imperial Law

exist s, and is summarily enforced by t he Marines. An att ack on a st arport is an att ack ont he Federat ion and is severely dealt wit h.

2 1 ) A CK - A CK s ( 4 0 m m ) A medium anti-aircraft phaser cannon, with a 40 mm

diamet er bore. The most common arrangement s are in batt eries of t wo (pom-pom guns)

or in fours (Quad-40 s). They are meant t o be used as point defense guns from zero t o 20

kilometer ranges. They can be eit her visually aimed by a gunner or connect ed t o a

comput erized Target Tracking Array. They are rat ed as 60% let hal t o air t arget s in t heir

zone of conflict (0 -20 km radius; 0-30 ,000 meter alt itude).

22) PERMAPLAST A building mat erial of t he 24 t h Century. It is stored as a powdery

substance like normal plast er. When it is t o be used, it is mixed wit h water and a fixat ive

and t hen sprayed ont o a wire or wooden mold. When it dries (in 1 t o 6 hours, depending ont he overall size of t he st ruct ure) it is the consist ency and density of obsidian. It is widely

used on t he Frontier t o build "t emporary" buildings t hat are expect ed t o remain t emporary

for centuries.

2 3 ) PHOTON TORPEDOES A phot on Torpedo is a starship's main off ensive weapon.



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Basically a t iny bit of antimat t er which is compressed int o a cigar-shaped project ile by

gravit ic-magnetic force f ields. These force fields keep t he antimat t er from det onat ing

unt il t hey have reached the indicat ed target . Once there, the force field dissolves and t he

ant i-mat t er (normally in the 1 t o 10 gram range) causes an explosion equal t o a 20 t o

20 0 kiloton nuclear device. Ot her devices, dubbed "Planet busters" may have as much as a

ton (106 grams) of antimatter and produce a blast equivalent to a 200 megaton nuclear

device.

2 4 ) GRAND CENTRAL PARK Casa Alto was laid out in accordance with the Sierra

Club Urban planning program developed in t he mid-19 90s by t he ecological group on

Earth called t he Sierra Club. It s basic tenet was t o " split up" vast megalopolises int o

numerous suburban cent ers, each connect ed by wide belt s of natural growt h and land. Thus

on Tarsus, cont ractors must leave 5 square kilomet ers of " park" land for each square

kilometer developed.

25) AUTOWASH The aut owash is a combinat ion shower unit . It sprays half wat er and

half ult rasonic sound. In most models, a computerized auto-med f acilit y also does a

medical scan of t he person and adds wat er-soluble ant ibiot ics, vit amins, etc., t o t he water

spray t o be direct ly absorbed int o t he body while one washes.

* * *

(cont inued in next chapt er)



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holes have four ent rance vect ors, t he normal RED and GREEN, and a second set of reciprocal

vect ors, designat ed BLUE and YELLOW.

So far, no Federat ion warp gate has opened on to t errit ory served by warp gates accessed by

any of t he known alien races, and it is theorized t hat t hey never will, being closed systems

unto t hemselves. Most warp gates t end to cover more t han 1,000 light years, and so far as

anyone can t ell, there is no limit in sight t o t he net work of warp gate stat ions. Current ly,

t he Federat ion routinely makes use of a net work of seventy -four warp gates. The furthest

single warp gat e shift is between t he Cygnus X-1 b lack hole and t he 1E23 44 + 1 8 quasar

science stat ion, 16 .3 billion light years away.

What about t he race who built t hese wonderful objects? So far, even less is known of

t hem. From radiological dat ing it is possible to say that all the known warp gat es were

built during a half-million year period between 6.5 and 7 million years ago. Of t he

builders themselves there is no evidence. Alt hough it is believed that t he warp gat es were

designed to have living beings in supervisory posit ions, much like t he t elepat hs of ITT are

acting t oday, there have been no finds of ot her art ifacts or records of t he enigmatic

builders.

The best t hat can be said about t hem is t hat t he warp gat e builders appear to have been

cont emporaries of t he First-Wave activit ies of anot her vanished race, t he Preservers,

who are responsible for t he propagat ion of so many humanoid life forms in t his sect or of

t he galaxy. Although it is tempt ing to identif y t he warp gates as Perserver art ifacts, much

more is known of t he Preservers than of t he race that built t he warp gates. It may be that

t he Preservers construct ed t he net work of warp gates t hroughout space and t ime; however,

there is currently no concrete evidence of that.

(Related t opics: Preservers, Pre-Galact ic Races, Arch of Time, The Cit y on t he Edge of

Forever, Prof. Alexander H. Pickering [ 20 t h Cent ury scientist - anomaly] .)

* * *

Appendix 2

STAR NO

Documents

Planet Magazine No. 3