Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “Egg Nebula” by Emily November 2009 “No…no, this is simply an error,” said Professor of Astronomy Gavin Hart. He lifted his head up from the magnifier and rubbed his eyes. “For starters, it’s not where it should be. Second, there is no way that it … Continue reading Return to Sender, by David Ferrett
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “Snuckles” by Patrick Stacy “Hold your breath until you turn plaid.” Pieler Wenck never forgot the line. While still in high school he had sneaked into a toy industry trade show with the hope of meeting a designer or two and finding out everything he … Continue reading Snuckles, by Michael J. Martineck
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “Head” by Charles H. Tyler, IV I am leaving this message as a warning to anyone who enters this space station. My name is Rog Crepzom. I and my partner, Sal Lazdos, are alien archeologists. Some would call us alien grave robbers. Our occupation is … Continue reading Strange Artifact, by Joe Vadalma
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “The Birth of Orba” by ehrad The battle-cruiser Aeolis glided majestically through the vastness of space. It was a titanic cylinder of glistening black metal, two kilometers long by one hundred fifty meters wide. Ship’s complement: Twelve-hundred crewmembers, all proudly bearing the insignias of the … Continue reading The Choices We Make, by Marcelo Hipolito & Marcelo Machado
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “Frozen Sun” by Zac Story © 2003 by Lewayne L. White Illustration © 2003 by Zac Lowing http://www.angelfire.com/il2/zvr/ ← Back to Planet Magazine No. 38 (contents)
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). (A Langford Joh Story) Illustration: “Lah Shipyard” by ehrad This is kind of like one of those space opera telecasts that I generally despise, except that the story is personally very real to me. I can't help it if it reminds people of the Maltese Falcon … Continue reading Voiders, by William Alan Rieser
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 38 (June 2003). Illustration: “Launch Cannon” by ehrad October 19, 2001: Scientists at Lucent Technologies’ Bell Labs have succeeded in fabricating molecular-scale transistors that rival conventional silicon transistors in performance using a class of organic (carbon-based) semiconductor material. In such transistors the length of one molecule defines the channel’s … Continue reading Worm Turns, by E.S. Strout
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 37 (March 2003). (A Langford Joh story) Illustration: “HiRes” by Carl Goodman It was significant that the first Confederation hopefuls were Earthlings because the surface and texture of Robain had many similarities to their home planet. The gravity was nearly the same, the content of the air almost identical. … Continue reading The Robain Incident, by William Alan Rieser
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 37 (March 2003). Illustration: “Gizmo” by Ehrad Jenkins hit his forward thrusters, hoping to back his ship away from the beast he was trying to maneuver into position. He could feel the titanic pull of the thing's gravity as his thrusters strained at 110% of capacity. "Jenkins, report," a … Continue reading A Singular Solution, by J. Alan Erwine
Originally published in Planet Magazine No. 37 (March 2003). Illustration: “Hell Tunnel” by Ehrad Let's see now -- what's it like to be one of the people who proved conclusively that humanity's not alone in the universe? Where the hell do you people get these questions, anyway? Wait, wait. I'm sorry. I'll tell you. The … Continue reading Cargo, by Floyd Largent
