The Golden Age Of Science Fiction Novel Chapters
List of most recent chapters published for the The Golden Age Of Science Fiction novel. A total of 1755 chapters have been translated and the release date of the last chapter is Apr 02, 2024
Latest Release: Chapter 1 : The Golden Age of Science Fiction.An Anthology of 50 Short Stories.by Various.VOL I.A ST
The Golden Age of Science Fiction.An Anthology of 50 Short Stories.by Various.VOL I.A STRANGE Ma.n.u.sCRIPT FOUND IN A COPPER CYLINDER.
By James De Mille CHAPTER I.THE FINDING OF THE COPPER CYLINDER.It occurred as far back as February 15, 1850. It happene
- 701 "No, not really. We took considerable time gathering in our boy here." Lanko inclined his head toward Genro Kir. "And the Bordeklu's home port is Tanagor, so Musa's old s.h.i.+p wouldn't spend too much of a layover in Kneuros. They're on schedule a
- 702 Genro Kir looked at the proffered circlet, then slowly extended a hand. He took the device, turned it around in his hands for a few moments, then put it on.Suddenly, his face set in decision, and he sat quietly for a while, grim faced. At last, he looked
- 703 "Instead of being patient, and nice, and helping me see how silly I've been." She reached out impulsively to touch his hand, then withdrew her own, feeling somewhat foolish when he made no move to respond. Her relief was too great, however, to be conta
- 704 "A lovely voice," Andy agreed, and his own voice sounded to him as if he were singing.THE END.TRADER'S RISK by Roger Dee Keeping this cargo meant death--to jettison it meant to make flotsam and jetsam of a world!The Ciriimian s.h.i.+p was pa.s.sing in
- 705 The Terrans drew together again."Zid?" Jeff echoed.Chafi Four relieved his fellow of the strain by trying his own rusty croak. "A vicious Canthorian predator, combing the island at this moment for prey. You must help us to recapture it.""So that you
- 706 ... although the most recent star to die, RNAC 89778 in the distant Menelaus galaxy (common name, Menelaus XII), had eight inhabited planets, only some one thousand people of the fifth planet escaped and survived as a result of a computer error which misc
- 707 "Blast me, Red, it's so d.a.m.ned crazy I'm for it. Let's give it a shot."I did not know then how much it would really cost us. If I had I might not have agreed. Or maybe I would have, it was good to know people could still have such dreams in our co
- 708 A dark suspicion crept into my mind, but I could not restrain myself."Wait, Dworken!" I shouted. "You can't just leave me up in the air like that! What happened then?"Dworken snorted into his green handkerchief."De Martian admitted it was a fake, af
- 709 "I'm talking about the--the--" he gulped painfully--"the stage."Alice wrung her hands, crying bitterly: "Wonderful! Splendid! Tristan LeHuber, The World's Unparalleled Upside-Down Man! He Doesn't Know Whether He's On His Head Or His Heels. He's
- 710 "You mean that Martians can read people's thoughts?""Sure! It's no trouble at all. It's very easy really, once you get the hang of it.""Can you read my mind?" I asked, smiling."Sure!" said Mrs. Dunny, smiling up at me. "That's why I said that
- 711 The book ... businessman dealt the cards. The reporter picked his up and arranged them in his hand, he discarded one; the businessman ignored it and drew from the deck, he discarded; the reporter picked the discard and threw away a card from his hand; the
- 712 "I know what it'll take," the Captain roared. "Don't tell me my job! Put every available man on this, I want that guy brought in."The old man walked back to his room. He was carrying a dozen cans of beer, but the load was light and he walked upright
- 713 "Do you speak English?" he asked. The man brightened but shook his head."No hablo ingles," he said, "pero el medico lo habla. Venga conmigo."He gestured for Jan to follow him and started off, pulling his way against the wind along the chain. Jan fol
- 714 "Why, yes, that's true.""He says the fuel will not work then, senor. He says it is low-grade fuel and the platform must have high octane gasoline."Jan threw up his hands and went back into the dome."I should have known that," he said unhappily. "I
- 715 "So what should I do, give you lessons?" The idea is so laughable I laugh at it. "Anyway, Frankie always makes with the eyes at thrushes.""Yes," Hotlips Grogan admits, "but never before have I been in love of any of the thrushes Frankie has made wi
- 716 "Why don't you play what you've written so far. It's not very long, and it might cheer you up a bit."You're a good friend, Channeljumper, Longtree thought, and when Redsand and I are married after the Music Festival we'll have you over to our hole
- 717 He had arranged to be a.s.signed the recording machines drifting in s.p.a.ce at the greatest distance from the command s.h.i.+p. The others would a.s.sume that he needed more time to locate and retrieve the apparatus--which would give him a head start tow
- 718 Tremont twisted his head around to eye the three of them without speaking. He was trying to decide where he had made his mistake.Bill Braigh, the elderly youth with the crewcut? Ralph Peters, the pilot who had come with the s.h.i.+p? Dorothy Stauber, the
- 719 As far as he could tell from the gauges lined in a miniature row along the neckpiece of the suit, his heating system was functioning as designed. The batteries had an excellent chance of lasting longer than he would.He began to dwell upon thoughts of sque
- 720 She thinks someone blew up the s.h.i.+p, he thought. She thinks I heard about the plot some way. For an instant he hesitated, then: "No, Susan; they weren't after you. No one was trying to kill you. Don't worry about it."Relief washed over her face.
- 721 "In general, yes," Taggert said."But what about the details?" Forsythe asked doggedly. "I mean, just how are we going to go about this? You must remember that I'm not at all familiar with ... er ... scientific research procedures.""Oh, we'll work
- 722 The senator puffed his cigar in thoughtful silence."We'll just have to keep working with him," Taggert said. "Maybe we'll eventually make sense out of this precognition thing."At least we've got what we wanted. The Soviets think they've put us bac
- 723 CHAPTER II.The Silent Ray A strange shape had suddenly materialized on the screen--an immense, oval-shaped thing of dull metal, with great curving cuts of gla.s.s-like substance in its blunt bow, like staring eyes; a lifeless, staring thing, stretching fa
- 724 "I'm there, Keith! Now for it!""Oh, G.o.d!" Wells cried. "They see you; they're coming!"For he had seen strange shapes leaving the enemy submarine.And at that same moment, Bowman saw them, too.They came like the blink of a dark eye from a door tha
- 725 Alone in the control room, Keith battled with the unbalancing flow of water, maneuvering with all his skill in a futile attempt to keep the NX-1 on even keel. The men forward worked with great speed, spurred on by the realization that they were fighting d
- 726 Slowly the ruler of the octopi swam into the chamber. Its great eyes centered icily on Keith Wells, standing at the head of his cowering men; and its mighty tentacles waved slowly, gracefully, as if the creature stood in doubt. One of them tentatively rea
- 727 For a few minutes there was silence. The octopus was apparently surveying this new part of the submarine. Then, without warning, the tip of a metal-scaled tentacle felt around the panel and crept, exploring, up Angus McKegnie's leg--which leg was again s
- 728 McKegnie's voice was much louder now, and growing every second. The note of pride persisted. "Of course, sir!" he confirmed. "It was kind of hard at first, with these octopises botherin' me, but I got onto it pretty quick. That octopis s.h.i.+p chase
- 729 The commander acted mechanically. Again by touch he steered his s.h.i.+p through the black, ragged cleft. Fifteen minutes after leaving the cavern of the octopi her bow poked through the weaving kelp into the free, salty depths of the Atlantic Ocean.There
- 730 Kieran looked up at him. He asked, "Am I in a stars.h.i.+p?""Yes.""But there aren't any stars.h.i.+ps.""There are. You're in one." The sandy-haired man added, "My name is Vaillant."It's true, what he says, murmured the something in Kieran's
- 731 "No," said Paula sharply. "If he goes out right now he's liable to stay out. I won't answer for it.""Meanwhile," said Vaillant with an edge to his voice, "the pattern is forming up. Have you any suggestions, Paula?"She nodded. "This."She sudde
- 732 Something hurt him, something threatened him. He put his hand to his cheek and it came away red.Paula and Webber were yanking at him, trying to get him to move.A stone whizzed past his head. It struck the side of the flitter with a sharp clack, and fell.
- 733 It was the first time she had used his given name. "What?""When they threw the stones, and we got back into the flitter, you pushed me ahead of you. You were guarding me. Why?"He stared at her, or rather at the pale blur of her standing close to him.
- 734 "A year ago," Bregg said, "some of the people got hold of her two young ones. They were torn to pieces before they could be saved, and she saw it. I can't blame her, either."He went on to the gate and opened it and went inside. The people drew back f
- 735 Those he'd find and a few, a very few other places, including a couple I suppose I haven't heard of. Practically all of them would surprise him--no one can predict what sc.r.a.ps of a blasted nation are going to hang onto a shred of organization and rut
- 736 But you get leery of any kind of mystery in the Deathlands. It makes you frightened and angry, like it does an animal. Mystery is for cultural queers, strictly. The only way for two people to get along together in the Deathlands, even for a while, is neve
- 737 "Those look like mean burns you got there, lady," I heard Pop tell the girl. He was right. There were blisters easy to see on three of the fingertips. "Ive got some salve thats pretty good," he went on, "and some clean cloth. I could put on a bandage
- 738 CHAPTER 4.Any man who deals in murder, must have very incorrect ways of thinking, and truly inaccurate principles.--Thomas de Quincey in Murder Considered as One of the Fine Arts For that matter we took off fast with the plane swinging to beat h.e.l.l. Al
- 739 "I just hope we got some sort of anti-collision radar," I said. I guessed we had, because twice we'd jogged in our course a little, maybe to clear the Alleghenies. The easterly green star was by now getting pretty close to the violet blot of Atla-Hi. I
- 740 We looked around and took stock of our resources. It was time we did. It was getting dark fast, although we were chasing the sun, and there weren't any cabin lights coming on and we sure didn't know of any way of getting any.We wadded a couple of satche
- 741 The haze lightened faintly, three times. I remembered the St. Elmo's fire that had flamed from the cracking plant."Pop," I said--almost whined, to be truthful, "why'd the b.u.g.g.e.r ever have to land here in the first place? He was rus.h.i.+ng stuff
- 742 Sergeant Walpole made his daily report at 2:15. He used a d.i.n.ky telephone that should have been in a museum, and a rural Central put him on the Area Officer's tight beam. The Area Officer listened drearily as the Sergeant said in a military manner: "
- 743 When the echoes of the explosion died away the pilot was grinning queerly. The helicopter's engine was still."I said it could be done! Pack of fat-heads at Headquarters!""Huh?""Picking up a s.h.i.+p by its spark-plugs, with a loop. They're doing th
- 744 They went off through the rain along the road, nearly parallel to the route the Wabbly was taking. Rain beat at them. Off in the woods to their right the Wabbly's noise grew louder as they overtook it. They pa.s.sed it, and came abruptly out of the woode
- 745 Aletha regarded it with bright eyes."Beautiful!" she said happily. "Isn't it?""Personally," said Bordman, "I never saw a place that looked less homelike or attractive."Aletha laughed."My eyes see it differently." Which was true. It was accepted
- 746 Bordman did not answer. The caterwheel car went on. It came to a patch of sand--tawny sand, heavily mineralized. There was a dune here. Not a big one for Xosa II. It was no more than a hundred feet high. But they went up its leeward, steeply slanting side
- 747 Most human problems are circular and fall apart when a single trivial part of them is solved. There used to be enmity between races because they were different, and they tended to be different because they were enemies, so there was enmity--The big proble
- 748 Lawton enjoyed a good fight. He stood happily trading blows with Slashaway Tommy, his lean-fleshed torso gleaming with sweat. He preferred to work the pugnacity out of himself slowly, to savor it as it ebbed."Better luck next time, Slashaway," he said,
- 749 Lawton's face was dark with fury. "I was an experimental rat in the sky, eh?""Look, Dave, we're all in danger. Don't stand there glaring at me. Naturally I waited. I have my crew to think of.""Well, think of them. Get those valves open before we a
- 750 POISONED AIR.By Capt. S. P. Meek A telephone bell jangled insistently. The orderly on duty dropped his feet from the desk to the floor and lifted the receiver with a muttered curse."Post hospital, Aberdeen Proving Ground," he said sleepily, rubbing his
- 751 "The first intimation we had of trouble was when Lieutenant Burroughs telephoned from the water impact range where they were doing night firing last night at about four A.M. Two ambulances went down and brought him and his four men back, all of them stri
- 752 Carnes had not returned when Davis called Dr. Bird at the officers' club two hours later. Night had fallen and everyone on the proving ground sat behind tightly closed windows with lights blazing on them, wondering whether the finger of death would reach
- 753 The happiness faded from the girl's face as if by magic and an expression of absolute immobility took its place. Her eyes looked as though a curtain had been drawn over them."Yes, Doctor," she said in a toneless voice as she turned and left the room.TH
- 754 "At five minutes to two, just as I got up, I heard a noise outside like a big electric fan. It sounded like it came from directly overhead and I went to the window and looked out. I couldn't see anything, although I could hear it pretty plainly, and the
- 755 Dr. Bird nodded agreement and with a sharp command to his men Bolton broke into a run. Not a shot was fired as they approached, and the front door gave readily to Bolton's touch. At it opened there came a grating sound from the roof followed by the whir
- 756 Strang left Security Headquarters, and crossed across to the Labs, frustrated and angry. His mind spun over the accident--incredulous, but more incredulous that Morrel would practically laugh at him. He stopped by the Labs building to watch the workmen pu
- 757 "But--you said the Dictator was only 32--" Roger trailed off, regarding Ann in amazement.Martin smiled. "People don't grow old so quickly nowadays," he said. "You are 57 years old, Roger. Ann is 53." He leaned back in hi
- 758 The little con-man's jaw sagged lower and lower, the color draining from his face. He turned, wide-eyed, to Meyerhoff, then back to the judge."The Chairman of the Jury," said the Judge succinctly, "will read the verdict."The littl
- 759 There are strange gaps in our records of the past. We find traces of man-like things--but, suddenly, man appears, far too much developed to be the "next step" in a well-linked chain of evolutionary evidence. Perhaps something like the events of
- 760 There were Hairy People about now; for the past five days, moving northward through the forest to the open gra.s.slands, the people of Kalvar Dard had found traces of them. Now, as they came out among the seedling growth at the edge of the open plains, ev
- 761 "Yes, I know. Thank you."The first mate held out the clipboard he was carrying. "Would you mind checking over this, Mr. Maxwell? Your baggage list.""Certainly." He glanced at the slip of paper. Valises, eighteen and twenty-fi
- 762 "I'm going to have to do a lot of talking," he said, "and it's going to be thirsty work. I'll have to tell you the whole thing from the beginning, and if you start asking questions at random, you'll get me mixed up and I
- 763 I'd gone off on the identification!I slapped another evasion pattern into the controls, a standard set, I had no time to punch up an improvisation. But he was on me like a wasp. I rejected it, threw in another set. Reject. Another!Even as I worked, I
- 764 "With my car in plain sight?"That didn't seem to call for an answer. The plainclothesman looked apprehensive but blank.Simonov turned on his heel and approached the two guards at the gate. They were not more than thirty feet from where he w
- 765 "I don't understand. Is this group of yours, ah, illegal?"She shrugged impatiently. "Oh, of course not. Don't be silly. We gather to hear various speakers, to discuss world affairs. That sort of thing. Oh, of course, theoretically
- 766 Blagonravov poured himself more vodka angrily. "Explain yourself. What's this all about?"His former best field man said, "Kliment--""I want no familiarities from you, colonel!""Yes, sir." Ilya Simonov went on d
- 767 It appeared to have been an expression of definite a.s.sent....The dreamlike sensation increased, hazing over Telzey's thoughts. If there was nothing to this mind-communication thing, what harm could symbols do? This time, she wouldn't let them
- 768 Telzey's eyes widened. She'd gathered something similar from her other information source but hadn't quite believed it. "One hunter killed for each cat bagged?" she said. "That's pretty rough sport, isn't it?"E
- 769 "Just as you say, Miss Telzey," he agreed. "I hate to miss whatever you're going to be doing here, but if you don't lock me up now, Miss Halet will figure I was helping you and fire me as soon as you let her out."Telzey nodde
- 770 Menesee entered his box between those of Directors Cornelius and Ojeda, immediately to the right of the Spokesman's Platform and with an excellent view of the prisoner. When Administrator Bradshaw and Spokesman Dorn had taken their places on the plat
- 771 The Missionary of Oneness swung his bronzed, well-muscled legs over the side of the hammock and sat up. With an expression of great interest, he watched Spokesman Dorn coming across the sun room towards him from the entrance corridor of his hospital suite
- 772 I didn't know. I hadn't seen them, nor the jeep, on my trip back. So we followed the wheel tracks for a while, and they veered off from my trail and followed another, very much like the one that had been paralleling mine when Jones and Lloyd had
- 773 I guess you know the rest of the story, about how that destroyer spotted us and got us and my diary aboard, and towed the rocket to San Francisco. News of the "captured Martian" leaked out, and we all became nine-day wonders until the dismantlin
- 774 "Why, I suppose I have, but I seem to fail to understand.""We are facing an invasion of fourth-dimensional creatures," the old man whispered, almost as if fearful to speak the words aloud. "We are being attacked by life which is o
- 775 It was not his body, however. His brain was not his alone. The p.r.o.noun, he realized, represented the sum total of those other men, his fellow adventurers.Suddenly a new feeling came, a feeling of completeness, a feeling of supreme fitness. He knew that
- 776 Mal Shaff tore madly up the slope, topped the crest, and threw himself flat on the ground, almost exhausted.A queer feeling stole over him, a queer feeling of well-being. New strength was flowing into him, the old thrill of battle was pounding through his
- 777 At the table, Dawes asked his destination."Wedding in Salinas," he explained. "Old Army friend of mine. I picked this. .h.i.tchhiker up about two miles from here. He seemed okay.""Never can tell," Dawes said placidly, munchin
- 778 He left the park, and wandered into a thriving luncheonette. He tried questioning the man behind the counter, who merely snickered and said: "You stayin' with the Dawes, ain't you? Better ask Willie, then. He knows the place better than any
- 779 "That is the point," Rostov said stiffly. "You have a serious heart condition. A dangerous condition. You've ignored eight years of my advice, and now your heart is showing the effects.""What can it do to me?""Kill
- 780 The pilot made a final check of Monk's G suit and straps. Then he clapped the industrialist on the shoulder and strode off.Twenty minutes later, when they were ready for blast-off, a warning bell sounded throughout the s.h.i.+p.With a deafening roar
- 781 Xanabar lays across the Spiral Arm, a sprawling sphere of influence vast, mighty, solid at the core. Only the far-flung boundary shows the slight ebb and flow of contingent cultures that may win a system or two today and lose them back tomorrow or a hundr
- 782 "So am I!" snarled Buregarde showing a fine set of white fangs in the most effective gesture."This must cease!" thundered the mercenary. "You cannot threaten His Excellency's Peacekeepers!"Buregarde growled, "Slip t
- 783 Down on the dark street, they met their mercenary again. He eyed them sourly. "I see you were, in a sense, successful."Peter Hawley faced the mercenary. "We were successful and would you like to make something of it?""I'm goi
- 784 "Why, foolish one! What could hinder them?""Wild beasts," said Dan. "Poisonous insects, disease, flood, storm, lawless people, death!""I never heard those words," said Galatea. "There are no such things here.&q
- 785 "Who knows?" said Dan again. "There are those who believe we wake to a happier world, but--" He shook his head hopelessly."It must be true! Oh, it must be!" Galatea cried. "There must be more for you than the mad world y
- 786 'Some sleight-of-hand trick or other,' said the Medical Man, and Filby tried to tell us about a conjurer he had seen at Burslem; but before he had finished his preface the Time Traveller came back, and Filby's anecdote collapsed.The thing t
- 787 'I thought of the physical slightness of the people, their lack of intelligence, and those big abundant ruins, and it strengthened my belief in a perfect conquest of Nature. For after the battle comes Quiet. Humanity had been strong, energetic, and i
- 788 IX.'We emerged from the palace while the sun was still in part above the horizon. I was determined to reach the White Sphinx early the next morning, and ere the dusk I purposed pus.h.i.+ng through the woods that had stopped me on the previous journey
- 789 Commander John Hanson challenges an appalling denizen of the watery world Hydrot."Good afternoon, sir," nodded Correy as I entered the navigating room. He glanced down at the two glowing three-dimensional navigating charts, and drummed restlessl
- 790 The Kabit was wrapped in the coils of a mighty serpent; a monster that must have been the height of a man in diameter, and whose length I could not even guess.Four coils were looped tightly about the Kabit, and we could now see the terrible tail of the th
- 791 "Back, men!" I shouted. "Hendricks! Get away as far and as fast as you can. Back! Back!" Half dragging Correy, who was still breathless from the blow, I hurried after the men.Behind us, shaking the earth in his death agonies, the monst
- 792 "No," I admitted, still staring with a fixed fascination at the strange scene in the television disk. "Perhaps this is what we've been searching for. Please call Mr. Correy and Mr. Hendricks, and ask them to report here immediately.&qu
- 793 "'Vegetation of heroic size' is right, too," said Correy, who had been examining the terrain at close range, through the medium of the television disk. "Two of the leaves on some of the weeds would make an awning for the whole s.h
- 794 "They'll give us medals. That's what they'll do. For safe delivery of one million tons of tractor fuel, you two fine specimens of manhood are hereby presented with the Order of the Oil. And for your courageous service in delivering two
- 795 "That's all I know. Read it some place a long time ago. Can I go back to sleep now?""Go back to sleep," said Banner.They spent the next three hours maneuvering carefully around the asteroid. They took six thousand feet of movies a
- 796 THE GREAT DOME ON MERCURY.By Arthur L. Zagat Darl Thomas mopped the streams of perspiration from his bronzed face and lean-flanked, wiry body, nude save for clinging shorts and fiber sandals. "By the whirling rings of Saturn," he growled as he g
- 797 Darl shook his head, and prayed for sudden death. The Martian spoke to the dwarfs. They started forward, saliva drooling from their tusks. Darl gritted his teeth. He would hold out as long as was humanly possible.A shrill rhythmic whistle came from somewh
- 798 Golden Age of Science Fiction.Vol VIII.by Various.THE BURNING BRIDGE.By Poul Anderson Usually there are two "reasons" why something is done; the reason why it needs to be done, and, quite separate, the reason people want to do it. The foul-up s
- 799 As he hauled himself toward the Ranger, Coffin watched the receiver web grow in his eyes, till it snared a distorted Milky Way. It seemed very frail to have carried so much h.e.l.l. And, indeed, it would have to be dismantled before deceleration. No trick
- 800 CHAPTER I.The Take-off.It seemed only fitting and proper that the greatest of all leaps into s.p.a.ce should start from Roosevelt Field, where so many great flights had begun and ended. Fliers whose names had rung--for a s.p.a.ce--around the world, had la