NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1978 NUMBER 28 SCIENCE FICTION REVIEW $1.50 Interview: C.J. CHERRYH BEYOND GENOCIDE By DAMON KNIGHT

ONE IMMORTAL MAN ——————— .

SCIENCE FICTION REVIEW rO^Ona, U Formerly THE ALIEN CRITIC

RICHARD E. GEIS, editor & publisher November, 1978 — Vol,7, No, 5

PUBLISHED BI-MONTHLY COVER BY BRUCE CONKLIN WHOLE NUMBER 28 JML , MARCH, MAY, JULY, SEPT., NOV. From an idea by Richard 3, Gels FHUNE.: (303) 282-©%! SINGLE COPY %\3i) ALIEN THOUGHTS by the editor. .4

BEYOND GENOCIDE by damon knight. 8 REVIEWS THE CARTOON HISTORY OF THE JOHNNY WI RECUTTER a poem UNIVERSE ..35 DR, STRANGE 7 BY NEAL WILGUS II ANTHOLOGY SPECULATIVE NIGHTFALL (RECORD) .18 OF POETRY #3 INTERVIEW WITH C.J. CHERRYH IMMORTAL 22 locus 23 TABU SPANISH OF MEXICO CONDUCTED . . . BY GALE BURNICK., .14 THE WHOLE FANZINE CATALOG #2 COLD FEAR * « • • < * • • * 1 23 TALES FROM GAVAGAN's BAR ..24 THRUST #11 HE HEARS, . , . NIGHTFALL BY ISAAC - DRACULA S DOG ...... i...... ASIMOV. EXTRAPOLATION, AN SF NEWS ATTACK OF THE KILLER TOMATOES .... REVIEWED BY MARK MANSELL, 18 LETTER...... 24 BIG PLANET 24 HALLOWEEN LEONORA THE HUMAN HOTLINE LORD FOUL S BANE 25 WHO GOES THERE? 25 PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK elliott, , . .19 SF News by elton t. THE BOYS FROM PURSUIT OF THE SCREAMER ...... ,25 BRAZIL WATERSHIP DOWN THE VIVISECTOR a column AN EXERCISE FOR MADMEN 26 CONFESSIONS OF A CRAP ARTIST .... .63 BY DARRELL SCHWEITZER .22 EMPTY WORLD ...26 BEASTS 27 OTHER VOICES book reviews by THE YEAR'S BEST HORROR ORSON SCOTT CARD, BILL GLASS, STORIES, SERIES VI 27 INTERIOR ART PAUL MCGUIRE III, FRED PATTEN, SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE ...... 27 TIM KIRK 2, 4, 64 DAVID A. TRUESDALE, MARK MAN- SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE 28 SELL, WILMA T. WRIGHT, NEAL COLONY 28 ALEXIS GILLILAND 5, 8, 10, 12, WILGUS, ELTON T. ELLIOTT, DEAN THE ACTS OF KING ARTHUR AND HIS 19, 22, 28, 31, 32, 37 R. LflHBE, ROY TACKETT, GRETCHEN NOBLE KNIGHTS 29 RIX. THE CITY OF THE SUN 29 BLIND VOICES. ,30 JIM SHULL 6, 25 SMALL PRESS NOTES STARSTONE 30 pY the editor. .35 THE ORANGE R .....30 VIC KOSTRIKIN 9, 35, 39 MONUMENT 31 MIKE GILBERT 11, 13, 38, 40 MOVING VISIONS THE GOTHIC HORROR AND OTHER SF, FANTASY AND HORROR FILM WEIRD TALES 31 JAMES MCQUADE 11 NEWS BY BILL WARREN .36 SWORDS AGAINST DARKNESS III 32 KALKI ....32 TODD KLEIN 12 ONE IMMORTAL MAN conclusion CYCLES OF WAR: THE NEXT SIX ALLEN KOSZOWSKI 16 FICTION NOVEL YEARS .33 A SCIENCE RANDY MOHR 18 BY RICHARD E. GEIS 45 THE ADAM EXPERIMENT 34 THE RAVENS OF THE MOON 34 RICHARD BRUNING 21, 33 ALTER-EGO VIEWPOINT sf & f 36 35 THE ROBERT WHITAKER 23, 26 BY RICHARD E. GEIS & ALTER b5 FANTASY CROSSROADS #14 35 SHAYOL #1-2 35 BILL ROTSLER 27 RUSTIN—30 ISSN: 0036-8377 RICK JANSEN 36 BRUCE CONKLIN 43, 45

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LETTERS

DARRELL SCHWEITZER. 4, 42 JOHN SHIRLEY 5 WILL PROBABLY BE MADE UP FROM THE FOLLOWING: ROBERT BLOCH .6

ARTHUR TOFTE ...... 6 AN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN BRUNNER MICHAEL MOORCOCK. 6 AN INTERVIEW WITH MICHAEL MOOR- ORSON SCOTT CARD ...... COCK JOHN MORRESSY ....13 "LOVE THY PUBLISHER: THE ASIMOV SUBSCRIPTIONS STEVE PERRY .41 METHOD BY CHARLES PLATT SCIENCE FICTION REVIEW JACK WILLIAMSON .....41 "OCCASIONALLY MENTIONING SCI- P.0. BOX 11408 CHARLES SHEFFIELD 41 ENCE FICTION BY DARRELL PORTLAND, OR 9721 RON GOULART ...41 SCHWEITZER

GIL LAMONT...... 41 "SCIENCE FICTION ON FILM GN For One and Two Years PAPER WAYNE DENNIS LIEN 42 BY KEYSER At Six-Issues-Per-Year Schedule JOHN STRICKLAND..... 42 A NEW COLUMN ON SF MAGAZINE FICTION BY ORSON SCOTT CARD UNITED STATES: $7.50 One Year HERITAGE PRESS REPORT ON $15.00 Two Years AWARDS 42 PLUS SF FILMS BY BILL WARREN, SF NEWS BY ELTON ELLIOTT, CANADA*: US$8.00 One Year FRED PATTEN. 44 OTHER VOICES, ALIEN THOUGHTS, US$16.00 Two Years RICH BARTUCCI .44 CARTOONS .... * Canadians may pay with personal cheques if the. chequing acct. num- ber on their cheques is printed in computer numerals. (Thus we become 10-13-78 Final entry. There In The #30 file: an interview slaves to the needs of the Machine.) seems to be a conflict between what WITH STEPHEN R. DONALDSON new GALAXY editor Hank Stine told "THE EDGE OF futijria' BY RAY UNITED KINGDOM: Send pound equiva - both Elton Elliott and myself about NELSON lent of US$8.00 One Year the new payments schedule, and that US$16.00 Two Years reported in the September LOCUS. to agent WM. DAWSON SONS Hank told us payment for mater- § Cannon House ial would be within 72 hours of ac- Folkestone, Kent, ceptance . The LOCUS story says ' 72 CT19 5EE hours after publication . or write them for current quote. Since Charles Brown, editor arid publisher of LOCUS talked to Hank CURRENT AND BACK ISSUES OF TAC AND after I did (not sure if he and Elt- SFR ARE AVAILABLE FROM: on discussed the matter at Iguana- wAMTS' A Z.I.PPY FANTAST (MEDWAY) LTD. con) the policy may have changed , CopA, I'LL q-ii/g h/m 39 West Street, in that period. Given the financial ' Wisbech, Cambs., PE13 2LX A z-i rfY crt>A- l LL problems of GALAXY'S publisher this JV5T TiP off the? mst is entirely possible. . .even consist- AUSTRALIA: A$8.00 One Year FROM" THE LOVE ent. Two TAPE'S A$14.00 Two Years " X Of RANZ-iNES to agent SPACE AGE BOOKS # Elton just called and is hot on WROTE WHEiJ I WA? A 305-307 the trail of finding out for sure Swans ton St. CHfUP TRO*>V$-Y. about Playboy's plans for PULSAR. Melbourne, 3000 Vic. He also called Charlie Brown about the GALAXY story and appar- ALL OTHER FOREIGN: US$8.00 One Year Two Years ently Hank Stine (or Charlie) is US$16.00 not sure what the payments policy All foreign subscriptions must be is. More on all this next issue. paid in US$ cheques or money orders except to agents. # We're having continuing problems with subscribers who very helpfully send in their new addresses. . .but MAKE ALL CHECKS, CHEQUES AND neglect to mention their former zip- MONEY ORDERS PAYABLE TO SCIENCE code. FICTION REVIEW WE HAVE TO HAVE YOUR FORMER ZIP- CODE when you move. That's the only Whs * cd way we can find your subscription SAVE A HASSLE Ail) EXTRA EXPENSE card. We do NOT keep a separate IF YOU MOVE WE NEED YOUR FORMER alphabetical file on subscribers. ZIPCODE AND YOUR NEW COMPLETE Thank you. ADDRESS, 3 ! - suggest that new readers will find ALIEN THOUGHTS it less so. And when one does un- derstand the story and thinks back over it, there is nothing to be gained by the ambiguity, any more The top word rate for GALAXY is than there would have been anything now lcf per word. That is not a gained by Melville's not letting on typo. One cent per word, tops. that Moby Dick is a whale until BUT—payment within 72 hours of late in the book. It's necessary acceptance. With the money saved for a writer to say what he means, and with money from hoped-for sales and in science fiction, for him to increases, the parent corporation get his basic premise down clearly, hopes to pay off all the past-due and early. The story is built on accounts and gradually up the rat- this. Situations derive from it. es. If the premise isn't clear, neither I was told GALAXY will be month- will the subsequent situations be. ly beginning in January. Of course, this is all my word How Hank's editorial policy in (and Delap's) against Knight, which re fiction will differ from that of looks pretty ridiculous... but, you Jim Baen or J.J. Pierce is not yet have to consider that Knight has clear. Or where he expects to get alienated virtually all his readers enough decent fiction at l

won't let anyone see it .' Which, of vicissitudes. The number of alco- At present I do with weak tea. course, renders all the information holic writers I've met is astonish- useless. It’s necessary to be very ing. I'm 25, have been a non-drink- public in this sort of thing. er, scoffing at writers who needed (Which leads me to mention I've been to drink -- until this year. It having troubles with TK Graphics all comes down to the caffeine/al- which would make your hair stand on cohol vicious circle, with me. I'm end, and I would seriously advise habituated to caffein, my only stim- authors to withdraw any manuscripts ulant. I have to have a cup of cof- they have submitted there. Contrib- fee to get started writing. I'm- utors to anthologies should with- not sure why. It may be psycholog- draw their work individually if ical, as Phil Dick's need for speed

their editor hasn't withdrawn the was . I've managed to cut down — whole package.) When you think ab- I'm down to two cups a day, and out it, SFWA, for all its awkward- I'm producing more material than ness at times, is the only writers' ever. But coffee keeps me awake — organization visible (with the ex- and more so as I get older. That, ception of the Hollywood Screenwrit- and worrying about the other uncer- ers' Guild) which has any teeth. It tainties inherent to the writing deserves support. career. So I started drinking to make myself sleepy. Now I find it 'By the way, I'm selling copies hard to get to sleep, after writ- of my TK Graphics titles, but the ing (which itself hypes me up some-

postal rates went up, so now I want what) , without having drunk at $3.50 for SF VOICES and $2.50 for least a quart of beer or several ESSAYS LOVECRAFTIAN. Why am I sel- shots of whiskey. I feel myself ling my own book? When it became beginning to crave the stuff more clear the royalty situation was and more often. I'm getting scared. hopeless, I asked for payment in copies so at least I might get some 5 . ) ) ! ' and find I get more sleep and don't ( (Since you wrote, the new Pope There may have been a small degree need the eoffee. But of course has died (was that a Godly veto?) of that, but he seemed oriented to sometimes I want to stay awake late and Jack lives on. In fact, I that sphere from the beginning, and and use coffee for that... but find should have a letter from him print- kept with it. Re didn't make a

I always seem to wake up at 7:00 or ed further on . in the magazine . ) fortune off Flying Saucers and eta. 7:15 A. M. regardless ... so have to so I think he was into it by way use coffee. . . . ) of a basic aharacter/personality need or inclination. )) # LETTER FROM ARTHUR TOFTE Sept. 1978

llmmm. . . let amend my 8-31-78 me 'I am a bit puzzled over David statement last issue about feeling A. Truesdale's letter in your #27 book publishers have no right to 9-4-78 I got a call from Elton issue. Inasmuch as my name is in- Elliott last night from the SF claim a big share of movie, TV, cluded in the letter as a "reliable Phoenix. I won the foreign rights sales, etc. Worldcon in source", I suppose I had better Best Fan Writer Hugo. I still don't think they have voice my opinion about whether or Wow. That ' s ... four years in a a right, but I'm realistic enough not Ray Palmer believed what he row, I think. Once again, thank to know that they have the power Shaver Mys- wrote about the UFO and you all. It makes me glow all ov- to take such slices of the pie. tery. er. I sends (still!) chills down The big boys do. It is rare that a big movie 'Frankly, I never read anything my spine. Except. . .I've now g-got t-t-ten rights sale occurrs without a of his after he left AMAZING. But in 1967 w-w-when I biggie publisher having first giv- I did know Ray pretty well. Hugos.. .and back s-s-signed that p-pact with the en the book its national display 'If he persuaded Truesdale that devil —my soul in exchange for and perhaps a push via advertis- wrote, that was he believed what he d- dreamed the ing. ten Hugos — I never probably his exact intention. The come so They are all owned by bigger p-p-p-p-p-payoff would readers of his publications (from s-s-s-s-s-soon! corporations, conglomerates, banks, Amherst, Wisconsin) were the kind SAVE ME! ! etc like handing big cash from of nuts that would believe anything. one hand to another for media dis- So Ray undoubtedly played up to it. play and bookkeeping advantages. # DEAN R. LAMBE notes that 'art- So a writer is in the position 'Since when does it become nec- icles guidlines from Oflil (former- of being royally screwed, but being essary for science fiction writers ly NOVA) require manuscripts writ- paid sometimes extremely well for to believe what we write? Also, having written a far-out story, ten in 45 chacter lines to "facil- it . . . and knowing that there is no itate editing". Fucking computers way he could get that kind of Big why can't we say (with a straight are taking over! Money without the biggies playing face and our tongue firmly lodged their big money games with each in our cheek) that we believe it? Cost considerations are taking over as usual. Time is pur- other. 'We'll never know for sure wheth- chasing power. Why object to a 45 Of course, the bigger a writer er Ray believed in the stuff he put character line if you don't object gets the more he can command of the Amherst. But I do know out from to double- spacing and wide margins pie. So it comes down to paying had a nutty audience for his pub- he as it is? And anyway, pleasing a dues and waiting for lightning to lications. Is it truly a "hoax" strike computer might be easier than (as Truesdale says) on Ray's part to pleasing an editor. give that squirrely bunch what they Speaking as an editor, I am wanted to read? To do that he would impressed and pleased by a profes- almost have to make them believe sionally prepared and presented he was as nutty as they. manuscript; it says to me the writ- # CARD FROM ROBERT BLOCH er knows his business, cares enough 'Let that be the end of this to send a neat ms and thinks me Sept. 2, 1978 silly dispute.' . , of sufficient importance to merit first class submissions. 'Ok, I'll be succint, as you ((I'd rather believe Ray was sin- request, in my response to SFR #27. I do not like sloppy typing, cere in his non-fiction speeches, single- spaced, from edge-to-edge, But I did want to reply to David A. editorials, eta., than a cynical Truesdale's questions about Roy Pal- with a lot of strikeovers and mend- liar and manipulator pushing a ings, with a worn- out ribbon. Nor mer and Shaver Mystery. I the No, phoney Truth and False Reality. don't think Roy was spiteful -- nor am I impressed by lack of return snubbing his nose at us. But any- envelopes and postage. And old, one acquainted with his career -- reused envelopes turn me off, too. and his personal statements -- would BUT— if the writing is fine, all realize that he placed a great deal is forgiven. of importance on making money. And the Shaver Mystery, plus some of the other offbeat notions he prom- ulgated, did just that for him. If he laughed at us, it was only on his way to the bank. # A LETTER FROM MICHAEL MOORCOCK August, 1978 'On a more serious note, as I sit here and gaze at the cover of 'Thanks for SFR #26, which I'm the current issue of TIME magazine, enj oying. I am struck by how much the new Pope resembles Jack Williamson. 'In Darrell Schweitzer's review Do you think....? Oh, I know it of SWORDS AGAINST DARKNESS III, he couldn't be, and yet.... ' 6 says that he would have revised his . . ' - for ideas about horse-riding if he had from tape . No 'Of course, Ellison plays read Anderson first. Surely this So the taped interviews listed the laughs and the entertainment, very intrusion of "realism" into as in-hand are likely not to be pub- too. If he didn't love it, he what is fundamentally a symbolic lished here unless the interviewer wouldn't be so good at it. And that genre is what has wrecked Anderson's wants to do the preliminary work makes me even sadder, because he of own fantasy stories (the revision first all people should realize when he of THE BROKEN SWORD is a horrible is doing, not Tom Paine, but Don I'll use, this issue, a recent- example) and will produce a kind of Rickies. No audience ever loved ly acquired interview with C. J. literal-minded sword and sorcery Johnny Carson better than that World- Cherryh, conducted by Gale Bumick. which has all the defects of "hard" con audience loved Harlan Ellison. sf, with none of its virtues? The Brunner and Moorcock interviews I'm glad Ellison is taking his leave are in line first, but I need a from fandom and fan events. You 'Anderson, De Camp and others shorter interview this issue. You can't laugh and chuckle at "Croat in their own non- literary way are may see them both in the January oan" and forget it fifteen minutes probably doing as much to make pros- issue later. Behind a typewriter Ellison pective authors of the genre as is a great man. In front of an aud- self-conscious as they are made by, ience he's a great entertainer. say, the Clarion workshops . It's And never the twain shall meet. astonishing how people will work # LETTER FROM ORSON SCOTT CARD away at the very foundations of Sept. 1978 genres they enjoy without ever once — apparently — being aware of the 'I just got back from my first fundamental virtues of those genres. World Science Fiction Convention, at which I had a lovely time discov- 'Anyone who's ever ridden a ering that every SF S, F writer I bloody horse knows what slow-moving, 9-7-78 The speculation/charge actually had a chance to talk to was lazy, short-winded beasts they are, that Harlan Ellison may have "stol- nice, besides being talented. I but the horse to sword and sorcery en" the idea of DANGEROUS VISIONS was disturbed, however, by a couple is what FTL Drive is to science from a pocketbook series titled of things . I have loved Harlan El- fiction and the simple inclusion TABOO from the early Sixties [in lison's work for many years, but of the word "magic-" or the phrase Scott Edelman's letter in SFR #27] only recently heard of his enfant (for instance) "preturnaturally has been refuted and demolished by terrible reputation. The feuds, hardy h. of the Cokbinnae tribes- information not- to-be- doubted re- the quarrels, etc. -- I didn't know men" will allow the imagination to ceived today. what to expect. What I found, in continue at full gallop, as it Briefly, Harlan originated the all of Ellison's public appearances were. But what the fuck.' TABOO anthology idea in 1960 or that I attended, was a highly moral so, tried to sell it to Regency, man with a tremendous gift of self- and then turned to project over ( (Yes, but that little phrase that expression who is the best damn en- to Paul Niemark in 1961. Several rationalizes the endless full gal- tertainer I've seen on any stage in stories had been submitted and two lop is the same as the phrase that a long time. Agree or disagree, of the authors went along with the makes ftl travel believable. it's impossible not to watch Ellison. change in editorship. Volume One For me, even heroic fantasy 'The trouble was, however, that of TABOO was published in 1964. has to have some elements of brutal I soon realized that the audience It would be nice if reality to be believable. Too much nasty was watching speculations and magic and not enough sword is as Ellison and accepting jumped conclusions him as if he were television. could be avoided in the bad as too much "nuts and bolts" on future. As if were Don Rickies. and not enough symbolism. To my he "It's you bastards mind, it is the small realisms that who made STAR WARS a # REVIEW OF DR. STRANGE (TV) to the magical success by going to see it ten or lend believahility The network (damned if I can elements. Like a unicorn limping twenty times", he snarled, and the audience cheered. No one can remember which one) decided it its because of a Xerty bush thorn in tell me that audience didn't contain hun- arcane, esoteric, stupid way, to his hoof. ...')) its dreds and hundreds of people who de- make a 2-hour TV movie to debut served exactly the abuse Ellison adaptation of the DR. STRANGE comic book hero. It had good elements: was hurling at them. Why were they Evil vs. the good old modem sorc- clapping and cheering? Had they erer who passes on the power and changed their minds? Of course not the challenge and the duty to a 9-5-78 You may have been wonder- — they plan to see STAR WARS a younger man; the evil, beautiful, ing why the promised Terry Carr in- dozen more times. They were clap- ruthless woman agent-on-Earth of terview isn't in this issue. ping and cheering because Ellison's the evil power/demon/devil/alien; The problem is that Terry talk- such a good show and he's so funny good special effects. ed too softly, the mike was too far when he's pissed off. They weren't But it had a bad writer who, from him, and there was too much taking the man seriously, and that ^ faced with two hours and a limited background noise. Result is mush made me sick. Because if there's imagination, had to pad and stretch and a few understandable words. anybody in the world of SF fandom to the point of a draggy, boring, And I have learned that accept- who ought to be taken very, very dull series of scenes. ing {provisionally) interviews -on- seriously, it's Harlan Ellison. It should have been fast-paced, tape is a horrendous mistake. People There is no better writer in the daring, vivid, even mind-blowing talk and talk and talk For two world right now; there are few peo- and in its way a serious aspect hours . . . three hours .... ple who have as keen a vision as of Good vs. Evil on Earth. What the interviewer expects me/ he, nor as willing a disposition to It was a drag. And I turned it us to do is do his preliminary edit- take on all the dragons of the world off after a half hour. ing and transcription for him. with a sharp, but not-very-long I won't do that again. sword; and to have his fervor ac- Interviews submitted to SFR from cepted by an audience as entertain- ALIEN THOUGHTS CONT. ON P.12 now on must be typed. We cannot ment is sad. take the time to transcribe and edit 7 . And fanzines have changed so BEYOND GENOCIDE much. When I came along, there had been some printed fanzines -- peo- ple had little Kelsey presses that BEYOND GENOCIDE cost $15 -- but most of them were done either on the mimeograph or the hektograph. I believe there is hard- BEYOND GENOCIDE ly a person alive today who knows anymore what a hektograph is, so I'm going to explain it to you. It was a little tray into which you would pour some gelatin, which formed a thick layer, kind of like SPEECH DELIVERED AT AGGIECON, COL~ would shave the back of your neck, rubber; and you would type or draw EGE STATION, TEXAS, APRIL 1, 1978 and he would clip the sides, so on a piece of paper with hektograph that what was left on top, for a ink, which was a smeary, intensely teenager, looked kind of like the purple ink -- in fact, it had a scum top of a turnip. And now the men on it that was green, it was so pur- of my acquaintance have so much ple . And then you would lay the hair that it's hard to tell them a- sheet down on top of the gelatin part without the name tags. (I my- leave it there for a few minu- I have a confession to make: I and self believe in a decent modera- happen to have a severe difficulty tes, and this ink would sink into tion.) with anything to do with calendars. the gelatin, and then after remov- I've got a digital watch that tells ing the master you would put anoth- me the month and the date, but it er sheet of paper down and pull it doesn't tell me whether it's Monday off, and there would be a copy. or Tuesday, and I'm completely at And you could do this about a sea. And I didn't realize until to- hundred times before it became il- day that I was going to be speaking legible. So our fanzines were lim- on April first. And then I said, ited to a circulation of one hund- "Dummy!" I know that Bob Tucker red, which we never achieved. They would want and expect me to come up nominally sold for a dime or there- with some really huge flimflam, and abouts, but I don't think I ever I didn't have one ready; so I apol- had more than two or three paying ogize for that. But instead of try- customers for my fanzine, SNIDE. ing to work some con on you, I'm go- We would send these things out to ing to come right out and tell you a mailing list of other fans, and that certain rumors that are float- we would get their fanzines back, ing around are not true. It's not or maybe not, but we had to get rid true, for instance, that Larry Niv- of the damn things some way. I sent en is about to undergo open-pocket one to Adolf Hitler in Berchtesga- surgery. And it's not true that den; at the time that seemed like a Bob Tucker was seen passing out cards funny thing to do. I later found to the goats on the experimental out that Hitler was not all that farm. That's not true at all. funny, but I'll tell you something Now I'm going to talk to you a funny I did find out recently about little bit about time travel. Most him. I recently read John Toland's people think it's fantasy; L. Sprag- two- volume biography of Hitler, and ue de Camp, in fact, said that all learned that among the various ail- time travel stories are by defini- ments that Hitler suffered from all tion fantasy, because it's scientif- his life was something I had never ically impossible. But I'm here to heard of, called meteorism. Lovely tell you that he's wrong: You can word: Do you know what it means? travel in time. There are just two It's really hard for anybody It means "uncontrollable farting". who wasn't there to realize how pov- little things wrong with it -- you Another thing that has changed erty-stricken we science fiction can only travel in one direction, about fans is that not only could- fans were in 1938. There were three and you can only go at the rate of n't we make a profit out of our magazines; you could read a maga- one second per second. So it's ta- fanzines, but we certainly couldh't ken zine in a day and a half, and then me about forty years to get here dream of 'fever making a living; and from what would you do for the rest of 1938. (Interesting trip. Us- now I believe there are at least the month? And there were practic- ed up a lot of toilet paper on the three fans who are making a living ally no books. The idea of publish- way.) off their fanzines, not even count- ing science fiction books in hard- One of the differences that I ing Ted White. cover as a regular thing was not in- notice, as a traveler from 1938, is vented until 1950. And there were that people have a lot more hair Another thing that you can't be- no paperbacks. We haunted libraries than they used to. In 1938 we went lieve unless you've been there is for science fiction; we read all the to the barber twice a week, and he the isolation that we suffered. I Wells and Verne we could find. that grew up in a little town called And we cruised around in second-hand Hood River, Oregon, and as far as I bookstores, just going down the could determine, I was the only one stacks looking at titles; and we in that town who had ever heard of were disappointed a lot. Things science fiction. I went around By like MAN OF TWO WORLDS --we thought leaving notes in science fiction it was about that was it, but no, magazines for other people to find; an Eskimo DAMON KNIGHT I dropped some in the city reser- ; " voir, until the guy's little son Some of you probably know that for Creative Anachronism, and we've came out to tell me I'd be arrested the watchdog of morality on ASTOUND- got the Dorsai Irregulars -- some- if I did that any more. Nothing ING, later ANALOG, was not John Camp- body out to pit them against each ever worked. bell but a lady named Kay Tarrant. other in a pitched battle, by the John way -- but I think we need more of If you did happen to strike didn't have anything to do with these traditions. We should absol- somebody who had heard of science the minor details of running utely wear propeller beanies fiction, they knew immediately what that magazine, he just read stories to all and talked official functions. We ought to it was; it was that crazy Buck Rog- to authors. And he trusted celebrate Gemsback's birthday, ers stuff. Jack Williamson in the Kay Tarrant to excise any- thing that which, by the way, is August 16th -- thirties went to a psychiatrist -- might offend anybody, and of course make a note. We could have an an- this story is a little bit apochry- she did. But the au- thors liked nual fan feud in Futureworld, with phal, but Jack wouldn't mind my to tease her about this; they would write zap guns and water pistols . How telling you -- and in his first in- things into their stories that about an H.P. Lovecraft ice-cream terview the psychiatrist asked him they knew she would blue-pencil, just for fun. eating contest? I think the record what he did. He said, "I write One time this backfired. is twenty-eight pints. On the first science fiction". The psychiatrist George 0. Smith wrote day of spring, we could celebrate said, "What's that?" and Jack ex- a story and introduced into it the New Wave by having Michael Moor- plained, "Well, it's about things the following riddle: "What is cock get into a full bathtub at the like spaceships and robots, that the world's most perfect ball- bearing top of Market Street. kind of thing". And the doctor said, mousetrap? Answer: A tom- cat." And Kay Tarrant didn't get "Well, we'll soon cure you of that . And I certainly think we should it, and it appeared in the magazine. revive the Elron. Does anybody know My very uninformed guess is that what the Elron is? It's an award in 1938 there might have been as for the worst science fiction story many as five hundred fans. And my of the year, consisting of a bronzed also very uninformed guess is that lemon. We could have a film festi- there must be at least ten thous- val consisting entirely of out-takes and in this country now. I have from MY MOTHER THE CAR, and an an- extrapolated this in a very scien- nual award for the most moving fare- tific manner, and I conclude that well to science fiction. I envis- by 2020 A.D. there will be one and age this as a life-size statuette a half million of us and we can , of mad dogs kneeing Harlan Ellison start our own political party. In in the groin. the year 2500 we'll take over the world. In the thirties and for quite a while afterward we always Now, money: This is a difficult had one or two token women writers; we had subject. In the thirties, if you Leslie F. Stone, and then we had C. got half a cent a word on publica- L. Moore, and Leigh Brackett. And tion, you were lucky. E.E. Smith the highest compliment, of course, received for his efforts in writing was to say to one of these women, THE SKYLARK OF SPACE the sum of "You write just like a man". Lately $125, which he split with his col- we've had a lot more women writers, laborator. Today advance payments most of them extremely good. My to authors of science fiction nov- wife pointed out to me some time ago els of ten thousand, thirty thous- that this was not equality, and, a hundred thousand dollars are because we ought have more mediocre wo- no longer unheard-of. If you went to men writers . And she ' s right and back in time and talked to Ed Ham- Things have changed so much, , now we've got a few. After all, if ilton about the year 1978, and if even in ANALOG. I talked to Ben you're a mediocre writer, why should you said we'd had a man on the Moon Bova a few weeks ago when he was in you have to be man to get publish- and we've got orbital satellites, Oregon for a writers' conference, a ed? and radar, and coin vending machin- and just for curiosity I asked him, es, he would have said, "Yeah, "Ben, what's the strongest word you Before I go on, I'd better tell yeah", but if you had told him ab- have used in ANALOG?" And he said, you a little bit about where I'm out that hundred thousand bucks, he "Well, in one story we used the coming from. I'm a white Anglo-Sax- would have said, "Forget it." word 'fuck'. And the next month we on protestant, and a lifelong het- got several letters from subscribers erosexual. I'm married to Kate Wil- Now I have to mention sex. In saying, 'If you ever use that word heim, and I have two sons, two the nineteen thirties, the strongest again. I'll cancel my subscription. 1 " daughters, and two stepsons. My word you could expect to find in a And Ben says he wrote back, "Will knowledge of the position of women magazine was "damn", and even that you be a little more precise? Which in society is kind of by observa- was a little unusual. Now you can word?" tion and hearsay; I've never been find every coneivable sexual act there and I can't know what it feels Then described in complete detail in the we have conventions . As like to be a woman. I guess I best-selling novels in the super- far as I can find out, at the first could call myself, if not a femin- markets. But the magazines espec- worldcon in 1939 there were about ist, then a fellow- traveler. In ially were very uptight about this two hundred people. Now we have ORBIT I think I must have averaged -- they were afraid of censorship, and four thousand, seven thousand about twenty- five to thirty percent I don't know what the limit is, or they policed themselves very care- stories by women writers , and once fully. There was a series of sto- whether there'll be a hall big en- or twice I got it up to fifty per- ries in ARGOSY by Arthur Leo Zagat, ough to hold us in about ten years. cent, which I think is where it be- about a post-Armageddon world in And we've done a lot of things longs. And I'm telling you all which nobody had survived but a to give science fiction a little this not to seek praise, but just bunch of teenagers . And they had tradition -- we've got the Society to let you know where I'm standing to find out how to reproduce the when I say what I'm going to say race by trial and error. 9 next. '

One thing that I notice happen- male, and they're terrifically hap- it, and in a sense we can see that ing in science fiction over the py. These women, all that we see it's justified; there's a lot of last ten years doesn't please me at or hear about, are beautifully ad- hatred bottled up in women that has all. In the fifties there was a justed, cheerful, cooperative, hap- to come out some way. And I'm not general attitude of what I think of py people. And the three men, the saying that these stories should as a healthy skepticism. We looked only representatives we have left not have been written or that they behind things; we said, "What's of the male half of the human race, should not have been published. I'm wrong with it?" We said, "Oh, are a weakling, a brute, and a cra- not even talking about this partic- yeah?" In the last decade I've zy old man. Under the influence of ular manifestation. What I'm say- seen a swing of the pendulum back a hypnotic drug, the brute makes a ing is that it alarms me when stor- to an attitude of romantic idealism rather clumsy attempt at rape on ies like these are received with which disturbs and distresses me. one of the women, and the crazy old enthusiasm, or at most in approving There has always been a strong man tries to take over the ship by silence, by science fiction readers. strain of messianism and utopianism force; the weakling helps to subdue I would like to see a return of in science fiction, all the way up him. And then the protagonist real- skepticism; I would like us not to from Gemsback, who was quite sure izes that what's going to happen to go down the tube again. It's so that AMAZING STORIES would save the all three of them is that they're easy for even an intelligent and ra- world by educating people to become going to be killed. tional person, once you admit the scientists. And at that time we overwhelming importance of some I some other also had the Technocrats, who were looked back at goal, to conclude logically that in I same pattern, running around in their uniforms, stories, and saw the order to achieve it you must kill same statement, that we can which consisted of double-breasted the large numbers of people. Male hu- if we just get rid of gray business suits. This kind of have utopia man beings are about 49% of the hu- all the men. It's in "When It Chan- thing was in the air --we were man race, which I guess adds up to "The Female Man" by Joanna looking for ideal solutions, easy ged" and about two billion people. Hitler two other stories solutions, to bring about utopia. Russ, and it's in only killed six million. That all faded away in the fifties, I haven't got a crystal ball, I think, because we'd seen what the and I don't know what form the next results of some of these utopian wave of messianic idealism is like- programs were. Now it's coming back ly to take; I doubt that it will be I used to try to start arguments a radical feminism. But as long as with people by asking them which we are sitting around with our they thought the more dangerous, mouths open, we are suckers for the the stupids or the crazies. I real- next charismatic leader who comes ized only recently that I was dead along with a simplistic formula for wrong about both categories: It utopia. isn't the stupids or the crazies My notion is that one of the that we have to worry about, it's reasons for the present wave of pop- the fanatic idealists. Hitler was ularity of science fiction is that one. He was not crazy, he was not people remember some of the things stupid, but he was utterly committed we said in the past. We weren't to an ideal. It's so easy to con- always wrong. We weren't wrong a- clude that we'll have utopia if we bout atomic power, iren on the Moon, kill all the Jews, or all the bour- radar and all that stuff, and they geois, or the bolsheviks, or the remember this; I think to some ex- blacks, or the whites. tent they listen to us. Science Recently, Alice Sheldon (James fiction has a long history of admon- Tiptree, Jr.) wrote a letter pub- itory satire, and I think it's pos- lished in FRONTIERS, A JOURNAL OF by Alice Sheldon, "Your Faces, 0 sible at least that when 1984 comes WOMEN'S STUDIES, fall 1977. This Ify Sisters, Your Faces Filled of it won't be the future that Orwell is what she said: Light”, and "The Women Men Don't wrote about, because he wrote 1984 . See". And I admit that this is a So it's my hope that those of you 'I think we could make it if very small wave so far. But I went who are writers, or who hope to be some disease came along and wiped back a little further, and did the writers, will try to recapture the out 999 men out of every thousand. homework I should have done years skepticism that we had in the nine- Otherwise I fear that the moment ago. I read some of the writings teen-fifties so that you can pass some of the things that are apt to , of the radical wing of the femin- it on through the medium of science go wrong happen, it will be blamed ist movement, and I found out that fiction, and give the world a lit- on our "freedom" and we will be the same ideas are there. You find tle bit of a push. We're going back as property. it in Valerie Solanis, the founder into what will probably be the tough- For a while after I read that of SCUM, The Society for Cutting est period in our history, and if letter I could not believe she Up Men, and in LESBIAN NATION by we come out of it alive we're going meant it. Then I began to think Jill Johnston, which I guess is kind to be very lucky. Perhaps it's im- about her story "Houston, Houston, of the bible of the radical femin- pudent of me to suggest that science Do You Read?" I think most of you ists now. And they're saying es- fiction writers could do anything have probably read this story, but sentially that there's no way to about this, but it seems to me that let me summarize it briefly. Three cure the evils of society without there is just a chance, and we've astronauts have run into a solar getting rid of men. got to try. flare and have been thrown forward I suppose this is something in time three hundred years. ************************************ that's inevitable, in the same way They are picked up by another space- that the black movement evolved ship, and find out gradually that from the NAACP to Malcolm X and El- about three hundred years ago a vir- dridge Cleaver. We have to expect us wiped out all the male human be- ings; society is now totally fe- 10 , .

He said for now that he would leave us so our thoughts we could refine, though he was doubtful that we'd see his point for men were so blind. Then he loped away in moonlight like a slim feline and there was nothing we could do that night but drown our woes in wine. It took a week of heavy marchin from the mountains to the brine and all the way we found the wires cut JOHNNY W I RECUTTER snapped like rotten twine. We marched through city after city BY NEAL WILGUS and to a halt we saw them grind but we never saw old Johnny or any of his kind. Johnny was a nudist But we know they're there awatchin but we didn't know what kind as our survivors recombine till that winter of 1999. we ' re on the run now We were up on Roarin Creek like the wolves were stringin telepop line and the wolves are enshrined. camp in at the entrance to the Odd John Mine. We were at the camp End. awaitin for the wind to unwind, we were playin cards and dr inkin but our checks were unsigned. When the lights went out a howl went up an ungodly whine, and we all went out to look around, to see what we could find. And there was Johnny Wirecutter lookin so fine, naked in the snowdrifts, he didn't pay us any mind. He was cuttin wire and singin in the pale moonshine and we all just stood agapin as he finished his design. He'd taken tools from our popter but he left them all behind when he finished chopin cables and let the wires intertwine We expected him to cut and run into the forest pine but he turned and waved and came toward us and a chill went down our spine. But he walked right up and hailed us and gave the peace sign and said he wanted us to understand why he'd put us in this bind. He said the world of man had reached the point where it must now decline, and that a super-race like Johnny would bring life closer to divine. He said he cut our fense and cables in order to remind that without our lights and poptech and our precious turbine we're at the mercy of the forest and the howling canine. 11 ] , ]

BEST PROFESSIONAL EDITOR: GEORGE SCITHERS ALIEN THOUGHTS CONT. FROM P.7 2. Edward L.- Ferman 3. Ben Bova

BEST AMATEUR MAGAZINE: LOCUS, ed- From IGUANACON the full and com- # ited by Charles 8 Dena Brown plete list of Hugo and related award 2. SCIENCE FICTION REVIEW, edited winners for (Awarded in 1977 1978). by Richard E. Geis 3. JANUS, edited by BEST NOVEL : GATEWAY by Frederik Janice Bog- Pohl [St. Martin's Press; Galaxy, stad § Jeanne Gomoll Nov. 1976 to March 1977.] BEST FAN WRITER: RICHARD E. GEIS 2. The Forbidden Tower by Marion 2. Susan Wood Zimmer Bradley [DAW Books.] 3. No Award TOTAL NUMBER OF VOTES CAST IN 3. Lucifer's Hammer by Larry EACH CATEGORY: Niven and Jerry BEST FAN ARTIST: PHIL FOGLIO Poumelle [Playboy Novel: 1130 Press; Fawcett.] 2. Grant Canfield Novella: 1048 3. Alexis Gilliland BEST NOVELLA: STARDANCE by Spider 8 Novelette: 1007 Short Story: 1042 Jeanne Robinson [Analog , March 1977.] 2. In the Hall of the Marian THE JOHN W. CAMPBELL AWARD: ORSON Dramatic Presentation: 1220 Kings by John Varley [F§SF, SCOTT CARD ["Ender's Game," Analog, Professional Artist: 1078 February 1977.] August 1977.] Professional Editor: 1150 3. Aztecs by Vonda N. McIntyre 2. Stephen R. Donaldson [LORD Amateur Magazine: 958 FOUL'S BANE, Holt, 1977.] Fan 903 [ 2076: The American Tricen- Writer: 3. Jack L. Chalker [A JUNGLE OF Fan Artist: 868 tennial , ed. Edward Bryant, Pyramid. STARS, Ballantine, 1976.] John W. Campbell Award: 990 Grand Master: 1147 "Eyes of Amber" Book- length Fantasy: 1030 BEST NOVELETTE: THE GANDALF AWARD FOR GRAND MASTER by Joan Vinge [Analog June 1977.] POUL ANDERSON OF FANTASY: James Corrick 2. "Ender's Game" by Orson Scott 2. Ursula K. Le Guin — — Gay Miller Card [Analog , August 1977.] 3. "The Screwfly Solution" by THE GANDALF AWARD FOR BEST BOOK- Raccoona Sheldon [Analog, June LENGTH FANTASY: THE SILMARILLION 1977.] by J.R.R. Tolkien [Edited by REG COMMENT: No real surprises Christopher Tolkien, Houghton Mif- until Best Pro Editor. . . The "Jeffty Is Five" BEST SHORT STORY: flin. ASIMOV policy of encouraging by Harlan Ellison [F§SF, July 1977.] ] 2. Our Lady of Darkness by Fritz new talent and of emphasizing 2. "Air Raid" by John Varley (as Leiber [Berkley, published as story and wonder over literary Herb Boehm, Isaac Asimov's SF The Pale Brown Thing F§SF quality may explain George's Magazine Spring 1977.] , , January- February 1977.] win. 3. "Dog Day Evening" by Spider into the 3. Lord Foul's Bane by Stephen R. With LOCUS surging Robinson [Analog, October Donaldson [Holt] 8000+ circulation figure now and 1977.] with a paid staff. . .and no longer in the amateur fanzine category, BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION: STAR WARS [Twentieth Century Fox. the future looks bright for SFR, 2. CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD one might think. All of iry maj- KIND [Columbia Pictures.] 1246 final ballots were count- or competition has graduated to the 3. BLOOD! The Life and Future ed; only in the dramatic presenta- pro ranks. I certainly hope so. Times of Jack the Ripper by tion category did the winner Robert Bloch § Harlan Ellison achieve a majority on the first [Alternate World Recordings.] count; and only in the Amateur Magazine, Fan Writer, and Fan RICK BEST PROFESSIONAL ARTIST! Artist categories did STERNBACH No Award place above sixth place, achieving 2. Frank Kelly Freas respectively 121, 16%, and 14% of 3. Stephen Fabian the votes cast. 9-9-78 Elton Elliott visited to- . day, bringing with him the Best Fan Writer Hugo which he accepted for me at Iguanacon. It is indeed a handsome item: the nickel spaceship next to a plaque upon which is mounted an inscribed plate giving all the in- formation. Once again, I thank all who voted for me. Elton was full to overflowing with experiences at the con... scan- dal. .. .gossip None of which I dare repeat. It would seem that a modem World SF Convention is a place where friends and enemies are made, girls and women are made, lawsuits are made, contracts are made, reputations are made — and unmade . — # A group has been formed calling is their possessing the exact per- It Too Costly For Any More Small- itself Science Fiction Consultants. sonality and character and memories Fry Publishers To Get The Subsidies Members are: Dan Alderson of the prime person. DNA is wonder- Reserved For The Big Boys.

Doug Crepeau ful , but .... Of course I've known for a long Richard Delap They had to grow so fast, had time that the postal service consid- Mike Jittlov to be linked telepathically to the ers low- circulation magazines a Walt Lee "father" and above all had to have bloody nuisance. This confirms that Joyce McDaniel his memories (up to the point of knowledge. There is absolutely no They aim to advise those in their "conception") so they could justification for a 400% increase the big media on how to make and get right into foiling the bad guy in the fee except a never- acknowledg- present good, coherent sf. The old and saving their father. It would ed desire to inhibit small-press slap- dash junk put out for the un- never do for them to emerge from the publishing. knowing masses isn't going to work artificial wombs as infants and have anymore, they say, because all the to be - educated, trained. .. for dec- kids are growing up having tasted ades. TV cannot even conceive of the fruit of good sf, and the el a sf show that is so logical and crapola will be laughed off the plausible. screens and racks. Why not do it right in the first place? #STARSHIP INVASION was a UFO- type 9-19-78 Talked to a Mr. Poole Good question. I hope every low budget and low grade credulity at the central post office this hope that the Science Fiction Con- destroyer. I couldn't watch more morning, on the phone, and he was sultants do a lot of business. I than a few minutes of it. Even kind enough to judge -in- advance that would love to see some real GOOD the skimpy costumes worn by the a second class application for REG sf for a change. lovelies from space couldn't hold would not be granted— and I'd lose me. my $120. application fee. Why? Be- Incidentally, Richard Delap has cause the p.o. rules and regs re- told people lately that he will be # BATTLESTAR GALACTICA was impres- quire that a periodical contain reviving/continuing DELAP'S F § SF sive and good in all respects until writings by more than one person. REVIEW on his own. That would be it started to get into the love- Thus a personal journal opinion- nice. But don't hold your breath. lives and personal concerns of its zine is ineligible. young secondary characters, and Weird. But that's the way indulged (calculatedly, of course) they play and they make the laws. in a kid and his mechanical dog He also said the fee was raised sub- sub plot. to $120 for all applications regard- It seemed to have been a two- less of circulation, because they hour movie married to a one- hour figure it cost them that much to episode. The segment on the plan- process an application in Washing- et Carolinus (I think) was marred ton, D.C. That's what they say. by some bloopers like how could the space fighter planes take off from the planet if they have to be launched from the Galactica from catapult tubes? How could the Cylons miss spotting all those -21-78 I bought myself a copy of jets on the planet? Oh, that 9 CMNI #1 and looked through it and whole episode sucks. It was on must admit to a judgement that while par with second and third a the the art is great the stories are not plots. year STAR TREK ,, so great and the articles are turn- We're going to see the same offs for me. old sf plots over and over, now. The magazine is a combination And they'll be hutched by lazy or of science and pseudo science and fiction. A very high class produc- 9-18-78 Everybody will be passing who- gives -a- shit writers and direc- opinions on BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, tors and producers who don't think tion with no real focus. Is it try- ing to touch too many bases? and so shall I. But first the viewing public cares. I'm sure they'll give us high-quality aliens I got the impression of coolness, #THE CLONE MASTER presented the and special effects, but I'm equal- a kind of awareness that it wasn't scriptwriter with all kinds of ly sure the stories will be so full people- oriented enough. I can't plausibility prob- scientific and of holes they'll destroy the enjoy- explain that. lems. He largely ignored them and ment of millions of watchers. I ' 11 probably continue buying no doubt hoped— if the pace was the magazine for the incredible art- fast enough— that everyone else work. would, too. The telepathic communication be- tween clones and their "father" (from # Our wonnerful, wonnerful postal whom they are copies) I can buy, service is at it again. I went in # LETTER FROM JOHN MORRESSY though why they cannot telepath be- to the central P.0, to see about a tween themselves is not explained, second class mailing permit for August 7, 1978 only asserted. RICHARD E. GEIS and was told there But what stops me is the ability has been a raise in the application 'Alter tried to do me in with his review of UNDER A CALCULATING of the two clandestinely funded fee... from $30 to $120. And there STAR, I grudges. I'm scientists to grow these 13 clones is a no- refund clause if the Wash- but bear no within about a year, or two, and ingtcnD.C. boys turn you down. renewing anyway. have them emerge (ripen) at a bio- This ploy is called Sticking It logical age of about thirty- five To The Little Guys, or Let's Make ALIEN THOUGHTS CONT. ON P.40 years And of course the real stopper 13 good stories or I wasn't explain- AN INTERVIEW WITH ing them right. And possibly if I wasn't explaining them right, I couldn't write a good story. So I worked on my explanations a good deal. Eventually I began working on the theory that perhaps I could- n't explain them right because I didn't understand what I was writ- ing. I had no contact with anyone who wrote. I never met anyone who wrote. I was too shy to go to the

writers ' meetings in the city, which wouldn't have helped anyway. I had to work out everything on my own. So I tried every kind of query let- ter. Finally, I decided to write one like a back blurb on a book, a little more modestly. I did, and that kind of explanation finally seemed to work. For the first time, well, the first time in my career, if you could call it that, somebody, name- ly Don Wollheim, wrote back and said, "Sounds interesting, let's see it." Before that it was 3 years of mimeoed rejection slips stuffed sideways into envelopes, "Don't call us, we'll call you."

SFR: Did you ever use an agent at all?

CHERRYH: No, I didn't know what one was. Well, I did know, but you have to sell to get an agent, and I hadn't sold so I didn't have an agent. The only thing I knew a- bout writing was what I'd read in

books . There were no writers in my acquaintance, and I never had C.J. GHERRYH a creative writing course. One time I got into a technical problem with a company I was suspicious of. I went to ask a creative writing teacher, "What do you think about that?" He gave me some good advice CONDUCTED BY GALE BURNICK which was, "Watch out for vanity presses." I was that naive, you know. It was basic advice: Never July 16, 1978 Ms. Cherryh currently lives in pay anybody to do anything for you. Oklahoma City where she taught And at those words of wisdom I went C.J. Cherryh was bom in St. school before turning to full-time off for another 5 years, stumbling Louis, went to college in Oklahoma, writing. around. has an M.A. from Johns Hopkins Uni- versity, is in her mid thirties, and SFR: You've been writing since you SFR: Are you considering taking on has sold the following for publica- were 10 years old and GATE OF IVREL an agent? tion: was published in 1976 -- had you sold anything before that? CHERRYH: It's an idea I have left GATE OF IVREL (Daw) 1976 open, but right now I don't partic- BROTHERS OF EARTH No, I had tried for 7 ularly feel the need of one. I CHERRVH : (Daw, SFBC) 1976 years previous. I sent off manu- work most comfortably with the HUNTER WORLDS OF scripts, whole manuscripts, and had least pressure possible, and I've (Daw, SFBC) 1977 the usual sort of things happen to seen some agents that possibly "The Dark King" them. For the last 3 years I gave would be a source of pressure. I (YEAR'S BEST FANTASY 1977 #3) up and started writing query let- figure that when my affairs get so THE FADED SUN: KESRITH ters. Every time I would get a complicated that I can't keep track (Daw, SFBC, GALAXY) 1978 query letter rejected I would go of them myself; then I need one. WELL SHIUAN (Daw) OF and either rewrite the manuscript Sequel to GATE OF IVREL 1978 or shelve it and write another SFR: Do you have more books under THE FADED SUN: SHON'JIR book. Usually the latter. I fig- contract to Daw, or will we be see- (Daw, SFBC) 1978 ured that I either wasn't writing ing books from other publishers? FIRES OF AZERCTH (Daw) WELL OF SHIUAN 1979 Sequel to CHERRYH: I have a couple more books 14 contracted to Daw. Beyond that, I took me one month. I was writing CHERRYH: There will be continua- don't know except that I plan to on Chieftain tablets with a big tions actually. I balk at the idea keep on writing. greasy pencil, illustrating every of writing a series which goes on page. You can imagine a ten-year- and on and on and the characters SFR: Has your interest in reading old's illustrations. All the books never change. It seems to me like and/or writing been in science fic- I had ever read were illustrated, you'd just be writing the same book tion and fantasy from way back, or back in the days when they made over and over and over again." I is books. So I figured this something you've switched nice pretty decided that to do a story that I into? that every writer had to be an il- could be happy with, people have lustrator. It never dawned on me to both live and die, things have CHERRYH: I've had no inclination that they were done by two differ- to happen to them, changes have to really to write anything else from ent people. I thought that if you be made which are irrevocable. The the time I was 10. Mundane litera- were going to write you had to learn thing has to grow. If it doesn't, ture just never appealed to me. to draw too so that you could do I can't go on writing the same book You couldn't force me to read it. the illustrations, otherwise people forever, always stuck at the same When I was a child I even hated the the book from weren't going to take plateau, wherever that is. I made nursery rhymes that were mundane. you. I spent all that time learn- up my mind that every three books It's just a lifelong taste. I ing art. I was that naive. No one in each series will tell a complete think my father had something to do told me any different. story, which gives you beginning, with it. When I had gotten through middle and end, although each one my "duty" for the week, my school- SFR; Do you plot your books in can be read separately. The next work, he got me Edgar Rice Bur- advance, or do you kind of have a set of three will begin with the roughs to read, even when I was in feeling about what you are doing as assumption that you haven't heard first grade. So from the start I you go along? of these people before. learned that science fiction and fantasy were a reward for good be- I do not make a detailed Is it true for the Faded Sun havior, the other stuff was work. CHERRYH: 5pR- outline, really. I have varied ways series, too? of starting a book. The most com- What would you call your SFR: mon outline, if I'm going to be work? Do you call it either sci- FADED SUN is real- that formal, is to list ten things CHERRYH: No, the ence fiction or fantasy, or do you I'm that are going to happen before the ly one book. It's very long. separate the two? end, and those are my chapters. a young writer, as least as far as the number of things that I've writ- Only they never work out. They end CHERRYH: I do mentally separate I up being twenty things and thirty ten, and because I like the idea, the two. I keep referring to GATE felt like I wanted to approach it things. Eventually, I put the out- OF IVREL and WELL OF SHIUAN as fan- slowly. It made sense to me to line away and never look at it a- tasy; Don (Wollheim) keeps saying it out at a gain until I'm finished, then dis- bring each part of one they're science fiction. I can time and give myself time to think cover I haven't followed it. Often see his argument. I still insist between installments. It did fall I don't know how a book will end. they're fantasy, because I want to naturally into three divisions. I think I do. I write toward the write fantasy. Basically, to me, I'm half way through the third book ending I have in mind, and then I in fantasy the technology is magic, right now. In the meantime, I've get there and discover it doesn't and in science fiction the technol- written another end that way. plotted and nearly ogy is technology or is absence of book, which I rarely do, except technology. Essentially it's a that I got a lot of threads togeth- SFR: Do y°u have a particular fut- machine-type question. I love both er and I wanted to make sure I got ure history? It seems that the of them. I consciously try alter- them This fall I'm going to series of books you're writing are all. nately working on a fantasy piece in the FADED separate futures. write the third book and a science fiction piece be- SUN Trilogy. Although I knew from cause it flexes different muscles, the beginning what it would be, I CHERRYH: Yes, they sure are. Some- as it were, and keeps me from fal- I would do body wrote to me and said they were wanted to make sure that ling into a pattern, at least one it properly. I liked the first one, trying to reconcile my universe. I can detect. felt really good. They were trying to work the fantasy and the second one series in with the science fiction That was a surprise to me because SFR: When we talked before, last middle books of series tend to be series and that was a problem. I year, of your writing habits you I the had to say give up on that. If awkward. Now want to do said you write one book, finish and there will be any kind of coherency third one right. go right on to another... to do, I suppose the fantasy novels You've been writing for many will all work together, although I SFR: CHERRYH: I have a superstition but you've only been publish- am not so sure about that. And the years, that at all times I must have a recently. How do you feel about science fiction novels will all ed book in the house or I may freeze quick success and popularity? work together, or at least they your up forever. I never finish a nov- won't be exclusive of one another. el on a weekend when I can't get to Well, a great deal of it I suppose everybody has some basic CHERRYH: a post office. The minute I finish is, I guess, in some ways unreal to idea of what they think the future it, it's into the box and out of me. I'm no different than I ever will be, but since my stories are the house. And before I go to bed was. Naturally. I'm still the set as far as 10,000 years in the that night I type the first line of same mistake-prone character. It's future I have quite a long time to my next novel or I can't sleep. play with. very strange. I don't feel any differently than I ever did, except SFR: Have they always been novels it certainly feels nice to be pub- SFR: Are GATE OF IVREL, WELL OF since you started writing? lished. I would have settled for SHIUAN and FIRES OF AZEROTH a tril- published. I enjoy creating the ogy or will there be further con- Yes. The first thing I That's joy in doing CHERRYH: tinuations? stories. my wrote was a novel. I'm not about things, and if I please people that to say what it is. Each chapter IS makes me happy. I enjoy it when . . . somebody else enjoys what I enjoy their typewriters, they begin to damaging anybody else. I've been doing type and it all flows out. First very fortunate never to have run in- draft goes off to the publisher. to a barrier. I've never beat my SFR: Do you feel pressured now by My first drafts aren't even coher- head against anything in the way of your popularity and success, by ent. I type things like g-b-h and something I couldn't do because I people perhaps expecting more from I know what's t-h-e because I do was female, except once I did have you? that a lot. I may have whole lines this wild urge to be a jet pilot. that are written in virtual code. Goodness knows what I would have CHERRYH: I did for a little while. My typing is like that when I'm done if I had been. I do think that When I brought GATE (OF IVERL) out, staring off into space and typing women writers in science fiction, I guess that I would have settled at high speeds. perhaps women writers in general, for published. I expected to be have brought something into the I cut with scissors and I paste totally ignored by reviewers. I field. I did female characters for things together. I dig back into would have settled for selling a a very long, long time when I was the wastecan and fish out something couple of thousand copies and say- growing up. All my leads were hero- I threw away two days ago because, ing, "I'm a published writer.” ines. Then finally it dawned on all of a sudden, I'm tearing every- me that I wrote entire books with- Then all of a sudden the reviews thing out and hauling it back the out a male character in them. Or came out and said that this was an way it was . Then I read what I if there was one, the poor fellow all-right book. That scared the did two days ago and it isn't as entered the scene only when neces- hay out of me. I've always been a brilliant as I remembered it, so I sary and exited as quickly as pos- very private person and all of a throw it away. Then I paste it all sible. This was because, again sudden there they are, the public. back together and re-write it again speaking as an artist, I always People are saying what they liked and again and again. That's the way drew females better in the early about the first book and now I have I work. days because I had a model -- me. to write the second book. I thought how I had planned to change these When I was trying to write characters and if I change them, males I was not secure with them. people who like them the way they I looked at the science fiction nov- were are going to be upset with els of the day (this was back in me. Then I'm going to have to read the 1950s and early 60s) and they all these reviews that say, "Oh, were all full of males. I thought how terrible". I really worried that it would be useful to write about that for awhile. male characters so I started figur- ing out how to do that. I learned Finally, I rearranged my think- and, curiously enough, in the books ing and said, "Well, you worked in I have out right now, I suppose the private to do the first book so male characters predominate. Which stop thinking about all of this and is a phase for right now. I may just get down to work; do the sec- switch back the other way. ond book the best way you can." Which is all you can do in the first As a matter of fact, the book place. So I did. I haven't real- I'm working on right now has a fe- ly fretted about that kind of thing male lead. Men could start out since. I think that a new writer can from the beginning writing books run into that very easily. I've with male characters and have the talked to other people who have female run on stage and run off a- had their first book published, and gain when she's no longer useful, you brace yourself for a storm of just the way I was doing with men. criticism and it doesn't come. But they could get away with it, That's more frightening, I think, and go on doing it forever and for- than if it did. Writers who have ever and forever. No one seems to not been published are used to be- notice. ing rejected. They've got all the I have noticed that now there mechanisms for being rejected and are male writers who are saying, then they're not any more. All of "I'd like to try doing a character a sudden things aren't working ac- from the female point of view", just cording to plan. You think, "That as so many female writers have done was a perfect book, now I've got to their books from the male viewpoint. write perfect literature." I think that that's all a part of You sit at your typewriter wait- SFR: If it's any consolation, I've learning to be a craftsman, like ing for perfect sentences and, of heard about as many different tech- an actor learning to play many course they don't come. They were niques from as many different writ- parts never there. So my basic philoso- ers. To get into another area that One thing I feel sensitive a- phy is produce anything and then ed- I ' m not too sure how to approach . . as a woman writing science fiction, bout is having people say, "Look, it. I write by editing. I write you're a woman, you've broken into anything that comes into my head the question comes to mind, well, not are you a feminist per se, but the field; you've broken the bar- and I edit the life out of it. riers". I didn't. Andre Norton, Gradually, after re-writing and re- what is your thinking on such is- Marion Bradley, C.L. Moore, Leigh writing, it begins to take shape. sues? Brackett broke the barriers. They All I ever ask is to al- were there a long time before any of SFR: Then you do a number of drafts? CHERRYH: lowed to do what I want to do, which the rest of us came on the scene. I do feel that all of a sudden People tell me that's not is all I think any human being asks. CHERRYH: there is an interest in female char- the way to work. They give me to Within reason. As long as I'm not acters in science fiction and the understand that they sit down at 16 men are interested in doing them. I'm kind of interested myself eighteen hour day. Well, you can high school. In English class we to see these experiments because it ' s throw onto that the sudden realiza- were writing essays on "What I like seeing yourself through other tion that you've got one book out, Did On My Summer Vacation". In eyes. Sometimes I don't agree with but it doesn't necessarily make you Latin class we were learning about what they find. Sometimes I think, a writer. You've got to come up the Trojan War and the entire past well, a woman wouldn't really do with a second book. of the world. that. I'm sure men reading my char- Also here comes the correspond- acters sometimes say, "That's pec- Then in college I had the good ence. You're already working an fortune uliar behavior", and you learn a to draw a roommate who was eighteen hour day and sleep has to little. majoring in genetics and was study- fit in there somewhere. I had al- ing the sciences. I already had ready gotten to where 1 was taking science and had an excellent train- SFR: Is there any particular reas- my meals at the typewriter, sit- ing, at least as far as high school, on you call yourself C.J. on your ting there thinking while eating a books rather than Carolyn? in biological science. I had taught sandwich because you could hold myself physical science by checking that in your hand. books out of the library and read- CHERRYH: I've never favored the ing them. I also read astronomical name Carolyn, although I have to A year of that, then I was hand- texts very heavily. I remember accept it because it's mine. My ed an extraordinarily difficult ex- iting the house secretly to watch middle name is my favorite name, teaching assignment, five prepara- some astronomical phenomenon that but no one can spell it or pronounce tions seven clubs and the depart- , was forecast and my parents pulling it properly. The spelling looks ment chairmanship, on top of it all. me in out of the backyard at three like Janice and the pronunciation My health began to suffer from it. o'clock in the morning convinced I is Jan-eece. I fought that battle, And here was the correspondence, was going to catch pneumonia out literally, sometimes with fists, and all of a sudden conventions there. all the way through grade school, came along. but I gave up on it. My intimate So I did work at that sort of I soon figured out that if I family, and only my family, calls thing, but I never had any formal wanted to go on living to a ripe me by my middle name. That is the training in the sciences except for old age I had better make a choice. name I would prefer if I weren't so biology. Then my roommate came a- When you've worked every spare mo- dum sensitive about it. So I've long. We had a partnership, help- ment of your time since age ten to- always gone by Carolyn except when ing each other study. I ward a particular thing, there was taught her I first started out on my own, I Latin for her anatomical courses, only one to be made. I agonized had all my mail done with a stamp and I memorized all her formulae over it a great deal. I wanted to that said C.J. I figured to avoid and her courses in toxicology and do both very much, but my choice burglars and other problems that comparative anatomy. I also tend was made a long time ago. I miss it was easier to go by C.J. on the to try things which happen along the kids . I enj oy my sub j ect a mailbox and similar things. That's because I think it would be interes- great deal and I miss that. There the way my rubber stamps were. ting to know how to do that. For are other things about it I don't Since they were, that's the way my instance, I'm on a tour and they miss at all. manuscripts were stamped. The path say, "Who wants to climb on board of least resistance. Also, I use a camel", and I say, "I'll try it". SFR: What about your educational I think that first-hand knowledge Also, I use long titles, and background; do you find the clas- or description helps a lot. I con- perhaps it's a bit of egotism, but sics best suited for the kind of sider everything a potential educa- if I use my full name they would writing you do? Is that what you'd tion. have to write it smaller on book- choose again? jackets. I prefer to be visible. To wrap it up, do you have CHERRYH: I would not change that. SFR: anything special planned for the SFR: When did you make the decision Perhaps, it wouldn't work for anoth- future in terms of your books or to give up teaching and become a er person, but that was what I need- your life? full-time writer? Was it after ed. I had a very fortuitous combin- your first sale? ation of things. I took art, for I enjoy very what the aforementioned reason, and art CHERRYH: much I'm doing. I'm about the most con- CHERRYH: Yes, before that I had al- gave me a sense of composition. tent ways managed to mix the two succes- person you could imagine. It's strange, but there is a When you get paid for sfully. Starvation was a good mot- daydreaming relationship between the visual about your favorite subject, it ivator as I wasn't selling anything. composition of a painting and the is probably the best of all possib- a book. I thought that when you wrote a structural composition of le worlds. I always write scared. com- book, you just wrote a book. You You can learn something about I always write with the feeling that and tone as it sent it in and a book happened on position and color whatever I 'm working on is going the stands and that was it. I did- relates to words. to be the most miserable failure. n't know that you got mail, and I I also learned music and the If I don't, I'm not trying hard didn't know that there were conven- structure there -- the same sort of enough. If I don't write constant- tions. I never heard of fandom. thing. I had a renaissance educa- ly at the outside edge of my abil- You see I had my day fully planned. tion all the way to learning Latin, ity, to the point where I risk do- I got up in the morning, staggered learning to fence, learning to ing something I can't do, then I off to school, taught a full day, ride. I was bom in the wrong cen- have the feeling that I'm goofing came home, ate supper. Then I sat tury. When I discovered Latin I off. at the typewriter, wrote 'til I discovered that the myths, the fell asleep, got up the next morn- I try to do a good story, but philosophy, the universe concept ing, taught school and on and on. I also try to do something either was what I had been looking for. structurally with the book or with I it in other sub- In the summer I had a little had not found the characters that I haven't done bit of bonus time. I could live jects. I was exposed to collegiate before. I've no desire to go on in almost a normal life. I did work ideas through Latin while still writing the same book over and ov- very hard. I calculated and found er and over again. I don't know that sometimes I was working an 17 who said it first, I've heard Rog- . , er Zelazny say it, "If I ever dis- self. There is also an excellent cover a definition of science fic- HE HEARS.... Rick Stembach painting on the dust tion I shall immediately attempt to cover, which has nothing to do with violate it". I can only define the story, but is lovely on its own. science fiction by giving a list of "Nightfall" Analog Records has been rele- books By Isaac Asimov gated to the sidelines for the time Analog Records My own definition of science being, despite a short-lived rumor Box G, 350 Madison Ave. New York fiction, I suppose, is a growing , that one of Gordon Dickson's Dorsai New York, 10017 list of my own books, each pushing tales would be the next selection. $6.95 + postage § handling at the limit that I can find for 55

would have been much improved if attend the Worldcon . It is in cele- the actors had more unique and dis- bration of his 50 years in Science tinguishable voices. Fiction. It was in 1930 that he organized The Ilford Science Lit- Dividing the story into a ser- erary Circle, in Ilford, England, ies of scenes, instead of several probably one of the first of many conversations as in the original such organizations which followed. I find that science fiction to version, robs the plot of much of me is one of the freest fields in the pacing that made the original All contributions to this fund which to work. I consider that it so memorable. Scenes are bridged will be gratefully received by the is the same thing that Virgil was with readings from the "Book of Rev- Admins trator, at the address given doing, Publius Virgilius Maro, my elations", which help add to the below. great literary idol. I consider suspense, but do little else to This fund has been organized by that you are free in this field to further the plot. Several points a committee composed of: David A. do pretty much as you please. You from the original story which gave Kyle, Lynn Hickman and John Millard can experiment. And the readership the reader some rays of hope for is intelligent and interested to try the planet's future have been omit- Please make all cheques or mon- and comprehend what you're doing. ted, making the record a chronicle ey orders payable to: John Millard They give you the benefit of the of a long slide to doom without any and send them to me at: doubt and say, "There may have been alleviating optimism. --'86 a purpose in this”. I'm not sure 18 Broadway Avenue that other readerships in other a- Tacked onto the end of the re- Toronto, Ontario, Canada reas will tend to do this. cord is an interview of Isaac Asi- M4P 1T4 mov concerning his opinions and im- DO NOT SEND CASH THROUGH THE MAILS. It gives me, as a writer, a pressions of "Nightfall”. The int- chance to try to create the same erview is conducted by Ben Bova. For those First Fandom Members sort of thing that the epic poets Most of the information is already who will not be attending Iguanacon, were doing. I view that as sort of available as notes in his books but would like to comment about the a continuation of the ILIAD and the NIGHTFALL AND OTHER STORIES and THE fund, they may send their comments ODYSSEY. It's the kind of thing EARLY ASIMOV (both from Fawcett to me at the above address or to that pushes at the outer frontiers Books), : but it's still a pleasure me , in care of The Adams Hotel of human knowledge, pushes at the to listen to Isaac talk about his POB 1000, Phoenix, Arizona, 85001. limits of our understanding about work. Please mark the envelope "Hold for the universe, asks why and tries 1978”. So "Nightfall" is an interest- Arrival 30th August I will to give an answer to it. I don't ing experiment in translating clas- do my best to make your comments think you could ask more of litera- sic sf to the black platter in known to the assembled members at ture. dramatic form, but falls short of our regular meeting. excellence. I would have preferred Thank you, C.J. Cherryh. --John Millard, Adminstrator SFR: to hear Isaac read the story him-

************************************ 18 1/1& THE TiTjUE Op YouK 'SooK -ro: " TlUOT FoRTUE C THE HUMAN HOTLINE I ms A |A% S-F NEWS BY ELTON T. ELLIOTT

r 1 L J

I this IGUANACON REPORT ft Carolyn Cherryh and had a futt had been espousing point fascinating talk about the ancient of view for several years and that Etruscans and the mystery they pre- he was going to continue to pay the On August the day before I 28, sent to archeologists. There is a notion all the attention it deserv- left for Phoenix and Iguanacon I re- possibility that their language is ed. Mr. Brown emphasized that his ceived from Hank Stine, new- a call related to the Basques' of north- policy of mentioning financial mat- ly appointed Editor at GALAXY, who western Spain and/or to the old ters will not change. asked I like to write if would a Celtic tongues. news column for GALAXY. I accepted ft Ray Faraday Nelson stated that (with a great deal of enthusiasm) as a teetotaler he wasn't exactly I also had a fascinating con- and my first column will be pub- ft enthralled with the "subtle pres- versation with Sydny Weinberg the lished in January. sures at a convention to booze it sf editor at Bantam. It will be up". His position is shared by What follows is a few of the featured in ny interview with Sydny ft this reporter. many things that happened at Phoe- next issue. I would like to thank, for nix, Arizona over the Labor Day ft ft Gregory Benford talked about weekend at the 36th World Science their kindness and support, Norman ideas in sf, and their relative Fiction nicknamed Spinrad, Gregoxy Benford, Spider Convention, Ig- scarcity. He mentioned not enough uanacon. This report is of neces- Robinson, Jim Frenkel, Robert Sil- has been used of 20th century phil- sity brief. verberg and especially Terry Carr. osophy. He mentioned that in ad- And also thanks to everybody who dition to using new scientific con- ft The local news media had a cooperated with me and gave me field day covering the convention, cepts, when he writes a story, he their support; it is much apprecia- interviewing all the people in Star also likes to include a new philo- ted. Wars costumes, etc. But then com- sophy. plained (after a few days of pat- Donald A. Wollheim mentioned A note : At the Hugo Awards I ronizing when ft ft coverage) the conven- his displeasure that a few authors had the pleasure of accepting the tion security wouldn't let them in- sign to do a book and never com- award for Best Fan Writer for Rich- to certain areas. All in all, I plete it, thus sticking the publish- ard E. Geis; congratulations, Dick. found the Phoenix media as execrable er for the advance. Then later I would also like to thank as the Phoenix weather. Tempera- these same writers scream about the ft Jesse F. Bone and Craig Peterson tures averaged around 110 in the lack of ethics on the part of pub- for putting up with me on the way day and 95 at night, with around lishers. He also gave quite a few down from the Willamette Valley. 40% humidity. examples to buttress his position. And also to John Varley, who joined Thank goodness the convention He said that the overwhelming maj- ft Jesse, Craig and myself on the way ority of writers do not do this, was better than the weather. The back. food at the restaurants wasn't as that in actuality it is a few high- bad as the service. And all the ly visible loudmouths. panels ran on time, as did the Hugo ft Andrew J. Offutt said that he Awards ceremony. felt reporters and magazines should The following reports are ex- not mention how much money authors ft GALAXY NEWS cerpts from the many conversations receive for books as this wouldn't be fair to authors who don't make I had at Iguanacon. Hank Stine, as reported earl- as much, and would cause envy and Poul Anderson ruminated that ier, has succeeded J.J. Pierce as ft hard feelings between writers. Don- due to the tax revolt, constitu- editor' of GALAXY. a ald A. Wollheim supported him, say- tional convention might have to be ing that the matter of money is a In addition to my column, of called. The reason being that the private transaction between the which more about in Concluding Words, real objective of measures like writer and publisher and shouldn't Richard E. Geis will be the Book California's Proposition #13 is to be made public. Reviewer, and Bill Warren will do a let the federal government know of movie news column. Jerry E. Pour- Several other writers disagr- the ordinary citizens' concerns a- ft nelle has resigned as science col- eed, saying that the reporting bout federal spending. However, be- of umnist; a replacement has not been cause the U.S. has no direct nation- financial matters gave them a bet- named. al initiative, and given what we ter gauge on the market. Charles N. know about legislators, is unlikely Brown, editor of the newsmagazine Effective immediately, the to ever have one; the only way cit- LOCUS, whose name was mentioned by word rate for GALAXY will be lJohn Crowley has sold a fan- And after that is accomplished, and Robert Silverberg will also be tasy, ENGINE SUMMER, to Bantam. then the word rates can be raised. published by Starblaze early next # Bantam will also be bringing Hank also is putting together year. out CONAN THE LIBERATOR, written by a stable of artists which ought to # David Gerrold is doing a tril- L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter. rectify the problems in that area. ogy for Quantam, entitled THE WAR Some of the names to look for AGAINST THE TOR. in GALAXY after the start of the year include A.E. Van Vogt, Norman Sp inrad, Frederik Pohl and a lot of fascinating newer authors. BERKLEY NEWS

Next issue I hope to have the December contents the next few issues of ACE NEWS of Frank Herbert DESTINATION: VOID GALAXY, in addition to some other (Revised) announcements and hopefully an in- December Harry Harrison. .MAKE ROOM, MAKE ROOM terview with Hank Stine. Jack Vance THE ASUTRA Gardner Dozois STRANGERS Fred Saberhagen. . .BROTHER ASSASSIN Robert Silverberg UNFAMILIAR E.R. Burroughs THE CAVE GIRL TERRITORY

E.R. Burroughs . .THE ETERNAL SAVAGE January Robert Sheckley. . .CITIZEN IN SPACE William Tuning TORNADO ALLEY Robert Thurston . . BATTLE STAR: GAL- Ben Bova is now the fiction ed- # (Revised and Expanded) ACTICA VOL. 2 itor OMNI. of After resigning Ian Watson MIRACLE VISITORS (No Title as yet Determined) from ANALOG, he planned to go into Joseph Green STAR PROBE Poul Anderson THE ENEMY STARS fulltime writing. However, Bob G.C. Edmondson. .THE SHIP THAT SAIL- James Tiptree, Jr... UP THE WALLS OF ' Guccione, publisher of PENTHOUSE, ED THE TIME STREAM THE WORLD PENTHOUSE FORUM, VIVA and now OMNI, (Revised) (Author's real name Alice Sheldon) made Bova an offer he couldn't re- Richard Matheson. . .THE SHRINKING MAN fuse. January Robert Qnopa THE PLEASURE TUBE Bova says Guccione feels that James Baen (Editor) ... DESTINIES #2 there is a large market for a scie- (Moved from Dec. to Jan.) nce/science-fiction magazine. It E.R. Burroughs .. THE LOST CONTINENT

should take a few issues before we E.R. Burroughs . BEYOND THE FARTHEST can see some of Mr. Bova's purchas- STAR es. DAW NEWS The fiction used in the first Randall Garrett. . .MURDER AND MAGIC few issues was material purchased (The First of Lord Darcy series) December by Bova's predecessors. Gordon R. Dickson. SPACIAL DELIVERY Robert Sheckley ... THE TENTH VICTIM A.E. Van Vogt PENDULUM One million copies were print- Bob Shaw THE TWO- TIMERS Alan Burt Akers GOLDEN SCORPIO ed of the first issue. From my (Drey Prescott Series #18) own observations it is reaching the Lin Carter (Editor) . .THE YEAR'S BEST huge non-sf magazine- reading audi- SPECIAL PROMOTION FOR ANALOG BOOKS FANTASY VOL. 4 ence it must to survive. A multi- THE ANALOG YEARBOOK E.C. Tubb THE QUILLLAM SECTOR million- dollar advertising campaign Ben Bova Anthony Lewis THE BEST OF (Dumarest of Terra Series #19) has been running with very effective Donald A. Wollheim (Editor) . . .WOLL- ads. ASTOUNDING 2 Orson Scott Card . . CAPITOL: THE HEIM'S WORLDS' BEST SF: VOL. WORTHING CHRONICLE # Stanley Schmidt is the new ed- (A Collection of Shorts) January

itor of ANALOG. I had a very nice Sam Nicholson . . CAPTAIN EMPIRICAL Marion Zimmer Bradley and conversation with him at the con- (A Connected Collection) Paul Edwin Zimmer .... THE SURVIVORS vention. He moved New York dur- Bova MAXWELL'S DEMONS to Ben (Paul Edwin Zimmer is Ms. Brad- ing the part of September. first Stephen Robinett PROJECTIONS ley's brother, the first broth- He was formerly a teacher in Ohio. er-sister writing duo in sf.) I hope to have some comments from

him in an upcoming issue. Michael Moorcock. . .CITY OF THE BEAST Brian M. Stable ford. BALANCE OF POWER Roger "SF is an ungodly field # , Hugh Walker ARMY OF DARKNESS filled with drug addicts and reb- BANTAM NEWS (The first of a series. The els" Elwood, is doing in the relig- second, MESSENGER OF DARKNESS, ious field, what he did in SF: Muck- December will be published by Daw in ing Up. He is now reportedly at March odds with Peterson Publications, Robert E. Howard. . .KANE: THE SKULLS . IN THE STARS publishers of INSPIRATIONS, which Gordon R. Dickson DORSAI Roger edits. Frederik Brown ROGUE IN SPACE

# Randell Garrett will have a January novel, TAKEOFF, out from Starblaze in January. Gordon R. Dickson TIME STORM Stephen Goldin TREK TO MADWORLD DELL NEWS # Robert Asprin will have two (A Star Trek Book, with an introduc- December books out in January -- MYTHECON- tion by David Gerrold wherein he re- CEPTION, Starblaze, sequel from a veals the truth about Stephen Gold- Joan D. Vinge FIRESHIP to ANOTHER FINE MYTH, also from in and his connection to were-Koalas) (Consists of the title novella Starblaze. St. Martin's will pub- and, MOTHER AND CHILD, another lish THE BUG WARS, another novel. 20 novella. It is not a Binary .

Star edition as reported in jove/hbj NEWS CONCLUDING WORDS SFR #27.) December Back in the spring of 1973 I Theodore Sturgeon THE DREAMING read my first sf magazine (it was JEWELS August Derleth. . .SOMEONE IN THE DARK given to me by a schoolmate whose Norman Spinrad THE IRON DREAM father worked in the local news ag- January ency, and took home copies of the January Cristopher Priest. .THE PERFECT LOVER old magazines for his kids). It Bob Shaw COSMIC KALEIDOSCOPE Carl Jacobi REVELATIONS IN BLACK was the January 1973 issue of GAL- (A collection of short stories) Leo Margulies WEIRD TALES AXY. If anybody had told me then that within six years I'd be on the staff I know I would not have be- lieved them. At the age of 22, I know for sure I am the youngest professional columnist in the sf DEL REY NEWS SPOTLIGHT: FEATURED AUTHORS field. NORMAN SPINRAD KATHLEEN SKY & -- Bob Stricklegold and As for my column in GALAXY Mark Noble GLORYHITS it originally was going to be only Norman Spinrad (The flagship of the Del Rey 350 words. However, Hank decided hardcover line.) # His new novel, A WORLD BETWEEN, to up it to 750. It will be a month Killian THE EMPIRE OF TIME will be published by Jove/HBJ in ly column. All of us (Hank, REG, Alan Dean Foster ICERIGGER April. Parts of the book will ap- and myself) agree that it won't af- Cordwainer Smith. .QUEST OF THE THREE pear in GALAXY. fect the continuation of my column WORLDS in SFR in any way. The audience THE # Jove will be reissuing overlap isn't significant. It will John Brunner . . . .SQUARES OF THE CITY IRON DREAM in December and BUG JACK be different from "The Human Hot- . . CHILDREN OF Evangeline Walton .THE BARRON later next year. LLYR line" and geared to a less sophis- ticated and less knowledgeable aud- Ace will publish THE STAR January # ience. The name of the column will SPANGLED FUTURE next spring. be "The SF Newsletter". Stephen R. Donaldson . . THE ILLEARTH And in Oct. of '79 Jove will WAR # Here is the new GALAXY editor- publish another novel, THE MIND GAME (The first book of the Chron- ial address: icles of Covenant, LORD FOUL'S Hank Stine BANE, has made it as far as Kathleen Sky 585 Caddo St. 4th on several nationwide best- Her new Star Trek novel, VULCAN Baton Rouges LA 70806 seller polls. A remarkable # has reached #12 on the B. Dalton feat for an author's first bestseller list. The first Star work. THE ILLEARTH WAR is the Trek book to do so. second of the trilogy; the fi- And my address for those who missed nal book of the trilogy, THE # She has sold a second Star Trek it in SFR #23: POWER THAT PRESERVES, will be novel to Bantam. Elton T. Elliott out in paperback in March.) # Bantam has also purchased a 1899 Wiessner Dr. N.E. Dave Bishoff NIGHT WORLD fantasy trilogy. The Witchdame Ser- Salem, OR 97303 Lee Killough A VOICE OUT OF RAMAH ies. John Brunner DOUBLE, DOUBLE Bantam has purchased another Weinbaum THE BEST OF STANLEY G. # novel, as yet untitled. WEINBAUM This Evangeline Walton THE SONG OF # Kathleen also had a rather un- Publication. . . RHIANNON pleasant encounter with a pick-pock- et at the Worldcon. Some money was stolen, in addition to a valuable antique handkerchief which was a family heirloom. Kathleen reports that it was done so smoothly she wasn't aware of the theft until she sat down several minutes later. The convention center security po- lice said the area is frequented by professional pickpockets. # On the brighter side, Kathleen and her husband, Steve Goldin, will be teaching a spring semester ex- is Available in tension course at Cal State-North- MICROFORM ridge with the emphasis on selling sf. For Complete Information

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that the average reader is in his THE VIVISECTOR late twenties and college educated. Imagine placing THE DISPOSSESSED, NOVA, THE THREE STIGMATA OF PALMER A Column By Darrell Schweitzer ELDRITCH, THE SPACE MERCHANTS, etc. in a trucks top instead of the usual college, shopping district urban, and suburban bookstores.

One is tempted to suggest some very nasty logic: A) The average science fiction reader is a bright child or a re- tarded adult. IMMORTAL hero calls his servants to help him Edited by Jack Dann on with his satin breeches, silk B) Thomas Disch writes science Introduction by R.C.W. Ettinger stockings, powdered wig, three-cor- fiction. Harper § Row, 1978, 226 pp.,$9.95 nered hat, etc. after which he is , Therefore, the works of driven in his six-horse carriage C) Reviewed by Darrell Schweitzer Thomas Disch are written for and down to the docks where spice ships read by. . have just brought in a new shipment I try to write favorable re- from the Indies. The blasted tubs, His career, if this goes on, views. I really do. I don't want three-masted and sail-powered' of will take a definite direction: to waste my time reading things I course, took a full six months for down and out, as his readership de- don't enjoy, so I always pick from

the . . the vast amounts of incoming review return trip clines and he reaches a point where his books can no longer be publish- copies those books which I think Disch's future is about as be- will be of genuine interest. When ed. He may vanish entirely into lievable. He simply isn't think- the infinitesimally smaller world IMMORTALS came in, I called dibs on ing . of the little literary magazines, it with Dick. I definitely wanted will wonder to do this one. Or perhaps he is writing a sto- and people whatever hap- ry for "bright children and a cer- pened to the guy who wrote CAMP CON- Wow, a major work by Thomas tain type of retarded adult". Disch CENTRATION. If I had been Disch's Disch, "Chanson Perpetuelle", an has been making a complete fool of agent, with a stake in his career, excerpt from a forthcoming novel. himself lately in THE LITTLE MAGA- and "Chanson Perpetuelle" had come I've always considered Disch's CAMP ZINE and SCIENCE FICTION AT LARGE in, I would have sent it back with CONCENTRATION to be one of the great (Ed. Peter Nichols, Harper Row) a very well-meant piece of advice: works of science fiction. The sto- 8 by showing himself amazingly unaware "Tom, bum this”. ries in FUN WITH YOUR NEW HEAD are of the nature of his field and his exemplary. 334 bogs down, but has Fortunately the whole book is- audience. Disch's contention is some very fine moments. n't as bad. We rapidly go from a that SF is a form of children's lit- declining Thomas Disch to Gene Wolfe, And now this thing. I regret erature, but then he goes on to dem- who keeps getting better and better. to say, it doesn't look like it's onstrate that he doesn't understand "The Doctor of Death Island" (not going to be a very interesting nov- children's literature either, be- to be confused with other titles!) el -- 54 pages of lifeless glop, cause he doesn't know a good juven- reminds me of some of the great without intellect or passion. After ile is supposed to deal with grow- work Robert Silverberg did in the 54 pages one is still waiting for ing up and approaching inevitable late 60s and early 70s. Wolfe has the story to start -- and by "story" adult realities. The audience, in taken a familiar idea, one often I don't mean bang-bang action. I his view, is made up of lower-mid- found even in comic books -- the im- mean some thematic development, some dle-class laborer types, almost mortal sentenced to life imprison- character change, introduction of completely illiterate, to whom SF ment -- and done a superlative stimulating ideas, something . Where authors must pander. Well, I cer- treatment of it, very possibly the CAMP CONCENTRATION was intensely tainly wouldn't want him in my mark- definitive one. The story is simp- rich in all departments, "Chanson eting department if he doesn't know ly about a convict who is put in Perpetuelle" is utterly empty. It that SF sales are heaviest in afflu- suspended animation until his can- is allegedly about a sub-culture of ent suburbs and college towns or , cer can be cured, then revived in mortals in a society of mortals two centuries hence, but without the brief note at the front you never know it. Disch makes no attempt to even touch on his theme, and his characters just wander around aim- lessly. What little of the back- ground we get is totally unbeliev- able. England in 2098 is apparent- ly just like England in the present, or even thirty years ago. At one point the characters even go to a Wimpey's, which is sort of a Brit- ish MacDonalds. How much to you want to bet that venerable instit- ution is no longer around in the stated year? Or you might try to imagine a novel about 1978 written by an utterly myopic author of 1778: In the morning the wealthy ) s . the future, when the human race book cases of how not to describe, THE Best has become immortal. What follows how not to construct a sentence F0p "rn« is a sensitive study in alienation. or paragraph. The prose is well be- science fiction Fom/ER"' The prisoner is more and more isol- low his usual level, and the story SPEECH .UOFIlfiEES WE‘- HHRLfiN ated from the frightening world a- is virtually opaque. There is also round him. Wolfe pulls the story a scene in which somebody rushes ElUsoHj BfimnDUBBR&, off by careful attention to chara- into an apartment and chops some- MERTSiLVEXmt cter and feeling --we know what it body's head off, witnessed by the m Roger is like to go through such a feel- protagonist. It's the most life- ing. He also somewhat mars his less, emotionless piece of action ending with ambiguity. I've ever encountered in a publish- ed story. I'm interested to note The character is murdered at that the only other review of IM- the end (as I read the murky last MORTALS I've seen (Doug Fratz in paragraph) leaving a vast number of , THRUST) agreed with me on this point unanswered questions, and what I'd "Transfigured Night" is as much a call a motivational rabbit out of total failure as any piece of fic- a hat. The rest of the story does tion can be. not build up to this . Otherwise the writing is very good, without the Basically, this book is below verbal inprecision and static qual- average for Jack Dann, from whom I ity which damages much of his work. have been led to expect better. People ask why there has never been Only one first-rate story and two a Gene Wolfe collection. Answer: losers. You can skip it, if the BECAUSE OF LAST-MINUTE DISQUALIFICA- not that many of his stories are Wolfe item is reprinted. TIONS, ONLY HARLAN ELLISON AND ROGER But he's getting a lot that good. ELWOOD REMAIN. THE WINNER IS. . . better, and soon they will be. Pamela Sargent's "The Renewal" is an honest effort, which falls short of its mark, I think, because LOCUS in recent months which has is Mich- the author just isn't as skilled as grotesque "Within the 1-103, 104-207 (two vol . ael Bishop's she should be. God knows she's try- Gregg Press, 1978, $95.00 Walls of Tyre" in WEIRDBOOK 13, ing. She's taken another familiar which I recommend, fiendishly, with idea -- the colony of artificially My Gawd, I never expected to malice aforethought, to the squeam- created, genetically superior child- get something like this for review, ish.) However, the editor's re- ren growing up in a frightened, and I hope the mailman didn't get marks do raise eyebrows (I have hostile world -- and done the best a hernia delivering it. Must weigh three.), leaving the impression to make it come alive. In most 30 pounds. I don't imagine many that either I know considerably stories of this type the super-child- individuals are going to buy this, less about this field than I think ren are the only interest, the nor- but libraries collecting science I do, or there is practically a mal adults are at best foils for fiction should. Lots of history in whole other genre of macabre fic-

their personalities to bounce off. these pages . Right now it ' inter- tion being published in England, Sargent tries to make hers fully esting to page through, and in twen- completely isolated from this coun- developed characters, but somehow ty years or so it'll no doubt be try. Lamb tells us that Rosemary for all their reported feelings, fascinating. By the way, publish- Timperley has published forty nov- their passions and love affairs, it ers intending to do fanzine facsim- els, and her ghost stories have doesn't quite work. There's a cer- ile reprints can learn a few things been appearing in "the best anthol- tain lack of sensitivity. I'm left from the Gregg experience. The pho- ogies" for twenty years. I've nev- feeling Kate Wilhelm could have tographic technique used is not ad- er heard of her. Charles Birkin done better with the same material, equate for anything less than off- has been active since the 1930s, or Joanna Russ in her pre-polemic set or the very best mimeo. Where with several collections published. days. The children are interest- the Browns printing expertise slips Who? John Blackburn has published ' ing, and there is a good deal of (especially in the earliest issues) twenty novels, three of which "rank consideration of how such beings the print gets pretty fuzzy. The as among the finest horror fiction (without many normal emotions) Gregg Press EXTRAPOLATION (Issues in the English language". Huh? would think and behave, but the nor- 1-10, 1959, 1969, $35) is that way And so on. There apparently is a mal adults are pretty much cardboard all the way through. larger market for this sort oF~ The result is a good story, a pub- thing in England (COLD FEAR was lishable one, which should have published there first.), and we been a great one but isn't. have to consider that Robert Aickman was unknown in the United States for' Then we descend back into the many years after he became estab- pits. I tried my best to read lished, but... Lamb goes on to George Zebrowski's "Transfigured COLD FEAR insist that Arthur Porges is a maj- Night", but gave up after three Edited by Hugh Lamb or macabre writer, and I begin to tries. I found I kept falling as- Taplinger, 1978, 175 pp., $8.95 suspect he's prone to exaggeration. leep, or my attention would stray, The stories are mostly very and when I got back to it I could odd book in some re- This is an readable, but slight. Only a short not remember what I had read. No spects. Its stated intent is "to piece by Brian Lumley is outrageous- characterization, but worse than living daylights out of scare the ly bad. Many of the rest are even that Zebrowski seems to be trying I remain you", yet after reading it well written. "An Emissary for the' desperately to write pretty, to be I'm getting jad- unperturbed. Maybe Devil" by Robert Haining, "The House arty, and the result is like swim- horror stories do not ed, but most in the Forest" by Frederick Cowles, ming in molasses. He uses a doz- affect me very much. (The only one Musician" by Ken Ald- en vague words where one clear one and "The Papal all evoke historical eras (Vic- will do. There are dozens of text- 23 en , that life is harder than you'd think torian London, pre -World War I Vie- ing, and heightens the story) , and nna, and medieval Rome) and handle times when it's better not to, and without modem conveniences, isn't detail very well, but have almost let the mood carry. Maybe it's explored in any depth. Pleasant as trivial plots. The Cowles, for because Aickman knows what he's do- is, but I wish the authors had tak- example, is about a boy who wanders ing that he's known outside of his en more time on these things. into a house where he meets a mys- own country and most of these other terious lady, then on a return vis- writers are not. (I'd expect you it is threatened by a vile dwarf, to recognize Campbell, Aickman, only to be rescued by the lady. Of Lumley, Porges, and Cole. David Sut- course he learns as an adult that ton, also present with an Egyptian the place had burned down well be- curse tale, is the editor of FAN- EXTRAPOLATION, AN SF NEWSLETTER fore he was bom, and of course the TASY TALES, but I've never seen his Vols. 1-10, 1959-69 two are ghosts connected with a fiction before.) Edited by Thomas Clareson ghastly crime there. The Haining Gregg, 1978, $35.00 story depends too heavily on Tarot reprint of an academic to be fully understood by someone Another who doesn't know the cards, but SF journal. The print is sometimes splotchy when the original mimeo it's easy enough to see that the TALES FRCM GAVAGAN'S BAR supernatural manifestation was caus- was. I found the content a lot By L. Sprague de Camp and Fletcher ed by Mysterious Gentleman who more interesting than I expected. the Pratt Delves into the Black Arts, and it Delany's oft-reprinted speech/ art- Owlswick Press, 1978, 310 pp. $13.00 An extensive Love- is just as easy to see that his icle on style. death was caused by delving too far. craft bibliography. Lots of infor- A completely satisfactory edi- SF, an It always happens that way in these mation on pre-Gemsbackian tion of a work first published in stories. Rosemary Timperley's "The area which needs scholarly delving 1953. This version contains five about somebody and rediscovery. An early article Darkhouse Keeper" is uncollected tales and one previous- who murders the guy who cuckolded about Clarion by Robin Wilson. A ly unpublished one, in addition to him, only surprise is that panel discussion with Asimov, Pohl and the those in the original collection. the supernatural revenge comes al- and Darko Suvin. A historically The original artwork (by Pratt's article on SF by Judith most at once, with no rationale interesting wife) is faithfully reproduced, for what happening. (Usually Merril. (Historical in that it is and there's a new color jacket by they get him through a magic amulet, shows what she was thinking back Tim Kirk. And it's a splendid job uttered curse, or craftily- laid ec- when she was an important figure.) of book-making: a real book with toplasmic boobytrap.) Adrian Cole's , cloth binding, sewn signatures, ************************************ "The Demon in the Stone" follows a heavy boards and acid- free paper, straight line from stated premise rather than a bunch of cheapo pages to the (almost required, it seems) thrown loosely in the general dir- demise people involved, but at of ection of a plastic and cardboard least has descriptive power well a back in the manner of many trade beyond ordinary. This one has BIG PLANET the publishers these days. no surprises, except in a few de- By Jack Vance The stories are barroom pieces Ace Books, 1978, 217 $1.75 tails (how the Thing gets them) pp, but it'll certainly hold your int- in the venerable tradition, derived Reviewed by L. Craig Rickman erest. of course, from Dunsany's Jorkens, of the sort made more familiar these Some of the better stories Recently Ace Books has re- re- days by Spider Robinson, and (be- strive for originality. Ramsey leased the book that started Jack fore him) Arthur Clarke in TALES Campbell makes it twice, with "In Vance on the often- long road to FROM THE WHITE HART. I don't think the Bag" and "After the Queen". The success. That book is BIG PLANET. they're as good as Duns any, who has former is by far the more success- never been bested at this sort of BIG PLANET'S plot is simple: ful, a frightful little thing about thing, and compared to de Camp, or Man against the toughest, meanest, an unlikely subject -- plastic de Camp and Pratt, they're a bit most bloodthirsty planet Man (or bags. Campbell usually writes about below the top drawer also. The same Jack Vance) could make for himself. very ordinary things. He did a sto- sort of wit and invention we see in That is the book. Characteriza- ry for WHISPERS once about someone the Harold Shea series is present, tion is better- than- adequate (espec- haunted by cigarette smoke. "After but greatly toned down. Efe Camp did ially for 1952) but they take a the Queen" is about reality doing , some better work along similar lines back seat. ’Vance's planet is the a flip-flop in a movie theater, but solo for UNKNOWN and ASTOUNDING a star. With a crazy emperor who it's very vague on exactly what is decade or so earlier. All are cap- wants to rule a crazy planet, a going on and why. PorgeJ "The Man ably written, but at times I find (minor) love affair, a dozen humor- Who Wouldn't Eat" is more gruesome them slight and anecdotal. Often ous, often unfriendly civilizations, than frightening, but at least, as they end just as they begin to look traitors on every hand (for sus- a story set in Haiti and dealing interesting. Someone tells of a pense) -- it is a pretty big star. with voodoo, it doesn't fall into situation they got into, and the de- It's like strolling through a men- the usual cliches. This time they noument is usually a confirmation agerie . do beat the witchdoctor's curse -- they they're telling the truth but was it worth it? Robert Aick- I liked BIG PLANET because (e.g. dime-sized tracks across the man's "Laura" is about a mysterious Vance's strange beasts, people and counter top, when the guy is talk- lady a man meets several times in cultures held my attention unflag- ing about sparrow-sized flying ele- his life. She is certainly from Be- gingly. I like to see the hero win phants) instead of a resolution of yond, and she probably is an emis- , in the end -- and so does Jack Vanca the problem. Somebody goes back a but at least Aickman I loved this book; I don't see how sary of Death, hundred years and finds himself out heavy handed. There anyone with red blood couldn't. doesn't become of place, and broke since his money you do explain every- Not without flaws, totally without are times when is no good, but the stated theme, thing, or almost everything (i.e. boredom. when the explanation is interest- 24 ************************************ . . OTHER VOICES, OTHER VOICES, OTHER VOICES, OTHER

ANTI-REVIEW OF NEAL WILGUS'S REVIEW OF Stephen r. Donaldson's LORD FOUL'S BANE Reviewed by Orson Scott Card

I can't quarrel with a reviewer's WHO GOES HERE? opinion that a book is not some- By Bob Shaw - thing to rave about - raving is a Ace, 1978, $1.75 very personal thing, and in fact when I was through with the Thomas Reviewed by Bill Glass Covenant trilogy I didn't feel like raving, either. I just bought three Packaged to look a hell of a of the cheap editions from the book lot more serious than it is, WHO club and started passing them out GOES HERE? is a fast- reading, ex- to every literate person I knew, tremely funny and ultimately satis- because if ever a fantasy deserves fying send up of Good Old-Time SF. to be read, this one does. Warren Peace (yes.') finds him- Wilgus should have read all self having enlisted in the Space three books, which, while they stand Legion and is somewhat surprised alone, work together into a coher- that he has done so. For one joins the Legion to forget, a desire the ent whole that makes the trilogy a and PURSUIT OF THE SCREAMER is an Legion immediately gratifies with masterpiece: Both the frame story excellent first novel. of Thomas Covenant, leper, and the selective memory erasure. Only Several thousand years before fantasy story of Thomas Covenant, poor, befuddled Warren has forgot- the novel begins, the world was reluctant hero, become counterpoint ten not just whatever dark deed set- tled from space. The immortal Tek that makes the three movements a urged him to put pen to paper, but everything ("You must have been a rules, but they in turn were ruled brilliant concerto. The trilogy's . monster" everyone keeps telling by an organic computer at the bot- trappings of fantasy borrow elements , of the sea, the from all the sources of fantasy: him.) tom Shai. The Tek developed other races as vassels. the mythmakers, other fantasists, What he was, is, and becomes Eventually the lower classes re- and the author's imagination. But is the frame on which the book is belled. The Tek built a death wall Donaldson goes farther. He is an strung. And in the stringing sharp around their realm. The High Plains. excellent writer, and contrary to satiric needles are stuck into mil- By the novel's start, the Tek are Wilgus 's opinion I found dozens of itary sf, satires of military sf, few in number and most of them are fulfilled and developed characters nicotine addicts, godlike superhu- mad. The killing wall is also down in the three volumes. Themes were man entities, snooty head police in one place, a fact very few know. introduced, then repeated with var- waiters, consumeristic imperialism, iations. The emotions evoked were mad scientists, their beautiful The novel tells the story of -- not the cheap ones sadness and daughters, and recomplicated time four people, and is seen through shock and romance. Donaldson was loops their perceptions and mentalities playing with the fires that bum hot- as their lives intertwine. Each is This one is a romp.' test and deepest, and instead of from a different major group. liking Covenant I found myself lov- Enjoy.' Enjoy! Enjoy! ing him; instead of pitying the los- Jannus is from one of the many ************************************ land societies. It is this young ers I found myself wavering between despair and hatred. Donaldson's man who first helps the Screamer, evil isn't mindless and relentless; and sets in motion a catastrophic it's whimsical and insidious and chain of events. His prime motiva- tion hopeless likely to pop up in your own grand- is a love for Poli. mother. Poli is one of the telepathic PURSUIT OF THE SCREAMER women warriors of the Valde who In short, Donaldson isn't merely By Ansen Dibell hire out as lie detectors and sen- a fantasist, he is a brilliant nov- Daw Books, 270 pp., $1.95 tinels to the cities in order to elist. He can be measured against Cover art by Gino D'Achille earn their bride the best in the world of fiction, price. (Valde men Reviewed by Paul McGuire III and while he makes some mistakes of are in very short supply.) After her finishes the beginner (as we all do) they troop their term of Don Wollheim has the habit of are far outweighed by the magnitude contract, Poli travels the long way comparing women writers only to with them, but of the achievement. This is not home before long be- other women writers, particularly comes linked with Jannus' schemes another rehash of Tolkien; not a Norton, Bradley and lately also Tan- book aimed at "young adults". Don- Elda is clan leader of a group ith Lee. Since he has done so with aldson has created a world more real of families making another long this book, I wonder if Ansen Dibell than reality, and the pain and joy journey by barge caravan to the is male or female. A small point and terror and love I felt while Valde summerfair for their homecom- to a reader. The important thing reading it remain in my memory, not ing. He was drawn into Jannus' plot is that (s)he is a very good writer as fiction, but as experience. to assist the Screamer by his lust ************************************ 25 for the fabled tools beyond the wall. : . Lur is the Screamer, a Tek, who (3) it creates contrast for up- EMPTY WORLD wishes to kill the Shai and restore coming events. This is all done in By John Christopher true death to his kind, but Lur is a series of short scenes. New York, Dutton, 1978, 134 pp. on the wrong side of the wall. * * * $7.50 Order from: E.P. Dutton, (Tek immortality is obtained by 201 Park Ave, So., NYC 10003. machines called redes. A redecap Transition seems to be a lost ISBN: 0-525-29250-0 records all of a Tek's mentality, art in writing. It has been replac- Reviewed by Fred Patten and when they die it is transferred ed by the blank space. In a motion to a new body.) The "screaming" picture, the illusion of motion is Christopher seems to be going comes from a Tek's mental anguish created by having a blank space be- out for the title of Dean of the whenever they are indoors. Just tween each picture which forces the World- Destroyers. There's NO BLADE as a Tek cannot abide any kind of mind in that split-second to fill OF GRASS, in which all grain crops roof overhead, a Valde cannot stand in the non-existent movement. With- fail and civilization starves THE the mental panic of a Tek. When his out that blank space, the film would ; LONG WINTER, in which a new Ice Age child's body is inadequate, Lur look choppy. Is this worth pursu- crushes society; THE RAGGED EDGE, switches to the body of a saber- ing as analogy? (One section of in which super- earthquakes practic- tooth tiger, without losing the pow- the novel actually is a screenplay.) ally shake the planet apart; THE er of speech. A ghost- like quality, conversa- WHITE MOUNTAINS and its sequels, in Like in Burroughs, the charac- tions occurring in limbo, objects which Wells-like aliens conquer ters' adventures constantly criss- with detail but no form -- yet, mankind. . somehow it works. cross in every conceivable combina- But Christopher usually leaves tion, not due to coin- but entirely * * * a modicum of humanity alive to be- is drawn ever deep- cidence. Jannus gin rebuilding. EMPTY WORLD is A tall golden alien who is the er into Tek intrigue, and even has his bleakest novel yet. This disas- rede which perfection of physical beauty, lands. to undergo having a made ter is a disease that causes the He evades answering questions, plants will force him into Tek existence body's cells to age rapidly. The Before long everyone trees with miraculous fruit, and after death. result is a sort of instant senility turns the whole social is trying to kill him, use him, or order upside in which people suddenly grow dry -- down. Well, to be more just get rid of him but the kid precise, he and wrinkled and die of old age eliminates the social order. has spunk! Soon within days. everyone is just lying around hav- Despite a good deal of action, ing fun. The story is related through the novel stresses character. The the eyes of Neil, a teen-ager in a Take a bite of the fruit and world is revealed on a need-to-know small English town. The Plague be- return to paradise. But there basis, but is done skillfully. For is a gins as a heard- in-passing TV news catch to it? there instance, the system of obligation Are nasty under- report of a mysterious new disease tones to the music of the sex orgy? all intelligent beings abide by is in India. Within months it has sp- Oh, sure they gang bang the important, yet it is revealed old wo- read throughout the globe. A state man prophet of through character interaction rather doom, but, it was for of emergency and national quaran- her own good. than by lecture. Dibell works it tine is declared in England, but so that the novel is quite complex Man gained the knowledge of good this proves useless. Soon Neil is without being confusing. An ambi- and evil, but have they accepted watching in horror as his family, tious project smoothly and profes- the responsibility? Can we? neighbors, and friends of all ages sionally set forth, although a bit become wizened and feeble and col- The can long. book be read in two lapse in the streets. ************************************ hours. This is the first novel I've noticed from Barbara Paul, but I Before the novel is halfway will be looking for her by-line again through, Neil is apparently the only ft*********************************;*:* person left on Earth. The remaind- er of the book describes his adjust- AN EXERCISE FOR MADMEN ment to the situation and his lone- By Barbara Paul ly journey through England looking Berkley Books, 168pp., $1.50 for other survivors. He does even- Reviewed by Paul McGuire III tually encounter three, all young like himself -- but two of them are Pythia is a domed science col- obviously psychotic. ony out in space functioning as Christopher has a habit of writ- smoothly as an anthill. In it are ing novels about young protagonists scientists, technicians, a cyborg in trilogies, so EMPTY WORLD may computer, thinking chimpanzees, ex- have two sequels coming. It certain- perimentally altered humans, and ly ends with many questions unan- one non-essential test tube person swered, such as the implication left over from a departed experi- that immunity may be associated with mental group all sumamed Geiss. a person's mental/emotional condi- -- The opening section accomplish- tion and what this suggests about es at least three things simultan- Neil. A plot in which the world is iously inherited by two Adam/Eve pairs, one homicidal, is not one which has (1) It shows us the science been overused. center under normal operation, EMPTY WORLD is extremely well- (2) it introduces characters, written. It is also extremely de- implanting some basic characteriza- pressing, and it ends at a frustrat- tion for each, different enough so ingly unresolved point. Wait and that we can keep them straight lat- see if there are any sequels. er 26 on, and ************************************ ,

BEASTS a very shallow imitation of Kuttner 's right fear, psychological horror, By John Crowley Baldies --in concept -- and just or finally tears, respectively. Bantam Books for June, 1978 managed to end somewhere close to And it is this last story, the one

211 pp., $1.75 where Kuttner started . by Russell Kirk, -that I single out as one of the most deeply touching Reviewed by David A. Truesdale If I were you I'd pass this one and honestly moving fantasy-horror by. stories that I have ever read. And This is a curious book, an enig- ************************************ it's not even listed on the contents matic book, a book I feel contained page or counted- in as one of the elements of a truly good all the fourteen stories in this supposedly somehow most certainly book, but thirteen story collection. But failed. At bottom line it tries to THE YEAR'S BEST HORROR STORIES, that's a minor publishing oversight deal with the persecution and alien- SERIES VI Some of the other notable ation of half- animal mutants called Edited^ by Gerald W. Page con- the leos in a future time when a Daw Books, #297 (UE1387) tributions, mostly original publica- corrupt government unlike --in terms tions although several are gleaned July, 1978, 239 pp. , $1.95 of structure and name -- ours of to- from WHISPERS and WEIRDBOOK, are day attempts to rule a society that Reviewed by David A. Truesdale "At the Bottom of the Garden" by has warred with itself and is in a David Compton, "Undertow" by Karl I don't read much horror or hor- fragmented and relatively anarchis- Edward Wagner, "Winter White" by . or they tic state. fantasy any more because the remarkable Tanith Lee, William stopped doing anything for me some Home Scott's delightfully chilling Through advances in modem years back. The writers of the "A Cobweb of Pulsing Veins", and a genetic engineering we have devel- short horror story seemed unimagina- pair of short shockers by Charles L. oped ability to create a half- the tive or unoriginal, or at best, un- Grant and Ramsey Campbell, respect- human, half- leonine species of "hu- skilled at their craft. These days ively: "If Damon Comes" and "Draw- man" which is capable of interbreed- it would seem that to be effective ing in". But all fourteen stories ing with homo sapiens. They are in this difficult sub-genre the wri- are good, so if you would like a few, and are castigated by the com- change of pace from your science mon people as well as the Union for fiction and fantasy reading, or are Social Engineering. They live in even an aficianado of the horror small groups in widely scattered tale, then by all means either way "reservations", and have an extreme- pick this one up. ly difficult time just getting en- ough food for their stomachs and ************************************ clothing for their backs. They are very close to total extinction.

Crowley sets his stage adequate- SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE Foster ly enough, for near the close of By Alan Dean Rey Books, the book our sympathies must of Ballantine/Del $1.95 necessity be with the starving, mis- Reviewed by Mark Mansell understood, maligned and murdered leos -- but then the book ends with This is a curious book. It is the half- fox mutant Reynard reap- by Alan Dean Foster, who was the pearing miraculously (he has had ghost-writer of the original STAR the foresight to clone himself) WARS novel, though George Lucas was and plotting with a group of under- given credit on the cover. SPLINTER ground leo sympathizers, their aim ter must try very hard to be orig- OF THE MIND'S EYE is a sequel to to begin a 'new age' of life and inal, be really frightening , and the movie novel. understanding for all Beasts every- possess enough writing skill to pull This book is practically iden- where the final hope given us in it off. the final line of the book. All tical in style to the first book. that is well and good. But... With this in mind, I am pleased It reads like something out of PLAN- to say that this is an honestly good ET STORIES. . . . Henry Kuttner did all this collection of mostly very short for us years ago and in so much Luke Skywalker and Princess , weird or horror stories, with ab- Leia crash-land on a mining planet more successful fashion, with his solutely no clinkers in sight. Oh, on their way to a Rebellion confer- perceptive, sensitive, touching there are some traditional offer- ence. They then meet an old woman tales of the Baldies, those telepath- ings written in a traditional man- who reveals that she knows the loc- ic mutants who were also outcast ner, but at least they are written ation of a certain jewel in a nat- and feared for their dangerous dif- well enough to work. ferentness from mankind as a whole. ive temple that can heighten the -- Kuttner knew what he wanted to say At least three of the fourteen Force that mystical quality of alienation and living amongst stories I would place in the "excel- somewhat akin to ESP. So, the mer- those who would hate and kill if lent" category. Stephen King's ry band sets off through the jungle, you let your differentness be indis- "Children of the Com", "Within the encountering weird creatures, strange traps and hostile natives. criminately exposed, and he said it. Walls of Tyre" by Michael Bishop, the jewel, but He got right to the point and show- and the 1977 winner of the World They finally find to Darth Vader -- ed us made us feel what it is like Fantasy Award for Best Short Fic- they have fight , arch villain of the evil Empire -- to be a second-class citizen because tion, Russell Kirk's "There's a Long, to get it. one is better. He didn't take up Long Trail A-Winding", are all some- what longer than the rest, are all nearly an entire novel with average It's a pleasant little adven- executed and written with a high de- characterization, average intrigue ture story. Luke and the Princess gree of expertise, and truly move and by-play before getting down to both come across as kids playing the reader to real emotions of out- the nub of things, and herin lies at being conspirators, and their the major fault with BEASTS. It is 27 characters are just barely sketched, : a failing in many of Foster's tales. a rebel conference on another plan- off the Young Hero's adventures. We still know next to nothing about et in the same system, crash land the Empire's organization. Although on Mimban, where they remain for Given the near monopoly these Darth Vader is constantly feared as the duration of the story. I'll groups hold in Fosters' fiction, being almost all-powerful, Luke is not bore you with any more of the it's not difficult to understand able to cut off his arm and get him yawn-provoking plot, except to say why he would have trouble with Prin- dumped into some sort of pit where that it has all the internal consis- cess Leia. She is young, beautiful the Force tells him that he will tency of a Marvel comic book. and very competent. In the movie characters in yet return. Of the SPLINTER serves as a showcase STAR WARS, had it not been for her, Solo and the previous novel, Han for Foster's most predictable hab- Luke and Han Solo would've most completely written Chewbacca are its. It has all the ingredients likely perished in the Death Star's the Wook- out of this one (although one is accustomed to finding in prison. Given her strong will and ie is replaced by a couple of equal- most of Foster's recent novels or Luke's lack thereof she would be in . Artoo Detoo ly furry "Yuzzem") shorter fiction (see his novels total charge of this adventure. and Threepio are merely sidekicks MIDWORLD, THE END OF THE MATTER and However, she doesn't fit into one as chauffeurs. brought along to act his short story "Snake Eyes” in STEL- of Foster's groups, so for the en- Darth Vader is And finally, after LAR #4. In these. stories you will tire book Foster wavers between defeated, the novel ends with the find cute striped furry little al- George Lucas' characterization of although characters all overjoyed, iens, jewels with bizarre powers, her in the movie and Foster's own they still haven't the slightest jungle worlds all supplied with the Screaming Secretary and Cold Bitch or idea how to get off the planet, same Ancient Temple a la H. Rider models. even how to avoid capture once they Haggard, all drawn together with Plotwise, another problem is get back to town. the major characters, who are forc- the irrational actions of Luke and ed into what can only be termed a Prose-wise, the writing is ade- Leia. There is a scene where they "search for the Golden Fleece com- quate, barely. Foster can keep you get into a fight with each other plex". novel with these hack- turning pages, but he doesn't in- One outside a saloon, and are captured. neyed 1950s PLANET STORIES cliches spire any sense- of-wonder, which is This particular scene is so con- necessary in this shallow a book. is bad enough but two or three in trived the only logical reason for a row! Basically, it reads like a juven- the incident is that Foster had to ile. Luke and the Princess both get them into the clutches of the behave like a couple of kids on local representatives of the Empire. their first date whenever they get As I mentioned earlier, the plot half-way romantic. Princess Leia has all the consistency of a Marvel doesn't really act like she's smart comic book. enough to head a rebellion, although 1. Finally, I wish Foster would she does give Darth Vader a pretty come up with a new background coup- good fight near the end. Most of led with a new plot and new people. the time, we get situations and be- I'm getting tired of Old Hags, jew- havior like this els and jungle planets. 2. '"It sees us!" the Princess All in all a dreadfully stale Luke's arm breathed, gripping book. SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE so hard it hurt. "Oh, it ought to be rated PG for Pretty sees us!"' Ghastly. Of course, no one ever cusses, 3. ************************************ no matter what the provocation. Although the Princess does say "Dam!" at one point (how shocking!). So basically, you have a run-of- Princess Leia presents a prob- the-mill juvenile, not bad as such lem for Foster. In all of his fic- COLONY Bova things go, but nothing spectacular. tion I have read, the human women By Ben Of course, being a STAR WARS novel, seem to come in three basic types: Pocket Books, 1978 it's selling big and getting a lot Screaming Secretaries -- Reviewed by Orson Scott Card of shelf space. ) this sort can be found in the back- ************************************ ground, yelling fervently and/or Even as advance money for scie- fainting. They are sometimes young nce fiction books reaches unheard- and beautiful and always unable to of amounts, science fiction writers handle adventure of any sort. are trying to break out of the shab- SPLINTER OF THE MIND'S EYE by little sf section of the book- Cold Bitches -- women of By Alan Dean Foster ) stores and get their books to the this type can be found as villains Del Rey Books, 1978, $1.95 front of the store, to the window throughout his novels; they are display, even (the height of achieve- Reviewed by Wilma T. Wright mostly young and beautiful, always ment) to the grocery store book rack competent and ready to castrate Alan Dean Foster has done the Foster's major human male character I sound sarcastic, but you can seemingly impossible; made the nov- The Young Hero. bet whatever you're willing to doub- el sequel (not the movie sequel) to le that I'm right in there too, try- Old Hags -- members of STAR WARS boring. ) ing to reach, not the few thousand this final group usually serve as diehard sf aficionados, but that The novel deals with a jungle advisors, helpers and confidants of vast market that bought THORN BIRDS, planet named Mimban (how's that for the Young Hero. They, like type THE GODFATHER, and every one of a cringe producing name) where the #2, are also competent. Unfortunate- James Michener's fourteen billion Galactic Imperials are doing some ly, they are also both old and ugly words. illegal mining. Luke Skywalker and and in some measure live vicariously Niven and Poumelle tried it Princess Leia, attempting to attend 28 . . with LUCIFER'S HAMMER, and my reac- fine piece of writing. quibbles Here's one of Steinbeck's last tion was to not buy the book for a are minor: Maybe people do fall works and it's as poetic a fantasy long time. More than a year, in desperately in love at first screw, as you could hope to find -- Stein- fact, because deep in my sf fan's as Ben has Bahjat and Denny doing, beck's retelling of seven of the heart I knew that they were "selling but I found it hard to believe classic tales of King Arthur and out", that this would be another that a few ecstatic nights could his Knights beautifully packaged one of those fifteen-unrelated-peo- make a woman like Bahjat go off the as a quality Del Rey classic. ple-thrown- together- by- a- disaster deep end as she did. Maybe a hand- Steinbeck worked on these "transla- novels. But when I read it, it was ful of corporate giants could meet tions" from the Winchester edition good. In fact, it was a hell of a fairly often without anybody know- of Malory's Arthur stories from 1956 lot better than anything Arthur ing about it and without any of to 1959 and apparently planned to Hailey's mill has churned out, and them stabbing the others in the continue indefinitely with the pro- it deserved a place high on the back, but I doubt it. Yet even ject until he was distracted by bestseller lists. when an item was hard to swallow, other work and had to leave his Ar- it didn't come within parsecs of thur book uncompleted. But if the And now Ben Bova's tried it with the difficulty of swallowing the whole cycle of the legend isn't COLONY. Set in the same universe TOWERING INFERNO'S asinine method presented here, what is provided is as MILLENNIUM (but using none of of fire-fighting, and I had to ad- first rate Steinbeck, first rate the plotlines from that book), it's mit that Ben might be right and I Arthur and definitely one of the a typical bestseller- type novel might be wrong. best books of "fantasy" available, which follows a newswoman, a black on the market today. revolutionary, an Arab revolutiona- I enjoyed COLONY. I was tired ry, and the result of genetic manip- when I started reading it nearly at As an added bonus there is an ulation experiments through the vic- midnight -- I was wide awake when I Appendix with a hundred pages of issitudes of an attempt by big cor- finished reading it at five a.m. selections from Steinbeck's letters porations to take over the world, But ny guess is that I'm not the to two associates, dealing with his even if it means destroying it in only sf reader who'll put these at- Arthurian studies and his personal the process. tempts by some of our best writers account of how the "translations" to tap the mainstream market on the were growing. All in all, THE ACTS But beyond that, there's noth- back burner for a while. LUCIFER'S OF KING ARTHUR is a real bonanza of ing in it typical of the normal HAMMER passed through 1978 unHugoed Steinbeck and Arthurian scholarship bestseller, whose highest aspira- and unNebulaed; I expect COLONY will and you really shouldn't let it tion is to reach the level of junk. do the same in 1979. SF fans will slip past. Ben can write , you see, and further- vote for books written for them ; ************************************ more his sole objective is not just SFWA members will vote for books to sell books --he also intends they wish they had written; the that his book say something that awards will be a long time coming will linger in the mind. The re- to the books that a (shudder) mun- porter, Evelyn, learns about the dane (I just learned the word --ah real world and grows up in the pro- the arrogance of fandom) would take cess of the novel (What? A best- to the beach and enjoy reading. seller with character development?); THE CITY OF THE SUN colony head, Dr. Cobb, who at first But I can't help thinking that By Brian M. Stableford seems all-wise and all-powerful, it's a shame. Because Niven and Daw, 1978 turns out to have been blinded by Poumelle and Bova aren't the only his own vision of what the universe writers who'll discover that sf Reviewed by Elton Elliott should be, and it takes more down- seeds can be planted on the other to-earth (love those puns) minds to side of the fence, and I expect to This book is the fourth in a solve some of the immediate prob- see some of the best science fic- series of adventures which follow the exploits of the members and lems ; corporate megalomaniac Gar- tion in the next few years written, rison, thoroughgoing bastard though not for the fans, but for real peo- crew of the ship Daedalus, as they he is, is also shown to be somewhat ple who take their fiction like ca- attempt to recontact some of Earth's loyal and inventive and clever (A viar -- now and then, with a furtive lost colonies. This time the intrqj- villain with some admirable traits feeling of self-indulgence, and not id team find a planet of colonists and human motivations in a bestsel- quite sure that they like the taste who have evolved what appears to be the ultimate Utopia. Only one prob- ler? Incredible ! ) anyway. lem, who rules, the humans or an in- While avoiding the shallowness ************************************ sidious alien parasite. THE CITY of the bestseller, Ben has also a- OF THE SUN is a genuine ho- hummer of voided some typical pitfalls of a book. The characters are gray, the sf writer. His L-5 colony is a and seem to move through the plot marvelous thing, and it might have like zombies. The basic situation been tempting to milk it to death THE ACTS OF KING ARTHUR AND HIS was written into the ground decades RINGWORLD, Riverworld) but NOBLE KNIGHTS (cf . , , ago and Stableford has nothing new he resisted the temptation to gosh- By John Steinbeck to say. Stableford, who once wrote with this marvelous colony Ballantine/Del Rey Paperback, 451 pp. wow us an excellent essay entitled "SF : The and set most of the action on earth, $4.95 Medium is the Message", has written climax of the book with only the Reviewed by Neal Wilgus some fine works of fiction; however, Further- occurring on the colony. judging by this book one hopes Mr. the solution to the crisis more, John Steinbeck was that tough Stableford' s message isn't becoming groundwork laid at the end has its and talented American Nobel-prize- —mediocrity. there is no cheat- in Chapter One; winning author of GRAPES OF WRATH doubt you'll guess what ing, but I who had little use for escapist fan- However, the book is not a dis- is until Ben wants the resolution tasies of days of yore, right? aster. The ending is well thought you to. Wrong out. Stableford fans should get COLONY is a genuine thriller, this. a good science fiction novel and a 29 A*********************************** BLIND VOICES Not that what the novel becomes STARSTONE By Tom Reamy after this point (a story of awaken- Edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley Berkley/Putnam, 1978 ing powers and coming of age) is bad and Walter Breen SBN: 399-12240-0 There are moments of lyrical discov- Published by Friends of Darkover, 254 pp., $8.95 ery alternating with moments of Quarterly, $2.50 per issue turn- the-screw- tighter suspense Reviewed by Bill Glass Reviewed by Paul McGuire III which lead up to one hell of a spec- tacularly pyrotechnical climax. Tom Reamy 's BLIND VOICES is a If you aren't a loyal fan(atic) hybridization, a half-and-half not It's just that things start hap- of Marion Zimmer Bradley's DARKOVER unlike several of the WonderShow's pening a little too fast, a little series of novels, there is nothing inmates within its pages. too slickly. The pacing becomes of interest in this zine for you, slightly uneven, as if scenes needed since the publication of a Paul It begins rather Bradburian in to tuck a few unraveled loose ends Zimmer fragment of a scene from THE the tone. It's the late 1920s in back into the weave of the plot are SPELL SWORD, which was originally small prairie town of Hawley, Kan- missing. This is most jarring in cut from that book, is an event of sas. Fanners fan themselves, the last chapter, which follows dir- somewhat dubious magnitude. But if young girls drink cherry phosphates, ectly upon the peak-state of the you are a fan, features like the and barefoot run about proclaim- boys climax without referring back to it Zimmer out-take mentioned above can ing what a phantasmagorical summer all, an abrupt, precipitous return be quite interesting, (it's promised it is. to the base-state normalcy of the that sections from THE PLANET SAV- Then, as in Bradbury's SOMETHING book's beginning without any fall- ERS written and added by the German WICKED THIS WAY COMES and Charles ing action (or reference back to translator will appear translated Finney's THE CIRCUS OF DR. LAO (Rea- the surviving major characters) to into English for the first time in my assumes, and deliberately uses, ease us there. STARSTONE #2) but to the casual our familiarity with the two earlier reader they won't seem related to works), this American normalcy is much of anything. broken by the arrival of a traveling The major part of the zine is show: Haverstock's Traveling Cur- completed fiction by fans. Two con- iosus and WonderShow. Tiny Tim! cern Regis Hastur, one of the keep- Women! As in DR. LAO, a Mermaid, a er Callista, and one is an article Medusa and a Satyr (misbilled as a named "Field Notes on Intimate Re- Minotaur!) are displayed. Haver- lations" blended with a framing stock manifests freaks, wonders and fiction story. There is a second the four elemental forces of air, article, and a prototype Regis Has- earth, fire and water, all before tur story by Ms. Bradley. The issue the goggling and/or cynical eyes of is filled out with some mediocre Hawley's residents for a mere 504 art work. a head, while late summer thunder- heads and dark undertones of psych- It is overpriced a bit, but not ic menace gather about the town. enough to prevent those who are DARKOVER fans from rushing a check Reamy focuses not on the Brad- off to Box 72, Berkeley, CA, 94701. burian pair of wonderstruck boys To them (I should say "us"), it is (Finney and Jim, echoing SOMETHING well worth it. WICKED's Will and Jim) but on three ************************************ girls -- Francine, Rose and Evelyn -- passing with blushes and giggles At the time of his death last through the mid- teen discovery of Fall, Reamy and his editor were still their own sexuality. In a very neat working the rough parts of the book's tripartition, Francine is drawn to ending out. What could have been the animal maleness of the Minotaur, never know. What we are we will THE ORANGE R Rose to the more-normally-human left with is a good first novel, un- By John Clagett sweet-talk of one of Haverstock's fortunately flawed, unfortunately Popular Library, 1978, 256 pp.$1.50 roustabouts, and Evelyn to the eth- all we will have of Reamy working erial wonder of the albino Angel, at novel length. Reviewed by Dr. Dean R. Lambe The Magic Boy, The Boy Who Can Fly. Denied the opportunity to dev- Quality is an elusive quantity, elop his novelist's craft, Reamy as Ted Sturgeon has most graphically All this is fine. Fantasy ex^- will still be remembered for the. stated. Unfortunately, while most ists in part to express the ineffib- delicate perfection of his shorter junk-food novels escape review be- le, to exteriorize and dramatize work (to be collected in an omnibus cause they are perceived as not the internal archetypes and private volume by Heritage Press later this worth the effort, those same books rites -of-passage common but unspok- year). BLIND VOICES, however, is dot the paperback racks of the coun- en in most peoples' lives. And, definitely worth the read; its flaws try, ready and willing to bend the being half illusion to begin with, not against Reamy' s talent, a blot minds of the uninformed and drain the carnival, the wondershow, is a but against his death. the purses of the unwary. THE OR- most marvelous medium through which ANGE R is such a work, a novel to give fantasy flesh. that should have been pulped in man- 1 The books' blurb writer, in an ef- So it comes with wrench that uscript, a story which gives cred- fort to set things straight, mala- Reamy, halfway through BLIND VOICES* ence to fears that publishers are props the satyr into a centaur. Ev- discards most of what has been built experimenting with heuristic comput- erybody else continues to call him up before, quenches the fantasy er programs as replacements for hu- a Minotaur. with a psience fiction rationale, man SF editors. John Clagett has and segues into a more Stephen- King- ************************************ written a piece of trash of the sort ish mood of menace, horror and sens- that leads otherwise reasonably fair- ation. 30 minded gentlemen like Ben Bova and . . . .. Jerry Poumelle to spell "environ- some pretty silly ideas about the MONUMENT mentalist" with a capital "Eech". biopsychology of deer. By Lloyd Biggie, Jr. Why then mention the book at all? Bantam, In the course of propping-up $1.75, 215 pp. Well, to save you a buck-fifty for his cardboard characters, who en- one thing, to spare Spider Robinson Reviewed by Paul McGuire III gage in a lot of maid-butler chat- the accumulation of more ashes in ter and "Oh, John ... oh, Martha" his woodstove, and finally, to Suppose a sailor had reached sighs, Clagett even fails to explain scare the bloody corpuscles out of Hawaii years before Captain Cook how all those radioactive folks the budding writers and readers out and he had tried to prepare the nat- came to be called "Roberts". Let there who might get the idea that SF ives to survive, on their own terms, hope this is not a denigration need contain neither science nor us the inevitable contact and coloniz- of the memory of J. Robert Oppen- fiction. ation by the Western World. There heimer, a deeply humane man who was doesn't seem to be much of anything writ- In THE ORANGE R (yes, the both father to, and conscience for, that he could have done. Now pic- that er could actually have chosen the Nuclear Age. ture it on a larger, inter- galactic title) we follow the short career , And, only a truly anti-scienti- scale of junior Powerman Kirk Patrick who fic moron could invent "deradders" fumbles through an America a century Obrien, once a wildcat space ex- -- which apparently work on the prin- or so hence, an America ruled by plorer, discovered a paradise planet ciple of the "Philosopher's Stone" the power companies with their leak- inhabited by a primitive and care- remove radioactivity from air, nuclear plants, an America divided to free lost colony of humans. As hero y water and food -- and then locate into Normal and Robert areas. The and wise man, he became little less his people inside, and his nuclear Roberts, you see, are those unfortun- than a god to them. Knowing how plants outside, those "deradders" ates who live in the irradiated they would be exploited into extinc- influence! Somebody should also countryside near the huge numbers of tion when the universe at large point out to this drivel-writer nuc plants that the evil power com- learned of the beautiful world's ex- panies have built for the benefit istence, Obrien, when dying with age, of the Normals in the cities. Nat- I S, An> iiovv I try (wherein over 30 nuclear plants but on the day he dies it is needed, C^NJT *5pE I OUT OF TrilE for a spaceship lands and the deli- lend a nice glow to things) , the well -indoctrinated Powerman falls ST7WHN3- HOSPctal! cate and desperate game for survival in love with Anne Martin. Unfortun- begins ately, schoolnarm Martin has an or- The above is the premise of Mr. ange, fluorescent "R" on her left Biggie's novel, MONUMENT. It fits hand... yep, she's a second-class nicely in a class with Eric Frank citizen, an inferior future nigger! Russell's THE GREAT EXPLOSION. Like Ah, the suspense ... will Patrick the novels of Nevil Shute, this is defy the Vermont Powermaster . . smoothly paced, unpretentious nar- will he join with the rebel under- ration using the perceptions of sev- ground of the Roberts, and take con- eral vivid characters deeply affect- trol of the nuc plants . . . will he ed by each other, and the dramatic ever be able to stop laughing at events the inpossibility of solar power . . and will he ever escape his plastic- ************************************ baggie radiation suit to enjoy the purity of Anne's nubile, yet radio- active, body? Well, you figure it out, and while you're at it, figure THE GOTHIC HORROR AND OTHER WEIRD out why the book ends with Adam and TALES Eve (Ghod is my witness those By George T. Wetzel, illustrated ! ) , cute little mutant Big Head children by Tim Kirk whose telempathic and precognitive Weirdbook Press, $4.00 abilities suggest that Clagett might Reviewed by Mark Mansell have the gall to write a sequel to this mess. that there are already nuclear power and weapons facilities in Arizona -- Like Weirdbook Press's two pre- WINE Let me be very clear; I am not as clearly shown on my "Nuclear vious productions- -TOADSTOOL a lover and HOLLOW FACES, MERCILESS MOONS— of nuclear power plants and America Map" (easily worth the 75

The best tale in the collection, these are Wayne Hooks, David C. arranged for himself, his wife, however, isn't one of the Lovecraft- Smith, David Madison, David Drake and three sterile but well-educated ian ones. "The Pirate of Shell and SF's premier interviewer Darrel friends to repopulate the world. Castle" has elements of detective, Schweitzer (his tale "The Hag” be- Unfortunately, there's a hitch that pirate and historical adventure sto- ing the first in his Julian the A- even Vishnu didn't suspect -- but ries in it. It is about how Black- postate series which has been run- more of that in a moment. beard, unexplainably surviving into ning in the Australian zine VOID) The end- of- the -world scenes, the Post- Civil War period, plans to Good stories by Tanith Lee, Jon the methods of survival afterward -- hold Charleston for ransom by block- DeCles (Marion Zimmer Bradley's we've read them all a dozen times, ading it with Monitor- type ironclads. brother), Robert E. Vardeman, Manly and Vidal adds nothing new to our The Tim Kirk illustrations are Wade Wellman, Geo. W. Proctor and speculations on humanity's, finale. among the best work he's done. He M.A. Washil are also included in the But then -- Vidal was not writing manages to produce quite evocative collection. The only thing I didn't science fiction. Where One of Us images in a fashion quite different like was Kathleen Rebsch's vampire would have labored lovingly over from a Coye or a Fabian, but just as poem "Revenant", which is rather every detail of survival after the effective. The best are the front dull free verse. end, Vidal passes over it with the and back covers, as well as the il- same quick efficiency he uses to Topping off the anthology is lustrations for "The Pirate of Shell dismiss Jimmy Carter as a redneck Poul Anderson's magnificent article Castle" and "Nightmare House". twice-born president. "On Thud and Blunder". Anderson This is an interesting volume delves into his own writing experi- In fact, long before KALKI is and is recommended to those who enjoy ence and activities in the Society a science fiction novel, it is a the genre. The price is worth it for Creative Anachronism to explain $4 Gore Vidal novel. It has Vidal's for value and the which elements in heroic fantasy are it's collector's typical first-person character who Kirk illos alone. most liable to errors, and how au- is not really all that vital to the thors could avoid them. A must-read machinations of the plot, but whose for anyone thinking of writing her- attitudes are the filter through [Weirdbook Press, POB 35, Amherst oic fantasy. the Branch, Buffalo, NY 14226] which Vidal's vision of world Aside from a rather comic-book- can emerge. It has the strange, ************************************ ish cover illustration, it is an ex- twisted, yet magnificent hero occup- tremely good collection, well worth ying center stage (Kalki, of course), the price for the Anderson article whose dreams and visions are mad yet alone strangely sane and wonderful -- but ************************************ who is doomed to failure. Do we SWORDS AGAINST DARKNESS III see Burr in Kalki? Of course -- Edited by Andrew J. Offutt and Julian and a dozen other Vidal Zebra Books, $1.95 heroes Reviewed by Mark Mansell Like Herman Hesse, Vidal keeps writing the same novel over and KALKI You might say that this volume over. And if this time the novel By Gore Vidal represents the "state of the art" in has the trappings of science fic- Random House, 1978, $10.00 the field of heroic fantasy (sword tion, it does not signal a new de- and sorcery) . Former SFWA President Reviewed by Orson Scott Card parture -- just a new game. (And Offutt has assembled 14 original don't misunderstand: Writing the stories and an article from some of There is nothing in KALKI that same novel over and over is not a the best, and some of the up-and- is not familiar ground to science bad idea. Sometime you're bound coming best, authors in the genre. fiction readers : Jim Kelly claims to do it right. I hated SIDDHARTHA and STEPPENWOLF; I loved NARCISSUS The two first stories are the to be Kalki, the last incarnation will AND GOLDMUND and BENEATH THE WHEEL. best in the collection. The heroes of Vishnu, who usher in the end the world. However, Likewise, with Vidal I loved BURR in Ramsey Campbell's "The Pit of of the ac- tual end is brought a lethal and and JULIAN; I hated MYRA BRECKEN- Wings" and Richard L. Tierney's "The by fast- spreading bacterium Kelly RIDGE and WASHINGTON D.C. How I Sword of Spartacus" have both appear- Jim isolated while with the feel about KALKI is what this is ed in the first two volumes of the serving army all about. S.A.D. series. In the Campbell in Vietnam. And Kelly/Kalki has story, the hero is to be sacrificed to blood- drinking winged creatures, and the Tierney story has a Samarian gladiator. bring doom to a Colosseum- full of Romans by using the sword which once belonged to the rebell- ious slave Spartacus to summon dark powers. These incursions into her- oic fantasy are a bit surprising from these two authors , both known primarily for their horror and Love- carftian tales. Another surprising feature about this anthology is the amount of semi-prozine or former semi-prozine authors from THE DIVERSIFIER, SPACE AND TIME, WHISPERS and PHANTASY DI-

GEST ( among others) who appear with their first (or nearly so) profes- sional heroic fantasy sales . Among . ,

KALKI is not Vidal's best nov- that, but he would make Kalki hate el. His first-person character, an Dr. Lowell so badly that he would aviatrix/bisexual named Teddy Ot- force Lowell to donate his semen tinger, is one of the most intensely for the good of the cause and then boring first person characters I would have killed him. But Vidal have- ever suffered through. First s imply has Kalki kill Lowell on the person characters who are not the spot, and the human race is doomed. protagonist of the book are hard to Instead, the monkeys will inher- bring off. Vidal succeeds often -- it the earth. And it is a credit but not this time. However, Kalki to Vidal that instead of making us and his nemesis, Dr. Giles Lowell, feel a tragic sense of loss about are so interesting that the book the poor, fallen human race, he itself succeeds in being interest- makes us accept the monks' inheri- ing and, ultimately, rewarding. On tance of the earth with a sense of the trivial (but decisive) level relief. We have seen in the book of entertainment, KALKI is worth too much of mankind's highest ach- the read. ievement, the United States, to To those of us whose first con- really mourn the loss cern science fiction, however, is Vidal lies a lot in the book, KALKI should be required reading. however. He exaggerates for humor- Not because Vidal has done a better ous effect, sneering at, in turn, job than most science fiction writ- hack writers, politicians, the mil- ers -- I could name a dozen sf writ- itary, television personalities ers who could have done as good a CYCLES OF WAR: THE NEXT SIX YEARS people with fashionable cancer, with Vidal's By R.E. McMaster, Jr. job, in their own way, individual peop- crowds of people, $10.00 material as Vidal did. KALKI Hardcover , 217 pp . , le, God, motherhood, science, and should read simply because Vidal War Cycles Institute, Box 1673, be everything else, if there's anything in no way partakes of our delicious Kalispell, MT 59901 else left over. Yet as he turns inbreeding. And the very fact that each of these into corpses, we know Reviewed by Neal Wile Vidal is not rewriting Silverberg/ that Vidal has not killed the real Kornbluth/Pohl/everybody means that thing. He has killed only a dis- Remember Robert Heinlein 's lit- we are getting Fresh Blood. torted image of what the corpse tle classic "The Year of the Jack- might have looked like with all the pot"? If so, you'll recall that How does a non- science fiction blemishes magnified. Heinlein postulated a time when all writer write science fiction? We In the end no one was the multitude of cycles that influ- had a taste with John Hersey's WHITE kind or loving or unselfish -- all acted for own petty ence and control human affairs LOTUS and MY PETITION FOR MORE SPACE their would reach their climax at once. and discovered that future visions purposes, and even those who loved When that point was reached all hell could be presented with such reality the world so much they would destroy would break loose and civilization and simplicity that our sensawunda it in order to preserve it ended up merely destroying themselves. come screeching to a halt. could be thrown away and we could discover, instead, deep and beauti- The world isn't like that. R.E. McMaster, Jr., gives no ev- ful characters. Gore Vidal's KALKI, There are good people. I've met idence of ever having heard of which in most ways is merely his thirty or forty of them, and that's "Jackpot" or Heinlein, but he has wish- fulfillment (yes, folks, Vidal a lot. Vidal is wrong. The world gathered a bookload of intriguing would love to destroy the world of is not yet Sodom -- Abraham can evidence to indicate that our real- 1980, which is precisely what he still find more than ten good peo- life jackpot might be coming up in has done) and a chance to stab the ple in order to make the world worth the next few years. CYCLES OF WAR sacred and profane cattle of modem saving. is mainly a review of the literature, America until they screech, gives for McMaster makes no pretense of And yet KALKI left me with the us a taste of future visions so having discovered any principles haunting feeling that there was some- simply presented and so much taken himself or of having done any orig- thing graceful about four billion for granted that the author can ful- inal research. What he had done is people leaving life suddenly, with- fill a completely different porpose, gather theories and speculations out panic, without a chance to soil the savaging of America and, by from a variety of sources in an at- the last moments with repentance extension, the whole human race. tempt to show that the early 1980s or greed; four billion people leav- have every chance of becoming the Perhaps the best explanation of ing the stage for the next act to Jackpot years for western civiliza- what we can learn from Gore Vidal begin. And while no one in the aud- tion. is his ending. If Niven and Pour- ience would applaud either their nelle had written KALKI, the best act or their departure, there was And there is impressive evidence part of the book would have been still a kind of beauty in the way to back his case. The book starts

the five survivors ' discovery that the extras all went through their small with an analysis from PSYCHO- they could survive against insur- paces, carrying on small private LOGY TODAY showing that cycles in mountable odds. If Robert Heinlein plays far better than the larger American literature are accurate pre- had written KALKI he would have ag- play that so bored us all. It is dictors of war, with the next one reed with Vidal enough to have the for the extras that KALKI makes us scheduled for the early 80s. Mc- survivors discover that Kalki 's weep: and perhaps, as the monkeys Master then considers a number of wife and he were Rh- incompatible, grow up, they will find a way (Vi- stock market cycles, historical and so that Dr. Lowell, who knew it all dal seems to hope) to leave the ex- cultural cycles, the Kondratieff along, is the only possible father tras in charge of the show, and wave and the cycle-based forecasts of the rest of the human race -- but push the stars and the director com- of stock market king W.D. Gann. In Heinlein would have made his charac- pletely out of the theatre. addition to these fairly solid ters live with that fact, make the ************************************ sources, McMaster also cites such best of it, and go on anyway. Har- borderline evidence as the so-called lan Ellison would agree with all 33 Jupiter Effect when the major plan- . ets line up in 1982, various astrol- EXPERIMENT starts on 29 October These aliens, believe me, you ogical predictions for that decade 1991 at "Mission Control" in Hous- wouldn't believe and I can't bring

and the visions of a variety of oth- ton when a monitoring computer types myself to give you Simmons ' descrip- er prophets and seers who have fore- out this message: "Termination sig- tion. seen disaster coming up. nal received from Pioneer X". The The book is full of misspellings NCO on duty, somewhat bemused, digs A secondary theme in CYCLES OF and typographical errors. As I into the old files on Pioneer X to WAR is that the looming disaster said above I would not think of try to find out what the message will be brought on by a new Caesar challenging Simmons on medical means. He finds: "In the event -- that it is just at this point in points but it is obvious that he that the satellite's external seal the cycle of history that a Caesar- knows nothing of physics, astronomy is ever broken and the scientific figure appears. McMaster's Caesar or space travel. He doesn't seem equipment inside is either tampered is, of course, Jimmy Carter and to know much about writing either. with or removed, a termination sig- there's no denying that all the psy- Mast of the characters and situa- nal will be transmitted to Mission chological factors for a new Caes- tions seem to have had their origin Control". arism are probably present in Car- in the 1950s and sci-fi movies. ter's makeup. Not content with I do not know if that is fact After many unbelievable trials working this theme into the main or fiction but it makes an exciting and tribulations THE ADAM EXPERIMENT text, MzMaster adds a lengthy ap- beginning for a novel. That's a ends with the words: "To be contin- pendix on the subject in which he grabber. Someone out there has in- ." ued. . attacks his version of "humanism" tercepted Pioneer X. It should make and promotes his version of Christ- for an exciting story and I suppose I hope not. ianity. that to the ordinary reader THE ************************************ ADAM EXPERIMENT is an exciting sto- The book's short -comings are ry. But I am an old sciencefiction- -- immediately apparent McMaster is eer and there are too many flaws in THE RAVENS OF THE MOON not a polished, professional writer the story to make it exciting for By Charles L. Grant and he alternates between simply me. It disturbs the flow of contin- Doubleday, 1978, $6.95 dumping ideas in your lap undigest- uity when the reader is hit between 184pp., Cover art by Fred Marcellino ed on one hand, and forcing them in- the eyes every few pages with the to the mold of his own opinions on club of the writer's ignorance. Reviewed by Gretchen Rix the other. But in the absence of The ultimate goal is to reach any other compendium on the subject, There are a lot of characters refer- the stars. With our current techno- CYCLES OF WAR is a valuable in Charles L. Grant's intriguey logy that will take a long time. ence and a good potential source of (sic) novel THE RAVENS OF THE MOON. On Space Lab 5, "hovering 300,000 off-beat ideas. It's worth looking So many people are introduced so miles out", two methods of solving into before the Year of the Jack- soon in so strange a setting that the problem are being considered. pot arrives. it takes quite a while to get them One experiment, conducted by Dr. ************************************ all sorted out properly. After- Gregor, is to put the crew in sus- wards, though, the book fairly zips pended animation; the other, con- along. ducted by Dr. Olmschied, leads to the generations ship. Olmscheid THE RAVENS OF THE MOON is about and his lovely assistant, Dr. Cort- a futuristic government coup and THE ADAM EXPERIMENT ney Miles, are experimenting with the machinations involved in get- By Geoffrey Simmons monkeys to see if primates can ting it off. Shanlon Raille is Arbor House, N.Y., 1978, 200 pp. successfully breed and come to term one of these machinations. A magi- $8.95 under conditions of weightlessness cian and political lobbyist, Shan- Reviewed by Roy Tackett without any ill or strange effects lon is earmarked as leader of the on mother and offspring. revolution that sets ratgangs and soldiers and the present government It is a pitiful thing when a A meteor tears through the space at each other's throats. He is al- mainstream writer attempts Science lab wrecking both experiments. so accused of having murdered a sen- Fiction. It is even more pitiful Gregor departs but a Dr. Baumeister ator just get things off the when the writer tries it as his convinces Olmscheid and Miles that to ground. But he didn't. And he wants second book. Geoffrey Simmons has their experiment must go on and had previously published THE Z-PAP- since monkeys really would not have to find out who did. His life de- pends on it. ERS, a medical-based suspense story proven anything, it should be com- which received good reviews pleted by humans. What Shanlon finds involves him THE ADAM EXPERIMENT also is "Man will conquer the stars", in the lives of his supposed vic- and of strong on medical background and I Baumeister says. "He can only do tim's daughter, Cato, that late former employee, would not attempt to question Sim- it by colonizing the universe first" the senator's

' Yenkin, who has turned up to aid mons expertise in that area since (Would I lie to you? That is right Cato. Two soldiers, one of whom is he is in the medical business. there on page 113.) However, when he mixes his doctor Shanlon 's uncle, are also important story with Science Fiction he has So Cortney climbs into the sack pawns in this story. Many, many (Mid-air, actually, no weight, crossed into an area about which I you other characters are involved, and have a small knowledge as is fair see) with Dr. John Hicks, who is as each comes to his/her own conclu- game. Baumeister 's assistant and handsome sions about what made the revolu- and all that, and the Adam Experi- tion and about what is really hap- Do you remember Pioneer X? How ment gets underway. pening to their world, they make could you forget it? That was the plans to set things right. one that was launched on 3 March Enter the villains. The aliens 1972 towards the outer reaches car- from Out There determined that Cort- Placed in a world-united fut- rying a plaque on which was en- ney's child will not be bom; "No ure, THE RAVENS OF THE MOON is a graved a roadmap of its origin al- human child shall be bom in the fast-paced little war story with ong with a sketch of a nude man cosmos". good writing throughout. and (incomplete) woman. THE ADAM 34 ************************************ . — , . ' SMALL PRESS NOTES

BY THE EDITOR

Small Press includes fanzines, I guess. But only those with a modicum of quality and something special in them I think might be of interest to the SFR readership. For instance, SF §F 36 has an interview with Chelsea Quinn Yarbro plus a fascinating article, "The New New Picture of the Solar System" by Richard Lupoff which traces sf SHAYOL #1 is dated November 1977 Volume #3 costs $2.50. Send. the through history by means of the and is still available. Also sent order to Bob Frazier, Box 491, Nan- knowledge and facts known at the for review was SHAYOL #2, dated Feb. tucket, MA 02554. times about our sun and planets 1978, still $3., and an even more

. goes now. and moons, and on from beautiful magazine. The art is ab- ft TABU SPANISH OF MEXICO-—Words This zine's name is confusing: solutely superb! And there is a Your Teacher Never Taught You!

SF 8, F 36 tends to make you think new story by Harlan Ellison, "Opium", strikes me as something every writer the '36' is the issues number. which slices you open like a razor should have for reference, for lend- Nope. This is #7, Fall, 1978. And and then heals the wound. Amazing ing a certain kind of scene or dia- it costs 754. From: Jim Purviance, writer logue that extra bit of authentici- 13 West Summit Dr., Redwood City, There is much much more in this ty- CA 94062. english issue. An in-depth interview with The Spanish words with organized by cate- Tim Kirk, a funny "Thick Thews and definitions are FANTASY CROSSROADS #14 has a rav- Bodily Functions, ft Busty Babes" by Phillip Bolick... gory: Anatomy and ishing Stephen Fabian cover done in Relations, Crime, Crooks, SHAYOL is published irregularly Sex, Sex the style of Bok. The result is Jails, and Drugs, Cantinas, by Flight Unlimited, Inc. [a front Cops, Steve's great technical precision Related, General Slang... for fans] at 4324 Belleview, #3, Liquor, and anatomy combined with Bok's Kansas City, MO 64111. Get it. etc., etc. A Goldmine. solid, blocky style and fantasy vis- $2.00 from Valcour 8 Krueger, ion. A superb rendering. POB 4384, No. Park Station, San ft THE CARTOON HISTORY OF THE UNI- I am very impressed with the in- VERSE is attempted (and done well, Diego, CA 92104. terior drawings by John Steward on the whole) by Larry Gonik for macabre, crawly realism. THE WHOLE FANZINE CATALOG #2 is Rip Off Press [$1.25 from POB 14158, ft Stephen Riley is a very compet- San Francisco, CA 94114.] Brian Earl Brown's attempt to give ent artist and contributes heavily access current Gonik is a very good cartoonist. interested people to to this issue. The Kenneth Smith fanzines. He gives all you need to I have only one grunch:the text says, porfolio is impressive. gives idea of 'At the edge of a spiral galaxy know to order and an FANTASY CROSSROADS isn't all called the milky way, a cloud of gas each zine's content or editorial artwork. There is a lot of verse by began to collapse. Pulled together approach. Worthwhile project and Bok, Ganley, Robert E. Howard and by the force of its own gravity, the as issues go by I'm sure Brian's others. Plus major fiction by compressed mass heated up, spinning coverage will broaden to include Charles R. Saunders . . . and a serial . UK, faster and faster. . European, and Australian zines. GHOR, KIN- SLAYER, written chapter- Uhhh. Why does one gas cloud He covers 30 American zines in this by chapter by a series of authors. Sept. 78 issue. collapse and not another? And what Price: 354: , 3/$l. This issue's contributors are Dar- makes it spin? Does a gas cloud from Brian Earl Brown, 16711 Burt rell Schweitzer (Chapt. and A. E. 9) have gravity? Road, #207, Detroit, MI 48219. Van Vogt (Chapt. 10). These read satirical, mockery, jape, and fun. Bob Frazier is trying, but he ft THRUST #11 (with an effective FANTASY CROSSROADS costs per ft $3 still makes mistakes. The Antholo- Gene Day cover) arrived recently, issue, and is not available by sub- of Speculative Poetry is a fine, with its usual chock-a-block line- scription. You buy issue-by-issue. gy workmanlike, informative title. I up of interviews (Theodore Sturgeon, From: Jonathan Bacon, Box 12428, see no reason to fuck it up by titl- Joe Haldeman, C.J. Cherryh) , "My Shawnee Mission, KS 66212. ing the magazine TAofSF #3. Because Column" by Ted White, interesting in small type under that arcane bit articles, reviews and good to fair Also per copy is an equally ft $3 he has to decipher it for the reader artwork. I recommend this one: Doug beautiful offset magazine, SHAYOL #1, with the full title. Dumb. Fratz has a fine sense of what edit- which stuns immediately with a full- Physically the magazine is ac- ing is all about. Send $1.50 to color wraparound cover painting by ceptable, with heavy cream cover and Thrust Publications, POB 746, Adel- R.A. Stine. pages, offset, with some fair art. phi, MD 20783. Inside this issue is work by This issue isn't all poetry; it Michael Bishop, Steve Fabian, Tim contains a short story ("I, Carto- Kirk, Tom Reamy, Barry Smith, Lisa grapher" by Michael Bishop, and an Tuttle, Steven Utley, and Howard interview with Bishop. Waldrop Some of the poetry is good, some IF THE SPACE SHUTTLE CAN'T COME TO This is a professionally prepar- ridiculous and unintentionally funny. SKYLAB, SKYLAB WILL COME TO THE ed, slick-stock, el neato product- SPACE SHUTTLE. ion. 35 ) in the 19o0s and early 70s, includ- MOVING VISIONS ing THE SKULL, TALES FROM THE CRYPT and Robert Bloch's fine THE HOUSE THAT DRIPPED BLOOD (in which not a

drop of blood can be seen) . The SF, Fantasy and Horror Film News director of THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES is Michael Anderson, which depress- es me no end, since he's strictly pedestrian and unimaginative. (He also directed LOGAN'S RUN and the BY BILL WARREN dreadful ORCA.) The special effects are under the direction of John Stears, and the art direction is by Ashton Gorton. This is also an NBC I'm surprised that television of seasons ago, but a new mystery- production. movies aren't junping onto the sci- horror tale set in San Francisco. Among the newly announced ence fiction bandwagon more than REVENGE OF RHE KILLER BEES is a theatrical films is THE AMITYVILLE they are. The money poured into sequel to the B-movie in which the HORROR, starring Rod Steiger and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA (which I'll insects were finally immobilized in directed by Stuart Rosenburg. This comment on in the next issue) would a sports arena. is based on the boring, silly, "True- indicate some interest on the part of Some of these movies, schedul- to-life" best-seller. TV moguls in science fiction but — ing being what it is, will have al- apparently And perhaps they're An updated comedy version of not. ready been shown by the time you right, as the early Nielson ratings DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE, perhaps to read this. on BS GALACTICA have it way down star Warren Beatty and Julie Chris- (#16) in the pack. TV movie fanta- tie, has been announced— as if that sies are about 15% of the program- A pilot film project created hadn't been done before. (Question ming, as per usual. ABC has no by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts has for you readers who thought my typo made- for- TV movies announced this been purchased by Universal; this about Nicholson in LITTLE SHOP OF year, and they used to make at least is "Time Train," in which we are HORRORS was a real error: name me half of them. told "the principl s pick the exact two modern-day comedy versions of year they want to regress to so's JEKYLL § HYDE. A hint: one starred In the animated feature of to change an early life pattern for Jerry Lewis, and the other was Brit- FLASH GORDON on NBC, he will go to better or worse." ish. Don't check any reference sources Warsaw to confront Ming and Hitler. Bill Melendez, who does the . Also on NBC: In HUMAN FEELINGS, "Peanuts" specials and features, is United Artists will release the Nancy Walker, emulating George also doing THE LION, THE WITCH AND Japanese STAR WARS ripoff , MESSAGE Bums plays God flftiHerself here , , THE WARDROBE as an animated special. FROM SPACE. It stars Vic Morrow. to destroy sinful Las Vegas. KISS And in England, a new "Quatermass" WEATHERMAN, about future weather MEETS THE PHANTOM features the rock series starring Sir John Mills, is battles, may star Clint Eastwood, group versus a mad scientist in an currently shooting. I do not know but probably won't. amusement park, who uses robots to for sure if Nigel Kneale is writing Roger Corman has announced yet further his evil ends. The remake the series, but I fervently hope so; another multi-million-dollar pro- of THE THIEF OF BAGDAD will also be in my opinion, he's one of the best ject that if it ever gets filmed on NBC, as will SUMMER OF FEAR in SF writers in the world. which Linda Blair again finds her- will cost much less. This one is The mini- series of THE MARTIAN self confronting the supernatural. WORLD WAR III, and the cast Corman CHRONICLES, from a script by Rich- The network's THE TIME MACHINE is a says he wants is John Wayne, William ard Matheson, is noe filming in new, updated version of the novel, Holden, Peter O'Toole and Richard Europe. The producers are Milton with John Beck as the Time Traveler; Burton. He is reportedly contact- Subotsky and Andrew Donnally, and I imagine this is the pilot for a ing Russia's Mosfilm as a possible the executive producers are Charles new series. coproducer. Fries and Dick Berg. Subotsky was Someone told me that the Phoen- one of the founders of Amicus, who The sound track for ROCKEN- ix worldcon committee foolishly did made a group of good horror movies STEIN has already been recorded, so not accept the premiere screening of NBC's telefeature, A FIRE IN THE SKY, about a comet hitting Phoenix. The production company was anxious to show the film to the convention, the story goes, and indeed held the premiere of the film a few days aft- er the convention in the same audi- torium used for the Hugo awards.

From CBS: DEVIL DOG: THE HOUND OF HELL with Yvette Mimieux and Richard Crenna, as a suburban couple who find their lives threatened by a dog given their children by a devil- worshipping old man. CBS will also be showing a bi- zarre horror tale, THE PLANTS ARE WATCHING, about murderous flowers. SPECTER is not the same as the Gene Roddenberry telefeature of a couple . — : I guess the film will be shot. (However, the rock version of FAUST, with Christopher Lee singing Meph- istopheles, has also been recorded though the film remains unshot.) ROCKENSTEIN features Johnny London in the lead, and was written by Roger Karshner. CLONUS features Tim Donnelly, David Hooks, Peter Graves and Keenan Wynn; the film is directed by Robert S. Fiveson from a script by Ron Smith and Bob Sullivan. THE CLONES, not to be confused with a film of the same name made several years ago, is a TV movie starring Robert Forster, Ray Mil- land and Peter Graves. The script is by John Shaner and A1 Ramrus, who wrote DAMIEN OMEN II. this in March. Herzog is a strange dogs attack Ferrer and Pataki in a Robert Altman's next film, fellow who makes fine movies. Of small cabin is drained of tension probably (unless A PERFECT COUPLE his, I've seen AGUIRRE— THE WRATH by poor editing and photography. is released first) will be QUINTET. OF GOD, THE MYSTERY OF KASPAR HAUS- It’s not quite a terrible film, but This stars Paul Newman, Vittorio ER (also delightfully called EVERY isn't much good. Gassman, Bibi Andersson, Fernando MAN FOR HIMSELF AND GOD AGAINST ALL) KILLER TO- Rey, Brigitte Fossey and Nina Van and STROSZEK. Herzog is a wonder- Like ATTACK OF THE MATOES! folks, that's the ti- Pallandt. In an interview in FILM ful director and I'm tremendously Yes to the exclamation COMMENT, Altman said "It's set glad he's making NOSFERATU. tle, right down point. This was made in 1977 by a probably in the future, or else in group in San Diego, and when it be- the present in a parallel world. . . gins title song It's of no known culture. The in- —with an amusing it look as. if it might amount to ternational cast. . .was chosen to Titles are somewhat a better something. the first select the weird meld in this soci- clue as to what the movie is like In half-hour, however, the filmmakers (whose names ety. . . There is a game called Quin- than the filmmakers wanted. I re- I didn't catch) exhausted all their tet, which is the game of the fu- cently saw two examples of this. ideas, and have to doggedly plod ture... (It's) their art, their war, DRACUIA'S DOG is the better of the film. their literature. It's the only two. their way to the end of the sounds and thing— the only remaining thing in It looks and very cheap Jose Ferrer comes to the U.S. sleazy, like low-budget locally- the culture." He denies any paral- a from Transylvania to warn Michael the basic lels to ROLLERBALL, since "the viol- made TV commercial, but Pataki, a non- vampire descendant mistake was overstatement. ence in the is film not for the (and the last in line) of the Drac- sake The best way to handle subject of violence, or for the sake ulas that a former slave of Count of matter like this — a spoof of monst- those people in the audience who Dracula and his dog have come enjoy watching violence." film — — er movies — is to do it with a very The to the U.S. to turn Pataki into a was in Montreal straight face. The gags should be shot and above the vampire so they'll have a master. Arctic Circle. delivered as if the characters real- (Actually, they don't know about lines, and the plot Altman's films, even when un- ly meant the the dog until fairly late.) satisfactory, are still always the structure and look should emulate That's a preposterous premise work of a truly novel and those of the monster pictures of personal even for a horror movie, but the director, and there's been something the 1950s. But this film tends to film isn't quite as bad as I expect- everything; it's excessive- good about each of them. Among oversell ed. I like the title — it's direct, them: M*A*S*H, NASHVILLE, BUFFALO ly cute over and again, and reaches simple and to the point. The film for gags. Somethines they adopt BILL AND THE INDIANS, 3 WOMEN, is indeed about Dracula' s vampire the straight-faced approach, but THIEVES LIKE US, BREWSTER McCLOUD, dog (s pleas ant -natured Doberman often they do this the scenes THE LONG GOODBYE, A WEDDING, IMAGES, when that was lounging around the theatre comic folderol, as and CALIFORNIA SPLIT. are too full of the I film) day saw the , and he when a conference is held in a tiny vampirizes almost every other dog MICROVAVE MASSACRE, currently room and the group solemnly crawls in the film. The last shot is of shooting, over a table to reach their seats. hardly sounds promising. a glowing- eyed puppy feeding off Nor does NOCTURNA, starring Yvonne That's not bad, but the scene is the corpses of little animals the De Carlo, John Carradine and Broth- ; overburdened with other Funny Stuff, question as to whether it would er Theodore. Laurence Olivier plays and the content is repeated again grow up to be a full-size vampire Van Helsing in a new version and again, as if we didn't get it of dog, or remain a little bitty puppy DRACULA. the first time. of not great harm, did occurr to me. Also, there's no "explanation" As far as I'm concerned, the (Joe Dante has suggested the film for the tomatoes turning killer, and big news is that German director should be called PUPPIES FROM HELL.) just what they do to people is never Werner Herzog, who made some of the The film is shamefully padded; clear. There is a funny scene that best films I've seen in the last there are many shots of the charact- at least had some of the right ideas couple of years, is filming a remake ers driving aimlessly around, glar- a tomato the size of a watermelon, of NOSFERATU, which was illegally ing at the ominous forest. And carefully chained down, is being some scenes seem almost designed to based on DRACULA (the book) . This examined by a soverfaced scientist; stars the bizarre but magnificent minimize tension. A well- conceived in a voice laden with doom, he in- Klaus Kinski, as well as Bruno sequence in which a pack of vampire forms the hero that the jig may be Gerz. Fox is planning to release 37 up for humanity, for the huge to- . mato before them is, "God save us Carpenter has wasted a great title The film is like a medieval all, a cherry tomato." for a horror movie. Maybe Peter S. ballad, and owes a great deal to The movie is based on a clever Beagle's wonderful original script THE SEVENTH SEAL, surely one of the idea, but the people who made it TRICK OR TREAT can be filmed some- most influential films. It's very lacked the talent and courage to day. slow, however, and only the most bring it off; they didn't really But HALLOWEEN is not without dedicated filmgoer will find it en- know what they were doing. its merits. It's quite eerie some tertaining. I t isn't bad, it's of the tine, the midwest locale is just made in a mode that Americans Another film written by some- well-recreated in South Pasadena, usually don't enjoy. one who didn't know what he was do- and the acting is good, but some of PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK is di- ing is HALLCWEEN; fortunately the the shocks are predictable. Tension rected by Peter Weiss, who also di- director comes as near to saving builds up tremendously by the end rected the impressive THE LAST WAVE, the film as seems humanly possible. of the film; since there now have which I reported on earlier. This However, the director and writer been plenty of pictures in which may be better; it's less obscure are the same person, John Carpenter. the bad guys win, the young heroine and perhaps Weiss was more sure of He also directed the non- fantastic (Jamie Lee Curtis) might just get what he was getting at. However, I and boring ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13, killed. The actual ending is a somewhat prefer THE LAST WAVE, I and directed and co-wrote DARK STAR; foolish fantasy, but there have been suppose simply because I prefer more he also co-wrote EYES OF LAURA MARS. good shocks and excitement before overt fantasies. He's got a great deal of promise as that. HANGING ROCK is set is 1900 Aus- a director, but his writing is so tralia, and is about the disappear- turned- in on movies that it has ut- I'd sure as hell like to see ance of three girls and their teach- terly no relationship to real life Carpenter handle a script by some- er during an outing to the rock of on any level. one else for a change. He's just the title. This is apparently bas- In his movies, people behave too involved in movies (one cop is ed on a true story, and has numerous in ways calculated to further the named Lee Brackett) to write them; elements that seem to confirm this. plot, not realistically at all. Now instead of using elements from the movies he loves to bolster and in- It's a beautiful film, one of the it's perfectly true that in all mo- form his own views about the world, best-looking movies ever made, and vies, that's what really happens: as Truffaut, Lucas, Scorsese and I loved it. the characters are manipulated by It's slow, not paced like Amer- the writer. But it should never ican films are, but that was no look like that's what's happening. barrier to my enjoyment. There are Behavior of the characters should haunting hints of fantasy throughout be consistent and believable; they the film, and the musical score shouldn't do stupid things that played on a wood flute is wonder- look like their only motivation is ful. The film reached inside me; I to make the scene come out right. was shaking with emotion at the end, This happens throughout HALLOWEEN. totally caught up in the story and A girl is strangled with a phone characters. Weiss really has my cord; she does nothing at all to number and I'll never miss a film fight back, though she could, be- Jig S cause this would introduce a comli- I loved PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK cation that Carpenter wanted to the first moments, on Valen- avoid. from tines Day, as the girls (around 12- The killer is an escaped luna- flutter about, talking of the tic; as a child on Halloween years 15) valentines and the outing. Yet before, he had murdered his older there's a mysterious, almost sinist- sister, apparently because she had others do. Carpenter instead has er undercurrent to many of these sex with her boyfriend, though this no apparent views about the real early scenes. is unclear. As an adult, he murd- world he never leaves the movie The film falls off somewhat ers without any apparent motivation theatre. MARS, Like EYES OF LAURA after the recovery of one of the at all. Hell, even the craziest HALLOWEEN is an American imitation missing girls (she never recalls killers are working with some kind of Italian psycho-thrillers which or reveals- --what happened), but of internal logic. are already — imitations of American comes back powerfully at the end. Carpenter seems to have recog- films. Carpenter is almost liter- One scene, in which the recovered nized that he provided no realistic ally too far from real life —which girl visits some of her schoolmates basis for the killer's motivations; is a shame, because he's got talent in the gym, is badly misjudged, but at one point, he has psychiatrist LEONORA, directed by Juan Bunu- it doesn't hurt the overall film. Donald Pleasance (in an excellent el, the son of Luis, is a slow, PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK seems performance) say that he looked in- handsome, moody drama set in the now scheduled for some American to the boy's eyes and saw Eeevil. I Middle Ages. Michel Piccoli's release. If your taste runs to ex- hardly consider that a learned psy- beautiful wife Liv Ulmann dies and plicitly worked- out and resolved chiatric diagnosis, but it sure as he immediately marries a serf's plots and lots of action, avoid it; hell takes the killer and Carpent- — daughter. Ten years later, his otherwise, I think you'll like it. er off the hook as far as logical, — longing for Ulmann has become so if insane, behavior goes. I'm on a lot safer ground re- great that he employs black magic The movie never exploits the commending 1HE BOYS FRCM BRAZIL. to bring her back to life, then fact that it's taking place Hal- Even though by now I would imagine on murders his younger wife when she loween; everyone knows the basis of the none of the trappings of won't leave his castle. the holiday are used to any effect plot, I can't count on that so I At first, Piccoli and Ulmann whatsoever. won't give it away. I assure you A couple of kids go by are happy, but eventually she be- on the street dressed that it is science fiction. in costumes, gins killing children for susten- there's a few jack-o- lanterns, and A young American Jewish kid is ance (it isn't clear if she vampir- some (cleverly- in Paraguay spying on some old Naz- scary movies on TV izes or devours them) used clips from THE THING and FOR- is, and he tape-records a meeting 38 BIDDEN PLANET), but that's it. conducted by Dr. Josef Mengele .;; s (Gregory Peck, no less) in which an uphill fight getting it to the tion. He hired the late John Hub- the Nazi scientist announces that fight audiences. It's not raunchy, ley to direct, but after a year of the future of the Aryan race will like FRITZ THE CAT and WIZARDS, so continuing disagreements, he was be assured if a series of murders those who think an adult animated forced to fire Hubley and begin are carried out. His followers film equals "smut" are going to be anew, with all-new character designs must kill 94 65-year-old men scat- turned away; it's not trendy and and voices. (Only two voices were tered all over Europe and North faddish, so those who were turned retained of the original vocal cast.) America. These men are all petty on by YELLOW SUBMARINE and the turg- Rosen himself took over direction, functionaries and all have young id METAMORPHOSES will probably not as well as script and producer func- wives. None are Jewish. find much to their liking. tions; he'd never directed a cartoon out, the evesdropper is before, and apparently Found It's intelligent, well-written, his unortho- killed, but by then he's managed dox methods brought some disagree- touching, amusing, exciting and to get word to an old Nazi fighter, ments. deeply moving. It is for children, Liebermann (Laurence Olivier) who , in the sense that they will like it But it was eventually made, lives in Vienna and seems to think very much, but it is not made spec- after about $5 million dollars in he may be senile. ifically for them. It is primarily cost and over four years of produc- The film deals with Mengele's for adults, but how to lure them tion. The final credits: written, efforts to carry out his insane into the theatre seems to me to be produced and directed by Martin plan, while Liebermann tries to a genuinely serious problem. The Rosen; edited by Terry Rawlings; find out — then prevent—what's novel's fame will help; I hope Av- music by Angela Morley; animation going on. What is going on is co uses a subdued ad campaign, em- director, Tony Guy; animation basically absurd, but director phasizing the basic realism of the supervisor, Philip Duncan. Hubley' Franklin Schaffher (PATTON) brings story. name doesn't appear anywhere, but I such a sense of conviction and such a swift pace that you aren't real- ly aware of the foolishness of the premise until the film quietly ends You'll hear plenty of comments that Peck is miscast, for this is his first truly villainous role. I thought he was quite satisfactory, if a little studied (he clearly has many thoughtfully planned ideas for playing old men: dyed hair, a stiff bearing, shriveled eyes), and far from being miscast, I found this role to be similar to others he's played in the past. A tradi- tional Peck character is one who is Richard Adams ' story about hero- wouldn't be surprised to learn that sure of himself against strong, odds ic rabbits in the English country- the p re -credit sequence, the legend he has some doubts, but his alleg- side seemed at first to be a mira- of El-Ahrairah, was influenced by iance to a higher power buoys him, cle: a serious, richly- detailed sto- him. and he pursues his lonely path to ry about animals never before treat- the end. That's most of his main ed on such a scale or with such hu- The novel was a major achieve- parts, including TO KILL A MOCKING- manity and insight. It was never film is somewhat BIRD, his finest performance, and ment. That the thought of as a "mere" children's than the novel is almost solely it's what he does here. less novel but was instead recognized as because themes like this have been Of course Olivier is marvelous , a work for adults; most didn't even before. But he's a realistic old man who is nev- treated in animation know that it was an ellegory of the magnifi- er merely loveable, who feels per- the film is, by the end, British effort at ridding Europe cent. It's moving and warm, but haps he's out of place in the mod- of the Nazis. I certainly didn't. not profound, which the novel almost em world, but who springs back to The very special flavor of the nov- action when needed. It's a warm, was. It's the best animated car- seemed impossible capture in perfect performance. He's still el to toon ever made in England, but any other medium, especially film; the the best. that's faint praise, because after all, reading about bunny rab- other feature any quality The film is lots of fun, though only of bits battling, killing and travel- made there was ANIMAL FARM. The ultimately silly; go see it. ing in search of a new home, form- film of WATERSHIP DCWN is sinple in ing off alliances and having harrow- construction and not really a para- ing adventures seemed to be some- ble; it has the limitations that thing best suited to the printed are inherent in the material, but WATERSHIP DOWN page. Literalizing something so it overcomes most of these. The film is fine. It is both fragile would make it seem absurd, We are accustomed to seeing understanding concerning wild ani- many thought. animated animals do cute little mals and it is deeply human and , But the book was bought for things to mostly comic ends. So wise. Most of the quality stems filming by a well-intentioned, very the opening sequence in WATERSHIP from the original story; Richard Ad- serious filmmaker, Martin Rosen. DCWN (the title is never explained, ams has been brought to the screen in (His only other credit I know of was the real Watership Down is used necessarily truncated form but with but as co-producer of WOMEN IN LOVE.) as a basis for the design) is per- otherwise great fidelity. He Rosen at first considered puppets, haps misjudged. It's the story of should be proud. It is not as stop-motion animation, live rabbits how the rabbits' god, Frith the sun, stunning as it might have been, and even men in rabbit suits, but gives El-Ahrairah, the arrogant given more time and greater artists, dropped all that and returned to prince of rabbits, enemies to kill but it is still a very special film. his first impulse, cartoon anima- him but also the cleverness and Avco-Embassy is releasing it in speed to outwit them. This is done this country, and they might have 39 in an almost African-primitive art . . . . style; before their conversion to overdone and they look like less ac- ermore, is almost unintellible at enemies, the other animals look like ceptably realistic rabbits than car- times. Using a harsh, cawing voice cookies. This gets the film off to toon characters. plus what seems to be a Swedish ac- a somewhat misleading start, but cent may have been a mistake. Also, The stoiyline, as I have said, the realistic scenes that follow there's an overlong sequence in has been vastly compressed, with form a different basis almost im- which Fiver searches for the wound- many characters and incidents re- mediately. ed Hazel, over which a forgettable vised or eliminated. There are now song sung by Art Garfunkle intrudes. Nonetheless, when Hazel and his three principal movements: the first followers first threaten to kill escape culminating in the crossing In a live-action feature it is another rabbit it comes as a dis- of a river on a raft; the entrance easy to single outthe elements of tinct shock, for the first scenes to and escape from the man- fed war- the film to praise: the camerawork, seem almost comic, but now we real- ren; and the final freeing of some the direction, the set design, the ize that this is, in the context of of Woundwort's imprisoned subjects acting, the special effects and so this film, indeed possible. And and what follows. The last section forth are easily discerned from before the film is over there are is not only the longest and best in within the whole. But an animated deaths among the rabbits. But sig- the film— the movie continually cartoon is much more of a piece; in nificantly, no violent deaths occur improves as it progresses, much as a real sense it looks like it was to any of Hazel's followers. Big- did the novel —but it could stand all done by one person. That's the wig coires near to death in the on its own as a short subject. way it should be. I can, however, snare, and bleeds profusely, but praise the score of Sngela Morley, The vocal characterizations are he does not die. Hazel's moving for it is evocative, supportive, largely excellent; as Hazel, John death at the end is from old age; and largely unobtrusive. Hurt (replacing Julian Glover) uses he simply shudders and dies. In no affectations whatsoever he I think that despite a few de- the novel death did strike among — doesn't try to sound rabbity. The fects, and the inevitable faint Hazel's people, but realizing that character is so fully realized that disappointment a person feels on for all his efforts at making an his death at the end is deeply mov- seeing the film version, however animated cartoon for adults as well ing and yet fully appropriate. Un- good, of an especially well- liked as children, the main audience will like Nfoses, he did live to reach book, the film is excellent and I still be kids, Martin Rosen soft- his promised land. I would have hope it makes a lot of money. But pedaled the unpleasantness in the liked to see a few more scenes at I doubt that it will, because seri- novel the end after the General's defeat. ous animated films are only just Because of the compression from The other main characters: Fiver, beginning to find a market. It's the novel, some scenes are confus- Blackberry, Bigwig and the others going to be a very tricky job mak- ing. Why Hazel believes Fiver and simply vanish because of time limi- ing the film appealing to the right wants to leave the old warren and tations . audience how they manage to recruit other Rabbits are social creatures ************************************ rabbits are unclear. The action with a wide variety of complex in-; occasionally moves in fits and stincts and behavior patterns so starts, but the story steadily im- ALIEN THOUGHTS CONT. FROM P.13 that the film is credible at all proves as it goes. The movement of times; with perhaps the exception the rabbits is especially convinc- of befriending Kehaar the gull (Zero ing; real rabbity actions are clev- Mostell's voice), nothing the rab- ' It might have made a difference erly interpolated to be used for bits do in the film is beyond the if this book were clearly marked as characterization. capability of the real animals. the third in a series that share The art style is like that of a Rabbits may not be intelligent, but characters and plot incidents; fine children's book; the back- it is easy in this context to be- then again, maybe it wouldn't; then grounds frequently reminded me of lieve they are. again, what the hell. Anyway, for the cover illustrations for Ballan- general information, UNDER A CAL- A few sequences stand out as tine's "Adult- series. The CULATING STAR winds up a story that Fantasy" being especially well done; the rabbits are cleverly designed- to starts with STARBRAT and continues climax is very exciting and well- seem believably rabbity and still with STARDRIFT (or NAIL DOWN THE timed, and Holly's memory of the have distinction in human terms to STARS, if you read it in hardcover.) destruction of the old warren is Now make them acceptable as individual frightening everyone knows. characters. Size, movement and ani- 'One bit of very good news*: malistic gestures are used well Those three books, plus my last ad- overall, but occasionally as in the However, Kehaar 's sequences, ult sf novel, FROSTWORLD AND DREAM- case of the seemingly homosexual though amusing, are not as sweeping FIRE, are all going to be published Cowslip, the man- fed rabbit, and the or involving as they might be; Mos- in England this year and next year. too-ugly General Woundwort, this is tel's vocal characterization, furth- Sidgwick and Jackson are doing UN- DER A CALCULATING STAR and FROST- WORLD AND DREAMFIRE in hardback; New English Library are doing those LETS SEE.. two, plus STARBRAT and STARDRIFT, in paperback. So before very long I will be all over England, like smog. 'Gordon Dickson's explanation of his thoughts on a Neo-Puritan 6oiees revolution were fascinating. I've been counting the straws in the wind, and it seems to me that we'll not only have the swingback, but n perhaps have it sooner, and strong- 40 j er, than any of us like to think. . ' ' . ' ' . '

For openers, let's see who gets nom- much time as teaching did. I've let ( (Orson Scott Card will be inated in 1980. the deadline pass on a new novel doing a column starting next issue about the humanoids — working tit- in which he reviews/appreciates 'That should give everyone plen- le, TEN TRILLION WISE MACHINES -- those stories in the magazines ty to worry about. and have just agree to write a new he thinks are superior. A better ********* Legion of Space novel for Pocket idea, I think, than trying to men- Books tion or encapsulate all the sto- *'Very good for me anyway. Others , ries in a given issue or issues. may be able to take it casually. 'Which is all rewarding. Though ( (T encourage book reviewers to I do miss students and classes, with be brief, but they always seem to the combined obligation and oppor- like STARBRAT (which have good reasons for longer com- ((I didn’t you tunity to read good literature and mentaries . ) ) no doubt recall I reviewed a few then to lead some kind of revealing UNDER CALCULATING years ago ) or A discussion of it, I'm sure I'm go- STAR I don’t much like Juven- because ing to be a lot happier in retire- iles. I recognize the need for very ment than most retired people I selective realism in that category, know -- not many people can retire the underlying ft LETTER FROM RON GOULART but I tend to refect to science fiction. premise: Children must be protected Sept. 1978 from the "awful" facts of life (not ( (Thanks for writing. Jack, and fust sex facts of life) to preserve ' In re the letter you tossed the very good news that a new their precious innocence and to keep for into #27 of SFR. Humanoids novel is coming, and a them "uncorrupted" for as long as Legion Space novel. I still 'Gad, sir! possible of have vivid memories of the impact ((But I'm happy for your success ' I am not now nor never have WITH FOLDED HANDS AND in having your books published in been Rod Gray. SEARCHING MIND had on me way back England; any man who can take the when. 'I have my code after all, and bad reviews I’ve given your work and )) not writing about somebody called still keep on subscribing is a very the Lady from LUST is high on the secure, mature person.)) list 'I've already refuted this sug- gestion in a couple of fanzines al- ft LETTER FROM CHARLES SHEFFIELD ready. Is it going to haunt me for- Sept. 1978 ft LETTER FROM STEVE PERRY ever? Will it be believed by the same think is Sept. 1978 people who Jack Vance 'Your comment in "The Human Hot- a penname of Henry Kuttner? line" of SFR #27 has a minor error 'E.J. Gold (son of H.L. Gold) 'Also. I have never written as in it. I serve as First Vice Pres- and his wife Cybele (she's the edi- ident of the American Astronautical Jose Silvera, Max Kearny, Ben Jol- tor) have started a new magazine, Society, not the American Astronom- son or John Easy. These are all WINGS, a bi-monthly dedicated to ical Society. It's not important names of characters in my books. "Consciousness, Science arid the to me, but perhaps the American As- 'Why Arts". They're looking for short do you listen to people tronomical Society might be sensi- fiction. who can't tell the authors from tive about the difference. their characters? 'Cybele wants quality SF -- but ' In a month the information 'I'll to you'd better try to get a copy of be happy send you a will need updating anyway, because the magazine to see where they're complete list of all my pennames. I will then be President of the AAS. to ask. at, first. That address is: You have but More to the point, perhaps, is the 'WINGS POB 370 fact that that position, like my 'By the way, there never was a Robeson. Nevada City, CA 95959' SF writing, is an avocation. The Kenneth That always was work that takes most of my time, a house name. and earns my living, is as a Vice President of Earth Satellite Corpor- ( (Apologies. Thanks for writing to ation, and it is in that role that correct misinformation. I tend to LETTER FROM JACK PRES, WILLIAMSON, I am best described. trust bibliographic info sent in by SCIENCE FICTION WRITERS OF AMERICA fans, but... From now on I’ll re- 'As usual. Issue #27 was un-put- Sept. 27, 1978 quire chapter and verse. And Lee downable, and Alexis Gilliland es- Smith has some explaining to do.)) pecially is sick in the head in just 'This is mainly to say that I the way that I am -- his cartoons still appreciate SCIENCE FICTION RE- are great. How about some coverage VIEW. (I'm delighted with the read- of the magazines soon? I'd rather able type-size and fine paper in see that than interviews, which #27, as well as with the contents.) are a 50-50 proposition. And how ff LETTER FROM GIL LAMONT 'Every time I get a new issue, about limiting Book Reviews to a Sept. 1978 I spend more time with it than I single column each? (Each book, I feel that I really have, and feel mean, not each issue!) Longer re- 'Just a quick note after an e- an impulse to write an enthusiastic views invariably get off the point ven quicker perusal of the new SFR. loc -- but, like a lot of other of the book, and onto. other review- Robert Whitaker is not quite cor- . good resolutions, that seldom or ers ' hobby-horses rect on his Ted Sturgeon/Ellery Qu- never gets carried through. een info. THE PLAYER ON THE OTHER correction in re 'I've been retired from teach- ( (Thanks for the SIDE was published in paperback in your officership in the American ing more than a year, and I had hop- 1965 by Pocket Books; the Ballan- Astrological Society. We try to ed to have an abundance of time for tine edition was more like 19)75. accurate and reliable. all that didn't get done before. be I, too, have heard the rumor that But SFWA seems to take up nearly as 41 Avram Davidson wrote one or two El- s lery Queens, and Jack Vance is also # LETTER FROM JOHN STRICKLAND tt LETTER FROM HERITAGE PRESS, INC. rumored to have done a few. Seeing Sept., 1978 DSC '78 REPORT as how Paul Fairman's obituary cred- ited him with having written Ellery 'By now, you've seen BATTLESTAR 'The Phoenix Award was given to Queen's A STUDY IN TERROR, it makes GALACTICA and so do not need a re- Karl Edward Wagner, and the Rebel one wonder just how many of the nov- view from Canada, but the movie ver- Award to Don Markstein. Also at the els were written by other people. sion differed from the TV version banquet, the arts awards were pre- No Sturgeon bibliography is complete in a couple of ways, and I thought sented by one of the judges, George without mentioning the three wes- you might like to know the differen- Scithers. Other judges were Vin- terns : THE KING AND FOUR QUEENS, ces : cent DiFate, Michael Goodwin, and THE RARE BREED (both novelizations Sandra Meisel (no judges were al- ' from movies), and STURGEON'S WEST 1 . The TV version was about a lowed to win awards) . The arts (a collection of western stories, half hour longer than the movie. awards were given as follows: some with Don Ward, published only This makes the TV version the more

in hardcover). Perhaps I'm merely preferable, as it detailed the char- BEST ASTRONOMICAL PAINTING : being retentive. acters more completely, and filled Winner: Green Hills of Earth by in a lot of background. For examp- Kelly Freas 'Lee Smith is close on the Ron le, we didn't know that Adama was Runner Up: Moon of Mutiny by Dean Goulart info, but is in error regard- holding his pilots in reserve when Ellis ing Kenneth Robeson being "a real the Cylons were planning to trap writer in the 30s who wrote the or- BEST SCIENCE FICTION : the refugees during the awards cere- iginal Avenger novels". Kenneth Ro- Winner: DRAGONFLIGHT by Michael mony, until the very last minute. beson was of course a house pseudo- Whelan nym of Street and Smith, mostly us- '2. In the movie, John Collicos Runner Up: ALL FLESH IS GRASS by ed by Lester Dent for Doc Savage. was killed by the Cylons for his Richard Powers So far as I know the original Aveng- failure to capture Lome Green and BEST HUMOR : er novels were written in the main company. Winner: SHIP OF FOOLS by Bob Maurus by Paul Ernst. Of the Goulart Av- '3. In the movie, Starbuck and ANOTHER FINE MYTH by enger novels, THE CARTOON CRIMES Runner Up: the "Social Leader" were in fact Kelly Freas tells all in a cipher message. sans clothing when discovered by BEST FANTASY : 'Now that we know Ron Goulart Adama' s daughter in the fighter Bay. Winner^ Endpapers from SOWERS OF wrote #s 2 and 3 of Howard Lee's In the TV version, they were fully THUNDER* by Roy G. Krenkel KUNG FU novels, and Barry Malzberg clothed and engaged in that quaint Runner Up: STORMBRINGER by Michael wrote the first, who wrote number pre-pubescent pastime called "neck- Whelan 4? After all, isn't that what bib- ing" . Thus we become the victims of liography is all about, tracking prime-time programming.' 'A special award was given to down the writers behind these elus- Kelly and Polly Freas for their un- ive pen names? dying support and help with the ((Thanks for the "movie" info on 1978 DSC and was etched: To Polly 'Hmm. Pseudonyms are probably GALACTICA. I've about given up on and Kelly Freas -- Who Can Do Any- worth an entire Trivia Bowl to the TV series. The only way the thing. ' themselves... if the judges can ag- writers seem able to start an epi- ree on an answer.'' sode is to have one or more of the soout/fighters disobey orders, ig- nore basic military procedures, and do something stupid that would in any military force in the world re- # LETTER FROM DARRELL SCHWEITZER LIEN or summary court # LETTER FROM DENNIS sult in dismissal Sept. 16, 1978 martial. And I note that Lome Sept. 1978 Green is being reduced to hand- ' I gather the Moorcock letter wringing and shorter and shorter in #27 is written in response to my 'Mark Mansell's statement that scenes. letter in #25, not that in #26, in BLOOD! is the "first record to be ( (And another thing John Colli- which I admitted some of the things nominated in the dramatic category" sitting up on that pedestal cos I said about UNEARTH were tactless. for a Hugo is, of course, flatly he sleep, eat, and throne— does I have nothing against UNEARTH. If wrong. Both BLOWS AGAINST THE EM- defecate up there? Is. that throne they can bring new writers in, more PIRE (sounds a bit like a Geis por- actually a toilet? power to them. I read the magazine no novel) and DON'T CRUSH THAT ((I suspect I've seen all there I find the features interesting. DWARF, HAND ME THE PLIERS (by Jef- is to see from GALACTICA. In last Some of the fiction is quite good, ferson Starship and the Firesign Sunday 's episode we were treated to which makes me wonder why it wasn't Theatre, respectively) were nomin- a "western" .. .and STAR TREK did- it sent to big magazines first. ated for a 1971 Hugo, and I THINK first. Then SPACE :1999 did it... and WE'RE ALL BOZOS ON THIS BUS, by 'It seems to me that unless a the has a particular Firesign Theatre again, for a ( ( GALACTICA is foundering already writer loyalty to 1972 Hugo. This last finished fifth on the shoals of its writers ' lack an editor (i.e. the editor discov- and last; my vague memory of the of imagination and its producer' ered him, as John Campbell did for a 1971 awards is that DWARF finished willingness to allow gross errors so many) , he or she will submit second to No Award. (Also, PRES- of science and plausibility in the story to the highest paying maga- ERVATION by the Kinks was nominat- series. The pattern of Juvenile zine first, assuming that magazine ed (but not short-listed) for a Crap is set and the show will sink observes basic courtesies, pays on 1974 Nebula, and the same thing hap- slowly in the ratinqs until cancel- time, and otherwise behaves itself. pened to five albums for the 1975 led.)) I don't think many people in our Nebula and two for the 1976 Nebula, field mind appearing in PLAYBOY, except that one of the last — HAR- where they get as much for a short LAN! HARLAN ELLISON READS HARLAN story as many people get for a nov- ELLISON -- did make the final bal- el. Sometimes a lot more. Ultim- lot.) ' 42 ately the work stands on its own ,

AVAILABLE NOW: $5.00 POSTPAID

fiction a science RICHARD £ GE/S

BY ^ CO^ *> IN™* MW*™*

THE WRAPAROUND an. IT SHOWS

ORDER FROM: SCIENCE FICTION REVIEW, P.O.B. 1M08, PORTLAND, OR 97211 , ' merit, not where it appeared, and 'By the way, another one of our # LETTER FROM RICH BARTUCCI, D,0, if a short story is to have any life discoveries, Barry Longyear, has July 28, 1978 at all, it will be reprinted from sold enough to just us to make a the original source, and read mostly living, and this is before his first 'I read Arne C. Eastman's letter in reprints (anthologies and one story has even been published! Vir- in SFR #26 and paused to shudder. author collections), and the orig- tually all of them are novelets, That line of his -- "If I could on- inal source won't count. If it is and there are something like nine ly bypass the physicians' total ac- not reprinted, nothing counts. of them so far. If you figure that cess to the USP me and my PDR and against what we pay, you'll see 'ASIMOV'S buys more than first out my Merck manual would do us fine." what I mean. Who says short fiction North American serial rights (al- Omigawd... The voice of blissful, is no longer a commercial proposi- though this is negotiable) and pays deadly ignorance, of cocksure ar- tion? Longyear clearly has quite for them. Lately we've come up rogance, of... Aw, what the fuck a career ahead of him. with a series of very thin pamphlet am I worried about; they'll either reprints, about 10,000 words per 'I just sold my fantasy novel, bring him in DOA or he'll kill some- volume, to be distributed through THE WHITE ISLE to Borgo Press. It body else and that'll be that. I supermarkets. This in addition to will be published in a couple years. just hope that I 'm not the doc who the Dale Books alphabetical series, I will make less than one would get has to revive the poor slob should and the new Davis ISAAC ASIMOV's SF for a short story in PLAYBOY, but he be wheeled into the ER someday. ANTHOLOGY, which is rather like then there are not many markets for The job'll be long, sloppy and prob- what they do for ELLERY QUEEN'S short fantasy novels (about 50,000) ably pointless; he'll just go out once a year. Every time the story which are not derivative of either and do it again. is reprinted, the author is paid a- Howard or Tolkein. I wrote the 'To tackle his "negative exper- gain. When artwork is re-used, the thing to see if I could write a nov- iences" point by point would do artist is paid again. (And he got I had never gotten beyond el (as nothing to convince Mr. Eastman, his original back.) So you can make 10,000 words before) and if I could but it might help other readers a lot more than what you got from sell it. I had a great fear of hav- who feel that the sum total of mat- the initial sale, and this does not ing wasted all that time, and this eria medica is contained in the PDR, inhibit your use of the same story discouraged me from trying again un- that big book we in the trade refer in a collection or a Best of the til the first attempt sold. Now I to as "The Sears Catalog of Pharma- Year Anthology. may consider another one, although cology". essentially a 'All authors get to proofread I still seem to be 'First, hemorrhoids often do their own work. Galleys are sent short story writer, most comfortable 6000 words . clear up spontaneously. The sur- out from New York as soon as the at about geon Eastman may have spoken to story is set in type. As for the might have been overeager. The author choosing the illustrator, Book (and I don't mean the PDR) this just isn't possible with a fre- stipulates that emolients and stool quent magazine. The editor has to # LETTER FROM FRED PATTEN softeners and sitz baths should be find an illustrator who (1) is cap- July, 1978 tried first; surgeons don't always able (2) is willing and not overly stick with such conservative ap- committed elsewhere (3) is reliable; 'STAR WARS opened in Japan last proaches. Eastman might have done You have no idea how things can be month, and it seems to have had the better if he'd visited a GP or one screwed up if an artist doesn't traumatic effect that was predicted, of the MD's "Family Practitioners". deliver on time. Unillustrated back- judging by the book and magazine log is tied up, and cannot be used spinoffs that are just now reaching 'Second, yogurt, if a live cul- as issues are being made up. the Los Angeles newsstands. Some ture, might well have put paid to of these are decidedly weird, espec- Mr. Eastman's wife's Trichomonis 'Also I might mention that re- ially the pornographic comic book infection -- but I'd like to see

sponse time is very fast . Many versions. Here are some sample how yogurt could clear up the Trich-

manuscripts are in and out the photocopies , ranging from kids ' ed- omonis urethritis h£ probably had. same day, and some are bought almost itions to one of the softer-core The condition's silent in males, that fast, although something which depictions from a mens' magazine. frequently, and it's possible for is not an obvious must, on which (There are considerably harder-core hubby to re-infect his chatelaine. there are several opinions, may take works. Craig Miller, who works for 'Third, a dermatitis (which is a week or two. George Lucas' publicity department, what I assume he had when they of- says that the office went into cul- 'These are basic courtesies fered him" a topical corticosteroid ture shock when they received the which I would expect from any maga- cream or ointment) can frequently file copies the Japanese publisher zine. In my experience ANALOG is be due to skin contact with irrit- sent them.) Some of the juvenile exemplary. FfjSF is slow on response ants (contact dermatitis), drug re- books are about 1/3 STAR WARS and sometimes, but no real problem. actions (erythema multiforme is an 2/3 other SF movies, including (If you write to Ferman asking example) or emotional instability lots of color reproductions of stills , where the story is you sent three planus, f ’rinstance) . With and posters from U.S. and Japanese (lichen months before, he will respond.) conditions judicious applica- "sci-fi" epics. One illustrated these tions of "tincture of time" can be ' As for encouraging new authors checklist of robots and/or artific- best, but topical anti-inflammatory the current ASIMOV'S (Sept- Oct) has ial beings has most of what you'd agents (like corticosteroids) are four first sales in it, and one of expect — Robby from FORBIDDEN often used to reduce the pain and them is featured on the cover with PLANET, Gort from THE DAY THE EARTH itching. Systemic antipruritics a Michael Whalen painting. You STOOD STILL, the Daleks from DR. and tranquilizers (hydroxyzine is can't get more encouraging than WHO, the Yul Brynner gunslinger handy) are also commonly used. that. (Four debuts in a single is- from WESTWORLD, HOLMES AND YOYO -- Eastman might have disposed of the sue is actually down from our re- but also the Tin Woodman from the cord of seven in the March-April WIZARD OF OZ and Disney's PINOCCHIO. issue.) Of those in the It's certainly a change from the us- current is- ALIEN THOUGHTS CONTINUED ON P. 63 sue, I'd say Anne Lear is the most ual newsstand fare. ' promising. A real find. 44 .

cords at the estate-tree of his doc- ONE tor. Vik sent Punia back to the pal- ace trees and set off alone to in- IMMORTAL vestigate. He found two of Defense Minister Quebo 's agents torturing the doctor for information about him. MAN He killed the two and regretfully killed the doctor. He returned home unseen. Another alarm told him oth- er agents were investigating his A SCIENCE FICTION NOVEL faked birth records in Nubia. Obviously Emperor Ndola, dying BY RICHARD E. GEIS of cancer, hopes that "Masil" is the immortal man—and can be made to give up the secret.

The following day in the gargan- tuan palace trees Vik had a meeting with Ndola and Quebo. Ndola offered Vik a visit by his Chinese girl who specialized in mouth love. On the way home that afternoon, Vik and his party were attacked by Synopsis disguised agents and Vik was deliber- VIK KUNZAR, the immortal man , has ately wounded in the thigh. lived through the horrible Bio-War He made it to his huge tree est- of 2205 that devastated America, ate but was confined to bed. The Europe, and most of Asia. Emperor's private doctor arrived and He was a king for generations helped treat the wound while covertly in the savagery and ruins of Europe, testing Vik for signs of his true as a new ice-age swiftly brought age. terrible cold and forced the new The Chines girl arrived later barbarians southward. . . and also in her fashion tested him. Moving ahead of the human tide, Finally, she paralyzed him by inject- in the 27th century, he triggered ing a drug hidden in a hollow tooth. one last resurgence of science and Signalled by the girl, the army technology in Egypt and caused to attacked Vik 's estate and took him be planted a new, wondrous ecology prisoner. of genetically altered and mutated He awakened in the army prison on plants and animals in the heart of the palace grounds. He was visited Africa, in the Congo by Defense Minister Quebo and the When the white- savages finally doctor and three guards. overran Egypt, Vik became a black Using self-hypnosis, Vik lulled and journeyed south to live in his them into thinking him still paralyz- new world. ed. At the right moment he attack- Now, 500 years later, in the ed, killed the guards, and by holding 32nd century, the whites are press- Quebo and the doctor hostage, escaped ing south from the Sahara, seeking unobserved into the underground sewer their god a man they call Kun-Zar, vines that serve the city giant whom legend says is immortal and of whom their priests say will be their trees. king of kings again and make them In the huge main sewer vine Vik forever the favored people on Earth. encountered a young man and woman who Vik has changed as the centuries were fugitives hiding in the sewer have He now ever slipped past. is system. He took their boat and more danger and devoted to sex and forced the girl, Consi, to accompany the subtle manipulation people of him on the trip down-sewer to the events. and Congo river. Yet, for all of his self-indulg- She cooperated and helped him he compulsion to main- ence, has a get past clusters of other criminals tain learning and culture, to keep and fugitives who live in the main extinguished. civilisation from being sewer.

As ONE IMMORTAL MAN began he Vik decided to pose as a dis- charged army veteran with a young was known as Masil , Emperor Ndola's First Minister .... and secret ruler wife. Once free of the sewer he and Consi found temporary refuge of the empire through vast commer- in a small community lower-class cial and banking power. of people who live in large hollowed Computer-run sensor devices gourds which have a designed ecology secret remnants of 22nd century tech- suitable for human use. nology alerted him to danger as he After one day, Vik and Consi ab- was enjoying a tryst with the young ruptly boated further along the Con- and beautiful Empress Punia. Some- go to another bulbhut cluster. Consi one was disturbing his medical re- 45 didn’t like the constant moving " side. Every wall was expected to groups of guards and company sold- and, knowing he was Masil, seduced by the huge promised reward, betray- have ears. iers into a coherent, disciplined attack force. They are too much ed him to the authorities. As they passed the nearby, hast- loyal to their personal leaders. Vik, ever suspicious and cautious, ily-built barracks, Vik asked, Those leaders are jealous of posi- escaped from the sudden night raid "What's the problem?" He walked tion and power. They will not even by the army and killed many soldiers slowly. Gitega limped badiy from a follow you very far, for very long. during a water chase. severe arthritic hip. They are at root mercenaries." During a trek through the jungle "I've just had runners from sur- Vik agreed. "That stupid lion- to a distant farm he owns he came rounding early-warning nests. Army fucker. He's disrupted commerce, too close to a squad searching units converging Thous- of are on us. finance, transport and supply for army troops and was scented by a ands of men. Quebo knows you and the empire. Ihe whites will run in feared Howler an incredibly fast we are here and is throwing every- the streets of Kinshasa within two and vicious tracking animal with a thing he has as quickly as he can, years." paralyzing bite. to lock us up." Vik succeeded in luring the Gitega said nothing. He shift- Vik stopped. "It's only been a beast to its death. He was still ed painfully. ten- day. We don't have enough— the thigh wound suffering from Vik tasted bile from his stom- and could not travel or fight "My estimate now is at least ach. He wanted to kill! Four hun- well. six thousand men against us in at- dred years of careful work and man- r He stumbled on a soldier tack position within tv. o days." ipulation. . . Four hundred years of alone and was forced by circumstanc- "And we have sixteen hundred funding museums and libraries and es to kill the man. The man was a men at root." Vik took a deep, sigh: universities... All lost because Nubian and Vik took his uniform, ing breath. "How soon will they of one or two incredibly selfish, pack and weapons. He changed the link up and make escape difficult desperate, irresponsible men. identity disc and became a dis- or impossible?" Yes and count himself with charged veteran of the army. , Several days later his thigh "Maybe tomorrow night. Some of them. He had been sloppy, careless, wound scar was minimal. He risked the forces are raw. Most are bat- and blind. Too busy playing with travel on a commercial path in the tle-hardened reserve, though." Punia and Malindi and Jamama . . and jungle. Almost immediately he en- hundreds of other sweet young women "How many men of ours are in- encountered another army squad and whose names he could not recall. side this net, coining in?" was accepted as ex-army, fed, and Too much playing with gold and pow- given a ride. "Maybe two hundred with sup- er and not enough long view. Not At a guarded bridge his identity plies." enough thought about cutting down was checked by a wary officer, but Quebo sooner. Not enough analysis "Why is he moving so fast?" let pass. That evening he took food of Ndola' s character. Too much -- and departed. . . on his way to his Gitega sat on a bench of killed contempt for them all of them... farm still three days walk distant. wood. Inside the nearby barracks the mortals. Vik in soldiers laughed, gambled, and At his farm succeeded Vik said, "All right. We dis- Masil and played tonk. "Ndola has ordered establishing himself as band. Save yourself, Gitega. Pass him. And he probably thinks you sent messengers to his associates the word to the others. You are in have a great treasure here. and agents, to his managers and war free to leave in any direction." around Kinshasa, and to Empress Ndola wants you. Quebo wants your Punia, telling them to come to him, gold. ..and you. You have made him "As the great Masil wishes." supplies, arms a joke. He's had six men flayed to bring gold and "Thank you for all you've done. alive for telling Quebo jokes." and men. I'll see you before you leave." Vik planned a coup against Ndola Vik stood looking off across Vik walked back to the tree. He and Quebo. the wedge-shaped arrow fields. climbed the ramps to his private However, the odds were against "Any word from the provinces?" quarters. He didn't bother to limp him; traitors in his forces tried as Masil would have limped. "It's too soon. Now. ..it's un- to assassinate him by fire late one likely runners will get through to night while he was with Punia in his us. We needed a month at least to He was going to slip away to- high tree rooms. Vik and Punia es- mount a force and link allies." night. Alone. He faced a long trek caped the fiery death, but one or through central Africa to Lake Tan- "And Quebo knows this, too. two of the assassins managed to ganyika, Lake Victoria, and then to He's nipping us in the bud." get away. the Indian Ocean. Gitega bowed his head. India was the ultimate destina- Vik said, "So we strike first tion. But it was a poor place to -- hit the army now, fast and hard seek. The last reports he had re- by surprise -- or we disappear and ceived told of the continuing break- forget the coup." down of the ancient Indian culture Conclusion in the face of hordes from the north "Masil, we could move further Madras was swarming with refugees CHAPTER THIRTEEN south. To the Uige...to Lunda, and Sri Lanka was unable to avoid and there begin again." desperate thousands of boatloads "We'd run out of money and peo- of starving people. Six days later Gitega entered ple by then. We'd have a few hund- the farm office with a thick sheaf He smiled ruefully as he ap- red die-hards, and we'd be prey to of report leaves in his hand. His proached his door. He wished there the local chiefs. We wouldn't last intense, pained expression signal- was a way to turn himself back to a year." led urgency. white. But that technology died Gitega said, "Our forces are with the Egyptians and in the mem- Vik dismissed Deba and the low- dung. We cannot meld these small ory banks of his computer. er echelon supervisors. He gestur- ed for Gitega to walk with him out- 46 Maybe his skin would lighten " a " naturally after another thousand It is a tactic. Go downtree and Vik remembered an old saying: years or so. tell everyone the truth." He car- bad news has a thousand voices. essed her lovely breasts briefly, He entered his tree rooms and When he reached the massive limb kissed her, and sent her out of the sank onto the new sponge bed. The that hosted Punia' s three rooms, he room as Gulu entered. room made faint growing sounds. The found the door ajar. new room was still sealing itself Vik said, "I know about the Inside, he found Sese, Punia 's to the limb, and the carpet was drums." black woman servant, packing their too thick and young. The fat man slumped, puffing, few possessions into a lionhide bag. The former, burned and baked into a bladder chair. It sighed She looked up, her eyes widened, room had been cut free of the tree, deeply from his weight. He wiped and she quickly bowed her head. Ibva salve had been applied to the his sweaty face. "The drums are a "Great Masil." limb's wounds, and the new, living minor annoyance compared to what I "Empress Punia?" room had been hoisted up and join- have just learned from a lion- run- ed with the special cement excreted ner." "In the bath, Great Masil." by the Natats shrub, part of the "I suppose Quebo's forces are Vik nodded. "Sese, Ndola's for- interlocked ecology of the area de- closing in faster than expected." ces are closing in on us faster than veloped and fine-tuned by the Egyp- we expected. We are abandoning the chuckled. He hand- tians hundreds of years ago. Gulu took a farm, and abandoning the attempt to full of Squala nuts from a pocket Vik felt tired. Too many con- overthrow the government. I have of his robe. He munched and said, ferences, too many late night asked Gulu to take you and Punia "If we ran now we might not make it. strategy sessions, too many pleas- with him to his estates in Gabon. They stripped Kinshasa of every lion ures with Punia. He set his mental You'll be safe there as long as you able to run and have run them to clock to awaken him after an hour of live. I want you to go to his com- us, each with a veteran on its rest. manders and make arrangements for a supplies. They back. Some with place on a wagon for Punia and your- He yawned, relaxed, cleared his have us now. A thin net, but with self. Gulu will be coming down the mind, and sank into deep sleep. " a Chad veterans tree in a minute and you can speak He awakened when Salina entered "How many?" to him if need be." the room. She carried a claw-tined "Maybe two thousand in the first The woman nodded. "Yes, great carpet rake. wave. More thousands forces run- Masil. Thank you." She looked up and a smile trem- ning on foot." "Go now, and make the arrange- bled into something like fear and "Two thousand makes a thin net ments." awe. "G-great Masil. I will fin- for fifteen hundred desperate fight- ish cleaning when you wish." She showed her palms and left ers." the room. "Salina, what's the matter?” "Yes, if we go within a few He left the bed. Vik opened the bath door and hours." entered a perfumed, steamy atmos- She shrank away. She bowed her "I told Gitega to tell the com- phere. Punia lay in the tub, eyes head and showed her palms. She be- manders and others they are free to closed, hands idly playing in the gan to tremble. She edged sideways leave. The story on the drumline hot, soapy water. toward the door. will speed their preparations. It's He stood watching her for a few "What's the matter with you? pointless now to try to knock down seconds, appreciating for the thous- Stop!" that Kun-Zar story." andth time the near perfection of She stood, shaking. The rake Vik paused and smiled wryly. "I her slim little body. He considered fell to the caipet. hope you make it to Gabon. I hope one last lovemaking with her, but you die in bed of overeating.” there wasn't time. And what he had "Why are you afraid of me?" Vik to tell her would make sex impos- took her into his arms. She mewed Gulu smiled. "And I hope you sible. with fear, then melted against him. never die... Masil. That is, until She wept. "The -- the drums.... He came forward and knelt beside you want to. The way things are few minutes ago . . . they say you are the tub. going you may end up the last man K-Kun-Zar. You are the whites' on this dung ball, or may be forc- She perhaps sensed his presence god! ed to live as a black among cave- -- a tiny sound, a waft of air... Vik closed his eyes. He releas- living whites.” She opened her eyes and sat up quick ed her and went to the windows. Far ly, sloshing the water. "Masil — "Who knows what awaits?" below in the farm yard, along the She smiled and settled back. "I was barracks, soldiers and farm workers As Gulu struggled to his feet, daydreaming and you startled me." darted and clotted, talking quickly Vik said, favor. Would you take "A "What was the dream?" and excitedly. Punia with you?" She reached for his hand and He saw Gulu puffing up the ramp "Of course." guided it to her naked breasts. to his level. "I'm going down now to tell her "That I was ruling Empress and you Vik turned and smiled at Salina. and say goodbye." Vik clasped Gu- plan for me. I want a gold tub in He laughed. "I am not Kun-Zar. lu' s hand, then left the rooms. the tallest palace tree, and I want This skin is not stained black, as a hundred servants, each trained to As he started down the ramp to you should know. No stain could do a different thing for me, to be Punia' quarters lower in the tree, survive the juices of a yoni for s perfect in that one thing. A ser- he noted even more activity below. long." vant to do my hair one way and do The news had been spread, no doubt it better than anyone, ever. And "The drums " by the lion- runner who had reported another servant to do my fingernails first to Gulu. "The drums say what Ndola wants just perfect. And one to dress me. them to say. He is trying to split And one who is just like me in size my forces with wormvine stories. 47 and in blood to wear my robes -- . — : left. He heard what sounded like two nearest soldiers were as little as or three squads of soldiers approach three meters away, oblivious to him, But the behind- the- lines jungle -- -- ing. when his gun fired thung ! and was too full army. He was leap- of the bolt buried itself in the squad ing across narrow path when he The Howler was shrieking now, a leader's left bicep and ribs, pin- was seen the point man of a rein- sensing the nearness of its prey by ning his arm. forcing patrol, independent of the from the freshness of the scent. reserve squad. The man spun down, his cry al- Vik burrowed his hand under the most lost in the babble and noise. The man had a deep, far- carry- mean branches of a Zawi thorn bush But there formed a clot of men ar- ing voice: "KUN-ZAR! KUN-ZAR! and pulled it out by the roots. ound him, more shouting. Soldiers

There ! I The Howler was going to get its follow him!" turned to look precious nose bloodied. Vik turned right to pass the - Vik had dropped his gun and Five seconds later the Howler patrol, and used all his coordina- pulled his long sword the instant shot into the tiny clearing, saw tion and skills to increase his the nearest soldiers looked away. and smelled Vik, and leaped, jaws speed through the black raw jungle. He attacked. wide, eager to inject its paralyzing To his surprise the soldier with venom. He had a tremendous advantage the close. booming voice stayed he was fighting to wound and escape, After frantic-paced half-minute Vik met it with his shield. a they were under orders to capture. Vik realized they were both losing The beast wailed as it bounced off. contact with the squad and patrol. It spun in the air and as soon as He surged from the fluttering it landed bunched and launched it- shadows like a giant black demon The Howler was of course near- self at him again, mindlessly fero- from a soldier's worst battle night- er, racing like lightning across cious. mare. In an instant he had thrust would the arrow fields. It be in and slashed and battered his way the few seconds. That jungle in a This time he had the viciously past the three nearest soldiers. would slow but not by much. it, thomed bush in its path. The How- One clutched an opened thigh, anoth- There had to be a squad following ler yowled- and fell to the ground, er reeled away with a half-severed the beast from the farm. confiised for a brief time by its right arm. The third was flat on Vik abruptly stopped and step- pain and by the scent of its own his back, stunned by a backhanded delicate nos- ped one stride to the left behind blood in its intensely head blow from the butt of Vik's a tree. When the still-shouting trils. sword handle. soldier plunged abreast of him, Vik Vik pinned it to the ground Yet a close-by soldier got off swished the long sword around low with the heavy shield, then crushed a dart shot. to meet him. it with his full weight. Vik felt the dart slap against The soldier had been running as The unnerving Howler scream was his covered shoulder and felt no -- Vik had run crouched, bobbing, gone, but in its place was the clat- sting. He had no time to be grate- weaving, leaping. . . The keen- edged ter and yelling of terribly near, ful. Other soldiers spotted him heavy blade took him in the fore- converging capture squads. and the cry went up. He veered and head. The impact sent a shock up veered and ducked and used shrubs, Vik rose and melted into the Vik's arm. The sword was wedged vines, trees, even other soldiers undergrowth. But only a dozen met- tight in the man's skull and was as shields from a wild volley of ers away a squad was spreading wide, nearly pulled from Vik's grip as criss-crossing darts. the body plunged forward to the two and three men deep, and the jung- soft, moist jungle ground. le was being lit by dozens of glow- The second in command shouted leafs. Another squad -- the one orders. The veterans cooled and With the Howler's screaming ev- from the farm -- was nearing, its chased. Glowleafs still surrounded er nearer, Vik wrenched and pulled lights bobbing and dancing in the him as Vik ran. A net hissed into at the sword, finally levering it hands of running, shouting men. the air toward him but was snagged out of the vise- like broken skull. by a tree limb. They thought they had him. A Vik plunged away at his best signal horn blared, calling more Vik turned right abruptly and speed, seeking a clearing. After a reserves slashed a man down, then left to moment he ran into a small glade avoid a sailing net and to gut-thrust Vik knew he had to break through big enough for his purpose. He stop- that man. He left a trail of wound- the encircling chain of soldiers. ped, breathing heavily, put down ed, yet the squad pursued and kept Find the weak link . Create a weak his shield, and waited for the Howl- contact, and ahead second reserve link . er. squads were sent to intercept him. He drew his bolt gun, tighten- He was grateful for the rest. The orders changed after ten ing the spring to maximum, and He was sweating and stinking inside minutes of this deadly chase. Vik spotted the officer of the nearest his thick hide armor. was panting, sweating rivers, but squad. He froze next to a thick, untouched. His pursuers were gasp- He readied his bolt gun. The intricately boled Ruvuma tree. He spring tension was near its limit. ing, almost spent. He heard the aimed. . .and waited. The bolt looked true. All he had to cry, "THROW FOR HIS LEGS! WOULD do was get in a perfect shot against He noted their weapons : dart HIM! AIM LOW!” guns, nets, short spears, daggers. a vicious, lightning- fast animal The orders were echoed, shouted Undoubtedly the darts were tipped in near total darkness within a desperately forward. split second of seeing the beast. with Howler venom, to paralyze him. He didn't know if his thick hide ar- Vik plunged abruptly into a vast Not very likely. He looked mor would stop a dart's penetration field -- another farm! He was ter- closely at the jungle around him. or not. ribly vulnerable in this emptiness. He moved right a meter. There was a moon, now, and he could The glowleafs created intricate- easily be seen. He lessened the spring tension ly weaving colored shadows. The 'and clipped the gun back onto his Dozens of soldiers spilled belt. He took up the heavy shield 50 from the jungle behind him. A glad and crouched low behind it. . — — . cry went 14). The fastest of them ed scent cry of another Howler. He The Howler streaked close, past

began to gain on him. A spear cursed under his breath, chest heav- him. . .and then it darted back, puz- thunked into the bare ground next to ing. zled. ..its acute sense of smell over- his foot as he labored into a lurch- whelmed by his powerful stench. Then he heard a rustle and a ing sprint. Yet there was enough of Vik's odor cry of annoyance nearby. Another to make it hesitate, baffled, con- A young, lean, very fast sold- voice snapped a be-quiet order. fused. ier almost got within six meters. A silent patrol. Not silent Vik heard his swift feet and lunged Vik tried to ignore the beast. enough sharply left He kept on toward the plunging line He was desperate now. The drug of soldiers. but took a short awkward — from the dart was beginning to af- spear throw in the right calf. The At last the Howler instinctively fect him. A low-level numbness was point reached bone and then the decided the trail was stronger and spreading from his armpit. He didn't spear worked free as he kept run- more important. It streaked away. think -the amount in his system would ing. But he limped, and blood flow- be enough to stop him. But it would Vik stumbled into a group of ed down his leg. slow him drastically. He couldn't sprinting soldiers. He let himself Vik damped the pain and angled beat another Howler. howl with pain as they knocked him again to reach the jungle. He threw over. He was bloody and stinking. He only had a few moments of his heavy shield backward at the They barely looked at him. He was peak activity left. speedy soldier and caused the youth just another terrified soldier wound- to sprawl. He listened acutely to the tiny ed by the mighty, incredible Kun- sounds of the patrol. They were Zar! They could not let the Howler A cluster of soldiers ran to passing by. How many? Maybe five get too far ahead, as had happened cut him off. They would succeed. men. with the first one. Kun-Zar had him. Spears They had the angle on somehow managed to kill the light- narrowly missed him. One took him He moved quietly forward and ning-fast little animal! The re- left only a deep in the left arm but spotted the last men in the single- ward for capturing the man- god was cut left to scratch. Vik abruptly file. They were spaced about seven enormous! The risks were worth it. body, in pass behind the main but meters apart along a marginal ani- They ran on. the path of three stragglers. mal trail. Because the first wave had pas- and readied The three shouted He knew what had to be done. sed him by, so did the others, as- instant guns and spears. Another suming he was as he appeared in the Thirty seconds later he looped moving glowleaf light. The Howler He lunged left again at the a thick Roblu vine over the trailing was infallible. This large, last instant and bowled into them, soldier's head and savagely garrot- stag- gering, groaning, shit- fouled cas- slashing with his bloody sword. A ed the man. There hadn't been a ualty wasn't worth stopping for. surprised soldier went down and ac- gasp. Not a sound. cidentally shot Vik at close range Let him find a field hospital on with a dart. It stung deep into The body thrashed in convulsions his own. He could manage to walk. his right underarm. for a few violent seconds as Vik He was a shameful coward to let his held it face down in the undergrowth. bowels turn to soup and be unable through them, into Then he was Then it quieted and went limp. to contain it! the welcome jungle, to face another four men with nets and darts and Vik quickly stripped himself of And so Vik was ignored as the spears his heavy, sweat-soaked hide armor large squad passed. He turned west . . .even the pliant boots . . . and and managed to move steadily, draw- his Tbp accidental dart hung in smeared his body and especially his ing on his reserves, fighting the armpit, gouging him as he fought, feet with the man's shit and urine pain and blood seepage and paralysis sending its poison into his body. which the body had expelled in its After an hour he was far into soldiers, barely death throes. He cut past the the raw jungle, far from any army that slid off his escaping a net He took the dead soldier's tunic units. The drums were faint in the suffering another head and arm, and belt and donned them. And the night. The lights were gone, cut time in his left spear wound, this shield and spear and dart gun. He off by intervening jungled hills. He pulled thigh. Deep. Bloody. carefully retained the two pouches He heard, still, the faint, shrill, from his flesh. the dart of gold from inside his discarded frustrated cries of Howlers as they Vik staggered on, trailing armor. traced and retraced his track... on- ly to lose it at the place of his blood, uncaring, savage, killing, He didn't want to, but he aband- last kill. working deeper into the raw wild- oned his sword. But ness. Meeting fewer soldiers. Vik was exhausted. But he kept This all took him longer than knowing another Howler was going to going. come after him. Probably many Howl- he liked. His arm was almost para- ers. lyzed. The numbness was spreading The sky lightened to a lumin-. slowly down his side and upward in- escent grey. The jungle changed the He instinctively sought to his neck. character. The ground softened and densest jungle. He forced his body turned to swamp. at .top speed, forced his mind to The Howler was screaming, close! stop the blood flow, to mute the A squad of soldiers was racing aft- Vik barely noticed. He used pain. er it, crashing through the jungle a broken limb as a crutch. He kept toward him. going. He plunged on until he lost pursuit. But the army horns blew Vik bent over and lurched to- signals. The army drums thumped ward them, moaning. He concentrat- out his general direction. There ed on slowing his heart, on con- were other units somewhere ahead, stricting his sweat glands tempor- CHAPTER FIFTEEN which answered. He could dimly see arily . the dancing glow of lights far a- If this trick didn't work... By sunrise Vik was the center head, down a slope and across a 51 of a buzzing cloud of insects at- shallow valley. Vik heard the dread- . .

tracted by his wounds and by the tured feet forward, depending more snapped its powerful jaws on the encrusted foulness on his body. and more on his tree- limb crutch. crutch, chewing it off with crunch- ing molars and saw- like incisors. He flinched and slapped and It was a large swamp croc. It But at least a meter of the crutch cursed as huge blood- sucking flying had decided he was nearly weak en- was lodged in its throat and stom- things attacked. Myriads of tiny ough to attack. It was waddling ach, ripping its organs as it con- green gnats clustered on his eyes through the mud and water less than tinued thrashing. Blood gushed and ears, in his nostrils, in the thirty meters behind him. In deep from its jaws. comers of his mouth and in his stretches it glided closer, in its mouth when he was forced to breathe element. Vik rolled and crawled quickly that way because of a clogged nose. away. He struggled his and Vik dimly realized he was in to feet turned away from the huge, dying He had no defense. He caked the Luozi Swamp, a wasteland noted reptile. His brief adrenalin high himself with swamp mud and used the on maps but never visited, never was fading, leaving him barely able army tunic to cover his head. . known. to stand. But the insects crawled inside some- The swamp croc was different how and feasted. He had to use the short spear as from the crocodiles and alligators a staff, but it was almost useless His wounds were maddeningly known in the 20th century. It had as it sank too far into the mud painful in spite of his auto-hypno- mutated as a result of the Bio-War and ooze. He became tormented ag- sis. His concentration was shat- and the following, suicidal nuclear ain by the swarming, feeding insects tered and destroyed. He cried out exchanges. The entire world had in his wounds. in torment and flailed futilely with tasted the fall-out of both phases his free hand. of that mutual devastation. He staggered grimly on through the seemingly endless swamp. He was food, and there was no Most large animals hadn't chang- mercy. ed. The swamp croc was one that An hour later he was semi- del- had. Its reptilian genes now grew irious, lurching and sprawling, He was barefoot, and an endless it larger, gave it longer legs, a muttering to himself, forcing him- night of walking -- staggering! -- shorter tail, a bigger brain, a self erect slowly, agonizingly, to had left his feet raw and bleeding more vicious set of teeth. go on from thorns, sticks, rocks and the swarming, biting, feeding insects. Vik turned and faced it. He He saw something ahead. He des- had a short spear, a dagger, and a perately wiped clustered gnats He had twice barely avoided crutch. eyes and squinted through stepping too near deadly- looking from his -draped trees. A purple-banded snakes. They studied each other. the vine and moss ftian dressed in rags .. .watching him. His right-side numbness had The croc came for him, sloshing Vik fell. When he managed to passed, as the dart drug had worn through three decimeter deep water. clear his vision again the figure off. In its place was pain from It moved fast! Its powerful jaws was gone. the swarming, festering wound. opened. He crushed hundreds of bugs and He couldn't stand up. His legs Vik dropped to his knees in the kept his arm pressed tight to his were quivering with exhaustion. He water and ooze. He dug his feet • side, but there were always a few was spent. He slowly rolled over deeper for leverage. His mind moving in the wound. His deeply and over in the ooze to relieve the sharpened with a surge of adrenalin gashed calf was a seething mass of pain and purchase even a few seconds and fear. What he had to do was insects in spite of constantly ap- respite from the merciless swarms simple . But he had to do it right plied mud. His left thigh wound of insects. the first time. could not be seen for bugs! There were things in the water He set the fork of the crutch As he fought the pain and the and mud worse than the bugs, but against his shoulder and dipped insects, Vik realized he was near he didn't care. He had no choice. most of its length into the water the Congo. He must have traveled before him. To the croc the two He had to rest. west and north during the night. meters of strong tree limb ceased Vik dragged himself to a small This endless swamp had to be fed by to exist. It wanted to crush this log and threw an arm over it. He the mighty river. human creature's head between its rested his head on his arm and re- He knew how weak he was, how jaws. Then, it knew dimly, the laxed. He clenched his eyes shut. near the end of his strength. His rest of the body would be still and He fought the insects that tried to condition dictated his plans. He would be good to eat. This big hu- enter his nostrils and mouth. He had to risk contact with the first man would keep its belly full for slapped more mud into his ears to bulbhut tribe he could find. He weeks keep them free of the maddening desperately needed rest and salves bugs, and to quiet the endless whine Vik set himself and waited for and food. and buzz. the croc's charge to bring it to But the morning wore on and he its death --or his. He managed a kind of sleep, some- slogged through unending swamp how. and At the last possible instant bog. He kept moving west and north, Vik lifted the crutch from the water It may have been a ripple of but with each passing hour his pace and lunged forward, driving the water against his skin, a sound that slowed. blunt, splintery end far into the penetrated the mud, a sixth sense.

• croc ' s throat . The shock of the He opened his eyes and looked up. He became aware of being track- inpact sprawled him backward. He ed. Followed boldly. Not by the had seen the crutch tear into pink He was surrounded by six white army. He caught flickers of move- flesh as it smashed into the beast's men in tattered slave outfits. ment when he looked around. gullet. In midaftemoon he was dull- The croc reared and flipped, al- minded, in a fog of endless pain, most slamming Vik with its wildly endless torment. He limped severe- flexing tail. Maddened by pain, it ly as he moved, dragging his tor- 52 CHAPTER SIXTEEN lavender robe and the graying top- the scraped, bulbhut floor. He knot said in accented English — a moaned. Their camp was a series of bulb- virtually unknown language in Afri- The other, the more senior and hut clusters, and surprisingly large ca -- "Are you the immortal Kun- self-possessed, was shaken, but Early runaway slaves had found an Zar?" still skeptical. "Masil is known island of high ground in the swamp Vik considered the possibilities as a great knower of history." and settled there. They knew he was Masil and knew the "Then for Christ's sake ask me Through the years other runaway extraordinary measures taken by Nd- a question only Kun-Zar could an- whites had reached them. Knowledge ola and Quebo to find and capture swer!" of the sanctuary was closely guard- him. They knew the government as- ed among the Congo slaves. Vik had sertion that he was their god, Kun- "I cannot. I don't know enough. heard rumors only. Zar. I'm only an underling priest, es- caped from slavery a year ago. I He was now grateful they had They had to find out. They had have no copy of The Book of Kun- found him and dragged him several to test him. But as either Masil or Zar. I was only taught for five kilometers to the island. Masil-Kun-Zar he was immensely val- years by the high priests." He ap- uable to them. He lay naked on a small blad- peared anguished. "We can't tell der bed in a bulbhut with a tight As Masil he could be traded for if you're really " He swallowed. door. The windows were filled with great wealth and tactical advantage. He looked sick. "Great Kun-Zar, if fat, intricate spiderwebs. The hut you are " As Kun-Zar he was their god, was insect- free. their legendary immortal leader The other priest stood and ap- A white guard with an army spear whose return to them meant world peared ashamed of his obeisance. stood by the door. Two older whites, domination and an end to their mass He still trembled. He cried, "Why in decent robes, their heads shaved quest. It meant wealth and a rev- did you leave us? Why are you black?" -- one with a broom- like top-knot -- ersal of roles with the blacks. "I couldn't control things any watched him and conferred in whis- Vik smiled. He replied, in Eng- more. You were disorganized mobs pers. lish, "I am. Please do not use Eng- after the twelve-year freeze. It A mulatto woman, heavy-breasted, lish. You speak it so badly it's was chaos. Everyone -- each tribe, was naked except for a loin cloth very hard to understand." each cluster of coherent, semi- org- and a triple necklace of croc teeth. anized population headed south. The The man said in the common mid- Her mass of straight black hair was northern whites became armed bands African language, "Masil would know bound in elaborate coils atop her of nomads preying on those still a few English words and would avoid head. She knelt beside the bed and farming, those still in towns and the language. He would pretend to sponge-washed him patiently, tend- cities. I saw what was coming. I be Kun-Zar to avoid return to Ndola.” erly. They hadn't bound him. knew the ice would spread south for Vik grinned and said in English, maybe a thousand years, till the Vik was content to be washed "Listen, you stupid sonofabitch. dust and excessive CO^ in the at- and to rest. He could still smell You prime- grade asshole, you cock- mosphere declined. The balance is himself. He closed down his mind sucking, shiteating, motherfucking probably correcting itself now, but and slept. idiot. You speak English like a the inertia of that drastic change He woke after dark. The wind- mongoloid German. Bring me food and in the weather patterns will carry ows were draped to prevent any light drink or I'll twist off your balls the new ice age for another hundred escaping. A single small glowleaf and eat them as nuts. Do you under- years or so. Maybe more. Then it dimly illuminated the hut. A dif- stand me?" will take more hundreds of years ferent guard stood by the door. for the ice to recede." Both men paled. The one with Vik felt better. He was clean. the totally shaven head said, "That "We don't understand about

He had been annointed with oils and is English, but he speaks it so that . . . see oh two. . . and why the ice his wounds slathered with salves fast!" came. You abandoned your people!" and sealed with Jop membranes. A The other obviously had, never- "Different value system." Vik young living robe covered him, its theless, understood most of what Vik pointed to the older man. "What is suckers fastened to his neck. The had said. He began to tremble. He your name? And his?" robe pulsed faintly amber. said, in English, "Kun-Zar ruled the The man said, "I am Dolph, First The mulatto woman squatted at Franco- German Confederation from Believer of this camp. This is On- the foot of his bed, eyes closed. A.D. twenty- five sixty for ... how ree, my Helper." The two older white men were gone. many years?" There was a soft rap on the Vik was famished and very thirs- Vik answered, "Fifty years. door. The guard looked through a ty. He lifted his head and caught 'Then I disappeared and reappeared peephole and then admitted the mu- the guard's eye. "I'm hungry." twenty years later as Eric The Blood- latto woman. She bore a woven vine The young man used the spear to y. I had blonde hair and a full basket of food and a gourd of some- prod the woman awake. "Get him beard. I ruled that time for thirty thing to drink. something to eat. And tell the years and was lost in a storm in the Vik sat up painfully, full of priests he's conscious." North Sea. I came back again ten aches and stiffness, and greedily years later as Kurt Von Richter, began eating. He refused to talk The woman left quickly. Vik with dark hair and a patch over iry until he had stuffed himself. He spotted his two pouches of gold in left eye. I led the Confederation drained the gourd of wine. a tray close beside the bed. That against the new Czar of the Ukraine told him a great deal. He relaxed and we lived fat for a generation." His fast-healing processes be- more. the meal. Both men were awe-struck. gan again, fueled well by Shaven-head sank to his knees. He Onree had remenibereed something. Three minutes later the two rob- bowed and touched his forehead to He said to Dolph, "Didn't you tell ed men entered. They gazed at him me that Kun-Zar had once taken a intently. The one in the glowing 53 sword cut that would have meant " .

certain death to a normal man. . .but your name?" Dolph hesitated. "I don't know. he stopped the blood and healed him- More than. ..two hundred." She answered softly, in a low, self magically in a week." sweet voice. "Lufira, great Masil." "Can they all leave here quickly? Dolph nooded. "I remember the Is there another island of high "You don't think I'm their god?" passages. His left arm was almost ground we can go to?" severed. The blood pumped like a "No, great Masil. Animals do "There is only deeper swamp and geyser. An ordinary man would have not have gods. They have no souls, then the Congo." bled to death in a moment, but he so they can only copy true people closed his eyes and willed the blood and pretend they are people." "Then you'll have to create a

to stop flowing. His generals and diversion. . .a decoy to draw the "How many blacks are slaves patrols away from here. Maybe paint companions were amazed. He was car- here?" ried to his castle and bedded. He your biggest man black, dress ate enormously, against his doctors' "Nearly fifty. Each hut has him in what I was wearing, and send advice, and recovered in seven days. its black slave. We serve every- him out to do the job." All that was left of the wound was one, in every way. I take as many ." "It will be as you order, my a thick scar. . as five poles a day, and night. God." They are sex- mad beasts. They make Vik lifted his left arm and me put down my hair and dance for "Make damned sure he understands pushed aside the amber robe. "On them, and then I must let them use he must not be caught. A white in the inside of the arm, halfway be- me. black face in that army tunic would tween shoulder and elbow. It's be tortured and there 'd be five much fainter now, but I still have "Human nature is wonderful." thousand army searching this swamp it." He displayed the thin, irreg- "They are not human!" within a day." ular brown scar in his black skin. Vik didn't care to argue the Vik thought briefly. "Get him The two priests stared. Tears point. Most conversations of this ready, then wait until you're posi- rolled down Dolph 's face. He sank type were utterly useless. He said, tive a patrol will discover this to his knees. "My God. My God !" "Wake me with hot food and hot drink place unless led away. Have him be Onree, too, knelt and wept. at dawn. Leave me alone, now. I sure to limp. And as an emergency The guard watched, wide-eyed, and want to sleep.” measure get a crew ready to carry then could help saying, "But me away on a stretcher." not Lufira bowed her head and show- he's black!" ed her palms. She hooded the glow- "It shall be." Dolph was radi- The mulatto woman watched im- leaf and curled up on a thick mat ant. "Kun-Zar is perfect. Kun-Zar passively. near the door. knows the world and his plans will save us." Dolph said, "My Kun-Zar. You Vik cleared his mind for deep must change yourself back to be a sleep. Vik rolled his eyes. In English white man again. It is time." he said, "Get your ass out of here! Get it done!" Vik put anger and imperiousness into his voice. ' "I_ will decide They were lucky that day. The He was eating his third big that!" He pointed at the mulatto patrols turned away and returned to meal by early afternoon the next woman. "Who is she?" the solid jungle. day. He felt much better and he

Dolph said, "A slave. One of knew his wounds were healing very But two days later. . . our slaves. She serves the colony quickly. Vik was planning escape from under my orders." Dolph hurried into the bulbhut. the whites. His wounds were heal- "Why does she have a ring in "My God, the army has sent patrols ing very quickly. He ate like a her nose?" deep into the swamp. They are close." pig to provide the extra protein and vitamins needed by his body/ "All of our slaves are ringed "How close? How many?" mind. He might risk leaving in an- that way. The blacks are beasts, "One kilometer an hour ago. One other day. and we tie them to posts every patrol has ten men, another, further night, to keep them in place. Even He was feeling fine in other west, has seven." so, a few try to escape." ways. Lufira was a good woman, a "What do you do when there's a gentle woman, and willing. "Just as you tried?" risk of discovery?" Dolph frowned. "I am a white He was lying on the spongey man! We are the Chosen Race. For "Only a few blacks have ever bladder bed, eating berries, toying seven hundred years we have searched penetrated this far. We kill them with her large breasts, smiling, -- for you -- our God -- and now we've or enslave them, if possible. We've laughing, as she toyed with him -- found you! We are vindicated. You never had the army..." her hand in his robe when Dolph left us, you tested our loyalty and burst into the bulbhut. "You may have to pay a high belief, and we never wavered. Now price to keep your god. Do you "My God— " He stared at them. you have returned to us and you have trained fighters? Do you have He was suddenly shaking with rage. will lead us to mastery the world of a military organization?" "Our God Kun-Zar does not lower him- again!" self to sex play with animals!" "We have very few with experience Vik sighed. me alone. "Leave fighting in the Quest Wars in the Lufira pulled away, but Vik held Leave her to me. Post that guard north. Our fighting men are rarely her close. outside the door." He settled back taken as slaves. They're never "What do you think I've been and ignored them all. He closed his brought south the to heart of the doing for seven hundred years? What eyes and waited as they whispered empire." together for a moment, and finally do you want?" Vik nodded. "True enough. How obeyed. "If the immortal Kun-Zar wants many people in this camp?" A moment later when the bulbhut a woman. . .a real woman. . .there are was silent, Vik asked her, "What is 54 dozens of lovely white girls in " " our camp who would be honored to But if he looks enough like me from "All right, Mitrovika, position bed with you. I was going to ask a distance he'll fool the patrols yourself ahead of the patrol and if you wanted one --or two -- when and the searches of the swamp will settle down into the swamp. When you were well. But now, if you be cancelled. If he gets across you're sure they'll see you, rise " wish the Congo he ' 11 have to wash him- up and stagger away. Remember, self unobserved and become -a white "Dolph, why did you come in you are supposed to be badly wounded here?" runaway slave again. He'll be on But don't let their fastest men get his own." too close. You know where the canoe "Ah! The army patrols are in is hidden?" Dolph was filled with admira- the swamp again. Our scouts report tion. "It is ingenious." "Yes. I know the swamp well." them further east, but they are pen- etrating farther, seeking the Congo, "Yeah, it might work. Bring to "Umm. Don't go straight for we think." me the man you've chosen. And next the canoe. Flee to the Congo and time you come to me, announce your- then go left or right as if in pan- "They'll probably work a grid self from outside. Don't enter un- ic... and then appear to stumble on and eventually search the entire til I say. Understand?" the boat." swamp. Do you people have a fall- back camp? Another sanctuary?" "As the mighty Kun-Zar wishes." To Dolph, Vik said, "I hope Dolph withdrew. they buy it. Is the canoe old and Dolph shook his head. "Where rotten enough to appear derelict?" could escaped white slaves cluster Lufira asked, "Shall I leave?" for long except here? The raw jun- "It's the worst one we have." "Yes, but first bring me fresh gle is being chopped and settled Jop membranes and salves." "They'll examine the canoe after every week, by refugees from the Mitrovika is through with it." north fighting. The big farms are She left and returned a few spreading out..." minutes later. "Shall I change your Mitrovika said, "It leaks bad- dressings now?" ly." "Do you have boats?" "No, I will do it myself at a "All right. Good luck, Mitro- "Only a few canoes. Most of time of my choosing. Leave now, and vika." Vik clasped hands with the our people are in rags and eat only don't come back until after Dolph big man. from the bulbs. Where can we go? and the man he brings to me have What will we do?" Dolph asked, "May I return in left. Then bring me roast croc meat a moment, my God?" Vik sighed. "Have everyone and lots of fresh berries." make a small survival pack of food "Yes." She was disappointed and her and drink. Send your best scouts feelings were hurt, but she obeyed. When he returned, Dolph said, "I to the jungle west and south to have five maidens who wish to serve find escape paths for most of your Alone, Vik quickly peeled away you, Kun-Zar. All untouched by men. people. Their only chance is to go the darkened, two-day old membrane All lovely. The finest fruit of our in two and threes and try for the and inspected his calf wound. It cluster." Malange mountains." had closed and was crusted with a zig-zag of black scab. "Thank you, Dolph. I'm not "But they are... over one thous- strong enough for maidens yet. An- and kilometers south of here!" He flexed the leg and tried other week..." Dolph was shocked. "It would be standing. There were sharp twinges suicide. Not one of us would sur- and a beginning ache, but in an em- "You may use them as you wish, vive. We would all be killed or ergency he could travel on it. iny God. They will serve you as the captured." half-breed animal has served you." Still standing, he peeled off "Do you want to fight the pat- the covering of his left thigh wound "I don't want a lot of young, rols? Then fight the full army re- The same miraculous healing had oc- giggling girls cluttering up the serve clustered in the jungle?” curred. bulb. I'll keep Lufira." "You are a god! You are Kun- He felt tentatively in his arm- "The people talk about her with Zar! You must save us! We are pit and smiled. He settled on the you. They say if you are really Kun your people!" Dolph fell to his bed and applied fresh antiseptic Zar you would not prefer an animal knees and touched his head to the salve and Jop membranes. to a white woman." floor. A few minutes later Dolph called "Why did you put her with me in Yik bit back the words he want- from outside, "Mighty Kun-Zar, I have the beginning?" ed to say. He had to heal at least returned with our hero." "She is skilled with medicine. another day. Until then he couldn't Vik called for them to enter. She knows cuts and bleeding. But risk offending these savages. He lay on the bed in his robe. now she is not needed here all the He said, "Your best hope is to time. It would be better if you The man with Dolph was big. send out your decoy today, now, and used a white woman as servant." Not quite Vik's size, but close en- have him lead the patrols to the ough. His skin had been darkened Vik yielded. "Very well. Af- Congo where he will discover an with mud and vine juice. His hair ter Lufira has brought my evening old canoe and set out across the had been tightly curled and dyed meal, take her. Bring me your river. and trimmed. He wore the filthy ar- white girls tomorrow. And keep me "He must sacrifice himself?" my tunic. informed about Mitrovika." "As wishes." Dolph with- "Probably. He'll have to either Vik studied the man. . .and the my God make it across and cause the army man studied Vik. Vik said, "Give drew. to begin massive searches on the far him a tree limb as a crutch." He He returned hours later, trium- bank, or he'll have to dive and asked the big man, "What's your phant, as Vik was eating a second swim rather than be captured." name?" large bowl of Deffi snake and gourd The Yanya— "First son of Mitrovika." meat. "Yes, the Yanya will eat him. 55 Dolph clasped his hands and . . knelt in worship. "Great Kun-Zar, well. He spent ten minutes exer- in the lower crotch of a nearby you planned perfectly. A concealed cising, loosening himself. Then he tree. scout saw Mitrovika lead a patrol wrapped the robe in a bundle with Vik smiled and crept closer to through the shore reeds of the Con- his two pouches of gold, and tied the canoes. He kept alert to the go. He took the canoe the bundle with the decorative braid- out into the pace of the man's breathing. When river. He got away!" ed vine robe sash. the guard began panting and slap- It was deep twilight outside. He stabbed into the still soft ping his fist up and down, Vik eas- Vik said, "Let's hope he doesn't run wall of the huge hollowed gourd ed a small punt into the shallow into patrol boats." that was the hut. He was in a way swamp water, flattened in it and lucky to be in a "young" hut re- let the canoe drift slowly away "The scout said the river was cently scraped clean of its nutri- from the soggy bank. The paddle clear, and Mitrovika was dipping his tious meat. Mother year and the in the bottom of the canoe dug pain- paddle with mighty strokes. The bulb walls would be dried hard as fully into his left thigh wound. stupid soldiers black were dancing wood. with anger." At dawn he sat in the canoe, He quickly worked up a sweat hidden in reeds and watched the Vik stopped chewing. They had , as he cut the fibrous shell in a Congo river traffic. He was about provided the old, leaking, suppos- rough circle about waist high. He 300 kilometers downriver from Kin- edly derelict canoe with a nice, was careful not to let the knife shasa. The river was enormously strong paddle. And the soldiers penetrate all the way through. wide. He had only seen one large had seen a big, exhaust- supposedly patrol boat slip by close to shore. ed and wounded black man paddling After an hour he had a "wind- away at full strength. ow"' ready with a very thin outer He didn't have time to hide covering here and wait. He could hear very The patrol commander would faint screaming on the south breeze. surely report that anomaly, and He listened intently. Minutes He had been right about the army the conclusion would be passed. The guards at the door ex- reached: a coming into the swamp in force. ruse, a decoy. And tomorrow changed low- voiced comments. --if The white's camp had been found. not tonight! — the army would be But they didn't move. There was no in the swamp like locusts. circling of the bulbhut. And he Vik thought it ironic that he couldn't detect anyone outside the and Mitrovika might be the only Vik handed his bowl to Lufira rear wall. survivors except for the black for another helping. He was going slaves. to need it. He had to take the chance and break out. The army commanders would send fast patrols splashing through the He moved to the hooded glowleaf swamp in all directions, seeking which acted as a soft nightlight, CHAPTER SEVENTEEN him. He had escaped them once ag- and pulled its roots free of the ain. They'd be furious and desper- floor where they penetrated to the ate. Ndola and Quebo would have a rich earth under the hut. The glow- lot of them executed if they failed leaf died. Vik had noted that the guard much longer. outside his bulbhut had been He went to his "window" in- and us- Vik checked the river again for creased to two men armed with spears ed the knife to quietly puncture a patrol boat. Clear. He paddled and daggers. He hadn't its edges. Then commented he inserted his free of the reeds and headed straight on it to Dolph because he knew the fingers and gently pulled. With a out into the mighty Congo. The answer would be: they are for muted tearing sound the outer shell your morning wind was rising and the wat- protection, great Kun-Zar. opened along the perforations. er became choppy. He was very care- But Dolph and the other few Vik listened and looked for a ful with the small, easily tipped leaders of the white camp had to five heartbeat, then eased out craft; he wasn't smeared with Yanya have a few lingering doubts, and at through the gap. The entire cluster repellant now. One mistake and the the same time some strong desire to was dark, as it had to be. Every world's one immortal man would be in fact protect this huge man in door and window was covered or seal- digested in the bellies of a thous- case he really was Kun-Zar. ed. No cooking fires were ever al- and vicious little fish. lowed at night. But Vik had to escape the camp An hour later the wind died away tonight, and there were only two His eyes adjusted to the faint as he drifted near the middle of ways: by bluff or by stealth. moonlight filtered through a fog. the river. He lay, sunning himself, He knew there were white patrols -- in the shallow bottom of the canoe, Stealth was the best way. The scouts -- moving in the surrounding waiting for a ship that he thought problem was the guards . Once out- swamp, and early-warning observers would be safe. side in the darkness he was in his in trees. But he was supremely element. The solution was to cut Even the sharpest eyes could confident he could avoid them. They his way out. not see the log- like canoe from the were atuned to intruders from out- shore Vik took the knife from the side. large fruit bowl beside the bed. Vik was in no hurry, now. He Vik hated the prospect of fac- It was ironwojd and lacked a decent watched a coastal freighter with ing those millions of vicious in- edge, but it would have to do. ten oars on each side slip by. He sects when daylight came. He blank- gave it a wide passage. Vik rose from his bed. He un- ed his mind to those thoughts. He suckered his robe, let it fall, judged the white colony's canoes He watched three other ships and was naked. He was careful at would be somewhere on the north side pass. None of them satisfied him. first as he tested his body for of the island. The wind picked up around noon. freedom of movement and pain. The It was from the east and allowed He was right. But there was a wounds ached slightly, but as long the big ships to pull oars and raise guard. Vik heard him masturbating as he avoided violent, extreme move- sail. ment he should be able to function 56 He spotted a huge three-master . . . surging toward him, its sails paint- Kinshasa carried soldiers hidden or and clambered up into the shelter- ed with the colors of the Congo disguised. Especially the ships ed wheelhouse. To the real sailors Shipping Company. One of his com- controlled by Masil companies. at the wheel he yelled, "Get down!" panies. The soldiers probably were put They ducked and scrambled away. He recognized it a moment lat- ashore at the mouth of the Congo The wheel spun free. The ship be- er -- the Kasai Queen. Captained and sailed back up the Congo on in- gan to turn. Poisoned darts hummed by a man he knew and trusted. coming ships into the wheelhouse and stuck in wood and hanging vine mats. Vik grinned and carefully moved He had been suckered and trapped. to a kneeling position. He was fac- Vik pulled one of the darts His anger and determination ed with a ticklish maneuver. The free and flipped it back. He was concentrated to a white hot control- big ship was moving fast under sail lucky --a low, humiliated cry re- led rage. and with the current. It was high warded him. in the water, sailing empty. Prob- Vik allowed himself, smiling, A quick look and he exited over ably so much disruption of commerce to be hauled inboard over the rail. the wheelhouse rail to the port in Kinshasa and the empire that The fake sailors noted the Jop mem- side deck. He landed like a great cargoes were unavailable. All the branes over wounds and his feigned black panther between two soldiers. interlocking coordination of his pain as he was handled. They did A powerful karate chop, a lethal commercial and banking and shipping not hold him with the absolute kick, and the two were down. He holdings was now missing. fierceness and strength it would knew he had to clear the ship of have required for even a few sec- Vik scanned the deck and super- army men to survive. In three sec- onds control if he fought. structure but could see no evidence onds the two were flailing in the of army men. He decided to board. The ship’s real sailors were air in their fall to the water. He had to be close enough to swing watching from midship. Vik had spear, two daggers, into the stem and reach the ladder a One of the "sailors" called, a loaded dart gun. or the trailing vine, yet not so "We have him!" close the bow waves or wake capsiz- The ship heeled to starboard ed him. A hatch slid open and uniformed and the sails began a thunderous army men came surging up on deck. flapping. A mate bellowed orders. If he missed he'd face death They were aimed with dart guns, or another long wait in the river. Vik had to keep moving. He ran spears, nets. from behind the wheelhouse, depend- As the ship loomed over him, Vik bowed his head and started ing surprise, speed, and super- Vik paddled expertly to take the bow on to sink to his knees. The hands ior reaction time. waves straight on, then skimmed holding him relaxed for a second to close to the hull, under the oar He was on the deck above the shift grips, to allow him to fall. 'ports and the twenty long oar bla- captain's cabin. He caught three des. The oars were up arid in to With a savage roar, Vik explod- soldiers on the ladder to the wheel- their limit, but the projecting ed into action. He gripped a leg house. The rungs encumbered them -- blades were a meter long and wide. with each arm and straightened, fatally. He shot one with the dart lifting -- and flipped the two men He was aware of sailors lean- gun, skewered a second with the who were holding him backward over plunged dagger into ing over the railing, watching him, spear, and a the rail. third. calling out. the belly of the One fell screaming into the riv- The stem ladder, built into The dart-shot soldier was still er. The other clung with one hand the hull, swept toward him. Vik capable. He had a few seconds be- Vik's right arm, and with his spun the canoe and reached with to fore the paralyzing drug took ef- other hand to the rail. Vik shook his left hand for one of the deep fect. He lunged with his spear him off. missed. An instant later he ladder step notches. It was wet and was dying with a dagger deep in his arid slimy. He almost lost his grip. An army "sailor" dived for Vik's left eyesocket. He grabbed his bundled robe with legs, to bring him down. his other hand and transferred to Six soldiers dead, one incapac- Vik leaped adroitly and landed the ladder. itated by a dart. How many were with one foot on his neck. The left? Sailors leaned over the rail spine crackled and the man went to give him a hand when he climbed limp. A fourth fake sailor backed A net hissed through the air higher away. over Vik's head. The canoe bumped against the The army men advanced, readying He reacted instantly by leaping hull and fell astern, bobbing in- their darts and nets. More emerged like a diver, arms outstretched, the wake. from below. seeking the edge of the net. His Vik was committed to the ship, flipped up the weighted Vik was facing at least seven fingertips totally. He threw the bundle up- lines as the net settled over armed men. He was still naked and outer ward to the deck and used both slid out from under unarmed. his body. He hands and feet to mount the ladder in one fluid move, turned, and hurt- to the rail. He called, "Tell Cap- His best chance was to be a led his remaining dagger at the tain Mavinga an old friend is com- moving, dodging target. He hoped thrower on the wheelhouse deck. ing aboard!" his thigh and calf were healed en- The man toppled, clawing at ough. Arms reached for him -- and a ironwood buried in his neck. coldness passed through Vik. The He darted after the retreating Vik whirled, sensing acute dan- arms were decorated with army tat- "sailor" and caused the man to turn ger, and spotted a soldier aiming oos. and run into two of the advancing from the hatch. Vik dove soldiers a dart gun He was naked and unarmed. The through the railing to the main deck knife was in the bundle. Vik veered left around the mas- four meters below as the soldier sive rudder housing. And leaped fired. He realized instantly what had been done: every vessel leaving 57 It was a fluke -- the dart struck . . " the underside of the railing and The officer staggered and reach- "He's in Kinshasa. All Masil- angled down to stick in Vik's ankle. ed for the ironwood handle that owned ships have new, Ndola- loyal protruded from his belly. captains Vik somersaulted in the air and and mates." landed on his feet -- and became a- Vik watched the man struggle to "You're not loyal." ware of the stinging wound. The pull out the dagger. Vik was very The smiled. "That's dart fell away, but the drug was in tired now, and becoming numb. If man right. We're asking twice the announced his flesh. there were more army men. . . reward for your capture. Our mes- He had only a minute before he The officer toppled. senger should be in Kinshasa tomor- was slowed enough to make fighting Vik staggered to the captain's row at dawn. We'll be back in Kin- or running impossible. How many bunk. He was dizzy. He plucked shasa by late afternoon tomorrow. soldiers were left? One at the the dart from his arm as an after- "Ndola will trick you. You'll hatch -- had ducked out of sight. thought. He sat fighting the drug all be slaughtered." Where was the officer? for a long minute. He was losing. "No, we've considered the ways Vikr ran to the three dying men He heard footsteps. Running he might cheat us, or kill us. We at the wheelhouse ladder and snatch- men coming down the 'tween decks have a good plan." ed up a spear and a dagger. passage. His hands had lost all "Listen, I have a large cache of He paused, scanning the stem feeling. He couldn't move. gold in Trivandrum, on the tip of decks. The sailors were at the A man who wore a captain's gold- India. You can have it all. Sixty- wheel, regaining control of the en necklace entered the cabin with thousand emperors." ship. were bodies -- writh- There two sailors. ing, groaning, screaming in death "Maybe you do. . .Kun-Zar. Or throes -- but none standing. No As Vik toppled sideways on the Masil. But we've made our decisions. effective soldiers visible. bed, paralyzed, he knew the man be- Besides, I suspect a man who is fore him was not Captain Mavinga. supposed to have lived as long as The hatch. At least two re- you. . .you're probably more devious maining army men were below deck. and untrustworthy than our dying He had to find them and kill them emperor. You'd have very quickly. He had no time for to be, to have CHAPTER EIGHTEEN survived caution. this long." Vik Vik knew the layout and design studied the man, studied the mate, of this ship well. He had okayed the guard, and decided there was the plans five years before. He Vik awakened with a terrible no use in more talk about changing their minds. had inspected during construction. headache. He didn't open his eyes. They were He was bound hand and foot with right. Vik leaped down into the com- vines and ropes. He looked about He said, "I need something to panionway hatch and plunged into then. He was lying on the floor of drink and eat." the semi-darkness of the long 'tween the captain's cabin. The captain decks passageway. His eyes adjust- and a mate were watching him. An- "You'll have to wait until af- ed to the gloom with superhuman other sailor stood guard, armed with ter we trade you. I'm sure Ndola speed. a dart gun. will feed you." He spotted soldier crouching a There were lingering tinglings Vik yelled, "You're a fool! in a narrow cross passage a few me- and areas of numbness from the para- I'm the god of the whites! The ters away. The on deck man had been lytic drug that tipped the darts. slaves all. know who I am now! They in the sun. He was still partially will mark you and this ship." blind. The bindings on his hands and feet were tight and well-knotted, The captain shook his head. Vik had no mercy in him. He sailor- style. He couldn't get free "You haven't heard what's been go- hurled the short spear with great ing on in the city. Most of the force and accuracy. The soldier The ship was moving. . .being row- white animals are captured and pen- was slammed backward by the impact. ed. ned. Especially the males. They The ironwood point cracked his The captain said, "Thank you won't save you, or manage a revenge breastbone and spread bone splint- for killing all the soldiers." upon us." He beckoned to the mate ers into his lungs. and they left the cabin. "Why am I bound?" Where was the officer? Vik Vik closed his eyes and tried "You're a very difficult man to screamed with rage and frustration to rest as best he could. keep in one place." He grinned. to keep his adrenalin pumping. He "We've decided to sell you to Ndola" The next day armed sailors had a dagger. That woud be enough. stood by as three other sailors His eyes drifted to the glass-paned "I'll pay you triple." rol- led into a net and tied its ends. door to the captain's cabin. The Vik "We already have your gold. It They grunted they covering drapes swayed with the as carried him up wasn't very much." ship's movement. That's where an to the wheelhouse deck. They strung him up in a standing position, on officer would retreat to. "I command more gold than Ndola. display, as the ship eased into pos- More than you can imagine." Vik smashed the door open and ition in the middle of the Congo, confronted the officer across four The captain shrugged. "That opposite the titanic palace trees meters of carpet and table. The may be. But how could we collect it? of Kinshasa. officer had been waiting. He barely Who would pay it? We are sure of Vik could see huge crowds on flinched as Vik erupted into the Ndola 's gold." the docks, on both sides of the large room. He triggered his dart Vik subtly tested his bonds a- gun. river gain. No. Someone would have to The captain and crew of the ship Vik twisted aside too late. cut him free. He asked, "Who are were armed with the weapons of the The dart caught his arm. He com- you? What happened to Captain Ma- soldiers who had fought Vik. The pleted his instinctive move and vinga?" soldiers' bodies had all been thrown wrist-snapped the dagger on its way. . "

overboard. The Yanya feasted. 'Your crossbows will be use- "No words for me, Masil? You Thousands of them had silvered the less at night. They'll firebomb will have! You'll sing your words river around the ship all during this ship with catapults in boats of truth and beauty. You'll croon the trip upriver. They still sur- and come aboard and slaughter you to me your secrets. Oh, yes. You rounded the ship. while you're fighting the fires. will. You will !" If you lower a boat and try to flee There was an exchange of sema- Ndola they'll give you to the Yanya. Be- was high on Zizu and hemp, phor messages with the shore. lieve me, they'll get the gold back recently smoked. Even so his fing- ers twitched at heavy, The mate came to stand by Vik. and kill you all. You don't dictate his jeweled robe, then He bragged, "Our terms have been terms to Ndola or Quebo and get a- occasionally clenched as accepted by the emperor. He has way with it." a spasm of agony wracked his frail seen you netted and bound. He has body. They watched the royal launch a... a telescope. ..it's called. He Quebo was waiting approach. Ndola sat in silken pil- at the dock. must come to us in a small boat, He gloated, Vik was lows shrunken and spindly, in the too, as hauled with the gold." from the stem cockpit. Two men rowed. launch and lay helpless on the rough killed-wood planks. He Vik grunted. "And after he has There was no one else. Ndola, me a fleet of boats loaded with asked "Will the attack on Vik said again, "Take him and soldiers will board you and take the ship begin now? They've pulled the gold. Free me and I might be back the gold -- with your lives." anchor and are breaking out a lot able to save us." of sail." "We're not stupid! Watch! "How?" There --a boat loaded with armor Vik looked. The Kasai Queen was and shields and weapons, fire bombs "I'm expert with the big cross- moving with the late afternoon breeze. The captain was piling on and heavy crossbows is coming to us bows. I can throw a firebomb farth- a dangerous amount first. We'll handle any force of er and more accurately than any man of sail; the ship would be very difficult to keep in small boats thrown at us!" in your crew. I can fight and kill the channel. ten men in a few minutes . You know Vik shook his head. "You're that. Give me armor, the dead of- fools. This ship can be sailed by Ndola was busy sucking on a ficer's sword, and I'll see this forty men, but not defended. Not pipe of pain-killing drugs. He ab- ship to the ocean." stractedly in this river against a disciplined waved permission. force of boarders, and not at night." "Oh, yes, and then? Then you'll Quebo shouted to a semaphor man take your gold and kill as many of The mate laughed. "We'll be down- atop a high platform. Signals were us as you have to, and you'll be river by nightfall, rowing and sail- sent. A fleet of small boats load- gone." ing like hell! They'll never catch ed with army put out into the river a mile downstream. us." "I give you my word." Vik lost interest in the ship. Vik didn't argue any more. The "No, we'll take our chances with man was unreachable, intoxicated Ndola's word." The captain walked The captain, the mate and his men were doomed. There were too many with the gold coming his way. away to be at the ladder when Ndola boats was helped aboard. He watched the boatload of wea- Ndola put aside the pipe. His pons and supplies being paddled to As the launch moved closer, Vik reddened eyes blazed. "I want him the ship. He watched as it was un- saw Ndola looking up at him, fierce- in chains! I want him dragged be- loaded. There were no tricks. The ly, triumphantly. The skull-gaze hind my lions! I want the sailors capered with glee as they burned into Vik's eyes. Ndola smil- people to see him naked and bloody like mounted the big, heavy crossbows on ed. the forecastle deck, on the mid- this! I want them to know I_ con- At the stem ladder Ndola de- ship cabins, and at the stem. quered the mighty god Kun-Zar! I the He sent They winched the bows and loaded clined to board ship. want him dragged past the slave pens! them with heavy ironwood quarrels up the gold and demanded that Masil I want them to see him in my power! be lowered into his launch. capable of sinking a canoe or small Quebo agreed. He gave orders boat, especially at short range. When Vik, still painfully bound, to the officer of a nearby squad of in the net, lay in the bottom The firebombs -- oil and pitch- tied palace soldiers. the Ndola grinned and filled gourds with wicks -- were of cockpit, cackled, "Oh, mighty Kun-Zar, where The net was cut away from Vik. tested and found potent. The sail- Ancient precious chains were taken are your tricks now? I see only a ors put on body armor, tested spears from vine baskets. Manacles were big, naked, bloodied man. I see a and shields. closed on his wrists and ankles while man who will tell me what I want to he was still rope and vine bound. The captain mounted to the know in order to stay alive." Finally the rope and vine knots wheelhouse deck beside Vik. "Now Vik ignored him. He had been were cut and he was hauled to his you'll meet your emperor again, Ma- periodically straining at his wrist feet. sil." He waved for the waiting bonds. There was a little slack small boat to approach the ship. Vik staggered and damped the now, from stretching the vines and pain from blood-starved hands and Vik played his last card: "Why rope, but not enough. Not yet. feet. His stride was restricted by not keep the gold, keep Ndola as The two men who had rowed the the leg chains. They made mistake hostage till you're in ocean, and a launch and received Vik from the in chaining his wrists. The manac- let me free to help you defend this ship were obviously tough, highly les were linked by a one meter length ship against Quebo's attack?" trained soldiers from Ndola's pal- of heavy chain. It hung almost to The captain hesitated. Then: ace guards. They sat at the oars his feet. He could kill with it. "No. We've been assured we'll be now, facing the cockpit, slowly row- But the guards were laying out free to sail. Besides, I understand ing the launch back to the royal another length of chain to attach Ndola' paying us with gold taken dock. Their swords were within s to his wrist chain and link him to from your banks!" He chuckled. inches of their hands. They watch- a huge reddish imperial lion. "Besides, why would he send us these ed him closely. arms if he intends to attack?" 59 Vik called, "Quebo! Do you " want to know how I escaped from the the precious chains and withdrew. six men were killed. Steam is still prison?" The door slid heavily down and the coming from the hole. There is a bolts were inserted. lot of melted metal down there." The Defense Minister strode ov- er, smiling. "I know. We finally When the paralysis wore off "I won't tell you." discovered that manhole to the sew- enough, Vik crawled to the bucket "The metal is worth a fortune. er." He stepped close, sneering as of water and stale loaf of bread It's mine if I let you go free!" Vik stamped his feet to restore cir- left for him. He ate and drank as culation. "This time you won't — much as he could, aware he was being "Agreed." watched continuously from the peep- Vik shifted weight suddenly and Ndola suddenly shuddered and hole in the door. swung his arms with lightning speed. sat very still for a moment. Fin- The dangling chain whipped and He slept. His body's fast-heal- ally he asked, "Will this. pain go?" caught Quebo across the face. His ing process began. "Yes, the cancer will die. But nose was mashed and his skull crack- you'll stay your present age -- for- ed. He Before six men could fell. ever." smother him down, Vik had lashed Quebo three times with the heavy CHAPTER NINETEEN Ndola' s eyes glittered. links. His skull was shattered. Vik said truthfully, as a pre- purple with fury. Ndola was caution, "A long time ago I learned He screamed and shrieked, "Lash to be absolute master of my body. him! !" It was a full day before there Lash him I withdraw into my mind and were significant sounds beyond the can to die, if I have to. A sergeant flailed a vicious door. will my body thorn vine whip ten times across I can deaden myself to any pain Vik's naked, contorting body. Then Ndola' s tired, faint voice for any length of time. I can came. "Kun-Zar?" stop all hearing, all sight, all Ndola screamed, "Hold him!" He smell, all touch... all sense con- came six meters of Vik and Vik didn't bother denying that within tact with the outside world. I am identity. He spoke to the door. shrieked, "I your precious Pun- - have beyond torturing. I can't be forc "I want free. How can that be ar- ia, mighty Kun-Zar! She was taken, ed to give what you want." and all of your agents and friends ranged?" Ndol^. nodded reluctantly. "I tasted spears in that clumsy escape "I can't hear you clearly. Come know you were 'paralysed' before, from your farm! I have the bitch! to the peephole." And she'll die screaming, hating when Singida tested you. The guards your name!" Vik rose and looked out through watched from the peephole. Yet the small hole in the thick wood. when the explosion came..." Vik barely heard him. His body was a mass of cuts. He was dizzy Ndola sat wearily in the cor- Ndola seemed to wilt as pain from dozens of blows, and withdrawn ridor on a cushioned wooden stool. filled his body. He sobbed and bent from the world as he desperately He was even more shockingly skele- further over, as if to topple to concentrated on shutting down pain, tal than before. His blue and gold the floor. Yet he waved away an surface arteries and veins. silk toga hung in revealing folds attendant who appeared. After a on his bony arms and legs. The glow- moment he raised himself slowly, He lay on the rough dock as leaf light made the liver spots on his breathing loud and ragged. He they chained him to the lion. Ab- his skin appear as diseased spat- whispered to Vik, "Even with massive ruptly he was dragged as the beast ters of black. Veins seemed to doses of Zizu " But he straight- was led away in Ndola 's triumphant crawl in his skull- like temples. ened further and lifted his chin. procession to the palace trees. "Life is very precious." Ndola' s gaze was feverishly Vik managed to get to his feet. keen with a desperate lust for life. Vik said, "There is no advant- He hobbled behind the lion, head age for you in killing me." up, observing the jeering crowds. Vik saw no guards, could hear He couldn't avoid all the rotten no guards. Ndola shrugged. "There are certain matters to be balanced." food, rocks, sticks, and shit that Ndola lifted a sticklike arm, He changed the subject again. "How was thrown at him. pointing. "You are Kun-Zar?" did you make yourself into a black A dozen sword- bearing, armored "Yes." man? Kun-Zar is supposed to be elite guards followed close behind.

' white." Ndola cackled, 'Yes, yes, yes ! Ndola rode in an elaborate You are immortal?" "In Egypt. There used to be chariot drawn by four lions. "Yes." drugs that could affect a certain gland which governed skin colour. "HOW?" The effort and despera- And there were a few surgeons in tion in the question shook the frail the guild who could change a face -- body. this way. It took five operations." It took an hour to get to the palace trees. Vik was exhausted, Vik didn't know. But he said, "What is the secret of your im- mentally and physically. "Free me and I'll tell you. It mortality?" may not work because of your age He was put into the same cell "Free me." and disease, but... But it might. as before, in the prison. He was Free me and I'll give you the se- "Is it a drug?" still chained. cret. I'll leave the empire. I'll Vik hesitated. "Yes." Vik sat in the filthy straw and never return. There's room on this watched uncaring as a guard shot him planet now for two immortal men." "You lie! It would be known. with a dart gun. The familiar para- The Egyptians would have known of Ndola licked his lips. He show- lysis spread swiftly. He couldn't The old science... They would ed teeth in a grimace. He changed it. fight it. known during the Bio- War. the subject. "What was in the have They knew everything !" When they were positive he was ground beneath your tree? Forty- unable to move, the guards took off 60 "Ndola, I lived through the "' " " . . " ...... Bio-War. The formula for the drug "But this second machine would Vik knew then the aliens would was given to me long before that be far away. It would take a heal- let him die. He had long ago de- war. thy man months, perhaps a year to cided his immortality was an exper- reach. So I must die." iment. Perhaps all mankind was an "But their science! They would experiment. Now his part, after a have discovered it! They knew ev- Vik said desperately, "It's a little more than a thousand years, erything ! formula. The stuff tastes ugly and was ending. you must drink it every hour for "No. Not everything. There ten hours— Vik heard hissing in the dark- were many small comers of know- ness... and caught the first whiff ledge--" "But you just said it had seem- of an acrid gas. ed harmless to you when you first ' How did you become immortal ? 1 ' tried it." Ndola shook his head. He went mad with rage. "YOU "It was an accident," Vik lied. "Your lies do not knit well." COWARDLY SONS OF DISEASED DOGS!

"There was an immortal man before LION FUCKERS! YOU CAN TELL NDOLA. . Vik put defeat in his voice. ." me. He was fatally wounded in a HE. . freak train accident. I was a pas- "The machine is in India. We could Vik choked as unseen clouds of senger on a less damaged car. I got reach it in a month." the gas were pumped into the cell. to him first. He knew he was dying "You could. On the way I would He became dizzy. He lurched and with only a few moments to live, probably die. Or your agents staggered around the cell. He be- and he told me the formula.” would attack... You could..." gan slowing his respiration and "You believed him?" Ndola bent over, grunting with heartbeat, desperately trying to " sudden agony. He whispered, It's avoid. . "No, I thought he was raving. ." bad . Worse than . . before . . He But I remembered the formula. And He was abruptly on his back on nearly toppled from the stool. just for fun, because it seemed the cold stone floor. His mind harmless, I tried it out. I mixed Vik felt all hope slipping away. slewed and skidded. He managed to a batch and ate it once a year. Ndola 's virulent cancer was eating think, What a shitty way to die . After ten years I saw I hadn't aged. his life, too. Then consciousness warped away and After twenty years I was sure !" he sank into a black whirlpool. Ndola looked up. His sneer was " But did not die, did not fully Ndola was clearly skeptical. distorted, but clear. Kun-Zar . submerge "And what are the ingredients? Are Mighty immortal Kun-Zar . Masil ! the same things available now, in You've been laughing at me for Vik's awareness of self return-

this empire, as were . . . . in ancient years twenty years playing games ed. His mind swam up from nothing-

times in America?" . with me Pretending . And now T ness, captured by a creaking sound have you ! No . I'll die . But m "Yes, the elements are in corn- ... He was lying on his back in mom— my dying I'll not be made a fool ! lush softness And I'll have one great satisfac- Bright light penetrated his "What are you telling me, great tion . I'll be remembered for one Kun-Zar? That you wander through great deed ." He grinned a death closed eyelids. the jungle picking this " !" and that, grin and gestured weakly. Guards Vik opened his eyes slightly. pulling a root here, a flower there? They came and helped him leave. A great slab of sparkling, trans- Do you take me for that great a fool?" parent 'crystal hung over him, sway- Vik turned and bleakly regarded Vik said nothing for a few sec- ing, held in the air by plaited his cell. What did Ndola have onds. He sighed. "What do you have ironvine ropes in a heavy-duty pul- planned? Some kind of public exe- to lose? Do you want to die?" ley system. cution? A public auction of Kun- -- Ndola rubbed his bony hand over Zar' s parts? To his right an on-edge slab his eyes. "No. But I'm a realist. of the same clear crystal, only a As Vik waited he stared into When my men discovered your secret foot from his shoulder ... and another his mind at his long life. The passages below your tree, they in- slab to his left. Cushioned white credible adventures, triumphs, fail- sent a man back to the palace trees velvet under him. ures. . .all were a waste. . .because with the word. He saw a fantastic he had been complacent, stupid and He was lying naked in a tomb of machine with lights and incredible careless this time. Beyond any re- the crystalline plastic from the controls. . .an Ancient's machine. . covery. blind, smug, arrogant ice-lands of North America! pure gleaming metal... But then my A idiot! men must have disturbed the machine. As his eyes adjusted to the You had it set to explode if the It was becoming dark in the sunlight and the rainbow glitter wrong people came close to it." cell when Vik heard guards approach from the crystal, Vik saw twenty of and begin doing something to the the emperor's palace guards spaced Ndola met Vik's eye. "I ask on the marble dais around the huge, door. A muffled scraping. . myself why was it so precious that transparent coffin, facing inward. it could not be allowed to survive He left the bed for a close Their plumed spears were levelled. in our hands? What secret did it look. They were caulking the cracks hold? And I answer: It held the and seams. Sealing the cell. The top slab of crystal hung secret of your immortality. And only half a meter' above the top of He yelled angrily, "Why are you now, without that machine you are the coffin. Another, identical doing this?" again mortal. You will die in a tomb stood a dozen feet away, empty. few years. Unless " There was no answer. A voice said, "He's awake. "You're wrong!" The peephole was plugged with Great One." cork. "Unless there is another mach- Ndola 's weak voice came to Vik. ine like it somewhere in the world. There were sounds outside the "Good! Be ready at my signal." The great Kun-Zar would have sec- tiny window. It was blocked. The Vik considered a quick scramble reted somewhere a duplicate for em- cell was plunged into total dark- from the coffin... but his first ergency use, Hmmm?" ness . move would bring those deadly lan- 61 Vik shook his head. "NO!" ces -- inpossible. — Ndola was carried on a cushion- Ndola, at the temple vive! This was his only chance ed litter close to the giant sarco- now. He had to go ahead. His mouth He noticed an observer in a sec- phagus. Near him, held by guards, was bone dry. ond-level alcove, a white face peer- was Empress Punia, her lovely face ing down. The bearded face of Sing- Mortals did matter to him. He a mask of controlled horror. ida's slave with the small Kun-Zar had come to think of them as his Ndola wore a golden leaf robe Quest religious design tatooed on property, his pets, his children, that was only flickeringly alive, the cheek. his responsibility. He had been with his massive, intricately-worked guiding and rebuilding civilization Ndola had committed a terrible jewelled Necklace of Empire. Be- as best he could since the horror blunder. He had publicly confirmed side him lay the gold and diamond of the Bio-War had swept over the Kun-Zar 's existence in Kinshasa encrusted staff, while on his sunk- world. In another five hundred Word would reach the white barbarian en-cheeked skull the Empire Crown years or so the few viable monsters hordes in the north and they would glittered with hundreds of diamonds, inhabiting the icy wastes of what sweep invincibly south to join their rubies, sapphires, set in gold, sil- had been the United States and Can- god, to make him their king again. ver and platinum. ada would have bred true and would They did not believe he could be be spreading south. . .eventually Ndola stopped his litter five killed, and maybe they were right. they would cross the oceans. meters from the coffin, just inside Vik begged. "I ask of you. the cordon of alert palace guards. He chuckled painfully. "I've had a Great Ndola, one last request." He had to be alive when that gold plaque cast in your honour. "What do you want?" challenge came to mankind! It reads, 'Mighty Kun-Zar, the Once And now- - Immortal Man, Defeated and Entombed He turned up his palms in sup- plication, and spoke an old ritual: He by the Great Ndola' . It will be held Punia and slipped his "Give me a full belly for my journey set in stone -- here -- and I shall right hand under her slim neck. He into death. Give me meat and let " be at your side." kissed her trembling lips. I 'm me eat my fill." sorry." He poured strength into Vik turned his head to look ful- his big hand and made a powerful ly at Ndola, and spotted the ame- Ndola studied him. A long mom- ent passed. A slow, malicious smile vice of his thumb and fingers. thyst-necklaced commander of the Her carotid arteries were squeezed taken a spread the Emperor's lips. "I can't guards. The commander had shut. lot of money from Masil in exchange deny you." « for information and secret loyalty. He pointed to Empress Punia. Punia 's brain, suddenly deprived of a flow of fresh oxygen and nut- Vik and put every ele- "Here is your lover. Eat her ! Take sat up rient-rich blood, began to die. ment your fill of her, because if you of deep, vibrant, baritone Her consciousness winked out. Her power don't she'll die later today for be- and authority he possessed body began to convulse. into his words. He spoke directly traying me in your bed." He gestur- the two guards. "Give to the guards and their commander. ed to nearest Vik kept up the pressure until her to him." her heart stopped for lack of a "I am Kun-Zar the Immortal . I_ away. proper signal from the dying auto- will all "com- Punia gasped and shrank reward you with high nomic system in the lower brain. mand, wealth, and my favour for as Her face was pale, her eyes enor- mous. She screamed as the guards Other controls, stuttered and died. long as you live . Disobey me now The body voided its wastes with ' her dragged her the and my curse will curdle your wives took and to huge coffin. She disintegrated in- great jerking spasms. wombs and you will father monsters I squalling terror. Your poles will wither and you will to hysterical, Vik flipped the body to his live in shame and sickness the rest Ndola ordered, "Take her brace- left side on to its back and tore of your lives !" lets and crown!" the leafgown away. He used hooked fingers to rip open its stomach and His rich, strong voice overrode They obeyed, then lifted her and tear away the muscles. Blood spat- Ndola' interrupt. With- s attempt to thrust her into the massive tomb. tered him and welled up in the gap- out pause, without hesitation, Vik The emotionally shattered girl ing ragged hole as he plunged his commanded, pointing at Ndola, "SEIZE fell on Vik and blindly clutched at hand into the cavity and found the HIM!" And confidently, calmly, un- warm, barely- still heart. He ripped hurriedly, climb from the him, sobbing, pressing to him in- began to it free and forced himself to eat coffin. stinctively for warmth and protec- tion. Her pink leafgown had been it in huge rending bites. He barely There was an instant of hesita- tom. It flickered softly, one of chewed. tion in the men. A flickering of its suckers hanging loose from her Vik was into a kind of trance, eyes to see obey. if anyone would large, exertion-swollen left nipple. a fierce autohypnotic action seq- The -- commander was poised eyes uence that forbade "human" thought. narrowed, body tense, about to act-- The hanging slab of crystal, its square edges sharp and perfect, He heard but did not hear the gasps Ndola screamed, "DODOMA!" swayed ponderously above them in a from the hardened guards. Even slow, eccentric arc, disturbed by Ndola' s shocked, reflexive laughter And a full company of the elite did not penetrate. army soldiers rustled into the tem- the guards and by Punia 's flailing ple from their secret positions just body. Vik found the liver, clawed it free and wolfed it down. Then both outside. Every archway was sudden- Ndola coughed. "I knew. I knew -- ly filled. everything." He lifted one thin kidneys biting, swallowing as arm in a brief ritual salute. "You fast as he could, drawing ragged The tension broke and the pal- breaths, snorting against the bloody ace guards prodded Vik back down, have your meat, Kun-Zar. To a white beast, does it matter that it is gobbets he crammed against his work- inside the rectangular crystal ing mouth. tomb. He closed his eyes in des- alive?" pair. There was almost nothing Vik braced himself. He closed He ate only the heart, liver left, and a terrible dread was claim- off part of his personality, part and kidneys . Then he heaved the ing him. He opened his eyes and of his character. He had to sur- ruined body out of the crystal cof- looked around at the guards, at 62 fin. . . ) . " " " dysentery out of the nursery -- and He lay back on the blood- soaked THE ALTER-EGO VIEWPOINT white velvet. He saw Ndola, face that otherwise innocent little bug contorted, gesture for the lowering is still a killer when it afflicts of the massive overhead transparent immune-incompetent neonates -- is slab. to keep enteropathic II. coli away "So then I said to Alter, I from the kids and out of the nurs- said, 'Alter, you can go to hell!' The guardmen closed in to pre- ery. That's why the nursing staff He was so amazed at my decision to vent a last-instant attempt at es- wears surgical scrubs, why doctors stand up to him that he — cape. The ironvine cables moved, don gowns to enter the nursery area, Geis! GEIS! Get your ass the pulleys creaked. . . why hand- scrubbing routines are rel- down here in the basement! We've Vik closed his eyes and began igiously followed. Since the dis- got reviewing to do! to slow his metabolism. He had covery of neonatal acquisition of "Uhh, sorry, friend, I've got fuel now, rich in the highest qual- passively trans- immunity via mat- work to do now. Got to do some re- ity proteins, fats, vitamins. The ernal antibodies contained in breast viewing Alter is too lazy to do him- interior of the tomb was large en- milk, however, a re-thinking of the self. Honestly, without me, he’d ough to provide air for years if old attitude has come about. In old- never get SFR out on time." he could slow himself enough, and er and more hidebound hospitals GEIS! Get off the fucking he hoped the lid slab would not be (and many of them, I've found, are phone and get your fucking ass down to an absolute airtight fit. He hoped Catholic-run), the Sisters stick here before I boot it to the fuck- isolationist line, declaring the emperor that followed the doom- the ing moon! that the joys of nursing do not ed Ndola would open the coffin. Or "He depends on me so much. compare to the agonies of a nursery that vandals would try to breach Got to run, now. Bye." full of mortally- imperil led babies. the seal... or that he could last un- GEIS ! til the white barbarians heard of 'Sixth, of course physicians *Pant, pant* "Here I am, Alt- Kun-Zar's entombment and came to blanch at the thought of laymen -- er. And I must say you have a foul set him free. particularly a layman of Mr. East- mouth today." man's calibre — thumbing through Think so? I'm influenced by One end of the top slab grated PDR. That collection of bound a novel by Phil Dick, titled CONFES- into position. The final ropes the package inserts is so inadequate SIONS OF A CRAP ARTIST, $3.95, pub- were pulled free and the mighty cry- pitiful. The damned thing is lished by Entwhistle Books (Bx 611, stal slab thudded down. The sound it's divided, not alphabetically or by Glen Ellen, CA 95442). echoed in the temple. type of drug, but by the pharmaceu- "His characters curse like you?" No, they Why are we indent- Vik concentrated on the ancient tical companies manufacturing . The — techniques of body control. His goddamned book is put out, every ing six spaces? Four is our format. heartbeat quietened and slowed. year, by the drug companies, and You know' that! Why do you screw up the IBM settings, Geis? Forty beats per minute. . .twenty. . the data presented is full of under- "Ummm Elsie was typing up ten. . .five. . . His oxygen require- statements or overstatements design- — ment sank to the absolute minimum. ed by men who are more lawyer than the stencils for pharmacologist, a "cover-your-ass" I don't want excuses! I want He settled into a deep, murky you to obey me and serve me the way dream. in the grand old medical tradition, designed to keep the companies safe every man in the book serves and ob- Earth's one immortal man waited. in that great big litigation-filled eys the bitch wife in CONFESSIONS. pit we call American society. And Now there's a psychopath after my END BOOK -- let me ask you -- if the PDR is own heart. ********* * **** ********************** so goddamn great, why the hell does "Yes, but she drove her husband every practicing doctor have about to suicide and attempted murder of books on pharmacology her, and she ruined the life of a ALIEN THOUGHTS CONT. FROM PM half-a-dozen in and around his office? I've got young lover, and derided her retard Goodman and Gi liman, THE QUICK DRUG brother, and— REFERENCE, the Lange REVIEW OF MED- Nobody's perfect. And you've contact irritant ox calmed down or ICAL PHARMACOLOGY, and umpteen books got to admit Phil painted a devastat- something. on surgery, emergency and internal ing picture of a certain middle -class 'Fourth, if the nurse-midwife medicine, obstetrics and pediatrics California life-style and weirdo in- it the it is had noted that the fetal heart rate with profound discourses on the fluence. He told way between Victims and Masters. If you showed signs of acute increase or pharmacotherapy of disease. And I decrease, or if there were indica- don't own one godamned PDR! follow Transactional Analysis theory tions of dystocia not previously you can see scripts all over the 'Will Mr. Eastman please take anticipated, that sleepy OB/GYN place note of the fact that I'm a D.O., man in the next room would've been "I tend to think that Phil Dick an osteopathic physician, and use in there faster than you can say has had experience with Bitch women. it as a means of staying the hell "Marcus Welby", ready to perform a Maybe even for a while he unconscious- and gone away from me or any bther caesarian section, to try a podal- ly picked them. Whatever, he has osteopath; I'm certain that my col- ic version, to cope with an abruptio here painted her down to the last de- leagues want him for a patient even placenta, things a nurse-midwife tail, every psychological twist. And less than I do.' isn't trained to handle. If Mr. he has provided the reader with doz- Eastman can pull that sortof exper- ens of insights and understandings a sometimes tise out of a Merck manual, I wish of the human mind. It's ( (I suppose you have critiqued a grotesque story but it all rings the hell he'd tell me what edition classic case of a-little-knowledge- — sure as true." he's reading: mine shit is-a-dangerous-thing-itis. ) doesn't have it. You'd tell people to read it, wouldn't you? 10-12-78 Time to wrap it all up and 'Fifth, quite a few hospitals "Yes. And the multiple POV is are or were stuck on the old "keep- send it away to the printer. Thanks interesting and works beautifully. the- little- darling- away- from- moth- to all who wrote letters and hoped It---" they'd appear. I have five here and er" routine. The most reliable Shut up, Geis. no room. Write again! Merry Xmas! method we have of keeping E.. coli ******************************** s . ?

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