Into the Unknown

By Dan Brock

14 Compelling Tales of Science Fiction and Fantasy

In this exciting collection, Dan Brock takes you from one side of the galaxy to the other. You will travel back and forth through time and space. Battle unusual creatures. Come face to face with imminent danger. Find yourself on strange new worlds, plus at times right here on our own…or is it? By the end of it, you will definitely be able to lay claim to having traveled into the unknown to somewhere out there.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jan 31, 2016
• ISBN: 9781329870352

Dan Brock

Dan Brock grew up in Kent, Washington loving science fiction and fantasy stories. He loved watching movies and TV shows with space ships and laser gun battles. He started in elementary school by writing a story called The Freeze Ray which the school published for the library. Unfortunately, the book was lost and the story only remains in Dan’s mind. Over the next several years, he’s written various other stories. Somewhere in there, he began writing poetry and scripts for stage productions, many of which have been performed by a professional theater group. At one point, he had a book published of ghost stories and tales of paranormal encounters that he wrote with some input from his brother that he’s currently working on redoing. In addition to writing he is also an accomplished musician, stage actor and artist. He runs an art production company, a Christian record label and now a publishing house. Dan currently resides in Auburn, Washington with his wife.

Book preview

Into the Unknown

Title Page

titlepage

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Copyright © 2016 by Dan Brock

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review or scholarly journal.

Second edition

First Printing: 2009

All characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

Cover and interior artwork by Dan Brock

ISBN 978-1-329-87035-2

Sword Stars Publishing

Auburn, WA

www.dtmenter.com

Dedication

To everyone who’s ever looked up into the night sky and wondered, what if? I would like to thank Gene Roddenberry, George Lucas, Robert E. Howard and Glen A. Larson for inspiring my dreams and imagination to create the stories you now hold in your hand. And last but not least, I would like to thank the one who gave me the ability to take my thoughts along with the images in my mind and translate them into written words, the big man upstairs himself, Jesus.

For my angel, Elizabeth

dedication

Prologue

This is a reprint of Somewhere Out There published by Publish America.  The reasons I decided to remake this book are many.  The Publish America edition had many errors in it that I wanted to correct.  Also, the cover they put on it was nothing even remotely similar to the picture that I asked for.  Most important, I couldn’t stand the thought of someone having to pay $27.98 for a paperback, which is what they were charging.

I had to change the original title when Publish America printed it, because they already had a book printed by the same name. That name was Into the Unknown.

Missing from this edition however, is Swords and Serpents and Galactic Brigade. They were not included here because I wanted to fulfill my original vision for them to be separate books in a series. I also decided to remove The Story Behind the Stories. I took it out primarily because I figured nobody really cared.

Putting it mildly, this is how the book was originally supposed to be.  I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this collection of science fiction and fantasy stories, and hope that you enjoy them.

-                   Dan Brock

   October 6, 2015

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Dedication

Prologue

Rip Tide

Subspace Holocaust

EARTH 13 Years Dead

Breed to Come

Wrecked in the Void

Sphere God of the Air

Backwards Messages

Voices From the Past

From the Outside

A Winter's Solitude

The Privateer

Slave Trade

Lost At Sea

Point of No Return

About the Author

Other Books By Dan Brock

Back

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Had it not been for his evil scheme, this would’ve been a very boring night for Fred Demos. The life of a lighthouse keeper is not exactly an exciting one. But as of late, things have been more interesting for Fred.

Three months ago he was trying to make a phone call and got a very strange answer which changed the course of his life forever.

He had a very scientific upbringing and was now using that knowledge to convert the light in the lighthouse to a super magnetic beam.

It won’t be much longer now and the beam will be ready, Fred said to himself.

Just then Fred heard the phone ringing in the lower levels of the lighthouse. He didn’t want to give up his work but figured the call might be important. Setting his tools down, he descended to the next floor. Entering his office he picked up the phone.

Hello, Moonlit Cove Lighthouse, he said into the receiver, trying to hide his annoyance at the interruption.

Is this Fred Demos? A man’s voice asked.

Yes, this is Doctor Demos.

And just what are you a doctor of, Mister Demos?

Who wants to know? Fred was finding it harder to hide the irritation in his voice.

Are you really a doctor? And if so, what of? The man again asked.

Well that depends, Fred said through gritted teeth.

On what?

On who wants to know!

This is Dan Stringman.

Fred slammed the phone down and started walking out of the office. Right when he got two steps up the phone rang again. He angrily stormed back into the office and picked up the phone.

Look here pal! I don’t know who you are or what you’re trying to pull, but I ain’t in the mood for jokes! He yelled into the phone.

Well I have been told by many that I’m a pretty funny guy, but I’m not here to joke with you, the man on the other end said.

Fred was beside himself with anger at this point.

"Who is this?" He asked again.

I told you, this is Dan Stringman. I’m the president of a country called the United States of America, perhaps you’ve heard of it?

OK, if this really is Dan Stringman, what was the name of your pet goldfish?

Pogo? What does she have to do with anything?

"Oh my goodness, it really is you! Fred said, I was so sorry to hear about Pogo dying. I sent a sympathy card to the White House but don’t know if you ever got it."

Are you sure you’re a doctor, Mister Demos? Dan asked, because I think I can recommend you to a good one if you’d like.

Dan Stringman, president of the USA was a young man of twenty-eight years. His intention was to lead Fred to believe that he was starting a tour of lighthouses along the Pacific coast and checking out their up keeping. The truth was that he was really there to find out if the stories he was hearing were true about Moonlit Cove Lighthouse. And he hoped they weren’t.

Moonlit Cove was a virtually unheard of beach on the coast of southern Oregon. Few except the local residents knew of its existence. Perhaps the reason so few ever came to this small stretch of beach was because of the extremely rocky terrain. It was a far cry from what most people visualize when they hear the word beach. There was no soft sand to lay out on, but there were sea gulls aplenty. The only visitors the beach ever really saw was the occasional young couple sitting on the upper rocks, watching the light of the lighthouse reflecting off the waves as the sun set along the horizon. And even then it only happened on clear nights when the moon and the stars were visible in the night sky. But some lucky few braved the rain and watched it come down in the light of the lighthouse. It really was an impressive view to behold.

An hour later, Dan parked his car outside the Moonlit Cove Lighthouse.

"Hello? Doctor Demos!" He called out as he entered the lighthouse.

Fred had just put the finishing touches on the magnetic beam when he heard Dan’s voice. He set his tools down and went downstairs to meet him.

Well, Mister President, this is an unexpected surprise, Fred said.

Yes, I’m sure it is, Dan replied. This is the first stop of my lighthouse tour.

Well allow me to show you around. I’m sure you’ll be quite pleased at how well the lighthouse has been maintained in my time here.

Dan followed Fred throughout the entire lighthouse for forty-five minutes. He was beginning to become impatient. There was only really one area he was interested in seeing. Unable to hold back any longer, he spoke up.

So Fred, I just gotta ask. I’ve always been fascinated by the lights in lighthouses. One thing I’ve always wanted to know is how do you make the light? Is it a big candle or a giant light bulb or what?

Well back in the day they used to use oil and burned it to create the light. But in more recent years they’ve switched to electricity and use high-powered light bulbs, Fred explained.

I’d love to see one, Dan said eagerly. Can we take a look at the light deck?

Dan’s sudden excitement about seeing the light made Fred kind of nervous. But it sounded as if Dan didn’t know a whole lot about lighthouses, so he figured that he wouldn’t know that the lighting structure had been altered.

Sure, it’s right up this way, Fred finally answered.

Dan was relieved that they were finally going to the light deck. Fred’s tour was putting him to sleep. The truth of the matter is that this sort of thing was of absolutely no interest to him. He was hoping that Fred was buying his act. Then they climbed the last few steps and were standing next to the light.

Woe, Dan said. This thing is big. How does it work?

Fred was beginning to fall for Dan’s ignorance act and felt he no longer had anything to worry about.

It’s simple, really, he said. You just flip this switch up to turn the light on, and down to turn it off.

Dan pulled off a highly convincing look of shock and disbelief and said, no way. That’s all there is to it?

That’s it.

The first thing Dan noticed when studying the light was the large mechanical box attached to it. Little did Fred know, but Dan knew that thing didn’t belong on there.

So is this what powers it? He asked.

Dan saw a bead of sweat trickle down Fred’s neck but did not let on that he noticed it.

Fred thought quickly and said, uh, yes. Yes it is. Without that power box the light and rotator wouldn’t work.

A very strange yet faint noise was suddenly heard from outside. The two men looked out to see something neither of them was expecting. A rather large flying saucer was hovering above the ocean about a mile out into the surf.

Now there’s something you don’t see every day, Dan said.

Oh my god, they’re here already! Fred blurted out before remembering that Dan was there with him.

You expecting company?

No, I wasn’t expecting them until next week!

Fred, is there anything you’d like to explain to me right about now?

They heard footsteps coming up the stairs from down below.

No. I’ll let the Gethollowans do that, Fred said.

Gethollowans? What in blue blazes is a Gethollowan? Dan demanded.

Just then three aliens stepped onto the light deck. They looked like turquoise catfish and wore blue and yellow outfits. The one who appeared to be the leader turned to Fred.

Is the device ready yet, Demos? It asked.

Why are you here already? You’re not supposed to be here until next week, Fred harshly said to the Gethollowan.

Is the device ready yet, Demos? It repeated.

Well yes, I just finished it when he showed up, Fred said, indicating Dan.

Who is this? The Gethollowan asked.

Chestakoff, this is Dan Stringman, the president of our country. Dan, this is Chestakoff, king of the planet Gethollow, Fred introduced the two to each other.

Dan looked amused and said, "Chestakoff? Your name is Chest-a-koff?"

Yes, that is correct, Chestakoff replied.

Dan began laughing and Chestakoff said, I fail to see what you find so humorous.

Please Dan, control yourself, Fred said. These, uh, men are our guests.

Dan calmed down enough to stop laughing and said, so what brings you to our neck of the woods here, Chestakoff?

Our planet is a water world, as you may have guessed by our appearance. We have been in communication with Demos here for the last three months. Gethollow has been horribly polluted and will be uninhabitable within the next fifty years. Demos has agreed to alter the orbit of your moon to shift the tides of your oceans, Chestakoff said.

Oh I see, Dan said. And what purpose will shifting the tides serve?

It will flood the planet and turn it into a giant ocean for my people to inhabit.

Uh, Chesty, can I call you Chesty? Would you mind running that by me again? I don’t think I heard you quite right. I’m thinking you may be a little congested there and wasn’t quite speaking clearly, Dan said.

My people need a place to call home. Demos said that he will turn the Earth into a giant ocean for us.

This confirmed the rumors Dan had heard over the last couple months about strange workings happening in the lighthouse. Some had heard voices and others had seen strange flashes of light that weren’t normal for the lighthouse. Unfortunately it was even more severe than he had originally thought.

Now wait just a damn minute, Dan said. If you needed a place to go, why didn’t you say so? All you needed to do was ask. You can live in the oceans as they are now.

That is a very generous offer, Stringman, Chestakoff said. We will begin transporting shortly. Once the world is flooded!

One of the two Gethollowans who was with Chestakoff hit the switch to activate the magnetic beam. The light shifted and emanated a green beam right at the moon. Dan rushed at the control panel and Chestakoff’s other associate pulled his gun and shot him right in the head. Dan dropped into a lifeless lump on the floor.

What have you done?! Fred shouted, there was no need to kill him! He was going to give you free reign of the oceans!

Chestakoff turned to Fred and spoke.

So long as one of your kind is alive we are threatened. We have studied your race for a long time now. The waters of your oceans are polluted daily and we would last less time there with you alive than we would back on Gethollow. No, all humans must be destroyed if we are to survive. In five of your years the Earth will be inhabitable by us. We thank you for your assistance, but your time is now at an end.

The Gethollowan who shot Dan turned his gun on Fred.

No, wait! You can’t kill me! Fred pleaded.

Chestakoff chuckled and said, didn’t you ever stop to think that you’d die once the planet was flooded?

Fred was shocked. Indeed he didn’t think about that. He had assumed that for helping Chestakoff that he’d somehow be spared. The last thing he saw was the orange beam of light discharging from the Gethollowan’s gun.

With the moon’s orbit shifting, huge tidal waves began pounding the coasts all across the world. The water quickly engulfed the continents and within a matter of hours, not a single human was left alive on the face of the Earth. Soon, even all the birds died out because they no longer had a place to land and fell into the sea, exhausted and were drowned. The only life that was to be found was aquatic life.

***

After five years of the waters purifying themselves, a familiar flying saucer hovered over what used to be Moonlit Cove. Gethollowans began transporting into the ocean and claiming their territory. And the Earth had a new dominant species.

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Captains Log, April 15, 3718. The Trekster has been sent by Sorbrom Command to pick up and transport representatives from the planets Owatag and Versac to the newly discovered planet, Kramky. This new planet was the subject of many arguments between the three governments for the last seven months. Finally it was decided that the three would share the planet and make it available for any life form in the galaxy to come to and live in peace. It was therefore given the nickname of the Planet of Peace.

* * *

Captain, we have just entered Owatag space. The ship, Nalumar Wessel is on schedule to meet us with Ambassador Ryeckar in twenty-two minutes, the helmsman, Ensign Nicholai Mufassa reported.

Excellent, remain on course to make the rendezvous. Once we have the ambassador we’ll be able to get to Kramky and then go about our normal work, Captain Wayne Trudeau said.

Aye sir.

Twenty-two minutes later the starship Trekster arrived at the scheduled coordinates to pick up the Owatagan ambassador but found no sign of the Nalumar Wessel.

Mister Mufassa, are you sure they were right on schedule? Trudeau demanded.

Yes sir, Mufassa said. I do not understand, they should be here.

Just then a large vessel appeared on the view screen from out of nowhere.

Barton, where did that ship come from? Asked Trudeau.

The science / first officer’s expression did not change as he looked from the view screen to his instrument readouts and back again.

It would seem that the Owatagans have developed cloaking technology. That is the Nalumar Wessel. Most remarkable, Commander Barton reported.

Captain, we are being hailed, Lieutenant Louise Michan, the ships communications officer said.

On screen, Trudeau replied.

Michan switched the on screen switch and the view screen formed the image of the Nalumar Wessel’s bridge.

I am Captain Wayne Trudeau of the Sorbrom vessel Trekster. Are you Ambassador Ryeckar?

No, I am Diat, commanding officer of the Nalumar Wessel. The ambassador is ready to transport to your ship.

Yes, of course. We will make preparations to beam him aboard in ten minutes. And may I express my gratitude to you for transporting him to us on the verge of this galactic break through we are nearing.

You may, Diat replied. I will inform the ambassador that he may transport over shortly.

Excellent. I will have Lieutenant Commander Brock meet him in the transporter room.

Splendid, Diat said as his image faded from the view screen and was replaced by