As human slaves were herded into the maw of a massive vessel, Kristin realized her normal life was over and her fight for freedom was just beginning…The alien Catteni value strength and intelligence in their slaves—and Kristin has managed to survive her enslavement while hundreds of other humans have not. But her trial has just begun, for now she finds herself part of a massive experiment. The aliens have discovered a new world, and they have a simple way of finding out if it’s habitable: drop hundreds of slaves on the surface and see what happens.If they survive, colonization can begin. If not, there are always more slaves.

    Now it is dying. But only Hari Seldon, creator of the revolutionary science of psychohistory, can see into the future -- to a dark age of ignorance, barbarism, and warfare that will last thirty thousand years. To preserve knowledge and save mankind, Seldon gathers the best minds in the Empire -- both scientists and scholars -- and brings them to a bleak planet at the edge of the Galaxy to serve as a beacon of hope for a future generations. He calls his sanctuary the Foundation.But soon the fledgling Foundation finds itself at the mercy of corrupt warlords rising in the wake of the receding Empire. Mankind's last best hope is faced with an agonizing choice: submit to the barbarians and be overrun -- or fight them and be destroyed.

    They say that vengeance is a dish best served cold, but to the men and woman who went with him over the border to deliver that vengeance, it was dish served hot, and out of the barrel of a gun and cannon, and from the air. Yet in victory came defeat as he found three hundred years later in the world he woke up in. One far different from the one he'd left behind when he went into cold sleep. Now he had to find a place in this strange new world, one without the means to wage war against an alien race raping the planet of its young people. First, he had to build an army, navy and air force from scratch while fending off attacks from the aliens and the secret government that wanted to put him and his men back into cold sleep or the grave.

    This volume assembles some of Clifton's very best work -- including THEY'D RATHER BE RIGHT:STAR BRIGHT (1952)THE KENZIE REPORT (1953)WE'RE CIVILIZED!SENSE FROM THOUGHT DIVIDE (1955)A WOMAN'S PLACE (1955)DO UNTO OTHERS (1958)THEY'D RATHER BE RIGHT (1958)WHAT NOW, LITTLE MAN? (1959)EIGHT KEYS TO EDEN (1960)And if you enjoy this volume, don't forget to search your favorite ebook store for "Wildside Press Megapack" to see more entries in this great series, covering science fiction, fantasy, horror, mysteries, westerns, classics -- and much, much more!

    Lover. Sniper. Thief. Scourge of the wicked. In fact, scourge of anyone if there's money to be made. A lawless man in a galaxy overrun by villains, Mork beasts, Dildonians and the dreaded imperial forces of Crem Slumdump. Aided by his otherwise unemployable crew of drunks, criminals, assassins and broken down combat droids, Bodega seeks fortune, and trouble seeks him. Armed with his array of hi-tech gadgets, and of course his famous las-gun, Bodega careens around the corners of the known Universe in his ship, the Disco Volante, guided by his unique sense of justice, and his love for the psychic entity known only as Majesta.Bodega: Tales from the Bodegaverse contains all the episodes of Bodega previously transmitted via the Triforce Podcast, and heaps more Bodega action besides. What're ya waiting for, pard?

    Enemy Rix are machine-augmented humans who worship AI compound minds. Separated by light years, bound by an unlikely love, Zai and pacifist senator Nara Oxham face the Rix and hold the fate of the empire.

    He’s forced to scrub booster tubes on commercial starships to make enough coins to feed his alcohol addiction in his dirty day-to-day existence. The future looks dark and is getting darker. To make matters worse, he discovers that two very powerful forces are attempting to capture him and he has no clue why. One of them is the Venzel Dragons, who are recognized as the most deadly warriors in the known universe. The other is a secretive organization simply known as the Movement. Gregor just can’t figure out why they’re after him and remaining free is quickly disappearing as an option. He has no choice but to run and try to determine why he is being pursued across the known universe. He has no memory of his childhood or where he was born and before he can make sense of everything, he would need to go back to Earth and find out who he really is. What he finds changes his world completely and learning that his adopted father was assassinated makes him resolve to make the killers pay for their actions. But what could a filthy, alcoholic bum do against the two most powerful forces in the known universe? The answer lies on the forest world of Bellingham and according to the Cartian Database, no one has gone to that planet in more than six hundred years and lived. Gregor’s Run will keep you guessing at all the twists and turns as Gregor struggles to find himself in a universe gone insane. Excerpt: Gregor’s Run Gregor looked around the gathering, “Some of ye give it a go.” A warrior standing next to Gregor shook his head, “I think it’s clear that swords will not go through that thing.” Gregor said loudly, “All of ye agree that swords are useless against this force field.” The warriors all looked at each other and nodded. “Now if that piece of wood inside the force field was holding a blaster and ye were close enough to strike the force field, ye would die. All of ye see that.” Again the warriors looked at each other and were forced to agree with Gregor. Gregor turned and said, “Now, I want the archers to move back ten yards and fire at that piece of wood like it’s an enemy coming to harm ye families. I want ye to move back in case the arrows you shoot bounce off towards ye.” Several male warriors and ten females moved back ten yards and formed a line. Ellie was one of the archers and she lifted her bow and pulled an arrow out of her quiver. The arrow flew toward the target at a speed that was difficult to see but, when it bounced off the force field, everyone saw it penetrate the canoe twenty yards further up the beach. Everyone immediately moved back another ten yards. The archers didn’t give up as easily as the swordsmen. They fired arrow after arrow at the target and arrows were ricocheting in all directions. Finally, all of them stopped firing except for Ellie. Gregor saw the anger on her face and she started screaming as each arrow failed to penetrate the force field. Gregor sighed and saw her frustration getting the better of her. She jumped and slammed her elbows down to her sides as she stamped both feet into the sand. She screamed at the top of her voice and ran toward the force field. Gregor yelled, “NO, ELLIE! STOP!!” Ellie arrived at the force field, jerked the last arrow out of her quiver, and screamed as she threw it at the wooden target. The arrow went through the force field and stuck in the center of the target. Gregor’s mouth fell open as he heard the computer say over the link, “What the hell just happened here!”

    But with Taran civilization on the brink of war, salvation may come from the most unlikely of places...Cris Sietinen, heir to the most influential Dynasty in the Taran empire, was born with rare telekinetic gifts--abilities he refuses to ignore, regardless of the governing Priesthood's decrees. Determined to be true to himself, and test the limits of his abilities, Cris escapes his stifled life of business and politics on Tararia to begin a new life exploring the stars.When Cris unexpectedly receives an invitation to join the Tararian Selective Service (TSS), the only organization to offer an official telekinesis training program, a new future awaits. It's his dream opportunity to be among people like himself, free from the Priesthood and political objectives. Except, Cris' path was designed, and he's right where the Priesthood wants him.Written in the style of classic sci-fi from the Golden Age, Architects of Destiny is the first installment in the Cadicle series, a new space opera epic with elements of "Dune", "Ender's Game", and "Star Wars". A fast-paced space adventure with intrigue, coming-of-age and romance, this short prequel is a prelude to the defining events in Tararia's history in the ensuing years.

    Humanity flows away from Earth, into space, and in time forgets our home world and creates a new empire, the Interdependency, whose ethos requires that no one human outpost can survive without the others. It’s a hedge against interstellar war -- and a system of control for the rulers of the empire.The Flow is eternal -- but it is not static. Just as a river changes course, The Flow changes as well, cutting off worlds from the rest of humanity. When it’s discovered that The Flow is moving, possibly cutting off all human worlds from faster than light travel forever, three individuals -- a scientist, a starship captain and the Empress of the Interdependency -- are in a race against time to discover what, if anything, can be salvaged from an interstellar empire on the brink of collapse.

    The question is: is it a better one? When a crew of arms smugglers botches their latest job, Corps-deserter and crewmember, Aly Erikson, is separated from her brother, the only person she can trust, and left behind to fight for her life. In the aftermath, as she tries to piece together what happened, a crew of roughneck settlers pressgang her into a dangerous mission in the heart of Corps territory. With her enemies closing in, time is running out to get back everything she's lost: her crew, her brother, and her options. But no one is taking her gun.

    But when a terrified woman falls through his bathroom ceiling, he's forced back into a life of gunfights, double agents and paranormal research. The secret he's been keeping for nearly four decades might reunite him with his lost love, or kill millions.This new short story by John August falls into the genre of paranoid "spy-fi" popularized by writers like Jorge Luis Borges and shows like The Prisoner and The Man from U.N.C.L.E.== What Others Say =="I really dug the story. Gave it a glance just to see, got totally hooked, and blazed on through to the end."-- Michael Chabon (The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, The Yiddish Policemen's Union) "The Variant" is both a good, fun, smart story and an interesting experiment in indie self-publishing for fiction."-- John Gruber, daringfireball.net== About the Author ==An excerpt of The Variant is available at johnaugust.com/variant About the AuthorJohn August is the screenwriter of eight feature films, including Go, Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Corpse Bride. He wrote and directed the 2007 movie The Nines.He can be found on Twitter, @johnaugust

    Seeking to atone, she joins the House of Reclamation, an organisation dedicated to rescuing ships in distress.But, stripped of her weaponry and emptied of her officers, she struggles in the new role she’s chosen for herself. When a ship goes missing in a disputed system, Trouble Dog and her new crew of misfits and loners, captained by Sal Konstanz, an ex-captain of a medical frigate who once fought against Trouble Dog, are assigned to investigate and save whoever they can.Meanwhile, light years away, intelligence officer Ashton Childe is tasked with locating and saving the poet, Ona Sudak, who was aboard the missing ship, whatever the cost. In order to do this, he must reach out to the only person he considers a friend, even if he’s not sure she can be trusted. What Childe doesn’t know is that Sudak is not the person she appears to be.Quickly, what appears to be a straightforward rescue mission turns into something far more dangerous, as Trouble Dog, Konstanz and Childe, find themselves at the centre of a potential new conflict that could engulf not just mankind but the entire galaxy.If she is to survive and save her crew, Trouble Dog is going to have to remember how to fight.

    Debilitated by their influence when faced with violence, the brilliant forensic investigator now only takes assignments involving theft. But when he has to hunt down a hijacked vaccine for a galaxy-wide pandemic, the tragic first clue is his best friend’s brutal murder.Nightshift guard Mairwen Morganthur knows she must keep a low profile. The product of illegal genetic alteration, she’s a lethal weapon with no social graces. But when she’s tasked to protect a detective with frightening intuition, she finds herself falling for him even though he could expose her.Racing to recover the cure for a galaxy-wide pandemic, Luka is surprised by his developing feelings for the capable-but-mysterious guard. And Mairwen may have to risk everything by revealing her identity, with deadly mercenaries hot on their tail.Can the unlikely pair survive an interplanetary conspiracy long enough to save lives and find love?Overload Flux is the first novel in the sweeping Central Galactic Concordance space opera series. If you like haunted characters, compelling mysteries, and interstellar romance, then you’ll enjoy Carol Van Natta’s epic tale.

    Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first.

    But after decades of vicious infighting and partisan gridlock in the New Republic Senate, that hope seems like a distant memory.Now a respected senator, Leia must grapple with the dangers that threaten to cripple the fledgling democracy—from both within and without. Underworld kingpins, treacherous politicians, and Imperial loyalists are sowing chaos in the galaxy. Desperate to take action, senators are calling for the election of a First Senator. It is their hope that this influential post will bring strong leadership to a divided galaxy. As the daughter of Darth Vader, Leia faces with distrust the prospect of any one person holding such a powerful position—even when supporters suggest Leia herself for the job. But a new enemy may make this path Leia’s only option. For at the edges of the galaxy, a mysterious threat is growing...