Virgin dick's fairy queen unicorn porn kill hunt.
3.5 out of 5
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Apexology - Jason Sizemore
Apexology is a better than good book, with a broad range of styles and sub-genres of horror selected.
It turned out to be better than I thought it would be, with the selections solidly and consistently readable, with the upper tier being as different as the exponentially increasing weird dread of Paul Jessup to the highly amusing debutantes and Cthulhu provided by Pagliasotti.
No bad stories, either, which is extremely well done given you won't have any fingers or toes left after counting the number of tales in this volume.
Also, Apex specialised in science fiction horror, so you get more of that than you likely will in almost any other book. That is, more than one story. Many horror editors have a distinct aversion to such, it would seem.
For people looking for a large dose of right smack-bang in the middle horror, give Apexology a shot.
Apexology : It Tasted Like the Sea - Paul Jessup
Apexology : Summon Bind Banish - Nick Mamatas
Apexology : To Every Thing There is a Season - Dru Pagliassotti
Apexology : Life's a Beach - Alethea Kontis and Ariell Branson
Apexology : Kusatenda Uroyi - Gill Ainsworth
Apexology : Lottery - Gene O'Neill
Apexology : Cerbo en Vitra ujo - Mary Robinette Kowal
Apexology : The Spider in the Hairdo - Michael A. Burstein
Apexology : The Dark Side - Guy Hasson
Apexology : With the Beating of their Wings - Martel Sardina
Apexology : Enough to Make a Devil - R. Thomas Riley
Apexology : Flash of Light - Jason Sizemore
Apexology : Transylvania Mission - Lavie Tidhar
Apexology : Inside Looking Out or Falling Through the Worlds - Mari Adkins
Apexology : Powered - Deb Taber
Apexology : Disturbing Things - B.J. Burrow
Apexology : Eulogy for Muffin - Jennifer Brozek
Apexology : Hands of Heritage - Elizabeth Engstrom
Apexology : The Junkyard God - M. Zak Anwar and O.M.R. Anwar
Apexology : Bessie Green's Thumb - Fran Friel
For the wolf commandos. Yeah, nazi werewolves. The usual.
3.5 out of 5
Saw momma.
3 out of 5
Family feud all over again.
3.5 out of 5
Host cut smash.
3.5 out of 5
Yog-Sothoth in jail.
3.5 out of 5
For R'lyeh Coming Out.
4 out of 5
Transformation vixen hunt..
3.5 out of 5
Crowley likes the penis.
3 out of 5
Body harvested boy bits bonk breathe no more.
3.5 out of 5
Rooms of chopped up me, and others.
4 out of 5
Trying the dead thing.
3 out of 5
Pandemonium garden fertiliser.
3.5 out of 5
Staking dad Van Helsing.
3 out of 5
Invasion host.
3 out of 5
Damn, I'm possessed.
3.5 out of 5
Wild Hunt Mummy.
3.5 out of 5
Searat murder talk.
3 out of 5
Big Dog spare.
3.5 out of 5
Pool of Fallen Heroes.
3.5 out of 5
Ghost murder hunt.
3.5 out of 5
4 out of 5
It turned out to be better than I thought it would be, with the selections solidly and consistently readable, with the upper tier being as different as the exponentially increasing weird dread of Paul Jessup to the highly amusing debutantes and Cthulhu provided by Pagliasotti.
No bad stories, either, which is extremely well done given you won't have any fingers or toes left after counting the number of tales in this volume.
Also, Apex specialised in science fiction horror, so you get more of that than you likely will in almost any other book. That is, more than one story. Many horror editors have a distinct aversion to such, it would seem.
For people looking for a large dose of right smack-bang in the middle horror, give Apexology a shot.
Apexology : It Tasted Like the Sea - Paul Jessup
Apexology : Summon Bind Banish - Nick Mamatas
Apexology : To Every Thing There is a Season - Dru Pagliassotti
Apexology : Life's a Beach - Alethea Kontis and Ariell Branson
Apexology : Kusatenda Uroyi - Gill Ainsworth
Apexology : Lottery - Gene O'Neill
Apexology : Cerbo en Vitra ujo - Mary Robinette Kowal
Apexology : The Spider in the Hairdo - Michael A. Burstein
Apexology : The Dark Side - Guy Hasson
Apexology : With the Beating of their Wings - Martel Sardina
Apexology : Enough to Make a Devil - R. Thomas Riley
Apexology : Flash of Light - Jason Sizemore
Apexology : Transylvania Mission - Lavie Tidhar
Apexology : Inside Looking Out or Falling Through the Worlds - Mari Adkins
Apexology : Powered - Deb Taber
Apexology : Disturbing Things - B.J. Burrow
Apexology : Eulogy for Muffin - Jennifer Brozek
Apexology : Hands of Heritage - Elizabeth Engstrom
Apexology : The Junkyard God - M. Zak Anwar and O.M.R. Anwar
Apexology : Bessie Green's Thumb - Fran Friel
For the wolf commandos. Yeah, nazi werewolves. The usual.
3.5 out of 5
Saw momma.
3 out of 5
Family feud all over again.
3.5 out of 5
Host cut smash.
3.5 out of 5
Yog-Sothoth in jail.
3.5 out of 5
For R'lyeh Coming Out.
4 out of 5
Transformation vixen hunt..
3.5 out of 5
Crowley likes the penis.
3 out of 5
Body harvested boy bits bonk breathe no more.
3.5 out of 5
Rooms of chopped up me, and others.
4 out of 5
Trying the dead thing.
3 out of 5
Pandemonium garden fertiliser.
3.5 out of 5
Staking dad Van Helsing.
3 out of 5
Invasion host.
3 out of 5
Damn, I'm possessed.
3.5 out of 5
Wild Hunt Mummy.
3.5 out of 5
Searat murder talk.
3 out of 5
Big Dog spare.
3.5 out of 5
Pool of Fallen Heroes.
3.5 out of 5
Ghost murder hunt.
3.5 out of 5
4 out of 5
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
The Fife of Bodidharma - Cordwainer Smith
Short Story
Number of words : 2900
Percent of complex words : 10.3
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 16.0
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 10.5
Flesch : 64.5
Flesch-Kincaid : 8.2
PEOPLE
Goldsmith
Made the fife and died as a result.
Bodidharma the Blessed One
Ancient religious leader who is given the fife.
German explorer
Found the fife.
Wolfgang Huene
A nazi who hates Hitler and finds the fife.
Hagen von Griin
One of the German rocket scientists who worked at Huntsville, Alabama.
TECHNOLOGY
Magical fife
A musical instrument. A chancy prediscovery of psionic powers with sonic triggering. Made of gold.
Onyx
A type of quartz.
Case No. 34 of the Dorotheum
Where the fife resided in Germany.
PLACES
Cathay
Another name for part of China.
Loyang
Chinese city.
Anyang
City in South Korea.
Rhine
German river.
Cape Canaveral
Site of USA space launches.
ORGANISATIONS
Northern Wei dynasty
Ancient Chinese rulers.
Toba Tartars
Chinese barbarians.
Volkssturm
German military group.
Harappa
A proto-Indian culture.
ANIMALS
Tiger and wolf and fox and jackal and snake and spider
Encountered by the Bodidharma.
VEHICLES
B-29s
Allied planes.
PLOT
A goldsmith makes a fife with special properties which has different owners over time from Bodidharmas to nazis. Eventually a rocket scientist uses it as a replacement strut in a launch and wonders if it matters in what setting he left it.
2.5 out of 5
Number of words : 2900
Percent of complex words : 10.3
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 16.0
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 10.5
Flesch : 64.5
Flesch-Kincaid : 8.2
PEOPLE
Goldsmith
Made the fife and died as a result.
Bodidharma the Blessed One
Ancient religious leader who is given the fife.
German explorer
Found the fife.
Wolfgang Huene
A nazi who hates Hitler and finds the fife.
Hagen von Griin
One of the German rocket scientists who worked at Huntsville, Alabama.
TECHNOLOGY
Magical fife
A musical instrument. A chancy prediscovery of psionic powers with sonic triggering. Made of gold.
Onyx
A type of quartz.
Case No. 34 of the Dorotheum
Where the fife resided in Germany.
PLACES
Cathay
Another name for part of China.
Loyang
Chinese city.
Anyang
City in South Korea.
Rhine
German river.
Cape Canaveral
Site of USA space launches.
ORGANISATIONS
Northern Wei dynasty
Ancient Chinese rulers.
Toba Tartars
Chinese barbarians.
Volkssturm
German military group.
Harappa
A proto-Indian culture.
ANIMALS
Tiger and wolf and fox and jackal and snake and spider
Encountered by the Bodidharma.
VEHICLES
B-29s
Allied planes.
PLOT
A goldsmith makes a fife with special properties which has different owners over time from Bodidharmas to nazis. Eventually a rocket scientist uses it as a replacement strut in a launch and wonders if it matters in what setting he left it.
2.5 out of 5
Nancy - Cordwainer Smith
Short Story
Number of words : 4700
Percent of complex words : 8.5
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 10.5
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 7.6
Flesch : 77.0
Flesch-Kincaid : 5.1
PEOPLE
Gordon Greene
Originally Giordano Verdi. A Space Service officer.
Wallenstein
An old man.
Karl Vonderleyen
An old lieutenant of the service.
ORGANISATIONS
Space Service
Goes into the Up-and-Out.
TECHNOLOGY
Nancy
An imaginary virus created friend.
Sokta virus
Designed to be implanted in a person and released in the case of needing companionship in space.
PLANTS
Geraniums
A type of flower.
FOOD
Dago Red
A wine.
PLOT
Man cannot cope in space alone, so missions always have more than one person. However, if one dies then there is a problem. The sotka virus enables a person to experience an imaginary companion after it is triggered. In a military interview, such a story is recounted.
3.5 out of 5
Number of words : 4700
Percent of complex words : 8.5
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 10.5
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 7.6
Flesch : 77.0
Flesch-Kincaid : 5.1
PEOPLE
Gordon Greene
Originally Giordano Verdi. A Space Service officer.
Wallenstein
An old man.
Karl Vonderleyen
An old lieutenant of the service.
ORGANISATIONS
Space Service
Goes into the Up-and-Out.
TECHNOLOGY
Nancy
An imaginary virus created friend.
Sokta virus
Designed to be implanted in a person and released in the case of needing companionship in space.
PLANTS
Geraniums
A type of flower.
FOOD
Dago Red
A wine.
PLOT
Man cannot cope in space alone, so missions always have more than one person. However, if one dies then there is a problem. The sotka virus enables a person to experience an imaginary companion after it is triggered. In a military interview, such a story is recounted.
3.5 out of 5
Angerhelm - Cordwainer Smith
Novelette
Number of words : 8100
Percent of complex words : 10.0
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 12.3
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 9.0
Flesch : 70.9
Flesch-Kincaid : 6.4
PEOPLE
Assistant
To Mr Spatz.
Mr Spatz
His boss.
Khruschev
Russian Prime Minister.
Secretary of State
USA cabinet member.
Undersecretary
Deputy to the Secretary of State.
Nelson Angerhelm
Of 2322 Ridge Drive, Hopkins, Minnesota. A 62-year-old retired poultry farmer. He had served in World I.
Colonel Plugg
A US army officer.
Lieutenant Colonel Potariskov
The Soviet Assistant Military Attache.
Colonel Tice Angerhelm
Nelson's younger brother, deceased.
Theiss Ankerhjelm
Swedish admiral a couple hundred years ago. A West Pointer in the Adjutant General's office.
Don Juan
Famous womaniser.
Soviet Ambassador
Head of the Soviet diplomatic mission.
Jensen
Angerhelm's pastor.
Mrs. Prai Jesselton
Tice's old girlfriend.
ORGANISATIONS
Department of the Army
US government department.
Signal Corps
Army intelligence gatherers.
Soviet Embassy
Diplomatic mission to the USA.
SAC base
Army facility.
FBI
Federal Bureau of Intelligence. USA national cops.
VEHICLES
Sputniks
Russian spacecraft.
CONCEPTS
Galactic clearance
Security rating. Galactic clearance came a little bit after Universal clearance.
PLACES
Minneapolis
US city.
Plattsburg
Town in New York.
Hopkins
A town in Minnesota, a diplomatic no travel zone.
VEHICLES
Chevrolet
A car.
Willys roadster
An old car.
PLOT
The intelligence communities of the USA and the Soviet Union are concerned about a message from a dead colonel to his retired brother in Minnesota. Especially as it doesn't matter what country you are in when you receive the broadcast and you can tell what it is.
3 out of 5
Number of words : 8100
Percent of complex words : 10.0
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 12.3
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 9.0
Flesch : 70.9
Flesch-Kincaid : 6.4
PEOPLE
Assistant
To Mr Spatz.
Mr Spatz
His boss.
Khruschev
Russian Prime Minister.
Secretary of State
USA cabinet member.
Undersecretary
Deputy to the Secretary of State.
Nelson Angerhelm
Of 2322 Ridge Drive, Hopkins, Minnesota. A 62-year-old retired poultry farmer. He had served in World I.
Colonel Plugg
A US army officer.
Lieutenant Colonel Potariskov
The Soviet Assistant Military Attache.
Colonel Tice Angerhelm
Nelson's younger brother, deceased.
Theiss Ankerhjelm
Swedish admiral a couple hundred years ago. A West Pointer in the Adjutant General's office.
Don Juan
Famous womaniser.
Soviet Ambassador
Head of the Soviet diplomatic mission.
Jensen
Angerhelm's pastor.
Mrs. Prai Jesselton
Tice's old girlfriend.
ORGANISATIONS
Department of the Army
US government department.
Signal Corps
Army intelligence gatherers.
Soviet Embassy
Diplomatic mission to the USA.
SAC base
Army facility.
FBI
Federal Bureau of Intelligence. USA national cops.
VEHICLES
Sputniks
Russian spacecraft.
CONCEPTS
Galactic clearance
Security rating. Galactic clearance came a little bit after Universal clearance.
PLACES
Minneapolis
US city.
Plattsburg
Town in New York.
Hopkins
A town in Minnesota, a diplomatic no travel zone.
VEHICLES
Chevrolet
A car.
Willys roadster
An old car.
PLOT
The intelligence communities of the USA and the Soviet Union are concerned about a message from a dead colonel to his retired brother in Minnesota. Especially as it doesn't matter what country you are in when you receive the broadcast and you can tell what it is.
3 out of 5
Induction - Greg Egan
Short Story
Number of words : 5300
Percent of complex words : 12.9
Average syllables per word : 1.6
Average words per sentence : 23.3
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 14.5
Flesch : 50.2
Flesch-Kincaid : 12.0
PEOPLE
Ikat
An astronaut on the moon.
Pope
Religious leader.
Qing
Ikat's colleague.
Mother
Of Ikat.
Father
Of Ikat.
Vikram Ali
Represents Khamoush Holdings.
Armstrong
First man on the moon.
TECHNOLOGY
Launch gun
Used for shooting payloads a long way into space at near light speeds.
Stage Nine
The ten-kilometre section of the barrel where the pellets would be accelerated from sixteen to eighteen per cent of light speed.
Maglev railway
Hover transport route.
Coil gun
Small space payload launcher.
Harbour Bridge
Sydney transport structure due for decommissioning.
Nanoware
Small manufacturing technology that is programmable.
ORGANISATIONS
Council of Islamic Scholars in Brussels
Religious academic group.
URC
Chinese government.
Magic Beans Inc.
Part of Khamoush Holdings.
PLACES
Potomac
River in Washington, DC, USA.
Procellarum
A moon base.
Bangkok
City in Thailand.
Prosperity B
A star in the target system.
Prosperity A
The larger companion star.
Duty
Prosperity A's fourth planet.
Aksai Chin
Part of China near India in the Tibet area.
Tokelau
Islands ruled by New Zealand.
Kowloon
Part of Hong Kong.
Mumbai
City in India.
Patience
A smaller planet in the prosperity system.
VEHICLES
Orchid Flower
Sent by launch gun and containing tiny pellets to be launched into space. The pellets that comprised the seed were not physically connected, but they would move in synch in a rigid pattern, forming a kind of sparse crystal whose spacing allowed it to interact strongly with the microwave radiation in the gun.
Pioneer 10
Early spacecraft.
CONCEPTS
Acorporeals
People that have left their bodies.
PLOT
Ikat is an astronaut on the moon, working on a project to launch a payload to nearby stars. Along with her friend Qing.
Then, in the future, people have the ability to be scanned and become posthuman, and the company that bought the rights to some of their early work has an offer for them - they can explore locally in person the new system. And from there, do further exploration.
4 out of 5
Number of words : 5300
Percent of complex words : 12.9
Average syllables per word : 1.6
Average words per sentence : 23.3
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 14.5
Flesch : 50.2
Flesch-Kincaid : 12.0
PEOPLE
Ikat
An astronaut on the moon.
Pope
Religious leader.
Qing
Ikat's colleague.
Mother
Of Ikat.
Father
Of Ikat.
Vikram Ali
Represents Khamoush Holdings.
Armstrong
First man on the moon.
TECHNOLOGY
Launch gun
Used for shooting payloads a long way into space at near light speeds.
Stage Nine
The ten-kilometre section of the barrel where the pellets would be accelerated from sixteen to eighteen per cent of light speed.
Maglev railway
Hover transport route.
Coil gun
Small space payload launcher.
Harbour Bridge
Sydney transport structure due for decommissioning.
Nanoware
Small manufacturing technology that is programmable.
ORGANISATIONS
Council of Islamic Scholars in Brussels
Religious academic group.
URC
Chinese government.
Magic Beans Inc.
Part of Khamoush Holdings.
PLACES
Potomac
River in Washington, DC, USA.
Procellarum
A moon base.
Bangkok
City in Thailand.
Prosperity B
A star in the target system.
Prosperity A
The larger companion star.
Duty
Prosperity A's fourth planet.
Aksai Chin
Part of China near India in the Tibet area.
Tokelau
Islands ruled by New Zealand.
Kowloon
Part of Hong Kong.
Mumbai
City in India.
Patience
A smaller planet in the prosperity system.
VEHICLES
Orchid Flower
Sent by launch gun and containing tiny pellets to be launched into space. The pellets that comprised the seed were not physically connected, but they would move in synch in a rigid pattern, forming a kind of sparse crystal whose spacing allowed it to interact strongly with the microwave radiation in the gun.
Pioneer 10
Early spacecraft.
CONCEPTS
Acorporeals
People that have left their bodies.
PLOT
Ikat is an astronaut on the moon, working on a project to launch a payload to nearby stars. Along with her friend Qing.
Then, in the future, people have the ability to be scanned and become posthuman, and the company that bought the rights to some of their early work has an offer for them - they can explore locally in person the new system. And from there, do further exploration.
4 out of 5
In Numbers - Greg Egan
Short Story
Number of words : 6900
Percent of complex words : 11.9
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 15.2
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 10.8
Flesch : 60.9
Flesch-Kincaid : 8.5
PEOPLE
Doctor Dreyfus
The medico on the Cyclops.
Andrew Callaghan
An engineer that has gone crazy due to the condition.
Jenny
Another crew member and cyberneticist.
Captain Salih al-Qasbi
Ship's leader.
Thomas Bwalya
Life-support engineer.
Greta Nordstrom
Communications engineer.
Kayathiri Sangaralingam
Drive specialist.
VEHICLES
Cyclops
A spaceship attempting to travel a record distance.
TECHNOLOGY
DDC-XV
A mixture of anti-viral agents.
CONCEPTS
Legionnella Six
A disease.
Cyclops Syndrome
Condition affecting Andrew Callaghan and the crew.
Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen experiment
Famous quantum mechanics work.
TECHNOLOGY
NMR spectra
Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy - a technique that exploits the magnetic properties of certain nuclei.
PET scans
Position emission tomography. A technique which produces a three-dimensional image or picture of functional processes in the body.
Nanomachines
Tiny robots that can be weapons or medical repair devices.
ORGANISATIONS
ISUSAT
A spaceflight centre.
MEDIA
The Plague
Work by Camus that inspired David to become a doctor.
PLOT
Dreyfus in the doctor on a ship that is attemping a voyage further out than anyone has gone before. The crew are beginning to come down with what seems like a disease that makes them crazy and dangerous, and in need of restraint.
It looks like it will affect all of them, so he has to make provision for everyone to be safe and to be fed by robot until they return.
However the condition seems to dissipate. He theorises that it may be because they have gone too far away from the rest of humanity, that there is some sort of quantum effect of life. If you go too far from Earth, your body will not be able to take it.
4 out of 5
Number of words : 6900
Percent of complex words : 11.9
Average syllables per word : 1.5
Average words per sentence : 15.2
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 10.8
Flesch : 60.9
Flesch-Kincaid : 8.5
PEOPLE
Doctor Dreyfus
The medico on the Cyclops.
Andrew Callaghan
An engineer that has gone crazy due to the condition.
Jenny
Another crew member and cyberneticist.
Captain Salih al-Qasbi
Ship's leader.
Thomas Bwalya
Life-support engineer.
Greta Nordstrom
Communications engineer.
Kayathiri Sangaralingam
Drive specialist.
VEHICLES
Cyclops
A spaceship attempting to travel a record distance.
TECHNOLOGY
DDC-XV
A mixture of anti-viral agents.
CONCEPTS
Legionnella Six
A disease.
Cyclops Syndrome
Condition affecting Andrew Callaghan and the crew.
Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen experiment
Famous quantum mechanics work.
TECHNOLOGY
NMR spectra
Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy - a technique that exploits the magnetic properties of certain nuclei.
PET scans
Position emission tomography. A technique which produces a three-dimensional image or picture of functional processes in the body.
Nanomachines
Tiny robots that can be weapons or medical repair devices.
ORGANISATIONS
ISUSAT
A spaceflight centre.
MEDIA
The Plague
Work by Camus that inspired David to become a doctor.
PLOT
Dreyfus in the doctor on a ship that is attemping a voyage further out than anyone has gone before. The crew are beginning to come down with what seems like a disease that makes them crazy and dangerous, and in need of restraint.
It looks like it will affect all of them, so he has to make provision for everyone to be safe and to be fed by robot until they return.
However the condition seems to dissipate. He theorises that it may be because they have gone too far away from the rest of humanity, that there is some sort of quantum effect of life. If you go too far from Earth, your body will not be able to take it.
4 out of 5
The Star Surgeon's Apprentice - Alastair Reynolds
Novelette
Number of words : 10500
Percent of complex words : 7.5
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 9.7
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 6.9
Flesch : 76.5
Flesch-Kincaid : 4.5
PEOPLE
Peter Vandry
A boy who needs to get offworld in a hurry.
Master Khorog
Shipmaster and pirate.
Mister Zeal
The ship's surgeon.
Happy Jack
He and his gang are after Peter on Mokmer.
Lobot girl
An Iron Lady drive engineer.
Baby
A young Flux Swimmer.
PLACES
Juntura Spaceport
Where Peter wants to get a ride anywhere but here.
Mokmer
The planet he wants to leave.
Bafq Gap and Belterra Sphere
Places he doesn't want to go.
Frovolo
A planet he wants to get to, in the Frovolo Hub.
The Napier Belt
Before Frovolo.
Jelgava
Has a good antique weapons market.
Crab Pulsar
Has a strong magnetic field.
ORGANISATIONS
Kalarash Empire
An old civilisation.
WEAPONS
Bone gun
A sonic disruptor weapon.
Tranquilizer gun
Small, non-lethal weapon that looks like a soldering iron.
VEHICLES
Iron Lady
A pirate ship that is really the Devilfish.
TECHNOLOGY
Freezer
Ship cryogenics.
Ramscoop
Ship drive.
CONCEPTS
Lobots
Humans with brain surgery modifications to make them dumb and docile.
Wethead
An unmodified human.
St. Elmo's Fire
An electrical weather phenomenon.
RACES
Flux Swimmers
Creatures that live among stars and create magnetic fields. Can be used as a weapon as a result.
PLOT
Peter needs to get offplanet as some thugs are after him. He gains passage on the Iron Lady in trade and in labour, where he is to work as the apprentice surgeon for a crew of cyborgs.
The ship is really a pirate ship and also uses lobotomised human cyborgs as labour.
When the ship gets in a conflict he learns that they are actually the infamous crew of the pirate ship Devilfish, and that their advantage is a captive pair of Flux Swimmers, who have magnetic abilities that can be used to disable other ships.
Peter is horrified by this information given to him by a slightly less dumbed down lobot girl who tends them, and he decides to help her do something about bumping off the cyborg crew. That is, metal powers, cyborgs = bad combination for them if the Baby Flux Swimmer can be given enough food to make it strong enough to use its nascent abilities at this range.
The problem with this plan is the girl also has metal in her head, and it will kill her if Peter can't convince her to let him operate first, very, very fast.
4.5 out of 5
Number of words : 10500
Percent of complex words : 7.5
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 9.7
READABILITY INDICES
Fog : 6.9
Flesch : 76.5
Flesch-Kincaid : 4.5
PEOPLE
Peter Vandry
A boy who needs to get offworld in a hurry.
Master Khorog
Shipmaster and pirate.
Mister Zeal
The ship's surgeon.
Happy Jack
He and his gang are after Peter on Mokmer.
Lobot girl
An Iron Lady drive engineer.
Baby
A young Flux Swimmer.
PLACES
Juntura Spaceport
Where Peter wants to get a ride anywhere but here.
Mokmer
The planet he wants to leave.
Bafq Gap and Belterra Sphere
Places he doesn't want to go.
Frovolo
A planet he wants to get to, in the Frovolo Hub.
The Napier Belt
Before Frovolo.
Jelgava
Has a good antique weapons market.
Crab Pulsar
Has a strong magnetic field.
ORGANISATIONS
Kalarash Empire
An old civilisation.
WEAPONS
Bone gun
A sonic disruptor weapon.
Tranquilizer gun
Small, non-lethal weapon that looks like a soldering iron.
VEHICLES
Iron Lady
A pirate ship that is really the Devilfish.
TECHNOLOGY
Freezer
Ship cryogenics.
Ramscoop
Ship drive.
CONCEPTS
Lobots
Humans with brain surgery modifications to make them dumb and docile.
Wethead
An unmodified human.
St. Elmo's Fire
An electrical weather phenomenon.
RACES
Flux Swimmers
Creatures that live among stars and create magnetic fields. Can be used as a weapon as a result.
PLOT
Peter needs to get offplanet as some thugs are after him. He gains passage on the Iron Lady in trade and in labour, where he is to work as the apprentice surgeon for a crew of cyborgs.
The ship is really a pirate ship and also uses lobotomised human cyborgs as labour.
When the ship gets in a conflict he learns that they are actually the infamous crew of the pirate ship Devilfish, and that their advantage is a captive pair of Flux Swimmers, who have magnetic abilities that can be used to disable other ships.
Peter is horrified by this information given to him by a slightly less dumbed down lobot girl who tends them, and he decides to help her do something about bumping off the cyborg crew. That is, metal powers, cyborgs = bad combination for them if the Baby Flux Swimmer can be given enough food to make it strong enough to use its nascent abilities at this range.
The problem with this plan is the girl also has metal in her head, and it will kill her if Peter can't convince her to let him operate first, very, very fast.
4.5 out of 5
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