
Part 1
Part 2
An exhausted pilot, low on fuel and supplies, drifts toward a distant world that seems almost a mirror of Earth—except for its uncanny perfection. The planet’s sky is threaded with swirling, metallic clouds, and the surface is a meticulously tended tapestry of trees, fields, and shining structures that hint at an advanced, orderly civilization. As he lands near a pristine farmhouse, the quiet beauty of the surroundings draws him in, but the precise calm feels almost too controlled.
Inside, he is welcomed by a striking woman whose voice carries a crystalline edge, speaking a language he cannot yet grasp. She offers him a simple, home‑cooked meal and invites him to sit at a spotless table, surrounded by flawless décor that feels both futuristic and timeless. While the hospitality is warm, an unexplained tension lingers, suggesting that beneath the serene façade there may be hidden complexities waiting to be uncovered.
Language
en
Duration
~33 minutes (32K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Original publisher
United States: Greenleaf Publishing Company, 1953.
Credits
Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2021-08-25
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1907–1975
Best known for the wildly popular and controversial “Shaver Mystery” stories, this American pulp writer and artist became one of the most talked-about figures in postwar science fiction magazines. His work mixed fantasy, paranoia, and underground civilizations in a way that still fascinates readers of strange fiction.
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