
A sleek interstellar cruise has taken its passengers to an ancient world they only knew from myths. When a restless Greek warrior bursts onto a battlefield on Earth, he finds himself confronting the very gods he once worshipped—Aphrodite, Apollo, and others appear in dazzling, almost theatrical form. The combat quickly escalates beyond mortal limits, drawing the stunned observers aboard the hovering alien ship into the fray.
The ship’s crew, a mix of disciplined officers and flamboyant aristocrats, watch the spectacle with a blend of curiosity and irritation. Their captain promises thrills, but the passengers soon discover that the “thrill‑ride” involves real deities, lethal weapons, and the unpredictable fury of a warrior driven by bloodlust. Amid diplomatic arguments and witty banter, the tourists grapple with the consequences of meddling in a conflict that was never meant for outsiders. The story balances high‑octane action with a satirical look at tourism taken to an impossible extreme.
Language
en
Duration
~16 minutes (15K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2021-04-13
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1917–1983
Best known for lively, idea-driven science fiction, this prolific American writer explored politics, economics, and possible futures with a sharp, often satirical edge. His stories were especially popular in the 1950s and 1960s, when he became a familiar name in magazines such as Galaxy and If.
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