
A courier pilot awakens in a cramped, locked bunk after a violent crash, his mind fogged and his memories fragmented. He discovers he’s been hidden away by a fellow prisoner, Troy Gordon, who seems both guardian and mystery. The ship’s emergency tank has kept him alive for years, while the outside world has become an alien captivity far from Earth.
The captors are called “Hammerheads”—creatures that look like oversized penguins with shark‑like heads, unsettling yet oddly endearing. As the pilot’s reflexes slowly return, he and Troy piece together fragments of a lost expedition named Cassa One, hinting at a long‑forgotten mission and a distant, hostile system. The story balances tense, claustrophobic moments with the quiet wonder of rediscovering forgotten skills, leaving listeners eager to learn what lies beyond the locked room and how the pilot will confront the strange new reality.
Language
en
Duration
~1 hours (67K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Original publisher
New York, NY: Ziff-Davis Publishing Company, 1962.
Credits
Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
Release date
2023-11-30
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1911–1981
Known for fast, clever science fiction and unusually capable heroines, this mid-20th-century writer built a loyal following with stories that still feel lively and smart. His work ranges from sharp short fiction to popular adventures in the Hub and Telzey Amberdon series.
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