Exploration Fiction

When the alien ship holding me malfunctions, I'm thrown into a shuttle and expelled from the ship. I awaken to find myself on what looks like a toxic waste dump - miles of inhospitable, eerie land where the ground smokes, the hills are black and barren, and it's unpleasantly cold. Soon I discover I'm not alone. There's an alien on the awful island. A familiar alien. He's the one who bought me from my captors. He's the one who paid extra because I'm a virgin. And he's the one who put me aboard the shuttle and saved my life when the ship went down.

In The Secret Explorers and the Jurassic Rescue, dinosaur expert Tamiko and geology expert Cheng travel back to the age of the dinosaurs in an effort to rescue a dinosaur egg from destruction. However, to save the egg, the Secret Explorers first have to use all their courage and skills to outsmart a fierce Allosaurus, rescue a baby Stegosaurus, and find a way to attract an Archaeopteryx. Tamiko and Cheng soon find that, to succeed, they need to come up with some unusual solutions....

What do you do when one of your deep space survey ships discovers a fertile, Earth-like planet that isn’t currently occupied by humans or any other intelligent species? If you’re the Lunar Free State, you make plans to put a colony there—and try to keep it secret so the Confederated Nations of Earth don’t do the same. Unfortunately, though, the secret gets out, and the CNE scrambles to launch their own colony project, starting a race by both nations to make their claim to the planet.

Liza Pound has pulled on one too many tails. And no-one likes their tail being pulled, especially tigers. In the grand scheme of things, the foxes were never a serious threat. But now there is a real threat, and they've taken notice of who is now their biggest threat.

She's an oracle. She knows that trouble is closing in. However, there's an instant in which she could escape, and so could those she loves. Too bad she's surrounded herself with ridiculously noble allies. The kind of self-sacrificing, kind, clever, and resolute people who force you to love them…then go off to risk their lives for the greater good. Of course, Cherry has to rescue them. And if she's rescuing those she loves, maybe she could save everyone else along the way.

Youth is a science fiction novelette by Isaac Asimov. It first appeared in the May 1952 issue of Space Science Fiction and was reprinted in the 1955 collection The Martian Way and Other Stories. Youth is one of the rare Asimov stories with alien characters. Slim is a boy whose astronomer father is visiting the country estate of an important industrialist. The industrialist's son, Red, has found two strange animals, and he enlists Slim in a plan to turn the animals into a circus act. The astronomer, meanwhile, tells the industrialist that he has been in contact with space aliens who want to open up their world to interstellar trade.

Everyone wants the Star of Erebus. Space-pirate Nyx Marcus is no exception. With it, she can prove to her father that she is worthy of his legacy. But she’s come up empty-handed aboard the space-ship Thanatos and now Malcam, her father’s first officer, is mutinying. As Nyx flees with a loyal skeleton crew, she discovers that the planet-killing weapon, named after one of the seven gods, is more than what it seems. Erebus isn’t a simple weapon. It’s an ancient AI and a technological god.

Meet Lia, a brilliant doctor aboard the starship Arcturus somewhere in the sprawling expanse of the galaxy, where humanity teeters on the edge of evolution. The legacy of her father, a pioneering inventor, looms over her as she tends to the health of both humans and those augmented by cybernetic enhancements. But as the Arcturus hurtles through the cosmos on a mysterious rescue mission, Lia finds herself grappling with the fact that her father’s groundbreaking technology is being used to usher in a new and menacing era of consciousness.

It’s been six months since Fortuna colony was established on a moon in a distant solar system. The aliens who invited the colonists here have never shown themselves, but they’ve provided everything the human settlers need to thrive. However, after several people vanish without a trace, the colony leaders decide it’s time to leave. But before they do, the aliens provide a final delicious meal for their human guests.

Mr. Kazarian has a problem...his evil cousin, Kronkhold, is threatening to consume the galaxy with his new device, a black-hole generator. Mr. K's four favorite students are in the library researching Albert Einstein when they see Mr. K heading out on his mission to stop Kronkhold. What better way to learn about black holes and Einstein's theories than to ride along? Oh, and hopefully help save their home in the Milky Way.

When Lee Anderson and her parents discovered a new world teeming with life, it was the dream of every explorer: they were rich beyond their imaginations. But tragedy struck when a herd of creatures overran their camp and killed her parents. The only other adult in her life had been their partner Gordon, who adopted her as parent. Which didn't turn out to be easy, because he wasn't human. He was a large intelligent alien, and to Lee, he was Uncle Gordon, but neither his race - the Derf - nor humans were gracious about accepting their family relationship.

As the title indicates, here are three science fiction stories by Frank Herbert: "Missing Link", originally published in "Astounding Science Fiction", 1959; "Operation Haystack", also published in "Astounding Science Fiction" 1959; and "Old Rambling House", published in "Galaxy Science Fiction" 1958.

Welcome to Cachalot, a planet made almost entirely of water, an ocean refuge for Earth's marine mammals, rescued from near extinction at the hands of humans thousands of years ago. Free from predators and human impact, the whales thrive in their new home, growing in size and intelligence. Everything is perfect. Until humans decide to establish floating towns on Cachalot, drawn by the planet's abundant natural resources.

Damien Montgomery serves the Mage-King of Mars as a Hand: a troubleshooter, judge, and roving representative. Now, his duties have brought him home and into conflict with his fellows. A Hand is dead in nuclear fire amongst the mountains of Mars. The conspiracy she served is broken and scattered, but Damien must know who they are and what drove them. What secrets could convince a Hand of the Mage-King to betray everything?

A deeply corrupt and embedded ruling class, disenfranchised settlers, and embittered indentured workers–slaves in all but name—have poisoned the planet. They've unleashed the fires of class war and threatening to turn the beautiful planet into hell in the wake of Earthfall. Sinister forces are stirring the pot. Roland—once Crown Prince of Earth, now a Marine Auxiliary—was charged with building an army to stabilise New Doncaster, but it was too late. The rebels struck and the planet fell into civil war.

In 1492, Christopher Columbus sailed across the ocean and discovered America. Right? WRONG! Columbus never actually set foot in what is now the United States. His voyages took him to islands in the Caribbean and along the coast of South America. The truth is, when Columbus first arrived, Indigenous peoples, including the Taino, had been living there for thousands of years, raising their families, running their societies, and trading with their neighbors. He didn’t “discover” the lands at all! And his name? Not even really Christopher Columbus!

Mars likes peace and quiet, and is not happy when unexpected visitors start showing up. But when they leave, Mars realizes being alone isn't all that great. Mars reaches out to his space friends—including his best bud, Earth—for comfort and help. Maybe Mars is a people planet after all!

Jazz Bashara es una criminal.... O al menos lo parece. La vida en Artemisa, la primera y única ciudad de la Luna, es difícil si no eres un turista adinerado o un multimillonario excéntrico. Así que hacer un poco de contrabando de lo más inofensivo no cuenta, ¿verdad? Sobre todo cuando hay que pagar deudas y tu trabajo como transportista apenas paga el alquiler.

The revolution that won Coyote's independence from Earth is 20 years past. Coyote's aging computers, aircraft, and medical equipment are badly in need of replacement. And the colony's survival is in question. Now the colony's hard-won independence depends on the descendants of Coyote's original settlers-versus help from Earth that may be more of a detriment than a boon.

Jeff Dolan always wanted to be an astronaut. After helping a private space company build a ship that can travel to Saturn's largest moon in five months, he gets his chance. Shortly after launch, a devastating malfunction forces Jeff and the crew to make a choice: continue to Titan or go back home. As the truth about their mission unravels, one thing is clear: Someone on Earth knew about the system flaw and covered it up. Yet surviving the journey isn't the crew's only concern. Even if they make it to Titan, they will face another problem: Something is already there.