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Two men will rise: Jonathan Boyles-a quiet, NASA computer programmer; and William Floke - a con man/messiah raised on the plaque rotted surface of Mars. Baseline humans, clones, AIs, and tweaks will compete to claim their place in a social order ruled over by super-corporations. Eventually the children of the programmer and the messiah will meet on Ross 128-4 to do battle and open the gate.

Welcome to The Year's Best Schlock! Fantasy 2013, a compilation of fantasy stories published in Schlock! Webzine (www.schlock.co.uk) over the past year.Here you can read the work of some of the hottest new talents in fantasy writing today; writer and critic Konstantine Paradias, with a story of exactly what the barbarian does after winning himself a mighty kingdom; author and independent filmmaker Birke Duncan with A Janitor's Territory, an urban fantasy (also available as a short film) in which a man becomes what he most detests; Warrior Sister, a tribute to the late Andre Norton by Joseph Baneth Allen, freelance writer, critic, author, and poet; The Fool and the King by Mark Slade, Mark Slade, editor of Dark Dreams podcast and Nightmare Illustrated magazine; Kill Something, a story of Renaissance Fairs and alien invasion by Michael B Tager; Gifts From The Sea, a sword and soul story by Sergio Palumbo, edited as ever by the indefatigable Michele Dutcher; Beneath the Temple of Outlandish Idols by yours truly; Uluru by Swedish art critic and poet Mathias Jansson. And finally, the first two chapters of HG Towne's martial arts/Western/sword and sorcery extravaganza, Star Thistle.

Xenobiology is a subfield of synthetic biology, the root word Xenos meaning stranger or alien. It is a form of biology that is not (yet) familiar to science and is not found in nature. Xenobiology features New-to-Nature organisms. Since Xenobiology is not a study of naturally occurring organisms, the stories in this anthology deal with biology that has been artificially produced, or biological creatures that have been produced by genetic material being acted upon by outside sources to produce something new. Those new organisms can be intriguing when thrown into the mind of an imaginative author. Some of the following stories tell of genetic material being acted upon by humans to try to 'upgrade' Humanity. What happens when an upgrade does occur and 'normal' humans are left wondering about their own place in the scheme of things? Should laws be passed? What kind of ethical questions would be raised? Richard Tornello investigates that concern, among others, in his story A Child Is Borne. What kind of genetic adaptations might be necessary to live and work on moons and planets 100 light years from Sol-and what would humans be willing to give up in order to adapt successfully so far from Earth? Sergio 'ente per ente' Palumbo explores this question in The Purifiers. With Xenobiology being such a young sub-science, what are the political, economic, and ethical ramifications of humans altering the genes of other humans and what happens when that alteration goes haywire? So many questions with only one certainty: science will go forward eventually, no matter how the mass of Humanity seeks to stop it. Beyond humans taking the reins of artificial reproduction of humans, could there be others in the universe who are eager to see what they could become if merely tweaked a little? Have those extra-terrestrial forces already altered Humanity's history as some suggest? Will forces in the universe that we are not yet familiar with speed Humanity's evolution in the future? What kind of 'improvements' would they be willing to experiment with? The story Starfish, among others, invites us to view a life altered by 'others' from out there-and how other humans react to the alteration. Zoomania by Carlton Herzog gives us an entertaining view of what might happen when animals are changed via bioengineering. What happens when an altered version of yourself decides (it/he/she) wants to become the creator of new forms of life? Will its reach exceed its grasp? Will there be an angry mob with pitchforks in your future? You'll need to read the story to find out. E W Farnsworth shows us what happens when a 1940s-style detective named Val Cassidy discovers cocoons of humans hidden in the New York City sewers. "Nothing opened a police morgue in NYC faster than two crisp Ben Franklins." The Scionites is a fun story, certain to entertain. The sky is the limit with Xenobiology...and far beyond the sky, where wars are raging peopled with stranger humans and aliens. But with a little help from Science, perhaps we are indeed the aliens we seek. -Michele Dutcher

The Glyphs of Endless Cave is a guidebook to the petroglyphs and pictographs that can be viewed by the informed explorer in Endless Cave and on nearby Lover's Leap Ridge. The illustrations and photos are presented as they would be seen during a walking tour, either from the entrance to Endless Cave or from the southern starting point of Lover's Leap Ridge trail. Maps are provided for your convenience. With most of the illustrations, you will have 2 photos - 1 of a glyph, and a 2nd photo of a similar glyph found elsewhere. The next 2 images use color-coded lines to establish properties in common between the two petroglyphs or pictographs. This can give a sense of these symbols not only being used in Cave River Valley, but also being used elsewhere in North America: in Missouri, South Carolina, or Kentucky, for instance (though one does hail from Hawaii).My daughter, Vicky Haralovich, and I discovered these glyphs after Cave River Valley Park was procured by the Department of Natural Resources in 2007. We were looking for a rock carving known to the locals on Lover's Leap Ridge, when we began to wonder if there were any Native American markings inside the nearby Endless Cave. Unfortunately, the cave had been closed to visitors due to the deadly White Nosed Syndrome found in the area's bats. This syndrome - a fungus that awakens the bats early from hibernation, causing them to fly out of the caves and freeze once outside - continues to ravage the bat population in the Eastern United States. In 2012, Endless cave was reopened to permit-only expeditions. After obtaining our permit, Dave Everton, and Rodney and Bernice Snyder, and I ventured into the cave, where we discovered what is now known as the Main Wall. The rest, as they say, is prehistory. Happy exploring, and PLEASE leave the cave as you found it!Michele Dutcher

Welcome to The Year's Best Schlock! Sci-Fi 2013, a compilation of science fiction stories published in Schlock! Webzine (www.schlock.co.uk) over the past year.Here you can read the work of some of the hottest new talents in science fiction writing today; Kill the Flats by RM DuChene, editor of the renowned Death Throes webzine; The Right to Be Unadulterated by Sergio Palumbo, edited as ever by the indefatigable Michele Dutcher; A Sloth's View Of Life, a post-apocalyptic noir detective tale by Benjamin Welton, freelance writer, critic, author, and poet; Man Suit by ES Wynn, editor-in-chief of Thunderune Press and numerous webzines. There's a monster on the rampage in Could Be Worse by writer and critic Konstantine Paradias; we also have a story of military experimentation, Rod R Surratt's Spartan Shell; a tale of romantic fulfilment at the edge of the solar system - and more! - from the ever-prolific Kevin L Jones; and finally, Nathan JDL Rowark's time travel tale In Light Of Darkness, also featured in his own Horrified Press' Dr. Who anniversary pastiche anthology, Twelve.

FEATURING STORIES BY:-Chuck Borgia-James Rhodes-Todd Nelsen-Michael Lizarraga-Obsidian Mercutio Tesla -Sergio Palumbo and Michele Dutcher-John L. Campbell-Rob Bliss-Gavin Chappell-C Priest BrumleyOn 3 June 2012, Schlock! Webzine announced the TIMELESS WORLDS competition, open to all readers of the zine. This anthology is the result; the winning entries of the contest are published alongside the best stories of the previous few months. Inside you will find tales of other worlds, some beyond the stars, others a shadow's breadth away from our own: a horror writer whose ambition leads him to the ultimate horror; a story of love and replicants; intergalactic boxing champs; abuse and revenge; demonic justice; homelessness and hidden roads; dying planets; high class horror; worlds of hope and despair; and a noirish quest for justice in an alternative cyberspace. Welcome to TIMELESS WORLDS!

A book about the petroglyphs and pictoglyphs discovered in the dark zone of a cave at Spring Mill Park.

A black and white version of the Green and True genealogy based around Pekin, Indiana.

Follow Daniel Boone in the late 1700's, as he cuts a path across South Central Indiana and moves his family to Missouri.