Search Worlds Without End

The Altar on Asconel

Whether or not he had wanted to turn back at the last minute, he couldn't have - the wave of dirty, hungry people carried him helplessly along in their fervour reach the temple. Like dope addicts, he told himself, they don't even care about themselves, only about the thing that is inside the temple!

He remembered the day ten years ago when his older brother had been made a Warden of Asconel, a prosperous and happy planet, and he and his other brothers had left in the interests of their people. Now they returned to a world where a fanatical cult had usurped the Warden's chair, and men and women were offering themselves up as human sacrifices to Belizuek - whoever or whatever that being from beyond the galaxy was...

I'll find out, he told himself grimly, when I enter these doors...

Android Avenger

All of a sudden I was moving faster than usual. The other passengers standing on the subway platform seemed rooted to their places. It took me only seconds to reach the top of the six flights of stairs, and then I was out of the station and moving down Fulton Street at better than forty miles an hour!

What was happening to me? It was as though I were the helpless passenger in a runaway car. Something else had assumed control and was guiding me.

My body turned into an office building and raced down the corridor to a room where a man was sitting at a console. He'd begun to swing around in his chair when my mouth opened, and a thin, blood-red ray shot out, cleaving the man from head to abdomen.

Then it was over. My mouth closed, and I stood there, stunned. Up to today I was Bob Tanner, an average, sane Citizen. Now what was I, man or murder machine?

Table of Contetns

• Introduction - essay by L. Sprague de Camp
• The Return of Conan - (1957) - novel by Björn Nyberg and L. Sprague de Camp
• The Hyborian Age - (1936) - short fiction by Robert E. Howard

Only once in several lifetimes does the world get such a man as Richard Henry Benson, known as The Avenger.

A man who had amassed a fortune in his early years, he was ready to enjoy life to the fullest with his wife and daughter when disaster struck, which vacuumed his soul right out of his body.

His family was taken from him by crime, and to make matters worse, no one believed him. He was forced into an insane asylum. He escaped.

His facial muscles were paralyzed by the tragedy, so he could press his face into any position to adopt any guise. From that day on, The Avenger's only drive in life was to bring destruction to crooks who operated beyond the law, and usually he made sure it was by their own hand.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

The hidden gold of the Aztecs. A gang of criminals kill to find it and unleash the wrath of The Avenger

In the roaring heart of the crucible, steel is made. In the raging flame of personal tragedy, men are sometimes forged into something more than human.

It was so with Dick Benson. He had been a man. After the dread loss inflicted on him by an inhuman crime ring, he became a machine of vengeance dedicated to the extermination of all other crime rings.

He turned into the the person we know now: A figure of ice and steel, more pitiless than both; A mechanism of whipcord and flame; A symbol to crooks and killers; A terrible, almost impersonal force, masking chill genius and super normal power behind a face as white and dead as a mask from the grave. Only his pale eyes, like ice in a polar dawn, hint at the deadliness of the scourge the underworld heedlessly invoked against itself when crime's greed turned millionaire adventurer Richard Benson into The Avenger.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A harsh, droning sound from an invisible plane. A man mysteriously walking in the sky, and huge skyscrapers collapse like matchsticks. Can the Avenger halt a master criminal's reign of death and destruction?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A message traced in blood reads "The devil's horns"; a political boss lies paralyzed. The city he controls now in the hands of killers; and The Avenger must decipher the bloody message - or die!

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A fine, white powder like snow settles on one human body and a plague of death is alive in the world's greatest city. One man's greed has created the deadly powder- and only The Avenger can stop its murderous spread.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

An ancient Egyptian ring, pale red until dipped in living blood. Then its 600-year-old cure is renewed and a great museum becomes a killing ground. Can The Avenger stop the curse, or will he become its final victim?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Big business and organized crime team up in the search for millions in missing securities. Their partnership produces murder until The Avenger decides to join the company.

In the roaring heart of the crucible, steel is made. In the raging flame of personal tragedy, men are sometimes forged into something more than human.

It was so with Dick Benson. He had been a man. After the dread loss inflicted on him by an inhuman crime ring, he became a machine of vengeance dedicated to the extermination of all other crime rings.

He turned into the the person we know now: A figure of ice and steel, more pitiless than both; A mechanism of whipcord and flame; A symbol to crooks and killers; A terrible, almost impersonal force, masking chill genius and super normal power behind a face as white and dead as a mask from the grave. Only his pale eyes, like ice in a polar dawn, hint at the deadliness of the scourge the underworld heedlessly invoked against itself when crime's greed turned millionaire adventurer Richard Benson into The Avenger.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A misty cloud filled with deadly lightening bolts leaves a trail of destruction at the site of a tunnel through Mt. Rainod. Does the ancient Indian rain god still live? The Avenger must unearth the truth before the electrical current destroys him.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Mystery shrouds a deadly new secret weapon. Is there a link between a howling dog and a banker who gives away money? The Avenger races to the scene to avert a horrible crime.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Is there a connection between two political murders, a sanity-test bill, reforestation plans for a national park and a tiny man with a green smiling dog? The Avenge embarks on a weird hunt to connect the links of a deadly chain.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

In a cave under a glacier (the "River of Ice") in British Columbia, Brent and Lini Waller find a time capsule with treasure, artifacts, and manuscripts from an advanced, pre-Ice Age civilization. Lini seeks to sell the cave contents to the Wittwar Foundation. Benson declines to lead an expedition to the cave. Lini is kidnapped, and a steel needle is pounded into her brain, a pre-Ice Age mind control technique. She leads the Justice Inc. team into several death traps, including a room filled with dry ice and a building that falls on their car. Mac and Josh, sent to locate the cave, are captured by the criminals. Nellie, captured, apparently has a needle inserted in her brain.

Flying to the cave, under Lini's control, Nellie strands Benson, Smitty, and Rosabel in a remote location. Benson had planned for a second plane, delivered by a young Canadian pilot, but accidentally crashes it and is captured. The mastermind seeks the ancient cold light technology which lights the cave, removes all the ancient artifacts, and sets an explosion that buries the cave with the Justice Inc. team inside. Benson arranged for the explosion to destroy the criminals, and escapes the cave using ancient advanced technology.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Three scientists die violently One in Paris, one in Berlin, and one in Montreal. Each exhales fire as he dies, like some ancient dragon. Coincidence? Hardly! The Avenger races to halt an international conspiracy that threatens to consume the planet in flames.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A beautiful woman trapped on the deserted shores of Lake Michigan. A murderous gunman hidden within a car hidden within a truck tracking her down with intent to kill. deaths galore! The Avenger races to the rescue before there are too many victims to count.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Suspense and murder lurk at the house of Mr. Death. Three gold crowns and a dentist's forceps are clues that lead from blackmail to a grisly death on a railroad track. The Avenger now stalks his victim like a black panther.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Few families in the world were more powerful. Yet, even the Haygars were powerless to halt the horror hidden in the set of gold medallions. The coins were summoning the clan and the Avenger to a rendezvous with death.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Knarlie, a twisted dwarf, worked for the candidate for the white house. Or was it the other way around? The Avenger had to find out in order to save America.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

The Avenger is blamed when massive power outages black out North America. Can Dick Benson locate the mastermind called Nevlo in time to prevent a deadly final blackout?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Death in Slow Motion cripples an American industry, and Justice, Inc. must find an antidote in time to save hundreds from the deadly paralysis plague!

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Cunning thieves smuggle stolen art into the country. But their crimes are only "act one" in a giant scenario of destruction. Can the avenger discover the link between smugglers and saboteurs in time to avert disaster?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A dread disease that contorts men into ape-like creatures brings a stranger to the Avenger's lab. He asks for an antidote, but will the cure do more harm than the disease? Will it mean death for the Avenger himself?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A stolen formula transforms ordinary people into super human murder machines in The Happy Killers!

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

Who was this devil, the leader of the Black Wings Cult, who could kill from afar? The Avenger himself would receive the black orchid of death before he found out.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A scuffling sound - then gruesome death. The Wilder Curse strikes another victim down! Can The Avenger unmask the killer whose plan for revenge upon the guilty is becoming wholesale murder of the innocent?

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A deadly plane crash sets Dick Benson on the trail of the incredible new invention behind Midnight Murder.

Paul Ernst authored this novel under the pseudonym Kenneth Robeson.

A man turns green and dies clutching an ancient medalion. Is it the key to a world of barbarism? Can the Avenger use it to stop the forces of Evil?

In an outbreak of bloody killings, all the victims bear the marks of attack by wolves. Instead of investigating, the government seems anxious to keep the matter under cover. Can The Avenger discover where the tracks of the wolf (or Werewolf) lead -- and trap the killer?

As the story opens, it is the early 1940s, and Hollywood B-movie starlet Heather Blair is in the middle of shooting a zombie movie when her Uncle Denny knocks at her door--a dead Uncle Denny who is, without a doubt, a real zombie. Cole Wilson, one of the Avenger's associates at Justice, Inc., happens to be visiting the film director at the time and begins to investigate the case. He discovers that Uncle Denny's body was not the only one stolen from the crypt--also missing is Dr. David Franklin Sheehan, who was working on a radio-controlled bomb when he passed away. The Avenger and the rest of Justice, Inc. join Cole in a frantic pursuit to stop a fiendish German spy ring from reincarnating Dr. Sheehan and gaining access to the top-secret plans.

He called himself Dr. Time, and claimed he could really travel back-and-forth in time. Five New York businessmen are convinced he's for real. Then their family members disappear, and Dr. Time demands money for their return. Otherwise they'll be marooned in the past for the rest of their lives! Can the Avenger solve this mystery? Can he stop Time?

Has the devil returned to the sinister old town of Nightwitch in Massachusetts? If not, why has MacMurdie vanished there without a trace... and who is the person in the devil mask? if so, can even the Avenger defeat the prince of darkness?

The Avenger and his band of associates comprised Justice, Inc. Armed with keen gadgets, clear genius, stout hearts, good humor, and the force of right set forth from their Bleek Street headquarters to thwart evil.

Strange disc-like objects have been sighted hovering above the desert. The toll of plane crashes has been mounting. Are saboteurs at work - or are visitors from another planet invading the earth? Can even The Avenger combat this unidentified menace in the skies?

Wonderman is America's most famous comic book character, the star of incredible crim stories. Wonderman's creator is a happy, successful man until his invented crimes begin happening in real life. Then he meets Wonderman in the flesh, and the Avenger tries to erase a cartoon crime wave.

The Avenger and his band of associates comprised Justice, Inc., and, armed with keen gadgets, clear genius, stout hearts, good humor, and the force of right set forth from their Bleek Street headquarters to thwart evil.

When the suicide rate in San Francisco soars, rumor blames a Fantastic new death machine as the cause. Can a Death Machine drive prominent men to suicide? Only The Avenger has the scientific know-how to verify whether such an instrument exists. If it does, can The Avenger defy it?

In South America to question a young girl who has just escaped the Gestapo's clutches, The Avenger finds the area terror-struck by a series of vampire-like killings. People suggest the girl he seeks is involved. Is she a Nazi victim... or a vampire?

The Avenger and his band of associates comprised Justice, Inc. Armed with keen gadgets, clear genius, stout hearts, good humor, and the force of right set forth from their Bleek Street headquarters to thwart evil.

A noted scientist disappears in the Southwest, then, in the same area, an "invisible man" appears and begins a killing spree.

A criminal with superhuman mental powers is seeking control of the New York underworld. Known as The Iron Skull, he is said to be only part flesh and blood. The rest of him is metal. Does such a monster really exist? Can he make good his goal to destroy Justice Inc. and The Avenger?

On a fog shrouded "haunted" island off the California coast, filmmakers on location to shoot a horror film find more than ghosts to terrify them. There is real danger here... danger that demands the special skills of The Avenger.

Fergus is back on Earth at last, trying to figure out how to live a normal life. However, it seems the universe has other plans for him. When his cousin sends him off to help out a friend, Fergus accidently stumbles across a piece of an ancient alien artifact that some very powerful people seem to think means the entire solar system is in danger. And since he found it, they're certain it's also his problem to deal with.

With the help of his newfound sister, friends both old and new, and some enemies, too, Fergus needs to find the rest of the artifact and destroy the pieces before anyone can reassemble the original and open a multi-dimensional door between Earth and a vast, implacable, alien swarm of devourers. Problem is, the pieces could be anywhere on Earth, and he's not the only one out searching.

It's a diabolical game of cat and mouse as top TEC agent Jack Logan tracks a scavenger through time and history...

USA, 2007: There's a deadly thief on the loose, with stolen millions and a time machine that could virtually shut down the planet. Now the world's most covert agency--the Time Enforcement Commission--must find him before he destroys the world.

TEC cop Jack Logan gets his first glimpse of the scavenger at the Empire State Building--just seconds before a B-25 slams into it on a summer morning in 1945. The felon escapes, and Logan survives to discover huge disturbances in the timestream--all connected to the scavenger's shopping list. From the fabled Lost Dutchman Mine to a Mississippi steamboat and a cyberfortress unsettingly close to the nation's capital, Logan races to apprehend the scavenger before he executes his chilling plan of global murder...

The X-Men--mutant protectors of a world that fears and hates them. The Avengers--Earth's Mightiest Heroes, the greatest super-team ever assembled. When the Scarlet Witch of the Avengers and Rogue of the X-Men both disappear under mysterious circumstances, each team's search leads them to more questions than answers. Desperate to recover their missing teammates, they must join forces to uncover the truth. But their efforts will bring them up against a foe with the deadliest power of all: to make them turn on each other!

Contents:

• Lost and Found - [X-Men & the Avengers: Gamma Quest - 1] - (1999) - novel
• Search and Rescue - [X-Men & the Avengers: Gamma Quest - 2] - (1999) - novel
• Friend or Foe? - [X-Men & the Avengers: Gamma Quest - 3] - (2000) - novel

A much shorter version of this story appeared under the title Secret Agent of Terra in Ace Double F-133 (1962).

Once the city of Carrig stood supreme on this planet that had been settled by space refugees in the distant, forgotten past. From every corner of this primitive lost world caravans came to trade - and to view the great King-Hunt, the gruesome test by which the people of Carrig chose their rulers.

Then from space came new arrivals. And with them came their invincible death guns and their ruthless, all-powerful tyranny.

Now there would be no King-Hunt in Carrig, or hope for the planet-unless a fool-hardy high-born named Saikmar and a beautiful Earthling space-spy named Maddalena, could do the impossible...