Hombres sin alma (Men Without Soul)

# "Hombres sin Alma" (Men Without Souls)

By Alan Star, published by Ediciones Toray (Barcelona, 1959), this science fiction detective serial belongs to the Spacial International Police (SIP) series.

The story concerns eighty-two mysterious disappearances across France over three months. Missing persons range across social classes and professions—mechanics, astronauts, pharmacists, lawyers, carpenters—with one common symptom: severe headaches preceding their vanishment. No ransom demands, no bodies, no trace. Commissioner Delahaut, frustrated by failed investigations, summons Donald Callowan, the legendary SIP operative heading the world's unified space-age police force (established 1988, overseeing colonies on Luna, Mars, and Venus).

Callowan arrives via intercontinental rocket and enlists Claude Serveil, his best French agent, interrupting Serveil's billiards match with journalist friend Henri Duval. The narrative establishes the investigation's beginning as an elegantly-dressed man approaches FranKola, France's largest soft-drink manufacturer, suggesting the disappearances connect to industrial espionage or corporate intrigue. The text cuts off mid-scene.