Astounding Stories #72

Joe Hilyer, a decorated submarine officer haunted by a terrible wartime decision, has spent three years in a catatonic state at a naval hospital, unable to speak or respond to the world around him. When Dr. Howard arrives on staff, he learns the tragic story: during a depth-charge attack on the USS Marlin, Joe was forced to seal a compartment door to save the submarine and its crew—sacrificing his best friend Terry Phillips and others trapped inside. Now Dr. Howard conceives a desperate plan: to use an actor and master of disguise to impersonate Terry Phillips, hoping the shock of apparent forgiveness might finally reach Joe's broken mind. What happens when Joe awakens to this encounter forms the heart of this gripping 1969 tale of conscience, duty, and the mysteries of the human psyche.

Ambitious archeologist Frank Marcuse finds himself stuck on a routine dig in Pompeii, convinced his career is stalling under the watchful eye of his supervisor, Mr. Hopkins. When he uncovers an ancient flask and drinks from it, he's transported back to Pompeii on the eve of Vesuvius's eruption—and discovers evidence of a legendary treasury that's never been found in the modern ruins. As the volcano begins to destroy the city, Frank must grapple with the terrifying possibility that his vision was far more than a dream.

Adam Jones works as a field representative for the Institute for Psychic Research, investigating reports of supernatural phenomena in homes across the country—though most turn out to have surprisingly ordinary explanations. In this story, he tackles cases ranging from a neighbor's prank using colored firelight chemicals and a rigged window-tapper to the real scare tactics hiding behind walls, uncovering the rational causes behind what terrified homeowners mistake for genuine hauntings. Whether it's creaking floorboards, animal sounds, or something far more deliberate, Jones proves that the strangest job in the world is really just applying a little logic to mystery.

Hannel, a nuclear physicist on the plague-ravaged planet Thorion, grows desperate when the ruling council refuses to pursue medical research or exploration, dismissing his pleas as superstition-fueled folly. When his wife Lusi falls ill with the plague, he makes a fateful decision: to steal a rocket ship and launch his family into the unknown reaches of space, seeking any habitable world that might offer sanctuary. Their desperate gamble carries them across the cosmos toward an uncertain fate, with no guarantee that life—or salvation—awaits them among the stars.

When astronomers spot a distant star's violent destruction, two lives separated by millions of miles find their paths converging toward an impossible meeting. Prince Jansen, the reluctant ruler of the doomed planet Extron, must lead his people through the cosmos in a desperate search for survival, while on Earth, a dreamer named Alice claws her way from poverty to stardom in Hollywood. As fate weaves their stories together, neither knows that their destinies were written in the stars long before the catastrophe struck.

When Bob Morrison's uncanny ability to predict future events—from World War II's timing to D-Day itself—catches the attention of military brass, he finds himself caught between duty and the strange visions that haunt him. During a fateful posting in wartime England, he meets a nurse named Alice, only to realize he's certain they've met before in a life he can't quite remember. As Morrison's premonitions grow more insistent and personal, he races against time to warn his commanders of a catastrophic German offensive that his gut tells him is coming.

In April 1873, the steamboat Mississippi Queen embarks on what should be a routine voyage from Memphis to New Orleans, a majestic vessel filled with optimistic passengers and lively evening entertainment. But when the boat fails to arrive at its destination and vanishes without a trace—despite sailing a populated river where escape would seemingly be possible—shipping officials and authorities face an unsolvable mystery that defies all explanation. The riverbed is dragged and searched thoroughly, yet neither the ship nor any of its passengers are ever found or heard from again.