Invaders from the Infinite · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for Invaders from the Infinite by John W. Campbell.
Chapter 1
I: Invaders
Russ Evans, a rocket patrol pilot stationed far from Earth, experiences a routine shift that turns into a crisis when a strange alien ship appears. The aliens, with blotched skin and boxlike skulls, incapacitate him with an unknown force. Evans manages to send a warning message to Earth before losing consciousness, and the alien vessel speeds toward the Sun and Earth, outpacing the radio signal.
Chapter 2
II: Canine People
Arcot, Morey, Wade, and Fuller demonstrate a new ray shield designed to protect against molecular rays used by space pirates. Three tall, dog-like aliens from another world land on the roof of Arcot's building. After initial telepathic communication difficulties, they use headsets to establish rapport and reveal they are from a race artificially created by the Ancient Masters from canines. They have come seeking help against the Invaders, having traveled three months across the galaxy.
Chapter 3
III: A Quarter of a Million Light Years
Zezdon Afthen explains the peaceful, mind-based civilization of the Ortolians and how they detected the Thessians through mental vibration instruments. The Thessians, a powerful and evil race, plan to conquer Ortol using a molecular ray. The Ortolians used thought amplification to implant ideas in the Thessian leader's mind, leading to a trap. Morey reveals Earth's advanced capabilities and suggests an alliance with the Sirians. Arcot plans to retrieve the Thessian ship from Mars, equip the Ancient Mariner, and travel to Ortol to help defend against the impending Thessian attack.
Chapter 4
IV: The First Move
The Ancient Mariner departs Earth at incredible speeds, demonstrating the space distortion drive to the Ortolians. Arcot explains the principle of altering space to exceed light speed, while Morey details the power systems. The Ortolians marvel at Earth's beauty, contrasting it with the awe of space. Preparations for the mission are completed, and Arcot discusses time-field theory and potential weapons for the coming conflict.
Chapter 5
V: Ortol
The crew of the Ancient Mariner arrives at Ortol to find a Thessian attack in progress. Arcot uses the ship's advanced technology, including artificial space and molecular rays, to destroy a Thessian ship and save the city of Hesthis.
Chapter 6
VI: The Second Move
Wade learns about the Ortolians' tragic history with the Thessians, including the use of the Negrian Death Ray and the rise of their canine-derived race. He discusses loss and polygamy with Zezdon Afthen, who explains their emotional control. The group teaches the Ortolians advanced weapons and then departs for an unknown world to find a new weapon against the Thessians.
Chapter 7
World 3769–37,478,326,894,6, Talso
The crew of the Ancient Mariner arrives at the planet Talso, where they encounter and defeat a Thessian ship. They meet the native Talsonians, who possess a powerful but energy-hungry weapon. Morey offers to supply unlimited power from the Ancient Mariner, forging an alliance against the common Thessian enemy.
Chapter 8
VIII: Undefeatable or Uncontrollable?
The terrestrials land at Shesto, where they meet Tho Stan Drel and the scientist Stel Felso Theu. They discuss the Talsonians' mysterious weapon, which is effective but poorly understood. Arcot demonstrates the immense power of his generator by creating a massive air arc, impressing the Talsonians. The challenge of transmitting such power through their existing infrastructure becomes a central concern.
Chapter 9
IX: The Irresistible and the Immovable
Arcot, Morey, and Wade work with the Talsonian scientist Stel Felso Theu to understand and replicate a weapon that creates artificial matter. After examining the Talsonian's apparatus, Arcot and Morey quickly construct a more advanced version aboard their ship, demonstrating the ability to create, shape, and control a ball of artificial matter that is either irresistible in motion or immovable when static. Arcot explains the physics behind the phenomenon, linking it to the ship's space-curving drive, and reveals the weapon's potential as a decisive tool in the war.
Chapter 10
X: Improvements and Calculations
Arcot returns to Earth briefly to share progress on new weapons and the time field equations, then leads an attack on a Thessian Arctic base. The magnetic beam proves effective against their ray screens, but the battle reveals limitations of their artificial matter weapon. Arcot's father reports the Thessian invasion of Earth and Venus, with fortified domes at each pole. Arcot introduces allied scientists Stel Felso Theu, Zezdon Afthen, and Fentes, and discusses further development of the time field and artificial matter.
Chapter 11
Write Off the Magnet
Arcot and his team engage the Thessian forces in Antarctica, but their magnetic beam fails against shielded Thessian technology. After a devastating battle that destroys the terrestrial squadron, Arcot uses artificial matter to burrow underground and then emerge inside the Thessian dome. He destroys the dome and the Thessian ships with a hyperboloid energy blast, then decides to return to Vermont for time-field installation before heading to Sirius.
Chapter 12
XII: Sirius
Arcot and his crew land on a Sirian planet to forge an alliance against the Thessian threat. They demonstrate their power by staging a fake attack against a simulated Thessian ship, winning the trust of the Sirians. Arcot meets Taj Lamor, who shares the secret of the attractive ray, a directed gravitational field that can move planets without reaction. Arcot deduces the principles behind the ray and plans to use it in the fight against Thett.
Chapter 13
Attacked
The Ancient Mariner is attacked by a fleet of seven Thessian ships. Arcot uses an advanced time field to gain an advantage, but a Thessian ship crashes into them, causing severe damage. Stranded near Neptune, the crew repairs the ship using artificial matter and relux from the enemy wreckage.
Chapter 14
Intergalactic Space
The crew decides to wait out the 80,000-year gap by using time retardation, spending 30,000 years (30 days subjective) working on the theory of artificial matter and energy fields. They briefly land in Neolithic Egypt, observe primitive humans, and then return to space to continue their calculations, with Arcot aiming to harness energy at the scale of a sun ('sol').
Chapter 15
All-Powerful Gods
The crew of the Ancient Mariner continues their journey through time, landing in ancient Greece and Egypt to determine their temporal location. They encounter primitive villagers who attack them, and in defending themselves, they inadvertently use their advanced technology in ways that the locals interpret as divine powers. Arcot, Morey, and Wade realize they have become the basis for ancient myths—Arcot as Jove, Morey as Hercules, and Wade as Mercury. The chapter concludes with the crew completing their work on the ultimate weapons and time equations, still uncertain of their exact date but aware they have left a lasting imprint on human history.
Chapter 16
Home Again
Arcot, Morey, and Wade return to Earth after their accidental time jump, finding the planet under siege by Thessian forces. They reunite with Torlos of Nansal, who has arrived with a fleet to aid Earth. Arcot reveals their time travel experience and begins work on a new apparatus to counter the enemy, culminating in a demonstration for Earth's scientists.
Chapter 17
Power of Mind
Arcot demonstrates to Earth's assembled scientists his new mental relay control, which allows him to create and manipulate artificial matter using cosmic power. He shows the creation of a sphere, a hand that lifts a heavy lux metal bar, transmutation of iron into platinum, and the synthesis of super-heavy elements. Finally, he creates Cosmium, an incredibly dense and strong material for the new spaceship, and ends with a theatrical supernatural display of a severed hand and a figure of Death.
Chapter 18
Earth's Defenses
Arcot and his team race to build a new ship on the asteroid Eros using artificial matter and cosmic power, while Earth's fleet struggles against Thessian attacks. After a near-disastrous mental projection experiment, they depart to aid Earth, fend off an assault on New York, and construct a massive time-shifting apparatus and a mile-long warship to turn the tide.
Chapter 19
XIX: The Battle of Earth
The Solar System's forces are on the verge of losing the battle for Earth when Arcot returns with a new weapon. He orders all ships to retreat within the atmosphere and then engages the Thessian fleet with devastating new technologies, including a ray-reflecting cosmium hull, artificial matter, and a space-warping magnetic field. Arcot destroys the Thessian ships one by one, culminating in the annihilation of the entire Thessian fleet near Venus using an invisible barrier of artificial matter. The chapter ends with Arcot declaring the beginning of the end and heading home.
Chapter 20
XX: Destruction
Arcot receives a message from Zezdon Fentes revealing that Thett's base is near the center of the galaxy. The crew names their ship 'Thought' and travels to Ortol, where they find Thett's messengers have arrived. A bizarre battle ensues as Arcot, influenced by Zezdon Fentes' mental mediumship, projects the Thessians' own horror-ideas against them, causing chaos and destruction among the Thessian fleet.
Chapter 21
XXI: The Power of the Thought
Arcot demonstrates the immense power of the Thought by stopping a Thessian planet in its orbit, turning it into a miniature sun, and then racing across the universe to Talso, where a desperate battle against the Thessians is underway.
Chapter 22
Thett
A lone scout from a distant galaxy races to a massive planet with a red giant sun, reporting to the ruler Sthanto about a powerful enemy ship that destroyed their colony. The ruler, Thalt, kills the scout and is then himself killed by the scientist Thalt, who takes over leadership to prepare a defense using a triple ray.
Chapter 23
XXIII: Venone
Arcot and his crew visit the planet Venone, a massive world with extreme gravity and a dense atmosphere. They learn from the Venonians about their history with Thett, including how Thett was initially defeated but later returned with ray screens. Arcot constructs a small ship to scout ahead, and Morey returns with a favorable report. The crew lands on Venone, demonstrates their power by creating a spaceship from energy, and establishes a bond of friendship with the Venonians.
Chapter 24
XXIV: Thett Prepares
A scout returns to Thett with intelligence about the Galactians and Venonians, revealing their power source and defenses. The Sthanto and council discuss the vulnerability of the triple ray and plan to use mental suggestion to lure the enemy into a trap. The colonial fleet has been destroyed, and its ships will be repurposed for Thett's defense.
Chapter 25
XXV: With Galaxies in the Balance
After resting in orbit around Venone, Arcot and the crew of the Thought head to Thett's system. They attack a Thessian fortress with a cosmic ray, causing massive destruction, but the fortress retaliates with a triple-ray that damages the ship. Arcot repairs and upgrades the Thought, adding new power collectors and a wall of blackness made of solid protons. In a second attack, the wall stops the triple-ray, but Arcot's own weapons breach it, forcing a retreat. Arcot and Morey are exhausted and are persuaded to rest by Zezdon Afthen. On Thett, the Sthanto remains confident despite the damage, while his subordinates doubt his judgment.
Chapter 26
XXVI: Man, Creator and Destroyer
Arcot devises a weapon that forces electrons to fall into protons, causing the complete annihilation of matter. The crew warns nearby Venonian worlds, then uses the weapon to destroy Thett and its entire system in a catastrophic release of energy. Afterward, they return to Earth, having been gone two years and three months due to a time displacement. Morey demonstrates a new device that can create solid matter from nothing, and Arcot reflects on humanity's dual role as creator and destroyer.
Chapter 27
Endnotes
This chapter contains only endnotes referencing other works by the author, 'Islands of Space' and 'The Black Star Passes'.
