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""Invaders of the Underground World"": Flying high in the sky, Adam Strange intercepts a commercial jet plane in order to intercept the Zeta-Beam and travel to the planet Rann. There he is greeted by Alanna and an Ranagar soldiers who look to arrest him. Quickly dispatching them with gravity bub

Mystery in Space #54 is an issue of the series Mystery in Space (Volume 1) with a cover date of September, 1959.

Synopsis for "Invaders of the Underground World"

Flying high in the sky, Adam Strange intercepts a commercial jet plane in order to intercept the Zeta-Beam and travel to the planet Rann. There he is greeted by Alanna and an Ranagar soldiers who look to arrest him. Quickly dispatching them with gravity bubbles, Adam asks Alanna to explain what's going on. Alanna explains that the High Council of Ranagar City has accused Adam of stealing war weapons. Finding the accusations ridiculous, Adam surrenders in order to straighten things out. Alanna warns Adam that his accuser is Xaltan Tor who is a powerful man in Ranagar City.

Brought before the Great Council at the Hall of Justice, Adam is accused of stealing war weapons out of a special vault locked in solid rock by way of teleportation. When Adam explains that he has no control over the Zeta-Beam he is suddenly trapped in a protective force bubble and vanishes. Seeing this as proof of guilt, the council finds Adam guilty.

Adam finds himself being drawn deeper and deeper into the planet until he finds himself in a hidden cavern full of rock like creatures. Their leader explains that they were the ones whole stole the weapons and they managed to get into the vault because their body density is so strong that they can pass through rock as though it were water. They explain that they stole the weapons to see if they had any effect on them, and that they kidnapped Adam to see if he was a threat as well. Finding that neither could stop them, the rock people send Adam back up to the surface to warn the people of Ranagar City of their impending invasion.

Sneaking to Alanna's house, Adam begins preparing hundreds of Ammonium Nitrate pellets. Adam explains that his observations of the rock peoples dwellings found that they prefer a warmer climate and that they might be vulnerable to cold. The next day, Alanna spreads the word of impending attack, and readies sharp shooters to counter. Adam Strange arrives and is ordered to be shot, however the rock people begin their invasion, and with the help of Adam, the sharp shooters uses the Ammonium Nitrate pellets on the rock peoples weapons, freezing them in their hands.

With their opponents surrendered, Adam warns them that to attack Rann again they will have the means to freeze them solid, and allows them to retreat to their home. After the battle Xaltan Tor apologizes for making rash accusations, and Adam then suddenly vanish, the Zeta-Beam wearing off and returning him to Earth.

Appearing in "Invaders of the Underground World"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Rock Monsters

Other Characters:

  • Xaltan Tor

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

  • None


Synopsis for "Amazing Ark in Space"


Appearing in "Amazing Ark in Space"

Featured Characters:

  • Val Hart
  • Stan Jackson

Supporting Characters:

  • Unknown

Other Characters:

  • Alien sleepers

Locations:

Items:

Vehicles:

  • Spaceships

Synopsis for "Riddle of the Counterfeit Earthman"


Appearing in "Riddle of the Counterfeit Earthman"

Featured Characters:

Antagonists:

  • Zu-Ok-Qu

Other Characters:

  • Earthlings

Locations:

Items:

  • Lead

Vehicles:

  • Spaceships

Notes

  • Reprinted in Adam Strange Archives, Volume 1.
  • "Amazing Ark in Space" implies that:
    • All Sol System planets would be reached by manned spaceships until 2025;
    • The human population on Earth would be 3 billion after 2025.
  • "Riddle of the Counterfeit Earthman" is reprinted in From Beyond the Unknown #8; 1988 is considered the future at the time this issue was published; the story implies that human civilization had developed manned spaceships capable of reaching Saturn by 1988, which places the story in Earth-54.



See Also

Recommended Reading

Links and References

Superboy Vol 4 69
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