Race for the Moon #1

In "Asylum," a centuries-old tradition of exiling the criminally insane to a distant world takes a shocking turn when Earth—long thought to be a primitive backwater—now stands as a formidable, advanced civilization. The arrival of a mission meant to retrieve the exiles is met with unexpected resistance, as Earth’s people have evolved far beyond the expectations of the ancient interstellar order.

In "Disc Jockey," Sam Webb, a radio station owner and notoriously unpopular disc jockey, refuses to leave the airwaves—even as his endless stream of terrible music drives even the most patient listeners to distraction. When his torment reaches a breaking point, the Martians, fed up with his audio atrocities, take matters into their own hands and intervene in the most literal way possible.

In "The Invasion," a young couple watches a chilling TV broadcast detailing an alien assault on Earth, their fear mounting as military defenses collapse in real time. Panicked, they grab what they can and flee into the countryside, only to later hear the announcer reveal the terrifying events were actually an original tele-screen drama — a fictional spectacle that blurred the line between screen and reality.

In the shadow of Pompeii’s bustling streets, a young woman named Ledra finds herself caught between loyalty and fear as her husband, the gladiator Gracchus, takes a desperate stand against the corrupt Crassius. With Crassius dead and their lives in peril, they flee to Ledra’s uncle’s town—unaware that beneath the quiet streets, a volcano stirs, and the very ground they seek to escape may soon consume them all.