Unusual Tales #39

In the depths of a forgotten mine, miner Conn Landrum is pulled from the dark by Launa, a stranger from a hidden underground society. Now faced with a choice between the life he knew above and the mystery of the world beneath, he must decide where his future truly lies.

In the remote mountains of Carginia, Dr. Karl Pultch invites five unsuspecting friends—Hendrik, Mr. and Mrs. Jacob Schute, Josef Balker, and his childhood sweetheart Ingrid Berg—for what they believe will be a relaxing weekend, unaware he intends to use them as test subjects for a radical experiment on human evolution. When Pultch secretly introduces a mysterious serum into their water supply, his guests begin to undergo shocking transformations, and the scientist must race against time to reverse the effects before his deception is fully exposed.

Since prehistoric times, tribal elders have commanded respect as keepers of hard-won wisdom and survival knowledge, becoming the first shamans and spiritual guides to their people. This nonfiction exploration traces how the "Ancient Ones" earned their revered status across cultures—from guiding hunts and ceremonies to preserving vital memories in societies without written records—while examining how different societies value their elders based on resources and need.

Cap Herman's routine island-hopping flight goes catastrophically wrong when his engines fail over an uncharted Pacific island, forcing an emergency landing—only to lead him to a shockingly modern house in the jungle and its mysterious owner, Conway. As Cap discovers the impossible truth behind Conway's sophisticated fortress and the hypnotized men forced to build and maintain it, he must find a way to break the spell before he becomes another prisoner on this strange island.