Appears in Shattered and Other Stories, ISBN: 0-87431-237-X
Released: January 1994
This far-future story starts at the fringes of the Shatterzone, a chaotic barrier of dark matter, dark energy, and cosmic chaos that separates our spiral arm from the rest of the galaxy.
While the Shatterzone is a very dangerous place (with hyperspatial currents and electrical fluctuations that can fry your ship’s computer), it is also rich in natural and unnatural wealth.
Thus it is the focal point of a lot of get-rich-quick schemes like the one in this story.
Unfortunately, species that exist on the far side of the ’Zone are trying to jumping across, preferring to risk the navigational dangers rather than face the onslaught of a mysterious alien race known as the Ormagons...
Author’s Notes and Spoilers Below!
My Second Published Work
This was my first paid foray into serious fiction. While my editor believed I was more than capable of doing serious work, the editor-in-chief had me pigeon-holed into comedy, based on my previous work with Title Deleted for Security Reasons. So yes, I was very happy to see that not only did my story get accepted and published, but it also became the namesake of the anthology.