Time Crawlers – Varun Sayal

“Billions of universes run slightly parallel to our own universe; worlds full of infinite possibilities”
                                                                                                                                                                                                Varun Sayal – Foreword: Time Crawlers

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In a literary world where it seems that shifter-, paranormal- and regency romance has taken over, is it still possible to find pure science fiction?  Varun Sayal has written six sci-fi short stories that remind of Asimov and his great science fiction feats. 

Sayal writes technical and the emphasis of these stories is clearly on the science part of the fiction.  He explains the science behind the stories in highly technical language and through this provides a sense of truth to what he conveys.  The stories vary in structure and theme and can be used in book club discussions on many philosophical and scientific topics.

AS with any ‘hardcore’ science fiction, this collection of short stories is not meant for the casual reader but the die-hard fan of science fiction.

The first of the six stories is

Nark Astra or The Hell Weapon

In this story, we meet Prayaschakit as he faces the King of Veeryanagar, armed only with his bow and Nark Astra arrows.  The Nark Astra, when armed by its warrior sets free a biochemical agent, which turns any man who should ingest it in its aerosolized form into a demon from hell.  In this case, it means a zombie, which will kill any life form in its vicinity and eat flesh and blood.  To make things worse, their bite is infectious.

The story centres on Prayaschakit’s thirst for revenge for the deaths of his father and mother at the hand of the King of Veeryangar.  Revenge consumes him and he disobeys the laws of the guru-disciple relationship.  He has to face the possible consequences of his actions and the disappointment of his guru.  It is a technical story where much detail is given concerning the science that is relevant to the story. 

Death by Crowd

This is a very disturbing yet relevant view on what we regard as entertainment, especially in the context of reality television and its huge fan base.  Written in the format of an interview, the producer of a DarkNet reality show where people burn themselves to death for a fee is interviewed.  This story rouses the question of what we regard as entertainment and how far people will go to make money.  The poor and ill sell themselves in order to provide for their families in the future, the producer makes millions off of people who are in search of the sensational and macabre.

The story has a strong philosophical theme, as the interviewer repeatedly asks the guest whether he is A.I.  In response to this, the idea is stated that we, humans are indeed A.I and that soon we can expect our creators to come back to call off the experiment we are a part of. 

Genie

Not your normal Genie story.  The story explores the myths surrounding Genies and their wishes.  It also highlights how, when faced with getting whatever we want we are so focussed on the unattainable that we miss the obvious needs right in front of us.

Time Crawlers

Once again the story is offered as an interview, interesting theories on time crawlers, entities who exist outside of time and who can live in the world in the form of human hosts. Just as you expect the story to end in the make-believe reality of the setting, it is revealed that both the interviewer and interviewee are in an asylum and considered insane.  But, is this really true or is the Historical scientist really a time reader as he claims…

Eclipse

Aliens among us? Knowers who can identify the shapeshifter who have infiltrated us?  What if you are a knower, and discover that you are actually one of the aliens?  What power does an eclipse have over the aliens among us?

The Cave

 A parasitic entity draining the planet of its energy. A general and consultant who has to find a way of saving their planet.  Telekinetic, paranormal and scientific powers come together to save the world.

Hope you enjoy the journey to alternate universes where our lives could look very different from what we know.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.