Project Gutenberg 2016-01-17 Public domain in the USA. 155 Shelton, Vaughan Weiss Point of Departure Produced from Galaxy Science Fiction April 1956 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net "Point of Departure" by Vaughan Shelton is a science fiction novella that was likely written in the mid-20th century, specifically during the 1950s. This work intricately weaves themes of exploration, technological innovation, and ethical dilemmas surrounding scientific advancements. The narrative centers around the mysterious activities of a research foundation and an unauthorized experiment involving ancient artifacts and a groundbreaking power source. The story unfolds as Raymond Donner, the administrative officer of a research foundation, recounts a troubling series of events involving a missing colleague, Porter Hays, and a mysterious figure named Simon Kane. Initially, Kane presents himself as a persuasive figure with grand visions of launching a spacecraft powered by a solar energy device derived from ancient Poseidon tablets. As tensions rise, Donner discovers that Kane's motivations are sinister, rooted in deception and murder. The tale escalates with the revelation of Donner's struggles against Kane's manipulative control over both the technology and the people involved. Ultimately, the narrative culminates in a tragedy when Hays disappears during the spacecraft's maiden flight, leaving behind tragic implications for all involved, including Kane's wife, Nalja, who holds the key to understanding the true nature of the tablets. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 84.5 (6th grade). Easy to read. en Science fiction Short stories Space ships -- Fiction Test pilots -- Fiction PS Text Science Fiction Browsing: Literature Browsing: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Browsing: Fiction Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy Category: Novels 69510 2025-06-20T12:57:34.419494 text/html 46091 2024-10-22T23:44:32 text/html 381408 2025-06-20T12:57:36.734453 application/epub+zip 380246 2025-06-20T12:57:34.884498 application/epub+zip 84064 2025-06-20T12:57:34.625487 application/epub+zip 420736 2025-06-20T12:57:38.241501 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 413359 2025-06-20T12:57:36.486583 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 117809 2022-09-23T07:16:35.554175 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 62421 2023-09-22T07:20:57.129522 text/plain 42692 2024-10-22T23:44:32 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 16538 2025-06-20T12:57:38.394466 application/rdf+xml 25761 2025-06-20T12:57:34.710516 image/jpeg 4443 2025-06-20T12:57:34.667456 image/jpeg 345347 2025-06-20T12:57:34.440515 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://book.klll.cc/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog