First Landing by Roger D. Aycock Episode 458

Roger D. Aycock | November 30, 2025

First Landing by Roger D. Aycock Episode 458
Roger D. Aycock

FIRST LANDING

Episode #458 · Written by Roger D. Aycock · Narrated by Scott Miller

Caught in the fog-choked wilds of Venus, Castle stumbles into a mystery far stranger than the hostile “natives” stalking him through the gloom. His only chance at survival lies in unraveling who — or what — really claims this harsh alien world.

Castle’s mission to Venus was supposed to be routine: gather data, survey the land, and return home with a neat stack of reports for the World Bloc scientists. But when his small craft crashes in the roiling nightside fog, the planet becomes a maze of towering toadstools, relentless wind, and unseen hunters. Strange, stunted figures shadow him through the gloom, pushing him toward something he can’t yet name. What begins as a scientific expedition quickly shifts into a fight for understanding — and survival — as Castle grapples with the unsettling realization that Venus is not the uninhabited frontier Earth believed it to be.

Aycock builds tension not through combat but through uncertainty, setting Castle against an ecosystem where every assumption becomes suspect. Venus feels alive, reactive, almost conspiratorial, and its inhabitants — whatever they truly are — hold secrets older and stranger than Castle imagined. As the fog deepens and the threat closes in, the line between discovery and danger grows razor thin. The story invites readers into a slow-burn mystery where first contact is not triumphant but deeply human, shaped by fear, fatigue, and the desire to do the right thing despite overwhelming ambiguity.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Roger Dee (Roger Dee Aycock) was an American science-fiction writer whose career spanned the heart of the mid-century magazine era. His fiction was known for its tight pacing, atmospheric settings, and characters who reacted to cosmic wonders with believable human responses. Rather than focusing on grandiose battles or galaxy-spanning empires, Dee often told stories of individuals navigating the fragile space between caution and curiosity. His work appeared in If, Planet Stories, Galaxy, Fantastic Universe, and numerous other publications that shaped the Golden Age landscape.

Dee’s background as a veteran gave him a perspective steeped in logistics, procedure, and the psychological strain of isolation — elements that frequently color his protagonists. Yet his stories also reveal a deep affection for the unknown, treating alien worlds as puzzles rather than mere dangers. His legacy has endured because he wrote with clarity and purpose, creating tales that reward readers who enjoy exploration blended with tension and speculation. Today, his work serves as a bridge between the adventure-forward spirit of early sci-fi and the more nuanced, character-driven storytelling that would follow.

LISTEN TO THE STORY

Listen to First Landing by Roger D. Aycock — a suspenseful vintage science fiction tale of Venus, survival, and unexpected discovery in classic sci-fi style.