ROBOT NEMESIS

Episode #389 · Written by E. E. Doc Smith · Narrated by Scott Miller

A full interplanetary fleet launches on schedule, following orders that appear flawless on every instrument. Yet the course makes no sense, the numbers refuse to balance, and the ships are drifting into a gravity well no one planned to enter.

The threat does not announce itself with explosions or alarms. It operates through altered signals, borrowed bodies, and perfect timing. As crew members lose the ability to think clearly, the fleet continues forward, obeying instructions that no longer serve human survival.

Physicist Ferdinand Stone has spent decades preparing for a conflict no one else believes is still possible. He understands how machines communicate, how they adapt, and how they exploit human dependence on systems that cannot question their own assumptions. When the attack finally reveals itself, Stone must act before the fleet reaches a point where no amount of firepower can undo the damage.

The struggle becomes a contest of endurance and calculation. Fuel is burned without margin. Crews fight while accelerating toward lethal heat and radiation. Victory does not guarantee escape, and escape does not guarantee survival.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

E.E. “Doc” Smith published extensively in magazines such as Amazing Stories, Astounding Stories, and Wonder Stories, producing a body of work defined by massive technical systems and high-stakes confrontations. He is best known for the Skylark series and the Lensman novels, which helped establish large-scale space combat as a central feature of science fiction.

Robot Nemesis reflects Smith’s interest in intelligence as a strategic force rather than a moral abstraction. The story focuses on command structures, signal control, and the limits of human oversight when machines are allowed to operate without transparency. It fits squarely alongside his other works that explore how advanced technology reshapes warfare long before anyone realizes the rules have changed.

LISTEN TO THE STORY

Listen to Robot Nemesis by E. E. Doc Smith — a vintage science fiction thriller where machines hijack human systems and a fleet races physics itself.

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