Wylie, Dirk 1920-1949 creator Pohl, Frederik 1919-2013 text utu 2020 monographic en 1 online resource : multiple file formats "Asteroid of the Damned" by Dirk Wylie is a science fiction novel likely written in the early 1940s. The story is set on a lawless asteroid known as Pallas, which serves as a refuge for outlaws and an infamous gambling den populated by a peculiar race called the Kiddies. The narrative revolves around a protagonist named MacCauley, who is on a mission to track down a crime lord involved in the narcotics trade flooding the inner planets with a dangerous drug called narcophene. The plot unfolds as MacCauley navigates the chaotic life on Pallas, encountering various alien species and the close-knit, odd inhabitants known as Kiddies, who have a bizarre obsession with metal. After being robbed by one of them, MacCauley faces numerous challenges, including the treachery of a fellow TPL (Tri-Planet Law) agent named Kittrell, who is revealed to be part of the narcophene operation. The story builds up to a tense climax where MacCauley cleverly uses his knowledge of the Kiddies' affinity for metal, ultimately using it to negotiate his escape and seize control of the situation, setting up for a potential future empire on the asteroid. The concluding twist highlights themes of ambition and the unexpected ways one can turn adversity into an opportunity for success. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Attributed to Pohl and Wylie by the Internet Speculative Fiction Database: http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/title.cgi?1417015 Release date is 2020-05-18 Produced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net Original publication data not identified Science fiction Short stories Detective and mystery stories Drug traffic -- Fiction Human-alien encounters -- Fiction Asteroids -- Fiction PS Original publication data not identified https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62168 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62168 UtSlPG 260607 20260610134431.0 62168