02451cam a22003733u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003704000110007804100170008905000070010610000320011324500170014526400510016230000470021333600260026033700260028633800360031249000480034850000310039650800960042752012260052353400760174965300200182565300180184565300270186365300420189065300350193283000480196785600430201599900190205873313UtSlPG20260610134709.0mcr n260607r20241954utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aPS1 aDel Rey, Lester,d1915-199310aBattleground 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2024  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier1 aProduced from Fantastic Universe July 1954.  aRelease date is 2024-04-01  aGreg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net  a"Battleground" by Lester Del Rey is a science fiction novel written in the mid-20th century, specifically around the 1950s. The story explores the theme of survival and the catastrophic potential of an alien culture threatening humanity. Set against a backdrop of space travel, the narrative unfolds as the crew of a hypercruiser investigates various habitable planets, discovering the remnants of previously advanced civilizations that have mysteriously perished.  The plot centers on Acting Captain Lenk and his diverse crew as they navigate the complexities of their mission, encountering a chilling pattern of destruction across the planets they explore. Each site shows evidence of once-thriving cultures that have been annihilated, raising questions about an impending doom heading toward Earth. As Lenk and his crew uncover the truth about the alien races and their respective downfalls, they grapple with concepts of faith, survival, and the cyclical nature of civilization's rise and fall. Ultimately, their return to Earth reveals that the fate of other races may soon be mirrored in humanity itself, leading to profound reflections on the future of the human race. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  pOriginally published:cNew York, NY: King-Size Publications, Inc., 1954  aScience fiction  aShort stories  aSpace ships -- Fiction  aOuter space -- Exploration -- Fiction  aInterstellar travel -- Fiction 0aProduced from Fantastic Universe July 1954.40uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/73313  c114038d114038