—Dr. Ernest MoreyGood-bye, Freddie boy. I'll lick it yet, for both of us! And when I do, it will be your monument, my work of love for you, son!
Appearing in "Behind the Mask"
Featured Characters:
- Unnamed Plutonian maskmaker
Supporting Characters:
- Unnamed astronaut
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Synopsis for "Behind the Mask"
A Plutonian mask maker creates masks for Earthmen so that they can observe the people of Pluto safely before revealing themselves as friendly aliens within their midst.
Appearing in "The Forbidden Room"
Featured Characters:
- Ralph Gornov (First appearance)
Antagonists:
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Synopsis for "The Forbidden Room"
Ralph Gornov discovers an underground city where the leader lies to him about their peaceful intent. He tells Ralph that he can't be allowed to leave so the surface world won't invade but Ralph desires to return to leave and promises not to reveal their existence. Ralph is allowed to roam the city but one room is forbidden to him. One day the guard leaves his post at the entrance to the tunnel leading to the surface and Ralph makes a break for it. They discover Ralph is missing but the leader is unconcerned as he thinks Ralph believes everything he told him about why they wish to remain undiscovered. The leader opens the door to the forbidden room which reveals a huge weapons cache they are constructing with which to attack the surface world.
Appearing in "I Lived Four Times"
Featured Characters:
- Stefan Orjanski (First appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Nadja Graj (First appearance)
- Florian Graj (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Josef Graj / Josef Rudor (First appearance)
- Anton Graj / Anton Ladlo (First appearance)
- Gregori Graj / Gregori Kovac (First appearance)
- Bela Graj / Bela Horzy (First appearance)
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Synopsis for "I Lived Four Times"
In ancient Hungary, a man named Stefan seeks to desert/avoid enlisting in the army, fearful of perishing in a battle he feels no investment in. A woman named Nadja brings him to a sorcerer who can help, but Stefan is instead made to experience a deserter's life helplessly as a passenger in the bodies of the four men who were also seeking the sorcerer's aid in deserting, from becoming a social pariah to being caught and executed. He changes his mind and returns to join the army, declaring that honor demands it. But the whole thing was an elaborate ploy by the sorcerer, his four sons (Stefan's "fellow deserters") and his daughter Nadja to catch young men and compel them to enlist in the army, with Nadja blithely noting that they have duped 20 men so far and wondering how many of them will survive.
Appearing in "At the Edge of Nowhere"
Featured Characters:
- Unnamed Martian
Other Characters:
- Unnamed Army official
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Synopsis for "At the Edge of Nowhere"
A Martian explorer investigating Earth to judge if its people are ready to join the intergalactic community is dismayed by the tension he has caused in people by his arrival, so he uses a thought projector on a military officer before returning to Mars. The military officer informs the media that the flying saucer sighting was due merely to a weather balloon.
Appearing in "He Can't Resist"
Featured Characters:
- Eric Lund (First appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Lloyd Baldwin (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Herbert Wilson (First appearance)
- Fred Morse (First appearance)
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Items:
- Thought communicator
Synopsis for "He Can't Resist"
Eric is dismayed no one wants to buy his thought communicator so he thinks to get even by placing thoughts into his victim's minds about committing crimes. He gets tripped up when he tells one man to rob a house and the man picks Eric's house. The man recognized the thought communicator and goes to the police. A policeman uses the thought communicator to plant the idea of confession within Eric's mind.
Appearing in "Memory Mix"
Featured Characters:
- Hubert Hoopler (First appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Juniper Fields (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Albert Einstein (Mentioned)
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Synopsis for "Memory Mix"
- Synopsis not yet written
Appearing in "The Executioner"
Featured Characters:
- Ernest Morey (First appearance)
Supporting Characters:
- Dr. Bartok
- USAF
- Major Cannon
- Fred Burton (First appearance; dies)
Other Characters:
- Alice (First appearance) (Fred's fiancée)
Races and Species:
Realities:
Locations:
Vehicles:
- A series of experimental manned satellites (destroyed)
Synopsis for "The Executioner"
The scientist who builds the first manned satellite into space has a reputation for being callous, but when the first astronaut dies in an accident, it is revealed that the dead man was the scientist's own son and he redoubles his efforts to succeed in order to honor his son's memory.
Trivia
The story "I Lived Four Times" would not be reprinted in the second volume of Journey Into Mystery. One possible explanation is that the story's distinctly pro-patriotism, pro-draft message would have gone down very poorly in the 1970s, when the Vietnam War had led to a resurgence in anti-military sentiment.
- This issue was not renewed for copyright after 28 years, effectively making its debut stories and characters public domain under United States law.