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Rocket Summer
The chronicle opens up in the middle of an Ohio winter. The small town is transformed by the wave of summer brought by the launching of a rocket. The rocket brings a heat wave and completely transforms the little town. Once white and snowy, the town resembles a brief time during summer. -
Ylla
This chronicle opens up with two martians named Mr. and Mrs. K. We see the life on Mars is similar two Earth and Martians have darker skin, yellow eyes and can use telepathy. By using her telepathy, Mrs. K dreams about an astronaut named Nathaniel York coming to Mars. She also starts humming a song that is coming through her telepathy. Mr. K becomes upset about these dreams and shows his jealously by waiting for the astronaut to land and shoots him and his partner. -
The Summer Night
Martians gathered at the stone galleries on summer night on Mars. A woman singer and musicians were on stage performing for an audience. During one of the songs, English words became pouring out of her mouth on accident. All the other Martians were very surprised and startled. She then tried again, but then the musicians played an unknown tune that went with the words the singer said previously. The town went crazy and everyone fled to their houses. -
The Earth Men
A captain and three astronauts landed on Mars and knocked on one of the Martian's door. Mrs. Ttt answered, seemed uninterested and sent the four men to go see Mr. Aaa. Mr. Aaa grew angry about the Ttt's sending the four men to him so he sent the astronauts to go visit Mr. Iii's house. Mr. Iii gave the four men a place to stay and gave them a key to the door. The men went into the room and was told to wait for Mr. Xxx. The room was an insane asylum and Mr. Xxx later killed the four men. -
The Taxpayer
A man named Pritchard wanted to get on a rocket that was leaving to Mars. He began to yell at the guards on the other side of the fence to tell them to let him on the rocket. He claimed he was a taxpayer and he wanted to get away in order to escape the atomic war that was supposed to occur in the next couple years. The guards laughed at Pritchard and at what he was saying. The taxpayer was eventually taken away and arrested as the rocket took off in the background. -
The Third Expedition
The third expedition, that consisted of 16 men, landed on Mars. At first, the men thought they traveled back in time because Mars looked like America during the 1940's. They then came up with the hypothesis that Earth is already colonized with people that lived back in the 1940's and have lived on Mars since. The 16 men made the discovery that the entire town was filled with deceased people of whom they once knew. The deceased people were actually martians and killed the men in their sleep. -
And The Moon Be Still As Bright
A fourth expedition arrives and the men discover most of the martians died from the chicken pox. Spender is proud of the Martian civilization and walks off to explore. He returns and claims to be a Martian. He kills five crew members. Captain Wilder chases him down and they have a conversation about his feelings about the Martians. Spender wants no humans in inhabit Mars. Captain Wilder eventually ends up shooting Spender. Wilder then continues Spender's mission to try to protect Mars. -
The Settlers
People started to travel to Mars just like the pilgrims traveled to America. Most were leaving to start their life over and to leave all the bad stuff on Earth behind. People on Earth also started to advertise the migration to Mars. The population of humans on Mars was small at first, but it grew steadily as time goes on. -
The Green Morning
A 31 year old man named Benjamin Driscoll became a farmer on Mars. It was his job to plant trees in order to release more oxygen into the thin air. Mars was very dry at the time so the farmer was wishing for rain. The farmer dozed off and woke up to the feeling of air on his skin. He went to bed, but woke up in the morning to the sight of thousands of trees growing into the sky. He fainted at the sight of it and when he woke up, there were 5,000 new trees climbing up towards the sun. -
The Locusts
More and more rockets started to travel from Earth to Mars. The rockets came like a swarm of locusts and started the invasion of Mars. Men were ready with their tools to transform Mars into what looked like their old home. In about six months, twelve new towns sprouted up on Mars and the human population consisted of 90,000. -
Night Meeting
A man named Tomás is driving down the street when he encounters a Martian named Muhe ca. Muhe ca claims he is going to a festival, but Tomás informs him that the ancient city has been dead for thousands of years. The two argue back and forth about what they are seeing is wrong. They agree to disagree and head their seperate ways. -
The Shore
This chronicle talks about how the only people coming to Mars are American. The rest of the world is engulfed in war and do not have the money or resources to travel to Mars. Because of this, only Americans inhabit Mars. -
The Fire Balloons
Father Peregrine and Father Stone are on a mission to convert some Martians over to Christianity. They hear about a race of Martians that are blue spheres. They discover the Martians are intelligent and they save Peregrine's life several times. The priest find out the Martians have souls so they built an alter for them. The Martians reject this because they claim they are already holy and are cleansed of all their sins. -
Interim
Humans are brings resources from Earth to use on Mars. This marks the transition of Mars turning into a more "Earth-like" planet. -
The Musicians
This chronicle tells us how children kept busy on Mars. The children would hike out to the ruins of Martian towns. These towns were filled with the dead corpses of Martians. They children would then stomp on the bodies and take the bones from the skeletons and play music on them. -
The Wilderness
The chronicle takes place back on Earth in Independence, Missouri. Janice Smith and Leonora Holmes are planning their trip to Mars. Janice is scared to go to Mars because she is scared to go on the rocket, but is going to meet her boyfriend on Mars. They talk about how colonizing Mars is similar to colonizing the Old West. The two woman say goodbye to many things in the town. Janice calls her boyfriend, but the only message that gets through is "love". -
The Naming of Names
This chronicle is about naming the town and landmarks on Mars. Many of the towns and landmarks are named after some of the famous men that attempted to colonize Mars. Some of the towns are named after resources you would fine back on Earth. Very few things are named after the Martian civilization. -
Usher II
A man named William Stendahl has built a recreation of The House of Usher. The haunted house has many characteristics of all the stories by Edgar Allen Poe. An governement official named Garrett comes to imvestigate the house. Garrett is killed once by a robotic ape, but that Garrett was actually a robot. The real Garrett arives later and Stendahl lures him downstairs and seals him up in a room. Stendahl then takes off in a helicopter while watching his house disappear underneath a bog. -
The Old Ones
The old people are finally coming to Mars. They are taking the path left behind by the ones who traveled there before them. -
The Martian
Mr. and Mrs. LaFarge miss there deceased son, Tom. One night there is a noise and Mr. LaFarge finds Tom outside. He leaves the door unlocked for Tom to come in to sleep. The next day the Lafarge's have trouble believing Tom is real and decide to go into town. When in town, Tom disappears and transforms into a deceased little girl that another family lost. People begin chasing Tom because he is transforming into the deceased ones they know. After a while, Tom dies from exhaustion. -
The Luggage Store
Father Peregrine and the luggage salesman talk about how unbelievable the war is and how luggage will be sold out soon. The salesman explains that they came up her to escape all the war, but they will all go back in a heartbeat. The Earth is their home and they don't want to see if become destroyed. -
The Off Season
News from Earth about the beginning of an atomic war has reached Mars. Sam Parkhill just opened a hotdog stand and is waiting for people to flee Earth and come to Mars. A blue, misty Martian approaches Sam, becomes frightened and shoots the Martian. A fleet of Martians then chases Sam down and give him the land to half of Mars. The story ends with the sight of Earth bursting into flames due to the atomic war. -
The Watchers
A morse code message reaches Mars as people watch the Earth on fire. It explains Australia has been destroyed and Los Angeles along with London have been bombed. The message also begs the people on Mars to come home and fight the war. People on Mars flood tonthe luggage store, buy all the luggage and flee back to Earth. -
The Silent Towns
Everyone has fled back to Earth except a man named Walter Gripp. He lived in the mountains and has been searching for love. He hears a phone call one night and picks up, but there is no answer. He goes through the phone book trying to find the othe person on Mars. He calls a beauty parlor in New Texas City and Genevieve Selsor answers. He travels to see her and discovers that she is unattractive and fat. He flees back home where he decides to never answer the phone again. -
The Long Years
A man named Hathaway is living on Mars with his wife and three children. Captain Wilder comes back from his expedition on Jupiter and Pluto. Hathaway wants to travel back to Earth with his family. Hathaway invites Wilder and his crew to breakfast. Wilder discovers that Hathaway's family are actually robots and his real family died 20 years ago. Hathaway built the family to keep himself company and to prevent loneliness. Hathaway dies of a heart attack and Wilder burries him. -
There Will Come Soft Rains
The story takes place in an automated house in the state of California. The house makes breakfast, but no one is there. The house is the only structure standing as the rest of the city is flattened and covered by a radioactive glow. A voice of the house reads the poem "There Will Come Soft Rains" which is about humanity's destruction and how it won't affect nature at all. A tree falls on the house and causes it to catch on fire. Everything burns down except for one single wall. -
The Million-Year Picnic
William Thomas brings his wife and three children to Mars. They are the only humans left on Earth and Mars that we know off. Mr. Thomas tells his kids that the planet is all theirs and to pick the city they should live in. Mr. Thomas brings a stack of records from Earth which he burns. His children are interested in seing the Martians so Thomas takes his kids over to the canal and tells them to look at the water. Their relfections serve as the new Martians.
