Search Worlds Without End

Seeking freedom from their oppressive government on Earth, a ragtag group of idealists embark on a perilous journey to found a new world light-years from home

On a future Earth, gone are the halcyon days of the early space program, when the universe held endless promise and excitement. Overcrowded, ruled by a corrupt autocracy, and plagued by vast economic inequalities, life on Earth has become nightmarish, and the promise of a world beyond the planet is diminishing rapidly as the government begins shuttering its interstellar efforts.

But for a small band of rebels called Constitutionalists, escaping into the vast universe beyond is the only hope. And so off they set for a distant planet where they can start over, building a new society on the principle of liberty, testing the very limits of human capability. Their years-long trip is not without its tribulations, from internecine conflict on the ship to ambiguous pleas from Earth to return.

Their destination, an Earth-like planet called Rustum, is twenty light-years away, and through every treacherous moment of the journey they know that their most harrowing trials are yet to come when they finally reach their new home.

Continuing from Orbit Unlimited, New America is the next chapter in the story of the planet Rustum, where the Constitutionalists continue their mission to build a more perfect nation

Civilization on Rustum has come a long way since its early days, when a few brave colonists traveled twenty light-years from Earth to found a society, New America, on the principle of personal liberty. Some call themselves Constitutionalists, others Jeffersonians, but whatever the title everyone can agree: Rustum has a problem. With one-and-a-quarter times the gravitational force of Earth and a host of inedible flora, Rustum is most habitable on its highlands, leaving the lowlands sparsely populated and creating a great imbalance on the planet.

Dan Coffin, an original settler of Rustum, agrees to join an expedition back to the lowlands, where he is one of the rare individuals who can survive in the dense air without a helmet. New America follows Coffin's endeavors to build a new life with a wife, children, and an effective governing body that can help give the lowlanders not only survive, but thrive.

Table of Contents:

• 9 - My Own, My Native Land - [History of Rustum] - (1974) - novelette
• 51 - Passing the Love of Women - [History of Rustum] - (1974) - novelette
• 85 - A Fair Exchange - [History of Rustum] - (1974) - novelette
• 117 - To Promote the General Welfare - [History of Rustum] - (1975) - novelette
• 159 - The Queen of Air and Darkness - [The Queen of Air and Darkness] - (1971) - novella
• 231 - Home - (1966) - short story
• 261 - Our Many Roads to the Stars - (1975) - essay