Photon-Men

Origin
Lab Technician Wanda Carter of the Perimeter Patrol service observes a beam of pure white light from the Danar planetoid. Shocked, she reports her findings to her co-worker, Arnold Brill. She then goes with Brill to report to Commandant Luther Mynot. Much to the chagrin of Brill, who is in love with Wanda, Centurion Mynot calls on Captain Martin Hawkins. Brill knows Wanda has an attraction to Hawkins and is jealous.

The Perimeter Patrol ship lands on Danar. In their investigations, Lieutenant Groll Mynot discovers a cave, reporting the finding back to Hawkins by radio.

Groll and his men enter the cave with his men to discover a city of "pure white light". They enter, and soon are surrounded and overcome by the Photon-Men. The Photon-Men fire their "beamer-rays", which encase its targets in chunks of "solid light". Brill is terribly frightened, announcing that he doesn't want to die.

Brill is taken before King Deutrino, who makes a deal with Brill for Brill to lure the Patrolmen into a trap in exchange for Brill and Wanda to go free. Both King Deutrino and Brill are both being devious. The king has no intention of letting Brill live, and Brill wants to take Wanda home to receive an undeserved hero's welcome.

As Wanda, Hawkins, crewman Jessup, and the rest of crew are admiring the city, the Photon-Men attack with Arnold Brill leading them. Jessup wants to get Brill, but Hawkins says that can wait. Instead, Hawkins devises a spinning "color wheel" shield to deflect the beamer-rays of the Photon-Men.

Arnold Grill beseeches King Deutrino to release Wanda and himself. The king reveals he will not release them, and sends his guard to capture Grill, so Arnold flees. As he runs, he crosses a bridge over the "Light Generating Plant" which is the source of the light in the city.

Captain Hawkins and crewman Jessup continue their battle with the Photon-Men, the shields proving quite effective. They are outnumbered, however, and Jessup is shot by a beamer-ray. Hawkins runs into the room of the Light Generating Plant and is seen by Brill. Brill thinks Hawkins is on his trail, but Hawkins thinks Brill is a technician that can decipher the machine. He calls to Brill to wait as the technician runs away on a catwalk above him., but Brill doesn't stop.

Photon-Men rush into the room, attacking Hawkins once more. One of the Photon-Men gets at Hawkins with a club and smashes his shield, but the other Photon-Men get distracted by Brill on the bridge above them and fire at him instead. They hit Brill, who is cocooned in light. Brill falls into the Light Generator and smashes it.

Without the light generator, the Photon-Men begin to disintegrate. Hawkins meets up with the captured Patrolmen and Wanda as their bonds melt. He rushes them out of the city and the tunnel before the construct explodes. The tunnel is sealed, and the city of light is destroyed forever. Captain Martin Hawkins directs the men to return to Rondos to report another successful mission of the Perimeter Patrol.

Public Domain Appearances

 * Amazing Adventures #6