- Into the Looking Glass
"Into The Looking Glass" the first in a series of military
science fiction books by John Ringo, which are heavily focused on science. The story involves the discovery of alternate worlds and the aliens that inhabit them.Plot summary
A serious explosion occurs at the University of Florida's science department, destroying the University and everything within a mile of it. Yet despite all the looks of it, from the devastation to the mushroom cloud, it wasn't a nuke, just a big boom. And hovering right over where that big boom took place it a strange, black metallic sphere. As the survivors around it stand in awe, a huge, 'bug' steps out of it, and dies.Meanwhile the President and his advisors are freaking out. They had what looked like a nuke, but wasn't goes off at a big University. They need answers, so they grab the first person with a physics degree and Top Secret clearance in arm's reach, Dr. William Weaver. Weaver quickly explains that Ray Chen, the maker of this mess, was working on changing the laws of physics withing an small space, to allow him to create a Higgs' Boson, essentially a particle containing its own universe. Whether or not he succeeded is unknown, however they have other problems as more of these, "Looking Glasses" begin to open around the country, then around the world. Weaver is sent down to Florida to investigate into the explosion. While on the site, a little girl named Mimi comes walking out of rubble a few blocks from the explosion, carrying a giant, spider, on her shoulder. They realize that something must have happened to her that allowed her to survive the explosion. They also discover that that spider on her shoulder, is an incredibly intelligent being, that seems to have formed a telepathic link with Mimi, as he is able to place his thoughts into her head.Less than a day later, they discover that gate isn't their only problem as a deadly new species, begins to thunder through the various gates, killing people and spreading a fungus that seems to do anything but die.However it appears not all of the aliens are bad. Mankind makes friendly contact with a felinoid species, the Mree. They explain that these aliens, the Titchr, are a pest that seem to go with the gates. They meet with the Mree Emperor, and begin to discuss explorations into each others cultures.In one of first spots the Titchr came through, their alien forces are continually breaking through the Human's lines of defense. Wanting to lower the daily body count, the president authorizes Weaver to place a nuke through the gate to give them some breathing room. After they start getting now activity at the gate, Weaver, accompanied by a SEAL team, takes the bomb through the gate. Once through they discover that the Titchr are actually a race of one organism that produces these fighting creatures, their equivalent of antibodies, to spread through the gates and take over other worlds. As they're preparing to set up the bomb, the forces attach, tearing open Weaver's suit and killing several SEALs. However they are able to set the bomb off and get through the gate, destabilizing it and the Mree gate....
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