The new planet caem out of the infinite deeps of insterstellar space, moved in towards the sunlike a comet, and stayed -- a new member of the Solar System, between Earth and Venus. Xenephrene it was named and it made a pretty vision in the evening sky . . . until other things began to appear in the heavens. flying things, strange visitants, myterious lights -- and people knew then that they were no longer alone. Xenephrene was inhabited, and its inhabitants were discovering the Earth. But were they coming as friends or as invaders? For trade or for conquest? Ray Cummings (1887-1957) was an American science fiction writer and one of the "founding fathers of the science fiction pulp genre."