Spiders

Welcome to this issue of the Herald. I am pleased to be back at the helm, after a short furlough practising my golf. It was an enjoyable break, and I have returned to my duties with a renewed sense of commitment and dedication to our cause. We will not let the aliens prevail to take over this green and pleasant land with its vast array of life.

Over millennia, Earth has seen the development of countless species of living creatures from such creatures as the tiny Hyracotherium, the Pezophaps solitaria and perhaps my favourite the Ursus eogroenlandicus.

The breathtaking diversity of Earth’s fauna might well be one reason that our enemies are so eager to come here; we may never know the truth, but our multiplicity of life forms can also have serious repercussions. There are a considerable number of dangerous creatures in our world including the Siberian tiger, the Golden Poison Frog, Puffer fish and the Blue ringed octopus. Lethal creatures, capable of killing a human with a swipe of a claw or a touch of poison.

However, there are creatures that pose an even greater threat to our world. You may have noticed that this issue of the Herald was, initially, without an editorial. This was not due to any inefficiency in the editorial staff, rather due to an incident within Headquarters that required my immediate intervention. Who would ever have thought that a tiny – and as far as I am concerned, if it can fit on the palm of my hand it IS tiny – arachnid could have had a certain member of staff reduced to screaming hysterics?

With that member of staff now undergoing therapy and counselling for the so-called ‘trauma’ of the incident, we are short-handed here, and so my Editorial was delayed while I dealt with more pressing matters. I am merely relieved that the incident did not occur in the middle of an attack by UFOs.

My apologies for the delay, and I trust that it will not have had a detrimental effect on your enjoyment of the Herald.

This issue has a diverse range of stories, including dragon’s ‘Glitch in the Machine’ to LtCdr’s ‘Lost Soul’. The serials include the beginning of ‘Shepherd Part 4’, ‘Friends’ by Toria, and, for those of you who have subscribed,‘Shades’ can be found in the adult section.

Please remember that subscription is free and you are only required to confirm that you are an adult in order to gain access to the adult stories.

One of our latest additions is a series of hand drawn comics which The Ed Straker Herald has been privileged to be allowed to publish. Created by Moreno Tambellini, these are beautiful depictions of the early (and original) scripts. They are well worth reading, even if you do not speak Italian!