Damnation Morning

Damnation Morning by Fritz Leiber



This is a short story set in the same story universe as Leiber's classic “The Big Time.” In that story, we discover that a Time War is being fought between two sides intent on changing history to their own unknown ends. The sides are the “Spiders” and the “Snakes.” The operatives of both sides are people of various ages and worlds “cut out” of their timelines, usually prior to their imminent deaths. Prior to being cut out of their timelines, people are just “zombies” that go through the motions of an apparently self-aware existence but are otherwise puppets of history.

We don't know who the ultimate string-pullers of the two factions are, nor do we know why they are re-arranging history or to what end. The characters don't know either but go along with their missions for their sides, almost like spies during the Cold War, for which this scenario might be Leiber's metaphor. Likewise, the “puppet” theme was explored in a different - more chilling way - in “You Are All Alone.”

That's the backstory that really isn't explored in this short story. The backstory is somewhat alluded to, and anyone with knowledge of Leiber would know the backstory. I think this story about the recruitment of someone for the Spiders - or was it the Snakes - might be enjoyable to a reader who lacked the backstory, but the story is far more enjoyable with knowledge of Leiber's Time War setting.