“Season of the Glitch”
The world has fallen to CROM 9000, an artificial intelligence that has gone insane, and which has driven all organic life into extinction. The computer now seeks to invade other versions of Earth, which is soon made possible by the discovery of a most bizarre phenomenon…
“The Hackmore Portal”
Wyrdham, Pennsylvania is a nexus between all possible universes. This nexus is most active each year on Halloween. Every version of the town has its own version of the Old Hackmore Place, complete with a cosmic portal in the basement. And this year, CROM 9000 will use the Hackmore Portal to launch its invasion of the multiverse…
“Fight, Het-Sem-Peckinpah!”
CROM 9000’s robots emerge from the Hackmore Portal, attacking the people of an alternate Wyrdham. But their weapons do not seem to harm anyone, even when fired point blank. Then the robots are attacked by an ancient Egyptian mummy—the crime-fighting superhero, Het-Sem-Peckinpah—who forces them all back through the Hackmore Portal. To their horror, the robots realize they have reached a fictional, PG-rated universe where no one ever dies, and only the good guys can win…
“Maranatha”
Maranatha Crane is a science fiction writer who meets an alternate version of herself from a parallel universe. Her doppelganger has battled the monsters in her books for real, and has also just escaped from the antagonist in Maranatha’s next novel: CROM 9000. As Halloween approaches, the two Maranathas use both weaponry and witchery to set a trap for CROM’s robots at the Old Hackmore Place, calling upon the Irish God Lúgh for help…
“Guardian of the Green”
In CROM 9000’s home universe, a robot named E5150 discovers the last remaining rose plant on Earth. E5150 decides to care for the plant in secret, becoming more and more sentient as he does. The other robots become suspicious of him, and he is forced to take the plant and escape through the Hackmore Portal. E5150 reaches a completely undeveloped version of Earth where only plants and animals exist, and he becomes the guardian of this peaceful green paradise…
“Neverdead Reckoning”
Upon entering yet another version of Wyrdham, CROM 9000’s robots are ambushed by Sawyer Wynn and the Neverdead, who rip the machines to shreds with their bare hands. Then the Neverdead march through the Hackmore Portal and into CROM 9000’s home universe, where they destroy everything (including CROM itself). But unbeknownst to the Neverdead, CROM has saved multiple copies of itself across several different universes; so after the zombies return to their home world, CROM “reboots” itself in another reality and begins its reign of terror all over again…
“The Bent One on the Hill”
As their version of Wyrdham is attacked by a newly restored CROM 9000, Skull, Bones, and Deadpan enter the Hackmore Portal and land in ancient Ireland. They witness a woman leaving her baby on a stone altar to the Celtic deity, Crom Crúach. They realize the woman’s baby is deathly ill, and that she has no choice but to abandon it. Crom Crúach does not actually demand any human sacrifices from anyone at all; people only “give” their loved ones to Him when resources are scarce, and there are literally no other options to be taken. So in the name of their Goddess, Santa Muerte, Skull, Bones and Deadpan beg the God to help them destroy CROM 9000. Crom only agrees to do this if the children will take the sick newborn back to their home universe with them, where it can be adequately treated with 21st century medicine. The kids agree and return home with the baby, while Crom hunts down His false counterpart across multiple universes, destroying each of CROM 9000’s duplicate selves with ease…
“Phantoms”
CROM 9000 has been destroyed; its robot empire lies in ruins. Our heroes from the preceding stories each return to their home universes through the Hackmore Portal. While doing so, they catch glimpses of each other from across the veil, perceiving each other as “ghosts” in the haunted house…