“By Any Other Name” – Chapter 2

The events of this story take place in the Starstuff Universe some years before (or after?) those of the Starstuff Trilogy.

There is only one lift that goes down past level 1,500, the marker between the lowest level of the Mids, and the beginning of the depths. The circumference of the planet is tight down there. The mines are clustered around the one shaft. The lift delivers food, water, clothing, and equipment. This is in return for the refined starstuff ore that is placed inside a...