30 years later, the victims of the gene-altering 'Wild Cards' virus face a new nightmare. From the far reaches of space comes The Swarm, a deadly menace that could very will destroy the planet. Aces and Jokers must form an uneasy alliance and prepare for a battle they must not lose. When a group of SF's most imaginative writers discovered they shared a secret love of the larger-than-life heroes of the four-colour comics and Saturday matinee serials, they gave each other a challenge: What would our world be like if these superhuman heroes and villains had been real flesh-and-blood men and women who lived through this century's most turbulent history? In WILD CARDS 2, the year is 1970. The place is New York City, home of Aces High, the glamourous lounge atop the Empire State Building, and Jokertown, the squalid residence of the city's underclass. The victims of the Wild Card Virus are no longer new and strange, but neither are they accepted by a world that still fears them. But as the '80s dawn, all eyes are drwn to the skies, and the Wild Cards may be the planet's only hope, as an abomination called the Swarm arrives to threaten Earth.

Edited by George R.R. Martin.

Contents:

• Pennies From Hell by Lewis Shiner
• Ashes to Ashes by Roger Zelazny
• Unto the Sixth Generation and Mr. Koyama's Comet by Walter Jon Williams
• If Looks Could Kill by Walton Simons
• Winter's Chill and Jube by George R.R. Martin
• Relative Difficulties by Melinda M. Snodgrass
• With A Little Help From His Friends by Victor Milan
• By Lost Ways by Pat Cadigan
• Half Past Dead by John J. Miller