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"Conqueror's Isle" is a 5,000-word short story by Nelson S. Bond, about a pilot who finds an enclave of super-humans bent on world domination. It was first published in Blue Book Magazine in June, 1946.

Spoiler Warning: Plot details and/or information about the ending follow. If you wish to enjoy the work first, stop reading here and return at another time.

Plot

Joe Brady, an American bomber pilot in the Pacific theatre in World War II, is talking to Lt. Cdr. Gorham, a navy psychiatrist, frantically trying to warn him of impending doom. He tells the doctor his story: returning from a bombing run, his plane was damaged and unable to make it back to his carrier. Before ditching, the crew wrestled with a storm, and coming out of it, they spotted a nearby tropical island. They ditched their plane on the beach, and were immediately met by a white man coming out of the jungle, calling himself Dr. Grove. Grove took him to his hut, a well camouflaged structure, and the men, sensing something amiss, panicked, brandishing their weapons. Dr. Grove invited them to fire, but none of the guns would work. Dr. Grove then stunned them all with a device of his own, and then summoned his own men to drag them into the building, which turned out to be just the top of an elevator.

Lt. Brady eventually woke up inside a small cell, well lit, but with no discernible light source. Then to his astonishment Dr. Grove walked into the cell through one of the walls, just as if it wasn’t there. Dr. Grove explained that he and his colleagues on this island were superior human beings, super-geniuses with special powers. They had been born to normal parents, but since they were telepathic, it was easy enough for them to find others of their kind. They have the ability to walk through walls by altering their molecular structure. They decided it was necessary to hide from the human race on this island, until the time was right for them to take their natural place as rulers of the Earth. Since they were homo superior, they would take over from homo sapiens, just as homo sapiens had displaced animals as rulers of the planet. To this end, they have placed agents in the real world in important positions in politics and business, waiting for the day to conquer the world. Lt. Brady managed to escape from the island by begging for some fresh air on the surface; he hit Dr. Grove with a rock, and then took a raft out of the damaged airplane and headed out to sea. He was rescued some time later and brought to this naval base.

Lt. Cdr. Gorham says that he doesn’t believe Brady. He thinks Brady’s mind was damaged by the time he drifted along at sea in the raft, and he recommends that Brady be locked up, possibly for the rest of his life. Then, satisfied that there is no more danger from Brady, he checks to see that no one is watching, and walks through a wall.

Additional Notes

This story has been reprinted in, among other places, Isaac Asimov Presents The Great SF Stories 8 (1946).