Not the "legendary ****ps which turn out to be real/discovered," like
(say) the Katana Fleet in Zahn's Star Wars trilogy, but ****ps that are
legends, *scary spooky* ones, even in an age of FTL and AI aliens, and
stay that way (bonus points if said ****p makes some sort of
corner-of-the-eye experience in the story). The sort of ****ps that
hardened spacers will only admit to seeing (honsetly, as opposed to
pulling the gullible newbie's leg) after they've been liquored up
sufficiently, and even then only in hushed tones and with furtive glances.
"Dawson's Christian" comes to mind, even if that's more filk than
fiction. And there was a bit in, IIRC, Allen Steele's "Orbital Decay"
where the crew spots what they're sure is a launch contrail from KSC,
when there's none scheduled, and call NASA for confirmation only to get
chewed out for not knowing that NASA *never* launches *anything* on the
Challenger Anniversary...
But what other honest-to-gosh "ghost ****ps" are there in SF?
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