As It Was

"As It Was" by Paul L. Payne is a science fiction novel from the early 1950s that takes place on the planet Thisbe II, where a team of big-game hunters, including the famous Pritchard, find themselves struggling to survive and facing difficult choices involving hunting and how humans interact with alien life. After arriving on the planet, Pritchard and his group expect an exciting hunt, but their trip soon becomes a dangerous fight against the strange creatures of Thisbe II and a mysterious being known as "The One," who seems to control the planet's wildlife. When they come across Cornelia Boyce, a survivor from a past expedition, she brings up the idea that the creatures of Thisbe II might feel and think like people, which makes Pritchard rethink his own beliefs. Fighting against the deadly nature of the planet and unseen forces, the novel shows the results of human actions in a world where it's hard to tell who is hunting and who is being hunted.