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Perfectly Humane

By submission | March 26, 2012
Author : J.D. Rice “I really want to take this fork and stab it through your chest, Mr. Johnson.” “That’s nice, Sam. Now please eat your food.” The boy eyes me with his cold, twitching eyes, fork hand ready to strike, bits of gravy smothered chicken still stuck between the ...
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Golden Years

By submission | March 25, 2012
Author : Thomas Desrochers Bertie was a kind looking old man of eighty who had more wrinkles from smiling than anything else, and who looked like he always had a joke on his mind. He wasn't particularly tall, though he was clearly handsome once. His shirt was plaid and tucked ...
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Ghost beacon

By submission | March 24, 2012
Author : M. A. Goldin Elise had been bellowing at the comms for two minutes. Where the hell was he? Keeper McDermott scrambled into the room and fell into a chair before the console. He wore worn clothes and a week’s whiskers. “Sorry, I was just tinkering with the electrical ...
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Two Paths

By submission | March 23, 2012
Author : Chris Daly There were two, quite different, options open to him now. The optical sensor domes sprouting from his aft projections registered six thermal spikes; a quick cross reference from his synthetic aperture radar strips confirmed the incoming ships. Pulling a ...
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Stupid is as Stupid Does

By Duncan Shields | March 22, 2012
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer Humans had always been looking for a way to legitimately kill the stupid. But where did they draw the line? An outside force had to make the choice. Humans couldn’t morally make that kind of decision. After first contact, Earth was ...
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Kiss Migration

By Clint Wilson | March 21, 2012
Author : Clint Wilson, Staff Writer The Pai-Toxh beings of the twin planet set, Andromedae 2787A and B, were nearing their migration time. The entire flock had just about finished feeding and were full of energy for their upcoming journey. Calls went out as alpha leaders ...
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Triage

By Julian Miles | March 20, 2012
Author : Julian Miles, Staff Writer Life shouldn't be this easy to take. Flick a switch and listen to the muted swoosh of a section spitting its atmosphere into vacuum. Of course, it's not so easy for those losing it. The agonies of the dying beat against my mind and reduce ...
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Underground

By Stephen R. Smith | March 19, 2012
Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer The detective stood just inside the tape at the doorway to Grant's office and surveyed the carnage. Deep maroon fluid had been spattered over most surfaces, some of it obviously while still under pressure as it had reached the ceiling ...
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Star Fair

By submission | March 18, 2012
Author : Kyle Hubbard Humans are remarkably ugly. The kylhu child had never seen a real one before, so it stared with morbid fascination at the man on the stage. The human marched back and forth on two legs, bellowing and waving his bizarre limbs in grand, sweeping gestures. ...
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Shadows

By submission | March 17, 2012
Author : Thomas Desrochers I found her on my way home from a party. She was sitting in the middle of the park's square in the four shadows of the four streetlights, and she was hugging her knees to her chest as if her life depended on it while her head was tucked in behind ...
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The Fine Print

By Patricia Stewart | March 16, 2012
Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer The Judge yawned as he seated himself at the bench. “What are we doing here, Mike?” he asked the bailiff. “Your Honor, we are hearing the civil case of ‘Captain Taylor versus Solar System Transportation, Inc.’, a dispute over wages due ...
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Step On A Crack

By Duncan Shields | March 15, 2012
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer The thing about the planet Kuroshka was that it had seventeen centers all orbiting each other. It was several times the size of Jupiter but had managed to create a mantle. The centers had formed their own molten-core solar system deep ...
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Performance Art

By Roi R. Czechvala | March 14, 2012
Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Alumnus I stood over him. His blood made a growing pool as it exited the wound in his back. The ounce slug of lead had gone all the way through. He looked up at me with crazed eyes. He raised his hands to me. He tried to speak, but choked on pink, ...
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The Big Game

By Clint Wilson | March 13, 2012
Author : Clint Wilson, Staff Writer As they lowered into a spot outside the arena and Jeremy’s father shut the hove’s engines down he continued to give his son the pep talk. “A year enslavement. Do you even know what that means? Of course you don’t,” he answered himself. “You ...
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Safety First

By Julian Miles | March 12, 2012
Author : Julian Miles, Staff Writer “The view from here is mighty fine, it sends a shiver up my spine.” I laugh at Kara’s ditty as it arrives. Nothing but the truth, even out here. My suit keeps me spread-eagled on the side of cannon four as it thunders along with its seven ...
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The Digital Dame

By submission | March 11, 2012
Author : A. Zachary Spery I was looking good when I wheeled into Chaucer's, the hottest singles bar in lower downtown. I just had my corpus bridge upgraded to a new Mitsushimi DX900q and installed prominently on the side of my Neodynamics' engramatic coprocessor case. My high ...
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Drudge

By Stephen R. Smith | March 10, 2012
Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer Mark stood a few feet from the doorman and presented his ID, which was accepted with apparent derision. The heavily muscled bouncer glanced over the details of the badly forged photo card and tossed it back. "One point eight meters? No way ...
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Snap Decision

By submission | March 9, 2012
Author : George R. Shirer Thraewen hangs in the middle of the view-pool, pretty and pristine. Dillon and Three can see the nightside’s cities, bright constellations scattered across the Capwen Archipelago. Three strokes the Starfish’s controls and the bioship moves. Night ...
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