Author: R. J. Erbacher She walked across the plywood subfloor in her bare feet, leaving damp impressions of her soles on the fresh wood. At the window she leaned her shoulder into the sheetrock wall, looking sideways through the pane which still had the factory installed ...

Author: Mark Renney The Elders insist that all descendants of the survivors still reside under a dome. But how can they be so sure when we haven’t yet ventured outside? The Elders insist that if any of the others had abandoned their dome, and were managing to exist out ...

Author: Majoki "They had a splendid wedding…after the beheading." "She went birdwatching…after the beheading." "In Disneyland, the child held Snow White’s hand…after the beheading." "The pastor bought a red convertible…after the beheading." "It was a dark and ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer “I tell you it’s a hologram! Once our people get past it they’ll see conventional forces, without a doubt.” General Bel Charles is known for being a bit of a throwback. A real blood, guts, and the occasional atrocity soldier. Calmly ...

Author: Frank Sikora My friend Stanislav bends forward and coughs, not once, not twice, but five times. Even in the mill’s dim light, I see the bloody bile on his hands. “I’m dying, friend Wojtek,” he says. “A most unpleasant experience.” I cannot disagree. I take a ...

Author: Harold Loomis I dream of fire. Not the warm fire thawing out your fingertips on a cold morning but the all-consuming fire of the Rock. That is what everyone called the meteor that hit the earth. Just, the Rock. Sounds simple, I know. Like something you would chuck ...

Author: Hillary Lyon Kavon stood outside on the front porch watching swirls of red dust dancing down the empty highway in front of his store. “You stay out much longer you’re gonna get windburned,” His wife, Mozie, called from inside. Kavon ignored her, shifting his gaze ...

Author: Jaslynn Middleton “Madison, I have a dentist appointment tomorrow. I need you to take me.” OF COURSE. NO PROBLEM. Fragile wings the color of the poppies in her neighbor’s yard. Edges defined by kohl black, a color she wouldn’t discover until she was an ...

Author: Eva Hays “Thank you for calling Teletravel helpline. All our operators are busy right now, but we’ll be with you shortly. You are now first in the queue.” I pull the phone away from my ear. The screen blinks at me. Call time: 67 minutes. Beneath my thighs, I can ...

Author: Majoki Schrödinger’s cat gets all the hype. And for what? Being boxed up in an existential thought experiment? That’s nothing compared to being strapped in a slapdash rocket and flung into space in 1963. By the French of all people. Just so they could claim France ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer Damon arrives in the control room in time to see the last sections of an entire screen consumed in expanding flashes of red. He stops dead and points at it. “What did I just see?” Teresh points to another solid red board at the other end ...

Author: Peter Mong'are They make you say your own name first, so the system knows you're not a recording of yourself. "Nwaneto," I said into the intake mic, and the light above the booth flickered green. First hurdle cleared. First lie told, though I didn't know it yet. I ...

Author: George Bancroft "How much of the archive has been entered?" Commander Rhenn asked. Jade looked at the left screen for a moment before returning his gaze to the center monitor. "We're at about thirty percent sir." "And no results yet?" "No, sir," Jade responded. ...

Author: Alastair Millar There was no doubt about it: normally, cases like this just sucked. Harry Bell, duty detective of the day for Zone 5 in Sector 4b of what he still called Greater London despite that stupid referendum, had silently cursed the luck that had brought him ...

Author: Richard E Schell By the second week, she had already learned when to laugh. She didn’t laugh first or too loudly; instead, she would join in just after the others started. She cast a glance down to appear modest rather than observant. At work, she limited her ...

Author: Robert Gilchrist This is a terrible idea. Not the sacrifices – that I’m fine with. There always needs to be grist for the mill of war. But what we’ve been reduced to is shameful, especially for a superpower like ours. Relying on the damaged to fix our ...

Author: Majoki The children were higgledy piggledy spread across the rolling field. Ms. Fuentes knew they were there to be citizen scientists. She also knew they were there to be enjoying the spring air and sunshine after a long winter. For eleven years she’d been ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer Wenza waves a tentacle towards the screen. “A pretty planet. All those blues and greens. What’s the white at top and bottom?” Bintol smiles. “Sub-zero territories. What you’re seeing is accumulated snow and ice.” “What’s ...