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The Obvious Choice

By submission | January 12, 2020
Author: Katlina Sommerberg Everything started with a star burping out an interesting tidbit. Buried amongst the electromagnetic radiation hiccups the same messages on repeat, looping endlessly. One species tamed this red giant, a fiend who swallowed half its planets, into ...
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Top of the World

By submission | January 11, 2020
Author: Malena Salazar Maciá Translated by: Toshiya Kamei My breath came in choppy gasps as I climbed. I thrust my pick against the rock with all my strength and finished hauling myself over the edge. As I sucked in a deep breath, the icy air stabbed my lungs. I was the ...
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Franco’s Cigars

By submission | January 9, 2020
Author: Jeremy Nathan Marks Smoking cigars was his new habit. Franco’s woman said you shouldn’t smoke so he switched from cigarettes. He would take a cigar a day as opposed to a pack of his favorite smokes. See, honey? I do listen. The first time it happened, Franco lit ...
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Evil Lair Architect

By submission | January 8, 2020
Author: Morrow Brady You can’t ‘business card ‘ evil lair architect. Not if you wanted a future. Forbidden desires ooze from dark web dead drops. Desires sent by faceless ghosts that had long since twisted off the doll's head of reality. Riches and power are like a ...
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Shelter in Place

By submission | January 7, 2020
Author: Rollin T. Gentry A figure emerged from the fog and constant sprinkling of rain. A small girl, maybe 5 or 6, in a yellow raincoat and black galoshes, approached the front gate of National Cybernetics Factory #3. She stepped up to the intercom, and standing on her ...
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2051

By Julian Miles | January 6, 2020
Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer Mister Grumsen looks about the little interview room. Nothing’s changed since he last inspected his paltry domain, but kings have to survey no matter how trivial, I presume. He nods at me. “One more before lunch, I think.” I press the ...
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Place Your Bets

By submission | January 5, 2020
Author: Ken Carlson “The cries of the people will not be drowned out by ignorance! They can’t turn their backs forever; can’t run away from a revolution.” “Turning and running? Sounds like a misguided aerobics class. Bartender, two more, please.” In a spaceport bar, ...
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Holy Roller

By submission | January 4, 2020
Author: David Barber “Drugs. Alcohol. Sex.” The missionary was praising the tolerance of the Jirt. She leaned forwards. “They don’t care.” Francisco shuffled awkwardly on the bench. A woman like her saying sex. His grandfather placed a heavy hand on the lad’s shoulder ...
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A New Year Story on Another Planet

By submission | January 3, 2020
Author: Glenn Leung The Star was rising to the Significant Angle once again. The inhabitants of Planet finished their chores and went to bed. We had to keep our celebratory noises down as they don't take kindly to drunken songs and pointless countdowns. Some of us gathered ...
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Auld Lang Syne Revisited Again

By submission | January 2, 2020
Author: David Henson Debra dipped a shrimp in cocktail sauce. “I’m glad my folks could take the kids so we could have a quiet night in. How’s your father spending this New Year’s Eve? As if I have to ask.” The couple sat at their dining room table in a space open to the ...
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Revolutions Around A Star

By Stephen R. Smith | January 1, 2020
Author: Steve Smith, Staff Writer Carter sat on a long low bench in the middle of the observatory and stared out into deep space. He hunted the blackness for a fleck of light, then watched it hawklike, trying to gauge its position relative to the edge of the viewport to see ...
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Happy New Year, Sad Old World!

By submission | December 31, 2019
Author: Irene Monaner Matthew had never heard of the Association of Friends of Planet Earth until he was invited to their NYE Gala Dinner. Having no better plans for the last evening of the year, he had donned a tuxedo and now shared a table with a couple of herpetologists, ...
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Warmth from a Distant Sun

By submission | December 30, 2019
Author: Lachlan Redfern My mother once told me I will never know the feeling of sunshine on my face. I remember telling her that was ridiculous. I’d felt the warmth of UV lamps, and in terms of physical sensation, there wasn’t any difference. Mother told me that there was, ...
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Maximizing Self-Interests

By submission | December 29, 2019
Author: Dylan Otto Krider We had a problem -- and by “We,” I meant for the people who make the decisions which, in turn, meant for the people who funded efforts to elect the people who make decisions. The problem was this: How do you leave the plebes with nothing, and yet ...
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World 174

By submission | December 28, 2019
Author: Andrew Grenfell You have chosen World 174. World 174 comes with a long list of warnings – that is, this list! World 174 is worth 12,000 points per instantiation (“life”). Of all the worlds we offer, it ranks among the highest in points per time due to the extreme ...
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The Painting

By submission | December 27, 2019
Author: Cesium When we left work that evening, they'd started blocking out the murals in the stairwell already, so we had to step carefully around the cans of paint piled on tarps and the walls still wet with fresh colors. They were going for a more abstract take on the ...
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Amid Stacks, the Sweeper Sweeps

By submission | December 26, 2019
Author: Ian Hill                 As the Sweeper sweeps, therein dwells another and smaller Sweeper—a microcosmic miniature, cuter than a button, armed with duster and eyes lit with adventurous delight.
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