Author: Glenn Leung "I'm sorry, what?" I gave the man my 'I don't believe you, but I'm intrigued' face. "Perhaps I should use visual aids," said the man as he set his drink down. He proceeded to grab a napkin from the counter and whip out a pen from his shirt pocket. In ...

Author: David C. Nutt “As I told you to begin with, if Renslo dies, you would die too.” I thought the Renegade Commander said that so I wouldn’t kill Renslo under the knife by violating my Hippocratic oath. Oathbreakers never understand the power of an oath taken; ...

Author: Timothy Goss Where to begin? Start at the dance. It’s a very good place to start. But the dance was slow. Everything was on its best behaviour, including the Humans’. They were representing Kircher and his crazy ideas. The Galactic community wanted assurances ...

Author: Steve Smith, Staff Writer Tenn disengaged the flywheel on the powerbike and coasted to a stop against the curb. He steadied the bike with both feet on the ground, glancing down as he did at the rough-shaven scalp of the man seated next to him on the sidewalk. An ...

Author: R. J. Erbacher “I’m sorry, what?” Aaron was about to tip his tray of leftover lunch into the bin and now held it frozen in mid-spill. Maybe telling him wasn’t a smart idea after all. I thought, out of everyone I knew and trusted, he would have an open mind. I had ...

Author: S. Sedeq Never had I expected death to eject half of my body into the void of space. Eons spent feeling the gradual, yet inevitable ebb of my essence has done little to prepare for an explosion more massive than any energy I have emitted as a star. Just now, ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer With slow majesty the huge spacecraft swings about, displaying alien lines in the distant star's light. Mantled wings of golden energy cant toward the tiny needle that darts about, shooting beams of visible and invisible energy at it. The ...

Author: James A Brown III Father Provious Del Ladra stared out the window at the green planet. His hands were clasped in front of him, his eyes closed and head bowed. “And please, Father, bless the 237th, especially Commander Nadia Ryes, as they protect your works so ...

Author: Glenn Leung The night the stars spoke; I was listening. It was not light they sent us, but a series of electrical pulses in M code picked up as instrument static. They sent it all at once, bypassing the lightyears through what we now call Hyperspace. They have been ...

Author: Jeff Hayward The fluorescent lights switched on flickering and humming – the clock on the wall read 6:00 AM. Patrick sat up in his bed, wiping the sleep from his eyes. He stood up unsteadily, using the steel sink to gain his balance. He shuffled the few steps to the ...

Author: James A Brown III “Well, I guess it’s time to head out.” “Where to?” “Grandagar.” Sri tapped some keys behind the bar and read the display, his face glowed a deep reflected red then blue as he worked down the list of ingredients. “That’s going to be a ...

Author: Ken Carlson “Hello and welcome to Burger King. How may I help you,” said the disembodied out of the drive-through speaker in a dark parking lot off Interstate 5, Tacoma. The voice belonged to Chad Stearns, 16 years old, 120 pounds and already drained of hope. He ...

Author: Hari Navarro, Staff Writer The great starving horde marched through space. No, they didn’t. They swarmed and, just as the hive-minded are apt to do, they toiled relentlessly, each individual an integral part of the whole. Every last one a citizen and willing ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer In the beginning, there was a world. It wasn’t a particularly unusual or outstanding one, just another ball of rock with a hot liquid interior and a solid lump at the centre. The usual early planetary phases passed without anything of ...

Author: R. J. Erbacher The incongruence of this bridge’s construction boggled Samm’s mind. Using her ship to cut, haul and position logs, if they could be called that, when they should be using carbon graphene girders. This planet didn’t have traditional trees but tall ...

Author: Glenn Leung 'Activate Neuro-Computer link.' I concentrated on the implants in my brain as I thought those words. I immediately got a sense that I knew more than I used to, and I mentally scanned for knowledge of the ship's map. Having it in my head would not help ...

Author: Lance J. Mushung The man standing in my doorway was me wearing different clothes. He smiled and extended his right hand. "Hello, Brad." After a couple of seconds, he grabbed my hand and pumped it. "You should close your dropped jaw and invite me in." He ...

Author: David C. Nutt I saw the black limo outside our cottage. I knew why the angel of death was here. It was for my partner Andrew. He hasn’t looked well for over a week. What’s more, he’s been grumpy- as grumpy as his actual age of 337, rather than the 42 he presents ...