Author: Mark Joseph Kevlock The snow outside is at least four feet high. This will finally give us that chance to talk. Only, which one of us will begin? "I never meant to hurt you," Marcine says. "You tried to kill me on three separate occasions." "I don't always ...

Author: Richard M. O'Donnell, Sr. Tee-Crux entered the spaceport with her service animal in tow. Everyone stopped to stare at her ET-Ultra. Even the ticket agents and porters gawked. Tee-Crux was especially pleased with the oohs and ahhs from the verbal races and the ...

Author: Steve Smith, Staff Writer I stand in the doorway, an invisible force for the moment stopping me from going any further. Arthur, ever the watchful companion, lifts his head and looks right at me, ears perked up, tail wagging, gently thump-thump-thumping against ...

Author: Stephen C. Curro It’s curious to look into the eyes of a dinosaur. There’s life there, but not the cold reptilian shade you’d expect. You can see the theropod is assessing you with genuine curiosity. Then it moves and its head bobs slightly like a bird, its foot ...

Author: Jamie Fouty Everything dies in this house but me. I don’t know if I’m immortal or if this is punishment. Three births happened here, perhaps equilibrium was wanting. The second death was the hardest; the third took two at once. After the fourth, I abandoned the ...

Author: Hari Navarro, Staff Writer A single bullet was all that was needed to start the last ever war on earth. A bullet and the head of a small child to put it in. Innocent, in as much as she surely had in her possession a life less used. But then so did many of the ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer The walls are sweating as I labour up the stairs. Intravenous packs are heavy and I have to buy in bulk, otherwise I couldn’t afford enough of them. The door opens to my retina print and I barge in, pushing the door closed with my ...

Author: Suzanne Borchers CHARLIE had found itself leaning against a trash bin in a nearby alley—alone, jobless, and needing shelter. Its owner had abandoned the retail store to run away with his clerk to parts unknown. It had rained for a week and its once pristine joints ...

Author: Irene Montaner I was never good at holding my breath underwater. So the moment the doors closed I knew I only had seconds left to live. Seconds left to think of Luna, alone in that escape pod. One Mississippi. Two Mississippi. I used to play that game on hot ...

Author: David Barber “Hi, granddad. It’s Tom." His granddad’s puzzled gaze flicked between the brothers. “Look, Corbin’s here. We’ve come to see you.” “Christ,” muttered Corbin. “Probably keep them under the spell all day. Total immersion software is the new...” Tom didn't know ...

Author: Tim Ulrich The doors opened and the small throng Joel was standing with, moved to board the lift. They shuffled into the car, jostling against each other as they settled into an impromptu formation for the brief, but cramped, journey up to the Centerline ...

Author: Lance J. Mushung I stepped onto the yellow and black transfer disk mounted on the gray deck of Delia Akeley and began bouncing like a child expecting candy. I'd be home in moments. Mickie, the A.I. half of the crew, said through the speaker mounted on the ...

Author: Hari Navarro, Staff Writer Cat toys. They have an aisle for cat toys. Of all the gaudy alleys in all the supermarkets and I find myself boxed into the last seconds of existence surrounded by fake mice and pom-poms. I fucking hate cats. I can hear Mrs Graves ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer I open my eyes to behold a slit of blue between tenements that descend from lofty, sunlit heights to the sordid mess of which I am a larger part. Lining that strip of clear sky are the blurry, baroque patterns made by fire escapes and ...

Author: Rick Tobin Rotting mangoes proffer disgusting flavors like burning spittle rising into a renovator’s mouth when alien wraiths hiss, rising from charred ruins fallen untold millennia before humanity’s existence. Dearth Crenshaw stood his ground as a maniacal, ...

Author: Suzanne Borchers The back rows of mourners had risen to pay their respects and shuffled toward the old man lying in the casket. The front rows consisting of family and their close friends squirmed a bit waiting for the line to proceed past. Soft musical selections ...

Author: Christopher Lee Buckner The End of All Things Good Alice-8000, a fancy name that meant nothing beyond the fact it made the android seem more advanced than it really was led the Johnson’s into their new room. Speaking in an upbeat voice, Alice stated to the husband and wife, “And ...

Author: David Henson The God Locator, no bigger than a TV remote, projected a hologram of the world with veins of light indicating the presence of God. The projection could be small as a grapefruit or big enough to fill a room. In certain areas, the light sparkled more ...