Author: E. S. Foster The weeds along the pathway clung to my IMRA uniform. The High Witch glared at me as I stumbled over diamond-patterned sticks. “We have no cause for your people here,” she repeated. Her staff—a branch braided with moss and who knew what else—swung ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer The room used to be part of a well-appointed apartment. Under the ravages of damp and neglect, it looks like it was abandoned hurriedly. If you peer through the grimy windows and look down, you’ll see waves breaking against ruined ...

Author: Don Nigroni I was in my study writing verse when this big fellow with a long grey beard and shaggy grey hair inexplicably appeared in front of me. He handed me a sheet of paper. The paper read: *** This morning, I was sitting in my living room reading Moby Dick ...

Author: Pete Smith I come to with a start. There’s a bell ringing. That’s not good. That’s never good. Raising my head from the bar, I try to focus. Oh yes – it’s the… landlord chap. Land. Lord. I giggle like a child. He’s ringing time. I look at the clock, and indeed, ...

Author: Tobias Hope Young There are moments when the sand looks sturdy. When it isn't rising and falling, when it's just completely motionless. It's in those moments that you might think it's solid but don't be fooled. That sand may look firm but if you step on it you will ...

Author: Nick Jessee The TV is blaring, but I don’t have the energy to turn down the volume. All around, I can tell others are in the same predicament: their TVs blast and rumble muffled shouts, explosions, and laughs through thin apartment walls. My stomach grumbles. ...

Author: Ethan J. Hatchett "We need to talk.” Katie’s words were firm, but her bright blue eyes betrayed her. "Not this time." Michael leaned in to kiss Katie. "Michael, stop. It's..." He couldn't wait for her to finish. He pressed the button and vanished back to his ...

Author: Majoki The children played in mud while parents worried. The rains had not stopped. They had never lasted this long in spring, never been this heavy. Twice they had moved their families farther from the river, but the entire valley was in danger due to ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer The door opens slowly. Lawgiver James comes in, helmet in hand. He’s got a look on his face that tells Maddy everything she doesn’t want to know. “They found him, didn’t they?” James nods. “He’s dead, isn’t he?” Deputy Evans nods as he ...

Author: Don Nigroni A scholar I know read this Latin passage in an ancient manuscript containing a complex formula for presumably transforming lead into gold. Yet the formula looked peculiar and unlikely to accomplish its goal. I once worked in a research lab studying the ...

Author: C.R. Kiegle “You’ll need to initial here, here, annnnnd, here,” the man at the check-in counter told Estella as he flipped through the pages of the form. The room was lit with white, sterile lights that had a slight blink. “Mmm. Okay,” she replied quietly, marking ...

Author: Rick Tobin A massive bright white RV was parked oblivious to the dangers of LA criminal elements on Figueroa Street. A sloping blue ramp led to a double door in the rear. The words “Second Chances” were stenciled over the back entry along with a welcome “Please ...

Author: Mark Renney The V-Training has always been controversial, even more so now, some forty years since it was first introduced. The ground offensive has been obsolete for decades and wars are waged from afar, controlled by the kind of people who first designed the ...

Author: Alzo David-West We were all enjoying a day on the beach. The sun was bright, and the water was cool. People were laughing and swimming. People were sunbathing and picnicking under umbrellas. People were having a fun day. Then slowly, there it was, a dark cloud ...

Author: Majoki The network was nearing completion, and nobody felt the weight of it more than Yehzaat. He knew what the ZG3 network would mean for humanity. Finally, there would be universal access to enlightenment. No longer would the conduit to nirvana be through ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer The farthest corners of the room are lost in shadows as the night draws in. A small group huddles closer to the fire and the pool of light shed by the bulky oil lantern, hung high enough above that its thick smoke goes up and out rather ...

Author: Tracy Aspel Artificial Intelligence is a load of nonsense. No bot or other digital thing can truly conceptualize, devise, and realize amazing work. What does it know of heartbreak, terror, or feelings even us humans can’t fully encapsulate in words? So, for starters ...

Author: Alastair Millar Mixology’s not my scene, but you go where the job takes you, right? The multispecies crowd in the Spacefarers’ Lounge, which bills itself as the premier bar in the Sagittarius Arm, is young, wealthy and out for a good time. There’s loud music, the ...