Vindication
Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer The two Capellians had traveled over 40 light years to collect a breeding pair of humans for the University of Xenobiology, on Capella Prime. During the trip, they also diligently recorded the various transmissions emanating…
read moreSeparated
Author : Jeff Kirchoff A few short keystrokes and the room sprung to life, bare, the walls black yet glowing with the subtle aura of electrical potential. Rico strolled to the center of the small space and looked at the crumpled paper clutched in his left hand with a…
read moreAlone
Author : Thomas Desrochers Whether or not something is difficult is largely a thing of perception. If you practice doing most things a lot, then they become easier. Driving, hunting, farming – they all becoming easier with practice. Living alone does not. For three…
read moreMy Sign? Exit.
Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer Levon leaned against the shower tube, letting the jets of water assail his body from all sides. As the sweat of the previous night’s activities rinsed away, the more subtle indicators of his exertions seeped in. Both his head and…
read moreListen For The Tone
Author : Carol Reid Is there a sign over Gina’s head that reads, “Vacancy”? She imagines it in neon, that peculiar orange pink reserved for a certain class of motel– and apparently for her, a certain class of fucked up female, who had a reasonable, ordinary life…
read moreSyndrome
Author : Q. B. Fox The members of Juliet Patrol, 29 Group, Royal Engineers hunkered down in a squat two-story, stone building balanced on the hillside. Lt. Harry Banford watched through the unglazed window as a UN superiority denial aircraft painted a con-trail far,…
read moreStrapped To The Chair
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer It’s a reasoning process. There are seconds left. The cold leather of the chair is warming up beneath my manacled wrists. The restraints are tight on my arms. I’m wide awake and dreaming. I can’t decide if it’s a syringe or a…
read moreFear and Loathing in Monochrome
Author : K. Pittman Sometime before midday’s full blaze, Susan threw down her skein and stopped walking. Georgia broke pace steps later and trod back, face flattened, hat shadowing her glare. “What.” “I want milk. I’m tired of water.” Susan half-turned and looked from…
read moreThe Digital Age
Author : Nick Gonzales “You heard they finally nailed teleportation?” “No.” “Yeah, just yesterday.” “For real?” “Fo rizzle.” I turn to look at Billiam, his eyes lit up expectantly as he leans towards me across the table. His face is twisted into his characteristic…
read moreThe Shipmaster's Widow
Author : Michael Merriam “We never had much,” she said. “The freighter was our life. Now it’s all lost, ripped apart by a neutron star.” I sat next to her. I couldn’t answer. My mind was dazzled, my eyes locked on her naked body stretched out on the bed we shared. She…
read moreFalling Stars
Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer I had heard the news only a short few minutes ago. I didn’t believe it. I couldn’t believe it. I walked out the back door onto the deck and looked up and down the beach. Like mine, all the other houses were darkened as well….
read moreThe Vesta 600
Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer “Dammit Joe, it’s freakin’ freezing in here,” complained Thomas Sampati as he checked the spaceship’s thermostat.” “We’re eight hours behind the Phoenix,” replied Joe. “We need to make a non-traditional course adjustment if we…
read moreConstance Vyke visits the Archangel – HOLOVID
Author : Sean Wallace “Now, we all look forward to entering the Archangel when we retire, but what about those people who go there before then? Constance Vyke reports on the people who keep Archangel running…” Constance, pretty in a thin, blonde sort of way, starts…
read moreGood Humor
Author : Eric Kimball It starts as the faintest quiver of sound, a slight singsong beat carried by the wind. The few stray notes that reach my ears instantly spring to the forefront of my consciousness. “Mother, he’s here!” “Hmm?” Mother replies flatly. The mechanical…
read moreLife Partner
Author : Bill Lombardi Troy sat by his bedside. Watching. Hours past and then Jon’s eyes slowly opened. “I’m thirsty.” His voice wavered, his strength beginning to ebb. Troy poured him a glass of water and stood by him holding the straw. He took several sips. Coughed….
read morePleuriopotent
Author : Matthew Banks “It thinks,” said the emaciated man, blinking up at the doctor with red-rimmed eyes. The doctor looked down at him for a moment, then turned to the display mounted on the wall. The multiscan of the man’s brain was mostly normal, except for the…
read moreMood Ring
Author : Richard “Zig” Zagorski Amanda awoke from a deep slumber and saw that her alarm clock would be going off in ten minutes. Not pressing enough to climb out of bed to turn it off just yet, but unfortunately also too little time left to fall back asleep. However…
read moreI Was Born on a Pirate Ship
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer I got pretty good at morse code after a while. My co-pilot had a beak. The only way we could figure out how to communicate was if he clicked his beak at me in morse code. He was a pretty impatient dude so he did it really fast. He…
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