Spark
Author : Mickey Hunt
"Welcome to the edge of the universe," I said cheerfully. "The very edge."
The clutch of tourists easing into my parent's store seemed overawed. At night, part of our sky is lit with nebulae, pulsars, galaxy clusters, and all sorts of stuff, but the rest of the ...
Plain as Plain Can Be
Author : C.L. Guerrieri
I sat at the monitoring bay as he stood there, roughened hands folded calmly behind his stained, dark brown overcoat. His receded cheeks mostly hidden by a thin, graying beard and a matted ponytail, the captain smiled as his thinned eyes squinted out the front ...
The Morrow Upon Midday
Author : Timothy Marshal-Nichols
Dearest, Humblest and most Obedient Sir,
Please be informed, as agreed in mutual undertaking, that yourself named Mutch, first name, Alfred, are contracted to duty and that the lease of said duty is due forthwith to expire. Thus upon the thirtieth inst ...
The Etheronian Situation
Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer
It had been four days since the ship’s doctor had quarantined the galley and shut down the deck’s gravity plates, and Captain Carson was becoming concerned. Not about the unwanted patient that was hold up there, but about his ship, its crew, and ...
Do Me a Favor
It was my lunch break. I was eating my turkey on rye on the roof of the Jefferson Bank Building in downtown Spartanburg just like I had every day for the last fifteen years. That sandwich needed the South Carolina humidity and roofing-tar smell or it just didn’t taste right.
I’d never seen ...
Oracle
Author : Desmond Hussey, Staff Writer
“Oracle, will she love me forever?” Tim whispers to the shimmering, liquid amber orb hovering in its special alcove in the family room. It’s late and he should be in bed, but he must know the truth. He can’t sleep. All he can think about is her ...
FilmScape
Author : Lindsey McLeod
"Good afternoon!” The teller chirped happily as Nagano sat down at the first available desk. "Welcome to FilmScape! What may I help you with today?"
"I'd like to cancel my account," he said, sliding his card across the counter.
The robot picked up the card. ...
Nature's Gavel
Author : David Kavanaugh
“Your honor, counsel, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, good morning. Over the last two months, we have heard so many rambling excuses for the accused’s illegal activities, that I’m sure you’re feeling a little overwhelmed. So I want to take the final moments ...
Quintari At The End
Author : Clint Wilson, Staff Writer
Quintari looked out the huge view screens at the inky night sky. The eight dying stars still visible to the naked lens were faint and alone against their velvet backdrop. She addressed her long time companion. “Ventry, do you recall the old sky, when ...
Copy and Paste
Author : Bob Newbell
I slowly wake up. I'm in a hospital bed. An IV in my left antecubital vein slowly infuses normal saline. I feel like I need to urinate, but I have a suspicion. I look. Yep, Foley catheter in place. I smile. "One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind," I ...
Of Stars And Obscurity.
Author : Sevanaka
It is an unnatural sensation. A man is meant to know - thoughts firmly grasped in hand. Oh, for the sweetness of emotion, the joy and sorrow and bubbling laughter and the deepest pits of despair. For the solid stoicism, the reassuring taste of logic and math and the ...
Jobsworth
Author : Rob Sharp
‘I can’t believe you’re doing this. This is the greatest moment in human history and I’m missing it. I need to be let through!’
‘I’m sorry sir, but you can’t come in,’ the Security Guard said. He stood firmly in front of a pair of heavy oak doors into the conference ...
Testimony
Author : Julian Miles, Staff Writer
The post-incident review was in closed session and after the presiding officer read the first line of the bonded testimony, the session was restricted to herself and Brevet Captain Danyls alone.
“We are in complete privacy, Danyls. Having read your ...
Illicit Consumption
Author : Bob Newbell
The policeman and his young partner crouched down by the doors of the warehouse. Their night-vision contact lenses allowed them to see perfectly in the darkness.
"You ready?" asked the older cop.
"Ready," said the rookie.
The veteran officer considered his ...
My Orbit is Not Done
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer
I’ve stabbed deep into the envelope around the white dwarf sun at the center of this solar system. My gravity repellers are maxed. I’ve skimmed the perihelion right in the onionskin. I came in at .75c and the slingshot here has nudged me just ...
Intentional Paradox
Author : Clint Wilson, Staff Writer
The team signaled goodbye to the assembled early humans. The tribe of twenty-three men, woman and children stood there in their animal skins. Many of them held the new tools. All of them now held the knowledge that had been passed on to them in the ...
Two Graves
Author : Julian Miles, Staff Writer
They say that a man who seeks revenge should dig two graves, one for his target and one for himself. I dug two hundred and seventy-nine.
Into two hundred and thirty-seven of them I put all that remained of the inhabitants of my home town, Padgest. I ...
Three Blind Mice
Author : Bob Newbell
The crew of the starship looked at the strange yellow star on the viewscreen. The interstellar vessel's enormous magsail was slowly decelerating the vehicle against the star's solar wind. Soon there would be a series of aerobraking maneuvers carried out ...
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