Unleaded
Author : Garrett Harriman
The dockyard was fragmentary; it reeked of grease and seal. Jetties devoid of craft sprawled like shattered ribcages, and two figures perched atop a decommissioned cruise liner.
This murky scene had backdropped thousands of Proto-Mob ...
Pilgrimage
Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer
“Who are they,” the chief officer of the starliner, Raumfahrer, asked Captain Kurtzmann.
“They’re a group of fanatic pilgrims,” he replied through a tight smile as he nodded perfunctorily at a small mass of red cloaked figures ...
Date 2.0
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer
I could tell from the way she softly clicked her teeth together twice while keeping her mouth closed, flicked her eyes to the top left and grunted once subvocally that she'd just adjusted me to be more handsome. She would probably pass ...
Command Decisions
Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer
“This is Captain Thomas Rider of the Starship Dunkirk. What’s the nature of the emergency?”
“This is Governor Wingfield of the Constant. We had a core breach, and had to jettison the reactor. We’re operating on minimum life ...
Good Man
Author : Jordan Whicker
Henry Goodman sank readily into the welcoming embrace of his favorite recliner; the whoosh of air escaping these cushions and the groan of its leather was the only 'Welcome home, honey!' he'd ever known. He sat in silence for a few moments, his eyes ...
Open House
Author : Ian Eller
People said that the house was haunted. It sat alone along the broken asphalt road surrounded by parched fields feebly overgrown with weeds and wildflowers. It was a small house: one story, with a covered porch and attached one car garage. The house would ...
Like Driving Through Nebraska
Author : Robert Sooter
The captain watched from around the corner as his small crew nudged the sleeping form with their brooms, utility poles, and various other implements as gently as they could. As captain he certainly couldn’t openly condone such behavior, especially ...
Ping
Author : Wasco Shafter
“Thirty minutes until heart failure” chirps a voice in Mark’s head. He flips through the internal photographs on his heads-up display, but there’s nothing new there. His heart is a confused, rotting lump of electrified meat rattling his ribcage. Five ...
Remember O'ahu
Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer
The skiff shot swiftly across the calm waters of the harbour as if pushed by a giant hand. A young woman, her thick red hair flying wildly in the wind, sat in the stern manning the tiller. Around the little craft, pacific striped ...
Clyde
Author : Clint Wilson
Even though the thing had now had a couple of weeks to absorb our language I didn’t really think it could understand me, but all the same I still uttered the pre-scripted line.
“Living Being… I address you as a devoted protector of the Terran empire. ...
Inside
Author : Jake Wagner
Space was our grandparent’s final frontier.
Nobody really noticed when the satellites started falling. And even if they did, nobody cared. They burst into flames, streaking brilliantly across the night sky as they tore to pieces in our atmosphere. But ...
Fertilizer
Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer
No one misses prisoners with life sentences. That was the key. Mars was turned into a prison planet.
NASA had set up fledgling terraformed domes on Mars and teleportation technology was a reality. After a life sentence was passed on a ...
The Mad Cow Special
Author : Marlan Smith
Rob ran into the bar and slammed the black leather bag down on the counter.
“Done! Gimme!” His eyes were wide with fear.
Hal looked at him, then down to the bag. He casually emptied his drink between thin lips and then smiled. “You know the ...
What Happened to San Francisco?
Author : David Bastin
It was the third year of the drought of 2130 when San Francisco rebuilt itself, put out to sea, and sailed away.
***
At first, when they heard what San Francisco meant to do, everyone laughed. Nobody thought that the people of San Francisco were ...
Marcus Grillman, Culinary Artiste
Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer
Janie loved the restaurant from the minute she walked in; dark wood panelling, slate floors, high ceilings broken up by a latticework of heavy wooden beams.
"You see, we've put your investment to good use Janie my darling." Markus slipped ...
The Application
Author : Ian Sweeney
We sat at the computer and accessed the System.
First, we needed to select the reason for our application. We scrolled through the options. Domestic violence. No. Infidelity. No. Incompatibility. Linda looked at me with sad eyes and I nodded.
Next, the ...
Special Ops
Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer
The morning sun cast a dim ruddy light through Frank’s single window. He missed the cheerful yellow light of Sol, though in this incarnation he had never been to Earth. Though his heart was attuned to his home planet’s local star, his ...
The Interview
Author : Jason Frank
"Now, it's just the two of us. Why don't you start by telling me what it is about you that is special?"
"..."
"Come now, there must be something... some small ability you keep from everyone, some extra talent that no one else seems to have? You wouldn't ...
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