Crash Protocol

Author : Daniel Fuhr Red rocks crumbled under my heavy boots. I looked around the desolate Martian landscape and destruction thereupon. I could taste the acrid smoke around me as I walked through the wreckage of the downed ship, even through the environmental suit and ...

The Anti-Universe

Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer A small boy sat in his father’s lap staring at the full moon as it rose above the eastern horizon. “Daddy,” he asked, “Where’s mommy?” The father rested his son’s head against the inside of his right bicep and pointed toward the ...

The View From Below

Author : Elbie Kruger I was born on the Calcarus colony settlement, a city floating 50,000 miles from planet Earth with a breathtaking view of the solar system. Having been born in space there were perks, however there were also drawbacks. You became used to cramped spaces ...

Way Out

Author : Ellen Couch “Don’t you love me?” she asked. “You know I do,” I said quietly, “but you’re not mine, you never really were.” I could tell she didn’t understand- how could she? As far as she was concerned, we had the perfect life. Late one night in the physics lab, ...

Sense Chair

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer I had all of the animals in the dome jacked and miked. I issued an edict. Collect every puppy, kitten, or chick for a small reward. It was popular game with the children. They’d go out ‘hunting’ in the engineered woods in the western ...

Expiration Date

Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer Arkus had come in from the mining field with less than a day before termination. He'd slipped unnoticed through the security fences and into an airlock in the biotech wing where he now sat, unable to enter and unable to leave. Marc ...

Kayak Angst

Author : Stephen Ira Owen was standing on the side of a boy's driveway. They were both smoking long thin joints, which made Owen's face pink and his eyes telescopic slivers. The other boy, his round face capped by a black beanie, called Owen "precious." Beyond the ...

Bedtime Stories

Author : W. Robinson I had thought after my last assignment on Epsilon that I was done with the military. Quite obviously the young woman in front of me with the large blue-gray eyes had not received that memo. Stock-built, but short, she stood with her arms crossed as I ran ...

Camping

Author : Jacqueline Rochow We're going camping. Mum finishes packing my bag as Dad prepares a celebratory stew. I packed the bags already, but Mum insisted on pulling everything out again to make sure that I didn't forget anything. Food, clothes, gun, bandages, antibiotics – ...

Love at First Sip

Author : Jacqueline Rochow We decided to take the draught. My parents didn't like it. A lot of people didn't. It was unnatural, people said. It wasn't the real thing. It was empty. It was selfish. So we didn't tell them. Stupid? Reckless? That's what my mother would have ...

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer Somewhere south of Toadsuck, Texas, along a washboard gravel road, a middle aged man was walking his dog, enjoying the cool night air and the effects of cheap grain alcohol. Looking up, he witnessed a glowing object streak across the ...

Prison Break

Author : Patricia Stewart, Staff Writer The alarm of the Olympia Undae Penitentiary snapped warden Jacobs from a deep sleep. He hurried down to the den to access his computer terminal, only to be greeted by a dozen escaped convicts. Jacobs recognized them as members of the ...

Shuffler

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer On my 67th birthday, my research finally reached fruition and I invented a portable matter transporter. By wearing it, I could transport anywhere in the world at will. If I grabbed someone, that person came with me. I didn’t need to ...

Are Two Heads Better Than One?

Author : John Williams Gas and Sag had clear orders to destroy all life on the planet. Their leader, The Gnik, was concerned that the violence portrayed on its radio and television was setting a very bad example to the rest of the Universe. The exact manner of destruction was ...

Career Advising and Planning Services

Author : D. Wang His wings were polyaramid leather woven over carbon bones and monofilament tendon, his gaze the piercing thousand-yard stare of a man who could see through stone, his talons X-ray lasers so powerful their waste heat violated Second Kyoto with every shot. In ...

The Mission

Author : Roi R. Czechvala, Staff Writer I didn’t want to think about it. Just do it. Get it over with. It’s a mission like any other. You can do it man. With a snap, I secured the gloves over my hands. They seemed such flimsy protection. I quickly pulled the mask over my ...

Talk To Me

Author : K Clarke As if crashing on this stupid planet wasn’t enough. Pad paced the cell, glaring through the one transparent wall at the creatures on the other side. As if having to survive for three months on this stupid planet wasn’t enough. I just had to ...

The Truth Will Out

Author : Jacqueline Rochow Den paced outside the library, the swaying of her tail betraying her unease. Gil merely stood silently, eyes tracking his boss' movement. “He'll come out soon,” Den said. Gil nodded in reply; he knew his input wouldn't affect her musing much. ...

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