Author: Steven French I like to think these woods are the remnants of a great forest, where ancient kings hunted and outlaws sought refuge. But at best you could lose yourself, or someone else, among the trees for maybe five minutes. Still, that was all I needed one morning ...

Author: Majoki Thang Danang balanced the hypodermic on the tip of her index finger. Reckless. Irresponsible. Crazy. That’s what her cousin Luc had called her. He’d yelled that her visions of their family ancestors weren’t real, that she was ...

Author: Tara Mukund “Imagine a giant slice of cake. Multilayered galore. Now replace all the baked matter with Earthen substance – rock, soil, water, and most importantly, humans. There’s your Anthropocene. Now, what if the Anthropocene were anthropomorphic?” The TV ...

Author: Donna J. W. Munro “The most intelligent creature wasn’t some begging dog or the hump crazy dolphins,” Randal said to Sophie as they walked the perimeter of the bowl valley waste they guarded. “It’s crows.” In the distance, a crow laughed at the sky and landed on a ...

Author: Rick Tobin “Outrageous! Don’t you dare degrade my mother, you monster! She will never love you.” Pearl pushed her finger at Jake Rosetter’s dark, greasy, pockmarked forehead only half-visible behind his helmet’s face shield in the ready room near exit hatches for ...

Author: Claire Fitzpatrick The street was long and empty, silent, save for the gentle sounds of dead branches underfoot, out of sync with the steady rhythm of Ginny's steps. Here, the pavement was littered with fallen leaves, and she stepped around it, careful not to crush ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer Two figures meet outside the Ship o’ the Line tavern on Marquis III. “No, no. You sit there. I’m more comfortable when I can see the ways in and out of any place I’m stopped in.” The reply is a flicker of tentacles and a telepathic ...

Author: Chana Kohl Chelsea Roberts walked up the hill to work, a hot cappuccino and bag of bakery-fresh rugelach in her hand. In a few, short minutes she’d savor the warmth of tender pastries in her mouth while browsing her morning feed. Her life was all about the simple ...

Author: Majoki “Another blow in.” I think the foreman would’ve spit, if he hadn’t been in an enviro suit. It’s kinda self-defeating to spit in a sealed system. Still, I think he was tempted just to be sure he registered his utter contempt for me. “Where you from, blow ...

Author: Deborah Shrimplin Ben and Evelyn watched as the rescue spaceship sent from Earth punched through Planet Exos' orange atmosphere without them. The spaceship was scheduled to return in two weeks. In three weeks, the damaged life support systems in the experimental ...

Author: David Barber Two hundred and eighty-five years earlier, the generation ship Pilgrim had set out for the worlds of Centauri, before such missions were abandoned by the nascent Steady-State. A century into the voyage, faint messages spoke of breakdowns and conflict. ...

Author: Hari Navarro, Staff Writer “You are functioning. Good morning, to you.” “Its two thirty two and a bit in the afternoon.” “Do you know where you are?” “Yes I do and I also know where I am not.” “Where are you not?” “I’m not in ...

Author: Julian Miles, Staff Writer The light from the triple row of screens reflects in their eyes as they watch the protest from eleven angles for the sixteenth time. When the replay ends, they look to the monitors on the desks in front of the three seated members of the ...

Author: Steve Smith, Staff Writer It's cold here. Inhospitable. We've been stranded for an age, near starving, not even enough energy to move from this place, much less try to find our way home. From time to time, some small animal, a rabbit, or a field mouse will ...

Author: Roger L. Wang Erik fumbled about in the bed of his echo chamber, knowing it would be a restless night. He eventually got up–not literally, but rather with his mind–and entered the studio. There, he obsessed and went through every detail of the dream he would ...

Author: Rachel Handley “Ok, now, before you see it, just-” “Just what, Terry?” “Just stay calm, be calm I mean.” Terry opened the door and pointed at a pink creature on the lamppost. “There’s nothing there, where is it?” “Look up” Terry said, jabbing his finger in the ...

Author: Jolie Lindholm Broque’s earthly ensemble fit like a glove, so comfortable, in fact, that he decided to leave it on for the entirety of our rendezvous. I followed suit. Feeling green and anticipating my first report, I’d already begun peeling at the pale flesh ...

Author: Brooks C. Mendell Every few days, I tote a pail of apple cores, carrot peels and coffee grinds to the steaming compost bin at the far end of our grassless backyard. The chore takes twelve minutes roundtrip. “That’s a minor inconvenience in the name of ...