Author : Dan Whitley “What is this?” Marc demanded, shaking a little plastic baggie in front of his son’s face. “This better not be what I think it is.” “What, it’s not like you didn’t do that sort…

Author : Aldous Mercer Septu’s core-temperature rises as soon as he steps out of the wind. But he keeps his eyes to the ground. The trembling of his father’s hand has nothing to do with the heat an…

The picture made the cover of the Tzarin colony newsletter: a petite, blond-haired girl kneeling in the center of a flock of hibernating escravo, her arms wrapped around her skinny stomach and her …

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer Janice faltered in the dark apartment. It wasn’t hers. She was sobering up, the guy was snoring, and it was time to go. She had her panties in her pocket and h…

In the full body cycle Linda’s chest burned, sweat slipping into her eyebrows. She could feel their eyes on her, the children watching the old woman strain. The lines of her skin betrayed her. Ge…

Author: Jae Miles, Staff Writer Our fleeing shadows flicker in the strobing light from far-off eppy guns – still enough to hurt our eyes, not enough to drop us. A while later, Oli gasps: “Whe…

Author: Beck Dacus Captain Whilford sat in the command chair, glowering. As he drank coffee with a blanket around his shoulders, he wondered what could’ve possibly warranted unfreezing him a year b…

Author: Gabriel Land In every direction, there was nothing but baked dirt, tumbleweeds, and flat death. The blazing sun weighed down on me. I didn’t know which way to walk, and I didn’t…

Author: Bruce van-Schalkwyk Noah’s eyes tracked the blip on his screen. Displaying 19% battery, but being the furthest away from the garage, he didn’t want to take any chances with the auto-cab. He…

Author: Leanne A. Styles The gatekeeper snatches the bag out of my hand, the lenses of his telescopic goggles making minute adjustments as he peers inside. “My watches and coin collection,” I say. …

Author: Aethelric Jones Am I human? I feel like a human being. I’m Jack Hawkins, married with two children. But that was a very long time ago. I don’t look like a human being. I have no flesh or bo…

Wasps Make Honey By Penelope Evans The scrap heaps at the edge of the settlement are taller than the average colony building. They offer up next to nothing good. But the factory doesn’t want either of us anymore. Power cells don’t come cheap now. In fact, they barely come at all. “Sometimes I think we should …

Author : Nick Lewandowski Lucy sat at her usual table, skimming the news on her phone. It was therefore some time before she noticed The Crazy Man. Youngish, with rumpled clothes and dark, tortured…

Author: DJ Lunan I love my bathroom. Its the best thing about my divorce. Alaskan white suite, powerful extractor fan, splash-blade shower, heated towel rail, and no queuing behind the kids. But di…

Cory pressed his foot on the rubber accelerator so hard that the car began to smell like peanuts from the oil it ran on. The couple in the back seat started making out viciously, tearing at each ot…

Author : Jae Miles, Staff Writer “Tell the Charmian that we can see her.” “She refuses to believe us.” “Oh, for the love of Turing, she got out before sensor tutoring?” “Seems to be the case, sir.”…

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer James was sick of his grandfather’s racism. He didn’t care if he was a war hero. “They’re not people, Jimmy. They have no feelings.” His grandfather shouted fr…

Author: Jae Miles, Staff Writer We’ve had kids stealing our garden gnomes for years. Some came back, some didn’t, and some sent me postcards, usually from Skegness or Blackpool. As years went by, t…

The Sweetness at the End By Jenny Rae Rappaport This is how it happens: Tony and Ma are in their seats in the skimmer, strapped in and grinning at us. Daddy and I kiss them good bye; take a photo of them in their spacesuits for posterity, and wave at them. We stay behind at the …

Author : Suzanne Borchers Rachel closed her eyes to the grayness surrounding her. She shut out gray clouds overhanging the gray sky and gray broken concrete and the metallic landscape. Heavy eyelid…

Author : Debbie Mac Rory The weather had turned bad during the night; the low air pressure finally bringing on the threatened storm. All occupied buildings had been sealed to maintain environmental…

Author : Sarah Klein General Elias Knox sat staring at the paperwork at his desk, utterly confounded. “Would you care to explain what happened, lieutenant?” The lieutenant swallowed ner…

Author : JD Kennedy It is interesting how seemingly unrelated technologies become connected together to create new and unexpected capabilities. First, there was the successful development of cryoge…

Author : Jared R. Cloud The General and the Secretary of State sat in the Oval Office, waiting for the new President to return from the bathroom. Although both had jumped in their seats when they f…

Author : Philip Smith Most of the bots you see in diners are the ones that serve the food. We have one but it was a bad decision on my part. Real waitresses give you a smile and make you feel welco…

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer It’s dawn. Unisun now, Twosun later. Wee mickle Trisun appresta that. The colony’s ticking up. Auld’uns like me waken up early. Shipment-time belding crops bac…

Author : Duncan Shields, Staff Writer There are over a billion species represented. Finding out information and language about a species happens quickest during coitus, they say, and the more plent…

Author : Roger Dale Trexler They gathered, all of those interested in watching, at a position twice the distance Pluto was from the sun. Onboard the maiden ship, Corosin, Trya watched intently. “It…

Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer As the relative calm of midnight in the projects was broken by a series of tightly spaced explosions, Tiberius knew he’d made a serious, and perhaps fatal m…

Author : Morrow Brady Pressure surge from the Reece tube flung slaters from the nozzle. I batted them away into space with a dirtied glove. “While you’re there, get rid of them too!&#82…