Author : Leanne A. Styles I reached across and tightened the strap on my kid sister’s tatty seatbelt. She grinned; through the breathing tubes, through the pain. The shuttle we’d stolen had been re…

Author : Samuel Stapleton Synthetic: a substance made by chemical processes, especially to imitate a natural product. The data analysis was grim. Predicted system stability – 62%. — My …

Author : Jae Miles, Staff Writer The room is a stock F-Class residential dwelling. With three people and a forensics robot within, it’s one small child short of standing room only. A young man in a…

Author : Hillary Lyon “Just think of all the work you will complete, Connie, now that you have an extra month here.” Conrad ignored Tandie, the on-board computer that ran everything. Including sche…

Author : Aaron Koelker Two Cardinalis cardinalis, the northern cardinal. Five Zenaida macroura, the mourning dove. One Toxostoma rufum, the brown thrasher. And the highlight of the excursion – one …

Author : Sheryl Normandeau “See these skyscrapers here?” he says, jabbing a finger at the pile of photographs splayed out on the tabletop. “I made ‘em all.” I stare up into the red-rimmed eyes of P…

Author : Beck Dacus From Earth, the lie was invisible. Looking up would present you with a deep blue sky, maybe some clouds sometimes, and a bright yellow sun (white from Low Earth Orbit). But I wa…

Author : Janet Shell Anderson I don’t like the severed heads. Well, nobody does. I like evenings along the Potomac, down near where my father worked; a civil engineer in the White House, he designe…

Author : David K Scholes Galactic Commitment “You performed well,” said my unit commander mark 5A droid “courage above and beyond the call of duty and all that.” “They were only virtual reality sim…

Author : Gray Blix Patient 7 lapsed into v-fib, triggering his brain implant and the one in Dr. Gottfried, miles away, who dropped his tuna salad sandwich and slumped in his office chair. “Wh…

Author : Morrow Brady “Of course I’ll miss you Serge. I love you” Ren said over-compensating. “Don’t act rash. It’s a small glitch. The error log’s sent and the patch fix wi…

Author : Matthew Harrison The mood in the meeting room, dominated by the large screen, was subdued. Only the tall silver-haired figure of James sat unperturbed, yet like the others he was waiting. …

Author : Neil Herndon Looking out. Or looking in. Do we stare into the expanse, or does it and its inhabitants look in on us? Which one of us is the exhibit in a zoo? In space, windows are structur…

Author : Jae Miles, Staff Writer Just another day at the office, sitting on my ladybird, chatting with my blue owl friend. I named him Percy, and he’s smarter than your average owl. Which he should…

Author : Neil Floyd We don’t like to use that word. It sounds negative, don’t you think? The whole procedure is much safer now. Please, try the caviar. It’s real. No, I insist. Ou…

Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer Dez pulled the bike up to the edge of the tree-line, the electrics going quiet automatically. In the distance, mile-high lamp standards flooded the distribution c…

Author : Mattias Ahlvin The man in the gray overcoat sat in his old station wagon. He waited. He took a sip of coffee from an old thermos and adjusted his glasses. He glanced at his watch and looke…

Author : Steve Smith, Staff Writer Tzen sat on the third floor of the abandoned building in near darkness. Only those streetlights that remained unbroken filtered light through shattered windows an…

Author : Jonathan DeCoteau “Stupid quotes are only tweets in disguise.” –unknown (but most likely someone who’s been unfriended) Riley saw the invasive little bug flapping its electronic wing…

Author : Olivia Black, Staff Writer Cold. For so long it has only know the frigid expanse of deep space, numb to the wonders, and horrors, of the galaxy. In this solitary existence, time has no mea…

Author : Beck Dacus In the middle of filing my taxes, I got a phone call. I hoped it would be some kind of relief from this stress, but it wasn’t to be; it was my wife’s lawyer calling, saying she …

Author : Russell Bert Waters It’s not easy being a psychopath. I don’t care about others, but I also don’t care about myself. I’ve never felt a connection, and I’ve al…

Author : Eric Spery 27 December, 2033 A thin sunbeam streamed through a crack in the blinds. It lit John Kohl’s pregnant wife Angie as she snored quietly in bed. He sat at his desk drinking coffee.…

Author : Joachim Heijndermans “Hello? Is anyone there? I can’t see. Is anyone out there?” “Yes, I’m here.” “Who are you? Where am I?” “I’m Kon. Can you tell me who you are?” “My n…

Author : David Henson “Honey, are you going to use the DreamMaster tonight?” Sally says to her husband. “You bet. I’ve scripted a football match,” Jim says, laying the…

Author : Philip Berry From the couch, engineer Stanislaw Hast looked past the grey-suited, female psychiatrist and through the broad window. The star, a long dying sub-giant, threw a dusk of burnt …

Author : Timothy Marshal-Nichols “So this bloke then, this Galvano bloke, so this Galvano della Volpe is dead.” The Local Defence Officer thought for a few seconds while twiddling with his moustach…

Author : Jae Miles, Staff Writer Tendrils of smoke rise from the ancient bridge, but it stands strong. Atop it’s singed arch, two men stand, their powered-down armour dulled by dirt and char. The t…

Author : David Henson The chaplain sits beside the young man and lays a small box on her lap. “Mr. Parker, would you like to pray with me?” “That’s not for me, Chaplain. But…

Author : Beck Dacus I was told that, when I awoke, I should expect the thunder of battle to have already started. But when the doctor woke me, his face calm, if not bored, I heard only the low rumb…