Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Fiction.
Sector 9-11
When I dream of my perfect life—the ideal one that only ever exists in my imagination—I envision endless light. The UV rays from the sun beam down on me from above. They envelop every inch of my skin exposed. In this dream, I exist no further than as a houseplant albeit with more complicated emotions. My skin cells photosynthesize the energy into nutrients to support the growth of my limbs as I stretch up and out to reach into the sky. Only once I have made it up into the clouds do I reach transcendence: pure Nirvana. Given this ideality, I can only hope that how I exist in present is as a seedling: expanding and strengthening my roots. The water that stimulates my growth soaks into the soil, my home, and fills me up from the inside. Nourishing me. The darkness that surrounds me exists only temporarily as I gain the resilience to sprout—to thrive—above ground.
By Christine C3 years ago in Fiction
Utopia
Utopia By Brandi Wanto The simplicity scares me as I think about it from start to finish. Drilling an ice sample in the artic ended our civilization as we knew it. Cutting into the ice was cutting back in time. Ancient micoorganisms were free to mingle in the air. The bacterium and fungi swept through humanity killing anyone without immunity. Over 90% of the world wiped out in seven years.
By Brandi Bowers3 years ago in Fiction
Limos Rises Again
2052. They predicted the oceans would do us in. No. It was the bees. It was the flies. It was all the creepy crawlers we swatted away mindlessly before the Fall. Most imagined the end would come barreling out of the sky. Or else some forgotten primordial beast would lumber out of the ocean and consume us for our transgressions against nature.
By Laquesha Bailey3 years ago in Fiction
Disability can divert fate
Once upon a time there was a king who liked to go hunting in the prairie with a large and powerful retinue. Once the king chased a leopard with great authority until the speed of the leopard slowed down, then the king calmly bent his bow and shot an arrow at the leopard's neck, and the leopard fell to the ground.
By Jenniferu Millerr3 years ago in Fiction
A Life for a Life
Yesterday, I talked a man down from a bridge. I wish I could say it was the first time. Deep down I knew it wouldn't be my last, and with all my heart, I wish I could say I was more successful in those moments. I approached each with hesitancy, asking the same question, hands drawn high, "May I sit with you?" His name was Bill, and he silently gestured an open palm to his side.
By Christian Prosperie3 years ago in Fiction
The Status Quo
The quiet of the night was so oppressive that every noise the courier made as she ran seemed magnified to her. Every footstep, every labored breath, every time she moved her auburn hair out of her eyes were as clear and echoing as a gunshot in the narrow aisle of industrial buildings. As she ducked into an alcove to catch her breath, her brown eyes darted about nervously. The corridors between metropolises were meant for official travel and logistic maintenance only; if any systems noticed her unauthorized presence, she could be offlined in moments. She checked her jammer and made sure it was still functioning, but this did little to comfort her. The idea that a split second glitch or battery failure could be the difference between a clear run and her demise hung over her head like a Sword of…
By Hill Burset3 years ago in Fiction