Alarms blared. They always did, nowadays. Sarai pushed away the weariness, an annoyance clamoring for attention in the back of her mind. She couldn’t be tired; that was a luxury war didn’t afford. She jumped out of bed and swept a hand over her bodysuit. In an instant, it morphed into a perfectly tailored gray… Continue reading A Child’s War
Tag: short story
First Winter
Vaughn was pretty sure he’d gotten his coordinates wrong. One moment, he’d been keying in the location of the space station hanging above his home planet Infyllus as he’d done a thousand times before. Sure, Kiefer had thrown a boot at his head as he’d been typing, but his little brother’s antics had never posed… Continue reading First Winter
A House of Fallen Leaves
“Wake up! It’s fall!” Rylie groaned. It should be illegal for someone to be so excited this early in the morning. “I know you’re awake.” Footsteps padded closer to Rylie’s bed. She rolled over, turning her back to the perpetrator. “Come on!” Piper continued. “It’s actually cold outside, and the leaves are falling. See?” Something… Continue reading A House of Fallen Leaves
Silver Starling
It looks like a monster. I’ve never seen something so fearsome, so sharp, so loud. Every line is pointed and jagged, without a hint of softness. I get the sense it’s ready to devour me as soon as I make a single wrong step. And it’s not forgiving, either. It will make sure I’m consumed.… Continue reading Silver Starling
Nowhere
Ishmael paused on the boundary of everything there had ever been. His ship slowed to a standstill. Through the viewport, thousands, millions, hundreds of millions of stars crowded together as if vying for room on the dark canvas of space. Goosebumps ran up Ishmael’s arms. He could be the first being to ever lay eyes… Continue reading Nowhere
Time
It’s always advancing. I’m always running. I know I’m not fast enough, but it’s the last thing I can do. Across the centuries, every mortal has run from this. I can almost see them as whole galaxies zip past my viewport. They plead and beg and trade, all for one thing: more. More life. More… Continue reading Time
Old Friends
In a single moment, Sariah’s life went to ruin. Morning light tried vainly to filter through closed blinds in the dusty, cramped room, but Sariah didn’t need illumination to know something was missing. She stared dumbly at the empty space in the nook that held her most prized possessions, not comprehending and yet fully understanding… Continue reading Old Friends
Going Home
A wailing alarm jerks me instantly awake from a dream—a very pleasant dream too, I may add. Equal parts fear and excitement rush through me. I mean, the alarm can only mean two things, right? One: something has breached the hull of the ship and I’m about to die. Awesome. Or, two. . . Something… Continue reading Going Home
Misguided Ghosts
When Victor opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a crying child. His feet instantly carried him towards the poor soul, a little girl no more than five years old hugging herself as she knelt on the pavement, her light brown pigtails bobbing with her sobs. Victor checked for oncoming cars as he… Continue reading Misguided Ghosts
An Interrupted Journey
“Don’t think I’m happy about this, Agent Beech.” Steven maintained a stubborn frown, eyebrows drawn as he stared unwaveringly at the road ahead. Holly reclined back in her seat and let out a long sigh. “Can you please just call me Holly? It’s been three months already; it’s not like we’re still on the clock.”… Continue reading An Interrupted Journey