I don't dislike seeing children portrayed as something malevolent - in fact, it frightens me a bit. I just don't prefer it. It smacks of something supernatural. It brings to mind Children of the Corn, Village of the Damned, the Omen, among others. Ooo, or how about Ju-On? I see a child as having no … Continue reading Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Prime Machine – Episode Seven
death
In Which the Automaton Finds Peace
Instructor Raines removed the old-style QF drive from the M4RV1N unit’s upload bay and closed the access panel. After a few seconds, the panel popped back open. Raines smirked, but felt a pang of sadness. The grey-blue metal casing of the android was fading. Deep scores marked past accidents, and the drive mechanisms were not … Continue reading In Which the Automaton Finds Peace
Reach V
PREFACE: Reach was one of seven men named as such who existed in seven separate universes as multiversally intertwined souls. It was impossible for them to meet; and though, theoretically, it was possible for Reach to cross over to another universe, the chances of encountering one of the other seven were ridiculously low. This was … Continue reading Reach V
Reach IV
PREFACE: Reach was one of seven men named as such who existed in seven separate universes as multiversally intertwined souls. It was impossible for them to meet; and though, theoretically, it was possible for Reach to cross over to another universe, the chances of encountering one of the other seven were ridiculously low. This was … Continue reading Reach IV
Reach III
If you don’t know what Gha’Cre Stoh Rage Haiku is, you shouldn’t. I invented it for my fictional multiverse. Rules: Seven lines, each line no more than seven syllables, one line must contain only two words, the final line is a single word. Written in multiples (Gha’Cre) usually numbering seven, a final stanza (Stoh) is … Continue reading Reach III
Dark Frontier
As Jeremiah choked the last bit of life from the lawman, the rest of his gang mounted their horses and began the job of rounding up their stolen cattle anew. Sheriff Carter went limp in Jeremiah’s grasp, but the criminal cattle thief kept his vise-like grip tight until there was no doubt their pursuer was … Continue reading Dark Frontier
Headland
Would the soldier, afforded an afterlife and a memory of the things they were and the places they'd been, conjure up thoughts of well-placed shots, violent ambushes, victory over the enemy? Would a stockbroker dream of their numbers, their material things, their portfolios? Would a priest recall the moments they stood on the dais above … Continue reading Headland
Nightmares IV
I suppose it has been a while since I've written here. I'm okay. Last Thursday at around 0200, I hit my head on my tile floor and woke up bloody and bruised. I'll have a nice scar on my right brow. So, I've got that going for me ... which is nice. But, I'm okay. … Continue reading Nightmares IV
Vestiges
There are people in this world that make it easy for us to to turn the word "human" into something pejorative. These are the people that would have you believe that selfish pursuits are our pinnacle, that greed and lust for power are virtues. These are people that don't see humanity for what it has … Continue reading Vestiges
Day Forty – Sword and Shield
Back when it mattered, back when corporations could still lie to your face and politicians weren't the subservient eunuchs they've thankfully become, there was a bit of copypasta making the rounds that really drove home what advocates of gun control had been trying to get across to the rest of the world. It went something … Continue reading Day Forty – Sword and Shield
Day Thirty-Nine – Damnatio Memoriae
"And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." - Book of Revelation On Thursdays, Gil Chambers left his place … Continue reading Day Thirty-Nine – Damnatio Memoriae
Day Thirty-Eight – Gehenna
The impact of the plasma round against the retaining wall sent shrapnel through Cool Monkey Dataskunk's cloak. His stunt flip off the wall had been effective as a dodge, but at the cost of his high dollar accessory. Upon landing, he dropped the canvas bag he was carrying to the ground and angrily ripped the … Continue reading Day Thirty-Eight – Gehenna
Day Thirty-Seven – Pampers For All Us Kids
The light was painful and unfamiliar. It nipped at the eyelids and chewed the pupils of the newly awoken. Conditioned air knifed at the fugitive's exposed skin; starched cloth, bright white, irritated the rest of its body. It involuntarily cringed in the chair it was strapped to. The impulse to curl into a ball fought … Continue reading Day Thirty-Seven – Pampers For All Us Kids
Day Thirty-Six – Entanglement
(Artwork: Zdzisław Beksiński) This is the last glorious day. The sunlight knifing through the smoky interior of the building that shelters the last two humans in existence has a distinct redness to it. This is the last fantastic day for the human race and its two final members, together at last, together at the end, … Continue reading Day Thirty-Six – Entanglement
Day Thirty-Five – The Everlasting Mister Rolo
Record 2 – Pushing Daisy The building was small and tucked between more architecturally pleasing constructions. It was bare – grey and featureless, save a small logo positioned haphazardly just next to the building’s single door. When Rolo had first been contracted to perform services for Ulysses Robotics, he had difficulty finding the location. He … Continue reading Day Thirty-Five – The Everlasting Mister Rolo
Day Thirty-Four – The Mysterious Flamingo of the Tundra
They say space ruins relationships. I believe it. I’m not talking about personal space, even though they might be. I don’t mean that his demand for guy time away from her coupon clipping is the spark or spur to the inevitable divide. I don’t suggest that two people perpetually intertwined for twenty-four hours out of … Continue reading Day Thirty-Four – The Mysterious Flamingo of the Tundra
42 V
I suppose I drifted off there for a bit. Life is currently taffy being pulled on a hook—sometimes I'm piled on, stuck in place and frozen between layers just right on the hook, and sometimes I'm on the stretchy bit and time slips away into distance. Something I feel I need to voice is this … Continue reading 42 V
Day Thirty – Quality Stock Tips From an Okapi (or, Mr. China Has Seven Splinters)
--- TRecTm5.2218.14.11.x.x Rprt -22.22.511.5.5.167.3.7.vv.20491 Earth Interplanetary Logistics and Colonization - Robotic Recon Team - Report - Assmt. 17501.R.TR73 ||\\|| BEGIN REPORT ||\\|| WRECKAGE OF ARTEMIS LANDER : MSN TtnRcn2203 : CONFIRMED ENVIRONMENT SEALS BROKEN ID OF FOUR OF FIVE TEAM MEMBERS CONFIRMED DOCTOR ABRAHAM TOLLE: DECEASED, BLUNT FORCE TRAUMA PTY OFR RAYMOND GILFREY: DECEASED, CAROTID … Continue reading Day Thirty – Quality Stock Tips From an Okapi (or, Mr. China Has Seven Splinters)
Day Twenty-Nine – Papercut Moseby’s Left Withered
There is darkness and sound--a repetitive thud and scraping of metal. I feel heat radiating around me, and I feel trapped and claustrophobic. I cannot move my body more than a few inches in any direction. There are walls surrounding me, lined with soft silk. I feel myself pressed against a cushion to my back--laying … Continue reading Day Twenty-Nine – Papercut Moseby’s Left Withered
Day Twenty-Eight – A Message Written in Mustard Beneath a Park Bench in a Secluded Spot Near the Lake Where Maddie Gantt Found the Possum With the Eye Infection
If you were to find yourself so inclined to dive into that mirror, you would likely find me halfway through that diamond maelstrom, regarding you with disdain from some reflective abode - perhaps a corner of shattered glass, an edge, a wink of light among thousands. That's what you want, and you know it - … Continue reading Day Twenty-Eight – A Message Written in Mustard Beneath a Park Bench in a Secluded Spot Near the Lake Where Maddie Gantt Found the Possum With the Eye Infection
Godhood of the Infinitesimally Small 