It’s been 25 years to the day since my friend Baptiste disappeared. Not officially. The date in the police record says ‘September 14’ because his aunt didn’t report him missing until three days later. I was the last person to see him though. I know when and where he disappeared, and I told the cops, but they brushed me off. I was just making things up to protect my friends, they said, and that I had watched too many horror movies. Baptiste and I were thick as thieves ever since first grade. To most people, we must have been an odd pair. The shy, withdrawn kid with the thick Haitian accent our classmates often made fun of, to a point…

When I was eleven years old, my family lived in a small, blue, relatively remote house in northern Sweden. The rear of the house had a small deck facing a dense old-growth pine and spruce forest, while the front had a garage, a shed for firewood, and a fairly large lawn. My little brother, Oskar, had just been born about a month prior, and my parents were beginning to settle into their new routine. On the day in question, my father was away shopping for groceries, while my mother was inside tending to the house and keeping an eye on Oskar, who had colic and demanded a lot of attention. I was outside playing with my toy tractor in the…

My mother was wanted across the universe for her ingenuity. Couldn’t expect any less from a woman who was feared and known for building ships and weapons for the lowest life forms in the universe, from smugglers to warlords. She wouldn’t build just for anyone though. The only things you needed to have her grant you an audience was not only bottomless pockets, but be in possession of the rarest tech or material for her to build whatever her heart desired. All with one thing in mind, go big or rot away like the rest. She built a ship for a very powerful being who ran the Crovix Sector long before man was a spacefaring species. It was the most…

I’m sure many of you have heard of the Uncanny Valley effect, for those who haven’t it is essentially the sense of fear or unease a person can feel when they see a creature or object that resembles a human; but there is something about the entity that makes it not look right, think mannequins or robots. However, this fear has caused a lot of debate, mainly about why we have it to begin with; most of our main fears and phobias can be traced back to our ancient ancestors; and what they experienced. We learned to be afraid of the darkness because predators could be hiding in it waiting to kill us. We learned to feel unease at low…

Three years. It has been three years since that incident. Three years since I put myself out there and got into the dating field. Despite it being years since I met her, I hear her voice any time I’m alone, and I often felt her touch on my skin whenever I laid restless in bed. Not a day would go by without me reflecting on the past, which I agree is unhealthy, but it was a force of habit. I feel that I owe you all an explanation. I used to work for a fast-food joint as a cashier. It was a thankless job, with many an irritable customer you could imagine. Or I would sometimes get tasked with cleaning…

I Newcomer It was midday on a Sunday, and Johnathan Urbez was driving his dream car, an RX7. The engine was modified to be even faster; the tuned machine used a racing transmission, special brakes, suspension, and tires. The body was covered in all kinds of paintings and designs. After five years of hard work, dedication, and a lot of money, this beast was ready and John had to take it out for a ride. The engine was roaring, and the feeling of going over two hundred kilometers per hour was exhilarating. The tension on his arms from handling the wheel, his brain-aware state—this must be what a professional race driver feels; then the curb came, he misjudged his skills and…

Outer space is the infinite expanse of stars, galaxies, planets, and moons; beautiful as it may be, Micheal Phillips knew it also had its negatives. Living on the Star Finder taught him never to take air, sound, and weather for granted. A middle-ground perk he learned was weightlessness. Though currently, he and the entire ship were in quite a predicament. Where he learned too late that some alien species exist that can entire a foreign body and drain it dry. Michael was the only one alive, sitting alone in the dark corner of his room. He was unsure when it started, but he knew it began when the first person collapsed and then the next. Those people were sent to…

The Sinking House by Tristan Mason Colt was only thirteen years old when he rowed as fast as he could away from Benji and Caleb, the most menacing boys in Troop 0172.  It was the dead of night and only the faint orange moonlight lit the narrow path for Colt’s tiny canoe, which was starting to overflow. Benji and Caleb, whose kayak was much bigger and rowing skills were far superior, were gaining on him, shouting from less than fifty away. “Give up, faggot!” Benji hollered, his ugly words bouncing off the tide. “Just give up!” Caleb followed, his voice slightly straining. When Colt was sure he reached the center of Gardner Lake, he stopped rowing and let go of…

Hello, I’ve been expecting you! I can see fear and confusion in your eyes. It’s okay, I don’t blame you. Clearly I have some explaining to do. Okay so, I noticed my life had always been a little different than most of the kids growing up in New York at a fairly young age. Mother and Father were always pushing the whole, “don’t ever give out your true name,” or, “don’t share our teachings with anyone.” Not to mention being home schooled with the focus on botany and ancient literature that I’d doubt you’d find in any sort of classroom. Every single one of my summers were spent on our family’s private property. The home to a creepy shed I…

A few years ago, a random virus that appeared overnight wiped out 3/4th of the population. The world went into ruin for a bit, until society came together after dying down to about 3 million people. They then made so many things that they could only dream of making when the population was at its max. Soon, most of society moved to a high tech city so originally named “The Big City”, It reminded people a lot of a Cyberpunk society. People did still live outside of The Big City, doing important jobs to keep the city afloat, like farming and livestock. One of these jobs was a mortician, where that job was taken by a man, his wife, and…