Flashes of Speculation

Red Plague - Stephanie Vann

The virus appeared first in the humid jungles of west Africa, but it spread rapidly.

The Beast - Breanna Stitzel

Doom! The grandfather clock seemed to boom out a warning. The shadows in the room lengthened. The little girl cowered in the corner, legs pulled up tight to her chin. Her eyes wide with fear, moved constantly around the room…searching…searching for the beast that held her captive.
There! Across the room, something large moved stealthily from [...]

Every Two Hours - Agnes Dee

GET UP. Randall struggled to his feet, the scars on his back and legs stretching. New and old, they hurt when he had to move. The bugs pinched at him with sharp mandibles, prodding him through the doorway of the cave. He pulled the rags he wore around his shoulders. It was cold today. MOVE. TIME [...]

Butchery - Jim Stitzel

The children splayed out behind him, he washed the blood off his knife.

The Marrakesh Raven - Rod Drake

She was the most beautiful, captivating woman alive, which was not really true.  Undead, I believe, was the correct word for Bree O’Reilly.  With a soul just as dark as her beauty was pale, highlighted by those blood-red lips.  Lips that could drive a man to madness.  Or worse.
My partner and friend, Acres Bowman, [...]

The Heroine - Dawn Dschaak

“There is darkness in me, a dark place, where sunlight cannot reach. It’s a hole of black nothingness,” Frog moaned as he gazed at the birds flitting around in a nearby tree.
I just looked him at him. Frog had a tendency to over dramatize things, like most Geminis do. It didn’t help that he was [...]

The Journey to the End - Breanna Stitzel

Looking up at the sky, the woman sees the moon is still hidden.
Good.
The roaring of the ocean below sounds in the quiet of the night.
So lonely…so lost…like me.
A single tear slips down her cheek. With a dirty hand, she swipes it away, smearing grime on her face. She then bends down and [...]

Scourge of Humanity - Kate Thornton

There didn’t seem to be any sense in hanging around.  The ship was loaded, my package safely stowed in with the baggage of a hundred or so miners from the mineral holes on Sheppard-1, destination Terran Moon for some R & R.
I knew Lester would receive the package at Toshiba Station and plant the contents [...]

Shadowboxing My Doppelganger - Gayla Chaney

I wrestled with my doppelganger last night. Thankfully, I won.

The Rainmaker’s Son - Charles Richard Laing

For the first few days we admired the beautiful clear blue skies, but then we started to wonder where the clouds went.