Latest Stories

Most recently published stories in Fiction.

The Undesirables
The sky shone like amethyst as Billie took one last glimpse of the outside world. She sighed and filled her lungs with cool air as she scanned the metallic barcode that was etched into her wrist against the cold turnstile entry. As she entered the hospital, she straightened her dark blue scrubs nervously and proceeded to walk down the dimly deserted narrow corridor. "Billie, is that you dear" a faint elderly voice beckoned from inside ward 4A. Good morning Mrs Martin – I can't chat for long. I'm already late for the morning handover with the warden. Billie pronounced loudly. "That's okay, dear; I just wanted to know what they are saying on the news now? No one has come to check on me in quite some time. Has the situation changed? Billie viewed Mrs Martin as more of a friend than a patient as she was one of the only authentically kind people left in her life, and she reminded her of her grandmother, who had passed several years ago.
By Caitlin Pascoe5 years ago in Fiction
Valentina's last steps.
The distance between Valentina Perez and unknown sanctuary, mere feet, yet a lifetime travelled. A barren desert of dread and torment, now her stage. This, a naked performance watched by the barrel of a smoking rifle in the nosebleeds. Before her, a makeshift barricade that had until this time only harboured in her psyche.
By Peter Culbert5 years ago in Fiction
Haven
It’s July 23rd, Julia’s birthday. “Julia get up.” Her mother commands as she sweeps the dust off the floor. They live in an apartment in New York, New York now in ruins from the serpents, which the world now calls laviathins, or aliens in short term. They wrecked the city and no one has any idea how to stop them, with intense and loud noises, the world hasn’t been the same since they arrived. New York has fallen, the military and economics have crashed so no one can buy or sell anything, and the military has become defenseless towards the leviathan. “I can’t…” Julia says. Still thinking about her encounter yesterday- not that she would dare tell her mother about it.
By Ysabel C5 years ago in Fiction
Finding Hope
Grey snow had started to fall around them and the dirt was already sludge under their boots. Annalise shuddered, pulled her coat tighter around herself, and watched Tabby do the same. This winter was proving to be the worst one yet. The June air was bright against their noses and ears. They hadn’t found any balaclavas on the last run through the old town. They hadn’t found much of anything. Scavenging was becoming less of an option every day.
By Blake Smith5 years ago in Fiction
Our Secret Hideaway
Migrants came through our little town of Baroque every day. They carried with them the burdens of the places they had left, all cities that had been charred by the spread of wildfires or the complete destruction of power grids or even the rampant threat of unseasonal blizzards. Their faces were drawn and tired, shoes becoming worn from the miles-long journeys, and the children too were laden down with whole lives crammed into backpacks and sacks.
By Jillian Spiridon5 years ago in Fiction
Searching for Mother Moon. Top Story - June 2021.
Luki had yet to meet another that satisfied her, and so she walked alone across the desert landscape, past the gnarled metal bones of those things her grandmother used to call buildings. “Buildings”, she spit the word out as she walked along, hard to imagine thier crooked spines once reached tall and straight into the sky. She heard her grandmother’s words in her head now, reciting that same old story about the transition between the old time and the new. Before, water had run through pipes, directly into people’s homes! And you could drink it that way, no need to boil first. Luki’s mouth felt dry, and she remembered her own thirst, one of her constant companions, along with alertness and fatigue.
By Maxx Ohm5 years ago in Fiction
45th the Great
It's amazing how quickly your life can change. Oftentimes because of circumstances beyond your control. I remember how all this started, I was there that day when those fateful words were spoken" whatta ya have to lose?" It was the first time I went to a political rally. I didn't support any candidate yet. I knew of this guy and decided I'd hear what he had to say.
By Qa'id Ali Harris5 years ago in Fiction
Letter from the other side
Dear Mariana, I hope you don’t cry when you read this, though I can’t demand much of you from where I’m writing. It’s interesting, I find the simple notion of writing to you from here unbelievable. I, who always thought that “here” did not exist.
By Natalia Perez Wahlberg5 years ago in Fiction
The Polchinski Locket
The Stormers bear down on me with endless fire. Golden, glowing shards of plasmic metal whistle past me and strike my armor, which won't hold up to an endless barrage such as this one. Weaving between cover, I have no hope of escape. My weapon is nearly empty, and my lone searing knife won't do much good with a group of enemies.
By K. T. Scott5 years ago in Fiction
The Fire Escape
“Stop, Police!” The girl heard behind her as she hurled herself down the alley. She didn't stop, she didn't even look back. “Great" she thought “This was not in the plan.” She leaped like a cat over the low stone wall at the end of the alley and smiled. “No matter” she could lose them in no time. She knew this city better then anyone. And besides, she was fast. Before the war, when she was only ten, she had been the fastest runner in her school. She wouldn't get caught, she couldn't get caught. A girl, alone, out after dark, without a permit. She shook her head “No.. she wouldn't get caught.” “Do they know I stole the locket?” She wondered. “Probably not, It's just a patrol" Her hand went to her breast pocket, and she felt the hard, heart shape of the locket beneath the fabric. She could get a good price for it at the underground market tomorrow, of that she was certain.
By Grace Bisaro5 years ago in Fiction
Senseless
The evidence glowed in high definition on the screen as Ren's chest felt the sinking pressure of sorrow. While his team were questioning other potential perpetrators, in the back of his mind he had a feeling his mother was the murderer. With the rose gold locket in his hand he tried to feel it's smoothness despite the wasted effort. The locket found at the scene didn't belong to a poor young woman of common birth, but to someone of high society willing to pay a fortune for 20th century craftsmanship.
By Miki Tea5 years ago in Fiction
Dear diary
Dear Diary, No one knows what really happened. The conspirators argue what caused things that went wrong in the year 2050. Some say it was the chem trails in the sky or the vaccines that they mass produced during the covid era. The most possible one I heard was the genetically modified food that the government ordered to produce for the increase of population. When the population rose the government installed the rules for the new generation. My generation now suffers under this government ruling. We can only have one child per family and food rations are given out accordingly from our family statues. This is for stopping the rise of population, but the only problem is that everyone around me is dying from unknown causes. It's been happening for months now. Not only is the mass population declining at a disproportionate rate, but I think that the government is behind this. I need to know more to find the truth. They say that we need to put our trust in the big government, because they know more than us and we must trust the government at all costs.
By Liz Mccory5 years ago in Fiction