Topic
Aliens
Anything from green skinned little people with five fingers to the truly alien.
WANT GOLD
Illiterate extraterrestrial extortionists! Not the way we'd hoped our first contact with an alien race would go. The spacecraft had hung in geosynchronous orbit above the eastern United States for three weeks. Then one day the mayor of Brandenburg, Kentucky, reported that a…
Transaction
You have to pay extra to ensure you have all of the Nanurian's attention. They say that once you have put out the additional cash and she physically zeros out any other trans-dimensional connections, the focused passion is almost bone crushing. But, since you exist in only this…
One Fathom from the Brink (and other Absurd Units of Measure)
The only thing saving Dr. Claire McClintock from certain death was the alien's misunderstanding of human units of measure. "No, no, I'm afraid you've located the wrong human," Claire said through the alien's translator apparatus, a black, plastic-looking thing that was wrapped…
Homecoming
We have returned to the alien world which defines us: for thousands of years, we've been told that this turquoise globe is home. Thanks to electromagnetic field propulsion, it has taken us just three Terran years to arrive. That is nothing compared to the one-way,…
No Worries
I stand in line to buy a beverage, tuning out the halitosis and manufactured perfumes that bristle against my wattle. Its purpose is not to keep us cool. We don't perspire like the humans, always leaking fluids from every crevice and fold. They must find it uncomfortable to live…
Fishers of Men
"Say you had a time machine." Marcus was waving his hands around like a madman. "It's a time machine?" Agent Cal Rosen asked, sitting up in his chair. "What? Christ. No. Just listen a second, would you?" Cal sat back, disappointed. "Say you had a time machine and went back to…
From American-Alien Relations, 1900 to 1999
The First Lady later wrote, she "felt a sort of maternal responsibility to the other American wives in the consulate," and especially to Mrs. Smith, the "pretty young girl" the translator had married not three weeks before his appointment. We can imagine her watching with…
War of the Worlds: Final Take
The Martians come back. This time they've had their shots. They trash a dozen big cities and, just to keep things even, a lot of useless English countryside. What brings them down isn't cruise missiles, armed drones or tactical single-K nuclear devices (such weapons leave…
Fermi's Answer
Notes from SETI Meeting #894 Dear Members, at last we have an answer. After years and years of searching for life on other planets, we have finally heard a sound. Sadly, it was a scream, the last gasp of a dying race. "Radio waves" whispered the alien into some interstellar…
Tourists
There are those who said that the Tourists had been appearing long before we had noticed, arriving at each solar eclipse to stare up at the darkening sky with obfuscated faces. Some say they arrived in vehicles shaped like saucers or cigars, while others say they teleported, or…
Invasion
"I am Kell. I am ready for my tour," the alien said. "Show me the bounty of Earth.:" Jeanette, his tour guide, thought that Kell looked like a swamp monster, but he seemed nice. The fish market in China Town was loud, bustling, and smelly. Immediately a merchant appeared and…
The Zoo
I've always hated the zoo. Being the youngest in the family, though, I don't get a lot of choice. My brother loves it; he gets to see these animals in pens made up supposedly like their natural habitats, all from the safety of the well-swept sidewalk. He gawks, he makes faces.…
Open Door Fallacy
Sure, you could say I left the door open, But can't we, for a minute, discuss the fault, Of that which followed me home? I mean, just because something is open, It doesn't give you permission to enter. So, if you want to blame me for this, Particular space invasion, maybe, just…
Babel's End
"This is how the takeover will happen." "The conquest, you mean?" "Think of it as an expropriation. We will compensate the rights holders and affected parties, such as you." The alien was sitting with me inside a spaceship orbiting Earth. That the creature looked like a smiling…
Far From Home
We knew it was war. When they arrived, sleek and silver, streaming across the night sky. At least, here in the US we did. That's what matters. We figured out what to do from watching films. How to save the world. We shot them down as they approached. We protected our cities. We…
Coast Sunset Express
After the war, Emily takes the train to Seattle. The trip would be faster by boat, but the train is more practical, and the war has made her a practical person. (Once she would have flown, but she puts that thought from her mind.) Besides, she's just as happy to delay her…
Form Rejection
Dear Grinjib, Thank you for letting us see your story, "How Grinjib the Eternal will Destroy Earth with his Fleet of Space Demons." We very much appreciated the opportunity to read it. Unfortunately, we have decided to pass at this time. We enjoyed the power and aggression…
Nightcrawlers
The chaos began with a whisper. An astronomer in Hawaii spotted it first: a faint red glow from Alpha Centauri. She sent the coordinates to a friend at the Gran Telescopio Canarias who verified her readings. Other observatories took note, and by morning, all agreed that the…
Lead With "The Dog Lives"
"Lead with 'the dog lives'!" the publisher said. "You sure about that, boss?" the writer asked. "Absolutely!" "You don't think that's burying the lede? Maybe? Just a little?" "Not at all. People love a happy human-interest story." "Human interest?" The publisher waved this…
Not mature enough for that
"Just a little help" "Nope" "But Dad, they're hilarious. They'd make a great contribution to the galactic culture. Everyone will find them entertaining." "Nope" "Just some help with the physics. They're so inefficient. At this rate they won't leave the planet for a long time."…
The Trap
The little girl lies hunched over in the rain, crying, yet nobody stops to help her. I take an involuntary step forward, and check myself. A couple of indistinct faces from the crowd pierce the downpour and look at me as if I am mad, then hurry off into the descending grayness.…
The Mission
Argos scanned another slice of the night sky, searching for secret messages written in the swirling stars and nebulae. Over the years he had learned to link with other telescopes in orbit, and larger facilities on the ground, extending his own limited senses. He didn't think his…
Neon
Giant neon koi swam through the intersection, followed by a banner for a dry-cleaning service. Never could remember what the place's name was, but I always loved driving past Fifth avenue for the fish. Tonight was no different. My passenger didn't have the same sentiment.…
Changing
I look at my toes every day now. It is my morning ritual. I know they are whiter at the nail tips. I know the toes are longer. He gets up, pees, and comes to look. He tells me I am imagining things, that my toes are the same as they have always been. He kisses my feet, and he…
Jupiter Stone
To understand my story, you must first understand me--not in the philosophical sense, but the physical entity that is "me," the way that my identical atoms are contained in their random motion. Imagine a balloon filled with helium, only there is no balloon. Imagine a cloud, only…
The Unity
July 17th, 2059: Aliens are coming. Something about a NASA probe getting evaporated by giant circular disks somewhere near Alpha Centauri. Governments around the globe have gotten together and announced a permanent truce. In the face of this existential crisis, it was…
Meet Cute
John poured another measure of wine into Greg's glass. Greg accepted it gratefully and took a sip. The hand that wasn't holding his wineglass was holding Cindy's hand. He was reluctant to let go as the feeling of her hand in his gave him confidence and courage, both of which he…
Just Desserts
First Contact wasn't like any of the scenarios I'd ever read. I'd spent twenty years out in the belt and beyond, trying to persuade Texans to negotiate with Muscovites, Oligarchists to listen to Chinese Technocrats, the Separatists to even acknowledge the existence of the…
Eyespots
She was the only other girl in Entomology 101. When it came time for introductions, she smiled widely and said: "Hello, Earthlings. I'm Aurea, from the Antennae Galaxy." "She's a weirdo," Mark G. said a week later. "Even when we were on a date, she kept up the whole alien…
Out-Of-Towner
The sun passed behind the clouds, enveloping the buildings in shadow. The woman entered the shadows, too, pausing in front of a striking art deco facade to stare in wonder. The crosswalk began to beep with warning. Horns honked impatiently as she blocked the intersection. She…
Pattern Recognition
Darren showed up at 7:35. I'd been at my terminal for an hour by then. He had a bruise on his cheek--a new one--and bags under his eyes. I pretended not to notice. "One of these days I'll get here before you, Felicia," he said. Not likely. I liked to be out the door before…
Just Below My Heart
My boyfriend lives inside me. Okay, so he's not really a boy; The Druklad don't have the same genders as humans. And since we're different species, we can't reproduce, so who cares about genders anyway? Not that I want children. I am proud to be a drone and an Ender; my gene…
Backwards
The Ending And they told me his story, read it for me backwards, and said that for me they would do the same. For progeny and ancestors of the Retromens had communicated with their caretaker, studying him as he studied them, generation for generation. Their lives were brief,…
Correction
An earlier version of this article stated, "Alien invasion fleet" rather than, "Meng Liberation." We regret the error. An earlier version of this article stated, "Occupation" rather than, "Partnership." We regret the error. An earlier version of this article stated, "Eye socket…
Intergalactic Negotiations
"The first rule of diplomacy is to know what the other party wants better than they do." In my head, I could hear the voice of my old professor, and his advice had served me well in the past. Knowing the Alpha Centuarian psyche stopped them from destroying Earth. Normally,…
Just Deserts
The scientists had anticipated that it would be difficult to communicate with aliens, but they were prepared. This was their first, and achieving communication, although difficult, was ultimately straightforward, though time-consuming. They had connected the Alien up to their…
It Only Takes a Few Months for a Poet to Position Its Jaws
Once upon every time, in the thin spaces wedged between possible realities, a species of poets swims behind the stars. Naturally, they spend most of their time gathering inspiration. Even with five nostrils, each the size of a small galaxy, it can take thousands of years for a…
Be Nice to the Butcher
The other guy at the hotel bar was the friendly type, grey at the temples, with the stocky blue-collar build of a man who never lifted a barbell in his life, but could still bench-press me over his head, just the same. "Bill Butcher," he said, extending a meaty hand. I shook it…
Cross-Purposes
Three blue nipples fluoresce in the dimming light. She looked more human at the bar. Perhaps a little long, a bit more angular, and the set of tentacles on her sides at the waist were obvious, but tasteful. You might imagine her an earth girl in a really good costume. Halloween…
Historical Fiction
Hanging above my writer's desk are a dozen sticky notes, all with the same message: "Write about the 2030s." I scribble ideas on blank sheets of paper, but nothing works. Mankind discovering interstellar spaceflight? No. It's been done. First contact with aliens? Nope. There…
Marla Corbet: Living (With The Invaders)
Ever since the DarkMouth of Saydeer opened over the Nevada desert, we've lived under constant threat from the Saydeerian Brood-Hoards and their duplicitous human-imitating doppelgangers. I don't know about you, but every time I enter a room and have my DNA scanned to make sure…
An Urgent Letter to the Editorial Staff!
Dear Editor(s), Please find attached my 16,345-word document "Adapting to Dothranji Occupation: The Cultural, Societal, and Political Ramifications of Dothranji Rule" for consideration in your Science Fiction Magazine. Upon studying your culture, we recognize that humanity…
Some Form of Contact
Jody climbed the rusty ladder to the apartment roof, Mick behind her making the metal vibrate with his heavy male steps. His face was close to her ass, which embarrassed and thrilled her. He was the hottest guy in the whole apartment complex. She was already imagining kissing…
Pain Tolerance and Resistance to Corrosive Substances In Four Specimens of Exomalaclemys Oharensis
Dr. J.J. Corr & Dr. A.B. McQuarry (Institute for Advanced Exobiological Research, Titan) Journal of Enhanced Interrogation Techniques (EIT) (Classified; requests for clearance to be addressed the Communications Director of the Galactic Intelligence Agency) Materials and methods…
Indirect Translation
As Captain Edward Becker came down the corridor, he spotted Kayinadar bouncing up and down on his tentacles. He thought that might be a sign of impatience, but he hadn't had time for a full briefing yet. First Officer Shen was beside him. "Kayinadar." Becker said cheerfully,…
Comment History for JustAnotherEarthling
1. Post: "Ariana Grande: Thank You, Next" in the MUSICVIDEOS subcommunity Comment: The way in which the spoken words cohere with the "beat" gives me pleasure. I love the Ariana Grande and her wonderful music, almost as much as I love the Justin Bieber or the rapper Eminem, whose…
Being Human
************Editor's Note: Adult Story************* The Incident: A mall. copper coins twinkling in the sparkling fountain in the afternoon light. A four-year-old girl, in a red skirt, long blond hair capturing the sun. She leaves her mother and goes to the fountain. There is an…
The Diplomats
This is my first encounter with the Tarak species. They are insectoid, enclosed in a brightly colored exoskeleton, but anatomically arranged much like a human. I watched the video about them without paying much attention. They have two rows of holes--breathing orifices--along…
Alien Realization
By the time the government released the Alien for public consumption, he was already famous. Over the next several months--as he traveled, appeared on talk shows, at universities and public forums--his notoriety continued to grow. During this time the world through which the…
Dust to Dust
It sounded like rain, fire, frying onions. It filled my head, summoning memories of the heady scent of rain caught on pine needles, sinking into mossy loam; of embers sent, glittering, up into a starry night; the taste of onions caramelized in butter. It was none of these…
The Doctor
"But I didn't KNOW she was an alien!" The doctor just stared at me. "I mean, she was perfectly human, doc. Well, except for the eyes. And the tail. And... other stuff. Ok, I knew she was alien, all right? But I'd been drinking all night and she was really hot, y'know?" The…
The Doctor
"But I didn't KNOW she was an alien!" The doctor just stared at me. "I mean, she was perfectly human, doc. Well, except for the eyes. And the tail. And... other stuff. Ok, I knew she was alien, all right? But I'd been drinking all night and she was really hot, y'know?" The…
This Ethnography is Rated R
Nobody tells you about the dark side of Xenoanthropology. The seedy underbelly. They just don't. It's all fancy degrees and exotic climes and "you're doing a great service for humanity, Professor," and then you're smack dab in the center of a Jimbonarian strip club watching the…
Jewels for Expression
They collected our salivas--they did, with their gleaming fifty mirror-crafted eyes, their shards of cilia from their wrists. They let our spittle drop into beakers--drip, drip. When the beakers filled up, they poured them over an infinitely rotating sphere--so agate pink and…
Gesamtkunstwerk
Our attack on the Earth city was quick, efficient and effective, but I should have made it more beautiful. When my fleet unfolded at the edge of space and I saw the world for the first time through my own eye, I realized Earthings also appreciated the higher aesthetics. The webs…
So You Want to Write Human-Galthgearian Interstellar Romance: a Brief How-to by Eethoo Inthogearian
THE MEET CUTE It is necessary to first show your two romantic leads meeting in a ridiculous yet stimulating fashion. For example, say that your human has a good job, like she is the president of Earth, and your Galthgearian is a humble cruise ship director, working on a craft…
We Float
We float. Jenny says she's only floated before while in water. There is no water where we come from, though Jenny says it was plentiful in her land. She drank it. She swam in it. She washed with it. Jenny complains about the lack of washing, although she says our rurr "hydrates"…
Passed Down
I grew up on Kata Skip Station. Seven skip nodes lead here. My parent and I run SpiceFire, a restaurant catering to the Four Known Races. We have four separate kitchens and four special chefs who set the menus; we have four species-specific dining rooms, and one big common area…
A Little Bit of an Oddity
The first time Zadie visited the coffee shop, Rahni was in the midst of explaining for the fourteenth time that no, they did not sell alcohol, no, not even an Irish coffee, to an old woman with glossy curls as springy as a vintage movie star's. Rahni never got snappy, exactly.…
Takeover
Two tentacled viscous lumps, a Leader of the Imperium and its offshoot, had most of their eyes focused on the large grey creature beyond the metal bars. "They call it an elephant," the Leader said. "That big thing on one end is called a trunk, not a tentacle. It has only one.…
Monster-Killer
When the monsters came my one useful skill was knitting. I made grey mitts to keep my little sister's fingers warm. I made slouchy caps to cover my shorn head which my father still tut-tutted and sighed over. I made scarves to keep my hands busy so I did not slap away his…
Let's Pretend
Let's pretend this is about two other people. Call them Ada and Jane. Ada was an overweight, sarcastic software engineer, fed up with people assuming that because she was black she must have dodged drug-dealers on the way to school. Jane waited tables in a Thai restaurant, the…
Footprints
The lead mission scientist started packing up her equipment. It was time to leave for her next assignment. A pity, as this world was one of the most beautiful she had ever seen, and she had enjoyed her time breathing fresh air after the staleness of deep space. She closed her…
10 Reasons Aliens Just Can't Get Enough of This Small West Virginia Town
Nestled in the hills two hours south of Pittsburgh, the town of Pine Grove has been all abustle since the Visitation. Why do our new friends love this little corner of the Mountain State so much? 1. Main Street's many antique shops attract Rigellians who want to absorb memories…
Bess
The alien impregnated me this morning. He has impregnated me ever since I could first conceive, his scientific syringe filled with the fertilizing fluid from an anonymous male of my own kind. The alien waited two weeks after I gave birth to another son, whom I named Ralph,…
Dial M for Martians
"It's the perfect crime," said the little green man. "You need a million galactic credit units to pay off your gambling debts. And I need to be rid of my third horizontal living companion. You know what they say about those." The little green man waggled his antennae and nudged…
Early Warning
Tom was visiting his Uncle Roy in the small farming community of Jamesville. His uncle handed him two foam pellets. "Get ready to stick these in your ears, Tommy. At seven sharp every evening we test the Alien Attack Early Warning System sirens. Don't want to get caught with our…
Learn From Us
"I don't get it," Marius was saying. "They're...." Prue shrugged. "Aliens." She stretched a bit. "They probably think we work the way they do." "The way they do? We aren't telepathic or whatever the heck is going on with them." "Right, but maybe they... I mean, could we really…
Improbable Meat
"I couldn't give up meat because I like the flavor too much." "Sure, livestock suffers. But it's the circle of life, ya know? We're designed to eat meat. Been doing it for hundreds of thousands of years. It's the taste that calls to us." Sound like you? Are you concerned for the…
On First Contacts and Second Chances
We've had a hard time accepting the fact that our first and only contact with an alien civilization must ultimately be considered a failure. Our overwrought imaginations simply hadn't allowed for the possibility. All the books and movies we had loved as kids and still treasured…
Not To Praise Her
I have some words to say. Some will be new to you, loanwords from her language. Attend, I shall endeavor to explain. She was my adversary. She was my friend. She is dead. "She" is a pronoun that refers to egg-carriers; also possessive "her," noun "woman" and adjective "female."…
Bleed
I bleed. The "scientific studies" have finished now, and my captors allow visitors to crowd round my cage. They stare. Their shocked, rapt faces and hushed conversations tell me what I already know. This color is new to them, never before seen. The color of my blood. The color…
The Goblin
Its face is still. I peer warily at the body sitting at the bottom of the sea, half-shrouded in shadows. My heart pounds in the dark, bubbles escaping to the surface just as I long to, but cannot. Okay, get it together, I remind myself. This is your job. Get it done. I shine a…
The Alien in 36B
The blood beneath the Alien's aqua skin rippled in waves. His immune system operated in overdrive, fighting all the microbes recirculating throughout the aircraft. The woman next to him in 36C kept coughing into her hand and then moving wrinkled magazines around on her tray…
Leeching for Good
We leach from them. Not because we are better than them, but because they are better than us. They arrived on a triangle-shaped ship, claimed they were just passing through, and landed to investigate what it was like to live on this place called Earth. They saw what they wanted…
Leaving Earth for Love
The Fermi Paradox stopped being a paradox the very moment that Tinder was hijacked. The proliferation of profiles with pictures of unearthly creatures with unspeakable names was considered a hoax at first. Until the first of them landed on our planet. A short but well-built…
The Burr
The alien's heartbeat thuds staccato, its breathing ragged as I step to the edge of the Plaza and survey the assembled throng. Before us they whirl and meet; their fighting arms or the intricately waving spikes of their tails entwine, then slide aside, deftly, every interlocking…
Mining Titan
It rained as they set foot on Titan. Liquid methane rolled down Bruce Villareal's suit and left a puddle beside the ice that served for ground. He noted Samira Boutros beside him, and her suit glistened wet with methane as well. The place abounded in it. Why else mine the moon…
The Space Between
Addy's physics lesson taught her that everyone and everything is made up of molecules, and the space in between them. Unfortunately for her test scores, quantum physics went over her head, but fortunately for the rest of the world, that lesson stuck with her. Addy started…
Apotheosis
There is a reason we treat them this way, girl. It is time you heard. Maybe next time, with this knowledge, when an Embodiment asks to taste your skin you won't act the fool and give offense. A long time ago humans had the idea there was a God out there somewhere keeping an eye…
Apotheosis
There is a reason we treat them this way, girl. It is time you heard. Maybe next time, with this knowledge, when an Embodiment asks to taste your skin you won't act the fool and give offense. A long time ago humans had the idea there was a God out there somewhere keeping an eye…
Play Pretend
"Hands up or I'll vaporize all of you," Dan says. He doesn't intend to, but years of pretend play with his friends takes over and he puts up his right hand in a fake gun shape, thumb pointed upward, one finger out, the five remaining fingers curled into his palms. "Can you try…
The Exclusive And Definitive Debate on Illegal Immigration
"Hi. I'm the Presidential Spokeswoman. Nice to meet you at last. I have never spoken with your kind before," The Press Secretary seemed at a loss for what to do next. She was not sure if she should stick out her hand or if there was some other more appropriate form of…
Revelations
No one knew why they came, and in the end, it didn't matter. They came, and that bald fact alone was all the human race needed to know. We could deduce certain things about them. They were bold, they were advanced, and they were not given to subtlety. They had a single, obvious…
Incoming Transmission
I have traveled through many galaxies and seen many planets. But the most amazing is in a small yellow star system, its only inhabited planet. Much of the surface is liquid water. The life forms are all carbon-based. It isn't terribly remarkable--at first glance. I only stumbled…
What Remains
I was the only one alive when the Picti found our shipwrecked shuttle pod. Sang, Tadala, and I had jumped through the wrong skip node on our way back to the mother ship. We landed on a planet we found on the other side of the uncharted node. Our rescue beacon probably couldn't…
Coke or Pepsi
The alien was found on the fifth planet, circling a dying star. The creature, like the star around which its home orbited, was fading. Every human in the system fought for a chance to question the creature, however it was old and tired and said that it would only allow one…
10 Reasons Why We Are NOT Invading You
1. It is not because you are damaging the planet almost irreparably, laying waste to the very flora and fauna that your survival depends on. We have our own planet. 2. It is not because your sad attempts at governing yourselves have led to a tiny fraction of your population…
Mother Pilgrim
A foreign body has infiltrated one of the pods in the cargo hold. My Margarets, my beautiful babies, are in danger. A screen flickers into life, and my oversized heart bumps against my exoskeleton: Margaret S's faceplate is sitting crooked. There's something beneath her oxygen…
The Adjunct Professor's Alien Girlfriend
Let's say she obtained a green card, stating she was a formerly a resident of the Isle of Man. She got away with it, too. No problem for a confident young woman and being attractive helped as well. As she was already a fine specimen of humanoid, any slight difference was easy to…
Emily Post's Guide to Alien Encounters
"It's their shape that decides it?" "Not precisely," I began, and then stopped. "People get degrees in this, you know?" "How interesting. But there must be some sort of common understanding." I was beginning to regret ever having invited my coworker. T loved the dogs, was…
How to Take Pictures of Alpha Centauri Children
l. Establish trust between yourself and the child. Let the child smell you. 2. Get down on the child's level, but not too close. 3. Bring with you something the child wants. A piece of kerlu jerky, or a simple toy. 4. Dangle what you've brought in front of the camera. 5.…
Alien Jerky
The moment Sebby arrived at the overlook atop King's Bluff, she sloughed off her backpack and plunked herself onto the gritty, yet somehow smooth, limestone. Though the guidebook had deemed the trail "difficult," she hadn't found the climb much more than "invigorating." However,…
Bitter Medicine
The telltale heat signature lights up Foster's screen like a Roman candle. "That one," she says, pointing at the blocky warehouse. Two interns peel off and barrel down the hill to where the second vehicle is parked behind a stand of trees. A few minutes later, Foster hears a…
Eyelet You Go
SHARE THE FUNNEST ITEM OF CLOTHING YOU'VE WORN. At the party someone, I forget who--we were all wasted by then--asked, What's the funniest item of clothing you've ever worn? It wasn't quite the non sequitur it sounded. Gertie had decorated her place with those cheesy…
Maybe Next Time
It's late at night and the coffee is gone. Rubbing an eye, I peer at the clock and then Mount Hayden, framed by the open window. The frogs are loud, so loud in this damned heat, but the mountain doesn't mind. It snores contently--no wait, that's my husband; the mountain squats…
Welcome
They saw our message and so they came. Across the City, perfectly synchronized with the end of the Queen's Speech, doorbells chimed, knockers... knocked, and letterboxes flapped. Afterwards, it was clear that not every home had received the Christmas Day visitors. Only those…
Last To Know
"Mom, Dad," I said, "Bryn has something he needs to tell you." My brother then said the words all parents dread. "You can't be an alien!" my mother cried, jumping to her feet. "You're human, like us." She looked at me and Dad. I grinned sympathetically. Dad stared back blankly.…
Top 12 Reasons Why the Aliens Must be Exterminated
Because in the years since their spaceship landed and they streamed out onto the steppe by the hundreds, they have not attempted to communicate with us even once. Not by voice, scent, radio, microwave, light, vibration nor by any other means we could imagine. Because they are…
All the World's a Stage
"We have scorched the snake, not killed it," pronounced Professor Dupree. Captain Cullen gave him a sharp glance, but it seemed he was just being pretentious as usual, quoting something--probably Shakespeare, that was his favorite. Why a starship needed a dramatist-in-residence…
Nothing Between the Stars
The Poet, a mound of lime-green flesh in a tank of 35-degree Celsius ooze, squelched. Its cilia rowed slowly to keep its massive body centered and upright, navigating the torpid jets that kept it oxygenated. The ooze smelled like horse sweat and roses, and the Poet gurgled when…
Where Everybody Knows Your Name
A wintry blast followed the bearish man into the Grover's. He growled, stomped snow from his boots, then waved as greetings filled the tiny bar. Annie stopped in the middle of making a whisky sour to stare as he shrugged out of his heavy coat and hung it up. Jose nudged Ed and…
The Last Kiss
Whenever I kissed him, but especially that first time, he tasted of metal: copper and steel. Strange, but not unpleasant. The smell of his spaceship clung to him. It was a mixture of flowers and rotten garbage. Again, strangely uplifting. I don't know what made me want to plant…
The First Time
He surprised her the first time they had sex. After that, she watched him more closely. Now that she knew what to look for, she could see little irregularities, barely curiosities if she hadn't been suspicious. He brought his food into his mouth with his lips more than his fork,…
Cyclical
May returns to her familiar place to grieve, a moment she once spent on a sunny hillside, flat on her back with her face to the sky, fingers twisted in the grass like she might soon be flung off this spinning planet. She supposes it's telling that her most comforting moment is a…
Fight of the Century
Felton Bruder paced in his boxing shorts and sweats. His manager looked up from his phone. "Easy, champ. Relax. This is just like any other fight you've been in, alien or not." "You know it ain't." Felton kept pacing. "Every other fight, I've seen the fighter in action. This…
Messages and Messengers
I met the old man a week after his 100th birthday. His nurse let me into his apartment and left without speaking. "You're late," were his first words to me. "I'm sorry, sir. The checkpoints--" "Of course the checkpoints." His country had dismantled little of the security…
A Star Falls
You don't expect him to be beautiful. You don't expect him at all, but still he waltzes down on a beam of light that shoots from a spaceship disguised as the night sky, striations of indigo reflected on its hull, periwinkle brushstrokes mimicking the cirrus clouds. This alien…
18 Things Only A Martian Mom Will Understand (You Won't Believe #13!)
1. Explaining to your kids that they're all still siblings, no matter which of your wombs they came from. Besides, most days you can't remember who came from where yourself. 2. Your mother calls every week just to remind you how easy you have it. "I helped conquer this planet!"…
Where I'm From, We Eat Our Parents
His name is not "Fiend." His people don't have proper mouths, and so anytime Clarissa says his name it sounds wrong. Human mouths make it sounds like "Fiend." The homonym is unseemly, but he puts up with it for her. He'll put up with anything for Clarissa. "They'll adore you,…
Better Than Bones and Dust
The protestors were gathered out in front of the barbed wire chain link fence that kept me and my kind separated from humanity. We had come to Earth only three years earlier. A blink in our lifetime. Blown into Earth's atmosphere by a solar flare. This planet, with its teeming…
Re: Upcoming Restroom Changes
MEMORANDUM DATE: 3.18923 of the Galactic Equinox 7B TO: All GalactiCorp Employees and Contractors stationed within Grid Sectors 12-Alpha through 543-Omega FROM: Garthrook Fivebody, GalactiCorp Employee Relations RE: Upcoming Restroom Changes Dear GalactiCorp Family: It has come…
The Hunt
Roberts climbed the hillside and approached the forest, moving stealthily. For the past two hours he'd stalked the wise old stag up the valley, only for it to move off every time he came within range. He'd paid a thousand pounds to tramp the sodden glens for the privilege of…
Symbionts
Gebra Mahara has found a suitor, but he lives on the Geborian home world, three star systems away. Mahara has chosen my own love Arina to be carrier, and so soon I must bid her farewell. "It's not fair," I say to Arina. We're lying in our hammock next to the artificial lake…
Sirens
"Have you noticed that dogs don't howl anymore?" She paused the movie, a sub-par remake of War of the Worlds, walked to the window. He slid off the bed, followed. On the street below, another firetruck and a police car slow-rolled their way through the four-way stop. The red and…
Retirement Plan
"Let me get this straight," Harry said, gesturing to the empty shelves behind him. "You want to buy four shelves worth of nothing. You'll move it to your ship and replace it with nothing from your ship and you'll give me this in exchange." Harry tapped the gleaming metal of what…
A Wrinkle Ironed Out
Ada lies on her back, her face inches from the cathedral's ceiling, and dabs at soot with moistened cotton swabs. The left elbow of the Virgin Mary looms above her, a patch of rich blue pigment emerging, the latest in a blossoming field of color she's coaxed out of the gloom.…
The Scooped Out Man
"Why did I have to bring my wife in here with me? I'm not a child!" The doctor was a young man, freshly shaven, with a warm smile. "Take a seat." I found myself warming to him, despite myself. Clearly he realized I didn't need to be here. Maybe he could talk some sense into…
Fireflies, those Femme Fatales
Long flash. Six second pause. Long flash. Two second pause. Flash. Six second pause. Long flash. Two second pause. Flash. Darkness was settling over the meadow, punctuated by short flashes of light. Some came from the meadow, while other flashes responded from the edge of the…
The Piper's Due
The boy was hot and tired, yet still his dark eyes waged war to stay open. He stared at me, draped over his mother's shoulder with his black curls plastered to a damp brow and eyes drooping in time with the rise and fall of the French horn. Anemic applause pattered through the…
Chatter Monkey
Part of the attraction for the emissaries of planet Donar was a visit to the zoo. At ten sharp, the driver stopped in front of the compound and the delegation of six ambassadors and one host boarded the elegant chrome craft. "We've been really looking forward to this,"…
Brilliance Like Stars
Lynn, her fragile focus on the painting broken, stomped to the door and yanked it open. Her irritation scattered like ashes. Her daughter stood there, escorted by a man in the crisp blue-purple bodysuit of an Emissary, those humans chosen to serve as the middlemen between the…
The Sixth Diplomatic Expedition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE We proudly announce our sixth diplomatic expedition to Sol III with a scheduled arrival on their worldwide Spring holiday of revival. Due to a curious lack of contact from the previous five expeditions, we are additionally sending four military ships as…
Settling Beef
When the cows started wearing toupees, we laughed behind their backs. We weren't going to be impolite about it. All of us understood the n'ermer were an advanced alien species, not really cows. After all, they walked upright, had four-fingered hands instead of hooves and wore…
A Modest Proposal
Hello. I am Glarb, and as should be obvious from the fact that your planet lacks intelligent life forms based on hexalateral symmetry, I am what you would call an alien. As we proceed, let me remind you that to me you are the aliens. Your dominant species has seen too little of…
Cradle
The alien splayed a group of five tendrils above its body, extended from the primary bulk of its multicellular colony. The saurian in the room nodded to the alien and said, "The Amass gives its greetings to you," then looked back at the group of humans for a reaction. Its…
Hidden Feelings
The spines on S'lisha's neck twitched, but she kept them from extending into a thorny display of her anger. The spaceship captain wanted the boxes of robot arms on his cargo deck rearranged yet again. If he'd explained himself clearly in the first place, it would have saved so…
Fluency
Corbalk: The conflicting emotions created by First Contact (used especially in reference to a homeworld-centric species). I learned corbalk in the basement pantry, seven years old. The smell of leather and gun oil, my father's skin, pungent with bitter sweat. Sammy crying, his…
Properties & Permissions
Document 75e: The Properties of Mr. Smith and Xm. Mesfaris Translated from the Noveana by [redacted] Note: Embassy investigation is ongoing and will be, given nature of the case. Never in our recorded contact with humanity (residents of Calee Object 214c; disc. 364 A.D) has an…
Dear 8B
Dear 8B, I may have accidentally laid eggs in a human. What is the proper way to inform him of his impending role as my children's first meal? --Baby Momma Dear Baby Momma, "Accidentally?" I suppose you "accidentally" built a warp drive as a child. Nevertheless, what's done is…
The Alien Came over the Hill
The alien came over the hill elongated, with a gravity belt, leaving behind all thoughts of home, armed to the teeth, scared and young. All superior officers dead; not sure of her mission; wishing for home. The alien came over the hill straight into someone else's war. They…
The Message
The message arrived on July 4, 2051. It came from deep space, thirty light years distant, picked up by radio telescopes around the world. It wasn't the first message Earth had received confirming the fact of alien life out there, but it was different, not the usual set of random…
Disharmony
Everyone knew how the Meritones wage war. In their opposing masses they gather a few furlongs apart and--like two lone piano top spiders on opposite sides of a metronome--hurl their songs at each other, each new canticle more violent and ragged than the last, each round more…
Strings
My first kiss was not normal. It wasn't under the bleachers, or in the back of my car, or in the halls at school. It was in a deserted house, with my parents still at work and with tears wetting his iridescent face. His eyes had turned purple and he told me he was going to kill…
Our Unfortunate Cousins
Dr. Allison Brophy stared up at the hundreds of bizarre forms arrayed around the semicircular amphitheater. Dozens of species--dozens of worlds--must have been represented in that crowded tableau. She avoided studying them too closely; the strange rainbow of unearthly shades…
H
Upon command, the squad members inject the H and begin the final check of helmets, armor, ammo, guns, grenades, knives--not once, but twice, three times, again, and again--waiting for the H to kick in ...I think it's... so they can storm and swarm yes, we're coming on-line the…
Quick as Quarks
When your ship came into our space we sent drones to discover what you were. They could not tell us, only saying you were an intelligently designed asteroid with a creature inside. They said you were safe, and we could not have known how wrong they were. We launched ourselves on…
My Favorite Part of Treaty Day
Monday This year I'm playing Aleysha in the Treaty Day play. She's the President's daughter. It's the best part I ever got and it's all because I got an "A" on my Ancient Earth diorama project. Tuesday Gansa didn't talk to me all recess. She's just jealous because I get to be…
Morytober
Daniyah Howard, Dani to her friends, the executive assistant to Outgrabe Corp's Senior Vice President for Alien Technology Commercialization, entered her boss's office, where she found him hunkered on the floor across from the Morytober ambassador. Face to something-like-a-face.…
Wrong Word
Jana found the body--stumbled across it, literally--on the beach, sticking out of the grey sand like a sculpture. Or an art installation, like the ones they used to have in the streets and parks back when this was still part of civilization. Something commemorative, or symbolic,…
Bologna and Vanilla
"Your cold shouldn't preclude you going down to the planet, Liam," the Doc said. Peppermint candy, chocolate milk. I was used to tasting words, or more specifically, meanings. "The captain's nervous, " he continued. "She's afraid something will mess up first contact." We were…
Knowing Your Human
It wasn't necessary to read the scientific studies showing that humans possessed a high level of intelligence and a complex and expressive language--it was these precise qualities that made them such excellent pets. Of course, "pets" didn't really do justice to their function.…
Love Changes Us
Love does funny things to you. I know that. Still, I'm not prepared for the little tendrils of skin that come shooting out of me. They're like translucent moles, but much too long and skinny. Plus they have minds of their own. "I want them gone," I tell mother. She pats my head.…
New Housing Starts Increase For Twenty-Second Consecutive Year
"Of course they do," Daniel said. He punched the Power Off key on the remote so hard the knuckle of his thumb turned white. "Dear," Rosetta said, warning. Daniel took a deep breath, eyes closed. "I thought we could go out together tomorrow," Rosetta said. "There's a new house…
Real Things We Learned as a Fake Band
A five minutes break is not enough break. Sets run from twenty to twenty-three minutes, depending on the combination of unintelligible howlings playing. We only have one working animatronic man, who we call Rusty, left to provide relief for me, Kelly, Rog, and Ryan. Although…
Emma Goldman: A Biography for Space Aliens
The Notable Earthlings series is brought to you by Gronklorf and Fizzoom. Gronklorf and Fizzoom's Notable Earthlings! Buy the whole set for your spawn! Emma Goldman was born in one imperial Old Earth unit and moved to another before the imperial Old Earth units began their…
Zugzwang
"You lose," Lieutenant Darrow said. "Again." He tipped over Erin's game piece, the one they were calling the king. Ton-Gla-Ben wasn't exactly like chess, but the mechanics were very similar, and the actual Quggano names were mostly unpronounceable by humans. Erin hated chess.…
Zugzwang
"You lose," Lieutenant Darrow said. "Again." He tipped over Erin's game piece, the one they were calling the king. Ton-Gla-Ben wasn't exactly like chess, but the mechanics were very similar, and the actual Quggano names were mostly unpronounceable by humans. Erin hated chess.…
The Story Will Win a Hugo
"That woman is asking about you again, Dustin," said Lucienne, the grad assistant. She'd braided her hair into a blonde rope that hung down her back. Like all his grad assistants, she didn't look old enough to drive. Dustin ground the heels of his hands into his eyes. The…
The Trip
No one heard the crash the night it came to Earth. There were no alarms or calls to the police. The wreckage was actually discovered by a couple searching for the perfect picnic spot. There, in the middle of a clearing, the saucer stood out against the ground. A spray of soil…
Jump, and I'll Catch You
Anton drew his legs up underneath him. The car seat was huge and puffy, and the leather made a breathy creak when he moved. It sounded like it was sighing. "How much longer?" he said. For a while, nobody answered. He thought maybe they hadn't heard him, but then his mother said,…
Phoenix Rising
The reporters keep asking how we could possibly have missed them. "Little green men in our backyard, and the eggheads at Steward didn't even notice." The press just eats that story up. So when I talk publicly, I start with the fact that we're not SETI. We're astronomers. Plus,…
Trial of the God Star
Ship's record of the Assembly colonial warship Eraedia, timestamp 2-18-5-8023. Recovered after the Slaughter of Pramis, 8023-25. Begin transcript: 1. The Judge In the name of the Galactic Assembly, I now open the case of Pramis Colony vs. Unidentified Entity. I will remind all…
The Vivisection of Sgt. Shane Eastwood
"I believe we have found your temporal lobe, which means you should be receiving translation now." "We call that Wernicke's area," Sgt. Eastwood replied, wondering if the translation went both ways. "Excellent. The contralateral neural control slowed our search." There was a…
Burying a Child
The G'narlons were coming any moment for the harvest. Dawnte liked to wait as long as she could, almost to the last minute. She didn't want her son Charlie to be away from her any longer than he had to be. It was a two-day sweep as usual. That was the G'narlons time allotment…
Life on Mars
I was on my way home from my night job when I heard they'd found life on Mars. Algae, I thought, wearily. Fossil bacteria. My night job, my other job, not my full-time job, which was unloading trucks at a warehouse, this job was tutoring Exceptional Teens in Broken Arrow for…
Eight Pieces of Losing You
1: Where a Monster Moves In Next Door to Marnie. "You shouldn't call them that," says Carl, her son. It doesn't really make sense to call them monsters, but somehow the name has stuck. They look human, mostly. Some small differences; they are very pale, their noses are small.…
The Signal
Day 1: This morning, our satellites picked up a radio signal originating from somewhere near the edge of our galaxy. A couple of us think it's more than the usual static background noise we sometimes pick up. Maybe a lot more. We've decided to keep it quiet until we can…
This Doesn't Appear to be the Alien I Paid For
1532 Mayberry Lane New Haven, BR 83623 Athena, Milky Way, Perseus Arm August 1, 2313 Gro-Life Science Kits, Inc. Consumer Complaint Division 41 West Harbor Lane Brekken, YA 26854 Podunk, Andromeda, New Outer Dear Sir or Madam: When my seven-year-old daughter asked for a pet, I…
What Is Expected of a Wedding Host
Welcome, Curious Volunteer! You've taken the first steps on a path that we hope will be rewarding (financially and spiritually) for you as well as the human race: 1. You'll be put through a vigorous series of tests: physical, intellectual, hormonal, and psychological. Don't…
Have You Seen My Girl?
Have you seen her? She's tall and slender and tilts her head to the side when she studies you. Her face is a mosaic of mismatched pieces: eyes too large, mouth too small. Her spiky copper hair brightens to red at the tips. Completely natural, or at least I've never seen it…
Baby Feet
The vitamins stick in my throat worse than the old pre-natals, but I force myself to swallow. The babies need the nutrients, and they'll suck them right out of my body whether there's enough for all three of us or not. I make sure to switch them every time so each child nurses…
Games
The alien sat, if you called it sitting, in my tree house as I tried to explain the game of Monopoly to him. "No, no, no," I said. "You're stupider than Billy Ailes and he's been left back twice. Boardwalk is yours. You bought it and you own it. You just can't give it up. Maybe…
Three is a Sacred Number
K'loth bends his face to the basin and washes. The first washing of the day is for the Gods. One is the Goddess. Two is the God. Three is the Shadow. The water drips from pale blue tentacles above his mouth that move in the motions of prayers he has said every day since…
Die for You
Joseph blinked open his eyes and groaned, stretching his arms out wide and running his hand over the rumbled sheets. He turned his head. His wife was gone, leaving only the impression where her body had lain the night before, a shadow of her curves in the old mattress. In the…
Guidelines for First Contact in Simplified Technical English
WARNING: trying First Contact can cause genocide, xenocide, death, injury, and/or mysterious disappearances. CAUTION: trying First Contact can cause enslavement, colonialism, frustration, bafflement, extreme cultural diffusion, and/or enlightenment. I): Preparations. Make sure…
Breva
Dr. Gianna Nero played the recording back for the fifth time, noting the odd inflections and guttural clicks in Breva's message. A smile curled up at the edges of her mouth as she caught the double entendre that no one on Earth would notice except her. In less than twenty-four…
Home Invasion
The two officers at the front door looked doubtful. Maybe it was the late hour. Maybe it was the less-than-pleasant neighborhood. Maybe it was the short shorts Clarence had fashioned out of aluminum foil to shield his naughty bits from alien rays. He didn't mind their…
Uh... Guys?
Dear Persons Who Have Evolved on the Earth, Please excuse this interruption of your fascinatingly disturbed culture. We will attempt to communicate in one of your languages, but it is difficult to adapt our reference-laden, parenthetical, simplest mode of communication to your…
A Crown of Woven Nails
My best friend growing up was a Splitter named Cobalt. She was nicer than the human kids--they called me Stump because my left hand has no fingers, or Puddle-lover because I spent so much time with Cobalt. Splitters are shape-shifters, but they come from a world with low…
An Impossible Matter
Thorn had seen so many orbs on their journey. Some were large, some small. Some were red and scorching, some cold, craggy rock. But in this swirl of light, the thirdly orb looked different. It was the color that caught his eye: blue and green, with wisps of white swirled around…
Sparg
Sparg had difficulty making pancakes, but he was trying. In the empty apartment, he clutched the silver bowl with one tentacle to hold it steady. With another, he attempted the far trickier business of whipping the batter as he'd seen his owners do many, many times. The bowl was…
All Kinds to Make a World
***Editor's Note: Adult Language*** It's not like we didn't try. A little tentatively at first, a little too gently, I'll admit. We'd never done it before. We hadn't even seen one, only heard them scratching around in the bushes at night. But we understood what we had to…
Lyam
"We have to smother it on all over. Otherwise he'll dry out. Think of it like human babies weaning onto solids. They can't produce their own mucus until they're three years old. The dependency helps reinforce the bond between child and... Moira? Are you alright?" "I can't do…
Snippets
Roger swiveled his chair to gaze out his study window, half-seeing his wife's garden bloom into spring, relishing the down time. The doorbell rang and Roger smiled, listening to his wife Ann plead to their ten-year-old son to quit stomping down the stairs three at a time. Five…
Soft
When Bjorn and his fellows were selected to supply context for the alien overlords who kept insisting they were just there for the Earth's own protection, he'd expected something different. Warriors in exo-skeletons, four limbs with a laser in each, maybe machine intelligences…
I Heard You Got a Cat, I Heard You Named Him Charles
I heard you got a cat. I heard you named him Charles. I guess you didn't know that I do cats too? I played all those games you wanted, all those black-blond-red-brown-bald-headed strangers. But you never said you wanted a cat. I could have done that too. I told you that you'd…
Substitutes
Sometime after sunset on a blustery evening in late summer, with the offworlders' orbital station a small bright misshapen moon over the choppy water of the river and the glittering barges of the loyal rich fighting at their moorings, a slim girl came skipping over Westminster…
What to Expect When You're Expecting an Alien Parasite
***Editor's Warning: Even Humor can be disturbing, and for adults only*** Stage One Pressure may build within the abdomen. The body may need to void itself. Due to the possibility of involuntary urination, you may wish to prepare for this stage by spending some time in the…
Casting Call
"I'm sorry, I just don't think you're right for the part." Michael Poksi shuffled the resume in front of him to the bottom of a large pile of resumes, the result of a disappointing casting day. He stared at his watch and sighed. 5:45. If the train was not running late, he might…
The Remnant
We expected them to be better at it. The aliens. You've only got to go to the movies to know that we expected explosions, telepathy, ray guns. We thought it would be something drawn-out and gruesome, or maybe quick and painless. But either way--big. The invasion looked bad in…
The Miracle on Tau Prime
The investigators arrived in the morning. Father Laughlin and Father Sauer trudged through the dense, chilly fog from their shuttle to the spaceport terminal just as the twin suns of the Tau system began to paint the eastern horizon in yellow hues. "Thank Christ you're finally…
The Race
I've learned a few things since my first race with the Martian. I learned clothes are nothing but extra weight. I strip off my shirt and kick off my skirt until I'm standing, shivering, in my skivvies. They used to be pink, but being passed down through three sisters has turned…
The Key to Everything
My special talent was pissing people off. That wasn't the technical term for it, but that was what I was good at. You would think there wouldn't be much demand for this talent. That would be you, wrong again. On a station like Confetti, where three different alien-to-each-other…
The Trap
Beneath the oldest rainforest in the world, Bakti walked quiet as a jungle cat. Three more hours to check his traps before nightfall. Ndari, equally stealthy, accompanied him. Bakti had warned her it was too dangerous, but her green eyes sparkled at the challenge. "Why?" she had…
Trophy Wife
He wore her heart on his sleeve. It was where he kept all of his trophies. Stitched on to the ceremonial garment that proclaimed him Gar-rag the Victor. He had seven now; seven life organs from seven species from seven planets. Seven was lucky, he knew that too, and he held…
Blue Sand
Five days after my mother dies, I push her into the ocean. Her body is a darker blue than mine, iridescent and nearly purple. Her carapace is brittle, and it shatters beneath the force of the waves. Her body breaks down into a coarse grit that washes up onto the shimmering blue…
Triumph
Ask people what they believe. Approach them on the street or at work, or better yet, visit their homes at dinnertime. Carry clipboards and tablets along with bright unthreatening smiles. Beg for a moment of their time and some careful thought. Tell them that you are doing a…
Too Careful
Tom wakes in a rush of fear--as every morning--and motion triggers react to the flicker of his eyelids, flooding his small room with light. He takes immediate inventory of the space: The door, closed; the tripwire, undisturbed. He lifts himself from the bed in one smooth, silent…
Ryan's World
I go to the grave after the service on Sundays. I leave Cal with Florence, our neighbor, and walk the dusty trail up the hill alone. It's ok because Cal enjoys the time with Florence; she plays games with him much better than I can. I'm not, I guess, that kind of father. My old…
An Open Letter in Defense of Our Alien Overlords
Our alien overlords meant us no harm. I understand the frustration and resentment that this sentiment will no doubt inspire. I know that none of us who were alive then will ever forget the devastation that we experienced in the long, bloody weeks that followed first contact. And…
The Time of Their Visitation
I've decided to blame the aliens for the way my petunias died without blooming this year. Everyone blames them for something. The business journals blame their disinterest in trade for the length of this recession; the financial community is supposed to be in shock over the fact…
Sapience and Maternal Instincts
She had my teeth. I hadn't expected to recognize myself in her, but when she greeted me, her maroon lips parting into a crescent, there they were. My teeth. White, flat, and surprisingly human. I forced myself to look into her too large eyes as her warm, seven-fingered hand…
The Prisoners
There was a lingering smell of smoke in Chanthrows' nostrils, like the acrid stink that stays with you even hours after the campfire has died. He was laid out flat, while overhead the night sky glimmered as with a thousand stars. He had never seen a sky like that before. Then he…
Cloudburst
Saturday night was scheduled to be our game night. Except that nobody ever told me the schedule. My son was unfolding the Monopoly board. My wife claimed that we had talked this through days ago. I claimed that I'd been more preoccupied than usual, which was the truth. I…
Visiting Planet Earth
I visit your planet from time to time, but it really is too painful. My race is immortal now, and our client races are immortal, too, or have transcended bodily form and exist in virtual realms, which is immortality by another route. But you humans are the only sentient beings…
Look Who Came to Dinner
Marcia was super pissed. Who the hell do they think they are? She stormed into her bedroom to get dressed. She tugged on a pair of jeans, which wasn't easy since she hadn't really taken the time to dry off. The sweater she slipped into instantly became damp around the neckline…
Crickets
Dr. Arroyo sighs. It's over. NASA has shut down, SETI has folded, the donors have forgotten the cause, the computers are out of date, the telescopes are old and broken. The decades of silence had defeated his mission. How many billions of dollars had SETI spend over his…
Inflection
Beth was breaking down book boxes in the backroom on the day he left. She ran her box cutter down taped seams, split the tape with slashing strokes that ran into the cardboard, ran through the corrugation, frayed bits of brown into fringe. She had thought she would not see him…
Found in the Wreckage
A giant silver ship burst though the Great Blue Dome and hurtled toward the earth. There was an explosion that shook the ground. The native found her in the wreckage. He prodded her with his foot. She whimpered, so he squatted down to watch until she coughed and sat up. He tried…