The air in Sector 4 smelled and tasted like sulfur. My throat absorbed it. It coated my throat with a thick, metallic film that no amount of pure water could wash away. I checked my watch. 19:31. The digital numbers lasered my eyes, the watch glowed a violent, bleeding red against my skin. She was …
Nobody else seemed to notice the mistakes. As if they were just a part of life – well, they were, to some extent. But it wasn’t normal – clocks jumping a few seconds, people repeating the same thing word for word multiple days in a row, the same stranger appearing in multiple places. I noticed …
The fluorescent lights of Carriage 4 hummed a bland B-flat with the same dilute blue that flickered above my cubicle an hour before. The carriage was oddly devoid of the usual Friday-night crowd. In fact, I was the only one who remained. My eyes met with a yellowing dental advertisement that presented a pasty woman …
Scarlet remnants of shattered life trickle into the drain lining the road. Silence dominates. The world is frozen in shock, like a mistimed Victorian photograph. Flashbacks. Endless flashbacks plague the mind of the young girl standing unsteady in the road. Flashbacks of the event which had, moments ago, pulverised the steadfast flow of her existence. …
“Are you for real?” I asked. They were the only words that seemed to be able to pour out of my mouth. Frozen, I stood, barely able to move an inch of my body looking at the woman who claimed to be my mother. The mystery that nobody was able to solve for 10 years, …
My body jolts suddenly in response to the familiar repetitive ringing from the device beside my head, uncomfortable upon the cotton casing. Before I’m really awake, my hand darts out towards the silencer. My eyelids begin to draggingly peel apart, the scarce hours of sleep evident in the discoloured bags beneath them, deep hues of …
Chris looked out over the horizon. Poking his head above the fragile barricade. The wind shredding his face like cheese on a cheese grater. Edging closer, the faint echo of marching gradually draws louder. He scrambles for his bag and reaches deep inside for his binoculars and directs them towards the hilltop in the distance. …
It was about halfway through lunch break and I finally got some food from the canteen. The hall was a sea of noise; with clattering trays and shouting coming from every direction, plus the queue was so long I thought I’d still be there by fourth period. Like always, I bought a ham and cheese …
Get back before dark, those were the rules, the rules that had been hammered into our heads since the day we learnt to talk and every day after. Never forget. Never question. Never be outside at night. These rules formed the backbone of our choices, our decisions and for good reason following the rules is …
“You’ll be up there for 18 months and then we’ll come to retrieve you and your findings.” I replay the recording again and again through the speaker embedded in the dashboard of the ship. Alarms blare all around me, signalling the impending crash as I hurtle towards the dusty planet. Months of travel has led …
