Sunlight filtered through the blinds of the lonely hospital room. Six-year-old Tommy Morsley lay in his bed, surrounded by sterile white walls and machines with coloured lights and dials. Above Tommy’s bed hung a sign saying “Home for Christmas”. The hospital room had been his home for the past three months. Next to him sat his father, Doctor Ian Morsley, a Professor of Antiviral Engineering working for the Health Department of the South Pacific Government. Tommy looked at the large needle in his father’s hand. “Is that going to help me, Dad?” he asked. “I’m not sure, Tommy. I hope so.” Tommy stared into his father’s eyes. “Will I be home for Christmas?” “Yes, Tommy,” said his father with a smile. “Of course you will. I promise.” Tommy tried to smile, his eyes drowsy once more. “Are you staying, Dad?” “I have an experiment to complete,” he said. “Then I’ll bring you some food. How about fish and chips?” Tommy didn’t […]
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Old Man Langly
Roy Banner stood over the lifeless body of his friend Peter. Blood dripped from the swords in his hands. The others would have to kill him for what he’d done. The problem was, he was already dead. They watched him die. The devil took him into the bowels of hell and spat him back out to wreak more havoc. Eddie and Steve looked on in horror, crouched behind an old sixties-style sofa. “What the fuck do we do now?” whispered Eddie. “We keep going,” said Steve. “We download the file and get the hell out of here.” “What about Peter and Roy? And what the fuck is Roy anyway?” “Don’t worry. Once we get out we’ll tip-off the cops from a phone booth.” “A PHONE BOOTH?” yelled Steve a little too loudly. “When was the last time you saw a fucking phone booth?” Roy stared in their direction, his eyes white and gloomy. Steve and Eddie looked at each other and […]
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Life In The Shadow
1. Max Tanner sprinted across the tarmac. Airport security launched the pursuit, screaming into their radios as they ran. The Boeing 737-800 made a deafening sound as it accelerated along the runway approaching take-off velocity. Max looked over his shoulder making a slight directional adjustment, praying his calculations were correct. Whatever the outcome, he’d have to deal with it on the other side. He had no more cards to play. The younger, healthier security staff had almost caught up when an airport police vehicle came up beside him. A man in a grey uniform sat in the passenger seat waving his arms and yelling out the window. Max didn’t understand a word he said, but knew exactly what he suggested. He continued running as fast as he could, looking over his shoulder again as the 737 lifted off the ground with a roar. Within the next three seconds he needed to be in the space the police car occupied. With no […]
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The Edge Of The Forest
Death comes to many in the relentless task of defending and sustaining Boldanthium. It is not considered tragic, and if those who die have done their job well, there will be many more to replace them. Achieving old age is rare. The only certain way to die is to disobey the orders of our Queen. As soon as the age of participation is reached, it is our non-negotiable duty to join the army and seek out all that is required to maintain our colonial existence. We fearlessly venture across the vast forest, and for the lucky ones, return to Boldanthium with the spoils of our journey. We are small in size, but strong and agile. Our sheer numbers help overcome and bring down some of the larger creatures occupying the forest. Many of them are simply too large and powerful. They pick us off one by one. But our army is large and we spread ourselves wide across the landscape. This […]
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The Dream Writer
How can they expect any sane man to live under these conditions? That was the only question left on his tired mind. He’d lost all hope. His world consisted of a small, windowless concrete room with a single bed and a round-edged side-table securely bolted to the floor. A small, filthy toilet and plastic hand basin occupied the corner opposite his bed. A red button on the wall was his only connection to the attendant somewhere outside, who rarely responded. After five years the world beyond those grey walls was just a memory, and well out of sight. But who in their right mind would want to see the world in such a shattered, desolate state? It’s only a dream, he told himself with all the doubt and disbelief of a man approaching the end of his miserable life. The fact that dreams could come true, as well as nightmares, had become just as real as the cell he now called […]
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Let’s Dance
It was the same thing every Saturday night. Rosie prepared an early dinner and handed it to her husband who sat quietly staring at the television. “Why don’t you come too?” she’d always say. “It’s never too late you know.” Bob never dignified the question with a response. Between shovelling fork loads of food into his mouth, he silently reached for the remote control, selecting his favourite show. He couldn’t imagine anything worse than going with her. Rosie shrugged as she applied a final shine to her pretty red dancing shoes. She put on her very best dress, the same one she wore every Saturday night. It made her feel like an angel as she glided across the dance floor. With her bag packed, she gave Bob a loving peck on the cheek before heading out. She paused at the door and tried one last time. “Life begins when you learn to dance.” “Off you go,” grunted Bob. He loved Rosie […]
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