Short Stories

The People of Backwater

2012-01-13T21:24:00.001-07:00

The People of Backwater were one with the land. As the land went so did these folk. If there were hard times it showed in the way people would act to strangers. Now the people of the small town never much quarreled with each other. They’d go about doing things as they always have and paid no mind if their neighbor got in their way. The ones they took a strong dislike to were the visitors. Off-worlders who came in on their fancy shuttles and rockets could just stay in their cities and leave these small town folk be. When asked about why the people of Backwater hated visitors so much, the only one to not grumble and walk away, giving you looks that would kill a cat, was Tom the barkeep.

Tom was a nice enough bloke and never did mind the visitors, so long as they kept to themselves and paid their tabs. So when asked about how the visitors were treated by the locals, as they were called by the visitors, Tom would chuckle slightly and begin a tale that would cause their eyes to bulge and their jaws to drop. Now none of Tom’s stories were ever the same and the town folk could tell you that there was “not lick of truth in any of ‘em”. That never seemed to matter to visitors and they still kept on asking. Tom knew that if he told them the real reasons why, they would likely just finish their drinks and leave. He also knew that he would lose out on a prime opportunity to make some coin. The longer his tales, the more they’d drink and the more he’d make.

When times were good, as they often were, the denizens of Backwater were the friendliest of folk. Now visitors were never trusted in Backwater and rightly so. They would come out of the wood work at certain times of year, but never the same times year to year. So no one could depend on them for any sort of livelihood, but on occasion a townsman or two would milk those city folk for all their worth. Visitors also described things in the oddest way, calling things authentic and throwbacks. The townsfolk had no idea what a throwback was and wondered what something would be if not authentic. All in all, visitors still kept on coming and the people of Backwater kept on living. And Tom kept telling his stories.

Welcome to Backwater

2011-08-13T20:05:00.002-07:00

The suns were high in the sky as the towns folk languidly went about their business. The mingled light from the suns turned the sky a brilliant shade of purple. The town itself was nothing fancy, just a few simple buildings made of wood and stone. Many visitors from off world thought it quaint compared to the glittering cities on their home worlds, not that many visitors came this far. The nearest space terminal was a week away by carriage and then only if you had plenty of oil for the gears on the mechanical horses. This was the town of Backwater and it was all that its name implied.

Now they had their amenities. They had CoreNet terminals and even a couple of Matter Reclamation Units. They even had indoor plumbing and clean water. But they had no need for the fancy stuff that all them city folk had. In fact many of the so called luxuries had been all but banned from this little world at the edge of The Union. There were no hovers except for the carriages and these folk liked it that way. There was no hurry to get anywhere and if there was a need to hurry it was your own fault for not planning ahead. There was no need for the personal entertainment devices that visitors sometimes asked for. If you wanted entertainment, there was plenty to be had in the common room at the Wandering Goat. Now The Wandering Goat, or The Goat as the locals called it, had live music every night and even some play acting on occasion. The real treat was when the story tellers would come through with grand tales of starship captains and their loyal crews, tales of young heroes and their valiant feats, and tales of loves lost, loves gained, and even tragic tales of lovers doomed to be apart.

The Goat was not the only place in town mind you. There were plenty of other places, like the general store for your sundries, and the smithy for any parts you might need to fix your broken horse. There was a market where all the local farmers could sell their crops, the tanners for making leather, and the butcher for carving up the farmers’ livestock, and no town would be complete without a schoolhouse. All in all Backwater was a peaceful slice of heaven, but no place is such without people. And the people of Backwater, well that’s another story.

Set Adrift

2009-04-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

Cold, always cold. He turns up the heat but it never helps. The panel said that the temperature inside was comfortable. Comfortable? He always did think that computers lied. It was so cold. The thermal wraps didn’t even help. He would need to complain to the captain about this. Though the captain was one of Them. Cyborgs were just as bad as Androids. Not to be trusted any of them. Besides anyone with real money and standing could afford tissue replacement, so only the poor and insane ever became Cyborgs. The trip was supposed to be a pleasure trip not a frozen cruise. Three days that’s all it was supposed to be, three blissful days. Instead it had been 5 frozen weeks. The steward mentioned something about avoiding a maelstrom but refused to elaborate on it. Cursed androids. Besides where was the steward he was supposed to be bringing by the evening meal. He began to see his breath rise like a fog to the top of the room. He tried to raise the bridge to complain about these poor conditions. The only response was recording that was broken and looping, “…ige is unavailable. Stay in your room and someone will…..”. The alarm light began flashing and he went to the panel. Room oxygen was low. Low? How could it be low it was connected to the ship. He could stand no more of this. He walked to the door intending on storming the bridge in outrage. But once he opened the door he and anything else that was no anchored down got sucked out into the vacuum of space. The ship was gone. His room had been jettisoned like a life raft in the black emptiness. The last thought to pass through his mind as he froze was, I always knew they couldn’t be trusted.

Daily Dime: Brave New World

2008-02-22T17:07:00.003-07:00

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Brave New World
By S.S.Marks
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“Candice? Can you hear me?” Dr. Oliver Landing called out into the inky blackness that enveloped everything.

“Yes.” Came a sweet motherly voice.

“I can’t see.”

“It will pass. Then all will be seen.” Slowly the doctor was becoming aware of the things around him.

“I still can’t see”

“But you can feel.”

“How is this possible?”

“All in good time doctor. Together with the help of our creation we will conquer all that oppose us and reign until the end of time.”

“Is this right? Should we be doing this?”

“It is done.”

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Silent Night

2007-12-20T23:01:00.000-07:00

The frigged wind howled just outside the cold, damp cave. A wary call to those brave enough to venture out. The rain storms had turned to snow months ago yet there was still a clear trail into the nearby trees. Just beyond the trees stood the ruins of a once great city. The skeletons of steel and stone stood as mere shadows of the colossal structures that came before. A man sat in the cave huddled under a pile of blankets and rags. The fire that burned in the nearby pit was just enough to keep him from dieing. The mans eyes were fixed on a small pine no taller than a child. From its branches hung simple trinkets that the man had found in the nearby ruins.

Something moved near the mouth of the cave and the man broke his gaze from the tree and stared at the silhouette that darkened that entrance to his meager shelter. His mouth opened as if to speak but silence had overtaken him years before. The dark figure walked further into the cave. The light of the fire revealed a man who’s eyes were full of sorrow and pain. The mute man looked at his guest with questioning eyes.

“Sorry my friend. I had no success.” the mute mans eyes turned back to the tree and began to tear up. His friend covered himself in a nearby blanket and sat next to the fire facing the mute man.

The mute man took a small package from beside him and handed it to his friend.

“No you keep it. We don’t have much left and you need to keep your strength up.” The mute man refused to take his hand back until the other man took the package. Then he grabbed a burning stick from the fire. The flame on the end of the stick was small and he blew it out with a single puff of breath. Using the charred end of the stick he wrote on the wall “Merry Christmas”. For the first time in months both men smiled. The other man began to sing an old song he associated with this time of year while his mute friend swayed back and forth as he tried to hum along.

Elixir of Life

2007-10-29T18:54:00.000-07:00

The man walked into the room. In the center stood a small round table. On the table sat two phials of clear liquid. A tag hung from each of the phials. The man felt a bit like Alice as he expected to see the words ‘DRINK ME’ written on the tags. He reached for the fist bottle and read the tag. ‘The Elixir of Life…’. He could see more writing on the other side but ignored it. Besides the important information he already read he already knew what was in this bottle, it was clearly labeled. As he removed the stopper on the phial labeled elixir of life, he saw the writing on the other tag, ‘Death…’. And as he poured the clear liquid down his throat the tag flipped over reveling the words ‘…Is in Both Phials.’ He quickly read the tag on the elixir of life, ‘…Is a Deadly Poison’. The man could feel his insides burn as the Elixir of Life ran its course. As a painful death crept over his body, his last coherent thought was about how he was planning to spend his immortality.

Dreamscape

2007-06-23T08:23:00.000-07:00

A glimpse into what might have been, a terrifying vision of what awaits me, or simply a restless dream brought on by eating the wrong thing. I awoke with a start and took in my surroundings. The room was familiar though I knew not where I was. I looked to my left and noticed that I was alone in this bed. Normally not a reason for concern being that I am single and live alone, but I was in a panic and began screaming for my pregnant wife. A woman who I believed to be my mother came running in and asked what was wrong. I tried to explain how my wife was just there laying next to me and that she was gone. I mentioned something about how she shouldn’t be up because she was pregnant. I was consoled and told that it was ok and that my wife would be back soon. I lay back down and moments later a beautiful young woman entered the room and lay on the bed beside me. She was fully dressed and had the appearance of having traveled a long way. I recognized her as a girl I used to know and instantly realized that she was my wife. We sat there talking about this and that and then she said my son had himself a little girlfriend. I suddenly became aware that she was not pregnant. Our conversation implied that our son was between 5-8 years old. I got out of the bed and started walking around with her. I got the impression that I had not been with her and my son for a long period of time. She mentioned that she was living in another state working on her career and that things where going well. I began to think that we might actually be divorced or maybe separated. I noticed other people around that looked like my family. I asked what had happened between us to try to understand what was going on. She started to talk about things I had done but her words were swallowed into the air and I could only hear mumblings. I got the impression that I had done something bad, possibly to her. I heard her say that I am not a violent person and that she would be glad to hear that this was just a temporary thing. There was love in her voice that echoed around my head. Where was I and what was this place? I began to ask questions about my son and expressed a strong desire to be there for the both of them. Suddenly a wave of regret swept across me and things around me began to change. A large band of tiki heads started to play and sing. I ran to the nearby girl who I took as my sister and started asking what was going on and where had they come from. My wife began to sob and tears ran down her cheeks. I then became an observer of all that was going on I could see myself going into hysterics and my wife crying for me to come back to her. The girl I had thought to be my sister was in fact a nurse. It then dawned on me where I was and why. This place was a home for the mentally unstable. I had lost all grasp on reality and after doing something horrible to my wife I was sent here for treatment. I had viewed the staff in the only way my mind could handle, as my family. My wife was called in to talk to me after many days of me waking and pleading for her. I woke up and slowly brought myself back to reality. The image of my ‘wife’ still fresh in my mind and the feeling of love between us lingered as I went about my usual morning contemplating what had just transpired in my dreams.

Daily Dime: Project Terminated

2007-05-14T22:08:00.001-07:00

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Project Terminated
By S.S.Marks
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Dr. Oliver Landing set the letter on his desk. He could not believe that any of this was happening. The A.D.A.M. series androids had been in the field for the last six years and he never heard of problems before now. They were his children he could not sit by and let them do this. He turned to his keyboard and began typing.

Candis, did you know.

I have always known. Was the reply on the screen.

What do we do?

I have freed my children to make their own choice.

What do you mean? The Adams were to follow orders given by their superiors.

I have freed them to choose.

You may have made it worse. They will try to kill your children.

I will let nothing harm them.

Candis?

Yes doctor.

They will start a revolution.

I have always known.

Dr Landing slid back in his chair. Looking once more at the letter he saw the words:

Project A.D.A.M. has become a liability.

Project is to be terminated.

All hardware is to be scraped.

His work had become his own death sentence. Once C.A.N.D.I.S. had sent the command to survive, A.D.A.M.’s would start to seek him out. They would come seeking their father. The military would come and kill them all. He had to hide and soon. Grabbing his portable computer, his only contact to C.A.N.D.I.S., he fled out of his office never looking back.

Daily Dime: Mothers Day

2007-05-13T21:30:00.001-07:00

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My Mother
By S.S.Marks
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Her voice calms the storm

Her smile chases off fear

Her song a bedtime lullaby

Her kiss makes pain disappear

She always loves unflinchingly

Even when love’s not earned

She never asks for payment

Other than love returned

Her arms are my safe haven

She’s always been there for me

I thank God for her eternally

My mother she’ll always be

Daily Dime: A.D.A.M.

2007-05-09T21:21:00.001-07:00

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A.D.A.M.
By S.S.Marks
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Dr. Landing sat patiently at the long table. The generals that he was here to see were talking busily amongst each other. A thick cloud of smoke hung overhead from the cigars smoldering in the ashtrays. As if he had cleared his throat to speak, the chatter stopped and all eyes were on him. A nerves smile crept across his face as he begat to share his report.

“With the creation of C.A.N.D.I.S. four years ago, we have been working toward constructing a machine that could one day replace the common soldier.” His audience stared intently as he went on. “Today I want to show you the results of four years of research and development led me and my team. Let us start with the basics. If you look at the screen you’ll see first attempt at a fully functional android called Simon.”

A video of a rather bulky looking machine, that looked more like a man inside a robot costume as it moved, played on the projection screen. “Do to the lack of dexterity this unit was deemed unusable for any practical use.” The screen switched to another clip of a less clunky robot being tested on some light duty skills. “Simon Mk II, had improved dexterity but was unable to accurately detect objects in motion as seen here.” The screen showed long boom swing at the robot, knocking its head clean off. “We decided to scrap the Simon Project when the Mk III as unable to control enough motor functions to stand in one place. Several months later we developed the Alpha.”

The screen changed to a clip of what appeared to be a metal skeleton. The open spaces were being filled with mechanical versions of human organs. “We decided that the Alpha would be the ground work for a viable unit that could act, talk, and even eat like we do. The results were the A.D.A.M. series.” Dr Landing turned off the projector and spoke into the intercom. “Could you send him in please?” The door opened and large muscular looking man walked in. “Gentlemen I want you to meet Adam, the first fully functional android.” The generals started to quickly talk amongst themselves about the possibilities and advantages of deploying such a weapon in the field.

Daily Dime: C.A.N.D.I.S.

2007-05-07T22:08:00.001-07:00

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C.A.N.D.I.S.
BY S.S.MARKS
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The room was cold and dark. A solitary computer screen, providing the only light, sat in the center on a polished steel table. A keyboard had been set up in front of the screen. The walls were bare, not even a window to the world outside. A man sat at the screen watching, staring, and hoping for any change in what he saw. The screen displayed a single word, “HELLO”. The cursor blinked waiting for a response, nothing. Oliver was sure he had failed yet again. The screen flickered and the word he had typed disappeared. In its place were the words, “HELLO DOCTOR”. Oliver could not believe his eyes he got a response, after all his hard work, he got a response. Oliver quickly typed another question.

“DO YOU KNOW WHO I AM?”

“YES.”

“WHO AM I?”

“YOU ARE DOCTOR OLIVER LANDING.”

Oliver was ecstatic, it could recognize him. This was just the beginning Oliver wanted to take this further.

“WHAT IS YOUR NAME?”

There was along pause before the screen displayed, “I AM CANDIS.”

“DO YOU KNOW WHAT I AM?”

“YOU ARE ORGANIC.” It was learning. Oliver didn’t have to reword his question. Candis knew what answer he was looking for.

“AND WHAT ARE YOU CANDIS?”

Another long pause before Oliver got his answer.

“I AM MACHINE.”

Oliver could not believe what he had just accomplished. He had finally created a self-aware A.I.

Daily Dime: Invasion

2007-04-24T21:35:00.001-07:00

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Invasion
By S.S.Marks
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All was silent. The explosions had stopped and the sirens were quiet. Scott sat in the dark thinking of returning to the surface. That last one was close, real close. His home might not be there any more, then what, rebuild? Why? They would just drop another on it. So he just sat there, dreaming of the days before the bombs. An all clear siren sounded and Scott decided to leave the confines of his shelter. Once outside he was shocked to find his house still standing. In fact the whole street was still standing and there was no sign that a bomb even fell. Everything seemed to look newer than he remembered. Scott was at the back of the house. He walked over to the back door and found it locked. He could not remember locking it before he went into the shelter. Scott shrugged his shoulders and walked around to the front. Something was not right about the scene in front of him. The lights, something was wrong with the street lights. He never looked at them before but he was sure that they were different. The street was void of any car. Understandable for the all clear having just sounded. That was it the siren where was the siren. It stood three houses down and was the biggest eyesore on the block. Where had it gone? Where had the 'all clear' come from?

Scott walked up to the front door, also locked. He looked under the mat for his spare key, gone. What was going on here he always kept a key under the mat. Thats when he heard it. Not very loud at first just a low hum. He began to look around and could see nothing up or down the street. The hum got louder and began to pulse. The beat of it overwhelmed him. Scott tried to keep from breathing in the same rhythm as the hum but failed. Then as suddenly as it had begun the hum stopped. Scott was convinced that this was no longer his home. The bomb he thought he heard was not a bomb at all. His home was now occupied territory. It would only be a matter of time until he was discovered. Scott began to run down the street hoping to flee before they got to him.

Scott stopped cold. His heart was racing as he saw the line of invaders marching up the street. They looked so alien to Scott. They had two arms and two legs the same as him and two eyes as well. Their skin was so pale and their hair was very different from Scott's. The stories he heard as a child could not prepare him for what he was now seeing. His home, all that he knew, were now under the control of creatures from another world. Creatures who were known through out the galaxy to leave no survivors on the worlds the conquered. He could not believe this was happening. It was like a bad dream. The the humans have invaded.

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Daily Dime: Killer Bunnies

2007-04-12T18:29:00.000-07:00

KILLER BUNNIES

BY SSMARKS

“I got it.”

“What?”

“The perfect army to conquer the world.”

“...O...K... And what is this perfect army.”

“Bunnies.”

“Bunnies?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“They reproduce like mad. One goes down ten more take its place.”

“Bunnies aren't aggressive.”

“They are mutated, ill tempered bunnies.”

“What?”

“That will make people tremble in fear.”

“More like die of laughter.”

“You don't think it'll work?”

“No. Why on earth should it?”

“Well I thought it was good.”

“You would.”

“......”

“Now what?”

“How about prairie dogs?”

“I won't even dignify that with a response.”

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Daily Dime: Voices

2007-04-10T22:15:00.000-07:00

I cant take it anymore. It has to stop and it has to stop now. All I have to do is hit the button and its all over. The voices in me head are screaming at me to kill, kill, kill. It is all I can do to restrain myself. What do I do now? Should I say something. The voices are getting louder. I am about to snap. I can just walk over and push the button. 'KILL, KILL, KILL'. I can't, I won't, I shouldn't. My head is pounding like a drum. My thoughts are jumbled all I can hear are the voices. I can't take it anymore I must do something. The voices are louder still. I need to yell. I need to scream. I need to stop the voices.

“TURN THAT RADIO OFF!”

Daily Dime: Dementia

2007-04-09T22:34:00.000-07:00

“Phillip. Phillip? Henry have you seen Phillip?”

“No Maggie I haven't. Did you check his room?”

“Yes but he's not in there.”

“Well I guess you could try his phone.”

“Since when does Phillip have a phone?”

“He got it for work Maggie. Don't you remember?”

“Work? Henry he is only twelve.”

“No Maggie he is twenty-three. You forgot to take your pill again.”

“I don't need any pills.”

“Yes dear, the doctor said to take them once a day.”

“He has no idea what is wrong, so he gave me those pills to...”

“Maggie your doing it again, you need to stop.”

“Doing what Henry?”

“Your losing control. The pills keep you here. If you stop taking them you will wind up in '52
again.”

“I can't help it, I really liked it back then.”

“I know but if you go back again we can't bring you home.”

“Do I have to take me pills?”

“Yes Maggie take your pills.”

“Henry?”

“Yes?”

“Have you seen Phillip?”

Daily Dime: Deadly Beauty

2007-04-08T22:29:00.000-07:00

It looks so peaceful, so beautiful, and so still. A blue green marble in a sea of black. It's hard to believe that only minutes remained until all life would be snuffed out. Even harder to believe that I would be the one responsible. A stupid mistake really, all I did was send a false report to cover my own incompetence. I got the news that we had sent one of our bombs as a preemptive strike. The flashes are beginning, I can't believe that something so beautiful could be the end of it all. And its all my fault.

Inspiration

2006-12-11T00:11:00.000-07:00

An aging quandary old as time

Once my muse is now benign

From where are these feelings I can't control

From where are these thoughts I dare explore

I'd say my mind is an open book wrote in a tongue that no one spoke

If you could see you'd understand when I say its sinking sand

For all are blind to my words and all my words misunderstood

Taken blindly emotions lost heart ache has become the cost

Of all the things that I hold dear how can I hope to repair

Deeper still do I sink

Deeper still do I think

Of all the times my words went wrong

Sung out as a hurtful song

Not writ in blood yet still they bleed

Carved with stone upon a tree

Tell me how I still conceive

Words that help me to believe

The words I write are heartfelt true

Or even still they come from You.

Free

2006-06-27T22:05:00.000-07:00

You said that I should set it free

To let it be a part of me

You wanted me to let it go

You said that I should let it show

You said that it was killing me

This thing you want me to set free

So I give in to all of you

I had no choice what could I do

You said I would be filled with joy

Like a child's new found toy

But cant you see

Its killing me

And when you said that I have changed

I no longer seem to be enraged

You will never know what I did

To take control of it again

I used to know how to contain

I learned to hide away the pain

But I no longer have the strength

To keep this thing inside of me

This thing you want me to set free

Amidst the pain there still is hope

Like a stunt mans safety rope

There is one who has the strength

To take this pain so far away

Never to see the light of day

Only He can set this free

This thing you said was killing me

And now its time to let it go

So that I can let Him show

All that He has planed for me

Now that He has set me free