The geevee ride through Maskar Hills is at once an eternal and a fleeting period. Penelope and I are sitting on one bench, opposite Cooper, Runa, and Lumpy Nose on their own bench. The driver is on my right, wearing a loose beige uniform and a clear-visored helmet, nimbly steering the geevee between trees and … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Ten – Asulon
Tag: Sci-fi
Project Super Nex – Chapter Nine – Vicissitude of Fortune
“What the bugfuck are you doing here?” That’s the first thing flying out of Penelope’s mouth precisely three seconds after she, Gene, and two of Augen’s faithful pobs showed up out of nowhere. The afternoon sunlight slicing through the library windows and the dusty air casts sharp shadows across Penelope’s glowering face, over the switchguns … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Nine – Vicissitude of Fortune
Project Super Nex – Chapter Eight – Old Scars
Ten minutes after snoozing the alarm at six, I haul myself out of bed, pee, shower, brush my teeth, get dressed, and breakfast on cinnamon oatmeal and aurium tea. My parents aren’t up yet, so I head into their room and peck them goodbye on the top of their heads; without opening her eyes Mom … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Eight – Old Scars
My 2 Cents on All Our Wrong Todays
I’ve always been partial to time-travel tales—Back to the Future, Stephen King’s 11/22/63, Audrey Niffenegger’s The Time Traveler’s Wife, NBC’s Timeless, et cetera. And I can add another one to the list: All Our Wrong Todays, the 2017 debut novel by screenwriter Elan Mastai (The F Word). It takes place in an alternate timeline where … Continue reading My 2 Cents on All Our Wrong Todays
Project Super Nex – Chapter Seven – Shred of Everything
Lab C16 on the Citadelle’s thirty-first floor is nice enough, with its tables and computers arranged in loose circles, with its microscopes, vials, centrifuges, ultra-cold freezers, and tons of other supplies. It’s one of several laboratories in the building handling research for Warbearer projects. I’m running computer sims, organizing equipment, recording everything in excruciating detail … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Seven – Shred of Everything
Project Super Nex – Chapter Six – First Acquaintance
Mom’s dropping me off now at Gollinger Park on her way to work (she’s an executive for MacCloud Electronics up in the city). She kisses me on the forehead, ruffles my hair, wishes me luck on my tennis match with Dr. Fulbright. I climb out of her car, watch her drive off, and then I … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Six – First Acquaintance
Project Super Nex – Chapter Five – Grammar Fanatic
My Mobular driver, Larson, is motoring out of Hexaber and then speeding west through the Trainore neighborhood. His stereo is blaring some twangy, plaintive country song; I never have to listen to any of that in Penelope’s truck. Sitting in the backseat, I distract myself by checking Walnut. My feed’s filled with news about the … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Five – Grammar Fanatic
Project Super Nex – Chapter Four – Paladin Gains Wings
A female voice, throaty and soulful and subdued, wafts out of the distance. The words are muffled . . . growing clearer . . . it’s a song, a forlorn one . . . But where am I? It’s dark, but I’m lying supine on cushioned surfaces. I imagine being on a bed that’s lost … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Four – Paladin Gains Wings
Project Super Nex – Chapter Three – The Thistles
“My fucking pad itches.” My eyebrows automatically scrunch together at Penelope reaching under the table, seemingly adjusting something in her pants. She screws up her face, and then her hand comes back up, hovers over her dwindling band of white pieces on the hexagonal ninety-one-cell reglintel board. Her narrowed gray eyes search for a weakness … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Three – The Thistles
Project Super Nex – Chapter Two – The Best We Can Do
CHAPTER TWO: THE BEST WE CAN DO For years I’ve had this dream where I’m in a meadow, having just picked some berries near the river. I amble down a mossy path with grawtrees standing tall on either side, shafts of gold light filtering through the apple-laden branches arcing protectively overhead. The peaty-smelling air whispers … Continue reading Project Super Nex – Chapter Two – The Best We Can Do
2 Cents Critic 