Red Futures Mag

End in Fire, Book I Zenith, Chapter 2

By Matthew James Seidel. BOOK I: ZenithPrevious Section: Chapter 1, Next section: (coming soon), Contents page. Chapter 210 minutes 38 seconds 10 minutes 37 seconds Sixteen-year-old Francisco Abeda’s hands were shaking. His right leg was pumping up and down. His knee produced a steady dull thump-thump-thump every time it

Call for submissions

We’re launching an open prompt for submissions to our next round of Red Futures Science Fiction writing! You can see our last sets of short stories which respond to the prompts New Planet and Utopia. For our next prompt, we are issuing an open call for submissions on the

End in Fire

End in Fire, Book I Zenith, Chapter 1

By Matthew James Seidel. BOOK I: ZenithPrevious Section: Prologue, Next section: Chapter 2, Contents page. Chapter 1Like all patriotic holidays, Arrival Day accentuated the brutally maintained divisions within society. That was not, of course, its stated purpose. In fact, according to Malcolm Grady, Assistant Manager of the Public Relations Department,

Prompt 2 Utopia

Feasibility Report

by Emilie Reed. The woman two desks down from where I sit sometimes ends up working in the same spreadsheet as I am. Checking and filling in the columns is a background clutter task that hardly registers as a skilled behavior to everyone in the office, but I still watch

Prompt 2 Utopia

Dreaming of Utopia

by Jamie Woodcock. It was hard to remember how many days, weeks, months, or even years they had been there. During the transit, the treatment was part of their contract. It was delivered like an immunisation, injected into the shoulder. Instead of providing protection, it changed body chemistry and the

Prompt 1 New Planet

Rings

by Mike Cook. It was the last day on earth, and it looked like it was going to rain. This was the sort of observation Sam would usually make a little mental note of for a later conversation with someone, but catastrophic global disasters made it hard to find someone

Prompt 1 New Planet

Long Haul

by Emilie Reed. Sidney is skimming the tent of her fingers along the in-cabin entertainment screen. Her gestures have been getting more grandiose over time, so when I stare at her back, I notice the force of each movement sending her slightly sideways in space, like a ticking clock hand.

Prompt 1 New Planet

Cave Canem

by Florence Smith Nicholls. Olive was a reliable dog-sitter. Every weekend she would dutifully watch over Old Sam’s beloved pet while he went away on business. It was easy money, especially because the dog had actually been dead for at least two years. “Smells weird.” Olive didn’t acknowledge

Prompt 1 New Planet

New Planet

by Jamie Woodcock. It was supposed to be a new world. He remembered the first time stepping foot onto the planet. A barren landscape stretched out on all sides. No flora or fauna. It was unmarked by human settlements. The ground crunched underfoot, bringing sound to the otherwise silent vista.

End in Fire

End in Fire, Book I Zenith, Prologue

By Matthew James Seidel. Next section: Book I Zenith Chapter 1, Contents page. Prologue Nathan almost forgot the sky wasn’t real until the ad started. Actors stepped from behind clouds, reciting lines Nathan had heard so often he could recite them himself. He had gotten better at blocking out