For days now, Ned’s phone had been on the blink. Almost at the point for a factory reset, he’s so fed up with it. Today is Thursday, if it is still playing up on Saturday he’ll drop by the phone shop in town, maybe they can sort it out.
On the train it rings annoyingly in his pocket, despite
being set to vibrate, a mad tune of shrill notes and groaning, like he’s
deliberately trying to annoy the other commuters. He thrusts his hand deep into
his jacket pocket and rummages around for the off button. For a second it feels
as though something alive tickles his skin, like a spider. He yelps and
withdraws his hand.
The old guy opposite, engrossed in his laptop, looks up and
frowns. Once he’s off the train, walking the familiar footbridge over the
platforms to his office block, Ned carefully opens out his jacket pocket and
empties the contents onto the ground.
His phone clatters to the concrete. Whether it is the trick
of the light or his own imagination, he could swear there were tendrils, like
plant roots, stretching out from the phone case. He kicks it, but it is just a phone.
He picks it up. The screen now has a long crack running across it. He tries
turning it on but nothing happens, and he groans. Broken and now no phone till he
can get to the shop on Saturday.
On Saturday, the phone fix-it girl places Ned’s phone in an
in-tray bulging with phones. She blows a bubble-gum bubble and then hands him his
receipt. ‘Check back by five, we’ll have looked at it by then.’ Ned smiles at
her, noting her name badge, ‘Manda’ but she blows another bubble and it pops,
sticking to her nose like a big pink bogie.
Later in the day, when the Manda returns from lunch, she
could have sworn the phones in the in-tray were all moving. Perhaps it’s too
much sugar and she sticks her gum to the bottom of the counter. Ned’s phone is
next, she picks it up and prises off the case.
Manda jumps in surprise, is something growing out of the
phone like plant roots, maybe a fungus? But whatever it was is suddenly gone. She
must be imagining things. Manda replaces the screen and then prises the phone
open. Inside the phone, a swarming nest of tendrils expands out across her
hands, crawling up her arms. She screams as they wrap their way up her body,
searching for a way to reach her brain.
At quarter to five Ned stops by the phone shop to see if his
phone is ready. There is no sign of Manda, just the sweet smell of old bubble
gum. His phone is sitting on the countertop so he rings the bell for assistance
and picks up his phone. It switches on with no problem and he scrolls through
his messages. The screen is repaired and it seems to be working fine. No one
answers the bell so, since he paid upfront, he pockets his phone and leaves, he
doesn’t want to miss the match tonight.
Manda’s brain responds well to the tendrils, despite it
being an old-fashioned biological processing chip. The tendrils reach out
through her work and they infest every phone she works on.
A few weeks later, Ned notices the person sitting opposite
on the train is acting weird. Shaking and shivering, as though he’s ill. The
guy is shaking so much he drops his phone. Ned asks if he is OK and reaches
over to pick up the dropped phone. He hands it back to the other passenger and,
as he does so, tendrils swarm out from the other person’s hand, twisting and
climbing up his arm before Ned can even scream. By the time the train reaches
his stop, the tendrils have infested Ned’s brain. He crosses the footbridge and
makes his way to his office block as usual, placing his phone in the security
tray full of phones at the front desk as he makes his way to work.
A reminder that a couple of my Kindle Unlimited eBooks on Amazon are free to download from today for five days! The promotion runs from 1/11/22 till 5/11/22 as a seasonal treat.
You can find them here:
Returning Home to Turnfrith eBook : Herlihy, P L : Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
'They are gone. Please arrange a time to collect your share. The estate will be sold if you don’t want to buy us out. The funeral is next Thursday.’
Cary is returning to her childhood home, Turnfrith Manor Farm, now the aunt and uncle who raised have died but the curt email from her twin sister has left her reeling... Cary and her twin Jenette have one thing in common, Lucas, Jenette's husband. Long ago Cary and Lucas were teenagers in love, or so she thought. Now she's returned to face her family again, but shocking events quickly take over on her arrival and nothing is as it seems.
A selection of three short and four flash fiction sci-fi stories about love, loss and life in the future. Contains adult themes.
In The Cloud Collectors Meet the crew of Acie’s extraction ship, in orbit around the planet Minerva, busy cleaning the synthetic atmosphere when they find a stowaway with a story.
What is the strange hold a model of a city, left to Lettie by an old Aunt, has over her and why is she now lying to Victor. The Liminlands are calling to her.
In The Dividers Cory has a choice to make, real life mining minerals on an asteroid beyond the moon, or a virtual life on an ark, mining data but for some reason, her father won’t let her go to the arks.
Carol is waiting for the end of the galaxy, stuck alone in lighthouse on the edge of the Deep Crossing in space when another ship suddenly arrives. Will The Urgent Diversity of Existence, a pamphlet she is reading hold answers.
It occurred to me yesterday. My housework gadgets are robots. Not the kind I imagined when I was a kid, scary humanoids all hellbent on controlling humanity. No, these are different. Benign. Unaware of me except to avoid bumping into me. We clean the apartment, sweep, vacuum, wash the floors. As I perform intricate tasks, clearing and dusting, the floor vacuum follows me, followed by the floor polisher and the small indoor insect-catching drone. Outside the lawn mower, the weed-picker and the window cleaning drone are busy. My favourite has to be the insect catcher watching it carefully trap spiders and flies and transport them to the window hatch for release. As we work, the patterns of our efficiencies become clear, a waltz of time and motion management through the apartment.
I am delighted to announce my latest short story is available as a Kindle Unlimted Edition on Amazon.
'They are gone. Please arrange a time to collect
your share. The estate will be sold if you don’t want to buy us out. The
funeral is next Thursday.’
Cary is returning to her childhood home, Turnfrith
Manor Farm, now the aunt and uncle who raised have died but the curt email from
her twin sister has left her reeling... Cary and her twin Jenette have one
thing in common, Lucas, Jenette's husband. Long ago Cary and Lucas were
teenagers in love, or so she thought. Now she's returned to face her family
again, but shocking events quickly take over on her arrival and nothing is as
it seems.
Please click on the link below to go to the Amazon page or click on image in sidebar for a preview.
I'm delighted to announce a new selection of three short and four flash fiction sci-fi stories about love, loss and life in the future, now available as a Kindle Unlimited Edition.
In The Cloud Collectors Meet the crew of Acie’s extraction ship, in orbit around the planet Minerva, busy cleaning the synthetic atmosphere when they find a stowaway with a story.
What is the strange hold a model of a city, left to Lettie by an old Aunt, has over her and why is she now lying to Victor. The Liminlands are calling to her.
In The Dividers Cory has a choice to make, real life mining minerals on an asteroid beyond the moon, or a virtual life on an ark, mining data but for some reason, their father won’t let them go to the arks.
Carol is waiting for the end of the galaxy, stuck alone in lighthouse on the edge of the Deep Crossing in space when another ship suddenly arrives. Will The Urgent Diversity of Existence, a pamphlet she is reading hold answers.
Contains adult themes.
Click here for link to Amazon or try out the preview opposite.
Introduction to the story:
Nanu, with the help of his sister Seer, is running a
gruelling race across the fire plains of Naime to win back the Amulet of Tears
for his people. Naime is their home planet, one of the Tied Worlds ruled by
Ota. By winning it, it will set the Naime free from Ota's brutal rule.
The Amulet is an
ancient jewel that Blem is prepared to pay trillions for. If Ota sells the
jewel, he will be able to pay off his debtors beyond the Tied Worlds & be
free.
But Blem's protege,
Cha is a Wind Walker whose people Ota destroyed. She wants to do more than help
procure the jewel for Blem but inadvertently sets out on an adventure of her
own across the Tied Worlds.
Jovu, the deal broker
is simply after making sure he gets the best deal, whether it's Ota, Blem or
Ota's creditors that he deals with.
Between them all, they trigger a set of events that will eventually take them beyond the fire plains & rift mines of Naime...
Click here to read Part 1 and 2 for free over on Fiction Press.
Glossary
Amulet of Tears
An ancient artefact, believed to be a piece of jewellery.
'The central leucotine gemstone glows with a milky light, around
it, lesser gems, red emperiums, blue hyacinthstone & a ring of opalescent
fyredimes glitter. Three milk pearls and a suspended waterbarle complete the
jewel.'
Amulet of
Tears Lore
Amulet of Tears
‘The central leucotine gemstone glows with a milky light, around it,
lesser gems, red emperiums, blue hyacinthstone & a ring of opalescent
fyredimes glitter. Three milk pearls and a suspended waterbarle complete the
jewel.’
The Amulet of Tears is an ancient jewel, maker unknown, depicting
the Tied Worlds. It is the symbol of the Naime & of considerable wealth.
Body Damper
Electronic device creating an interference shield camouflaging the wearer from
scanning devices.
Brinwold Seawater
A spa treatment, the seawater from the Brinwold planet system is high in
minerals and salts & highly sought after as a relaxant for space travel
stress.
Caliedeope
The spinning disc galaxy the Tied Worlds solar system is in.
Chafestalk
A rough grass used for animal silage and once processed, for weaving.
Cloche
Type of hard hat worn on the Tied Worlds, usually with an outer layer of heavy
cloth, covering most of the face.
Cred (Singular)
Creds (plural)
Monetary unit of credit system run on the Naime planet.
Disrupter Gun
A disrupter gun fires focused high frequency beams that rupture cellular
cohesion through interference at point of convergence.
Doub (Singular)
Doubs (Plural)
Official monetary unit of the local solar systems.
Etoh-Mix
An alcoholic mix designed to be introduced into the drink tubes of travelpod suit-seats.
Face-Tech Tattoos
Cyberware tattooed onto the skin to provide enhancement, connectivity or
control over external hardware.
Fanfare
Tree roosting forest bird. Seed eating found in the Honetan Forests.
Fathomer
Title given to someone who has undergone many educational processes on Parse-Terra
in multiple disciplines such as science, economics and medicine. With the title
is the weight of responsibility for your local community.
Fleose
A long, simple gown or top made of any soft, woven material.
Flikscreen
Portable
device with the ability to project information streams to other nearby devices
in real time.
Fulcrum
Flies
A
marsh insect found on Parse-Terra, named for its erratic flight pattern, hovering
while producing a whirring sound to attract mates then jumping to another spot,
mid-air, propelled by releasing rubber band-like muscles on its legs.
Glimmer
The name for the effect of sunlight on the dust ring, causing blinding light
flares on the polar caps of Syrene.
Gravonium
A noble metal element.
GST
Galaxy Standard Time. A standardized time
system across the galaxy to allow for easier trade & communications.
HAB Kit
A basic survival kit for planet pioneering.
Contains basic rations, medicines & survival equipment. Habitat Adaptive
Biodome Kit
Hecton
A volumetric unit on the planet Honetan. Based
on an old system of measuring the weight of a crop by its dimensions. A hecton
equals the amount of crop one Honetan could carry on their own, roughly
equivalent to a standard cubic meter.
Hoop-Station
Space travel speeds are increased using laser propulsion which can be
magnified many times by passing through a series of mirrored donut shaped space
stations, forming lanes to cross large areas of space.
Hotsand
A type of powdery rock found on the Naime planet. When exposed to sandmint
oil it explodes. Often used for rock blasting in the mines or ground up to be
used as a firelighter.
Liege Lines
Usually presented as a tattoo or body
ornamentation, liege lines express the feudal ancestry of the wearer, like a
family tree of ownership.
Leans
A compound word, leather or pleather and jeans.
Lung Sail
A breathing bladder designed to float above you by using a double layered
outer shell filled with helium. The internal bladder can be filled with clean
air or water and tethered to you by a feeding tube.
MagProp Batteries© Engine
An MPB© engines uses Magnetars to charge its battery-based
EM propulsion system.
Moon Shitting
Once a saying used when something easy becomes overly complicated to do, now used
as a profanity.
Mindsplain
A type of herb, brewed to produce a mind altering effect, often used as a truth
serum.
Mintweed
A culinary herb found on Honetan.
Night Slips
Marsh-dwelling creature on Parse-Terra.
Panagereme
Type of vine fruit, with pink flesh and sweet pips with a thin edible yellow skin,
up to 8cm in diameter.
Panicle Seed
A food crop plant on the Tied Worlds, usually ground and used as a type of
flour.
Phosphor Eels
A bio-luminescent eel found in the marshes of Parse-Terra.
Pungene
A noxious gas found on Barle.
Quinium
A precious element derived from the processing of quintessence.
Quintessence
The fifth element in the universe, defined as comprising of dark energy.
Saltwort
A type of edible plant like a seaweed. Native to the Tied Worlds.
‘Salvar Trove’
Misinterpreted by Cha as meaning treasure trove, the ‘Salvar Trove’ is an
escape route
Salvar – save
Trove – find
Sand Mint
Aromatic herb growing on plains of the Naime planet. Containing volatile
oils that combust in the air on exposure to high temperatures hence giving the
fire plains their name. At night, sparks from these fires fill the air, caused
by the hot air rising into the cooler night sky.
Sandmint Oil
A highly flammable oil pressed from the leaves of Sand Mint.
Sinbarum Balm Oil
A skin emollient made from pearl oil, farmed in the pearl fields on the
planet Sinbarum.
Slipon
A plain utility tunic, primarily used for uniforms.
Snow Spriggan
Mythical being associated with the planet Syrene.
Sofface
A Naime musical instrument, like a drum, producing different tones when
tapped.
Sollop
A moss, grown as a food crop, rich in amino acids.
Sonic Vortex
Machine using sonic waves directed into a vortex field to hold an object in
place. First built to stabilise shockwaves from hypersonic travel.
Spacedial
FTL (faster than light) universal
communication system.
Space
Fugue
A dream state often induced by long
bouts space travel, where the individual has trouble distinguishing the
conscious from the unconscious.
Stimpen
A quick revival auto-injector pen, delivering a stimulant to counter the effect
of sedatives.
Terranium
A
conductive salt harvested from a plant of the same name, grown in the salt
marshes on Parse-Terra.
Torque
(plural)
Torquo (singular)
Hunting bolas often worn in pairs on the arm. Made from a rope of woven
plant material with lizard claws weighted with lead at each end. The claws are found
on the fire plains, shed from lizard species both living & extinct on the
Naime planet.
Water-Bark & Water-Trees
Barrel-shaped trees with tough silvery leaves, the bark can be cut to
reveal, fleshy edible pulp high in sugars and water. The bark can be plaited and
carried as a food and water source.
Wisdomer
A person who guides or mentors people on the planet Syrene.
Wrist App
A skin surface-mounted bio-chip, most often used by organisations with
large workforces. Can be programmed for resources such as attendance,
admittance, security clearance and time and motion studies.
Wyren
Syrean Cave Bat
Xinta (singular)
A type of small knife, usually worn hidden in clothing, typically carried
by Gemins. The handles feature horn from Mountain Oryx and finely worked silver
motifs. The blades are knapped Gemin flint.
Zstral
The name of a fictional fiery planet in Naime folklore. Often used in
comparative sayings. Eg ‘as hot as a firestorm on
Zstral’ or ‘I’d run the firestorms of Zstral’
as an expression of how difficult or important a task is.
The Tied Worlds Solar System
Star/Sun: Leucotia
The four large planets of the solar
system:
Barle - Gas Giant, outer planet, largest of the
planets. Habitable.
Naime - Dying planet, mined for precious metals and
gems. Homeworld of the Naime.
Honet - Habitable planet.
Volpair - Once habitable planet, destroyed by Ota.
The five smaller planets of the solar
system:
Blythe - Technically a moon, satellite to Honet.
Habitable
Syrene - A cold planet furthest from the sun,
Leucotia. Habitable.
Solea – A fiery, volcanic planet closest to the
sun, Leucotia. Uninhabitable.
Duos and Empiria – Once moons for the planet Barle, now pulled
away into their own orbit. Habitable. Homeworld of the Wind Walkers.
Syrene Old Language Translations
An - I am
Beforn - before
Caverns – Tunnels/caves
Flyge - fly
Hearthen – Home
Glimmer – the proper noun for the effect of sunlight on the dust
ring, causing blinding light flares on the polar caps of Syrene.
Mi – I/me
Most - must
On – In
Quiken – Quick/run
Sleppen – Sleep
Toggon – Go to / to get
Wealk - walk
Wyren - Syrean Cave Bat
Ule – You
Y - And
‘Wyren sleppen on cavernes. Flur y
Char most toggon hearthen. Quiken! Quiken!’
‘Syrene Cave Bats sleep in the
tunnels. Flur and Char must get home. Run! Run!’
‘Uly y mi wealk Hearthen beforn glimmer.’
‘You & I walk home before the
glimmer’
‘Ule sleppen on mi hearthen y ule
most reman onside amiddn glimmer. Wilcom tog Glist Fae!’
‘You sleep in my home and you must
remain inside during the glimmer, Welcome to Glist Fae!’
‘Uly salvar, uly sleppen, uly
flyge.’
‘You safe, you sleep, you fly.’
