After surviving a brutal war of annihilation against a mysterious and implacable foe, Captain Dylan Cook finds the only solace is at the bottom of a bottle. With his beloved ship, Magpie, sacrificed for the ultimate victory and all his friends either dead or spread out among the Five Systems, he tries to live his life in solitary peace. Until the day an almost literal ghost arrives offering him a new life, a new but familiarly named ship and a crew of misfits and fading memories. When their first job as cargo haulers turns out to be a lot more complicated than they could ever imagine, the crew find themselves in a race to fulfil their obligation while trying to avoid a new war. Only, this time, it won't be a war against faceless enemies, but against old friends and former colleagues. A sci-fi blockbuster in the vein of Firefly/Serenity and The Expanse.

The Academy doesn't train pilots. It sorts them. Milo Vance arrives with two hours of sim time and a Bronze band that marks him as expendable. The rubric says he's *Uncontrolled* - too much instinct, not enough obedience. One more strike and he's gone. Cassian Vale arrives with a Gold band and a call sign that follows him like a title: Atlas. The rubric says he's the Standard - the pilot others should become. He's never questioned it. Then the Academy sends them both into the Fringe, where the Lattice lies and compliance gets you killed. Out there, the scrap-pile kid sees what the golden boy can't. And the system that built them both is about to find out what happens when the wrong pilot survives.

Russ, a former janitor, is now second-in-command on a mission to find a cure for The Storm. The Storm eradicated those sixty and older. There might be a cure, but not on Earth. After each newly discovered planet, a team finds their minds and bodies changing. They're haunted by their pasts, and by the fanatical Green-Eyed faction. Decades into their journey, they must decide if they can complete the mission parameters, or default to back-up protocol. This star-bound research team stumbles upon what it means to exist in the vastness of space, against the ticking clock of a dying planet. simul /ˈsɪməl/ noun 1. a shortened form of simultaneous 2. a display in which a player plays a number of games simultaneously against different opponents. *WP Editor's Choice- Aug. 2022 *WP Explorer Take a break from this reality List-Aug. 2022 *WP Science Fiction Summer List-Aug. 2022 *Community Curator List for Hispanic Heritage Month-Sept 2021* *Previously Featured*

It was meant to be a mission of hope, a new dawn for humankind. The United Earth Star Ship Dominance carried explorers, soldiers, families-a city among the stars, a symbol of unity forged from the ashes of Earth's past divisions. Their destination was Andromeda, a promise of discovery beyond imagination. But in the darkness of space, something stirred. The voyage that began as humanity's brightest dream twisted into silence and shadow. Cryogenic pods shattered, corridors fell empty, and the flagship drifted off course into a future no one could have foreseen. What awoke in the void was not wonder, but a presence-unseen, unspoken, yet waiting. Now, Lieutenant Dagr Magnusson must face the ruins of three million light years years, guided only by Helena, the ship's flawed AI, and haunted by whispers of a force that does not belong to humankind. What began as a journey of exploration becomes a struggle against the unknown, as hope itself is swallowed by the dark. This story can also be found on Royal Road

Humanity has an inherent tendency toward self-destruction. Drowning in hate and hedonism, the worlds of humanity have not seen a true peace since the end of the Hydrian War. It has been decades since humanity saw any true technological advancement. Ruled by a decaying republic, for most of humanity, absolute loyalty and real morality no longer exist. This is the declining state of the Ariean Solar Year 4249. Sickened by the state of the worlds, Charleston Reeter knows he and the rest of humanity were meant for something better. With the aid of a powerful AI harboring her own intentions, Reeter's New Era Movement will accept only perfection. People believe he will lead them to a future that is nothing less than heaven. Admiral Gives has seen hell. To him, it's any day he's forced to work with reporters or politicians. There is nothing worse for one of the most hated members of the human race. It is not his business if the worlds of humanity want to tear themselves apart, provided they leave his ship alone. But humanity came to hate him for a reason: given the chance to save the worlds, Admiral Gives refused. The rest of the human race never forgave him for it. It rendered him and his haunted battleship the embodiment of every evil Reeter has set out to exterminate. Welcome to the dark side of human nature. Welcome aboard the Battleship Singularity. ...... Guts, gore and cursing galore, Blood Impulse explores a galaxy where morality has disappeared. Inspired by Battlestar, Firefly and Star Trek, if you miss the glory days of TV space opera, this all-original work is for you. Step aboard if you dare, and don't forget to leave a vote! Note: This story is in the process of being cross-posted on Royal Road.

After Denton foils a terrorist attack at an Intergalactic sporting event, he finds himself racing to save his homeworld from a plot of betrayal and revenge. ***** When Denton Staxx, a special agent with the Orbital Security Services, discovers the Intergalactic Olympic Games have been targeted by a terrorist attack, he rushes to Earth to try and stop the event before it's too late. But what he discovers on earth is far worse than he imagined, and Denton is quickly pulled into a galaxy-wide conspiracy that takes him from one solar system to another in the search for a mastermind that will stop at nothing to get his revenge on the richest man in the universe -- regardless of the innocent people who die along the way. [[Wattys' Shortlisted]] [[1st place, Month Elimination Awards, Sci-Fi Category]] [[Best Plot Development, Iced Tea Summer Bash Awards]] [[Best Adventure Scifi Story, The Ooorah's SciFi Awards]] [[1st place, Rebel Awards, Sci-fi Category]] [[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]

Uncertainty is our lot in life, for the future is never what you expect. Uncertainty in years. Uncertainty in days. Uncertainty in what you'll recollect. ~ CT-8870 -- Among the masses of identical faces that reside on the rain-drenched planet of Kamino, CT-8870 is an oddity. He's been created to serve amongst the ranks of the Grand Army of the Republic--even earned himself a specialty in sharpshooting--but unlike his clone 'brothers', CT-8870 has grown to value anonymity. Anonymity, after all, is what keeps safe from the scourges of his Kaminoan overlords. He's even evaded a name in favor of keeping to the background. His marginal hopes for his short life are quickly rearranged when he's inducted into the squad he'll be serving alongside. Amongst his new brothers, the army's signature fire and tenacity mix seamlessly with cavalier misadventures and even a type pf gentleness CT-8870 hasn't encountered since his childhood. Suddenly, the galaxy seems wider than ever before. Opportunities to learn and grow into something more than a soldier beam around every corner, but so does the ever-present threat of death. Or worse, the threat of loss. Could allowing himself to indulge in these two bonds, to fall into the camaraderie that is brotherhood, possibly be worth the risk of having it all stripped away? With tomorrow ever uncertain, CT-8870 is forced to step into the fog and shadows of the galaxy as well as the war. There is no such thing as stagnation in life, after all. There is no going backward--only forward. -- Inspired by Star Wars: The Clone Wars, but is largely original in nature. Cross-posted to Ao3. Rated Mature due to gore, graphic war violence, and depictions of mental health issues that might be disturbing to some readers.

"Resilience is the irrefutable buffer between man and beast." Liv spent her entire adolescence in pursuit of treasures unknown. In the ruins of a once bustling metropolis near Central South America, the only company she has is a pragmatic set of sentient that insists on being called her "boss". After a decade of (mostly) solitude, a mother who died when she was young, a father she never knew, and a system of tunnels stretching across the city, Liv's explodes into the forefront of the demon hunting, continent spanning Hellfire Initiative... Literally. In a world filled with desperate people, portals to horrifying worlds- colloquially called "Stratas"- demons, a complex power system, and figures lurking in the shadows: Liv will be forced to acclimate and grapple with this new, foreign way of life while trying to ascend the ladder that is the brutal Initiative. EXPECT: A lot of Combat A protagonist exploring an unfamiliar world Shonen meets Modern Dystopia. A strange, in depth power system that will be exploited. High stake fights against human and monsters. Long(ish) chapters. Most chapters range from 2000-3000 words; though, I try to go back and edit where I can. I post on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday at 5:30 EST every week!

Slow-burn sci-fi, psychological tension, survival, corporate horror, character-focused. Best Ranks: #1 in Forensics #3 in Science Fiction-Space & Serious #4 in Coworkers #5 in Galaxy & Corporate #10 in Romantasy 90% Scifi - 10% Romance ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Forensic Biologist Dr. Lark Whitmore is part of a survey team sent to planet M51-VCS‑6‑N1 one month ahead of a group of new residents. At first, the mission seems simple: study the land, catalog resources, identify profit regions, and ensure a smooth landing for those who will follow. But as the team explores breathtaking landscapes and discovers alien wonders, cracks begin to show. The planet is unpredictable, the corporation is profit-driven, and this dream "paradise" is far more hostile than anyone imagined. Stuck together under an impossible deadline, the researchers clash, compromise, and realize that trust-and perhaps something more-may be the only thing keeping them sane. A story of exploration, corporate greed, and moral compromise, where the frontier is beautiful, dangerous, and unforgettable. ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Themes and TWs: ememies to lovers (disagreeing corporate coworkers to lovers?), corporate greed and politics, death, gore, horror/thriller elements, allergies/anaphylaxis, suffocation, electrocution, gunshot, combat/military, forensics ⋆ ✦ ⋆ Spotify Soundtrack of the story here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/14bq79tdthiO1gfQaiXNHi?si=820afb9cfd1d42f6 The cover of this book is a section of one of the Hubble Space Telescope's photos of the Whirlpool Galaxy M51