A travelling zoo and circus has arrived in town, and Charlie and I are having a look around.

Entry into the whole thing was pretty reasonable, but you can see where they really make their money - the snack vendors, the side show games, the usual carnival stuff. The zoo side of things is covered by the entry, as is the big top.

We are wandering around the zoo exhibits, when Charlie stops and frowns. Then she drags me back to the start "Toby," she hisses "take a closer look."

So we start over looking at the animals. It does not take me long to spot what is wrong. And the exhibits have noticed that we're noticed. This could get awkward.

One of the security guards comes over to us "Is there a problem?" she asks. Charlie looks her up and down, and whispers "We understand."

This does not reassure the guard, who reaches for Charlie, and then flinches, shaking her hand. My love has ways of making sure no-one ever touches her without permission. The guard, "Sal" according to her badge, looks at her hand, and then back at Charlie. "Shit. Ok, I gotta take you to the Boss."

Charlie smiles like there is nothing better she'd like to do (which is probably true) and we go to one of the smallest caravans in the convoy. Sal knocks, and says "Boss? I've got a couple of special visitors you need to see."

I can't hear the reply, but the door opens and Sal ushers us in. Inside is a very mundane office. A couple of laptops with extra screens, laser printer, and two people working at desks. One of them, a man in his fifties maybe, points to the chairs opposite him.

He barks out "OK, you've scared Sal. Who are ya? What ya want?"

Charlie takes the lead. "Nothing, I just noticed that all the enclosure locks are on the inside. I'm guessing those people get a cut of the entry ticket?"

"Ya know about them folk. Ya gunna cause trouble?"

I speak up "Nah, I work with a dryad, and we have a werewolf over for games every Thursday."

The boss looks at me "A dryad. That's a myth. They don't exist."

"This one does. Her mum made her."

His eyes widen, then narrow "Ya reckon she'd like ta travel?"

"No, sorry, you might say that she'd put down roots."

"Bugga. Well, had ta ask." He looks at Charlie "You a witch?" Charlie nods. "Right then," and he rummages in a draw pulling out a couple of wrist bands, "put these on."

"And what are they?" Charlie's voice is velvet over ice.

"Nothin like that. All area passes. Ya can even go backstage if ya like. Gotta stay friendly with the local authorities."

Charlie takes the bands, inspects them, and then hands one to me.

Her tone softens "Thank-you. We will return them when we leave."

"Hang onto 'em, we'll be back in a cupla years."

And with that we're shown out. Now we get to have the fun of a chat with the performers in the cages after closing. I guess it is a way of making money out of your talents. I wonder which one is Sal's partner.

#SF #SFF #UrbanFantasy #CharlieAndToby #microfiction #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting

Recently we have been noticing some odd log files on our configuration deployment server.

Our first thought was that it was some sort of attack vector, but the logs continued to appear even when the server was disconnected from the network.

So we dug in deeper, and the logs were perfectly ordinary job execution logs - except that they were from three weeks in the future.

Roll forward three weeks, and we get an urgent change request to deal with a zero day. We run the job, and that was when our junior commented that the resulting log was the same as the one we saw three weeks ago.

So I'm sitting in my home office now, and I'm looking at the classic Magritte - 'The Treachery of Images' aka 'This is not a pipe'. And I'm thinking "What if he was wrong. What if the label can be the thing?"

Our configuration deployment is called "Ansible".

#SF #SFF #SciFi #microfic #microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting

Maintaining an interstellar community is extraordinarily hard. Even within the human worlds, it is difficult.

The hardest part is disease.

Not so much massive plagues - they are easy to quarantine. The tricky thing is the endemic bugs of each world. The things that could run riot in other biospheres.

Smoothing the spread of such bacteria and virii is initially handled by the scout service, who introduce the most common microflora and fauna to new worlds in a well controlled way. They also manage the outward spread of the new world's biome to neighbouring worlds.

But what about after that? How do you maintain a biome that is not going to kill travellers across tens, let alone hundreds or thousands of worlds?

The answer lies in one of the least formal parts of any major interstellar community.

The tramp trade network.

Small independent traders that move from world to world in small ships, moving relatively slowly, and almost always visiting the surface. Picking up the latest mutations in the local microflora and fauna as an incidental, and releasing the latest from the nearest neighbours.

Keeping the local group more-or-less in sync. And the trade routes overlap, and operate in overlapping spheres.

Yes, if you were to catch a fast ship from one end of a large polity and travel to the other end, you might well get very sick. But if you did it slowly, you would get gradually adapted.

The downside is that most travellers over large distances tend to spend much of their time vaguely unwell.

"Space Flu" they call it, and it is something that affects many long-distance tourists. People discuss solutions for it on the news boards almost constantly, and new treatments are always being touted.

What only a few very well informed people know is that this travelling malaise is a sign that things are working as expected. There will never be a complete cure for it, and it would be a disaster if one were found.

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #microfiction #tootfic #microfic #IAmWriting

We were on a deep survey run out towards the far edge of the Orion Arm that Earth is in, so yeah, we were a long way from home. We're just come out of jump, and were recalibrating our sensors, when the collision warning alarm went off.

We had sealed our suits, and were reaching for the controls when the impact happened. Whatever hit the ship got us in the crew quarters. Fortunately we were all on the bridge at the time.

Marcelo went aft to investigate, and a few minutes later we heard him scream, so we went after him like idiots. We found him backed up against the wall, a hexapod advancing towards him - all sharp claws and spines. When we entered, it turned towards us, so we backed out of the common area. It ignored Marcelo, and followed us.

Now I know what you are thinking, why didn't we shoot it. Simple. We were a survey ship. Yes, we had some small arms, but they were kept in a locker near the gravraft. Heck, the ship itself only had a single turret with a couple of popguns.

So, we backed out, and it followed us - but it is not a big ship, and it was not long before it cornered us.

It pulled a rectangular object out and some sort of cylinder with odd grips. Then, before I could do anything, it was right in front of me, and pushed the rectangle against my suit, and did something with the cylinder. Then it turned around and went back into the the object that collided with us.

The thing that had crashed into us reversed course , leaving a three meter wide hole in the hull.

Marcelo made it back to the bridge with a rocket pistol, but it was all over by then.

We sealed the bridge and repressurised, then opened our suits. The outside cameras showed the other craft just sitting nearby. We looked at the rectangle, and it appeared to be some sort of tablet with markings on it. Some of the markings matched the ones on the craft that hit us.

We puzzled over this for an hour or so, then another larger craft turned up, and opened up comms. That was when the one that hit us left.

It took us a while, but we figured out that they were offering to tow us to a repair yard in the next system. Not having any other clue, we sent an image of the tablet, almost instantly, they had tow lines attached.

Marcelo had been sitting thinking for a while but spoke up once we were underway. "Ceinwen, Dargh? I think that thing was giving us its insurance details."

#SF #SFF #SciFi #SpaceOpera #Humour #microfic #microfiction #tootfic #IAmWriting

Thanks to @Steveg58 for the inspiration.

It was only after I graduated that I realised what a career limiting move it had been to study at Florida Keys University.

#tootfic #microfiction #microfic #IAmWriting #SmallStories #SliceOfLife

My partner has one of the Percepterol implants. She uses it to tag names to faces, so we got it on PBS.

Anyway, I was scrolling my news feed, and saw an alert about a manditory product recall on Percepterol implants, so I asked "Hey, sweety, have you had a ping from Percepterol about the recall?"
"No, I've not seen anything."
So I showed her the article. That was when things got weird.
"It's great to see that Percepterol is doing so much to help war refugees" she said.
I looked over her shoulder, and I saw the recall notice.
That's why I'm calling 000. My wife needs to have the implant updated or removed immediately, and is not able to request it for herself.
"Thank you for your call, but triple zero is not the correct number to call to complement a private company for their compassionate works."
Fuck.

#SF #SFF #Horror #IAmWriting #microfic #tootfic #microfiction #scifi

Inspired by a comment by @NanoRaptor about AI screwing with people's perceptions.

Iris (Part 12)

Alice was really annoyed. She had absolutely wonderful news, and there was absolutely no-one she could share it with. None of her classmates knew about her mother or her best friend. They couldn't. It would not be safe for anyone.

So there was no-one that she could tell. Indigo, her best friend was the one who told her, so she was out. Her mum already knew. There was no. No, wait. There was someone else.

Siobhan was marking history assignments when there was a knock on her door. Final bell had been a few minutes ago, so probably another teacher. "Come in!" she called.

Alice opened the door, and stepped in.

"Miss Ringly!" Siobhan was surprised to see her, given how low a profile Alice kept.
"Hi Ms Embrason. Um, can we talk?"
"Of course, but you're not in any of my classes this year."
"It isn't about school. It is a private thing."
Siobhan frowned. "Are you sure you should be talking to me?"
"Absolutely! You're the only other person who knows."
"OK, but you will have to leave the door open. School policy."
Alice paused, and looked up and down the corridor. No-one. She sat down. "OK."

"So, what is it? Is there some trouble?" As soon as she had spoken, Siobhan could tell that it wasn't. Alice was practically vibrating with excitement.
"No! It is really good news! Iris, that's Indigo's mum, is pregnant! Indi is getting a sister!"
"So another mermaid in the family?"
"No, Iris said that was only because of the fish. Long story. No, Dave, that's Indi's sort-of-dad, is the father, so she'll be a Naiad like Iris."
"And she'll be a girl?"
"Yep, all Naiads are!"

Siobhan smilled. Alice had had a rough life, really, having to cover for her mother's past, and being unable to explain her absent friend.

"Well, I am certain you'll be the best Aunty for her!"
Alice froze. "Aunty?" she asked in a small voice.
Siobhan revised rapidly "Well she'll be your best friend's sister, and there's going to be nearly seventeen years between you. So, yes, honorary Aunt."
Alice relaxed.
"Oh. Cause Indi isn't like that, not that that would be a problem, she'd still be my best friend, but um" Alice's words came out in a rush, tumbling over each other. She stopped.

The teacher smiled, "Well, that is wonderful news. I'll send a card via your mother. Off now, you don't want her to worry."
"Yes, Miss" was the meek reply, and Alice fled.

Resting her head in her hand for a moment, Siobahn smiled. Alice had it bad for her friend, she could tell. Ah, teenagers. All drama and angst. She picked up the assignment she'd been marking. Yep. Drama and angst.

#SF #SFF #microfic #tootfic #IAmWriting #NereidIris #UrbanFantasy

Air to Ground Intercepts - VH-WZJA/PER 20xx/11/21

08:11 DEP KTA 115PAX ETA 10:05
09:10 ATC REPORTS NO OTHER TRAFFIC THIS FL/HEAD. CAN SEE OT. PER CONFIRM.
09:30 PER PLS CONFIRM NO OTHER TRAFFIC
09:45 PER ON APPROACH RNWY 06 ETA 10:00 REQ TUG/AUX PWR
09:55 ATC REQ GO AROUND AND HOLD
10:00 PER CONFIRM CAUSE
10:02 PER RECONFIRM CAUSE
10:15 REQ REDIRECT
10:20 REQ REDIRECT
10:30 PER ATC NO CONTACT NO BECON
10:32 PER PLS RESP
10:45 DCLR FUEL EMERGENCY NO ATC RESP.
10:47: PER PLS RESP
10:50: ON APPROACH RNWY 06
10:51: PER ON GROUND NO DAMAGE NO CASUALTIES
10:52 CAN ANYONE PLS RESPOND?
10:53 IS THAT A FLYING SAUCER?

No further messages.

#IAmWriting #tootfic #acars #microfic #microfiction #SF #SFF

Inspired by the good folks @acarsdrama .