Mystery

How to Survive an Alien Abduction
1. Introduction It is no secret that the river is not as safe as it used to be. The threats that have risen against us have multiplied on a massive scale. I’m not talking about bears, eagles, or even one another, I’m talking about a far more formidable foe. Many have said that they are just a myth or a scary bedtime story for your fingerlings, but the truth is, they’re out there lying in wait for us. If they weren’t, we wouldn’t have seen so many disappearances as we have in this past season. Make no mistake, aliens are very real. That is why I’m here to tell you exactly what you need to do in the event of a close encounter.
By Levi Dickson2 months ago in Fiction
THE REMARKABLE CASE OF DAVIDSON'S EYES
I. — The transitory mental aberration of Sidney Davidson, remarkable enough in itself, is still more remarkable if Wade's explanation is to be credited. It sets one dreaming of the oddest possibilities of intercommunication in the future, of spending
By Faisal Khan2 months ago in Fiction
Preface and Epigraph
Preface This story blends fiction and non-fiction using actual memories shared by my son Toby and me. Before each chapter, you’ll find a memory from our lives; most of them true and written as accurately as I remember. The real memories are woven throughout the story and intertwined with the main narrative. Though this story dives into some heavy moments, Toby was never in danger of losing his life.
By Anton Mathias Heft 2 months ago in Fiction
The Hour Between Calls
Every night at 11:11, my phone rings. There’s no number. It’s not “Unknown Caller.” Only a blank screen, glowing softly, almost like someone breathing.
By Lori A. A.2 months ago in Fiction
The Day the Sun Crowned the Third Pyramid
The Day the Sun Crowned the Third Pyramid The desert was still, the kind of still that pressed against the ears and made every heartbeat loud. I had arrived hours before dawn, walking over sand that had carried footsteps older than memory. The pyramids loomed, dark and patient, watching the night fold into itself.
By Marie381Uk 2 months ago in Fiction
3I/ATLAS: THE IMPOSSIBLE ENGINE
The official story is comforting. It is safe. It tells us that 3I/ATLAS, the third interstellar object ever detected in our solar system, was just a fascinating, nickel-rich snowball that swung by the Sun, melted a bit, and is now drifting away. NASA has stamped the file "NATURAL OBJECT," and the scientific community is patting itself on the back for capturing some nice data. But if you actually look at that data—specifically the numbers released this week regarding the object's surface activity—the "snowball" theory doesn't just crack; it shatters. We are being told that 3I/ATLAS is a comet. But comets are dead, chaotic things. This object, however, behaved with a terrifying efficiency that looks less like geology and more like engineering. The "Water" Dump Let’s start with the headline finding: Water. The SWAN instrument on the SOHO satellite captured the object releasing a staggering amount of hydrogen. On November 6, just days after skimming past the Sun, 3I/ATLAS was dumping 3.17 × 10²⁹ molecules per second. To put that into perspective, that is enough water to fill multiple Olympic-sized swimming pools in a matter of seconds. Scientists call this "sublimation"—ice turning into gas because of the heat. But look at the timing. The release didn't happen in a chaotic burst; it happened in a sustained, high-pressure flood that tapered off with mechanical precision as the object moved away from the heat source. In industrial terms, that doesn't look like a melting rock. It looks like a coolant flush. If you were piloting a nickel-plated vessel close to a star, you would need to dump heat fast. And that is exactly what 3I/ATLAS did. The 20% Anomaly Here is the smoking gun, the statistic that should keep every astronomer awake at night. In a typical solar system comet, the "active" surface area—the part that is actually spitting out gas and dust—is tiny. Usually, only 3% to 5% of a comet's surface is active. The rest is just dead, crusted rock. But 3I/ATLAS? The data confirms that 20% of its surface was active. That is not a deviation. That is a different species entirely. For a natural object to maintain surface activity that is four to six times higher than the standard model is virtually unheard of. It suggests that the object isn't covered in random patches of ice. It suggests the object is porous, or perhaps, vented. Why would 20% of the surface be active? Maybe because 20% of the surface is covered in exhaust ports. The "Green" Camouflage The Hubble and Gemini North telescopes noted a distinct "greenish tint" caused by cyanogen and dicarbon, along with a "blue haze" surrounding the nucleus. While these are chemical compounds found in nature, they are also excellent at masking what lies beneath. This "dirty snowball" is rich in nickel—a heavy metal used in aerospace shielding. It survived a closest approach to the Sun that would have disintegrated a looser pile of rubble. And it did so while maintaining a structural integrity that baffled observers. The Rush to Normalize Why was NASA so quick to shut down the theories proposed by astrophysicists like Avi Loeb? Loeb suggested weeks ago that the object's nickel composition and non-gravitational acceleration pointed toward artificial origins. Yet, before the water data was even fully analyzed, the agency issued a blanket statement confirming it was "natural." They are trying to normalize the anomaly. They want us to see the water release as "ice," not exhaust. They want us to see the 20% activity rate as "unusual," not impossible. 3I/ATLAS is moving away from us now, fading into the dark. It survived the fire of the Sun. It flushed its systems. And now, "clean" and cooled, it is heading to its next destination. We call it a comet because we don't have a category for what it really is. But the math doesn't lie. Rocks don't behave this way. Machines do.
By Wellova 2 months ago in Fiction
Broken Vision. Honorable Mention in Nothing But Voices Challenge. Top Story - January 2026.
“Anything else, Lieutenant Colonel Dixon?” “Permission to push forward, General. Our defences are holding, and the enemy is faltering, I believe we could gain an advantage going on the attack."
By Liam Storm2 months ago in Fiction
When the Quiet Finally spoke
Chapter One: The Shape of Silence Elena Marais learned, early on, how to make herself small without disappearing entirely.It was a delicate balance—existing without inviting attention, breathing without being heard. She had mastered it the way some people mastered languages or instruments. Quiet became her second skin.The café opened at six every morning, but Elena arrived at half past five, when the town still slept and the ocean breathed slowly in the distance. She liked those thirty minutes of solitude. The smell of ground coffee. The soft hum of the refrigerator. The predictable comfort of setting cups in neat rows, handles aligned, ready for hands that would soon wrap around them.
By Alice Van Heerden2 months ago in Fiction
What We Do on Sundays
Every Sunday at exactly 6:40 p.m., we set the table for three. This is the ritual. The time never changes, even when the light does. In summer, the sun still presses against the windows, lingering, curious. In winter, the room is already blue with evening, the corners soft and retreating. But the clock is firm. 6:40. Not earlier. Never later.
By Lori A. A.2 months ago in Fiction
Embrace 2026 Don’t Fear It
Embrace 2026 Don’t Fear It Do not step back from the edge of the year. It is not a cliff, it is a doorway wide. The days ahead are not sharpened with threat. They wait like hands that have learned how to hold. You have survived heavier nights than these. Carried years that asked far more of your heart. This year does not come armed with your past. It comes empty, asking what you will place inside. Let the number pass without flinching or doubt. Time is not hunting you down. It walks beside you, steady and calm, keeping pace with who you have become.
By Marie381Uk 2 months ago in Fiction
When the Scarecrow Turned into a Snowman
Once upon a time, there was a scarecrow named Robert. He wore a plaid shirt, tattered overalls, orange scarf, and a straw hat.
By Seema Patel2 months ago in Fiction
Heaven here I come
Papa? Papa? is it you? I have just seen the news. Yes, Masha, it is me. I am here in Heaven. But... but... Papochka! The Ukrainian drone... it blew you straight to hell.
By Raymond G. Taylor2 months ago in Fiction