Imaginings set loose.
The Great Silence (Sonnet for SETI)
by Geoffrey A. Landis — We strain to listen to the stars but hear only silence.
String Theory
by John Philip Johnson — A meditation on possible worlds that are the dreams of other worlds.
Silent Spirit
by Kenny A. Chaffin — An ode to the rover, no longer sending messages from Mars.
Racing the Moon and the Hill that Burned the World
by Adrian Simmons — Gamma's world burned when the strange two-legged creatures made first contact. Now his people must adapt or be destroyed by their fellow natives.
Branches on My Back, Sparrows in My Ear
by Nikki J. North — Sub-q ink gives most of humanity full-time access to the world datastream. When one woman finally gets what everyone else takes for granted, she may find the cost is too high.
The Agreement
by Adria Laycraft — A clone struggles to find her place in the world while living in the shadow — and service — of her Original. Will breaking The Agreement mean freedom or death?
Colorless Green Ideas
by Shaenon K. Garrity — The death of an alien exchange student may mean the end of peaceful coexistence on Earth unless one teacher can decipher the aliens' linguistic nonsense and find a way to bridge the communication gap.
Native
by Eric Cline — A veterinarian confronts his native heritage when dealing with a trapped wild Grandee, better known to the public as a Bigfoot.
Children of the Thousand Days
by Peter Charron — When the next generation of Earth's children are infected with an alien language, the response is widespread fear and violence. Who will protect the children when even their parents wonder if they are still human?