by C J Paget
“You said that before, but how can we? We are mere mortals.”
“Believe. You have to have faith in yourself.”
“But I already do.”
“No, you don’t. What you call faith is merely a layer of dust on top of a desert of self-doubt and fear.”
One of them began writing down Non’s words.
“THOU SHALT NOT COMPOSE DOGMA!” Non shouted.
The creatures jumped back as the paper burst into flame.
Non took a deep breath and continued. “If you are going to evolve, you have to do it yourselves. There may be a germ of truth in your religion, but it dies when it becomes rigid and codified.”
“What do you want us to do?”
“Learn. Experiment. Figure out how your universe works. Examine cause and effect. The more you know about the natural world, the less you need to fill gaps with supernatural fantasies.”
The door opened and the jailer announced it was time for the trial.
The whole troop left the jail escorted by a company of guards. In the courtroom, a majestically robed judge sat on a dais behind a desk while attendants scurried about.
“State your name,” ordered the judge.
“I am Non,” said Non.
The crowd gasped. The judge banged his gavel for silence.
“You claim to be the one true god?” the judge asked.
“I don’t claim to be your god, but my name is Non.”
“You seem to be acting like a god. You have been charged with performing miracles without a license. How do you plead?”
“I did nothing special. You can do anything I can.”
The crowd grumbled and muttered. Again, the judge banged his gavel.
“Is it true that you have told people they do not need religion or government to tell them how to live?”
“Yes.”
The crowd howled for punishment and threw rotten vegetables.
“We need hear no more,” the judge yelled over the din. “I find you guilty of blasphemy and rebellion. You shall be nailed to the platform of punishment as an example to others.”
The guards grabbed Non and dragged him from the courtroom to the hill where stood the platform of punishment. Non was hauled onto the platform. His limbs were spread out and nails driven through them into the planks.
He screamed every time the executioner swung the hammer and drove a nail deeper.
Non couldn’t believe how much pain the physical body could endure.
“You don’t have to do this,” he pleaded.
It seemed like it would never end, but eventually, the last nail was driven and the executioner left.
Non’s body was aflame. Each beat of his heart was throbbing agony.
A few sympathetic creatures lingered. One of them crawled onto the platform next to him.
“Master, you can leave here anytime. Why did you let them do this to you?”
Non spat out each word. “I came here to be one of you. I would be a hypocrite if I left when things got bad.”
The creature nodded in understanding, then pulled out a knife and plunged it into Non’s heart.
Non leapt free of his body and flew from the planet. He zoomed toward the window through which his home lay. As he approached the window, the universe decayed around him.
Non tried not to look. He didn’t want to see the creatures, his children, go extinct.
Again they surprised him. Crude metal vessels spread from planet to planet. His children multiplied. Then the metal vessels were left behind and they flew as beings of light across space.
When Non came to the window separating the universes a being waited there. It was pure thought, almost a mirror of Non.
The formless being extended itself toward Non. Perhaps it was going to wave or touch him as he passed. Instead, the appendage flattened and rapped him smartly on the head as he slipped through the portal. Non heard gleeful laughter as the portal closed behind him.
* * * * *
Ixthys splashed in and out of a pulsar’s beam, showing off for Insecare who studiously tallied the asteroids orbiting a gas giant. Hummus nestled in the gravity well of a black hole, silently watching the other two.
Non entered their universe. A white-hot explosion greeted him. The glare cleared and he saw enormous stars collapse under their own weight. They exploded again, pushing back the boundaries of the universe. The cycle repeated until matter cooled and planets formed.
A few planets fostered chemical reactions. A few reactions became aware. A few aware reactions left their homes to explore in crude metal vessels. A few of the explorers moved beyond metal vessels to travel as pure consciousness.
Hummus grabbed Non as he sailed by and held him still. The Committee gathered around while Non collected his thoughts.
“What did you see?” Insecare grew impatient. “Give us your report.”
Non looked at each of them for a long time, full of love for his companions. He felt gratitude and compassion for the countless generations of beings who suffered and labored to produce him at this time.
“I have seen our time here is finite. I must get this out of my system before it is too late.”
Then he flattened out a part of himself and rapped Insecare smartly on the head.
BD 2132, ancient among stars, heard laughter for the first time.
About the Authors
Jocelyn Adams
Jocelyn Adams grew up on a cattle farm in Lakefield and has remained a resident of Southern Ontario her entire life. She has worked as a computer geek, a stable hand, a secretary, and spent most of her childhood buried up to the waist in an old car or tractor engine with her mechanically inclined dad. But mostly, she’s a dreamer with a vivid imagination and a love for fantasy. When she isn’t shooting her compound bow in competition or writing, she hangs out with her husband and young daughter at their little house in the woods.
Her debut novel, The Glass Man, released in October 2011 with J. Taylor Publishing, and her short stories have appeared in Residential Aliens Magazine, Hall Brothers Villainy anthology, Roar and Thunder Magazine, Wicked East Press’s Twisted Fairy Tales II, and The Red Penny Papers.
http://www.joceadams.com
http://www.joceadams.wordpress.com
http://twitter.com/#!/JocelynAdams
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Jocelyn-Adams/204748756204572
Jeff Brackett
The storytelling gene was inescapable. A father whose daredevil adventures personified the rebellious preacher’s son, a Choctaw mother, and a veritable cast of characters in the family made for lots of “Did you hear about?” stories, as well as the inevitable oral histories.
Influenced by those histories, as well as his martial arts classes, trigonometry, Star Wars, and ice cream, Jeff recently decided what he wanted to be when he grew up—an author. His long-ignored and oft-lamented Attention Deficit Disorder notwithstanding, he occasionally manages to get his wild musings out of his head, and onto the virtual pages of his computer.
He has won a few local amateur author awards, recently published his first novel, and plans to start on that “growing up” thing any day now.
Jeff and his family live near Houston, Texas, with two “goggers,” three kids, one grandchild, and Dead Tehya, the cat.
http://jlbrackett.com
https://twitter.com/#!/@Jeff_Brackett
http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100000848836913
James Ebersole
James Ebersole was born in Sacramento, California, and grew up in Kure Beach, North Carolina. He currently resides in Richmond, Virginia, where he attends the University of Richmond and works at the Poe Museum. His previous poems and stories have appeared in such publications as Richmond Macabre: Nightmares from the River City, Cape Fear Community College’s Portals, and UNCW’s Talonmag.
Court Ellyn
Court Ellyn began writing historical fiction when she was 14, but her interests gradually shifted toward the fantastical. Today,
she primarily writes character-driven fantasy, collects fairies in bottles, and tames dragons. Her fiction has appeared in Kaleidotrope, A Fly In Amber, Silver Blade, and a number of self-published ventures. Between dragon dens and battlefields strewn with otherworldly foes, she moderates the LegendFire Creative Writing Community at www.legendfire.com.
http://cortllynn.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Court-Ellyn/116505078423990
http://twitter.com/#!/@Court_Ellyn
Laura Givens
Laura Givens is a Denver Based author and artist. Her art has graced the covers of numerous publishers’ books. In 2010 she naively decided she could write stories as well many she had illustrated. She has sold ten to date including the story in this volume. She was co-editor and contributor to Six-Guns Straight From Hell, a weird western anthology recently released. She performed improv comedy on stage for a decade then produced, wrote, directed and filmed her no-budget masterpiece, The Jerusalem Tango, which you will never see for good cause—trust me.
http://www.lauragivens-artist.com
Andrew Hawnt
Born in the north of England, Andrew currently lives in Nottingham in the UK’s midlands. As well as writing short fiction he writes for a national rock magazine, two pop culture sites, and is the author of The Otherside Trilogy novellas (Dead Thing, For The Fallen and I Am The Dark) as well as several other books. He’s easy to spot—just look for the guy with the shaved head who is rummaging through old science fiction pulps and battered VHS tapes of bad horror movies. This is his first fiction published in the US, and he sends a big hello to you in particular.
http://www.andrewhawnt.com
http://twitter.com/#!/@andrewhawnt
Kurt Heinrich Hyatt
Kurt Heinrich Hyatt was born and raised in Canada and came down during the Vietnam War to join the U.S. Army. He started writing in Seattle, Washington and had science fiction stories accepted in publications such as Space and Time, as well as being an associate editor for Starwind Magazine. He left writing to raise a family in Las Vegas, Nevada and returned to writing in 2010 with science fiction stories accepted by Raygun Revival, Allegory, Etopia, Aphelion, Orion’s Child, Residential Aliens, and The Nautilus Engine. His hobbies include raising tropical fish, weightlifting, and building custom motorcycles.
Daniel Latham
Daniel Latham describes himself as a wage slave with dreams of glory. He lives in Medford, Oregon with his wife, Kelly. They are training their two dogs, Rusty and Bobo, to become productive members of society.
Daniel has had personal essays published in Breath and Shadow magazine and read on Jefferson Public Radio. He is delighted and honored that his first science fiction publication is in the Dead Robots’ Society’s Explorers anthology.
http://plus.google.com/111892635872845359120/posts
http://twitter.com/#!/@LiterateLatham
Mark Mellon
Mark Mellon is a novelist who supports his family by working as an attorney. His work has recently been accepted for publication in Hungur, Criminal Class Review, and The Mythic Circle. A Western,The Pirooters, is published by Treble Heart Books. His fantasy novella, Escape From Byzantium, won the 2010 Independent Publisher Silver Medal for fantasy/science fiction. A steampunk/alternate history novel, Napoleon Concerto, is also published by Treble Heart Books. Most recently,Roman Hell, a horror novel, has been published by Amber Quill Press.
http://www.mellonwritesagain.com
Vincent Morgan
Vincent Morgan is the author of several short stories including “Murdock’s Last Stand,” “Umbuto’s Rock,” “An Alien Initiative,” and “With Cannon & Cutlass to the Gulf of Darien.” He lives with his family in Vancouver, British Columbia and is presently working on his first novel.
Ira Nayman
If Ira Nayman existed, he would be a satirist who dabbles in science fiction. He would have two collections of Alternate Reality News Service stories, Alternate Reality Ain’t What It Used To Be and What Were Once Miracles Are Now Children’s Toys, in print. A third collection, Luna for the Lunies!, would be forthcoming. All of the material in all three books would be available at his Web site, Les Pages aux Folles, as well as new material every week. “The Weight of Information,” the pilot for a radio series based on stories from the books, could be heard on YouTube. He would have written a separate series of short stories featuring Antonio Van der Whall, object psychologist, as well as a novel and two novellas featuring the Transdimensional Authority. Unfortunately, Ira Nayman can neither confirm nor deny his existence, so you will have to find the truth yourself.
http://www.lespagesauxfolles.ca
C.J. Paget
Colum sold his soul to science fiction in the 70’s, and has never stopped being bitterly disappointed with ‘progress’ since. He lives in Birmingham, UK, with many aged but adorable computers that he’s rescued from abuse and neglect (but mostly from the trash). He’s been published in Daily Science Fiction, Hub Magazine, Fusion Fragment, Kasma SF, Bards and Sages, Jupiter SF, and the anthology Anywhere but Earth.
He writes because no one else seems to be writing the stuff he wants to read.
Lauren Roy
Lauren M. Roy spends her days surrounded by books and her nights scratching out one of her own. Her rambles about bookselling, writing, geekery, and her inability to nurture houseplants can be found at her website. She is represented by Miriam Kriss of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency.
http://falconesse.com
http://twitter.com/#!/@falconesse
http://gplus.to/falconesse
J. Daniel Sawyer
J. Daniel Sawyer is the hat-wearing, obsessive-compulsive nutcase attempting to write his way out of the loony bin. The award-nominated author of the science fiction thriller series The Antithesis Progression and the cabin fever comedy Down From Ten, he also spends far too much time trolling the disreputable parts of his homeland doing research for his hard-boiled detective series The Clarke Lantham Mysteries.
In addition to his wanton abuse of the printed word, he unscrupulously uses his decade-long experience as an audio and video producer with his painfully florid and gritty writing style to create deeply immersive audio universes. This habit, which he indulges in public, has garnered him seven Parsec nominations (a trend which, for the good of the world at large, we can only hope abates soon). Meanwhile, his growing, rabid fan-base is currently plotting to imprison him and force him to produce endless new literary abominations for their amusement. We can only hope they succeed.
http://www.jdsawyer.net
Jesse Summerson
This is Jesse Summerson’s first printed publication, and he could not be more proud. He currently lives behind the misty redwood curtain in California, where he spends his time daydreaming and only occasionally writing. “For my little wolf, always, and ever.”
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000596426791
ABOUT THE EDITORS
The EXPLORERS anthology was created, produced, and edited by the Dead Robots' Society podcast, which was started in August of 2007 to help aspiring writers learn about their craft and the business of publication. You can find us at http://www.deadrobotssociety.com. Since then we have produced over 250 episodes covering topics ranging from initial story development to final edits and all points in between, as well as convention panels and special episodes. We've also had the pleasure of hosting authors, publishers, and editors. During the past five years it's been our pleasure and honor to have many fine co-hosts helm the podcast, but it was the efforts of the following who made this anthology a reality. They are:
JUSTIN MACUMBER is the author of the science fiction novel Haywire (Gryphonwood Press), and the soon to be published post-apocalyptic fantasy A Minor Magic (Crescent Moon Press). His short stories have won awards and been published through Golden Visions Magazine of Science Fiction and Fantasy, Ray Gun Revival, Flagship, and Abattoir, as well as the anthology Podthology (Dragon Moon Press). Justin was also an
Honorary Mention in the Writers of the Future contest. In lives in the Dallas/Fort Worth area of Texas with his wife and an ever-growing number of pets. You can find him online at http://www.justinmacumber.com, his Twitter handle is @JustinMacumber, and he's also on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Justin.Macumber.
TERRY MIXON, author of the upcoming erotic romance murder mystery novel Murderous Complications (under the not-so-secret pseudonym Lynn Mixon), lives in Houston with his wife and a pounce of cats. His writing as Lynn Mixon has appeared in the Lambda Literary Award Finalist anthology Lesbian Cops (Cleis), and is available on all major online booksellers in the form of numerous short stories and the erotic romance high fantasy novel Will of the Gods. Follow him on Twitter @TerryMixon and @Lynn_Mixon or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TerryLMixon and http://www.facebook.com/LynnMixonErotica. His author website, with a full listing of his mainstream erotica publications, can be found at http://LynnMixon.com.
ELIYANNA KAISER lives in Manhattan with her wife and works in local government. Her writing has appeared in Dark Faith (Apex), Brain Harvest, and Silver Blade Magazine. She is no longer a co-host of the Dead Robots' Society, but she will always be a Dead Robot. Follow her on Twitter @eliyannakaiser.