artwork © John Hughes
Blog Archives
Edition 3: The Observer by Hansen Hovell Holladay
From the other side of the glass, it always pays to be detached. What do you do when you feel for the object of your observation? A flash piece by Hanson Hovell Holladay gives a small insight in The Observer. SY
Gazing into the monitor’s screen, the Observer suddenly becomes uneasy. The woman below always rises with the sun, watching it grow in brightness throughout the morning hours. Only on this morning she does not appear. Those that encircle her life stir and pace about as though the day seems just as any other. Where is she? He thinks to himself. What’s wrong?
On the nearside of the planet’s natural satellite, invisible to the people that dwell below, the Observer scans the numerous monitors before him. Looking, he can see everyone and all they have created over time—everyone but her. She had been crying the day before, having emptied her sadness in isolation. With every tear she struggled to breathe, until exhaustion carried her into a deep slumber. He knows that she suffers from inner pain. What can I do? Why do you hurt? So much time thinking.
Edition 3: Notes From the Editor
No one ever tells you that when you begin work how many decisions you are going to have to make every day. It also isn’t revealed how hard those choices are going to be.
When Gerry asked me to head up this e-zine (and its predecessor SQ Magazine), I didn’t realise that I would be making tough decisions on fantastic stories all the time. It is agony sometimes to take only a selection of the shorts that come through to the submissions page. As the quality keeps improving, it only gets harder.
You will find this edition has a definite bent towards horror and supernatural themes. It is interesting how a run of a particular speculative fiction theme will be sent to us, from all over the globe. In SQ Mag 3, we have authors from the US, the UK, Ireland and Italy. We have stories of creatures of space, long-held bitter feuds, love, loss and murder. We all have really enjoyed putting this group together and hope you will appreciate them too.
Edition 3: Serial Fiction: Avoiding The Searchers (Part 3 of 5) by M.F. Burbaugh
Previously, in Part 2, we found the narrator, Johnathan, and his friend Tonie, begin their dangerous reconnaissance mission. They took a detour at the remains of his old, pre-invasion home, and draw some impressive weaponry and other military equipment that were secretly cached. Later, they made a grim discovery, the remains of Tonie’s mother, father and young brother, who were executed by what appeared to be Earther ground troops. An intense need for revenge coursed through Tonie’s being. Following a close call with Searchers, they encounter a mysterious stranger. GH.
Illustration by Jeffery Doherty
“Well, Seymour, what now?” I asked.
“Look, I just follow orders, honest. I ain’t supposed to let anyone past here,” he said, a touch of fear showing.
SQ Mag 