Shadows of Light

Silent Earth

A Short Story

Neo is a Martian. At seventeen, the only ground he’s ever seen is red, the only air he’s ever breathed is filtered, and plants only grow in the underground greenhouses. He also knows every living person, all fifteen of them. Mars is as much a part of him as is his family and the others in their makeshift colony. The planet is also trying to kill him. With no way to repair their habitat’s aging systems, their survival hinges on help from Earth—but the blue dot in the sky has been silent for twenty years. They have enough power for one last message. Now Neo must face reality: he and his family will die if Earth doesn’t respond, and if by some miracle they do, he stands to lose everything anyway.

Among the red storms, barren landscape, and his dark cavern home, Neo must decide if he will let his despair chip away at him like the aging habitat, or if he will send the final message through the void.

A heartfelt, character-driven, sci-fi short story about tough choices, the strength to make them, and having hope in the face of them.

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narrated by Philip

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Early readers say...

Loved it! Great concept, really touching and moving. Thought provoking.

Sneak Peek

Neo had been seven, and already tall enough to fit into his mother’s EV suit, when he’d experienced the world outside the habitat for the first time. The old satellite images and photos he’d obsessed over were suddenly transformed. No longer were they just pictures. Each now triggered a memory, letting him relive an experience.

His parent’s pictures of Earth, however, were something else entirely. Today he couldn’t see the star-like blue dot against the bright pink sky, but he knew about where it should be. His mother called Earth home. When he was younger and naïve, Neo had too. But every image, from the blue skies and colossal trees to cities full of people shuffling about under imposing glass buildings, was more alien to him than anything he’d seen on Mars.

He’d tried sketching out his own versions of the scenes, hoping that an act of creation could be a substitute for real experience. He wanted to feel connected to Earth like his parents and the others. But Earth wasn’t his home. Neo was a Martian. He’d been born here, grown up here, and now, at sixteen, he was going to die here.

Neo had thought he would’ve had longer—at least thirty or forty Earth years. However, he’d never thought his frail, Martian body would outlast their deteriorating equipment, but from the looks of things, everyone was going to die long before his body physically gave out.

Release Date

Fall 2024

Publisher

Tale Forged Books

Pages

34 pages

Language
English

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