Instant Story

Flash fiction fresh from my fingers to your mind!

Challenge #02565-G008: Around and Around They Go

Based off of this post: https://steemit.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-02375-f185-call-it-a-win

He remembered the portal made out of antimatter and tachyon particles, he tried replicating it multiples times but all ended in failures. Many times and many explosive experiences later he came across a strange matter literally called strange matter from a neutron star. Not only it was still stable but also within the same fabric of spacetime. Years later a woman inserted her hand into a three pronged device while a robotic voice exclaimed “very good, you are now in possession of the Aperture Science handheld portal device” -- Anon Guest

[AN: Much though I'd love to ruin my prospects of actually selling an instants anthology for income, I have to decline.]

There had been very much ado about the portal. Five dollars was, indeed, five dollars... and Science was tempted to bet Steve that he couldn't do it again. They also rather feared that he could do it again. Unfortunately, though Humans will do literally anything to win a five dollar bet, they're less able to do it for a mind-bogglingly uncountable stipend.

In brief, though he may have been able to build the portal to win a five-buck bet, there was no way Steve could build it for a billion-dollar business investment. All sorts of theories emerged, mostly considering the vast distances between linked portals and what data could be obtained with teams, supplies, and enough stable time loops to theoretically accelerate technological evolution by ten to twenty thousand years.

The structure already there was 'impossibly old', data gathered from what cameras viewed through the portal. Living, organic eyes never saw the same thing twice, and didn't like what they saw looking back at them. That was really how the experiments began.

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Challenge #02564-G007: Determination and Caffeine

A planet with a mix of deathworlders and havenworlders, one of the few planets to have such a mixed colony, is struck by an unusual virus. For the havenworlders, it's painful, it makes them very, very sick, but it is survivable, mostly. Though there have been casualties and other side-effects. For the deathworlders, it's just as painful, but worse, the virus is mostly fatal if contracted. And the survivors are usually in very bad shape. The disease is also, unfortunately, extremely contagious

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Challenge #02563-G006: Little, Quiet, Troublesome

There were three humans aboard this ship. As big as it was, and with the size of the crew, even with three they had their hands full! Still, it wasn't a bad job, pay was good and they saw some of the most beautifully unexplored worlds. Two of the humans were burly individuals, boisterous and active. During down time they always headed to one of the storage areas that had been converted to a game room to burn off steam playing racket-ball,

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Challenge #02562-G005: The Work Around

A disabled human ("invisible" disability) from a...less than understanding society, grown to adulthood and full of the painful little quirks and habits that one develops in order to survive that situation, encounters a member of the Galactic Alliance. A member of the Galactic Alliance who isn't sure what to do with a deathworlder who apologizes for displaying distress, and cries from joy when not berated for showing signs of pain when "there's nothing wrong" -- Anon Guest

They call me Human

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Challenge #02561-G004: Soft Protection

Cuddly-Pie, Uplift, the name said it all, designed as an accessory/servant. now acts as Companion,Escort, Shield for those humans needing a Buffer and Shield when moving about or interacting with life. The Shield works both ways. -- Anon Guest

Augment -- a non-cogniscent species given cusp-cogniscence at a genetic level before gestation and training after birth in order to be an engineered assistive animal, usually sterile and made for assisting one person.
Uplift -- a non-cogniscent species given post-birth retrogenetic

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Challenge #02560-G003: Human NO!

A: A Dyson sphere just millions of solar panels covering a star

B: But why do we need that much energy?

A: To make a black hole bomb

B: WAIT NO

https://youtu.be/ulCdoCfw-bY -- Anon Guest

Ever since Nikola Tesla accidentally invented radio[1], Humanity has been obsessed with transmitting energy without using some form of wire between points A and B. The instant they had the means, they switched to becoming obsessed with gathering as much energy as possible.

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Challenge #02559-G002: Needing a Hand

His name was Marvin. He traveled with a band of friends on various adventures. But his life had not been quite this pleasant before he met them. Abused, mistreated, made to feel stupid, even when he was with the gang, people he thought were his friends, it had been misery. Now, with the wizard, the kobold, and the others, he actually had a chance. But, on quiet nights like this, as they had set up camp and he was not on watch,

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Challenge #02556-G001: Tearful Appreciation

"Are you alright?" The same question they got lots of times when tears would fall down their cheeks. Of course, they understood the Galactics were not used to seeing a human crying when nothing was wrong, obviously. They were sitting with their friends watching a video that showed incredible sunrises and sunsets from various worlds with a background for these wonders being the sound of an orchestra increasing the richness of the experience. And, as always, they wiped their cheeks and said

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Challenge #02555-F365: It's So Relaxing

Oh, I can't really handle all the excitement and action in FPS, especially the PVP ones. I much prefer simulation games, like Frost Punk! You build your little town, and manage resources, and try not to let all your people freeze to death or starve or something. Nice, relaxing fun. -- Anon Guest

Humans love to play. Their play takes every form you could imagine and some that seem incredibly unlikely. Some play involves flinging themselves physically at obstacles, off obstacles, or

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Challenge #02554-F364: Learning to See

Just as there are xenophobes amongst the various races outside the Galactic Alliance, so, too, are there within. Even amongst races that are, normally, allies. They and their family, and many within their community, were such xenophobes. They chanted Earth First during the protests they ran to show their displeasure of alien races being allowed to visit their world. Some of the more radicalized ones even committed crimes to try to "prove their point". This group, however in the minority they were,

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Challenge #02553-F363: Here There Be Sock Puppets

An enemy deathworlder, a xenophobe, constantly making life hell for the havenworlders around them. A general, proud, fierce, having suffered many tortures and never once broke, always escaped. But now, they were being held by humans. Pain meant nothing to them. When asked about the movements of new weaponry, the answer was always a snark and the spitting or words "Do your worst, I'll never say a word, you'll have to kill me."

The humans bring in what they call the 3rd

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Challenge #02552-F362: Find a Family

She was small, almost dangerously thin, but fast. Her parents, addled yet again on drink and the newest designer drugs, didn't even notice as she left their quarters in search of food. She heard, as she was contemplating swiping an unattended sandwich, that one of the big havenworlder freighters was docked and was on loading cargo for their next run. Large cargo freighters usually meant larger amounts of food. This wouldn't be the first time this young human had snuck aboard freighters,

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Challenge #02551-F361: You Hear Me

“Get back to work and if I see you with something in your ears again you’re fired!”

The human just stared blankly

“Do you understand me? Is your universal translator even working?”

It took the human a moment then wrote something down

‘My translator is with my hearing aids you took’ -- Anon Guest

In all things, communication is important. This is why any given traveller will find far more accessibility options available in Galactic space than many other places. It

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Challenge #02550-F360: A Hero is You

Grandma I got the big sad, can you read me a story? -- Anon Guest

Oh my child, my darling dear. Sadness must be hunted. A story can quell it, but you must trace it to be happy in the long term. It is a hunt only you can embark upon. You must armour yourself with happier times, you must strengthen your soul with the knowledge that your true family is always there to support you, and arm yourself with clever thoughts

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Challenge #02549-F359: Misunderstanding

"Why does everyone think I'm a Vampire whenever I tell anyone I transform into a bat?! There are over 1,200 species of bat and only 3 of them drink blood! I'd rather drink a cricket and fruit smoothie then get whatever Hematological disease you've got!" -- AmberFox

"So... you're undead?"

"What? No! I turn into a bat at will."

"But... vampire bat, right?" said Allie. "So if vampire bat, then vampire, then undead? It's the way it goes."

"No... there's over

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