Tag / sci-fi

by Warren Benedetto

Read the entire “Override” novella for free

The full version of my cyberpunk thriller Override is now available to read for free.

“This conversation will be the last thing you remember.”

Originally published as a three-part serial in Dark Matter Magazine Issues 007, 008, and 009, Override is the story of a man who volunteers to be converted into an AI-driven automaton in exchange for a company taking care of his wife and his sickly son for the rest of their lives. But when the company reneges on its end of the bargain, his wife must navigate an underworld of violent criminals and corrupt corporations to find him, free him, and bring him back home.

by Warren Benedetto

“From Below” published in Parsec #5

My post-apocalyptic eco-horror story From Below has been published in Parsec #5. In the flooded remains of Old Manhattan, the wealthy live in penthouses and dine on fresh meat, while everyone else is left to fend for themselves against the unseen horrors lurking just below the surface.

The boy from the boat—the one who had spoken to him only minutes earlier—was at the window, pounding on the glass. His face was a mask of pure terror. Panicked, the boy looked over his shoulder, then down at Jeremy. He screamed, his lips forming two words that Jeremy easily understood, even through the thick, soundproof glass.

“Help me!”

by Warren Benedetto

“A Piece of the Sky” published by The Dread Machine

My sci-fi horror story A Piece of the Sky has been published by The Dread Machine. It’s told through the testimony of the surviving member of a two-person asteroid mining crew that picked up an unfortunate souvenir during their expedition.

With all due respect, sir, you don’t know what you’re talking about. There was no way Bakely could’ve known what the thing was when he picked it up. It looked like a rock. Hell, it was a rock, just a hunk of the asteroid’s crust that he grabbed as a souvenir for his kid. There’s no way he could’ve known it was a nest.

by Warren Benedetto

Read “One Last Step” for free in The Sirens Call

My sci-fi horror story One Last Step has been published in the Summer 2022 issue of The Sirens Call. You’ll find it on page 226 of the downloadable PDF.

It’s a story about a little girl stalked by an unseen shadow-thing across a post-apocalyptic landscape. The key to her survival? Following the instructions her dead father tattooed on her arm.

by Warren Benedetto

Read “Blame” for free on The Dread Machine

My techno-horror story Blame is now available to read for free on The Dread Machine.

It’s a “found footage” story consisting of emails, Slack conversations, Reddit threads, phone transcripts, and more unusual artifacts like git commits, JIRA tickets, door entry logs … even a Walmart receipt.

Also, like many found footage tales, the story is ultimately pieced together based on incomplete information. Multiple reads of the story should reveal new hidden details that may change your interpretation of the ending.

by Warren Benedetto

Three drabbles published in Drabbledark II

Three of my horror drabbles have been published in the Drabbledark II anthology by Shacklebound Books.

  • Everything Your Know About Witches is about a witch being burned at the stake, who insists that everything her killer knows about witches is wrong.
  • The Angel is about a father and daughter eating their last meal before the zombies come.
  • The Last Fantasy is a sci-fi horror about a brain upload technician who browses through his beautiful patient’s mind drive in search of her deepest, darkest fantasies.
by Warren Benedetto

“Blame” published by The Dread Machine

My techno-horror story Blame has been published by The Dread Machine. It’s a “found footage” story consisting of emails, Slack conversations, Reddit threads, phone transcripts, and more unusual artifacts like git commits, JIRA tickets, door entry logs … even a Walmart receipt.

Also, like many found footage tales, the story is ultimately pieced together based on incomplete information. Multiple reads of the story should reveal new hidden details that change the your interpretation of the ending.

by Warren Benedetto

“Override, Part Three” published in Dark Matter Magazine

The third and final installment of my cyberpunk thriller Override has been published in Dark Matter Magazine Issue 009. Override is a three-part serial novella that started in Issue 007 and continued in Issue 008.

In Part One, Delek Foster volunteers himself to Syntech be converted into an AI-driven automaton in exchange for Syntech taking care of his wife (Neera) and his sickly son (Sev) for the rest of their lives. But something goes wrong, and the deal falls through. Delek is taken away by Syntech, leaving Neera and Sev with nothing. Part One ends with Neera setting out on a mission to free Delek from Syntech.

In Part Two, Neera finds a shady underworld boss who has an interrupter technology he claims can override Syntech’s AI. She cons him into giving her an interrupter in exchange for a useless bank auth key that he thinks he can use to undermine his criminal rivals. After hijacking a Syntech van, Neera is able to track Delek to the location where he is stationed. She attempts to use the interrupter to free Delek, but things don’t go as planned. Neera is captured by Delek himself, who seems to have no memory of his wife. To make matters worse, Delek is working for the very underworld boss that Neera just conned. And he is not happy.

What happens next? You’ll need to read Part Three to find out.