Adventure
Solitude of the Cabin in the Woods
Chapter 1: The Journey to Solitude Dave had always dreamt of escaping the chaos of city life. The constant noise, the pollution, the rush—it had all taken a toll on his mind and body. When the opportunity arose to spend a year in a remote mountain cabin, he seized it without hesitation. Leaving behind his job as an executive, he packed his essentials and set off on a journey to solitude.
By Dave Karpinsky, PhD, MBA4 days ago in Fiction
The Best Books to Read in 2024
Introduction As we step into 2024, there are many new and exciting books to look forward to. From gripping thrillers to heartwarming romances and insightful non-fiction, this year’s literary offerings promise something for every reader. Here’s a curated list of the best books to read in 2024.
By Derrick Juma4 days ago in Fiction
2026 - The War of the Americas
Part I of this series can be found here. "Fuck Dom, that's Tijuana alright, and San Ysidro crossing has been totally fucking destroyed. How could we have not heard anything? or seen anything?" Dom considered the question briefly before responding "Don't know babe, my guess is must have been a cruise missile strike likely from a sea based destroyer off of San Diego. If it had been an airstrike surely we would have heard the jets." That was a question for another day, right now a more pressing concern was on Dom's mind, and he guessed Sylvia would have the exact same immediate concern. "How do you think Mexico is going to react baby?" Dom asked already knowing the answer, but hoping she might surprise him. "Not well Dom, not fucking well." Within minutes she was proven correct as breaking news coming from multiple sources indicated that Mexico had declared it was now officially at war with the United States having been attacked without provocation. That news was troublesome to say the least but what came next, was a thing they did not expect, but perhaps should have, and it caused the fear level in them both to rise to new levels. Mexico had declared all US citizens living in Mexico enemy combatants and ordered their immediate arrest and detention. Immigration records had already been pulled, both Dom and Sylvia were registered as temporary residents of Mexico, and national guard and regular military had already been deployed to the addresses on file to begin rounding up Americans. "Fuck babe. We need to act now. They could be here to arrest us at any minute."
By Everyday Junglist4 days ago in Fiction
First contact with an alien civilization and the consequences.
The news spread like wildfire across the globe - humanity had made contact with an alien civilization. It began with a series of strange radio signals detected by SETI researchers, seemingly originating from the Gliese 667 system. After years of analysis and failed attempts at communication, a message was finally received, in a complex mathematical language.
By Abdul Rafay Khan (ARK S)4 days ago in Fiction
Do Parallel universe exists?
Parallel universe, an independently created scientific concept in many worldviews and science fiction, refers to hypothetical universes that exist alongside the known Universe. This tantalizing notion, known as the “multiverse,” suggests that our universe is only one of many—if not an infinite number—of universes that in turn coexist around us. These parallel universes are also unlikely to resemble the world of our own; they could very well have different physical laws and even us in all of them! What does science have to say about parallel realities? We would look into different theories and evidence on the topic.
By Galaxiesbuzz4 days ago in Fiction
The Lost Temple of Hathor. AI-Generated.
In the time of Egypt's great Pharaohs, when the sun-god Ra's chariot soared across the sky and the Nile nurtured the land with its life-giving waters, there existed a hidden temple devoted to Hathor, the goddess of love, beauty, and joy.
By Sherif Saad5 days ago in Fiction
Specter of La Sirene del Crescente
On the longest day of the year, a town revives an ancient solstice ritual and discovers its unexpected power... My mind was reeling on strange intrusive thoughts - s0 much that the tapping sound of my pen as I dazed at the page before me had become a steady and rhythmic distraction. One that after a few moments finally occurred to me as I shook off my daydream. The art commission I had intended to complete within the hour had scarcely been outlined and I still couldn't seem to focus. I didn't understand why - I had grown distant from my aunt Sharlaine over the years, and I scarcely knew her since I moved to Houston. Sure, she had raised me from the time I was four years old - and after my mother's accident I knew it couldn't have been easy. Her creepy old house in Tremé had always kinda gotten to me - and I didn't understand why she hadn't sold it after Hurricane Katrina hit.
By Sai Marie Johnson5 days ago in Fiction
2026 - The War of the Americas
When Sylvia saw the look of distress etched across the narrow lines of her husbands face as he turned from his phone to gaze up at her, she immediately knew the next words to come out of his mouth were not going to be good. "Shit babe, I can't believe it. I can't fucking believe it. That son of a bitch, actually fucking did it, fuck, fuck, fuck. We are screwed here Syl, Trump just bombed Tijuana." Sylvia's heart dropped in her chest. It took her a few seconds to process what she had heard, stunned was the understatement of the century. "Shit Dom, are you sure? Are you certain? What's the source? Maybe it's a mistake, or propaganda?" "It's no mistake hon I have video footage right here. I am looking at it right now." Dom, spoke more gently now after hearing the fear in his wife's voice. He was scared too, very scared, but when Sylvia got scared, he got terrified, because it took a lot to shake her, and this news clearly had. He beckoned her over to sit beside him, and she moved quickly to his side putting one arm around his neck and over his shoulder using him like a swing to maneuver herself into her seat next to him. The warmth and love between them was evident in that moment revealed in the comfortableness of their physical interactions even in such highly stressful circumstances. She stared at the screen of the phone Dom had placed between them and saw smoke clouds rising above the border wall near San Ysidro crossing, the largest and busiest land border crossing in the world connecting the countries of Mexico and the United States just south of San Diego, California. Formerly largest, given what had just happened, Dom thought to himself. Additional footage showed the remains of the crossing itself which had been reduced to rubble and ash along both the Mexican and US sides of the border. The screams of the dead and dying could be heard above the wail of sirens. Mercifully, the strike must have happened in the middle of the night, probably between 2am and 4am local time. That was when the San Ysdiro crossing was slowest, but slow for a place like San Ysdiro still meant potentially hundreds to thousands of border crossers both on foot and by car, not to mention the hundreds of US and Mexican border agents working both sides of the crossing. What about the US CBP agents? she wondered. Had they been tipped off about the strike and evacuated? Likely that would have sent alarm bells ringing along the Mexican side so sadly she guessed, correctly it turned out, that they had not been informed, and instead had been deemed acceptable losses for the greater good. President Trump would call them war heroes for their sacrifice, but a sacrifice made without any choice, is no sacrifice at all she thought. It would also later be revealed that Trump had wanted to strike at the height of rush hour to maximize the impact, but had been talked out of it by his Generals who wisely counseled that the loss of innocent American lives would be so high it might lead to mass defections among the troops and possible insurrection in the military itself. Fortunately, Sylvia knew nothing of this at the time, and, as upset as she was by those thoughts, she also knew that the loss of a few hundred border patrol agents could be nothing more than an footnote in a war that might cost tens, or hundreds of thousands or even millions of lives should things spiral out of control.
By Everyday Junglist5 days ago in Fiction