The Fifth Di... March 2017

By J Alan Erwine

The March 2017 issue of The Fifth Di... starts yet another year of wonderful science fiction and fantasy fiction.
This issue brings you fiction from Daniel C. Smith, Melanie Rees, Kate Runnels, and Eamonn Murphy. These stories will have you questioning reality, questioning what’s right and wrong in the world, and maybe even questioning what we should tolerate as the world changes around us.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nomadic Delirium Press
• Release date: Feb 25, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370432547

J Alan Erwine

J Erwine was born Oct. 15, 1969 in Akron, Ohio. Early in his life he was exposed to science, and specifically astronomy. From there on, J's passion turned to science fiction, a passion that's never died. Due to family issues, J eventually found himself in Denver, Colorado, where he still lives (well, right outside now.) From the time he could put subject and predicate together on paper, J has been writing stories. None of those early stories exist anymore (thankfully), but that passion for writing has never waned. After several years of rejection, the story Trek for Life was eventually sold to ProMart Writing Lab editor James Baker. It wasn't Asimov's, but it was a start. Since that time J has sold more than forty short stories to various small press publishers. In addition ProMart also published a short story collection of J's entitled Lowering One's Self Before Fate, and other stories, which is still available. ProMart also published a novel from J entitled The Opium of the People, which sold a few copies before going out of print. The relevance of the novel after the events of September 11th caused J to self-publish the novel, as he felt the story had a lot to say in the new reality we now find ourselves living in. Now, this same book has been re-released by Nomadic Delirium Press. Eventually J would become an editor with ProMart. Then, after the untimely death of ProMart editor James Baker, J would move on to ProMart's successor Sam's Dot Publishing. J also spends most of his time working as a freelance writer and editor. J's novel was voted a top ten finisher in the 2003 annual Preditors & Editors contest, and his short story The Galton Principle won a ProMart contest for best story over 5,000 words. In addition, a number of his stories have been voted "best of" in various issue of The Martian Wave and The Fifth DI… and have been included in Wondrous Web Worlds Vols. 2, 3, 4, and 6. In 2009, the Ephemeris Role Playing Game was released. J is the co-creator of this game, and has written numerous supplements for the game. J has now sold three novels and four short story collections, all of which are still available from various sources, including Smashwords. J currently lives with his amazing wife, three wonderful children, three cats, and a very quiet turtle.

Book preview

THE FIFTH DI…

March 2017

Edited by J Alan Erwine

Published by Nomadic Delirium Press at Smashwords

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Copyright 2017 by Nomadic Delirium Press

All stories and poems are copyrighted in the names of their respective authors

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any informational storage and retrieval system, without the written consent of the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passes in connection with a review written for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, broadcast, etc.

Nomadic Delirium Press

Aurora, Colorado

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Artemis One by Daniel C. Smith

Resinging by Melanie Rees

The Mart by Kate Runnels

The Union Man by Eamonn Murphy

Artemis One

By Daniel C. Smith

"Houston… this is Artemis One… we've touched down-- we are back on the moon ladies and gentlemen! Houston this is Commander Stuart Ullman requesting permission to EVA… Houston do you copy? Houston… please respond…"

Sergeant Diane Johnson sat listening to the recording for what seemed the millionth time since leaving Earth-- the same transmission everyone else on the planet had heard almost six weeks ago. And nothing had been heard from Artemis One-- whatever it was-- since. Of course, the International Space Agency had never launched a ship for a lunar landing-- once the industrial and security platforms had been built during the thirties the moon and all of its dust seemed an unnecessary expense. Profit and security as enforced by the ISA under the aegis of the United Nations were the only reasons for the existence of a space program at all. Humans hadn't been to the moon since the early 1970's, and there had never been a ship registered as Artemis One. And so far, no one had found anyone named Stuart Ullman, or anyone who matched his voice print. After everyone started to consider the whole thing some sort of elaborate hoax the story faded from the headlines.

Unknown to the general public however, the ISA had indeed tracked a UFO landing in the southern portion of the Sea of Tranquility, very near the sight of the original Apollo 11 landing, just minutes before the world heard Commander Ullman's triumphant hail from the lunar surface.

The ISA opted not to make this information public (of course).

Once the powers that be decided that whatever or whoever Artemis One would prove to be, they were still hiding in the lunar shadows, they dispatched Johnson and her team on this mission.

This was not a rescue mission-- Johnson was not qualified to lead a rescue mission. This operation was strictly search and destroy-- her specialty. Another of her specialties was following orders without question, in this case orders that no one else on her team knew about. As for Artemis One, she couldn't care less what it was, unlike her crew, none of whom had stopped theorizing for the last three hundred thousand kilometers. Parallel and alternate universes, shifting timelines, time travel and dimensional rifts, she had heard it all in the last twelve hours.

And now she had heard enough.

Danny Torrence, the Alabama boy, was running his mouth, "We're gonna be the first people to walk on the moon since Apollo 17…we're gonna be famous..."

She cut him off, We're not going for a walk, country boy-- and no one knows we're going to the moon, so don't you be dreaming about any book tours.

Why are we going, Sergeant?

That was Duval, the farm girl from Illinois with a philosophy degree from somewhere they never heard of in Johnson's neighborhood.

Johnson ripped her, Because those are our orders sweetheart, and we follow orders-- that's what good Marines do. Any questions?

Silence. Just the way Sergeant Johnson liked it.

She continued, "Whatever or whoever broadcast that message, command believes that they're still there. Whatever and whoever they are, they ain't us. and the only people that belong on the moon-- is us. Any questions?"

Four faces, Danny Torrence, Michelle Duval, Del Grady and Dr. Richard Halloran, stone silent. Just the way she liked it.

Everybody understands then. We land in half an hour, how about some quiet time, huh?

With that each member of the team retreated into their own thoughts, giving Johnson the peace