I half-suspected Ambassador Brune would attack the station. Despite talks of peace, our two species are in territorial dispute—his people want Earth and we humans don’t want to give it up.
I sprint to an escape pod, dodging gunfire and invading soldiers. The pod launches into space like a bullet. I stare backwards out the window and smile despite it all. The new helm room I designed should baffle the ambassador completely. The controls are a plain series of flat grids. The only distinguishing feature is color.
He underestimated me…betrayed a secret. The ambassador and his people are colorblind.
Know your genre. Escape pods are generally short-range spaceship lifeboats, not bona fide space vehicles on their own. A shuttle would be a better term – apart from many other better than that. Relying on a punchline ending demeans microfiction.
I agree, Perry, with your remark about relying on a punchline — or as some term it, a “twist.”. I see that all too often on these pages. Jerry
I’m sorry the form of the story isn’t your style, glkamens. thanks for taking the time to read my story and comment.
Hey Perry, thanks for your suggestions. I’ll take them into consideration with future projects.
I enjoyed the story and probably don’t know about sci-Fi to pick up on the escape pod discrepancy.
I write a lot of flash with twist endings and it might not be for everyone, but that’s story telling in general.
I think it flowed nicely and was a great ending.
Thank you C! I appreciate your positivity. And you’re right, no one story will please everyone. Your comment made my day. 🙂
Ok, so this was my first “flash fiction” story. I am currently reading a short story by Faulkner and I certainly enjoyed this more. Valerie, I liked the twist at the end…just sayin’.
Hi sharon! Thanks for reading my story and taking time to comment. It’s interesting to see the different reactions such a short story can invoke. Also, thanks for the positive vibes.