Flash - A Love Story
by Eric J. Krause
A zombie sneaks up on a group of unsuspecting campers. It's built for feasting on their brains, while they're built to die. Mayhem ensues as he breaks their camp. Maybe he kills them all in a gruesome scene of pornographic gore. Maybe one young kid escapes, humanity's last hope in the coming zombieocalypse.
Flash.
An older gentleman, surrounded by his family and friends, lays on his deathbed. He revels in their presence, but his mind wanders back to his youth. To that pretty girl he never had the courage to court. How different would life have been? He doesn't dream of this with any sort of longing, just curiosity. As he smiles at those around him, he knows he couldn't have asked for a better life. But that nagging voice, his last conscious thought, tells him life holds too many mysteries, too many choices, for just one go-around.
Flash.
The starship pilot pushes and prods the controls. That last laser torpedo destroyed his navigation, his steering, and even his communication capabilities. All that remains is the life-support system, and a hell of a lot of good that does him since all he can do is float aimlessly. A quick exploding death would be preferable. Not that all hope is lost. He could be picked up by a passing freighter, or maybe he'll hit the gravity field of a life-sustaining planet. Or maybe he'll just go crazy thinking of the options in his lonely isolation.
Flash.
The young boy crawls all around the ant hill, fascinated by the insects scurrying here and there, always busy. He wants to dig it up, see how far down it goes, but he promised Momma and Dad that he wouldn't. He pulls out a magnifying glass, and anyone passing by would have to wonder if it's to observe the ants up close or to bring fiery death from above.
Flash.
The young woman puts an extra kick in her stride, aware someone is following her. Of course this is late at night, the witching hour some might say, or she wouldn't be as frightened. How dumb is she for even being out here? The campus newspaper, all the campus websites, and even the local TV news have warned all co-eds to not travel alone after dark. This serial killer has left no clues. The footsteps behind her get louder, and she turns to face her pursuer. When she sees it's another girl, a woman her age, she loses it, balls her head off, and hugs this stranger. The twist? (Of course there's a twist.) The killer is a self-loathing, woman-hating lesbian. She won't take her own life, so she offs any pretty lady she sees. They turn her on and disgust her all at once. You better believe our heroine gets a knife in the back.
Flash. Flash. Flash.
The author sits back and smiles. That'll do for today. Tomorrow he can visit countless other places, be anyone he wants, do whatever catches his fancy. In short, he can be the master of the universe. All at under 1000 words a pop.
