Start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don’t recognize.

Posted in Mystery on Feb 2, 2024

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✍️ 33 stories

“Dead Girls Tell No Tales” by Abbey Light

Submitted to Contest #236

“Detective Gray?” Thea’s head turned toward the voice of a crime scene tech. “That’s me.” The tech wiped his brow with the back of his coverall sleeve, despite the cool autumn air. “This way.” The man turned and began walking toward a vast field. Thea fell into step beside him as he filled her in. “Jasper Hastings, a local farmer, bought this land a little over a month ago, but it was considered public property before that and hadn’t been touched. Hastings was in the middle of plowing the field when he hit something.” They wer...

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“Beyond the Veil of Drowning” by Morgan Aloia

Submitted to Contest #236

“There was a god here, once.” Adysl recited, feeling out across the wallstones of the crumbling and emptied temple, the last of Myarsa, “I know this to be true.” “You have such faith, conservator.” Kadius basked in an awe that radiated disquietingly towards his precious charge. His axe was still heavy in hand from their escortment across the swamp. He had brandished it at the penitents that usually flooded the temple, picking away at its intruding roots, and had not seemed to have had compunctions about using it if they had disobeyed his c...

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“Whisper Voices in her Head” by Kami Drake

Submitted to Contest #236

Eris, Whisper to her Sisters, rarely left the comforting glow of her computer monitors. With all the technology at her command, she never had to leave the server room. But today was her prescribed day outside. Her Sisters, ever with Whisper’s best in mind, made her go out during the day at least once a month. Today was that day. “Whisper, damnit.” Blast was panting when she caught up with Whisper. “The faster you walk doesn’t mean we go back faster. Slow down, enjoy the scenery”. Blast waved her hand around the stre...

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“The Whispering Gem” by Corbin Russell

Submitted to Contest #236

By the time Oots had found the still waters of the pond at the edge of the wood, the bear was far enough away for him to sit and rest. Oots was limping along, nursing his torn-open thigh and carrying a fawn carcass—what was left of it—over his shoulders. He was lucky the bear left him alone. It was not a large bear, as bears go. Oots knew the hunger and tenacity of any bear, especially the larger brown bears. And to be a bear’s prey at any distance meant a race for your life that would only end if the bear died, found easier prey, or caught ...

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“Colonialcore ” by Nina Yaney

Submitted to Contest #236

He looked up and the sky was full of rats. It is such a trope: the old city, the ancient pigeon shit. A whole park dedicated to the avian rodents. Every road seemed a maquette; every wall peeling in colonial core. It would be a cliché asking if it has always been like this, but the longer he stare the more he internalized how enduring status quo was. He walked to the a double black door standing proudly against the radioactive yellow wall. His gaze locked on the metal bars that cross and covers the wood windows on both doors. ...

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“The Beat and the Bass” by Gregg Voss

Submitted to Contest #236

The vibration of a bouncing basketball is the core of music, the primal gateway to karmic sound that transcends the universe. For Jimmy Trost, the music was present in every pass, every shot attempt, every rebound, every point scored. It was a choir that might move him to tears if it wouldn’t have made him seem weak in the faces of his varsity players. The rhythm of movement by ball and players alike equated to the individual components of an orchestra. &nbsp...

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“Patch” by Zavier M. Ames

Submitted to Contest #236

The world has claimed victim to another slash-and burn operation in the Amazon Basin. The thick smoke of a variety of cremated remains from beautiful exotic plants rises upon acres and acres of land. Javier has worn a gasmask while clearing the land to prepare it for re-planting. His heavily forested farmland was used for an extensive amount of money by a foreign lumbering company to create exotic furniture for three times the price worldwide. It’s easy to see...

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“Worth a Thousand Words” by Emily Melcher

Submitted to Contest #236

I didn't intend to steal it; I thought I could salvage it for parts. The object wasn't of any familiarity to me, and judging by its condition, this device didn't belong to anyone anymore. If it did, it had been long forgotten. As the sun made its descent below the horizon, the blaring sirens from outside the window gradually died down, and the once-bustling city resumed its hushed state. The view from my window was a sight to behold, with the cityscape bathed in a warm orange glow. The towering skyscrapers, the winding roads, and the flick...

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“The Liver Killer” by Leah Cartlidge

Submitted to Contest #236

It had been ten years since Sophie Langdon’s parents were murdered. The culprit was left unknown and at large. He was known as the Liver Killer, for his trademark cutting out of the liver of all his victims. Middle-class families in London were the target and there had been at least twelve victims. There was nothing that she could do except sweep the rosewood floors of her master's manor in silence. She relied on the police to catch the man responsible, something that looked bleak with the little amount of evidence they had. ‘Cut that out,...

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“For the First and Final Time” by Malcolm Dutton

Submitted to Contest #236

The basement was dark, even with the lights on. Of course it was, the lights were old. In the whole time Alex had lived there, and the seven years after, her father had never changed them. They barely functioned, but they weren’t broken, so he didn’t change them out. The lights weren’t the oldest thing in the basement, just about all of her dad’s old junk was in here. Books on information years out of date, computers filled with software that hadn’t been useful in decades, and a dozen other types of old clutter. She hadn’t thought about cle...

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“Songs of Farewell” by Mara Rouge

Submitted to Contest #236

I made my way to my mother’s house with a mix of anticipation and nostalgia coursing through my veins. It was my move day from what has been the only home I had known to my own place. As I stepped through the familiar threshold, I was greeted by the sight of my mom, diligently packing my belongings into boxes. Mom, you don’t need to do all this. But THANK YOU! This is great. Aww. It’s the least I could do. There are so many memories packed around these walls. You know, when I look at all these things, it brings back a lot of good me...

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“Through the Eyes of the Innocent” by Scott Wells

Submitted to Contest #236

Through the Eyes of the Innocent I It was a lovely late spring afternoon when 11 year old Casey Johnson was walking home from school. Every day on her walk through her hard working blue collar community, she would pass through her local downtown area. It wasn’t a bustling town in the least, with many storefronts having empty windows. Businesses had a hard time staying afloat there. It was a community that focused on the essentials of living rather than the finery that most...

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“Ma Bell” by Charles Sheehan

Submitted to Contest #236

Ma Bell The young girl’s red-haired head popped up from the opening on the floor. She looked around the attic, taking in everything and committing it to memory. Once satisfied, she turned her attention to the elderly man, who sat with his back to her, on a cardboard box in the middle of the floor with a single light bulb over his head. “Grandpa, what are you doing up here?” He wiped a forearm across his eyes as he turned toward her. “Belle, does your mom know you’re up here? I seem to recall her telling you not to climb on the attic ...

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“Old Tech” by Chuck Thompson

Submitted to Contest #236

“You call this technology?” Captain was taken aback by the vehemence of the query from the room. “Captain, Old One requests an audience with you and the other captains.” “What does it want?” Captain knew Old One from stories his predecessor told him. No one could tell him if Old One was male or female or even StarOne. “It says it has a story for you. An old story.” In its hooded shimmering gray cloak, Old One stood a head above the others. Broader across the shoulders than even the strongest warrior, it stood tal...

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“Grammy's Game” by Tanya Humphreys

Submitted to Contest #236

Geraldine’s eyes flew open as she whooshed upwards through the fading dream she’d been having. ‘A noise? Was it a noise that just roused me?’ She lived alone in the large Victorian though a waitstaff of three dwelled on the property in the large guest house over the four-car garage. Butler, Jameson, maid, Felina, and Maxxy the cook. Oh, and of course there was Jimmy, her best friend, an aging but spry Mastiff she’d adopted after the death of her husband. She was sixty-six years old, but her hearing was like that of a cat’s. She heard a ...

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Start your story with a character finding a retro piece of tech they don’t recognize.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 33 stories

“Dead Girls Tell No Tales” by Abbey Light

“Beyond the Veil of Drowning” by Morgan Aloia

“Whisper Voices in her Head” by Kami Drake

“The Whispering Gem” by Corbin Russell

“Colonialcore ” by Nina Yaney

“The Beat and the Bass” by Gregg Voss

“Patch” by Zavier M. Ames

“Worth a Thousand Words” by Emily Melcher

“The Liver Killer” by Leah Cartlidge

“For the First and Final Time” by Malcolm Dutton

“Songs of Farewell” by Mara Rouge

“Through the Eyes of the Innocent” by Scott Wells

“Ma Bell” by Charles Sheehan

“Old Tech” by Chuck Thompson

“Grammy's Game” by Tanya Humphreys

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story about someone finally gaining access into their family’s very old computer.

Write a time-travel story where a character from the present finds themselves in the 80s or 90s.

Write a story about a grown-up sharing their favorite childhood video game with their child.

Write about a character who isn’t nostalgic about their past at all, and show readers why.

Contest #236

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

184

Contest entries

83

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: