Write a story about a character who wakes up in space.

Posted in Science Fiction on Mar 22, 2024

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✍️ 50 stories

“Doomed” by Fern Everton

Submitted to Contest #243

CONTENT WARNING: This piece contains descriptions of violence, gore, and some profanity. Viewer discretion is advised. A shrill wail jolts me from the quiet darkness of sleep to the glare of LED lights flooding an unfamiliar room. The ground I lay on is hard and cold— have I rolled off my bed again? Another wail prompts me to push my upper body off the ground; the setting before me tilts and spins like I’ve just staggered out of an old rollercoaster. I squeeze my eyes shut against the bright, dizzying room and clench my teeth to fight back ...

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“The Enemy” by Camille Clarke

Submitted to Contest #243

THE ENEMY By Camille Clarke Leslie felt groggy and a bit disoriented as she woke up. The room was dark, cold and smelled like fresh coffee and sausages. She gave a good stretch and was still confused as she looked around the spacecraft. Then she remembered that she was in space and was on her way to earth, which was her final destination. The spacecraft left Titan’ s International Space Station two months ago and Leslie was glad to be at the end of this journey. It u...

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“Starman” by Sirref Pen Name

Submitted to Contest #243

In 2084, in response to a growing number of AI—originally designed by the United States as elite combat soldiers called the Saviors—settling Mars with the threat of wiping out earth with nuclear weapons, the top space and military programs set up a world class division of soldiers called the Devil Brigade. Their mission was simple. Stop the nuclear invasion. Take out the Saviors. These Saviors were designed after the statues of Greek gods and biblical figures such as David, archangels Michael and Gabriel and stood over seven feet tall.&...

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“How to Survive Interplanetary Camping” by Baron Crase

Submitted to Contest #243

“Hey, Josh. Joshua. Wake up!” Hands shook Josh awake. The first thing he noticed, as he came to, was his position. He wasn’t lying down, he was sitting straight up, strapped to a chair. An uncomfortable chair. His back was stiff, it kind of hurt to shift. His brain caught up to why he was sitting as his eyes shuttered open through the grogginess. What he saw woke him up immediately. The clear windows of the shuttle revealed the twin moons of Icar blocki...

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“All Among the Stars” by Michael Contant

Submitted to Contest #243

In orbit of a lifeless planet, there lies a space station. The exterior nearly falling apart, plates drifting aimlessly around it. Its system used to cater to nearly one hundred human lives but now was barely able to sustain two. Thankfully there's only one aboard to cater to. As they rested, strapped into their sleeping bag, they were roused from their rest by an incessant beeping. They undo the Velcro restraining them and push themselves off the nearby wall. They float over to a nearby terminal, and begin their usual routine, blocking the ...

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“Welcome to your new life.” by Gemma Reilly

Submitted to Contest #243

The first thing I become aware of is a hissing noise. I can’t tell if my eyes are open, I don’t feel hot or cold, I am not aware of standing or lying down, but I can hear. I start there, focusing on that sense alone. A low humming adds itself to the sharp hiss. Machinery perhaps. Like a build-up of gas being released. Now a rhythmic beeping, closer than the other sounds. A hospital? Ah, smell. Sterile but sour. Bleach covering old vomit. A deep breath causes a stinging in my nostril. I feel all of my body too quickly. Stiff...

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“Origin” by Jayne Dyann Barrett

Submitted to Contest #243

Ultimately, we come to be known as Earth and Moon, among many moons and planets and stars. I am by far quite a bit younger than Moon, stoic and cold, seeming uncaring. She, who rarely directly communicates with me, but oh - when she does - firstly the oceans respond by churning and heaving, then waves reaching to the skies and beyond. Moon begat me, and my breaking away from her ripped my heart to pieces. At first, I shot far out into space and eventually slowed to a soft silence of forever pain. And loneliness. I constantly travel through w...

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“Echoes of Solitude” by Keyana Monet

Submitted to Contest #243

8:40 a.m.The blaring alarm clock rattles in his ear, pulling him from the depths of sleep. His vision slowly fades into color as the room materializes before him, and he blinks away the remnants of slumber. The crimson and emerald tassels sway gently against the vent, which blows cold air into the surprisingly hot spacecraft.He slips out from under the gray covers and swings his legs over the edge of the bed, planting his feet onto the cool metal floor. He spreads his toes and wiggles them, a small chuckle escaping his lips. "R.I.C.E, turn o...

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“Untethered” by A.B. Boatman

Submitted to Contest #243

Dani felt untethered. It was like the drop of her stomach during a sudden fall. But without context. Was she falling? She had the sense that the space around her was somehow falling with her. Her understanding was fragmented, coming to her in pieces. Nausea. Dizziness. For a brief instant, she imagined she could sense the space around her, viscerally. Everything seemed to be coming to her through intense colors and sensations. It felt jarring to open her eyes, even the smallest amount. The air felt stale; rec...

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“The Distance from the Sun to the Earth” by Paul Littler

Submitted to Contest #243

A nation planted, so concerned with gain As the seasons come and go, greater grows the pain And far too many feelin’ the strain When will there be a harvest for the world? ‘Harvest for the World,’ The Isley Brothers The distance from the Sun to the Earth is approximately ninety-three million miles, or one astronomical unit, which is close to the distance displayed on m...

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“Full Moon Eyes” by Christopher Biery

Submitted to Contest #243

If it hadn’t been for the framing of my helmet, I would’ve thought I was dead. Beyond the thin glass barrier was nothing at all; utter darkness. When someone’s power goes out during a storm, or when an urbanite goes camping, they only think it's dark. This is like laying in a dark room with your eyes open. Your brain tries to make out shapes, but you know there are none. There’s no difference between closing your eyes, or keeping them open. The term pitch black beholds new meaning amidst the final frontier. I am lost in space. I had been sle...

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“The Janus Expedition” by Nicholas Schramm

Submitted to Contest #243

Jeremiah . . . Jeremiah . . . JEREMIAH . . . JEREMIAH!!!My eyes snapped open. The foreign voice had brought me out of a strange dream. In it, I’d been floating on the Dead Sea, a place I’ve never been but would love to visit one day. This wasn’t the oddity of the dream, however. While floating, I had been doing . . . nothing. Sitting, bobbing, looking off into the distance but picking up nothing of detail; it had been like I was—“JEREMIAH! ARE YOU WITH ME?”The voice penetrated my skull, reverberating through my brain. I cried out and my han...

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“Oblivion...” by Walter Harris

Submitted to Contest #243

I woke up coughing smoke out of my lungs. Pain stretched over my entire body as I drifted, rotating weightlessly around an enclosed corridor. My body was encased in a heavy layered suit of flexible aluminum that only left my head and neck exposed. Gravity devoid droplet's of blood danced about me slowly as a glass visored helmet made of the same suits material floated nearby. “What... the hell.” I thought. I couldn’t remember much of anything. Blank spots in memory. My head pounded and vision blurred as my ears took i...

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“Beyond Yonder” by Aeryn Goodspeed

Submitted to Contest #243

(Conlang glossary included at the end) Guavato was drifting. The expanse around them was black. Their fingers, enclosed as they were in the airtight gloves, brushed against something jagged. Not sharp enough to pierce their suit, thankfully. But rough enough to feel a vague texture. They couldn’t see anything. After a moment, they realized it was because their eyes were closed. But lifting their eyelids was too difficult, so they left them closed. Everything hurt. Their head pounded, arms ached, legs burned, tail…well, they couldn’t feel ha...

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“narrators adventure ” by William Ghostkeeper

Submitted to Contest #243

He awoke with a start, he often did that. Call it insomnia or rem sleep disorder but I just think its because he hasn't been doing well lately. “Hello!” he called out, to no one unaware of the fact that every- “shut up!” what? “Idk who's talking but stop that and I'm doing just fine by the way”. You can't shut me up, I'm the narrator. “What?” “what do you mean by narrator” he asked the narrator, "your not a narrator your my inner voice I'm not in a story”. maybe, or maybe you are in a story, a short story that's being submitted to win ...

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Write a story about a character who wakes up in space.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 50 stories

“Doomed” by Fern Everton

“The Enemy” by Camille Clarke

“Starman” by Sirref Pen Name

“How to Survive Interplanetary Camping” by Baron Crase

“All Among the Stars” by Michael Contant

“Welcome to your new life.” by Gemma Reilly

“Origin” by Jayne Dyann Barrett

“Echoes of Solitude” by Keyana Monet

“Untethered” by A.B. Boatman

“The Distance from the Sun to the Earth” by Paul Littler

“Full Moon Eyes” by Christopher Biery

“The Janus Expedition” by Nicholas Schramm

“Oblivion...” by Walter Harris

“Beyond Yonder” by Aeryn Goodspeed

“narrators adventure ” by William Ghostkeeper

🌟 Similar prompts

Write a story imagining 'what if' one historic invention had never happened. How would our world be different now?

Write a story with a strong sense of place. How is the setting of your world the same as, but different to, our own?

Write a story from the point of view of a non-human character.

Write a story where time functions differently to our world.

Contest #243

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

286

Contest entries

113

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: