Write a story where a character has to decide whether to press the button or not.

Posted in Science Fiction on Feb 3, 2023

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✍️ 70 stories

“The Heart of Dunamis” by Emily Eakin

Submitted to Contest #184

Dunamis loomed below the ship. Its towering trees tore through the clouds, branches intertwining one another like a work of art. Perhaps she would have taken a moment to appreciate the planets sheer beauty if she wasn't gripping to the edge of the ship for dear life. Maeve's heart thundered against her chest, feet swaying beneath her as the contents of her breakfast nearly made an appearance."I can't do it.""Stop acting like a child," Captain Aloisa grumbled behind her. The captain gripped Maeve's shoulders and shoved her off the ship.Maeve'...

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“Pushing It” by Jed Cope

Submitted to Contest #184

It’s that time again. Sooner or later, it always comes to this. Unless of course, we are saved from all this nonsense by divine, or cosmic intervention. Not this time though, that was never going to be in the script. The way this works is that there is an inevitable build up to this show down. Good versus bad, us against them. We sort the teams and then off we go until it all gets too much, too big, too far down the line to do anything other than sort it all out, once and for all. “You have to be stopped,” she says to me ...

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“THE GAME” by KATIE BARNETT

Submitted to Contest #184

It started as a way to make change. The year was 2045, and people were finally jaded enough by federal legislation to abolish voting in the usual way. Instead, decision making fell to the people. Whichever side of a decision had the most bodies behind it was the way the country went, and thanks to The Game, every American had a voice. The Game had been instituted 4 years before, recently enough for 8th grader Cece Watson to remember what life used to be like. While Cece’s mother used to scold if Cece jumped on her VR r...

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“Collector's Item- A Fable Of The Future” by Richard E. Gower

Submitted to Contest #184

Paulus Cranshaw stared at the rows of numbers on the curved panoramic screen in front of him and felt a sweat break out under his armpits. His predecessor, damn his exactitude, may have been correct. There was a potential imbalance in the stats and it was deadly serious. It was the largest discrepancy Paulus had ever seen in his almost thirty years with the department. He still had doubt about the accuracy of his findings. But the numbers couldn't lie, could they? Double-entry accounting was one of the few systems that had survived pas...

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“The Feline Urge” by Alyeska Salinas

Submitted to Contest #184

Before I fell asleep, Maxwell, Lucy, and I were still in our apartment. I was preparing for a much-needed nap under the rays of the setting sun, too sleepy to care for the debating between my people. "We need to get out of here, Luce," Maxwell said in a hushed tone, almost as if he were worried about who would hear him. "What about Nox? There's no way I'm leaving him here." Lucy responds, and I can feel her gaze as she speaks. "I still have an anesthetic for him somewhere," Not daring to open my heavy eyes, I only hear Maxwell r...

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“Click Click Boom” by Sherri Moorer

Submitted to Contest #184

5:15 p.m. Reminder for September 25, 2161: Do you want to send the video message? Cinia stared at the “yes” and “no” buttons on her computer screen. The decisive moment had arrived. The office was silent except for the cool air blowing through the vents and the hum of the fluorescent lights. All that remained was her and this decision whether to say “yes” to the reminder on her screen. Her stomach twisted as she looked out of the window. She could see the glow of the spatial anomaly burning like a second sun in the sky. Where did it lead?...

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“Green eyes” by Anthony Harding

Submitted to Contest #184

I awake upon hearing the tear of the duct tape from across my mouth, ripping across my lips. The rope loosens around my ankles and wrists, and I rotate them slowly in my new found freedom. There’s still darkness in the musty, damp room I look around, squinting to make out the shadows my paranoia sees in every corner. “It’s just me.” A rich voice echoes around the chamber of a room and I turn to face my kidnapper.. “Why- why did you take me?” My voice trembles as I choke back a sob while the kidnapper muses with a light-hearted hum, the tune ...

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“Instruction Manual” by Kendall Defoe

Submitted to Contest #184

Please read carefully…Congratulations on your purchase of the device from one of our many fine dealers! We do not yet offer the product in the regular chain stores, so your purchase must have taken place through the many new and wonderful franchises now growing and thriving across the nation, soon around the world. We thank you for your interest.As you inspect the device, it is necessary to remind you one more time that once you decide to use it, it is a one-time deal. No money back guarantee is offered on a used device, unless you decide to...

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“Please Clear Your Desk” by Gregg Voss

Submitted to Contest #184

As a younger sales rep, just out of school and in professional diapers, along with a bad tie and nose hair, there was always a little schadenfreude just before Christmas. No Big Fatty that year? Then you’re out. Better you than me. I gotta go to work. For years, Kent had w...

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“The Human Factor” by Giuliano Olivotto

Submitted to Contest #184

The finger in the protective glove approached the button to stop, trembling, a few millimeters from the glowing surface. That piece of plastic possessed an unreal power: it turned a possibility into a choice. Intermittently, a deep blue hue illuminated the small cockpit because Marcello had not yet activated the external projection on the syntho-glass screens. It was like staying hidden in his own thoughts. He did it every time. The air in the cockpit left a metallic taste in his mouth, like that of the coin his grandfather had given hi...

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“Adrift” by Erik Brun

Submitted to Contest #184

(Content Warning: Mild foul language)“What the hell was that?!” The ship jolted and took a sharp dive to the right. Jeff Tatsuya jumped up to take manual control, spilling the bowl of noodles he was about to start eating. The control column pulled down hard as he attempted a course correction. No luck. She was going down.A green light flicked on. The screech of the com link coming to life followed. “Everything ok up there? That was quite the bump.” Jeff eyed his lunch spilled across the deck, “yeah, yeah everything is fine. It’s err… just so...

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“SAFETY PIN” by Mara Masolini

Submitted to Contest #184

SAFETY PIN Charles lived alone in an almost isolated house. When he woke up in the middle of the night with her heart in turmoil from a nightmare _____he was dreaming that monstrous-looking dogs were chasing him, they reached him and grabbed him by the waist ( belt) of his trousers. He, trying to escape those ugly and bad beasts, fell into a deep pit, but those terrible dogs didn’t let him go, they were on him, their fangs stuck into his meat___ the first bad surprise was that there was no light. Groping around he looked for the...

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“All Backed Up” by Willow Warren

Submitted to Contest #184

The end of the concert was followed by a standing ovation. Jeanine added her own claps to the sounds echoing through the grand hall with its perfect acoustics. As the thunderous applause died down, she willed herself out of virtual reality, returning to the mundane surroundings of her apartment. As always, she felt a bit wistful upon returning to the real world from the unlimited indulgences of VR. She empathized somewhat with those who had taken the radical step to transfer themselves permanently into that world. It was becoming increas...

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“Self Destruct” by Jocelyn Parkhurst

Submitted to Contest #184

Lightening lit up the sky and thunder exploded as I ran from the men seeking to destroy my life. Their animals howled in the distance, progressing ever closer even as I raced out of breath. Yet, stopping meant death, so I endured each painful breath that threatened to tear my lungs from my body. The trees tore at my hair as I wiped the sweat off my face with hands bloodied by the brambles and bushes. Suddenly, the dense trees opened into clearing. Stopping, I gazed across the distance through the torrents of rain, gaging whethe...

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“Bye-bye Birdie” by Barb Brown

Submitted to Contest #184

Warning: This story does not have a happy ending, beginning, or middle Her eyes were blank, staring aimlessly through me, instead of at me. "It's called TIS", I heard someone say behind me. "It stands for Total Indifference Syndrome. It's far more common than we realize, unfortunately," the voice kept droning on and on feeding useless information into my apathetic ears. I was hearing about as much as she was while she was laying there in her hospital bed zoned out. I was born into an era preceding the digital age. ...

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Write a story where a character has to decide whether to press the button or not.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 70 stories

“The Heart of Dunamis” by Emily Eakin

“Pushing It” by Jed Cope

“THE GAME” by KATIE BARNETT

“Collector's Item- A Fable Of The Future” by Richard E. Gower

“The Feline Urge” by Alyeska Salinas

“Click Click Boom” by Sherri Moorer

“Green eyes” by Anthony Harding

“Instruction Manual” by Kendall Defoe

“Please Clear Your Desk” by Gregg Voss

“The Human Factor” by Giuliano Olivotto

“Adrift” by Erik Brun

“SAFETY PIN” by Mara Masolini

“All Backed Up” by Willow Warren

“Self Destruct” by Jocelyn Parkhurst

“Bye-bye Birdie” by Barb Brown

🌟 Similar prompts

Start your story with someone saying “Houston, we have a problem.”

Set your story during a complete city or nation-wide blackout.

Write a story about a character who is experiencing glitches in their reality.

Write about someone who has chosen to disconnect and live an analog life.

Contest #184

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

281

Contest entries

121

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: