Welcome to Babel!
My story Babel was released by Greyhart Press last week. It’s a science fiction short story with a gothic horror theme. Babel is a brothel planet (ooh..err) and it’s facing an apocalypse.
A tourists’ guide to Babel
Situated one thousand light years from Skyfire (hot planet, lots of good bars) yet disturbingly close to the Thanatos system (thirteen dark, nasty planets. No bars at all), Babel was colonised by a human explorer team from Skyfire who quickly declared independence from the mother planet and turned Babel into a giant brothel. There were buildings in existence from the previous civilisation (who either became extinct or left the planet for some unknown reason). There is a native species on this planet; Lung-men. Their bodies act like lungs taking in oxygen and nutrition from the atmosphere of Babel. They are used by the humanoid colonists as an unpaid workforce.
Babel is set a far, far into the future. as a writer and as a person I dislike reality (yuk, reality, yuk, yuk) so enjoy writing about things that have absolutely nothing to do with contemporary reality. I admire writers who create their own universes (Frank Herbert, Alistair Reynolds, Ian Whates) and Babel is one of a series of stories and a novel (due to come out at the end of this year) set in the universe of Skyfire. It is a massive honour to get Babel published on the net and all respect and salutations to Mr Tim Taylor of Greyhart press for putting it out there. Also, I wish the best of luck to my label mates Emma Coleman and Nigel Edwards. If I knew how to put a link up here to you good people I would but I don’t so I can’t
Finally, a brief visitors guide to Babel
Do visit the red palace and study the fantastic architecture if you can keep your eyes off the beautiful Babelite hostesses who will seduce you and reduce you to a gibbering wreck with their attentions regardless of gender, species or planet of origin.
Do make sure you have enough ching (money) as the palace owners have a unique way of reimbursing any costs via your friends, family or planetary government. Put it this way, you could end up being impaled up the digest spreader by something sharp and nasty.
Do not tip the Lung-men. they like carrying your luggage and clearing up after you. Honest.
Do not declare any religious beliefs that involve abstinence from sexual activity to the Babelite hostesses as they’ll simply see this as a challenge which you will lose. God will be very disappointed with you.
Thank you and good-bye.
The link fairy must have read your post because she’s put some links to Emma and Nigel’s latest (and Andy’s) under yours.