Original sci-fi and fantasy stories for Teens and Adults
We have revived many short submissions from people who want to share their thoughts about, and their experiences with, the current revolution. Because of the influx, we have decided to reserve this post solely for those submissions. Also, most people wish to remain anonymous because of the charged political climate, and the questionable legality of the revolution. So far we have complied these submissions.
People of Forcastle, what is the reason for this revolt? Your government is doing all that they can. The problem is not the hoarding of food, the problem is its utter absence. Food is too scarce to properly distribute it, currently. It has been nigh impossible to get food from the farms in the provinces down to the city. Even though neighboring countries have distributed some food to us, recent flooding in the provinces has made it hard to get it here. Your government is doing all it can to protect you and to make sure that you are looked out for.
The urban poor have risen in revolt. Two days ago, what is now called ‘the letter of Utopia’ was plastered on every corner and flagpole in Forcastle by the ‘friend of utopia.’ Incited by this, city dwellers are marching on the homes of wealthy aristocrats, trying to fund hoarded bread. Any gold they find, they commandeer, claiming that it will go to starving families. They deem the gold as a symbol of the oppressor.
Dear citizens of Vision,
Famine sweeps across the land. We live in squalor while the rich aristocracy hoards food. What does a government who has sworn to protect its citizens decide to do when to time to make sacrifices arrives? Instead of making those who hoard sell and distribute it, instead of increasing the minimum wage so that food could be afforded, instead, they choose to abandon us. They would say that all of our sacrifices, all of our devotion, the cause some died to further, all of it was for nothing. It was they who called on us to become more then we were. More the peasants and farmers who would blindly follow the oppressive Eastern Empire.
On the first day, Jada walked into the Ivory Tower with a slightly dreamy expression. She was not paying attention to where she was or what she was doing. When she looked around, she saw a large circular room, immaculate, just like herself. It was furnished modestly with a desk stacked high with scrolls, and a table covered in strange mechanical devices. Jada walked to a large circular window that overlooked the city and paused before turning to sit at the desk. She leafed through the mountain of scrolls with a sigh. Her blue eyes shone like forgotten pools, staring off into the distance, unseeing. A strand of hair fell over her dark face, which would make it hard for her to read had she been paying attention.
It seems that this drought and famine have impacted urban centers such as Forcastle the most. The farmers are barley producing enough food to survive and are therefore reluctant to see it all sent away, out of their reach. The law of supply and demand dictate that the price must rise, and in this case, significantly. How significantly no one truly anticipated. We’ve compiled a list of the price and income fluctuations leading up to the famine and subsequent market crash.
Where’s my bread? I’ve worked my whole life for our cause. Backbreaking labor making machines so we could have a self-sustaining economy, and do I get what I am due? My retirement fund, promised to me from the government for my long years of service, was what I was given. It was a meager amount of cash that I gave back to our government so they could further our cause. In return the promised to keep me clothed and fed. It was the bare minimum, but I was willing. They also said sweet things, like that they’d “be forever in my debt.” Now that I’m hungry and I need their aid more than ever, they turn their back on me.
Why is it that we promise freedom, and enlightenment, and hope when our people are starving. Enlightenment may have been our original purpose, but enlightenment won’t fill and empty stomachs. Knowledge does no good if one has nothing to eat. You can’t eat a book. Currently, the Eastern Empire is offering favorable terms.
Time are tough. The rising price of bread is putting a strain on family budgets. Starvation sweeps through the land. We pity all those who live during this time. Our beginning was bright, and our future will be brighter still, but in the present, we are struggling.
Commander McKay stood on the bridge of his starship. Calm and sure, confidence radiated out of him as he stared out at the black void of space. He knew that that day would go...