The Hugoverse

Summonning a supernatural entity and then running before it manifests becomes the new teenager craze. All the cool kids are ding-dong ditching demons. [ Link to post. ] “Boss wants to see you,” Elaine said. Her cheerful voice came through the intercom. Rudy sighed, but did not bother replying. He rolled his chair back and stood from his desk. He grabbed his jet black coat on the way out the door. “Thanks Elaine. Go ahead and take the rest of the day off,” Rudy waved to his secretary as he stepped out into the long corridor. After an hour of walking he reached the boss’ office. He walked in and nodded at Debbie, the chief’s secretary. She smiled. “No rest for the wicked, eh Rudy?” She said. Rudy shrugged in return. “Not when it’s my job,” he said. Debbie waved him in to see the big man. He heard his boss’ deep booming voice as soon as he stepped into the office. “Red! Glad you’re here.” He showed his ivory teeth, and walked over to shake Rudy’s hand. “You promis...

Rudy's story in chronological order. Free dinner Timeless Picking Sides

This is where I will start storing information about my Universe to help add some context to my short stories.  Magic: Magic is a natural force present on all Earths, though not all Earths have a population that can tap into it. Once a Soul learns how to tap into magic on one Earth they can tap into the magic from other Earths. Nanos:   Microscopic machines that excel at efficiency. As a result they work together and learn to optimize the tasks they're trained for. On some Earths they allow Zeroes to tap into magic, while on other Earths they evolved to mimic magic.  AlterNet:  A network that allows users from alternate universes to communicate with each other. It is an Earth that is completely dominated by nanos. Earths with the right technology can project their consciousness to that Earth, and the nanos will form an artificial body for their consciousness. This is primarily used for gaming, and has essentially become a giant cross universe M...

Flash Fiction Challenge! Location: A rooftop | Object: A tin can [ Link to post. ] “Holy hell, I can’t believe you fixed everything ,” Chuck said. He stood on the rooftop and stared out over the bustling city. The people should have been contrite, terrified to leave their homes. Instead the streets were full of people happily going about their business. Traffic flowed like molasses, he heard sirens and horns honking in the distance. “How?” Chuck turned to face the short, rotund, blonde man. Rudy smirked. “I could explain it, but you’re an asshole. So I’ll just say, it’s my job .” Rudy stepped toward Chuck. Chuck still faced out over the city and would not have noticed Rudy stepping forward, had he not accidentally kicked a tin can. The noise caused Chuck to whirl around. “Stay there.” Chuck raised his hand and showed Rudy the number ‘1’ glowing red on his hand. “You’re not taking me back to Hell, I’ve got a new job.” A pitch black portal opened next to Chuck. Rudy stopped ...

It turns out that every conspiracy theorist is right, each conspiracy theory is true but they all come from a different timeline. [ Link to post. ] “The boss wants to see you,” the secretary, said through the intercom. The gentleman in the office pressed the red button to reply. “On my way,” he said. The clean shaven, portly man pushed his chair back and stood from his desk.  “He only wants to see me when there’s a problem,” he sighed, then gathered his coat from the rack on the way out of his office. “You know how it goes, Elaine. I’m probably out for the rest of the day.” He said to his secretary. “Right. I’ll reschedule your appointments Mr. Deville.” Elaine waved at him as he stepped out into the long cavernous hallway. Fluorescent lights somehow made the hallway drearier. He began the journey to his boss’ office and arrived there an hour later. Debbie, the boss’ secretary, let him in as soon as he arrived. “Good! Glad you made it, Red. We’ve got an enormou...

“Are you happy?” the stranger asked. The two men sat in a run down lunch diner that served better food than it had any right to. Martin Spencer put a big piece of steak in his mouth during the man’s question, and could not answer. He took his time to finish chewing and let the question hang. The silence allowed him to appraise the unknown man that treated him to dinner. The stranger sitting across from him was a portly man, with short blond hair. It was combed neatly, with a part down the left side. His face was clean shaven. Mr. Spencer thought it was a stark contrast to himself. He was a relatively lean man, with a full beard and receding hairline. They were both wearing suits, but Martin grew self conscious. His own suit seemed drab and sloppy in comparison to the crisp dark suit of the stranger. “Let me stop you there. You bought my attention with this steak dinner. I’m not obligated, nor am I planning to buy anything you’re selling. I’m just here for the food, honestly.” ...