Missing dogs, bushes growing metallic berries, and university researchers vanishing without a trace. These are but some of a few incidents surrounding a swamp in northern British Columbia, where a local man believes he might be able to solve the mystery behind these strange phenomena. This is “It Eats Metal,” read and written by Mark Ferguson

After Toya Smith is killed by police during a traffic stop, doctors at a unique facility manage to preserve her consciousness and transfer it to a new body that should resemble her old one. Only her new body isn’t the one she expected or wanted. How will Toya adjust to her new life in a body so different from the one she’d lived in her whole life? Find out in “Second Chance,” read and written by Sakinah Hofler, winner of Analog’s Emerging Black Voices Award.

When two South Philly cops walk into a Nepalese bakery, one starts grilling the owner, Missus Singh, about rogue robots that might be helping her, while the other can’t stop thinking about how good a bear claw would be right about now. Will this good cop/bad cop duo discover the secret behind Missus Singh’s scrumptious sweets? Tune in to hear the conclusion of this police encounter that is anything but ordinary in Ryan Hunke’s “Bad Cop, No Donut,” narrated by Glen Melin.

The elsp are a species of megafauna who have been driven to the brink of extinction by environmental threats and reluctance to reproduce. When a wave of petty crime takes over the elsp's sanctuary planet, law enforcement is quick to suspect sanctuary workers. But an intrepid scientist decides to investigate for herself, and finally figure out if the elsp are sentient after all. Here is “Expert Witness,” read and written by Leonard Richardson.

Rosalina has just begun working at a migrant camp with her parents when before long a swarm of small, bee-like machines starts following her wherever she goes, sparking a media sensation. Here is “Mariposa de Hierro” read and written by Matt McHugh. 

Tamar is on a mission to salvage usable technology from a space debris field. Her routine assignment turns dicey when her crew mates vanish, and a foreign AI appears on Tamar’s radar persistently trying to communicate. Here is  “For Every Bee, a Hive,” read and written by Benjamin C. Kinney.

With Earth long destroyed by war and ecological disaster, Ernie, Kate, and Harv are humans who have started new lives on a far-flung exoplanet. With scarce options for good food or money, the trio decides to embark on a project that may net them a little cash, and remind them of what life back home used to be like. This is “The Eiffel Tower of Trappist-1b,” read and written by Jeff Reynolds.

Before he goes away to college, all Noah wants to do is relax, play video games with his friends, and practice for an upcoming tournament. His mother, however, has a different plan for her son: She’s asked his aunt Meg—whom he hasn’t seen in ten years—to take him on a little camping trip. Reluctantly, Noah goes along, but soon finds that he may have more in common with his aunt than he thought. Here is “Fly Straight and Don’t Get Eaten,” read and written by Vera Brook.

Meadow is a curious teenager who has spent her entire life on a large space ship. She thirsts for adventure, or at least a break from her overbearing mother.

One day, she meets an artist who is desperately trying to clean-up a spill of small, colorful beads—not an easy task in zero-g, and a serious violation of safety code that Meadow’s mom is eager to report.

Will Meadow be able to protect her new acquaintance and learn about herself in the process? Find out in “The Carina Nebula,” read and written by Kelsey Hutton

For our May/June issue, we have a special treat for our listeners—a double feature! First up is “A Place for Pax” read and written by Colin Mattson, followed by “Collateral Damage” by Jen Downes. Both stories feature spunky protagonists who are making due in futures that feature farming, ingenuity, and creative solutions.