March 2, 2030 Mark and Susan floated, weightless, looking out the window at the departing space capsule. The circular form shrank into the distance, brief puffs of gas visible from attitude control thrusters. “The very last Drake,” Mark commented into the silence. The International Space Station was eerily quiet now that it was just the two of them aboard. In the past, it had been bustling with astronauts, cosmonauts, mis...

Kevin strolled the exhibition floor, glancing at each booth he passed. The booths were advertising various services and hardware for pharmaceutical development. This conference would likely be the biggest sales day of the year for many of these companies, and the exhibition floor buzzed with the excitement. A few vendors recognized him. “Mr. Canidae!” exclaimed a young man seated behind a table of swag, the booth behind h...

Kevin stepped into the hotel hot tub, grateful for the opportunity to relax after a long day at the pharmaceutical industry conference. The hot tub was empty except for a single woman, reclining with her eyes closed. The jets partially obscured her frame, but he could tell she was middle-aged, perhaps 40, with a slender build. Something seemed a bit off about the stranger. The way she shifted every few seconds, arching he...