A robot is a mechanical construct that’s created to do a specific job; it has little to no independent thought. An android takes this idea to the next level: It may be a mechanical construct, but it can think, learn, and adapt.
Tag Archives: urban encounter
Reptilian Aliens
Man is not the sole sentient race to dwell among the stars. If one were to probe the cold depths of space and search for signs of life, they might find merciless, reptilian eyes peering back at them. The Ssargolothh mastered space travels long before the human race learned to stand — erect and conquer the minuscule mud ball known as Earth. Each new world the scaly, biotechnical wizards encounter feel the mark of their presence, and many new life forms emerge from their crucible of science. These cold-blooded, interstellar travelers discovered earth during the dark ages and began to modify life forms. Dragons were their most impressive creations, and the world recoiled in fear when these terrors took to the skies. Once their initial work was finished, the aliens buried a transmitting station 1,000 feet beneath the surface of modern-day Afghanistan to monitor Earth’s progress.
Reanimated Killers
Many proponents of science and religion agree that death is the final exit from the mortal plane, though they disagree on what happens next. There are some phenomenon, however, that neither can explain and that flies utterly in the face of both their beliefs.
Publicity Seekers
Andy Warhol said that, in the future, everyone will be famous for 15 minutes. Although most people live in quiet anonymity, that doesn’t prevent others from trying for their 900 seconds in the spotlight. Publicity seekers are those who try to set themselves apart from the teeming millions by drawing attention to themselves. These folks can be broken down into two types – general and limited – and three broad methodologies: knowers, doers, and hoaxers.
Private Investigators
Consulting detectives have existed since the 1830s but were only available to the rich, soon to be rich, corporations, and governments. They are brilliant people who can and do solve the most baffling crimes, sometimes without even leaving their homes.
Possessed Artifacts
Consciousness is not a property reserved only to flesh-and-blood creatures; it can be found trapped within seemingly mundane objects. Once a person or beast, misplaced souls can give life to inanimate vessels of stone, metal, or even plastic. Potentially, any harmless-looking toy, statuette, or tool could become a lethal predator of its own master, or perhaps the master of its owner.
Poltergeist
The poltergeist (German for “noisy spirit”) is one of the more advanced types of ghost; spirit-hunters theorize that they are often the result of mass accumulations of psychokinetic energy, brought about by great mental or physical trauma in this world or the next. As such, they can spontaneously generate from this energy and aren’t necessarily linked to departed souls, although they can be, if an individual has died in a particularly horrific or violent way.
People in the Park
City parks, those bastions of natural tranquility nestled within chaotic concrete jungles attract all manner of people. While it would be impossible to provide a comprehensive view of all those who might be at a park – since, indeed, anyone who is a resident of the city could logically wander its parks – it’s possible to mention some types of people who might be there … especially those with a penchant for getting entangled in events of excitement.
Parasitic Beings
The term “parasitic beings” is really an umbrella under which many different creatures and entities can be grouped. Leeches are certainly parasitic beings, as are vampires and, to a certain extent, some demons. The word “parasite” is defined as a creature that feeds off of a host while contributing nothing to the host’s ongoing survival. Most such abilities are highly specialized, much like the leech’s ability to secrete a substance that prevents blood clotting. Most mundane parasites that have been cataloged by conventional science are primitive creatures, such as leeches, ticks, various other insects, and a number of plant species. There are other kinds, however, although most have not been catalogued by mainstream science.
Odiumus
The odiumus are the flaming angels of vengeance in an obscure religion. They appear as huge wheels of divine flame, with seven golden eyes set into a wheel. They are the holy spirits that destroy those who do not serve the interests of the religion.