Born Into Shadows

by Micah R. Sisk

Five posthumans working as a crew together for the first time are sent on a fact finding mission to a remote and seemingly uninteresting nebula. Their mission: investigate rumors of a large object hidden in the nebula, an object said not to be of modern posthuman design. Only one of the crew knows the identity of the expedition's mysterious backers and...what it is they fear.


"Born Into Shadows" is a short story set in The Posthuman Cycle universe where our solar system is controlled by baseline humans who reject posthumanism, eschew genetic modifications and all body/mind augmentation, insisting upon the dominion of the genetically pure. The rest of the explored galaxy is inhabited by the posthuman diaspora, humans who accept and embrace (sometimes radical) body/mind augmentation as the final step in human evolution.

Genres: Science Fiction

ebook

First published May 3, 2014

About the author

Micah R. Sisk is a German-born American science fiction writer who has lived most of his life in Frederick County, Maryland, U.S.A. After a close encounter with Engineering, Micah received a Bachelor of Science degree in Art from Virginia Tech. He now makes his living as an Application Systems Engineer at a major U.S. corporation, while in other incarnations he is, or has been, a landscape painter, real estate agent, assistant gallery director, retail sales manager, microfilm quality control tech, musician, composer, and builder of electronic musical instruments.

Micah is often seen puttering around town on his bicycle, hanging out at coffee shops and reading/writing science fiction tales.

Reviews

[Charles Hash · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent short story that combines the best elements of Star Trek and Alien. A nice setup for a much larger story. Easy to read, but not soft fiction by any means.

[Anthony Deeney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this ebook as it was recommended to me and I did enjoy it.

A group of five post-humans have discovered an artefact that seems to be shielding itself and decide to investigate. The author holds your attention as the story develops, skilfully playing on one of my personal failings, my nosiness!

I just had to find out what it was. He also skilfully paints in the backstory, as he steadily revealed more & more details about the object.

It is a short story, so it is a small investment in time and one that is well rewarded.

[A. Umaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Born Into Shadows by Micah R. Sisk, is a quick, easy read that tantalizes as much as it entertains. The author informs us that it is a prequel to a previous posthuman offering, filling in the details of an event referenced in his earlier work NightBird Calling.

The author is clever in his use of names for the futuristic technology employed, the names themselves often containing sufficient information for the reader to generate an effective concept without the need for extensive explanation. The fast paced narrative and succinct dialogue of the characters are well integrated and make for a delightful story flow. The characters themselves are sufficiently detailed to give the reader a good sense of the what the author means by transhumanism. The ending's sudden twist is a delight, and certainly invites the reader to pursue the author's story-line in previous and future offerings.

[Tyler Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read with interesting descriptions of future technologies. Believable but not overwhelming. The story line is captivating and offers a twist to traditional endings.