Hope. It's the thing that keeps us going, even when everything else is wrong. But what happens when all hope is gone? That's where we discover one of the most terrifying human despair. In this science fiction issue, five authors explore the idea of despair and how it affects us. But fear not, this issue also contains the finale of Bill Adler's story, Hopscotch, which will leave you with a scoop of something a little more palatable. We hope you enjoy this unique issue of SFS Stories, Issue #12.