A collection of speculative stories about desperation, love, and human nature. Blood and Wires: After technological advances began to blur the line between man and machine, the world was unprepared for The Flare, an astrological event that left the atmosphere scorched and the world’s digital infrastructure severely crippled. Now, functioning mechanical implants that used to be common are the most desired commodities in demand. People fight for them. Kill for them. But as Adam and Thomas Carn find out during their search for their estranged father, there are worse things than marauders to be faced in the Post-Flare world. Of Mice and Men (and Cats and Rats): Aidan Chandler might be crazy, or he might be completely normal and it's everyone else who's totally mental. At the end of the day, he doesn't think it really matters. What matters is that the people only he can see, like the memory of his father's cruel words, won't leave him alone. But even that doesn't really matter now that he's got a plan. It's a plan that's brilliant in its simplicity, a plan that will silence both of his torments forever. Primary Directive: Judgment Day has come and gone in this second apocalyptic tale, and the verdict wasn't good. After a nuclear catastrophe wipes out most of the world, ailing roboticist Carlisle Evans and one of his earlier creations are among the few left in a world of marauders and ruins.