Mario Silva

Farscapes and Dreamscapes Mario Silva

In a collection of four stories, author Mario Silva offers an exploration of the furthest reaches of what it means to be human. These tales consider the things we do--and the things we are sometimes forced to do.

In "Galahad," Sir Galahad suddenly finds himself in a place that he finds difficult to understand. There he meets a young girl who teaches him not only the ways of the place but pushes his code of chivalry to the limit. In "The Letter," Jennifer Ashton is on her morning run when she finds a letter from her deceased husband; as she reads it, it gradually turns into regular garbage. She then begins receiving messages that seem to come from nowhere, pushing her to the edge of sanity. "Cigarette" tells the story of a man trapped in the zombie apocalypse who only wants to find his next smoke--no matter what. In "First Thought," a man traveling the world after humanity's end meets a young boy, and together they encounter unearthly creatures and spirits--one of whom challenges them to an unexpected game.

These four short stories examine the factors and habits that lead humanity both away from and toward redemption and forgiveness.