C. L. Nichols
Bio
C. L. Nichols retired from a Programmer/Analyst career. A lifelong musician, he writes mostly speculative fiction.
clnichols.medium.com
specstories.substack.com
Stories (22/0)
Banished! — 3: Jada Volunteers
The ship’s crew stepped out onto the wide outside hull of the rocket, now a walkway about fifty yards wide, extending the entire length of the ship. Gyroscopes maintained this one side as the surface. There were inflatable extenders within each ship that would fit across the hull and turn this small surface area into a floating platform a half-mile across. The ship itself would not be seen with that platform secured over the rocket body. The ship itself would hold sleeping quarters, recreation areas, and the controls necessary for the ship’s operation.
By C. L. Nicholsabout 6 hours ago in Chapters
The Foot
His pickup truck was so old that it still had the shift lever next to the steering wheel, but it was new to Billy. He pushed in the clutch, shifted to reverse, and turned the key to kill the engine. The door creaked loudly as he opened it and got out. As he shut the door firmly, he admired the brand-new decal on the side of his door:
By C. L. Nichols3 days ago in Fiction
Banished! 2: Water, ho!
The colonists of each rocket ship had each voted to name their ship. For now, they were simply calling the planet New Earth, at least until they could send delegates to a common committee that would decide upon all the preliminary things needing to be quickly done, including writing a constitution and naming the planet.
By C. L. Nichols4 days ago in Chapters
Banished! 1: Exiled!
Once upon a time, the Centrist World Party ruled the world, by popular consent. They had for generations. When the planet suddenly went through a series of man-made and natural catastrophes, the government did its best to solve as many of those problems as possible. It wasn’t enough. Not for the recently formed New Liberation Party.
By C. L. Nichols6 days ago in Chapters
Toolie the Time Traveler
Toolie Ingersoll sat on the padded seat he just installed yesterday, staring at the console in front of him. Where did he want to go today? He’d never traveled in this machine before. Hell, he’d just put on the finishing touches yesterday.
By C. L. Nichols8 days ago in Fiction
Crank & Boomer
The young man walked the path, unsure where he was headed or what he’d do when he arrived at whatever destination he happened upon. He had been a clerk in a department store, pretending to know more about the store wares than he actually did. Wearing one of the stores suits that had been sold to him at a huge employee discount, he appeared to be someone worth deferring to by the customers that seemed attracted inside from the mall walkway. His chosen work clothing not only made appear wiser than he actually was, it also slimmed his expanding waistline.
By C. L. Nichols9 days ago in Fiction
Harry & Sue
Lightning slashed a path across the evening sky. In its brief flare, a solitary man examined the small huddle of cottages around a common yard. A child’s wagon had turned on its side, two wheels in the air too rusted to turn. Something was loose, banging in the gusting wind. The man turned toward the noise. He watched an unsprung screen door slap in time with the incoming storm. A fat drop splattered his cheek.
By C. L. Nichols11 days ago in Fiction
Eli's Journey
Near the top of the mountain, Eli’s gaze shifted from the darkening sky to the forest. The family had come up in their motor home onto Witch Mettle Mountain, which was short as mountains go. It bordered on being labeled a tall hill, but it was only ten miles from town and gave the best lookout around.
By C. L. Nichols11 days ago in Fiction
Jump! — a short story
Stinging rain pelted Tanner Sage and streamed down his vinyl raincoat, falling thirty feet to the ground below. The two-by-three bucket he clung to swayed on its long metal arm in the gusting wind. Lightning arced across the sky then thunder shook the night.
By C. L. Nichols12 days ago in Fiction
