Rage is a superpower (Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester. Next year)
Homeless. Penniless. Forgotten. A man who lost his way finds new purpose in the most unlikely of places.
'Frank lifted the scaffold pole from the ground and walked slowly from one to the other, pounding it down on their heads until even the blood flowing from them had stopped moving.'
The Soldier (Poets Estate, Salford. November 2000)
A series of brutal murders spreads across Salford. What is the link between them?
'Dane had no education and could barely read, but he knew people. He knew them in a way that no Doctor of Psychology could ever comprehend. He knew people like a hunter knows its prey. He saw their needs and their weakness. He knew how to become the shape that would fill the emptiness in their lives.'
The Cripple (Richmond, Yorkshire - or somewhere similar. Any time soon)
Society made her a victim. She turned herself into the perfect instrument of revenge.
'The funeral was even better than she had imagined. She smiled proudly at the image of the crucified Jesus amidst the hymns and the flowers, content that the pulverized bones and organs poured into that coffin would never exploit another trusting child.'
I am Pipp (Little Hulton, Salford. The near future)
So many of us spend our final years in desperate lonely isolation. Maybe robots can help us.
'By the time she had turned ninety Phyliss Hughes began to feel that she had nothing more to live for. Her friends were buried, her family were strangers. She had discovered the awful truth that it takes a lifetime to learn, that time is not short, time stretches before us, mocking us, challenging us to fill its hours, while at the same time robbing us of the energy and joy we need to fill them.'
Fifty One (The Nevada desert, USA. Tomorrow morning)
One man dedicates his life to exposing the truth, but is the world ready to hear it?
"Put me on the air, or I will butcher these people. I swear to God I will."
Thank You Osbourne (Medina, Washington, USA. The near future)
A legendary tribute to a very special character. How will rottweilers fit into the world of the future?
'But for all he wished might be different, Osbourne was contented with his lot, and committed to do whatever he could for his new family. He belonged to them, and in his mind, they belonged to him. They rose and slept in his care, under his watch, with his protection. They would never understand it, but Osbourne was the product of 2000 years of selective breeding, and he was always ready to stand in harms way for his family. Without question. Without hesitation. Without mercy.'
The Final Deal (Lennox, Massachusetts. 11th August 1919)
How does the richest man in history make amends for the lives he destroyed?
“Mr Frick said I should inform Andrew Carnegie that he was looking forward to resolving their past differences at a future meeting. He told me they would meet in Hell.”
The Harmony of the Three (The edge of the Galaxy. A long time from now)
A stranded overcrowded spaceship, a beautiful trusting alien, a species with 3 genders. What could possibly go wrong.
Oxygen (A distant, unamed moon. The future)
Never confront an enemy unprepared.
'Ensign Lewis then took command. The rapid promotion she always felt she deserved. Snede suggested immediately that they ignore the screams and head back to the camp to get more weapons. Before he had finished speaking she charged further into the darkness of the caves. "Come on, we have to find it quickly," she had said. She found it quickly enough. Snede could still hear her agonized cries when he arrived back at the camp.'
Leech (A long time from now, in a Galaxy not far away)
An alien object of incalculable value is found by a space ship packed with human greed and resentment.
'Leech had always figured that whoever drew up the shared salvage clause knew a lot about human nature, they knew that just as hope could set a man free, it could also hold him in chains.'
Eight Forty Five (A car park in Swinton. Thursday, 2045hrs)
The depths of grief and depression push a man into a new phase of his life.
'It occurred to him that it was a well named thing, a relationship. He and his wife were related. They were joined at the root of their souls and bound tight enough to choke them both to death.'
The World in Harness (Rome. 24th August 410AD)
Advertisers spend fortunes to change our behaviors and re-align our values. Is someone directing it all?
'Let the people burn. Let them plough for our food, toil for our bricks, let them bleed for our cause. Let their children scream in hunger while we feast, let their bodies rot in the ground to feed our vines. I spit on them all. They are a pestilence on any who would serve them.'