Thrilled to make my debut in the latest edition of Kaleidotrope Magazine, with a story called “Something in the Air.”
The story – and the whole magazine – is free to read online here. The magazine is well worth your time.
The story features an unfortunate linguist tasked with investigating the alien markings on a mysterious ancient slab retrieved from beneath the Antarctic. All other scientific tests having failed, the linguist tries to decipher what appears to be writing inscribed into the surface of the slab. But the message on the monolith contains a surprise that has a dramatic impact on the linguist, and through him the rest of the world.
There’s a story behind the story. It takes place at Porton Down, the UK’s chemical and biological research facility in south west England. Many years ago, I was lucky enough to visit Porton Down. Not because my work had anything to do with chemical or biological weapons (it did not!), but because I had met a senior official from Porton Down on a training course, and he organised the visit for a number of us. It was a memorable and fascinating day, including an outing to look at the UK’s stock of decommissioned chemical weapons (not as grand as it sounds – it was a cattle shed with pallets holding mainly rusty World War One gas shells that had been found over the years).
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