Size / / /

Ascending for seventy-three euphoric
seconds we thought they’d got away.

A second sun bloomed in the sky,
eruption eclipsed our ears and I don’t

know whether that whine was spiralling
rockets or a collective scream but I do know

it was the worst sound to ever howl through
me. Later, I learned the crew must’ve survived

initially, though it would have been kinder
if they’d died in the blast. The cabin went

ballistic—traced a perfect rainbow
to its fool’s gold end. Rudderless

and wingless for two-and-three-quarter
minutes’ eternity the crew was conscious,

toggling switches in vain. Comms down.
Power out. Recorder stopped. Oxygen on.

Hell, they could see death coming, 
but had no way to stop it and no one to tell.




Bronwyn Lovell is a Melbourne-based poet. Her poetry has appeared in several publications, including Best Australian Poems, Award Winning Australian Writing and the Global Poetry Anthology. She has won the Adrien Abbott Poetry Prize and been shortlisted for the Newcastle, Bridport, and Montreal prizes. She is currently writing a science fiction verse novel.  Find her at www.bronwynlovell.com.
Current Issue
18 Mar 2024

Strange Horizons
We are very happy to welcome Dante Luiz as a new fiction editor on the team! Dante is a Ignyte Award winning author, and has been with Strange Horizons working as an Art Director for the past several years. We’re stoked to bring him on to the fiction side and have him bring his wonderful insight and skill to the fiction team.
Day in and day out, the rough waters of the Pacific slam themselves against the protrusion of sandstone the locals refer to as Morro Rock. White streaks of bird shit bleed down the rock, a testament to the rare birds of prey that nest in its pocked face overlooking the bay.
in my defence, juggling biological and artificial, i tripped over my shoelace, and spilled my lungs empty of the innocence that was, before guilt.
the birds, / who carry with them / the many names of the dead
Wednesday: Overlap: The Lives of a Former Time Jumper by N. Joseph Glass 
Issue 11 Mar 2024
Issue 4 Mar 2024
Issue 26 Feb 2024
Issue 19 Feb 2024
Issue 12 Feb 2024
Issue 5 Feb 2024
Issue 29 Jan 2024
Issue 15 Jan 2024
Issue 8 Jan 2024
Issue 1 Jan 2024
Load More
%d bloggers like this: