An e-zine about spaceships, aliens, science, memory, motherhood, magic, and cats.
by Mary E. Lowd
Originally published in Commander Annie and Other Adventures, November 2023
Once upon a time, there was a soul that wanted to anchor itself into the world. The soul watched all the creatures in the world, trying to decide what shape its anchor should take.
The mouse was small and could explore tiny places.
The deer had long legs and could run through the woods.
The bird had wings and could soar through the sky. Continue reading “Greatest of Them All”
by Mary E. Lowd
Crystal and glass
As galaxies pass
She reflects them all
In her many facets
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1 or return to the previous chapter.
The Lucky Boomerang stayed docked at the interstellar space station for more than a month before it was time to head home to Earth, bearing a treasure trove of new knowledge, strange goods, and even one of the translator parrots who wanted to come along.
Trugger and the mice had become regular customers at several of the food carts during their month-long visit, and Kipper learned about interstellar law. Most importantly, she learned that the humans running the space station — Crossroads Space Station — wouldn’t trade or deal with societies that didn’t afford equal rights to all their members. This meant, if dogs wanted to oppress cats and ban them from traveling to space, then these humans wouldn’t want to have anything to do with them. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Epilogue”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
Kipper watched Amelia walk away, back toward their spaceship. It shouldn’t bother her to have the government dog who she’d never wanted on her ship leave her side. But it felt wrong.
Kipper was just one cat. A tabby who’d grown up in a cattery, poor and undereducated, without a real support system. She had her siblings, and she’d made friends over the years. But deep inside, she still felt like a lone cat who had to fight for herself. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 28: Kipper”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
As all the rest of the crew absorbed the chaotic view of alien lifeforms on this interstellar space station, Amelia only had eyes for the humans among the crowd. She wanted to rush toward the first one she saw — a human with pinkish skin and long black hair — and fall at the woman’s feet. She wanted to forget everything about adulthood and civility and kiss the woman’s boots, touching the fabric that clothed her, rubbing her tongue along a surface that touched a human’s skin. She wanted to roll on her back and laugh and bark and beg the human to tell her she’d been a Good Dog. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 27: Amelia”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
While Sequoia piloted The Lucky Boomerang toward the mysterious, exciting space station, all of the engineers gathered around the deck of poker cards in engineering, breathless to find out which one of the mice would get to join the away mission. The slots for cat and dog were already filled by Captain Kipper and Amelia.
Hedda shuffled the deck, and the four mice drew cards, nearly as large as themselves — high card wins — to decide which one of them would get to represent all of mouse-kind. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 26: Yvette”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
Kipper was struggling really hard to make a decision that she knew would be unpopular with her crew when Amelia burst back onto the bridge, zooming like a fuzzy meteor, followed more sedately by Sequoia. The squirrel looked much better rested now. That was good. Amelia looked… half-crazed. There was a glittering gleam in her brown eyes that worried Kipper… but somehow felt inspiring too? Like Amelia was one of those preacher dogs who could get a whole church dancing on their paws and howling like feral wolves, overflowing with a frenzied, communal joy. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 25: Kipper”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
Sequoia woke up from a sleep so deep that it was as if she’d disappeared from the universe for a while, blinked out of existence into an entirely separate realm of blissful unconsciousness.
The universe she woke up into felt like an alternate reality. Sure, she’d been the first one to flirt with Amelia by braiding the curly fur on the dog’s face, and she’d been the first one to fall asleep in the dog’s bed, innocently sharing a pillow… But now, she’d woken up with her red-furred arms tangled up with the mop dog’s blonde curls, and the dog’s arms wrapped tightly around her. It was more. It was different. It felt like the beginning of something and not just a playful flirtation. They’d come to each other when tired and overwhelmed. They’d turned toward each other like orbiting stars, like they were held together by each other’s gravity. Like they were building a relationship. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 24: Sequoia”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
With Sequoia away from the bridge, the squirrel’s pilot station was empty — except for the mouse perched on the edge of its computer console. Yvette felt a thrill down to the tip of her tail as she realized that she might be able to take over the station. The cat captain hadn’t objected to her staying on the bridge yet. And while messing with the squirrel’s computer console might draw attention to her and get her kicked off the bridge and back to engineering, it seemed like a risk worth taking.
There was so much information flashing and streaming over the computer screen beneath her paws! Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 23: Yvette”
by Mary E. Lowd
An excerpt from Otters In Space 4: First Moustronaut. If you’d prefer, you can start with Chapter 1, return to the previous chapter, or skip ahead.
Amelia’s heart jumped inside her chest, and instead of returning to a normal rhythm after the jump, it just kept racing, beating so fast that it felt like it was trying to break free from her body and run toward the humans — her gods! — that she was suddenly certain they’d found.
They shouldn’t have been looking.
She was a Bad Dog for being here. A Bad Dog for letting this happen. They were supposed to Wait. Continue reading “Otters In Space 4 – Chapter 22: Amelia”