Neurodivergence on FH-358: Short Story

When Cormier Oil and Gas sends geologist Warren to the planet FH-358, they assume it's lifeless. But instead, Warren discovers something unexpected: a teenage girl named Mina who knows where the oil comes from.

The company desperately wants Mina's knowledge, but she doesn't know how to communicate with them. Out of time and frustrated, they decide to risk Mina's life for the location of the oil.

In this thrilling sci-fi adventure, Warren will have to discover a way to get Mina's knowledge before it's too late.

If you enjoyed the suspenseful world of The Martian by Andy Weir, you'll love Neurodivergence on FH-358. Buy it now!

Excerpt:

The three-eyed beast stared at me from the top of the boulder. Short strands of light brown fur blown by the wind covered its body. It wasn’t exactly fur. After studying a dead one when we arrive on our mission, I concluded that they were antennae, sensors that fed to the nerves in the body. The beast two times bigger than my lanky six feet height opened its maw and revealed slop-coated yellow teeth almost the size of my arm.

Damn, I should have brought along Block as Romano suggested. Heck, he ordered that I bring an armed escort. I was too thick-headed to listen. We barely experienced any threatening wildlife on this planet, why would I start to now with this short trip away from camp?

I held my hand up, hoping to calm the beast.

“Easy now,” I said. “I’m not here to harm you.”

Silly to say but I had to say something to prevent my death.

I took a step back, my boots crunching the granular surface of the planet. Vegetation grew proudly out of this part of it. Some plants offered edible fruits and nuts. Though different in appearance and texture from what Earth produced, they tasted the same and had a healthier effect on our bodies.

I took another step.

The beast lowered on its haunches and tensed.

Oh, no.

“Please,” I said. “I don’t want to hear Romano say, I told you so.”

If the beast left me alive to hear the executive say it.

The beast’s gray and black eyes widened.

It sprung into the air.

Intent on my death.