What duties do you owe to those in serious danger? To what level is the risk to your own well-being relevant to helping others? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the narrator and her friend Tasha live in Florida. Twice a month they do nighttime speedboat drug runs for the Columbians. After completing a pickup, they are running a full boat of marijuana back to the States when they see a distress flare in the middle of the ocean. They decide to help the person in need in the hopes that, in his gratitude, he will not inform on them. They rescue the lone man, dropping him off near shore, and quickly head home. A few weeks later the police show up and arrest the narrator. She is sentenced to a year in prison. Upon parole, she finds out the man she saved was also running drugs, was captured, and traded information about her for his freedom.

How do you know if what you feel is real, or is simply the natural result of a modified belief/desire? Does it even matter? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Susan and Richard are getting a divorce, but their son is struggling to come to terms with it. They head to the clinic to learn about using the “Davidson Method” to modify their child’s brain so he will be more accepting of their divorce. Alison, the person in charge of explaining their options to them, explains that long term brain modifications in children are not permitted. However, she suggests, as adults, they could use the method to make a long-term modification so that they are happy in their marriage. They reject this idea. The next option, she suggests, is to modify them so that they don’t care that their child is unhappy about the divorce. They likewise, reject this idea. Alison explains to them the desire to make their child happy too, can be modified. The couple rejects the idea and leaves the office, determined to work harder on their marriage, rather than face the horrible prospect of programming themselves not to love their child.

What does it mean to have faith? If you have absolute proof God did not exist, would it change your moral duty to others? In this work of philosophical short story fiction God, literally, lives in a temple as a being among the people. He has guided and instructed them for centuries until, one day, he declares he has nothing more to teach, and leaves. The local clergy go into a period of grief while the cities fall into lawless chaos. The clergy/narrator, likewise, falls into a deep depression as he sees the temples and religious infrastructures quickly fall into disarray. He meets at the “first temple” with the remaining leaders who are equally distraught and lack answers. He burns his religious belongings and falls into a deep depression. His church is ransacked and later turned into an elementary school. In the end, narrator gets a job working at a museum.

How much say should each partner get in deciding to keep, or abort, a pregnancy? Should you believe what your significant other tells you? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Charles and Muriel are engaged to be married. Muriel surprises Charles by telling him she is pregnant. They had previously discussed, and agreed, they didn’t want to ever have children. Muriel, however, forgets to take her birth control pills and skips a few days. Charles thinks she did it on purpose. Regardless, Muriel now wants to be a mother and is determined to keep the baby. Charles leaves in a huff, but comes back a day later. They keep the baby and get married.

What does it mean to be dead? If you were living in a perfect, but false, moment in time, would you choose to leave it? In this work of philosophical short fiction, Linus and Axel are sitting in Central Park on a perfect October day. They have lived in this same day, seemingly, forever. They know they are both dead. Linus died about ten years later than Axel. It occurs to Linus that if they are both seeing his vision of Central Park, it must be his reality. Linus theorizes that, at the moment of death, our brain activity speeds up dramatically, making it seem like our final moment in time lasts forever. However, it’s not real. Linus decides to end this moment in time and move on.

To what degree do serious issues require serious consequences for politicians who fail to address them? Should politicians who fail to keep campaign promises have greater consequences than not being reelected? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Brian Greenwald is running a unique presidential campaign. Not only is he a single-issue candidate for stopping global warming, but an ominous figure follows him everywhere with the promise to kill him at the end of his term if he fails to move the needle. The electorate knows this, and elects Greenwald President in a landslide. Everything he does in office is focused on the single goal of lower greenhouse gas emissions. At the end of his first term emissions have gone flat, but not down. By the end of his second term, even after exceptional efforts, global greenhouse gas emissions have failed to significantly fall. Good to his word, the ominous figure kills him for failing to deliver.

What if there was absolute proof of the soul? Would you ever have yours removed? Would you be friends with someone who had had it removed? In this work of philosophical short fiction, science has definitively discovered that your soul resides in your appendix. Sometimes, when your appendix is having issues, it is for medical reasons. However, sometimes it is because your soul, residing in your appendix, is having issues. The solution in either case is the same, remove the organ. Rolly is a young boy, like all other young boys, who likes to play with is friends. However, his appendix was inflamed and had to be removed. Now, the other children call him “No Soul” and refuse to play with him. Feeling left out, he goes to a neighbor’s house to visit another friend Cioran. However, Cioran’s parents are far more religious and, when their child had appendix issues, they refused to have it removed as they didn’t want to remove his soul. Because his appendix was not removed Cioran, unlike Rolly, died.

Should a bipolar person go on medication if doing so limits their ability to do “great things?” In this work of psychological fiction, Irena is a bipolar piano player that fled, years ago, from an eastern bloc country. Her troubled relationship ended, and her partner died shortly after their breakup. This put her in a deep depression and sent her to therapy for years where she was treated with medication for being bipolar. One day, her dead ex comes to her and tell her she should enter a world renowned piano competition with a $400,000 prize. Her therapist reminds her about her stage fright that ended her career, but Irena insists. She practices, and wins the competition and the money. She decides to move to New York and leaves the $400,000 prize money as a thank you gift to her therapist.

Is the specter of death the greater motivator of life? And, without that specter, would humans lack motivation to work and achieve? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Peter wakes up to a warning from his computer that the nanites in his grandmother’s body are failing, and she is slowly dying from kidney failure. He spends the morning working to find the source of the sickness and issues. After some work, he realizes that the nanites are producing a product that is slowly poisoning his grandmother; it’s murder! He goes to his 150-year-old grandmother’s house to tell her, only to find out she knows about the issues, and she is the one who created them. Even though she is the creator of the nanites, and is a celebrity scientist of sorts, she has come to the conclusion that without the fear of death, humans lack motivation to excel.

Is it okay to give credit to an unknown person? Is there value in taking credit for the success of your own hard work? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the narrator is on a road trip and decides to stop in for breakfast at a small-town diner in Gardenia. Like most breakfast diners, the local community is there. He strikes up a conversation with an older gentleman sitting next to him and learns about Elroy Goddard, the most powerful, wealthiest, and probably the kindest, man in their small town. He owns practically everything, and has helped out practically everyone in town at one point or another. Many of the streets and parks are named after him as well. The waiter says he’s her “uncle,” of a sort, and even helped her get the job. However, after additional questioning it becomes clear nobody has actually ever seen Elroy, and his actions and support of the town are more indirect than they seemed at first. The narrator leaves town wondering if Elroy is real at all.

What might you learn by walking in another person’s body? In this work of body swapping philosophical short story fiction, Empathery has perfected the technology to move the consciousness of one person into the body of another. To promote their business, they have partnered with the local school. Carol, the narrator of the story, is surprised when her daughter and son both come home in new bodies as part of a two-day assignment for school. Later, her husband Dave comes home in the body of a co-worker as part of a work team building exercise. Carol is offput by the entire thing, but when Dave decides to take the kids on a weekend fishing trip, she comes up with an excuse to stay home. Over the weekend, she goes to Empathery and gets the body a younger and fitter woman than herself. She finds the entire process disturbing, never leaves the house, and takes the body back as soon as she is able.

How would you live if you knew there would be no tomorrow? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the earth is coming to an end. A free-floating planet, dubbed the “black sun” is on a collision course with earth. The narrator goes out into the darkness of the streets to walk, lost in thoughts about his life, about its happiness, and its failures. He hears a tv on and wanders into a house to find a little girl, watching the tv. She is alone in the house, she explains. Her mother left years ago, and her father left earlier in the week, leaving the house stocked with food for her. He talks to her, and they decide to face the end of the world together.

What would you do to ensure your soul continues forever? Does comfort with death require truth? In this work of philosophical short fiction, the narrator goes to a pseudo-scientist/cult leader who says that by consuming the ashes of the dead, you are consuming their souls and spirit. She is visiting to seek her revenge because her mother and father got wrapped up in the ideology of the man. She tours the facilities, and learns about the “science” and faith behind the process. In the end, she exacts her revenge for what was done to her family.

How do you deal with a family member with a severe mental illness? To what extent do you allow them into your life, when doing so causes stress and harm to your well being? In this work of philosophical short fiction, the narrator is suffering from a severe mental illness, but clearly loves her daughter. Her daughter has suffered the attention of her mother’s mental illness for years and has done her best to limit her mother’s effects on her life. The narrator correctly intuits that her daughter is getting married. She is not invited to the wedding so to prevent there from being a scene, and drama. No matter, she continues to focus on “planning” the wedding until she is eventually arrested.

How can a son receive the attention of his father, when they don’t share similar interests? Should a child change in order to find common ground with their father? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Gregory is a young, sensitive child, looking for approval from his father. However, his father’s only interest seems to be hunting. His father correctly understands that Gregory is not old enough, and does not have the temperament, for hunting. However, Gregory wants his father’s approval and his mother insists he at least take him out for target practice. Finally, after much waiting, Gregory’s father agrees, not to take him hunting, but out for target practice. While at target practice they find a sick kitten, still alive, with ants crawling over it. Gregory’s father has Gregory shoot the kitten to end its life.

What causes some people to struggle to find love? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, Monique is on an online date when Leo, her ongoing booty call, contacts her. She ends her date, finding out their mutual friend Jace, and her first love, recently died. Monique arrives at Leo’s place, they have unloving sex, and she leaves. Later, they see each other at Jace’s funeral and Leo’s would-be girlfriend asks Monique to back off. She refuses. The following day she goes for her annual mammogram only to find out she is pregnant with Leo’s baby. A few days later she miscarries, and goes right back to her life of wine, grading English papers, and online dating.

What is the purpose of defending yourself in a fight? To what ends should you go to stop getting bullied? In this work of ethical fiction, a pre-teen Rusty is sent to the general store on his bike to buy alcohol for Walt, the local drunk, in exchange for ice-cream. While at the store Rusty is attacked by two older boys trying to steal his bike. He holds onto his bike, but is badly beaten in the exchange. Later that day, Rusty gets a metal pipe and tells his friend Gene to meet him that night. They meet and Rusty tells Gene his plan, to toss the pipe into the bushes, distract the boys who beat him up, and get in a quick punch before running away. Gene gets scared and leaves, just as Bill, one of the boys that beat him up, sees him. In a panic, Rusty swings the pipe, hitting Bill. Rusty goes into a rage and continues hitting Bill. The next day Bill is in the hospital, and the police are at Rusty’s doorstep with questions.

Why does society seem to support the leadership of bully strongmen? In this work of philosophical short story fiction, the narrator is visiting his friend Tomas. They have been of-and-on friends for years, but now Tomas is dying. Over drinks, they reflect on their lives while Tomas retells the story of a baboon tribe he read about. The baboon tribe was run by vicious leaders and violence was common. Until, one day, they found a trash heap. The largest, most dominant members ate from the heap, while the less aggressive were denied access. Eventually, the trash gives the baboon’s tuberculosis, and all the aggressive males die off. The passive males reform the tribe as an egalitarian paradise of sharing. As soon as baboons from the outside tribes try to enter, they quickly learn they will be pushed out unless the adopt the kinder ways. This goes on for six generations. Plato argued humans were too stupid to trusted with voting in a democracy. The baboons might tend to agree.