But first:

This is the last prompt of the whole year! Wow! I’m going to hold off on writing up a “lessons learned” or “Goals for 2026” post for now. For now, it’s enough to say that I honestly thought I wouldn’t make it.

Last week’s story:

I finished “Christmas Miracles” this morning, and I’m pretty happy with how it turned out, even if the plot point of the evil data scientist didn’t come up until the very last page and I sort of rushed through it. At least I finished off the romance between William and Sheila, and even brought an end to their mortal enemy Steve and his evil ways, because every romance story needs a mortal enemy, right?

This week’s prompt:

I couldn’t find the dice I normally use to generate my prompts. I suspect they’re behind the credenza, thrown there by a kitten that roams the office, but what do I know? But just as Steve was the mortal enemy to William’s and Sheila’s romance, so kittens are mortal enemies to dice. Just ask any cat-owning D&D player. The substitute dice don’t photograph well because they are red numbers on black dice, so they won’t be part of this week’s prompt photograph.

Anyway. I rolled a 6 on the d8 for Science Fiction, and a 4 on the d6 for humor. Thus, this week’s story will be humorous science fiction. Here’s what I drew from the Story Engine’s Science Fiction Deck:

A telekinetic chrononaut wants the rare material they can only get from a nebula, but it will make them a fugitive.

I feel like I’ve seen these cards before, and it’s certainly possible I’ve cycled through the entire Science Fiction deck. I’ve certainly included a chrononaut before, way back in Story No. 5, “Shadow Event”. So yeah, it’s definitely within the realm of possibility.

The holidays are here. It’s the fourth Sunday of Advent, and Christmas is this week. Therefore, the story will likely be super-short. A flash fiction piece, around about 500 words or so. Or at least, that’s what I’m hoping.

This week’s recommendation:

It’s not a recommendation, really, it’s a shoutout to my friend Theresa Baumgartner, who writes as T. M. Baumgartner and Tess Baytree. She won the Mystery Murders short story award this year, and I couldn’t be prouder or happier for her. Here’s her winning story:

Death of a Detective

Facebook, the arbiter of all things past and present, tells me that I’ve know Theresa for at least ten years, and I’ve recommended several of her books throughout this past year. Go out and read what she’s written!

And as always:

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Yule, Solstice, and whatever else you celebrate at this time of year! Are the stars right this solstice? Will the Old Ones rise from the depths? We’ll see, but it’s unlikely as far as I’m concerned.

And, as always, stay safe, kind, and punk.