In this issue, a giant feline swats us into the void with ‘Space Cat’ by Bronwyn Schuster. And feature author Kate Heartfield leads us on a daring escape through the universe in ‘And in the Arcade, Ego’. Hitch a ride into the heat - and heart - of the desert with Kevin Sandefur’s ‘Out in the Sticks’. And it all goes up in flames in ‘Paper, Candles, Hearts & Other Combustible Materials’ by Anne Baldo. Natalie Harris-Spencer, in ‘The Art of Ironing’, and Cara Waterfall, in ‘Vessel’, illustrate ways of navigating relationships and bodily autonomy. And friendship transcends time and place in ‘Fate of Chickens’ by Krista Jane May. We delve into familial grief and sacrifice in ‘Sap and Seed’, by H Pueyo and Dante Luiz, and the opening chapters of ‘Allaigna’s Song: Chorale’ by JM Landels, while ‘Pale Pony Express’ by Lulu Keating and ‘The Echo of Light Footsteps on Parchment’ by Kimberley Aslett explore memory and loss through storytelling. Strange science brings us ‘The Magic Shuffling Machine’ by Derek Salinas Lazarski but can’t explain the tiny home intruder in ‘The Switch Fairy’ by Monica Wang or the supernatural occurrences in ‘Pretty Lies: Eyes Full of Moon’ by Mel Anastasiou.