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eBook Category: Science Fiction
eBook Description: Nanotechnology heals all wounds, and no one dies--except Lantry Stiller's wife, destroyed in a freak orbital accident as he helplessly watched. Now he lives far from the starship he once dreamed of, in an isolated valley of Earth, and hides from sight of the stars. But their son, Kyle, loves the stars, and wants more than anything to go into space. Lantry will do anything to make sure their son never goes to the stars.

eBook Publisher: Fictionwise.com, Published: The Age of Wonders, ed. Jeffry Dwight, 2000
Fictionwise Release Date: August 2003

25 Reader Ratings: Great Good OK Poor

Available eBook Formats [MultiFormat - What's this?]: Adobe Acrobat (PDF) [42 KB], eReader (PDB) [21 KB], Palm Doc (PDB) [7 KB], Rocket/REB1100 (RB) [7 KB], Microsoft Reader (LIT) [60 KB] - PocketPC 1.0+ Compatible, Franklin eBookMan (FUB) [77 KB], hiebook (KML) [48 KB], Sony Reader (LRF) [33 KB], iSilo (PDB) [6 KB], Mobipocket (PRC) [8 KB], Kindle Compatible (MOBI) [35 KB], OEBFF Format (IMP) [13 KB]
Words: 1914
Reading time: 5-7 min.
Microsoft Reader (LIT) Format: Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud ENABLED
Adobe Acrobat (PDF) Format:  Printing DISABLED, Read-Aloud DISABLED
All Other formats: Printing DISABLED, Read-aloud DISABLED

"The Sealed Sky", by Cynthia Ward is an emotional short-short that begins convincingly in the midst of a father and son crises, and ends in a commendable resolution. When Lantry Stiller, a widower, tries to quell his son's desire to become a space explorer, near-future technology plays a poignant role in repairing their fragmented relationship ... and intervening in a suicide attempt. Stiller lost his wife to an accident in space and now can't bear the burden of his son, Kyle's, obsession to follow in her footsteps. Set within the now familiar "computerized home", the father and son try to resolve their separate grief, one through inspiration and the other through parental possessiveness. The story utilizes a great spin on the conceit of replicated consciousness and packs a lot of power in a quick-paced narrative. A good story, scribed with technical skill and an enviable understanding of the nature of grief."--Eugene Wiley, sfreader.com

Cautiously, Lantry Stiller pulls back a fold of curtain, to expose a gray afternoon. A low, dull cloud rests on the rim of the wooded hilltops, a pewter pot-lid covering the isolated valley. The cloud is a familiar sight; in the Northwest, the sky is overcast almost every day. Lantry doesn't mind. He doesn't want to see the sky.

It is safe to go out. Lantry gulps brandy-laced coffee and ventures onto the redwood deck. Shivering in the damp autumn air, he looks around. There is little risk of a break in the cloud cover; no risk of seeing stars. But he doesn't look up.

Lantry drops the mug. He barely hears the porcelain shatter. His house has changed.

He stalks inside and pounds furiously on the door of his son's bedroom.

The door opens fractionally. A wary brown eye peers out and up. "What?" Kyle asks.

"What do you think?" Lantry says. "You turned the damned house into an observatory. Again."

"Dad, my softutor's teaching an astronomy mod. How can I learn astronomy if--"

"Don't give me that," Lantry says. "Your education software includes a virtual-space package. Now, put the house back to normal."

Kyle opens the door a few inches. He is a short, slim boy, with fine dark features and heavy black hair. "How about if I get rid of the dome and keep the telescope--"

"The whole observatory," Lantry snaps. "Now."

Kyle tugs nervously on his tunic, garish plaid shot through with nano-spun gold and ruby thread, this week's kid fashion. "But, Dad, I want to be an astronomer--"