“Which do you prefer? Snack 8816CAO coloured what we now call light red, or snack 10345HBX coloured what we now call deep red? Which one tastes the best and why?
“The second one, definitely the second one. And I love the colour.”
“But why?”
“Makes it look much more mouthwatering. Tastes better. Reminds me of a place I was once told about. A far-off place whose name I can’t recall.”
“Congratulations, you’ve chosen the best. It’s our own brand and is less expensive than the market leader you also tried. Can I tempt you to receive a few packets as payment?”
“Yes, please, but I have to ask. What’s the flavour and what makes it that…what did you call it, deep red colour?”
“Homolastic.’ It was discovered on a planet in the Malleable system. The dominant species on that planet is homo sapiens. They refer to it as a substance called plastic, something they think they created themselves, but unknown to them, did not. We planted it there.”
“Planted?”
“Yes, we found it on the red planet that neighbours them. That planet is now uninhabitable, although they believe that one day they can inhabit it.”
“And the colour?”
“Their blood, which, unlike ours, is liquid-form. When mixed with homolastic and the other ingredients, the majority of our testers agree it’s the best flavour. There are just under 8 billion homosapiens, and most are infested with homolastic, so we’ll never run out during our lifetime. And when their planet becomes uninhabitable, we’ll have a new home.”
Written in response to Esther Chilton’s Writing Prompt: Theme: Red.
The featured image in this post was created using the WordPress AI Image Generator block. AI was also used for checking spelling and grammar mistakes.
You can follow me at the following sites.
Copyright @ 2026 hughsviewsandnews.com – All rights reserved.
Discover more from Hugh's Views & News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Hugh's Views & News 
A great, imaginative story., My reaction was yuck! at first I thought you were getting into a discussion about Red Dye #2 or whatever number it is. This is worse!
Thank you. I agree, this is a dark story. But hopefully one that will get people thinking about what they do with plastics.
Indeed. Our brains are already riddled with microplastics. But I think concern will eventually bring about change.
I hope so, although my ‘best-by’ date will have probably come and gone by the time it does.
What a super story, Hugh! I wasn’t sure where it was going to begin with and then you reveal a bit more and a bit more. I really like where you take it – hopefully not a prediction for the future! I’ll add it to my prompts round-up if that’s okay.
Hi Esther, yes, please do.
I’m glad you enjoyed it. I enjoy writing in dialog only. Some say it’s difficult to do, but I rather the characters say what’s going on rather than the author (so to speak).
I think dialogue works so well in driving a story forward and you do it so well. Thank you, Hugh.
Well, that was quite a shocker. Now I know what those red things are in the photo, I’ll say no thanks! Great story! Reminds me a little of Soylent Green! :)
I’m glad it shocked. Soylent Green is a gem of a 70’s sci-fic movie. I’ve not watched it since it was released. Time for a rewatch.
Same here, I need to see it again. Thanks again for the story. :)
Hi Hugh! Great story, is it only your imagination or are you seeing the future? :)
Lol, how did you know I had a crystal ball, Elizabeth? My imagination can run riot, when I allow it.
Good to see you. Hope all is well with you.