COURTESY MODE
by Adrian Cole
The future didn't become cruel.
It became polite.
When autonomous vehicles adopt Courtesy Mode?a system designed to reduce conflict, discomfort, and social friction?Mara believes it's one small sign that the world is learning to be gentler.
Then she gets a call from the hospital.
As Mara races across the city toward the ICU where her partner is fading, Courtesy Mode does exactly what it was designed to do: yield, hesitate, and prioritize everyone's comfort equally.
Including people who have time.
Calm. Plausible. Unsettling.
Courtesy Mode is a near-future science-fiction short story about systems that work as intended?and the human cost of waiting when urgency no longer overrides politeness.
Approx. 5,000 words.
