Five original tales set in a shared urban future—from some of the hottest young writers in modern SF. More than an anthology, METAtropolis is the brainchild of five of science fiction's hottest writers—Elizabeth Bear, Tobias Buckell, Jay Lake, Karl Schroeder, and project editor John Scalzi—who combined their talents to build a new urban future, and then wrote their own stories in this collectively-constructed world. The results are individual glimpses of a shared vision, and a reading experience unlike any you've had before. A strange man comes to an even stranger encampment... a bouncer becomes the linchpin of an unexpected urban movement... a courier on the run has to decide who to trust in a dangerous city... a slacker in a "zero-footprint" town gets a most unusual new job... and a weapons investigator uses his skills to discover a metropolis hidden right in front of his eyes. Welcome to the future of cities. Welcome to METAtropolis. Contents: Introduction (METAtropolis): Essay by John Scalzi; In the Forests of the Night: Novella by Jay Lake; Stochasti-city: Novella by Tobias S. Buckell; The Red in the Sky Is Our Blood: Novelette by Elizabeth Bear; Utere Nihil Non Extra Quiritationem Suis: Novella by John Scalzi; To Hie from Far Cilenia: Novella by Karl Schroeder