Dar's Adventures in Space 1: Space Crazy by K. Rowe Read Free Book Online Page A

Blow will take the edge off and help you stay calm.”
    “Is there a cure for this?”
    Karnis shook his head. “Tincture of time. It’s a nasty virus, there’s no cure. If it doesn’t kill you, you’ll have immunity the rest of your life.”
    Dar writhed around. “I feel like I did when I messed with that hive of Erotin Ember ants.”
    “Yeah? Bet your mother warned you about screwing with ’em, didn’t she?”
    “Uh huh. But this wasn’t my fault.”
    “No, I know. It’s one of the dangers of space travel. The more planets you go to, the more chances you have of getting a sickness.” He poured another glass of water and gave it to Dar. “Most of the illnesses out there aren’t fatal. Unfortunately, this one happens to have a rather high fatality rate.”
    “Just my luck.”
    Karnis turned for the door. “You’re young, so you stand a pretty good chance. Get some sleep, I’ll come check on you in a couple of hours.”
    “Karnis?”
    “Yeah?”
    “What happened with the pirates?”
    “Oh, Gwog ran ’em off as usual.”
    Dar snuggled back under the covers. “Where are we?”
    “About half way to Iddris.”
    “Thanks,” he said softly and closed his eyes. The Mind Blow seemed to be going to work. His body felt rather numb, and for some reason, he felt like he could do anything at that moment. Thinking hard, he remembered in school they said the drug gave you the feeling of invincibility, but of course, it was all in your mind. They also said it was quite addictive. Dar didn’t want that to happen, he needed his hard earned drig to buy some fancy Catarin hide clothes.

6

    Four days later, Dar emerged from his quarters; his whole body covered with peeling blisters, and he still felt wrung out. This wasn’t the way he envisioned his first few days in space to be. No, it was supposed to be exciting; instead, he spent most of it drugged out of his mind. Clearly his new life wasn’t going according to plan.
    He’d survived Skrinnian fever thanks to Karnis and his generous offerings of Mind Blow; and Gwog, who came and visited before bedtime, bringing a bottle of Malikin port from Gardinis. Dar argued he wasn’t old enough to drink, but Gwog insisted, saying it would make him sleep better. After getting past the initial burn of the alcohol, and the heady buzz he got, Dar discovered port had a rather nice flavor. In fact, he liked it.
    Together, Gwog and Karnis nursed him through the worst of it. Dar figured if his mother ever got wind of what those two did, she wouldn’t be happy. They probably saved his life, because, had he scratched and popped the blisters, they would have gotten infected and he might have died.
    Dar wandered into the galley and sat down at the table. He yawned loudly and stretched.
    Karnis was busy in the kitchen making lunch. “Ah, he’s alive!” he joked, poking his head through the service window.
    “Wondering if I really wanna be,” Dar replied.
    “Oh, the rest of the blisters will peel off in a couple of days, and you’ll be fine. Are you hungry?”
    “Yes, very.”
    “How’s a bovidis shoulder sandwich sound?”
    Dar licked his lips. “Sounds fantastic.” He could feel the ragged shreds of skin on his lips and it was driving him crazy. He hoped soon he’d be looking normal again.
    “All right, gimme a few minutes.”
    “Thank you.”
    Gwog came in, hoping to grab a bite of something before lunch was served. His stomach growled and he really didn’t want to wait. “Hello, little one. Good to see you up.”
    “Good to be up—as opposed to the other option.”
    He sat down across from him. “I didn’t wanna make a trip back to Erotis, bringing you home to your mother wrapped in a shroud.” He picked at his nails. “And I like you, you’re good to have around.”
    Dar smiled. “Thanks.”
    “Are you to ready to come back to the bridge?”
    “I think so. Just a little tired still.”
    Gwog got up and stuck his head through the kitchen window.