Tundra

Day seven: Oxygen draining, food vanishing, water diminishing. Mind going blank. Nightmares continuing. Tired. Only way out. . .none. Exhausted. Worried about family. Stressing. Need to find an escape. Tune out voices. Growing darker. Enclosed spaces. Can't breathe. Heart beat slowing. Eyes, heavy. Tongue, dry. Cold everywhere. Ice in the air. Stars cease to exist. Cold. Cold. Cold. Lights put out--

''Dan! Danny! Hey, are you writing in your diary again?'' there was a thud and in came a young, tall adult with hair of black and eyes of brown with a cheeky grin and strong cheek bones. ''Dan Dan, don't hyperventilate I do not want to kiss you again,'' said the cheeky boy.

Startled, the man apparently named Dan, slammed the notebook he was writing in and put it away. ''It's not a diary it's a log book. And I thought I told you not to call me Danny or Dan Dan. Its just Daniel,'' he said, enunciating his name correctly.

''Okay, jeez, don't put a wrinkle in your trousers,'' the younger man replied.

''What are you doing up here, Robert? I thought I told you to stay in your room.'' Robert plopped down in the co-pilot's seat of the tiny rocket they were in. He spun in it, though one of the wheels was broken. ''You think to much, Dan.'' He then continued, trying to mimic him in the best possible way by using a stout voice. ''I thought I told you to stay in your room. I thought I told you to stay out of my way. I thought I told you.. I thought I told you. . I thought i told you.'' He turned the chair around and smiled, his eyes lighting up, waiting for Dan's reaction. Dan narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms. ''I do not sound like a grouchy old man. And my name is Daniel, not Dan.'' Dan got up from the pilot's seat and walked out of the room. Robert got up, too and called out, ''Light a candle, it's super duper dark down there!''

Dan turned around, his figure barely making out in the dark. ''Oh, great idea! And where do you think I'll find matches or a lighter in here?'' he asked sarcastically. Robert began to think, really think. Dan gave up on him and started to walk to the lounge, where their kitchen was also located. It only had a couple of chairs and compartments where they kept all of their food. Dan opened the first compartment and all he found were empty aluminum bags. Dan checked the second and third compartment and found the same thing. He checked the fourth and found only one bad of jerky with one strip of it in there. Dan knew they were low on food but now the rate of death was severe. There were only two people on this ship, him and Robert, and Dan couldn't fathom the thought of Robert so carelessly eating most of their supplies. He slammed the compartment drawer closed and stomped back to the cockpit, planning to kill the fool before Robert killed him with his selfish inconsideration. ''Robert you better have a good explanation for eating all of the jerky!'' he called, approaching the flight deck. He noticed a peculiar light glowing inside, and once Dan entered the cockpit his eyes widened. Startled, surprised and shocked at the same time he couldn't believe his eyes. Robert held up a lighter, his smile probably brighter than the tiny flame. He was so happy but Dan was not. He lunged towards him and knocked the lighter out of his hand. ''Are you crazy!?'' he exclaimed, snatching it out of his hands and throwing it to the side. ''Do you know what you could have done?''

Robert looked dumbfounded, not really seeing what the problem was.

Both men slowly turned their heads to observe a blazing light, as dazzling as the sun, burning their eyes. Dan looked away but Robert was entranced and kept staring. Then the light vanished, and they were surrounded in darkness again. There was a clear, distinct droning sound above them. Then a rumbling. And it grew into thunder but it wasn't thunder. With all the noise there was a sound of a whale. Streaks of white light flashing in the pitch dark space. When it flashed you could see the shadow of something big. Something monstrous. With six tentacles, long and dangly. A lizard tail with hundreds of shiny silver scales--thousands of claw like spikes up and down its body. It had no claws on it's forelegs, for they were webbed, but its venom spitting mouth was something to watch out for. One spit from its mouth and you're blind for eternity and not only that but the poison is still inside of you, killing you off, slowly. And the brute was called--

''Tundra,'' Dan whispered. The whale noises didn't stop. Or the droning, or the rumbling. In fact, it got worse--the rumbling I mean. The good part was that what the beast was bringing with itself were the white streaks, and immediately as they came the whole ship lit up, the controls were working again. Dan smiled and laughed for once during the dilemma. ''We might not die after all!'' Dan said, happily. Robert smiled proudly. ''See? I just did us a favor. I attracted the. . .whatever you said and now we have power. Am I a genius or what?'' Dan rolled his eyes.

''It was a lucky chance and that's it. Now let's go home, I don't want to spend another millisecond in this forsaken galaxy.'' He sat down in the pilot's seat, pressed some buttons, pulled a lever and the ship slowly started to move. Now I won't have to have a grave on the moon. Dan thought to himself, smiling ever so much. ''Robert get over here and sit down, I can't fly this thing without you.'' Robert flicked off the lighter and hid it by one of the small circular windows. He sat down in the co-pilot's seat, strapping himself in.

''Didn't you mention you had kid?'' Dan asked, glancing at the young male. Robert nodded. ''Yeah. Three years old. I'll be so happy to see her when I get back.'' Dan shook his head, hardly believing he was a dad. It was even harder to believe he kept a wife.

Momentarily forgetting there was a monster outside.

''And you have a. . girlfriend, right?'' Robert said, trying to recall if Dan had said that before. Dan shifted in his seat and seat nothing for a moment. ''Ex-girlfriend,'' he finally said. Robert glanced over at him, feeling a bit awkward now. ''Oh. Sorry about that.'' Dan didn't say anything as something crashed into the side of the ship, sending it flying. Lucky thing they were strapped in, but the two were staggering a bit after being jostled. The whale sound turned into a hideous and throaty roar and the ship was hit again, spinning this time, around and around and around. ''Fly!'' Dan shrieked when the ship finally stopped spinning. Robert didn't hesitate. Pressing buttons and pulling a lever on his side. The ship sped from that spot and into the right direction. Towards earth. The screeching of the Tundra was lost in the distance and Dan and Robert were away safely and headed back to their home.