Zak Storm - The Chosen One

The Poison of the Shadow Nettle

They had no choice but to leave Dezer and regroup themselves. According to Vapir, they would never be able to do it without being noticed immediately by Bones or Skullivar, so they needed a damn good plan. Zak was inconsolable. Not only had he failed, but he had also left his team alone with the scorpions. "Everyone makes mistakes, Zak. We learn from that," Calabrass tried to appease him. That brought absolutely nothing, because he didn't set a tone. "Blowing tribulation doesn't help either," Calabrass said. Again, no reaction and so slowly, Calabrass became sceptical. 

In Vapir 

Flint knelt in front of Skullivar and handed over the Planetarium. "As you wished, my lord." He looked at the artefact with satisfaction. "Well, you were good at something." Without looking at Flint, he asked, "Did you do the other job?" Flint nodded: "Cleanly executed. It's only a matter of time, Master." 

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"Hey, buddy - everything okay with you?" "Yeah, I'm fine," the Captain grumbled. Ria also tried her luck. "Something like this happens..." She wanted to see the stab wound, but when she touched his arm, it felt like fire. Zak quickly pulled his arm back. "I said I'm fine." Ria somehow didn't buy it from him, but left her brother alone. "She just wanted to help you," Calabrass said. He noticed that Zak's hands began to tremble, and his skin was losing colour. "The sea is spinning," he muttered. His legs felt like wobbly pudding, which was sinking more and more. A black rim formed around the wound. Zak let go of the wheel and leaned on it. His friends slowly approached him and almost had a heart attack. His eyes were no longer really blue, but shimmered greyish. "Zak?" Everything around him sounded dull and he saw only blurred outlines. 

Caramba and Ria looked closely at his condition and she was unfortunately pretty sure. 

R: "The symptoms indicate poisoning. Pale skin, circulatory weakness..." 

Ce: "What kind of poisoning and what?" 

R: "I can't say for sure... But I think Zak suffers from 'Fog Fever.'" 

Cl: "Fog Fever? Never heard of it." 

R: "This disease is not fun. If you don't treat it, it ends in death." 

Car: "But there is an antidote, isn't there?" 

R: "As far as I know... No. Fog Fever is caused by certain bacteria that are actually extinct. In the past, almost all of Marituga was wiped out because of this disease. These bacteria are found only in Vapir and harmless in normal concentration. But when they are added to a particular substance, the bacterium mutates into the 'shadow nettles.' They have to be bred today. Typical for Fog Fever, especially in wounds, are the black border and colourless eyes." 

Ce: "So, it wasn't an accident?" 

R: "No, certainly not. I think I can imagine who would do such a thing..." 

Ca: "Flint! But he does all the dirty work. He's a lot, but he would never do it alone." 

R: "We have to go to Sassafrass. She can certainly help us. The Planetarium has to wait." 

Everyone agreed with Ria and left the cabin. Ria gave Zak an anxious, sad look. They had only a few days to prevent a tragic end.