Tevun-Krus #65 - AcidPunk

Girl, You're Tripping - Part 1 of a Short Story by @JeffreyVonHauger

Girl, You're Tripping

Part 1 of Significantly Advanced Tech

By Jeffrey Von Hauger

Sometimes a girl needs to take a gap year. One where she steps way outside her comfort zone and preferably gets into a bit of trouble. She'll come back a changed person, ready to step into the next big stage of her life.

Pippalotti Francesca Ritz was dancing her ass off. The modularized tribal beats reverberated through her entire body. The flashing lights penetrated her skin and seemed to illuminate her cells. She was feeling floaty for the longest time but the floor became real again as her feet began to hurt. Her face was sore from the non-stop smiling. Overall, she felt really great. Almost too good.

She promised her friends and the family that if she went to the Jersy Jakz Disco Inferno she would use one of the house provided chaperones. She smiled at Crystal Blue Persuasion and watched her dance. Crystal was a Zorr in the prime of her life. Which meant she was big, blue, and beautiful. Two meters of physical perfection sporting long braided hair that flew around her head with a mind of its own. She moved her voluptuous body in ways that turned everyone on, regardless of any preconceived orientation.

Zorrs were athletic, intelligent, intuitive, and charming people. Pippa could never figure out why some species looked down on them, let alone try to enslave them. She had already transferred a huge tip in Grandor credits to her account. She couldn't have asked for a better guide.

"I gotta take a break!" shouted Pippa over the pulsating musical thunder.

"Ok!, want me to come with?" Crystal took her hands in hers and danced slower. "Are you alright? You look like you're tripping pretty hard."

Crystal's eyes were a deep blue ocean.

"I'm OK! I think I'm in a calm phase and need to change atmospheres. You stay here and dance, I'll ping you if I need anything!"

"Alright, baby, I'm here for you." She swirled away in a singular body motion that started at her wrist, moved up to her eyebrows, then darted down to her ringed toes.

Pippalottti made a beeline for the nearest exit.

After a couple hours here, she realized it wasn't as dangerous a place as people led on. Though she had to admit it was hard to keep it together with Jakz Juice pumping through her system. She opened the door out of the dance floor and left the spinning lights behind. The adjacent lounge had a completely different vibe.

Mellow crooner music in a language it didn't matter if you understood swooned her over to the bar. The six armed android bartender was on it. At least she hoped it had six arms; there was no way to know for sure with the visual side effects of the drug.

"Water, kind sir."

"Affirmative."

The robot filled a tall slender glass and handed it to her. It was cool and refreshing with a hint of mint. She sipped and enjoyed the feeling of the liquid sliding down her throat.

"Oh, man, I gotta tell you, you should have one of these, it helps," said a very nondescript yet wasted looking man easily twice her age.

He opened a crinkled tin paper package and took out a thin hand rolled joint and offered it to her.

"It's tobacco. Terrible for you but I discovered by accident that it takes the edge off Jakz Juice. I can tell you're new to the experience."

He seemed harmless. She accepted the little white gift. He took another out, lit the end on fire, and exhaled a large purple plume of smoke that hung in the air over the bar. It smelled pretty bad.