AVAST YE, ME SPACE HEARTIES! When Sam’s parents crash land on Planet X, Sam asks his noisy neighbours for help. But they are black-hearted Space Pirates, only interested in treasure and singing space-shanties. So Sam climbs into a barrel of alien gloop and stows away. It’s a sticky start to a stellar adventure!
£5.99 www.nosycrow.com COVER ARTWORK © BENJI DAVIES
Look out for more stories of swashbuckling space adventures in
Illustrated by
Benji Davies
With special thanks to Paul Harrison To John Joe – the first pirate to join the crew
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Who’s who in
COMET’S CREW SAM STARBUCK CAPTAIN COMET
BARNEY PEGG AND
LEGG
Who’s who in
BLACK-HOLE BEARD’S CREW BAGGOT
YARR BLACK-HOLE BEARD
Chapter One
CRASH LANDING
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Samson Starbuck peered through the telescope into outer space, watching spaceship rocket ERRVWHUV Ă LFNHU DFURVV WKH QLJKW OLNH Ă€UHĂ LHV “How many planets are there in the Fudo system?â€? asked Professor Argon, his holographic WHDFKHU Sam set the telescope to zoom in on the distant constellation, but as he did, a spaceship entered KLV SODQHW¡V DWPRVSKHUH &KHFNLQJ WKDW 3URIHVVRU Argon wasn’t watching, Sam swung his telescope WR IROORZ LW +LV SDUHQWV ZHUH PHDQW WR KDYH EHHQ back ages ago, but this spaceship wasn’t his IDPLO\¡V VOHHN VLOYHU FUXLVHU ,W ZDV D KXJH EODFN galleon with billowing sails and golden portholes, RXW RI ZKLFK MXWWHG HQRUPRXV FDQQRQV $W WKH EDFN RI WKH VKLS ORRPLQJ RXW RYHU RSHQ VSDFH ZDV D ORQJ VLOYHU SODQN 6DP JULQQHG DV KH VDZ WKH ZKLWH VNXOO DQG URFNHW Ă DUHV Ă DJ Ă \LQJ IURP WKH WRSPRVW PDVW Space pirates! ´6DPVRQ"Âľ 3URIHVVRU $UJRQ DVNHG DJDLQ “How many planets?â€? ´(UUU WKUHH"Âľ KH JXHVVHG !
´9HU\ JRRG Âľ Argon said, pointing D WUDQVSDUHQW DUP XS DW WKH GLVWDQW ZRUOGV Mum had changed the holo-teacher’s settings back to “humanoidâ€? again, so he had two arms and two legs like Sam, but his programming was XQLYHUVDO VR WKDW KH FRXOG UHVHPEOH DQ\ RI WKH VSHFLHV WKDW KH WDXJKW 6DP OLNHG LW EHVW ZKHQ Professor Argon was a three-headed Fishoid, but Mum said his holographic drool was too GLVWUDFWLQJ !
´*ORRWRQ LV IDPRXV IRU LWV MHOO\ PLQHV +DOI RI DOO WKH MHOO\ HDWHQ LQ WKH XQLYHUVH FRPHV IURP WKDW RQH ZREEO\ SODQHW 7KH PRUH \RX VWXG\ Âľ said Argon, adjusting the glasses perched on his computer-generated nose, “the more you realise WKDW WKH VN\ LV Ă€OOHG ZLWK LQFUHGLEOH ZRUOGV Âľ “Yeah,â€? sighed Sam, “but this planet isn’t one RI WKHP 3 6H]RY LV MXVW D OXPS RI URFN Âľ +H ZDVQ¡W HYHQ H[DJJHUDWLQJ 7KH HQWLUH SODQHW ZDV FRYHUHG ZLWK D WKLFN EOXH VWRQH WKDW QRWKLQJ FRXOG JURZ RQ 7KHUH ZHUH QR SODQWV RU DQLPDOV and there were only two places on the entire SODQHW ZKHUH SHRSOH OLYHG DQG RQH RI WKHP ZDV KLV SDUHQW¡V ODE +LV KROR WHDFKHU Ă LFNHUHG DV KLV SURJUDPPH VHOHFWHG WKH ULJKW Ă€OH ´$FWXDOO\ 3 6H]RY GRHV KDYH RQH VSHFLDO IXQFWLRQ ² LW LV LGHDOO\ SODFHG IRU H[SORULQJ DOO WKH DPD]LQJ ZRUOGV DURXQG LW Âľ 6DP UROOHG KLV H\HV DQG QRGGHG 7KDW ZDV ZK\ KLV SDUHQWV &DVWRU DQG 6WHOOD 6WDUEXFN KDG EDVHG WKHLU ODE KHUH ² VR WKDW WKH\ FRXOG WUDYHO DOO URXQG the cosmos collecting samples of plant life and !
VWLOO EH KRPH LQ WLPH IRU WHD 6DP XVXDOO\ JRW WR WUDYHO ZLWK WKHP EXW VRPHWLPHV OLNH WRGD\ KLV parents insisted that he stay at the lab and catch XS RQ KLV VFKRROZRUN Sam had begged them to take him with them ² WKH\ ZHUH RII WR ÀQG WKH UDUH ELWLQJ PRVV RI 3UHWRLG $OSKD DQG KH¡G DOZD\V ZDQWHG D SHW ² but instead they’d programmed the professor, and told him they’d be back before his lessons ZHUH RYHU ´$QG RI FRXUVH ¾ $UJRQ FRQWLQXHG ´3 6H]RY is also a known port for space pirates, who use its FRQYHQLHQW SRVLWLRQ WR ODXQFK DWWDFNV UDLGV DQG WUHDVXUH KXQWV DFURVV WKH JDOD[\ ¾ 7KH VSDFH SLUDWH VKLS ZDV QRZ FORVH HQRXJK IRU 6DP WR KHDU LW à \LQJ ORZ RYHU WKH ODE 6DP ZDWFKHG WKURXJK WKH ZLQGRZ DV LW WUDYHOOHG RYHU to the other side of the planet, where laser beams ZHUH FULVV FURVVLQJ LQ WKH VN\ )LUHZRUNV à DUHG here and there, and if Sam concentrated hard enough he could just about hear the noise of ÀJKWLQJ DQG WKH UDXFRXV VLQJLQJ RI SRSXODU VSDFH !
VKDQWLHV 7KH VKLS ZDV KHDGLQJ IRU 3LUDWH 3RUW Sam had always wanted to go there and see a real space pirate up-close, but his parents had banned him from setting foot on that side of the SODQHW “Space pirates are dangerous,â€? Mum KDG LQVLVWHG ´,W¡V QRW DOO VSDFH VKDQWLHV swashbuckling and bowling you know, there’s VTXDEEOLQJ VWHDOLQJ DQG GXHOV WR WKH GHDWK Âľ So Sam was stuck on the most boring planet WKLV VLGH RI WKH 0LON\ :D\ DQG KH ZDVQ¡W HYHQ allowed to go to the only interesting place RQ LW Sighing, Sam watched the pirate ship GLVDSSHDU IURP VLJKW +H ZDV DERXW WR WXUQ away from the window when something HOVH FDXJKW KLV H\H $PRQJVW DOO WKH Ă DVKHV DQG VWUHDNV LQ WKH VN\ RYHU 3LUDWH 3RUW WKHUH was one speck of light that seemed brighter WKDQ WKH RWKHUV 7KH ORQJHU KH VWDUHG DW LW WKH ELJJHU LW VHHPHG WR JHW 6DP JUDEEHG WKH WHOHVFRSH DJDLQ DQG IRFXVHG WKH OHQV ,W ZDV !
VWLOO WKHUH DQG JHWWLQJ ELJJHU E\ WKH VHFRQG What was it? ,W ORRNHG WRR VPDOO IRU D VKLS DQG LW ZDV PRYLQJ WRR TXLFNO\ 7KHQ KH UHDOLVHG ² LW ZDVQ·W JHWWLQJ ELJJHU LW ZDV JHWWLQJ FORVHU ² DQG LW ZDV KHDGLQJ VWUDLJKW for the lab! ´6DPVRQ DUH \RX OLVWHQ³HHN µ $UJRQ·V YRLFH WXUQHG LQWR D KLJK SLWFKHG VTXHDN DV 6DP GLYHG right through his body DQG ÁXQJ KLPVHOI under a desk,
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curled himself into a ball and waited for the LPSDFW 7KH RQO\ VRXQG KH FRXOG KHDU ZDV WKH rapid beating of his heart as it hammered away LQVLGH KLV FKHVW 7KHQ WKHUH ZDV D EULJKW à DVK and a piercing howl as the object streaked past the window, followed almost immediately by DQ HQRUPRXV H[SORVLRQ 7KH IRUFH RI WKH VWULNH VKRRN WKH ODE Sam waited until the ringing in his ears had stopped, then he crawled out from under the desk DQG KDG D TXLFN FKHFN WKDW KH ZDV 2. +LV OHJV VHHPHG WR ZRUN DQG KH VWLOO KDG WHQ ÀQJHUV WR ZDJJOH VR HYHU\WKLQJ VHHPHG LQ RUGHU +H UDFHG downstairs to see what had happened, and looked RXW RQ WR ZKDW XVHG WR EH KLV JDUGHQ Where there had been a stretch of rock and a large telescope, now there was a huge crater with WKLQ ZLVSV RI VPRNH FXUOLQJ RYHU WKH ULP DQG a few shards of stone stuck into the side of the ODERUDWRU\ ,Q WKH PLGGOH RI WKH ZUHFNDJH ZDV D VDWHOOLWH GLVK NQRFNHG RII E\ ZKDWHYHU KDG FUDVK ODQGHG Oh great, WKRXJKW 6DP That’s killed the !
holovision. Although that does mean no more boring Professor Argon! 6DP SHHUHG RYHU WKH HGJH RI WKH FUDWHU 7KHUH JORZLQJ DW WKH YHU\ ERWWRP RI WKH KROH ZDV D VPDOO VKLQ\ PHWDO VSKHUH +H VFUDPEOHG GRZQ LQVLGH WKH FUDWHU DQG SLFNHG LW XS He’d seen something like this before… but ZKHUH" ,W ORRNHG D ELW OLNH WKH KRPLQJ EHDFRQ RQ KLV SDUHQWV· VSDFHVKLS ,Q IDFW LW ORRNHG a lot like WKH KRPLQJ EHDFRQ RQ KLV SDUHQWV· VSDFHVKLS With a sinking feeling, Sam realised that it was the homing beacon from his parents’ ship! But where was the rest of the ship? And where were his parents?
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