Tom Harem [Harem - Space Fun Box Set

"Everyone here is running away from something, boy." The man behind the glass told me, his husky voice muffled, "Your name?"

"Kane Drummond," I told him, as I squeezed my backpack against my chest, afraid that someone would grab it and start running away with it. After all, everyone here was a thief or looked like one.

I looked around at the tall, shiny buildings surrounding the New Andreas spaceport. It was my first time there. I had hitchhiked from a space garbage carrier after running away from home with just a backpack containing 3 bars of cereal, a bottle of natural orange juice, my great-grandfather's gold watch, a few coins, and my father's travel diary. I left the rest behind without a second thought. I couldn't take it anymore. It was not only the daily problems at home or working as a slave in the old mines but also the dream I had since I was a child of something bigger. I had read the diary dozens of times, perhaps even hundreds, and imagined the worlds my father had described in such detail and how fascinating they all were. The adventure and the taste for danger were in my veins and I couldn't just ignore them.

"What can you do?" The man asked me, also telling all those behind me to stop pushing, "One at a time." He shouted.

"I worked in a mine. I can transport large and heavy quantities of different materials. Will that do?" I gave a tight lip smile.

"Hm, hm." The man answered me. He diverted the fringe covering his right eye and scratched the scar he had on his eyelid, the dry, red skin protruding from his pale-face, hiding it a few seconds later.

"Ill put your name on the list. If any captain is interested, you will be contacted."

"That's it?"

"Yeah, and now get out of here. Can't you see there's a line behind you?" He said, green eyes wide open as he rubbed his cracked lips on each other.

I thanked him and gave my place to the next one in line.

I put the backpack on my back and wandered through the city's wide streets, the dust flying and obscuring the long-distance vision, also covering the faces of the people who crossed my path. Most of them were older, taller, and had a turtleneck covering their faces up to their noses. Everything there was new to me.

As soon as I reached the main streets, I released a long "wow " of so much shock that I was in. I had come from a planet inhabited by drunken miners, criminals who had no more than a knife in their pocket and taverns who had no name. But there everything was different. The bars had signs with letters of different colors indicating their names, the women wore ruffles and laces up to their knees and the men walked with their hands on each other's shoulders singing from door to door, with rosy cheeks and wet lips as well. While some people just roamed through the streets, others went to the bars or the casinos, and some stirred among the tents where weapons and items were sold. Truth be told, part of me felt that the people there knew that I did not belong there. They stared at me with disdain and a couple of the men even spat on the ground as they looked at me up and down. They were probably not used to seeing someone like me; dirty, ripped cloths, straying away from everyone, acting like I didnt belong there. They werent wrong.

I ended up walking all the way to the end of one of the main streets where a small bar caught my eye.

Unlike the other bars, the walls there were harsh and stained by the time passage. There was no one at the entrance and the letters on the sign only blinked. Not to mention the ones that didn't even work. It was the perfect place for me to rest while waiting for someone to call me. I mean, I was hoping someone would need a carrier or I would have to sneak into some ship. And, let's be honest, most captains wouldn't be as kind as old Albald of the transporter.

I opened the door carefully so as not to make any noise, and yet the rusty hinges ravaged the floor. A thunderous noise that sparked all eyes to my tiny ass. Two men banged their full mugs on the table and turned to me. A woman in a corner lifted her pirate's hat and looked at me. The dimmed light did not let me see the color of her eyes, but they were as clear as daylight. I had no doubt about that.

"Close the door when you come in." A man behind the bar told me.

He had a voice similar to wood scraping on the floor and conveyed chills only with a pitch-black look.

So, I did. I sat on one of the swivel seats in front of the counter and in less than a minute I had a drink in front of me. A thick white liquid serving as a base for a brown that swirled around the middle.

"I didn't ask for anything," I told him, afraid it was a trap for tourists or rookies.

"I know, but I can tell you need it." He answered and shoved the glass towards me.

"How much is it? I don't have much money."

"Don't worry, boy." He answered. He took a break and cleared his throat, "You're new around here, aren't you? You don't have the same blood-thirsty look on your face as those who stop here."

For a moment, I thought of lying to him, but something told me that he knew the answer and just wanted me to confirm it, "Yes, Im not from around. I'm looking for a ship to settle on."

"Hm. I see. I give you the same advice I give to everyone who comes in here with no fixed destination. Keep your head down, don't get in trouble and hopefully you'll survive."

"I don't want any trouble," I answered him.

I was going to continue when three hooded men broke in, their eyes scrutinizing the whole room.