Free Jacob Wonderbar and the Cosmic Space Kapow by Nathan Bransford Page B

to have buttons or anything he could control. All he could see was their speed, trajectory, and the destination, which was listed as “Numonia.”
    â€œHave you heard of a planet called Numonia?”
    Dexter’s jaw quivered. “I knew it. We’re definitely going to die.”
    â€œWe’re not going to die!”
    â€œWe’re heading toward a planet named after an infectious disease! Of course we’re going to die!”
    â€œIt’s spelled differently! I’m pretty sure there’s a p in pneumonia .”
    Dexter leaned against the wall of the pod. He stared at the ceiling and his foot began to fidget uncontrollably. “We need to think.”
    â€œGood idea. Let’s think.”
    Jacob placed fingers to his temples. He had once read an article that said that the part of the brain responsible for inspiration activated when you stopped thinking of anything and let your brain relax. Jacob took a deep breath and quieted his mind. He felt the cool air-conditioning on his skin. He heard the whirring of the gears of the pod and the strange whoosh as it passed through the vacuum of space. He heard his heart beating in his ears. He heard Dexter hyperventilating.
    What he didn’t hear was his brain thinking of any good ideas.
    â€œMayday!!” Jacob yelled.
    â€œMayday!!” Dexter started laughing uncontrollably. “Mayday!!! Ha-ha-ha! Wow. Now I’m so scared I don’t even care what happens anymore.” He reached over and patted Jacob on the shoulder. “Thanks, Wonderbar. I needed a laugh.”
    â€œYou’re welcome.”
    Although he didn’t know where in the universe they were headed, Jacob at least was able to comfort himself with the knowledge that Sarah surely had discovered what Mick had done to them. He smiled to think of the horrific tantrum Mick Cracken must have been witnessing at that very moment and how much Mick must be regretting discovering the explosive side of Sarah Daisy.
    Jacob and Dexter were in a tough spot, but if he knew Sarah, nothing could stop her from turning Praiseworthy around and rescuing them the second she found out they were missing.
    â€œUm. Wonderbar?” Dexter was staring out of the window and shaking his head. “I think you might want to take a look at this.”
    Jacob stepped over to the window, and suddenly red lights and a loud horn started blaring.
    â€œAh! Ah! I knew it was bad!” Dexter shouted.
    Jacob watched a tiny gray planet growing larger and larger.
    â€œWonderbar!”
    â€œI see it!”
    The planet grew closer and closer as the pod rocketed toward it.
    â€œWe’re going too fast!” Dexter yelled.
    The planet couldn’t have been more than a few miles across, but they were on a head-on course at an incredible speed. Jacob grasped the walls of the pod as tightly as he could.
    â€œHold on!” he yelled.
    They were going way too fast toward a very ugly planet. The gray texture of the planet took shape. Jacob saw a glint of silver as the planet grew closer.
    â€œWe’re going to crash!”
    Jacob felt his stomach fling into his throat as the boosters fired.
    The pod landed gently.
    â€œOh.”
    When the dust settled, Jacob looked out the window at an empty gray planet. The pod hatch opened.
    Dexter sniffed the air. “Is that ... burp breath?”

CHAPTER 17
    D exter and Jacob sat on the ground in front of the escape pod and looked at their surroundings. At first they had enjoyed jumping around on the surface of the planet, which, because of its small size, had much less gravity than Earth. Jacob jumped ten feet in the air and pretended to do a 360-degree somersault tomahawk jam into an imaginary hoop. Dexter countered with a between-the-legs behind-the-back eyes-covered Statue of Liberty, but soon they both began to cough on the planet’s air, which still smelled like burp breath, so they sat down instead.
    Dexter rubbed his skin.