Ricardo's Virus

"Ricardo's Virus" by William Tenn is a science fiction tale set on a hostile Venus, where human colonists fight for survival against a world of deadly perils. The story follows Graff Dingle, a colonist infected with a lethal virus after a dangerous knife wound, as he races against the clock to rescue a kidnapped woman and her father, a scientist who may hold the key to his survival. Partnered with MacDuff, a Venusian pterodactyl with a mysterious past, Graff braves the planet's treacherous swamps, evading deadly flora, fauna, and villainous outlaws who seek to exploit the chaos. Driven by time constraints and deadly surroundings, Graff is determined to save his life, the Bergenson's, and his community from the dangerous Ricardo's Virus.