Quinn's Code - Geekery at the Mega-Mall - Part 1

Quinn's Code (A Daria AU)
Installment 4: Geekery at the Mega-Mall
Monday, October 25, 2005
“A hundred miles? To go to a mall? Dammit, there's a mall five minutes away!” Jake Morgendorffer ranted.
 
“Sit down, dear. We're not going,” his wife, Helen, said, reassuringly.
 
“Oh, oh!”
 
“It's not a mall, it's a super mall! The Mall of the Millennium. Everything under one roof. I could spend days there...” their younger teen daughter, Quinn said.
 
“If you play that John Lennon song backwards, it says, 'Imagine all the people, browsing in a mall.' Isn't that weird?” Quinn's older sister, Daria snarked.
 
“It's too far away, Quinn, and you've done enough shopping for this quarter,” Helen said. 'All computers all the time. It's all I can do to tear her away from them!' she thought.
 
“Mo-om! As a member of the Computer and Programming Clubs, I have to keep on top of the current trends in computer equipment. Some of that equipment is not available in Lawndale!”
 
“Computer and Programming Clubs? Did you know that she was in those clubs, Helen?” Jake asked.
 
“Yes, Jake.”
 
“The Computer and Programming Clubs? I thought she was in the Anime Club.”
 
“She is in that club too, Dad!” Daria said, not looking up from her plate of lasagne. 'She is definitely overachieving.’
 
“Say, what do you think of this PDA?” Jake said, as he took his PDA out of his pocket.
 
Quinn looked at it. “It's quite obsolete, Daddy. You may as well have a Newton,” she said with a slight nervous laugh. “Now, if you drive me to the Mall of the Millennium...”
 
“No! We're not going to a mall outside the county,” Helen said.
 
“How will I hold my head up in the Computer and Programming Clubs?” Quinn whined.
 
“A traction pulley?” Daria snarked.
 
Quinn turned to her sister. “Just because you're not interested in what's new and up-to-date!”
 
“Oh, I'm interested. But why go a mere 100 miles away? I bet they have some fascinating malls in Japan for your tech-head and otaku needs!” Daria said.
 
“Daria,” Helen said, trying to defuse the situation.
 
“I wouldn't go that far,” Quinn said.
 “Japan? To go to a mall? Dammit!”
 
“Sit down, dear. It was a joke,” Helen said.
 
“Oh!” Jake said.
 
Quinn ran out of the kitchen.
 

( Quinn entered her room and slammed the door. )

The Engineer and the Time Lady - Rescue v0.2

9. Rescue

Alpha and the Synth were in Transporter Room 1, along with a replicated coracle, which the Synth would use to board the distressed ship. “Ready for transport?” Alpha asked.

“Yes,” the Synth answered. “I have run through all your scenarios.”

“Very good,” Alpha said as she moved behind the console.

“Energize.”


The Synth materialisd, in the coracle a short distance from the ship. Alpha continued to watch his progress via the probe.


Nina entered the library on her third day of work. Immediately she was called into the head Librarian's office. She could see the expression on her new boss' face. “Is something wrong?”

“Aialah Talan hasn't come in today.”

That was something Nina hadn't expected. “She didn't.”

“I know something of what occurred yesterday,” the Head Librarian divulged. “Including about the book that shouldn't have been loaned.” She shook her head.

“What I suspect is personal, but I have reason to believe she could be in danger.”

“I knew about her and the Mayor's son. So I suspected that something like this could happen,” the Head Librarian got up from behind the desk and paced. “But Aialah is missing and I should have looked out for her more.” She gestured to the pile of paperwork at one end of the desk and sighed.

Nina could see that the Head Librarian took duty of care seriously. It was just as well she had read up on the way this particular society worked. “So, you have informed the Police and the Guild then? Why are you telling me this?”

“The Guild, yes,” the Head Librarian answered. “The Police, not yet. The latter may be more influenced by the Mayor than I like.”

'Of course. It will the Guild leading this investigation,' Nina thought. She just wanted a quiet few days! “So...”

“Given that Aialah confided in you, a little, the Guild wants you to help with the investigation.”

Nina nodded.


The Emergency Away Mission Synthetic analysed the refusal that the crew member had given him. “Why?”

“You have your answer. The Captain won't see you, and we can repair the ship ourselves!”

“I still can repair your ship.”

The crewmember then brandished a sword. “Get off this ship!”


Alpha saw saw the Synth retreat. She supposed she could beam him into the hold, but that was still rather risky from a Prime Directive standpoint. 'There's probably not much choice if the ship is to be saved,' she thought. She wished she had tried to run simulations of external repairs to the hull. She shook her head. There was no way the Synth could have done that.

“Emergency Away Mission Synthetic to Baffin.”

“Alpha here.”

“I was unable to gain entry to the hold.”

“Could you try again?” she asked. A look at the sensor data told her there were crew in the hold. She wasn't sure they would leave it.

“There's a high probability of failure, but I'll try.”


“Is that strange man asking to help repair the ship again?” the Captain asked.

“He is. I should note that the cracks in the hull are getting bigger. We won't be able to save the cargo.”

“Forget the cargo, can all of us escape?”

“Yes, barely. The jollyboats are ready to go.”

“Good. Now, tell that man to go.”


The Synth saw the Mate approaching.