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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 18, 2005 22:21:04 GMT -5
*gasp*
CPR!
*thumps on chest*
Not breathing!
Mouth to mouth!
... Um, Frankie can do it.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 20, 2005 3:47:54 GMT -5
*hurriedly sits up* I'm ALIIIIVE!
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 20, 2005 20:18:33 GMT -5
Oh, good. I was worried.
Um, here. *hands over breath mints*
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 22, 2005 6:19:03 GMT -5
Er.... thanks.... I don't quite like what you're implying...
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 22, 2005 21:05:44 GMT -5
Oh, good.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 23, 2005 3:06:18 GMT -5
........ *cries again*
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 23, 2005 23:34:12 GMT -5
Awww...
*pets*
I'm sorry. Really.
Here. Have an oreo. 'Tis Teh Nummy.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 24, 2005 12:15:38 GMT -5
OOOOOOH TEH OREO
*munches*
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 24, 2005 23:52:36 GMT -5
You really should strain to update this, you know.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 25, 2005 6:01:16 GMT -5
I know... I managed to update Hawthorne Dene, so next task is this one. But first I must write an award-winning poem for the Fellowship Festival.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 25, 2005 14:19:50 GMT -5
The miracles continue... I WROTE MORE!!!! *hallelujah chorus*
Ashley and Sam both span round. Sam had half-expected to see the department store which they had just left, but he was to be disappointed.
They caught a glimpse of a large plain room with no windows, filled with desks and other laboratory equipment, all of which seemed angled so that the people working had a good view of the lift at all times, but then their eyes became preoccupied with staring at a large robot, which was trundling towards them on four wheels. It had to be about eight feet tall, and was extending two arms ending in hooks towards them.
“Eep!” squeaked Ashley, which may have not been very articulate, but summed up her opinion on the situation quite aptly.
Sam was shaking his head and backing away into the lift. “Oh great - of all the universes, we get one ruled by robots!”
“Are you determined to complain about everything?”
“No, just bloody great robots for now!”
The robot ground to a halt at the lift doors, and stood silently, as if considering them. Neither Sam nor Ashley dared move. There was something ominous about the whirrings coming from its chest.
Suddenly, it raised its hooks, and spoke in a loud echoing voice, making them both jump.
“WELCOME TO POLYMUS,” it stated, “MAY I TAKE YOUR COATS?”
Sam and Ashley stared at it, mouths slowly closing again. After an extremely long moment of silence, Ashley squeaked, “What?”
The robot seemed slightly confused. “WELCOME TO POLYMUS,” it boomed again, “MAY I TAKE YOUR COATS?”
“No, it’s fine,” said Sam hurriedly.
“I’m not actually wearing a coat-” said Ashley quietly, but the robot interrupted,
“PLEASE FOLLOW ME.”
Abruptly, it turned and started trundling away again down the aisle between the desks towards the door at the far end. When Sam and Ashley didn’t make any move to follow it, it stopped, rotated around its mid-section and repeated, “PLEASE FOLLOW ME.”
“I think it wants us to follow it,” whispered Ashley.
"Your powers of perception astound me."
"Should we, though?"
“I don’t know,” said Sam uncertainly, “Suddenly this lift is far more appealing.”
“PLEASE FOLLOW ME,” boomed the robot, and this time it sounded more like an order than a request. Knowing deep down that they had little choice about it, Sam and Ashley subconsciously took a deep breath and stepped out of the lift into the room.
When they were only a few steps away, the lift doors slid shut behind them. They both glanced back at it, stomachs sinking slightly, but kept following the robot. Their footsteps echoed on the metal floor. Sam noticed several cameras in the corners, all angled on the lift doors. As they crossed the floor though, they turned and followed their progress. They both felt very uncomfortable under their electronic gaze, and walked slightly quicker.
Reaching the door, the robot pivoted sharply and continued down the left corridor. Ashley and Sam followed, glancing back down the right corridor. Sam felt relieved to see something that, for once, seemed normal – with its pale walls, cheap carpet, strip lighting and closed doors, it just looked like an ordinary office building back in their universe. Ashley, however, felt slightly disappointed. She had been hoping for more along the lines of the robot. If they were in another universe, she reasoned, it may as well be different from their own.
They followed the robot down that corridor, and down another one, and another one, and another one, until Sam had lost count of how many turns they had made and Ashley was regretting not wearing socks that day as her feet started to get sore. All of the strangely deserted corridors looked the same, as did the empty offices they caught glimpses of through open doors, and they had wondered more than once whether the robot was malfunctioning and leading them in circles.
For a long time, they didn’t see anyone, but as they passed a water cooler for what Ashley thought was the eighteenth time, a boy came round the corner ahead of them. At first he didn’t notice them, engrossed in reading the file he was carrying, but then he seemed to sense someone there and looked up. He stopped quickly, nearly stumbling, his eyes widening - he looked just as surprised to see them as they were to see him.
“OFFICIAL POLYMUS BUSINESS,” boomed the robot. Sam and Ashley glanced at it in surprise - compared to these harsh authoritarian tones, the one it used to greet them seemed almost pleasant. “STAND ASIDE. CONTINUE TO GO ABOUT YOUR GIVEN TASK.”
The boy hurriedly stepped out of the robot’s path as it sped past, but looked at Sam and Ashley in amazement. Sam and Ashley couldn’t help but stare at him as well, subconsciously looking for any differences between him and them. He was quite tanned, his clothes were a strange white shiny fabric that he didn’t recognize with a silver ‘P’ stamped on the front, and he had a white band tied around his forehead, but other than that he looked just like them. Ashley looked at him as they passed, and their eyes met; she quickly looked back down at the ground. Sam continued to watch him as they walked past, and looked back over his shoulder after he had passed them, feeling deep relief that there were at least some people like them in this place. The boy stayed still, watching them go, and was still watching when they rounded the next corner and vanished from view.
They were both so surprised by the boy’s sudden appearance that it took a moment to realize that the robot had stopped, turned round and was indicating an open door to them. They glanced in, and saw, with another slight pang of disappointment for Ashley, it looked like just an ordinary waiting room that one might sit in while waiting to see their GP or the headmaster.
“PLEASE TAKE A SEAT,” said the robot, in its usual ‘pleasant’ tones, nowhere near the harsh derogatory tones it had used with the boy, “POLYMUS WILL BE WITH YOU SHORTLY.”
“Who’s Polymus?” asked Ashley.
“PLEASE TAKE A SEAT,” repeated the robot, “WOULD YOU LIKE A DRINK?”
“No, thanks,” said Sam. He and Ashley went into the room. The door closed behind them with a sharp snap, making them jump.
They looked around. It was a plain room, with plastic chairs dotted around it, with the same carpet, walls and lighting as there was in the corridor. There was no window. Sam realized that he hadn’t seen a window since they had arrived, and had no idea what the world outside looked like. It could look like anything.
“Weird,” observed Ashley, “Is the design of waiting rooms universal?”
“Not universal,” corrected Sam, “Multi-universal.”
Ashley grinned. “Accepted it, then?”
“Well… it was that guy we saw… his eyes-”
“I know,” said Ashley, “There was something about them.”
Sam nodded. “I could just tell when I saw them that… he was different from us. That we were somewhere different.”
Ashley shrugged. “Welcome to reality. If we can call it that…” With a sigh, she collapsed into one of the chairs. Sam followed suit. For a while, neither of them spoke.
“I wonder what they want with us, though?” said Ashley eventually.
“No idea,” said Sam, “Something horrible, no doubt…”
“That’s not very optimistic.”
Sam shrugged again. “If you always assume the worst, then you’re nearly always pleasantly surprised.”
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 25, 2005 21:56:26 GMT -5
Lol. He's got a point...
thankie for updating!
*dancy dancy* *throws out heart-shaped warm fuzzies*
*throws out cookies*
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 26, 2005 5:16:41 GMT -5
YAAAAAY! *dances in the rain of heart-shaped warm fuzzies* *snarfles cookies*
You can have a bit more before I go.
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Post by Hobbit-eyes on Aug 26, 2005 5:18:16 GMT -5
Suddenly the door opened. Ashley and Sam looked up. Two scientists had come in. They were not wearing white coats, but they had a certain kind of inquisitive presence. They were wearing the same white clothes as the boy they had seen in the corridor, and had the same white band around their heads. Their skin however, in contrary to the boy’s tanned skin, was very pale. They were identical; both of them had the same haircut, the same way of standing and the same expression on their face; one of slightly alarming eagerness, as though the moment they had been waiting for had finally come.
“Hello,” said one of them, in a slightly odd way, as though he wasn’t accustomed to saying it, smile fixed, and then continued in a rush, “We offer you our most fervent greetings, male and female from Universe #23392742. I’m sure we have worked very hard to bring you here for this moment.”
“We are very happy to meet you,” added the other man, in exactly the same voice. If Ashley didn’t have her eyes open, she wouldn’t have been able to tell it was a different person speaking. “On behalf of Polymus Industries, welcome to our universe. May we offer you a drink?”
Ashley and Sam were slightly stunned. “No, we’re fine, thanks,” said Ashley finally, fixing a polite smile on her face, which she often used for meeting relatives when she had no idea who they were, “But, uh… what are we doing here?”
“You are part of an experiment,” said the first scientist.
“An experiment?” said Sam in disbelief. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Ashley frowning slightly.
“Oh yes. Quite an extensive one,” beamed the second scientist, “We are collecting specimens from many different universes, and seeing how they differ from us. We plan to collect many more creatures to examine. Don’t worry, you will be perfectly comfortable during your stay.”
“Oh, that’s good to know,” said Sam, “Just like how lab rats get nice cages, right?”
The scientists’ smiles didn’t even flicker. “We will take you to your rooms and give you some information on this universe and the manner of your tests. You don't have to do anything you don't want to. A medical examiner will visit you later, to check you’re not carrying any diseases which are harmful to us. Tomorrow morning, we’ll start testing you in mental ability, physical aptitude and things like that. Do you have any questions?”
“Can we go home?” asked Sam immediately.
“We can’t stop you,” admitted the first scientist, “But we would prefer it if you stayed. We will take good care of you – you will live at a level of luxury which I am almost certain you do not have back in your universe. In return, you help us further our quest for knowledge about other life in existence. And then we will send you back to your own universe… with a small financial reward, of course.”
“How much?” asked Ashley slightly suspiciously, and Sam was sure she was thinking the same as him. This deal sounded too good to be true, and it probably was. He was wondering just what these tests would entail.
“Well, we are unsure of your currency and monetary value. Our research will tell us how much to pay you,” said the second scientist.
“How much would earn in a week in your place of work?” asked the first scientist.
“Five million pounds,” said Ashley without a moment’s hesitation. Sam was slightly surprised at how calmly she said this, without batting an eyelid.
“That sounds like a fair exchange,” said the second scientist thoughtfully, “We will return you to your world in one week, and in exchange, we will reimburse you for the money lost. Is that five million each?”
Sam was still trying to stop his face from reflecting his inner astonishment when Ashley said in a controlled voice, “Actually, I only earn five million pounds. I have a very menial job. But Sam here is a skilled labourer – he earns more along the lines of ten, no, twenty million pounds a week.”
“That will all be arranged,” said the first scientist, smiling reassuringly. Ashley made a funny noise in the depths of her throat, and her eyes seemed to be wider than usual, and her face unusually strained. Sam was also scarcely believing their luck – what he could do with that money when they got back…
‘But we have to get back...’ he suddenly thought, and the smile vanished. The uneasy feeling hadn’t faded yet – if anything, it had increased.
“I think our parents might notice we’re gone,” he said, “I don’t know how things work here, but in our universe the country generally goes crazy if two kids vanish into thin air.”
“That is not a problem either,” assured the first scientist, “You forget, Bifrost can take you anywhere, at any time. We can drop you off just moments after you left.”
“Still with the twenty-five million pounds?” asked Ashley, almost in a whisper.
“Of course. It’s only fair.”
Ashley almost started hyperventilating.
“All settled?” smiled one of the scientists. They knew that they’d convinced Ashley at least, and seemed certain that Sam wouldn’t leave her. “Very well. I’ll call the robot to take you to your room. If you have any questions, just press this button-” He handed Ashley something that looked like the thing that weathermen used to change the picture. “- and someone will come and see you.”
Even though the scientist had not seemed to have called it yet, the robot appeared outside the door. “Goodbye,” said both the scientists in unison, and stepped to either side to let Ashley and Sam past, still smiling, such perfect smiles that they were slightly creepy. Ashley and Sam tried to smile back, failed, and followed the robot back down the corridor.
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Post by reasonably_crazy on Aug 29, 2005 0:21:09 GMT -5
Oooh....
interesting-ness! Ashley's awesome. "Five million pounds." That rocks.
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