Jeanette, Chapter 17

Lab of Confusion

Sometimes I just don’t understand what happens around here.  We’re theoretically a scientific research centre, but we have a spaceship under construction (apparently only by me, as it turns out), and are frequently contacted by aliens.  I’ve been tasked with building a mind-controlling ray gun, and drinks that will make you feel all sorts of weird things.

But every once in a while, strangers in street clothes are walking around like they belong here.  And then, when the strangers poking around are people (or not) that you actually know, it becomes a really weird day.

11-14-16_10-15-22-am Meagan has been gone for some time now, and I thought she’d been let go.  Today she walked in without lab coat or proper ID, and began playing with the equipment.  I guess she was transferred to another lab, but still I had no clue what she was doing here.

11-14-16_10-18-12-am Just don’t freakin’ break anything, Meagan.

11-14-16_10-20-17-am Another surprise visitor was Georgia, messing with the analytical gear.  She certainly knew what she was doing, and management didn’t seem concerned with her actions.

“Hey!  What’s up, Georgia?”

11-14-16_10-20-24-am“Oh!  It’s you!  What are you… Hi Jeanette!”

11-14-16_10-22-09-am-2I missed her. I hadn’t seen her since … hey!  Wait!  Georgia is an alien in disguise!  Does this mean we’re working closely with the aliens now? Does anyone else know she’s not human?

11-14-16_10-22-53-am Oh jeez!  What about Meagan!?  Does that explain her actions and disappearance all this time?  She’s actually an … of course she is, why didn’t I see that before.  I bet I can get answers from her somehow.

11-14-16_10-24-05-am Just a quick blast from my trusty Steve…

11-14-16_10-24-18-am Oh crap, wrong setting.  Did Meagan always have a full arm tattoo?  How had I not noticed that previously?

11-14-16_10-25-42-amShe wasn’t impressed with my meddling, and began getting angry. She threatened to have me fired, I threatened to expose her secret, she claimed she didn’t have one, I hit her again with the simray….

11-14-16_10-25-45-am Things may have got out out of control.

11-14-16_10-27-45-am But at least she wasn’t yelling.

11-14-16_10-28-23-am Oh fine, okay…. I’ll get her out of there.  The boss wasn’t impressed either.

11-14-16_10-28-35-amJust a little more, maybe one good one right… oh!  Right; I should do this with eyes open.  Her time on ice had cooled her temper some, and I did still have some work to do, so I left her to warm up.  Maybe now she’ll leave, or at least behave herself.

11-14-16_10-33-41-am Goddamnit Meagan!

11-14-16_10-35-02-amI thought the manager was going to chew her out, but instead he complimented her skin tone, and praised her work ethic.  I thought I was going to barf.

At the end of the day, she had broken two pieces of equipment and the computer, then left without a word. Back to her planet, or mothership, or whichever hole she hides in.  Just so long as she’s gone.  I need to get out.

11-14-16_11-09-29-am I went home to change, and took a cab down to the local disco.  Some dancing and flirting was exactly what I needed.  Or, wanted, anyway.

11-14-16_11-10-47-am But the place was fairly dead. A couple of the usual group, but not the crowd I was expecting.  Nobody new.

11-14-16_11-11-43-am I was about an hour before anyone else showed up, but even then it wasn’t the throng I’d expected, and none of my friends were anywhere to be seen.  But that’s right about when Caitlyn called.

Everyone was down at the ruins for a Friday night bash, and she told me I totally needed to be there.  I totally agreed, and took off.

11-14-16_11-13-36-amSome of the group at the disco heard as well, and by the time I arrived and met Caitlyn, the place was filling up.

11-14-16_11-14-10-am However, it was already getting late, and I hadn’t eaten anything.  I knew just what would help me out here, and downed a dose of something we’d been working on.  It would keep me going for the rest of the night.

11-14-16_11-17-53-am And go we did!  The DJ was pumping out great dance tunes, everyone was dancing up a storm.

11-14-16_11-26-19-am A couple of drinks, some more dancing, loud shouty conversations with cool people; it was a great night out.

11-14-16_11-24-00-amHours later, exhausted, I went home.  The weekend had arrived already, and I wanted some sleep before all that nothing I had to do tomorrow.

11-14-16_11-31-19-am

chapter 18 …

Jeanette, Chapter 4

She Blinded Me With Science

11-01-16_3-03-41-pmAnother beautiful morning in Windenburg, and my bed has the greatest view.

11-01-16_3-05-00-pmI took some time to wander my yard, picking various wild flowers and taking some microscopic samples for analysis later.

Returning to work, I spent an uneventful day of chemical experimentation, plant maintenance, rock collecting, and messing about with the Inventor robot. Personally, I think he’s got a thing for me; nobody else seems to spend any time talking to him.  I figured out how to splice various plants together to create new species, and made a new “Red Hot” serum, that looks like it’s meant to make people angry. Maybe because it tastes like concentrated basil and rat urine.

11-01-16_3-11-23-pmWith Summer’s assistance, I made another sample of SynthFood.  And this one….

11-01-16_3-11-29-pm… worked! It looks like I can create this as viable on a regular basis. This could seriously solve my hunger problems. Heck, it could solve the world’s hunger problems. If I hadn’t signed that stupid proprietary information agreement, I’d market it and make a fortune.  Or … you know … solve the world’s hunger problem.  Whatever.

The rest of the day passed without incident. I got to know the team a little better, and felt pretty good at the end of the shift.  On the way home, I collected a bunch more rocks and various trophies, then sold the lot for a small bit of cash.  That, along with the day’s pay, allowed me to buy …

11-01-16_3-29-49-pm…plumbing!  I have no roof over my head, nor walls to hold up said roof, but I have a shower of my very own, a sink, and – the best thing ever – a toilet.  My own toilet.

11-01-16_3-30-18-pmIt’s a beautiful thing.

As I was marveling over my newly gained assets, I got a phone call from Georgia, the alien bartender I’d met last night at the Chowder House. She invited me back to the restaurant for dinner, which sounded great.  I left, hoping that the service will be a little faster this time.  I actually want to eat.

11-01-16_3-35-16-pmWe had a great time!  The food was good, and came to the table without much delay. We had a few drinks, and some great conversation.

11-01-16_3-35-43-pmI made a great friend this evening. Yeah, she’s an alien, but I can’t hold that against her, can I?  Isn’t my job as a scientist to discover new things, investigate every opportunity with an open mind?  We joked and laughed well into the night.

11-01-16_3-49-45-pm

I went home, exhausted but happy.  I sent Georgia a text message thanking her for a fun evening, and looking forward to more.  I changed back into my jammies, and had just crawled into bed, when my lights came back on.

11-01-16_3-51-37-pmWait.  I don’t own any lights yet.

11-01-16_3-51-26-pmShit.

11-01-16_3-51-56-pmShit!  What was that I said about open-minded new opportunities?

11-01-16_3-52-06-pmWAIT.

11-01-16_3-52-07-pmSHIT.

chapter 5 …

Jeanette, Chapter 3

This Bed

001The nap didn’t last very long.  I was up at 3am with the sudden realisation that I had enough money to have that ancestral suit of armour brought over, with enough left over for …

11-01-16_2-21-04-pmA bed!  A glorious, wonderful (slightly small, but private) bed.  With no tvs on or dudes trying to talk to me.

11-01-16_2-21-27-pmI have some time to get some real sleep before work.  Luckily it never seems to rain here.

11-01-16_2-22-09-pmA beautiful morning, which I nearly slept through completely.  I got up just in time to head back to the lab.

11-01-16_2-22-50-pmUgh.  It’s going to be a rough day.  I didn’t get a lot of sleep, nor did I have time to grab a bite on the way to work.  I’m grateful that I don’t have to sleep at the spa any longer, but I’m going to need some time to adjust, I think. In the meantime, I’m starving.

11-01-16_2-23-14-pm

It was then that I remembered I’d made that meal-replacement serum yesterday.  Time to see if it works.

11-01-16_2-23-23-pmCrap.  That’s going to require some more experimenting.

11-01-16_2-24-05-pmI made another one, and while I had a further breakthrough while doing so, failed to make a viable serum. I’ll just grab a sandwich and coffee again.

11-01-16_2-26-59-pm

Had a great chat with Meagan, another scientist here at FutureSim Labs, and started to feel like I could get through the day. I spent some time with the rather chatty Invention Constructor, and together we made a SimRay, which I named “Steve”.  I was a good day on the job, getting to know the team of scientists better, working in the chemistry lab and analyzing various plants and minerals.

11-01-16_2-29-08-pmCaitlyn told a few jokes near the end of the shift, but Meagan wasn’t impressed.

11-01-16_2-36-23-pmI spent the last hour of my shift collecting rocks.  It seemed like an important thing to do.  But I’m starving again.

11-01-16_2-39-10-pmAnother shift ended, and I return home.  I want to head into town again to visit the library, but I’m really going to have to eat something first.

11-01-16_2-39-15-pmI *did* make another sample of that meal-replacement drink, this time with basil and daisies.  Maybe this one will work better than the last.

11-01-16_2-39-16-pmDammit.

11-01-16_2-39-19-pm

Instead, I headed down to The Chowder House, a little restaurant over in Willow Creek.  Unfortunately, it was quite busy, and although I’d ordered food, after two hours it hadn’t arrived.  I cancelled the order and grabbed some fish and chips at their bar.  There I met their bartender Georgia Knupp, who came to sit with me for a while.

11-01-16_2-50-09-pmThat’s when she hit me with some weird mind voodoo, and let me know that she’s actually an alien.  An alien!  Her disguise was amazing. We talked for almost two hours after that, and I think we’re going to be pretty good friends.

After finishing my meal and using the restaurant’s washroom, I said goodnight to Georgia and took a stroll over to the library again, to do some research.  I’m going to have to get my own computer eventually, but right now I’d settle for my own toilet.  I returned to my near-vacant lot for the evening, and fell into bed.

chapter 4 …