//------------------------------// // 5 ◈ It may be treacherous, // Story: Pony-Me™: Rebooted // by TheMajorTechie //------------------------------// Lisa idly scanned through the various bags of chips lining the shelves. She didn’t quite recognize any of these brands, but… whatever. She grabbed a bag of ranch chips and stood up. Footsteps and the rustle of cellophane approached her. “Feeling better, sis?” Timothy struggled to keep everything in his arms. A bag of jerky fell to the floor beside him. “Hold on a moment, I gotta find myself a basket or something.” He wandered away again, leaving the jerky on the floor. She picked it up and set it on one of the shelves before following after him. “I probably shouldn’t be getting so much, should I?” Timothy muttered under his breath. A chuckle escaped him. “Look at me. I’m like a kid in a candy store!” He spun around and stacked several more bags of chips on top of the one Lisa was already holding. “There we go, now you have some too.” Lisa blinked, her eyes flitting between the snacks and her brother. “Uhm… thanks?” She shook her head. “So, what are we gonna do now? We’ve both decided to stay here, outside of the simulations. Are we just gonna…” No words came up in her mind. “Yeah, we’re just gonna.” Timothy shrugged the best he could. “You wanted to learn about your life before you were plugged in, so that’s one place you could start at. Don’t really have much in mind right now about what I wanna do yet, but that’s my problem to deal with. Either way, we made a decision, and now we just have to roll with it. Y’know?” “I… guess so.” “Just take it easy for now. One thing at a time.” He continued his beeline to the checkout counter, where Argall was waiting. Come to think of it, Samantha never came into the shop, did she? Lisa glanced about, spotting her friend just outside with her phone to her ear. She was shouting. Maybe there was a problem with tracking down… what was the name that came up before? Rosanne? If Rosanne or whoever it was with her account was in hiding, it’d make sense for some problems to bubble up here and there. Lisa joined her brother at the counter, setting the bags beside the rest of the snacks. “Has everything been alright today?” the cashier droned as he scanned in the items. “Would you like a car wash with your purchase today?” “No, we’re good.” Argall fished for his wallet as he eyed the pile of food. “You guys sure you want to get this much?” Timothy nodded enthusiastically. “Oh! Hold on a sec. Gonna go grab a carro—er…hot dog too.” Lisa glanced out the window, then back to Argall. “Sure.” ~~~ “Sam?” Lisa poked her head out the door. “Argall’s asking if you want anything.” Samantha kept her phone to her ear, giving slight nods and mm-hms every now and then. She caught a glimpse of her friend before shooing her away. Lisa shrunk back a little, letting the door begin to close. “I’ll… check in la—” “What? No, I already told you I’m against it! Do you know how much damage that would cause? Tell Roger that we will not be sold so long as I’m here.” She froze.  Sold? Samantha stuffed her phone into a pocket with a huff. A loud sigh rose from her as she threw her head back and let out a loud groan. “The board of directors wants to sell the business. Something about having more resources to better prevent future breaches.” “Well…” Lisa stepped out the door. “That doesn’t sound too ba—” “The selling part by itself I’m honestly fine with. It’s who we’re selling to that’s the problem. Can you tell me if you remember any specific brands from your time in the simulations?” “…No.” “Exactly. And that’s the problem with this sale. The folks who want to buy us up make a whole lotta money from advertising. Do you know how much of a gold mine stuff like virtual reality would be for them?” Slowly, Lisa began to nod. “Exactly!” Samantha threw her arms up. “The whole world exists inside a pile of rocks that people tricked into doing math! Every single thing anyone does can be tracked for the purpose of maximizing profit!” “Can’t… er—can’t you maybe make some kind of deal for them to agree not to do that, then?” “Nope! You saw me on the phone earlier. That was exactly what I was trying to do. Did it work? No! Will it matter that I said no? Also no! I’m just the twenty-something that ohhhhhhdidalittlesomethingcalled making the whole thing possible in the first place.” “Sam—” Samantha sucked in a breath. “It’s just… frustrating, that’s all it is.” She forced a smile, though it steadily grew more genuine with every word she spoke. “That’s enough of my worries for now. Sorry to dump all that on you like that. Was there something you were going to tell me earlier?” “Argall asked if you wanted nachos.” “Sure. You want me to head inside as well? I saw your brother with that pile of stuff.” Lisa stood silent for a moment, looking between Samantha and the convenience store they stood in front of.  A stray breeze blew past the two. “Yeah.” Lisa nodded before opening the door. She slapped herself mentally as she stepped back inside. Why did she have to make that so awkward?  “Nachos?” Samantha approached Argall. “That what you want?” Argall hummed. Samantha shrugged. “I mean, if they have them here then I’m all for it. Heyyy—” She slapped her hand on the counter, catching the cashier’s attention. “You guys have a microwave here or something?” “It’s over by the breakfast burritos, ma’am.” The cashier gestured. “Coin-operated, though. Do you need change?” “Eyup!” Samantha fished out her wallet. “Guessing the thing takes quarters?” “Yes. Fifty cents per operation.” “I’ll get nachos then.” She slid a five-dollar bill across the counter. “Keep the change. I probably shouldn’t have slapped the counter like that earlier.” “Oh, no miss, I—” “I’m serious. You look tired. It’s the least I can do.” The cashier shot a glance to the side before taking the bill. He set two quarters on the counter in exchange. “Thanks!” Samantha chirped as she took the coins. Lisa watched her wander off toward the breakfast counter... thing. “Anything you want for yourself?” Argall nodded his head toward Lisa.  “Uh—” Lisa’s attention was torn away from Samantha and fully onto the old man. She spotted her brother squirting ketchup onto his hot dog in the corner of her vision. “I’ll have a hot dog as well.”