<meta name="LineWrap" content="true"><TITLE>SR_Bk1 0116</TITLE><A HREF="SR_Bk1-0117.txt">Next (Page 117)</A><BR> I got a glimpse of my home town for the briefest of instants when I Created--and I got that impression."<P><P>"So," Granticaine said, also sighing, "how do we know that Aconck will ever come back--recover from this disaster?"<P><P>"We don't," Daptin said. "But I have a feeling someone out there has the capacity to do it. Remember--Bavler Bestroystraw was careful to address the issue of stability in his equations. And he does refer to recoverable crashes in his works."<P><P>Granticaine nodded.<P><P>"Well, I just hope that whoever that someone is who can reboot Aconck, they're hard at work making it happen," Grant said.<P><P>Daptin noticed that Demolish All was looking very unhappy.<P><P>"What's the matter, Demolish All?" Daptin asked.<P><P>She smiled in a tense way.<P><P>"Well, Daptin Gone. I don't want to annoy you, but I'm just..."<P><P>"You want to do some destruction," Daptin said.<P><P>"Yes, and it's just... your Land is so pristine and so new... all this anti-damage is draining me."<P><P>"Well, my dear Demolish, how 'bout I create a sprawling cityscape for you to blast to your heart's content?" Daptin said.<P><P>Demolish All perked up and smiled brightly.<P><P>"Do you really mean it? Oh, I would so love it!"<P><P>"You got it," Daptin said.<P><P>--------------------------<P>CHAPTER 28<P>--------------------------<P><P>Dizappacha was 21 and a petite young woman. She wore a blue shirt, a multicolored tie, and a man's sport jacket, black. Below, she had a schoolgirl-style skirt going down to mid-calf, a black-and-gray checkerboard design. Her hair was a soft blue-green, dark, and it hung, full of body, halfway down her back. On her feet here a pair of black basketball sneakers.<P><P>She was walking down Rillekon's Road. Alone. No money. No stuff.<P><P>Until recently, she had been a member of Streamlike Lodge--an exciting young startup company which took over a building and converted it into a plethora of "Atmosphere Suites"--rooms stuffed to the gills with sound, lighting, scenting, visuals, theming construction, and the like--all meant to create certain atmospheres.<P><P>As well, there were "cast members", in costume and in character all the time while in the rooms. The net result of this was quite effective. People who entered the suites were quickly drawn into the created situation. Only problem was, the whole venture had to make money, and this was where they ran into a little trouble.<P><P>Renting the suites was rather expensive, but with a group of people chipping in, it might not be so bad. Streamlike Lodge pitched the Atmosphere Suite service in a variety of ways--as a place to take a date, hang out with your friends, have company meetings or entertain clients, and the like.<P><P>Each suite had different sorts of diversions. Some, like the "Perfect Family Home", had a den complete with TV and stereo stocked with vintage content, plus "Mom" to bring you snacks, and brothers and sisters to play boardgames with.<P><P>Another, called "Opium", offered a smoky (non-narcotic) exotic dance and gambling environment--a real popular one to bring a business client. Dizappacha danced in this one, till she caught the drift that there was some real prostitution going on. Then she high-tailed it outta there.<P><P>"Shelter" recreated a cozy little cabin in the woods with a variety of natural disaster going on outside, like hurricanes and blizzards. Complete with roaring fire, this was a popular one for dates.<P><P>But the cost of operating Streamlike Lodge was sky high, and the partners were barely keeping their heads above water. Still, it was a unique concept, and they were getting a lot of press, so the founders all hung on, though they were losing their shirts.<P><P>Dizappacha had a small equity stake--her boyfriend, Larry Jonx, had been one of the founders--but they broke up. It was mostly amiable. He started cheating and she didn't care all that much.<BR><A HREF="SR_Bk1-0117.txt">Next (Page 117)</A>