Christmas Adventure: Back to "Vaughan Mills Mall." PT II

Posted on Thu Dec 16th, 2021 @ 1:34am by Lieutenant Commander Brandon Pratt

1,238 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Christmas Vacation
Location: Holodeck One
Timeline: Christmas Vacation Concurrent

[ON]

Christmas Adventure: Back to "Vaughan Mills Mall." PT II
06:35 PM EST
Holodeck

Brandon was exhausted. He had been to the food court twice for three different drinks—a coffee beverage from Starbucks, Dunken Donuts, Subway, and Mrs. Fields. Ok. Well, not all drinks. He was hungry, as he was a big guy.

On his third time leaving Mrs. Fields, Pratt had his mouth half full of coffee and a nice baked cookie from the bakery chain of the mall. He was wearing a pair of long bootcut jeans, his red plaid buttoned shirt, and a Carhart jacket. Complete with Bed Bath & Beyond bags, The Body Shoppe, Best Buy, Peoples, Sears, JC Penny, and The Bay.

"Oh my God!" His attention was caught by a square canvas sign showing "… gorgeous steel ratchet and sockets! Wrenches and wrench sets…." Brandon's cup of coffee and cookie in his mouth tasted incredible, "No wonder these transfats were banned. OMG, I love you!?!"… Brandon mumbled as he huddled across the square on the second floor of the mall. As he passed, he felt it awkward to navigate the crowds of the people increasingly. The mall had so many shoppers going every which way in a beeline. "God damn chaos, that's what it is!" Brandon had grumbled as he paused, almost having run into a young six-year-old child, his coffee teetering, with his shopping bags at his side.

As he excused himself, he then re-made his way back out to his 2008 Toyota Sequoia SUV and loaded up his groceries. The endpoint of the game where the exclusive "Christmas: Back to Vaughan Mills" Mall, the Interactive Holodeck Experience.

Re-securing the vehicle, the lights had contacted back to him, letting him know that their security field had been activated. Pratt had held the key fob remote to his vehicle up to his mouth as he mumbled into it. "Security field acknowledged."

As he said that, he turned to see a couple slowing down, watching Pratt and his rantings. He looked distracted and out of place for some perceptive observers, as the AI analytics of the program allowed for some strategic and social interaction for participants with core interactionist holodeck avatars.

"Are you alright, Sir?" One of the females turned up from her phone as he had asked.

"Of course. I am good. I've got gifts for my friends now, and family completed for a holiday. How about you? How is your shopping At least I'll have It wraped by Vulcan New Year!" Brandon agreed to play along with the characters of the Holodeck Holiday Simulation. In the mall's parking lot, he had just dumped off a sizeable amount of large bags, boxers, and the like. He found the gift ideas to be enjoyable, if not pleasurable.

Back in the mall, Pratt beelined it for the Sears department store. The sign with the large entrance is connected to the mall in the concourse. There it was, the "Sears Craftsman Tools." Pratt started as he whistled.

"I'll need to pick some up for myself as well as Victoria. She'd kill to get her hands on a new set of quality metal." Brandon then remembered Jane for the USS Myogi hangar. She would appreciate a replicated tooling set that still functioned on many metals and resource tooling for colonies.

"Can I help you, Sir?" One of the patron's customer associates met Brandon at the entrance of Sears. "How can Sears help you today?" The lady wearing the 1988 custom plaid pantsuit and tweed wear, with lots of red blush on her cheeks, had been doused with had smelled like an explosive amount of perfume on her.

"Uh.." Pratt had furrowed his brow and coughed as she radiated chemical toxicity. "I... I will ask. Thank you." He had to rush around the lady and in… Coughing as he did, he paused, bending to catch his breath further in the store. There was a smattering of people here and there. Full of all departments of stuff that anyone could need or want, even a travel agency… "a place to fix your timepieces! Get out of TOWN!" Pratt had gawked. His escalator slowly took him upward, where the arrows had led him, without asking for directions.

"Yes, Sir. You have made it. That's us. Master Craft. We are North America's Number One Rated Tool running in the United States and Canada for over 7 Years Running. Consumer Reports Annual." Touted the gruff and burly businessman in his corner of the organization. His corner had all the fantastic small combustion engine-based outdoor tools and supplies for mechanics.

"I have come for the Mechanics. The Craftsman supplies sets. I want a few of them. One I want gift wrapped. Have the tag say "you sexy bitch!" and "Whose, your new Boyfriend?"

"I… Well. We don't offer gift wrap at this part of the department. But I can get the order sent down to the gifting clerks, and they can have that done for you… And your bitch." The Tools Department Sales Associate had grinned and raised a brow. "Is that what you call her? The Bitch?"

"That is none of your concern, Salesman. You have your sale. Back Off!" Brandon nearly more than bark. His sugar was dropping from too many coffees in the food court and not enough protein.

"Annnnnnnnnnnnnddd… Your card is approved! Excellent." The Craftsman salesman had turned to his telephone at his sales counter of his department and picked it up.

Taking his card back, Pratt had slid it back into his brown leather wallet.

"Tell them. I would like it wrapped." Brandon then mouthes the words as the Salesman is on the phone. The Salesman at the tools counter does his best to try and ignore the customer's ongoing insistence on gift wrapping.

"You don't understand if I don't get this gift wrapped. I have no boxers in my Quarters on the Myogi. It's like game over. I even had to buy some supplies from Hallmark. I am not a Hallmark Shopper! Do you understand me.. Dirk!"

"Yeah, hold on with that! I will be right with you, Sir." The Salesman just then tries to bide his time and ignore Pratt. Perhaps his obnoxiousness and pretension of the actual people around him didn't exist… Gave off a bad vibe to the customer service of the mall.

"I will take this lovely plastic bag you have given me." Brand looked at the large white plastic box-sized bags in which the merchandise was now placed. "And I will use this as wrapping! It will be the coolest thing the Myogi has ever seen." Pratt scoffed as he reached, grabbing his bags once his Federation Credits payment was approved.
"If you want an extended warra-"the Sears Craftsman Sales Associate had chased Pratt out of his departmental boundary.

"Sir! Stay within your department!!! How do you operate a ship, I mean a department store so melancholy?"

"It's just the standard 23.99 two years extended tool wa-"

"I SAID good DAY, SIR!" Brandon had had enough. He needed a drink after in the 10 Forward Lounge and maybe go and wrap some gifts in the bags provided.

"That sounds marvelous. A drink." Brandon began to make his way through the Vaughan Mills mall maze back to the parking lot where Pratt's SUV was waiting. To drive to his home in the game, where the endpoint would be.


[END]

Lieutenant Brandon Pratt
Chief of Engineering
USS Myogi

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