Challenge #03770-J117: Big Chaos

in #fiction2 years ago

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Small Human Child: "For some reason, I always do a chaos if I'm not next to Rennie at bed time."
Small Child's Parent: "It's true. You don't want to see it. I didn't want to see it last night. Can you play quietly until I'm ready to go to bed?"
SHC: "Maybe." -- Escla

Companion Ghayth considered the very small Human currently playing with their KidReader(tm)[1]. They were peacefully guiding a digital effigy on a randomly-generated world. Chopping trees and digging up things and taking scans of the flora and fauna.

They didn't seem to be that threatening, but these were also Humans. Whatever a 'chaos' was, Ghayth didn't want to witness it. "How bad of a destruction radius are we talking about?"

"I was cleaning glitter and sticky stuff out of the vent filters for two months," said Human Url, petting her kid's shoulder. "That's a chaos I never want to repeat."

"Yes," crowed the kid in a whisper. "I scanned the Blikkledop."

"Good work, kiddo. How's your critterpedia?"

"Still lookin' for th' Coelacanth. But they're hard."

"Animal Crossing, Strange New Worlds," explained Url. "It's good for relaxing. Keeping calm." The flare of Url's eyes told an entire story regarding how important calm was at the end of the day.

Companion Ghayth thought she knew everything about Humans and their strange ways. Starting with babies' innate desire to grab and taste everything, through toddlers' means of growing sticky by indeterminate means... This "doing a chaos" was new territory for Ghayth.

Meanwhile, the tiny menace of Human Xayn was peacefully using their parent as a beanbag whilst fiddling with the interfaces.

"I don't recall there being an incident with 'a chaos' in our mutual careers..."

"Oh no, you were on your mating season when all that happened. Lucky you," Url finished up her current report and then checked her schedule for the next work cycle. "This is all why I'm applying for in-habitat work in the afternoons. So I can be there for Little Mischief's naps. The in-ship educators are not prepared."

Ghayth tried to figure something out. "We... never had glitter on board. Did we?"

"Nope," said Url.

"So how in the name of the Powers did they get glitter in the vents."

Again, Human Url's eyes flared as she whispered, "That's why we don't want them to do another chaos."

[1] Like a Datareader, but specifically for children. They have age-limited data access and parentally controlled bedtime options.

[Photo by Jack Van Hel on Unsplash]

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