Date: Thu, 22 Aug 1996 22:58:26 -0700 From: Aileen Fish Underwood Subject: INT: The Hub: Xaviera's Reserved: Xaviera, proprietess, Xaviera's Bed and Breakfast Rianna, Joele and Quas, her "girls" Not long after the Gardener arrived, the usual second-shift crowd began to wander, or slither,in. Xaviera was kept busy, renting rooms. A tripod of unknown race bumbled drunkenly toward her at the Main Desk. "Room," he demanded in Basic. "By the hour or by the night?" "Night." She glanced up, but didn't stare, trying to decide which girl would be best for him. "You want a room with a girl, or a room with a view?" "View." Even better, she thought. Takes care of two customers with one girl. She slid the IDScan across the counter and waited while his arm formed a hand from the grey fleshy end. At the answering _beep_ from the scanner, she came around the desk. "Follow me." The Interior Transport closed around the pair. Xaviera pushed a code on the front panel, and the Transport opened without seeming to have moved. She stepped out into the corridor and unlocked the door before them. The tripod followed her. The room was empty, but as Xaviera pushed the various buttons on a floating central panel, furniture appeared. The bed, its gently rocking gelatinous padding heated to 29 degrees Celcius. A stool. She hesitated before hitting the waste facility code, uncertain which method would be required by this creature. Lastly, she opened the viewing panel to the next room. Quas's fuscia skin could be detected somewhere beneath the riotous thrashing of black limbs belonging to the crew of the Delurian Scout vessel which had pulled in earlier. As Xaviera watched, an arm flew across the room, splatting against the viewing panel. It hit the floor, rose on its nine fingers and scuttered back toward the bed, shoving aside two legs. The creature beside Xaviera made a warbling sound. She turned. He stared at the panel. His bald, fleshy head tilted. He bent to his right, tilting more. Then back the other direction. Colors like refracted light washed over his face. His left ear-like protuberance twitched, thickened, and began to straighten. He looked up at Xaviera. "View?" "View," she agreed, smiling and nodding. He glanced again at the panel and scratched at his ear. "View. Trees. Sunsets." Xaviera laughed. "Oh, of course!" Reaching out to the floating pad, she closed the panel, and lowered an ancient vid screen from the ceiling. She had to think for a moment about programming it, but found the controls behind a concealed door in the front of the box. The box hummed to life; a faint glow lit the center of the screen. As the picture cleared, the sound of chirping birds and a babbling brook filled the room. -- @~~@~~@~~@~~@~~@~~@~~ Aileen Fish Underwood writnma@ix.netcom.com aileenu@aol.com @~~@~~@~~@~~@~~@~~@~~ %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%