by Lasa Limpin
Pwamster: Kind of robot. The Pwamster is one of the most popular robots in Malltown. The Pwamster Robot consists of three white orbs with a flat face, and resembles a snowperson.
Pwamster I Can Learn Robot: also known as the Pwamster Learner, or simply Learner, the Pwamster I Can Learn Robot is conditioned to learn from its environment and adapt to its user.
Bimpercar: Comfortable white chairs on two tracks with a third track for passing. Bimpercars travel the entire length of Malltown. Mass transit within Malltown.
Hobbyists: an undeclared Factor
Malltown Community Rover: Also known as a Citizen Rover, or simply a Rover. The standard Rover for Malltown citizens. For example, a Grippy Factor Rover will have specific access capabilities to Malltown’s public camera sensors, as well as access to information regarding supply stocks, etc… All Rovers come equipped with basic capabilities like bumping, accumulating Points and full access to Malltown’s closed network of ad-free internet.
College-Senior Rover: will have access to college material, senior grade.
Senior Rover: is equipped with material useful to the senior. Such as health sensors.
Covop Secreshy, Shyster Model: adaptable camouflage has been around for years. A suit that bends light, hides heat from sensors. But they’re not perfect.
VR suit: Virtual reality sensor suit (rarely a Wumper).
Qwammy slip-on runners: VR runners which allow the wearer to run in place.
RR—real reality or real world
VR—virtual reality
AR—augmented reality
Field door—the back door of a homepod, leading to the fields. The field door has a forcefield.
Haircut vending machine: A vending machine for haircuts.
Clover: a hairstyle vending machine for seniors.
Wall scroll: Internet material, or other projectable material. Said material is projected against the white walls of a homepod, on white tabletops, etc…
Council Meetings: Usually held in VR, these meetings create changes in Malltown through community voting—Small Council Meeting; Great Council Meeting—a whole sector; Greater Council Meeting—a whole side, left or right, a Giant Council Meeting—the whole of Malltown, and a Numbered Council Meeting—consisting of a certain number of sectors (numbers given at time of announcement of meeting and included in title, for example “Numbered Council Meeting, 8, 5”—would be a meeting for sectors 8 and 5. Whoever wishes to attend a council meeting may do so, regardless of type or sector.
Peggy: Long for Peg. Peggy lives in Sector Four. Her Address is: Homepod 1492, Sector 4.
Meg: Short for Meggy. Best friend of Peggy. Meg recently moved to Sector 5.
Becky: Long for Beck. Short for Rebecca. Next-door neighbor of Peggy.
Roxy: Owner of Roxy’s kiosk and a Factor.
Franny 2-9 Robot: Roxy’s robot friend. Franny 2-9 is a Factor, working the grill and waitressing at Roxy’s.
Petunia-Glass: Homepod 3497, Sector 4
Sandy-Grass (Sandrea-Grassly): Homepod 4952, Sector 6
Rocco-Vertuccio: Hardcore horticulturalist/gardening hobbyist. Homepod Unknown, Sector 9
Katy: College senior who would like to go to the city. Katy picked up a task at Roxy’s in order to bump points.
Points: A form of exchange.
A hard core food hobbyist is sometimes called a Kelpy.
Tug it back: replay
Peggy: She’s got reddish brown hair, shoulder length, brown eyes, and a hook nose. She's got crows feet and smile lines, is sort of tanned, and is in her late thirties. Her mouth looks a bit dry and is a bit wide. She's thin, but not emaciated or like she tries to be thin. Her hair is medium thick and not used as a feature, but more utilitarian. Her brown eyes are not beautiful, they are a bit too large, stick out a bit but not in a way many would notice or mention. Her skin looks used, lived in. Her cheekbones aren't high or low. Her mouth is interesting, because it's wide but of average fullness. Has a loose quality, sort of relaxed but not sensual in any way. Workmanlike. Everything about her is utilitarian without being forced. Her hair isn't cut badly, just normally, in style #4. She doesn't think about it, she's had the cut so long. She wouldn't shun a romantic interest and it wouldn't exactly surprise her, but she hasn't gotten one in a long time. She doesn't seek it. She's regular, normal. But has a way of opening her eyes wide as though she sort of acknowledges they're a little large and uses them as a way to speak. Her mouth is nothing she thinks about other than to put food in. She's about five six or seven. Her hands look like a woman of forty or more. Her fingernails are a little long. She wears a ring combo of single diamond engagement ring and wedding ring. They belonged to an ancestor. So to us she looks married, but she isn't. Her hair is definitely more brown than red, only the light hitting it gives it a hint of blond, or orange, something lighter. In other words it tends lighter rather than darker. But it's brown. The hair isn't curled under at the ends, but not purposely not—just does what it does. No make-up but she looks fine anyway. Looks average, like anyone else, maybe with a bit of sharper intelligence, through her eyes and how she moves her thin body type. A sort of careful movement but not mannered. Relaxed, but careful—she's not one who considers herself to be muscle, to have physical skills. But she appears healthy. Sliding into middle age without much notice. Has been who she is for a long time. Wears the beige jumpers without much thought. It's a habit. She's got a lot of habits she doesn't think much about, which frees up her time to think of other things. Her goal is to live a good, simple life and contribute her part without going overboard on the notion. She doesn't have a strong sense of duty, but she has a sense of responsibility—there's a difference. Duty is to a cause, responsibility is to people. Her neighbors. She's a Factor because she feels capable of the job and she wouldn't admit it to herself, but a little restless. Just enough to keep her thinking. She doesn't put her hair behind her ears or touch it much. She doesn't have the large gestures that would require shoving it out of her face much. She's polite and keeps unkind thoughts to herself and tries to talk herself out of them with common sense and kindness but she's also clear eyed as to people's flaws. Only she doesn't enjoy them without a reason—meaning, unless someone has been a jerk and deserves that others be satisfied with their demise—but on the whole, everyone has flaws. She's a very don't-punch-down kind of person. She doesn't feel jealous of much, but she values her job, her position more than she realizes. She likes that people come to her. Maybe she's a little jealous of people who are prettier or younger, but that's been factored into her character, in some of those eye-widenings, and it's not something she deals with on a very conscious level. She had a relationship with this guy that she doesn't talk about much. It was in her late twenties and he moved to a different town and although they intended to keep up they didn't after a while. Other than that she dated in her twenties, made out some in her teens, the usual. But since then she's been pretty quiet, on the dating front. She feels more like that should be a hole in her life than it is? That she should feel like that's a problem? But in Malltown you're surrounded by people so it's not like you'll ever be alone, or without support from the community, or that you'll ever go hungry. She likes the people she encounters as she does her 'soft patrols'—these are sort of rounds she does, eating at places, talking to people, making sure people know where to find her. Because although there are gadgets, sometimes people want to go and see her in person, have a face-to-face and it's easy to have a walk and know generally where to find her. It's comforting to people that she has a routine, almost an old-fashioned route. It's comforting for most people to have a routine, where they can be found in person so that someone doesn't even need to contact them electronically. It's sort of a comfort that way. She likes to go out for breakfast at one of two or three places, talk to the people running the places. Then she does a walk of her sector and any errands she might need to do. Then it's back to her pod to take some time in the VR getting reacquainted with friends in other secto
rs, having a lunch or play date there. She's got a habit of taking walks in VR, that's what she likes to do. Or be a bear. Maybe she jogs. Or bikes.