Hello Viking

Chapter 2

"Maybe," he thought, "this isn't what I should be doing?"

He removed his shoes carefully and laid them on the sand, taking off his shorts and his socks so that he could step into the water. The cool waves brushed against his body, and in the corner of his eye he saw his Orb meticulously observing him.

"The water feels great!" he shouted into the air, understanding that his actions, good or bad, could end up being broadcast if he was interesting enough.

He had participated in a number of produced shows before, usually they involved a script and he could pretend to be someone else. When the reviews would come out, there would be those who thought he was a terrible choice for the role, and there were those who thought he was doing the best of anyone else out there. "There are always critics," he thought.

This time, however, he would be judged not by his choices of how he portrayed his character. No, this time, he would be judged entirely on his own personality, and the core of himself. The pressure was overwhelming and was causing him some stress since before they announced that he was Leader. Once that title was placed upon him, all he wanted to do was abandon it and run away.

"I haven't produced anything but being a brat so far," was the only thing that continued to ring in his thoughts. "No one will like what they have seen so far." He pressed his toes into the sand, making scooping motions to dig himself further into the water. "I can't turn around my image at this point."

Carson and Pavel:

"There are so many places to get food!" exclaimed Pavel. "I've never seen so many options."

Carson looked at the two shops on either side of the street. "There are... literally only two shops though?" he said inquisitively. "Just two."

"Yeah! Two!!! This is incredible!" Pavel walked up to the window front of the shop on the left, gazing at the menu. "They have pancakes here."

"Do you like those?"

"I can't say I've ever had one, to be honest."

"I enjoy them, let's get pancakes!" Carson pushed the front door open and motioned for Pavel to follow in. "We'll be here for a few days, probably, there's plenty of time to check out," he looked at the shop on the opposite side of the road, "all... of the other options."

"I sure hope so!" Pavel skipped inside and ran up the counter where a woman dressed in all black stood. His mouth dropped at the number of options on the menu.

"Welcome to Mapel," said the woman. "Are you new in town, or just passing through?"

"We're traveling for a few days," said Carson shyly. The Orb following them pushed through the door and focused on their faces as they ordered. Carson ordered a chocolate and fruit pancake for both himself and Pavel, and the woman showed them to a table in the mostly empty shop.

"That's a fancy Orb following you around," she observed. "You boys own a video blog or something?"

"Something like that," Carson nervously responded.

"Your food will be up soon."

"Boy, this is a fancy place Carson," pointed out Pavel. "Wait till my ma hears about this place. Why, she just won't believe it."

"This is our first time really hanging out; tell me about yourself and life on Turtle Outpost. Was it just you and your mom?"

"It was my ma, my pa, six or seventeen uncles and aunts, and a cargo full of cousins. We lived on a big farm raising all kinds of critters and veggies. I've never even seen a place like this one before. The closest town had a little clothing shop and there was a fried food chain that originated on Earth."