Ally intended to start working right away.
But after she stepped into escape pod Alpha, she quickly got distracted. Alpha
"I haven't been in this pod in so long!"
It had a comfortable sleeping unit, along with some fun entertainment options.
But when she looked at the meal-o-matic that dispensed food, she saw it was nearly empty.
"Looks like the food supply is running low.
I'd better remind Mom to refill it when I'm done."
Ally grabbed one of the last bottles of juba juice from the machine and took a swig.
"Ahh! Still bubbly!" She turned the repair manual on and got ready to work, but there was something bothering her.
"It's too quiet in here," she murmured.
She pressed a button on the dashboard and the pod's computer instantly lit up.
"Alpha," Ally commanded. "Play some fun music."
An upbeat song filled the pod.
"Satisfactory choice?" the computer asked.
"Yes! I love this song!" Ally jumped up to dance around.
When the song ended, she sighed. "I guess it's time to get to work."
"It's long past time," the computer said.
Ally scowled. "Are you going to start nagging me too?
Besides, if you're so smart, why can't you fix the comm device yourself?"
"Repair of communication devices is beyond my capabilities."
The computer's lights dimmed as it put itself to sleep.
"That's fine," Ally mumbled. "I don't need your help or anyone else's.
I'll have this comm device working in no time."
She took another sip of juba juice and sat down to work.
A short while later, Ally had taken the comm device apart, and all the pieces sat in front of her.
She pushed her tentacles out of her face.
"That wasn't very hard. And I found the problem. The fuse was blown.
Now all I have to do is put the device back together."
The computer lit up. "Be sure to consult the manual before reassembling comm device."
"Thanks, Alpha," Ally replied, "but I took it apart, so I can totally put it back together." Alpha
She snorted. "My parents will be sorry they called me irresponsible."
The computer made a noise that sounded like "Hmm."
Before long, Ally had finished reassembling the device.
"See, Alpha?" She proudly flipped her tentacles. Alpha
"I told you I didn't need the manual."
"Standing by for test of communication device," the computer said.
"Here we go!" Ally turned the device on, expecting it to light up.
But nothing happened. She tried again. Still nothing.
"That's funny," Ally murmured. "I don't know what's wrong."
"Scanning area." The computer clicked and clacked.
"Detecting nanochip receiver on the floor. Repeat, detecting nanochip—"
"I heard you the first time!" Ally checked the floor by her feet.
The computer was right—a part from the device was lying there. "Oops."
She didn't want to admit it out loud, but it was time to consult the manual.
As Ally reached across the dashboard to grab the tablet, her arm knocked into the juba juice.
The bottle tipped, spilling sticky juice all over the manual and the dashboard.
The tablet sparked, while the dashboard fizzled and popped.
"Oh no!" Ally cried. "What have I done?"
"Sensors indicate you spilled juba juice, and the—"
"I know what I did!" Ally snapped. "I need to know how to undo it!" whatundo
The computer clicked, but Ally cut it off before it could speak.
"No! Don't tell me! I'll figure it out myself. But first I'd better clean up this mess."
She hurried to get a towel.
But somehow the toe of one of her boots got stuck on a rung of the chair.
Ally lost her balance, and her hand slammed into the control lever.
She gasped as she heard the escape pod's engine sparked to life.
Then—whoosh! The pod started to zoom away from the mother ship. whoosh!
"Alpha!" Ally shouted. "Stop this thing! Get me back to my parents' ship—fast!"
"Unable to comply. Escape pod is unable to redock with the mother ship at this time."
"What?" Ally blinked, trying to understand what she was hearing.
"Then call my parents so I can ask them what to do!"
"Command does not compute. Communication device is offline."
"Oh no!" Ally cried, watching in horror as the pod hurtled into deep space.
