VLADJI and the Avatars: Family Matters

Chapter 3 - Christians, Muslims, and Jews - Oh, My!

No doubt someone like Vinny Lee could tell you about the full extent of the Cyberoom – the desks around the whole place, the holo computer Tails had recently installed in the center of the former computer lab, and the atmosphere of study.

I will spare you all that.

It's the size of a regular classroom. It's full of tech. It's in the center of the Hangar.

There. That's all there is to it.

When we reached the Cyberoom, Tails then hopped up to the main computer in the room. In my opinion, the computer he'd created out of the old ones resembled the main control panel for the TARDIS, or a holographic computer from Star Wars. (I had wondered if he'd reshaped the parts to fit, but Tails quickly disproved that. Apparently, technology wasn't as adaptable to his transforming abilities as ordinary items. Go figure.) The latter possibility was how it got its nickname from DJ – the Holo, which eventually stuck, as I didn't like saying holo computer twenty times a day.

He hit the power button and the screen flashed on. I say flashed on; it was more like it flickered into existence – like a holoscreen. How Tails had pulled that together – us human beings could only dream of such tech – was a mystery I was going to leave to the guy who made it. Besides, it worked, anyhow – and reflected well on us. Having tech like that around makes us look sophisticated, I suppose.

"What's the big news?" I asked. Vinny Lee began rummaging through his tote bag and pulled out a piece of yarn. That tote was chock full of stuff – some of it useful items, like duct tape and gum, but mostly bits of junk that didn't seem salvageable to most people. Vinny Lee, however, wasn't most people.

He examined the length of the yarn, smiled, and then tied it into a loop, which he began playing witch's broom with – essentially weaving the loop into the titular broom shape with his fingers. Naturally he would.

Now Tails responded, typing as he did so. A list popped up on the Holo – something official looking, like on a US Census website. It looked like a listing of secondary schools, even though more than half of the names on the list were ones I'd never even heard of. "I was researching various private and charter schools in the area," he said in an even tone. "I heard that they have better academic turnout than the public schools and I was trying to find something that would prove it."

Amos rolled his eyes. "Oh, yeah. Prove that when half the families in Philly are turning to those alternatives because they don't trust the current public school system. You'd be saying something they already figured out for themselves – Ow!"

I'd punched Amos in the arm, just to shut him up. I mean, sometimes the boy needs a good smack somewhere to get him to pay attention.

Tails didn't say anything, but I could tell Amos was testing his patience. "Then I heard from Vinny Lee's father about Fairview High School." He clicked on its name in the list and a bunch of things popped up on the Holo – school bulletins, photos, and other documentation pertaining to that school, by the looks of it.

DJ and Vinny Lee exchanged looks. I guessed they'd been enrolled there, and they'd learned that fact around the same time. Just a minor little detail they'd forgotten to mention.

After a few seconds of staring, Vinny Lee went back to his witch's broom game with the yarn. Typical.

"I researched the school and found out something interesting. The school was started as a place for children to become patriotic, God-fearing men and women. It was initially just evangelical –"

"Naturally it's some religion," Amos interrupted again.

"Would you shut up?" I yelled at him.

"I-yi-yi, woman! All right!"