Technology Freaks

• Vita Rinaldi, Grade 5
• Short Story
• 2010

Technology Freaks

Harry Blobton was very lazy and enjoyed watching TV, playing computer and eating deep-fried McDonalds chips. All the people in his class thought that he was gross because he smelled of monkey poo and peanuts

One day when Harry was playing his favourite computer game, “Blaster Killer” he heard something he hadn’t noticed ever before in the game. It was a voice.
“Hey Harry,” it said in a coaxing tone, “do you like this game?” Harry nodded, listening carefully, so full with concentration that his tongue was poking out of the corner of his mouth. “If you want, you could be in the game.” Harry wasn’t really listening to the voice anymore, his attention span lasted only two minutes. The computer was fed up.
“DO YOU WANT TO BE IN THE GAME!” it screamed, in a high sharp voice, which grabbed even Harry’s attention. “W-what?” he stuttered, shocked.
“If you say, YES, you can BE in the GAME.”
“Awesome!” Harry nodded, vigorously. “Yeah!”

It happened in a matter of seconds. The computer flipped, and Harry Blobton, was subconsciously sucked in! “What is this place?” Harry said slowly, turning his big floppy head to and fro. Harry didn’t have much time to wonder though, because one of the space ships in the game began to shoot at him.

Meanwhile, outside the screen, Harry’s head was gone. Instead there was a computer screen - a computer screen that was still playing ‘Blast Killer’ except one of the characters in the screen was a lazy little boy – miniature Harry!

The voice of the computer was back. It had dropped its coaxing voice, and now it barked instructions to the screen. The computer had a microchip brain. Harry used to have a REAL brain, but now he had a screen for a head, he had a microchip for a brain, and he obeyed every command the voice told him.
“Go next door!” the voice screeched.
Harry automatically lifted a leg and started to walk

***
There was a knock on Jane and Billy’s door.
“It must be Harry,” said Jane, bouncing towards the door.
Billy followed her reluctantly.
“What’s so good about Harry, Jane?” he asked, “He’s just a lazy kid from next door.”
Jane gave Billy a look, and opened the door. She gasped, and Billy moved in for a closer look.
“Whoa!” Screen-head-Harry pushed Billy aside and Jane heard a shrill voice.
“Get out he back!” the computer voice screamed.
Knocking over cabinets and bookshelves along the way, Harry walked out of the house and into the streaming sunlight in the backyard.

Billy got off the floor and ran outside. Jane was frozen, staring back at him, a look of complete shock on her face. She knew she should be running out to stop her little brother, but she couldn’t.

Billy knocked over Harry, and a wire fell out of his head. That gave Billy an idea. He reached over to Harry’s screen head, but missed because Harry ducked. Then there was a loud “Kaboom!” as Harry’s computer/screen/brain/head, (or whatever it was) crashed!
To avoid any further crashes in Harry, Billy reached over and pressed the “off” button.
“Ahh! No!” screeched Harry, and Billy watched as Harry’s head shrank, back to normal.

A few years later…

“Run Billy! I’ll catch you!” Harry shrieked loudly. He ran quickly through the playground, dipped under the monkey bars and caught Billy. Harry wasn’t a lazy blob anymore. He hardly ever watched TV, and hadn’t played a single computer game in years. A few months with Billy had taught him that it was more fun to be active that to blob around inside.

“Hey Harry?” Billy asked, as they walked back home. “What’re we going to do at your house?”
“I don’t know,” replied Harry truthfully.

They slipped inside and refused Harry’s mum’s fruitcake. Then Billy said, “What’s that room?”
“Study,” mumbled Harry.
Billy rushed in. “What’s this?” he asked, pulling out ‘Blast Killer’.
Before Harry could stop him, Billy was playing ‘Blast Killer’.
Suddenly Billy was…
SUCKED
IN!