May the vacation begin!

Mazer unplugs his PET from the jack in his seat on the plane. Machman and Aera appear on the screen. The seatbelt sign lights up as the pilot's voice comes in over the P.A. system.

{Good afternoon passengers, we are just about 10 minutes from our destination; and we are starting our approach. Flight attendants, please prepare the cabin for landing.}

Mazer looks out the window to see the Yoka landscape passing beneath him. He then picks up his PET and places it against the window, allowing Machman and Aera a good view of the landing.

A few minutes later, the aircraft makes its final approach to the runway and eases down to the ground below. The gear touches down, giving the cabin a small bump. The spoilers open up on the wings and emit a dull roaring sound as the plane slows down rapidly. The plane slows to taxi speed and makes it way to the terminal. The plane parks at the terminal and everyone shuffles out of the plane and into the terminal of the Yoka air port. Mazer's fellow passengers split up to their respective locations, but most walk over to the baggage claim area.

[[i]Where are we going first, Mazer?[/i]]
"Well, I need to get my luggage first, then we'll head over to the inn. Hopefully after that we will be able to go to the onsen!"
[[i]Yay! I'm so excited! I hope the onsen is as good as people say it is![/i]]
"I hope so too. I'm kinda stiff from sitting in the plane."

Mazer waits for the luggage conveyer to start up. The conveyer kicks on, spitting out an almost uncountable amount of bags. Mazer was able to spot the handle label on his bag and pull it off the conveyer. He swings his bag onto his back and walks off to an information kiosk. He finds a pamphlet for the inn and takes looks it over as he makes his way out of the airport.
"Alright. Now I just need to find the shuttle to the inn, and we'll be on our way!"
[[i]According to the airport map, the #3 shuttle stop is in front of terminal 3.[/i]]
"Thanks Mach."

Mazer runs to the waiting shuttle and hops in. A few minutes later, the shuttle stops a few blocks from the inn and Mazer walks off onto the sidewalk.
[[i]It should be 3 blocks ahead on this street. It looks like there's a lot of shopping opportunities and restaurants around here.[/i]]
Mazer takes a look around at all the different restaurants and shops on the street.
"Yeah, definitely. I'll be hitting up that Yoka restaurant tonight!"
Mazer continues forward and slows as he sees the inn up ahead. He stops in front of the inn, with a large "旅館" printed above the doorway.
"This must be it, take a look!"
Mazer turns the screen of his PET towards the in, getting a collection of "ooh"s and "ah"s from the PET. He passes through the doorway and up to the counter where a hostess in a dark kimono greeted them with a smile.
"Welcome to Onsen no Ryokan! How can I help you?"
"Hello! I'm here with a reservation for Patrovski."
"Okay sir, let me check for your reservation... There we go. Someone will escort you to your room."
She rings a small bell behind the counter, calling another kimono-clad woman out into the lobby. As she passes by the counter, the hostess hands her the room key. She then walks up to Mazer and bows slightly towards him.
"Good afternoon, sir. Please follow me to your room."
She turns and walks off to the room, Mazer following closely behind. Mazer's head is on a swivel, soaking in all the sights of this traditional inn. As they make their way to the room, they approach a doorway covered by a cloth printed with "男" and "gentlemen" in smaller print below. The woman stops and gestures towards it.
"This is the entrance to the onsen. Please only use this entrance, since this leads to the men's onsen."
"I understand. Thank you."

She continues on a short distance to his room. She slides the lattice wooden shoji screen open and gestures him inside.
"I hope you enjoy your stay at the Onsen no Ryokan. Here is your key. If you need anything, please call #0 on your room phone or using your PET. Have a good day." She hands him the card, bows, and quietly slides the door closed.
"Thank you!" Mazer turns back into the room and looks around. The room isn't very large, but plenty of room for a single person. The floor is covered with tatami mats and has a very comfortable looking futon in the corner of the room. On the opposite side is a dresser with a small LCD TV on the wall above it. There is also low table and two pads on the floor next to the futon. The light and fan of the ceiling softly illuminates the room, but outside light shining from the screens is bright enough to turn the light off. There is also a PET jack-in port in the wall next to the bed. Mazer takes off his shoes and duffel bag and places them near the door and next to the bed, respectively.

"This is nice! I just want to relax on that futon for a while; we can do some quick virus busting in the mean time."
Mazer takes a seat and sighs as he sinks into the cushy futon.
"Man, that feels great... Sorry. Machman.EXE, Jack in!"

((Logged In))

((Returned from Ryokan Virus Busting.))

Machman returns to the PET, and is instantly sent to the Data Recovery Station. Aera already had her program restored, and watched as Machman warped in. The tube had slid down into the floor, leaving just the upper and bottom rings. As he stood in the D.R.S., his body was bathed in a powerful green light. Machman's energy was fully restored and he steps out of the D.R.S. Aera walks up to him and hugs him.

Great job, Mach! I just wish I was able to help you out... I'm sorry.
Mach looks down to her, and wraps his arms around her.
I'm just glad you're alright.
[Aww...]
Mach's face instantly turns a light shade of red.
*giggle*

Mazer puts the PET on the short nightstand next to the futon, and rolls over onto his back.
"I think I might take a quick nap before we head over to the onsen. Maybe a half hour."
Mazer pauses for a few seconds, then shifts back over.
"Y'know what, I'm still a little wound up from that net battle. Might as well go to the onsen now."
[[i]I can't wait![/i]]
[[i]I heard the onsen will do wonders to for my movement functions.[/i]]
"Alright, alright, we'll head out."
Mazer opens up his duffel bag and pulls out a red pair of swim trunks and heads into the bathroom to put them on. He emerges from the bathroom donning his trunks and a towel in tow. He picks up the PET and slips on a pair of flip-flops on his way out the door. He walks out into the hallway and locates the entrance with the "男" printed on the cloth and enters. He notices a sign written in Japanese, English, Electopian, and some other languages he didn't recognize stating all guests should properly bathe before entering the onsen, as to keep it clean at all times. Mazer puts the PET outside the shower stall and takes a few minutes to soap up and rinse off. He picked up the PET on his way out, he noticed only a few other guys in the washroom. He followed the signs to the onsen, passing through a cloth curtain. The onsen was outside, surrounded by wooden walls of the hotel. The edge of the onsen is rimmed with dark stones, bathed in a low mist rising from the warm water.

He looked around, trying to find a PET jack in terminal. Then looked down. Directly between his feet is a sign painted on the pavement. It has a symbol of a PET and an arrow pointing to his right. He sees a few other signs on the pavement in the path of the arrow, and follows them to a 3'x4' wooden box jutting out of the wall. Mazer was kind of surprised by how inconspicuous it was. He opens the front to see several cubbies just the right size for PETs with individual terminals and small number-pad locks.
"Looks like this is where you two get jacked in. This is pretty neat!"
[[i]I'm impressed by the security. I was kind of worried about that. Just don't forget your combo.[/i]]
"I won't. I'll give you my planned combo now."
Mach types a 5 digit number combination on the PET, so both Mach and Aera would know if he happens to forget. Mach pulls the jack out of the PET, and finds the jack in port.
"Alright you two, have fun!"
[[i]We will![/i]]
"Machman and Aera, Jack in."
Mazer plugs the PET in, types in his combination and the "set combo" button, and closes the door. He heads back to the onsen, places his towel on the rocks on the edge, and eases into the water.
"Oh yeah. This is awesome. I can already feel my muscles loosening up!"
Mazer sits on the bottom of the onsen, his head and the majority of his neck still above the water. He leans back and closes his eyes, trying to enjoy the onsen to the fullest.

((Jacked In))

Mazer opens his eyes groggily, the warm smell of the onsen bringing him back to full consciousness. He feels almost numb as he starts to wake up, he must have relaxed so much that he fell asleep!
What time is it... how long did I sleep in here?
Mazer looks down at his watch and notices he's been sleeping for almost 45 minutes.
Wow. Surprised I didn't slump into the water. I bet I'm all pruny... yep.
Mazer hoists himself from the water and begins to towel off as he walks towards the PET holder at the wall. He moves his arms, legs, shoulders, and neck around, surprised by how loose his joints have become and smiles. He opens the door of the PET cubbyholes and punches in his combination. The lock pops open and he reaches in to pull out the PET.

((Continued from relaxing in the onsen.))

Mazer unplugs the PET from the wall and drapes his towel over his shoulders as he closes the door and heads back out the door and to his room.
"Well, we have almost 2 hours till dinner and I feel plenty rested; wanna do some netbattling while we wait?"
[[i]Oh yeah. Definitely! Let me just check our BBS post and look up the hours of that restaurant you were looking at.[/i]]
"Okay. Thanks."

Inside the PET, Mach and Aera move up to the terminal. As Mach scrolls through the BBS posts to see his, Aera points one particular post out. Mach opens it to see a navi named Curseman looking for a busting partner.
[[i]Ooh, another Navi wants to find someone to virus bust with. Want to see if we can meet?[/i]]
[[i]I'm always up for some tandem busting. Is it alright with you, Mazer?[/i]]
"Fine with me, Mach!'
[[i]Alright then. Posting a reply now.[/i]]
Mazer rounds the corner and walks down the hallway to his room. He finds his room number and places the card key on a little block on the wall. The lock on the door makes a small click and slides open. Mazer walks in and places the PET on the bed while he goes off to take a quick shower.

A few minutes later, Mazer emerges from the shower, already dressed in fresh clothes and towel in hand. He hangs the towel up on a rack on the door to let it dry and heads back to the PET on the bed.
"So whats up?"
[[i]We have successfully contacted Mr. Tylien and Curseman; they would like to meet at the Electown NetSquare.[/i]]
"Cool. We still have a few hours before dinner, I'll log you both in."

Mazer pulls the spring-spooled jack plug from the PET and inserts it in the jack in the wall next to the Futon.
"Machman and Aera, Jack in!"
Mach and Aera turn cyan before warping up and out of the PET into the net.

((Logged In))

((From Electown Net))

Machman and Aera return to the PET, and Mazer unplugs the jack from the wall. He then places the PET on his futon and puts on some more formal clothing and places the PET in his pocket. [[i]Alright, we should have enough time to get there a minute or two early. You want to take a left at the street and it should be on our right side.[/i]]
"Alright. I'm starving!"

((Two days of sightseeing and great meals later...))

Mazer is awakened by a beeping noise from the PET, rousing him from his comfortable bed. "I'm up, Mach. The train arrives at 9, correct?" Machman's face appears on the bottom corner of the PET menu screen.
[[i]Correct. You are looking for train 233 on track 2. We should be able to catch a bus to the station if we leave soon.[/i]]
"Alright. I'm already packed from last night, so I'll just brush my teeth and we will head out."

Mazer walks into the bathroom and brushes his teeth and combs his hair before placing his toiletry bag in his duffel and the PET in his pocket. He hoists the bag over his back and slides the door open. He slides his feet into the slippers waiting outside his door and walks out into the lobby. The attendants bow and thank him for coming as he returns the room key and retrieves his street shoes. He thanks the stewardess and walks a few minutes to the bus stop. A quick bus trip later, Mazer arrives at the train station and quickly finds the train as Machman pulls up the ticket receipt and places it on the screen. Mazer places the screen up to a sensor on the front of the gate entrance, and the doors slide open. He boards the train, and finds a seat.
[[i]The train ride should only take a few hours. This train also has wireless network connections, so we could surf the net to pass the time.[/i]] The train starts to pull away from the station, just on time.
"Lets try something new. I wouldn't mind getting an image modification program for you. We need to ask the NetPolice for a mission to get one, though."
[[i]Understood. I'll post a request on the appropriate BBS.[/i]]

Machman reports back to Mazer.
[[i]We have a mission, from a Global Network Admin! We need to report to SciLabs so we can fix a comm satellite.[/i]]
"Really?!? That's awesome! I can't wait! I probably won't be able to sleep to pass the time..."
The train continues on its way to ACDC and SciLabs.

((To SciLabs))