Dizgaia ~ The Dreamfinder's Daughter

Chapter 10 ~ Flynn

When Mia next awoke it could have been an hour or several hours later; she wasn't certain as she'd lost all sense of time since arriving on Dizgaia. Blair was slumped over his desk, fast asleep with his head buried in his arms, leading her to suspect she'd been asleep for a good while. Mia supposed she ought to go back to sleep, but now that she was awake she found she was completely wired. But what else should she expect, considering that not long ago she'd arrived in a magical world, a world just waiting to be explored?

Three things kept her from rushing headlong into the outdoors and exploring for herself – the late hour, her father's warning of the Dark Ones who sought her, and the memory of the beating she'd taken at the hands of the Tremaine sisters. Still, she had to do something to burn off the excess energy, and so, after draping a throw blanket over Blair, she quietly tip-toed out of his office and into the corridor beyond.

As expected, all was quiet in the Imagination Institute. The Imagineers likely went home in the evening, which reminded her of the talk she needed to have with her father. But she'd save that for tomorrow. In the meantime, Mia was content to stretch her legs and go up to the atrium to admire the cityscape. She bet it was positively breathtaking at night.

As she traveled further through the pristine corridors, she began to hear music which gradually grew louder until Mia realized that what she was hearing was Sweet Dreams Are Made of This by The Eurythmics, and it was coming from Flynn's office. Well, that was no surprise.

It seemed Flynn was working late tonight, assuming it was work he was actually doing. Now that Mia thought of it, she'd never gotten the chance to properly thank him for helping her. After fainting and meeting her long-lost father, she'd nearly forgotten about her rescuer. Perhaps it was time to remedy that.

Hoping she wasn't interrupting anything too important, Mia rapped upon the door. Flynn didn't answer, but he had to be in there. After all, he surely wouldn't leave the music playing while he was away, would he?

Hmm...

Perhaps that was the problem. He couldn't hear her knocking over the insanely loud music. It was a wonder he could concentrate with it blaring so loud.

Maybe I should come back later, she thought.

But after a moment of further contemplation, Mia decided she really wanted to see him again and simply could not wait. There was a panel beneath his holographic nameplate. She pressed her fingers against it, not really expecting it to respond to her touch and rather assuming it would be locked. To her surprise, the door slid open. Mia hesitated a moment, then stepped inside.

Flynn was sitting at his computer with his back to her. He hadn't even heard her come in. Mia took a moment to admire her surroundings. Flynn's lab was not at all like her father's office. In fact, it was quite the hot pad, with lots of science-y stuff as well as '80s pop culture for décor. She didn't entirely disapprove. There was a mini fridge covered in magnets, a single bookshelf with several thick, old looking books on it, and a console that held the Tron identity disk. Flynn was typing away at his keyboard, occasionally pausing to manipulate a holographic model with his hands. The model appeared to be some sort of vehicle.

"CLU, run diagnostic test. Check for any sort of extraneous energy output and aerodynamic resistance."

From the computer, a somewhat stiff, robotic voice replied, "Yes, sir. Of course, sir."

"We gotta work the bugs out of this, pronto!"

"Yes, sir. I know, sir."