Challenge Four: The Valley of Death

            “Oh God, how are we going to get through this?” Moira asked as she stared across the desert.

            “It’s so hot!” Lily exclaimed.

            Moira gave her a withering look. “It’s only going to get hotter,” she reminded her.

            “It’s only twelve miles,” Will shrugged. “That’ll take, what, four hours?”

            “Are you crazy?” Moira asked him. “It’s supposed to be up to almost hundred and ten degrees today! It’s going to take way longer than that. We have to go slow, and stop to rest a lot. We need to drink a lot of water too.” She held up a container of water. “I hope this is going to be enough. I don’t think there are any reservoirs out there.”

            Adrian and Jesse were still smearing sunscreen on themselves. “You realize that’s going to take a while to start working?” Will asked.

            Adrian gave him a wide grin. “We want to tan, but not burn.”

            Moira rolled her eyes at them. “The sun’s not even out yet you guys. It won’t be for a few hours.”

            “Yeah, but if it comes out before we’re done, we’re ready!” Jesse chimed in.

            “You two are idiots,” she said. “Do you even realize that we’re risking heat exhaustion, heat stroke, dehydration, and probably numerous sun-related illnesses?”

            Adrian grinned. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”

            “I look ridiculous in this hat!” Lily wailed.

            “It’s not a fashion show,” Moira reminded her. “No one’s going to see us. Besides, we’re all wearing the same thing.” She pointed at her own floppy wide-brimmed hat.

            “Let’s get this over with before the sun comes up,” Jesse grumbled. “I want to get the hell out of here and go lay by a pool somewhere.”

            Will threw the sunscreen into his pack and they began their descent into the valley. It was slow going. They slipped and slid in the sand.

            Partway down, Lily’s ankle turned under her and she started sliding. Adrian and Jesse immediately ran after her. When they caught up to her, she had stopped sliding and lay on her side. She was crying.

            “Lil, you gotta stop crying,” Adrian told her.

            “Why?” she sobbed.

            “Because you’re losing fluids and we don’t have enough water to replace them. We don’t want you to get sick.”

             She sniffled a few more times. By the time Moira and Will had caught up to them, she had stopped. Adrian and Jesse pulled her to her feet and Adrian helped her dust the sand off. She turned to her brother. “I want to go home.”

            “I know, Lil, but we can’t. We gotta finish this. If we don’t finish this—if we don’t win—we could all go to jail. You don’t want that, do you?” Adrian asked.

            She shook her head. “No. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to go home.”

            “I know, Lil. But I need you to be strong. Can you do that for me? For Jess?”

            She nodded.

            “How about being strong for us too?” Moira called. “I’m sick of your whining.”

            “Oh will you just stop being such a bitch?” Lily shouted.

            Moira stared at her in surprise. “Excuse me?”

            “I’m sick of you being so mean to me!”

            “I wouldn’t be so mean to you if you would quit your damn whining and do something useful for a change!” Moira flung back.

            “Maybe if you would leave me the hell alone then I could!”

            Moira smiled. “Well, it’s about time you got a backbone.”

            “Uhhh . . . I hate to interrupt this lovely conversation, but I think I saw something moving over there.” Will pointed to the right of them.

            Everyone was instantly on alert. “What did you see?” Jesse asked.

            “I’m not sure, but it looked human.”

            Lily gasped. “Do you think it was one of those Hunters?”

            This time, they all saw the shape moving in the distance. It definitely looked human, and it was moving toward them.

            “Run!” Adrian ordered.

            He grabbed his sister’s hand and started dragging her behind him. The others took off after them. The wind picked up as they were running. Sand flew all around, blinding them.

            “I think I see a dune we can try to hide behind,” Will tried to shout over the wind, hoping that the Hunter wouldn’t hear him.

            They struggled toward the place that Will pointed toward, which looked to be a mile or more than their present position. Moira tripped and fell. Her ankle rolled beneath her. She fought to regain her feet. When she tried to put weight on her ankle, she cried out and collapsed to the ground again.

            She was quickly being left behind. No one had noticed her fall. She tried to yell for her teammates, but her mouth quickly filled up with sand. She grimaced and spat it out. Obviously, that wouldn’t work. She closed her eyes and concentrated. Help, she thought.

            She opened her eyes. No one had turned around. Help! This time, she tried to throw the thought out toward her teammates.

            She almost cried in relief when she saw Will pause. He turned around, frowning. He finally noticed Moira lying on the ground and floundered through the sand toward her. “What happened?” he asked when he reached her.

            “I twisted my ankle,” she shouted above the screaming wind.

            “Can you stand?”

            She shook her head.

            Will didn’t hesitate. He reached down and picked her up. “Hold on!” he ordered, then started to run after the others.

            They finally reached the dune and ducked down behind it. “I’m not sure this is a good idea,” Moira told them after Will placed her on the ground.

            “Why?” Adrian asked.

            “Because the wind might pile the sand up back here. We could get covered.”

            “Oh crap. I didn’t think of that.” Adrian thought for a minute. “Let me try to see if the Hunter is still out there.” He slowly stood up, and peeked around the dune. He edged around the corner and soon the rest of the team couldn’t see him anymore.

            They waited what felt like an eternity. They tried to take advantage of the time to rest, but they began to worry if Adrian had been captured.

            The wind had begun to die down, when Adrian finally popped back around the corner. “Hey!” he said.

            They all jumped. “I think the Hunter guy’s gone. I don’t see anyone,” he told them.

            They made their way out from behind the dune. Everyone looked around, but they didn’t see anything either. Just more sand.

            They began to walk again, the guys taking turns carrying Moira, who still couldn’t walk. When they finally reached the edge of the desert, they nearly collapsed in exhaustion.

            “Hey, there’s our car!” Lily pointed.

            “I wonder how it got over here?” Jesse asked.

            “It was brought over for you, of course,” Chance Cagney said from behind them.

            “Dude! How do you always show up out of no where?” Adrian asked.

            Chance grinned. “I have my ways, Mr. Rayne.” He turned his attention to the rest of the team. “Well, I think you have all earned a reward. Enjoy the day—and night—off. You will find information about your reward tomorrow.” He turned and walked away.

            The team all stood around, staring at each other. “Now what?” Jesse finally asked.

            “Let’s find someplace to sleep,” Moira suggested.

            They all agreed and headed for the car.

TO BE CONTINUED . . .

Challenge Three: Going Going, Back Back, to Cali Cali

            “Where the hell were you?” Adrian demanded when Moira appeared from behind a booth.

            “I—I got something to eat and I was playing some games,” she said.

            “By yourself?”

            “Yeah,” she lied. She couldn’t tell them about Toby. Not yet.

            “So, you won that panda yourself?” Adrian asked, nodding at the stuffed animal Moira held in her arms.

            “Uh . . . yeah. I’m really good at games.”

            Lily came up to Moira and got as close to her as the giant panda would allow. “We were looking for you forever and you were off playing games?”

            “Not so timid now, is she?” Moira muttered to herself under her breath. Raising her voice, she said, “Yeah. After being trapped in that tiny room, I had to go do something fun. Got a problem with that?”

            Lily quickly backed off. “No, I guess not.”

            “So what now?” Jesse asked.

            “Well, we’re supposed to have the night off. Why don’t we go get some food—those of us that haven’t already,” Adrian suggested, looking pointedly at Moira. “Then we can have some fun and find someplace to crash for the night. I guess we’ll get our instructions in the morning.”

            “Hey, it’s not my fault you guys didn’t eat!” Moira said.

            “Actually, yeah it is,” Lily told her. “We were looking for you instead of eating.”

            “Well, sor-ry. Let’s go find you guys some food.” She hoped that they wouldn’t run into Toby and his team. Not that she didn’t want to see him again, but it would be hard to not go up to him and they couldn’t risk their respective teams finding out about them yet.

            Moira trailed behind the rest of the group as they wandered through the fair, trying to decide what to eat. She wanted nothing more than to go find a hotel room, maybe email Toby like she had promised, and curl up in bed. She was still trying to process her time with Toby. She was overwhelmingly happy that she had finally been able to see him in person, able to actually touch him—but at the same time, she hated the fact that they were competing against each other.

            She was so absorbed in her thoughts, that she didn’t notice when Will dropped back to walk next to her. “Are you okay?” he asked her quietly.

            She jumped and almost dropped the panda that she was still clutching. “Yeah!” she laughed, cringing a little at how high her voice was pitched.

            “I know that after being trapped in that tiny room like you were, I probably wouldn’t be okay,” he told her.

            She stopped walking and stared him down. “Look, I told you I’m fine. I don’t need someone to coddle me.”

            “Fine,” Will mumbled. “I was just trying to make sure you were okay.”

            Moira hesitated. Maybe she should be a little nicer to him. He had freed her from one of her worst nightmares, after all. “Sorry. It’s just been a long day, and I’m a little tired.”

            “S’okay,” Will said. He started to walk away.

            “Will?”

            He stopped and looked back at Moira again. “Yeah?”

            “Thanks for saving me in there.”

            He shrugged. “No problem.”

            After everyone had eaten, they stood around, trying to decide what to do next. “Should we go on some rides?” Lily suggested.

            “Lil, I’m too tired for rides,” Jesse said. “Let’s go find a motel room or something for the night.”

            They all headed for the parking lot. When they reached the car, everyone turned to stare at Moira. “You’re not really going to bring that thing in the car with us, are you?” Lily asked.

            Moira clutched her panda protectively. “Hell yes I am!”

            Lily rolled her eyes while Will helped Moira try to fit the stuffed animal in the trunk with their bags. “I don’t know why she bothered to get that thing,” she muttered to her brother and Jesse.

            “Hey!” Moira said as she slammed the trunk. “What I get or don’t get is none of your damn business.”

            Lily shrank back behind Adrian. “Sorry.”

            “She sure gives up easily, doesn’t she?” Moira whispered to Will. He nodded in agreement.

            After driving around for a little while, they found a small motel on the main road through the town. Adrian and Lily went inside to check them in while the others waited in the car.

            “The biggest they had was a room with two beds,” Adrian told them when he and Lily came out of the office.

            “I’ll sleep on the floor,” Will volunteered.

            “You sure, man? Jess or I can sleep on the floor,” Adrian said.

            “Yeah, it’s cool. I don’t mind.”

            “Okay,” Adrian agreed, shrugging his shoulders.

            They all dragged their bags out of the trunk. Moira tried to grab her panda, but everyone else got so annoyed that she had to leave it there.

            “Well, it’s not much, but it’s only for one night,” Jesse said when they got to their room.

            “Are you kidding me? This whole place looks like it’s straight out of some bad slasher film!” Moira said as she came up behind him.

            They stood just inside the room and took in the threadbare bedding, the worn 70’s style brown shag carpet, and the thin curtains. “This is worse than the room we woke up in,” Will said.

            “Whatever, let’s just go to sleep. We can get out of here first thing in the morning,” Adrian said.

            “And go where? We have no idea what we’re supposed to do next,” Moira reminded them.

            “Uhhh . . . maybe there will be a message on the TV again, or in the CD player,” Jesse said.

            “Do I have to share with her?” Lily asked her brother.

            “No, you can sleep with me,” Adrian told her.

            “Hold on a minute!” Moira said. “As much as I would rather not share with Lily, there’s no way I’m sharing a bed with Jesse.”

            “Afraid you can’t keep your hands off me?” Jesse asked, slinging an arm across Moira’s shoulders.           

            She stepped away and shrugged Jesse’s arm off of her. “Ew, no! I have a boyfriend. And since I have yet to even sleep in the same bed as him, there’s no way I’m sleeping in the same bed as some guy I barely know. Lily, you’re going to have to share with me.”

            “It’s okay, Lil,” Adrian reassured her. “Jess and I will sleep by the door. You and Moira can take the other bed. Nothing’s going to hurt you. That is, nothing’s gonna come inside and hurt you. I can’t say the same about her.” He nodded at Moira.

            “What is this, gang up on Moira night? I’m not going to hurt her or anyone else,” Moira said.

            “You don’t kick in your sleep, do you?” Lily asked.

            “Not that I know of.”

            They took turns in the small bathroom so they could change into pajamas and brush their teeth. They finally settled down to sleep, but their sleep was plagued by nightmares of what had happened to them in the funhouse earlier that day.

            They woke early in the morning and got ready quickly. “Should we just wait around and see if anyone comes to give us instructions?” Jesse asked as they were repacking their bags.

            “I vote for food,” Will said.

            “Good idea, man,” Adrian told him. “Let’s go check out and go find some breakfast.”

            Jesse volunteered to drive. “Can I sit up front again?” Lily asked.

            “Yeah, we don’t want you puking on us,” Adrian said.

            “You mean I’m stuck in the back, in between two guys again?” Moira wanted to know. She had had horrible dreams the night before, of Toby being trapped in a box drowning while she was barricaded in a small room desperately trying to get to him. She hadn’t slept well and was inwardly cursing the fact that either of them had gone on the show. She hoped to God that they would both survive it.

            “Yes, you’re stuck with me and Will,” Adrian told her.

            “Great.” She rolled her eyes as they all climbed in the car.

            As soon as Jesse turned the key in the ignition, the CD player came on with Chance Cagney’s voice. “Good morning, my little criminals! We’re bringing you a choice this morning. Two options await you. You may either head to Florida and brave the swamps, or go to California and try your luck in Death Valley. Both locations have been programmed into your GPS. You simply have to choose one. You will find supplies in the trunk. Remember, the Hunters will be following you no matter where you go. Good luck.”

            “So, where to?” Moira asked.

            “California!” Adrian, Lily and Jesse said in unison.

            She sighed and wondered which destination Toby’s team had picked. “Seriously? The desert?”

            “Swamps sound disgusting,” Lily offered. “Besides, then we won’t be that far from home!”

            “Lil, Death Valley is like six hours from home,” Adrian reminded her.

            “Whatever. It’s closer than we are now.”

            “So, food first?” Jesse asked.

            “Yep,” Adrian agreed. “Then we’ll head out.”

            “Wait, did anyone see any supplies in the trunk when we stuck our bags in there?” Will asked.

            A chorus of “no’s” met his question.

            “We’ll figure it out when we get there,” Adrian said. “If Chance said there’s supplies, then there should be supplies. If not, then we can buy whatever we need, right? I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?”

TO BE CONTINUED . . . 

At Last (Part One)

Toby couldn't handle being with his "team" any longer. After their near death experience in the fun house, he needed some space to recollect himself, to feel normal. The game was over for the night, and nothing sounded more appealing to him than letting loose, eating something greasy and deep fried, and blowing some cash on an aggressive game, or two, or three. He also wanted to find a WiFi hot-spot for his laptop to see if he could get online to talk to Moira. At that point, he'd just about sell his soul to hear her voice and see her face.

Funny, because as he walked through the carnival, he noticed someone who looked an awful lot like her. Toby rubbed at his eyes, slapped his face a few times, and then pinched himself. Not possible. She couldn't be there. Could she? What was she doing there even? No, his eyes had to be playing tricks on him. Still, as much as he wanted to just keep walking, he followed the girl with the dark hair who looked practically identical to the girl he loved whom he'd never met. The one he'd been dating online for the past six months. And he felt his heart beat faster the closer and closer he got to her.

Soon he was right behind her, his hand outstretched as if to touch her, but he held back. Until someone shoved him into her and he knocked her to the ground. "Shit, sorry." He mumbled, completely embarrassed. And then his eyes met hers.

“What the hell? Why don’t you watch where you’re going?” Moira yelled from the ground. She stared up at the guy who had knocked her down. “Oh my God, Toby?” Moira couldn’t believe her eyes. There’s no way he could really be here. It was impossible! She hadn’t even gotten a chance to tell him that she was going to be on this show. Had he tracked her down somehow? “Is that really you?”

He had a great reply for her, but he was completely shocked that it actually was her. "Moira? Are you shitting me? It really is you?" He had to pinch himself again. "Sorry some asshole pushed me into you, but I saw you from that way." He pointed in the general direction of the fun house. "I had to see...and I'm glad I did baby. Wow you look..." He couldn't take his eyes from her.

“It’s really me. I can’t believe this!” She finally tore her eyes from his and glanced around, realizing she was still on the ground. She flushed, embarrassed that her first meeting with Toby in person involved her being sprawled out on the ground like a moron. “I guess I should get up.”

"Oh here." He offered his hand and pulled her up. Ace boyfriend move right there. Just leave her on the ground idiot. He sighed and nervously put a hand through his dark shaggy hair. "What are you doing in Colorado?" he asked at last as he tried to regain his insides. He was amazed at how he didn't feel as awkward as he initially imagined the moment being.

“Thanks.” She couldn’t stop staring at him. It was nothing like seeing him on Skype. To actually see him in person...she felt like she was in a dream. “Well, I’m sort of on this show. Like this reality show thing. I know, it sounds kind of dumb.”

That was when he crapped a proverbial brick. "Did you say a reality show?" His jaw dropped further. "No freaking way. That's why I'm here too!"

This was beginning to become bizarre. “Are you serious? Wait, is the one you’re on called Escape?”

He nodded slowly. Then it dawned on him that his traumatic experience in the fun house...she might have gone through that too. "Are you okay? You didn't get hurt did you?" He could ask about why she was even there later. He paused. "You're not on my team. Ahhhh shit." He scowled. "Dammit all."

“Oh crap. Do you think they’ll let us switch?” She wondered how much she should tell him about what had happened in there. Wait, what was she thinking? This was her boyfriend she was talking to. She could tell him anything. She didn’t have to act like things didn’t bother her. “I’m not hurt, at least not physically. But they locked me in this tiny room. I was terrified.”

He put an arm around her, instantly wanting to comfort her after the words 'I was terrified' were uttered. "I doubt we can switch. This sucks." He sighed, happy to actually be able to hold her. This was weird. He almost stopped but realized he was her boyfriend. This should be cool.

Her heart felt like it was going to stop when Toby’s arm went around her. It felt so good to be held by him, especially after what had happened in the fun house. She snuggled closer to him. “It does suck. All my teammates are assholes. I’d much rather be on a team with you.”

"Mine are too,” he groaned. "This one guy is completely worthless. You should swap places with him." She didn't pull away from him, so he took this as a good signal and put his hand a little lower on her hip, admiring the curve, and moving her in closer. "Let's...let's do something fun. Forget about all of that crap for a little while?"

She tentatively threaded her arm around Toby’s waist, hoping that he wouldn’t notice and freak out. “Sounds good to me. What do you want to do?”

"I think its one of my boyfriend duties to win you a huge ass stuffed animal. Food sounds good. I'm starving." And he needed to comfort eat like a total girl, but it was the only familiar thing he had at the moment.

She grinned at him. “A huge ass stuffed animal sounds amazing. I don’t know how I’m going to get it in that ghetto thing they claim is a car, but I’ll figure it out. And food definitely sounds good. I’m starving too.” She hadn’t eaten all day, afraid that she was going to throw up from the fear of being stuck in that “fun” house.

"Anything in particular you want?" He asked. "There's teddy bears, unicorns, gorillas, pandas, I could probably win any of these games with my super jock powers. And for food we have um..." he paused trying to find something she might eat. "Cheese curds maybe?"

“I’m not much of a teddy bear person, but I make an exception for pandas. But I’d be happy with anything you want to win me. And cheese curds? Ew! Sorry, but that just sounds nasty.” She laughed. “What about a funnel cake instead?”

"Panda it is! Which is easier for me because it’s the basketball game and we all know I'm totally amazing there." He was kidding, but it helped him cope with not focusing on any of the negative implications floating around., like how she was competition now, and the cameras. Were those on now? And if he won what did she miss out on? "Okay so no cheese curds. I was just trying to appease your vegetarian side since these isn't a lot that isn't meat on a stick." He paused. "You won't kill me if I get a corndog will you?" He gave her a sweet and innocent smile. "I'll get you a funnel cake and I see potato skins up that way. Wow, mini donuts!"

“Yes, we all know how amazing you are—at sports, I mean.” She blushed. Man, what was with her today? She figured it must be a combination of not eating, the stress of being trapped in the fun house, and the excitement of finally meeting Toby in person. Speaking of which, it had just occurred to her that they were now competing against each other. What would happen to them if her team won, and his lost? Or the other way around? She couldn’t be thinking about that right now. “No, I won’t kill you if you get a corndog. But you do realize that they’re not even real meat, right? They’re just cast-off parts of animals that they’ve caged and tortured.”

"I bet I'm amazing at more than just sports too." He said confidently. Not like he'd know or anything seeing as how he'd never had a girlfriend near him, but he did have a lot of self-esteem. Plus he was smart; he had a lot to offer. "And I know they're not real meat, but I'm staaaaaaarving. Though, I could skip it tonight and just go for the potatoes." Wonderful, filling, carbs with cheese. It would probably be better for him in the long run too. "Oh look! That one has fried veggies on a stick!" He dragged her over that way so they could investigate. "Looks like eggplant, carrots, mushrooms...I'm getting it." He went into his pockets to dig out the cash they'd pulled from the ATM earlier so he could pay. "What about you? Enticed?"

“You’re pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you? I guess I’ll try the fried veggies, and maybe a couple of the potatoes. Ugh, why’d I agree to go on this show? If I’m going to be eating nothing but junk food...maybe I should have stayed home. Oh, and you don’t have to pay for all of it. I have money too.”

"I'm just happy to be eating right now, and with those hunters..." He shuddered a little. "I'm not worried about gaining weight, that's for sure. It's one night of indulging. It won't hurt you. You're super hot babe." He looked down at her and met her eyes briefly, took a moment to check her out again because wow she was so much hotter in person than he ever could have imagined, and then looked back up at the menu. "Anyway, what kind of a boyfriend would I be if I didn't pay for my girl? You can get the next one."

“Thanks. And you’re right, we should be eating now while we have a chance. Those hunters scare the hell out of me. Who knows when they're going to pop up?" She glanced around before continuing. “Besides, I didn’t eat all day, so I guess one meal of fried food won’t hurt...” She broke off when she noticed him staring at her. “Toby, why do you keep staring at me? It’s not like you didn’t know what I look like.”

He shifted as she caught him staring and he quickly averted his eyes to somewhere, anywhere else. "I've always thought you were super gorgeous, beautiful, hot, sexy, awesome looking. Even more so now that you're four dimensional, well, maybe five now because I can touch you, and taste you, I mean..." He blushed. 

He shouldn't even be thinking beyond the hand holding cuddling stage, but for so long he'd been wondering what it would be like to touch her and kiss her. Especially kiss her. He'd always wondered what that would be like in general. "It's different, but um. I'll stop now. Food." 

He got back on track. "We'll find something non-fried to balance it out or whatever."  He bit his lower lip, "You don't think the hunters will come again tonight do you? I mean, Chance said we got the night off, but...I don't know how much I trust him."

Oh crap. She’d upset him. She grabbed his arm. “Toby, I didn’t mean it like that! I wasn’t trying to be mean. Damn it, I’m totally screwing this up, aren’t I? I mean, I like you staring at me...ahhh this isn’t coming out right! It’s totally different than talking to you online and I kind of don’t know what to say...I don’t know if I should touch you or if it would freak you out, you know?”

He took his eyes off the menu board to look back down at her again. "Babe, you're my girl. Whatever you want it's yours. Do with me as you please. I meant it when I said I'm yours. You honestly think I'm going to freak out on you?" He laughed, "Trust me. I'm cool. I just wasn't sure if you were. I mean, this isn't how I was planning on meeting you. I wanted it to be a little more romantic. But...carnivals are pretty romantic. And I think there's a tunnel of love ride too." Was that too forward of him? He didn't know, but they had been dating for six months. He would have made out with her via computer screen if he didn't think it was weird as hell.

“That’s good to hear. Sooo...carnivals are romantic? I’ve never really thought of them that way . . . more as a source of terror, as proved today. But maybe you can show me a different side of them?”

"I can try," he said. "Back home this kind of thing is huge. They come and set up, it's a three day event." He finally was able to get the food and pay. With a gentle hand, he led her off to the side. He immediately started to devour the fried veggies. "Ugh, this is like heaven right now."

She reached for one of the fried veggies and tentatively bit into it. “These aren’t as bad as I thought they would be. The closest we have back home is a theme park. Although, they do have a carnival every once in a while in San Jose, which isn’t far from where I live. It’s mostly food and games...nothing compared to this.”

"Theme parks are nothing to the real deal." He grinned, determined to make this a great time for them both and to make the most of it. If he didn't think about the game, about the hunters, about anything else having to do with what brought them there, then he couldn't let it spoil the fun. "Okay, so we need the panda." He pointed to the basketball hoop game. "Ya know, I've never been to a theme park."

“Are you serious? That sucks. I mean they’re not all that great, but everyone should go at least once in their lives. The one in Santa Cruz has rides, games, shopping, food, mini-golf...but when I go, I spend most of my time in the arcade.”

"I was supposed to go to King's Island once with my family, but I ended up getting food poisoning. While everyone else left, I stayed home with my grandma and puked my guts out,” he said as he finished wolfing down his food. "Fun times, let me tell you. We were supposed to go again this summer, but I kind of screwed that one up big time. It sounds like fun. You should take me sometime." He nudged her playfully. "Show me what I'm missing out on out in the country."

“That doesn’t sound like fun. I don’t know much about the rest of the country, but I can show you around Santa Cruz. That is...if you want to come see me when this is all over.”

"Uh, hell yes I do!" He wanted to be anywhere she was, and anywhere that was far away from home. He hated home. "Unless you think I'm annoying and you don't want to bring me back with you. I bet I could fit in your suitcase or something if I tried hard enough. You could sneak me in."

She grinned. She liked the idea of him being at her house. “Of course I don’t think you’re annoying! And I wouldn’t have to sneak you in. My mom wouldn’t mind if you came to visit. In fact, I can guarantee she’d say you could stay as long as you like. She’d probably think you’d be a good influence on me!”

"Really?" He smiled at that. He liked that her mom liked him and them together. His parents always sort of rolled his eyes and hoped he'd grow out of the Internet stage, but they never understood. They thought she was sweet and pretty, but they didn't like that she wasn't physical. But now she was.

He stopped at the basketball game and gave the attendant some tickets. "Alright. One panda coming right up." And with ease and the near perfect form that earned him his position as starting forward, he dropped the ball into the net five times in a row. He pointed to the panda, which was fairly large, but not so big she couldn't carry it easily in her arms. He made sure that she was holding it before he kissed her cheek just in case she'd try to slap him or something. "Now you can cuddle with it and think of me. Since...I mean...it could be a lil bit before we..." he swallowed. This wasn't fair. At all.

Her hand flew up to touch where he had just kissed her and she almost dropped her new panda. She smiled at him, but she felt like she wanted to cry. “It’s not fair!” she finally said, feeling a little like a five-year-old throwing a tantrum. “None of this is fair. I hate that we had to meet like this, on this stupid show...I mean, I’m glad that we finally met, but I definitely wouldn’t have planned it like this. And now we’re going to be separated!”

"We can try to keep meeting? I can help you!" he insisted. "We can leave each other clues and hints online. I duno. Anything!"

“That’s a great idea! I mean, we’re basically going to be in the same places at the same time anyway, right? We can sneak away after the challenges like we did tonight!”

"Yes!" He liked this idea. The more time he could spend with her the better. "So now you have your panda. How about a ride?" He wasn’t kidding about the tunnel of love, but he didn’t know if he should suggest it or something else. He did want this date to feel normal though.

“Sounds good to me. What did you have in mind? Please, no roller coasters or anything like that. I don’t really like heights.”

"Then that rules out the Ferris wheel." He snapped his fingers. "We have a carousel, looks like a haunted house ride but id rather stay away from all things houses right now. The tunnel of luuuuurve." He made a dorky face at that one. "Scrambler, the octopus, and the spinning strawberry thing."

She hesitated for a moment. Would it be too forward of her to suggest the tunnel of love ride? She kind of liked the idea of being alone with him in the dark...“Whatever’s the quietest ride, I guess. I kind of need to relax a little after the fiasco of the fun house.”

"So let's go on the tunnel, quiet and dark." He paused unsure if this is her indirect way of saying she wanted that kind of time with him. "And no pressure, promise." He was just happy to touch her instead of a computer screen.

She was glad that he had suggested it instead of her. “Sounds good to me. But what are we going to do with the panda?”

"Panda can make sure we don't get too frisky. Plus I think there's a back seat anyway." He waggled his eyebrows playfully. Maybe he was getting a little too excited. His fingers interlaced with hers again and he led her towards the ride, his tickets ready.

*This is a collaborative story between Brea Essex and J.F. Jenkins (Team Introv3rsion). To read Part Two, please visit http://introv3rsion.blogspot.com/

The "Fun" House

            “You have now arrived at your destination,” the tinny voice of the GPS blared into the silence that permeated the car.

            “About damn time!” Adrian muttered.

            “Just shut up, Adrian! I’m sick of your complaining,” Moira told him.

            “I’m sick of you complaining about my complaining,” he shot back.

            “Oooh, that was original.”

            “Get off your damn computer so we can get the hell out of this car,” Adrian demanded.

            “I would get off the damn computer if I could just find a damn WiFi hotspot so I could email my boyfriend! I haven’t heard from him in a little while,” Moira admitted.

            “I’m sorry, Moira,” Lily said.

            “Don’t feel sorry for me! There’s nothing to feel sorry for.” She was starting to feel a little hysterical. Not necessarily because she hadn’t heard from her boyfriend, but because she wasn’t exactly sure they were going to be facing at this carnival, and that was starting to scare her. She didn’t like carnivals to begin with, and this was probably going to make it worse.

            “Sorry,” Lily said again as she climbed out of the front seat of the car and slammed the door behind her.

            Moira gave up on trying to find an Internet connection. She sighed and shut down her laptop, carefully stowing it away in her bag. Everyone else had already gotten out of the car, and they were standing around waiting for her.

            “So, now what?” Jesse asked once they had stowed their excess things in the trunk.

            “Maybe someone’s here to tell us where to go?” Lily offered.

            “Right you are, Ms. Rayne!” Chance Cagney, the host of the show, appeared as if out of nowhere.

            “Crap, man! Where’d you come from?” Will yelled, jumping away from Chance.

            “Oh, I was around. So, your challenge today is to make it through the fun house.”

            “That’s it?” Adrian asked, skeptical.

            “That’s it! However, you will meet with challenges while in the fun house, and of course you must evade the Hunters. There is a hidden door at one end of the fun house. You must find it, and then you will have the night off,” Chance explained.

            Moira perked up at the idea of having the night off. Maybe she could try her boyfriend again. She really wanted to hear his voice. “Just get through the fun house, avoid the Hunters, and get out? Then we have the night off?” she repeated. It sounded almost too good to be true.

            “Yes, but beware—in the fun house, things aren’t always what they seem. Good luck!” With that, the host walked off again.

            “What’s that supposed to mean?” Lily asked with a frown.

            “I think it means that we’re going to have a lot harder time in the ‘fun’ house than we think,” Jesse answered.

            “Can we just go find the damn fun house and get this crap over with?” Will cut in.

            “He’s right, let’s get this over with,” Moira said. She didn’t want to let on how scared she actually was about the prospect of being trapped in that fun house. She really hoped there wouldn’t be any clowns. She had been terrified of clowns ever since she had watched the movie “It”.

            It took them a few minutes to locate the fun house. “I don’t know how we didn’t see this thing from across the carnival,” Adrian muttered. It was a huge, gaudy red and yellow striped tent. Music spilled over them in waves as they stood staring at the entrance. Strangely enough, no one else seemed to be around.

            “What, did they reserve this thing specifically for us?” Moira wanted to know.

            “Adrian, I’m scared!” Lily wailed.

            As Adrian turned to comfort his sister, Moira rolled her eyes. She was scared too (hell, she was terrified!) but she couldn’t let it get to her. Just go in, get through it, and then you’ll be done, she told herself.

            Will was giving her a strange look. “What do you want?” she demanded.

            “Nothin’. You just don’t look so good,” he told her.

            “Thanks,” she muttered, then raised her voice so the whole team could hear. “All right, let’s get in there and get this over with.” She marched inside, not bothering to see if anyone was following her.

            Once inside, the music was even louder. The lights were dim, strobes flashing everywhere. An unnatural fog permeated the tent. Must be a fog machine, Moira thought to herself. The smell from the machine was already giving her a headache. There were mirrors everywhere, and she didn’t know which way to go. “Which way should we try first?” she tried to yell over the music and creepy sound effects.

            There was no answer. She turned, thinking that maybe they hadn’t heard her . . . but her teammates were all gone. Moira swore violently. She hadn’t liked them, but this was the last place that she wanted to be left alone in.

            She called out for her teammates, but received no answer. Finally, she thought she heard Lily’s voice calling for her. She could barely make it out over the din.

            She ran toward where she thought Lily’s voice was coming from. She kept running into mirrors and dead ends. All the reflections of herself were beginning to make her feel a little crazy. She turned a corner, and instead of finding Lily, she found someone, something else . . . a clown. It wasn’t a garden-variety children’s birthday clown. No, this one had sharp, serrated teeth—and it was holding a knife that was dripping something steadily onto the floor.

            Moira’s scream ripped from her lungs as she turned and fled as fast as she could. Oh God, did that thing kill Lily? She ran smack into a mirror, ricocheted off of it, and collapsed on the floor. The mirror had splintered where she hit it, and there were glass shards scattered all around her. She couldn’t stay on the floor! She picked herself up off the ground, slicing her palms on the glass fragments, and began to run again.

            Something slammed into her from behind and she tripped, falling against a wall this time. She didn’t fall to the floor—something was keeping her up. She tried to turn, only to find a closed door behind her. She was trapped in some sort of metal cylinder. She jiggled the handle on the door, but it wouldn’t turn. She started pounding on the walls, screaming for someone, anyone to come and let her out. The walls were so close that she could barely lift her arms. It seemed like they were barely three inches away on all sides.

            Adrian heard Moira screaming. “Hold onto us, Lil,” he ordered his sister. She complied, grabbing one of Adrian’s hands, and taking Jesse’s hand on the other side. Will had disappeared the minute they set foot into the tent.

            “Wh-wha-what do you th-think is g-g-going on?” Lily asked, her voice quavering. Her whole body was shaking.

            “I don’t know,” Jesse answered her. “But we need to stick together if we’re going to get out of here.”

            “Did you hear that?” Adrian asked.

            “Hear what?” Jesse wanted to know.

            “It sounds like Moira calling for us.”

            “Hold on just a minute.” Jesse held up his free hand, palm facing upward. He stared at it for a moment, until a small flame erupted, dancing merrily.

            “Great idea, man. We need some light in here besides all these crazy strobes. I feel like I’m in a techno club,” Adrian told him. He started dancing until Lily elbowed him.

            “Adrian! This is serious! We have to find Moira and Will and get out of here!” she chided him.

            He winked at Jesse above her head. He had just been trying to take his sister’s mind off their situation. “Of course. Sorry, Lil. Let’s go.”

            They began to move in unison, hunting for their other teammates. The mirrors were disorienting, and the fire rising from Jesse’s hand threw back strange reflections.

            A loud whirring sound reached their ears. “What the hell?” Jesse asked.

            It was coming closer. Adrian looked around for the source of the noise—and saw a chainsaw reflected in one of the mirrors. He caught a flash of a suit. It was one of the Hunters. He didn’t know if they were supposed to hurt them, or just scare them, but he wasn’t taking any chances. “Lily, don’t look. Just run!”

            Still holding hands, they bolted through the maze of mirrors. They could hear footsteps behind them. Jesse tried to shoot some of the fire in his hand back at whatever was chasing them. It didn’t seem to reach. Adrian tried to pull some of the electricity from the strobe lights, but that just made the building darker.

            “What the hell is that growling noise?” Jesse shouted over the sound of their flight.

            “What growling noise?” Adrian slowed down. “Hey, I don’t hear the chainsaw anymore.”

            “But do you hear that?” Jesse pointed, letting the fire go out.

            Adrian looked where Jesse was pointing. There was a giant black panther clawing at a metal cylinder. They could hear Moira shrieking and banging inside. “Oh crap, it’s gonna kill her!” he yelled.

            The panther stopped what it was doing briefly and looked at them, then it returned to trying to shred the metal.

            It finally broke through and Moira came tumbling out. She ran over to where Adrian, Lily, and Jesse stood. The panther collapsed on the ground. It blurred, and then Will was lying on the ground in its place.

            “What the hell?” Adrian exclaimed.

            Will looked up from the ground. “It was the only way I could find her.”

            “What’s that supposed to mean?”

            Moira leaned against the wall, trying to steady herself. She had worked herself into a frenzy inside that hollow tube, but she couldn’t let them know that. Suddenly, she felt herself falling. She landed on the ground once again, this time with sunlight spilling over her face.

            “Oh my God, we’re free!” Lily shrieked excitedly.

            “Right again,” Chance Cagney said, stepping around the corner. “You managed to get away from the Hunters, and you got out of the fun house. Great teamwork everyone!”

            Will wanted to rip the stupid guy’s throat out, but he knew that wouldn’t help anything. “So we have the night off now?” he growled, his voice still thrumming with the aftermath of his shapechange.

            “Yes, you are all free for the night,” Chance told them. “Further instructions will come in the morning.” He turned abruptly and walked away.

            “Thank God that’s over,” Lily commented.

            “Yep. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m getting the hell out of here!” Moira exclaimed and disappeared around the corner.

            “Should we go after her?” Adrian asked.

            “Nah, I’m sure she’ll be okay. We’ll find her later,” Jesse told him. “Let’s go find some food!”

            Will wasn’t sure she would be okay. He had seen the look on her face when she came falling out of that tube. He made a note to keep an eye on her in the coming days to make sure she didn’t have a nervous breakdown or something.

TO BE CONTINUED . . . 

Escape! Challenge One

            Adrian woke with a splitting headache. He was lying with his face pressed against unfamiliar bedding and his eyes felt gritty. He began to lift one hand to rub at his eyes, but something stopped him. “What the hell is going on here?” he wondered aloud as he tried to yank his wrists apart.

            “Adrian?” his sister Lily’s quavering voice came from across the room. “Are you there?”

            “Yeah, Lil. Are you okay?”

            “I think I’m tied up. I can’t move very well,” she responded.

            “Me too. Hey Jess, you here?”

            His best friend’s voice drifted up from the floor. “Yeah man?”

            “You have a knife?”

            “I don’t know. Let me try and check my pockets.”

            “Will you three idiots please shut up so we can try and figure out where we are?” another female voice called.

            “Who’s that?” Adrian demanded.

            “I’m Moira,” was all she said.

            “Yo! I gotta knife.”  A figure rose up from the floor, already untied. “I’m Will,” he explained as he began to saw through Adrian’s bindings.

            Adrian immediately ran over to check on his sister. Lily was crying, curled up on the bed as best as she could. She was wearing the tank top and shorts she had gone to sleep in the night before. “Adrian, where are we?”

            “I don’t know, Lil.”

            “I thought we weren’t supposed to leave until this morning! I thought Mom was going to take us to the airport! We didn’t get to say goodbye to her!”

            “Seriously! Will you quit your whining?” Moira cut in.

            Lily looked stricken. By now, Will had finished cutting everyone’s ropes and they were all moving to pick up their packs which lined one wall. “Lily, do you want to get dressed?” Jesse asked, holding out her bag.

            “Okay,” she nodded.

            “Then maybe we should let your brother get some clothes on!” Jesse laughed.

            Adrian looked down at himself, suddenly realizing that he was clad only in boxers. “Damn it! I knew I should’ve worn pants last night!”

            “I hope you remember to pack some!” Jesse joked.

            “Shut up, Jess!” Adrian shoved him and then helped Lily stand. “Anyone have a problem with my sister getting ready first?” he asked.

            “Just as long as she’s quick about it. There’s only one bathroom and five of us,” Moira said.

            “So, I wonder where we are?” Jesse wondered as the bathroom door closed behind Lily.

            Adrian rifled through his pack and dug out a pair of jeans. Pulling them on over his boxers, he headed for the window. When he pulled back the yellowing curtain, all he saw was a small parking lot and beyond that, unrecognizable buildings. “Well, there’s nothing out there that’s going to tell us anything. Maybe someone from the show will come by soon and explain why we were all abducted from our homes and tied up last night instead of flying out this morning like we were expecting.”

            When Lily emerged, Moira and Will were fighting over who got to use the bathroom next. “I’m a girl! I should get to go next!” Moira demanded.

            “But I’m about to piss my pants! Get outta my way!” Will pushed past her and slammed the door behind him.

            “What an jerk! My boyfriend’s going to kick his ass when he finds out about this!”

            “You have a boyfriend?” Lily asked tentatively.

            “Yeah. What, is that surprising to you?”

            “No. I was just going to say that it sucks you had to leave him behind.”

            “Oh. Well, technically, I didn’t leave him behind. I’m from California. He lives in Ohio,” Moira explained.

            “How did you meet?” Lily asked.

            “Do you always ask so many questions?”

            “Sorry! I was just trying to be nice.”

            Will finally came out of the bathroom and Moira raced in before anyone else could beat her.

            Jesse was the only one that remained in his sleeping attire. He wasn’t shy. He whipped off his pajama pants—almost taking his boxers with them—and pulled on some jeans. Moira came out of the bathroom in the middle of this process. “Oh gross. Couldn’t you have waited five minutes?”

            Jesse just shrugged. “Doesn’t bother me. I don’t see why it should bother you. It’s not like I was naked. Besides, I was hanging around in only my boxers for a lot less time than Adrian!”

            “Hey guys, what’s this?” Lily asked. She was standing by the lone bedside table.

            “What is it?” Jesse asked, coming up behind her.

            There was a remote control lying on the table with a note attached.  Turn me on, was all it said.

            Lily frowned and hit the “power” button. Everyone turned toward the TV.

            At first there was just static, but finally a figure appeared. The man looked to be in his mid-forties. His hair was beginning to grey.  He wore black-rimmed glasses.

            He flashed the camera a big grin. “Hello my little criminal masterminds. Or maybe I should say not-so-masterminds, since you all managed to get caught. After all, isn’t that why you’re all here?” he laughed.

            “Now, I’m sure you’re all wondering where you are, and how you got here. Unfortunately, this isn’t the time for explanations. This is the time to move. You will find a set of car keys on the table. Inside your car, you will find more supplies and instructions. That is, if you make it to your car. As soon as this video ends, you will have five minutes until the hunters come to find you. Good luck.” With that, the image faded and the television returned to static.

            “Move!” Adrian demanded. He lunged for his pack and Lily’s while everyone else grabbed for theirs.

            “What are the hunters?” Lily wanted to know. She was starting to look scared again.

            Adrian grabbed her by the shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Lily, I need you to be brave, okay? Can you do that for me?”

            She nodded. “I guess so.”

            They all ran out of the motel room and into the parking lot.  “Crap! Did anyone grab the keys?” Adrian asked.

            “Yeah, I got them,” Jesse told him.

            “You always have my back, man.”

            Jesse pressed a button on the key ring. A car beeped.

            “Awww hell no!” Will exclaimed. “I ain’t gettin’ in that piece of crap!”

            “We don’t have another choice, moron!” Moira reminded him. “Now get your butt in the car. I don’t know what these hunters do, but I’m not anxious to meet them.”

            Jesse tossed the keys to Adrian. “You drive.”

            “Anyone have a problem with that?” Adrian asked.

            No one answered. Adrian pushed the button to pop the trunk and they all tossed their bags in and piled into the car.

            “Now what?” Lily asked.

            “Just drive!” Jesse said.

            As soon as Adrian started the engine, the CD player came on. A voice came over the speakers. It was the same voice of the man on the TV.

            “Well it seems like you made it to your car. Congratulations. In the glove box, you will find a debit card. Use it wisely. You will also notice that your car, such as it is, is equipped with a GPS system. If you turn it on, it will direct you to your next destination, the Snowy River Carnival. Good luck.”

            Jesse was sitting shotgun. He opened the glove box and found the debit card. “Food?”

            “Yeah, let’s see what we can find,” Adrian agreed.

            Jesse turned on the GPS. “Well, at least now we know where we are.”

            “Where?” Moira asked.

            “Colorado.”

            “Damn! That’s hella far from where I live!” Will said.

            “Where are you from?” Lily asked.

            “East Side San Ho!” he made a gesture with his hand.

            “What?” Lily looked confused.

            “What is that, a gang sign? I think he means San Jose, California,” Moira explained.

            “How did you know that?”

            “I’m from Santa Cruz. It’s right by San Jose.”

            “We’re from California too,” Adrian offered as he pulled out of the parking lot.

            “Oh yeah? Where?” Moira asked.

            “Los Angeles,” Lily answered for him.

            “All three of you?”

            “Yep! Adrian’s my brother, and Jesse’s his best friend. He’s practically my brother too.”

            “Well, they weren’t very original when they chose our team,” Moira said.

            “What do you mean?” Jesse asked.

            “We’re all from California.”

            “So, Moira, Will, what did you guys do to land you on this show?” Adrian asked.

            “Why don’t you tell us what you guys did first?” Moira asked.

            “Fine. I stole a car, Jesse set something on fire, and Lil tried to steal a shirt. Happy?”

            Moira rolled his eyes, which Adrian didn’t see. “Oh please. At least I did something worthwhile!”

            “Which was?”

            “I tried to keep an evil company from torturing helpless animals.”

            “What, are you a vegetarian?”

            “Actually, I am. Someone has to speak for those with no voices. And why would I eat those I’m trying to speak for?”

            “Oh jeeze. What about you, Will?” Adrian asked.

            “I stabbed someone,” Will said shortly.

            “What? Why?”

            “Gang fight.”

            “You’re in a gang?” Lily asked incredulously.

            “Was. Quit to come on this. I’m surprised they didn’t kill me.”

            They all fell silent at this revelation.

            “Hey, McDonald’s!” Lily exclaimed, pointing.

            “Is that okay with everyone?” Adrian asked.

            “I don’t eat fast food,” Moira informed them.

            “Girl, I don’t think you gotta choice,” Will said.

            “Fine, but there had better be options with no meat.”

            “We’d better be careful with this card. The hunters might be able to use it to track us,” Jesse said.

            “Good point. Let’s go in and see if there’s an ATM. Plus, it’s easier to look at the menu that way,” Adrian said.

            He parked the car and they all climbed out. Ten minutes later, they all emerged, carrying bags and drinks.

            “What do you think is going to happen when we get to this carnival?” Lily asked as they pulled back onto the road.

            “I don’t know Lil,” Adrian told her. “I guess we’ll find out when we get there.”

TO BE CONTINUED . . .