Not much to say here, except to enjoy this chapter - the longest one yet!

On our way to the Medusa roller coaster, we passed a little kid's coaster to our right. It had a simple layout, and it didn't go very high. Ahead was the entrance to Medusa. "It doesn't seem to be very crowded," remarked Rachel. "Maybe that's because everyone's eating lunch right now."

The queue line was a very short wait. When we got to the loading platform, there were only a few other people. The train itself was very open; there were eight rows with four seats in each, and the middle two seats of rows four and five were a bit larger and had two buckles for "larger guests". Rachel and I sat in front, Jake and Tobias sat in the back, and Cassie and Ax sat in row four. Coincidently, a fat couple did sit in row five. As we sat down (Rachel on my right), I noticed the man sitting in the row behind us. I attempted to subtly turn around to get a better look at him. To my surprise, it was the same man in his 40s that Jake and I had passed on our way out of the restroom. My eyes widened. He noticed me and smiled. "Hey! I know you!"

"Uh…" was all I could muster.

"It's okay," he reassured me. "I was just in a bad mood earlier."

"Um, nice to meet you," I sputtered.

I slowly turned back around. "Who was that?" Rachel asked.

"Someone Jake and I bumped into on our way out of the restroom."

"Oh," was her reply.

We now had a full car – or train, or whatever you want to call it. A crew member made sure all of our harnesses were fastened, and gave the operator the all-clear signal. The metal riveted floor at our feet separated into two parts and receded into the area below the train. Beneath that was a net – no doubts as to its function. At the same time the gate in front of Rachel and I opened up, and we were off. During the full 180° turn to the left, however, my watch beeped. It was 12:35! "Rachel!" I cried as we started the lift hill, "Ax and Tobias only have ten minutes left!"

"Not to worry," she assured. "We'll have plenty of time."

"I sure hope so," I replied.

The chain lift system took us up 150 feet into the air. Almost 4,000 feet of track lay ahead of us, and I knew we were in for a good time. The top of the hill was probably the worst part of the whole ride, though. For those brief moments, I knew what was coming (the drop), and while I knew it would be completely safe, there was still a feeling of foreboding.

We started our descent at 65 miles per hour, and I gleefully yelled my lungs out. Rachel had apparently put herself up to a challenge – she was sitting completely neutral, no screaming, facial contortions, or expression. I knew she was still having fun inside though. Behind me, I could hear screaming – one of those screams was probably Cassie.

Right after the first drop came a giant vertical loop. There was a dive loop to the left and a zero-G roll, and then we entered what was called a "Sea Serpent roll". Then we came to the mid-course trim brakes. Suddenly, we came to a jarring stop, which caught all 32 of us by surprise. Rachel broke her face for this operational anomaly.

"What's going on? Why did the ride stop?" she cried. Others on the train voiced their similar concerns.

"I want my money back!"

"Is this supposed to happen?"

"Now all we need is a news crew"

"Some'un git the mechanic up here!"

It then occurred to me that Ax and Tobias were in serious danger now. There was no telling how long we might be up here. I looked at my watch. It said 12:37 – no! – 12:38! It had just changed. For a brief moment I wondered if the six of us should all morph to escape the train, and then I realized how stupid that would be with everyone watching. We couldn't even talk to each other to discuss a solution when we were in different rows.

While everyone on the train was still voicing their displeasure, I heard a clanking sound to my left. A man was coming up the ladder! He was wearing overalls, a park t-shirt, and a baseball cap with the LA Angels team logo on it. He had a grey mustache and carried a toolbox. When they noticed him, everyone stopped talking.

"Hello, folks," he said. "Sorry for the trouble, but this doesn't usually happen. I'll just be a minute," and he proceeded to a little control box behind us that I couldn't see. We might not have a minute, I thought. The man continued: "These trim brakes here aren't supposed to entirely stop the train; they're just supposed to adjust the train's speed before continuing – Ah, there we go! Okay, y'all ready to continue?"

"Yes!" was the overwhelming reply.

"Allright, here you go!" He pressed a button, and we took off at the same speed we would have been going if we hadn't have stopped. I just realized how lucky we were that that didn't take as long as it could have.

"That man was so nice," commented the woman behind us. Well, yes he was, but I was disappointed that we didn't get to experience walking off the ride – that would have been fun.

Rachel resumed her stone face, and my excitement took over as I was enveloped in the fun of riding. The section of track after the trim brakes consisted of a twisting left-hand drop into a flatspin under the brake run. Then the on-ride photo was taken – Rachel still stone-faced – and we traveled through an inclined helix to the left before diving into the second Flatspin. There was a banked helix, a quick S-turn, and the final brake run. 100 yards later, we pulled into the station. Everyone waiting clapped (although I don't know why) and the metal floor came back up. I glanced at my watch again – 12:40. We were running out of time! Ax and Tobias had to get to a bathroom now!

We ran down the stairs to ground level and stopped for a brief glance at the photo counter before everyone else got there. Jake located our car on the monitors.

"There! Number 3405!" he shouted. My eyes quickly followed his outstretched hand to the screen. Rachel and I were in front. I was elated, she was bored, and the two people on her right (the screen's left) were having fun. Cassie had a look of pure terror on her face, but at least Ax looked like he was having fun. Tobias had his arms in the air, and Jake's eyes were closed. He looked like he was grimacing – neither smiling nor screaming. Other people were now starting to enjoy their photos, and the 40 year old man was buying his fiancée (I assume) a wallet photo.

After only twenty seconds of looking, Jake snapped into action. "All right guys, hurry!" he said urgently. "We need to find a bathroom!" My watch read 12:41:35. Could we make it in time?

And that is my first offical cliffhanger. I think there's going to be about two more chapters - maximum three - left.