Author's note: Sorry for the lag. I've been getting quite a bit of homework recently. Well, on with the story.
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Chapter 3: Luxury (?) Cruise
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FRIDAY 05:18 PM - S.S. TOYBOX
"This is a boring cruise," Clover said, looking out onto the ocean, "and I'm beginning to feel seasick."
"Don't stare at the waves, then," Arnold suggested. "If you do, you'll only feel worse."
Sam and I were busy looking around the deck. There were many people around us.
"I've got this gut feeling that something's wrong here," I told Sam, pulling a pad of paper out of my backpack. "I'm going to take a survey among the passengers. I'll be right back."
I went around, questioning the passengers about their names, what trivia questions they were asked, and why they knew the answers. A pattern showed up quickly. Look below, and you'll see what I mean.
Arnold. I was asked what ion supplies energy for atomic explosions (the Uranium 2-35). You know how much of a chemistry geek I am.
Mandy. I was asked about Fashion Weekly, which, as you know, I'm a reporter for.
Dinah. I was asked what the initials of the BHA programming language stand for (Butt-Head Astronomer). I was a computer programmer on my most recent job, so it was a snap.
Ivan W. Aller. I was asked what the first license plate ever made said. I'm a used car dealer who researches a lot of that stuff, so it wasn't a problem.
Jacob Merdo. I was asked how much chocolate was used in the original Toll House Cookie recipe. I'm a cook at a diner, so I knew this one in a snap.
"… and Jason and I were both asked about video games, which we're really good at," I explained to Sam once the polling was done. "See what's going on here?"
Sam nodded. "Every trivia question was asked to someone who knows a lot about the subject at hand. Someone wants a lot of tourists to visit Toy Island."
"Exactly. Though I'm still not sure why."
At that moment, a voice came over the loudspeaker. "We will be arriving at Toy Island in ten minutes. Be prepared."
The familiar Toy Island jingle began to play. "This is Toy Island, full of toys / For all the girls and all the boys / The carnival is lots of fun / So get together, everyone."
"I don't know what's making me want to throw up more," I heard someone mutter, "the rocking of this cruise ship or that stupid jingle."
05:30 PM - TOY ISLAND PIER
The S.S. Toybox finally reached the pier, and anchored. Tourists poured off the cruise ship like water from a pitcher. We were among them.
We were greeted by six people dressed like the toy soldiers we saw in the Toy Island commercial. There were three male soldiers and three females.
"Welcome to the Toy Island amusement park," one female greeted us. "We're the toy soldiers, built by Dan Ti himself to make your visit to Toy Island more enjoyable."
"If you're lost, just look for us," a male added. "Stop by the information booth to get your maps of the place, and be sure to stop by Toy Tunnel in the castle quadrant."
Clover and I both got maps. Just like Jason had said, the park was divided into a main plaza in the south, a giant toy store in the east, a board game area in the west, and a toy block castle in the north.
"We want to go to the board game area first," Arnold told Sam and me.
"Fine," I responded. "We're going to the toy store. We'll meet a little later near the castle's south turret. Let's go."
We left.
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What's next? You'll have to wait to find out!
