Nimbasa Arc: A Day In The Amusement Park
After their city tour, it had already gotten dark and the girls decided to let the day be a day and end. They returned to the Pokémon Center and soon went to sleep as well.
The next morning, Mari bent over a still-sleeping Jacky. "Heheh... Let's see if I can scare the crap out of her with this... BOO!",
"WAAAAAH!" Jacky shot up. "In Arceus name, Mari! Did you have to do that?",
"If you don't feel like standing in line for a long time, then yes", she replied giggling. Jacky quietly grumbled something to herself before standing up and getting ready. "Well then, off to the park we go," she said when she was ready... though still a bit sleepy. Mari nodded. "Okidoki!"
They made their way to the amusement park, and even though it was quite early, there were already quite a few people in it. The park contained a giant Ferris wheel, a roller coaster, several hot dog and fast food stands, bumper cars, a candy kiosk, and all kinds of other stuff that was impossible to ride off in one day. Most noticeable was a large building that was lit up with spotlights. It bore the gym emblem. "Hey, look! So that's the gym over there." Mari pointed it out.
"Woah... it looks huge.",
"Not as huge as the Ferris wheel. Come on, let's go for a ride!",
"Okay!"
The two headed for the Ferris wheel, paid for a tour and got into a cabin. They had it all to themselves. As the cabin climbed higher, however, Jacky's fear of heights came back to her. She clung to the seat. "This is really high...",
"Hey! I can see Castelia City and the desert from here! Look!" While Mari looked excitedly out the glass window, Jacky crouched down and clasped her hands over her head. "IEEEK! I want to get out of here! It's w-way too high!",
"The gondola won't crash," Mari tried to reassure her. She saw two silhouettes heading for the Ferris wheel from the corner of her eye and looked back out. "Hey, those are the Pokémon from yesterday! Flygon and Vibrava!"
Flygon flew past the cabin and Vibrava followed it. Mari could see it draw a circle around the Ferris wheel and then stop just outside their cabin. "Raaaah!" Flygon nudged it playfully and Jacky whimpered. "Not so close! The cabin is wobbling!",
"You won't fall off!",
"Raaah!" The two accompanied the cabin on its way down and then, when they reached the bottom, they got out.
"Better?" Mari asked.
"Whew... Much better. Finally solid ground again...",
"You're green in the face.",
"Not true!",
"It's very much true." Mari waved at Flygon and Vibrava as they flew off with a soft cry. "It doesn't get any better on the roller coasters, trust me." Mari sighed and they made their way to the roller coasters. They were located in a building next to the gym. "I haven't seen an indoor roller coaster yet," Mari commented as she entered the building. Just looking at the routes made her dizzy. "I'm sure you'll get pretty shaken up on that one.",
"Scared?" Jacky asked coyly, but Mari threw a death glare at her. "Not one bit."
They went ahead as a roller coaster car looking kind of like a single cabin train stopped at the bottom. They got in and fastened their seat belts. As the cabin shot off as if stung by a Beedrill, Mari was pressed into the seat. "UAAAAAH!" She clung to the bar in front of her. "This is going way too fast! OH ARCEUS, LOOK OUT!" A hill came up and the roller coaster shot over it unperturbed and down the other side almost in free fall. A loop followed and they raced through at full speed. They kept shooting up and down, taking sharp turns, and two loops later the car slowed and stopped. When Mari got out, she staggered. "My head is spinning... It's enough to break your neck!"
Jacky, who had enjoyed the adrenaline, laughed. "Not scared, huh?",
"I wasn't scared! I just... didn't expect it to be like that!",
"It's a roller coaster. What did you expect it to be like? A train ride?",
"Oh, Mari. You're funny. So, where to now? Are we going for another ride?",
"I'd rather not." Mari shook her head and already headed for the exit.
"Look over there!" Jacky pointed to a building labeled 'Adventure Mansion'. "That's where you go in with your Pokémon and then, you have to find your way out!",
"Something like an escape room?",
"Sort of. I think.",
"That sounds cool. I hope it's not a mirror maze, I'd be running into the walls all the time." Jacky laughed. "Hahah... Luxio, come out!" Her Luxio appeared next to her and brushed its paw.
"Zorua, we'll do it together." Maris Zorua jumped on her shoulder and she had to laugh as well. Together, they entered the adventure mansion. A staircase led up, then the hallway split. "Okay, I'll go to the left", Jacky determined.
"Alright, I'll go to the right", Mari said and they parted ways.
Jacky slowly walked ahead until she ended up in a room full of mirrors. So it was a mirror maze after all. Wonderful. "Where is the way? All I can see is me..." She looked around. Mirrors were everywhere, reflecting her. She felt like she was being stared at by a thousand reflections of herself. Creepy. She decided to feel her way along the mirror walls, but her progress was slow. Several times, she almost ran into one of the mirrors or hit a dead end and had to turn back. "Oh, darn, I hate that kind of thing..." Luxio's ears twitched as the star on its tail began to glow and the light reflected off the mirrors. Only the spaces between the mirrors remained as they were. "Ah... well done, Luxio!" Jacky petted it and together, they made their way through the caustic maze of mirrors.
Mari had landed in a room that was dark. Nowhere did she see even a spark of light. "Wuh, you can't see anything in here... Hm..." She just walked straight ahead with her hand outstretched, and when she bumped into a wall, she felt her way along it. Even though it took almost an eternity, Mari found the path that led away around a corner to the right. Then, she bumped into a door with light coming from behind it. She pushed down the handle and pulled it open. She found herself in a room with nothing but an altar with a strange switch on it. Mari looked around. She didn't see a path anywhere that led on. "Is this a dead end or something...?" Zorua plodded past her and jumped onto the altar. It sniffed curiously at the mechanism. "Zoru!",
"Hm..." Mari walked over to it and looked at the switch. "...Maybe this one opens a hidden door or something... No one would bother to put a switch in here." Zorua looked up at her and Mari nodded. The dark-type Pokémon chuckled and pressed the switch with one paw. The lights in the room dimmed down as if by themselves, until they were so dim that one could barely make out anything. Then blue, other lights flickered on around them. "Huh?! What's that...?!"