As the group walked down the pathway further into the chocolate room, everyone was still a bit panicked. "What's going to happen to Owen? Are they going to fish him out in time?", Cameron said. "I'm surprised he went up that pipe. I never thought he would fit in there!", Heather scoffed. "Everyone, please, don't worry about Owen! He'll be perfectly fine...we think. But don't let that deter you from enjoying the rest of the tour: we've got so much more interesting stuff to see!", Chris reassured the group, who seemed to calm down. "As a matter of fact, here we are!"

The group stopped in front of what looked like some kind of dock, albeit a dock that was made completely out of hard caramel. Despite that, it didn't stick to anyone's shoes, leading Cameron to wonder what kind of magical properties this caramel had. Everyone else was wondering the same thing, and Cody even bent down to lick it to see if it was the real deal.

"Cody, I wouldn't do that: we've already had one casualty due to falling in the river today. I'd hate for there to be two". Cody heeded this and stood back up. "So, Chris, why are you showing us this dock? I like that it's made out of caramel, but there's not really"-Courtney popped her gum- "much else to it!"

"Patience, dear child, patience! You should know a thing or two about patience, given that you've been chewing that piece of gum for, what, three months now? Anyway, here it comes!" Chris retorted as he pointed to a tunnel. Out of that tunnel came a boat, but not just any boat: This boat was made entirely out of candy. It was bright pink, and it shone like a diamond due to the fluorescent lights beaming down on it from above. It was constructed with a tall front and a tall back, with a flat middle: It resembled a giant Viking ship made of candy, with carvings of Chris' head at the end of the boat. There were tons of benches throughout the ship, with interns occupying those seats. The interns in the boat were holding oars (five interns to an oar: these things were very big), and in the middle were seats designed for the four remaining families. There was a fifth set of chairs as well, but Cameron supposed they would go unused, since Owen and his mother were not joining the rest of the group in the rest of the tour. The boat, Cameron thought, looked amazing. He could not wait to get on.

"This, my friends, is the S.S Mclean! The interns and I spent months upon months crafting this thing, and we are quite excited to show it off for the first time. Don't worry, we have tested it rigorously, and this baby should stay afloat: it is made out of the finest hard candy money can buy, and we have yet to experience any problems. Hopefully one doesn't happen today. Anyways, hop in! We've got a lot to see!" Chris said.

"Daddy, I want a boat just like this!", Heather demanded as she got on the boat. "Actually, I want a boat like this AND some interns to help row! Actually, I want all that AND a chocolate river in our backyard! The regular river we have in our backyard is boring." Sir Watson dropped his jaw for a second, but then put it back in place. "Of course, darling. I'll see what I can do".

The rest of the group made their way on board, with some not taking a second glance at the intricate carvings on the boat, and some, like Cameron, admiring the amount of work that went into making this beautiful boat. Once everyone was seated, they all began to chatter to one another: The parents were once again making conversation amongst themselves, Courtney and Heather were once again insulting each other, and Cody was secretly playing on his phone. Chris took a look at Cameron, gestured for him to wait a second, took out a mug he had in his pocket, and dunked it into the river. Once he had a full cup of chocolate, he handed it to Cameron. "Here ya go, little guy, you look like you could use it. What have you been eating for the past year, dust? You're thin as a rail!" Chris asked.

Cameron greedily gulped three quarters of the chocolate down immediately, then handed the mug to Grandpa Joe, who finished it off. "Oh my god, this is the best chocolate I've ever tasted! How do you get it so creamy?" Cameron asked.

"Sorry, that's a Mclean secret. A magician doesn't reveal all his tricks", Chris said before turning his attention to the group. "Ok, now that we're all settled in, let's get this thing moving!" And with that, one of the interns up front whistled, and all the interns started to row in unison. The boat moved along the chocolate river just like a real boat would, and it had the advantage of smelling amazing as well. Everyone was amazed as the boat headed into a long, dark tunnel. Chris sat at the front of the boat and smirked as everyone looked around them and saw nothing at all.

"Hey, Mclean, where are all the lights? I thought you wanted us to see everything in here!", Courtney said. "Yeah, and where are we going anyway? If we're just going through a dark tunnel this whole time, this is gonna be lame!", Heather added. "Well, I think it's fun! I would just like to see-*pop*- where we're going, you selfish brat!" Courtney retorted. "You're just saying that because you want him to like you, gum-chewer!" Heather snarled back, and the two started bickering all over again. Cameron and Grandpa Joe rolled their eyes, and even Cody threw in a little "Would you two be quiet?", to no avail.

Mclean pressed a button on a remote he pulled out of his pocket, and suddenly the tunnel was filled with bright, multicolored lights that moved in a fashion similar to a disco ball. No one could tell where these lights came from, however: they seemed to be floating in midair. Everyone now saw that the tunnel was nondescript, with metal walls that were wholly unspectacular. As the boat began to move faster and faster, Cameron swore he saw something move on the wall, something almost inhuman. Judging from the gasps of the others, he assumed he was not the only one who did. Chris cleared his throat, and with a small smile, he began talking:

"There's no earthly way of knowing

Which direction we are going"

Everyone raised an eyebrow in confusion, but no one dared speak and interrupt Chris. They found this too bizarre to comment on.

"There's no knowing where we're rowing

Or which way the river's flowing"

"What in God's name are you saying, Mclean?", Sir Watson inquired, with a slight tremble in his voice. Cody had put down his phone, Cameron noticed, and was completely engrossed in what was going on. Chris did not answer, but instead kept on speaking:

"Is it raining, is it snowing

Is a hurricane a-blowing"

Suddenly, a scream. It was Heather. "Okay, now I'm sure I saw something on that wall! It looked like a giant disgusting bug!" Others nodded and said the same thing. Cameron was a bit spooked by this, but he didn't want to tell anyone. "Grandpa, this is getting pretty strange!", he leaned over and told the old man. "Yes, Cameron, strange but fun!", he replied. "Mclean, I want off!", Courtney's mother yelled at the man who was now chuckling wickedly at the front of the boat:

"Not a speck of light is showing

So the danger must be growing"

Heather was holding on tight to her father, who was breaking out in a sweat, which was ruining his pristinely-gelled hair. Courtney had started chewing her gum faster and faster, to the point where Cameron was afraid her jaw might fall off. Cody was the only one relatively unfazed by this: his eyes were wide open and his mouth was agape, but Cameron did not see any other signs of panic or fear in the boy's eyes. His father, on the other hand, was quite the opposite, as he was yelling at Mclean to stop the boat. Even Grandpa Joe, who had been quite enthusiastic about the ride a minute ago, was now clutching Cameron's hand tightly as he leaned over and said "What is going on here?" Chris was raising his voice, and when he said the next words he was practically yelling:

"Are the fires of Hell a-glowing

Is the grisly reaper mowing?"

"What in the-what is going on, Mclean? I swear I just saw a lizard crawling up the wall!", Mr. Jameson-Anderson inquired loudly. "I saw it too! It looked huge!" Courtney affirmed, at this point chomping on her gum. "Calm down, everyone, I'm sure there's a good explanation for this!" Grandpa Joe assured the rest of the group. The interns were now rowing at a frantic pace, and Cameron could feel the wind whip past his face as the boat went careening down the tunnel. Cameron had indeed seen what looked like a giant lizard munching on a fly on the wall, but he was staying quiet; Whether that was due to fear, shock, or awe, no one knew. "I feel like I'm gonna be sick!" Mrs. Lopez cried out. "I think I already am!", replied Heather. At the front of the boat, Chris was now standing up, and now he was in a full-on yell, with a maniacal smile plastered to his face:

"Yes, the danger must be growing

For the rowers keep on rowing!"

Everyone had a tight grip on to their seats, for the boat was moving at a breakneck pace; They could hear the chocolate rushing by as they sat glued to their seats. The interns hadn't even broken a sweat, yet they were rowing furiously. Everyone was shouting indistinctly at this point, either for Mclean to stop the boat, to slow the boat down, or to share what insane thing they had just seen on the wall. Cameron thought he saw a crocodile opening its jaws, but he wasn't sure. The lights had started moving around faster and faster, and it was getting increasingly harder to see due to the constant glare of the lights, combined with the speed at which everything was moving. Chris raised his arms towards the ceiling, and he said with an insane laugh:

"AND THEY'RE CERTAINLY NOT SHOWING

ANY SIGNS THAT THEY ARE SLOWING!"

"Chris, stop this damn boat! This has gone on long enough!", Heather yelled. "I don't know, man, I'm starting to dig it! It reminds me of Night at Killer Mountain 3: The Bloodening for some reason!" Cody stood up and said.

"Stop? Ok, we'll stop", Chris said, returning to his normal voice and demeanor. The boat came to a screeching halt, and Cody was thrown forward and landed on the floor with a bang. "We're near where we need to be, anyway! If you look to your left, you'll see the Whipping Room!" Everyone was silent, mouths wide open, terror on their faces, for what seemed like a good thirty seconds. "Daddy, when you buy my chocolate river, please don't put one of those freaky tunnels in there!" Heather told her father, who readily agreed. "C-Chris….what the hell was that?", Courtney exclaimed.

"Oh, that? Just a poem I read a little while ago. Thought you guys might enjoy it. It really spiced up the tour, I see! Did anyone wet themselves? I hope not!", Chris replied.

"But what about all those...things we saw on the walls? Were those real? They sure seemed like it!"

"No idea what you're talking about. Anyway, the Whipping Room!" Cameron looked at Grandpa Joe, who raised an eyebrow at him. They both share a chuckle, as if to say "That was insane, but it was also kinda interesting!"

"Here is where I make all my whipped creams! We have a bunch of interns who go hit the cans of cream with whips, and I think that is why we have the best whipped cream in the whole world!"

"But that's not how you make whipped cream!" Cody said as he peeled himself off the floor, looking no worse for wear.

"Of course it is! How else can you make whipped cream if you don't whip….the cream! It's obvious, really!" Chris replied. The door to the Whipping Room opened, and it was just as Chris described: a team of interns were hard at work using a bullwhip on giant buckets of cream. As the boat drifted along slowly, Chris suddenly motioned for the interns to stop rowing. "Here it is, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! Our next stop! I am super excited to show this to you! Please exit the boat in an orderly manner; no pushing or shoving! Courtney, Heather, that means you! I hope you enjoyed your ride aboard the SS Mclean, and be sure to thank the interns for doing such a great job rowing you guys here!" Chris said, in his best imitation of a flight attendant. Cameron and Grandpa Joe waved to the interns, thanking them for their job. In spite of Mclean's instructions, Courtney elbowed her way to be off the boat first. She stood there and said "Let it be known that I was the first one off the boat, therefore I was the first person to survive the boat ride of doom! I should add that to my record collection", to which everyone groaned.

Once everyone had left the boat, it sped off, leaving them in front of a giant set of steel doors with a sign over it that simply said "THE INVENTING ROOM". Chris opened the doors and said, "Well, what are you waiting for? Come on in!", with a little chuckle.

Well, there you have it! My longest chapter yet! I tried to do my best with the boat ride, and hopefully I succeeded in making it both accurate to the source material and in-character. As always, let me know if you have any suggestions, recommendations, etc. and I hope to see you again when I write about the Inventing Room! TUS