"All right Mr. Shane, rest assured our work will be completed on schedule and you and your friends will be given entry shortly." explained a formally dressed man.
The Shange gang's hideout was sturdy and provided a safe haven to both members and their slugs. However, according to Kord, who was the group's go-to for most things tech related, it was time for an upgrade.
Their security features were being reassessed and replaced by 'Eastern Tech', a security company that's well known for its reputation and success. Employing them to evaluate the hideout meant that for the next little while they would have to find a new temporary home.
"All right, has everyone packed their bags?" asked an overly energetic Eli, whose attitude did not match the fact that everyone was awake in the middle of the night.
"You're way too excited about this," noted Kord, who was still feeling a bit groggy from having to wake at the odd hour.
"I can't help it, I've never stayed at a hotel in Slugterra before. I'll miss the hideout but it'll be nice to have a change of environment." agreeing with Eli, Burpy chirped excitedly next to him.
Pronto sighed, it was clear he didn't share the same enthusiasm as his teammate. "Well did we have to get up this early? We Molenoids require our beauty sleep."
"It can't be helped, 'Eastern Tech' needs access to the space for their installations, and they'll be here soon, so I suggest we start heading out," said Trixie.
After placing their belongings in the back, they rode their vehicles down to the city where their hotel, 'Slug Hosts Inc.' was located.
"Well this place certainly lives up to its reputation," admired Trixie as she recorded the welcoming scenery around her.
"I take it you're the Shane Gang?" asked a woman with a friendly expression on her face. She was wearing the hotel's uniform and had a bright smile to match her bubbly personality.
"We sure are!" said Eli.
"Terrific! Please follow me and I will show you to your rooms."
Due to how popular the hotel was, the Shane gang were only able to book two rooms, meaning they would have to pair up and share each room.
"Well here are your rooms, please feel free to let me know if you need anything else," she said as she handed the keys to Eli, going back to the lobby afterwards.
Kord and Pronto grabbed one of the keys while Eli and Trixie kept the other.
Kord was a heavy sleeper and could sleep through almost anything, combined with the fact that Pronto would often snore during the night, they decided to be roommates. Eli and Trixie on the other hand, were light sleepers and were woken fairly easily, they had paired up mainly because of this.
It was still very early so both pairs had time to kill.
"Wanna watch a movie?" asked Eli. During the storm, the gang had watched Kord's movie, and there hadn't been another opportunity for a movie night after that.
"C'mon Eli, we're at the famous Slug Hosts hotel. You don't really want to spend it cooped up in our rooms, do you?" responded Trixie.
Eli chuckled to himself, it was clear he wasn't going to be able to watch his movie today after all. "Alright, what did you have in mind then?"
The night before, Trixie had decided to dig a little into the amenities the hotel provided and already had a list of activities she was excited to try. "Let's head over to the pool!"
Slug Hosts didn't spare a dime in their aquatic recreational activities. There were luxurious cabanas, butlers, spas, wave machines, and a massive water-slide that stretched across the ceiling.
"This place really doesn't disappoint," said Eli.
"You can admire it later, let's hurry up and get in line," said Trixie as she grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the diving board.
Soon enough both were standing near the edge of the board, looking down, it was more than a 75 ft jump, and even with just a glance they could see how deep the pool below them was.
Glancing at how mesmerized Trixie was, Eli's mischievous side began to show.
"All right, what's the plan Shane? Should we do a backflip, a front flip, or a double handstand?"
The massive diving board itself was quite impressive, but another feature it had was the stunning camera that was positioned across it. Being one who was obsessed with all things camera-related, she had also read up on it before arriving at the hotel.
Because of this many who tried the diving board would try their best to pull off an impressive stunt during the drop in order to get a cool photo at the end.
But while Trixie was busy listing off some of the options they could do, Eli stealthily went behind her and gave her a light push from the back.
By the time she had figured out what was happening it was already too late, "You littl-," was all she could get out before falling down to the pool with a large splash.
Eli sooned followed after her, but given the fact that no one had pushed him, he was able to add a flip to his dive. Both of them had been captured on camera.
Walking back from the photography booth, Eli was the first to share his picture. It was timed perfectly and showed him having half-completed his flip.
Trixie on the other hand was more hesitant to share hers. However, Eli was quick to swipe it out of her hands and grabbed a peek. It captured a moment of her less-than-composed plummet at a humorous angle.
"You have made a grave mistake today Shane," she playfully threatened as she swiped back her picture from a still laughing Eli. Composed or not, she still wanted a souvenir from today. Though she probably wasn't super keen to show it to Kord and Pronto.
Eli feigned a scared expression at her threat. But both quickly got distracted when the screen on the wall lit up with a message, "The Wave Machine Will Start In 5 Minutes."
This time it was an excited Eli who was pulling Trixie. Around them other groups were together locking together elbows and hands, the point was to try and stick together when the waves began and to see if you could keep your hold on the other person.
They both gripped each other's hand tightly and eagerly waited for the waves to come.
They had started off strong, but once the frequency of the waves increased they began being pulled and pushed in different directions, till finally Eli lost hold of Trixie, and both got swept up in opposite directions.
Pulling themselves out, they grabbed a seat on the nearby tables to catch their breath.
"Phew, well that was fun," said Eli.
"We still have a little time before we need to head back."
"Yeah, any idea what you want to end off with?" he asked.
"Hmm, how about a surprise?"
"Work for me."
Soon enough Eli was walking with Trixie behind him, covering his eyes with her hands. She still wanted to get back at him before the day ended.
"Aaaand we're here," she said while letting him open his eyes.
The slide had caught her attention when they walked in and she also noticed that there was a slight twitch in Eli's eyes when he looked at it.
"O-oh the slide. You sure you don't want to do something else, Trix? Not that I mind or anything," he responded with a less than confident voice.
Urging him on, the both made it to the slide. "Don't worry, I read about it online. This'll be great."
"All right Eli, you head down first and I'll follow after."
"I don't know about this, maybe we should try something else."
"Don't tell me you're scared."
"W-what don't be ridiculous, why would I be scared."
She watched him slowly tiptoe towards the slide and her suspicions about his fear grew.
"He's terrified," she thought to herself.
But while Eli was still trying to calm his nerves, he didn't notice Trixie close the distance between them. Slowly she bent her knees and positioned her hands behind him.
With a swift motion she swooped Eli's legs and lifted him in her arms. She relished the look of shock on his face before stepping through the slide. She enjoyed his less-than-manly scream even more as they sped down.
Arriving at the bottom she let go of him and lifted herself over to the floor, doubling over in a fit of laughter while Eli tried to catch his breath next to her.
"Now we're even," she managed to get out with a grin across her face.
Eli couldn't help but laugh as well as the two went back to dry off.
Their hotel room was a lot less eventful. During all of their fun, they didn't notice how tired they had become. Once inside Eli was quick to doze off on the sofa while Trixie did the same on the bed.
During tomorrow morning's breakfast with Kord and Pronto, they decided to keep their antics to themselves. But as they drove back home it was clear neither would easily forget their first experience Slug Hosts.