The Rising Of The Anomaly - Chapter 184

Okay, so, uh…that was…that was something. The ride was over, and Katie and I were kinda bemused as we headed out.

“I wasn’t expecting it to be like that…,” She muttered, her eyes kinda wide.

Once the ride began, it was really jerky and rough, so that was kinda uncomfortable, and then the projectors turned on, flashing out images of blood and guts all around us, which all looked super realistic, along with pretty accurate audio, the sound of flesh being torn apart.

I’ve seen plenty of blood from my fights against Mutants, Wights and Prodigies, and I’ve killed plenty, humans included, so the images didn’t bother me much, though Katie seemed to be a bit nauseous. Most of the other people on the ride were screaming in horror, while some were exclaiming in disgust, I also heard a few people gagging.

And then, stuff started springing out from the trap doors I’d spotted, really gruesome and accurate looking corpse dolls…if it wasn’t for the lack of smell, I’d have been genuinely concerned that they were using real corpses…but I managed to grab at one, and it felt like rubber.

After that, with proof that it was fake, the rest of the ride didn’t really bother me, though my back kinda hurts from how rough that ride was, it was way to bumpy…I guess that physically jarring us is a way to try and get us more scared and confused, but I just found it annoying.

“You were holding onto me pretty tightly towards the end…were you scared?” I asked Katie with a teasing smirk.

“No, it was a little creepy, but it didn’t really scare me…the visuals and sounds kinda made me feel sick though, that was really disgusting,” She groaned in response.

“In that case, how about we go for a more calming ride next?” I suggested, as we came across another map of the park.

“Yeah, that sounds nice…oh, how about this one?” She responded, pointing at a spot on the map.

I glanced at where she was pointing to and read out the name of the ride…

“Oh, one of those virtual 3D rides where it makes you feel like you’re in whatever setting that’s picked, huh? That’s kinda like a roller-coaster but for people that are afraid of actual roller-coasters, right?”

“Uh, well…I never thought of it like that. Huh, but yeah, the seats shake and stuff, but for the most part, you’re not really moving. Maybe the virtual setting is highly detailed and feels real?” She replied uncertainly.

“Only one way to find out…let’s go take a look, shall we?” I suggested with a smile.

“Yeah, okay, let’s check it out.”

…

Huh, so this is the place…it was a large, dome-shaped structure, and looks like it’s two tickets per person for entry. We handed over the tickets and headed inside, given the option of three settings…underwater, in the sky, or an active volcano site. Each setting had a different room, so once inside the dome, there were three rooms to choose from.

The ride lasts three minutes, and right now, the volcano one was currently active with about a minute left to go, while the other two were waiting on more people to show up before starting.

“Which one do you want to check out?” I inquired, as Katie mulled over the options.

“Let me see, uh…how about underwater? I can always fly in real life by having you carry me while using your jetpack, and the volcano one sounds cool, but something relaxing feels more appealing right now. Okay, yeah, let’s go with the underwater option,” She decided, after taking a while to weigh each of the options.

“Alright, then, underwater it is. Let’s go,” I responded, before taking a bit of initiative and grabbing hold of her hand, heading into the room with the underwater setting…

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“Huh, that was, uh…,” Frowned Katie, as we left the place after the ride ended.

“…really disappointing. They didn’t even use real imagery, that was all just really bad CGI!” I explained in dissatisfaction, “So not worth two tickets, the ride itself was really slow too, we might as well have been sitting on regular old chairs.”

“Sorry, I picked a really crappy ride, huh?” She apologized sheepishly.

“Why’re you apologizing? I mean, it’s not like I knew what it was going to be like either. And besides, complaining like this is kinda fun too, in a weird way,” I responded with a grin.

“Wait, really?” She replied in bemusement.

“Yeah, really…come on, give it a try,” I prompted her as I poked her cheek.

“Okay, uh…that ride was awful, the seats were swaying so slowly that I couldn’t ‘accidentally’ lose my balance and fall towards you! And the not-so-merry-go-round was crap too, but at least I got to hug you tight,” She remarked wryly, as she glanced at me from the corner of her eye.

I could feel my face starting to heat up…no, I’m not gonna get flustered so easily, let’s try a counter…

“Yeah, can’t deny that that was pretty nice, your breath was tickling and brushing against the back of my neck, and despite the surroundings, it was pretty nice and cozy with you hugging me so firmly,” I admitted in an attempt to see her flustered, though I was kinda also making myself feel embarrassed as a result.

“Wow…you look adorable when you try to play it cool and act like you’re not affected,” She smirked as she reached up and touched my face, “Yeah, your face is really warm.”

Well played, she got me…but I’m not giving up that easily, time to turn the tables…

“Guilty as charged, but you’re one to talk…just look at the tips of your ears, they’re bright red,” I countered, and before I could give it a second thought, found myself leaning down and impulsively giving the tip of her right ear a light nibble…

“Wh-wha…? Wh-where’d that come from?” She responded in surprise, her face turning red as I pulled away and realized what I’d just done.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that-…I mean, I did, but I shouldn’t have, that was-…,” I began to apologize.

“H-hey, I didn’t say that I didn’t like it…you just startled me, that’s all…,” She mumbled bashfully, before pulling my arm and dragging me towards another map of the amusement park, pressing her finger against another spot, “Um…let’s go here next, okay?”

“Uh, sure, which one is-…,” I started, before trailing off as I saw the name of the ride she was pointing out, reading it out, “Tunnel of Love…”

“I-it’s a two-person boat ride that goes through a long, dimly lit tunnel…,” She explained quietly, fidgeting slightly.

“Oh, yeah, I’ve seen these in old movies…but, uh, I don’t know how to row a boat, I’ve never been on one before,” I frowned, feeling kinda disappointed…not gonna lie, this sounds kinda appealing to me…

“Don’t worry about that, the boat moves on its own, it’s probably connected to a track or something. Unless you don’t want to, then we don’t have to-,” She replied, looking a bit nervous.

“Never said that I didn’t want to…in fact, it sounds pretty nice. Yeah, let’s go for it.”

“Really!? I-I mean, yeah, let’s go!” She responded eagerly, looking relieved and happy.

…she’s killing me here…

…

We made our way to the ride, which wasn’t crowded at all, much to my relief. The attendant informed us that the boat takes ten minutes to go through the tunnel, which was easily the longest of the rides in this amusement park…well, there’s also the ferris wheel, but I’d rather avoid that.

We then hopped onto a boat, before the attendant pulled a lever and the boat began moving, a slight awkward tension between the two of us…normally, silence between the two of us doesn’t bother me since she’s usually quiet, but she’s been really expressive, confident and talkative today.

And now, she’s all quiet and fidgety…and it was kinda making me nervous too. As we began to enter the tunnel, which was dimly lit with pink lights, I decided to break the silence…

“Hey, you okay? You look like something’s bothering you.”

“Huh? N-no, it’s not that something’s bothering me, per say…,” She responded as she averted her gaze, before taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling, a look of determination on her face as she stood up and sat next to me, “I’ve…got something I want to say to you.”

“Oh…uh, okay, what is it?” I asked her, starting to feel kinda nervous myself.

“Well, I-…remember when I asked you out, I said that I really liked you?”

“Y-yeah, I…I remember.”

“You see…that’s not quite accurate.”

Huh?

“I, uh…what do you mean?” I responded, as I felt my chest tighten, my mind flashing back to the last time I went to an amusement park.

“The truth is that I’m…that I’m in…I-I’m in love with you, Kilzachs-…ow!” She confessed, before I landed a light chop on her forehead, “H-hey, what was that for?”

“Oh, sorry, I just-…you really freaked me out for a sec with your phrasing,” I remarked sheepishly, before realizing what she’d just said, “Wait, back up a sec…could you repeat that?”

“H-huh? Y-you want me to-…hey, I had to really work up my courage for that! Take this instead!” She frowned with a pout, before grabbing my collar and kissing me…

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