Kid Sensation: Escape Room

Sadly, I've been swamped lately and didn't get as much writing done as I'd like. In part, I'm having to deal with a couple of Amazon things. (Big surprise, right?)  One's something that - per Amazon' rules - I can't talk about yet. The other is something I posted about: changes to Amazon ads that I didn't think would affect me, but they absolutely do. Now I'm having to restructure some things on the promotional/marketing side of the house, and it's taking longer than I anticipated. 

***Le sigh...***

Anyway, I thought I share an excerpt from an upcoming Kid Sensation book. As always, the usual caveats apply (i.e., hasn't been proofed, etc.)

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“Whose bright idea was this?” asked Smokey as he fumbled around in a corner.

“I believe it was yours,” answered Kane. Then, mimicking Smokey, he blurted out, “‘Let’s do an escape room. It’ll be fun…’”

Smokey chuckled. “You guys haven’t been having fun?”

“The first hour was fun,” I offered. “The last two have been a bit of a slog.”

“Agreed,” Kane noted, to which Smokey didn’t offer a reply.

As Kane had stated, we were currently in an escape room. Basically, we had found ourselves with a fair amount of time on our hands earlier in the day while hanging out with Atalanta and Gossamer (the respective girlfriends of Smokey and Kane), as well as my ex Electra and our android friend Li. However, rather than engage in one of our usual group activities – such as going to the movies or playing video games – we racked our brains for something new. That’s when Smokey suggested an escape room.

“Perhaps we should have included Electra and the others,” suggested Li, “and made it a team-building exercise instead of a boys-versus-girls competition.”

“I believe that was your idea, too,” I said to Smokey.

“No,” Smokey insisted, shaking his head. “I simply said we should divide into teams to make it interesting–”

“And then you suggested that the four of us pair up,” Kane interjected.

“Hmmm,” Smokey droned. “I guess that did kind of divide us into does and stags.”

No one countered that statement, although Kane’s comment wasn’t exactly true. In essence, Li was incredibly bright and had such a broad base of knowledge that anyone with him on their team would have an insurmountable advantage. Ergo, it was decided that he would participate as a member of both teams. So, although Smokey actually only suggested that Kane and I be his teammates, Li was automatically included.

That said, we all assumed that any escape room was likely to be child’s play for Li. That being the case, Li himself suggested that he simply go along with both teams to observe and socialize – not to participate. Everyone was fine with that, and it was decided that our team would go first. (And, needless to say, everyone agreed not to use their powers.) Three hours later, we were stuck in the fourth of five interconnecting chambers that made up this particular escape room.

The area we were currently in was designed to resemble a science lab. Per the clues, we were supposed to be looking for a lever that would open a door to the last room, but it was apparently well-hidden.

Annoyed, I let out a sigh of frustration. “Aren’t they supposed to just kick us out if we can’t solve this thing in a certain amount of time?”

“We paid for the premium experience,” Li reminded me, “which comes with unlimited time. However, we do have the option of simply giving up. There’s a button we can use to contact the game monitor and–”.

“No,” Smokey interjected fiercely. “We are not giving up, even if we have to stay here all…”

He trailed off as an audible click suddenly sounded and a rectangular section of nearby wall opened, revealing itself to be a door. We all looked at each other. At the time, Kane had been fooling around with a laser mounted on a lab counter, pointing the laser light at random objects around the room. Smokey had been playing with a magnetic floating globe, essentially trying to see how fast it he could make it spin without falling. On my part, in reflecting on an earlier clue about things “weighing in the balance,” I had been using various items in the room to try to balance a set of scales that was bolted to a desk.

In short, none of us knew who or what had triggered the opening of the door. That said, we were not about to look a gift horse in the mouth. (Plus, we could always ask Li about it later – he was sure to know the answer.) Moments later, the four of us were in the last room, laughing and congratulating ourselves as the door swung shut behind us. However, the second it closed, I began to sense that something was wrong. And then I realized what it was.

In alarm, I suddenly turned to Smokey and punched him solidly on the arm.

“Ow!” he yelped. “What the hell, man?”

“I didn’t feel anything,” I said, trying not to panic.

“Well, I sure did,” Smokey countered, rubbing the spot where I’d hit him.

“No, you don’t understand,” I explained. “When I punched you on the arm, I didn’t pick on any of your emotions. I didn’t feel your surprise, irritation, annoyance. Nothing…”

Kane and Smokey shared a glance, then Kane asked. “What are you trying to say?”

“I believe that what Jim is trying to convey is that this is not an escape room,” Li stated. “It’s a nullifier.”