Rainbow Road [Super Mario Bros.]

16

After a shower and some stretching, Luigi was feeling much better, so the bros decided to check the motel out.

Besides the domed ceiling and the magic trick with the walls, the main feature of the room itself was the Hospitality AI interface on the wall. Since this was a moving motel, every activity in this place had to be scheduled, and the interface had a program where you could block out times for meals to be delivered, for housekeeping to come in for cleaning, for check-out, and for access to the common room, all according to where your capsule happened to be in the rotation.

Mario took a moment to examine their room's nearly empty schedule: it looked like housekeeping would be coming in to clean tomorrow at 9 AM. In addition to this, there was a system alert in the bottom corner reminding them that the next time they could expect a delivery for room service was 7 PM, but they had to put the order in now. Mario did so — a couple of steaks and blackberry ginger ale — and they pondered the common room.

"It says it's got exercise equipment, a small cafeteria, a bar, and TVs," Mario said. "Want to check it out after we eat?"

Luigi concurred, so Mario scheduled for them to be sent down at 8 PM.

They watched some TV while they waited for room service to arrive, and it did right on schedule: at 6:58, the Hospitality AI announced, "Room service!" and Capsule 29 slowed and then stopped moving. Then came a knock on the door. When Mario opened it, instead of seeing the operational booth and Rainbow Road, he opened it to a wall, and what looked like a drive-through window; beyond, cooks were working in a steaming hot kitchen. A Shy Guy peeked over the counter.

"Two steaks, two blackberry ginger ales?" He pushed a giant takeout bag at them and shut the window. Mario also shut the hotel door, and the room started moving again a moment later.

They watched a rerun of an old Smash Tournament on TV while they ate, and after they'd had their fill, they waited for their chance to go down to the common area. Eventually, the Hospitality AI said, "Common room!", and the room came to a halt once more. The bros went and opened a door, and this time they faced an elevator, which opened for them with a pleasant ding.

The bros stepped inside, and the elevator took them down. A moment later, it opened into a wide, carpeted space filled with people, sofas, sound, and the scent of cooking meat. Mario and Luigi piled out and looked around. Then they glanced at each other.

"Kind of cool," Mario said.

"Yeah, but it kinda feels like a maze," Luigi said. "You know how to get back, right?"

Luckily, there was a giant screen on the wall that displayed a directory of the place: it showed the Orbital Motel moving in real time, and whenever someone's capsule room moved back into the twelve o'clock or six o'clock position, an announcement went out over the loudspeaker, telling them to report to the elevators to be taken back to their room.

The place was chock full of Rainbow Walkers, including Daisy, who was hanging out with a bunch of them over near a pool table. She grinned when they came up. "Took you guys long enough! What happened? You were the last ones to report in!"

Mario and Luigi exchanged a glance. "We were chasing a criminal," he explained. "Long story."

Daisy raised a brow. "Oh right, I heard about that... Nabbit, right?"

Luigi twitched. Had she seen the video?

Daisy handed Mario a set of Uno cards. "Well shuffle that and tell me more about it."

They set up a folding table not far from the bar, and while Luigi busied himself with cutting and shuffling the deck, Mario explained their run-in with Nabbit and their failed attempt to apprehend him. Daisy wasn't happy when he finished.

"That oily rascal," she growled, chewing at her thumbnail. "I should call the Penitentiary and take the job of whoever that mongrel gave the slip!"

"If you took the job of every correctional officer that Nabbit has hoodwinked," Mario said, "we'd have a lot less law enforcement on the streets. Right now, I just want to focus on how I can get my hands on him, so I can enjoy the rest of the Walk-A-Thon in peace."

"Hear hear," Daisy said. "Any ideas?"

"Right now, we're trying to squeeze him. A blockade's combing the Road from below, and one's being set up to come down from Orbit City. He'll pop out somewhere, and hopefully we'll be there when he does."

"See that he doesn't throw anyone else through a tea shop window," Daisy said. Luigi went ramrod straight, his face red like a stoplight.

"You saw that?!" he cried.

Daisy snorted. "I think everybody on the Internet did—"

The younger Mario bro got up and bolted. Daisy stared after him, startled.

"That was mean," Mario said angrily.

Daisy ducked her head a little. "Sorry," she muttered. "I didn't mean to be insensitive. It was a joke... Why can't he have a thicker skin?"

"Jabs like that won't help," Mario said, voice clipped. "Especially when he's trying to redeem himself."

"He's going to try and take down Nabbit himself? How?"

"I don't know." Mario gathered up the Uno cards Luigi had spilled across the table, stacked them up, and began to deal Daisy a hand. "But I don't doubt he can do it. If he has the fortitude to hike this far up the Road by foot, he can apprehend Nabbit no problem."

—

Notes on the Orbital Motel:

- The schematic is actually not entirely accurate. The Motel is situated around Rainbow Road, and is not separate from it.

- Elevators are at the 12 o'clock (going down) and 6 o'clock (going up) positions. When Capsules stop at these positions, guests are able to take the elevator up or down to the common room.

- The Motel is constantly starting and stopping to facilitate scheduled stops that the guests input into the Hospitality AI.

- Capsules freely rotate, so that the door to the hotel room faces whatever dock it shifts into. They also do this so that the floor always remains below the guests (if it was locked into place, the floors would rotate upside down. Basically, it operates like a Ferris wheel, so that you're always right side up).

- Unless the Capsule is docked at an elevator port, the kitchens, or the operations booth, the hotel room remains locked, and cannot be opened by guests.