Pen was feeling rather stumped.
What was supposed to just be a silly little competition for some silly little island has turned into a decade-long nightmare that he and the rest of the contestants of the Battle for Dream Island just *couldn't* wake up from. First off... he didn't win the island. That was his whole objective, the one point of his participation, and he couldn't do it. That... sucked. But that was all in the long, long, *long* ago, and so much has happened since then, that it felt like that was just *nothing*. Not only did he not win the island, but he also couldn't even mope about it in peace; immediately upon being eliminated, he was thrown into a cramped metal box and left to rot there until the end of the competition. There was a shot or two for him to rejoin, but he'd be unable to seize any of them. Then they were briefly let out for the finale... Only to be forcibly thrown back in, now with a bunch of other nobodies, upon failing to make the cut for the second season. First off, who even gets to decide that? Why on Earth should their very lives depend on the thoughts and opinions on a bunch of faceless, (largely) nameless, *soulless* nobodies that they've never seen or noticed? Why was the Battle for Dream Island ultimately up to *their* decree, and not, say, their actual strengths and capabilities? And then there's the matter of being thrown straight back into the Tiny Loser Chamber for their failure. Why couldn't they have just been released? Allowed to do whatever they want? Not being in the competition was already painful enough as is.
Regardless of his complaints about it, regardless of what *anyone* had to say about it, that would be their situation. He'd be stuck in that miserable box, alongside everyone else unfortunate enough to wind up there, packed like sardines. At the very least, he had his closest pals by his side that entire time; they've stuck through thick and thin, through highs and lows, and this was *definitely* their lowest low. By far. By a mile. They were able to get through this painful episode of their lives through the power of friendship, but there was no doubt that it left them worse for wear. Again, they were stuck there. In a cramped metal box. For *years*. Sometimes something interesting happened, sometimes something new occurred, but those were almost always offset by something terrible or miserable happening *immediately* afterwards. They were able to take the reins of the second season, hosting it for some time, and then Balloony just *had* to be a buzzkill and ruin it for everybody.
When Pen and everyone else was finally let out of their prison, not only did they emerge into a world that was completely and utterly unfamiliar to them, but also a world that *didn't* have the Battle for Dream Island. It was the whole reason they were here, how they got roped into this nonsense, and now it was gone. They were now pushed back into dreary reality, making do with whatever the world decided to throw at them. Again, it could've been a *lot* worse. His friends were still by his side, and Yoyle City was this massive playground with *so* many things just hiding in plain sight. They could make do. They could get back up on their feet.
Only for them to immediately be sent tumbling back down.
The Battle for Dream Island would suddenly return, and now it was even *worse*. They didn't even know how it was possible. Not only was the new host this murderous child that inflicted pain and suffering whenever possible, that *absorbed* the eliminated instead of just confining them for all eternity, but he also had to deal with it alone. The lines drawn this time around separated him from his pals, forcing him to make do with this Death P.A.C.T. nonsense. They were *tolerable* enough, but it just wasn't the same. They were nice, reasonable, well-meaning people, but he just didn't have the same connections and attachments.
And speaking *of* those connections, those would continue to be torn away from him. The Battle for Dream Island would be split in half, and Blocky would decide to stick with Four. The writing utensil would *finally* be reunited with *one* member of their little group over at the new show, but all that was soured a little by the loss of their linchpin, the one that made them so renowned. Or hated. Whatever. And speaking *of* hatred, it seems like the universe hated Pen, despite allegedly being this inanimate, uncaring... *thing*. Whatever Tennis Ball calls it. He and Eraser were able to get back together... for a time. And then he was ripped away from him again. And then he got *eliminated*.
