Battle for Triangles Multiversal Travel Machine (and also Dream Island)

Episode 2 - Then the Plunge

As night began to set in, the two teams began planning for how they would tackle the later contests of the competition. Given what Triangle had said, the competition was most likely to be long and full of contests, so it was best to be prepared.

/Team Sharp Minds/

"Alright, people!" Golf Ball would begin. "Since i'm the smartest out of everyone here, I will be the brains of this team! You people will listen to what I have to say, and you will do it!" Needle would immediately question Golf Balls authority. "How come you're now the boss? I'm the team leader!" "I was *supposed* to the team leader!" Before the argument could get any worse, Tennis Ball would immediately intervene. "GB, calm down! Let's respect authority. I'm sure you're smart enough to know that. Right?" Needle would agree. "Besides, Golf Ball, it's not like you *can't* ask me for permission to manage our strategies for dealing with contests."

Golf Ball hadn't realized until now that she could've just done that instead of challenging Needles authority. Awkward silence would follow. "Er... Can I?" Golf Ball would ask, somewhat embarrassed by her outburst. Needle would simply smile which made it seem like she had already forgotten about what had happened. "Sure thing!" "Wait!" Blocky would immediately interrupt. "How come I can't also manage how-" "You're too dumb!" Golf Ball would interrupt *him* as well. "Too dumb? I literally run a business based on doing funny doings in creative ways. I'm quite possibly the second-smartest in here." Tennis Ball would grumble. He didn't want to hear him challenging anyones authority, especially Golf Balls. "QUIET!" Golf Ball would yell, and yet more awkward silence would fill the scene.

"Since we don't know what the challenges will be yet, we will first be categorizing the members based on their strengths!" Golf Ball would attempt to put the focus of the conversation away from her. "Needle, what are you good at?" "Oh! Uh... I can run." Needle would quickly reply. It was her running that won her the role of team leader, after all. "Alright, the rest of you, tell me your strengths!" "Uh... I can anger people!" Coiny would be the next one to respond. "Totally! Did you see what I did to Firey?" Most members wouldn't want to reply, however. "Why should I follow *your* orders?" Blocky would argue. "Yeah, *bossy bot*?" Eraser would agree with him, given that they were friends. "Because i'm managing the team! Needle gave me the authority to do so, so you will listen!" Golf Ball would reply. "You think you can manage *ME*?" Blocky would respond, threatening to pick up the rather light Golf Ball. "Blocky! STOP IT!" Needle would immediately stand between the two, however. "You're clearly outnumbered here!"
"Yeah! Cut that out!" Tennis Ball would join in. Silence would begin again, as a tense and awkward standoff would begin between the two sides.

"You don't know what you're messing with... I can easily hurt you!" Blocky wouldn't care that Needle was the team leader, and would immediately threaten her. "Yeah!" Eraser would utter in agreement. But before the situation could be resolved peacefully, Rocky would suddenly vomit at the two of them, putting an abrupt and comedic end to the argument. Blocky would immediately scream in disgust. "Stop now, or there's more where that came from!" Golf Ball would immediately walk up to Rocky, pretending she had control over when and where he'd vomit. "Ugh, fine!" Blocky would finally give up, putting an end to the conflict. "I can, like, sabotage the other team. Now get this stuff off me!" "Yeah!" Eraser would say the exact same word yet again, proving that the author is incompetent at writing. "I can hit people too! Get it off!" Eraser would attempt to wipe the vomit off using his hands, only to quickly realize that that meant the vomit would be on his hands as well. "Where's the towel?" He'd cry out in both pain and anger.

"Ice Cube, do you have any strengths?" Golf Ball would ask. "Uh... I don't know..." Ice Cube would reply. "Well, you're made of water, so you can probably be used to take out Firey!" Golf Ball had already said that before, but she felt like reiterating it, since she thought it was important. "He's clearly a threat to most of us, since he's fire!" Golf Ball would then look at Rocky again. "And Rocky can deal with the others, too!" She'd then walk up to Match to ask her the same question. "Match?" "Huh? Like, what do you want?" Match had been busy relaxing in a bed she claimed as hers, which was something the other contestants hadn't done yet. "Do you have any strengths?" "Like, uh... I can totally, like, start fires! I'm sure that'll be, like, useful..." Match would think of yet another thing she could do for the team. "And I can totally, like, gossip with Pence-Pence! I'm sure we're still, like, friends, even though were in different, like, teams, right?"

"Uh... Yeah, sure." Golf Ball really didn't like talking with the other girls, especially because they weren't as smart as her. She'd immediately walk away as soon as she was done, and would walk up to someone else. "Bubble?" "Uh... I don't knoiow..." replied Bubble, which had also claimed a bed for herself, wanting to be as far away from Blocky as possible. "Well, given that you're a bubble, I don't think you can do well in fighting the other team, if it comes to it." Golf Ball would think harder in order to find some sort of use for her. "Uh... If you won't do well in terms of strength, then surely you must have some intelligence! Are you smart?" "Uh... I can count to three! Does that count?" Upon realizing that Bubble had absolutely nothing to bring to the table, Golf Ball would just sigh in defeat. "Ugh... You can just... Be there for motivation, or something. Alright?" "Yoiy!"

With all the contestants having been reviewed, Golf Ball would walk back to Needle. "Needle, you got all that, right?" "Mhm!" Needle would reply. "I'll be grouping ourselves based on what we can do best. Me, Coiny, Blocky, Eraser, Ice Cube, and Rocky are best at fighting the other team directly, while the rest of you are better at strategizing and stuff! Right?" "Uh... But what about Bubble?"
"I'm sure we can find a use for her. I mean, she can't possibly be useless, can she?" Bubble would grow worried. "Oh, noio... I think i'm letting my team down already!" "Relax, Bubble! The actual challenges haven't even begun yet! I'm sure you can do good."

"Alright!" Golf Ball would interrupt. "As the team manager, I say that we go to bed already and sleep! If we are well-rested, we'll be able to perform better against the others!" "Sounds good!" Needle would nod. "You're still not the boss of me!" Blocky would protest. "Fine, then!" Golf Ball no longer cared about what Blocky had to say, wanting to sleep already. "But don't blame me if our team loses due to your shortcomings!" All Blocky could do was shake his fist at her angrily as she made her way to her claimed bed. Needle, Golf Ball, Tennis Ball, Ice Cube, and Bubble would go to sleep shortly after. The rest would stay awake, talking to each other.

/Team Prawn/

"Man, this team sucks!" Pen would grumble. "Almost none of my pals are here, and our team leader can't even talk!" "Yeah!" Snowball would agree. "And the one responsible for our previous loss is right here!" He'd point at Woody, who was still screaming, although a normal persons vocal cords would've been exhausted by then. "Quiet down!" Pin would walk up to them. "Don't you guys know you have a great leader on board here?" "I could care less about you!" Pen would immediately respond. "I want to be with Eraser!" "Tough luck! You're in this team now, and we'll have to do what it takes to win! Isn't that right, Teardrop?" Teardrop would nod.

"I have to admit, though. Our team's sort of... Lacking." Firey was experimenting with the beds, along with the pillows and blankets which came with them. Triangle seemed to have accounted for those like him, as they seemed to be fire-proof. "Team Sharp Minds took all the good ones before us!" "Don't say that! You could demoralize the teammates we got!" Pin would reply, angered by what Firey had said. Flower, on the other hand, would be somewhat more offended by it. "GRR! Are you calling me bad?" "In some ways?" Firey would respond. "Yeah!" Flower would begin shouting incoherently out of pure anger. She'd attempt to slap Firey, but it's rather obvious how that would go. Her hand would end up catching on fire as a result.

"GAH! SOMEONE, HELP!" Flower would immediately scream in pain. Teardrop would immediately jump onto Flowers hand, putting the fire out, but killing her in the process. "SEE? Now look what you did! You just killed our team leader!" Fireys point was now proven. As the arguing continued, Pencil would sigh. "Well, this team's off to a great start." "Quiet!" Although Pin was also mad at her team, she'd try her best not to lash out at them. It was her responsibility as their secondary team leader, after all. "Let me think..." "I don't even think that i'm friends with half of the people here." Firey would add. "Well, you have to get used to them!" Pin would be quick to interrupt. "They're your teammates now. You can't just hate them!" "It sure is tempting!"

Pin would sigh. "Alright, alright. relax. Firey, Snowball, and Spongy. You three can be our... Protectors. You guys seem big and strong enough for the job. Make sure the other team doesn't mess with what we do in the challenges. Can you do that?" "Er... Sure?" Firey would reluctantly agree. "How am I supposed to work with *him*?" Snowball would point at Firey. "He's made of fire, and i'm made of snow!" "Just work it out, alright?" Pin was getting even more frustrated than she already was. "Me and Teardrop will be the brains of the team, and I suppose Flower could also join Firey and the others at protecting us..."

"What about me?" Pencil would ask. "...I don't really know what you can do. All I've seen you do is gossip with Match!" Pin would reply. Riveting dialog right here. "WHAT?" Pencil would be offended by the somewhat-true generalization of what she normally does. "That's rude!" "It's the truth!" Pin replied. "I mean, you tell me. What else can you even do? "Uh... I can..." Pencil would have a hard time thinking of something she could do other than talk to Match. "I can think too! I'm a pencil! I'm normally used to write thoughts down!" "...Alright?" Pin would begin considering giving up at this point. Much like me after realizing just how much more of this chapter I have to write. "Pen wants to defect, so we'll decide what to do with him later. That leaves Leafy and... Woody." "I can help with team morale!" Leafy would immediately reply. "Everyone on this team is now my friend!" "Leafy, *everyone* is your friend. No exceptions to it. Well, except Flower." "I know, right? That's my best skill, yet!" "Alright..." Pin would sigh. "That's enough planning for today." Spongy would try to ask something, however. "But what about Woo-" "Let's get to sleep, everyone!" Pin couldn't care less about that slab of balsa. "We have to be wide awake on the next morning if we want to win! Those prizes are as good as mine!" She'd almost maniacally laugh, but would keep *those* tendencies for later, when they'd eventually become unruly.

"Uh, wouldn't Teardrop get those prizes?" Firey would ask. "Oh, hush. She's not even here right now!" Pin would laugh, although she'd control it to make sure it wouldn't come out as evil laughter. "Let's go to sleep." Pin and Leafy would be the only ones to actually go to sleep shortly after. The rest would stay awake for longer, and would spend their time talking to each other.

-

Triangle was on the phone, talking to someone. "Yeah, yeah. I'm already here on the location you specified." Triangle would nod, although he knew whoever he was talking to couldn't see it. He'd listen in for a moment to hear what his caller had to say, and then would formulate a response back. "I'm setting up the base of operations as we speak." He'd snap his fingers, and a camper, similar to those in a trailer park, would materialize in front of him. "...Yes, the contestants are in line. It was relatively easy. The other host has been neutralized, so to speak." He'd shift his eyes towards the Announcer, who was hopping towards him as he spoke. "...Of course the plan will work. You said the latest surveys of the planet pointed to the origin point of the anomalies, right?" He'd continue setting up the base as he listened to the response. "Great. Then it'll work. Trust me. Besides, even if it doesn't... We can just try again." He'd nod. "I'll get back to you as soon as I encounter something that's noteworthy. I have something to do at the moment."

Triangle would look back at the Announcer, who was continuing to come closer, and would hang up. AFter a few more seconds, the Announcer would finally land next to him. "Just what do you have in mind?" "I told you to wait over there." Triangle seemed to barely hold in his anger. "What are you doing?" "I don't want to wait any longer. Tell me." Triangle sighed. "A partnership of sorts, I suppose." Triangle would make two lawn chairs appear, although only he really needed to use one. "Let's get to discussing that, shall we?"

-

The first thing Needle noticed was the heat. She felt as if the floor she stood on was being heated up. The floor was the next thing she noticed, in fact. She was now standing upright, instead of lying down in her bed. which was the last thing she remembered doing before going to sleep. She'd open her eyes as she regained her senses. She'd then notice that her arms were tied together around a wooden pole, which meant she couldn't get herself out of the predicament she found herself in. As soon as she realized this, fear began to set in. While her vision remained blurry for several seconds as she opened her eyes, she'd be able to look down and noticed that what she was standing on was a pile of branches that were piled up around the pole. As soon as her vision finally cleared, she looked back up and saw the other contestants staring angrily at her.

"Glad you're finally awake, NEEDY!" A voice that was unmistakably of Pins would yell out. She appeared to be the one leading the crowd, as she was the one in front. She had the urge to slap her there and then, but her hands were tied, of course. "W-What's going on?" She'd immediately ask. "You know very well what's going on!" In fact, she didn't! That's the whole point. "Your crimes against us won't be forgiven like you probably hoped for, Needy!" "Needle, how could you? I thought you were a nice person!" Another voice, which she recognized as Coinys, would cry out. "I am! What's going on?" She was completely and utterly confused. She just wanted to go back to bed, dangit. She'd struggle to get herself freed, and she'd feel the growing fire begin touching her feet, finally causing her pain. "Enough of playing dumb!" Pin would yell out. "Let's leave her to her fate!" The large crowd behind Pin yelled out "YEAH!" in agreement. She'd walk out, followed by Coiny and the others, leaving her to her demise. "Guys, no! Please, tell me what's going on!" Of course, no explanation would be given to her. As the fire began racing upward, however, her vision began to change yet again. Her sight would suddenly be consumed by a bright red light, and would continue growing to dominate her vision. As soon as all she saw was red, however, it would immediately go black.

-

Needle would wake up immediately after, drenched in sweat. She would notice that she was breathing heavily, obviously in fear of what she had just experienced. She'd look to her right, and saw Coiny, still sleeping. She'd nudge him slightly, in desperate need of assurance. "...Huh?" Coiny would yawn as he got woken up. He'd immediately get up, and would turn to face her. "Needle, what's going on?" "...Just... Just come here, alright?" Coiny would slide on closer, sitting next to her. "Why'd you wake me up? And in the middle of the night, too..." "I had a dream." Needle began. "A nightmare, actually." "...That's all you wanted to tell me?" Coiny would immediately begin lying back down, only for Needle to stop him. "No!" She'd immediately force him back up. "There was something to it. I think..." Needle didn't really know how to phrase it. Already, the memories of it began to disappear, much like most dreams would. "...I saw you there."

"You saw me there?" Coiny chuckled. "I don't think that was really a nightmare, Needle..." A slight pink blush would appear on her, but she'd try her best to hide it. At literally any other moment, she'd accept the compliment, but she was entirely serious this time around. "No, not like that..." She'd sigh, trying to stop her blushing. "The others were there... Pin was there! She said something about... Leaving me to my fate..." That seemed to catch his interest. "Huh? What do you mean?" "And then you all left, and all I could remember was..." Needle felt like she was about to cry, remembering things that didn't actually happen. "...The fire..."

Needle, for some reason, remembered it not as if it was a nightmare, but as if it was a distant memory. One that she had forgotten for many years and had locked away in a deep within her mind, but was now a monster that desperately crawled its way back to the present. "Needle... You know that nightmares are just that, right?" Coiny would ask. "I heard from GB that it's just your mind going wild as you sleep. I don't think it means anything." "I don't know... Something, no, *someone* is telling me that it does." Needle would try to remember just who that someone was, but for the life of her couldn't form a face in her mind. Whoever it was, it was now a completely unknown character to her. "...Needle... We can talk about this in the morning. Let's go back to sleep." "Oh, alright..." Needle would sigh. Coiny would be quick to lie back down and go back to sleep, but Needle would remain sitting there for several minutes. She'd look out the window. The moon was no longer visible, but it was clear that the sun would not come up for another few hours. As the place grew ever more silent, she knew that she was entirely safe in the house. But she didn't *feel* safe, and that was what was important to her. She'd attempt to shrug it off, however, and would go back to sleep.

-

The next day had begun as the sun had begun to rise. Although days actually begin at midnight and not when the sun rises... Shut up. As half of the familiar yellow disc became visible above the horizon, the fence in-between the houses would disappear, followed by a small opening in front of the doors to let them out. Triangle and the Announcer would then make their way to the houses. "GET UP!" Triangle would yell as soon he finally made it in front of the houses. Triangle didn't use anything to amplify his voice, but it sounded as if he did, causing everyone to wake up. "EVERYONE! OUTSIDE, NOW!" It would take several minutes for all of them to make their way out, as they would take their time to fully wake up. It's not like they were all too excited for what the day had in store for them, anyway. Eventually, however, they'd finally begin exiting the houses. They would form up into two lines of ten, based on their teams.

"Alright." Triangle began. "So, me and the Speakery over here have come up with some sort of agreement. Since I did the last challenge, he, or they... Do you even have a gender?" Triangle would ponder the thought for a minute before continuing. "...Whatever. *They* will be managing the next one. We'll be alternating and such, and we'll both be handling the eliminations." "...Eliminations?" Pin would immediately want to ask about it, only for Triangle to interrupt her. "That's not important right now! Take it away, Speakery!" The Announcer would hop to get slightly closer to the contestants, mostly in order to get their attention. "The second contest is to build a boat, get in it, and row it across the Goiky Canal." "A canal?" Firey would immediately ask. Although most objects were dumb, Firey at least had some idea about a canal. "I don't think I'll do well, there..." "And where *is* the canal?" Blocky would also ask. It's been right here this whole time, silly."

Triangle would turn around, presenting the miles-wide canal which, to the contestants, had just appeared in front of them. "If you are the first to cross the line..." The Announcer would continue. As the Announcer continued talking, two spotlights on the other side of the canal would turn on, creating bright rays of light that stretched out into the sky. "...Then your team wins. The other team loses, and one of their members will get kicked out of the game." Awkward silence would follow after the Announcer finished speaking. Why wouldn't it, especially after the Announcer just said *that*?

"Uh... You guys can go do that, now." Triangle would finally end the silence. "There's a pile of junk over there if you want to go look for stuff." He'd then point to a pile of stuff that had just mysteriously appeared. The contestants would then rush to it.

"Guys, I got a plan!" Golf Ball would begin. "I found this generator here, which could power the..." The other members of the Sharp Minds were already digging through the pile, not caring about what she had to say. "You could at least listen!" She'd yell out. "Can't talk right now!" Coiny would reply. "Every second counts! The other team's already working on a boat as well!" "Of course we're not listening! Your plan's way too confusing!" Blocky would also respond. "WHAT?" Golf Ball would be shocked. "But I literally just started explaining it! You said that you specialized in funny doings! That takes some amount of-" "Yeah, and I only specialize in *that*. I mean, come on, 'generator'? What even is that? Is that some sort of magic thing?" "Like the 'Multiversal Travel Machine', right?" Coiny and Blocky would laugh at that rather unfunny joke.

"UGH! You people are just-" "Uh, GB?" Tennis Ball would walk up to her. "WHAT?" She'd immediately yell at him. "...Um. Haven't you noticed that Firey is on the other team? They're clearly going to take longer to build their boat to account for him!" "...Huh." Golf Ball would think about it. "You're right! I suppose we could just use a manual mode of propulsion. They'll probably take a while." The two of them would begin digging into the pile as well. As most of Team Sharp Minds was busy beginning to work on their boat, Team Prawn would be a bit more disorganized. While Pencil watched her team look through the pile, Match would suddenly appear next to her. "Hey, Pencil! What are you, like, doing?" "Match!" Pencil would be surprised by her sudden appearance. "What are you doing here? We're on opposite teams!" "But, we're still, like, friends, right?" Pencil would hesitate slightly, not wanting Team Prawn to think she was betraying them. "Well... Yeah. But-" "So, like, let's just, like, talk! Nothing wrong with that, right?" There was clearly something very wrong with it, but Pencil didn't know how to say it without offending her. "Er... Sure."

"So, what's going on in, like, your team?" Match began. "Well, it's going about as well as you'd expect." Pencil would reply, pointing to the rest of Team Prawn. Nearby, Pin's temper was beginning to slip yet again. "So... our boat will have to account for Fireys deadly allergy to water, Spongys weight, and Woodys fear, right?" Flower would then yell at her. "WHAT ABOUT ME?" Pin would sigh. "What do *you* want?" "I want the boat to be a luxurious yacht! I won't settle for anything less!" Pin would sigh again. "Flower, that's not what we need to do for the contest! We need a boat that's just-" "I DON'T CARE! I don't want to be uncomfortable on the trip!" Pin would sigh one more time, for luck. "Seriously? Is this team for real?"

Match and Pencil had been staring at Team Prawn while they continued talking as... That unfolded. "Uh, yeah. Like that." Pencil continued. "Wow. That's like, sad." "I know, right?" Pencil chuckled slightly. "Tell me about it. How about your team?" "Our team is, like, going well!" Match would begin. "We're, like, cooperating!" Despite the fact that Match was right there, not cooperating. Pencil would sigh. "Ugh. I wish I was in your team." "Well, unfortunately for, like, you, I don't think they'll, like, allow that just yet. I still, like, want it to happen, though!" Tennis Ball would then walk up to them. "MATCH!" He'd yell out. "What are you doing? You shouldn't talk with the other team!" "Oh, hush, TB!" "He's right, you know." Pencil would reply. "I don't think we should talk to each other at the moment." "But, Pencil..." "You should go and help your team, alright? We can talk later." Match would hesitate, but would eventually give in. "Well, like, alright..." Tennis Ball was already walking back to Team Sharp Minds by then. "Match, hurry up! We need you!" Match and Tennis Ball would walk back to where Team Smart Minds was now building their boat, and Pencil would sigh.

"GB, what do you, like, want?" Match would ask. "We're making good progress, despite your procrastination." Golf Ball almost felt like spitting at her, but would decide against it. "We're almost finished with our boat, and we just need people to be the oars!" "...Oars?" Match would be confused. "What do you mean?" "You know! Uh... The things you use to row a boat." Match would still be rather confused, even with the explanation. "Needle already signed up to be one, and you seem to be just the right shape for it as well!" Match would want to divert the conversation from this talk of oars, however. "Wait, just what is, like, the boat?" "Come and see for yourself! Behold, my latest masterpiece!" Golf Ball would step aside, revealing a boat with a large flat bottom to hold the contestants, and walls that barely reached above the shin to keep them from falling off. The entire boat was brown, making it seem like it was made of wood. Or maybe even cardboard.

"That's, like, a floating piece of cardboard."
"Oh, relax!" Golf Ball would be quick to interrupt. "It'll hold all of us, and the boat will hold! ...As long as none of you mess up and tip the boat, that is. We'll be fine, and we'll be bound to win this challenge for sure!" "But I don't wanna be, like, an oar! Like, what even is that?" "Too bad! The others have been trying to find something to pass for oars for the past few minutes now, and everything has either been too heavy or too weirdly-shaped!" Golf Ball would breathe for a moment. "We don't have any options, and if we want to win, we have to get going right-" "Guys! I found some oars!" Coiny would call everyones attention, and would reveal two brown... Things. If we're going by that cardboard box analogy again, these were basically the flaps. "They seem to be light enough, too!" "Well, what do you, like, know?" Match would be relieved. "ALRIGHT! Just get in the boat! Blocky! Eraser! Push the boat!" "Ugh, alright. No need to boss me about it." Eraser still hated Golf Ball, but he loved the prospect of winning the contest more than he hated her.

The rest of the team would get on the boat as Blocky and Eraser pushed the boat to the canal. Once it was fully in the water, Blocky and Eraser would get on as well. "Alright! Now, you two, get rowing!" "What? No way!" Blocky would immediately protest. "But you two are the strongest!" Blocky and Eraser would just stare at her. "Fine! Needle, you seem to have enough stamina. Get rowing! Eraser, you too!" "Fine! Sheesh." Eraser would comply reluctantly. The two would grab the oars and would begin rowing. Needle would do so with enthusiasm, while Eraser would do so reluctantly. "Guys! They're already leaving!" Pin would call everyones attention, and would point to Team Sharp Minds' boat. They'd watch for a few moments as it began drifting further into the water. "So what?" Flower asked. "Keep building!" "You haven't even helped at all!"
"I helped find stuff from the pile!" "For like 5 minutes!" Pin would interrupt her before Flower could make up something else to say that she helped. "Stop complaining and start helping!"

Leafy, Pin, Pencil, and Snowball would be the only ones working on Team Prawns boat. The others would still be sitting around. Teardrop was still nowhere to be found, mostly because she was dead. Several hours would then pass, and it was now about noon. Team Sharp Minds was now around a third of the way across the canal, while Team Prawn was *still* working on their boat. Their boat had begun looking similar to a longship, like those the Vikings used, only made of some form of cheap plastic, and the bow and stern of the boat had small rooms that were walled-off in order to keep their 'fragile passengers' safe. Flower had reserved the stern compartment as her own, though, filling it with things she liked from the pile. "Leafy, Pencil, how's the sail coming along?" Pin would ask. "I don't think the pile has enough cloth to make a big enough sail..." Leafy would reply. Pin would end up sighing in response. "Ugh, seriously?" "Pin, relax. I think I saw a generator as well as a motor that Golf Ball left behind earlier." Pencil would join in. Match had told her about it during their talk, which meant she knew that it existed. "Yeah, I was wondering why they left that. I thought that they would get back to it eventually." Leafy replied. "Well, we're probably going to have to use that, but a sail looks much more intimidating!" Pin would almost break into maniacal laughter, but would stop herself.

As time continued to pass, it was now well into the afternoon. Team Sharp Minds have made it halfway across the canal, while Team Prawn was just about to begin sailing. Triangle was looking at both teams using binoculars. In a rare act of cooperation, however, the hosts would begin talking to each other without immediately getting angry. "You know, Speakery, I feel like i'm forgetting something." Triangle would begin. "If you forgot, it probably wasn't that important."
"...Yeah, you're right." Awkward silence would then last for several seconds or so. "...There weren't twenty Objects in the line-up, was there?" Triangle would finally ask. "...Teardrop." The Announcer answered. "Oh... ...Right." "Not so much of a good host, are you?" "Hush." Triangle would immediately interrupt him as soon as the Announcer doubted him. "It's my first crack at it." He'd mindlessly snap his fingers as he continued to focus on looking at Team Sharp Minds. In the waters below their boat, Teardrop would spontaneously reappear. She'd be just fine, given she was made of water, but wanting to return to her team, she would begin swimming up.

Team Sharp Minds had gotten bored of sailing by this point, with Needle and Eraser lazily rowing with the oars. "Ugh." Match sighed. "Just, like, how wide is this canal?" "I don't know, alright?" Golf Ball answered. "It is pretty wide, though. All I know is that the other team still hasn't even started yet! Even if this canal turns out to be a million miles wide, we'll be just fine!" "But, like, couldn't you have put things to, like, do in here?" "We need to conserve weight! This boat clearly can't hold a lot of things!" "Then why didn't you make a better boat?" Blocky would ask. "Says you!" Golf Ball would, of course, immediately question the intelligence of anyone who dares to question her. "Didn't you say that you were only an expert in funny doings?" "I don't need to be an expert in anything to know that! It's common sense to build a bigger boat!" "Uhh... Guys?" Eraser would catch their attention. "I think something's rising from the water." Eraser would look into the water, confused, when the water would suddenly splash into his face. Teardrop had managed to surface right where he was looking, causing him to drop the oar into the water. Eraser would immediately scream shortly afterwards.

"What is it, Eraser?" Golf Ball would be surprised by Erasers TOTALLY MANLY scream, and everyone would check to see what it was. "Guys!" Coiny would get their attention again. "It's Teardrop!" "Wait, Isn't she the other team captain?" Tennis Ball would ask. "She is!" Golf Ball would immediately answer. "Get her out of here! Rocky!" Rocky would be quick to rush to where the most of the team had gathered, and would immediately prepare to vomit. Teardrop would immediately submerge again as soon as she realized what was happening, and Rocky would vomit out into the water. "Alright, she's gone." Golf Ball sighed in relief. "Keep rowing, Eraser!" "Uh... Golf Ball?" Eraser would ask. "What?" "...I lost the oar." Awkward silence would follow as Golf Ball realized just what that meant. "...WHAT? she'd yell angrily. "NEEDLE! Stop rowing and get over here! We need to decide who becomes an oar!" Needle would put the oar down and would walk to the others. The boat would then begin drifting along the current as they argued.

Team Prawn would finally be finished up with the boat after yet more time had passed. It turned out that there wasn't enough cloth for the sail, and so they had chosen to use the motor. "Alright. Is everyone on the boat?" Pin would ask. "No." Pen immediately answered. "Pen, get on the boat." "No! Why should I follow your orders?" "You're on our team, that's why!" "You're not even our team leader!" "UGH!" Pin would sigh angrily. "Snowball!" "Pen..." Snowball began. "I don't like it here either, but I'm not dumb! And I know what's for the best!" Snowball would get off the boat, forcibly picking up Pen, and would bring him to the boat. "Is Spongy is on the center of the boat? We need him to be right in the center, so that he won't tip the boat!" Pin would ask. "Yeah!" Spongy gave an immediate answer. "Ugh, why is HE there?" Flower asked. "Shouldn't he be in the special room, where all the 'specials' are?" "HEY!" Firey would yell from the bow compartment. "Spongy is fatter than the rest of us! He'd tip the boat if he was anywhere else." Pin would answer. "Now start the motor, Flower!" "Why should I do that?" Flower asked yet again. "You're on the back of the boat! The motors over there!" Pin didn't know what the back of the boat was called, because she's dumb. "Shouldn't that be YOUR responsibility? You're the team leader!" Pin would ignore the fact that she referred to her by the wrong title, and would continue. "No, we agreed it was yours several times already! Now get to it!" "UGH! Fine!"

She'd attempt to start it, but the first several times would end in failure. "FLOWER!" Pin would yell. "I'M TRYING!" Flower would yell back. After several tries, the motor would begin to spin ever so slowly, but would stop after several seconds. "Well this is a terrible-" The motor would then suddenly turn on, spinning incredibly quickly, and they'd quickly make progress across the canal. "Woah!" Triangle yelled out in surprise. "That was quick." "Of course." The Announcer replied. "They're using the motor. Don't you know?" "...Know what?" Triangle would ask. "...Nothing." The Prawns boat would continue across the canal with incredible speed, managing to catch up with the Sharp Minds rather quickly. Teardrop, who had been swimming back to the start, would hear the sound of the motor rumbling as it continued to come closer, so she'd surface to figure out what was going on. Shortly after surfacing, however, she'd suddenly be run over by the boat. She'd manage to hang on to it, however.

Meanwhile, Team Sharp Minds would continue bickering about who would be an oar. "I'm, like, not going to be, like, the oar, okay?" Match would make herself clear. "Well, you don't have a choice!" Golf Ball would yell in response. "Needle made a fair point in saying she was the team captain! We obviously can't let her be used like that! You're the oar!" "Like, no way!" "Uh... Golf Ball?" Tennis Ball would try to catch Golf Balls attention. "YOU HAVE TO!" Golf Ball yelled back at her. "GOLF BALL!" "WHAT?" "There's a boat dead ahead! Or behind! ...Whatever." "Wait... What?" As she turned to look at the boat, the Prawns boat would ram into their boat, flinging them. The Sharp Minds would scream as they got flung towards the end of the canal. The Prawns boat would continue on, but the sudden jolt upon ramming would cause everyone to be suddenly hurled around. Woody would scream at the sudden jolt. "OH NO!" Firey would yell. "HANG ON!" Pen would also yell. Spongy would quickly slide into Flowers side of the boat due to the impact. "HEY! Get out of here!" Flower would yell. "Sorry!" Spongy would quickly apologize.

The team would be able to survive the impact without anyone being thrown overboard. Most would get hurt, however. "Hang on! I think I see the other side!" Pin would point to the horizon ahead of them, where they could barely see a hint of green amidst the shades of blue. Meanwhile, the members of Team Sharp Minds would end up landing on the other side of the canal, but the finish line was still a few hundred meters away. "Ugh..." Needle groaned in pain. "What happened?" "Needle, look!" Coiny would point to a thing in the distance. The thing in question was illuminated by the spotlights. "It's the finish line! Get moving!" Needle would immediately begin running towards it, with Coiny quickly following her. The others would eventually notice, and would begin running there as well. As they continued running, Team Prawns boat would eventually make its way to the other side of the canal. "FLOWER!" Pin would yell again. "Stop the motor!" "WHAT?" Flower yelled back. "I CAN'T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF THIS MOTOR!" "THEN TURN IT OFF!" "UGH! ALRIGHT!" She'd still be a bit dizzy from the collision, but would end up managing to turn the motor off. The boats speed would be conserved, however, and the boat would continue forward, hitting the land and beginning to slide across it, digging up dirt and grass as it went along.

Triangle continued watching as these events unfolded. "...I think that's a good sign that someone's about to win. Come on." Triangle would put down his binoculars, and would snap his fingers, teleporting them to the finish line. Meanwhile, Needle would continue running, having made considerable progress in running to the finish line. But she would end up stopping when she noticed a faint rumbling noise coming from behind her. "Huh?" The rumbling would grow louder and louder as it got closer. After a few moments, the Prawns boat would become visible over the horizon. Upon realizing what that meant, she'd immediately begin running again. The boat was still faster than her, however, even after dragging itself through hundreds of meters of soil. "NEEDLE, WATCH OUT!" Coiny would finally realize what was happening and would give her a warning that was a bit too late. The boat would end up running over her anyway, flinging her towards the finish line, but she would be flung at an angle, meaning she wouldn't be hurled directly at it. Eventually, due to the difference in angles, which meant that Needle had to travel slightly further than the boat to get to the finish line, Team Prawns boat would manage to cross the finish line with Needle being somewhat to the side, with the boat managing to cross the finish line mere milliseconds before she did.

"Amazing! And a photo finish!" Triangle would yell out, being a bit too happy about what just happened. Needle would end up landing in front of Triangle. She'd struggle to get up for several seconds, but eventually would get up. "...Who won?" "Man, I actually don't know! I was barely paying attention!" Triangle continued smiling. "I was just so amazed by how quickly everything went! I think we need to do that contests again, as-" "The Prawns win." The Announcer would immediately kill Triangles mood, causing his expression to immediately turn to one of disappointment. "...How do you know?" "Just use the slow-motion replay." Everyones vision would suddenly be filled by said slow-motion replay, which would show what the reader already knows, but the contestants didn't. Needle and the boat would both cross the finish line at nearly the exact same time, but the tip of the Prawns boat had managed to cross it several milliseconds before Needle did. As soon as the replay was over, everyone would blink at once just to make sure everything was back to normal. "...That was weird."

After the replay had finished, all the other contestants which weren't at the finish line (which meant the rest of Team Sharp Minds) had been teleported to them. "So, for those who had just got here, Team Sharp Minds has lost the contest." The Announcer began. "As such, one of them will be up for elimination." As the Announcer finished, Team Prawn would cheer, while Team Sharp Minds would groan in frustration. "Ugh, really?" Golf Ball in particular would be rather angry. "I thought we had them! I thought we got them for sure..." "Relax, Golf Ball." Needle would try to calm her down. "I'm sure we'll win next time..."