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

Episode 28 - The Boring Episode

Triangle and Key had returned back to the base far, *far* earlier than they had expected. Most expeditions had generally lasted for several months up to several years, but recent events (which happened during the previous chapters, if people ever bothered to read those) had forced them to return extremely ahead of schedule. Triangle would immediately make his way to the base proper as soon as they had landed, and would immediately go to GDs house, not bothering at all to stop and answer anyones questions as he passed by. He would be carrying all the data and artifacts that they had gathered and collected, and immediately placed them on GDs desk as soon as he entered. "Here's all the expedition stuff." Triangle would quickly say. GD would nod. "Thank you." "You're-" Triangle suddenly froze as soon as he looked up at him. He, of course, wanted to question GD regarding Keys knowledge of GD Incs... 'doings', or rather the lack of it, but GD appearing to be nonchalant caused his train of thought to abruptly come to a halt and be derailed by a sudden explosion of fear and confusion.

"...What?" Triangle could barely speak. GD nodded once again. "Thank you, Triangle." He'd pause for a moment, and would be somewhat embarrassed. "Is it... Not regular company behavior to thank someone for doing something for you?" He'd ask. "I mean, you *are* the CEO for this company. Or what's left for it, at least. ...Is it?" Triangle would still be confused, and would shake his head. "No. Um..." He'd immediately hesitate, and would nod shortly after. "Yes. Yes it is." He'd continue second guessing himself, however. "Or was." He'd sigh. "Whatever." Triangle would then turn around, wanting to leave as soon as possible to be alone in his thoughts, when he would remember about the whole thing with Key and the argument shortly before *truly* exiting. Before then, remembering about his argument with Key felt like trying to remember a dream, but just before he went through the door, it suddenly became clear as day, like his brain just put on its glasses, or some other dumb metaphor. Triangle would immediately turn around, wanting to question him. "GD, about Key-" "Yes, yes. I know." GD would interrupt him and nod. "He didn't know about the whole thing, yes?" Triangle would be surprised. Key hadn't been able to tell him about what happened first, did he? "...How did you know?" He'd ask. "When you have lived to be as old as I am, Tri, you unlock the ability to do things that are... A little strange." GD would answer.

GD would sigh. "I was able to nab your thoughts about the whole thing and put them in my head." He'd roll his eyes. "That does *sometimes* cause you to slightly forget about what I took from your head, though. That happens when your brain tries to block an invading force out, yet is incapable of doing it. It just simply erases it from memory." He'd sigh. "So sorry about that." Triangle would stare at him with concern. "...But *why* did you do that?" He'd ask. "The fact that you were somewhat angry while giving the data gave it all away." GD would pause. "Well, that *and* the fact that you arrived several months early, but that too. A little." "...Was it you that took Keys memories of the whole thing?" Triangle would ask. "Because I could've swore-" "...No." GD would shake his head. "I wouldn't have the range to do that. And why would I *even* do that, anyway?" He'd ask. Triangle couldn't seem to take that answer, however. "...But, Key said-" "That he forgot? Or that he didn't know?" GD would ask. Triangle would hesitate from answering for a moment. "...That he didn't know." He'd answer. GD would shake his head. "...Then no, that *definitely* wasn't me. The whole thing I can do only results in you forgetting slightly, like a dream you can just barely remember." He'd clarify. "It doesn't remove it from your mind entirely. It *definitely* wasn't me." "...You said 'that definitely wasn't me' twice." Triangle remarked. "That's irrelevant." GD replied.

"...Then what is?" Triangle asked. "What I believe to be happening is a restructuring event." GD continued. "You remember what I told you about that, right?" "Yeah?" Triangle would nod, doubting himself once again. He knew that GD had told him about a restructuring event, but any attempts to remember specifics only resulted in him remember pouring orange powder. Funny, that. "Now, during a restructuring event... Things get ugly." GD wolud continue. "The multiverse attempts to merge several universes together that look and feel the same, but are incompatible in all sorts of ways. In order to account for this, the multiverse..." He'd struggle to come up with the right phrase for his explanation. "Takes the average out of all the universes, and proceeds to construct that. Several events in several universes could be merged together, or wiped out entirely if it can't fit into the new timeline." He'd breathe. "Now, keep in mind that the way the multiverse works is far beyond me, and definitely well beyond you, so what i'm saying could be completely wrong. It *could* just be the CE finally getting to us and making us think that that's what's happening. *Could* be." He'd pause. "But..." "Whatever, sure." Triangle would shrug. "Your point is?" He'd ask. "My point is, it *definitely* wasn't me." GD would point out again. "Key forgot about the whole thing because... It never happened. Or could've happened, but he forgot. Or something." He'd then begin experiencing a mild headache in trying to keep all the concepts in his head.

"...But..." Triangle still had doubts, of course. "But the craters, the wasteland, they're all..." "Again, not a single person throughout the multiverse knows exactly how it all works." GD would shake his head. "No one does. The multiverse works in mysterious ways, and all that. That's as much as everyone knows." He'd pause. "All I can say is that if it has flared up *that* much, then... It won't be too long until the whole thing finally blows over. Whatever it is, anyway." He'd sigh. "I can't tell you about what might happen after, if you'll lose your memories as well, and stuff like that, but what I can tell you about is the complications." "Complications?" Triangle would ask. "Yeah. Restructuring universes tend to attract Chaotic Energy, and its wielders, like a big ol' shining beacon. It also works the other way around as well." "Chaotic Energy?" Triangle would ask again. "You told me about that before, haven't you?" "Yeah." GD would nod. "Many times. Just wanted to make sure you remembered." He'd pause for a moment to think. "The last uptick in CE levels for this universe was... What, a thousand years ago?" He'd ask. "I caused it, right?" Triangle would nod. "...Yeah. You did." "Now, we were lucky that no extra-dimensional forces were attracted to this universe during that, but stuff such as this could get their attention all over again." GD would continue. "And this time, we might not be as lucky."

"...What do you mean?" Triangle would ask. "Uh..." GD would think again for a moment. "Bad things could happen. Or something." He'd pause again. "...Tell me, have you been feeling weird recently?" He'd ask. "...That's a sudden departure." Triangle would remark. "But... Yeah, I was." He'd nod, but would immediately hesitate. "I think. Maybe?" GD would nod as well. "Yeah. That's not good." "How come?" Triangle would ask. "I mean, haven't really felt good for a long time, really..." "Yeah, but the way you said it..." GD would scratch his head. "Sounds like the Chaotic Energy is already beginning to take hold in this universe." "Well..." Triangle would think for a moment. "I mean, what can we do?" He'd ask. "I mean, you did say 'extra-dimensional forces', right? Stuff that's clearly beyond us?" "Well... It is, yes." GD would nod. "But... I've heard from some places that there were... Theoretical ways to reduce CE levels." "Reduce them?" Triangle would raise an eyebrow in confusion. "But you said that there's no way to do that." "I know, I know." GD would nod. "It sounds crazy, yes. I think so as well. I haven't seen a single documented case of it myself. But given how much time I've invested into this god-forsaken universe..." He'd sigh. "I'll be willing to try it out." "Well, how can one do that?" Triangle would ask. "Yeah. You see... That's the thing." GD took a deep breath, and scrunched his forehead. "This'll take a while."

-

The coast rapidly disappeared behind them as the boat continued to quickly speed across the vast and empty sea. The only noise that could be heard by most was the sound of the waves that were created as the boat splashed around due to the high speed, and Fireys yelling, of course. Triangle would stay at the stern compartment of the boat, waiting out the time before they finally reached Dream Island. Triangle knew that the boat wasn't all that capable of turning, as the contestants that built the boat were only expected to sail in a single direction, and so they had just oriented the boat towards the general direction of Dream Island while they were moving it, and hoped for the best. Triangle would continue to sit on the back of the boat, watching over the motor, just in case he needed to turn it off at a moments notice, either because they were nearing the destination, or because of an electrical failure, or something else.. As he continued to sit around there in silence, he felt like all the energy he had during his time as a host and as a driver had left him. It took a lot of energy and motivation to prevent the competition from simply falling apart due to his incompetence, and with the competition nearing its end, perhaps it had left him permanently. The only thing that kept him going *was* probably the fact that competition was still going, after all, but given the current situation, pretty much all options, even insane ones, were on the table. If his time as host truly was over, then higher powers would probably take over his role as leader once they finally got to Dream Island.

The exhaustion would finally get to him as more and more minutes passed by, and he would almost pass out at several instances. Despite how terrible he felt, however, he still wanted to stay strong, in the rare (well, not actually) chance that something goes terribly wrong, and they would need his powers to stop it. Regardless of the pain he suffered, he still wanted to keep going, much like a writer that was suffering with writers block, but still wanted to churn out a new chapter as there were just a few more chapters remaining. Whatever that means, anyway. As the boat continued to rock back and forth due to the immense speed that it was going over the waves, Triangle began to feel a *little* bit odd. On a normal day, he would simply assume that he was just seasick. He hadn't been on a ship that many times before, he thought. It would be a rather reasonable explanation. But today, of course *wasn't* a normal day. His body seemed to ache everywhere, even in places he didn't know existed, he didn't feel like thinking about anything, even about the plans he had made, or even about anything random, *and* he felt like he was in this weird in-between state of being awake and asleep. Much like the author in most cases when writing this junk. Stellar.

As Triangle continued suffering in this state of being in a condensed state of pure torture, Firey would also arrive at the stern compartment, with him feeling just sick and exhausted. He'd stumble for a moment, and would end up sitting down next to Triangle, but the latter would immediately gasp in pain as soon as he felt the heat, due to the fact that he was made of *literal fire*. "Gah!" Triangle would shout in pain, or it could be seen as a loud whimper, or something. "Oh!" Firey would be surprised to see the otherwise neutral host actually express pain. Of course, he still felt pain. Triangle still suffered headaches, and had been punched in the gut once. He just hadn't noticed him react to pain until *right now*. "Sorry." He'd apologize. Firey would then awkwardly slide away from him, making sure not to accidentally burn a hole through the boat in the process. The sudden pain would cause Triangle to become a bit more lucid. "Why are you here?" He'd ask. "Don't you have some more screaming to do?" "My throat was getting sore." As if on cue, Firey would clear his throat. "I don't even want to yell, either. It's just... The *water*, you know? It's my poison!" "You sure about that?" Triangle would ask. "You seem to be just fine when you were doing that. I mean, what with you screaming for such a long time..." "YES!" Firey would shout. "Alright, alright. Sheesh."

Awkward silence would then follow. "...Why are you here, anyway?" Firey would ask. "To watch over the motor, of course." Triangle would answer. "Why are *you* here?" He'd ask back. Firey sighed. "I just wanted to rest, I guess." He'd pause. "...Didn't expect you to be here." "Likewise." Triangle would nod. More awkward silence would then follow. "So, uh..." Firey continued. "Can I ask you a few questions?" He'd ask. "Uh..." Triangle would scratch his head. "I feel like i'm about to pass out, but yeah, sure. I suppose it'll help me from staying conscious." Firey would think about what to ask. "Why are we going to Dream Island, again?" He'd then ask. "Because of what happened, remember?" Triangle would answer. "All the lights went out, and it was no longer safe, for obvious reasons. Remember what you guys experienced?" He'd ask. Firey would think about it. "I don't know, really." He'd pause. "I suppose that there's just some part of me that thinks it's not the true story." Triangle would raise an eyebrow. "How come?" "Well, uh..." He'd look around, and would slightly blush in embarrassment. "You haven't seen Coiny around, have you?" "...No, I haven't." Triangle shook his head. "And why do you care?" He'd ask. "You hate him, right?" "Well, yeah." Firey would nod. "But... We've been fighting so much that him disappearing was just... Odd." He'd sigh. "Like I lost some meaning in life after he left." Triangle would think about it for a moment, and would then nod. "That does make sense. Tradition is tradition. Losing it *would* change someone drastically."

Firey would take a deep breath before continuing. He hadn't talked about how he felt about Coinys disappearance until right now, and it was just rather awkward to talk it to your host. Triangle had essentially become their father, in a sick and twisted manner. "But lately..." He'd sigh. "I've been getting these dreams, you know?" He'd ask. "Keeps me up at night." That seemed to catch Triangles interest. "How come I haven't heard of those?" He'd ask. "...I was in the other van." Firey would reply. Triangle would nod. "...Right. I meant, why didn't you tell me at the times we *weren't* in the vans? Or tell *anyone*, even?" He'd ask. "I didn't find the time, I think." Firey answered. "I was spending so much time either conversing with Blocky, or just trying to calm down, that..." He'd sigh. "I don't know." "Well, we have time now." Triangle replied. "So what's up?" He'd ask. "Well..." Firey would breathe. "In my dreams, Coiny has been telling me... Something bad is about to happen, I think?" He'd struggle to remember the details, of course. Dreams *are* dreams. "You *think*?" Triangle didn't seem happy with that answer. "You're saying this all based on a *hunch*?" "A lot of what he was saying made no sense!" Firey argued. "That's normal with dreams." Triangle continued. "I don't get why you're making such a big deal about it. It's probably just a normal dream." Firey would become somewhat embarrassed about asking him about it. "I don't normally dream of Coiny. Come on. There has to be *something*." "Well, he *has* disappeared." Triangle nodded. "That could've changed things." "Are you saying that-" "Yes. I *am* saying that."

They'd then stare at each other, quickly followed by Firey slapping him. Triangle would wince in pain, but would manage to recover from it within a few seconds. "Well..." He'd rub his cheek. "That's a bit harsh, don't you think?" "I DON'T FEEL THAT WAY ABOUT COINY, ALRIGHT?" Firey would yell. Triangle sighed. "Of course you don't. He does have Needle, after all." He'd freeze. "Um... ...I hope. Er, think." He'd pause. "I'm just saying you guys are way more friendly with each other than you may think." "WHY DO YOU THINK THAT?" Firey would continue yelling. "WE'RE ENEMIES!" Triangle would nod. "That's what you want to think." He'd look at Firey, almost blinding him in the process, but that's what the powers are for. "What do you *really* feel?" He'd ask. "I... I..." He'd trail off, and would slightly blush, although it wouldn't be all too visible due to his red color and brightness. "...W-Why do you care?" He'd ask. "Again, I'm the host." Triangle reiterated. "I *have* to care. I don't want to, to be completely honest. But I have to. Such is life." Firey would sigh. "...I suppose..." He'd pause. "I suppose we have developed *some* kind of friendship?" He'd be uncertain, of course. "I mean, we have a bond from fighting each other, I guess?" "Well..." Triangle thought about it "That makes *absolutely* no sense. I wouldn't ever want to be friends with a guy that does nothing but berate me, but i'll take it as fact."

"I will say that you guys did develop a bond over the whole fighting thing." Triangle continued. "It's a running gag of sorts." "Huh?" Firey would be confused about his usage of the term 'running gag', but Triangle wouldn't care. "What else did he say?" He'd continue. "Maybe what he's saying in your dream *does* make some sense after all. I've heard of some cases where dreams were prophetic. Some poorly-documented cases, but still." "Uh..." Firey would continue thinking about it. "He was saying that... Pin was going to win Dream Island, that she was going to ensure peace, along with her allies..." He'd trail off. "Uh..." Triangle shook his head. "...That's no good. She's already eliminated." He'd say that so that Firey wouldn't have any reason to worry. "And I don't think I have any rejoining contests planned. At least, for now. "But that's what he's been saying!" Firey argued. "Yeah, yeah..." Triangle would nod. Given what he knew and experienced, these claims made complete sense. But he couldn't tell about what he knew to Firey. His mind was going to explode if he did. Probably. "...The only way I could see that happening is through Pin managing to steal Dream Island from whoever wins." He'd continue. "Much like Leafy would've done." Whoops. Firey would raise an eyebrow in further confusion. "...*What*?" "Absolutely nothing! Hah." He'd attempt to laugh it off as a joke, but that only made Firey even more suspicious.

Triangle very well knew that Firey wasn't buying it, and so had to resort to drastic measures, such as exploiting author oversight. Whatever that means. "Hey, haven't you ever thought about why, even though you're made of fire, you're not burning through the ship?" Firey wouldn't budge, however. "...No, seriously. *What*?" "You definitely burn way hotter than the average melting temperature of plastic, no?" Triangle would remark. "This boat is made of plastic, isn't it?" And with *that* usage of common sense, Firey would immediately burn through the boat, causing him to fall into the sea. Firey would scream as he died, becoming yet another casualty of the deep blue waters. Triangle would simply chuckle as he watched another man die. It wasn't all that rare of a sight for him, anyway. However, as common sense would dictate, the water would then proceed to flood into the boat, flowing through the hole and into the floor. "...Uh oh." Triangle would then immediately lose his dizzying feeling, recognizing the direct threat of his life posed by potentially drowning in the middle of this god-forsaken sea, and would proceed to run out of the stern compartment. Meanwhile, the contestants were still busy hanging on to the boat, fearing for their lives because they could be flung off the boat at any moment. Triangle would greet them. "Hey, guys. I don't want to cause any panic, but..." He'd trail off for a moment. "There's now a Firey-sized hole in the boat, and also Firey's gone. Totally unrelated, *I swear*."

"*LEAK*!" Eraser would shout. Triangle would nod. "Yeah. My point exactly." As soon as everyone realized what a leak in the boat meant, they'd immediately begin panicking. "Any takers on who will seal it for the time being?" Triangle would ask. Everyone would then go silent for a moment. *No one* wanted to have that role. "Actually, don't answer that question." Triangle continued. "Blocky's the only one large enough to do it." "*WHAT*? NO WAY!" Blocky immediately protested. "Too bad." Triangle shook his head. "You wanna drown?" He'd ask. "NO! THAT'S EVEN WORSE!" Blocky would yell again. "Great!" Triangle would nod. "Let's go." Triangle would then walk up to BLocky and pick him up, and would immediately rush back into the stern compartment, forcing him through the hole to block it up, or at least slow down the flow of water long enough to get to Dream Island. "There we go!" Triangle nodded. "Now we have a bit more time before this boat sinks. Enough for us to get to Dream Island!" He'd pause. "...Probably." "GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Blocky would continue yelling. "Don't struggle." Triangle shook his head. "You know what'll happen if you do." He would then walk back to the outside. "Well, that resolves *that* problem." Triangle would have a faint smile on his face, somewhat happy to have made someone absolutely miserable. "*Please* tell me that we're close to Dream Island." "I think I see it over there!" Needle would yell.

Needle would point towards the horizon, where something that appeared to be an island with a vast amount of man-made infrastructure had begun to emerge. "Great! Spectacular! Some other word!" Triangle would celebrate. He would know that *that* island wasn't Dream Island, however. Dream Island itself was on another island, which was now also emerging from the horizon, but it was further away than the island Needle had seen. Triangle would estimate the distance between the boat and the island, do the calculations in his head, and then would rush back to the motor to turn it off at just the right time, so that the boat would end up stopping just before the islands shore.

-

GD looked out the window of the base, which was now pretty much complete. He'd watch the waves form and then crash onto the island over and over again, and would sometimes walk to the opposite window to look at Dream Island, which appeared to be a ghost town that was vacated just yesterday, even though it was never populated at all. While he was admiring the view, however, the bases alarms would then go off all over the place, accompanied by the typical bright red lights flashing on and off in sync with the alarm. One of the soldiers that was stationed at the base would immediately enter GDs office, who was most likely, in GDs mind, going to just report what emergency was going on. "My lord!" The soldier began, and his face would immediately go red in embarrassment. "Er... Sir!" He'd then continue several seconds later. "There's an unknown vessel approaching the base!" "...Uhuh." GD would nod, not worrying at all even though all the warning signs around him told him to worry. "What kind is it?" He'd ask. "It's a boat, sir!" the soldier replied. "It's coming towards the base at high speed!" "So the invasion has come early, huh?" GD remarked. He would pause for a moment to think. "Should I give the order to open fire?" the Soldier would ask. "No. Don't do that." GD shook his head. "Just... Gather more soldiers. We'll confront them once they land."

-

Triangle would count to five with his fingers, and then immediately turned the motor off. The noises it was making would quickly die down, but the noises would then start back up again due to the screaming of the contestants. The water had continued to flow into the boat, continuing to flood it, and their feet were now getting soaked in it. "QUIT YOUR YELLING!" Triangle would yell back at them. "IT'S NOT LIKE YOU GUYS CAN'T SWIM!" The boat would gradually proceed to slow down from its high speeds, and the island would gradually continue coming into view. As they got closer, they could begin discerning the features of the island, both natural and artificial. Triangle would then walk out and would look for a platform protruding from the island. A few seconds later, he would find it. "There's the dock." He'd remark to himself. "EVERYONE!" He'd then yell. "EVERYONE GET TO THE PORT SIDE! If we get enough mass over there, we could possibly change the boats course!" Everyone would try their best to comply, with the speed the boat was going limiting their movement. They'd slowly but surely make their way to the port side (the left side of the boat, looking on to the front, in case you guys didn't know nautical terms, just like I did during the first draft of this) of the boat to 'turn' it, as the boat was heading directly for the island itself, and not the dock. The boat would continue to slow down as this happened. Not like I had to reiterate that, as that would be rather obvious, but oh well.

Eventually, the boat would finally make it to the island, but it was barely going at all once it did, only going at several meters per second, compared to the hundreds of meters shortly before Triangle had turned the motor off. The boat would eventually make it to the dock, fully stopping once the tip of the boat touched its wooden planks. Everyone would go quiet for a moment or so, waiting to make sure that they weren't dead *and* the boat wasn't going to immediately sink afterwards, like in some sort of comedy movie. "Alright..." Triangle would then pause for a moment. "I think we're good." He'd pause again, waiting to see if it'll do the comedic thing. He'd sigh in relief once he knew that it wasn't going to. He was probably going to use his powers if it *did* sink, anyway. "Everyone, get to the shore." He'd continue. Most of the contestants would then begin making their way to the dock and would run for the shore, while Triangle would free Blocky from his punishment in the hole and would carry him to the shore himself. Blocky sighed. "...That reminds me. I'm *definitely* not like you." "Sure you aren't." Triangle scoffed. "I have godlike powers, and you *don't*, as far as I can remember." He'd pause. "Think of what just happened much like a prank." "Uh..." Blocky would sigh. "Alright." Awkward silence would then follow as Blocky did just that. "Okay, now that I think of it like that, we *are* alike."

Everyone would eventually make it to the shore, and would be relieved once their feet touched the yellow sand. I don't know why I had to specify that the sand was yellow, but I did. Triangle would count everyone who remained. There were now only seven contestants remaining, eight including himself. Behind them, they could see the boat gradually sinking into the sea, as the water now rushed into the boat with full force. "She was the finest sea-worthy vessel ever to grace the seas..." Triangle muttered to himself. "Well... At least we're not there anymore. Ain't that right, Teardrop?" Pen would remark. Teardrop would nervously nod, and would begin looking around. The rest of the contestants would follow, not really sure *what* island this was. At first, they thought it was Dream Island, but as they continued to look at their surroundings, they weren't so sure anymore. The beach along the islands shore was pretty much the only natural part of the island that could still be seen, other than the several feet of grass between the beach and the massive metal wall which surrounded the rest of the island. In front of them (and behind the dock, in case that wasn't obvious) stood a massive metal gate, which seemed to serve as the main entrance to... Whatever this place was. The wall was lined with towers that were clearly meant to look out for intruders. Intruders such as them, for instance. Inside the wall was a massive complex full of large, monolithic buildings, most of which towered above the wall, and were in the same shade of dull gray as said wall. It looked more like a fortress or a prison, and *definitely* didn't look like the promised island of luxury.

"Uh... This island sure doesn't look like Dream Island." Eraser remarked. "How would you know that?" Triangle asked. "Have you ever *seen* Dream Island in order to get a fair comparison?" Eraser folded his arms. "I just know, alright?" "Well... Does it really matter for the time being?" Triangle would ask. "I mean, we're now on land, and not on *that*." He'd point to the boat, which was now barely in view, as most of the boat had now sunk into the sea. "We can check if this is Dream Island later." Triangle continued. "For now, we should probably just relax. I mean, things can't possibly get any worse-" And then things immediately got worse. The gate would then begin to open, and soldiers began pouring out of the opening as soon as they could fit through. By Triangles estimate, they numbered at around fifty, or even more. They soldiers would quickly surround them such that the only way out was through going back into the sea. As the soldiers finished their encirclement, one of them would immediately begin yelling. "DO NOT ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE!" "We weren't-" "SILENCE, CRIMINAL!" the soldier would interrupt Eraser, and would then pause for a moment or so, remembering his lines. "YOU HAVE ILLEGALLY ENTERED GD INC TERRITORY, THE PUNISHMENT OF WHICH IS IMPRISONMENT. WHAT IS YOUR INTENT?" Absolutely no one had an answer for that. "Uh..." Eraser would just trail off immediately. "WHAT IS YOUR INTENT?" the soldier yelled again. "OUR BOAT WAS SINKING!" Pen would yell back. "We had to make landfall as soon as possible, or we would all drown!"

The soldiers would begin whispering to each other, as they obviously doubted Pens story. "...A likely story, I suppose." the soldier would nod to his comrades. "BUT THIS IS STILL INEXCUSABLE! YOU WILL BE DETAINED UNTIL A DECISION HAS BEEN MADE! FOLLOW US!" Pen folded his arms "...No." All of the soldiers would immediately point their guns at them. "THAT WAS AN ORDER!" the soldier continued. "NO!" Pen yelled more aggressively. As the commotion continued, a familiar man would walk through the opening, and would observe the surrounded crowd. As soon as his eyes laid on Triangle, however, he'd slightly panic. "SO BE IT!" the soldier would then point his own gun at them. "OPEN-" "HOLD YOUR FIRE!" GD would immediately yell before the order could be finished. "WHAT DO I PAY YOU FOR?" Everyone would suddenly go quiet. All of the soldiers would look at GD, while the contestants would look in their general direction. "...Make way." He'd order. "But sir!" the same soldier would protest. "We've captured these-" "MAKE WAY!" GD would yell louder. The soldiers would split into two groups, much like how Moses parted the Red Sea. Haha! Bible reference. Funny given how God is clearly not present in this universe. GD would walk through the crowd of soldiers, and then would stand on the gap between them and the 'criminals'. He'd simply stand still, knowing what would happen next. Triangle would immediately step forward as soon as GD had arrived, facing him directly.

"...GD." Triangle would say in as serious of a voice as he could muster. "...Triangle." GD would do much the same. The two would stare at each other, but would immediately hug after a few seconds. Both the contestants and the soldiers would stare in disgust as it happened, as neither side had seen their respective leaders in such a state before. Triangle would be the first to break away from the hug. "Triangle, you..." Tears were already forming in GDs eyes. "You goshdarn fool." He couldn't bring himself to swear, instead coming up with something dumb. What am I doing with my life? "How did you get here?" He'd ask. "Went on a road trip." Triangle would answer. "It wasn't as good as you made it out to be." GD would nod. "We lost communication with you as soon as the Devent hit. I thought you had died." Triangle would shake his head. "Of course not! I mean, I *definitely* feel dead inside, but i'm definitely not *dead* dead." GD would chuckle. "Glad to have you back on board, Triangle." "Likewise, sir." Triangle would nod. "Managing those guys was like trying to herd cats. It was madness." Awkward silence would then follow, as neither of them knew what else to talk about. "SOLDIERS!" GD would begin yelling again. "BACK TO YOUR STATIONS! We'll have a meeting tonight about recklessness. Didn't I tell you to ask first, then shoot later?" "But-" "GO!" the soldiers would then walk back into the base.

GD then looked at the contestants. "...Who are these people?" "The contestants." Triangle answered. "Remember?" "Yes..." GD would nod. "I just didn't expect them to be with you here." "It is my duty to oversee the contest until its conclusion, sir." Triangle would nod back. "You haven't discharged me from my position yet, so I *had* to bring them over." the contestants, meanwhile, would be in awe as to how Triangle no longer acted like he was king of the world or something. For the first time, they had seen someone Triangle actually *respected*. GD would chuckle. "Come on. Don't call me sir. You're the CEO, and we're friends. Just call me GD, dangit." He'd pause for a moment to look at the contestants a bit more. "...Is it just me, or are there fewer of them than I thought there would be?" He'd ask. "Definitely fewer, sir." Triangle would nod. "A few were lost during the Devent and the trip. I couldn't recover them because I had temporarily lost my powers. You think you can do that for us?" He'd ask. GD would nod. "I'll see what I can do. Things have definitely been volatile over the past few days, so... I'll have to do that when I know there will be no risks." He would then go silent for a few moments, and would then look at the remaining contestants once again. "Let's get you all inside." He continued. "I'm sure you guys have been through a lot to get here. We'll make you comfortable." GD and Triangle would make their way into the base, and the contestants would then follow.

-

White flags flew all over the base, but their defacement with GD Incs logo meant that its meaning was the opposite of a pure white flag: GD Inc had remained defiant against all odds, and still continues to hold its ground in a world that wants it dead. The sky, once blue during the last leg of the trip, had now taken a grey color, causing everything to look depressing in preparation for the epic final battle. Soldiers ran all over the place, giving the impression that this was actually an active military base. Which it was, of course. "...This isn't Dream Island, is it?" Eraser would quietly ask. GD and Triangle would then chuckle. "Of course not!" GD answered. "Yeah." Triangle added. "Would you imagine if *this* was your prize? A hastily-built military base built to combat an extra-dimensional threat intent on destroying the universe as we know it?" "...Wait, *what*?" Eraser would then grow concerned. Triangle would simply smile, thinking that it was probably now fine to spill a *few* secrets. "Nothing!" "Dream Island is a few miles out from here." GD continued. "You can see it from here, in fact. It's *definitely* way more cozy than here. I would've set up the base there if I was allowed to, but Triangle insisted to keep things clear for the winner."

Silence would then follow. "...Speaking of winners, Triangle..." Needle would start. "Who wins Dream Island?" She'd ask. "Uh... Yeah. Right." Triangle would nod. "Yeah." GD would nod as well. "Who *does* win Dream Island? I've been itching to find out who'll own the next island over." Triangle shook his head. "I'm not gonna name any names yet. I think we'll have... What, one more contest? Before we decide on a winner." "Of course." GD would nod. "The world may end soon, but the competition must still go on." "Hey, they don't know." Triangle would nudge him. "Besides. The contests make good training." "Anyways, Triangle, if you're planning on having another contest, you're free to use the amenities of the base." GD continued. "You *are* the CEO, after all." "Terrific!" Triangle would nod. "Not now, though. I have a feeling everyone here is *exhausted*. Ain't that right?" He'd ask. Most of the contestants would nod. "Of course." He'd nod again as well. "GD, can you direct us to where we can rest?" He'd ask. "Well, where *they* can rest, anyway. We have something to talk about." "Really? We *still* have things to talk about?" GD would be rather surprised. "I thought we've already exhausted every conversation topic under the sun." Awkward silence would follow. "Right." He'd continue. "Follow me to your place of rest, everyone."

They'd all enter one of the large monolithic slabs that GD Inc called a building, and would proceed to walk down its winding hallways and depressing corridors. Everything was colored in some variation of gray, of course, and was barely broken up by propaganda posters and screens that were turned off. Nothing was ever on TV, anyway. Eventually, however, they'd end up in a room that was lined with bunk beds. "Alright." GD continued. "This is one of the living quarters for the soldiers. But given that they have a hard day of training ahead of them, they'll probably be empty for most of the day." He'd pause. "Feel free to rest, to relax, to talk, or whatever you guys do. Me and Triangle have things to discuss." Everyone would immediately rush to claim a bunk, although they were only going to be resting on them for a few hours at most. Triangle and GD, meanwhile, would make their way to the latters office, and would sit down to talk. "...Do they know of what we're trying to do?" GD began. Triangle shook his head. "Of course not. I think they've heard of our broadcasts on the station, but I don't think they think much of it." "That's still bad, though." GD would remark. "...Can you give an estimate as to how many of the contestants have been corrupted?" "Including the host?" Triangle would ask. "Uh... I can only count two that have direct confirmation of being corrupted. Two more are possibly corrupted, but with no direct confirmation, and around half of the others have been manipulated by the host in some form."

"...Where are they now?" GD would ask. Triangle would be rather embarrassed to answer. "Not a clue, sir." He'd shake his head. "After the Devent, the host and one other person had disappeared. Since then, a whole bunch of others have either disappeared or died. I don't have any idea which is which, or which is allied to the host." GD sighed, and shook his head as well. "...That's not good." Triangle sighed as well. "Of course it isn't. So what's the plan?" He'd ask. "Lure the host here, of course." GD answered. "The plan will still go as intended." "What about the contestants?" Triangle would ask. "They weren't meant to be here, besides the anti-host, but I feel like they could somewhat help." GD replied. "It would give the host a sense of familiarity. Would give them a reason to stick around." "Right." Triangle would nod. He would then pause for a minute. "...Are you sure this plan will work?" He'd ask. GD sighed. "...Of course not." Triangle would be surprised by his answer. "...What?" "Like I said, absolutely nothing is certain." GD explained. "The plan could fail, or maybe it won't. Who knows. Although the theory sounds pretty rigid, there's always the possibility that some unknown manipulation of spacetime could result in failure." "How come?" Triangle would ask. "Again, extra-dimensional forces." GD reiterated. "We don't know what these things can do." "...Right." Triangle would nod.

Awkward silence would follow. "...If the restructuring finishes, and most of everyone here will lose their memories..." Triangle sighed. "What will happen to us?" He'd ask. "Uh..." GD would think for a moment. "Given my current state of advancement, i'll probably be able to get through it just fine, although i'll still suffer the effects of restructuring." He'd look at Triangle. "You, on the other hand..." He would think again for a moment. "While you are definitely more advanced than the average inhabitant of this universe, you aren't as advanced as me." Triangle sighed. "Of course i'm not." "Maybe you'll have your memories wiped, maybe you won't." GD continued. "Maybe even something else happens. Who knows. Again, anything could happen." "...Ah." Triangle nodded. "...But then again, there's always the option of using the Multiversal Travel Machine to get out of here before restructuring finishes." GD continued. "Would you want to do that?" He'd ask. "Uh..." Triangle would think for a moment. He'd shrug. "I don't know, actually." "How come?" GD would ask. "I mean, I've experienced so much, done so much, and..." He'd sigh. "It changed me, alright? Like, I used to be so optimistic. I actually used to smile often. Can you even remember that? Can you even remember me smiling?" He'd ask. "I mean, I can remember a few times..." GD would think, not really wanting to remember those times.

"Point is..." Triangle sighed. "I want to remember everything, but at the same time, I don't. I want to still be around you guys, but I also don't. It's..." He'd sigh again. "It's all confusing to me right now, alright?" He'd ask. GD would nod. "Must be the restructuring getting to you." Triangle would nod back. "...Probably." He'd pause. "I'll get back to you on that question once all of this finally ends, alright?" He'd ask. "Sure." GD replied. "Take all the time you need. It was also troubling the first time around." Awkward silence would follow. "...Right." Triangle would nod. "Let's... Let's talk about the contest." "Right." GD would nod as well. "I'll show you around the base. Tell me what you need." They'd get back up and would begin roaming around the base, looking for places to use for the contest.

Meanwhile, the contestants would just hang out, and would sometimes talk to each other. There wasn't any point in trying to escape, as this was a military base, after all. And it was also a military base on an *island*. Where was there to go to? Dream Island? They'd most likely drown before getting there. Pen sighed. "Hey... Eraser?" "Huh?" Eraser would reply. "Don't you think it's a little weird?" Pen would ask. "*What* is a little weird?" Eraser would ask back. "You know..." Pen sighed again. "One day we were all hanging out like we were best friends, but now... Everything's just a mess. Things have changed drastically, there's been a lot of arguing..." He'd look around. "And now we're in a military base! Like, I don't even know what that is." "Me neither." Eraser would shrug. "But it's probably best not to question it." "Yeah." Blocky nodded in agreement. "I mean, i'm hoping this is just some incredibly large prank on us, but at the same time... I really want to live on Dream Island." "Who wouldn't?" Eraser would ask. "The way they advertised it made it look like the best place around." "Maybe it is?" Pen would ask. Eraser would think about it, and would then nod. "...Yeah. Maybe it is." Meanwhile, the others would remain silent, waiting for the inevitable to happen.