The Power of Two

Episode 1: TWO Many Teams

It'd been a few days since Two appeared and flipped everybody's world upside down. No object knew what to do after Two split the group and sent Four, X, and the BFB crew...somewhere. They'd told them that they were somewhere on Earth, but none of the contestants trusted ANY of these omnipresent numbers. At least they FELT omnipresent. No one was able to breathe with Four and X around without one of the two knowing about it.

Two was different, though. Two didn't stick around after their work was finished. Someone would die (usually somebody fragile, like Bottle or Bomby), Two would appear out of thin air similarly to Four, bring them back, and then they'd be off as if they had better things to do. Nobody knows where they go. They even used his infinite power to fix up the bathrooms. They made all the grass grow back and fixed up Golf Ball's underground factory.

Two was just as big an enigma as Four or X; the only difference was how indifferent Two seemed to everyone. They were friendly, sure, but they didn't interact with anyone unless they needed to.

Pen sighed and looked off into the horizon. He and Eraser were sitting at one of the picnic tables by Gelatin's Steakhouse, though the restaurant was closed to its owner's absence.

"Another beautiful day in North Goiky." Pen said aloud to nobody in particular. The fields were pretty quiet today. He saw the members of Death P.A.C.T. standing a ways away, and the rest of Free Food (sans Eraser of course) were doing the same.

Pen felt terrible about his relationship with his team. They were good guys, if not a bit eccentric. Tree, Pie, and Black Hole were chill; he got along with them the best. Pillow, Remote, and Bottle were a bit more on the strange side, but they'd still been pleasant enough. Despite how weird they were their hearts were always in the right place. I mean, that was the whole point of Death P.A.C.T., wasn't it? To keep people safe and alive? An admirable goal, Pen thought.

That's what made him feel so bad. Despite how friendly his team was Pen still didn't feel comfortable with them. He'd been the very last one to be put on a team and only ended up with Death P.A.C.T. because they still needed one member. It hadn't been a good feeling, and since then, Pen had felt excluded. However, it'd been his own fault. He'd made the decision multiple times to opt-out of group activities he'd been invited to, choosing instead to spend his time with his usual group of friends.

Speaking of his usual friends.

Eraser's snoring stopped as he lifted his weary head off the table. He wiped a little bit of drool from his mouth and looked out to where Pen was watching and knew precisely what he was thinking about.

"Just go talk to them," he sighed, "sitting here with me isn't gonna do anything."

"It's not about that." Pen said, turning to Eraser.

"Then what is it about?" Eraser asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I just...don't have a lot in common with them," Pen put his face in his hands, "Didn't you have the same issue with Free Food?"

Eraser shrugged, "In the beginning, I guess. I wasn't close to any of them, but then I started talking to them. Turns out they're pretty chill."

Then he remembered Fries and Yellow Face existed.

"Most of them, at least."

Pen watched Death P.A.C.T. and their antics. Remote was chatting with Tree. Pillow and Pie were using Black Hole, almost like a roller coaster. They circled in his orbit, occasionally using the momentum to launch themselves up into the sky; he always caught them. The only other member was Bottle. She was sitting staring wistfully into the distance.