Battle for Some Actual Peace and Quiet for Once

Episode 16 - Some Incredibly Stacked Odds

Several objects were running through the forest.

Panic and confusion reigned as sirens blared throughout the place. A faint red glow dominated the scene as the wrath of an entire entity was brought upon the land. The low rumble of helicopters could be heard as people desperately searched for the runaways. They were escapees, those objects. Far more in number than the band in question. Some had been caught already, some strayed from the pack, but much of them remained in their single group. The only place where they felt truly safe.

The alarms grew louder. They didn't draw any nearer, there was simply more of them. Big metal birds took the skies in a rush to leave as white streaks descended from the spotless blue sky, heralding death. Neither side of the pursuit knew of what was upon them, they were far too concerned about the other party. More lines of white rose up to meet them, though none were quick enough to destroy them before it was too late. As they hit the ground, explosions rocked the area, causing the escapees to stumble and trip and the helicopters to spin out of control, despite their distance. A blinding white light, rivaling the stars of the night sky in intensity, grew out of the commotion in the distance, swelling quickly in size and carrying clouds of death far worse than any plague or illness. One final desperate scream would be let out by everyone, a final shout into the dark before all was consumed by the light. Destroying. Decimating. Deleting.

-

As always, there was some rather tense opposition from the losing team regarding being sent to Cake at Stake.

Team Not Prawn had been on a winning streak beforehand, having won three contests in a row against the disadvantaged Team Sharp Minds. As such, they had gotten a bit *too* used to winning great victories, and thought that they were nigh-invincible, and that it wasn't too long until Blocky would finally be made the leader of the whole group of unlucky Objects. It was a surprise, then, when they were suddenly faced with a contest that was pretty much impossible for them to do: a contest that was unfairly biased towards Team Sharp Minds. It wasn't like Blocky and the others had to be forcibly dragged to the Cake at Stake area with them kicking and screaming, or something. Much like Team Sharp Minds before them, they just flat-out refused to go. But as they were the more unruly team, they'd do so trying to retain a sense of pride. Pencil and the members of Team Sharp Minds would obviously head to the area first, seeing no problems with what was happening. Meanwhile, Team Not Prawn would stare at them as they left, scoffing and jeering as they got farther away. Pen and Ice Cube, however, wasn't as inclined as the others to protest against the supposedly unfair loss. Within a few seconds, Ice Cube would quickly break off from the team and would get as close to Pencil as possible. Pen would then also give in to temptation and run up to Pencil as well. Blocky and Snowball would notice this act of betrayal and would chase after them, wanting to berate them regarding their cowardice.

Eventually, after about a quarter of an hour, Team Not Prawn would finally be seated at the Cake at Stake area, completely voluntarily even though they'd want to say otherwise. Pen and Ice Cube would be the first, followed by Blocky and Snowball, but the latter two would obviously be mad about it. Team Sharp Minds would be sitting at the bleachers, of course, while Pencil had to remain standing, having to manage the elimination and all that. Some of the eliminated contestants would step out of the HLR to see the commotion unfold, as they grew tired of their metal prison, but that detail is rather irrelevant. Pencil would clear her throat, prompting everyone to fall silent, even though, once again, they didn't really *need* to. After silence fell upon the area for a few seconds, she would continue. "Team Not Prawn, as you *very* well know, you guys are up for elimination." She'd say. "NO!" Blocky would then shout. "No, no, *NO*! That last contest was clearly rigged against us!" Golf Ball would then shout back at him, her shrill voice being heard clearly despite her distance. "How would you know that? You guys are clearly too dumb to do critical thinking!" She'd chuckle, thinking that she got them good. "Nice one, GB!" Tennis Ball, who would obviously be sitting next to her, would applaud her (as best as he can, anyway) for her totally genius retort. "GRR!" Blocky would turn to them and angrily shake his fist. "I'm smarter than you think, you DORKS!"

Pencil cleared her throat again, prompting Blocky to turn back around. "You guys can have your feud during the break. The suns still up, so we'll have *another* hour-long break, followed by the final contest for the day." She'd pause to breathe. "...I assume you guys want to enjoy that break as soon as possible, so..." She'd sigh. "...Get to it." "I'm voting for Ice Cube, obviously!" Blocky would be the first to vote, immediately casting his vote after Pencil stopped talking. "She's done nothing but drag this team down! I thought teams were supposed to work together, but she clearly hasn't gotten the memo!" "Yeah!" Snowball joined in. "She's good for absolutely *nothing*! She has to go!" The harsh tones of their voices, although they were normal coming from them, would be particularly grating to Pen. Normally, he'd be perfectly normal with their attitude. *Of course* they wouldn't like anyone that was trying to stand against them, that was just natural. Though when he would previously join them in berating the offending contestant without any hesitation, as has been documented before, Pen struggled with choosing which side he was on. He began to sweat nervously as his eyes quickly moved around, looking at Blocky, then Pencil, then back again repeatedly. Once again, he had to choose between going with his friends, and going with what he truly wanted.

In the time Pen would spend being indecisive, Ice Cube would cast her vote. "I vote Blocky!" She'd shout, her high-pitched voice causing slight laughter from both Blocky and Snowball, even though one of them was being threatened. "You think your opinion actually *matters*?" Blockys laugh grew louder. "We're *all* against you!" He'd turn to Pen. "Isn't that right, Pen?" Pen would obviously be incapable of responding, only managing to mutter out an "Umm..." or "Eh..." or some variant of the two, much to Blockys confusion. "*Ahem*!" Blocky began tapping his foot. "I said... Isn't that *right*, *Pen*?" Pen continued to sweat profusely, attempting to stare at Blocky directly in the eye, though he couldn't help but slowly drift towards looking at Pencil, his expression subtly asking for some much-needed help. Pencil would take notice of Pens distress signal, and would be rather unsure of what to do as well. She already reckoned that he'd be uncomfortable with voting for Ice Cube, given that she was a relatively close friend of hers. But since there wasn't really any other choice, unless they wanted to incur the wrath of the vengeful Blocky, she would be somewhat fine with it. But given the tense situation, she couldn't just express her stance on the matter into words. She'd just slightly nod at Pens direction, urging him to get on with it and prevent the situation from getting any more awkward.

Pen then nodded as well and gulped, proceeding to look back at Blocky. "Um... Yeah." He'd scratch his head. "Ice Cube, you've contributed nothing to the team. You've even made us lose, in fact." He'd come up with an excuse on the spot in order to ease the tension between him and Blocky. He wouldn't be able to confidently say the final key words, however. He wanted to let Ice Cube know that he was still on her side, yet obviously couldn't, given the circumstances. He'd decide to just bite the bullet and give the news to her directly. "...You just gotta go, Ice Cube." He'd say as quickly as he could without making it too fast to understand. He'd then mutter one last thing under his breath. "...I'm sorry." He'd gulp once more. Immediately afterwards, Ice Cubes eyes would widen as if this was some unexpected outcome, when pretty much everyone knew that that was going to happen before the elimination even started. With her fate pretty much sealed, Ice Cube did the one thing she could do best. "I WANT *REVENGE*!" She'd shout in such volumes that rivaled even the loudest thunderstorms, almost deafening Team Not Prawn in the process, and prompting Pencil to cover her ears. She'd then turn to Ice Cube and frown. "...Sorry, Icy. It's a clear majority. You're out." She'd then write the results in her notebook, even though it wasn't really needed at this point.

ICE CUBE: III
BLOCKY: I

-

As that pretty much wrapped up the elimination, Team Sharp Minds would proceed to leave the bleachers and go to their house. Pencil would walk up to Ice Cube and put a hand on her head, though would immediately pull it back due to just how cold it was. "...Hey, don't worry." She'd say to her. "You can stay with me if you want, alright?" Ice Cube nodded slightly. "Let's go. This place clearly isn't safe for you." Pencil continued. They'd both then proceed to walk to the hangout place. Pen would follow suit, though would pretend to be going somewhere else, but would immediately stopped by Blocky grabbing him by the arm. "...I don't think so, Pen." He'd scoff. "We need to have a little talk. Don't you think so?" "Uh..." Of course, Pen wasn't able to come up with a reply. Snowball scoffed as well. "Yeah." He'd join in. "Just a quick talk, if you know what's right." Blocky would then pull Pen back towards him, putting him right in-between him and Snowball. "...Guys?" Pen would obviously be uneasy. There was only a single reason why they'd want to talk at such a time. "Let's not be too hasty, here... I'm sure we can-" "Oh, really?" Blocky raised an eyebrow and proceeded to laugh. "I don't think I want to resolve it peacefully, thank you very much." "But isn't this just a talk?" Pen protested. "How could a talk get violent?" Blocky didn't actually have a response to that, and so decided to just be vague. "...You'll see." And threateningly waved a fist at him.

"You thought we wouldn't see it, didn't you?" Blocky continued. "We *definitely* know what's up." Pen tried to raise an eyebrow, trying to act confused. "What's up with what?" He'd ask. "You know what's up as well, Pen!" Blocky replied. "Don't play dumb! I saw how you hesitated in voting for Ice Cube." "Yeah!" Snowball joined in once more. "That should've been an easy decision for you. But you didn't do it immediately!" "Yeah, Pen." Blocky stared at him. "That just means one thing. You're trying to break away from us." Pens eyes widened. "B-Break free? From *you guys*?" He'd try his best to chuckle, though couldn't muster all that much. "You guys are my pals! Always have been! Why would I want to do that? You guys know very well that no one else would accept us. Blocky snickered. "Yeah, you're right. But something tells me that that's changing." Pen frowned. "Okay, guys..." He *really* just wanted to get out of here, much like how the author wants to get out of writing these chapters, yet can't because of some moral obligation to always provide content. "...This is a great prank and all, but the point of a prank is to be funny." "Oh?" Blocky grinned. "You think this is just a prank, huh?" He'd chuckle. "You think this is all just a fun time? Is that it? Just a couple of friends goofing off?" He'd take a few steps closer to Pen, staring at him directly in the eye, before pulling back and throwing a punch at him, narrowly missing him by a few inches, just to prove a point or two.

"This isn't a prank, Pen." Blocky continued. "We're no longer playing games here. This is *serious*." He'd reiterate. "Ever since the competition with that Triangle guy, the stakes have been raised incredibly high. Friendships that were once disposable, like pieces of garbage, have become assets one must utilize." Pen would raise an eyebrow genuinely this time, perplexed by how Blocky suddenly seemed to change in tone and vocabulary in an instant. "One should choose their friendships wisely, Pen." Blocky would stare at him again. "...*Very* wisely." Pen gulped. "...But I'm *not* going to abandon you guys." He'd try to protest. "What makes you so certain I would?" Blocky clearly wasn't amused. "Again, did you *seriously* think we wouldn't notice?" Blocky asked. "I already had my suspicions, but the way you've been handling this conversation is confirming them one by one." He'd pause. "You've been avoiding us. First, you didn't stay in the house last night, and then you kept to yourself during the break, hanging by the fence." He'd pause again to breathe. "...I gave you a chance when I said we could leave this place together, Pen. Start fresh. Be free from all this... Stuff." He'd extend his arms, as if he was pointing at the entire living quarters. "But you didn't take it. That. *That*..." He'd pause one final time for dramatic effect. "That is what makes me so certain you're trying to betray us."

Pen would once again be lost for words. That pretty much summarized his intent to the very last detail. He had always enjoyed hanging out with his metaphorical brothers, but because he chose to associate with them, that pretty much limited his options for friends to *just* them. This was fine at first, but ever since he developed *those* feelings for Pencil, he wanted to have more options on who to stick with. He had wanted to do so discreetly, so that he could enjoy the benefits of both, but... That clearly wasn't working out to his advantage, hasn't it? "I..." He struggled to even begin. "...I just wanted more friends, alright?" Pen confessed. "You guys are cool and all, but I just want more people to talk to. Can't exactly do that if you annoy everyone, so I've been trying to be more friendly. That's all." Awkward silence fell upon the scene for a bit. Blocky would draw nearer to Pen once again. "...Glad to see you still have a level head." He'd nudge him slightly with a harsh poke in the forehead, causing him to slightly move back. "...But don't be ridiculous." Blocky continued. "Why would you need any other friends? We're always here to talk, you know." His tone became somewhat lighter, though the anger was still there. "Because..." Pen tried to defend himself, but Blocky would interrupt him. "...Don't answer that. Any response you might have will be dumb, anyway." He'd frown. "...Just don't let us catch you trying anything funny, alright?" He'd continue. "If we do..." He'd then simply smile at him before pulling back once more and turning to make his leave.

Snowball would then quickly follow Blocky. "Why are we leaving him be?" He'd whisper to him, somehow actually managing a quiet whisper for the first time in... Who knows how long. "Given what you said, we should probably..." "No need." Blocky interrupted. "I have a feeling he'll soon regret it if he tries something out." They'd then walk out of the Cake at Stake area, being some of the last to do so. By then, the other bystanders from the HLR had already gone back inside shortly after the 'talk' had started, as they didn't really care what that rowdy bunch was up to. Blocky and Snowball would leave Pen all alone, unsure of what to do next. It felt that he only had two choices at that point: either go all-in and fully break all ties with them, hoping to get literally everyone else in his side (since that seemed to be the only group capable of taking Blocky and Snowball on), or submit once more, which didn't really sound all too appetizing of an option at that moment. Whichever decision he chose, he was bound to anger a lot of people. He wanted to maintain the status quo of both sides being *somewhat* trustful of him, but it was clear that it wasn't going to last. His eyes would naturally wander off to the fence, and the idea of scaling it and getting the heck out of there had never been any more tempting. All of the people that had... *Extraordinary* abilities had disappeared following the end of the previous competition, after all. Surely there was no way anyone could track him down if he tried to escape, right?

*Right?*

-

Pencil and Ice Cube have been sitting around in the hangout place for a good while now, not doing all that much. It had been a rather uncomfortable time, and so neither of them was really into talking at the moment. Most of the time had mostly been spent with Pencil trying to comfort Ice Cube while she was constantly on the verge of crying. By the time that had stopped, nearly half an hour had passed. By this point, Pencil and Ice Cube were just sitting on opposite sides of the couch, doing nothing but waiting for the hour to pass. It had been agreed upon that Ice Cube could just stay back here as Pencil managed the competition. There hadn't been many instances where a contestant had voluntarily entered the place outside of a competition ever since Pencil set up shop there, so she was most likely safe there.

Pencil had been constantly keeping one eye on the clock at all times, watching as its arms kept going around in the same old circular trajectory. As she kept looking at it, her mind began going in all sorts of weird directions, as all minds do at some point in their lives. You know when you have absolutely nothing to do during something incredibly boring, like on a road trip or something, and so you just let your head run loose and start thinking about all sorts of nonsense, until your mind snaps back into reality and you realize you were now thinking of something completely different? It was kinda like that. Or something. Useless tangents that add absolutely nothing to the story aside, as Pencil continue staring at the clock, she remembered a memory from really, really, *really* long ago. So long, in fact, that it didn't really feel like a memory at all. It happened at such a distant past that it felt more like a vaguely-remembered dream than anything else. She could somewhat remember a former friend- no, more of an acquaintance of hers. He was also a clock, much like the one she was looking at, though he was considerably more alive and lively than this specific one. She could barely remember any details about him, even if he had arms or not, or if they ever really met besides the occasional glance or two. All she could remember about him was that he was a different color than this specific clock, and that was about it.

As she continued thinking about him, she would be interrupted by the sound of faint whimpering. Pencil would immediately turn to look at Ice Cube, who was once again on the verge of crying. Her eyes immediately widened and she proceeded to draw nearer. "Icy!" She'd immediately start to panic, though why this was exactly is unclear. "W-What's wrong?" She'd ask. Tears began forming in Ice Cubes eyes (though whether or not they were actual tears or just melted ice is up for debate), until she eventually began crying hysterically once again. Pencil would continue to bring herself closer, as close as she could get without feeling her frigid skin. "Come on, tell me! You can tell me anything, right?" Despite her efforts, however, Ice Cube would throw herself at Pencil, causing her stomach to immediately feel the cold which rivalled even the Siberian winter. "I miss Bubble!" She'd start yelling, her voice somewhat muffled from now having a face full of wood. "I miss her so much!" She'd elaborate further. "I miss Match! I miss Leafy! I miss... I miss..." She then continued on her round of hysterical crying. "There, there..." Pencil would awkwardly pat her in the head in an effort to calm her down here. "We're all here. We've always been." She'd continue. "...Most of us, anyway." She'd mutter to herself, recalling Match and the expedition team. "It'll be okay." "*NO*!" Ice Cube shouted again.

Of course, as has been stated many times before, things could never *truly* go back to the way they were: back to the days of frolicking in the fields and doing nothing but holding conversations that went nowhere. Triangle and the Announcer came and went, and although they were long gone, the impact still remained. New alliances were formed, old ones were ripped to pieces, and their lives had been reshaped to such an extent that to go back to the way things had been was nigh-impossible. This has all been said before, of course. Pencil continued patting Ice Cube, though quickly pulling back her hand as soon as she actually touched her. Feeling a slight pain in her stomach was bad enough. Pencil sighed. "...I know things are tough right now, Icy..." She didn't really know what to say. Pencil never really saw Ice Cube as a friend, but she saw Bubble as slightly more so, and as everyone knows, the friend of your friend is your enemy. Or something. Whatever. Even though Ice Cube was her friend in the same way someone like Tennis Ball was, it meant that she felt like she had to show *some* hospitality. Pencil sighed again, wishing that literally anyone else was here to comfort her. Even Match could do a better job, probably. "...But..." She struggled to continue, though how much of that is due to the growing pain in her stomach is once again up for debate. "...I'll be here for you. I'll protect you."

It didn't really seem to do all that much to calm down Ice Cube, so at least she knew that she also felt the same way about her. Her crying and sniffling *did* lessen to some extent again, however, so that was a start. She'd try and push Ice Cube away gently so that she could recover on her own. She'd resist, of course, needing a shoulder to cry on, but eventually would move back on her own. She'd been stuck to her long enough for several drops of melted water to have latched onto Pencils frame, which she would quickly wipe off. Things eventually quieted down once more, and Ice Cube would stop grieving, at least about the loss of her past way of life, anyway. There was *always* something to complain about.

-

The members of Team Sharp Minds were once again back in their house, doing as close to nothing as they possibly could. Golf Ball was *still* reading the heavy volume that has retained a state of semi-existence throughout this story, with Tennis Ball carefully watching behind her. Leafy wouldn't be doing anything of note, and so will not be written about. Even though Tennis Ball was supposed to be reading alongside his platonic friend, the way Golf Ball had been erratically behaving made the whole situation awkward. She'd gone from being her usual self, to being cold and dark, then back to normal over the course of an entire day. Tennis Ball had tried to keep up with the changes, for he couldn't really find the time to question her about it, but now seemed like the best time to finally do so.

Tennis Ball inched closer to Golf Ball, close enough to poke her lightly with a foot. "...Hey, GB?" He'd call out to her. Golf Ball would quickly turn to face him. "Hm?" "Uh..." Tennis Ball began to sweat. "...I'm not saying that you're doing something wrong, but..." "Huh?" Golf Ball raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" She'd ask. "Um..." Tennis Ball continued sweating. "...I just want to say that..." He'd start to get nervous, as if he wasn't already. "...If there's something wrong, like if something's bugging you, you can tell me. Alright?" He'd ask. "I'm your friend. You can do that, right?" Golf Ball seemed to become even more perplexed by this response. "...Yeah, of course." She'd glance back at the book, then back to Tennis Ball. "...There's nothing wrong, though. Why all the concern, all of a sudden?" She'd ask. Tennis Ball began to sweat even more. "I, uh..." He'd gulp. "I just thought that you've been..." He didn't really want to insult her. "...You've been acting... Strangely." "Eh?" Golf Balls eyebrow couldn't possibly raise any higher. "Strangely? What are you talking about?" That only made Tennis Ball even more nervous. "I, eh..." He'd gulp again. "When I... When I first asked you about it, you seemed to..." He *really* didn't want to anger the closest friend he had, but he also felt like he had to get straight to the point. "...You seemed to be all angry, and stuff."

Golf Ball nodded slightly to the best of her ability. She seemed to paradoxically be both understanding and confused. "Did I... Come off as rude to you?" She'd ask. Tennis Ball gulped one final time. "...A bit, yeah." He'd 'nod' back. A brief period of awkward silence followed until Golf Ball spoke again. "...Sorry." came her quick apology. "I must've been letting stress get the better of me. Like you said... We can't all be perfect." She'd turn back to the book. "There's the whole competition thing with Blocky, then there's this entire book we're trying to figure out..." She'd sigh. "Must be too much for one brain, I suppose." "I..." Tennis Ball 'nodded' again. "...I guess so." He had finally gotten *an* answer, but it wasn't exactly the one he wanted. For one thing, Golf Ball completely ignored the fact that she *literally floated*. Such a fact would obviously be something she should bring up, but she kept her mouth shut about it. "But..." Tennis Ball continued. "But again, I'm here. You know that, right?" He'd ask. Golf Ball briefly 'nodded'. "Mhm." "Alright..." Tennis Ball wasn't sweating so much anymore, though was still concerned. "It's just that it seems you keep forgetting that there are people that can help you out." He'd then turn to Leafy, who he also had questions about. "...Isn't that right, Leafy?" He'd ask. "Hm?" Leafy had been doing nothing in particular, and would look back at Tennis Ball. She had been listening to their conversation, however, and would know what to do. "Uh... Yeah." She'd nod. "We got your back, GB." She'd then promptly go back to doing a whole lot of nothing.

"See?" Tennis Ball continued. "We still care about you. Sure, we might not have Bubble, or Eraser, or Ne-" "Or the rest of the Sharp Minds. Yeah." Golf Ball interrupted. "No need to remind me of all the people we've lost. It stresses me out." "...Sorry." Tennis Ball was quick to apologize. "But what matters is that we're still here, alright? And as long as we're still together, then Team Sharp Minds will still stand strong, no matter how few we are in number. After all, we are indeed the Sharp *Minds*, right?" He'd wink. Golf Ball chuckled a bit, which was quite the rare thing to witness. "...Yeah, I guess."

-

The hour would eventually pass, and Pencil would step out of the hangout place, already blowing her whistle. Within a minute or two, the remaining contestants would quickly gather in front of her. She'd quickly count all of them, and would end up counting six, seven including herself.
"Alright, guys." Pencil began. "We're now in the Final 6." She remarked. No one would celebrate this, for it only seemed to serve as a reminder of how long they've had to put up with all this competition nonsense. It had been so long, that not only had they gotten through one, they've also managed to get halfway through *another*. It somewhat helped that the number of contestants in the second one had decreased compared to the first, but it was still a rather discouraging fact. "No need to remind us of how much time we've wasted, Pencil." Blocky would put those exact thoughts into words. "Yeah." Snowball joined in, once again contributing nothing to the conversation. Pen would choose to simply nod a bit, pleasing the still-angered Blocky while not angering Pencil *too* much. "...Yeah." To their surprise, however, Pencil seemed to agree with them. "I don't like being reminded of it either. But if we put up with it, we might be able to speed things up and be done with it sooner." "Yeah!" Blocky shouted with a hint of excitement in his voice. "The faster we finish this, the faster I can get to rule you dorks!" Golf Ball glared at him. "I wouldn't be so certain of that..." They'd continue to lock eyes in an intense staring contest, much to the displeasure of literally everybody else that had to witness this terrible feud. "Again, there's a time and place for your bickering." Pencil remarked.

Awkward silence would then occur for a few seconds before Pencil continued. "...Speaking of which, the next contest is..." Pencil immediately trailed off. Pencil and Golf Ball had agreed to partnership in coming up with contests, but it seemed like that was just a one-off thing. Pencil was, once again, completely out of ideas for contests. "*Is*..." She'd repeat herself, this time staring at Golf Ball, who would realize what she was implying. "Oh, right!" She'd jump. "How about we-" "NO!" Blocky would immediately shout, interrupting her. "We're not going to take any ideas from *YOU*!" Golf Ball snickered. "Who said anything about *we*?" She'd ask rhetorically. "It's up to Pencil to choose the contests. She can choose from whichever idea she likes, either her own or someone else's." "Well, two can play at that game!" Blocky replied. "The next contest should be..." He'd then proceed to trail off, for he too had no contest ideas. "Be, uh..." He'd still try his best, however. "HAH!" Golf Ball jumped once again, feeling triumphant over the obviously defeated Blocky. "Alright, how about we..." Golf Ball had completely overlooked one thing, however: she herself was *also* out of contest ideas. She remembered her partnership with Pencil, but other things had dominated her mind, preventing her to come up with even a single idea for a contest.

Pencil wouldn't be amused by any of this, and they'd all stand in awkward silence for a few minutes as both team leaders tried to show their superiority by seeing which one could come up with an idea first. Unfortunately for the golf ball with a superiority complex, Blocky would be the one to come up with an idea first. "AHA!" He'd shout. "The next contest should be to stack up! Whoever can stack up the highest wins!" Pencil thought about it for all of two seconds before nodding. "You know what? Since that's the first idea we've had, we're doing it." "HAH!" Blocky would waste no time in shoving this achievement of his in Golf Balls face. "I CAME UP WITH A CONTEST BEFORE YOU! I'M SMARTER THAN YOU!" "*WHAT*?" Golf Ball would quickly turn to Pencil. "WHY ARE YOU ACCEPTING IDEAS FROM *HIM*?" She'd then turn back to Blocky. "WHERE'D THAT IDEA EVEN COME FROM?" Blocky scoffed. "I'm a building block, in case you didn't know, dork. I just supposed that I should be used for my intended purpose for once!" Golf Ball looked back at Pencil. "Tell you what, GB..." She'd sigh. "If you can come up with a contest idea in five minutes, we'll go with that. If you can't, well..." She'd snicker. "I suppose that Team Not Prawn wins, no?" "FINE!" Golf Ball shouted, not wanting to admit defeat. Four minutes would then pass, mostly consisting of everyone watching Golf Ball helplessly stutter as she couldn't come up with an idea to save her life.

Before the fifth minute had passed, Golf Ball would sigh in defeat. "FINE! WE'LL DO HIS CONTEST IDEA!" Blocky and Snowball would then begin laughing hysterically, having scored yet another victory against the supposed genius. Pencil simply nodded, not wanting to deal with this any further. "Alright, then." She'd say. "You guys have a minute or two to plan how you're going to stack yourselves up, since that requires at least a *bit* of planning. Get to it." She'd then sit down on the grass, as she didn't really feel like taking a nap that time. The two teams would immediately disperse to plan in secret, even though that wasn't really necessary. "Alright, guys!" Golf Ball quickly began, not wanting to waste another minute after being humiliated like that. "We're clearly at a disadvantage here, since spheres don't stack very well." "Yeah." Tennis Ball joined in. "He really outsmarted us there! How are we going to manage it?" Golf Ball scoffed. "He probably chose that idea because we were spheres. But he's failed to realize one thing." "What is it?" Tennis Ball asked. "As we're different in size, it'll be easier for us to stack up!" Golf Ball explained. "Tennis Ball will be the base, while I'll climb on top of him!" She'd then turn to Leafy. "Leafy!" "Yeah?" Leafy was also sitting in the grass, minding her own business. "As you're the lightest, you'll probably have no trouble climbing without knocking us off! You'll be on top, since you're actually capable of climbing!" "Alright." Leafy would give her a thumbs-up

Meanwhile, Team Not Prawn would also plan on how they'd tackle the contest, in a rare act of actually performing critical thinking. "Snowball!" Blocky began. "Huh?" Snowball would look at him. "You're the largest out of all of us, so you'll be the foundation! And you're also made of snow, so that gives us even more of an advantage!" Blocky explained. "How?" Snowball asked. "You can shape yourself to be flat on the bottom, allowing you to more easily stay put! Tennis Ball will *have* to be struggling to not move, or they'll all fall down!" Blocky elaborated further. "*WHAT*?" Snowball wasn't too keen on the idea, however. "It takes forever to get this spherical shape! I'm not going to do that!" Blocky scoffed. "Come on. It's not *that* perfect of a sphere." "It's the best any of you can do!" Snowball protested. "Look, it'll only be for a few minutes, alright?" Blocky continued. "I'll get on top of you, and Pen will be at the top, since he's the thinnest." He'd then look at Pen. "You can do that, right?" Pen would immediately turn to him and give him a thumbs-up. "Uh... Yeah. You can count on me." "*Good*." Blocky nodded. Yet more time would pass, and Pencil would blow on her whistle again, indicating that the time for planning was up. Both teams would gather close to her once more. "Alright, alright." Pencil continued. "Just stack, or something." She *clearly* was tired of it all at this point. "I'll give you ten minutes, or something. Go."

Immediately, the two teams would start putting their plans into action. Tennis Ball would immediately sit down where he was standing, and Golf Ball would start struggling to climb up him. Meanwhile, Snowball would start struggling to reshape himself to have a flat bottom (hah), with Blocky and Pen helping him. After a minute or so of struggling, Golf Ball would eventually give up and turn to Leafy. "Leafy! Get me on top of him!" "Can do!" Leafy would then run to her and pick her up, raising her up and placing her on top of Tennis Ball. Unfortunately, however, Leafy wouldn't be able to place her on the exact spot where she could stay without falling, and so would immediately roll off after letting her go. This constant struggle in getting Golf Ball up would give Team Not Prawn enough time to sculpt Snowball into the proper shape. Snowball would then sit down, with two gaps having been made so that his legs could be level, limiting his movement. Troubles would arise, however, when Blocky would try to climb up. As he was a rather heavy contestant, Pen couldn't exactly help him up like how Leafy helped Golf Ball. He would try his best, but it wouldn't amount to all that much, as he was just so *heavy*.

After several attempts with no luck, Golf Ball would finally manage to stand on Tennis Ball in the short time she had before rolling off, allowing her to finally stay on top for more than a second or two. "YES!" She'd shout in excitement. "Now, using my vast intellect, I'll be able to determine which spot is right for me! I estimate that the best spot will have a 94.36% probability of keeping me on top of Tennis Ball during the allotted amount of time! I just gotta find it!" She'd then begin carefully inspecting Tennis Ball, looking for microscopic bumps that could be exploited to get a hold on what was usually a smooth surface. Although her dimples made the task ever so slightly easier, she felt like she needed every edge she could get. Once again, this would give Team Not Prawn the time they need to finally get Blocky on top of Snowball. "YES!" Blocky would also shout in excitement. He then got comfortable and proceeded to sit down. As he didn't immediately fall off shortly afterwards, he felt that victory was within reach, since they were all taller on average compared to Team Sharp Minds. But since snow isn't a fully solid material, and because Blocky was so heavy, gravity would naturally pull Blocky down, causing Snowball to become even more deformed, and Blocky to sink further into him. They didn't notice or care about this, however, as they felt like they were going to win anyway.

A few more minutes would pass, and Golf Ball would finally manage to find the coveted perfect spot. She'd sit down upon it, and felt triumphant as she didn't immediately roll off. Leafy would then climb up on top of her, and would manage to stay there, despite the limited surface area she could stand on. "HAHA!" Golf Ball laughed. "Finally! The perfect stack! We're bound to win in no time!" Team Not Prawn would notice this, and Blocky would immediately see this as an obvious threat. "Oh no!" Blocky exclaimed. "Quick, we gotta knock them out!" Pen would quickly get down from his position from the top of the stack, but Blocky would struggle to do the same, as he had now sunk down a few inches into Snowball, making it a bit difficult to free himself. "...Uh oh." He'd remarked. "SNOWBALL!" He'd shout. "GAH!" Snowball shouted back. "LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE DONE! NOW I'M EVEN MORE DEFORMED!" "THAT DOESN'T MATTER!" Blocky shouted back. "JUST DO SOMETHING!" He'd point aggressively at Team Sharp Minds' stack, which somehow continued to stand despite how unstable it was. Snowball would attempt to get up, though it was quite a struggle, given that he was now carrying Blocky. After almost collapsing after standing up, he'd start preparing to tackle Team Sharp Minds, although it would take a bit because of his sheer mass. Golf Ball would realize what was going on and would start to panic. "HOLD ON, LEAFY!" She'd shout. Leafy would try her best to grab on to Golf Ball with her feet, though that wouldn't really amount to all that much.

Snowball would manage to get a running start despite all the added mass, and ended up tackling the stack head-first, which unfortunately meant that Blocky was going to get the head concussion of a lifetime as he slammed directly into Tennis Ball, absorbing all the force that Snowball would've experienced, had he been Blocky-less. This would also cause Blocky to sink further into Snowball, almost burying his mouth in the snow. They *would* manage to succeed in toppling the stack however, causing all of them to fall down. With only two minutes or so left, Team Sharp Minds had to act incredibly quickly. Leafy would quickly get Tennis Ball upright again, and essentially had to throw Golf Ball to get her on top once more. She hastily looked for the spot again, with it being somewhat easier as she now knew its general location. She had no time to be precise, however, and so just sat on whatever spot looked fine. She'd adjust herself by quite a bit in order to be a bit more precise, using up much of the time remaining. Leafy barely had any time to get on top of Golf Ball before Pencil blew her whistle, signaling that the time was now up.

Pencil would get up from where she sat in order to check the stacks. Pen would raise his arms up in a desperate attempt to gain some extra height, prompting Leafy to do the same, though Pencil wouldn't notice this. She'd check Team Sharp Minds' stack first, being the one to the left of her. She'd see Golf Ball with an uneasy smile on her face as she struggled to stay still, as well as Leafys legs somewhat shaking due to all the exertion that standing on a sphere would cause, or something. She'd walk around the stack and nod before moving on to Team Not Prawn. The first thing she'd immediately notice was that Blocky was now half-submerged into Snowball, and was flailing his arms around in a panic while Snowball seemed utterly done with all of it. Pencil looked at Snowball and frowned slightly, somewhat concerned. "...That *has* to not be good for you.*" She remarked. "Tell me about it." Snowball replied. "I feel somewhat dumber than I was before." Pencil nodded and looked up, seeing Pen desperately trying to keep his arms up. She'd nod and take several steps back, wanting to see both stacks in order to compare them. Although it was obviously hard to determine their exact height, as Pencil didn't have a ruler in hand, she could somewhat estimate it. In an ideal scenario, Team Not Prawn would've won, as their stack would've been taller. But all their extra height had disappeared into Snowball, causing it to seem like Leafy was just the tiniest bit higher than Pen was.

After nodding a few more times for good measure, Pencil would finally declare who she thought was the winner. "Team Not Prawn." She'd turn to the team in question, who would now be panicking. "You guys clearly struggled a bit, no?" She'd ask. Snowball grumbled. "...Of course." He'd reply. "Yeah, sorry to say this, but..." Blocky already knew what she was going to say, and so sighed accordingly. "UGH!" He'd shout. "AGAIN?" Pencil shrugged. "Your good luck ran out, I guess." She'd remark. "Team Sharp Minds, you've won." Golf Ball would then sigh in relief, thanking whoever may be up above for the near-miraculous victory, only for the stack to immediately collapse due to that.