Author's Note: Let's keep this update train a-rolling!

Episode 7 Part 4

Shy Guy: I can't believe it: I'm actually going to be a finalist. I'd been dreaming about the possibility for ages, but to know for sure it's happening? Just… wow. I can't slouch though. I still need to be prepared to ace the final execution.

Mona: I've been looking back over my notes an noticed an interesting pattern. Yeah, we've all earned exemptions before, but this is Shy Guy's third! Even wilder, he got all three of them by betraying the group. If he's the Mole, then that's some efficient sabotage right there! And if he's not, well, I'm not looking forward to facing someone so cunning in the finale. Either way, Shy Guy makes me really nervous.

Mallow: Gah, I really could've used that exemption! I think we all have a pretty good idea of who the Mole is at this point, so whether or not I make it to the end comes down to how well and how quickly I do the quiz. And I dunno, that almost feels like random chance at this point. It's like I'm back in Episode 1 all over again!

Toadiko: At the beginning of this episode, we treated this place like a fun beach vacation. It was a place to relax and destress before the final gauntlet. But now any sense of levity has gone flying out the window. The moment we got back to the hotel, Mona was buried in her journal. I don't blame her, not one bit, but it's disappointing to see that we've flung ourselves back into the stress so quickly. That being said, I should really dig into my journal as well.

Following the mission, the players were left to their own devices for the rest of the day. With Shy Guy's exemption reminding them of the fast approaching endgame, that primarily meant reading journals, writing in journals, and strategizing. Each player had their own location to work. Mona was hidden under her comforter with a flashlight, Toadiko was at a table in her and Mona's room, Mallow was out on the balcony, and Shy Guy had slunk off to the roof.

The only time they reunited that day was when Anderson called them down to the lobby that evening. After another bout of dramatic pauses and near heart attacks, he admitted that they were just down there for dinner. There would be no execution that night, as he had promised.

"But remember, players," Anderson said as they prepared to return to their rooms for the night. "Next time I call you down here could be the last for one of you. Or not! Regardless, it will all be over three days from now."

It was that ominous reminder that hung over the players' heads as they entered day two of Episode 7. When Anderson's usual morning call didn't come, they cautiously ordered room service for breakfast, exchanged some wary hellos on the balconies, and went back to their earlier orientations.

Mona: As much as I've appreciated all this time to prepare, this is starting to get torturous! Is Anderson just letting us stew before springing the next execution on us?

It wasn't until mid afternoon that the phones in the hotel rooms started ringing. Mallow and Toadiko each shakily picked up their respective receivers, both offering a nervous "Hello?"

"Players!" Who else could it be but Anderson? "Could you all meet me down in the lobby?" Before anyone could answer, he hung up.

"Lemme guess: our gracious host wants to see us?" asked Mona, emerging from under her covers with her journal.

"Right on the nose," Toadiko replied with a nod.

"What do you think we're in for? Mission or execution?"

Toadiko shrugged. "We can only hope it's a mission."

Mona nodded. "Yeah, that's what I'm going with. I feel like we've seen too little of the city, ya know?"

"But who's to say the finale won't also take place in the city? I know Anderson said we're going somewhere called Molehill Isle, but that doesn't mean we'll be there the whole time." said Toadiko.

"Eh, maybe," said Mona. "Or maybe the last part will be at sea! Or maybe Anderson will fly us out somewhere completely random, like he did with Petal Meadows!"

"I don't know if I can share your enthusiasm here," said Toadiko. "Even if we go somewhere else, I'm afraid of what surprises it would bring."

The players were soon gathered in the lobby, with the men showing up slightly late due to Mallow having to fetch Shy Guy from the roof.

"Players!" Anderson greeted, finally entering the room once everyone was present. "I'm sure you all are very curious about why I've gathered you here."

"Cut the games, Anderson," Mona said bluntly. "Are we doing a mission or an execution?"

Anderson raised an eyebrow at the interruption. "An understandable question, but not as simple as you think. You see, we're kind of doing both."

"Huh?" gasped Mona.

"What ever do you mean?" asked Toadiko.

Shy Guy flashed his exemption. "How does this work for me?"

Anderson chuckled. "Ah, I see. You all are mistaken. The execution in question is not for you all."

This comment managed to confuse the players even more. "Hold on, what?" asked Mallow. "Are there other players we didn't know about or something?"

Anderson chuckled louder this time. "Now that would be quite the twist! But no, it's nothing like that. For our next mission, you all will be playing the role of assassins!"

Mona clapped her hands together and jumped with glee. "Heck yeah! I've been waiting all game to do some proper spy stuff!"

"Yes, I suppose this sort of mission was inevitable," said Toadiko. "But I have to ask: just how abstract is this mission?"

"Ha! Abstract? Hardly!" said Anderson. "The four of you are required to find the governor of the Yell Yell Desert region and actually, physically attack him."

There was stunned silence for a moment as the players processed the host's statement. "Excuse me, did I hear that right?" asked Mallow.

"You want us to attack a sitting member of government?" gasped Toadiko. "Need I remind you: I work directly for the Princess!"

Mona meanwhile had stars in her eyes. "Real. Spy. Stuff," she whispered giddily.

"Yes, this is probably our most wicked challenge since your last bout with the Koopa King!" Anderson said, clearly proud of himself. "But don't stress too much. I'm not asking you to commit real treason here. Governor Skullington, as you may guess from the name, is a Dry Bones. If you smack him hard enough, he'll collapse into a pile of bones, but won't be any worse for wear."

"Yes, but," began Toadiko.

"And the honorable governor has agreed to the whole thing, even if he's a bit fuzzy on the details."

"Hold on!" said Toadiko. "How in the world did you get an actual regional governor to agree to be assassinated?"

"Faux-assassinated," replied Anderson.

"Attacked! How did you get this guy to agree to be attacked? That's insane!"

"Pulled a few strings," said Anderson. "If he lets us do this mission, then he gets to dine with Princess Peach in Toad Town. Pretty good deal, eh?"

"To a man like him, sure," replied Shy Guy. Toadiko raised an eyebrow at that comment, but said nothing.

"So, here's the details: Governor Skullington will be hosting a big party at his mansion on the edge of town tonight," explained Anderson. "You all are not invited, but you will have to find a way in, nonetheless. Once you're there, use any means necessary to make the governor collapse, so long as you don't hurt anyone else."

"And then we get off scot free?" Mallow asked hopefully.

Anderson shook his head. "While there's no chance of you being arrested by the police, you'll find no such luck with his guards. If they catch you and lock you up, then the rest of the group needs to get them out. If you can successfully 'assassinate' the governor and all four of you make it back to the hotel by midnight, then you win 40,000 coins. If even a single one of you doesn't make it back in time, then you win nothing."

"Aw yeah, this is gonna be so cool!" said Monna, pumping her fist.

Shy Guy grinned. "I agree. This reminds me of some of my old heist movies."

"Fake or not, I'm not thrilled about becoming an assassin," Toadiko said with a sigh.

"You all will have a few things to help you succeed," continued Anderson. "Firstly, you have until tonight to prepare a strategy, which could make or break this whole thing. Second, you'll have special earpieces so that you can keep in touch over the course of your mission. And finally, we've brought a wide selection of clothes from the University of Villepario's theater department, so any zany schemes you concoct are welcome to incorporate disguises."

And with that, several racks of clothes were wheeled into the lobby, and the players gathered around a table to begin planning their plot.

"Jeez, how do we even begin planning something so horrible?" Mallow asked with a shudder.

"As much as I wanna jump right to the weapons and fighting, I think we should first focus on how to get in," said Mona. "Anderson said we're not invited to the party, right?"

"Right," Toadiko said with a nod. "Perhaps we could go in dressed as wait staff? That's a pretty common tactic in the movies."

Shy Guy grinned. "I appreciate the use of movie strategies here."

"Hold on," said Mallow. "Do we really want to put all of our eggs in one basket like that? What if we get caught?"

"That's exactly what I was thinking," said Shy Guy. "But Anderson said something that could help us with that, big time."

Toadiko's eyes lit up. "You know, you did say something weird earlier. What did you mean by 'a man like him?'"

"Anderson said the governor was willing to allow himself get attacked in order to meet Princess Peach," explained Shy Guy. "I may not be royalty, but I've met plenty of people who are desperate to meet celebrities, and this guy reeks of that attitude."

Mallow grinned. "I see exactly where you're going with this! You want me to go in separately, right?"

Mona looked at him confusedly. "Wait, I don't follow."

"Because there's no way he'd turn a prince away, regardless of if he was on the list or not," said Shy Guy.

Mona smacked a hand to her forehead. "Oh my gosh! You're a prince!"

"Yes?" said Mallow.

"I totally forgot you're a prince!"

Mallow grinned sheepishly. "I don't really talk about it much."

"I would've treated you way nicer if I'd remembered you're a prince!" said Mona.

"And that's why I don't bring it up," said Mallow. "You don't need to treat me special. I'm just Mallow!"

"Getting back to the strategy," cut in Shy Guy. "The governor should treat you special and let you in with less resistance."

"Right," Mallow said with a nod.

"Going in with you would probably be the safest option," said Toadiko.

"Sure, but aren't we gonna look a bit suspicious as his entourage?" said Mona.

Shy Guy nodded. "That's right. Mallow, I don't really know anything about Nimbus Land. Could any of us pose as an attendant or something?"

Mallow looked between his three companions. "We don't have any Toads or Humans up there," he said. "But we do have these flying Shy Guys called Shy Aways. You could pull off that role, right Shy Guy?"

"It's a role I've done zero research for and haven't been given a script, but I'll do my best," said Shy Guy. "Takes me back to my days doing improv in college."

Toadiko snorted. "You did improv?"

Shy Guy shrugged. "Maybe. Or maybe I'm lying to throw you off."

Mona rolled her eyes. "We get it, you're mysterious," she said in a joking tone. "So if I got this right, Mallow and Shy Guy are going in the front door as a royal surprise, and Toadiko and I are still doing the waiter bit?"

"Sounds good to me," said Mallow.

Toadiko nodded. "That should be fairly simple. Shall we move on to our plan once we get inside?"

Shy Guy nodded. "Did Anderson say he had a schematic of the building or anything like that?"

"Not even close," said Mona.

"Does anyone know anything about the mansion?" he asked.

"Nope, sorry," said Mallow.

"Unfortunately not," said Toadiko.

"Not a chance," said Mona.

Shy Guy sighed. "How are we supposed to plan a heist without a map?"

Mona raised an eyebrow. "A heist? You mean an assassination?"

Shy Guy shook his head. "Anderson totally gave us the setup to a heist movie. We're sneaking into an opulent mansion, performing a covert operation, leaving without being seen, and getting rich afterwards, all while working together as a team. This is a classic heist setup!"

"Yes, it would seem like that," said Toadiko. "But that doesn't mean that's exactly what we're doing. Last challenge felt like the setup to a crime thriller but turned out to be more of a game of cops and robbers."

"But the resemblance is so striking here," muttered Shy Guy.

Toadiko: I'm not sure why Shy Guy was being so stubborn about this. Has he been thinking in movie logic this whole time, or is he just intimidated by this challenge?

"So unless we find some sort of detailed map in there, it sounds like we'll have to play it by ear," said Mallow.

"Or we could just charge the guy the moment we see him, then bail before anyone has a chance to realize what happened," said Mona.

Toadiko shook her head. "That sounds like the perfect way to get us all locked away for a night."

"I still think we need a solid plan," said Shy Guy. "We don't know how good his guards are, so we should assume they're the best. And in that case, we need a plan that will let us slip out without having to deal with them."

"I'm telling you, whatever goons he hired will be too shocked to react if we just go in and do it right away!" said Mona. "And the longer we're in there, the harder it'll be to make a clean exit!"

"But if we get him when no one's watching, we may not have to deal with the guards at all," said Shy Guy.

"I'm inclined to agree with Mallow," said Toadiko. "Mona's plan could easily go wrong, but if we try and form a perfect plan like Shy Guy wants then any one thing going wrong could cause the whole thing to crumble. We need to play things by ear."

Mona sighed and nodded. "Alright, I'm listening."

"We of course can't improvise completely," said Toadiko. "So I propose we set a few goals we need to meet before we finally act." She turned to Shy Guy. "What are the things a heist plan needs? And please, stick to big, broad strokes."

Shy Guy mulled over the question for a moment. "There's identities and an entrance strategy, which we already have. They need a way to get out, usually casually through the front door if it can be helped. They need a way to disable security. And they need a clever, unexpected way of doing the deed. There's lots of other bits, but those are the big ones."

"Disabling security seems like a tough one," said Mona. "We can't exactly beat up a bunch of guards."

"Maybe we just distract them? Or at least figure out which areas they guard less," said Mallow.

"And we can tie that to our exit plan," said Toadiko. "If the front door isn't an option, than we need to know where the exits are and which are safest."

"Then there's the question of the assassination itself," said Shy Guy. "We don't have time to do something incredibly elaborate, but I think there's two things we need to figure out. First, what's our weapon? Second, when and where can we do this without getting caught?"

Toadiko counted the points up on her fingers. "I think that about covers everything! So, when we get in, we each need to do our best to blend in, all while doing some reconnaissance to figure each of these things out. Once every point is in order, we'll execute our plan and get going."

Mona snorted. "Ha! 'Execute.'" Her pun earned a chuckle from Mallow. "I'm still afraid of what happens if we mess up," she admitted. "But hey, it's worth a shot."

"And if we find a map, we should meet up and perfect our plan," said Shy Guy.

Toadiko nodded. "I can agree to that."

After a moment to reflect on this plan, Mallow turned towards the racks of clothes. "So, who wants to help me look princely?"

Night had fallen, and a van brought the party to a hill on the edge of town. Atop the hill sat a huge mansion. The building was made primarily of aged sandstone, which stretched in magnificent arches over stained glass windows. The mansion's roof was made of copper, which had long since oxidized to a seafoam-like green. The whole mansion was surrounded by a luxurious garden, complete with fountains and a hedge maze.

The group quickly caught sight of a line of guests slowly heading into the front door. Mallow turned to Shy Guy. "Are you ready?"

The only change to Shy Guy's usual appearance was a black bow tie. "Here's hoping."

"We'll scout for another entrance," said Mona, stepping towards the garden.

"Best of luck, you two!" Toadiko said, quickly following after her.

The line was painfully slow, as each guest was checked on the list before being let in, but eventually Mallow and Shy Guy made it to the front, where two Chargin' Chucks blocked their path. "Hello!" Mallow said with a polite wave. He'd decided to keep his trademark striped shorts but added a fancy red cape to his look.

"Name please," grunted one of the guards.

"I don't believe I'm on the list," said Mallow, prompting confused glares from the Chargin' Chucks. "But I'm sure Governor Skullington would be happy to see that I've arrived. I am Mallow Nimbus: Prince of Nimbus Land."

One of the guards snorted. "And I'm the King of the Koopas." He started to take a step towards Mallow before Shy Guy stepped forward.

"Please, sirs! He's the real deal, I swear it! Just look him up and you'll see the truth."

The Chargin' Chucks looked at each other and shrugged. "The governor would be pretty happy if another prince showed up," one of them muttered. He reluctantly pulled out a phone and began typing. After a moment, he showed the screen to his companion. They both looked from the screen to Mallow a few times.

"Well I'll be!" said the other guard. "You really are the prince! Sorry for the confusion."

Mallow smiled warmly. "No worries at all!" He began to step forward before one of the guards lightly put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hold on, who's this guy behind you?" They were staring at Shy Guy, who looked incredibly nervous, though Mallow couldn't tell if that was in or out of character.

"Ah, that's my assistant, Shy Away!" Mallow said quickly. "The poor kid lost his wings long ago, but he's been a great help to the kingdom!"

"Your praise means so much, your highness!" said Shy Guy, not missing a beat.

One of the Chargin' Chucks smiled warmly. "D'aww that's sweet. Love seeing royals do stuff like this for their employees. It really shows they care about the people, you know? Anyways, enjoy the party!"

Meanwhile, Mona and Toadiko, each dressed in a spiffy waiter's outfit, eventually found a side entrance where staff was filing in.

"Oh thank goodness, I didn't think we were getting any more help tonight!" an exhausted looking Pianta greeted them as they approached the door. Toadiko and Mona glanced at each other, grinned, and walked in.

Toadiko: Well that certainly went easier than expected.

Before they could get out of the kitchen, the Pianta approached them with trays of bread and drinks. "Go ahead and restock any tables you can!" she pleaded.

"Oh, of course!" Toadiko said, grabbing a tray. It was so big that she was barely able to keep it balanced above her head.

Mona quickly scooped up three trays, two balanced on an outstretched arm, and the other in her other hand. "We'll get this done in no time!"

Toadiko turned back to her as they exited into the main ballroom. "How are you even doing that?"

"Plenty of practice," replied Mona. "You get tons of tips if people are impressed." She looked around at the room. They were in a huge ballroom lined with tables and filled with finely dressed people of all species. At the far end of the room she spotted a grand staircase that led up to a second floor whose balcony overlooked the ballroom on three sides. The fourth side was a huge, two story glass window with a door leading out to the gardens.

Toadiko had been scanning the room as well. "There's a door on the big glass wall," she said into the earpiece. "We'll have to scope it out to see if it's safe."

"Roger," replied Shy Guy's voice. "We're coming into the main room now." Just as he finished speaking, Toadiko spotted Mallow and Shy Guy walking in. The quartet locked eyes for a moment before turning to focus on their groups, so as to not draw more attention.

"Someone should check out that second floor too," said Mallow.

"I got an idea," Mona said to Toadiko. "As soon as I empty one of these trays, let me take yours, and you can explore a bit.

"Sounds like a plan. I can barely carry this thing as it is."

The crowd was packed, but Mallow and Shy Guy were soon able to approach the grand staircase. "Alright," Mallow said into the earpiece. "We're heading for –."

"Excuse me, you wouldn't happen to be Prince Mallow, would you?" Mallow froze. It took him a second to regain his composure, but eventually he spun around to face this speaker. He was a green-skinned Beanish man with fabulous golden hair. "Prince Peasley of the Beanbean Kingdom!" he said, holding out a hand.

"Ah, uh, yes!" Mallow said, hastily shaking it. He cast a panicked look to Shy Guy before looking back to Peasley. "I'm surprised to see another prince here!"

Peasley raised an eyebrow. "Are you now? I was on the guest list, I do believe."

"Ah, well, you see, I actually wasn't," Mallow said, grinning sheepishly. "But I was in the area and happened to hear about the governor's party, so I figured I would drop by."

Peasley guffawed loudly, drawing glances from other partygoers, much to Mallow and Shy Guy's annoyance. "Ah, I had no idea the prince of Nimbus Land was such a partier! I was told you were a meek boy, if you don't mind me saying."

"Ha, well, I guess that rumor is outdated," Mallow said. He felt Shy Guy tugging on his sleeve. He looked down to see him giving him an impatient look.

Mallow: What did Shy Guy expect me to do? Look at this prince and say "Sorry, but I have an assassination to attend to. Bye!"? There's only so much I could do.

"Why don't you run along, Shy Away?" he said to Shy Guy, making a shooing motion with his hands. He turned back to Peasley. "My young assistant isn't much for royal gossip, you see." Shy Guy gave him a thankful nod before scampering away.

"Ah, I see your game!" said Peasley. "You're after royal gossip, huh? Well boy are you in luck!"

Mallow: Oh no. Forget the guards. I'll be lucky if I can get away from Prince Peasley before midnight.

"Mallow's trapped in a conversation with one of the guests," Shy Guy said into the earpiece. "But I got away. Should I go for the door or the second floor first?"

"I got the door," said Toadiko.

"Thanks to someone's excellent waitressing skills," added Mona.

"Looks like Mallow's status was a double-edged sword though," said Toadiko. "Maybe you should think of an emergency to pull him away if need be."

Toadiko peaked stepped out into the garden. The night air had already grown chilly, but it was at least a fairly bright night. She glanced around her. She spotted a couple of Chargin' Chucks playing cards at a table, as well as a few guests lounging by a fountain.

She stepped back inside. "There's a couple guards out back, but they're distracted. If we're quick, we could probably get into the hedges before they know what's going on and lose them."

"Alright, one step closer to assassination!" replied Mona.

"Don't say that word out loud!" hissed Shy Guy. "The last thing you want is for them to catch on to our plan."

"Not to mention, we don't know how many people know about the game," said Toadiko. "If the wrong person hears, they might think it's a real threat, and at that point we have a lot more trouble to deal with."

"Okay, okay, got it," said Mona.

Toadiko attempted to make her way back to Mona, but was blocked as the Pianta approached Mona once again. "Hey, I'm really liking your work out here!"

"Thanks, I try," Mona said, giving absolutely no effort to sounding humble.

"I'm thinking Governor Skullington might pay us a bit more if we send someone who's a little more flashy, you know?" continued the Pianta. "Do you think you could head up there with these trays?"

Mona's eyes widened. "For sure! I can totally do that!"

"Excellent!" said the Pianta, sounding incredibly relieved. She quickly explained where to find the governor as she stacked a few trays onto Mona's arms.

As soon as the Pianta left, Mona excitedly hissed into the earpiece. "Guys! I've been made the governor's personal server!"

"Woo!" Toadiko cheered quietly. "Another win for us!"

"So should I just bash him and run, or what?"

"Hold on there," replied Shy Guy. "Let's be sure we know it's safe first. I'm already up on the second floor. I've spotted a few potential weapons, but nothing perfect quite yet."

"Fiiiiine."

"Where is he, by the way?" asked Shy Guy.

"He's got a private room with a few friends upstairs," explained Mona. "It's that super fancy mahogany door."

"Ah, I see it!" said Shy Guy. "You know, there's a bathroom nearby. Maybe we could make him slip as he walks in."

"I don't know if we want to have to rely on this guy using the bathroom," said Toadiko. "But we can keep it in mind."

Mona knocked on the heavy door with her foot. "Come on in!" came a raspy voice from the other side. Mona slowly pushed open the door, revealing a small, smoky room. Sitting around a poker table were a Pokey, two Goombas, a Spike, and a Dry Bones with chalky, white bones.

"He's got friends," Mona muttered into the earpiece.

"Oho! I was wondering when our next round of drinks would arrive!" said Governor Skullington in a jolly tone. He looked at all the trays balanced on Mona's arms. "Do you need help there?"

"Nah, I got it!" Mona replied, expertly sliding the trays onto the table.

The governor clapped lightly. "Impressive. Now, how'sabout you poor me and my pals some of that delicious Chuckola Cola?"

Mona set out the drinks and examined the bottle closely. "Oh man, I've heard this stuff is delicious!"

The governor took a swig. "You're welcome to try some! I'll warn you though, the caffeine hits you hard."

"I see, I see," said Mallow, trying not to give away how anxious he was to get away.

Mallow: I've had to sit here and listen to this guy's thoughts about Daisy for the last five minutes and pretend like I've never met her before, much less been on an adventure where she's present for roughly half of it. This is ridiculously uncomfortable.

"Well I must say, this has been quite the interesting conversation, Prince Peasley," Mallow said, abruptly changing the topic. "But I should really go find Shy Away. I promised him we'd try some of the fancy drinks here."

"Well you know, I could always show you some of the best ones!"

Mallow shook his head perhaps a bit too vigorously. "My apologies, but Shy Away is nervous when it comes to most royalty."

"Ah, I understand," said Peasley. "We can't all be fit for this sort of grandeur, I suppose. I appreciate your time, fellow prince!" And with that, Peasley turned and left, immediately finding another guest to talk to.

"I finally lost him," Mallow muttered into the earpiece. "What do you all want me to do?"

"Start think of a plan!" Mona said, sounding peppier than normal. "I'm getting bored just serving this dude soda!"

"We'd be done faster if we could lure him out of there," said Toadiko. "It's too risky getting him while all his friends are there."

"I guess you all could use me for that," said Mallow. "If you told him I'm here, he'd probably want to come talk to me."

"But then he would just be more out in the open," said Shy Guy.

"Just get him in the bathroom or something," said Mona.

"How are we supposed to do that?" asked Toadiko.

"I dunnoooo," mumbled Mona. "Just shove him or something! Come on!"

Toadiko: I hadn't heard Mona this hyper in a while. Has she been chugging soda?

"Actually that could work," said Shy Guy. "I found a decorative bat on the wall I could use. Mona, you tell him Mallow is waiting. Mallow, you wait in front of the bathroom. As soon as he gets to you, you two shove him into the bathroom, and I'll smack him. That should be just private enough to let us run away."

"Should we maybe wait until a bit later when people have left and there are fewer witnesses?" whispered Toadiko.

"Fewer witnesses means we stick out in the crowd more," said Mona.

"I'm gonna have to agree with Mona here," said Shy Guy. "Might as well get this done while the crowd's still loud."

"I'll head into position then," Mallow said nervously. "I can't believe we're really doing this."

"Me neither," said Toadiko. "I guess I'll be close to the door so I can exit as soon as the deed is done."

After a few moments, Mallow spoke into the earpiece. "Ready."

"Ready as well," came Shy Guy's reply.

"Then let's do this," Mona said. She took a deep breath and walked into the governor's room with a fresh tray of drinks.

"Welcome back," said Governor Skullington, not looking up from the ongoing card game.

"Sir, I have some great news!" Mona said, trying to sound as chipper as possible. "Apparently Prince Mallow of Nimbus Land is here and would like to speak with you!"

The governor grinned wide. "Another prince! Fantastic! Please, send him in!" Mona froze.

Mona: Wait no, this isn't how it's supposed to go!

"Er, I think he wants to meet you out in the hall," she said, trying to keep her composure.

"But I'm sure all my friends here would love to meet him," replied the governor. "Please, ask if he'd like to come in."

Mona sighed loudly. "Guys, we hit a snag," she said into the earpiece.

Governor Skullington raised an eyebrow. "What in the world are you talking about?"

"I'm doing things my way. Roll out."

"Mona, no!" cried Shy Guy.

Mona calmly set down the tray and picked up a bottle of Chuckola Cola. "Governor, it's been a pleasure." She swung the bottle down.

Ka-crack! The sound of the bottle hitting the governor's skull blasted throughout the room. Before anyone could even process what had happened, the governor was a pile of bones in his chair.

"The deed is done," Mona said into the earpiece. "Run!"

Author's Note: And the final mission of Episode 7 kicks of with a bang! Or more of a ka-crack, I suppose. The idea for this challenge was very loosely developed before the hiatus, and I'm pretty satisfied with the wacky romp it turned into. Will Mona and the gang be able to get out in time, or will her hasty action get them all thrown in the brig? Find out next Sunday!

Princess Toady: As always, an excellent analysis of the chapter! Like before, I have to tip toe around a lot of the specifics of your review, since I don't want to confirm or deny any motivations/suspicions here. That being said, I really enjoyed your analysis of who you think the vulnerable players are. As you saw with the beginning of this chapter, tensions are really ramping up between our final four. You definitely have a strong understanding of who these characters are (with the possible exception of the Mole's identity), so I'm very curious to see how you'll read into the escalating stress over these next six parts. Thanks again!