Hey everyone! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT.
The final episode arrives a bit early for everyone! : )
I hope you enjoy! It is...truly...the beginning of the end.
ENJOY!
FINAL EPISODE
Ten entered the agent's labyrinth construction of deceit. One by one, the ruthless and unpredictable floors of the building took a victim each. Player after a player, the agent of the building took them all. Now, after being subjected to the countless merciless creations of the building, just three move on to the final round.
Piantissimo. Eclair. Tiny. The last three players have yet to elevate to the final level of the game, where the most difficult moment arises…and where the most difficult question must finally be answered by one of them, about one of them. And in the end...on the roof of the building of betrayal...one question will finally be answered.
Who is the Mole?
PLAYER: Eclair
Surname: Choux
Birthday: June 30
Occupation: Patron/Pastry Maker
PLAYER: Piantissimo
First Name: Il
Birthday: January 5
Occupation: Competitive Athlete
PLAYER: Tiny
Surname: Kong
Birthday: October 20
Occupatione: Retail Manager
It was the first day of the final episode.
"…Oh….my gosh. I'm..." Tiny was on her bed, holding a cushioned pillow to her face. She breathed heavily into it in a mixture of relief and overwhelmed emotions. Then, after letting go off the pillow, she fell back onto her bed and laid down. She looked at her ceiling, speechless.
"I'm in….the final three," she repeated, staring at her room ceiling with conflicted eyes. "This is it. I can't believe it." She then covered her face with her pillow again.
Tiny: I was happy to be in the final episode of the game…but so nervous. So, SO, SO nervous. I had no idea what this episode had in store. Things would be crazy…and I didn't know if I was ready for it all.
Tiny got up from her bed, taking a relaxing breath to shake out her feelings of anxiety.
"I survived seven episodes...and now it's the eighth. I can do one more." She looked towards her metal door with an uncertain look and knew one thing: opening it would bring her into the start of her final round of the game. She reached for the door knob with a look of hesitancy and twisted it open.
Piantissimo had woken up early, prepared for the final episode. Arms crossed, he held an uneasy face as he stared out the window in a moment of contemplation and silence. The sun in the galaxy shined out to him, as he realized that it was time to leave his room.
As he got up from his bed, he looked back at the objects he had placed on the counter of his desk. His mask sat, untouched since yesterday. As he looked at it with a moment of uncertainty, he shook his head and continued out his open door.
Piantissimo: A journey of self-discovery this has been, no doubt. But this final episode is where we will learn the most about ourselves. I can't help but admit that I am very nervous about this round, because we will finally know who the winner is...and who is the Mole.
"The final step awaits, Piantissimo…do as you always do your best." He talked the sentence to himself, taking his own words solidly into his mind. Then, he walked out the door with ready face.
In the final room, Éclair solemnly sat on her bed, staring at the makeup, jewelry, and other cosmetics she would not be bringing along. She had finished packing her clothes into her bag, ready to bring it to the next floor of the building and to where their last and intense episode was to take place. Uncertain of what the final episode had in store, she took a breath.
Éclair: In my castle, I had lived a life of luxury...and this was not it. I had to play this game of difficulty, tribulations, and trials to my best. This is the most difficult game I had ever faced...but it would be the most life-changing and rewarding to me. With faith...I will move forward in this game to the final episode.
As she went to grab her bag, she saw a single piece of paper shine out to her from its front pocket, the words ingrained in her mind since she had received it from the aquarium: 1 Free Question.
"Snifit…" she whispered softly. The princess shook her head, as if shaking away the sadness of last night's event out of her head.
"I must be strong..." Then, with a face of quiet determination, she pushed her metal door open and entered the final episode.
On the face of the moon...
As soon as they walked out of the space station, they all saw the metal elevator, waiting for them on the base of the moon a distance away. It stood by itself, like a lone square structure that was built upon the sandy terrain in isolation. Standing next to it, they saw the blue hat of McHallyboo and his figure come into view as well, waiting for their arrival and for the beginning of their new destination of their game.
When they reached him, the three players stopped in front of the host, as McHallyboo looked at them one by one.
"Welcome…" he announced grandly. Tiny, Piantissimo, and Éclair all nodded together
"Congratulations...for making it to the final episode of the Mole."
Piantissimo: This was it. The end.
"Very soon, one of you will be taking home the pot at currently almost 200,000 coins," McHallyboo began, his feet planted into the ground of the moon. All three players felt a surge of disbelief run through them.
"And one of you will succumb to this game, as the final victim of this building of deceit and mistrust." The players nodded in understanding as well, at the true and unfortunate statement emitted from the host.
"And…lastly." He continued, a diminutive smile on his face.
"One of you is the Mole." At this, the three players looked at each other.
Éclair: It is an individual game now…to figure out who is the saboteur among us.
Tiny: One of us is it. And they've been hiding it from the very beginning. Scared.
Piantissimo: I am only certain of one thing: that in the end, it is me that will uncover the Mole.
"We'll be taking the elevator to your final location." McHallyboo turned to the metal doors. "You will be travelling to the final level of your game." With hushed anticipation, the three players listened.
"Final level..." Piantissimo said, looking stunned.
"I...cannot believe this game is at its final stage...it has been unreal," Tiny finished, to herself mostly.
"You will be brought the top floor of the building. You will finally, and lastly...reach floor seven. This will be…your final elevation…" he spoke silently. The three players looked at the length of the elevator, going into the sky and disappearing further into the darkness of the space.
"What lies there…are harrowing challenges and locations that you have never experienced before," the host told them. "So are you ready to enter?" At this, three players looked at one another.
Eclair: To live a life, without challenges, is a life that has not been lived. And right now, we were ready to face more. Our final challenges.
And then, the elevator in front of them made a soft ding a sound that indicated that it had arrived to the level of the players and the host. As the elevator doors slowly opened, each of them took a breath before taking a step inside the compartment.
"Going above the moon…" said Piantissimo with disbelief, stepping into the elevator. Éclair followed, then Tiny, who paused before making her way inside. McHallyboo stepped in last.
Tiny: Only one of us will stand as the winner in the end...so we'll all have to fight till that winner stands.
Piantissimo: Let us begin...the beginning of the end.
And then, the doors closed. In an instant, the elevator ascended, higher into the galaxy sky and higher than the moon. It traveled at the swiftest of speed, taking the Mole inside it as well for the last time.
When the elevator arrived at the seventh floor, it stopped.
"Hrmm..." McHallyboo laughed suddenly, as the three players turned to him with confusion. It was an odd pause before the opening of the doors, and as an elongated period of seconds passed by, the final three players stood edgily with the host in the tight and limited compartment. They were finished moving.
"Umm…what…happened to the door?" Tiny asked, puzzled. Before any of the players could say anything else, it was McHallyboo who suddenly jumped up, startling most of them as they turned their attention to the host.
"Well! Aren't you all excited?" the host said excitedly, facing them all. "This is the final episode! The final stretch! The final...ever."
"So….that means what?" Tiny began, glancing at her teammates. The players stared at the host, who seemed to be, for some reason, smiling jovially.
"Well…I was just wondering…if you guys were excited as well," McHallyboo voiced, smiling. The three players looked at each other, not knowing what to say.
"Well, yes," Éclair began, trying to be polite, "We are...but we are also all very anxious, not knowing what is in store, and…"
"We are just waiting for the doors to open," Piantissimo finished. "We are ready for the final episode." McHallyboo face changed, to one of seriousness as he nodded. But then, his smile seemed to reappear once again. But his smile, like many time in the game, was a mysterious one.
"Then let us go…" he announced, with a mysterious look, "for my last time, to the new world." Tapping his foot on the ground to signal the opening of the doors, the elevator opened to reveal the created atmosphere.
The doors opened.
DING!
Tiny And it was nothing like I had ever expected.
A bright light surged into the small space as they shielded their eyes. As the sound of birds were heard above them, the three players stepped out carefully one by one. A sun hit their sights immediately, glaring from the sky above. It was the ground they felt first, and each one of the players felt a grassy surface beneath their feet as they entered the mysterious, new land. But it was strange, because in the air, it was the smell of the ocean that made caught them all of guard. The air was now more fresh, and no longer in the space of the moon.
The players turned to the elevator and saw that it stood on a part of the land that was covered in layers of sand. As they looked above them, they covered their eyes to the tropical sum, blinding them again. But they stared in awe to something strange as well that was in the sky: a plethora of smoke reaching out into the air above them and blocking most of the ray of the grassy beach they had found themselves on.
"What…is this place?"
Two of the players, for a second, were lost. Piantissimo looked around for a second, arms crossed and surveying the mysterious land he had ended up upon. Éclair stepped with caution towards the sandy land, and bravely touched a small palm tree that was protruding from the ground in front of her. But it was Tiny Kong who was frozen, standing still and not bothering to move an inch from her standing when she realized where they were. As the other two turned to her, they saw that her mouth was open, and her body was still yet slightly trembling with confusion and excitement.
"This…place…" Tiny stuttered, still not believing it as she looked around the large land. The waves hit the edge of the land, hitting the grassy ground near them. "This is…"
"I have never seen this place in my life!" Piantissimo asked, face befuddled and looking at her. As Tiny looked above, she saw a mountain, shaped in face structure like that of someone she recognized. And she was shocked.
Tiny: And I knew who that was.
"This is my home!" Tiny finished, and McHallyboo joined the three players. "This is it! This is..." He looked at them, but mostly looking at Tiny with a smile.
"Yes," the host stated. "Welcome to…Donkey Kong Island."
Tiny: I couldn't believe where we were.
The two players besides Tiny gasped in realization. Tiny Kong only nodded, still taking in the location that formed around all of them. It was the large island that for her had served as a view of beauty for years, and a heavy part of her home.
"I hope you enjoy starting your final episode in this land," McHallyboo smiled. "Welcome...to Episode 8!" The players both looked at the mysterious island around them, then at the host with disbelief and feelings of confusion.
Piantissimo: But why were we at this location for our final episode?
"Why here?" Tiny asked, flabbergasted and looking at the island they were all standing upon. "I mean…unless…"
"For this final episode," McHallyboo began with a smile, "we will be visiting three different lands." He grinned.
"Your lands." At this sentence, the three players all looked at him in incredulity.
"Our lands…" Eclair whispered. "Do you mean..."
Eclair: Our final episode…it is us. The game would be…us.
"A land of each of the final three, huh?" Piantissimo said in wonder. McHallyboo nodded.
"So this is mine," Tiny commented with realization, looking around.
"A land of each of your origins will be visited, and we will be travelling to these very special locations one by one," McHallyboo announced to them. "This is it. This is what the final episode is...and it is based on the last three who remain in this game.
"This final episode is the ultimate location..." McHallyboo said in a grand voice. "A tripartite world of the three of you." Tiny, Eclair, and Piantissimo were stunned.
Tiny: So this whole building really is the creation of the Mole.
Eclair: And I could only wonder what the Mole had in store for our worlds: would they create good...or terrible ruin?
"So we begin here, in the land of Tiny Kong…on Donkey Kong Island," McHallyboo announced to them, as they all stared at the grand flora around them. Above, the smoke continued to fill the air, the remains of a factory that loomed above adding to the mystery of the land above them. Tiny looked up, feeling a sense of welcome to the island they were all on.
"In each land we visit, a game awaits…" McHallyboo explained to them all, "and the owner of that land will play a special role in each game. They will be…the leader of the mission." As the players took in the words of the host carefully, Piantissimo and Éclair both turned to Tiny together.
"So that's me," Tiny realized, giving a surprised smile.
Piantissimo: The fact that there would be a leader for each game was a scary situation. Because if that leader turns out to be the saboteur of our game...then we could be in trouble for that mission. A heap of trouble.
Tiny: The fact that I'm going to have to lead the other two in this next mission is unnerving, because one of them is the Mole, designed to sabotage and ruin our games from the start.
"I'm going to do my best, if I'm the leader of this first mission," Tiny spoke, looking at both the players and the host. McHallyboo nodded.
"Our first game, on this island of the mighty Donkey Kong, will be a game we always play in the face of the Mole," McHallyboo began. He looked at them.
"The Three Questions game." At hearing this, the players all nodded with ready faces. Their rules were familiar to them in each of their minds, but they were still uncertain.
The Three Questions Game
Prize: 10,000 coins
"Tiny will be asked three questions…" explained McHallybo. "She would then be sequestered out into this island somewhere. Each question she answers only has two answers each...your names." The players nodded.
"Across three rounds, you will answer a question each," added McHallyboo, pointing to Piantissimo and Eclair. "Get all three right…"
"And we win," Tiny remembered, nodding. The other two players looked at the host.
"But...because this is the third season, and this is the third time we have played this game, there will be a little rule change," the host suddenly spoke, and all three players looked at McHallyboo suddenly. "A twist. A change." Their faces suddenly turned uneasy.
"A twist?" Piantissimo asked with suspicion. The host nodded.
"Before you are given each question," McHallyboo began, "You two must complete a small task. Only after completing a task will a question be given to you." At these words, Éclair and Piantissimo looked at each other with a bit of confusion.
"Complete the task, and you get to hear the question," McHallyboo began. "But fail…and you will never hear the question at all."
"So to be given the question...we must complete a task you give us," Piantissimo spoke slowly, wanting to clarify the rules. "Okay...it is an interesting change of rules." Eclair still looked conflicted
"But are we still allowed a guess, even if we don't hear the question?" Éclair asked. As McHallyboo nodded, Éclair and Piantissimo looked at each other in surprise.
Eclair: It was an odd twist to the game. Perhaps we would do a round without doing a task, yes…but it would be risking our game. Is blindness a step to take in this final episode of our game?
"If you are able to answer all three questions correctly…I will grant you this world...and that is 10,000 coins directly to your pot," McHallyboo told them. "Your pot will be risen to 180,000 coins if you succeed...but you need teamwork to get there." Hearing these words, the three of them nodded.
"This is the beginning of your end. Good luck." The players nodded, looking at each other. It was their first pot offer for the final episode.
Tiny: Teamwork...something we knew was both slowly vanishing in this game, but growing. And it would be up to the two genuine players to beat the Mole in this final round.
"Aright, well," Tiny began, taking a deep breath. "I am ready. Episode 8, let's go." Eclair nodded as well, as she looked at Piantissimo.
"Every coin is worth it," Piantissimo spoke confidently, looking at his teammates. "We can do this!"
"Then Tiny…come with me." McHallyboo turned to Tiny, who nodded in reply. Before turning away to follow the host, she gave a little smile to both Éclair and Piantissimo, then turned to follow the host away into the midst of the islands, further into the mountains and to a location that held one of their final chances of winning in the game of the Mole.
With one player now gone and sequestered elsewhere on the colossal tropical land, it was only Piantissimo and Éclair walked through a strange forest. As they ventured on with their guide for the game, they noticed large stalks of mushrooms laying around their area as they began their first round.
"Oh dear..." Eclair held her nose, eyes wide. They smelled something pungent hit their noses, as they all looked around and noticed that the amounts of mushrooms around them were beginning to grow larger down the mud road they took.
"What is the odor?" Éclair commented with displeasure, holding her nose. They looked around at the ground that was covered with plants, flora, and the unappealing smell of natural fungi.
"That is the smell of Fungi Forest," McHallyboo began, looking at them. "Welcome to a land as mysterious as the Mole itself."
"I'd say," Piantissimo said with a wrinkled nose, looking at the bundles of trees that surrounded them. "Hopefully not as smelly."
Piantissimo: Let the three questions game begin.
ROUND 1
"With Tiny sequestered, I'm afraid there's just two places to go from this point," the host informed them, pointing in opposite directions from their spot. Two arrows on a tree behind him pointed out to their possible paths. Each arrow was labeled with a respective name, as the players looked at it in awe: Piantissimo and Eclair.
"Answer each question correct…as Tiny answered them…and you will be brought to your winnings of ten thousand coins," McHallyboo began. Nodding slowly and listening, the two of them were ready.
"She was asked three questions about the two of you, and some of them, well, get personal. But you simply answer them to win."
"We know," Piantissimo said, almost with a little grin himself.
"But to hear the question, you need to each complete a task first," the host added, and he turned around. The two players looked with unsteady eyes as he went over to a log that protruded from the ground behind him. As the host walked onwards closer to the forest, they saw him approach a white-looking plate that sat upon the wooden stump. Eclair and Piantissimo felt their stomachs curl as McHallyboo took the plate off the stump with both hands, then turned around to look at them.
"What are…" began Piantissimo, as the host then approached them again. But then they saw that the plate in his hands held two brown-colored items, spongy and wrinkled from the moist air of the forest. Each one was speckled with red dots, and as the two of them looked at it and realized what they were, they each held looks of uneasiness on their faces.
"These are two of the most odorous mushrooms on Donkey Kong Island…and you must eat one each," the host informed them. "And the taste, according to locals and creatures, is rather…vile." The two players looked at the pair of mushrooms in horror.
Éclair: It appears as if our taste buds will have to suffer in this final episode as well.
"Oh dear...it is the smell that is most distasteful," Éclair covered her nose again, eyes wide and looking at the fungi.
"The taste is what may get you," the host declared with a small grin.
"We have to eat one each?" Piantissimo exclaimed with nervous hesitation and disbelieving laughter.
"To hear your question…you have just one minute to devour one delicious fungi each," the host informed them with a smile, "but fail...and the question will never fall upon your ears." Piantissimo and Éclair both looked at each other.
"I believe we only have one shot at this," said Piantissimo, looking at the foul mushroom on the plate before them. "And, we only have one option." Reluctantly, the princess nodded.
"Yes…" Éclair grabbed a piece of mushroom, her face unpleasant and unwilling. Piantissimo nodded, then grabbed a piece of mushroom into his hand as well.
Piantissimo: Then a thought hit me...perhaps we didn't have to eat these.
"Well…we do not have to do the challenge," Piantissimo began, staring at a large clock tower that stood in the middle of the island's forest. "After all, in the end, we have seen this game anyway: it is all luck." Éclair nodded, but looked unsure.
"Perhaps..." she began. But Piantissimo shook his head suddenly.
"But what is the fun?" Piantissimp said with a small laugh. He held up the mushroom to Éclair.
"One?" he began, grinning nervously. Eclair reached forwards to McHallyboo's plate and grabbed a mushroom slowly.
Éclair: Perhaps the seven episodes before this was to prepare me for this very moment.
"Two…" The princess closed her eyes in fear, as she held the mushroom in the air as well.
"Three!" And with that, Piantissimo and Éclair put the mushrooms into their mouths.
Piantissimo: The taste…was indescribable.
"PHHEEEFPHT!" Piantissimo immediately sputtered, coughing up a part of the pungent mushroom into his hands. In fortunateness, Éclair's eyes remained closed, not witnessing the terrible action that her partner had committed.
"Yeeuck! …this is terrible…" Piantissimo turned around, seeing McHallyboo smiling and holding up another mushroom for him to eat.
"You are not out..." McHallyboo said, and Piantissimo saw that he was suppressing a laugh. "This is...another mushroom. But time is ticking." The player looked the host in disbelief.
"Mmmph…ahh!" The princess winced, as she tasted the foul fungi. Her face remained focused as she struggled to bite into the terrible mushroom.
"Okay...I got this phew…" Piantissimo breathed, and he grabbed another whole mushroom from the host to put into his mouth. In his second chance, he chewed quickly, his face twisted in a look of disgust as he attempted to devour the mushroom. After a few seconds, he opened his mouth to show what he had done: he had finished the challenge.
"I did it! I succeeded…uh, Éclair? Are you okay?" Piantissimo asked, turning to her. The princess' face was scrunched, as if she had eaten a lemon that was too sour for her taste. For a second she was unmoving, as if blocking out all sounds, and then she finally swallowed. She finished, opening her eyes with exhaustion.
"I…am okay." It was the weak look on her face that made it appear as if she was going to faint, and what made McHallyboo laughed. The two of them had succeeded.
"Well, it seems like the events of this final episode are already taking its toll on you both," he chuckled. "Welcome to the Mole's…final challenge." Piantissimo looked at the host, eyes angry cross.
"Just give us our question," he said, tapping his foot. The host cleared his throat, pulling a small card out from his pocket. As he spoke, the two players focused their attention back to him, listening carefully.
"Who is more likely to spend the money wastefully on themselves and no one else, if they were to win the game?" McHallyboo told them. "Éclair, or Piantissimo?" As the two players heard the question read by the host, they turned to each other.
"Hmm..." began Piantissimo, facing Éclair. Éclair looked at him, unsure.
"It is okay…to be…honest?" the princess asked politely to Piantissimo. The male player nodded.
"You don't have to say it…you would pick me," Piantissimo said, before the princess could speak. She smiled softly, nodding.
"Yes," she admitted. "Then again..." She thought for a second.
"If I am a princess, and Tiny assumes I have much wealth...then perhaps I spend extravagantly," she thought. "It can be either me or you."
"Yes, true," Piantissimo began. "But then I think I would be judged as being rash, spending money extravagantly as well. But...that is not true. I am better than that." He looked out into the mushroom forest, almost glumly and in a dejected manner.
"What is our answer?" Eclair spoke softly.
Eclair: If one of our answers were wrong...then it would cost us money.
"We'll go with you...if that is okay," Piantissimo spoke, and he turned to the host. "Eclair."
"Okay," Eclair said to the host. "Yes."
"Final answer?" McHallyboo confirmed. The two of them nodded.
"Let us go," Piantissimo said hastily and readily. "We've decided."
"Okay…if that is your wish," McHallyboo said, pointing his hand towards an exit of the forest. The players saw that in the direction of Eclair's name, less fungi paved the path in the forest. Through the direction they faced, the scent of an ocean could be smelled by both of them. In the small distance, they saw beige-looking land, and they knew they would be walking closer to the sand of the ocean and closer to the water. They entered into the second round of their game, closer to where the third player of their game was hiding.
A wrecked ship blocked their way from continuing on the beach. As Piantissimo and Éclair stared at it in wonder, McHallyboo turned around.
"Okay…this is the second Round," McHallyboo began. "Welcome to the beach of Donkey Kong Island!"
"Pretty..." commented Piantissimo. The area surrounding them made them all remember the islands that consisted of Isle Delfino, and the ocean surrounding them all reminded them of the high seas of Episode 6. Far in the distance, rocky cliffs were splashed by heavy waves.
"But…once again, I have a challenge for you." He turned to the destroyed structure behind him with a little smile, and began to walk towards it. The two players only obeyed and followed the host, closer and closer the wooden frame of the ship. When they stopped, they were right at the hole of the ship, right at the entrance of the cannonball wound that had caused its dilapidated and unfortunate status.
Piantissimo: We were both expecting something uneasy. After the horrid mushrooms…I did not expect an easier challenge.
ROUND 2
"In this ship," McHallyboo explained, pointing into its interior, "is a destroyed world of a past long gone. From...something before." The two players turned to the host with wide eyes, looking into the dark exterior of the ship. At the base of the ship's bottom were little shadows, and from their view, they saw the green scales scurry past them below.
"What...the heck was that?" Piantissimo stammered.
"Klaptraps...are an interesting hybrid of reptile combination," McHallyboo explained, reciting his information with keen interest. "They are part lizard, crocodile…and even rumored to be part dinosaur. And when I say you may scream…" The host turned to them, his eyes glaring at them.
"It is because they are known to give a nasty bite," McHallyboo finished. The two players' faced him, horrified.
"Well...little mushrooms…suddenly do not seem so bad anymore," Éclair said nervously.
"Klaptraps are known to give a rather heavy bite," Piantissimo said, turning to Éclair with a conflicted face. "Err..."
"Bring me the dinosaur skull at the bottom of this ship," McHallyboo spoke to them, "and you will be rewarded with hearing the second question." Both Piantissimo and Éclair looked at each other.
Piantissimo: Was it worth it just to hear a single question?
"The choice is up to you." As the host began his stopwatch, both Piantissimo and Eclair looked at each other.
"Let's just do it and get it over with," Piantissimo said suddenly, shaking his head.
"It is the only way to hear our question," Eclair whispered with confidence. The two players looked at each other, then nodded to McHallyboo. They were headed with little hesitation to do their second task.
Eclair: And we stepped in…not knowing what was in store or what dangers could be present inside.
The two players slowly stepped down into the ship's hole. Once they climbed a few rocky steps into the ship's inside, they jumped off, seeing the vast darkness that existed. Their feet hit the water that was situated at the ruined ship's bottom, dampening their feet step after step. As they took little steps forwards, they realized that they couldn't see anything. They could only hear their own footsteps, splashing below them with each step they took.
Piantissimo: As soon as we stepped in, we almost regretted our decision.
"I cannot see anything..." Éclair whispered cautiously. "Where are we?" As they looked around the ship's dark, underground room, they noticed something at the distance not far from them.
"Look…there's a glowstick!" Piantissimo realized, pointing towards the ship's end. They could only make out a green light at the end of the tunnel, and upon a small hill of sand, a single skull sat. Éclair gasped.
"That is the skull!" she whispered. "We must get it." They slowly stepped forwards, making their way to the item at the ship's path. Only several away from them, the two players made their way into the pitch dark, to the light that guided them to their victory.
Éclair: It was frightening…and dark. We could not even see our own hands.
After walking several feet in silence and in the dark, they found themselves at the sand hill's bottom. Piantissimo tucked in his shirt, and then stepped to it.
"Almost got it…" Piantissimo said, grinning in the green light. He reached forwards, stepping upon the sand slowly and then reaching out with both hands to get the skull. As Éclair held her breath in anticipation, he grabbed it, and then jumped back down to meet her.
"I have it!" he announced, the skull in both of his hands. Éclair smiled, then faced the exit of the ship.
"Hurry, we must go back," she said urgently. "I do not think it is good to be here."
"You are right," Piantissimo said. "Now let us just-OUCHHHH!" The skull flew in the air out of Piantissimo's hands, landing away from them with a strong splash! Éclair turned around in the dark cave-like area, alarmed.
"Piantissimo!" Éclair shouted, and then she screamed as well. It was a Klaptrap, biting her dress as she pulled away from it. The sound of growling was magnified in the ship, echoing horror to the two players.
"Éclair, the skull!" Piantissimo yelled, fighting a Klaptrap that was attached to his shoe. "On the floor! …Get…get it!" The princess gasped, then turned to see the skull in the dark water, upside-down and on the ground of the ship.
"Okay!" As she went to get it, she saw a Klaptrap in the distance, running its claws towards the skull as well. It was going to get the object as well, as the princess began to move. As Éclair ran to the skull, she grabbed it into her own hands.
SNAP! Before she could move, the Klaptrap suddenly jumped into the air and shut its green jaws right onto the skull Éclair was holding, as both princess and Klaptrap were face to face.
"AHHH!" Éclair screamed, trying to shake off the Klaptrap inches away from her eyes. "Help!" Piantissimo freed himself, then turned to the princess, running up to her. With a quick whack, he hit the reptile off the skull, as it fell to the floor. It let out a hiss towards the player before running off.
"Quick!" Piantissimo shouted, grabbing the skull into his hand as he grabbed Éclair's hand. "Let us escape!" The two players ran quickly through the darkness in fear, their feet splashing mercilessly into the air with every step. The sound of snapping and ferocious growls began to fill the air, as the creatures started to escape from their abodes. As Piantissimo and Éclair turned around, they saw to their horror that a small hoard of Klaptraps had arrived in view, and were running in direction towards there feet.
"There!" Éclair cried, running and seeing the light at the ship's end. As they reached the rocky grounds that led to the ship's hole, Klaptraps jumped towards their feet, snapping their jaws in an attempt to reach the other players. One Klaptrap has managed to make its way up the hard ground, and attempted to bite Piantissimo's ankle once again. But it was not to be.
"Not this time, you little croc!" Piantissimo shouted in fear, and he kicked the deadly creature with light force. It was enough to send it back into the ship's inside, as it scurried away. As they climbed out of the boat's hole to safety, both Éclair and Piantissimo rose out of the ship's, eyes panicked and relieved. They were safe, and in their hands was the prized skull.
"Wow…congratulations," McHallyboo greeted them, eyes exhilarated. The two players were too overwhelmed to talk.
"I..." Once again, Éclair was out of words. Piantissimo angrily massaged his ankle.
"That darn little dinosaur gator..." he muttered, as he struggled to stand up again. He frowned at McHallyboo.
"We deserve more than a single question for that task," Piantissimo panted, looking at the host with displeasure.
"But it is a question that can bring you to victory, right?" McHallyboo reasoned with a smile. "It is valuable." As the players tried to catch their breaths, the host read the question out loud to them. The two of them listened to him carefully.
"If both players were to die today, who would feel more underachieved and unsatisfied in the life they had?" the host spoke, and both players' faces were dumbstruck in silence.
"Oh dear…" Éclair covered her mouth. Piantissimo looked down at the ground.
Éclair: How we were to answer such a dreadful question?
"I cannot answer that," Éclair whispered. "I do not understand this game and its cruelty." At this line, Piantissimo folded his arms, shaking his head a bit.
"Huh, you really haven't seen any of the shows before, have you?" Piantissimo snickered, but then his face turned serious. He turned to McHallyboo.
"Put me," he told the host, as Éclair's eyes widened. She stepped up.
"I do not agree," the princess spoke, looking at the host as well. "I do not agree with that answer at all...that you would feel unsatisfied and underachieved if you died." Piantissimo only looked at the princess.
"But I do," Piantissimo said, and the two of them were in a moment of silence.
"Piantissimo…" As Éclair looked at him sadly, McHallyboo pointed towards the direction of the chosen answer.
Éclair: Even if the answer was not to me…I could not help but feel affected and think just how cruel the game of the Mole could be to some of us.
They had climbed an hour up the side of the hill through a system of ropes and pulleys. As a wooden elevator on the cliff side of Donkey Kong Island brought them higher to their next location, it ascended with intermittent stops as it cranked its way slowly up. The cliff was tall, and as they looked down, they saw the beach they had left and played second round of their difficult game. They looked out at the expanse of the sea, staring out at them.
As the lift slowly lifted them into the air, both players only sat in silence.
"I…" Éclair began to talk, but then stopped as Piantissimo turned to her. She looked down.
"I just wanted to say…that answer we gave to the last question," she said, and she turned to Piantissimo. "I did not believe it." At hearing this, Piantissimo's eyes raised in his surprise. But he just looked forwards at the sun, face still and not knowing what to say back.
"Thank you…Eclair" he replied back. He looked away, his face troubled. But in the inside, he was happy.
Piantissimo: Yes, this game was quite troubling for me. But it was a game of identity-discovering as well.
"And to the last round," he realized, his eyes looking up at the smoke above him. And then, the elevator stopped. McHallyboo used a hook to pull their gondola closer to the cliff's edge top, using his precise skills to bring them closer to safety. As the two players hopped off carefully, they gasped at the smoke that hit their eyes with full force. Then they saw what was the source of the smoke they had seen earlier from the island's bottom.
"What the…" A large building of metal loomed over them, as the two players looked at it with alarmed faces. It was an industrial area of mechanical and mysterious elements that hit their eyes. Fire seemed to spray from the chimneys of the power plant that towered hundreds of feet above them, and Éclair and Piantissimo could only look in curiosity and fear and what laid ahead of them.
Eclair: The largest of smoke-creators...it was a terrible sight.
"This is a…factory," Éclair noticed. The smoke was strong.
"And in we will enter…" The host led the two players into the midst of the mysterious building.
The smoke was now gone, but what existed for them were red flashing lights. The blaring red of the flashing strobes made every player tense, reminding them all of the reds that had executed every players before them. It was a small room, and if it were not for the ominous lights that spun, they would have been in a location of darkness.
Eclair: The reds of the execution…taunting us, as if reminding us that one of us three would be the final victim in this game.
Piantissimo and Éclair looked at the two doors before them. They were metal, locked, and holding something unknown to them. As the factory lights began to lessen, McHallyboo talked to them.
"Could Tiny be behind one of them?" Piantissimo wondered, and he was quickly stopped by McHallyboo, who stood in front of both doors as if guarding them preciously.
Round 3
"Final challenge...begins now," the host spoke quickly, as the two players immediately faced McHallyboo in surprise. The sound from the small sirens began to lessen as well, and the tiny room that the three of them were in became silent.
"And that is…" Eclair voiced with uncertainty. The host faced them, looking still and serious. Éclair and Piantissimo held their breaths in nervous anticipation.
"You!" he said, pointing at Eclair. The two players looked confused.
"Me?" she answered. McHallyoo laughed out loud, in response to their surprised faces.
"Yes, you.." he replied. "You are the last obstacle...yourself." Both Piantissimo and Eclair looked at him skeptically.
"What are you talking about?" Piantissimo said, raising his eyebrow. "That we are the last obstacle?"
"In other words..." McHallyboo paused.
"You must simply both answer a last question," the host said, looking more composed. "You must battle yourselves." At this, the two players looked more confused.
"Whu…what? We are finished?" Piantissimo questioned. They looked at the host, then at each other. The host nodded.
"There is no last task," the host commented. "I decided to give you guys a small break, after those two previous horrible ordeals." Both Eclair and Piantissimo sighed with relief: a final torture would not be implemented.
Éclair: We had suffered enough, I believed. So we did not complain.
"But…" McHallyboo faced them both. "…you must answer one final question." He turned to the two blocked doors that stood before all of them. They stood, silent and not knowing their final step of the game that they would face.
"Left or right…depending on your answer…" McHallyboo began, pointing to each door. He took out a card, and read the final question to both players.
"Who is more likely to steal a Plus 1 from another player?" read McHallyboo, and hearing this, both Éclair and Piantissimo stared at each other with faces of disbelief.
Piantissimo: Truly…this had to be the question.
"If you believe Tiny chose Eclair for this question, choose the left door," the host told them, hiding a smile, "but if you believe Tiny chose Piantissimo on this question...choose the right door." Both players, Piantissimo and Eclair, were unamused. The host smiled out to them both.
"Huh...very funny," Piantissimo snorted. McHallyboo's grin just remained.
Eclair: It is like we will finally figure out who Tiny believes stole her coin.
"Well…shall we choose?" Eclair said finally, after a few seconds of deliberation.
"No, we shouldn't," Piantissimo began, and then he suddenly fished into his pocket. He then pulled out a single gold coin, as Éclair and the host looked at him strangely.
"We're asked a question about a coin…let's answer it with a coin," Piantissimo said with a little smirk. Hearing this, Éclair looked shocked. Even the host raised his eyebrow.
"An...arbitrary selection?" Eclair asked, confused.
"Well, what else are we supposed to do?" Piantissimo said, turning to his partner. "We can debate…or just settle it right now. Think about it." Éclair looked at him, more puzzled.
"We have no idea what the answer to this question is…none of us know how the mind of Tiny works," he spoke, looking confident. "There is no different between us debating…and us flipping this coin. Éclair looked at Piantissimo, still unsure.
"I suppose it is an option," she admitted.
Éclair: The decision was so sudden…but I did not know if it would be the best for us. But it seemed resolute, and we had no choice.
Piantissimo put the coin at the edge of his finger, as it ready to flip it. Then, with a sudden motion of his finger, he flipped the coin into the air as it flew into the air with a Click! The metal coin landed back into his open palm, and the two of them looked at the symbol that shined out to them together: heads.
"That is the left door…for Éclair," McHallyboo began. "Are you sure you want to continue with that choice?" Both Éclair and Piantissimo faced each other, momentarily uncertain.
"We have no other option," Piantissimo said, and he crossed his fingers.
Piantissimo: We were playing this final round like this whole game was played by…faith, and a little bit of luck.
"Very well," began McHallyboo. "That is your choice." Both players nodded slowly.
BEEP!
The red light over the left door flashed on suddenly. As Piantissimo and Eclair saw the door become activated, they stepped back in surprise, as a strong sound of whirring locks filled the air. Then, the door was unlocked.
"Tiny!" McHallyboo called out. "The three questions are over...and the final decisions have been made." He approached the door, putting his face close to the metal.
"Are you in there?" he asked. And then with a loud sound of sliding metal, the door opened.
Whoo!
Well...and so the final episode begins : )
I cannot believe it is coming to this point...the beginning of the last chapter starts!
So is Tiny Kong behind the final door? And just what final locations await the players in this final episode?
Just to warn...they indeed become a bit crazy!
Anyways, 500 REVIEWS! WOW...it has reached that?! I am so grateful : ) thank you guys.
I just wanted to post: in order to update on time and not extremely late, I won't be able to reply to each of your reviews personally from now on at the end of chapters! Dx I am hurting when I say this!
This is just to ensure that updates are given on time I hope this doesn't deter you from reviewing : ( ...BUT!
If you have person questions you want to ask, those will be answered! :) Like some of you asked about a possible 4th season, hur hur. I will answer that another time.
Anyways, yeah! So questions directed towards me will be answered at the end of reviews, if you have any : )
Anyways!
For this round, for reviewing, you all get cookies! Ready? Time for the cookie throwing...
CATCH YOUR COOKIES!
sixthsense6 : (catches cookie like a fast pro)
Partical : (enjoys cookie happily and merrily)
NintendoMLP : (catches cookie and writes a beautiful story about it that gets published in less than a year)
Perianth : (eats the cookie with a sly smile and satisfaction of solving the Snifit mystery)
Guest : (sees the cookie and cries, "Yes! Cookies!" and devours it)
fredthemontymole : (doesn't eat the cookies, decides to concoct a counterfeit version of the cookie on ebay but is quickly stopped by krisetchers)
theJirachi21 : (eats cookie AND candy from Jirachi)
Notes and Promises : (uses the cookie as comfort food for Snifit's disappearance, makes memorial for him)
Elegance Silenced : (eating while thinking and mumbling, "Snifit's not the Mole?!" with every bite taken)
Heysoup: (talks to the cookie and tries to make friends with it)
Jesterboobro : (eats cookie and then gets attacked by a murder of boos)
Luigenius : (whispers, "I know who the Mole is...muahaha!" creepily to the cookie as the cookie backs away nervously)
Firekai: (demands more cookies for being krisetchers' reviewer from the very beginning of time, request is granted)
Wow...you all did a pretty interesting job in this cookie catching o.O Anyways, I won't judge your action hehe.
Hope you enjoyed them! : D
Haha anyways, what is in store next for this final episode?
Only time will tell!
Thanks guys! And it really is...THE BEGINNING OF THE END!
It is not long until the Mole is revealed.
But the final journey begins.
Stay tuned for the next part! : )