(A re-write of chapter 18 as it bothered me. Let's forget about it lol.)
Yin Yang screamed. He couldn't tell who screamed, only that it was one of immense pain and fear. The oven blasted fires around his already scalding body. Desperately, he gripped at the grates, waves of pain shooting up his arms.
He didn't want to die. Not now.
Low and behold, Yin Yang's need for attention had become his downfall.
"You a-are so dumb...
Yang, I- augh! I-it burns! Help me stand up, please!"
Yang wanted to. Truly, he did, but both him and Yin could feel consciousness slipping from their two-sided grip.
His limbs shut down, numb to the burning sensation coursing in his veins, horror snatching his last thought as he was scalded to an uncomfortable death.
The oven door opened. Light flooded the scene, cascading down the lump of cake - and Yin Yang's body. MePad hurriedly closed the oven door; even the sight of Yin Yang's corpse gave him no emotion.
"Sir," MePad started in a monotone voice. "The cake is undercooked and unsafe for consumption. I would call that an immediate loss for the Bright Lights."
MePhone snorted, evidently impatient. "It's fiiiine. If it's food, it's safe for consumption."
The counsellor widened his eyes at his boss, hoping they shared some sort of understanding. "It's... not food, sir."
MePhone took his word for it without wanting any further conflict. "Okay, Grand Slams, show me what you've got!"
Confused murmurs broke out between Lightbulb and Paintbrush. "Was it that bad?" The blonde asked, getting a shrug in return.
"T-that must've really sucked, eh, Marsh?" Paintbrush chuckled in an attempt to lighten her mood. But Marshmallow continued to stare at the floor, white bangs shielding her face.
Bushes rustled behind the trio. Test Tube, Fan and Knife sneaked out of it to not cause a scene.
Fan approached Paintbrush. "What's going on? Is MePhone eating our cake yet?"
"JESUS CHRIST!" The taller exclaimed with a jump. "Where the hell did you go? You cost us the challenge!"
Fan nodded in response yet his eyes were elsewhere. In front of the oven was an all-too-familiar sight - a yellow sheet of paper.
Minutes later, the challenge concluded in its usual form. MePhone flourished his arms to the cameras with as much charm as a dead goldfish. "What a delicious challenge! It was a piece of cake for the Grand Slams, whereas the Bright Lights did muffin special. Vote for who you want to see out in the next episode!"
Test Tube concluded, "It was theoretically impossible for us to win; most of our teammates are below 6 foot." This earned glares from the others.
"A-and, uh, where's Yin Yang?" She fixed her glasses as if he'd appear out of thin air.
Before anybody could reply, MePad approached the team, Toilet trailing behind.
"Yooo MePad, how are you?" Lightbulb leaned on the counsellor as if he were a wall, resulting in a gentle push.
"I'm very good, thank you."
"Fully charged?" Fan snickered, reaching to high-five Lightbulb. Both missed.
"Indeed. A full 8 hours of sleep is very important. Anyways, me and Mr MePhone would like to have a discussion with your team. May you please gather at the oven?"
Marshmallow, shocked, felt a new wave of tears hit her as she realised what was about to happen. Paintbrush stroked her head with a shaking hand as they followed the tall counsellor.
'Toilet is oddly quiet.' Fan noticed, unwilling to speak.
Brushing off his suit with a smug expression was MePhone as he stood at the door of the giant oven. "This cake must be really bad if we couldn't even show it." He rolled his sapphire eyes.
With the help of the oddly silent Toilet, MePad opened the oven door. The host's smile faded as the group took in the sight.
"Oh my god."
"You guys were supposed to watch him!"
"N-no...weird boy is dead.."
"You have got to be kidding me. Another death, Bright Lights? Your team is set up for disaster! God, MePad, can you take care of this? I-" The host pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. "-have a migraine."
"Sir, pardon my incompetence, but don't you believe we ought to talk to the team? Bright Lights, if I may question you; did anyone see when Yin Yang entered the oven? Where were Fan and Test Tube?"
And, of course,
"Where are Tissues and Apple?"
The entire team spoke in one huge garbled nonsense.
"They're sleeping!"
"We were, um, drawing."
"He got hungry."
"They have the condishawn!"
"I got trapped in a swamp."
"Clumsy Yin, right?"
"They're dead." Marshmallow growled under her breath, an uncomfortable and shocked silence settling across the Bright Lights.
Even MePad was hit with surprise. "They're dead, Miss Marshmallow?"
MePhone's eyebrows knitted in a threatening manner. "You're joking. I'm not going back to jail."
Expectant, horrified eyes looked at Marshmallow. She wiped hot tears from her eyes.
'I'm not letting Apple's death be in vain.'
"They're dead. They were k... They were killed. The bodies are hidden near the big pine tree, you know, the one with all the ivy and ant nests? We found Tissues hung. Test Tube said that he didn't kill himself. And A-Apple... She got stabbed. I could've stopped it from happening, but it was so fast...s-so..."
The white-haired girl's hard composure shattered once again. The pain of reliving that moment was heart-shattering. Oh-too-familiar tears dripped from her chin.
MePhone kicked the steel oven with increasing outrage. "Oh jeez, I thought your team was just dysfunctional this entire time. But you've been killing each other? It's almost like you want me to go into debt!"
His assistant nodded. "Sir, I think the best plan of action would be to cancel the show."
"What?" MePhone glared at the masked man. "No, no, that's a loss of money. Here's what we'll do. We'll eliminate both Tissues and Apple. Alright?"
A horrible stench reached Paintbrush's nose, snapping them out of their silence. "Are you forgetting the body right IN FRONT OF US?"
"Oh," The host paused, before yelling, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'VE BEEN HIDING CONTESTANT DEATHS FROM ME! Murders or not, that's terrible! You guys really are dysfunctional!"
MePad, clad with prosthetic arms, sighed as the sun began to set. "It's going to be dark soon. We need to do something. Shall I transfer the bodies to the sleeping area with the Cherries, sir?"
"Oh, um. About that..." Paintbrush did a weird gesture with their hands as if struggling to explain. "They're kinda in the bush too."
MePad didn't immediately answer, but his face grew dark. "Okay."
The counsellor hoisted the body over his shoulder, attempting to keep the sight out of view from the others.
"Toilet: clean the oven. Bright Lights - do you know how much stress you're putting me through? I cant have one normal day on this god-forsaken show. I need these deaths to stop now, understood? Good. I'm going to bed"
And with that, the host departed, leaving an empty field and a panicked team.
Lightbulb slung her arms around Paintbrush and squeezed them. "We're going to die!"
'How are we going to stop this...' Fan queried. 'The note! That's right!'
With a not-so-swift motion, he snatched the note clean off the ground. It's formerly neon surface was grimy and slightly singed. Fan deemed it readable nonetheless.
'What an ironic way to go.
Are you aware that Yin Yang has killed somebody before? Makes you feel better about the ordeal, right? Karma and all.
Anyways. Best of luck hiding THIS one from your camp councillors. My guess is that they'll keep a close eye on you.
I doubt it'll interfere with my plan too much. After all, it is for the safety of the contestants.
Pinkie promise!'
'They're not wrong about the karma part.'
"Anyone got a fingerprint decoder? I could use my phone, but..." Fan asked into the quiet.
Test Tube replied with a burst of excitement, "I do! I do! What for?"
"Um... I think I have something that could lead us to the murderer."
-
The remaining Bright Lights followed Test Tube back to camp. It was unknown to each of them where they were going, taking a gamble to trust her judgement.
The scientist approached the picnic area, standing with her back to a vending machine. Her posture was straight and her shoulders perked. There was a grin of borderline excitement on her face.
Lightbulb's silver eyes grew wide as she reached for the vending machine with outstretched arms. This confused Fan, as the machine only held water and Dr Fizz.
"How is a VENDING MACHINE going to help us solve a MURDER?!" Paintbrush stomped their foot, the toe of their boot digging into the mud. Test Tube flinched. She backed up further, saying, "C-calm down! Ill show you!"
Water.
Dr Fizz.
Water.
Dr Fizz.
The scientist's hands moved swiftly from button to button. A certain blonde bounced on the balls of her feet, readying herself to catch the bottles that came tumbling out. But they didn't.
Instead, a chute flew out of the vending machine's side. It's glass surface reflected the team's array of faces. Fan was struck with bewilderment and disbelief; the words he spoke came out in a garbled mess. The fanboy gripped onto Test Tube's Lan coat as he bounced up and down.
She pulled away from his grip. "Slide down, but don't touch anything! Just wait for me, okay?"
Test Tube pleaded to the team, specifically looking at Lightbulb.
"Aye aye captain!" The team leader saluted and threw herself down the chute as if it were a slide.
Fan glared at it. It seemed small enough for even him to get stuck in. "I don't kn-"
The redhead was cut off as Paintbrush hoisted him into the chute head first, sending him down with their foot. "Goodbye!"
A yell of shock echoed through the tunnel, ending with a thud.
"A-are you okay?" Test Tube leaned into the chute and called.
"I'm goo- woah! Lightbulb, what are you holding?!"
The scientist grew tense with worry.
'They could already be destroying the place!'
"D'you mind if I-"
"Go ahead." Paintbrush answered. After the scientist entered the tube, they turned to Marshmallow, wordless. The two glared at each other for around twenty seconds before bursting into fits of laughter.
Paintbrush felt an immense wave of relief to see their friend finally smile again. "I'm guessing you want me to go first."
Marsh nodded, still smiling. Paintbrush entered the tube with a warm feeling in their chest, the other entering close behind.
From his crumpled position on the floor, Fan gazed around a new environment with shock-filled eyes. Before him stood a grand lab. Every polished surface was littered with vials and test tubes and various other equipment Fan could not describe even if he wanted to.
The lab was made up of clean blue surfaces: the floor, the wall and even the counter-tops. There were gentle sounds of buzzing and bubbling and whirring. The air was warm; Fan could've fallen asleep had Test Tube not put a foot on his back.
She extended a finger towards the centre of the room to a table. On top of the table was a run of the mill computer printer.
"What's that?" Lightbulb asked, looming over it with piqued interest.
"Don't! Touch! it!"
The team leader pulled herself back.
"That," Test Tube started with growing excitement, "is the key to revealing this murderer once and for all."