Episode 7: Part 2

<Reina & Faris: Sisters, Currently in 1st Place>
     "This is it!" Reina said, pointing her flashlight at a sign on a cavern entrance that read "Hours of Operation: 8:00 am to 5:00 pm."
     "Thar goes our lead," Faris said. "Wait, maybe we don't go in," she said, walking to a nearby clue box outside the caverns. She ripped it open and read it to Reina. "Make yer way inside the caverns --aww, drat-- and search for yer next clue."

<Announcer Gippal>
     "Teams must now --err, at around 8:00 am-- search through the Kirsla Caverns for a clue box within. It shouldn't be too hard to find, but then again, the Ronso are still in the race..."

<Reina & Faris: Sisters, Currently in 1st Place>
     "Seems time fer some sleep," Faris said. She began rolling out her sleeping bag and sat on it. Reina rolled hers out right next to her sister's and joined her in lying down to get some rest before the caverns were open.

<Fran & Balthier: 1 Win at Detour>
<Ma & Zell: 0 Wins at Detour>
<Zone & Watts: 1 Win at Detour>
<Biran & Yenke: 0 Wins at Detour>
     The four remaining teams placed their bets at the detour and waited for the results. Zone bet on blue once again, Fran placed a Win bet on green, Biran continued to bet his and Yenke's colors as Perfecta: blue and yellow, while Zell continued to stick with the blue and pink Perfecta.
     The four teams in all this hassle were actually beginning to enjoy each others' company, though since many were sleep-deprived, it was kind of like a group of drunks. Zell, Zone, Watts, Biran, and Yenke were the main offenders, as they were constantly cheering on the blue bunny and roughhousing. Ma watched in the distance and just hoped that playfulness like this was not a penalty.
     The first race ended with green in the lead, giving Fran and Balthier their second Win.
     "What now?" Balthier asked Fran.
     "Green again," she replied. "Play it safe."
     "We can be safer with another bet, actually," Balthier said. "All other teams have a bet on blue to win or at least come in second. If we bet on blue, we're guaranteed to leave before at least Zone and Watts..."
     "We could possibly put them out of the competition." Fran pondered the proposal. "And they are the strongest competition remaining, aside from perhaps Ma and Zell or the sisters."
     "The last thing we need now is a team like Biran and Yenke or Dona and Barthello going home. If we play it right, we can keep them around till the finals and have a guaranteed win. I mean, we're already guaranteed a win as the leading man and leading Viera, but a more guaranteed win."
     "Fine, blue. Do not miss our betting opportunity."
     "Right." Balthier jumped into the line behind Biran. The other teams kept their normal bets while Balthier changed theirs to bet on blue.
     "Why blue now?" Ma asked him.
     "Well, to join in the fun!" Balthier replied, giving Biran a very light punch in the arm. "Err, right? Fun? Maybe not...."
     Biran stood tall and stared at Balthier for a long moment. Then, suddenly, he reached out and hugged Balthier tightly and lifted him into the air. "Biran has a new friend!"
     Yenke, Zell, Zone, and Watts all cheered and headed into the race area to root on the blue bunny.

     Balthier endured the rowdy boys to cheer on the blue bunny, only to see it come in dead last.
     "New friend is bad luck!" Biran shouted. His group of new friends also began shouting at Balthier about the bad luck he brings. Balthier still stayed the course and continued to bet on the blue bunny.
     In the following race, Zell and Ma were on the edge of their seat as they watched the blue and pink bunnies battle for first place. They didn't care which bunny took which slot so long as blue and pink were numbers one and two. Biran and Yenke cheered for the last-place yellow bunny to hurry his hornless ass up, but it was in vain as the yellow bunny gave up and fell asleep on the tracks. The pink bunny barely edged out first place.
     "SCORE!" Zell shouted. He high-fived Ma and they quickly ran to the receptionist to get their next clue. "Teleport to Elicoor II's Aire Hills."
     "That was so much fun to watch!" Ma said.
     "I actually thought it was kind of boring...."
     "Oh, not the bunnies. They were boring. But you boys. You were so goofy in there! Sometimes, I feel like I missed out on watching you grow up, but then I just get reminded that you still haven't grown up, so I still have that chance."
     "Oh, knock it off, Ma."
     Ma and Zell made their way through Gemity City and found the teleportation room. They stood on the purple square and teleported away to Aire Hills.
     Zell found the clue box and pulled out their next clue. "Make your way to the Kirsla Caverns to the west." He consulted his compass, then led Ma to the left.

<Dona & Barthello: Summoner/Guardian, Currently in 2nd Place>
     On their way to the caverns, Dona and Barthello came across the town of Kirsla and found a supply store that was open all night. They walked inside and looked around at the wares. To avoid wasting too much time, Dona approached the counter and asked the man for batteries.
     "Batteries?" he replied. "As in, something to batter with? Perhaps a mini-battering ram? Is that what you mean?"
     "Oh don't tell me you don't have them," Dona moaned. "Look, do you have anything that makes light in the dark?"
     "Sure. Fire. Need a torch?"
     Dona sighed. "Fine, give us a cheap torch."
     "Okay, that'll be seventy fol."
     "That's almost all of our money!" she argued. "I am not giving up this money for a pathetic torch."
     "Your choice. Bye!" the man said cheerfully before kicking them out of the store and locking his door.
     "What did I just do?" Dona asked Barthello. "Now we'll be stuck in this darkness."
     "It's okay. I- I like being able to protect you again. It's been so long since I was your guardian."

<Fran & Balthier: 2 Wins at Detour>
<Zone & Watts: 1 Win at Detour>
<Biran & Yenke: 0 Wins at Detour>
     The bunnies continued to hop around a track, never getting tired of this wonderful life of hopping around a track all day. This time, the blue bunny came in first, though the yellow bunny remained in last place the whole time.
     Balthier and Fran took their clue from the receptionist and Zone and Watts placed their bet on the blue bunny to win once again, while Biran and Yenke continued to bet Perfecta on the blue and yellow ones.
     Fran ripped open the clue and read it. "Teleport to Elicoor II's Aire Hills." She and Balthier jogged through Gemity City and entered the teleportation room. They teleported to Aire Hills and found their next clue box waiting for them. Fran opened the clue and read it to Balthier before the pair headed to the left toward Kirsla.

     Dona and Barthello finally reached the Kirsla Caverns and found the sisters attempting to sleep. Instead of causing the usual trouble, they decided to follow suit and rest, as well, though Dona first grabbed their next clue and read it quietly to Barthello. "Make your way inside the caverns and search for your next clue."
     Barthello nodded, then, they unfolded a large blanket and pulled it over themselves. Dona hogged the blanket, pulling it off one side of Barthello's massive body, but he did not complain.

<Zone & Watts: 2 Wins at Detour>
<Biran & Yenke: 0 Wins at Detour>
     Biran, Yenke, Zone, and Watts continued to have fun at the bunny races, and this particular race was certainly eventful. The pink and green bunnies were way in back with no chance to catch up, while the yellow and blue bunnies were out in front, fighting for the lead. The Ronso were so pumped up that they each lifted one of the Forest Owls above their heads. Biran started pumping Zone up and down in the air while Yenke spun Watts in circles.
     "GO HORNLESS FLUFFBALLS!" Biran shouted.
     "Hurry up, Blue!" Zone shouted, despite the absolute dread he had in the pit of his stomach from the possibility of being dropped onto Biran's sharp horn.
     The yellow bunny was the first across the finish line while the blue placed second. The Ronso put Zone and Watts down and chest-bumped each other. They waved to Zone and Watts.
     "Good luck, hornless ones," Biran told them. "Ronso have lots of fun with worthless humans. Not want you get eliminated."
     "Thanks, guys," Watts said. "Good luck to you, too."
     The Ronso headed to the receptionist and grabbed their clue. Yenke read it aloud. "Teleport to Elicoor II's Aire Hills."
     "Biran knows where teleport room is!" Biran replied. "Hurry, Yenke!"
     They ran to the teleport room and used the purple teleporter. After the appeared on Aire Hills, they opened their clue and Biran read it. "Make way to Kirsla Caverns to west." He and Yenke started jogging in the specified direction.

     Zell and Ma reached Kirsla as the sky began to gain a faint bit of light. Zell walked to a man on the street to ask for directions to the Kirsla Caverns. The man pointed him north, so Zell and Ma followed his direction and headed north.
     By the time they reached the caverns, Faris and Reina were awake, as well as Dona and Barthello. The sun had come up and the two teams at the site seemed to be respecting the order of the two-team line they had formed. Zell and Ma stood behind Dona and Barthello as they waited for 8:00 am.
     As they waited, Ma suddenly perked up when she noticed the clue box in the corner. It was hard to notice behind the line of people that swept past it, so she politely snuck between Reina and Faris and grabbed her clue, then returned to Zell at the back of the line. "Make your way inside the caverns and search for your next clue."

     Fran and Balthier jogged from Kirsla to the Kirsla Caverns and saw the line of teams waiting outside. Both smiled at each other as they started walking up, but quickly broke into a run when they noticed the teams finally starting to walk into the mines. It was a minute after 8:00 am, so the teams were entering in a single-file fashion. Though, once inside the cavern, the single-file changed into an all-out sprint for their next clue. Fran and Balthier raced to the cavern's entrance just in time to be immediately behind Ma and Zell as they pushed their way through to search for their next clue box.
     Reina spotted the clue box and shouted to Faris. Of course, this meant the other three teams noticed, as well, and all sprinted for the same box. Reina still reached it first and pulled the clue out of the box just before Zell and Barthello got to the box and started fighting over the clue both had managed to grab. Zell finally conceded and grabbed his own clue.

<Reina & Faris: Sisters, Currently in 1st Place>
     "Roadblock: Who's ready to haul asses?" Reina read.
     "I believe it be my turn," Faris replied.

<Announcer Gippal>
     "A roadblock is a task that only one team member may perform. In this roadblock, that team member must pilot a beast known as a hauler. These haulers are used to pull a cart along a broken mine cart track. There are five different types of haulers: steady, carefree, whimsical, ill-natured, and aggressive. Using one of these five haulers, the team member must take two soldiers, as well as their teammate, in a mine cart to be pulled by the hauler. Their teammate cannot help them with the task, though they are allowed to give advice. If any teammate is seen physically controlling the hauler, they will have to start over and must wait five minutes before trying again.
     "The original team member must drive one of the soldiers to a specified location and drop him off. Then, they must pilot the hauler to the end of the track. If at any point the mine cart becomes dislodged from the track, that person will have to start over, though if they have already dropped their soldier off, they will not have to redo the drop off. Once at the end of the track, both team members will get off and receive their next clue. The task is not physically demanding, but picking the right beast for the task can be difficult. The track comes with some strange twists and turns, so teams must be ready for anything."

<Reina & Faris: Sisters, Currently in 1st Place>
     "Methinks you shoulda done it," Faris said. "But enough blubbering! Let's find a hauler!"
     "Right!" she replied. "Good luck!"

<Ma & Zell: Mother/Son, Currently in 2nd Place>
     "I'm a speedster, so I'll take it!" Zell said.
     "You think this old lady isn't ready to haul some- err, butt?" Ma replied. "It's my turn, so I think it should be me."
     "But Ma!"
     "No buts, Zelly," she replied sternly. "Think about it logically. We can't use you for too many roadblocks now or we'll be up poopy creek later."
     "Man, I should've raced with Rinoa," he whined. "She let Squall do all the roadblocks. Okay, Ma. You're up then. But I get the next one!"
     "We'll see," she replied, smiling.

<Dona & Barthello: Summoner/Guardian, Currently in 3rd Place>
     "I'll do it," Dona said. "I've never seen Barthello move quickly."
     "But Dona! It says 'haul.' Don't you think it could have something to do with lifting?" Barthello asked.
     "This is not a discussion. I'm doing it."
     Barthello paused for a moment. "You're right. Good luck, Dona."

<Fran & Balthier: Sky Pirates, Currently in 4th Place>
     "My turn," Fran said.
     "So it is," Balthier replied.

     The group of roadblockers rushed to the marked area to begin the roadblock. There was an instruction manual handed to each of the racers about how to properly handle a hauler. While they read, staff members prepared them and their teammates by equipping them with helmets. They were taken into a section of the mine with minecart tracks that led into a small doorway. The door was opened and inside, the hauler beasts wildly pushed and fought each other. Each was a different color. They looked like large, angry, six-legged turtles.
     "Which type of hauler would you like?" a staff member asked the roadblockers.
     Each of the roadblockers read their instruction manual except for Dona, who pointed to the "Aggressive" hauler on her paper. "I'm aggressive, so this should be easy," she said. "I'll take this one."
     "Oh...kay," he replied. One of the haulers came out of the room as the staff moved a minecart to a location behind the hauler and connected the cart to it with some chains and poles. It was like a horse and buggy, only the horse was an angry turtle and the buggy was a minecart.
     Dona entered the minecart and was handed a set of controls. They seemed easy enough: a button on the left to make the beast turn left, a button on the right to make it turn right, a button pointing forward to make it accelerate, and a button pointing backwards to make it decelerate. Two soldiers entered the minecart with her, followed by Barthello. With the full set of passengers, Dona was given the signal to leave the station.
     The hauler walked into the minecart corridor, which was not very wide. There was plenty of room between the narrow cave passages and the edges of the minecart, so nobody was at risk to lose limbs from sticking their arms out, but it was still generally claustrophobic. Dona's hauler increased its speed as it came around the first turn. And then, it increased even more. And more. Dona noticed the speedometer was showing her going about 40 km/h. Ahead in the track was a split where the tracks could either break off to the left or continue going straight.
     "If you want to turn, slow down to 25 km/h," the soldier said to Dona.
     "Fine," Dona said. She pushed the "left turn" button and held down the decelerate button to instruct her hauler to slow down and turn left. As the turn got nearer, the hauler did not slow down. By the time it reached the turn, it had raced past it and continued going around 35 km/h. The course circled a few times to the right and Dona noticed the hauler following a final left turn that led back to the beginning. The hauler stopped and the crew unattached the cart while Dona, Barthello, and the soldiers exited the cart.
     "Fine, I'll read the manual," Dona said as Faris moved toward the hauler crew. They had formed a line with Faris in front, followed by Fran, then Ma. "Here it is," Dona pointed to the manual under the "Aggressive Hauler" section. She paraphrased the section to Barthello. "He tends to disobey commands and refuses to go slowly. Wonderful. I won't be using him again."
     "You'll do better next time, Dona," he replied.
     "I'll be tryin' out the carefree," Faris said. "The directions say he only turns right, but I don't know which way be right anyway..."
     Faris loaded up her minecart with Reina and the two soldiers, then headed off on the carefree hauler. It accelerated slowly, but Faris was prepared for a slow ride on him. Reina looked over the edge of the cart at the hauler. She really enjoyed the beasts and often called them cute, though Faris and the rest of the world failed to see their cuteness. The hauler walked around the track, gradually gaining more speed. When it reached the possible left turn, it was under the specified maximum speed, but continued straight regardless, as Faris expected. She hadn't, however, expected that taking the first right resulted in her coming right back to the start.
     "Yar, he be a waste of a turn," Faris commented to herself as they left the hauler and lined up behind Dona.

<Biran & Yenke: Comrades, Currently in 5th Place>
     Biran and Yenke reached the Kirsla Caverns and found the clue box at the entrance. Biran opened it and read it to Yenke. "Make way inside caverns and search for next clue."
     "Sound easy to Yenke!" Yenke raced inside, closely followed by Biran. They entered the mine and found the next clue box easily because of a lot of noise coming from a section of the mine. They saw all the other teams in line, while Fran and Balthier were boarding a minecart pulled by a strange beast. Specifically, it was the "steady" hauler. Biran pointed at the clue box and forced Yenke to read the clue, since he was tired of doing it.
     "Roadblock: Who ready to haul asses?" Yenke read.
     "Biran thinks roadblock sound boring."
     "Boring! Boring! Bwa ha ha!" Yenke paused. "Oh, that mean Yenke has to do it." He read through the roadblock, then jumped in the line behind Faris.

     Fran slowed her hauler down and made the left turn and sped back up. Not long later, she was forced to make another choice: left or right. She, again, chose left. Eventually, this led her back to the start, where she lined up behind Yenke.
     Ma took the cart and decided to try the "ill-natured" hauler, which tends to do the opposite of what you tell it. She argued that it might be the best choice for her, since she acted as a mother to a "disobedient teen." Zell whined at the notion as he boarded the minecart.

<Zone & Watts: 2 Wins>
     Zone and Watts watched three more races at the bunny racetrack, still without a win. It seemed like the blue bunny was never going to win again.
     "I think those other guys had all the luck, and they took it with them when they left," Zone whined.
     The race began again, this time with the blue bunny falling to the back of the pack really early on. It never looked like it would catch up. And it never did. Another bet on the blue bunny failed.

     Ma's ride on the hauler went rather well. She had mastered the reverse psychology and was having no difficulty telling the hauler to turn left when she wanted it to turn right. After two turns, the soldier tapped Ma on the shoulder. "At the barrier, please slow down so I can exit."
     "Oh, certainly!" she replied. She told her hauler to accelerate, but the hauler did just that. Luckily, she corrected her mistake of thinking the hauler always did the opposite of what she said in time for it to stop and let the man out. She started her hauler moving once again, when suddenly, the other soldier began telling her of a cave-in warning.
     "Should I speed up? Or slow down?" Ma asked him.
     "It's up to you," he replied. "It isn't life-threatening. It's part of the course. But if your hauler gets hit enough, we'll have to take him back to the beginning to heal him."
     "Speed up, Ma!" Zell encouraged her. She complied and jammed on the accelerate button. Some of the falling rocks hit the hauler and one even hit the minecart, though there were no injuries. Yet another switchpoint came up, so Ma signaled to take the turn to the right (which would turn her ill-natured hauler left), but she had sped up so much that it could not turn and instead took the right. Another switchpoint came up, but Ma was so lost that she just let the hauler do whichever direction it chose. It chose right, which led it right back to the station.

<Zone & Watts: 2 Wins>
     "Blue bunny won!" Zone and Watts shouted as the blue bunny crossed the finish line first. They quickly ran to the receptionist and took their clue. "Teleport to Elicoor II's Aire Hills," Zone read. "Back to the teleporting room!"
     "We badly need to make up some time," Watts replied. They raced to the teleportation room and teleported to Aire Hills, where they took their next clue. Watts read this time. "Make your way to the Kirsla Caverns to the west." They consulted their compass, then headed west in search of the caverns.