Rest Period

The tension in the resting building was thick, oppressive, and inescapable. After the brutal conclusion of Game 2, the remaining teams—Team 2, Team 3, and Team 5—were escorted into a dimly lit structure at the center of the island. The air smelled of mildew and salt, and the faint hum of the overhead lights was the only sound breaking the otherwise eerie silence.

The room itself was simple: a set of hard benches arranged around a central pillar with a monitor perched on top, blank for now. The teams were separated, though not by barriers. They seemed to instinctively keep their distance, each group occupying their own corner of the room, their wariness forming invisible lines that none dared cross.

Team 2: Cracks in the Foundation

Team 2 huddled near a wall, their faces tense and voices hushed. The aftermath of their narrow survival weighed heavily on them, and the cracks in their unity were starting to show.

“Are you serious right now, Logan?” Sarah hissed, her arms crossed tightly as she glared at him. “You almost got us all killed out there!”

Logan shot her a look of disbelief, his jaw clenched. “Oh, give me a break! I wasn’t the one tripping over every branch in the damn forest. You made us an easy target.”

“I tripped because you shoved me into that pit to ‘slow them down,’” Sarah snapped, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Brilliant leadership, Logan. Truly.”

Emily, the quietest member of the group, glanced nervously between the two. Her voice was soft but steady as she intervened. “Stop it. Both of you. Fighting now won’t help.”

Sarah turned to Emily, exasperated. “You’re always saying that. When are you actually going to stand up for yourself and pick a side?”

“I’m not picking sides,” Emily replied, her gaze unwavering. “I’m trying to keep us alive. Can we focus on that for once?”

Logan threw his hands in the air, pacing back and forth. “Great. Just great. We barely made it through the last game, and now you two want to turn on me? Do you have any idea how hard it is to come up with strategies while you’re all panicking?”

“You call that a strategy?” Sarah shot back, her voice rising. “Half the time, you were running off without us! If it weren’t for Emily covering your mistakes, we’d all be dead.”

Logan stopped pacing, his eyes narrowing. “At least I was doing something. What about you? All you did was complain and slow us down.”

Before Sarah could retort, Emily stepped between them, raising her hands. “Enough! We have one hour to rest. Do you really want to waste it arguing?”

The tension between Logan and Sarah was palpable, but they reluctantly backed down, sitting on opposite sides of the bench. Emily sighed, rubbing her temples.

“Logan,” she said softly, “you need to start thinking about the team, not just yourself. Sarah, you need to stop pushing him when he’s already on edge. We’re not going to survive the next game if we’re at each other’s throats.”

Logan muttered something under his breath but nodded grudgingly. Sarah looked away, biting her lip.

But beneath the surface, the rift in their team deepened.

Team 3: Calculated Observation

Across the room, Team 3 watched the unfolding drama with muted amusement.

“Looks like Team 2’s falling apart,” Carter muttered, leaning back against the wall. “Guess we don’t have to worry about them in the next game.”

Sophie smirked, her arms folded. “They’re barely holding it together. We’ll crush them.”

Daniel, their leader, glanced at the other teams with a calculating expression. “Don’t underestimate them. Desperation makes people unpredictable. Focus on what’s next, not their infighting.”

“Always so serious,” Carter teased, though there was a hint of admiration in his tone. “But you’re right. They might be a mess, but that Logan guy has a mean streak. We’ll need to keep an eye on him.”

Sophie raised an eyebrow. “And what about Team 5? They’ve been quiet. Too quiet.”

Daniel’s gaze shifted to Team 5. “They’re the wildcard. That girl, Lila… there’s something off about her.”

“She’s not off,” Sophie said. “She’s dangerous.”

“Which is why we need to stay sharp,” Daniel said firmly. “No mistakes. Not now.”

Team 5: Quiet Unease

Meanwhile, Team 5 sat in their corner, the silence between them heavy. Jules tapped his foot anxiously, glancing between his teammates.

“We need to talk,” he finally said, breaking the silence.

Bree sighed, leaning back against the wall. “About what? We survived. That’s what matters.”

“Barely,” Jules replied. “And we wouldn’t have if it weren’t for Lila.”

All eyes turned to Lila, who sat quietly on the bench, her gaze fixed on the floor. She hadn’t said much since the end of the last game.

“You okay, Lila?” Ethan asked gently.

Lila looked up, her eyes flickering with uncertainty. “I… I don’t know. Something felt different out there. Like I wasn’t myself.”

“You were a total badass, that’s what you were,” Jules said with a grin, trying to lighten the mood. “Seriously, I don’t know where that came from, but it saved us.”

Bree frowned, her arms crossed. “It was… weird, though. You weren’t just confident—you were calculating. Almost like you’d done this before.”

Lila’s face flushed, and she shook her head. “I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like… something just clicked. I didn’t have time to think; I just acted.”

Ethan placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Whatever it was, it kept us alive. Don’t overthink it right now. Rest while you can.”

Jules leaned forward, his tone serious for once. “We need to stay sharp. Team 3’s on a roll, and Team 2’s probably plotting how to take us down next. We can’t afford to slip up.”

Bree nodded. “Agreed. No more screw-ups. We stick together, we keep moving, and we win. Simple as that.”

Lila nodded hesitantly, though the unease in her eyes lingered.

Tension Mounts

As the hour stretched on, the tension in the room grew heavier. The teams exchanged wary glances, each group sizing up the others.

Logan, unable to contain his frustration, stood abruptly and began pacing again. “This is ridiculous. We’re just sitting here, waiting to get picked off.”

Sarah rolled her eyes. “What do you want to do, Logan? Charge at them? Get yourself eliminated before the next game even starts?”

“Maybe we should,” Logan shot back. “Take out the competition before they take us out.”

Emily’s voice cut through the tension, sharp and decisive. “Don’t. That’s exactly what they want. The moment we step out of line, we’re done.”

Logan glared at her but didn’t argue, his jaw tightening.

Across the room, Daniel watched Logan carefully, his lips curling into a faint smirk. “That one’s going to snap,” he muttered to Sophie.

“Let’s just make sure we’re not in his way when he does,” Sophie replied.

Jules, overhearing the remark, leaned toward Bree. “You feel that? The tension in here could blow the roof off.”

Bree nodded. “Stay focused. They’re all on edge, and that’s when mistakes happen.”

The Announcement

The monitor suddenly flickered to life, and the masked Manager appeared once more.

“Your rest period is over,” he announced, his voice cold and detached. “Prepare yourselves. The next game begins now.”

The room fell silent, each team bracing themselves for what was to come.

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