Chapter 4: An Eventful Night

 ~-Brialgic-~

As the date of the simulation approaches closer and closer, more contestants came to visit the Spectator Dome. Brialgic took note of the ones that seemed competent enough to compete with him.

It was the evening before the day before the simulation, and Brialgic was lying in the Spectator Dome, listening to Cyclosword giving some girls - whom he deemed incompetent - a tour around the Spectator Dome. They kept gushing about normal things, and Brialgic was annoyed, but he had to observe everyone. 

"That's the screen, it's where people who want to spectate come to watch." Cyclo was saying.

"Wow, it's so huge!" That was Minji. Brialgic doesn't know much about her except that she's some beloved star from Dove Rose and her entire island is cheering her and her teammate Pleebs on. 

"Mhm," Cyclo said, "I can show you guys the control center."

"That'll be great!" That's Pleebs. Now Brialgic is even more annoyed, because Cyclo didn't offer to show him the control center. Once their voices and footsteps completely faded away, he sighed with relief.

"Brialgic!" That call snapped Brialgic awake. It's Ryuga's voice, coming closer. "I'm here!"

Brialgic hopped off the seats as Ryuga called, "Brialgic! Can I stay here tonight?"

"You'd have to ask Cyclo or Leo." Brialgic answered, "why though?"

"Because then for the simulation I can already be here to watch!" Ryuga said.

Brialgic shook his head, "it doesn't work like that."

"Why though?' Ryuga asked.

Brialgic had to be patient. After all, this was someone who might be able to help him win. "You see," he explained, trying to remember from Ryan's stories. "A long time ago the simulations weren't hosted on Jay Blossom, or in the Hive District at all. It was on a remote island quite far away that didn't belong to any district. So a tradition was formed where everyone participating and watching will meet up at the docks on Hive Island and ride there on the Cirandeiro - some ship's name. Maybe fifty or something years ago the simulations were moved to Jay Blossom. There was no need for a fancy ship like Cirandeiro anymore, so she retired to the back of Jay Blossom. We still kept the tradition of meeting up on the docks and riding together though."

"Okay, so we ride with everyone else?"

"Yes, there will be a lot of people." Brialgic sighed. He didn't like being with people. "We stick together when tomorrow's tomorrow comes."

"Mhm!" Ryuga said.

"Oh yeah, I figured out the Command Blocks." Brialgic said. "We can sneak into the Control Room after Cyclo goes out to do whatever he does."

While Ryuga wondered around the Spectator Dome, Brialgic sat the podium that sometimes Cyclo or Leo would use to announce things. Sometime later he watched Minji and Pleebs head towards the sleeping quarters, talking to each other about things he didn't care about. Eventually Cyclo left, "come on, this is our chance."

"Coming!" Ryuga said. 

It's pitch black outside, another calm Jay Blossom night. Brialgic worked at the lock while Ryuga watched. "Will you teach me how to do it?"

"No," Brialgic flicked the door open. 

He had been here before, pretty much every night since the registrations, actually. "This is where I'd enter the simulation arena, basically they watch the arena and make stuff happen in it here."

"It looks so complicated." Ryuga glanced around the screens and levers and buttons positioned in the control center. There seemed to be a million of them.

"They keep the Command Blocks in another room." Brialgic knew they didn't have to be concerned with the control room. "Come."

He lead Ryuga further into the room until they were met with another iron door. "I can't see." Ryuga tried peeking through the gaps on the door.

"You will," Brialgic got the door open and flicked the dim redstone lamps on. 

Inside the room, there are command blocks. A lot of command blocks. They were all orange, green, or purple, and were all of different sizes. "How do we make this work?" Ryuga asked.

"I thought you said you were the one who could help me win," Brialgic walked further into the room. It had a single window very high above the ground, only letting in a sliver of natural light. "Basically you see this right here?" He nodded towards the very big command block that is beside him. "This basically runs everything, and all the other command blocks control other stuff. But it's not as complicated as it looks on the surface. Most of these command blocks are not used." He picked a very small one up from atop the biggest command block. "Basically you modify it so that once say, I enter the arena, it checks to see if it's me, and once it verifies that, it gives me some boost that others do not have."

Ryuga blinked. I guess he really has no clue. Brialgic thought, "they should keep a command block manual somewhere in here, I'll get it for us."

Just then the door was pushed open. "Hide!" Brialgic whisper-screamed, pushing Ryuga to the back of the big command block. "It's Cyclo!"

"Um...no it's not?" The newcomer walked in. "I was looking for Cyclo."

"Oh, it's just you." Brialgic got up to see Potato - another contestant - walking in. He didn't really know Potato that well, but he wouldn't tell on them. "How did you get in here?"

"You left the door open, SMH my head." Potato answered, "Anyways, you ready to lose to me in the simulation?"

"Who's your teammate anyway?" 

"Blaze."

"Wait really?" Ryuga sprung up from behind the command block too. 

Potato didn't seem to have notice Ryuga there before. "Yeah, you're participating too?"

"Signed up too late." Ryuga shrugged. 

"Well, how about let's take this conversation outside while we wait for Cyclo?" Brialgic suggested. He can't risk letting Potato know what they were doing in there. 

"Okay." Potato left first.

"You stay here and work the command blocks." Brialgic whispered to Ryuga before heading out. He only hoped Ryuga knew what he's doing.

When Brialgic left the control center, the outside wasn't exactly as calm. In fact, it was very loud. He stood next to Potato, "uh, what's happening?" 

"These two walked in while playing noteblocks." Potato answered.

That is really all that's happening. Two people - contestants perhaps - had walked in playing music, but it sounded so chaotic because they were playing completely different music that sounded awful mashed together. They each had a strap of little noteblocks tied together on a string. 

The room was almost quaking as their songs both reached the climax. "Stop it, you two!" Brialgic could recognize Scissors as one of the noteblock players. The other one, he's not so sure.

"Uhh, I'd recommend covering your ears." Potato shouted in order to be heard.

>8 Scissors 8<

Scissors fumbled to reach for the right noteblock. No, that one's sharper. He had reached it just in time too. Never make that mistake again. 

Just in front of him, Six was playing too. Scissors could see the ice and gold under his noteblocks that gives Six his signature sound. Too soft. 

Scissors had been living his life as usual, returning to his home on Jay Blossom after a day at the main island. He had decided to come to the Spectator Dome, which he'd never been in before. Of course Six had to have the same idea. They talked for a bit, not for long, when Six started tapping his noteblocks. That was how it all started, and they're still going now.

Scissors was just about to reach the grand finale note of his song when the lights turned off. He thought a blackout had occurred until they turned back on again. "Woah woah woah, I leave for a bit and this happens?" Cyclo came in. To Scissors' relief, he didn't seem mad.

"They didn't even notice us telling them to stop." That was Potato. Scissors hadn't noticed Brialgic and him standing at the side until now.

"Well, I guess you've seen everything around here?" Cyclo asked.

"We'll find our way." Six reassured him. 

"So do we stay here tonight?" A new voice squeaked from the far side of the Spectator Dome. 

"Minji and Pleebs! Awesome, everyone's here." Cyclo made his way to the poidum. "Yeah, you can stay here tonight if you'd like to, the simulation starts the day after tomorrow though, so I'd recommend not to." 

"What now?" Six asked. 

"You guys can do whatever. I still have some things to fix with the command blocks though."  

Scissors was going to leave for now, "I'm going," he announced, heading for the redstone door but beaten by Six. "Ugh."

Six smiled and tapped a noteblock, a bright sound ringing from it. Scissors could hear the ice under the noteblock, clear as crystal. 

He started too. This time he tried listening to Six and being his support. They simulatenously headed towards Maple Island through the stepping stones, sitting down under the gazebo and the moon. "You know," Scissors stopped after a while, "it's a shame we aren't teammates." 

"Eh, I mean, we probably wouldn't stand a chance if we were." Six shrugged, stopping on the last notes of his improvisation, the crystal clear sound fading into darkness. "I'm with Stick, that's the guy who lives in Darkwood and collects sticks. He's actually really good at fighting."

"Ah, nice," Scissors replied. "You might get carried."

"Well, there's a lot of strong fighters this year, so highly doubt that. Good thing we can come back, I heard most of the other districts select their Selected Team with actual fighting and bloodshed."

Scissors shuddered. "Glad we live in Hive."

"Mhm, nighty." Six answered, getting up to leave.

The slight breeze of the night raises as Scissors got up to leave too, pondering the Hive's selection process, where the winner of the simulation will be honored and die, but the ones who lose are actually more safe.