Leo's POV

The four of us approached the Radish Festival. People were everywhere in Victor Square and its surroundings. Todd and Rebel weren't on stage anymore, but I wasn't sure where they went.

"Okay. What's the plan again?" Glitch asked.

Choco sighed. "Get in, get Cook and Rebel, get out."

"Okay, but what's the plan?" Glitch repeated. "We can't just expect to stroll out with them with no difficulties."

"It's probably best if we split up," I spoke up.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Naomi replied. "What if one of us gets caught?"

"If the bots see four suspicious people walking around together they'll know it's us for sure," I argued.

"How about we do two and two, then?" Glitch suggested. "I'll go with Choco and find Cook, and you two go find Rebel."

"Works for me," Choco replied. She and Glitch slid into the crowd.

"Where do you think Rebel is?" Naomi asked as we entered the throngs of people.

One of the people nearby spoke up. "You want an autograph too? We're in line to see Rebel now!"

Naomi and I looked at each other. "How long's the wait?" Naomi asked.

The guy who spoke to us looked behind him. "About an hour, I think."

I groaned. "We don't have time for this."

"It's the only way we're gonna be able to get to her. Come on," Naomi said softly. She walked over to the back of the line. I groaned again and joined her.

***

Choco's POV

I shoved through people as fast as I could. There was loud music playing and everyone was dancing, so nobody really cared much. I didn't look back, so I had no idea if Glitch was still behind me. But I didn't care. I had one goal in mind. To find my brother.

"Slow down!" I heard Glitch whisper behind me. "Do you even know where you're going?"

I stopped abruptly, and Glitch crashed into me. I looked at him. "No. But he's not just gonna come to us. We have to find him."

"Choco?"

I turned around to see my brother staring at me from a couple feet away, being jostled by the crowd.

"Cook!" I exclaimed happily. I started to run to him, but then stopped. He looked at me, confused.

"We can't be seen together. The Radish bots are searching for me," I explained. "Pretend you don't see me and start dancing."

Cook reluctantly started to dance with the crowd. I did the same. Glitch looked back and forth between the two of us. I glared at him. He sighed and started awkwardly shuffling back and forth.

"Let's dance our way out of this crowd and get out of here," I said.

"I can't," my brother replied. "They put an ankle monitor on me. If I leave Victor Square, I'll get shocked and the bots will come for me. What do they even want with me? Nobody will tell me."

"It's probably just because you're related to me," I concluded. "They're using you as bait."

"And what do they want you for? I thought they liked you. You won the Games."

"Long story. No time. Take that monitor off and let's get out of here."

Cook shook his head sadly. "No can do. Tried already, the bots threatened me. It sends out an alert whenever I even try to touch it."

I looked at Glitch, who looked embarrassed out of his mind from terribly dancing. "Can you hack into that thing?"

"Probably, but I need a computer," he answered.

"I saw one backstage," Cook spoke up. "Controls the lights and such."

"That'll work," Glitch said.

"Alright. Let's boogey on over there," I said seriously. Cook snorted.

***

Rebel's POV

I sat backstage, drinking water from a glass one of the bots brought me. I was exhilarated from the spotlight experience. Did Todd get to feel this all the time? If so, then hosting must be a lot of fun.

Speaking of Todd, he entered the room. "There's my favorite cohost. How are you feeling?"

"Great," I answered with a weak smile.

"Good. Ready to do some autographs? You got a whole line of people out there waiting."

"Really?" I was surprised. People really cared that much about me?

"Of course! The victor of the first Games and the new cohost attracts a lot of attention around here," Todd explained. "Now I—"

"Supreme Radish," a bot cut in.

Todd closed his eyes and sighed. "What did I say about interrupting me, Gerald?"

"Apologies, master," Gerald the robot replied. "But this is important. It's about the Games."

"Can it wait?" Todd asked, still looking at me.

"Not if you want your plan to be successful."

This got Todd's attention. He looked at the bot. "What is it?"

What plan? I thought to myself.

"Two of the contestants, Stab and Poke, are teaming up on Ry right now," Gerald explained.

"Show me."

The bot's chest turned into a TV screen. It showed a forest, clearly in the arena. There was a girl, who I recognized as Ry, running as fast as she could. Two guys were chasing her. They must be Stab and Poke.

"Our projections show these two will kill Ry in a few minutes," Gerald said.

Todd turned away and started muttering to himself. I couldn't hear everything he said, but "star contestant" and "she's my favorite" were repeated multiple times.

"What's going on?" I decided to speak up.

Todd looked at me. "Congratulations, Rebel. You get to witness the best part about hosting." He turned to a different Radish bot. "Remote?" The bot handed him a handheld device. Todd took it.

"The...best part?" I asked.

Todd nodded. He pointed to the screen, where Ry was now cornered by Stab and Poke, both with knives out. Todd then pressed a button on his remote, and the ground underneath Poke exploded. The cannon sounded, and Stab turned, horrified, to where his friend had just been standing. Ry used this as her chance to escape.

"The Games are rigged?" I asked in horror.

"I wouldn't use that word. More like...guided," Todd replied. "Now, go sign some autographs!" He ushered me out the door, and I didn't have any more time to think about it because the crowd greeted me with cheers.

~~~~~~~~~~

I hate this book so much I can barely get these chapters to 1,000 words lmao

Anyway I'm not even gonna apologize for the wait since last chapter because I don't care anymore

It's been over a year since I started this book and I've gotten 8 chapters out. New record? I think yes

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to vote, comment, and follow!

~Radishologist