This article features the four teams that debuted in the Marble League Practice Round. For the article that focuses on the six teams in Group A that were unable to qualify, click here. For the article that focuses on the six teams in Group B that were unable to qualify, click here.

A Rocket in Orbit

by Stynth

Orbit had a full view of the Bermenghank night sky as they rolled into the arena of The Pond for the first time. Stopping next to the Climbing track, the Captain of the Purple Rockets took out their camera and audibly gasped as they photographed the stars peeking from behind the thinly spread clouds.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” mused Orbit. “We’re at such a high altitude, but the sky isn’t clearer because of it. Everything – the stars, the clouds, the mist, the planets, fate – is in flux.”

Coach Rocket chuckled. “This is very deep for an astrophotography shoot. I get the feeling something else is on your mind.”

“Yeah, well…I don’t want to talk about it.” Orbit put away their camera, their eyes fixated on the clouded sky above them.

“That’s what you’ve been saying since we won. And it hasn’t helped you shake that something. Which leads me to think we should—”

“What good will it do? You don’t understand, and it’s not like anyone in the community would understand,” Orbit interjected.

The two marbles, captain and coach, watched a cloud mask the cluster of stars Orbit had just photographed. Orbit sighed.

“It’s scary to put yourself out there. Like, as an athlete and as a personality. After we won, I wasn’t sure that I could handle it. There were a lot of marbles that didn’t think we should be competing with JMR. And the truth is that I was one of them.”

“Oh, Orbit…”

“I knew everyone else wanted to compete in Marble ManiaX and participate in the Marble Sports Games B-League. And I know we made it work. But it was a lot…mentally…and…I don’t know if it’ll work again. And I don’t know how much I can handle hearing marbles tell us we’re not worthy of being here.”

Orbit stopped, looking aside at their coach with tears in their eyes. Coach Rocket gazed back, tears streaming down their face, and the captain and coach embraced.

Pulling away after a moment, Coach Rocket looked their captain directly in the eyes. “You don’t know how many fans of you – especially us – value you. Of course, you’re a skilled athlete and a natural leader on the team. But you’re also a marble with a heart of gold and a true passion for what they do, and if anyone doesn’t see that, it’s their issue.”

Orbit wiped a tear from their face. “I know. But sometimes it’s just hard to believe that. It’s scary.”

“I know it’s scary. But it’s worth it, isn’t it? We’ve dreamed of this opportunity our entire lives.”

Orbit looked up again at the sky to find that cluster of stars again, shining bright past the departed cloud. “Yeah. We have.”

“Fate is irrelevant. Whether or not we’re supposed to be here or not, we are now,” Rocket continued. “You want to be, right?”

“Yeah,” Orbit responded, with no hint of hesitation. “Final answer. It’s time to make a landing in the Marble League.”

Doubling Down

by Stynth

“How do I look, Jack?”

Heart, emerging from the team locker room before their other teammates, smiled proudly as they posed for their coach. The Captain of the Black Jacks was the first to don the team’s new uniform, the Double Downer – designed to be as athletic, stylish, and, of course, deep black, as possible.

“There’s no other way I’d want to suit up for our second attempt at the Marble League. We’re showing everyone that we’re here to win.”

Jack rolled to the closest table, overlooking the early morning glow cast over the grandstands of The Pond. “You and I can get a round in before the others are ready, right?” they asked, unsheathing a deck of cards from their leather-bound playing card case.

One by one, the rest of the Black Jacks joined the captain and coach for their morning round of cards, which they insisted would help the rest of the team wake up and mentally prepare for the Practice Round later that day. The activity was not without challenges: Ace fell asleep in the middle of Eleusis after staying up late during a game of Marbludo on the Marblebase the night before, and Diamond refused to join canasta, instead opting to play solitaire with their own deck. But as fans started filtering into the stands, the Black Jacks were able to tune out every other distraction and get into a competitive mindset.

“For our fans,” said Spade, revealing their royal flush to win poker.

“Wow, looking sharp!” replied Club, folding their hand of mismatched pairs. “Sharper than those black-and-red uniforms critics were proposing, that’s for sure.”

“SCOPA!!! With the sette bello!” exclaimed Diamond, eagerly slamming down the seven of spades as they swept the table clean of cards.

“Now remember. Make a comeback like that in Triathlon, and we’ll be in good hands,” advised Jack, scribbling down Diamond’s two points to tie their game of scopa.

“Hit. Hit. Still, only sixteen?” asked Heart, looking down sheepishly at their 4 cards.

“The only thing climbing today is Heart’s share of the deck,” joked Ace.

“One more time…TWENTY-ONE!!! I WIN!!!”

Looking down at the blackjack they had been dealt, Ace sighed deeply. “Sheesh. And I doubled down.”

It was Heart’s turn to reshuffle when they heard a familiar ringtone – the Strixes’ Summer 2022 performance of “Mrollin’s Third Symphony”. Jack picked up the phone, their voice turning serious on a dime.

“Okay. Thanks,” they said, hanging up. “It’s time. Are we ready?”

Heart nodded, quickly dealing the cards to their team and coach for one final round. “High roller rules: everyone doubles down – even if you have to fold. Play like we’re about to compete. Two minutes on the clock. Let’s roll.”

The First Hunt

by Stynth

Coach Akela, Sirius, and Remus were the first trio of teammates that security officials summoned to set up on the Climbing track. With uniforms of gray, yellow, and black, representing the traditional colors of their home city of Furbank, the Wolfpack rolled with purpose as they entered a Marble League arena for the first time. Their small, yet mighty fan section erupted in a symphony of howling.

“I know Manager Nova advised me not to say this,” muttered Coach Akela, “this is your moment. Take it all in. But remember – this isn’t a friendly round for us – it’s our first impression. I know you’ll do us proud.”

Coach Akela gave Remus one last bump before the athlete settled into the track as the Skipper. They and Sirius continued to the right, towards the incline where Sirius would ascend to compete as the Striker. The slope of the incline reminded Sirius of the hills that they had sledded down when they were competing in the Iditaroll.

“This reminds you of home, doesn’t it?” Akela smiled as Sirius’s eyes widened, as if the coach had read their mind. “Haha! Ancarnage has snowy peaks, too. I used to sled in my youth. But I could never have achieved a Surculo championship last year, or done what you’re about to do.”

The two had now reached the lift to the starting gate. Giving Sirius a bump, the coach parted ways with one final query. “You’re ready, right?”

Sirius beamed. “I’ve been ready all my life.” 

The night before, Captain Balto had stumbled across the triathlon track being constructed during a midnight sprint – an exercise where Wolfpack athletes run towards the moon for as long as physically possible. Balto’s run ended at the crossroads of a Marbula One track; coarse, rough, and irritating sand; and the night-shift security for The Pond. 

As Manager Nova defended Balto’s accident against inquiries from race and security officials, Balto and technical director Beta quietly exited The Pond to scope out the Triathlon track again, without trespassing within the now-marked boundaries.

“What I wasn’t sure about is that turn,” Balto asked, pointing to the part of the track where Dash overshot the wall. “How do I arrest my momentum and still have enough to enter the sand section?”

“…I don’t think you do,” Beta said. “You might have to make up for lost time once you hit the chicanes. This is a strange course.”

During the race, we sat with Beta as they watched Balto attempt to catch Diamond’s slipstream but crash into the wall instead, leaving them too many lengths from the top two to contend as they finished third.

“It’s safe to say that we don’t have it all figured out yet. But I don’t think we’re supposed to,” the technical director noted. “If you catch prey on the first hunt, odds are that you just got lucky. Patience and consistency are what will make our team the next Marble League champions.”

Recharging

by Smacg13

“Lapis, Brilliant Blue Corporation, Zuro’s number one news source. How does it feel to prove the doubters wrong?”

The echoes of this question still rattled around Fearo’s head as they led the team from the stage where their post-Friendly Round press release had recently concluded. The change in tone from the disaster that had been the previous press release was stark. Gone was the vitriol about stealing a place in the Showdown, replaced with the facade of always believing that Team Plasma could do it. How could some be so fickle?

Ecto was nowhere to be seen, having disappeared soon after the end of the conference, muttering to themselves about the lack of dessert options available at the Pond. Following close behind Fearo were Phanto and Gloomo deep in conversation, already planning how to continue the momentum into the Showdown. Phanto was only semi-listening to Gloomo wax lyrical about the intricacies of Climbing strategies when they sensed something was off. Phanto quickly rotated around to see Ghost drifting listlessly behind. Leaving Gloomo to their postulating, Phanto rolled up beside their dejected teammate.

“Fearo mentioned going to the Pond Pub to celebrate our victory, are you interested?” asked Phanto, curious to see how their downtrodden friend would respond.

“You go, I don’t deserve to go,” replied the glum marble. “You all did so well without me. How can I possibly live up to that performance? I don’t deserve to be on this team. The press may have been wrong about you, but I can’t help feeling that they were right about me.”

“Now that is definitely not true,” Phanto responded. “You are an integral part of this team and we all believe in you. We all suffer from imposter syndrome from time to time. Remember when I recorded that album of musical number covers? I nearly canned the whole project as I didn’t think it was any good at all, nowhere near as good as the MarBeats. But you convinced me to release it, and look at it now – it made it into the charts and the Swarm sent me a nice letter congratulating me on the project! I nearly let imposter syndrome get the better of me, but with the support and encouragement of my friends, especially you, I got through and succeeded. You may feel like you don’t fit in right now, but we are here for you every step of this crazy journey and we believe you will succeed. You always challenge us in training and when you finally get to perform in front of a stadium of fans, you will make Team Plasma proud.”

“Hmm. I guess I give Ecto a run for their money, they should really cut down on the pies,” replied Ghost, a sliver of confidence returning to their voice. “Thanks, Phanto. I guess I will join you at the Pub. But drinks are on you, your number one fan deserves at least a sliver of the royalties from that album.”

Best of luck to these expansion teams in the remainder of Marble League Showdown 2022.

Credits

• Writers: Smacg13, Stynth
• Graphic Designer: Tim Ritz
• Photographer: Jelle’s Marble Runs
• Reference: Marble League Showdown 2022
• Release: 17/12/2022