Out of the Rolling – Event 14: Send a New Message

Aryp swung the door to their hotel room shut. Their thoughts were backing up in their mind like a clogged drain. If they didn’t do this right now, they were going to explode.

From under their bed came a cardboard box filled with “junk.” Next came their cutting mat, and from their bag came scissors, an x-acto knife, brushes, and a bottle of glue. Their collection of items had been built up since the start of the tournament for this express purpose. They knew when their time in this tournament ended – no matter how it ended – they would make a collage.

Aryp picked up a brush and slathered it with glue, then coated an empty page of their sketchbook in turn. They all but threw their brush into water when they were done, then snatched up a turquoise paper. It was smoothed over the wet glue, but the end result was anything but – peaks and valleys rippled across its surface.

This kinda looks like a mountain, Aryp mused as they eyed the edge of their tree-lined paper. They looked at the smiley face on their generic takeout bag, seeing clearly what it would be – a sun. 

Guess we’re doing Kinikolu scenery, they decided. Flowers would go great with that, so they fished up a goodie bag decorated accordingly. As they steadily cut out the flowers, their mind began to drift.

Sightseeing and eating and partying made for a great routine when Aryp had first arrived to compete in Marble Survival 100. Gradually, however, those things gave way to exercising and training and having meetings. When that happened, apprehension creeped in over enjoyment. It happened so slowly that it only hit Aryp a week or so ago, but once they noticed it, it was hard to un-notice. They tried to not let it affect their performance, but it was futile. Silly mistakes and bad lines piled up until there was nowhere else for them to go.

In today’s race, their last race, they had clawed back positions after a bad start. But then they were skirting to the side, then up against the back of Sea, and then it was over. They hated to admit it, but once the disappointment and shame washed away, there was relief; the pressure was off. They could not say they were unhappy with their overall performance – no DNFs, a handful of wins, and a good time. They could come away from this knowing that they did their best.

Now for the branches. They picked up the wreckage of the paper bag and tore at it again, coaxing it in the direction they wanted it to go. Holding it to the composition, they determined the branches were too light in value, so they got a wash of brown watercolor.

The brush and glue came back out as Aryp confirmed the new pieces were looking good, and the paper was slathered in glue once again. They placed the final bits with precision, making sure it was exactly to their liking. And just like that, it was done.

The sun had not yet risen: over and above the early dawn, one could still see a constellation or two. MS100’s eliminated competitors revisited for the week’s final races, and an athlete’s social that reunited all of them had emptied out.

Swax may not have won the tournament. At the social, though, they were the center of attention for their deep tournament run. By this point, it had been hours since old friends like Minty Mint or teams they knew less well feted them. Now, the Bumblebee was focused on talking to one fellow competitor.

“Here’s a silly question,” said Swax. “I’m used to the heat in Kinikolu, it’s not far from how warm Buzznya is. But did that ever bother you here given how much colder it is back home?”

“Well, I’ve seen it all after all my globetrotting,” said the other athlete. “Honestly? I’d give up a month of travel abroad to take my time back home. Some of my friends I haven’t really seen in years. It’s not great.”

“Oh… well, anyone in particular who’s on your mind?”

“Oh, gosh. When was the last time I saw my coworkers at the old rocket base… I’d trade ten sponsor meetings to travel around with them!”

The athlete sighed and continued. “Also… some of my friends from the Stardust Classic. When I was in a regional league, we could hang out after the event, maybe tour the city together. You could befriend your competitors. At the highest level, all the time afterwards is spent with your team or with the press.

“There are familiar faces who I pass by in competition. But I have no time to say anything. It’s as if we are strangers.”

Swax replied with a smile. “Well, about that! I should’ve mentioned someone who wants to see you…”

A block away, Saucer was watching the first light. They had told Swax to not worry about them attending the social. They were more comfortable spending their time around teammates, like giving them a tour of the island.

The rest of the Rockets went to bed in their rooms, but Saucer stayed jittery and restless. They had spent most of the night reviewing tournament tape in their hotel room, sketching training notes in their notepad. Suddenly, they heard their phone vibrate and a text message pop up:

Looking down from the balcony, Saucer could see a clear marble rolling to the hotel lobby. “You’re the best, Swax,” said Saucer to themselves. Then they were off and out of their room.

There were 99 races when you couldn’t count Yellah out. While Mellow Yellow fans would prefer their athlete had fewer brushes with elimination, climbing the rankings from behind was Yellah’s plan. They would rather get bumped aside the first few times they hit the track, such that by the second half they knew how to get past the traffic.

“It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” said Yellah again and again with a smirk. It was a long game they played, where even solving disputes between their rivals was a chance to study personalities. With Race 100 about to start, only one competitor remained.

It was Sea, who said to Yellah in the starting gate: “good luck, have fun.” Soon enough both were a third of the way into the race, and the Oceanic already blocked Yellah multiple times. Yellah took the bell carousel cleanly, but frustration was setting in.

They sped up to overtake Sea once and for all – only to overshoot a corner with a “pancake ramp,” sliding back behind a wall.

With that went the race.

Losing happens more often than not: Yellah knew that. Standing one rung below the top on the championship podium, the light show spinning around them, Yellah thought back to their first Marble League gold.

Yellah earned a round of celebratory bumps after winning Marble League 2017’s High Jump, but there was even more. The bronze medallist, Mimo, made sure all of Team Momo came up to congratulate Yellah. That included Momomomo, still on their crutches.

After the championship ceremony, Mellow Yellow booked a Kinikolu ballroom for the celebration party. Yellah and team captain Yellow were both pouring glasses of pineapple juice, but Yellow was on a tear. “I feel awful for you on how unfair that last track was. I was not happy about how it’s designed, you know!”

“Well,” said Yellah. “It can’t be helped. It’s not like we haven’t been runner-ups before.”

“It still sucks. Maybe it’s just me, but I think about loss much more than victories,” said Yellow. “There are those two times that Kinnowin beat me in a sprint, in 2017 and 2019! We meet from time to time. But, for seven years now, I avoid bringing that result up.”

Yellah didn’t know how to respond, though Yellow went on. “Sorry, maybe I’m exaggerating… but I act polite when needed. When I win, others congratulate me for a moment and move on. I don’t do more than that either to my competitors. Some things are better left unsaid.”

The next morning, Yellah had one more chance to look out their hotel balcony. Memories of the last few months lingered, and two others: that moment in 2017, and that moment with Yellow last night.

Did Yellah agree with their captain? Alone with their thoughts, Yellah could exclaim: “No, come on.” Then, checking they had an afternoon before the whole team would fly out, they had an idea.

Yellah had saved the contact of an athlete they stumbled upon in Kinikolu, someone they had not seen in years. To them, Yellah sent a text:

Credits

• Writers: Evolution, Fouc
• Editors: Evolution, Millim, Stynth
• Artist/Photographer: Evolution
• Photo Credits: Jelle’s Marble Runs
• Reference: Marble Survival 100 | Jelle’s Marble Runs
• Release: 20/09/2024