The four of them huddled in their assigned room, a plain chamber with five levers lined up on the far wall. Each lever was marked with a number, and a glowing panel displayed the score: 0–0.
Finn rubbed his hands together. "Alright, here's the plan. We'll trap levers two and four. The rest are safe. Simple enough, right?"
Lyra nodded. "We'll need airtight answers. If they catch on to our traps, we're done."
Greg, the muscle of the team, cracked his knuckles. "I'll keep quiet. Talking isn't my strong suit anyway."
Lucas raised a hand. "Question: what if I accidentally make it obvious which ones are traps?"
Finn smirked. "Then try not to do that. Just let me handle the talking."
Lucas sighed. "Great. Delegated to the role of 'nervous bystander.' My specialty."
…
The Rival Team
The rival team entered the room with a confident swagger. Their leader, a wiry guy with glasses, adjusted his frames and gave a smug smile. "Ready to lose?"
"You're awfully cocky for someone about to step on a metaphorical landmine," Finn shot back.
The rival team's leader—Number 221—chuckled. "We'll see. Let's get started."
…
Round 1: Question Time
The opposing team fired off their first question. "If lever three is safe, why didn't you trap it?"
Finn didn't miss a beat. "Too obvious. Everyone traps the middle lever. We're not amateurs."
Lucas swallowed hard. That's... not even remotely true.
The rival team's leader narrowed his eyes. "Interesting. Let's test that."
He stepped up and yanked lever three. It moved smoothly, a green light flashing on their panel. +1 point for the rival team.
221 smirked. "Thanks for the point. You're not as clever as you think."
Finn gritted his teeth but managed a grin. "First round's yours. Don't get cocky."
Lucas exhaled quietly. Great. We're off to a fantastic start.
…
Round 2: Counterattack
Now it was their turn to interrogate. Finn leaned forward, fixing the other team's leader with a piercing stare. "Why'd you trap lever five? Seems like a risky move."
The leader smirked. "Who said we trapped it?"
"You just did," Finn shot back, "by not denying it outright."
The leader's confident expression faltered for a fraction of a second. It was subtle, but Finn caught it.
"Lucas," Finn said, gesturing grandly. "Would you do the honors?"
Lucas froze. "Wait, me? What if it's—"
"Just pull the lever," Lyra hissed.
With trembling hands, Lucas approached lever five. He closed his eyes, gave it a tug, and—
A green light flashed. +1 point for their team.
"Ha!" Finn exclaimed. "Too easy."
Lucas stumbled back, his heart pounding. I'm never doing that again.
…
Round 3: The Decider
The score was tied, and the air was thick with tension. It all came down to this final question.
"If lever two is safe," their rival asked, "why didn't you trap it?"
Finn's grin didn't waver. "Because trapping two levers side by side is the oldest trick in the book. We're not that predictable."
Lucas's stomach churned. We literally trapped lever two. Finn's bluffing. Oh no oh no oh no.
The rival leader stepped toward lever two, his hand hovering over it. "Let's see if you're lying."
He yanked the lever.
Red lights flashed, and an alarm blared. -1 point for the rival team.
Finn pumped his fist. "Boom! Outplayed."
…
Victory
The game ended with their team victorious, 1–0. Lucas's legs felt like jelly as they filed out of the room, but a small smile crept onto his face. For once, luck had been on their side.
Finn clapped him on the back. "See? Told you we'd crush it."
"Yeah, sure," Lucas muttered. "But next time, I'm not pulling any levers."