With this goal in mind, Tiffany slowed down. The team continued to advance, cooperating flawlessly. Kenneth was satisfied, but turning around, he saw Tiffany far behind, relaxed, with Ged, usually boisterous, meekly following. They seemed on vacation.

Kenneth fumed, but remained silent, muttering, "Never mind. I owe her!" Sandra, secretly angry, sensed their relationship had worsened since their fight two days prior, a fight neither won. She knew Kenneth's coy attitude masked wavering feelings. "Why doesn't he ignore her? Why does he even look at her?"

Taking a deep breath, Sandra calmed herself, feigning concern. "Why did Tiffany fall behind? Let's wait for her," she said, stopping Kenneth, and thus the entire team. Under the scorching sun, no one complained, yet everyone resented accommodating Tiffany. Someone muttered, "What a burden…"

Tiffany caught up at a moderate pace—a distance of less than 300 feet taking ten minutes! The team's anger erupted. "How dare you make us wait?" they shouted. "It's only a few steps! Why so slow? No team spirit! We'll be at the bottom this time!"

Ged yawned lazily, "Who asked you to wait?" Tiffany echoed his sentiment with a raised eyebrow. Their attitude angered the others. Finally, someone said, "Forget it. Let's go; ignore them."

Sandra, torn between loyalty to Tiffany and the team's needs, said, "Kenneth, let's go ahead. If Tiffany's in danger, she'll catch up." Kenneth, frowning but seeing the others' unrest, nodded. "Let's go."

Unburdened, the team advanced rapidly, until they stumbled into a trap hidden in the grass. The instructor's warning about danger proved true. Four or five people fell, crying out in pain. The trap was shallow, but their carelessness led to the fall. The pit was over ten feet deep, though mats mitigated injury; however, multiple people falling caused injuries.

Kenneth reacted swiftly, pulling Sandra to safety. "We have to save them!" Sandra grabbed a rope from her backpack, throwing it down. "Hold on; we'll pull you up!" A shocked girl praised, "Sandra, where did you get that? You're so thoughtful!"

The rope worked, quickly rescuing the fallen. Sandra sighed, then saw Kenneth looking at her. She winked playfully. He laughed. "Let's go. The journey's far; prepare for consecutive nights. I'll lead; follow carefully."

Tiffany and Ged finally caught up. Someone protested, "You know how to take advantage!"

"You're right!" Tiffany grinned. "Idiots scouted ahead. Why wouldn't I reap the rewards?" Ged agreed, gesturing, "Come, continue."

Everyone was dumbfounded. Sandra said aggrievedly, "Tiffany, this is a group assessment! Falling behind means no score…"

This reminder spurred the team. "You shouldn't enjoy the fruits of our labor! We hit a trap; now it's your turn!"

To everyone's surprise, Tiffany agreed, snatching the map from Kenneth and leading. Ged followed. The roles reversed; they would clear traps. Someone sneered, "Those traps might be dangerous. They'll embarrass themselves."

About 1000 feet later, they reached a sandy area within the mountain forest—unexpected quicksand. Kenneth stopped everyone. "Stop! Quicksand!"

The training base's quicksand wouldn't swallow people whole, but it was still dangerous. They needed a strategy to cross it. Yet, Tiffany, ignoring Kenneth's warning, stepped into the quicksand… The sand rapidly engulfed her to her waist.