"Hello, everybody, and welcome back to Total Drama Virtual Party!" Topher greeted from outside the testing building. "In our last episode, a surprise team swap saw Dunstan, Jynxie, Irving, and Vanessa all changing teams. Robby declared Gunther public enemy number one after it was revealed that the sword collector voted for Vanessa instead of Nils the night before. Wanda tried to insist on team unity, but none of her teammates were having it. Joseph saw the team swap as an opportunity for new allies, and he appealed to Irving for an alliance. Cyan and Vanessa hit it off pretty quickly as well. The challenge this time was simple: mine more valuable gems than the other team. Despite Robby's attempts to throw it for the Cyber Snakes, the Pixel Peacocks ended up losing that night. Joseph urged his new teammates to vote for Lilith, while Cyan urged them to vote for Joseph. Irving, however, tried staging a coup to take out Cyan, but Vanessa refused to go along with it, leading to Joseph's elimination. It seems like everyone is fighting with everyone, and I am living for it! Who will lose the ongoing fight tonight? Find out, right here, on Total! Drama! Virtual Party!"
Cyan sat down at the breakfast table, where Irving had already been eating his breakfast.
"Ah, Cyan," Irving grinned. "Here to tell me what a horrible person I am?"
"No," Cyan sighed. "I just want to know why you wanted me gone so badly that you sowed all this distrust in order to split the vote."
"Believe me, I have nothing against ye," Irving said. "Quite the opposite, in fact. Ye be quite the likable lass. Joseph refused to vote against you when I asked because ye be so likable. Why, ye be a social threat, methinks. Not an obvious one, but one who no one would think to target, especially since ye won't be a challenge threat in the merge. Lilith, now she was a target. I feel like I could justify voting her out at any given time. But ye be a trickier beast. Do ye understand?"
"Oh..." Cyan said. "I guess? I never really saw myself as a threat."
"That's just the thing," Irving chuckled. "Ye aren't threatening enough to be a threat, but ye aren't quite weak enough to be a nuisance."
"So I take it you still want me gone?" Cyan frowned.
"I don't have to," Irving stated. "Ye see, Vanessa's proven to be quite the dishonest wench over the past week. I'd be perfectly fine with getting rid of her if the opportunity arises. All I'd need is ye and Lilith in agreement."
"You think Vanessa's dishonest? That's kind of hypocritical, isn't it?" Cyan asked flatly.
"I've always been honest about me own dishonesty," Irving insisted. "I've made it known to anyone who asked for me vote that nothing is set in stone and that I can change me mind in an instant. Vanessa lied to Nils, to Joseph, and to me that she'd vote the way we all wanted. She's always played herself off as someone who wants everyone to be happy, yet she has no qualms trying to play all sides and forgetting to cover her tracks as she does. Her definition of what makes people happy seems arbitrary at best. She cannot be trusted."
"Well, after what you tried last night, she might decide that it'd make everyone happy if you went home," Cyan pointed out. "Maybe siding with her would be the safest option here."
"A pirate always has something up his sleeve," Irving said cockily. "Ye have until our next vote to think about it. Take your time."
Irving finished his breakfast, stood up, and left.
Confessional:
Cyan: I hate how untouchable he acts like he is. And yet, he was the only one to not get a vote last night. Right now my most reliable ally is Lilith, and she's... quirky. This is not a fun position to be in.
Irving: I'm debating strongly as to whether or not I should tell the others about me invincibility cube. If I do, it might put them off of voting for me, but it might also make me a bigger target later on. Eh, I should focus on winning Invincibility the old-fashioned way by winning challenges. Won't need to use it in that case! Gyarharhar!
Jynxie found Robby also in the dining hall.
"You!" Jynxie snapped as she walked up to the table and slammed her hands on its surface.
"I prefer 'Robby'," Robby responded dryly.
"What the hell were you thinking at the challenge yesterday?!" Jynxie snapped.
Robby sighed. "You want all this fighting to stop, don't you?" he asked. "As soon as we vote out Gunther, it can. Ergo, if I throw the challenge, we will be guaranteed an elimination, and he can finally go home."
"That's so fuckin' dumb!" Jynxie scoffed. "We're here to have fun and compete and shit! Not lose shit on purpose because some guy didn't vote the way you wanted!"
"Et tu, brute?" Robby sighed.
"The fuck you just call me?" Jynxie leered.
"First Wanda won't side with me, now you won't... don't you people realize that Gunther cannot stick around?" Robby scoffed.
"He's not throwing challenges, is all I know," Jynxie shrugged.
"He's a sociopath!" Robby argued. "Nils almost killed Vanessa, Gunther stood there and watched, and then he voted for her! He doesn't care in the slightest who gets hurt, just about what's convenient for him."
"Well, if voting you out is what's most convenient for him, I can't say I disagree!" Jynxie shot back. "Throwing challenges is fucking dumb!"
"Tch. I thought you were the one who always stood for doing whatever you wanted, rules and norms be damned," Robby pointed out. "I'd think Dunstan would be the one to get so anal about it, but I stand corrected, it seems."
"You can do what you want, but if you do something dumb, expect consequences for- oh my god," Jynxie cut herself off. "...This isn't over!"
Jynxie dashed out of the dining hall.
"Plebeian," Robby remarked as he took a sip of tea.
Confessional:
Jynxie: Holy shit that WAS something Dunstan would have said! "Expect consequences for..." What the hell is wrong with me?! I want to win shit, yeah, but I can't just tell him he can't do what the hell he wants. That goes against everything I stand for!
Robby: Perhaps she has a point: throwing challenges may not be the wisest option. I just can't stand by Gunther sitting comfortably while innocent people on the other team go home. I think Joseph went home last night. Never knew him, but he seemed nice. This game, I swear.
Vanessa had just exited the shower with a towel wrapped around her, only to come face-to-face with Lilith.
"Oh! Lilith!" Vanessa jumped. "The, uh, the shower's all yours."
"You seem to live in a state of constant unrest..." Lilith noted.
"Excuse me?" Vanessa asked, confused.
"Of all the people I've seen in this game, you've been the most consistently stressed," Lilith continued. "Sometimes more so than other times... mweeheehee..."
"It's a stressful game. So what?" Vanessa asked.
"What's your secret?" Lilith asked as she cocked her head to the side.
"My secret?" Vanessa asked, taken aback a bit.
"How do you stay in such perfect, beautiful unrest for so long?" Lilith giggled. "You will make an amazing ghost. I envy you greatly. I want to know how I and others can achieve such misery,"
"Excuse you!" Vanessa frowned. "I want everyone to be happy, I'll have you know. Even if I had any idea what you were talking about, I won't tell you how to make others miserable!"
"I see... mweeheehee..." Lilith smiled. "What about yourself? Do you do anything to make yourself happy?"
"Making others happy makes me happy," Vanessa insisted. "Can you please get out of the way? I'm dripping wet."
"Mweeheeheeheeheehee..." Lilith giggled.
"Oh, grow up," Vanessa sighed.
"You've taught me a lot today, Vanessa," Lilith smiled. "I have a lot to think about. Thank you, Vanessa..."
"Um... you're welcome?" Vanessa responded nervously.
Lilith continued to stand in front of Vanessa. The redhead awkwardly shuffled around Lilith and exited the bathroom. Lilith remained completely still.
Confessional:
Vanessa: Lilith has always struck me as a little odd, but she's actually starting to worry me. I think I see what Joseph was talking about with her. But is she worth taking out over Irving? I know Cyan is friends with her. Maybe I'll ask her why.
Lilith: It's a real Catch-22. If you dedicate yourself to making others happy the way Vanessa is, you neglect your own happiness and become miserable. But I want everyone to experience the beauty of becoming a ghost, and that means making them all anxious. Can't be selfish, can I~?
Dunstan had just finished his morning exercises when Wanda entered the room.
"Wow it stinks in here," Wanda commented.
"That is the stench of a healthy lifestyle!" Dunstan declared.
"If that's what it smells like, I'm glad I still haven't given up junk food," Wanda concluded. "So, you've been a Cyber Snake for a full day. What do you think of the team?"
"I have to admit, I feel much safer here than I did on the Pixel Peacocks," Dunstan smiled. "That said, the lack of synergy between the individual members of the team is most concerning!"
"You can say that again," Wanda sighed. "Just last night, Jynxie wouldn't let me hear the end of how Robby tried to throw the challenge, so add that to the pile of conflicts."
"He did?! How unsportsmanlike!" Dunstan grunted. "Wouldn't have taken Kacey for the type to care so much, though."
"Maybe you're inspiring her," Wanda giggled.
"I sincerely doubt that!" Dunstan denied. "The only thing I might inspire her to do is to become more of an upstart if only to spite me! She probably has some personal reason against throwing challenges! Perhaps it 'harms her mojo' or some such nonsense!"
Wanda giggled. "You seem awfully fixated on her."
"I do not!" Dunstan insisted. "She is a rambunctious punk, and rambunctious punks need to be taught how to behave! I keep almost tripping over her duffel bag because she just leaves it in the middle of the floor!"
"I think you're the only one who trips on her bag," Wanda commented. "And hey, how come you never scolded Irving or Nils? You didn't even react that much when I said Robby tried throwing the challenge."
"I already have my hands full with Kacey still in the game," Dunstan grumbled.
"If you say so," Wanda said innocently as she skipped away.
"You don't believe me, do you?!" Dunstan called. "I am not lying! Lying is not welcome in a polite environment! And no skipping in the halls!"
Confessional:
Wanda: Okay, yeah, I ship Dunstan and Jynxie hardcore. They're definitely crazy about each other; they just don't know it yet. So I'm going to work my magic and help them realize what they really mean to each other.
Dunstan: I can't say I don't understand Wanda's mindset, but she could not be further off from the mark! My feelings towards Kacey are those of strong disdain towards her flagrant disregard for common decency! I spend my time thinking of ways to make her stop! Nothing romantic in the slightest!
Cyan and Vanessa had met up in the sleeping room.
"Hey, so, um... No hard feelings about the vote?" Cyan asked nervously.
"I won't lie, I am a little hurt that you were so willing to believe that I was playing you," Vanessa admitted.
"I get that," Cyan sighed.
"I do still want to work with you, though," Vanessa said. "After what Irving tried to pull last night, I think we can both agree that he's dangerous."
"He thinks I'm a social threat," Cyan added skeptically.
"Well, I can say with some certainty that us three girls would be happy getting rid of him," Vanessa decided. "Well, I figure you and I will. I still don't quite understand Lilith."
"I don't think anyone does," Cyan admitted.
"How did you end up trusting each other?" Vanessa asked.
"Honestly, good question," Cyan thought aloud. "Cosette had the idea of an alliance with me and Jynxie in it. After Cosette left, Jynxie suggested adding Lilith, and, between Dunstan and Jynxie always fighting, Felix being constantly naked, and Joseph being pretty firmly loyal to Felix, Lilith was our best option for an ally. She's been loyal so far, and I don't see any reason why that might change. Why would she vote out someone who's always so stressed about the game, right?"
"That is an oddly comforting thought," Vanessa figured. "Although, maybe comfort isn't what we want in that case, is it?"
"I wouldn't worry about her loyalty, is the point I'm trying to make here," Cyan said.
"Alright, I'll trust your judgment," Vanessa agreed. "Allies?"
Vanessa held her hand out for a shake.
"Allies!" Cyan agreed as she jollily accepted the handshake.
Confessional:
Cyan: God bless Vanessa for being so understanding about everything. I think she'll make a good long-term ally, especially going into the merge, since we both have friends on the Cyber Snakes.
Vanessa: I seem to have a bad track record of my allies going behind my back, but I get a sense of genuineness from Cyan that I think I can trust for sure. She seems like a good friend, so I definitely want her to stick around.
Gunther found Jynxie listening to music on her own.
"Hey, Jynxie?" Gunther asked.
Jynxie paused her music. "Whaaaaaaaaat?" she whined.
"I hear Robby tried throwing the challenge yesterday?" Gunther inquired.
"Don't! Even get! Me started!" Jynxie groaned.
"I take it you'd be alright with voting him out if we lose?" Gunther continued.
"Hell yeah!" Jynxie agreed. "We'd need three, though, right? Who else you got?"
"I've talked to Dunstan a bit, and-" Gunther started.
"Oh hell no!" Jynxie shouted.
"I'm not offering an alliance," Gunther quelled. "Just that we vote Robby out if we get the chance."
"Good! Because I'm not working with that human scantron!" Jynxie insisted.
"And you don't have to," Gunther assured her. "You don't even have to talk to him. Just vote for Robby, and we're good."
"You sure we can't just vote out Dunstan?" Jynxie asked.
"Who would our third be?" Gunther asked. "Robby and Wanda want me gone."
"Eh, Wanda's cool. I could talk to her," Jynxie said.
"I won't rule the possibility out, but at the same time, I think we can rely on Dunstan," Gunther said. "Talk to Wanda and let me know how it goes."
"Will do," Jynxie grinned.
"So, uh..." Gunther rubbed the back of his head. "What are you listening to?"
"Polka," Jynxie said seriously.
"...Not what I would have expected," Gunther admitted.
Jynxie began cackling. "I'm pulling your leg, dude! Did you- Did you seriously think-?" Jynxie could not finish her sentence because of her own amused laughter.
Gunther awkwardly left the room.
Confessional:
Jynxie: Gunther seems like the kind of person who's never actually had fun in his life. He's not aggressively unfun like Dunstan, but he probably literally only thinks about strategy and maybe swords sometimes. I'm not going to be talking to him any more than I have to.
Gunther: I'd rather Dunstan didn't leave because he's one of the only people who's still willing to work with me. Maybe I'll talk to Wanda as well and see where her head is at. She never struck me as particularly close with Robby, so maybe we can discuss strategic possibilities.
Irving examined the VR machine when Lilith entered the VR room.
"What'cha doing?" Lilith asked. "Planning on hacking the VR machine to do your bidding?"
"Keh. Couldn't even if I wanted to," Irving said. "There's nary a monitor on this thing. It's definitely controlled remotely."
"How strange..." Lilith smiled.
"They probably had to rush to make it so, in order to keep us contestants from screwing around with it!" Irving laughed.
"You sure do know how to screw around with things..." Lilith giggled. "Last night was something else."
"I'll say," Irving nodded. "Ye don't seem to be mad at me."
"Goodness, no," Lilith responded. "Cyan and Vanessa are stressed beyond belief. They'll become wonderful ghosts someday... mweeheehee..."
"Unless ye plan on killing them yourself soon, I ain't sure it'll last that long," Irving chuckled.
"Oh, no, I couldn't," Lilith said. "As stressful as prison would be, it would really limit my possibilities."
"Whatever keeps ye on the straight and narrow," Irving shrugged.
"'Straight and narrow'? How boring," Lilith grimaced. "Unless living such a perfectly boring life eats away at you, always leaving you thinking about how much more you could be doing, I'd much rather do what I can to cause unrest amongst others. You of all people understand, yeah? Mweeheehee..."
"Look, kid, I just be here to have a good time and win some money," Irving shrugged. "I be the Dread Pirate Irving, taker of names, kicker of ass, and distributor of media for free! I have no morals as far as the game goes, but I don't plan on killing anybody for real anytime soon."
"...How loathsome," Lilith scowled venomously. "All this potential to cause unrest left unharnessed. I thought you'd understand me, but you're no different than everyone else. I hate you I hate you I hate you I hate you!"
"Sorry to disappoint, kid," Irving said dismissively.
Confessional:
Lilith: Irving has no unrest within him whatsoever. With all he did last night, I had hoped that he might be like me, giving up my own unrest in order to give it to others. But he doesn't even want that... it was all just happenstance... He's so perfectly boring... I must do something.
Irving: Lilith's a strange kid. One second she's praising me for the move I made last night, the next she says she hates me because I don't want to kill people. I have no idea what makes her tick, but at the end of the day, I think she be a fairly harmless little girl, despite what Joseph said. Look at her. She couldn't kill anyone even if she really did want to! Gyarharhar!
Dunstan found Robby relaxing on his own.
"Robert! We need to speak!" Dunstan declared.
"Oh? Here to discuss the vote?" Robby asked.
"Heavens, no!" Dunstan objected. "There is a much more pressing matter at hand, here!"
"What is it?" Robby winced.
"I hear you tried to throw the challenge yesterday!" Dunstan scolded. "What were you thinking?!"
"I was thinking that the longer Gunther sticks around, the worse it'll be for us," Robby stated. "I've since learned the error of this reasoning, so you can rest assured that it won't happen again."
"I should hope not!" Dunstan huffed. "What possible rush could there be in eliminating Gunther?"
"He's a challenge threat who's been cast aside by his teammates," Robby explained. "Should he make the merge, not only will he likely make allies with the Pixel Peacocks, he can do so whilst winning Invincibility. That's not someone I'm in any mood to face."
"An understandable sentiment," Dunstan pondered. "I feel similarly about Kacey."
"I gathered," Robby said flatly.
"I'm serious!" Dunstan insisted. "Kacey is in an alliance with Cyan and Lilith! If all three make the merge, it could mean trouble for whoever else has made it! A tight alliance of three is deadly in such a small group of people! I should know! I had to share a small team with them!"
"Are you saying you'd rather get rid of Kac- er, Jynxie than Gunther?" Robby asked skeptically.
"Ideally!" Dunstan nodded. "I understand your sentiments on Gunther, but, from what I understand, which may not be correct, he also angered Vanessa, yes? She's likely making allies on the Peacocks. Even if he does make the merge, I doubt anyone from either side would stick with him!"
"And the whole 'challenge threat' thing?" Robby asked.
"He is not infallible!" Dunstan said.
"I understand where you're coming from as well, but I don't agree that Jynxie is a higher priority target than Gunther," Robby said as he shook his head.
"I'm not sure coming to an agreement will be easy," Dunstan agreed. "I'm glad we had the chance to speak, though!"
"Likewise," Robby nodded politely. "Tell you what, I'll think about voting for Jynxie if you think about voting for Gunther."
"You have my word!" Dunstan saluted.
Confessional:
Dunstan: The thing is, Gunther is my ally! I understand that he wishes to rely on Kacey's vote to eliminate Robby, but Robby is not someone we need to worry about! He throws challenges, and he doesn't seem to have any clout amongst his teammates! That said, I'm not sure anyone else on this team will be willing to eliminate Kacey, at least until Gunther or Robby goes home! Patience is a virtue!
Robby: Dunstan and Jynxie don't seem likely to target anyone but each other anytime soon. That said, the same could be said about Gunther and myself. Thankfully, I have Wanda on my side, so no matter how split the votes get, all I need is two to get rid of Gunther, and I hold all the power. That'll show them not to underestimate me. Heh heh heh.
The nine contestants met up with Topher in the VR room.
"Good afternoon, contestants!" Topher greeted. "Cyber Snakes, as you can see, Joseph was voted out at last night's elimination."
"Good job," Gunther mouthed to Irving and Vanessa as he gave them a thumbs up.
"Before we begin, I'll need one of the Cyber Snakes to sit out," Topher said. "Robby, since you were the last one on your team to sit out, it cannot be you."
"I'll do it," Wanda volunteered.
"Huh?" Robby asked as he and his teammates all gave her confused glances.
"Wanda said she'd do it. No takesie-backsies," Topher smiled. "Into your VR pods!"
The contestants all entered their respective VR pods. The VR pods all shut, and the contestants fell into a daze as they were transported into the virtual world.
As the contestants came to, they found themselves separated by team, each in a different run-down, derelict house. The sun was setting through the cloudy sky.
"Welcome to the city of Santa Muertos!" Topher's voice announced. "You might find yourself with your team inside of a run-down house. Your house is actually right next to the other team's house. The goal is simple: survive. This challenge will only end once every member of one team has died. That team will be voting someone out tonight. Any questions?"
"So we just have to kill the other team? That's it?" Irving asked.
"I mean, you can try killing the other team yourselves, but it might prove... difficult," Topher chuckled. "You'll see what I mean in a minute."
"Considering the setting, and the fact that the town is named 'Santa Muertos', I think I can venture a guess," Gunther thought aloud.
"Are there any tools around to help us out?" Lilith asked.
"As far as tools go, you'll have to adapt. Improvise. Overcome," Topher answered.
Silence.
"The goal is simple, but attaining it might be less so," Topher said. "Since there are no more questions, let's begin the challenge!"
Just then, a multitude of zombies began rising out of the ground outside the houses all at once, as could be seen from outside the windows.
Confessional:
Jynxie: Zombies?! Fuck yeah! Zombies are like one of the top ten most metal things of all time, dude! I've always wanted to kick the shit out of zombies! Yeahhhhhhhhhh! (She air guitars.)
Vanessa: Somehow the zombies are actually a relief. I was afraid we'd have to kill the others again. I hate those kinds of challenges. Either way, I guess people are going to die, but... at least it won't weigh on our consciences?
Wanda: The reason I sat out is that I want my teammates to try and work together and get along without my help. As awesome of a magician as I am, I can't pull a solution out of my sleeve and make the animosity disappear. They have to be able to trust each other.
"Okay, what's the plan?" Cyan asked.
Silence.
"Right, Joseph was the one who came up with plans," Cyan remembered.
"First thing's first: always take the higher ground," Irving said.
"You know how to fight zombies?" Vanessa asked.
"No, but having the high ground is always how you win a fight," Irving said. "Remember Episode III?"
"I try not to," Vanessa said.
"Shouldn't we be looking for something to defend ourselves with?" Cyan asked.
"Couldn't hurt," Irving said. "You lasses check the second floor. I'll check the kitchen. We meet on the roof."
"Aye, cap'n!" Cyan agreed.
"Lilith, you've been quiet," Vanessa noted. "Anything to add?"
"Yeah, I figured you'd be excited with all the zombies around," Cyan added.
"Zombies...?" Lilith asked. "I hate zombies."
"Since when?" Irving asked.
"Since always," Lilith answered. "They bastardize the concept of death."
"And ghosts don't?" Irving remarked.
"No!" Lilith pouted.
"Can a zombie come from the body of someone who became a ghost?" Cyan asked.
"...Zombies aren't real, Cyan," Lilith stated.
"Right. My mistake," Cyan said.
"Enough dilly-dallying! I'll be off! I suggest ye do the same!" Irving declared as he headed for the kitchen.
"Right! To the second floor!" Vanessa reiterated.
Confessional:
Vanessa: I hope the zombies kill us quickly and painlessly if they do get to us. I mean, they probably won't be so merciful, but... I can hope, right? Happy thoughts.
"Alright, here's the plan!" Dunstan prefaced.
"Why do you get to decide the plan?" Jynxie interrupted. "What do you know about zombies?"
"I don't need to know about zombies to know how to lead people to safety in an orderly and efficient manner!" Dunstan insisted.
"You both make valid points here," Gunther said. "Jynxie, what should we know about zombies before making plans?"
"A single bite will mean you'll turn into a zombie before long," Jynxie said. "Meaning that, if someone is bitten, they're as good as dead and we have to leave them behind!"
"I cannot abide by abandoning a teammate!" Dunstan objected.
"Would you rather risk everyone's safety by letting someone who got bit turn into a zombie near the rest of the team?" Jynxie shot back. "That just puts everyone else in danger of getting killed, genius!"
"...Proceed," Dunstan mumbled begrudgingly.
"Zombies don't have functioning brains, right?" Jynxie continued. "That means that they have no sense of self-preservation. While this means they can be easy to take out, it also means that they don't restrain their own physical strength because they have no concept of pain! Zombies are strong sons of bitches! If you're going to take shelter from them, use something really fucking strong!"
"Houses are strong, right?" Robby asked as he looked around the house.
Jynxie burst into laughter. "Windows aren't! And hell, even if we block the windows, a big enough mob could break through the door if given enough time!"
"Where are you going with this?" Dunstan asked.
"Hiding isn't going to help us any!" Jynxie summarized. "We're going to want to take some weapons and deal with them the old-fashioned way! That way being violence."
Gunther drew his sword. "Works for me," he said.
"Can we be sure that the zombies in this simulation will behave exactly as Kacey has described?" Dunstan questioned.
"If you're so scared, you can try hiding," Jynxie sneered.
"I am not scared!" Dunstan insisted.
"You probably just don't think you could defend us and keep us safe, huh?" Jynxie taunted.
"I will keep you all so safe, you won't even realize we're in a challenge!" Dunstan shouted. "Where is the nearest armament?!"
Confessional:
Gunther: Huh. Maybe those two can work together after all. Granted, they still yelled at each other a lot, but at the very least they came to an agreement. (He shrugs.) It's something.
Irving searched through the kitchen for utensils that might serve as weapons.
"Let's see, kitchen knives ought to do some work..." Irving thought aloud as he grabbed a block of knives. "What else...?"
Irving opened several drawers until he found the silverware drawer. He took as many forks as he could and stuffed them into his pockets.
"It's something," Irving decided. "Any kebab skewers around here?"
Irving kept looking through the drawers but did not find anything else that could be weaponized. Once he ran out of drawers, he found himself standing in front of the refrigerator.
"Can't say I'm not curious," Irving smirked as he opened the fridge.
Inside the fridge were what appeared to be the severed heads of Cyan, Lilith, Vanessa, and Irving, each on a platter.
"Gyarharhar!" Irving laughed. "That's funny! ...Actually, this might work as zombie bait. Never know."
Irving grabbed a tote bag from nearby and put the heads inside. His eyes went wide as he saw what was left in the fridge.
Behind the platters where the heads previously rested was a glowing golden cube.
"No way!" Irving laughed. "This can't be- Ye can't be serious!"
Irving took the cube.
"Congratulations, Irving!" Topher's voice sounded. "Don't worry, only you can hear this message. You just found the Pixel Peacocks' Golden Cube of Invincibility! You can play this cube at any elimination ceremony before I announce the votes. Doing so will nullify all votes cast against one person of your choosing!"
Irving stuffed the cube into his coat pocket.
"I be the invincible Dread Pirate Irving! Gyarharharharharhar!" Irving laughed maniacally.
"Irving? Find anything?" Cyan asked as she entered the room.
Irving cleared his throat. "Indeed I did, lass. I'll be with ye shortly."
"Cool. Better hurry up, though. I hear the zombies pounding at the door," Cyan urged.
Sure enough, a zombie smashed through the kitchen window and began crawling through.
"Then we shall be off!" Irving declared as he dashed out of the room.
Confessional:
Irving: Two fancy Invincibility cubes? And here I thought I be in the clear with just one! Granted, I need to know when to play them at the right time. Otherwise, they be worthless. But still, this could change the game! Gyarharhar!
Cyan: Looks like Irving found some good stuff in there. I couldn't find anything in the room where I looked, so hopefully, Lilith and Vanessa had better luck.
Zombies began breaking through the windows of the Cyber Snakes' house.
"Shit, we need to get a move on!" Jynxie winced.
"Gunther, do you think you can hold them off?" Dunstan asked.
"Piece of cake," Gunther bragged.
"Excellent! Do so, while the rest of us locate weapons for our own self-preservation!" Dunstan ordered.
Dunstan, Jynxie, and Robby all ran off while the zombies approached Gunther.
"Was dying once not enough?" Gunther scoffed. "Come and get some!"
Gunther swung his blade at the zombies' necks, effectively beheading them. More began to crawl in through the broken windows.
"I'll take two of you, I'll take two-hundred of you!" Gunther grinned maniacally.
Meanwhile, Jynxie had led Dunstan and Robby to the kitchen.
"Killing a zombie isn't as easy as killing a person," Jynxie explained. "The trick is to get their heads. Behead them, smash their heads in, light them on fire, whatever works! There are probably sharp-ass knives in here. We'll use those!"
"Any, er, longer-range weapons we can take advantage of?" Robby suggested.
"...Maybe! You guys stay here! I have an idea!" Jynxie decided.
Jynxie ran off. Dunstan growled as he took some kitchen knives out of a block identical to the one in the other house.
"Something troubling you?" Robby smirked.
"I can't believe I'm taking orders from Kacey of all people!" Dunstan bemoaned. "As a proud monitor of these great halls, having a rulebreaker such as herself in a dominating position over me is humiliating!"
"I bet it is," Robby snickered under his breath.
"What was that?" Dunstan asked.
"What was what?" Robby asked innocently.
"I thought I heard you say something," Dunstan clarified.
"No, no, I didn't say anything," Robby denied unconvincingly.
"I see! My mistake!" Dunstan apologized.
Confessional:
Robby: Right now I'm evaluating whether I'd rather get rid of Dunstan or Jynxie first. One of them will have to go sooner or later, for everyone's sakes. Right now I'm leaning much more towards dropping Jynxie, after Gunther of course.
Dunstan: I understand that Kacey has a better grasp of the situation than I do and that putting her in charge of things should be what's best for the team overall! But it still bothers me! I'm torn between my need for things to run smoothly and my dislike towards Kacey! It's a very uncomfortable position!
Cyan and Irving met up with Lilith and Vanessa on the roof
"I come bearing sharp objects!" Irving announced.
"I found nails and a baseball bat," Lilith smiled as she held up a wooden bat with nails driven into it.
"I'm not really creative when it comes to weapons," Vanessa admitted as she held up a hammer.
"Isn't that the hammer Lilith used to make the spiked club?" Cyan asked curiously.
"...I'm not a weapons girl!" Vanessa insisted.
"Ye don't need to be," Irving said as he dropped his block of knives, and emptied his pockets full of forks.
"What are forks going to do?" Lilith asked.
"Have ye ever stepped on a fork in bare feet? It hurts!" Irving answered. "We'll be using them as caltrops!"
"...Have you stepped on a fork in bare feet before?" Cyan asked.
"I wasn't trying to!" Irving insisted. "Here, take a knife or three! I'll lay the caltrops!"
"What's in the tote bag?" Lilith asked.
"Keh. See for yourself," Irving smirked as he tossed the bag full of fake heads to the blonde.
Lilith took Cyan's head out of the bag.
"EEEEEEEK!" Cyan cried as she pointed a knife at the head. "Why is my head in there?!"
"Zombie bait, maybe?" Vanessa figured.
"Looks like we're all in here," Lilith giggled as she glanced into the bag. "Pretty detailed, too..."
Lilith stared at the fake Cyan head with a wide, giddy grin.
"Give me that!" Cyan objected as she swiped her head from Lilith.
"Are you scared of death, Cyan?" Lilith asked.
"I'm scared of that look you were giving my head!" Cyan cried.
"Mweeheehee..." Lilith giggled.
Confessional:
Vanessa: If nothing else, I think we should be relatively safe from the zombies. I don't think zombies know how to climb walls, so the roof was a good call.
Lilith: I can only hope that someday I'm able to witness a real beheading. The tension leading up to the swift motion that seals the victim's fate... so wonderful...
Gunther found himself vastly outnumbered by zombies as they crawled into the house from the broken windows. He grimaced as he clutched at his heart.
"You won't... break me..." Gunther panted. "I am a master of the sword!"
Just as a zombie was about to latch onto him, its head exploded.
"Huh?" Gunther emoted as he turned his head behind him to see Jynxie holding a shotgun.
"Just saved your life, virgin!" Jynxie grinned. "Fall back. I've got 'em."
"I can handle it," Gunther insisted as he sliced the heads off a few more zombies.
"Cockiness is a huge death flag, dude!" Jynxie insisted. "Now go catch your breath so I can deal with these guys myself."
Gunther gave Jynxie a look before retreating to the kitchen. He approached the refrigerator and opened it, only to find facsimiles of the severed heads of the four Cyber Snakes who competed in the challenge.
"No bottled waters, I take it," Gunther commented as he shut the door.
"I think Robby is still recovering from the time he checked," Dunstan added as he gestured to the corner of the room, where Robby had curled up into a ball, trembling.
Just then, a shrill scream could be heard in the front room.
"Kacey!" Dunstan cried. "Can't she do anything productive on her own?"
Dunstan grabbed a large kitchen knife and ran into the front room.
"I'll be with you in a minute," Gunther said as he leaned against the counter.
Over in the front room, Jynxie swatted at zombies with her shotgun as they began to surround her. Dunstan ran straight for the pack and stabbed several zombies in the neck. This didn't quite behead them, so he delivered swift chops to their heads, which fell off easily.
"Dunstan?!" Jynxie yelped.
Dunstan grabbed Jynxie by the hand and pulled her out of the pack of zombies, dragging her into the kitchen.
"Hey! I was fine!" Jynxie objected.
"You most certainly were not! You could have put our chances of victory at risk!" Dunstan insisted.
"Oh, so it's just victory you care about, not the safety of your teammate!" Jynxie accused.
"Oh, and for the record, guns tend to be more effective if you shoot them, rather than hitting people with them!" Dunstan added.
"Guys, it's not safe in the front room," Gunther interrupted. "We need to find a way upstairs."
"H-How?" Robby asked. "The only staircase is... in the front room."
"...Tell me we did not get ourselves cornered already!" Gunther groaned.
Confessional:
Jynxie: What the hell does Dunstan know?! Zombies probably (she imitates Dunstan.) "are not welcome in a school environment!", so Dunstan has like zero experience with them! I know what I'm doing! And yeah, no shit guns are more effective if you shoot them! Reloading them is a massive pain, though! I was surrounded! Ugh! He really pisses me off!
Gunther: Well, them getting along didn't last long. Things are looking dire, but if we can hold out long enough, we can still win this. We have no idea how well or poorly the Pixel Peacocks are doing; for all we know they could be on the cusp of losing right now.
"We are nowhere near the cusp of losing," Vanessa smiled up on the Pixel Peacocks' roof.
"That as an odd way to word that," Cyan pointed out.
"Just finished laying the forks down," Irving reported as he gestured to the forks which lined the perimeter of the roof's edges. "...Now what?"
"There's nothing else we can do... except wait for the inevitable demise of the Cyber Snakes," Lilith pointed out.
"Waiting, huh?" Cyan asked.
"It doesn't have to be boring," Vanessa smiled. "We can take this time to get to know each other better."
"Okay! I'll start! Best shade of blue! Discuss!" Cyan beamed.
"Orange," Irving responded with a chuckle.
"Fine, don't take it seriously!" Cyan pouted.
"I like periwinkle..." Lilith admitted.
"See, this is why Lilith is my friend and you aren't," Cyan teased Irving.
"Hey now, it was just a joke," Vanessa piped in. "Irving didn't mean to offend."
"Tch. I can see when I'm not wanted around," Irving said. "Actually, I've been looking for an excuse to go to the Cyber Snakes' house and sabotage them a bit."
Irving stood up and grabbed the bag of fake heads.
"Are you sure bringing that is a good idea?" Vanessa asked. "What if it lures the zombies to you?"
"Oh, no, I'm leaving the heads," Irving said as he dumped the heads on top of Cyan, who shuddered intensely.
"Ew!" Cyan grimaced.
"I'm taking the bag, though. Surely they have heads of their own," Irving explained. He approached the edge of the roof that faced the Cyber Snakes' house. "Until we meet again, lasses!"
Irving hopped off the roof. Lilith peered over the edge to see him shoving his way through the zombies towards the porch.
"Is he dead?" Vanessa asked.
"Are we not all dead at least a little on the inside?" Lilith responded.
"...That doesn't answer my question," Vanessa said.
Confessional:
Irving: Messing with Cyan be a grand old time. She may be a social threat, but even she can't forgive me for everything. The angrier she gets, the less appealing of an ally she'll be, ye understand. Besides, when ye be angry, ye be more prone to... making mistakes, shall we say.
Cyan: Irving said he had nothing personal against me, but now he's just picking on me for no reason! I hope he doesn't think it's helping him any because if anything, it's just cementing that he's going to be the one to go home if we lose again.
Irving arrived at the porch to find that zombies were shuffling into the door and windows by the truckload. There was no possible point of entry from where he stood.
"Grah! Keelhaul it all!" Irving swore.
Just then, a zombie bit him on the shoulder.
"Son of a submariner!" Irving cried as he tried prying the zombie off of him.
But it was too late. Irving fizzled out of the simulation, only to be immediately replaced by a zombie which strongly resembled him.
Meanwhile, in the Cyber Snakes' kitchen, Dunstan paced back and forth frantically.
"Any ideas?" Robby asked.
"Kacey, how powerful is that shotgun?" Dunstan asked.
"It'll knock, like, three or four zombies down," Jynxie said. "It'll blow off a zombie's head if you aim it point blank."
"Gunther, how easily does your sword cut through the zombies' necks?" Dunstan asked.
"Pretty easily," Gunther said. "My main issue was the sheer number of them. It's draining trying to deal with that many at once."
"Do you think these kitchen knives could do the trick?" Dunstan asked as he held up the large knife he had been holding.
"Not as effectively, since it's shorter than my sword, but I think if you can connect the blade to a zombie's neck, it'll cut right through," Gunther hypothesized. He approached the fridge and opened it, revealing the heads once again.
"Why are you looking at them again?!" Robby gagged.
Gunther grabbed his fake head out of the fridge.
"Very lifelike," Gunther commented. "You think the zombies will go after it if I, say, threw it in the opposite direction of the stairs?
"Let's find out, dude!" Jynxie urged.
Gunther tentatively approached the front room, where the zombies had continued to pour in. He tossed the head towards the hall opposite of the stairs. Sure enough, the zombies shuffled towards the head as quickly as they could.
"It works!" Gunther announced.
"Excellent idea, Gunther!" Dunstan congratulated.
"I'll grab the rest of them just in case," Gunther said. He handed his sheathed sword to Robby. "You'll probably need this."
"Why aren't you keeping it for yourself?" Robby asked skeptically.
"Would you rather be the one to carry the heads?" Gunther asked as he took the other three heads from the fridge. "Let's go!"
The four teens dashed out of the kitchen and up the stairs while the zombies flocked around the fake Gunther head. Some of the zombies took notice of Gunther holding three heads and chased the foursome up the stairs.
Confessional:
Robby: Tch. Stupid Gunther being good at challenges and not holding any resentment towards me. How am I supposed to get rid of him when he's so much better than me at everything?!
Dunstan: Did you see that?! My team answered my position of authority! Even Kacey! ...Okay, granted, I didn't give any actual orders, but... it's a start!
Cyan, Lilith, and Vanessa continued to wait on the rooftop.
"You think the zombies will ever make it up here?" Vanessa asked.
"Do you want them to?" Cyan asked.
"No, but I'd rather know for certain so I don't get surprised if they do," Vanessa admitted.
"Just assume they will," Lilith suggested. "Always assume that death is imminent. Mweeheehee."
"No, no. Happy thoughts," Vanessa insisted.
"I bet Irving got killed by the zombies," Lilith smiled.
"Those aren't happy thoughts!" Vanessa frowned.
Just then, a pounding sound came from the other side of the roof's door.
"Those aren't happy sounds!" Vanessa cried.
"Don't forget that we're armed!" Cyan reminded her as she brandished her kitchen knife.
The door broke down and out poured several zombies. They shuffled towards the girls menacingly.
Lilith and Vanessa each took a knife out of the block Irving had provided and held them towards the zombies.
"Why did Irving leave the forks as far away from us as possible?" Vanessa asked nervously.
"...You know what else he left?" Cyan remembered.
She picked up her fake head and threw it off the roof. Sure enough, several of the zombies chased after the head, ignoring the girls outright. They leaped off the roof, albeit not without stepping on the forks Irving had scattered, which did not seem to affect them in any way.
"Okay, we have three more," Cyan thought aloud. "That should buy us some time for a while, but after we run out, be prepared to fight."
"Or prepared to die..." Lilith giggled as more zombies came through the door.
Cyan tossed Irving's head off of the roof. The zombies all went after the head, jumping off of the roof.
"Since when are zombies so fast?" Cyan commented.
Confessional:
Vanessa: It never occurs to you just how gross zombies are until you see one in person. They smell terrible and you can see their bones and they're all scabby and... I'm going to make myself sick, I should stop.
Lilith: ...I still hate zombies, but I can at least appreciate how much they can terrify others. Still wish we'd come across a ghost, though. (She sighs.)
The Cyber Snakes arrived at the master bedroom, shut the door, and locked it.
"Will the lock be enough to hold it?" Robby asked.
"Probably not," Jynxie said. "Quick, help me push the bed up against the door.
"It looks heavy," Robby commented.
"That's why I need help!" Jynxie reiterated.
"All four of us!" Dunstan added.
"...There's only three of us," Robby noted.
Sure enough, Gunther was not in the room.
"Well, where the hell did Gunther go?!" Jynxie snapped.
"You didn't lock him out, did you?!" Dunstan accused.
"I thought he made it in!" Jynxie scowled.
"He was running behind me," Robby mentioned. "And I was behind both of you. It's possible the zombies got him without anyone noticing. Probably because he was carrying those heads."
"Let us hope his death was swift and painless!" Dunstan said solemnly.
"Speak for yourself," Robby muttered.
Loud pounding began sounding from the other side of the master bedroom doors.
"Shit! The bed! Come on guys!" Jynxie coaxed.
Jynxie, accompanied by Dunstan and Robby, tried pushing the bed up against the door. Even with their combined strength, however, they were unable to move it quickly.
After moving the bed a couple of inches, the door broke down. A zombie which resembled Gunther hobbled into the room.
"Ah, Gunther! Would you mind helping us move the bed?" Dunstan requested.
With a loud bang, the zombie's head exploded. Dunstan turned to see Jynxie with her shotgun aimed at the zombie. Smoke wisps escaped the barrel of the gun.
"Looks like he's just as useful now as he was before," Robby commented.
More zombies found their way to the open door.
"Hold me!" Robby cried.
Confessional:
Jynxie: I've somehow managed to become the most competent member of the team. Me! What is this world coming to?!
Cyan had run out of heads to lure the zombies away from the Pixel Peacocks, and the zombies continued to make their way onto the roof.
"Well, girls, it looks like fighting for our lives is the only option here," Cyan said.
"Mweeheehee... prepare to die, zombie bastards," Lilith cooed.
Vanessa shot a concerned look at Lilith. Lilith's eyes showed pure malice as she ran up to the zombies and began slashing at their throats with the kitchen knife she wielded.
"Lilith! Be careful!" Cyan warned.
"Mweeheeheeheeheeheehee..." Lilith giggled as she slew zombie after zombie.
"Whatever works, I guess," Vanessa told Cyan.
"She's going to get surrounded soon. We should help her," Cyan decided.
"R-Right," Vanessa agreed as she and Cyan ran up to the horde of zombies.
Lilith slashed any zombie that stood near her, cutting their heads off and leaving a pile of decapitated bodies at her feet.
"You are wastes of death!" Lilith screeched as she cracked a toothy grin.
"Lilith, are you-"
Cyan was cut off by Lilith slashing her across the throat, fizzling her out instantly.
"Cyan!" Vanessa cried.
"Oh, was that Cyan?" Lilith asked as she cocked her head to the side. "Does she want to die?"
"I don't think so," Vanessa explained. "Don't you think you're getting a bit carried away?"
"I hate hate hate hate hate hate hate HATE zombies!" Lilith said indignantly. "She shouldn't have gotten so close!"
Just then, a zombie bit Lilith on the neck, causing her to squeal out in pain before fizzling out, only to be replaced by a zombie lookalike.
"...Uh-oh," Vanessa gulped as the zombies approached her.
Confessional:
Vanessa: So it's me against the walking dead, one of whom looks like a person I actually know. Total Drama is not friendly to pacifists, you know that?
The Cyber Snakes prepared their weapons as more zombies shuffled into the bedroom.
"Kacey, how many bullets do you still have?" Dunstan asked.
"I don't know. I didn't count them," Jynxie responded.
Robby drew Gunther's sword out of its sheath.
"This thing is a lot heavier than it looks," Robby commented as he lifted it up using both hands.
"Metal is pretty heavy," Jynxie commented flatly.
"Kacey, hang back and fire at the zombies whenever you get the chance!" Dunstan ordered as he approached the undead mob. "Robby, guard Kacey with your life!" Dunstan beheaded a couple zombies. "I will take the front lines! Kacey, if all else fails..." Dunstan took a second kitchen knife from his pocket and tossed it onto the bed. "...you'll need this!"
"Since when did you become the boss?" Jynxie snorted.
"Do you want to win the challenge or not?!" Dunstan scowled as he beheaded more zombies.
"He's taking the brunt of it all. Fine by me," Robby chuckled as he swung the sword around experimentally.
"Nyeh... whatever," Jynxie spat as she took some ammo from her jacket pocket and tried reloading the gun.
Jynxie dropped the bullets by mistake, however, and they rolled under the bed.
"Shit," Jynxie grumbled. She peeked down under the bed to find a gem next to the bullet. "Weird," she commented as she grabbed the gem, which disappeared in her clutch.
"Congratulations, Jynxie!" Topher's voice announced for all to hear. "You have found the second Day-to-Day Advantage in this game: a real bed! While the others are stuck sleeping in uncomfortable cots, you get a nice cozy bed that only you may sleep in!"
"Hell yeah!" Jynxie grinned.
"Aghhhhhh!" Dunstan cried as a zombie overtook him, fizzling him out and replacing him with an undead copy.
"Shit," Jynxie swore under her breath as she continued fumbling around looking for the bullets she had dropped.
"You can't beat me!" Robby croaked at the zombies. "I'm-I'm going to send you back from whence you came!"
Robby swung the sword around aimlessly in hopes that he would sufficiently keep the walkers away.
In actuality, Robby cut the zombies across the torso, letting the top halves of the zombies crawl with their arms up to Robby. They bit him on the ankles.
"Ow! Ow! Hey!" Robby cried before fizzling and becoming a zombie.
"Shit, it's just me, isn't it?" Jynxie realized as she stood on top of the bed. "Come and get some, zombitches!"
Confessional:
Jynxie: Yeah, I knew I'd be the last one standing on my team. Dunstan and Robby are awful zombie survivalists, and Gunther relies too much on his sword. Short-range is not where you want to be when it comes to zombies. Bring it on!
Despite the girls' best efforts, the zombies vastly outnumbered them, and one of them fell to the horde.
"And that's that!" Topher announced. "With the entirety of their opposing team wiped out, the winners of this challenge are..."
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"The Cyber Snakes!"
"Fuck yeah!" Jynxie cheered.
Confessional:
Wanda: Aha! I knew my team could work together if it came down to it! See, they don't have to fight all the time!
Vanessa: I tried my best, but in the end it just wasn't enough, and now we have to vote out someone else. On the plus side, I think I know who I'll be voting out tonight.
Irving: I am unafraid of what might happen tonight. Sure, I am more than certain to be somebody's target, but a pirate be nothing if not difficult to take down!
Irving sat in silence with his teammates in the dining room as they ate dinner.
"Ye know what, it be far too quiet in here," Irving decided.
"What's wrong? Is the tension too much for you?" Lilith giggled.
"On the contrary," Irving smirked. "I've a bit of a secret I've kept since the challenge and methinks I'll divulge it to ye all."
"Secret? What secret?" Cyan asked.
"In the refrigerator of the house we stayed in during the challenge, behind the fake heads, I found a glowing golden cube," Irving explained. "According to Topher, this cube can be used to nullify every vote against of person of me choosing if I offer it up to him before the votes are revealed to us."
"Oh really? Can you show us?" Vanessa asked skeptically.
"Alas, as this be the real world, I cannot," Irving admitted. "But I will be more than happy to show ye once we find ourselves in our cages."
"Even if this is true, why are you telling us?" Cyan asked.
"I wanted to give ye a fighting chance," Irving grinned. "I want to see ye fight for the right to stay in this game." Irving finished his food, took his empty tray, and stood up. "I'll leave ye to discuss it. If ye wish to speak with me, ye know where to find me."
Irving left the room with a chuckle.
"...I don't think he's lying," Lilith said.
"You believe him?" Vanessa asked.
"He's too calm. No unrest whatsoever," Lilith explained. "Although he was like that before the challenge, too... What is he thinking?"
"Well, let's assume he's telling the truth," Cyan thought aloud. "If we all vote for him, then he'll decide who goes home."
"Are you suggesting we split the vote?" Vanessa frowned as her brow furrowed. "But we're the only other people on this team."
"That's right..." Cyan realized. "But, if even if just one of us votes for someone besides Irving, we'd still get the majority of votes against Irving, but we'd leave it to a tie if he does have the golden cube or whatever it was. Then, if we re-vote... um..."
"I'd rather let Irving decide who goes home than to have to betray someone to their face," Vanessa said firmly. "I'll be voting for Irving."
"Who do you think Irving is most unlikely to vote for...?" Lilith wondered.
"He told me this morning that he was annoyed at Vanessa," Cyan recalled. "He called you dishonest."
"What?!" Vanessa fumed. "He's one to talk!"
"That's what I said," Cyan nodded.
"I'm not sure how relevant this is... but I hate Irving with a passion and told him as much this morning..." Lilith chuckled darkly.
"Why?" Cyan asked.
"He laughs in the face of unrest... He lives against everything I stand for... I'm voting for him too!" Lilith decided with a scowl.
"Okay, so I'm the one splitting the vote then... okay," Cyan gulped. "I can do that. I just have to... decide which of us three to vote for."
"If Irving is upset with me and knows Lilith hates him, then you might actually be the least likely target of his," Vanessa pointed out.
"He does still think I'm a social threat," Cyan pointed out. "...I'm going to go talk to him. See where his head is at. Hopefully."
Cyan stood up and left.
Confessional:
Lilith: Some people like Felix are too relaxed to be a potential ghost, but Irving... Irving is so aggressively carefree that I don't think he'll ever become a ghost. He makes me so mad... mweeheehee... mweeheeheeheeheeheeheehee...
Vanessa: Is Irving just making us mad for fun? That's the impression I get, and the worst part is that it's working! Okay, no, the worst part is that we might not be able to do anything about it! If he's serious about this golden cube... someone is going to be going home unhappy tonight, and there's nothing I can do. (She sighs despondently.)
Cyan found Irving admiring the VR pods in the VR room.
"I can only imagine the future of the entertainment industry when there are machines such as this," Irving commented before turning around to look at Cyan. "Here to discuss plans?"
"I talked it over with the girls, and we've come to the conclusion that the only possibilities here are to let you choose who goes home, or we split the vote and hope for a tie," Cyan told him.
"And why are ye telling me this?" Irving asked curiously. "Hoping I'll tell ye who I'm planning on voting for so ye can get that tie?"
"I'm here to discuss possibilities with you," Cyan conceded. "The fact is, Lilith and Vanessa are both very upset with you. That's not to say that I'm super happy with you, but getting angry isn't going to make this situation any better."
"Even after I messed with ye on purpose in the challenge... I'm impressed," Irving remarked.
"So it was on purpose!" Cyan accused. She took a deep breath. "Whether or not you really do have this golden cube is irrelevant, because now that the possibility exists, a 3-1 vote against you is too big of a risk. The girls and I are going for a 2-1-1 split. Assuming this cube exists, you should be safe no matter what, so when the only viable votes result in a tie, there will be a re-vote to decide who goes home."
"And ye wish to make those single votes against Lilith and Vanessa?" Irving guessed.
"Ideally," Cyan nodded. "In this scenario, they will not be able to re-vote, only we will. You said this morning that you were open to working with me to take out Vanessa? Well, I'm open right now as well."
"So let me get this straight," Irving said. "Ye be forcing me to play my cube tonight whilst simultaneously forcing me into the minority against ye and Lilith. And what I don't vote for Vanessa on the re-vote? Then a random draw of the people not involved in the tie would determine who goes home. And since I would be invincible, that would result in a 100% chance of ye going home."
"But I'm the only one here willing to work with you right now," Cyan reminded him. "Getting rid of me won't help your game any."
"And why are ye willing to work with me?" Irving challenged. "Surely Lilith and Vanessa won't take too kindly to this. Unless ye've been lying to me the whole time and are trying to force me into voting a certain way so that ye can work around it."
"How would I work around it?" Cyan frowned.
"Let's say for the sake of argument that I don't play me cube," Irving suggested. "If I vote for Lilith or Vanessa, then, if ye vote for the other one, there is a 0% chance of ye going home."
"Are you planning on not playing it?" Cyan asked as she folded her arms.
"Me plans are privy only to me until the votes be read," Irving smirked. He suddenly burst into laughter. "Actually! I just changed me mind. I've got a better idea! I'll vote for ye tonight!"
"Me?! Why?!" Cyan cried.
"Ye be desperate to make it through this vote, I can tell," Irving chortled. "I want to see ye work for it."
"Well, what good is that going to do you?" Cyan asked. "Like you said, there's a good chance I'll end up 100% safe if I'm in the tie."
"What good is Total Drama if there's no fun to be had? No uncertainty?" Irving snickered. "I'm curious to see what ye do, Cyan. Impress me."
"I'm not here to impress you!" Cyan objected. "I'm going to tell the others about your plan."
"Please do," Irving chuckled. "I'm interested to see how they might plead to ye for safety."
Cyan scowled as she left the room.
Confessional:
Cyan: Irving really is just trying to get into my head. Well, I won't let him. He lied to a lot of us last night in order to try and get rid of me. I can't take anything he says at face value. Keep calm, Cyan. Think of royal blue. Royal blue... royal blue...
Irving: I refuse to be a part of a game that doesn't challenge myself and others intellectually. These shiny Invincibility cubes sure help a lot, they do. Keheheh.
The four Pixel Peacocks had entered the virtual world. They each found themselves in an endless dark void, and each of them stood in a metal cage, each supported by four metal chains which connected to where the ceiling might be, although the chains seemed to extend infinitely. Spotlights shone above each cage.
"Whose fate shall be sealed tonight...?" Lilith mused.
A spotlight shone in front of the Pixel Peacocks, revealing Topher standing on a pedestal.
"Good evening, Pixel Peacocks," Topher grinned. "Welcome to the sixth elimination ceremony of the game. One of you is about to be the fourth one voted out of this team."
"Before we begin, Topher, I have something for ye," Irving smiled as he fished a shiny golden cube out of his trenchcoat pocket, displaying it proudly for all to see.
"Ah, an Invincibility Cube," Topher commented.
"So he wasn't kidding," Vanessa commented.
"Vanessa, please," Irving said in mock offense. "When have I ever lied to ye?"
"Who are you playing it on, Irving?" Topher asked.
"Me, of course," Irving chuckled.
The cube floated out of Irving's hands and glowed increasingly brighter, causing those present to shield their eyes. Once the light had gone, so had the cube. Irving's cage, as well as the chains supporting it, turned a radiant gold.
"If there are no further delays, I'll reveal the votes," Topher said.
Cyan glared at Irving.
"The first vote... Irving! Does not count!" Topher announced.
The chains on Irving's cage remained intact.
"Second vote... Irving! Does not count!" Topher continued.
Irving yawned. No chains broke.
"The third vote..." Topher smiled.
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"Lilith!"
"Oh?" Lilith said with a large, forced smile as one of the chains on her cage broke.
"And the fourth and final vote..." Topher grinned.
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"Cyan!"
"What?!" Cyan gasped. "You... you really did vote for me?" she asked Irving as one of the chains on her cage broke.
"I said I would, didn't I?" Irving responded, seemingly confused. "Again, have I ever lied to ye?"
"Yes!" Cyan accused.
"Here's how this is going to work," Topher said. "Since the only valid votes have resulted in a tie, we will have a re-vote. Cyan and Lilith will not participate in this re-vote. If this re-vote results in a tie, we will randomly decide someone amongst those not involved in the tie to go home."
"May I discuss this with Vanessa?" Irving asked.
"Why would I listen to you, Irving?" Vanessa huffed. "It's your fault I have to choose between my friends, here!"
"Ye don't seem to understand," Irving chuckled. "The choice be between Cyan and yourself."
"What are you talking about?" Vanessa asked.
"I am voting for Cyan once again. Ye cannot sway me," Irving explained. "Either ye can join me in voting for Cyan, or ye can vote for Lilith, resulting in another tie, which will result in the random elimination. Only, it isn't random. I am safe thanks to me golden cube, and Cyan and Lilith would be safe because they were in the tie. That just leaves ye."
"Why are you so firm on voting for me?!" Cyan cried.
"So what'll it be, Vanessa?" Irving laughed. "Will ye give up the happiness of your friend, making ye directly responsible for cutting her game short, or will ye give up on your own happiness, and any chance to keep those in this game happy. Perhaps ye'd even meet up with Nils again down in the abyss."
"The unrest... so palpable..." Lilith commented. "Mweeheehee... perhaps I misjudged you, Irving."
Vanessa began breathing heavily as she held her head with both hands.
"What do you have to gain from this, Irving?" Cyan spat.
"Well, ye don't expect me to just lie down and accept ninth place, do ye?" Irving scoffed. "All I did was make myself safe with the golden cube. The rest is just a part of the game's rules."
"I... I can't go back to Nils..." Vanessa sobbed.
"Vanessa..." Cyan's eyes filled with tears.
"I'm ready to commence with the re-vote, Topher," Irving stated.
"Yeah, it's about time we do that," Topher agreed.
Topher snapped his fingers, and small platforms rose from the floors of Irving's and Vanessa's cages. Each platform held a rectangular parchment and a permanent marker.
"Irving, Vanessa, write down the name of the person you're casting your vote for," Topher instructed.
"Will Vanessa do the right thing? I wonder..." Lilith giggled.
Irving wasted no time writing a name down on his parchment. Vanessa paced back and forth anxiously.
"Sometime this year, Vanessa," Topher coaxed.
"It's not easy!" Vanessa cried.
Vanessa paced back and forth, back and forth. She sighed before quickly scrawling a name on the parchment. She curled up into a ball and buried her face in her knees.
"I have the re-votes," Topher said.
Cyan's grip tightened on the bars of her cage. Irving folded his arms with a self-satisfied chuckle. Lilith's eyes darted back and forth between Cyan and Vanessa as she wore a smile of anticipation. Vanessa remained in her fetal position.
"First vote... Cyan," Topher said.
"You're not going to get away with this, Irving," Cyan said disapprovingly as another of her chains broke.
"Second and final vote..." Topher trailed off.
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"Cyan!"
A third chain broke off of Cyan's cage, which began to wobble.
"What?!" Cyan sputtered. Tears ran down her face. "Vanessa, you...?"
Vanessa burst into tears.
"I'm so sorry!" Vanessa wept. "I can't go back to Nils! Do you know what he'd do to me?! After I betrayed him?! And I wouldn't be able to escape! I- I just- I can't-"
Vanessa's words devolved into an unintelligible blubbering.
"This is all your fault!" Cyan shouted at Irving.
"Me? This wouldn't have happened if Vanessa had voted for Lilith like she was supposed to," Irving said innocently. "Never took her for the selfish type."
"I did the wrong thing! I'm so- I'm so-" Vanessa could not finish another sentence without sobbing loudly.
"Any last words from anybody?" Topher asked.
"No hard feelings for voting for me," Lilith told Cyan.
"You are the orange of people!" Cyan told Irving harshly. "That's the opposite of blue, by the way!"
"Yellow is the opposite of blue depending on who ye ask," Irving said smugly.
"I didn't ask you!" Cyan shouted.
The final chain on Cyan's cage broke, sending her plummeting into the abyss below.
"Bye, Cyan," Lilith smiled.
"What an eventful elimination ceremony," Topher beamed. "You're now down to three members. I'm interested to see where things go from here. But until then, you guys can get to bed."
The three remaining Pixel Peacocks exited their VR chambers.
"I never thought I'd see Cyan in such unrest," Lilith giggled. "I'm proud of you, Irving."
"Ye don't seem upset that your ally just left," Irving noted.
"She'll make a lovely ghost after all is said and done," Lilith smiled. "That's aaaaaaaaall that matters. Mweeheehee."
Vanessa shuffled out of the room silently.
Topher stood outside the building. The moon had risen as night fell over the desert.
"The Pixel Peacocks are down to three, but the drama has been cranked up to ten!" Topher told the camera. "How will the dynamics on the Peacocks be affected by Cyan's elimination? How will the dynamics on the Cyber Snakes be affected by Wanda forcing them to work together in the challenge? All I know for sure is that, no matter what, the drama will be total! Or, wait, no, that doesn't... Uh... next time! On Total! Drama! Virtual Party!"
Votes:
Lilith: Irving does not understand the beauty of unrest and what it will do to your soul... He disgusts me... He must go...
Vanessa: I can't just stand by and let Irving bluff his way past his just desserts. I am voting for Irving tonight.
Cyan: There's no way Irving is voting for me. He has nothing to gain from voting out the one person reaching out to him. He's definitely voting for Vanessa. So I need to vote for Lilith. It sucks voting for her, but we're playing with fire here, and I don't want to get burned.
Irving: See, the thing about lying is that if ye do it too much, people will know that ye be lying. So, I will be voting for Cyan tonight, just as I said I would! Truthfully, I don't care which of the lasses goes home tonight. I will be able to work around whatever pair of them sticks around.
Cyber Snakes:
Dunstan - The Hall Monitor
Gunther - The Sword Collector
Jynxie - The Uber Punk
Robby - The Weaselly Briber
Wanda - The Chipper Magician
Pixel Peacocks:
Cyan - The Blue Enthusiast
Irving - The Cutthroat Pirate
Joseph - The Bro Code
Lilith - The Ghost Obsessor
Vanessa - The Bringer of Happiness
Eliminated Pre-Swap:
Nils - The Stone Cold Heartless
Felix - The Nudist
Zelda - The Snarky Magician's Assistant
Cosette - The Small Bean
A/N: I think Cyan's placement changed the most out of everyone as I've made plans for this story. She actually started out as an endgamer, even a potential finalist, but, as I began writing for her, I felt there wasn't much I could do with her compared to some of the rest of the cast. I definitely enjoyed writing her, don't get me wrong, but she was never the most popular of the cast, and one of the least dynamic as far as relationships with other characters go, so I kept bumping her elimination earlier and earlier, eventually settling on ninth place for her. I tend to do this kind of thing a lot, for the record.
