The Challenge Rivals Edition X Chapter 6
A Flaw in the Plan
"Ah miss this" Rogue said across the game room as she sipped her beer. She sighed and sagged back in her chair, looking over to watch Sam and Bobby play darts.
"Alcohol?" Bobby asked, tossing a dart and swearing as it missed its mark. This had never been his game.
"Jerk. Nah, the three of us hangin' out. Why hasn't that happened recently?"
Bobby threw his leg over a chair and sat to watch Sam take his turn, "Well last I checked when we were all on a team together you turned into a whacko and Sammy got beaten up."
"Then Bobby slept with your Momma." Sam said, closing his eye to line up a dart.
Rogue made a noise of indignation and threw a bottle cap at him, which Sam easily caught, chuckling.
"Dick."
"Ah speak no lies, Roguey."
Rogue: It's nice to have a little reprieve from the game. Ah feel like now we're in a pretty good position because Ah have a day off, and odds are that no one from my alliance, or Sam, will be gettin' the axe tomorrow.
"How's the quest for the Holy Grail goin' by the way Bob?" Sam asked, cleaning up the darts and taking a seat.
"No dice Sammy."
"Holy Grail?" Rogue asked, an eyebrow cocked over her beer.
Bobby blushed and Sam clapped him on the back, "Drake's out ta turn your partner into his bedfellow."
Rogue rolled her eyes, "She toldja the deal Bobby. She ain't gonna do anything on camera. She likes you though."
Bobby sputtered on his beer, "You didn't tell me that!"
"Because I didn't realize we're in fourth grade," Rogue drawled.
Bobby: I like Ali. She's hot. Really hot. So, so hot.
"So why won't she make out with me on camera? She's on TMZ every other day!"
"She ain't on TMZ by choice, Ice-pop. Maybe she doesn't want to give them another reason."
"That blows."
"'Pologies."
"You should. You need to be advocating for me more."
Rogue chuckled, "Ah'll be sure to get on that. 'Hey Al, you should totally go sleep with Bobby, it'd be great.'"
Bobby looked at Sam, "Why would that be an issue?''
Sam smacked himself in the head and Rogue rolled her eyes, "You are as clueless as they come."
Elsewhere, Hank eyed Warren with trepidation, following his friend's gaze over his beer. Across the room Fantomex was standing a little too close to Betsy and flirting as hard as he possibly could. For her part Betsy seemed repulsed, but this did nothing to alleviate Warren's anger.
"Can I ask you something?" Hank wondered.
"Sure." Warren replied, not breaking his gaze.
"Are you trying to win this competition?"
"Of course I am."
"Have you ever won something where you truly hated one of your teammates?"
"Nope."
"Well what does that tell you?"
Warren sighed and turned to Hank, "I know."
Hank: Warren has the toughest rivalry left on the men's side. Alex and Bobby and Santo and Victor are more like siblings, and Sam and Guido's was vague from the beginning. Logan and Scott and Namor and I have had our issues, but for the greater good we've put them aside.
"It's just...look I love Betsy more than anything. I want to marry her one day. But we've seen this story in our world a million times Hank." Warren said looking at the ground. "What couple among us has actually gone the distance? Even Scott and Jean fell apart. Did ANYONE see that coming?"
Hank put his hand on Warren's shoulder, "You are one of my best friends Warren and I know Elisabeth very well. While it pains me to say something negative about one of our teammates I will say this. It would take a much better man that that to take her from you."
Warren smiled to himself and gently punched Hank on the arm, "Thanks buddy."
"Anytime."
Meanwhile, Betsy walked over to the pair and perched on Warren's lap.
"Ugh."
Warren smirked up at her, "Ugh?"
"If you didn't have to be paired with that weasel I would've ended his life long ago."
Warren covered his mouth with his hand and Hank grinned at him, "He's not that bad."
"Yeah I like him."
Betsy raised an eyebrow at them both for a moment and neither could keep a straight face, and she burst out laughing with them, "You're a right pair of tossers you two."
Warren wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned into her back, "But I'm YOUR tosser."
Betsy patted him on the shoulder over his head, "Yes you are, luv."
"Me too?"
"Stay away from my woman McCoy."
"Didn't you know I'm only with you because Henry turned me down Warren?" Betsy asked.
"Well now you've killed him." Warren said grinning as he eased Betsy off of him and the two started to wrestle, something Hank easily got the upper hand in.
"Say it Feathers." Hank said.
"Never! Where's Bobby. Someone get Bobby."
"Admit inferiority!" Hank snarled and rubbed his fur over Warren's mouth causing him to spit out hair.
"Ok fine! You win, take my girlfriend and my money just get your fur out of my mouth!"
Henry laughed and got off just as Bobby walked in with Sam and Rogue.
"Aw. I never get to play anymore."
Hank patted Bobby on the shoulder as the group sat down, "You both still couldn't take me."
A few minutes later, when everybody had assembled in the room, Cyclops walked in with his cell phone.
"Ladies and gentlemen…"
"CLUUUUUUUUUUE!"
"Shut up Bobby. We have a clue from TJ." The rest of the crowed whooped loudly…they were beginning to get into the theater of the clue.
"It says 'Be prepared to push past your limits in tomorrow's challenge. Be ready at 8 a.m.'." Scott read.
"Strength match." Alex said.
"More commonly known as an easy victory for Imperius Rex and the furred one." Namor said haughtily.
"Oh please, I'm the strongest one here by far." Santo said with a chuckle.
"Wanna bet?" Guido asked flexing.
Paige: Yay. A testosterone competition. That's awesome.
Later that evening Logan pulled Sam and Guido aside to talk to them. "What's yer game tomorrow Cornpoke?"
"Ah really hate when y'all call me that."
"Whatever. Are you rollin' over for the three stooges?"
"Of course not." Guido said. "We want to win."
"So why don't you work with me an' Summers?" Logan pressed.
"Because I ain't willin' to turn my back on Bobby an' Warren an' Rogue like that Logan." Sam replied.
"Damn it Guthrie don't you get it? There are three spots in the end. We can promise you one of them…they can't do that."
Sam was quiet.
"Look, all I'm sayin' is that it's something worth thinkin' about. These guys can't have your back the whole time and what if you lose tomorrow? Y'think they're goin' ta throw you the kids? You're getting me and Summers if we don't win Sammy-boy, just like Remy did."
"Well we don't plan on losing." Sam said forcefully.
"And how's that been workin' out for you so far?" Logan shot back, causing Sam to grow silent once more.
Logan: I'm not tryin' to say that Sam isn't really friends with those guys, because I know he is. This is just strategy and it makes sense for him to work with us.
"Look Logan thanks but…" Sam began.
"We'll think about it." Guido said putting his hand on Sam's shoulder and leading him out.
"Good."
Moments after the three left the hallway, the door to the bathroom crept open and out stepped Warren Worthington, an unmistakable look of anger on his face.
The next morning Bobby and Hank's faces slowly began to drop as Warren described what he heard, as the three got ready.
"You've got to be kidding me." Bobby said.
"It does sound rather unlike him." Hank agreed.
Warren shook his head, "That's exactly what happened. Sam and Guido both said they'd be willing to sleep with the enemy here. And he should, it's what makes sense."
"From a numbers standpoint at least. He's our friend."
"So is Scott." Warren pointed out.
"But that's different."
"How?"
Bobby sighed and kicked at the ground, "I don't want to work against Sam."
"And we don't have to, yet." Warren said bracingly. "Today we go in, Hank loses, we win, and Logan's all but gone and Sam has no one in his ear. Bing, bang, boom."
"It's not going to be that easy War." Bobby said.
"We'll make it that easy. We can do this. This is what we're here for."
The group met in the kitchen area of their living quarters and started to walk outside to the challenge where TJ stood waiting for them in front of a pair of logs.
"Ladies and gentlemen welcome to your sixth challenge here on Rivals." The group clapped lightly so TJ continue, "This is Turn Style; you'll recognize it from Fresh Meat 2. As you can see we have two giant logs one on top of the other attached to a spoke in the middle. This challenge will be run in a series of heats where each team will play another. When it's your team's heat you'll each put one person on a log, and a member from the opposite team will be on the other end of the log. When I blow the air horn it's your job to push as hard as you can against your opponent. Whichever team is able to push hard enough to make a full revolution will win. For the guys that means Jungle safety, and for the girls two grand. The guys that get beat in the fastest time will automatically go into the Jungle. Now, here's how it'll work. There are six male teams left, the team that wins their first matchup in the fastest amount of time will be given a bye to the final, and the other two first round winners will play each other for the other final spot. For the girls, last week's challenge winners, Betsy and Paige, will have a bye to the second round. The fastest perform in the first round will go straight to the final, and the other first round winner will play Betsy and Paige in the second round. Now we've decided to switch things up a bit. The rule used to be that the girls made the order on guys days and vice versa. Not anymore. So the male team that one the last challenge, will make today's matchups, and that's Scott and Logan. So get it done boys."
Bobby: What the f(#*. We were banking on Betsy being able to set this up for it to make the most sense. We need Hank to be able to throw it against a team that doesn't matter.
"How do you want to do this?" Logan asked.
"Well I would say we need to put Bobby against Warren to get rid of one of them but the problem with that is that we need one of them to be a Jungle team and they matchup well enough that they won't lose fast." Scott said. "So I think we want to play one of them so we can deal with them quickly."
"Bobby and Alex are smaller."
Scott nodded uneasily, "Yeah. Fine. Us against them."
Scott: I don't want to call out Bobby and Alex. Alex is my little brother and Bobby hasn't been half the dick that Warren has. But it makes sense strategically.
"Alright Sam and Guido probably have a better shot against Warren than Hank, so we'll do purple and blue, and that leaves green and orange."
"What about the girls?"
"Well Betsy automatically goes to round two but I want at least one of red and orange out so we put Kitty and Emma against Ali and Rogue, then Jubilee and X against Dani and Hope. Good?"
"Perfect."
Scott handed the clipboard to TJ who read off the first heat, "Alright we're doing girls first so it's Emma and Kitty against Ali and Rogue."
Emma: I am a little surprised at Scott. While Kitty is seemingly working with Warren and Bobby, I have not lent my support either way. I would've expected my boyfriend to give us the easiest matchup possible.
"Do you want Rogue or Ali?" Kitty asked.
"Ali is smaller so you should take her."
Kitty gritted her teeth, "Got it."
Kitty: Logan and Scott clearly have now associated us with being part of the alliance and aren't really trying to protect us, so I guess helping them out is over and done with.
Kitty lined up across the way from Ali and Emma lined up across from Rogue. All four leaned into their logs as TJ prepared to blow the airhorn.
"Ready, set, GO!"
Ali leaned into the log and immediately swore, "Oh, what the f$."
Ali: This log is a million pounds, and I have another girl who is my size on the other end of it. This thing is never going anywhere.
Bobby: Is it weird to be turned on by a girl with a mouth like a sailor?
"Ali your ass looks great from here!" Bobby shouted.
"Shut. Up. Bobby." Ali said through gritted teeth.
"You okay Al?" Rogue said from the log portion behind her.
"Yeah, just peachy Rogue. I love this stuff." Ali said.
Rogue: This isn't that tough actually. Emma's barely putting up a fight.
"Hang on, I'm comin'." Rogue said as she started to put more force into her push.
Rogue began to slowly walk her portion of the log towards Ali's, as Emma was forced to retreat.
Emma: Even though Rogue's strength is reduced due to the nature of the jersey, she has more natural strength than I do; this is going to end very badly.
A moment later, Emma found herself sandwiched between her log and Kitty's and the entire orange team was forced backwards.
"Come on Al. Just keep marchin'. They're almost done." Rogue said, still keeping her pace.
Ali: Rogue is an animal at this. I just need to keep up.
Slowly but surely, Rogue and Ali had cycled the log all the way around, and with one more push, had moved across the goal line. Ali collapsed to the floor and could barely stand when Kitty came over to hug her.
"Tough right?"
"I barely did anything and I'm winded."
"Round one to the red team, good work guys." TJ yelled. "Next up are black and yellow, Dani and Hope against Jubilee and Laura.
Jubilee: This is the second time we've had to go head to head with these two and last time we won it. I'm confident that we can do it again, but I'd prefer not to have to.
"Neither of them is really bigger than us." Jubilee whispered to Laura.
"I'll take Hope. It shouldn't really make any difference."
The two teams lined up and TJ blew the horn. Immediately Laura started throwing her weight into the log.
Laura: My strategy isn't to push hard, but to push quickly and catch her off guard.
After three quick pulses on the log, Hope was knocked back on her heels and retreating.
"Hope hold it!" Dani said, as she kept Jubilee at bay.
"Easier said than done Dani." Hope snarled back.
After a few more good pushes, Hope's arms gave out and Laura pushed her around to Dani's log. Now that the force was acting on both logs, Dani and Hope didn't stand much of a chance. It didn't take long for the log to swing the rest of the way.
Dani: We could afford a bad day today. It wasn't a girl's day and nothing is going to happen that'll change the votes. I'm pissed at our performance, but given the low stakes I don't really care that much.
Jubilee: Beating Dani and Hope is big time since they've been the girls to beat. Hopefully we get to bypass Betsy and Paige and Ali and Rogue can pull something off.
"Alright so we have our two winners, but now it's about time to see who gets a bye." TJ said, after looking over his board with the scores.
Paige: We believe that we can beat Laura and Jubilee and we want to do it now so that we don't have to worry about order for the next challenge. Having both our team and red in the final eliminates that.
"By only forty five seconds, the winners are, Jubilee and Laura!"
"Yes!" Jubilee shouted, throwing an arm around Laura.
Jubilee: This is perfect.
"Betsy, Paige, Ali, and Rogue, get ready to go."
"How do you want to do this?" Betsy muttered to Ali.
"It's pointless for us to kill each other and then go in tired against them." Ali agreed.
"So who's losing?" Paige asked.
"Ah think we've got a better shot, honestly." Rogue said. "If we win we'll give you last next time and we'll take second to last."
"Ok, done."
Betsy: It would be stupid for our two teams to really try against each other to only go against a well rested Jubilee and Laura. So, since Rogue feels confident in her strength, Paige and I will roll over for them.
The girls lined up and TJ prepped his horn, "Ready? GO!"
Right when the horn blew Betsy and Paige both took their hands off the logs and Rogue and Ali casually wheeled them around. Only moments later, the logs passed the line and TJ blew his horn.
"Well that was pretty weak," the host said.
Betsy walked over to Warren who was grinning, "Good strategy luv?"
"Very smart." Warren replied putting his arm around her, "Hopefully it works."
Jubilee: Ali and Rogue and Betsy and Paige are afraid, as they should be, so they need to collude to beat us. Fine. We get it.
"Final round time ladies, Ali and Rogue against Jubilee and Laura."
"Ah'm taking Laura."
"Yeah, no st."
TJ blew the horn and the pushing began again. Laura began her strategy once more, but Rogue held up to it much better than Hope had, and all the while Ali had actually made ground on the much smaller Jubilee.
Jubilee: Ali is more muscular than Dani, so holding her back and waiting for Laura isn't gonna happen this time.
"Keep goin' Al. I've got her. Once you get over here it's over." Rogue said encouragingly.
This time, it was Ali marching the log and Rogue fending off her opponent. Ali eventually brought the log over and now it was both of their weight resisting Laura, who was eventually forced back due to the size difference.
Laura: Jubilee has been useless in this competition and both of them are much bigger than I am.
Finally, they were right up against the line.
"One, two, PUSH!" Rogue shouted, and with one more shove, the log crossed the line.
TJ blew the horn, "Game over, Ali and Rogue take it."
"Yes!" Ali said jumping on Rogue who was on the ground breathing heavily. "We did it!"
Rogue climbed to her feet grinning and they rejoined the rest of the group and high-fived the remainder of the alliance. For good measure Ali jumped on and hugged Bobby who didn't look like he planned on detaching himself.
"Hug over Bobby." Ali said giggling.
"Nope. Just a few more seconds. I'm not done celebrating your victory."
"You're impossible."
"You love me."
"You wish."
Betsy swatted him on the arm, "Put her down now Robert, Warren will get jealous and he'll take it out on me."
Warren turned to look at her indignantly, "What?"
Betsy grinned sweetly at him, "What what?"
"I'm watching you Braddock."
"Good," she smirked back.
TJ stepped back up to the ground and read his clipboard, "Ok, time for the boys, first matchup is Scott and Logan, against Bobby and Alex."
"WHAT?" Bobby shouted, looking frantically at Warren and Hank, "This wasn't supposed to be what went on!"
Hank grabbed his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down, "Relax Robert. Just go and hold him off."
"This is ridiculous."
Bobby rolled up his sleeves and walked over to his partner, "You ready?"
"Not really."
"Me neither. Who do you want? Tall or heavy?"
Alex chuckled, "Well I'm taller and heavier than you, so I don't know."
"Your weight might be better against Logan." Bobby said.
"Ugh this is gonna suck."
Bobby nodded, "Yeah, but we just have to be good enough to give Hank a large enough window to tank."
Alex grimaced and took his spot on the log across from Logan who grinned broadly at him.
Alex: I have an awful feeling about this.
It was over before it even started. The second TJ blew the air horn Alex was draped over his section of the log, which went careening into Bobby's sending them both backwards across the finish line in less than ten seconds.
Warren: I've never seen something that embarrassing. And I've watched Bobby hit on women.
Alex: I have never been so humiliated in my life.
Logan: Didn't you get the memo? I'm Wolverine.
"Well that was certainly interesting." TJ said, struggling to keep a straight face.
"Thanks Teej," Bobby muttered.
Warren patted him on the back, "Head up, Bob. You're fine." Bobby silently walked passed him to go get a water. Warren looked at Rogue who sighed and followed him.
"Now what?" Hank asked.
"I have no idea."
"Even if I lose faster than that, Logan and Scott just got themselves a pass to the final round and odds are they'll win." Hank said.
"Bobby's not going to want to go against them after that anyway Hank. It doesn't really matter."
Hank shook his head, "I've been an athlete my whole life, Warren. Losing was part of our strategy so I was willing to do it. If it is not longer, I will be trying to win."
Warren shrugged, "Fine."
"Next up is Hank and Namor against Sam and Guido."
"Do we have a plan?" Namor asked.
Hank nodded, "Crush 'em."
Namor smiled broadly, "Finally."
"Ready, set, go!"
To Guido's credit, his size and strength allowed it to not be as one-sided as the previous matchup, but it was almost as bad. Namor gave one great bellow of "IMPERIUS REX", and took off from there.
Guido: This fish guy is a lunatic.
Unlike the previous matchup, there was no even contest. Sam and Guido were both able to resist a bit, but Namor and Hank were able to make fairly short work of them. When it was over, neither of them had even broken a sweat. Namor walked over to Hank and pumped his hand hard.
"I'm beginning to realize you aren't completely useless McCoy."
"That's wonderful, Namor. I'm glad."
Namor: Imperius Rex has not deigned to make my presence known in this competition as of yet, and I truly could not care either way if I win. However, to easily best two X-men was quite thrilling. Maybe I shall reevaluate the vigor that I bring to this contest.
"Final first round matchup boys, Warren and Jean-Phillipe against Victor and Santo."
Warren wordlessly took his spot at the log, causing Fantomex to shrug and walk to the other side.
Warren: I don't know why I let this guy get under my skin like this. Almost every other team has been able to become civil with their partner, but I really want to hit him.
"Ready set go!"
At that moment, Warren took out all of his aggression on the log, immediately sending Anole backwards.
Victor: I knew Mr. Worthington was in shape, but I didn't think he was this strong.
Unfortunately for Warren, his speed forward was almost as fast as Santo's was, and the logs came to a dead stop in the middle of the track.
"Come on Worthy! Push!" Bobby shouted.
"You can do it Warren!" Hank shouted.
Warren: I'm picturing his face. That's all I can see.
Warren began to mutter under his breath to himself through gritted teeth as he continued to try to plow forward.
Santo: Worthington has like, pregnant woman strength right now. Y'know how like, knocked up chicks can lift a car or something? It's totally like that.
Warren dug in with each of his steps still looking directly at the log, and his headway gave Fantomex enough space to at least keep Santo at bay.
Fantomex: Worthington is possessed right now. I have no idea how he's doing this, but it's working.
Warren continued to breath heavily and push, and finally made it within inches of the finish line. He let out a harsh growl and slammed the log past the line.
"YEAH!" Bobby roared. Bobby and Hank both ran to jump on him as they saw the grin start to seep back into Warren's face.
"That's what I'm TALKIN' about!" Bobby bellowed.
Warren laughed, "I'm telling you…I could do that s*#& again right now."
TJ walked back over to the group with his clipboard, "Ok, so obviously we have Team Blue, Team Green, and Team Grey all advancing. I'm sorry to say, Team Blue, even though that was an awesome performance from you, Warren, you had the slowest finishing time. The difference between Green and Gray was only eight seconds. The team going straight to the final is…Logan and Scott, Team Grey."
Scott pumped his fist and Logan clapped him on the back.
Scott: It's not over yet, but we at least get to sit out a round and recover. Unfortunately, since Warren and Hank understand how to play this game, it won't be a long recovery.
Warren, Hank, Namor, and Fantomex all sat around a set of tree stumps as they began to strategize.
"Warren, do you honestly believe you two will beat Logan?" Hank asked incredulously.
"Yeah, I do."
Fantomex rolled his eyes, "I'm not sure what performance enhancers were slipped into your coffee this morning but let's take our one underdog victory and call it a day."
"We are much stronger than they are, Worthington. It is the smart decision. You attempted head to head competition with Summers and the animal last time. As I recall it did not work out for you." Namor pointed out.
Warren shrugged, "Fine. We'll roll over. But how about we do it like this…"
"Okay boys, Blue against Green here we go. Ready, set, go!"
Much like the match between Betsy, Paige, Rogue, and Ali, Warren and Fantomex allowed Hank and Namor to push the log all the way around. However, the pair stopped just before the finish line and held the log in place.
Warren: Hank and Namor had their round more recently, and expended more energy than Scott or Logan did. Our goal is to let them rest until they're good to go and can give Logan and Scott the best fight possible.
"Well this is enthralling." Emma said as the group watched as minutes went by and the teams just stood there. Scott shook his head annoyed.
Scott: The fact that Warren has a strategic thought running around in that head is mind blowing to me. Absolutely mind blowing.
"You good?" Warren asked Hank.
"Indeed. Namor?"
"I am ready."
Warren lifted his hands of the log and Hank gave it one more gentle push forward across the line.
TJ blew the horn shaking his head, "I'm telling you. I've hosted a lot of challenges and I've never seen this must strategy. It's nuts. Well, let's go since everyone's had their break, Green against Grey, come on."
Warren sat back down with Bobby and Betsy who patted him on the shoulder, "Good job, luv."
"I wanted to go and beat them."
"I know, but let's focus on winning, shall we?"
Warren nodded and sipped his water.
"Here we go. Ready, set, go!"
This time, there was no easy kill. No pushover. Namor and Logan were both battling each other as hard as they could and Scott was managing to keep Hank at bay.
Scott: We have to beat them quickly, or we won't win. I'm not as strong as Hank, and this isn't like Dirty Mouth where I can use some leverage. This is pure force.
Scott was eventually proven right as inch by inch, Henry began to shove him backwards.
"No." Scott growled as he tried to stop the momentum.
"Summers…" Logan snarled as Scott started backing up into his log.
"He's too much." Scott panted.
"Keep on them." Hank shouted to Namor.
Now Scott was pressed against Logan's log, and both began to slide. Finally, after a grueling battle, Logan's back crossed over the line, and TJ blew the airhorn.
All four competitors collapsed to the ground, seemingly with no plans on getting up. Eventually, the other guys went over and pulled them all to their feet, and the group assembled before TJ.
"Well guys that was pretty gnarly. Some easy battles, and some tough ones, but I'm very proud of all of you." Everyone clapped, "Alright, first off the girls. They went into three rounds and they came out of three rounds so today's obvious winner is, Team Red, Ali and Rogue. That's two grand for you girls!"
Ali: The money's nice, but the fact that we finally got a win is awesome. I'm so happy with where we're at right now. Maybe we're peaking at the right moment.
"Now for the guys. It was a monstrous fight between probably two of the toughest teams here, but there can only be one winner, and today that is the Green Team, Namor and Hank." Once again everyone applauded and the other guys clapped them on the back.
"So Hank, Namor, you are both safe from going into the Jungle tonight. Unfortunately one team is NOT safe tonight. Even though Green's first round made a competition of it, the team who was beaten in the fastest amount of time, Team Black, Bobby and Alex."
Alex: This sucks. Second Jungle appearance and we just got embarrassed.
"I'll see you back at the house in a little bit, and we'll figure out who you'll be going up against. Get out of here."
A little while before the deliberation Warren, Fantomex, Bobby, Alex, Hank, and Namor all sat up in their loft.
"Well?" Bobby asked.
"We need to know where your head's at." Warren said.
"What does THAT mean?" Bobby demanded.
Henry sighed, "Well we'd like to know what the two of you want to do."
"We want Santo and Victor, obviously." Bobby said while Alex nodded.
"I thought the plan was for us to try to eliminate Wolverine if possible?" Fantomex interjected.
"No. The plan was for Hank and Namor to try to eliminate Wolverine because they said they were comfortable doing that. Alex and I didn't agree to that."
Fantomex muttered something under his breath that sounded vaguely like "coward".
Bobby was immediately on his feet, "What did you just say."
"You clearly heard me."
"You're lucky Warren's your partner man."
Fantomex rolled his eyes, "Ah yes, or else I wouldn't be here and would be leading a terribly unfulfilling life. Woe would be me."
"Shut up Jean-Phillipe." Warren said evenly. "I know you love being the center of attention but you aren't the reason we're here right now."
"Then maybe I'll go somewhere else." Fantomex replied coldly and stood up and left.
"Forget him." Warren said.
Tensions were beginning to get high, as Bobby watched the door through which Fantomex left murderously. "Bobby, come on," Warren said.
"Well clearly he isn't the only one who wants us to go against Logan." Bobby said. "So speak up, whoever else."
Warren held up a hand, "He doesn't speak for me, and I don't think you should go in with Logan either."
"Thank you."
"BUT, I don't think that we should throw in Santo and Victor." Warren finished. "They're clearly the worst team here and I think we should keep them around as long as possible as a safety net."
"You want me to go against Sam?" Bobby asked incredulously.
"I think he wants me and you to go against Sam and Guido." Alex muttered.
Bobby looked at his partner apologetically, "Right. Sorry."
Warren ran a hand through his hair, "Look. Sam is open to the possibility of working with Logan. Say you go in and beat Santo and Victor and next week the plan works or else you or me loses. Sam could be a guaranteed vote for Logan's side. Kitty and Emma are flakey, Jubilee probably won't vote with us, and who knows with Hope and Dani? I think we have to neutralize that possibility."
Bobby: Regardless of whatever conversation he had with Logan, Sam is my friend. I don't want to do this.
Bobby sighed, "We're a team here, majority rules. I don't want to do it, but I'll put it up to a vote. I vote no."
Alex clapped Bobby on the shoulder, "Vote as a team."
"I believe it to be the best strategic option." Hank said.
"Agreed." Namor chimed in.
Warren: Bobby is the one that's going in. It should be his call. But part of me is a little annoyed that both Hank and I are willing to go for Logan but he isn't.
"I say Sam." Warren said quietly. Bobby stared at him for a long moment and nodded.
"'Kay. Let's go tell the girls."
Later, all the remaining teams met in the deliberation room where TJ stood waiting for them.
"You guys know the drill at this point, you'll be voting for who faces off against Bobby and Alex in tonight's Jungle. The only team that can't be voted in is Hank and Namor. You have twenty minutes, get it done."
"Anyone have anything to say?" Alex asked.
"I do." Victor said. "I think that based on the way we've performed so far we don't deserve to go in. I know it's going to be us, but if we're rewarded how well teams have done we shouldn't have to go."
Victor: I'm sick of playing this game passively. If these losers are going to send us in, I'll go down swinging.
"Well Victor, today may be your lucky day." Ali said. "We're voting for Sam and Guido."
"What?" Sam shouted.
"We're going the same way." Warren said.
"Us too." Kitty agreed, and Hank nodded along.
"What in the hell is goin' on here?" Sam demanded
Warren rubbed the back of his neck, "We just heard some stuff Sam. Talks were had; deals might've been made. It just looks bad."
Sam looked incredulously from Bobby to Warren, "Between me an' Logan? You boys gotta know that that was nothin'."
Bobby shrugged but didn't meet his eye, "Sorry."
"Well we'll vote for them too, I guess," Santo said.
"Us too," Jubilee said.
"We'll go for Santo and Victor," Dani said.
Dani: I'm not voting for Sam. No way.
"I'm not going to vote for Sam, so we're going to throw ours and vote for Scott and Logan," Paige said.
"Santo and Victor," Scott said.
"Sam?" Henry asked.
"Ah mean, does it even matter? It's six to two to one. Hell if that's how y'all wanna play it we vote for Warren and Jean-Phillipe." Sam said.
"Six to two to one to one." Bobby said quietly. "Someone call TJ back in."
TJ reentered the room and called Bobby and Alex to stand up with him. "So who's it gonna be?"
Sam raised his hand, "Us." He stood up with Guido in tow.
"So Sam and Guido? How do you guys feel about it?"
"Kinda pissed TJ. There's some hearsay goin' on here and now Ah have to go down for it."
"Sam I was in the bathroom when you were talking to Logan; I HEARD you. What do we have to gain from taking you out now besides that? You were voting with us til now. I'm not stupid." Warren said.
"Well y'sure are doin' a good impression of it."
"Come on Sam." Guido said.
"Just finish up TJ. Come on now." Sam said heatedly.
"Ok. Ok. So tonight in the Jungle we have Team Black and Team Purple. Should be a good matchup. I'll see you guys in an hour." TJ nodded to the group and left. Sam quickly stormed off to the kitchen and Bobby quietly rose and went to his room.
Warren got up to follow him but Betsy grabbed his arm, "Something tells me you aren't the one to talk to him right now, luv. Ali? Can you?" Dazzler sighed and followed Bobby to his room.
She walked in and there was Bobby laying face down on his bed. "It is such a difficult life you lead oh Frozen one."
"Urgh."
"Jesus you are ridiculous." She walked over and sat at the head of his bed. "What's your deal?"
"Don' wan' go in with Sam" he said, his voice muffled.
"Well you're going. So you either play the game and win and come back, or you mope, lose and are done."
"Urgh."
Ali moaned, "You are too much. Flip over Bobby. Right now." Bobby slowly rolled over. "I'm going to do this one time and I swear to God you better be appreciative and go win, or I'm gonna kick your ass." She leaned down and gently kissed him on the lips. She giggled when she noticed his eyes were still closed after she broke away.
"I am trying to memorize this moment. A moment of silence please."
"Shut uuup." Ali said shoving him.
He stood up and flexed, "I slowly…feel my powers…returning. Who knows what you could do with a little tongue Blaire." He wiggled his eyebrows up and down.
Ali shook her head and stood up, "I hate you." She turned and walked out of the room.
"Clearly nooooooot." Bobby sing-songed after her.
The groups began to pile out to the Jungle area with Ali hanging back with Warren and Betsy.
"Is he good?" Warren asked.
"I think he'll be just fine."
"What'd you do?" Betsy asked.
"No comment."
"Ali!" Betsy gasped.
Warren rolled his eyes, "She was only in there for two minutes Betsy…I doubt…well actually I don't doubt…this discussion ends now." Warren quickened his pace and walked away from them to catch up with Hank.
"Tell me later." Betsy grinned.
"There's nothing to tell!"
The group stood at their normal spot and waited for TJ to start talking, "Alright everyone, welcome to the third male Jungle. I need to see Bobby, Alex, Sam, and Guido." The four players walked out of the crowd and into the Jungle area.
"Are you in it?" Alex muttered to Bobby.
"Yeah."
"I need your best man."
"I'm good Alex." He grinned, "Chill."
"Yeah. You're fine."
TJ clasped his hands, "Alright boys, tonight, you're playing Rail Slide." He tugged a cloth that was covering a giant bamboo structure.
Guido: Very dramatic.
"As you can see here we have two bamboo tracks, one for each team. Each team also has one long bamboo rod that will sit at the top of each track, and both team members will be strapped to and hang from. Your goal tonight is to swing and move your bamboo pole all the way down the track. The team that makes it to the end first, wins. Let's make it happen."
Bobby: Tonight kind of threw me for a loop, but I'm back in the game and I'm ready to rock.
Alex: I don't want to go home yet. If we win this, we'll be in a solid position for the rest of the game.
Sam: Ah'm livid right now. Ah'm not goin' home.
Guido: I know my partner. I need him to keep a calm head or we're going to lose.
"Are we all set?" TJ asked as they all finished getting strapped in.
Bobby was the last to click in his safety harness and flashed TJ a thumbs up. "Good. Ready? GO!"
Immediately Bobby and Alex sagged as low in their harnesses as they could. Once they were in, Alex started to count, "One, two, three, go! And one, two, three, go!"
Alex: Our goal is to get as low as possible and swing with more momentum. That way we can move a little more each time. I'm not sure whether Guido's weight is an advantage or not in this kind of game, but I'd rather not risk looking over and seeing what he's doing.
Logan: Strong Guy looks like a dead fish out there.
Unfortunately, this game didn't favor people with vastly different sizes. While Sam and Guido were swinging back at the same moment, Guido's size caused him to have a shorter, more forceful swing, whereas Sam's arc was longer, but didn't get enough power to move the bar.
Sam: This is embarrassing.
On the other side Bobby and Alex had already reached the halfway mark before Sam and Guido had even gone a quarter of the course. Alex was starting to breath heavily and Bobby looked over at him.
"Don't you gas on me Summers! I'm trying to get laid tonight!"
Ali: I'm actually going to kill him. I know he's making you guys good TV, but he's dead. Sorry.
The final portion of the course was a slope and one the final hump was crossed it was a straight slide to the bottom. By this time Alex was panting pretty heavily and they were only one jump's distance to the downhill. Guido and Sam were still a few yards behind them, but they had gotten a much better rhythm.
"Summers, we're one push away. Stop flailing for a second and take a breath." Bobby said soothingly. Alex relaxed for a moment and gathered himself. "Okay, now focus. One more hard swing."
Alex nodded and they both pulled back, and then threw their weight forward as hard as they could. The bar jumped off the track and landed just after the downhill began, allowing them to slide the rest of the way to the goal-line. TJ blew his air horn and the group erupted.
Bobby and Alex quickly unhooked themselves and embraced each other, still obviously euphoric.
Bobby: I'm kinda starting to like this kid.
The production team helped Guido and Sam down from their harness, the later started to stomp around and mutter to himself. "We lost. Lost."
Sam: Ah can't believe this.
"Alright boys, come over here." TJ said. "Bobby, Alex, excelled performance in the Jungle, you're staying in the game. Go rejoin the group." Bobby and Alex each shook Guido's hand but when they leaned to shake Sam's he didn't respond. Bobby sighed and went back to the others.
"Sam, Guido, you played a solid game, you just got tripped up in this elimination. You're both solid competitors, and hopefully we'll see you again." They both shook TJ's hand and offered the group a final wave before walking off.
Guido: Next time around, it'll be all me. It sucks to have a partner, especially one who thinks he's dominant in the game. I like Sam a lot more than I did, I just don't want to be on a team with him.
Sam: Ah think Ah made a new friend in Guido on this thing. Unfortunately, Ah may have lost a few of the friends Ah already had.
Later that night, Bobby sat out by the pool deck, drinking a beer by himself.
Bobby: I won, but I sent my friend home. I didn't want him gone. When Warren, Hank, and I started this game we agreed to have each other's backs. They blatantly did something I didn't agree to.
Ali came out and sat down with him. "There he is. The champ."
Bobby grinned at her, "I won."
"Yes you did."
Bobby looked at the ground, "But I sent Sam home."
"Yes you did."
"However you also kissed me." He grinned again.
Ali rolled her eyes, "Yes I did."
"I'm on an emotional rollercoaster."
"You'll get over it."
He turned to stare at her for a minute. Ali ran a hand through her hair subconsciously, "What?"
"I'm gonna kiss you again."
"Bobby…"
"Ali, I'm gonna close my eyes and count to five. If you're still sitting there in five seconds, you're being kissed. Just deal with it." He closed his eyes and counted. Five seconds later, he opened them and she was still sitting there.
Bobby grinned as he leaned into her, "I knew you liked me."
Ali: I dunno. Shut up.
