"Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you." ― Friedrich Nietzsche
~Theme Song (Merge)~
The camera pans out to a sci-fi looking utopia with various places placed in perfect zoning. It quickly zooms in down to the area near a narrow river.
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doing fine
Cassie, Jane, Valerie, Marvin, and Phoebe were walking along the riverbed, having a casual conversation.
You guys are on my mind
The camera switches to Nataline's room in a large mansion, where she was looking at a photo of her and a girl with long olive green hair and a black choker around her neck.
You asked me what I wanted to be
Terrance, Tatiana, and Felix are hanging out in the mansion's mechanic room, clearly working on an android. After a short while, the machine's eyes lit up.
And now I think the answer is plain to see
Arnold and Desmond are competing by doing push ups with Nicholas keeping count.
I wanna be famous
Lucy and Jude came by and the former blasted an airhorn, surprising Desmond and Arnold and making them fall. She laughed before running off with Nicholas chasing them.
I wanna live close to the sun
The scene changes the timeframe and it showed Cyrus atop a tree, writing down on his notebook as Cassie and Desmond argued below.
Go pack your bags, 'cause I've already won
Inside an android factory, Nataline was cutting through against combat machines with an electric powered steel edged parasol as Terrance stood at the far end of the room, his psionic blade ignited.
Everything to prove, nothing in my way,
Terrance and Nataline ran towards each other and were about to clash when the ceiling above them came down in between them.
I'll get there one day.
After the dust cleared, Phoebe was shown to be there accompanied by two silver and black automatons, with the silver one carrying her as the other was shown to wield dual blades and stared unblinking at Terrance and Nataline.
'Cause I wanna be famous,
The camera panned to where Tatiana was fighting against both Jude and Arnold at the same time with lightsabers drawn.
Na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na
They were interrupted when blaster shots whizzed past them. They all turned to see Lucy running at them with dual blaster pistols, her red eye glowing. Tatiana was shown deflecting the next few shots and one of them hit Arnold in the shoulder, making him cry out in pain.
I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous
The camera switched scene to see Valerie trying to flirt with Nicholas, who only raised his eyebrow at her as he raked his silver hair.
I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous
The scene changed and this time Felix, Jane, and Marvin were seen covering each other's backs as they were surrounded by aragami. All three had their God Arcs at the ready as they prepared to fight them.
*whistle*
The merge cast can now be seen whistling while gathered around a campfire built in the middle of a post-apocalyptic city, with fighter jets and giant machines fighting in the background. Marvin and Phoebe sat in the middle, awkwardly staring at each other with no one making the first move. A large hologram in digital neon letters of cyan and silver flickered above them with the words 'Total Drama Sci-Fi Showdown: The Merge'.
"Last time on Total Drama Sci-Fi Showdown," Chris started with a wide grin as the camera panned in. "An aftermath episode was dedicated to the eliminated, and we got to see their reactions about the show and saw what they did during their stay there. We also asked them about who they think will win, and lastly, got them all hyped up after revealing to them about the three returnees for the merge."
The large hologram in the Drama Dome shone up to reveal the full body portraits of Nicholas, Valerie, and Felix. "Nicholas is known as a terrifying physical and strategical threat, able to lead his team in challenges that require strategy and heavy physical effort. He was a force to be reckoned with and his team definitely wanted to keep him around, until he screwed up by targeting Lucy too early." The hologram showed his his efforts to eliminate Lucy and his elimination that same night.
"And next we have Valerie, the resident flirt who made it to the team merge of two." The hologram showed Valerie and all her highlights in the show. "She was friends the biggest alliance on the Silver Terminators team and was supposed to cruise on by with them until a tie breaker happened between her and Shane which resulted in her elimination. That in turn resulted in the team being a bit more gloomy."
The hologram now showed Felix and his very few highlights. "And lastly, we have Felix the prankster. Out of all the returnees, he spent the least amount of time on this show, making him the less known and remembered. Not much is said about his talents and skills due to is early elimination so consider him the dark horse for the merge."
Chris spread out his arms in a dramatic fashion. "It's time for the merge and the competition is getting even harder. Will the returnees make a difference? How will the others react to it? Will strategies change? Will the drama intensify? Find out now on Total...Drama...Sci-Fi Showdown!"
It is early dawn in the virtual world, with everyone still asleep in their respective outposts. The whole place started to flicker in blue sparks, binary codes emerging through various objects and plants. Soon, even the outposts flickered and faltered, all of the virtual world morphing into something new. Objects and organisms shrunk and grew. The scenery altered into something completely different. After a long while, it became a completely different world. It now had mountain ranges and a desert, with plains to the far end. There is a great monolith sitting at the center of the new land, and hovering atop it rose an old and ancient temple tall enough to look like it rose above the planet. Made up of eight tall minarets and a pool at the center, it stood and housed the twelve contestants who thought they were still asleep in their outpost.
Everyone's clothing were altered so that they were already wearing their usual clothing, but their beds and pillows were removed and so they slept on the cold marble and stone. Chris' hologram appeared hovering above the pool. He raised his hand slowly and then the water swirled upwards, matching the speed of his raising palm. It continued to swirl and danced gracefully before stopping as Chris stopped moving his palm. He abruptly closed it, sending jets of water towards the contestants and splashing them all.
"What the hell!?" Arnold cursed as he immediately sat up, now soaking wet. The rest of the contestants followed suit, each with similar reactions to the rude awakening they received.
"E-Eeek!" Phoebe shrieked as she stood up and looked around frantically. "W-What's happening!?"
"I swear if this is Cyrus' new idea of a prank-" Nataline glared at the emo boy who raised his hands defensively.
"That wasn't me. I got soaked too you know." He defended.
"I know who did it." Jane glared towards the hologram floating above the pool, and everyone else followed her gaze.
"Of course it's Chris. Why am I not surprised?" Lucy rolled her eyes as her red eye glowed angrily.
"Got you guys there." Chris laughed. "Witness the power of the Force!"
"The Force? Seriously?" Terrance groaned as he tried to shake off the water from his glasses before wiping it. "This is obviously special effects."
"Maybe." The host shrugged. "But this is in theme of our next challenge."
"What? Splashing each other with water?" Jude raised an eyebrow.
"I'll tell you guys after this next announcement." Chris said irritably.
"Is it the fact we're merging?" Desmond deadpanned. "Because I'm sure everyone knows that already. We're half the cast after all."
"Is that all you know? But that isn't everything yet." Chris smirked.
"What do you mean? Is there a twist to this?" Marvin asked.
"Yes there is, Marvin." Chris said. "But I'll give you two guesses what it is."
"Is it a rest day?" Cassie guessed.
"No." Chris deadpanned. "Why would I give a rest day so freely like that?"
"Then maybe we all get free assets!" Tatiana cheered.
"Of course not. I want those without assets to suffer horrible or be creative." Chris said as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.
"Is Sarah coming back?" Arnold asked hopefully.
"Well you're almost right there, Arnold." Chris said. "The twist is that some eliminated contestants will compete again, but none of them is Sarah." He laughed.
"Aw man." Arnold frowned and sighed heavily.
"Exactly how many people will come back?" Lucy asked with a slight glare that nobody seemed to notice except for Terrance.
"And how is this fair?" The techie boy crossed his arms.
"It isn't. That's why it's fun." Chris chuckled as he snapped his finger. Three beams of light shone down on the marble floor in front of the contestants, silhouettes slowly forming from there. "Everyone, please welcome our three returnees for the merge!" He announced.
The beams of light ceased and left behind Nicholas, Felix, and Valerie. All the contestants got mixed reactions upon seeing them, and they started murmuring.
"Of all the people..." Lucy muttered under her breath as she glared at Nicholas, who caught her staring and gazed back at her evenly.
"Hello, Lucy." The detective greeted.
"Felix? Is that you?" Desmond said with widened eyes as he saw his former alliance member standing there in front of him.
"Don't worry guys, your reinforcements have arrived." Felix grinned confidently.
"Um, pretty sure only Desmond is happy to see you." Jane rolled her eyes.
"Heya!" Valerie greeted to her old alliance.
"V-Valerie!" Phoebe grinned upon seeing her friend.
"Howdy, Valerie." Cassie tipped her hat forward with a smile. "It's 'bout time you rejoined us."
"Alright alright, you can catch up on old times later. We still got a challenge to do." Chris said impatiently.
"But what about breakfast?" Marvin raised his hand to ask.
"Oh you'll be eating something, alright." Chris grinned. "You'll be full with the Force!"
"Can this day get any more awkward?" Cyrus sighed.
"For once, I agree with you." Jude shook his head as he stared at the host.
"Look just be quiet for a while and let me explain." Chris said irritably. "Today's challenge is lightsaber combat." Terrance's eyes lit up and so did Tatiana's.
"Really!? Is this for real!?" Tatiana bounced up and down. "Yes! I've been waiting for something like this!"
"Lightsaber combat? You mean like the one in Star Wars?" Jude asked.
"This has suddenly gotten interesting." Terrance adjusted his glasses as he grinned widely.
"Excuse me but what is this lightsaber combat?" Nataline asked.
"That's right, I forgot some people here are not in the loop." Chris nodded as he realized this. "Lightsaber combat is when you use these futuristic weapons to fight your opponents. They have a color scheme and sounds and everything."
"Nice way of explaining it." Felix chuckled.
"Quiet." Chris scolded the prankster. "As I was saying, most of these weapons are in the form of swords. You'll be given a variety of lightsabers to choose from, as well as the color scheme you want." He explained. He snapped his fingers again and a long table materialized in front of them, atop it are the various kinds of lightsabers. A machine materialized next to it, with different kinds of colored buttons on one side and a small tube in the other.
"This looks really fun!" Valerie cheered. "Do we get to choose if we're Jedi or Sith too?"
"This is the merge. It doesn't matter which faction you align." Chris shrugged. "Just hack and slash."
"Actually there's more to that than just-" Terrance started but Chris waved dismissively at him.
"I don't wanna hear it, geek." The host interjected. "Just choose your weapon already so we can get started." He pointed at Nicholas. "Starting with you." He said. The detective shrugged and went to the long table, walking while looking at the different types of lightsabers on display.
"Can I not use a blaster gun instead?" He asked Chris.
"Nope." Chris shook his head. Nicholas continued looking until he picked up a regular lightsaber. "I'll take this." He decided.
"Good. Now go over to that machine and put it on the tube." Nicholas did as he was told. "Then you press the button depending on what color you want it to be." The detective nodded as he understood the instructions. He went and pressed the blue button, and soon the streak of blue light shone down on the lightsaber for a few seconds before dispersing and leaving it as it was. He picked it up and turned it on, revealing a blue lightsaber.
"Cool." Tatiana squealed. "My turn, my turn!" She exclaimed as she went over to the table and picked out her weapon. She eventually picked out two lightsabers and excitedly went to the tube and shoved the two weapons inside. She pressed the red button and after the light dispersed, she got them and turned them on, revealing red dual lightsabers.
"Wait, we can do that?" Jane widened her eyes.
"That's right. You can have as many as you want, just as long as you can handle it of course." Chris chuckled.
"I'd rather not risk it, y'all." Cassie looked at Jane as she went forward and went for a weird looking lightsaber. "What's this?"
"That's a lightwhip." Chris told her. "It's like a lightsaber but it's longer and acts like a whip." He shrugged his shoulders.
"Looks hella strong." Casie grinned and took it then placed it at the color tube. She pressed the green button which got her the green lightwhip.
"I think I'll take that too." Jane smirked as she got a similar lightwhip and placed it in the tube. Instead of green, however, she pressed the red button.
"Good luck with those." Terrance muttered as the two girls went back to stand with the group.
"I think I'll go next." Felix said as he stepped forward to choose his lightsaber. His gaze fell upon a certain lightsaber that had a ringed emitter around the handle. He picked it up and saw that it has two ends, making it a double bladed lightsaber. "Hey Chris, what's this?"
"It's a sort of unique lightsaber with two blades and can spin on its own." Chris shrugged. "Sorry I'm not a geek."
"That's the lightsaber the Inquisitors use in that show, Star Wars Rebels." Tatiana remembered. "I don't actually suggest you use that. It's pretty difficult to wield."
"But it can spin on its own. It has to be cool." Felix defended as he placed it on the color tube and pressed the red button.
"I can already tell who's dying early." Terrance sighed.
"Yeah, it's you." Nataline said confidently as she stepped forward after Felix went back to the group. "Mine will be the one to cut you down." Terrance just glared at her comment as she picked up a regular lightsaber with a slightly curved blade. She went to the color tube and pressed the blue button which got her the blue lightsaber.
"We'll see about that." Terrance scoffed and went to go next. He carefully scanned the table full of lightsabers before picking up a lightsaber with a longer hilt then the regular ones. "The light-longsword." He grinned as he put it in the tube then pressed the blue button. He brought it to life the moment he got the finished result and Tatiana widened her eyes at the longer blade.
"What? Is that a new lightsaber or something?" The marksman asked.
"More like a variation of one." Terrance said as he did a few practice swings."
Nataline simply rolled her eyes. "So what if it's longer? It's not the size that matters, it's the performance." Everyone just gave her weird looks. Tatiana couldn't stifle a giggle and Lucy shook her head slowly but was grinning. Most of the guys looked a bit flustered, with Terrance looking so dumbstruck by her comment. "What? What is it?" She demanded. Finally realizing what she said, she blushed in embarrassment. "H-Hey! It's not what you guys think."
"Sure it isn't." Cyrus gave an amused scoff.
"Boys, take notes." Valerie chimed in teasingly.
"Can we just get a move on already?" Nataline crossed her arms and pouted.
"Then I'll go next if no one minds." Jude stated as he stepped forward. He looked at the array of lightsabers before picking up a double bladed one. "This looks cool enough." He muttered as he went to the tube and placed his weapon inside. He pressed the yellow button and out came his yellow double-bladed lightsaber.
"Bold choice. You sure you wanna go with that?" Chris asked the marksman.
"Yeah. It'll help me fight off multiple enemies." Jude said as he rejoined the others. "I suspect there will be lots of those in this challenge."
"He brings up a good point." Jane thought to herself.
"I wanna go next!" Valerie volunteered as she skipped over to the table. "My guy friends are hyped about this lightsaber thing so I wanna join the trend too."
"Why does that remind me of Betty for some reason?" Felix thought aloud.
Valerie picked out a regular lightsaber and pressed the green button once the weapon was inside the tube. She opened it afterwards and did a few strokes. "This is pretty cool." She giggled.
"Okay now who's next?" Chris turned to look at those who haven't picked yet.
"Might as well do my turn." Marvin shrugged. He went and got a regular lightsaber like Valerie, and pressed the green button to give him a similar green lightsaber.
"Did you just copy me?" Valerie pouted a bit when she saw Marvin turn on his weapon.
"Technically, mine is light green." Marvin pointed out. Sure enough, his lightsaber was a lighter shade of green than Valerie's.
"Almost everyone has a weapon now." Chris noticed. "Hurry up already so we can start." He told them.
"Fine. Let's just get this over with." Cyrus droned as he stepped up to the table and just grabbed two regular lightsabers and placed only one in the tube before pressing the blue button. Once he got his blue lightsaber, he placed the other one inside and pressed the red button to give him a red lightsaber.
"Mixing it up, are we?" Jane smirked.
"Making it colorful won't make you win." Lucy added.
"Shut up." Cyrus grunted at both of them as he went to stand a bit away from the rest of the group.
"Time for me to pick out mine then." Arnold stated as he boldly went forward. "Something flashy yet strong." He said to himself as he started to choose. He got a double bladed lightsaber like Jude and put it in the tube. He pressed the green button without hesitation and out came his green double bladed lightsaber. "Might as well represent my soccer team's color." He shrugged.
"Ya wanna go next, Phoebe?" Cassie asked the doll faced girl. Phoebe shook her head with a frown.
"N-No. I'm s-still a bit unsure." She answered.
"If she won't go first then don't mind if I do." Desmond said as he went up to the table. "Something practical that isn't the regular one." He then took interest in a lightsaber that had two power vents on its side. "Hey Chris, what's this lightsaber?" He asked.
"It's a crossguard lightsaber." Tatiana answered instead. "It has these two smaller blades beside the primary blade to act as a guard for the user's hand, oh and it helps in offense too."
"Why did you answer him?" Terrance groaned. He saw Desmond nod with a grin and took it to the tube. "Now he's gonna use it!" Tatiana immediately covered her mouth.
"Oops." Was all the gamer girl said before Desmond rejoined them with his red crossguard lightsaber.
"Only Phoebe and Lucy have yet to choose their lightsabers." Chris announced. "What will it be, girls?"
Lucy took a glance at Phoebe, who still seemed unsure whether to choose hers. With a sigh, the red eyed girl went to the table. "Might as well." She said. "Now that I've seen the others' picks, this should be good." She added under her breath. She went to grab two lightsaber tonfas. Placing it in the tube, she pressed the black button at the bottom of the palette and out came her black lightsaber tonfas.
"Hmm, it's an interesting choice." Nicholas spoke up as Lucy opened her lightsabers and held it with the blades pointing back along her arms.
"What's that?" Nataline wondered.
"I think it's called the guard shots?" Tatiana tried to remember.
"Guard shoto." Terrance corrected. "Or otherwise called a lightsaber tonfa. A short lightsaber with a perpendicular grip. I'm surprised she didn't just choose the normal lightsaber shoto." He adjusted his glasses.
"I don't know much about lightsabers, but I can tell she has a defensive advantage." Marvin said while looking at Lucy's lightsabers. "This could be bad."
Chris looked at Phoebe. "You're the last one. Get moving already."
"O-Oh." Phoebe frowned a bit as she stepped forward to look at the lightsabers displayed on the long table. She passed by each one until she found a regular lightsaber. She picked it up but found that it was too heavy for her. "W-What can I use?" She searched a bit more and found a relatively shorter lightsaber than the rest. Picking that up, she found that it was lighter and can be wielded by only one hand. She placed it in the tube and pressed the yellow button, giving her the yellow lightsaber shoto.
"Hey look, it matches part of her dress." Valerie noticed and grinned. This made Phoebe smile a bit.
"I k-know. That's why I chose t-this color." The doll faced girl said.
"It's as short as Lucy's lightsaber. I wonder what it's called." Desmond wondered.
"That's the lightsaber shoto." Terrance answered simply. "It's mainly used as an off hand weapon but some people use it when they can't lift a regular one."
"Can she fight with that?" Arnold scratched his head.
"Don't underestimate her." Jane scoffed.
"It's still a small lightsaber." Desmond shrugged. "She won't last long."
Phoebe frowned more and rejoined Cassie and Jane. Cassie glared at Desmond and was about to confront him when Chris interrrupted.
"Save the anger for the challenge. It's really gonna help." The host smirked. "It's time to explain how this challenge will work." He snapped his fingers and a hologram materialized in front of them. It showed three places. One was the mountain ranges, the second was a dense forest, and the third was in the desert.
"Are we gonna be fighting there?" Marvin asked.
"Right-o!" Chris exclaimed. "I will divide you into three groups for each of these battlefields. The ultimate goal here is to survive and be the last one left standing. The winner will receive the first merge immunity and therefore cannot be eliminated tonight. That sounds clear enough?"
Jane raised her hand. "These places look to be far apart from each other. How will we hunt down the others?"
Chris smirked. "I'm glad you asked. The last two contestants from each battlefield will be transported back here at these grounds to fight to the death. Call it the championship round."
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Cyrus rolled his eyes.
"To be honest, I like seeing lightsaber fights especially in the movies." Chris shrugged. "But knowing you guys, it might not be as great."
"We'll see about that, won't we?" Nicholas said evenly. "The challenge has yet to start."
"Then let's get this show on the road!" Chris said. "For the group that will scale the rough mountain ranges." The hologram reformed into five portrait slots. It showed the pictures of Nicholas, Lucy, Terrance, Nataline, and Felix.
"Oh?" Lucy raised her eyebrow with a sinister grin.
"I can work with this." Nicholas said.
"Really? I'm in the same place as him again?" Nataline pouted and sighed.
"Don't worry, you won't be for long once I'm done with you." Terrance scoffed and adjusted his glasses.
"Is that a challenge?" Nataline glared at him.
"It is!" The techie boy shot back.
"Can we please calm down for a bit?" Felix tried to ease the tension.
"No!" They both shouted in unison.
"Alright! Back to me!" Chris said impatiently. "Next is the group who will traverse the difficulty dense forest." The portrait slots changed and showed the pictures of Marvin, Phoebe, Cassie, Cyrus, and Tatiana.
"Yeah! This is gonna be so awesome!" Tatiana cheered. "Many ways to do lightsaber fights in a forest."
"At least one of us is happy." Cyrus rolled his eyes.
"Don't ya worry so much, Phoebe." Cassie turned to the doll faced girl. "I'll protect ya from Cyrus."
"O-Okay." Phoebe nodded.
"Sheesh, I'm over here you know." The emo boy sighed.
"And I'll help eliminate the opposition." Marvin said. "That is, assuming I can understand how to fight with this." He stared at his weapon.
"And lastly, the team who will walk upon the sands of death." Chris said. The slots showed the portraits of Jude, Desmond, Jane, Arnold, and Valerie.
"I should be fine. I remember going on a desert once with my family." Jane shrugged.
"Too bad my team never actually trained here." Arnold sighed. "Oh well, I'll manage it with my toughness." He flexed a bit.
"Wait, who trains in a desert?" Desmond asked.
"I know a couple of people." Arnold answered.
"Do you wanna team up for this?" Valerie asked Jane. The latter shrugged her shoulders.
"Sure, why not. But don't expect any mercy when it's time to go back here." Jane smirked. Valerie winked.
"I won't." The flirt replied.
"Hunt and conquer. This should be straightforward." Nicholas said.
"Well I guess I can tell you this now. The desert group are the lucky ones." Chris grinned.
"Why? Is it because they're more out in the open?" Lucy raised an eyebrow.
"Not really." The host shook his head. "It's still a surprise for now."
"Can we just start now?" Cyrus sighed.
Chris snapped his fingers and all of them were enveloped in a bright light. "When you all spawn in your locations, the challenge automatically begins. May the Force be with you." He smirked and they were all transported away.
~Confessional~
Phoebe: I'm n-not really good at this s-sort of thing. My sister a-and I used to watch Star Wars when w-we were little, but we never took that much interest i-in it. *she shivers in fear*
Jude: Too bad I wasn't in the same group as Lucy. I really wanted to protect her and help her reach the next part of the challenge. I hope she'll be fine on her own at least.
Cyrus: Sometimes I see the kids and teenagers in my neighborhood play with toys that look like these. *he ignites his lightsabers* So you could say I picked up a few things after watching them. They kinda suck though.
~End Confessional~
(Mountain Ranges)
Nicholas opened his eyes as he felt the rocky ground beneath him. Glancing around, he deduced that he was at an entrance of a small cave in one of the mountain ranges. He carefully analyzed his surroundings but found no sign of the others. Rocks and boulders of varying sizes decorated the place with no sign of plant life. The detective saw a few mountain trails that he could follow in order to proceed.
"Should I go find them?" He muttered to himself. "Staying here is a good idea too until Chris decides I'm eligible for the next phase. He didn't really say we should go out and duel. Just survive." He continued his monologue. Just then, he saw a silhouette of a person running along a rocky path just ahead of him. He found out that it was Lucy heading for the largest mountain range in sight. "Interesting." He silently followed her.
~Confessional~
Nicholas: I have to make sure that what she's planning won't happen. I learned that she can be devious even in challenges, and so I cannot let my guard down. Not anymore.
Lucy: Yeah I'm completely aware that Nicholas is following me. *she grins maniacally as her red eye glowed*
~End Confessional~
Over at another part of the area, Nataline was walking around while keeping her eyes peeled for anyone else. Her lightsaber had already been ignited and positioned in front of her as if to hold a defensive stance while walking. She experimented slashing at small rocks and slicing them apart. "This is pretty fun." She giggled to herself. She then heard noises from above her. Looking up, she saw Felix hovering above her, his ringed lightsaber propelling him in the air.
"Hey Nataline!" The prankster waved with his free hand as he landed in front of her.
"How did you learn to do that?" The lady tilted her head. Felix shrugged.
"I just turned on this button that makes it twirl around automatically. I got scraped a few times trying to control my flight but I got the hang of it easily." He said proudly.
"Well have you seen the others?" Nataline asked.
"Not really. You're the first one I saw. But you don't have to find them anymore." Felix smirked as he stopped making his lightsaber spin. "En garde!"
"I don't think that opening line fits in these sorts of things." Nataline frowned a bit as she took on an offense stance.
"Who cares? Let's get it on already!" Felix laughed as he charged forward first, jumping high into the air and slashing down at her. Nataline blocked the attack and held it in a saber lock before Felix made his lightsaber spin again and knocked them both back. The prankster couldn't find his footing in time and accidentally cut himself in the hip with his own weapon. "Argh!" He screamed in pain.
"I see that you have yet to master how to wield your lightsaber." Nataline noted. "I suppose flying is the best you can do." She smirked as she regained her stance.
"I'll get the hang of it too." Felix pouted and slowly regained his balance and prepared for her attack. Nataline charged forward with her lightsaber positioned to deliver a downward diagonal slash. Felix thought fast and blocked her attack but was not able to counter it. She followed it up with an upward slash and stepped forward to keep up the pressure. Felix block her next attack and the ones that came after, slowly getting the hang of how to use his lightsaber.
"Come on, just die already." Nataline frowned as she stepped forward again. This time, however, Felix managed to spin his lightsaber to deflect her attack and throw her off guard long enough for him to get betting footing. "What!?"
"Almost there. Just a little more practice." Felix said as he kicked her back. The lady staggered back and immediately went for a defensive position just as Felix threw his lightsaber at her.
"Practice? How dare you!" Nataline glared at him as she ducked his flying lightsaber right in the nick of time. She spun to the side after realizing it came back around to try hitting her in the back. "I'm not some practice dummy for you to get stronger."
"I figured as much. You're pretty good at this too." Felix admitted as he caught his lightsaber. "But it's time to get serious now." He laughed and was about to take the offensive when a loud roar can be heard from the distance. Rumbling in the ground is felt and they both turned to see a giant, ugly looking creature emerge from behind some large rocks. It tore down the obstacles blocking its path and storm towards them, letting out another menacing roar.
"What the heck is that!?" Felix stood there in fright and shock as the creature turned its attention to the prankster and began storming towards him, its huge arm raised to crush him.
"I need to get away." Nataline took this opportunity to back away and hide behind some large boulders to avoid the creature's wrath. Felix wasn't able to find a hiding spot in time and just began to run like hell out of there, the creature hot on his heels. Panicking, he turned on the automatic spin for his lightsaber and tried to fly away, but the creature's arm managed to catch him off the air and crush him, his avatar disappearing.
Nataline's eyes widened in horror but kept still in her hiding spot, waiting for the large creature to pass by without noticing her. A minute after the ordeal, Chris' hologram appeared beside her and he laughed. "Like it? That's a Rancor."
"A what?" The lady looked at him weirdly.
"A Rancor." The host repeated. "It's a, um, a local around here." He laughed more.
"Was that the surprise you meant to show us?" Nataline asked as she looked around to see if the coast was clear.
"That's correct. But don't worry, there's only one of it." Chris assured as his hologram flickered out before Nataline could ask any more questions.
~Confessional~
Felix: Seriously? Getting taken out by that creature really sucks! And I was getting used to my lightsaber too. But hey, at least I know how Nataline fights. She's pretty competitive if you ask me, even more so than the last time I remember.
Nataline: I should play it safe for now and find cover whenever I can. I can worry about Terrance after I'm sure I have the upper hand. But then, I wouldn't have to worry anymore. *she giggles*
~End Confessional~
(Desert)
Arnold and Valerie were staring each other down as they were in their battle positions. The desert was calm for the moment, making it easy for them to see their surroundings.
"You're not making it fair." Valerie pouted. "You have two blades and I only have one."
"I highly doubt you can wield a weapon as heavy as mine." Arnold taunted.
"Doesn't mean you'll win though." Valerie pointed out as she slowly walked forward while maintaining a defensive stance. She started with short blows and strikes yet Arnold was able to block them with ease. He used his shoulder to push her back and keep the distance.
"By the way you attack, I'm confident I will." Arnold said confidently as he took on the offensive. To his surprise, despite the flurry of attacks he did with his two blades, Valerie blocked and held her ground pretty well. She parried some of his hits and made sure to keep a good defensive stance.
"It's hard fighting in the sand okay." Valerie insisted. Arnold didn't let up and continued to launch attack after attack with excellent footwork, losing more and more confidence as he saw how good Valerie is. The latter continued to block with relative ease and used her steady stance to refrain from being off balanced. "My turn!" She cheerily said as she launched her own offense.
"Darn it." Arnold cursed as she managed to slash at his gut a bit. His relentless assault made him tired and unable to defend well, so all he could do was step back and try to whiff some of her attacks. Valerie did a few flips and jumps to get him even more confused. He desperately tried to fall back but the flirt's footwork was simply too quick for him to keep up.
"Hey look at that! I'm winning!" Valerie giggled and delivered one final slash across his chest right after deflecting his last attempt to counterattack.
Jane ran towards the sound of combat, and looked on in shock as she found Arnold's avatar flicker out with Valerie drawing back her lightsaber. "Valerie?"
"Heya!" Valerie waved to her. Jane blinked and went over to her. "Just won a battle. No big deal."
"Well yeah but that's Arnold." Jane pointed out. "No offense but I didn't think you'd come out on top."
"Well sometimes I like being at the bottom too." Valerie winked and giggled. Jane just looked at her deadpanned. "But it's really no big deal. I got somewhat of an experience with blades."
"Well that's good. Makes it easier to watch each others' backs." Jane shrugged her shoulders and looked around at the bare desert. "No one else is here so let's keep moving."
"Sure!" The flirt skipped over to her friend to catch up, though she stopped when she suddenly tripped due to the blanket of sand that caused her imbalance.
~Confessional~
Jane: Valerie must be pretty good with a lightsaber if she can defeat Arnold in a fight. Well that makes fighting her soon all the more worthwhile.
Valerie: My father is pretty big on swords, so I learned a thing or two from him and the movies that he always watches. I actually didn't expect to win that fight but hey, I'm not complaining!
~End Confessional~
Over at another part of the desert, Jude walked alone, his double bladed lightsaber ignited. He wiped the sweat off his brow as he went along. "This heat, I swear." He muttered dryly as he sighed to himself. "Wait, is that-?" He saw what looked to be two silhouettes in the distance. He ran towards it in hopes to finding someone else but got held back when a rush of air blew sand his way. He shielded his eyes but upon looking ahead again, he lost sight of it.
"Maybe it's just a mirage." He stomped his foot down in frustration. Another rush of air carrying sand swept by, this time catching the marksman in the eyes. "Ah come on!" He rubbed his eyes to be rid of it not knowing there was someone sneaking up from behind him.
"And…done." Desmond ignited his lightsaber and aimed to stab Jude in the back. The marksman reacted fast and spun around in time before the attack hit and was about to launch his own attack when Desmond disarmed him by efficiently cutting off his hand.
"Arggh!" Jude yelled out as he crouched down in pain.
"Too bad. Guess you aren't winning Invincibility." Desmond smiled and stabbed him in the chest, forcing his avatar to flicker out. "That was simple enough. Guess the sand got to him." He noted. "It's a good thing I'm used to travelling in deserts." He said to himself as he started walking the way Jude had supposed to go.
(Forest)
Cyrus was high atop a tall tree, sitting down on a large branch and leaning against the trunk. He looked down to wait for anyone to pass by him. "Ambushing someone should be easy." He smirked to himself.
Just as he said that, he saw Cassie and Phoebe walking on the path beneath him, talking to each other. Oblivious to the emo's presence above them, they continued on their way past the tree he was perched in. Cyrus grinned and took this chance to make his move. Sitting up from where he perched, he glared down at the doll faced girl. "This is for staying in the game without doing anything." He leaped off and aimed at Phoebe for a twin downward slash. He ignited his lightsabers at the right time and caught them both by surprise.
"Phoebe!" Cassie widened her eyes as Phoebe got cut down and her avatar disappeared without showing her reaction to the sudden assault. Cyrus landed safely on the ground then glared up at the ranch girl. "You!"
"And now you're next." Cyrus grinned slightly. He wielded his lightsabers in an offense stance as Cassie ignited her lightwhip.
"Ya think ya can best me in a duel?" Cassie almost scoffed at the idea. Cyrus kept his guard up as he waited for her to make her move. He was surprised when Cassie wielded her weapon and whipped at him, the crackling sound coming forth as green light flashed before his eyes. He immediately went to block it, but the force was strong enough to disarm his blue lightsaber on his right hand.
"What the-?" Cyrus said in shock before he had to block the next strike that was coming for him. He got imbalanced and staggered back.
"Ow!" Cassie exclaimed in pain as her second attack backfired and hit her in the leg. Cyrus took this chance to close the distance and kill her with an uppercut slash from his remaining lightsaber. The rancher thought fast and leaped back to dodge it and crackle her whip to counterattack. "Gotcha!"
"Tsk!" Cyrus blocked the hit but stopped in his tracks as he lost the momentum. To his surprise, the edge of Cassie's whip ricochet back to her and hit her in the backside, making her topple forward in shock and pain from her own attack.
"Agh! Why does this keep happening y'all!?" The rancher girl demanded as she struggled to get back up. Cyrus picked up his other lightsaber and charged forward to the vulnerable Cassie, aiming at her head.
"This time for sure!" The emo boy growled as he did a cross slash at her. Cassie panicked and block the attack by holding her lightwhip sideways and grabbing a part of the whip to stretch it out for a straight block. This caused her hand to get burnt immensely from the whip's plasma energy and she screamed out before Cyrus struck her down. After her avatar disappeared, Cyrus sat down on the ground and panted. He stared at her lightwhip that was left behind and shook his head. "It's dangerous, but risky." He noted. "Jane better fail trying to use hers too." With a victorious smirk, he got back up and started to walk.
~Confessional~
Cyrus: I gotta admit that I was scared when I saw Cassie use that whip against me. The blows from the thing hurts like hell so I'm glad she didn't use it properly. But if I see Jane in the final stage then I'm banging my head against the minaret.
Phoebe: I d-don't remember what happened to me. I j-just felt a sharp pain a-and before I knew it, I was g-gone.
Cassie: Y'all see that? I couldn't use my lightwhip properly and I lost to Cyrus too. *she tips her hat forward in embarrassment* Maybe I shoulda gone for a regular one.
~End Confessional~
(Mountain Ranges)
Lucy ran up a narrow trail that leads to the largest mountain in the range, going higher up in altitude and feeling a slight chill from the wind. "Almost there." She muttered to herself as she went on.
"Hold it right there!" A voice called out from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Nicholas coming up from behind her.
"You're too excited." Lucy giggled as she ignited her light tonfas and deflected the lightsaber Nicholas threw at her.
"This is the perfect place to hold a duel." Nicholas said evenly as he caught his lightsaber after the failed attack. "Nowhere to run or for dirty tricks."
"You know your facts well, almost." Lucy praised as she stopped and turned to fully face him. "But you were too focused on chasing me down that you actually got distracted. Ironic, right?"
"What do you mean?" Nicholas narrowed his eyes at her. He prepared an offensive stance just as a low roar can be heard.
"I made sure to lead us to where that large creature was supposed to go." Lucy explained. "I saw it earlier and decided to follow its movements and ended up here. You, on the other hand, simply went where I headed."
"A large creature?" Nicholas looked behind him to see the Rancor coming up to them, letting out a fierce roar at them.
"Now you have to fight on two fronts!" Lucy growled and grinned as she charged forward and went to strike his body with her light tonfas. Nicholas blocked blow after blow with a bit of ease as he moved back. Seeing the Rancor about to deliver crushing hit with its big hand through his peripheral vision, he rolled to the side and narrowly avoided it as the ground they were on shook by the force.
"Close call." The detective grunted as he stood back up. Lucy smirked as her red eye glowed.
"Next time you won't be so lucky." Lucy said as she ran up the arm of the rancor just as it lifted it off the ground. She slashed the neck and back of the creature, making it flail its arms wildly. Nicholas had to step back multiple times to avoid the hits, watching the rocks around them crumble and break at the Rancor's struggle.
"That creature isn't on your side." Nicholas stated as he prepared a defensive stance.
"I know. But the least I can do is guide it." Lucy laughed as the Rancor slammed its hands down in pain, the shockwaves catching Nicholas and swiping him off his feet. She then jumped off the creature and rolled on the ground to lessen the pain before jumping back up. "Now take this!" She growled and charged forward again. Nicholas, still on the ground, raised his lightsaber high to block all of her hits but felt his stamina deplete with each block.
"Not yet!" He exclaimed and kicked her chest. Lucy yelped and staggered back which gave him enough time to stand up and launch his own attacks. Lucy's light tonfas gave her a defensive advantage, however, and she found it easy to dodge and deflect his blows. "I didn't know you loved fighting."
"Only when it's necessary." Lucy smirked. "But in this game, it's always necessary." She said as she began doing counter-attacks, striking Nicholas on the thigh and side. The detective moved back as he grunted in pain, making sure to keep his distance. A loud roar interrupted both of their focus.
The Rancor regained his senses and began to wildly slam his massive arms at them. Lucy managed to jump to the side and slide under its legs. Nicholas, however, wasn't so lucky as he was knocked aside due to his injured leg not being able to help him dodge.
"Gahh..." Nicholas grunted as he accidentally dropped his weapon. Lucy saw this as a chance to go around the rancor to where he is, slashing at the Rancor's legs in the process to get it distracted. Once the large creature roared in pain from the lgihtsaber hits and began stumbling around to find Lucy, she went over to stand in front of Nicholas.
"You put up a good fight actually." Lucy admitted. "But I can still outsmart you." She smirked and slashed at his head, making his avatar flicker out instantly.
~Confessional~
Lucy: *her red eye glows* You see? He couldn't defeat me even in a physical challenge like this! I'm so much better than him!
Nicholas: I cannot believe she bested me again. She has gotten better at analysis and combat tactics. Though bringing in the creature was an underhanded strategy, she won in the end and can safely outmaneuver it. I only hope the others can defeat her.
~End Confessional~
Over at the other side of the largest mountain in the range, Terrance was busy heading up the trail, making sure not to trip over rocks that may cause a rockslide beneath him. With his lightsaber safely tucked inside his hoodie pocket, he had no problem using his hands to scale the rocky sides when needed. After reaching the highest point he could go from his vantage point, he slowly descended down towards the foot of the largest mountain.
"It's only a little further. After that, I have the high ground." Terrance adjusted his glasses. "If there's anything I learned from watching Revenge of the Sith, it's that I need to hold the high ground." He smirked as he continued his monologue.
"That's a good strategy. I hope you don't mind if I take it." Someone called out. Terrance turned and saw Nataline walking towards him, her blue lightsaber already ignited.
"I hope you don't mind if I take your life first." Terrance groaned as he got his lightsaber from his hoodie pocket and ignited it.
"Such violent words." Nataline commented as she assumed an attack stance.
"But it's true. It's not like you know how to use a lightsaber, or know which form you're using." Terrance stated as he assumed a defense stance.
"That's not what matters. What matters is that I strike you down and move on to the finals of this challenge then win Invincibility." Nataline shot back as she stalked towards him closer and closer.
"You seem confident." The techie boy rolled his eyes.
"That's because I know I'll win against you!" The lady charged against him with her lightsaber raised. She brought her blade down on him and he reacted with a horizontal block, entering saber lock.
"You're just a cocky rich girl who thinks she can win it all because everything has been laid out for her!" Terrance shouted as he pushed her back but remained on the defensive as she went for another well aimed strike at his gut, but it was blocked as well and they entered another saber lock.
"You don't know anything about me! I don't even know what's your problem with me!" Nataline retorted as she was able to push him back this time. She continued her fierce but graceful attack pattern against him which made Terrance move back bit by bit.
"You think you have it all, always so confident in your abilities. Well guess what? If it wasn't for Tatiana's Invincibility Statue, you wouldn't even be here!" Terrance gripped his lightsaber with two hands now and it became easier to block and deflect her attacks, making him hold his ground against her. He delivered short but precise hits to keep his distance from her before returning to his defensive stance.
"Like Nelly deserves the spot any better." Nataline rolled her eyes as she twirled her lightsaber and took a deep breath. "She was arrogant and pretty discriminating."
"Don't look down on her." Terrance slightly growled and launched his own counter attack, swinging his light longsword at her. Due to its longer size, Nataline was forced to back away more to block better.
"You're just saying that because she shares the same interests as you. You're being biased too." Nataline glared as she took a chance to attack again after dodging a high hit. "You're no better!"
"Then let your lightsaber do the talking." Terrance adjusted his glasses quickly before blocking her attack and moving back and higher up the mountain. Nataline relentlessly gave chase, using her footwork to try and catch him off guard.
"I know you're going to slip up soon." Nataline taunted as she managed to overtake him and move up faster. "And then I'll strike you down to show you why I deserve to be in the merge!"
"You're seriously pretty cocky for someone who has never used a lightsaber." Terrance shook his head as he slashed at her legs. Nataline did a flip out of instinct and gracefully landed. "Although your movement is pretty good, I'll give you that."
"Anything to bring you down." Nataline jumped back as she stood on higher ground now.
"Damn, she claimed the higher ground first." Terrance muttered to himself.
"What was that?" Nataline mocked. "Did you say something, dear?"
"Just thinking of ways to kill you while you're up there." Terrance smirked as he prepared for his attack.
"You said it yourself. The higher ground is beneficial." Nataline pointed out. "You can't seriously try to challenge your own theory." She twirled her lightsaber again.
"We'll see about that." Terrance jumped up high into the air and tried to deliver an upwards slash at her, his grip tight on his light longsword to make sure he doesn't falter. Nataline just smirked as she moved back to make him whiff, and dashed forward to cut off his arm that held his weapon just as he landed in front of her. "Gaahh!" He screamed out as his weapon fell to the rocky ground and rolled out of reach.
"And you took the bait." The lady said as she prepared to finish him off. Her eyes widened in surprise as he was able to block it still. She saw his other arm shoot forward and his psionic blade ignited in order to stop her killing blow.
"And you still underestimate me." Terrance shot back with a pained smirk as he elbowed her in the face.
"Ah!" Nataline staggered back a bit and Terrance was able to slightly slice at her arm. "Agh! Watch it!"
"I won't let you win. I'll keep at it until you're eliminated from this game!" Terrance said with conviction as he prepared to attack her once again. Nataline twirled her lightsaber and both contestants launched a flurry of attacks and blocks, each trying to gain dominance over the other or until one goes over the edge of the platform.
"Gaahh!" Nataline yelled as Terrance was able to swipe low to graze her left leg. She crouched down in pain but was able to block Terrance's killing blow. "N-No..." She groaned.
"It's over." Terrance said softly. "I can finally rest knowing I've beaten you." He smirked and was about to bring all of his strength into his last killing blow to finish her off. Nataline looked around frantically and saw that he was close to the edge.
"You're right. It is over." Nataline smirked and stood up, bearing the pain as she tackled him hard using all the strength she could muster at the moment. Terrance was caught off guard and wasn't able to resist the force, sending him over the edge and plummeting down to the rocky bottom, his avatar disappearing just before his body hit the ground. Nataline gulped as a third of her body was over the edge and she had to slowly crawl back to avoid meeting the same fate. "Finally." Panting, she stood up and dusted herself off with little improvement on her clothes.
Lucy came up to that same high ground moments after, her light tonfas still ignited. "So you defeated Terrance. I bet you're so happy right now." She snarled.
"Lucy, I trusted you." Nataline glared at her. "Why do you hate me?"
"All part of the game." Lucy stalked towards her, her red eye glowing. "Nothing personal." She charged forward then jumped high into the air before aiming down to slice off Nataline's head. Nataline reacted by delivering an uppercut slash to meet with her attack. Just as their lightsabers sparked due to collision, a beam of light shone down on the two of them to transport them back to the temple grounds.
~Confessional~
Terrance: No! Damn it! I was so close! Why couldn't I beat her? *he clenched his fists* I know more about Star Wars than her! I should be a better fighter than her! So why?...
Nataline: I knew I could win against him. So what if he knew so much about wherever this challenge was based on? I still won! I'm stronger than him! *she smirks victoriously*
~End Confessional~
Jane and Valerie continued to walk along the desert sands, hoping to find the others and defeat them. The former went ahead to guide them as they walked.
"Incoming sand." Jane called out as she shielded her eyes with her arm. Valerie did the same and they both felt the gust of sand blow past their faces.
"Remind me again who we're looking for." Valerie coughed a bit.
"Jude or Desmond." Jane said. "I'm not particularly fond of either. You?"
"They're hot but I can manage fighting them." Valerie giggled.
"Always the flirt." Jane commented with a roll of her eyes.
Valerie squinted her eyes as she saw a male silhouette in the distance, walking towards them with an ignited red lightsaber with crossguards.
"It's Desmond!" Valerie exclaimed as she pointed. Jane followed her gaze and soon enough, Desmond came into full view.
"So you two decided to team up? Not surprising." Desmond rolled his eyes as he stood a few good meters in front of the two girls.
"You sure you don't wanna surrender?" Jane smirked. "You've always been outnumbered. In alliances, and now in challenges."
"One day you'll get eliminated too. Being a physical threat and having such an overpowered asset will put you on the hot seat." Desmond countered. "So don't think for a second that you've won."
"Sheesh, no need to be so grumpy about it." Jane gave an amused scoff.
"Overpowered asset?" Valerie tilted her head.
"Trust me, you don't want to work with her. You wouldn't stand a chance against her." Desmond told the flirt. "Her asset is to turn into some sort of liquid metal and reform again, so she's almost impossible to take out."
"Wait, really?" Valerie widened her eyes.
"Don't listen to him." Jane grunted. "He's messing with your head."
"Messing with your head with facts." Desmond retorted as he assumed an offensive stance.
"Just shut up already. I can't wait to eliminate you after Arnold." Jane glared as she ignited her lightwhip and started off the fight by crackling it towards him. Desmond blocked it and immediately switched to a more defensive stance when Valerie went forward and followed up with her own flurry of attacks, each one not leaving an opening for him to attack due to the short hits and steady form she used.
"You're pretty good. Guess I'll...have a tough time." Desmond noted as he kept blocking her blows. He tried turning his blade every time their sabers locked to use the crossguards against her, but she kept seeing it coming and broke the lock everytime.
"I'm usually better in bed." Valerie winked as she jumped back and put her blade in front of her to defend against his attack. Desmond didn't take the bait and kept his distance. Just as Valerie stepped back, Jane went for another attack from her whip, this time making Desmond go off balance as he tried to deflect.
"Got you now!" Jane took the opportunity to unleash another whip attack, but pulled back her weapon too early and the edge of the whip lashed at both her and Valerie, wounding them. "Argh!"
"Hey!" Valerie pouted as she stepped to the side to keep a distance from her friend. "Watch it!" She scolded. She then took a knee and moaned in pain since the whip wounded her in the gut.
"Sorry. This is harder to wield than I expected..." Jane groaned in pain. She widened her eyes as Desmond went towards her with his lightsaber raised. She stepped back and tried to whip him again, but Desmond deflected it successfully and the whip hit Jane again, this time on the leg. "Gahh!"
"Shouldn't have chosen a weapon you can't wield." Desmond taunted as he slashed at her across the chest which made her avatar go down in a pile of liquid metal.
"Jane! No!" Valerie exclaimed dramatically. She slowly stood up while clutching her injured gut and staggered towards Desmond, who was spreading sand to cover the liquid metal with his foot. She then took notice of it and tilted her head. "What are you doing?"
"Were you not listening?" Desmond raised an eyebrow. "She can transform into this liquid metal when she gets fatal injuries then after a while she'll keep fighting when she reforms. That's what I meant. She can't die." He stalked towards her.
"That's good then." Valerie painfully said.
Just before they could clash, two beams of light shone down on them to teleport them out of the area and back to the temple grounds.
~Confessional~
Valerie: Actually, that light saved me. I don't know if I could have survived a fight against Desmond if I kept at it. But I'm just so mad that he was so mean to Jane! He's hot, but his personality needs to improve.
Desmond: I'm beginning to suspect that Valerie is experienced with swords. She chose the most basic of lightsabers but wields it effectively. Good thing Jane's whip injured her, could mean the difference out here.
Chris: Actually, I'm going to count that as Jane's loss. She didn't reform in a few seconds so it would suck if they had to wait it out. *he shrugs*
~End Confessional~
Tatiana was humming to herself as she walked along the forest part, her two lightsabers ignited and wielded with the blade facing down unlike the rest of the contestants besides Lucy. She heard a distant roar then frowned.
"That sounded like a rancor." She muttered as she kept going. She noticed Marvin hiding behind some bushes and called out to him. "Hey Marvin! I can see you there you know."
"Really? Guess that means I'm not so good at hiding." Marvin shrugged as he came out of hiding. He ignited his green regular lightsaber and did a normal stance.
"Is that Form I?" Tatiana tilted her head. "You wanna just do the basics then?"
"Is that what it is?" Marvin asked curiously. "I don't know much about Star Wars so I'm just trying to copy what those young Jedi do."
"Well yeah that's Form I. The most basic of forms." Tatiana said. "It's a raw form that focuses on disarming the opponent."
"Then maybe I'll need it since you're holding two weapons." Marvin pointed out.
"Well that's true." Tatiana giggled as she readied herself. "Let's go!" She moved first, moving in to slash at his head for a lethal strike. Marvin ducked just in time and blocked her other lightsaber that seemed to go for a low hit.
"A distraction?" Marvin moved back and went on the offensive, trying to slash at her wrists to disarm her. Tatiana blocked all his attempts with ease, however, and moved fluidly to go for a counter-attack. "What?" He moved back once again as he saw her go in for a strike, but his right arm still got grazed in the process.
"Almost had you." Tatiana exclaimed. "Just a little more." She twirled her lightsabers and leaned down a bit. Just then, they both heard a roar, this time much louder. "There's that rancor sound again."
"A rancor? Is that, like, and animal?" Marvin scratched his head.
"Well yeah it is. A very dangerous one though." Tatiana frowned as she looked in the direction of the roar. Marvin took this chance to dive in for an attack to disarm her once again. The gamer girl was surprised and desperately tried to block it, forcing a saber lock that ended in Marvin's favor as he managed to push her back and make her fall. "Hey no fair! I wasn't looking. I- " She was interrupted when a Rancor burst forth from the trees, knocking down trunks and roaring in a rage.
"So that's a rancor." Marvin said as he looked upon its massive size. "I expected it to be less...ugly." He said before moving back.
"It's ugly but it's really strong." Tatiana stated as she stood up. The Rancor let out another roar and went for the gamer girl. It slammed its large claw down the dirt, sending dirt flying around. Tatiana was able to jump back in time but coughed afterwards. "This is bad." She groaned before coughing again.
"I'll say." Cyrus' voice came from behind her. The emo boy emerged from the bushes with his lightsabers drawn, narrowing his eyes at both Marvin and Tatiana. "Well let's get this over with."
"Don't you guys wanna work together against that thing!?" Tatiana exclaimed as the Rancor roared and swiped at Cyrus this time. The emo boy was able to leap back and slashed at its arm a bit, making it growl in slight pain.
"I'd rather not. One of us just has to die and the other two will get to move on." Cyrus said as he assumed a balanced stance.
"Really?" Marvin asked in surprise as he got ready to fight again.
"Yep. Killed Cassie and Phoebe a while ago." Cyrus smirked. "If that thing can help me kill one of you, then it'll be enough."
"Oh yeah? Well I'm not planning on losing this." Tatiana pouted as she dodged another of the Rancor's attack. "I wanna go to the next level."
"I have to win for me and Phoebe." Marvin said. "You all understand, right?"
"Whatever. I just wanna win the million and go home." Cyrus rolled his eyes. He soon took the initiative and went for Tatiana, striking her with both his lightsabers which were met by her own, creating a saber lock. The gamer girl moved fluidly once again and was about to counter attack when the Rancor slammed both its arms down in between them. Cyrus lost the saber lock and was knocked back but it saved him from the creature's slam, catching only Tatiana.
"Well that just happened." Marvin remarked as he saw Tatiana's avatar immediately disappear. The Rancor roared again as was about to go for Marvin when he was suddenly struck by a beam of light and transported away.
"What?" Cyrus blinked. Just as the Rancor turned back to face the emo boy, a similar light shone down on him and took him away as well.
~Confessional~
Tatiana: Aw, I lost. I really wanted to be a part of the final leg of the challenge but I guess it's game over for now. I wonder if Nataline and Terrance both made it out alive in their end.
Marvin: I didn't expect that result at all. But this setting for the challenge has piqued my curiosity. Maybe I should watch more Star Wars and find out more.
~End Confessional~
The camera showed the temple grounds once more, this time with the remaining six contestants and Chris. Each of the remaining contestants stood atop a minaret with Chris standing at the center of the temple grounds. The eliminated contestants stood outside the grounds, watching the fight from there. The host spread out his arms dramatically as he looked at the camera.
"Welcome to the final leg of this first merge challenge." He announced with his signature grin. "As you can see, only six of our contestants remain. These are the people who did their best in surviving the chaos in their respective areas. Their avatars have been healed up upon transportation so they can start again fresh and active, so now let's see who these survivors are. For the Mountain Range group we have Nataline and Lucy!"
Lucy just scoffed and closed her eyes as Nataline gave a practiced wave and smile to the camera. "Next, for the Desert group we have Desmond and Valerie!"
The flirt winked at the camera and gave flying kisses while Desmond just gave a short nod, still glancing at the rest of his competition. "And lastly, the Forest group survivors are Cyrus and Marvin!" The host gestured towards the last two.
Marvin gave a small smile to the camera while Cyrus rolled his eyes and just crossed his arms in annoyance. "Can we get on with it now?" The emo boy demanded.
"Just be patient." The host answered irritably. "As I was saying, these six will battle it out in these very grounds, staining these sacred temple with their anger and animosity."
Lucy couldn't help but give an amused scoff as she opened her eyes and looked around. "Quite the introduction. Now how about we give the crowd what they want?" Her red eye glowed just as she said this.
"You're right, Lucy. We should!" Chris agreed before turning back to the camera. "And without further ado, let the challenge...begin!" He pressed something on his wrist and his avatar flickered out.
Desmond nodded towards Marvin and they both jumped down from their minarets. Valerie giggled and jumped down as well.
"Let's get him, Marvin!" The flirt said as she ignited her lightsaber. Desmond and Marvin did the same, with the latter looking conflicted.
"Help me kill her. She's too dangerous to duel." Desmond said to the other boy as he stalked forward towards Valerie. Valerie took up a defensive stance out of instinct.
"But you're the physical threat." Valerie pouted. "Join me in this, Marvin!"
"Well...I..." Marvin looked from Desmond to Valerie. "This is hard." He admitted.
"No it isn't. He's our alliance's enemy." Valerie pointed out. "What's stopping you?"
"N-Nothing of course." Marvin breathed out as he turned to Desmond. "Let's get him."
"What!?" Desmond glared at Marvin and angrily slashed at him, though the latter was able to block in time.
"I'll help!" Valerie chimed in and went forward and did a short hit on Desmond. He grunted and twisted his lightsaber enough to catch the hit with the crossguard. "Go, Marvin!"
"Right." Marvin hesitated a bit but dived in and was able to slash Desmond at the gut, injuring him.
"Damn it!" Desmond cursed and stepped back, but both Marvin and Valerie pressured him and kept on the offensive, both using only short hits to keep him on his feet.
"We got good synergy." Valerie winked as they cornered Desmond against a minaret. She slashed upwards and cut his shoulder while Marvin hit his leg.
"I think so." Marvin said as he panted a bit. Desmond grunted in pain and desperately tried to make them back away by slashing wildly. Valerie was able to defend the blows in time but Marvin got hit across his stomach, making him stumble and double over in pain. "Gahh! That hurts..." He groaned.
"Hey you'll pay for that!" Valerie glared at Desmond and soon went on full offensive, clashing against Desmond's lightsaber until he gave in and she stabbed him in the chest. With a yell of agony, Desmond's avatar flickered out. "We did it! Marvin, we- what!?" She stared in shock as she saw Marvin's avatar flicker out as well.
Lucy stood there in is place, an evil grin on her face and her black light tonfas ignited. "I'm sorry, did you still need his services?"
"Why you-!" Valerie charged forward to attack but Lucy easily blocked and did a counter attack, slashing her arm up a bit. "Ayie!" She moved back and immediately raised up her lightsaber in a defensive position.
"You like going on the defense huh?" Lucy smirked as she raised her light tonfas tauntingly. "Then you should have went for these."
"Lucy! We aren't done yet!" Nataline called out as she ran towards the red eyed girl, her lightsaber ignited and ready to deliver a killing blow.
"Oh it's you, Nataline." Lucy blocked her attack with one of her tonfas. She saw Valerie about to dive in to attack her as well. "Come on, flirt. You wanna go for it?" She glared at her.
"A-Ahhh...No." Valerie backed away, clearly intimidated. She then took off running.
"Wait! We can beat her together!" Nataline called out but to no avail. Lucy laughed as she pushed her back and readied her stance.
"Guess you're on your own. Just like always." Lucy said darkly. "You lost your alliance, and your enemies are still here in the game. It's over." She gave a side smirk.
"I'm so used to being alone, it doesn't bother me anymore." Nataline glared and continued her flurry of attacks, each one met with a block and deflect from Lucy. However, Lucy wasn't able to launch a counter attack due to how graceful Nataline's footwork was as she went on the offense.
"Why isn't there an opening?" Lucy scowled as she kept moving back.
"Oh look, a cat fight. Not surprising." Cyrus said in a bored tone as he approached them. "I'll join in."
"Nobody cares." Lucy rolled her eyes. "You're not that strong anyway." She broke off from her fight with Nataline and went for Cyrus, immediately disarming him of one lightsaber as he was trying to block. She followed up her attack with a kick to his guts and he stumbled backwards.
"Damn, she's faster than Cassie and Tatiana." Cyrus shook his head and got up.
"Is that all you got?" Lucy taunted then immediately spun around and blocked Nataline's surprise attack with one light tonfa. "Sneaking up on me won't help you." She added as she won the saber lock and pushed her back.
"This is proving to be difficult." Nataline remarked. She then went with another flurry of attacks. Lucy once again started to block and deflect with ease.
"But of course. You think I'll just move over for your victory?" Lucy made a face before doing a backflip.
"Yeah and now you forgot about me." Cyrus said as he dived in for an attack. Lucy widened her eyes at his sudden confidence as she blocked his attacks. Cyrus pushed hard in the saber lock which forced Lucy to add in her second light tonfa to keep up the defense. Nataline saw this as an opening and immediately dashed forward to deliver a lethal uppercut. Lucy tried to break free of the saber lock but the other girl was simply too fast. In a blink of an eye, Lucy's avatar flickered out as Cyrus fell due to the lack of counter-force. "Ow."
"I did it!" Nataline cheered.
"'We' did it." Cyrus corrected with a roll of his eyes as he dusted himself off and picked up his fallen lightsaber. "Are you that prideful that you couldn't even give credit where credit is due?"
"Sorry. I am thankful though." Nataline said softly. "But we still have to fight." She pointed her weapon at him. Cyrus did the same.
"You're right." The emo boy narrowed his eyes at her but then saw Valerie hiding behind a minaret. "But maybe I'll go deal with the other girl first." He said before running towards where Valerie was.
"Hey! That's rude you know!" Nataline called out in annoyance as she chased after him. Valerie saw them both come and squealed in surprise when Cyrus suddenly slashed at her. She ducked behind cover to avoid his lethal strike before jumping back up and facing him.
"Wait! I'm still injured." Valerie pouted as she used her defensive stance to block his next attacks.
"Don't care." Cyrus went for another attack but Nataline's lightsaber caught it and they were soon in saber lock. "Stay out of this!"
"No way, I'm going to win this challenge, even if it means taking you both on." Nataline insisted as they both broke the saber lock.
~Confessional~
Nataline: I won't lose now. I'm so close to winning immunity. I need it...I really do.
Cyrus: Being the one to defeat Valerie will show Cassie's alliance that I'm still in this game. I can't be humiliated!
Valerie: *she winces in pain as she gripped her injured arm* It still hurts.
~End Confessional~
Valerie kept going on the defensive as Cyrus relentlessly attacked her with his lightsabers. "You're just like Lucy. What's with you people and defense?" The emo boy grunted irritably. Valerie broke her defensive stance and did a short hit towards his ribs, which connected and he got grazed. "Gah!"
"That's what happens when you keep talking." Valerie giggled before groaning in pain as she felt her injury kick in again. "Oww..."
"Don't forget about me." Nataline exclaimed as she dived in and elbowed Cyrus to the side before turning her attention to Valerie. She used her graceful footwork to get around the other girl as she attacked.
"Your style is different." Valerie remarked as she had a tougher time trying to defend against it. "Have you been practicing?"
"Let's just say holding swords isn't new to me." Nataline smiled sweetly before delivering an accurate blow to her other arm. Valerie crouched down and squeaked in pain.
"Oww." The flirt pouted. Nataline was about to deal the final blow before she saw Cyrus in her peripheral vision. She spun out of the way in time before the emo boy could stab her straight through the heart.
"Almost there." Cyrus grunted. He didn't let up though and dashed forward to stab Valerie instead. The flirt was too injured to resist him and so her avatar flickered out immediately. "But it's not all a loss."
"Hey that was my kill." Nataline pouted.
"Shut up." Cyrus retorted as he went for a balanced stance. Standing in front of her, he narrowed his eyes and waited for her next move.
Nataline took one step forward to intimidate him but the latter didn't flinch. She took another step forward with her lightsaber pointing towards him. Cyrus kept his gaze straight at her, his feet shifting a bit in anticipation. With a short breath, Nataline dived in and slashed him across the chest. Cyrus managed to block the hit but stepped back to get better footing. The lady moved to the side a bit and positioned herself to strike again.
"Got you." Cyrus said and used his other lightsaber to strike down at her legs. But due to Nataline's position, she was able to deflect his attack and swipe upwards, putting him off balance. "Or not." He blocked her follow-up attack and pushed her back.
"You think this will be easy?" Nataline narrowed her eyes at him as she twirled her lightsaber then slashed downwards, clashing with Cyrus' lightsaber as he blocked it then ducked to avoid his head hit.
"Well you have one lightsaber while I have two." Cyrus pointed out. "This battle is mine." He went for a kick but Nataline side stepped then slashed at his leg, cutting it slightly. "Argh.."
"Even if you do have two, you don't seem to know how to use them." Nataline giggled and blocked Cyrus dual strikes, seeing his wrathful face.
"I've just had about enough of you." The emo boy growled and roughly pushed her back against a minaret before stabbing her shoulder.
"Aahhh!" Nataline screamed and rolled out of the way just as Cyrus slashed downwards on where she once stood. "That's it!" She dived in and went on a saber lock with him. Cyrus grinned as his free lightsaber went for a gut stab but Nataline saw this coming and twirled around gracefully before slicing his wrist, making him drop his blue lightsaber. "Just like earlier." She muttered to herself with a smirk.
Cyrus went down on his knees as he stared at his missing wrist. "Damn it!" He cursed. He looked up only to see Nataline bring down her lightsaber on him, making him flicker out and eliminated from the challenge.
"Nevermind. This was easier." Nataline giggled.
"Congratulations, Nataline!" Chris announced as his avatar appeared behind her. "You have won the first merge challenge and therefore you are immune tonight." He said. "Moreover, there is another reward waiting for you after the elimination ceremony."
"Yes! I won!" Nataline cheered. She then cleared her throat and waved politely. "I mean, naturally."
"The rest of you can go plan your votes right here. We finished late so I'm only giving you thirty minutes to come up with your votes." Chris announced and soon everyone dispersed to go discuss their votes.
~Confessional~
Terrance: *he adjusts his glasses and had a scowl on his face* I kinda wished Cyrus won so that we could finally eliminate Nataline. But I guess everyone has their days. I just wish she had none when it came to the merge.
Nicholas: This is my chance to eliminate Lucy. I have to get Nataline to vote with me as well as some others. It's truly a shame Nelly had to go, for she would have been a valuable ally at this time.
Desmond: I hope Marvin is on board with eliminating Cassie still. Even after knowing Jane's asset is overpowered, the fact remains that Cassie's social skill will get her further. She has to be cut off immediately if I want to win.
Tatiana: Since Nataline is immune, that means Lucy won't bother me about it. *she sighs in relief* Right? *she suddenly gulped*
~End Confessional~
Desmond met up with Marvin who was looking down below the edge of the temple grounds.
"Hey, let's talk strategy." The former said as he joined him.
"I'm curious to know if earthquakes will ever affect this place." Marvin wondered out loud.
"You can wonder about that later." Desmond sighed. "Right now I need you to tell me if you still want to vote for Cassie tonight."
"Well yeah of course." Marvin said as he looked at him. "But only if you can tell me you have the votes for it."
"You have to help me gather those votes." Desmond stated. "But otherwise it should be easy after knowing how much of a threat she is."
"Are you sure? Because it seems lately that the others are more agitated over Jane's asset more than Cassie's overall threat level." Marvin shook his head.
"Then help me persuade them. We can't let Jane be eliminated this early." Desmond said. "It will ruin my plan." He explained.
"Maybe Arnold will join us in this." Marvin thought out loud.
"I'll go get him and then I'll talk to Felix. I know he's still loyal to me." Desmond grinned. "You just stay put and don't draw any suspicions." He jogged off, leaving him behind.
Meanwhile, Cassie, Jane, Phoebe, and Valerie met up under one of the minarets for their alliance meeting.
"I saw Desmond approach Marvin earlier." Jane told them as she jerked her head towards the aforementioned duo, who were already splitting up.
"Don't cha worry 'bout him none." Cassie waved her hand. "Desmond's alliance was lost ever since Sarah got eliminated, y'know."
"So who are we voting off tonight?" Valerie asked. "I'm now willing to vote off Desmond even though he's hot." She sighed.
"I don't think that's a good option right now." Jane thought for a bit. "We should get rid of Cyrus instead."
"R-Really?" Phoebe blinked.
"Makes sense. He's been tormenting Phoebe more times than the rest." Cassie pat the doll faced girl's head. "He has to go."
"And I'm sure some others would be willing to vote him off as well. Especially those on his former team." Jane added. "We don't even have to talk to them anymore."
"Aw, seriously? I wanted to socialize more." Valerie giggled.
"We all should catch up instead." Cassie suggested.
"That i-is a good idea." Phoebe nodded. "V-Valerie, how was the resort?" She asked her friend.
Valerie beamed and they all began talking about Valerie's stay in the resort. Unbeknownst to them, Arnold was watching them from afar with a slight glare.
"You still pissed at them?" Desmond suddenly approached the soccer player. "This is your chance to avenge Sarah."
"How?" Arnold sighed. "Maybe they'll just plan to vote either one of us out. They have the numbers after all."
"Not absolutely." Desmond pointed out. "And I'm planning to vote for Cassie tonight. I have the votes to make it happen."
"Really?" Arnold looked surprised. "Who?"
"Felix and Marvin." Desmond stated.
"Wait, why Marvin?" Arnold asked.
"He agreed to vote her out because she's a physical threat. Next will be Jane if things go our way tonight." Desmond said. "Afterwards, we can work together to eliminate him or sell him out so that his former alliances mates won't take him back."
"That's a really good plan." Arnold conceded and shook Desmond's hand. "You got my vote." Desmond grinned and nodded.
Desmond turned to look at Felix and gave him a thumbs up. The prankster did the same with a wide grin on his face.
Over at the other side of the temple grounds, Nicholas met up with Nataline. The latter was currently having casual talk with Tatiana when the detective approached them.
"Ah, Nicholas. You remember Tatiana, right?" The lady motioned towards the gamer girl, who waved.
"Yes I do. You're from the Red Sith." Nicholas politely bowed. "I'd love to stay and chat but first thing's first. We need to talk about the votes."
"We already did that." Tatiana chirped. "We're gonna vote for Lucy!" She exclaimed.
"Is that so?" Nicholas can't help but give a small smile.
"Tatiana told me how Lucy basically threatened her not to use her Invincibility Statue on me the night I was supposed to go home." Nataline frowned. "But you didn't tell me what the threat was."
Tatiana blushed and looked away. "It's nothing important right now."
"I see. It matters not. What matters is that we are voting for her tonight." Nicholas said evenly. "She is manipulative and an excellent strategist. We cannot let her be the puppeteer."
"You're right." Nataline agreed. "But afterwards, can we work together to vote off Terrance for me?" She asked nicely.
"Very well. I do not harbor any special connection to him so consider it a trade." Nicholas nodded. Both of them turned towards Tatiana, who cleared her throat and hummed.
"Of course. He is a threat after all." The gamer girl said.
"I know you're close with him. He did help you build your asset after all." Nataline pointed out to her. Tatiana shook her head.
"But it's already the merge. He understands that it's everyone for themselves." Tatiana insisted.
"Then that's good enough for us." Nataline smiled. Nicholas stared at Tatiana for a moment longer before breaking his gaze and looking elsewhere.
"Should we go talk to the others?" The detective asked.
"I'm sure they'll know to vote for her too. I think some of them knows about her dark side anyway." Nataline assured.
Lucy was leaning behind a minaret, clearly eavesdropping on their conversation. She smirked before joining Terrance and Jude a few ways back.
"I overheard them and who they're voting for." The red eyed girl said. "They are gunning for me tonight."
"Seriously? Not Cyrus or someone from the Silver Terminators?" Jude blinked. "What are they thinking?"
"I do not know. But what I do know is that we have to take action." Lucy said.
"So we vote for either Nicholas or Tatiana?" Terrance raised an eyebrow but Lucy shook her head.
"We will vote for Jane. Think about it, someone with an overpowered asset like that will only prove to be dangerous in the challenges to come. We got lucky she did not win immunity tonight, but no one can say for sure how many times she may win in the near future." Lucy explained. Both boys nodded in understanding.
"But there are only three of us." Terrance pointed out.
"Leave the numbers to me. I know who to talk to." Lucy giggled as she left them.
"She's cute when she makes strategies." Jude suddenly blurted out when Lucy was out of earshot. Terrance just made a face at him.
Marvin was currently talking to Cyrus, in the same place Desmond had originally found him. Lucy saw them and smirked before approaching them.
"And I do wonder about-" Marvin was cut off when Lucy cleared her throat.
"Excuse me, boys. I'll leave you two alone in a bit right after we have a short important talk." Lucy said as her red eye glowed.
"You got another plan?" Cyrus raised an eyebrow.
"Are you two in an alliance?" Marvin glanced at Cyrus and Lucy.
"Something like that." Lucy answered before Cyrus can. "And don't worry, you won't be left out of this conversation. You might want to hear my proposal too."
"So who's the target this time?" Cyrus crossed his arms.
"Jane." Lucy said simply.
"Done." Cyrus shrugged nonchalantly.
"Just like that?" Marvin blinked. "You're not going to question her motives."
"It's useless to think deeper into this. I had fun seeing Nataline's face of despair when she got the most votes last night. So I figured I should just stick to whatever Lucy suggests." Cyrus explained in a bored tone.
"And you should consider doing the same, Marvin. You don't want a power player like that roaming around, do you?" Lucy giggled as she turned on her heel and walked away. She then called out. "And don't worry about the numbers either."
~Confessional~
Marvin: I wonder if I should vote for Cassie or Jane tonight. Cyrus told me that Lucy's judgement yields good results. But then, we don't have a special connection or anything. I want to trust Desmond, but perhaps Lucy is the better investment. After all, she is physically weaker and I would hope that it's easier to defeat her even when she's a finalist.
Tatiana: I can't let Nataline know I like Terrance. It would just make things awkward for all three of us! But the way Nicholas looked at me sent chills down my spine. I wonder if he knew I was lying.
~End Confessional~
After some time has passed, Chris called them to the middle of the temple grounds and told them to sit on the floor while he stood before them. There was a cart next to him with fourteen golden space food containers.
"Welcome, final fifteen, to the first merge elimination!" Chris spread out his arms for dramatic fashion. "This time, anyone can vote for anybody! But tonight, no one is allowed to vote for Nataline because of the immunity she got from winning the challenge." Nataline smirked at Terrance upon hearing it, and the techie just rolled his eyes.
"Get on with it! I want to sleep!" Cyrus called out irritably.
"You're not the host here!" Chris retorted. "Anyways, it's time I say who's safe for tonight." He got one container. "The first one goes to Nataline because of obvious reasons." She caught her space food container.
"Phoebe." The doll faced girl received hers and sighed in relief.
"Nicholas." The detective easily caught his with one hand.
"Desmond."
"Tatiana."
"Jude."
"Terrance."
"Felix."
"Valerie."
"Marvin."
"And Arnold." After the soccer player caught his space food container, the remaining ones who weren't called glanced at each other. "The rest of you who haven't been called have received at least three votes." Chris announced.
"Three?" Cassie blinked. "That means the votes were split."
"That's correct." Chris nodded. "But those who just got three votes and are safe are..." He paused. "...Cassie and Lucy!"
The two girls caught theirs and Cassie breathed a sigh of relief while Lucy just smiled. Chris glanced between Cyrus and Jane. "One of you will be eliminated tonight."
"Not surprising." Cyrus grunted.
"But...how?" Jane blinked as she looked at her alliance members, who looked worried too except for Marvin who was deep in thought.
"The final golden space food container goes to..."
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..."Cyrus!" The emo boy smirked victoriously as he caught the container and bragged it to Jane's face.
"You see this? That means I'm staying and you're going!" Cyrus gloated. Jane glared at him and stood up.
"Shut up. You aren't tough enough to beat me in a real fight." Jane scoffed.
"Any last words before we send Jane off?" Chris asked the others.
"I'm g-going to miss you." Phoebe looked to be on the verge of tears as she went over to hug her friend. Cassie and Valerie followed suit and pat Jane on the back.
"Ya fought well." Cassie tipped her hat forward. "We'll win this for ya."
"Thanks." Jane smiled at them.
"Say hi to Wesley for me." Valerie winked. "But seriously, it sucks that you have to go. I was hoping we could talk more."
"We can keep in touch after the game is over, Valerie." Jane said to the smaller girl. They all let go and she rested her gaze on Marvin, who was looking at her with an almost pained expression. She gasped a bit but then grinned.
"Hey Marvin! Take care of Phoebe, alright?" She told the boy.
"Yeah..." Marvin nodded. Jane nodded towards Chris.
"I'm ready to go." She said. A beam of light was preparing to shine down on Jane to take her out of virtual reality.
"Jane, you have finished this game in 15th place. For real this time." Chris said.
Jane rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I had fun playing the game with my friends by my side. And now I can take a break from all of this." She glared at Cyrus who was smirking at her. She went over to him and did a slide kick to knock him off before the light shone down on her and took her away before Cyrus could get his revenge.
"Good riddance!" The emo boy angrily and painfully called out.
"The rest of you will be transported away as I terraform this place again." Chris announced. "Except you, Nataline. You're coming with me."
"Where are we going?" The lady blinked in confusion as she went over to Chris.
"I'm taking you to your other reward for winning." Chris said to her as he pressed something on his wrist and both of their avatars flickered out first.
"I wonder what it is." Tatiana thought as she went with Terrance.
"I don't care. It's probably not that important." The techie boy just shrugged his shoulders.
~Votes~
Nicholas: My vote goes to Lucy. I cannot let a manipulative yet intelligent person like that continue to play. It would be dangerous.
Cyrus: Jane has to go. That asset of hers is too strong. That, and like I said I just want to follow what Lucy orders me to do. *he shrugs*
Phoebe: I'm g-going to vote for Cyrus. I u-used to like him, but I have my friends a-and Marvin now. I'll be a-alright, I think.
Jane: Time for Cyrus to get the hell out of here. Seriously though, how did he survive until merge!?
Nataline: As much as I want to vote off Terrance as revenge, I need to play smart. I have to vote off Lucy so that she won't be able to pull the strings. Poor Tatiana, I can only imagine what that manipulative snake said to her.
Terrance: So Nataline's immune, huh? I can always get her out next time. For now, I'll vote for Jane. I need to make sure my assets are the strongest and with her around, it can't be made possible. *he adjusts his glasses*
Lucy: With no more Invincibility Statues, there is no way for an elimination ceremony to go wrong for me. I vote for Jane, so I better see some good results. *she laughs as her right eye glowed red*
Jude: I'm gonna do what Lucy says and vote for Jane. Honestly, she's a good rival in terms of physical challenges. But hey, less rivalries means higher chance of winning.
Tatiana: I vote for Lucy! I hope this works because I really need her to be gone so my secret is safe, assuming she hasn't blabbed it to Terrance already.
Cassie: Me and my alliance be voting for Cyrus. Y'all are wondering why he made it to the merge? It's cuz we weren't on the same team as him during the team swap. He would have been gone already if it was up to us.
Marvin: After properly considering both my options, I have decided to vote for Jane tonight. Even though Cassie is a social and physical threat, we should also consider the fact that Jane might win challenge after challenge. It's easy for her because of her asset, and I don't want to risk it. Sorry about that, Desmond.
Desmond: My vote goes to Cassie as planned. I already explained why she needs to go and I'm too tired to repeat it.
Arnold: I vote for Cassie! This one is to avenge Sarah!
Felix: Desmond said I should vote for Cassie, so I will. I'm not that great of a strategist and I'm still going to let Desmond decide all that. I just want to improve on my challenge skills, you know.
Valerie: Cyrus has to go. In fact, he gives emos a bad name by being such a pain in the butt. I hope no one takes after him because that would just suck.
~Eliminated~
(24th place) Richard - The Maestro
(23rd place) Delilah - The Serpent
(22nd place) Harvey - The Chill Guy
(21st place) Betty - The Phone Addict
(20th place) Wesley - The Blue Blood
(19th place) Shane - The Lone Wolf
(18th place) Ivy - The Distant Cloud
(17th place) Sarah - The Rocker Girl
(16th place) Nelly - The Arrogant Nerd
(15th place) Jane - The Survival Expert
Chris can be seen standing in the Drama Dome with the blue hologram showing the terraforming process. He spread out his arms with his signature smirk. "And there you have it folks, the first merge elimination has been done. With the cast all merged together and three returnees to rejoin them, no one is truly safe from each other. Will Cassie's alliance find out who eliminated their friend? Will Lucy be able to hold all the strings when it comes to eliminations or will Nicholas be able to stop her in time? When will Terrance's and Nataline's heated rivalry end? And what is Nataline's other reward? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Sci-Fi Showdown!" He exclaimed as the camera panned out slowly then turned off.
I always did imagine Jane to go home early on in the merge so I got no qualms with her leaving as the actual first merge boot. I'd like to think I did well on her character. Strong and protective of her friends while staying safe all throughout the team phase. I bet some of you wanted to see her asset in action more. Well I'm sorry to say that if I did, I might as well hand her the million. And since I don't plan on doing that, I decided to drop her here. Sorry to all the Jane fans out there. See you next chapter. :) XBloodLegendX