Chris Above Ground Recap

"Last time, on Total Drama Crios Cath…

Tensions were boiling in each of the four clans, as the men of Cumhachtach all schemed to assassinate their leader, Tiberius. Thanks to Laura's observations, Anemone and Alice learned that they had each been using the other one, and their solid duo morphed into Mealltach's next drama. Ryuji pleaded with Jeremy to get rid of a corrupted Laura on Cyfrwys, and Kalyssa egged him on. Over on Alltud, Arianna continued to butt heads with her new teammates, and Setsuna continued to stay quiet in the shadows. The challenge was a high stakes game of cops and robbers involving all four clans stealing coins from the desert, and in Alltud's case, the other clans, and thanks to both Michael's and Ryuji's assistances, they managed to emerge victorious over all the other clans, sending all three of them to elimination! Tiberius was slain by the joint efforts of Frag, King, and Stan, and while Michael tried to play the loyal follower in an effort to curry favor, he underestimated Tiberius's hostility towards the team as a whole, and Stan became the new king for no other reason than his last name. Alice convinced Maggie to vote off Anemone with her and Rose, while Jarri voted for Rose as a reminder for past actions, and ultimately sent Anemone down to the Shameterranean. Finally, Kalyssa managed to trick Laura into misvoting during the Cyfrwys elimination ceremony, opening the door for Ryuji and a convinced Jeremy to eliminate her from play above ground, and finally giving Kalyssa the rulership status she's been after all game, making her, owing to her immunity medal, virtually indestructible on her clan of 3 members. Now to Chef to the events of the Shameterranean!"


Chef Underground Recap

"Those three eliminated contestants all went down underground! Tiberius found the old True Resting Place! Now it's his! Anemone found a Force Exile Idol and a Team Shift Idol at an altar! She sent one up, and kept the other one, but then she got yeeted down a Pit of Peril by an unknown assailant! Mateo pulled Laura into his secret tunnels and revealed that he yeeted Anemone! He asked her to be his queen and they made out! Now there's nothing but dangerous people down in the Shameterranean!"

"Will this trend continue?" Chris butted in. "How will Cumhachtach and Cyfrwys fare with new leaders? What did Anemone send up? Who will be the next to have their torch snuffed? Find out right now on Total! Drama! Crios Cath!"


*Survivor's: Ancient Voices starts playing*

As the music begins, various shots of Crios Cath from above are time-lapsed and shown through the screen, notably the highlands, the forest, the bog, the lower fields, the desert, and underground.

Cumhachtach

A red figure holding a red stag skull flag is shown, before the camera zooms in so only the image of the flag is on the left side of the screen. Meanwhile, the right side of the screen pans over the lands that Cumhachtach owns, before showing its remaining members in alphabetical order, doing various tasks.

Frag is putting in effort to freehand climb up a cliff in one shot, and drumming on a large rock while smiling in a second shot.

King pulls an incredibly healthy looking carrot from the ground in one shot, and is raising both his arms up in a cheer in a second shot.

Michael is throwing an object as if it were a baseball in one shot, and crouching and peering through some bushes in a second shot.

Stan is side-stepping through water and rallying the rest of the team in one shot, and harvesting some wheat in a second shot.

Mealltach

A green figure holding a green dryad flag is shown, before the camera zooms in so only the image of the flag is on the left side of the screen. Meanwhile, the right side of the screen pans over the lands that Mealltach owns, before showing its remaining members, in alphabetical order, doing various tasks.

Alice is seen twirling her hair suggestively as she looks at someone off-screen in one shot, and breaking out into a sprint through sand in a second shot.

Jarri is seen picking fruit off of a tree and examining it in one shot, and tossing a spear in slow motion in a second shot.

Maggie is busy dusting off her stone slab bed in one shot, and organizing various makeshift tools in a second shot.

Rose is seen playing with a large conifer branch as though it is a fan in one shot, and is running along, clapping and shouting in a second shot..

Cyfrwys

A yellow figure holding a yellow king and queen flag is shown, before the camera zooms in so only the image of the flag is on the left side of the screen. Meanwhile, the right side of the screen pans over the lands that Cyfrwys owns, before showing its remaining members, in alphabetical order, doing various tasks.

Jeremy is seen placing the DA on its True Resting Place in one shot, and staring intently at the Tine Naofa Bonfire, aware of what elimination means in this game, in a second shot.

Kalyssa is waving semi-flirtatiously at the camera in one shot, and is swinging a club at something hidden in the grass in a second shot.

Ryuji is seen cracking open a cactus with a large rock in one shot, and covering his eyes as he laughs and points at something off-screen in a second shot.

Alltud

A dull grey figure holding a dull grey broken chain flag is shown, before the camera zooms in so only the image of the flag is on the left side of the screen. Meanwhile, the right side of the screen pans over the lands Alltud owns, before showing its remaining members, in alphabetical order, doing various tasks.

Angelo is hauling sandstone in one shot, and harmoniously playing a violin in a second shot.

Arianna is quickly turning her head to look behind her, her twintails whipping around as she does so in one shot, and is cupping her hands while shouting so loud her face is going red in a second shot.

Axel is crouched over and brooding by himself in one shot, and confusedly looking over a map in a second shot.

Carol is facing off against a giant scorpion while holding a makeshift spear in one shot, and is energetically cheering her team on as she sidesteps with them in a second shot.

Setsuna is shown curiously looking at a trap in the ground in one shot, and calmly firing an arrow from a bow in a second shot.

Shameterranean

A white figure, holding a druidic artifact, is seen falling down into what appears to be some kind of underworld, before the camera zooms in so only the underworld image is on the top half of the screen. Meanwhile, the bottom half of the screen pans over the Shameterranean caverns, before showing the remaining players trapped there, in alphabetical order, at the moment of their elimination and doing various tasks.

Laura is getting her torch snuffed by Chris one shot, and is seen staring down off-camera arrivals to the Shameterranean in a second shot.

Mateo is getting his torch snuffed by Chris in one shot, and skulking through the tunnels of the Shameterranean with a sinister grin in another shot.

Tiberius is getting his torch snuffed by Chris in one shot, and pacing around the first True Resting Place in another shot.

The camera zooms out to reveal that all the figures and underworld were part of the same picture, the season logo connecting them like a belt.

Total Drama Crios Cath


Location: Neart Highlands (Cumhachtach Territory)

Contestants: Frag, King, Michael, Stan

Frag woke up late for the third time in three days.

For all his faults, Tiberius at least would get the clan moving.

Stan had struggled with getting anyone to rise in the morning.

The extra energy was nice, but there were chores that needed doing around camp, chores that required everyone put in effort and wake up on time. Tiberius had made sure it was the king's duty to get the members of their clan up and running.


Confessional: Frag: Clan Cumhachtach

"Tiberius is actually gone, which… I'm still trying to process right now. But Stan is...so far it feels as if Tiberius could've made a rock the new king and things would be about the same. Three days and I haven't seen him lead one successful plan."

End Confessional


Stan was out in the highlands, angrily carrying flour in a sack made from his shirt, as Michael trailed behind him.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know to bring the sack?" Michael shrugged with a snicker.

"Because I specifically told you to bring the sack by the door!"

"And I did!" Michael gestured. "I took the sack and I put it by the door!"

"It was already by the fucking door!"

"That's why I thought it was a weird command!"

"I wanted you to bring it with us!" Stan groaned. "Anyone could have seen that!"

"Well, y'know, maybe you aren't as clear as you think you are! Spell these out in the future, sheesh!"


Confessional: Michael: Clan Cumhachtach

"Nah, I knew what he meant the first time. But he's wearing that crown and that's something I'm not about to let go. Him? Him? Anyone would have been a more acceptable choice than mister 'I'm boring Stan Manley who thinks doing nothing is the same as doing something!'. Freaking really, Tiberius? I'm going to need to turn public opinion against this man as far as I can if I'm going to have any hope of surviving right now."

End Confessional


Confessional: Stan Clan Cumhachtach

"This is not the first time this has happened. Michael convinced the others to sleep in on day 1 of my reign. Michael has 'misplaced' bags and important tools we've created on more than one occasion. Michael 'forgot' to keep the fire in our fireplace going, it's just, does he think I can't see the pattern here? I can see the fucking pattern, Michael, but unlike you, I am not a coward. I won't pick fights from the shadows. I'll deal with you when the time is right."

End Confessional


"Welcome back, you two!" King welcomed Michael and Stan as the latter handed him a shirt full of flour. "Why didn't you take the sack by the door?"

"Beats me." Michael shrugged. "I told him, too."

"Oh shut up, no, you fucking didn't." Stan rolled his eyes. "I told you to bring the sack by the door."
"Yeah, and I brought it right to the-"

"Michael-!" Stan rose a hand but got the better of his emotions. "I'm not about to have this exact same argument with you again! Let's skip to the end where you go 'lighten up' and I go 'fuck you' and we head off in opposite directions!"

"Hey, lighten up!" Michael obliged.

"Fuck you." Stan opened the door to the Cumhachtach cabin to head outside and was face to face with Chef.

"Oh, uh, I wasn't talking to you, Chef, I was talking to Michael-"

"Don't matter." Chef picked up Stan and plopped him in his jeep. "You've been summoned to the Mealltach campsite."


Confessional: King: Clan Cumhachtach

"Ah, so Stan has been summoned to the ladies in the forest, ja? Hopefully he can get information from them without giving any of our own away. It also gives me time to decide whether I want to stick with Michael or Frag the next time we need to vote someone off. I could really use a known ally on this team right now, that's for sure."

End Confessional


Location: Lower Ceol Fields (Cyfrwys and Alltud Territory)

Contestants: Jeremy, Kalyssa, Ryuji, Setsuna

"Hup!" Setsuna pulled on her makeshift rod as she fished in some of the new Alltud territory.

The cord snapped.

She soon found herself tangled in a fishing line, and rolling downhill, away from the stream.

"Uh-oh." She noticed an area up head filled with small hills and holes in the ground, likely where some prairie dogs or moles preferred to burrow.


Confessional: Setsuna: Clan Alltud

"I had gone for a while without getting myself caught up in a trap. I thought maybe it was over. I guess I thought wrong."

End Confessional


"Oof." She spoke in a monotone as her body came to a halt against what felt strangely like a wooden bucket.

"Wait… I recognize this feeling."

She rolled herself over.

Sure enough, there was an idol right beside the bucket, along with instructions for what it did and how to use it.

"Ah." Her eyes widened.

She inched her way closer, contracting and expanding her body like an inchworm.

"Almost… theeereee…."

Finally, she managed to rest her head on the idol.

"Whew. Okay. This is mine now, I touched it…"

She rolled over again to read the instructions.

"Congratulations… you have found the Clan Shift Idol. You may play this whenever you wish to join any clan other than the one you are currently on with no restrictions."

She looked up at the sky.

"No restrictions huh?"

She inched toward the idol again, and picked it up using her mouth.

Once again she rolled onto her back and spit the idol out.

It landed in her hand.

"Okay…" She took a deep breath. "I can't see me getting anywhere with this Alltud mess. Everyone views me as relatively useless. They sent me way out here to get fish when we live right near a water source, after all.

"Hello?" She called out. "I'd like to play this Clan Shift Idol!"


Shift Camera Focus

The Cyfrwys three all sat around their campfire.

Kalyssa had her immunity medal around her neck, her legs crossed.

"So…" She grinned as Jeremy and Ryuji both did their best to stare into the fire and let the time fly by that way.

"Which one of you should I eliminate first? The outsider Alltud? Or the deposed king who wouldn't even be back up here on a normal playthrough? It's an interesting dilemma."

"You better hope that medal isn't a fake one." Jeremy warned her. "We aren't going to turn our backs on each other because you threaten us."
"Precisely why this real medal is keeping me safe the next time we lose." Kalyssa smiled. "It's good to be queen, but it's even better to be invincible. And since I am invincible, let me tell you what I know. Apparently Stan and Michael were in alliance but no longer are. Michael and King were in an alliance, but no longer are. Maggie and Jarri formed an alliance recently as well. And Alice and Anemone were an alliance, but it appears that is no longer the case either."

"Why tell us all of this?" Ryuji wondered aloud without looking up from the fire.

"Because you're going to lose anyway." Kalyssa hummed. "I can bet however much land I want. As long as I don't bet too much of it, I can keep big bets going, and either it'll pay off tremendously or we'll be living with much less land to work with. Either way, I won't have to worry about being voted out. One of you will go home the first time, and the other right afterwards. Your only alternative is to carry me to the merge."

"If one ever even happens." Jeremy noted. "There's only fifteen of us left above ground. Out of thirty-six starting contestants, that's more than merge-worthy."

"I don't mind being a clan of one up until the finale." Kalyssa shrugged. "You two are pretty much dead weight anyways."

"Yeah, yeah, dead men walking, we're well aware." Ryuji sighed.

"You know-" Kalyssa stood up, only to be cut off by the sound of Chef's jeep pulling up.

"You!" He pointed at her. "You've been summoned to the Mealltach campsite!"

"Oh!" Kalyssa grinned. "Someone wants to know what this new queen of Cyfrwys knows it seems. Very well, I'll leave these profligates alone with their looming demise."

She entered the jeep and noticed both Stan and Setsuna in the back seats.

"Aight, next stop, Mealltach!"


Confessional: Kalyssa: Clan Cyfrwys

"I have no idea what that one Ffydd nobody whose name I don't remember is doing in this jeep, but it appears Stan and I are the rulers of the hour~."

End Confessional


Confessional: Jeremy: Clan Cyfrwys

"Finally, a break from the constant put downs she's been giving the two of us. We better do our damnedest in these next few challenges, because as it stands, we're quite literally at that twisted girl's mercy."

End Confessional


Confessional: Ryuji: Clan Cyfrwys

"You know, for a cunning clan, these guys certainly have had trouble showing it. We're the only one with only three players left after all."

End Confessional


"What are we going to do, dude?" Jeremy asked as he tossed another log on the fire and the two of them began to move around and stretch, bringing life back into their bodies.

"I have no clue, man." Ryuji sighed. "Maybe there's a way we can steal the immunity medal off of her."

"Maybe." Jeremy shrugged. "I'm not too keen on theft, but when the alternative is...this...I'm not sure how much room there is for being squeamish about it."

"I get what you mean." Ryuji sighed. "So I don't know if this will make you feel better or worse but I'm having trouble thinking of a time when I'd be able to even snag that thing away from her."

"Yeah, she guards that thing like it's her life. I guess it is her life in terms of the game at least."

"I hear ya."

The two sat back down.

They stared at the fire.


Location: Glas Woods (Mealltach Territory)

Contestants: Alice, Jarri, Kalyssa, Maggie, Rose, Stan


Confessional: Rose: Clan Mealltach

She sighed. "So, at Tine Naofa last night, Chris decided it would be fun to rip open a band-aid that had already been fairly sealed. It's not like Jarri hates me or anything, but if I want to be a good ruler, I have to make up for my past mistakes. I unfairly put Jarri at a disadvantage, but giving her my power only evened the playing field. I have to do more."

End Confessional


In the heart of the campsite, the fire glowed, giving the only sense of light. Jarri was cooking breakfast. Alice was off grabbing firewood, supposedly.

Rose sat on the log opposite to Jarri. "Jarri."

Jarri stirred the jam. "Good morning, Rose."

"A-About Tine Naofa."

"Before you continue, I don't hold any beef with you about Tine Naofa. I just spoke my mind on the situation."

Rose shook her head. "I'm done apologizing to you. We both past what happened. We understand each other's viewpoints." She sighed. "We need to move forward, or else were gonna lose someone more valuable than Alice again."

Jarri put her hand on her head. "So what are you saying?"

"I don't plan on going to elimination. That's never been my thing, but I sort of understand now why these conversations matter in the first place." Rose put her hand on her chest. "You have my vote."

Jarri's eyes widened. "Really?"

Rose nodded. "Not that I ever plan on losing."

Jarri laughed. "You'd better not!"

They giggled.


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"I feel like, this entire time, this was the leverage I was looking for."

End Confessional


And so they laughed and ate and Maggie too joined them on the fun. The three would stick together until Alice was done.

Jarri bowed off Rose and Maggie, for her day was soon to get filled with all kinds of strategy.

Chef pulled up in his jeep and dropped off the princess. Jarri would soon learn that Kalyssa's game was flawless.

"Enchanted to meet you, Jarri." Kalyssa bowed.

"Um," Jarri's eyes darted around. "Nice to meet you, too."

Kalyssa pushed the trees out of the way as she led Jarri into the Mealltach camp. "Beautiful campsite.. It's endearing."

"Thank you, Kalyss-"

"That's Queen to you."


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"So she is the Queen. Perfect! So that means Laura the Conqueror is gone!"

End Confessional


Jarri cleared her throat. "Actually, that's prisoner Kalyssa!"

Kalyssa turned around. "I beg my pardon?"

"And you shall not be pardoned!"

The Queen did not back down. She smirked. "You're making a powerful enemy!"

Jarri shrugged. "Maybe, but I outnumber you!"

Kalyssa sat down by the fire.

Jarri turned her back on her, and paced a few steps forward.

Kalyssa rose an eyebrow.

"If you think you could rise upon your former queen's fall, that would make you all the more conspicuous."


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"It's not that Kalyssa is powerful, no. That was Laura. And she was powerful because she built herself up to be powerful. Kalyssa inherited Laura's position upon that power, even though Cyfrwys has lost all that land they once had, it doesn't mean they're over." Jarri put a finger to her lips. "I think us clans go a little too easy on Alltud. Let's give them a challenge!"

End Confessional


"You know…" Jarri turned back to face Kalyssa. "Your clan members will vote you off next time you three head to Tine Naofa."

On the queen's face emerged a sinister grin. "I wouldn't say that if I were you…"

And there, Jarri's eyes filled with dread as Kalyssa's medal swung off the tip of her finger.


Confessional: Kalyssa: Clan Cyfrwys

"Reactions like those are what I live for."

End Confessional


Shift in Camera Focus

Chef's jeep landed where Alice dragged her sticks along.

"Thank you, Chef." She said.

Stan looked around in the forest. "I've never been here before."

Alice bowed. "Greetings, Your Majesty~."

Stan, not knowing what else to do, bowed back.

"Allow me to show you around."

"Very well." Stan spoke curtly with a nod, and motioned for Alice to lead on.


Confessional: Alice: Clan Mealltach

"Ah, so we had the overly arrogant in Tiberius and now we have the overly methodical in Stan. You see, I thought Clan Cumhachtach was going to be an awesome and savage force, but then, I forgot they are simply foolish teenage boys."

End Confessional


Confessional: Stan: Clan Cumhachtach

"I was called by this girl, Alice, to the Clan Mealltach campsite. She is no doubt trying to pry information out of me. Information I do not intend to share. I will remain as robotic as possible to let her think I'm useless. If she's someone worth keeping an eye on, she'll try every trick in the book to get me to talk. If she doesn't then I can say she isn't a threat to the clan of the stags and we can all write her off if we're in the merge. Ultimately, this trip is about her giving me information. If nothing else, now I know what their campsite looks like."

End Confessional


Alice led Stan to the conifer huts meant for guests. "So Stan?"

Stan sipped his tea.

"Are the boys treating you well?"

"Fairly so."

"Oh yeah?"

"Quite."

Alice placed a hand on Stan's leg. "I hope you're enjoying your stay here. I like to think I'm treating you just as well."

"You are." Stan nodded with a quick smile.

"Ah, so you guys are all getting along then, now, that's good." Alice smirked.

Stan stayed silent.

Alice grinned.


Confessional: Alice: Clan Mealltach

"It's okay, Stan. You can play Mister Methodical all you'd like. I know how to read your eyes. You have at least one person on that clan you aren't getting along with, and that might be all the information I'll get out of you right now, but it lets me know that I can still get information out of you!"

End Confessional


"This tea is very good." Stan complimented. "Do you all know how to make it or is it just you?"

"We all do. We use the berries as sweeteners to constitute for the bitter taste."

"A good idea." Stan nodded.

He sipped his tea again.

"Who would you say is your best friend in that clan? Tiberius?"

Stan's nose twitched.

"Frag?"

Nothing.

"Michael?"

Stan's nose twitched again.

Alice had her answer.


Location: Ionad Desert (Alltud Territory)

Contestants: Angelo, Arianna, Axel, Carol

Alltud sat around their fire, most of their morning chores done. Except for one.

Carol laid with her face up to the sky. Grey clouds moving in. Very little spots left for the sun to creep through. Her hands relaxed on top of her stomach. "Man, I wonder where Setsuna is with the fish."

Axel lifted his head, trying to detect the time with the sun. "If only these godforsaken clouds would get out of the way!"

Angelo sighed. "Axel, yelling at the sky won't make the clouds go away."

"I'm just hungry too. The challenge is about to begin, and I will go nuts if I don't eat before the challenge!" Axel caught sight of Arianna staring at him while toying the flames with a stick. "What are you staring at, villain?"

Carol sat up and shook the sand out of her hair. "Axel, I don't care how much of a villain you think she is, she's in our clan now, so that means we have to try to get along."

The vigilante ignored Carol and stared right at the snake. "You're lucky Setsuna is late."

"Well," Angelo stood. "Somebody might as well go on to check on her."

"You might not want to do that." Someone said.

Everyone turned their heads to the voice. Chris walked up to the hungry Alltud. "Alltud."

"Greetings Chris." Angelo waved.

"I have some unfortunate news for you."

"Great." Arianna sighed under her breath.

"Setsuna will not be making her trip back to the desert."

Axel's eyes widened. "A shark ate her?"

"Nope. She found a Clan Shift Idol sent up from the Shameterranean. It's to my understanding that she found it while stuck in a trap and playing it would be her only way out of the trap. She is now in a different clan. Good luck in the challenges to come." Chris left.

Carol stared at the ground. "So, now our supposed breakfast isn't coming anymore."

Angelo patted her shoulder. "Come on, let's try to get some fish. We'll start another fire at the Ceol Fields. We'll bring the cooked fish from there. You guys can come along earlier if you are that hungry, but please, watch the fire."

"Sounds good." Axel said.

Arianna gently nodded.

Angelo and Carol set off on their little journey.

As much as adventure was fun, this one was not. The stress bubbled up in Carol's chest. "Angelo, what do we do now?"

"We get our food."

"No, I mean with elimination."

Angelo stopped in his tracks and turned around. "We're Alltud. We don't have to worry about that." He said as the sand transformed into grass. The pair put their shoes on again.

"We have to worry about it because we're Alltud. We are the clan that gets the harder challenges. We should go to elimination more than any other clan, but we don't because we bust our asses off in the challenges." Carol takes in a breath. "I don't know. I know it's nothing to worry about, but… I feel like the obvious vote off just left the clan. Not that I'm mad at her, I just don't know what to do."

"Perhaps you miss Maggie." Angelo squatted over the stream flowing with fish.

Carol sat down, with her brows scrunched together.

"You can't say Arianna or Setsuna are the most friendly towards you."

She shook her head. "This isn't what this talk is supposed to be about. Who do we vote for if we lose?"

Angelo looked up at Carol. "So, you're implying you want Axel gone?"

"He is a bit of a pain when all he talks about is wanting to get rid of the villains. I don't care if they're bad people it's still a downer."

"He and Gazella were the reason why we dominated at the beginning. Only going to Tine Naofa once. You really wanna take him down over the untrustworthy Arianna."

"I feel like we should give her a chance. Nobody has done that yet. It's kind of rude that we're going off of Axel's assumption."

"I see." Angelo thought for a moment before catching a fish. "Until Arianna does something that proves she isn't as villainous as she seems, I'm keeping my vote for her. I don't want to put too much trust on her."

Carol nodded. "I understand."


Confessional: Carol: Clan Alltud

"This game has just gotten way more stressful in just one little announcement. Alltud has never been down to four before. Most would say it's the muscle that counts, but I think it's the sheer number of people and how well they are able to work together as a clan. I keep having to remind myself not to be afraid. We combine our strengths and do not fear the challenges. Use the clans' strengths against them, so that their strength becomes ours. But loss is another thing. Chris has been going harder and harder on us since we were on our little winning streak. I could tell he was happy when he made that announcement. This challenge won't be easy for us. I can feel it, so I wanna be prepared for the elimination ceremony."

Carol took a breath before continuing. "When Setsuna was here, it was pretty simple just to vote off her, given she never really had a care when it came to wagers or in challenges. But now that she isn't here anymore, I don't know. At first, my thought was Arianna, but just to vote her off without even giving her a chance? I'm not so sure about that. It must be running through her mind too. Of course, I'd love to talk to her about it, but I'm cautious of her. Like Angelo, I'm not ready to give her my full trust, which is why I went to talk to him. I don't want him gone. I see Angelo as valuable to this clan. He may claim that it was Axel and Gazella that made us dominate, but it was us, as a clan, and he was the glue. I still think he is the glue based on what his thoughts were on the vote." Carol sighed. "I really hope Arianna comes through before the next Tine Naofa."

End Confessional


Confessional: Angelo: Clan Alltud

"Carol is most definitely the glue of Alltud. She has just convinced me to consider changing my mind about Arianna, but, of course, the only person who truly can change my mind is Arianna herself."

End Confessional


Back at the Alltud camp, Axel kept his constant vigil of Arianna.

"The other two were likely going to let you stay over that woman. Consider yourself on thinner ice than before, snake."

Arianna rose a brow, keeping her arms crossed.

"You might be in this clan now…" Axel continued. "But I know you're a deceitful witch. I've known since the ship. It's glaringly obvious in fact."

Arianna stood up, catching Axel's eyes. She grabbed the pot, and ever so slowly, very slowly, drew some water from the nearby oasis. From Axel's view, she was playing with the pot.

"And playing with our toys isn't going to get you any points with us." Axel groaned as he stood up and stoked the flames of the fire, making sure to keep it going as Angelo and Carol had requested.

Arianna turned her head, her twin tails whipping her face in the process. She hoisted the water pot, some of it spilling in the process.

"And putting negligible effort into a fake 'nice girl' act isn't going to get you far." Axel walked towards her. "Instead of faking trouble with the pot, just carry it like this." Axel took the pot from her.

Arianna held her hands out, massaging them. A curved red indention ran along her palm outlined with yellow. She glared at him. Her hand scooped up the moist sand, compressing it into a ball. Michael-styled, she pitched the sand orb.

Fwt!

"Gah!" Axel nearly tripped into the fire with the pot as he felt the impact against his back.

"You are so fucking lucky that didn't ruin the fire! This is why I'm not about to give you any sort of 'chance' like one of my bleeding heart clanmates. And if you think you'll earn their trust by lying to them, you clearly haven't studied this game as much as you think you have. In fact, since you seem to style yourself clever, why the hell are you putting on a fake act to begin with? Surely you knew it'd blow up like it has already."
"Well, Carol sure has lasted a while in this game hasn't she?" Arianna asked, but paused a little.

Axel opened his mouth to respond, but she had already cut him off.

"I figured she'd be the first to be voted off of Alltud, if not Ryuji or Maggie, but she's still here. Why, Axel?"

Axel eyed her for a second to make sure he wouldn't be cut off again, before responding. "Because the three people that received votes during our one elimination ceremony were myself, Ryuji, and Gazella, for various different reasons. Carol hasn't been outright weak, and as far as we're all aware has been nothing but honest and trustworthy. Unlike your old clan, we value those things."

"Exactly, being a nice fucking person gets you far in life."

"That's only if you really are one. Doing what you're doing gets you here. The bottom of a clan of exiles."

"Well, it's not like you're the kindest either. I'm not even going to hide it. Those things freaking sting, Axel."

"They sting because people like you sting far more throughout your lifetimes!" Axel stood up, shouting through his mask. "So don't you play the fucking victim with me! You know full fucking well that if I weren't here to call you out, everyone else would end up one of your victims!"

Arianna let out an incredulous laugh. "Okay! I think everyone gets the point by now. Stop it!"

"No, Arianna, you don't get the point! If you don't change, and I mean really change, then your fate isn't going to be any different than Mateo's. Thinking your way is an invincible strategy, that's the same thing he thinks about his. You know how well that worked out for him."

"Don't you dare compare me to that Neanderthal!" Arianna held a hand to her heart. "Pretending to play around with him? Enduring him calling me a fucking puppet to my face? Cyfrwys is not an easy clan to be on. You never know where the knife is, but me playing my 'good girl' act has gotten me to where I am in the game now."

"Firstly…" Axel started to calm down a bit. "You want to talk about knives? Because for however many knives were being juggled in your clan of 'masterminds' there are oh so many more all pointed squarely at Alltud! We don't get cool powers like your rulers, we weren't given any useful biome and were stuck in this desert. Our challenges are always more difficult than anything you had to do on Cyfrwys, and if we can't agree on acres to bet, we're sent straight to elimination! And on top of that, you think we're any fucking different? Angelo and Carol, right now, I guarantee are talking about who to eliminate! People fucking scheme in this game, and no one on this tribe gets any sort of tiebreaker ability. As for your 'good girl' act getting you to where you are now… what, you want to be on the bottom of this clan? I don't buy that at all. Arianna, if you want me avoid comparing you to Mateo… it would be a really good start if you stopped thinking only of yourself."

Arianna stepped up to Axel, ever so closely, very close, to his face. "How can I try to change if Mister No Chances over here doesn't give me just one of them?"

"You have the power to change whether I'm gunning for you or not. I simply think you'll ultimately fail if you even elect to try."

"What I'm saying is, some neutrality would be nice. Or else I'm gonna blow up again."

"You don't recover from first impressions, Arianna. By all means, blow up again. It'll be your elimination. If you want neutrality, earn it through words and actions. Not one, not the other, both."


Confessional: Axel: Clan Alltud

"I don't understand how she can so readily admit to a villainous strategy and then have the audacity to ask for trust and neutrality? A clean slate like that might happen if you change schools, but not if you're just changing clans on Crios Cath. If she wants positive change, she needs to be the one to bring it."

End Confessional


Confessional: Arianna: Clan Alltud

Arianna sat in the confessional with her fists clenched. "Okay. Change. So does that mean to hate everyone all the time? But how is hating everyone not villainous? And who exactly judges if I've ever changed for the better? He certainly can't if he has it out for me! I don't understand! What does he even want from me? A freaking blood oath or something? AAAHHHHHH!" As she screamed, one of her hands pulled out the blue ribbon on her twin tail.

End Confessional


Location: Neart Highlands (Cumhachtach Territory)

Contestants: Frag, King, Michael, Setsuna

"Clan Cumhachtach!" Chef called as he drove up in his jeep.

"Stan's back already?" Michael rose a brow. "I thought he stayed with the Mealltach ladies until the next challenge."

"Stan ain't here, maggots. Y'all have a new clan member that played a Clan Shift tiki."

"Hey." Setsuna greeted from the back of the jeep.

"Wait a minute, I'm confused." Michael scratched his head. "I thought we were on a guys only thing! Isn't having boobies, like, not allowed?"

"It's okay, Michael." Setsuna gestured to her chest. "It's not like I have any anyways."

"Oh, they're under there." King rolled his eyes. "But if you're joining this clan, think you can try to sleep with at least some underwear on?"

Setsuna gasped and covered her body with her arms. "You've seen me naked?"

"Believe me, I never wanted to." King shook his head with a sigh. "But when you don't wake up for hours on end, people will check on you."

"Guys, can we stop freaking out over a new clan member?" Frag asked. "Think about it, this numbers advantage might just be the edge we need to finally win a challenge. The island gods know we aren't getting anything from Stan."

"Wait! So Stan isn't the man with the plan?"

Michael put his hand on his hip. "He never was, Setsuna. Nor should you stan him."


Confessional: Michael: Clan Cumhachtach

"But everyone should stan me! I know I do."

End Confessional


"Speaking of Stan, where is he?" Setsuna looked around.

"He's where the boobies roam." Michael shrugged. "Probably being seduced by sweet nothings whispered into his ears."

"I doubt that to be honest." Frag chuckled a bit. "I've been called over there before and they usually only bring people over for someone to just sort of vent to as far as I'm aware."

"Well, maybe that was your experience." Michael smirked. "But would you want to vent to Stan about anything?"


Confessional: Frag: Clan Cumhachtach

"Fair point, Michael. He could very well have been called over there in order for them to get information out of him. However, I still don't think we have too much to worry about. After all, Stan is nothing if not consistent, including being consistently tight-lipped. Not that we have any secrets anyways. Well, except my vote block, which I intend to save until the perfect moment."

End Confessional


"King." Setsuna tugged on King's sleeve.

"What is it?" King asked.

Setsuna's stomach growled.

King sighed.

"Come into the cabin, I'll show you how to make fralla. Just…"

He put both hands on Setsuna's shoulders and stared her straight in the eyes.

"Do. Not. Burn. Yourself."

"Sure." Setsuna nodded.

"Yeah, she'll just burn the rest of us." Michael joked with a giggle, causing King to giggle in response.

"Ja, just like… she'll take some dough out but it'll be on fire or something, then she'll toss it and it gets in someone's hair like 'aaahhhh'!" He pretended to have his hair on fire.

"Heeheeheee!" Michael's giggles grew.

"I wouldn't burn any of you guys." Setsuna shook her head, not quite getting the joke. "I would probably burn the cabin down."

All three Cumhachtach boys present began to burst into giggling fits of laughter, imagining what Stan's reaction might be if he came back to see a house in ruins and Setsuna standing in the middle of it all.


Confessional: King: Clan Cumhachtach

"Setsuna being on this team is… strange. While the initial introduction went well, afterwards, she just became all nervous. She'd generally avoid us and me in particular. She went out to get flour but hasn't come back in like an hour. And we all know what that means."

End Confessional


"Thought so." King sighed as he helped Setsuna out of a trap she'd gotten herself stuck in.

"Thanks." Setsuna smiled meekly.

"Instead of words…" King suggested. "It'd be great if you could thank me by voting alongside me the next time we head to elimination instead of using that box of yours."

"I…" Setsuna bit her lip and backed up, nearly getting caught in the trap again.

King rolled his eyes with a sigh.

Once again, he helped her out of the trap.

"Thanks to stuff like this, Setsuna, I'd much rather just vote you out already, but I need your vote. If Cumhachtach loses again, they're going to vote me or you out, and that will leave either one of us without any true allies going into the merge. For us to both make the merge together, we're going to need to vote together, and that means you need to ditch that box. Why do you even use it anyways?"

Setsuna took a deep breath.

Her tears barricaded her eyes, wanting to be set free.

She looked up at King.

"Power." She replied.

The emotion on her face, King never realized. He never knew it could be so… personal.

Setsuna looked to the ground as if looking into King's eyes would cause a leak. "I vote randomly with this box because… votes have power, and power is frightening." She looked back up. They have escaped. "I'm a girl who gets caught in traps that knows where they are set up. Do you really think I'm going to trust myself to make such an important decision as who I'm going to vote for?" Her fragile hands gestured to herself. "I'm not voting randomly for the lulz, or because I don't care. I'm voting randomly because I don't want to end up like Franchesca, like Indigo, like Tiberius, like Laura. I can't let myself down if I'm not the one making the decision. To ask for a vote is to ask for a weapon. Even if you don't like me, you're my only friend up here, and I don't want you to see me go the way of any of our clan mates or the other clans' rulers."

"I… suppose I do see your point." King's eyes widened. "And I'm sorry, what I said earlier was rude. I just know that I've been targeted by these people before. Still though, if you just don't want to be responsible for your vote, why not let me tell you who to vote for?"

"No, you still don't get it." Setsuna ridded the tears off her face. "I don't want anyone else to have this power either. The ability to vote is taken for granted by everyone in this game. If I were to just vote based on what other people told me, all I'd be doing is giving them a weapon I don't want to see used."

"But, voting people off is the point of the game." King suggested. "In your approach, we might as well never interact with each other."

"You have your own vote, and I'm not taking that away from you." Setsuna shrugged. "I'm not suggesting everyone should vote randomly either. I'm suggesting that no one should cast their votes lightly. I already have one contestant's blood on my hands, King, because I couldn't bring myself to vote for you, and I feel terrible about causing it. So please, please don't make me vote again."

Her voice was cracking.

King sighed.

"Maybe we'll just work to win so we don't have to worry about votes. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to stress you out so much."

Setsuna sniffed.

"Thank you." She drew King in for a hug, and he accepted.


Location: Nialasach Ruins

Contestants: All Above Ground

Everyone gasped at the setting that stood before them.

The Nialasach Ruins that once contained many recognizable statues had been ruined even further. No statue was recognizable any longer, pillars were toppled, certain ancient buildings had gathered tons of moss, and the large stream that twisted and turned through this section of the highlands was flowing fast and loudly.

"Welcome campers, to the Nialasach Ruins and your next challenge!" Chris outstretched his arms. "The Obst-Alltud Race!"

"Oh, that can't possibly be a good thing." Angelo sighed.

"Never a good thing when your clan name is in the challenge." Aria shook her head in agreement.

"I need to explain the challenge so shut it!" Chris put his hands on his hips. "Anyways, the challenge is an obstacle course. Clans will be completing blindfolded while a designated caller will be announcing who will be watching at a safe place, while giving directions. Everyone else in the clan will be competing. This is not a relay. The first obstacle will be a series of platforms that get higher and higher in height. And then, you all will have to balance along a large pillar, ducking under statues along the way. And then, you will have to jump across a large stream. Every member of your clan that is running the obstacle course must complete the section before your clan can move on to the next leg. Meanwhile…"

Chris turned to Alltud. "Alltud! You, while your arms are bound, are responsible for setting up the final two legs of the obstacle course! There is plenty of easy to move rubble around the ruins for you guys to design the legs, but you have to finish them before any of the three other clans complete the first three legs of the race! If any clan completes the first three legs before you guys are done setting up the rest of the course, you will be sent to elimination along with the last place team! Any questions?"

"Can we sit people out considering one clan would only have two runners?" Frag asked.

"Sorry Frag, if you wanted a fair fight, maybe you guys should have coordinated who lost and when." Chris snickered.

Frag rolled his eyes.

No one else had any more questions.

"In that case…" Chris smiled. "Rulers, Alltud members, heed counsel and deliberate! Decide on your bets!"

Stan put a finger to his lips. His clan was waiting for him to come to them. Stan shook his head.


Confessional: Stan: Clan Cumhachtach

"I think I know what's best for my clan, and I'll be damned if I open my mouth to let Michael undermine me."

End Confessional


"Wooow." Michael mouthed with exaggeration to his remaining clan members, working on undermining Stan for his decision.


Confessional: Frag: Clan Cumhachtach

"And now I'm glad we didn't get rid of Tiberius right away. Not sure I'd have appreciated more rounds of not getting to decide acre bets as a unit."

End Confessional


Rose stepped up to her clan. "What do we think, women?"

"I think a little more than the last challenge would be good." Jarri chimed in.

"Yeah, I think so too!" Maggie pipped.

"Definitely more than 1000 though." Alice finished off.

Rose nodded. "I see. How does 1200 sound?"

"Sounds good." Maggie nodded back.


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"Hey, okay, there we go! It looks like Rose is recovering from her, uh, stumble earlier in the game."

End Confessional


Meanwhile, over on Cyfrwys, Kalyssa also trotted to her clan. "How many acres would you boys like to put up?"


Confessional: Jeremy: Clan Cyfrwys

"Now that's a sentence I haven't heard in a long time. A long time."

End Confessional


"How athletic are we?" Jeremy asked.

"Not at all." Kalyssa replied.

"Nope." Said Ryuji.

"Me neither." Jeremy sighed. "So that means we should ante up 300? 400?"

"Sounds perfect, Jeremy." Kalyssa bowed her head.


Confessional: Ryuji: Clan Cyfrwys

"I'm so glad Laura's gone!"

End Confessional


Alltud held their usual huddle, this time with a missing member.

"Big or small?" Angelo started off.

"When we have all this land? Big." Said Arianna.

"But not too big." Carol limited.

"I don't see why not. We could overtake the island if we wanted to!"

Angelo sighed. "I don't know, Arianna. This challenge seems pretty difficult. Moving objects without our arms?"

"I agree with you, Angelo." Axel nodded. "We shouldn't give away too much."

"Half the land?" Carol suggested.

Arianna sighed. "I still think we should do more…"

Axel sighed. "Okay. How about this. We bet 100 acres more than half."

"Deal."

Alltud broke out of their circle. Everyone else has stepped up to their plate.

"Cumhachtach." Chris declared.

"2000 acres." Stan nodded.


Confessional: Michael: Clan Cumhachtach

Michael sat down at the confessional booth, incredibly confused. "What was I going to say again?" He gives a confused glance at the wall. "So we were talking about how Stan didn't heed counsel…" He muttered. "And then… ooOOOHHH YEEAAHHHHH!"

Michael cleared his throat. "Fuck Stan."

End Confessional


"Mealltach?" Chris went down the line.

"1200 acres, Chris." Rose nodded.

"Cyfrwys?" Chris smiled. "Whatcha got for me, Kalyssa?"

"3400 acres." Kalyssa gave a wicked grin.

Ryuji and Jeremy's chins fell.

"Aaaaand, Allt-"

"Wait, a minute, Chris!" Jeremy interrupted. "Kalyssa, you said we would bet 400!"

"We did." Kalyssa held a hand to her heart. "I just decided to add a three at front."

"If you're the reason we will live on only 200 acres of soil, or even worse, lose our shelter-"

"What are you gonna do? Vote out Ryuji?" Kalyssa taunted.

Jeremy remained silent.

"Okaay. Alltud?"

Alltud stood and stared at the Cyfrwys clan.

"Um, hello? Alltud."

"6600." They all said out of sync.

"Alright, let's locate, get shackled up, and then we'll get started."


Challenge: Obst-Alltud Race

Rules: Clans must complete three legs of an obstacle course, while blindfolded, and a designated caller calls out to them. The whole clan must complete one leg before moving on to the next leg.

Leg 1: Jump onto three high platforms of rubble.

Leg 2: Balance on a rather large pillar, ducking under statues along the way.

Leg 3: Jump across a large stream.

Alltud's Challenge: Alltud must, while their arms are restrained, create obstacles from a giant trash pile and move them onto the course, to create a fourth and fifth leg of the challenge before any team completes the legs that already exist. If Alltud can succeed, they will place 1st. If Alltud fails, they and the clan that comes in last will go to Tine Naofa.

Callers:

Cumhachtach: Frag

Mealltach: Alice

Cyfrwys: Kalyssa


Wagers:

[4000] Cumhachtach: Stan bet 2000 acres

[3400] Mealltach: Rose bet 1200 acres

[3600] Cyfrwys: Kalyssa bet 3400 acres

[19,000] Alltud: Everyone bet 6600 acres


CHALLENGE COMMENCE!

"Alright. We got Frag calling out to Cumhachtach, Alice calling out to Mealltach, and Kalyssa calling out to Cyfrwys! And this challenge starts…" Chris chopped through the air with his arm. "Now!"

Mealltach and Cyfrwys bustled through to the platforms.

"Jarri!" Alice called. "Jump!" And so Jarri did. "Rose, stop running! Maggie! You'll run into Cyfrwys if you go that way! Run more in the right direction! Jarri!"

Frag took a more different approach. "Stan, you go first." And he stepped forwards, faster and faster. "Alright, now King!" King took off. "Stan! Jump!" And he jumped. "Okay boys! On the count of three you both jump. Three, two, one, JUMP!" And both of them jump. "Now go, Michael!"

Meanwhile, on Cyfrwys,

"Jeremy, jump!" Kalyssa called.

And Jeremy fell into the water.

"Ryuji, stay there until Jeremy gets to the same spot you do!"

Ryuji stopped. "But shouldn't I keep going forwards?"

"No!"


Confessional: Kalyssa: Clan Cyfrwys

"Of course, I made myself the caller. No way would I be humiliated by helplessly running into various objects blindfolded. No, thank you!"

End Confessional


Chris stepped in front of the camera. "It's Cyfrwys and Mealltach, neck and neck for last place. Cumhachtach is in first place for the first time in this game! Meanwhile, Alltud is still trying to figure out what the next obstacle should be!"

"Guys, we need to move more of these larger pieces!" Angelo called out. "We're going to make them do hurdles!"

"I thought we decided on making them zigzag through these smaller ones!" Arianna called out as she kicked some smaller pieces of rubble into place.

"Guys, we need to come together and-" Carol found herself nearly tripping over the rubble before Axel stopped her.


Confessional: Carol: Clan Alltud

"As I've feared, our communication is breaking down thanks to Setsuna shifting clans without warning like that. I don't get it. Was it something I said to her? Did she not feel welcome? What could I have done differently to get her to stay instead of leave right away?"

End Confessional


"Alright Setsuna, one last jump!" Frag shouted.

Setsuna did exactly as she was told and Michael and King both managed to keep her steady as she landed right near them.

"Cumhachtach is making quick work of the first leg of this challenge!" Chris announced. "They can move on to the next leg!"

"Wooo!" Stan cheered out, before Michael stuck his leg out, tripping him.

"Dude, watch it!" Michael shouted.

"I can't fucking see, man!" Stan growled back.

"Just wait for Frag to direct you before moving!"

"Well, why are you sticking your leg out like that?"

"Stan, Michael, less yapping, more moving forwards!" Frag called to both of them. "One at a time across the balance beam, once one person is across, then the next one can go!"

"Finally…" Jeremy sighed as he managed to get across the last platform.

"Eugh." Rose coughed as she achieved the same result.

"Clans Cyfrwys and Mealltach both tied for last place in this race, both can finally move on to the second obstacle, which half of Cumhachtach is already across!"

"King, you need to stay behind Setsuna!" Frag hoarsely called out. "Keep your hands on her hips to help both of yourselves balance! Listen to my voice, make sure you hear it coming from directly behind you!"

"Maggie, Maggie go faster!" Alice shrieked as Maggie struggled to cross the balance beam, and Jarri got ready to follow.

"RYUJI!" Kalyssa shouted. "TURN AROUND!"

"What?!" Ryuji asked back.

"180 RYUJI!" Kalyssa kept shouting. "TURN BACK AROUND, YOU'RE GOING THE WRONG WAY!"

"Frag doing an excellent job leading Cumhachtach through this challenge," Chris paced around near where the three callers stood. "Kalyssa and Alice having trouble getting their teammates to listen to them, Alltud still having trouble setting up their first obstacle! This might be the first time Cumhachtach has appeared dominant in a challenge, but it's the most dominant any team or clan has been in a challenge on this island! They're onto the final obstacle!"

"Everyone STOP!" Frag announced. "It's a large river! You'll need a running head start to jump!"

"What?" Michael turned and shoved Stan into the water with an exaggerated display of his arms.

"Ohmyfuckinggod, what the fuck, dude?!" Stan shouted as King and Setsuna both helped him out of the water before he could be carried away by the river.

"Ah, fuck, fuck, Cumhachtach is almost done guys!" Axel shouted. "We need to be done fast!"

The clan had only recently decided on Angelo's pillar hurdles.

"Well, help me put this last one into place!" Angelo called.

Carol and Arianna all rushed over to Angelo to help him with kicking the pillar into place. Axel leaned his back against the pillar and pushed with his legs.

"This is looking like a race between Alltud trying to make another leg of the course and Cumhachtach trying to complete it before it can happen!" Chris exclaimed. "Cyfrwys and Mealltach, both almost entirely out of this challenge, Cyfrwys only barely making their way towards the stream now, Mealltach still waiting on Rose!"

"Rose! FASTER! FASTER!" Alice shrieked.

"If I fall, we have to start over and lose even more time!" Rose shouted back.

"Stan, you first!" Frag announced. "Run!"

Stan started to sprint.

Frag did his best to gauge the lag between his command and Stan's actions.

"Jump!" He hollered.

Stan sprange his legs up close to his chest, and epic and triumphant music played as the edit in slow motion showed him crossing the gap, rolling onto the other side.

"Stan is across!" Chris announced.

"Michael, Run!" Frag shouted. "Jump!"

The same shot, this time of Michael.

"Michael is across!" Chris announced.

"Hurry!" Arianna snapped.


Confessional: Axel: Clan Alltud

"Look, we know to hurry, we are all hurrying, you don't have to tell us."

End Confessional


"King is across!" Chris announced after a shot of King crossing the river triumphantly. "It all comes down to Setsuna, delivering a fatal blow to the clan she was a part of until only this morning!"

"Setsuna, run!" Frag shouted.

Setsuna ran.

"Almost there, guys!" Carol tried to rally Alltud.

"Jump!" Frag shouted.

Setsuna lifted her feet as she launched off the ground in slow motion.

She soared through the air.

The camera cut back to Alltud.

Then to Setsuna moving.

Then back to Alltud.

"Almost…" Arianna gritted her teeth.

Finally, Setsuna's feet landed…

Square on the other side of the river.

"CUMHACHTACH FINALLY WINS A CHALLENGE!" Chris announced as his hands went up. "They can take their blindfolds off, and they'll be gaining acres from Alltud, who are going to head to elimination with either Cyfrwys or Mealltach, both of which have yet to get anyone across the river! Mealltach only just got there right now!"

"Ryuji!" Kalyssa called. "Run!"

As Ryuji followed Kalyssa's directions, Stan, Michael, King, and Setsuna took off their blindfolds as Frag rushed through the ruins to go celebrate with them.

"Congratulations on finally winning, Cumhachtach." Chris grinned as they and the defeated Alltud all waited to see the results of Cyfrwys and Mealltach's battle to avoid elimination.

"So, we get our acres no matter what, right?" Stan asked.

"That's right. You won the challenge, you get the acres."

"But the challenge isn't over, right?" Stan continued to ask.

Frag gave Stan a quizzical look out of the corner of his eye.

King and Setsuna exchanged nervous glances.

"That's correct, Stan." Chris smiled, before turning. "Ryuji is across the river!" He announced. "Cyfrwys has officially pulled into the lead! Now only Jeremy needs to cross!"

"Hold that thought, Chris!" Stan called out as he put his hand in the air. "As King of Cumhachtach, I'm exercising my right to call a special elimination!"

"WHAT?!" Jeremy asked, mid-jump, before landing on the other side of the river.

"Stan with the buzzer beater call for a Cumhachtach special elimination!" Chris announced. "Against who?"

"Against that one." Stan pointed at Michael, who gasped as he covered his mouth with his hands.

"After all we've been through?!"

"After all you've put me through." Stan responded.

"Well now…" Chris smiled. "Alltud and Mealltach can both count themselves lucky that they don't have to eliminate anyone tonight, that honor goes to Clan Cumhachtach! Stan has called a special elimination against Michael! One of the two of you will be sent down to the Shameterranean tonight, and the other one will walk back to Cumhachtach with the knowledge that you either remain, or have become, king!"


Confessional: Frag: Clan Cumhachtach

"We all bust our asses off during that challenge without the armored ass around to carry any weight for us, my voice was so fucking sore, but we did it. We fucking did it. We won, we managed to break even in acres for the first time since the start of this freaking game, and Stan fucking blows our all time high morale because Michael just got under his skin that much? Look, either Stan isn't fit to lead, or Michael is such a nuisance that he needs to be gotten rid of. So, good luck to both of them, I guess, because whoever survives this bullshit is gearing up for leaving the second we go back to losing."

End Confessional


Confessional: Kalyssa: Clan Cyfrwys

"Stan, if I didn't have someone in my life already, I'd freaking marry you. You're about to take out either yourself, or Michael, two of the most athletic people in that clan of yours, meanwhile, we on Cyfrwys are back up at 7000 acres in land thanks to my bet. It's like, can this game get any easier?"

End Confessional


Confessional: Rose: Clan Mealltach

"Well, hopefully, finally, I won't be the center of attention for calling a special elimination out of nowhere."

End Confessional


Confessional: Arianna: Clan Alltud

"Okay, that special elimination just bought me a few more days on this island. I need to make them really freaking count."

End Confessional


CHALLENGE AND ACRE RESULTS

1st Place: Cumhachtach (bet 2000 acres) [4000] - [6000]

2nd Place: Cyfrwys (bet 3400 acres) [3600] - [7000]

3rd Place: Mealltach (bet 1200 acres) [3400] - [4600]

4th Place: Alltud (bet 6600 acres) [19,000] - [12,400]


Shameterranean

Contestants: Tiberius

Tiberius walked the halls of the Shameterranean. He made sure he wouldn't get lost.

Gross lake.

Crack that glows.

Pit of Peril here.

Turn the corner.

Tiberius smirked to himself. No way would he get lost… again.

Another weird puddle.

Area where the ceiling is too short for me.

The steepness here.

Mysterious button on the wall.

Random bracelet someone must've dropped.

Wait a minute. A button?

Tiberius headed back a few steps. He pushed the button.

No way does the Shameterranean have more than one floor. No, it did not.

He headed into the alcove.

A treat lay on the altar. It was obvious which one he should keep.

It was the only one that would benefit him. Specifically.

Tiberius wouldn't normally hang onto an advantage because he doesn't need those things. He was already so powerful, after all. It would just be unfair. But just in case.

Just in case.

As for the other one, it impacted the game above ground more.

He sent it up. The edge of the Ionad desert.

Tiberius didn't know which clan that part of the island belonged to now, but it'd probably go to someone.


Tine Naofa Bonfire Elimination Ceremony (Special Elimination Ceremony)

Participating: Michael, Stan

Jurors: Jarri, Ryuji

Watching: Frag, King, Setsuna

"Welcome, Cumhachtach, to your first special elimination ceremony." Chris smiled at the watching members of Cumhachtach. "Jarri and Ryuji have been determined randomly as the two jurors for this case since Ffydd is no longer a tribe...and at this point might as well say that Cumhachtach assimilated them." He grinned at King and Setsuna who both stared on blankly.

"Here's how this is going to go." Chris continued. "First, Stan, you will make your case for eliminating Michael to the two members of the jury. After you are done, Michael," Chris turned to Michael. "You will make your case. After you are both finished, Jarri and Ryuji…" Chris turned to Jarri and Ryuji. "The two of you are going to deliberate in private who you think deserves to stay in the game more. After half an hour passes, you will vote for the person you wish to stay in the game. I repeat, this is a vote for the person you want to stay. Michael and Stan both want to see their names on these pieces of paper tonight. Any questions?"

Setsuna put a hand in the air.

"Yes, Setsuna?" Chris asked.

"Do I have to vote or anything?"

"No, you're just here to watch and absorb information. Though you could signal to the jury with facial expressions if you wanted to."

"Nah, I'm good." Setsuna yawned. "Can I go back to the cabin now?"

"N-no? You have to stay at the ceremony."

"K." Setsuna shrugged as she fell asleep.

"Alright." Chris looked around. "If there are no other questions… Stan… you may present your case to the jury."

Stan assessed both Jarri and Ryuji, and cleared his throat before speaking. "Michael and I formed what I thought was an alliance during the reign of Tiberius, but since I came to power he has constantly been undermining my authority through a petty jealousy since he was not crowned king. This has manifested itself in deliberately misunderstanding my orders around camp, and actively pushing me into and off of various obstacles during the challenge. This kind of behavior is not tolerated in my honorable clan. That is all."

Stan gave a polite bow as both Jarri and Ryuji nodded along with his statement.

"Michael." Chris motioned. "You may give your rebuttal."

Michael flashed a quick grin before clearing his own throat, making sure to exaggerate the way Stan did it. "Stan is honestly a worse leader than Tiberius was. And lemme tell you, Tiberius would throw his dirty socks in our faces and tell one of us that he wanted them clean, and then proceed to go on to take a nap. Now, Stan… He… He… doesn't appreciate anyone else's input. You saw earlier today, during the bets. On top of that, he's the kind of person who would call a special elimination and destroy morale just because we have some different ideas on how the clan should be. We never had these problems under our old leader, and it's only natural to regret making an incorrect decision. He just wants his power to not be questioned."

Michael gave his own little bow, and stepped back from the jury.

"Jarri and Ryuji will now deliberate." Chris responded. "When they come back, they will vote, and I'll read them off. If the vote is a tie, a tiebreaker challenge will take place. Since Stan is putting his game on the line, his automatic win of tiebreakers does not activate. Jarri, Ryuji, off you go."

Time passed.

The camera panned around everyone.

Stan and Michael both stared at the bonfire and went blind for a little while.

Frag looked intently between the two rivals, wondering which one of them would come out of this unscathed.

King leaned away from a snoring Setsuna.

Finally, Jarri and Ryuji both returned.


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"Okay, I think I know exactly what's going on here. Now, which one of these two cucks gets my vote to stay? Hmm… this one of course!"

End Confessional


Confessional: Ryuji: Clan Cyfrwys

"So, the clan of cucks is now cucking each other from voting. But, since I'd rather play with people easier to reign in, and less of an annoyance to be against, I'll give my vote to you."

End Confessional


"I'll read the votes." Chris announced. "The first vote is for…

… Michael. Remember, this is a vote for Stan to stay in the game. Our next, and final vote is for…

… Stan. We're tied, which means we'll be moving on to our tiebreaker Challenge. So if Jarri and Michael could pair up, and Ryuji and Stan could pair up, we'll get started. Chef!"

Chef brought out two small pumpkins.

"These are pumpkins."

Michael scoffed. "No shit."

"You will be tossing them back and forth with your partner. After you successfully toss it once, you will move back 5 feet. The first pair whose pumpkin breaks, or hits the desert sand, loses, sending either Stan or Michael to the Shameterranean."

"Sounds simple enough." Stan shrugged.

"I just want to play with the pumpkin, fam." Michael took one of the pumpkins from Chef. "This one, called it."

"That's fine." Stan took the other pumpkin. "This pumpkin will lead Cumhoetach to victory."

"Good." Michael snickered. "Because mine will lead Cumhachtach to victory."

"Oh my freaking…" Jarri mumbled under her breath, before addressing both of them. "Guys, can we not do this? Ryuji and I are tired."

"We want to go to sleep like Setsuna over there." Ryuji nodded.

"Fiiiiine." Michael groaned. "Let's play with pumpkins now."


Tiebreaker Challenge: Stan and Ryuji VS Michael and Jarri

Level 1 (5 ffeett apart)

Stan and Michael both tossed their pumpkins.

Ryuji easily caught his.

Jarri easily caught hers.

"Alright." Chris smiled. "Stan, Michael, 5 feet back."


Level 2 (10 ffeett apart)

Ryuji and Jarri tossed their pumpkins.

Michael had to jump to catch his.

Stan had to crouch to catch his…

But they still both caught their pumpkins.

"Another 5 feet back you two." Chris grinned.


Level 3 (15 ffeett apart)

Michael threw his pumpkin.

Jarri caught it close to her chest…

… It did not break.

Stan threw his pumpkin.

Ryuji gripped it, but kept from gripping it too hard.

Both pumpkins remained intact.

"Alright, onto a 20 foot distance." Chris nodded.


Level 4 (20 ffeett apart)

Ryuji threw his pumpkin.

Stan lifted his hands to catch it.

He fumbled the pumpkin around.

Michael made a fart noise.

Stan's pumpkin slipped out of his hands and hit the sand before he could get a hold on it.

"And Stan has dropped his pumpkin!" Chris announced. "It's all up to Jarri and Michael right now! If he catches it, he'll become the new King of Cumhachtach, if he doesn't, depending on the severity of the fumble or miss, it could be him going to the Shameterranean tonight."

"No pressure, just the weight of the entire game." Stan scoffed at Michael.

Jarri tossed her pumpkin.

And Michael…

… Caught it.

"Michael wins the tiebreaker challenge!" Chris announced. "He is now the new KING of Cumhoetach!"

"Cumhachtach." Stan corrected.

"Bitch!" Michael looked over at Stan, though he couldn't help but grin. "You don't get to correct anyone on pronunciation. You aren't the king of jack shit anymore!"

Jarri bit her lip.


Confessional: Jarri: Clan Mealltach

"Here I thought that Stan was being like Rose and calling a special elimination for selfish reasons, but, I don't know, the way Michael gloated so openly like that… it left a bad taste in my mouth. The way he talked though, it reminded me of Roxanne's speech to the jury at the other ceremony, and I just… I couldn't let a royal push around a player beneath them. I think I misunderstood who was pushing around who."

End Confessional


Confessional: Ryuji: Clan Cyfrwys

"Well, Stan got screwed. By himself, mainly, but hey, at least he can go into the Shameterranean knowing I had his back up here and that he wasn't alone. Not happy that someone like Michael has king powers, but that's the way these games go I guess."

End Confessional


"Stan, you need to bring me your torch." Chris announced.

Stan sighed.

He grabbed his torch and presented it to Chris.

"Stan…" Chris put out the fire. "The jury has spoken."

"Good luck with that thing, guys." Stan waved to Frag, King, and the sleeping Setsuna as he cocked his head towards a celebrating Michael. "At least I brought the problem to the forefront."

"Shameterranean time, son." Chef motioned for Stan to follow him.

"And that's all for now!" Chris turned into the camera. "Cumhachtach has a new king, Kalyssa has furthered her power in this game, and while Alltud hasn't lost any players, they have lost a lot of acres, enough to give every other clan some of their wager! What challenges are in store for our players? How will Setsuna fare on Cumhachtach? Can Arianna get a foothold in Alltud? Is there any hope for Jeremy and Ryuji? Find out maybe a couple of these things… next time!

On Total!

Drama!

Crios Cath! Man, it's been a while since I've been able to say that."


*Stan's Elimination Confessional:

"I played a solid game I think. I got my crown the honorable way, and I made sure that my clan knew exactly who the problem child of our group was on my way out. But I'm not done with this competition. There's still a whole Shameterranean to explore, and with any luck, I have an ally clad in armor waiting for me down there. No, I'm coming back up. I'm coming right back up, and taking back the crown that belongs to me. See you soon, Michael."

End Confessional*


15 Above Ground. 18/36 Remaining.


Jury Votes for those who are curious

Jarri voted for… Michael

Ryuji voted for… Stan


AN: Stan's the only one I need to talk about with this note so let's just dive right in. I think a lot of people are going to be all like "Why did you DO that" to Stan reading this chapter, but personally, I don't blame him for his decision to call a special elimination ceremony. Michael made it like his mission to annoy Stan as much as possible, to prevent Stan from getting anything done. So yeah, obviously it sucks that he lost the tiebreaker, but he definitely does have a good enough build on his body to generally not have to fear getting yeeted in most circumstances. Hopefully he'll be able to find the DA and get it back to the surface.


EN: Stan is a man that can no longer plan, for he has been banned by his clan.

Michael is a psycho with the Geico. 15 minutes could save you 15% or more on car insurance. #notspon


AN2: Hey guys. So, something really cool I want to share with you. It's this free thing called Discord. I have a server and you can join in, connect with us and, like, talk and post memes about total drama and these characters and episodes and stuff. Anyways, the link is on the profile and you should join, since clearly you enjoy total drama content and having fun.


EN2: Outline Quotes:

"Michael is jealous and secretly undermines him at every opportunity (ie hiding firewood or food or shit like that)"

"She gets all nervous upon meeting him and is like-Kaede level scared because of what power she has over deez boys."

"She explains the power of the votes. King is like WOAH!"

These aren't really that funny. It's really just us being unprofessionals.


AN3: And as always, thanks for reading.