~~DAY 5~~

Flygon can be seen hovering slightly off the ground, wings gently flapping, fingers pressed together.

"Today was… weird. We got to the challenge area as we usually do, and… nothing. Just a host, two teams, and a place to put the Immunity Idol. I was scared we were about to be shot or something…"

The walk to the spot marked on the map was a quick one. It was at the meeting point where the paths to their camps converged, just south of Tribal Council. Both tribes could even see each other through the trees in some spots, leaving everyone confused as to just why they were headed to this spot. There was no way they could fit an immunity challenge there, right? Well, they were about to find out.

Once arriving, the tribes indeed found nothing. Two teams, one Marshadow, and one idol holder. Everyone stood on their respective mats, shooting their pairs pleasant glances… all except Flygon, who lost her partner to the first Tribal Council. At the very least, Marshadow was there to offer some talk.

"Aqua, getting your first look at the new Magma… Honchkrow, voted out. Flygon, I notice your nervous look."

"Yeah," Flygon admitted, "I'm a little nervous. Honchkrow and I knew each other before the game, so it indeed hurts to lose that connection. Still, uh… at least the others will hopefully get what I'm feeling eventually?"

"Of course, of course." Marshadow took Aqua's idol and place it in the holder. "You're all probably confused. Where's the challenge? Is there no challenge? Actually, let's take a poll, how many of you think there's gonna be a challenge?"

A few nodded their heads in agreement. Some, however, either shook their heads or offered some other form of disapproval. In the end, Marshadow seemed to side with the latter.

"Correct, there will be no challenge. We had a challenge designed, but unfortunately, the set got destroyed in last night's storm and we didn't have enough time to rebuild. So instead, we're gonna do something… a little different."

Marshadow offered up little more than a smirk, leaving the players only a few seconds to guess what in the world he was talking about.

"The first person to agree to Tribal Council… will send their team to Tribal Council. It will be impromptu; the other tribe will get to watch. However, to compensate, upon your return to camp, you will receive a bit of a bonus: A large bag of rice, some salt and pepper… and a hidden immunity idol, hidden somewhere at your camp."

The castaways turned to look at each other, specifically the Aqua tribe, where half of them hadn't even heard of anything called a "hidden" immunity idol. Thankfully, their host was here to explain that as well: Hold one, and you can use it after the votes are read to negate any votes against you. Immediately, everyone on Aqua was a lot more intrigued.

"I see some curious faces. Alright, if just one of you speaks up in the next fifteen seconds, you will agree to the impromptu tribal council and decide on the second player voted out of this game. Anyone at all?"

All twenty-four Pokémon (including Marshadow) stood, listening to the sounds of silence. It was a deafening sound that drowned out everything else. No one could focus on anything but the silence or the anticipation that came with it, the fear that someone on their side might kill it. Those fears made it impossible for anyone on Team Magma to even consider raising support. The same could not be said for Aqua.

"Alright, let's do it."

Oddish popped up to offer support. Though some on his tribe were livid, others were a tad more understanding.

Magneton shifted his gaze about, eyes narrowed.

"Disappointing, but unsurprising. None of us have the idol, and I am the only one who knows who has it. It was a matter of time before one of my allies would begin to crack under the pressure. Unfortunately, this means I haven't a clue who to vote…"

"Alright, Oddish." Marshadow nodded. "This means that Magma wins immunity and is safe from the vote. Aqua, meanwhile, gets the idol clue and some extra food supply. Are you guys ready to start this Tribal Council already?"

With a bunch of nods, Marshadow led Aqua over to the Tribal Council area and showed them their torches. He implored Magma to watch as well, since they wouldn't get another chance to do so this entire season. With all twelve torches soon lit, each player sat at their respective stools and awaited the inevitable. With that, Marshadow began his questionnaire.

"Welcome everybody," he began. "So Oddish, why? Why did you decide to do it?"

"I mean, that idol sounds real nice and all," the Grass-type admitted, "but I'm really in it for the food stuff. We got berries, and that's great, but I think that with a bit of extra seasoning it'll just bump us way up. Cheer us up, get us doing better, you know?"

"Still, you aren't worried about how your team is going to feel about having to vote off one of their own?"

"…I mean it had to happen eventually, didn't it?" Oddish imitates a shrug with his leaves. "I'm sure someone was gonna do it anyway."

Indeed, Oddish was right. Though none would admit it, a few were considering stepping forward and sacrificing their team for some salt. Even Marill, who already had an idol, was close to agreeing to the vote simply because he wanted some rice. The apparentness of this fact was enough to even make their Magma spectators chuckle.

"Okay, on to someone else." Marshadow shifted his eyes around the set. "Pupitar. You were sort-of abruptly thrown in here against your will. Does that make figuring out who you want to vote out more difficult?"

"Not really." Pupitar paused to get a glance at the reactions of his fellow players. He seemed… almost disappointed. None of the shock he was aiming for, just neutral stares with a bit of confusion. Sighing, he emphasized his thoughts: "I know who I'm voting for."

"Oh really?" Marshadow wasn't sure whether to act impressed or confused. "You're not having any trouble at all?"

"Nope. None. And I hope the one I'm voting for knows about it."

The others had a good feeling of who he was talking about. Him and Dewott got along about as well as a Zangoose and a Seviper. Sure, she was far from a liability around camp, but given the lack of time to properly strategize, he couldn't think of a better option. The offending Water-type rolled her eyes at him and scoffed. The display was enough to spend a few Magma members into a giggle fit.

"Dewott, it seems you know exactly what he's talking about."

"Of course I do, he's talking about me." Dewott began to fidget with one of her scalchops. "He's still being a baby about how I woke him up last night. As if he doesn't get enough sleep already."

"Don't think you're so righteous. If we'd gone into a challenge today, we probably would've lost because your screaming woke up the entire camp."

"And I'm sorry about that, but it was one time. One time! And you were asleep for all of five minutes!" She almost stood up to give him a piece of her mind, but realizing all the Pokémon around her, she remained seated, pouting. This was the kind of drama Marshadow loved to see.

"Lopunny, these two are clearly not seeing eye-to-eye. Would you agree with Pupitar, that it's an easy vote?"

"Hmm… good question. I mean…" Lopunny shot a glance at Gardevoir, who shot her an encouraging smile back. "I won't lie, I had my vote in mind before I got to that fake immunity challenge, yeah. I mean it's a no-brainer. Not sure about some other folks…" The Normal-type side-eyed the two opposing alliances. "But as for myself… yeah, I know."

A few of the alliance members side-eyed her back. She shrugged in response.

"Would just appreciate it if you two put your differences aside and did what was best for the tribe instead of butting heads. That's all."

"Hmm, I see." Marshadow then turned to face the voting booth. "I think it's time we put Pupitar's assertation to the test, because it is time to vote. Go one at a time and write your vote on the top parchment, then place the parchment in the urn. I will then read the votes one by one before we reach a majority or plurality. Got all that?"

Everyone nodded.

"Good. Magneton, you're up."

Magneton floated over to the voting station, just down the right path. He soon arrived at the station, where the pens, parchments and urn all sat. The Steel-type used his magnetism to lift the pen and pop open the cap. He began to write down a name.

"Cleffa." Magneton began. "We are of opposing alliances, deadlocked in a power struggle. I pray you do not take this personally."

Magneton folded up the paper and stuffed it in the urn before returning to his seat. The rest of the vote was very much like last time, Pokémon walking one at a time to cast their votes. It was a tedious process, but luckily for them, it would get less tedious as their numbers dwindled.

"Get out of here," Dewott exclaimed as she wrote Pupitar's name down. "If you're not gonna help around camp, then I don't want you around camp, period."

"Ahem…" Pupitar cast his vote for Dewott. "Strictly personal."

"…sigh." Mawile rolled her eyes as she cast her vote for Oddish. "This was a Arceus-forsaken mess… this probably won't go anywhere, but… I don't care…"

Once all twelve votes were cast, Marshadow nodded before running off to retrieve the urn. The players all finally got some time to breathe before the moment of truth came. Their host soon returned with the urn and yanked the lid open.

"If any of you already have an Immunity Idol and want to play it, now is the time."

Marill, being the only one with an idol, took a moment to pause. He could certainly guarantee himself some safety, but he didn't want to give up on his safety just yet. He remained seated, not saying anything.

"…alright. I'll read the votes."

Marshadow pulled out a vote, and then another. The reading of the vote started simply enough.

"First vote… Cleffa. Second vote… Pupitar, one vote Cleffa, one vote Pupitar." He read another pair of votes and narrowed his eyes. "Dewott… Oddish, we have a four-way tie. One vote each for Cleffa, Pupitar, Dewott and Oddish."

Team Magma was enjoying this, to say the least. Their competition seemed so fractured by comparison; it was the lack of planning, really. Maybe if Aqua had some more time back at camp they could've come to a unified decision, but today was not that day.

"Cleffa… Pupitar… Oddish. Two votes Cleffa, Pupitar and Oddish. One vote Dewott."

Dewott breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed she wasn't the target after all, yet one of the other three certainly was. She certainly hoped it was Pupitar, but she had no way of knowing just yet. Only time would tell before she could feel vindicated.

"Next vote… Pupitar, three votes Pupitar… that's four votes Pupitar."

Pupitar's eyes sank. This can't be real, this has to be a joke. He glanced around at the others, who seemed to barely acknowledge his own existence. All except for Dewott, who gave him a slight smirk.

"…Second person voted out… Pupitar. That's five votes, tonight that's enough. No matter where the last two votes go, you will still have a majority. Give me your torch."

"Damn it, damn it, damn it…"

With a bit of help, Pupitar was able to get his torch over to the holder next to Marshadow's podium. Considering how long it took to fit it in, Pupitar was able to think over the past few days as he worked it in. Sure, he didn't always help around camp, but he still helped sometimes. Was it not enough to put in what was expected of him? Was he really supposed to go further above and beyond what he was willing to give? Or was the bare minimum far higher than he had anticipated?

"Pupitar, the tribe has spoken."

Marshadow snuffed out Pupitar's torch in a quick fashion, suffocating the flames in one quick stroke. He ushered the Rock-type out down the other path, and off he went. His tribe – and the spectating Magma tribe – watched as he disappeared into the darkness, muttering something to himself. As they refused to acknowledge him during the vote, he refused to acknowledge them as he left. Sighing, Marshadow turned to the players on Aqua.

"Well, you survived your first Tribal Council, but it appears you've exposed a weakness as a result. Will this lack of unity prove costly, or will you be able to rise above and conquer your rivals over there? Aqua, Magma, head back to camp. Good night."

Pupitar's eyes are heavy as he explains himself to the camera.

"Damn, how did this happen? I think… man, I think this game just isn't for me. It's always 'work' this and 'help' that, and I frankly just want to be left alone. I think I'm just gonna go home and forget about all this, I was never meant to succeed in this game. So yeah, goodbye."

~END OF CYCLE TWO~

I'm so sorry I haven't released an update in ages. My old computer basically got fried, and that destroyed all the motivation I had. Moral of the story is, keep backups of all your stuff. And that's also why this chapter was so short and abrupt, I wanted to quickly move past the part where I lost any and all motivation and start fresh. So I'll apologize for the quickness of this chapter, as well – I wanted to move past it, and quickly.

First, let's talk about out boot, Pupitar. Pupitar was always destined to go early, even in the original draft. Though originally his boot was because of his ineptitude, here it was driven by laziness, a change necessitated by the change in structure to Survivor. It's a reminder that if someone wants to participate in a competition, they have to actually participate or there's no reason for them to be there.

So yeah, we're moving into the Final 22 next time. What can you expect?

-A less obvious boot.

-More aggressive strategy.

-An actual challenge.

-A potential quit?

That's it for now. See you next time, whenever that is.

~~REMAINING CAST~~

Team Aqua

Magneton

Dewott

Oddish

Beheeyem

Plusle

Cleffa

Marill

Lopunny

Flygon

Mawile

Ditto

Team Magma

Sableye

Breloom

Gardevoir

Pikachu

Sudowoodo

Glaceon

Petilil

Kadabra

Minun

Sneasel

Braixen

Eliminated

24th: Honchkrow

23rd: Pupitar

22nd: ?