Survivor - Emperors vs Knights

Chapter 42 - Day 35 Part 2

Alright, here we go again. Time for another vote off to take place, and after this chapter is done, we will have only six characters left in the game. And once we get to five, the finale will start to take place!

Oh, and I have one thing to say real quick that should've been said last week. This story is now my most second reviewed story of all time right behind Kodai Island! Thanks as usual. (Hard to believe I've been here since 2011).

Historyfan15: That is true. Perhaps he is assuming that bringing in Shovel Knight will also bring in Luigi who is his number one ally. But, yeah. Speaking of that, seeing all the seasons, it is annoying at times where an alliance needs one more person to vote with them and things don't turn out well for certain players lol.

~KF

Bikutā

Day 35

Knuckles, Shovel Knight, Zelda, Foxy, Luigi, Sheik, Marth

-/-

"Nice job, Shovel!"

"I was right behind ya."

"One of my triangles was turned upside down, but you beat me to it..."

Just a few minutes after everyone returned to camp, the castaways of the Bikutā tribe already began to split up into different directions, eventually leaving Foxy and Knuckles alone at the shelter, the former lying down on the bamboo.

"Master should never let me near anywhere a puzzle ever again in Survivor. This could have been the one time where I actually had a good shot at winning immunity, but what do I get? Second place because one of the pieces on the other side wasn't right... ...But, you know what? Even though I'm mad, it's basically my fault because if I would have checked both sides in the first place, Shovel would have never won the necklace. But then again, I don't create these challenges. So..."

"..."

"..."

After almost half of a minute of silence, Foxy was the one who eventually broke the ice while Knuckles eyed the fire.

"So Knux, any plans discussed yesterday?"

"...Well..."

"Well, if the plan is me, then I guess that's that. But otherwise, if something else actually came up, then I'm willing to do anything for obvious reasons."

"...You know, to be honest, I don't think anything has been discussed yet as of late as far as I'm concerned. Maybe people were just waiting until after the challenge." He never looked away from the fire.

"Hmm..." Michaels remained facing the 'roof' from his position with hands behinds his head. "That could either mean that they're waiting until the last minute, or because of my vote off being so easy and simple..."

"..."

"...You know, Knuckles, I was just thinking of something. Last night you told me you went against us because you and everyone else thought that me and Bonnie were the most dangerous pair and that we were both on the bottom... But, let me ask you this. Is Bonnie here anymore?"

"..."

"...Yeah, that's what I thought. Just wanted to throw that out there. If Bonnie is not here anymore, then that makes me less of a threat actually. ...Unless I'm still a threat all on my own, anyway. But if I'm actually less of a threat now, then... maybe we could actually work together again... if you want."

Even though Knuckles finally rotated his head in Foxy's direction, Michaels never felt his eyes staring in his direction, so he never looked back.

"You don't have to let me know now if you wanna work together again or not in case you want to have some time to think to yourself. Like I said last night, I'm still open to work with you if you need my vote for something."

"Well, since you have to write down someone tonight, who do you think?"

Foxy had no intentions on explaining the full details of his scheme to the echidna. The damaged trust with him still existed. "I'm considering on doing either Sheik or Luigi. If they put me out of the picture, Sheik is probably the biggest threat. I have never seen someone literally forcing another to work with them. That's huge. If she's that smart of a strategic player, that could be extremely dangerous when it come to the finals. And she could have an idol. I don't think she's told you if she has it or not yet."

"She hasn't."

"There you have it. She doesn't trust you." That added on to Foxy's points. "If you want her out, then all we need to do is to have the entire tribe vote against her except for Zelda. She'll never write her name down. Especially since she's increased her chances of getting to the end. Marth would be all over it. And if we get Shovel, that means we have Luigi. 5-2 vote, Sheik goes home, possibly with an idol in her pocket."

"Why Luigi, though?"

"Well, Shovel has won the challenge. If Shovel Knight is already thinking of final three at this point, who's gonna be the first person he's willing to take to the end?"

"Luigi?"

"Exactly." He answered immediately as if it was what he expected. "Voting out Luigi takes out one of his options. Us two, plus Marth, and if we can somehow convince Sheik to flip, that means we'd probably get Zelda, get Luigi out in a 5-2 vote, Shovel Knight would be on the outs who also probably has an idol. Then me, you, and Marth will hopefully be able to align together again and turn the tables around. ...But the thing is, Knuckles, if I leave, that's one less vote you can have."

"Foxy could just be saying all of this just to save himself, since I still don't have that many problems work with the Chatan Alliance." The nineteen year old admitted. "But, don't get me wrong, a lot of what he told me makes sense. Sheik's a threat, Shovel's a threat, and Luigi has a big chance of getting to the finals. I think Marth will easily work with me and Foxy, and if we somehow get Sheik to turn on Shovel Knight, I doubt Zelda would wanna go against her. So I have two options: I could either flip and do it, or get Foxy out of here and get it over with. I have no problems working with him again, but he's on the bottom for a reason. Why'd let the one player who's on the bottom get to the end?"

-/-

As for Impa's student, Sheik from Hyrule was seen leaning against the tree, lost in thoughts all alone. She was just finished having a brief discussion with Shovel Knight and Zelda, yet by the time she was finished, she strongly felt that she needed at least a brief moment to herself. Poor ninja had a bajillion things going on in her mind, with so little time to actually consider her future plans. Worst of all, the more time one was actually alone and away from everybody, the more suspicious people became. One major disadvantage when it came to being on the island fighting for the money, or at least the title of the Sole Survivor, the main goal Sheik was attempting at her hardest to reach.

Knuckles of all people, happened to be the one to finally locate her.

"Heya…"

"Hey..." He replied. "I was looking for ya. ...You alright?"

"I'm fine. Just thinking a few things over. ...You were alone with Foxy, right? What did he talk to you about?"

"Ah, he just did the usual routine of what people on the bottom do. He's just willing to work with anyone as long as he knows that his name's not gonna be the one up for elimination. ...He's even said that he's still willing with me, even after he confronted me the other night..."

She laughed a little bit. "That's what people on the bottom do. Foxy's a strategic player and he knows it. That move on Bonnie just put the final nail in his coffin."

"So Foxy, done. Right?"

"Unless he somehow has an idol." Sheik nodded in confirmation. "Although at this stage, I really doubt he has it. If he actually had it, he would have played for himself last tribal and didn't have to work about turning on his right hand man. We just have to keep watching him. He seems to be doing his usual routine, though. He doesn't stay at camp for this long after a challenge so he's probably somewhere else."

"This is hard... Okay, I guess I need to explain..." She took a deep breath, having the necessary patience figuring out where to start first. "Okay, so basically, I'm trying to play up as many sides as possible. It can be quite difficult telling someone one thing and thinking of something completely different in your head when you find the two seconds to think to yourself. ...So anyway, Foxy's the obvious easy vote. However, Foxy himself came up with an idea that I needed to get rid of Shovel Knight who could potentially be my biggest threat at the end... And you know what? He could actually have a point about that. Not only that he's likable and fun to be around and keeps the tribe happy, he's made little signs that he's here to play as well. Of course, we've been buried the hatchet of him not playing his idol on Greninja… But the thing is, as much as it pains me to say it,... little sings like that are making me wonder..."

"You think we should just keep an eye on Foxy, do a 6-1 on him without making anyone mad, and... we'll see what happens from there..."

"That'd be alright. We don't need to discuss anymore. We're straight." It was all Knuckles needed to hear.

"Shovel to top it all off is in fact the one who has the idol. And it's getting close to the point to where you only have a few more opportunities left to play it. So that's part of me telling myself that anytime to take out one of my closest allies with an idol in their possession is as soon as possible... But, guess what? He won immunity. Though Foxy told me in advance that if Shovel won immunity, he wants me to vote Luigi out, in order to take out one of Shovel's options because he's taking him to the end... But, here's the problem. I'm also planning on taking Luigi to the end. I think it'd be a pretty pointless move for me to vote him out of all people. He's done nothing threatening to hurt my game at all; the furthest he's gone is that he... almost beat me at the other immunity challenge, which neither of us even need. But the bottom line is that while it would work for Foxy if I vote Luigi out, I doubt it'd be good for my game. So this is telling me that it's more of Foxy getting what he wants, rather than what's best for the both of us."

Speaking of Michaels, sometime after Knuckles left, Foxy was coming right towards her to borrow her time for a couple minutes.

"So... Shovel won immunity."

"Yeah..." She replied, drinking from her canteen. "Do you think he's just escaped his elimination round?"

"Well, that depends on what did you wanna do and how to decide your own fate?" He pointed. "But since Shovel already has the necklace for tonight, then if you want to keep me here, we need to execute Plan B."

"Luigi?"

"Yep. If you go with it, Zelda and Marth will take that offer in two seconds. They'll do anything you'll tell them to do for different reasons..."

"So if Luigi is out of the question tonight, that means that I have one less thing to worry about. With him off the board, that pretty much leaves Foxy... unless you count Knuckles. I mean sure, he just flipped over to my alliance,... but do we really need him? At this point? Sure, the popular opinion is that Knuckles is not exactly a threat to win, however, he's a threat to get to the end. He literally almost won today... and that kinda scared me... As I'm sitting here right now, my plan this late in the game is slowly changing to where a final three matters most and who I want to take. A perfect world for me is to have myself, Zelda, and Luigi sitting at the end. It'd be nice if I can help the both of them get there. But because of the fact that there are only three spots, Knuckles is not part of that plan. And if I don't get rid of him now, he could probably go on a run. Sure, he sucks at puzzles... But this challenge ended off with a puzzle, and he was literally almost there."

"Then on the other hand, we have Foxy, who's also a beast at challenges. Obviously the bigger strategic threat. ...But here's my question: which of the two is stronger? ...Well, Foxy already beat Knuckles at the final twelve immunity challenge, but Knuckles was ahead of him today. ...Sounds like they're eventually matched. Strategy? Foxy is of course better. ...Yet... Knuckles is actually the one that is with Marth right now, who were in the same alliance before. He, along with Foxy and Bonnie desperately tried to keep him with their alliance at the Freddy vote, showing his loyalty. If he and Marth hatch up some sort of plan, that's not good for me. Maybe taking out Knuckles would be taking out one of Marth's own options. Foxy, however, has a way better shot at winning in comparison to Knuckles. Maybe if I don't take him out now- You know what, I feel like I'm going back and forth." She placed her hands on her head. "This is giving me a headache... Foxy? Knuckles? Foxy? Knuckles? Who do I choose?"

A few minutes later, she found Zelda and Shovel Knight both in the sand.

"You guys wanna know something?"

"Oh, hi, Sheik!" Shovel waved. Although it was quite friendly, his warm smile almost immediately turned into a frown of concern. "...You look perplexed..."

"I... kinda am... Hear me out..." She went right to the point. "So... Okay, Foxy's public enemy number one, right? ...But I've been thinking... Is he rather something that would cause more harm than Knuckles?"

Both the emperor and knight stood there slightly confounded, exchanging a brief glance.

"You are saying that we should consider voting Knuckles out?" asked Zelda.

"Either him or Foxy. Both of them are threats for different reasons. ...It's a shame that we can't vote two people out at one Tribal Council..."

Although she went silent for a bit, all of a sudden, she snapped her finger as if she just came up with an idea.

"But, you know what? Maybe this plan will work. If we all decide to vote out Foxy, then it can be an easy 6-1 vote. But if we decide to vote for Knuckles, maybe just so that we are a hundred percent sure that our plan is gonna go through without any complications, Marth and Knuckles can vote for Foxy, but including Luigi, what we're gonna do is put our four votes on Knuckles."

"...Knuckles? Now?" Shovel Knight blinked, actually being more confused than ever. "...I am curious to hear your reasons..."

"Just think about it. Knuckles is more of a threat to get to the end, rather than win. If we decide to send him home over Foxy, it'll be because of not only that, but still, we're still sorta holding onto Marth by the leash. Knuckles possibly working with Marth and Marth only again, could be a rather big problem for all three of our games."

Zelda stay silent and continued to listen.

"If we don't want Marth jumping ship or doing whatever again, maybe we can prevent that from happening by taking out one of his options to work with, so that he'll literally have no choice but to stay loyal to us. If we vote out Foxy now, the six of us have to battle it out, anyway. Why not make things easier?"

"Then I guess that means that we can't tell Marth about this." Zelda concluded. "Can we?"

"Oh, yeah... I'm sorry..." It was actually something that Sheik just now remembered.

"No, no, don't apologize." She held her hand out. "If it's the only way, it's the only way. So it's he and Knuckles writing down Foxy and the rest of us voting for Knuckles? Who would Foxy vote for?"

"Sheik is once again proving how intelligent she is when it comes to a game such as this." Shield Knight's loved one complimented. "Perhaps she would born to get involved in this. She's very smart... Though, as usual, that's the perception people seem to make of her these days. Foxy literally approached me the other day saying that she's a threat. Pulling off such a bold move on Marth at the final nine was certainly not easy. That alone makes her threatening. Yet, what intensifies the situation is that he assumed that Sheik was my personal biggest competition that I need to deal with. Hmm... But the thing is, she certainly seems very loyal as of now. Why would she come up with a big scheme about getting rid of Knuckles only to find myself being bl- Oh wait, I have immunity. Haha, never mind. ...Although, what is she intends to target me afterwards? She already knows I have the idol. But if she's going to outsmart me about it, if I find out that it is her intention, then perhaps I need to outsmart her first... Ugh... I am talking as if our friendship never existed..."

Just a few minutes before the group was scheduled to part for tribal, Shovel made an effort to find time with his number one ally.

"Luigi... I need to speak with you..."

"..." For once, the roles were reversed. Now Luigi was the one that was actually concerned for Shovel Knight. "Are you okay...? ...You look puzzled and... kinda off..."

"Oh, I'm fine. Don't worry." He shook his head in assurance. "...The plan is still the same. Either Foxy or Knuckles. We just need to confirm the vote with one another one last time, and it'd probably be right before we head to tribal. ...Let me just give you a hint... This might be the first ever time I am doing something like this for the whole season..."

"..." The plumber fell silent for a quick second. "And what is that?"

"...Okay... Forgive me if I sound cold-blooded. But yet,..." He looked at the Mario brother straight in the eyes. "Part of me feels as if we need to get Sheik out..."

"!" He was absolutely flabbergasted.

"And our friendship did in fact come to life. This was one of the first beings on the island that have shown that they had the desire to work with me, as well as Greninja. I never came to them. They came to me for assistance. We all been through quite a bit together. Sure, I might have helped let Greinja go, but other than that, our relationships were always the solid with one another and we were even already making plans to come across one another once the competition has concluded... Trust me. I do not want to vote Sheik out. She deserves it. She deserves to stay here. All that we've been through. I've had my idol, but if it weren't for here, things just wouldn't have been the same. Yet,... with my time out here, after learning from others for so long,... perhaps it is time to put my knowledge to the test. I hate to do it, but... if she is making plans to come after me in the near future, perhaps it is in my best interest to get rid of her before she gets rid of me. Striking before the other person does seem to be the most justifiable argument I can make if I have to face her on the jury. That being said, if I do get rid of her, then I'd better prepare for what's coming..."

Luigi, now having a variety of motions, was now running his finger through his hair rapidly out of a bit of anxiousness. "I dunno, Shovel Knight... I dunno… Even if we'd want to, how are we gonna get enough votes to do it?"

"Well, you and I make two votes." The knight began to do the math. "I doubt Zelda would want to turn against Sheik. Though say if they intend to vote for Knuckles, Marth and Knuckles will vote out Foxy. But if us two write down Sheik, we bring in Foxy, who has to write down somebody, anyway,... that would mean that Sheik would be eliminated in a 3-2-2 vote..."

"...But what if they just decide to have everyone vote for Foxy?"

"...Hmm... Good point." Shovel actually never thought of that. "...We haven't been confirmed of what Sheik's plan is, yet. Though if the plan at the end of the day is Foxy, then we would need to hurry up and recruit Marth and Knuckles last minute to make it a 5-2 against Sheik leaving Zelda out of the loop."

"I... honestly feel as if I am making a huge betrayal here. Part of me is begging to pull this move off, while the other half is rejecting that offer like there is no tomorrow. I mean, I do have the idol, so I might not even have to vote her out. I never had to put Greninja's name down, showing proof of my loyalty, which is what my game has become at this point... So, to suddenly change my entire direction of how I am playing is... rather... unsettling to be honest. I can not even decide last minute at tribal because I have heard no final words from anyone, forcing me to make this decision as soon as possible..."

Tribal Council

Night 35

Tribal Council time did eventually came, however, meaning that at some point, final plans were indeed discussed with one another. They knew that it was going to come eventually; no excuses.

So there they were, the black merged tribe placing down their torches and sitting in the remaining seven seats.

"We'll now bring in the members of our jury... Shulk, Roy, Shadow, Greninja, Freddy,... and Bonnie voted out at the last Tribal Council."

Actually staring at him with widened eyes, Foxy even began to start chuckling to himself a bit, Bonnie Roberts shaking his head with a large smirk. It told Michaels that even though he was okay with what happened, it was something that he never would have forgotten for the rest of his life. The one time Bonnie chose to play Survivor, he was basically accidentally eliminated from the game. Not the best way to go home. That was for sure.

Yet it was night thirty-five, and night thirty-three. Another night, another new Tribal Council discussion to occur.

"Alright. So Foxy, at the last Tribal Council, we spoke about how... talented you guys were at blindsides. It is rather common for this season. Sheik stole Marth's vote, yet last time, a simple, 'split-vote' situation seemed to occur, and people were still a bit astonished at what happened. It seems for the umpteenth time, some plan didn't fall through properly." Master Hand pointed out. "So, I guess I'll start with you... What happened this time?"

"Oh, I'll happily answer that." He found no problems elaborating. "I'm glad you started with me master. You see, me and Bonnie were the two main targets on the board (especially me), because we were seen as the tightest pair at the time. ...Which, I'll give them that, is understandable. We called Greninja and Sheik a pair, too."

He blinked in reaction.

"They know how it feels to be targeted not only because of yourself, but because of someone else as well... Kinda saying like how you can't be close friends with anyone out here because it'll bite you in the butt. And that Loved Ones visit challenge really spoke to people, since me and Bonnie were conveniently paired up for it. Knuckles chose to jump ship, Marth couldn't do anything about it, so what do I do? In order to save myself from being in Bonnie's position right now, I decided to make a last minute sacrifice to save my life..."

"...So you voted Bonnie out?"

"Yeah, I did..."

The bunny grinned largely at that, Greninja playfully punching his arm.

"It was the absolute last thing that I wanted to do. But, we were both backed into the corner and it was like a bunch of people were coming at us with... shovels. Let's just say that."

Now Shovel Knight began to chuckle.

"We were about to get attacked by shovels from everyone else, and of course since you can't vote yourself out of Survivor, you can't be heroic. I put Bonnie right in front of me, let him take the beating, and then I ran off to buy me some time. ...Just like in horror movies. To avoid making a bad decision when running away from an enemy, what do you do? Make sure someone slower than you comes with you because them getting caught will buy you some time."

At that moment, nearly everyone shared at least a bit of amusement.

"True..." Master Hand himself thought he was not wrong. Who would have known? Was the master a fan of horror movies?

"Yep. But as the consequence for me voting Bonnie out, I'm the only one left… My back is the only one that is against the wall this time and looks like it is me against the world…"

"One versus six, huh?"

"Yeah… I mean, I'm not the first person to go through this, but now I know how they feel. Pretty much the best case scenario for myself is to… hope that I can win three more immunity challenges even if I survive tonight. Most likely this is my final day in Survivor anyway, so… if I'm here, I'm here. If I'm not, then I had a good time playing while it lasted."

"Zelda, knowing your history in the game, it seems that you are one of the most likely to relate to what Foxy is going through. Have you been on the bottom before?"

"Yes."

"Did you feel as if it was you against the world?"

"Yes." She gradually nodded. "I did. There is only so much you can do when you're in that position. You try your best to prove yourself out here. But the thing is, you know how when you need to achieve certain things in life, it takes rather difficult work and determination? For this game in particular, it is even more than that. Luck can also prove to play a factor, depending on the situation. ...And.. luckily for me I am still here. But no matter what happens to Foxy, it is safe to say that we at least all have made it to this point. Because anyone who is going to be on the jury is technically still a part of the game. And I used to think to myself when I felt as if it was me against the world. It isn't easy."

"Sheik, even though Foxy might be the only one at the bottom, even if he does in fact leave tonight, you still have three more tribals to go after this." It was something that the hand just had to point out. "You still have three more people you gotta get rid of, yet at the same time, hope that they vote for you if you're sitting here at the finals. Do you plan ahead?"

"Everyone is always planning ahead, master. Since we are on the island 24/7, and knowing what is at stake here, you are constantly thinking to yourself of plans to the future. Foxy's the target, but if the rest of us are the final six, then you gotta hope that you will find a way to get to that final three and that you are on the right side of the numbers for the rest of the game. Yet no matter how deep is it into the game, you can be at the bottom at any point in time. Even though I can admit that I personally never experienced being the lone wolf at the bottom, it doesn't mean that I actually want to be in that position. Who plays Survivor and actually wants to be on the bottom? Especially since me and Foxy are both knights."

"Luigi, you're nodding in agreement."

"Sheik does have a point. It is not as if no one is asking, nor wanting to be on the outs. I have... surprisingly not have been on the outs as much as I may have predicted before I came out here, but... can't say that it is a reason to complain. You're just trying to survive out here for as long as you can. I do feel bad for Foxy, though. But, just because I was never in a position to where I had to face in the world when it came to Survivor, does not mean that there aren't similar situations in real life where you feel that way... based on personal experience."

"Knuckles." He desired the echidna to have the chance to speak. "What about you? Do you feel like it is you against the world sometimes?"

He nimbly nodded. "No doubt. I do."

"Marth?"

"Yes."

"Shovel Knight?"

"Indeed."

"Seems the Bikutā tribe has one big thing in common. Sometimes you feel you are alone. And Foxy, since you're the one that feels that way at the moment, judging by the responses from everyone based off their own experience of feeling a certain way,... you are not alone."

He nodded with a smirk. "Thank you, master. But, you know what? Hey. I've made it this far. No way I'm gonna give up at this stage. The game must go on."

"So Marth, even though Foxy is the odd one out on the bottom, it's been almost forty seasons. Obviously there are going to be names thrown around the get the target off his back. The question for you is if you actually believe it. What do you do if you were approached by a new opportunity to get a different target out?"

"Well, long story short, you are your own judge. Perception is everything. Everyone can be a threat for a different reason. I, personally, have not seen every season of the show due to Altea's technology not being nearly as advanced as some of the other worlds, yet I am aware that with every new vote off in Survivor, suddenly somebody else might be a target out of nowhere. It is whatever the other players around you feel and know... I suppose this leads into the whole... 'go with your gut' thing." The only remaining swordsman assumed.

"Aye, you're getting there." Knuckles commented, a few laughs being heard once again. "Good work."

"Practice makes perfect."

"And Knuckles, since going with your gut seems to have always been a trend in Survivor, at the same time, it can be both a blessing and a curse. It can literally either make or break your game. Literally, every move your make counts out here."

"It's because you're literally taking a gamble here. That's the whole point. Just because you're going with your gut does not mean you're always right. When you have to do something you don't want to, you really have to think about what you're doing carefully and making sure this is really the path you're gonna take. And if it works for you, that's great. Your chances of winning just increased. If not, then... oh well. As long as you're still in the game, I suppose there's always the next time."

To hear Knuckles the Echidna saying something like that of all people caused quite a few head turns at that statement. Even Bonnie from the jury bench, who Knuckles helped vote out, turned his head side to side.

"Alright. It is time to vote. Zelda, you're up."

First it was Zelda, then it was Sheik who was on her way to vote.

"Guess I'm going with my gut for this one too. Better now than never."

Once she placed her vote in her urn, she made her way back so that Foxy had the chance to vote.

"As a wise Survivor player once said: 'as long as it ain't me.'"

Following the fox was the great shovel warrior, Knuckles quickly writing down his target within no time at all. Luigi and Marth went up to vote and sat down shortly after.

"I'll go tally the votes..."

Foxy was actually already getting a couple of his bags together, in preparation for the worst. The jury watched as everyone else simply waited patiently, the hand never taking that long to return.

"If anybody has a hidden immunity idol and you wanna play it, now would be the time to do so..."

...

"Okay." No one seemed to have the item of power. "Once the votes are read, the decision is final. Person voted out will be asked to leave the Tribal Council area immediately. I'll read the votes..."

Marth sighed, just wanting the vote to be over with already.

"First vote... Foxy."

He nodded as if it was what he expected.

"...Foxy. Two votes Foxy."

He nodded again, with even the smirk on his face signaling that he was prepared to make his departure from the game.

...

"Sheik. One vote Sheik.

That actually made her raise an eyebrow, Greninja curling up his lips. Yet Shovel Knight never made eye contact.

"...Knuckles."

"...?" He made a frown, shifting his eyes to the rest of the group individually.

"Knuckles. Two votes Knuckles, one vote Foxy, one vote Sheik."

"Hmm..." sounded Shadow from the jury, placing a finger beneath his chin.

"Here we go again..." mumbled Shulk.

"Knuckles."

He was completely in shock.

"Three votes Knuckles, two votes Foxy, one vote Sheik, one vote left."

Michaels was also eyeing all over the place, subsequently setting one of his bags down. Though he still was never completely sure. Knuckles on the other hand had a dropped jaw, his eyes went from all over the place, to refusing to shift away from the urn where the votes were being read.

"...Fourteenth person voted out of Survivor and the seventh member of our jury. Knuckles. You need to bring me your torch."

"Wow..."

Other than Knuckles of course, Foxy too looked to be a bit surprised. Not even he expected that. Even Marth was glancing around in confusion, glancing at Sheik especially. No one told him about the whole Knuckles thing.

Shadow sighed and shook his head from the bench.

"My boy stays alive..."

Hearing that mumble made Foxy immediately shift his head to face Bonnie upon recognizing his voice, both grinning in reaction.

"I don't know what to say, but... good job I guess..."

With a heavy sigh, he placed down his torch. "Looks like it's my time instead, master..."

"Knuckles, the tribe has spoken."

Upon putting out his torch, the Mobian never even waited for Master Hand to tell him that it was time for him to go. He made a big wave to his fellow members of the season and began to make his way out.

"Good luck to the rest of you. I'll be watchin'..."

And by the time he made his way down the stairs, he speed-walked the rest of the way out of the tribal, completely in frustration. Not at anyone in particular, but simply because of the fact that he was never predicting himself to leave that night.

"Unbelievable..."

"...Well?" Master Hand spoke. "Remember what I said at the beginning of the tribal?"

Literally all of them laughed in response.

"You guys are good at 'em and this is why. Now here you all are at final six. The endgame is near and the plan is simple: how are you going to make sure you are sitting at the finals with a case to win at all? Game is still going. Give it your all. Grab your torches, head back to camp. Goodnight."

#Blindside

"I never saw that coming. At all. I really wanted to be in there in the final three, but I guess this is my fate. My time out here doesn't feel complete, but I guess it is what it is. Maybe I should have listened to Foxy. No wonder Sonic always call me a Knucklehead, haha. But it's my own fault that I'm here. No hard feelings."

Votes:

Zelda - Knuckles

Marth - Foxy

Luigi - Knuckles

Sheik - Knuckles

Knuckles - Foxy

Shovel Knight - Knuckles

Foxy - Sheik

7th Place: Knuckles

4-2-1

Yet another blindside for the season. I apologize for this chapter being released so late today, but I've been kinda busy for the past couple of days. I wanted to get Bonnie's Ponderosa chapter out before this, but since I've stated that I'm kind of behind on that, the main fic for the season is the bigger priority. However, the chapters are going to be the done. Best case scenario, I get both Bonnie and Knuckles's chapters done before the next vote off. So be on the lookout for both of them!

I give credit to Sheik for making this. It's as if she completed turned in a new direction of what her game was going to be since the Freddy vote. I guess she actually thought that Knuckles was more challenge threatening than Foxy being the overall bigger threat to win. Let's see how it works out and who wins the challenge for next time.

Oh, next person in line for Survivor - Mexico? Our third and final Shovel Knight character for the season, King Knight. One Shovel Knight character per tribe.

Questions:

1. When it comes to Foxy and Knuckles, if you were Sheik, which one would you pick for elimination this round? Both answers seem to be correct with their own advantages and disadvantages, but I want to hear peoples, opinions.

2. Would Foxy win the next immunity challenge?

3. When will Shovel Knight play the freakin' immunity idol? (LOL. Seriously. He's had that thing since the day of the Rouge vote.)

I'll see you all on Wednesday!