I'll warn you all now: Chapter 9 has something big coming up. You'll see what I'm talking about after more review responses.
ShadowJcreed: Thanks for your praise! I'm honored you find last chapter better than canon. The goth definitely feels better with a friend on her team here than in the original timeline. I do have something in mind for Cameron, part of which is about to follow.
animefan1009: Much appreciated. That's an interesting idea for a twist, but I found the irony of bubble being transferred to team villain too amusing to leave out.
Phenomenal Ultra Instinct: Chef was without any doubt the best one to protect that idol once our CIT recovered it. Her worries about Mal definitely got in the way of things.
GlitchWarrior: In some ways, yes, but you might change your mind after what follows.
That British Guy: Quite simple; Chris would send whoever was voted off from the losing team over to the winners' side. Since Mr. Wilkins volunteered for "elimination" and had no idea what would follow, he got switched over to the Vultures. The boy isn't evil at all, though.
Read on!
A rest in that hotel bed was well-needed. I'm not putting my back through the agony of sleeping in a cave again, especially when I already found the immunity idol. Hopefully Scott isn't too exhausted when he gets back from Boney Island. We're headed back there either way for today's challenge within the so-called Fun Zone. In the meantime, I'll get dressed and have breakfast before that starts up.
Wait a moment. I almost forgot how my mini flashlight and switchblade are still in the pockets from those pants I wore yesterday and the day before. Gwen and Heather are still asleep right now. When nobody's looking, that blade will have to be returned. I take out the mini flashlight and put it with my other belongings. That switchblade goes into one hand and my clothes for today in the other as I hear Heather moaning in her sleep and mumbling "Keep your dick in my pussy, Alejandro; I want you to finish inside me."
Gross! It was bad enough repeatedly hearing her fuck him (and probably get pregnant with his baby at some point) near my apartment before travelling back in time. They also engaged in lots of dirty talk during such sessions. Now I must hear her having a sex dream with the guy while we compete on TV!? She needs to go ASAP as there's no way can I take hearing more of those! I cringe as I make my way out of the room. Thankfully nobody is in the kitchen yet. Once I place my switchblade in the drawers, I then use the toilet and get changed in the bathroom. I take my pajamas and put them back with my bags afterwards. Everyone else (minus the exiled Scott) has now taken seats at the table to eat.
Joining everybody else at breakfast, I see Cameron groaning as he struggles to fix his glasses. This time I don't evilly taunt him about how he'll be gone before those can get fixed. That was completely unwarranted on my part when I first lived through the season. I also don't conspire to eliminate him unlike before where I felt some supposed "newbie target" was on him instead of me after I transferred to the Vultures. What does happen again, though, is Gwen helping him out. She suggests "Here; maybe a twist-tie would help" and hands him one.
I add "Worth a try." as I grab a waffle and some bacon.
The bubble boy successfully ties them together with the twist-tie, gratefully affirming "It worked, thanks!" as he puts on the newly-fixed glasses.
After Ms. Goth tells him "The villains' team isn't entirely made up of evil people.", Heather taunts "You look nerdier than before! I know it sounds impossible, but here you are doing it, so-"
Alejandro interjects with "Heather, please; I think that he pulls off a nerdy look with a generous measure of dignified flair." before I can say anything.
"It's half made up of evil people." Gwen tells him as they walk away.
Wait, she said HALF instead of MOSTLY this time! Obviously becoming friends with me changed things up. It's understandable why the goth would deem Scott evil when she doesn't know him as well as I do, and I don't deny he did bad things in season 4, but it's not like they were any worse than my past evil actions. I also know he's become much kinder since getting voted off. The guy surely learned his lessons after playing baddie and so did I even if we never entirely lost our mean streaks.
I overhear Heather sulk to Al "Great, they've already bonded." and see her offer him a handshake after proposing "I hate to say it, but maybe we should form a temporary alliance to avoid being voted off. Allies?"
"Agreed." he affirms and kisses her hand.
She fakes being disgusted by adding "Ugh, gross!" while pulling her hand away from him as I snicker in amusement and sit at the table.
I know both are secretly planning to eliminate each other once they have the chance. No objections to either of them going home next if we lose today. Can't let them know I'm onto their plans now, though.
"What's so funny?" he asks.
I tell him "The way she pretends not to like that hand kiss." with a mouthful of waffle.
"I most certainly did NOT like it!" Heather insists, though her blush gives away how she's lying.
"Yeah and I'm the Queen of England." I sarcastically quip after swallowing. "Any other obvious lies you'd like to tell, Ms. Blusher?"
"Just fuck off!" she barks and storms off with her cheeks still red.
"I'll take that as a no." I add and then resume eating.
"Blushing does give away how she really feels." Al comments. "In the meantime, we have another challenge to win."
"Quite true." I affirm, and then he leaves, presumably to join his target for elimination.
Once I finish my breakfast, I brush and floss my teeth before heading outside. Something I just remembered is that Gwen will befriend Cameron today as she sympathizes with how he feels out of place on team villain. Perhaps I could do the same and we could all vote together. A loud horn can then be heard.
"Get your butts to the dock, campers! It's challenge time!" Chris announces through a speakerphone.
We all head for the docks. Once all the contestants have gathered there along with our host, he announces "Welcome all! Today's challenge involves a trip to the FUN ZONE!" and then chuckles before blowing a little party horn.
Lindsay cheers "I like the sound of fun!" with both fists raised in the air as some intern off-camera drops confetti over us, though in all fairness, no contestant except me knows what the so-called Fun Zone really is.
"What's the catch?" a suspicious Heather inquires. "Is the 'Fun Zone' just a building that's on fire?"
"No." McLean answers.
"Does it have a time twisting machine like the one from Crash Bandicoot: Warped where we must gather crystals scattered across time?" asks Sam.
Funny how you mention the idea of time twisting.
"Would that be fun?" our host questions.
"Obviously it would!" the gamer insists.
I fully expected him to say so.
McLean continues with "You've had it kind of rough lately, so I figured—OK the lawyers figured—you deserve a treat, but if you'd rather do something else-"
We all interrupt him with "No!", and I only join that protest to avoid raising eyebrows.
"Fun Zone it is!" Chris replies as he walks to the end of the dock, and continues with "Ooh, here's our ride!" as Chef's boat returns Scott, who's filthy and slouching with exhaustion.
"I'm back from exile." the ginger tells us and tries to step off the boat only for our host to push him back in.
"All aboard!" McLean tells us, and we get in the boat.
Hatchet then starts it up and we arrive at the docks within five minutes. I help clean off Scott's filth along the way. Lindsay asks the host "Fun Zone, here on Boney Island, really?" in disbelief once we reach the docks.
"Yep! It works better as a surprise that way." he responds, and then everyone except Chef gets off the boat to follow him towards its entrance.
Heather on our way over groans and complains "I'd forgotten what a dump this island is!"
"Come on now. Maybe someone will finally find the invincibility statue." He quips.
Our cook evidently hasn't yet told his boss how I found that.
"I searched all night." Scott informs him. "There is no statue, say it!"
Someone clearly didn't look past the broken windows and carvings on a big door.
"Yes, there is, but it's hidden IN the Fun Zone and whoever finds it gets to keep it!" the host retorts.
As I expected, this prompts cheers from the others. I join them in cheering to avoid suspicion. Thank you, Chef Hatchet, for not spilling the beans to anybody. Once we arrive at the entrance, Chris states "Welcome to the outside of the fabulous Fun Zone! Patent pending. It's obvious Duncan visited this door during his exile time given the smashed windows and carving of his initials. Wonder if he got inside. Those need to be fixed either way." and pulls out a switch to activate the door, continuing with "Alright, let's move it people!" and pressing the door as he instructs "Keep a steady pace! Chef, please get some tape for the windows"
Every contestant including me then walks inside before the door slams shut. We all turn around to its sound. Now that I think about it, even Cameron would probably get stuck trying to climb through these broken windows. As Chef Hatchet covers all the window frames with duct tape, the giant TV monitor then turns on and shows us our host's face. McLean informs us "You are now in the Fun Zone aka the most dangerous place you've ever been! Your challenge is easy; put eggs in a basket."
Said baskets can be found close by the door. A red one for the Vultures and a gold one for the Hamsters. As the monitor changes its image to show silhouettes of mutant creatures, Chris tells everyone "Eggs found here in the Fun Zone belong to all the terrifying mutants from season 4, who will try to smash your bodies and eat you."
"What is 'fun' about that!?" Mike asks, clearly back to his normal self now.
"Um, it's fun to watch." Chris replies.
Alejandro then inquires "All we have to do is collect the eggs?"
"You'll be fine." the host assures him. "They're just wild mutated beasts trying to protect their unborn babies. How bad can it get?"
The monitor then shows a basket. Our host adds "First team with six in their basket wins." as the shown basket fills with said number of eggs.
"What about eggs that hatch?" Sam questions.
"As long as you keep whatever hatches in your basket, it counts, and as a special bonus whoever collects the most eggs for the winning team gets a special reward!" McLean answers. "So, excited, huh?"
I then hear Scott snoring as he sleeps while standing up, and turn to ask him "Did you catch all of that?"
He apparently didn't hear me and continues snoring. An irritated Chris then takes a megaphone and angrily shouts "Scott!" into it to wake up our sleepyhead.
That woke him up! He then screams at the loud noise and groans in pain as the soundwave knocks him onto his back. I rush over to help the ginger get back on his feet. Scott gratefully replies "Thanks, Court." and I tell him. "Not a problem!"
Our host then continues with "The red basket belongs to the villains. The gold one's for the do-gooders. I'd wish you all good luck, but it's bad for ratings, so I hope some of you get really hurt." before blowing an air horn to start the challenge and telling us "Begin!" as we go to collect eggs.
"This reminds me of how many levels in Spyro: Year of the Dragon have six eggs you must find to fully complete them." says Sam while running off.
I search around for any eggs nearby for about five minutes, having no luck, and then hear snoring. Scott is asleep again! Just like when first living through the season, I see him leaning against a tree as he sleeps. Even if he's exhausted, he needs to help with the challenge now. I nudge him awake and say "Scott, we need to-"
He then suddenly awakens and growls while shaking his fists around in some sort of self-defense. I cower to avoid getting hit and then say "No, it's me; stop!" as I grab his torso from behind, adding "Come on; let's find some eggs".
That thankfully calmed him down just as well now as it did in my first run-through. I just remembered now that Mike and Zoey won big for their team during this challenge last time with a giant nest containing some sort of mutant bird eggs. We need to get that before they do. Scott follows me as we make our way through Fun Zone, though he doesn't know where specifically I'm leading him (can't give that away for obvious reasons). Along the way, I see Alejandro throw a rock at one egg on a ledge to get it down, and he's about to collect it when Heather sneaks up and snatches it. She makes a pun with "Eggs-elent work, Alejandro" and he scowls at her before they go over to our team basket, which can be seen out in the distance.
"I wish I reached that spot first!" Scott complains.
"As do I, but it's still a score for our team." I admit.
Within the next minute, a trumpet sound plays as Chris can be heard announcing on the speakerphone "First egg goes to the Vultures!" and I cheer along with Scott before the host adds "You better get your butts in gear, Hamsters!"
While Heather goes off to find more eggs, Al stays back to ask McLean "Hang on, what's to stop the other team from taking eggs from our basket?"
"Integrity?" the host answers with uncertainty as I see the future Mrs. Burromuerto turn back towards the baskets and add "So nothing." only to get "I didn't make it a rule that they can't, so I guess they can." from Chris in response.
She then instructs Alejandro "You stay; guard the next" and heads off to resume the egg hunt and he affirms "You're the boss" before muttering under his breath, which I know from re-watching this episode is him secretly saying "for now" as he plans to eliminate her.
"Maybe I should guard the eggs instead." Scott suggests with a yawn, which he also did off-camera in the original timeline.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out he plans to sleep instead of hunting for eggs. Can't blame him for wanting to catch up on rest, but that must wait. I then give him the same response as I did when initially living through All-Stars, which was "Nice try. We both know you'll probably fall asleep unsupervised. Chances are the others will vote you off if you fail to protect our collections and we lose."
"No way would that happen!" he insists.
"Don't lie; your yawn indicates otherwise." I reply.
"OK fine, you got me." the ginger relents.
As we make our way through the island, I hear loud footsteps and turn to see Zoey carrying a flower. It's not just any flower. This one belongs to Larry the mutant Venus Fly trap, who's chasing her now and roaring. That plant is very protective of this flower and will attack anybody who tries to take it away. Oh right; she and Mike are using that as a distraction to gather some giant Venus Fly trap egg. Ms. Pigtails then sees a flying three-eyed moose (maybe the same one I saw when searching for the immunity idol) and throws the flower at its face, getting lodged in the nose.
The moose makes some odd noise and has a scared look on its face as Larry grabs it with one tentacle and pulls the flying thing in. That fly trap quickly eats the moose without spitting anything out. At least there's no gore, blood, or bones. The pigtail sighs "Phew!" in relief as she continues to run while Mike follows her with the big egg and calls out "Sorry again!", reminding me of how she also apologized to Larry for taking that flower.
Before I can stop Scott, he runs over to snatch that egg from the multi-personality teen, and the two engage in tug-of-war for it.
"We found it first!" Mike barks at him after two or three minutes.
"Chris never said we couldn't take these away from others before reaching the baskets." the ginger retorts.
"Just go find your own!" Zoey orders.
"Why don't you?" I question.
"MY EGG!" both guys yell angrily at each other simultaneously.
It then starts rumbling.
"Uh-oh!" the egg holders state at the same time right before it bursts open.
Mike and Scott both get splattered with some slimy goop all over their faces, arms, and chests. Six little fly traps that hatched from the egg then walk around. One of them has a face resembling McLean. Did our host seriously impregnate a giant Venus flytrap (and I now remember Zoey observing Larry could be female, referring to that plant as potentially "Laurie", which could easily be true unless Larry is guarding some female fly trap's egg)!? That's totally disgusting and illegal! Perhaps it was also one of the reasons he got arrested at the end of season 4 unless he somehow snuck out of jail in between seasons.
The four of us stare at that Chris-like plant for a bit with wide eyes. Mike wipes off the goop from his face and arms as he walks away with Zoey. Scott also cleans himself, though unlike him takes off his filthy tank top to wipe off the goop (I'm guessing Mike didn't want to risk turning into Vito as that happened whenever he was shirtless before that shovel hit in the head). It gave me the chance to see his chest and I involuntarily blush a little at the sight. While he might not have a visible six pack or be as muscular as guys like Brick or Lightning, I like what he has underneath that top and there definitely is more toned muscle than last season (but only noticeable when he's shirtless). Maybe Scott helped himself get somewhat more fit in between seasons while healing from Fang's attack.
Another trumpet sound gets played. Who got another egg now? Our host tells us "And the score is 1-all!", meaning Lindsay or Sam found something and probably started guarding the Hamster basket from Alejandro.
That gets me re-focused on the game and we start looking for eggs of our own. OK, I admit I was checking out Scott shirtless for a bit. Even if he isn't the type of guy that attracts many girls with his looks alone, I do like how he has freckles (like me) as well as slicked back hair, eyes with a shade of blue reminding me of fun swimming lakes I visited during family vacations growing up, and decent muscle. Looks however aren't everything to me or my basis for choosing a partner. I once called him cute "in a sloppy rustic sort of way like a shack with nice curtains or a donkey wearing a wig" in a confessional when first living through the night race challenge. It was when I acknowledged he had a certain charm to him that I liked even though I didn't yet see him as potential boyfriend material.
The day I started liking him back as more than an ally/friend was here during the egg hunt challenge. As I said before, what first attracted me to Scott was realizing his sense of loyal dedication to those who matter to him (which back then meant me). Him willing to take orders as needed was a nice bonus. While he hasn't said aloud what exactly he likes about my physical appearance, he did call me "pretty" before and evidently likes my ass based on how he stared at that on our first day competing together. He said I was that both in the original timeline (with "you're pretty when you're mad" and staring at my face when I chastised him for making our pancake challenge harder) and in this one (when saying I was "pretty AND smart" in the confessional when admitting he liked being on the same team as me, making it clear he also likes my brains). I'm guessing he additionally likes some part of my face based on the way he's stared at it as well as probably my boobs because I caught him glancing there more than once when I first lived through the season.
Out from the swamp, Scott and I see a giant mutant alligator with tentacles. We run without hesitation and hide behind a rock. That thing killing us would be a terrible way to die! Thankfully we don't get spotted, though wait until it's gone before leaving the rock. Heather then runs up towards us, panting a bit. "Glad I found you." she says and catches her breath before continuing. "Alejandro's convincing everyone to vote for Scott at the next elimination."
That reminds me of how she's lying in some campaign to oust Al. Even though they like each other, both still have a competitive streak and are determined to outrank one another.
"Why would he do that?" I ask in disbelief.
"Probably sees him as a threat. Don't worry; my vote's for Alejandro." Heather replies while running off.
Once she's gone, I tell Scott "I don't buy her story for a moment. We need to give Heather the boot next chance we get. After already putting up with general shit for three previous seasons, I've frankly had enough. Gwen probably feels the same way and it'll be easier to secure her vote for that than for anyone else."
"I'd rather vote for bubble boy. That guy has no place on our team and now I have the chance to get back at him for when he and Zoey voted me off last season." he tells me.
I respond with "He can vote with us, plus she's a bigger threat. Please spare Cameron for now even though I know the two of you have past issues."
"Are you certain he won't just bail out of any proposal?" he skeptically asks.
"No doubt about it." I assure him.
Mr. Wilkins is one of the people Scott had a major conflict with in Revenge of the Island. He, Mike, and Zoey hated the ginger's guts for his deceitful nature and evil actions, especially after he eliminated the multi-personality teen. While Scott has of course toned down his mean streak, he certainly hasn't made up with any of them. That probably won't change anytime soon. Right now, all I want is for Scott and Cameron to agree on voting for the same person at our next elimination ceremony. They both agreed to vote for Al during the original timeline when us Vultures lost this challenge, so I don't see any good reason why that would be different now should we lose again. Don't get me wrong here as I still hate Alejandro and want him gone too, but I only had to deal with his antics for one previous season where Heather competed on three other seasons with me, plus the girls' cabin will be a more pleasant visit without her around.
Another trumpet horn sound gets played as Chris informs everyone "That's two eggs for the heroes!"
Uh-oh! Better catch up. No way will we stay behind if I can help it! The two of us search around for a while. I know I've lived through this before, but it's still shocking how many mutant creatures are around us! At one point, I tell Scott "I don't know how you guys put up with a whole season of these weird monsters."
He boasts "Hey, whatever doesn't horribly maim and devour you only makes you stronger." while flexing one of his biceps and instructs "Stay close. I got your back." before grabbing my hand with his other arm.
I distinctly remember how we briefly held hands in this challenge the first time. Back then I played coy and blushed a bit (though the cameras for some reason didn't show my cheeks going red). He would then try to apologize only to get interrupted by a giant gopher attacking him. The truth is I really liked that moment. We both did. Thankfully no gopher is around this time as we're in a different area now. Scott and I hold hands for longer than before today without releasing. He then nervously adds "Uh sorry, I-I, uh, hope you don't mind me doing that."
"Not at all." I answer.
Sure, that's a sign I reciprocate Scott's affections, but that's fine with me. It's only the two of us around and he was going to learn sooner or later how I felt anyway.
"Th-There's something I feel I should say." the ginger anxiously tells me as he lets go of my hand.
I already have a sense of what that is. He's ready to ask me out and even has the same nervous facial expression that he did when popping that question in the original timeline! As much as I would love to get together right here and now, our main priority at this moment is defeating the Hamsters.
After a brief pause, I hide my excitement and respond with "If it isn't related to the challenge or who to vote off, then it unfortunately has to wait. I'll be all ears after the elimination ceremony ends. Regardless of which team is wins, I PROMISE you neither of us will take tonight's flush of shame. Gwen will vote with us if we lose and I'm sure one of us could secure Cameron's vote to ensure our safety. I watched last season and know that after once getting immunity, he was able to spare you for a moment to join Lightning in voting off Jo when she pushed them both too far, so he can do that again here."
"Fair point. I almost forgot about that day." Scott admits.
We then hear a faint roaring somewhere far off. Maybe it was that giant mutant chicken catching Mike and Zoey trying to take her egg. In any case, the trumpet plays again a couple minutes later as Chris tells everyone "And the villains are up 4-2!"
That was a well-needed boost! Scott and I fist-bump upon hearing that announcement. Next thing we know, that giant nest with mutant bird eggs is up ahead. Jackpot! We take the nest with us and head back to our basket. On the way back, I hear Zoey talking to Mike in the distance.
"So, if getting hit in the head made you lose contact with your other personalities, would another hit in the head bring them back?" she asks her boyfriend.
OH FUCK! This was the episode Multiple Mike dropped that giant boulder on his head, thinking it would restore how he was before the shovel hit, but inadvertently makes things worse as Mal then takes much more control. I need to stop him from doing that after the challenge. One thought I previously came up with was simply using another shovel instead.
"Like a reset button! Worth a try." he responds before Scott and I are out of hearing range.
Something I know from re-watching the episode is that Zoey can't bring herself to hit him, but maybe the smaller rock Mike suggested using would've had less damage than the boulder. There either way is nothing I can do about that before the challenge ends without raising eyebrows. In the meantime, Scott and I have a victory to secure. The two of us run as fast as we can without spilling anything.
"The score is still 4-2 villains, but I see a lot of eggs approaching! It's gonna be a close one!" Chris announces while we head for our basket.
I then hear Lindsay screaming. Some mutant was probably chasing her. She bumps into me while running, making me fall back and drop the nest. Come on! Most of those eggs have unfortunately broken as a result. The blonde has apparently taken one of the three intact eggs with her before I could get up. Scott then helps me up and we each grab a giant egg and run for our basket.
McLean then informs us "It's now that 4-3! Can the heroes win after all?" right after the trumpet is played yet again one minute later.
They better not get ahead of us like that! Lindsay is now guarding the Hamsters' basket when I approach it while Cameron is guarding the one for the Vultures. Scott then somehow trips and drops his egg, which breaks upon landing. Dammit! He insists "Go score while you can." and I take my egg to our basket.
I place it in the basket without hesitation and run back for more eggs as the trumpet plays again and Chris adds "Make that 5-3 for the villains!"
Scott joins me as we go to find more eggs. It takes some searching, but we still have a chance to win. I then spot one in a tree after ten minutes or so. That unfortunately is out of reach. We keep walking. After about five minutes, a giant mutant gopher pops up from under the ground! At least it's too far away to grab Scott this time. Even so, I grab a big stick nearby to whack it away. One swift smack thankfully is enough to make that retreat into its hole. One of its mutant gopher eggs pops up as the thing digs its way back underground.
"Yes! Weirdo gopher egg! Come on!" I proclaim as I grab the thing.
The ginger doesn't need to be told twice to follow me as we run back. Just as the basket is in sight, Sam and Mike show up from the side with eggs of their own! Zoey has also apparently traded places with Lindsay for guarding. That trumpet plays again as Mike places his one egg in the basket and Sam then secures their victory by adding two more to their collection before I can reach our own. So close and yet so far! I drop the egg as there's no longer any point in bringing that over.
"6-5, the heroes win!" Chris announces as if it wasn't already obvious while everyone gathers near the baskets.
The Hamsters cheer for their win as us Vultures look down towards the ground in defeat. McLean doesn't ask if anybody wants to collect belongings this time since Heather didn't find and stash away the immunity idol. That giant door then promptly pulls up instead and Chef escorts us all to the boat. Our host calls out "All aboard!" as we enter it.
Once the cook starts that boat up again, we get to the docks in roughly five minutes. I hold back Mr. Wilkins and the goth as the other Vultures go to the cabins and the Hamsters head for the hotel. Time to secure tonight's flushing.
"Gwen, do you remember how we once made a pact in season 3 to vote off a certain somebody only for that to backfire when Chris told us it was a reward challenge when we lost?" I question. "It seems like a good opportunity to try that again tonight."
"You mean give Heather the ax? She assured me her vote was for Alejandro even though he was convincing you and Scott to vote off Cameron." she replies.
I then add "That deceitful bitch said the same thing to me about getting Scott out. I didn't believe her for a moment. Let's boot her off while we can. It'll show she's not as clever as she thinks."
"Deal." the goth affirms with a smile and shakes my hand as bubble boy states "Count me in!"
Assuming Scott doesn't vote for anyone else, we should be good. I know Cameron has at least watched the third season before joining, so he knows how evil both Al and Heather can be even if less nasty now than before, but those two might be able to more easily manipulate Scott when he probably hasn't watched the show much (if ever) before competing himself. While Wilkins also surely knows how mean I got then, he thankfully seems to have noticed that I'm nicer these days. We'll at worst go through a tie-breaker. I then part ways with bubble boy and Gwen.
To pass time before the elimination ceremony, I take a walk around the island. What I see after about half an hour scares me. Mike is carrying a giant boulder with him to the confessional outhouse. Mal will show up more often if that gets dropped on his head! I call out "Don't hurt yourself with that thing!" as I get closer, and he thankfully stops to drop that boulder.
"After losing contact with my alternate personalities following a shovel hit to the head, Zoey and I thought maybe getting hit in the head again could work like a reset button and bring them back, so I chose to use this." Mr. Multiple Personalities tells me.
If I can stop Mal from causing as much damage as he did in the original timeline, then I know I'll be a hero (or at least get closer to being one) regardless of team placements. However, I probably won't get switched onto the Hamsters either way when the cameras aren't recording this ordeal, but that doesn't really matter now.
"That seems rather dangerous. A boulder of such size will surely harm you much more than that shovel. Did you think maybe using a shovel specifically might work better?" I inquire.
"Never occurred to me." He answers while shrugging his shoulders.
By some coincidence, I see an intern dropping a shovel near that outhouse. I then go over to pick it up as Mike follows me. He instructs "Do it!" while leaning his head closer to me and the shovel.
"I want you to know I'm sorry in advance for the pain this inflicts." I tell him.
"Consider yourself forgiven. I have to protect Zoey at all costs and can't think of any better way when I feel something has been wrong with me ever since losing Vito, Chester, Manitoba, and Svetlana." the multi-personality teen says.
That "something" is obviously his inner demon. Here's hoping my plan works. Zoey then unexpectedly shows up and asks me "Are you testing out the theory I shared with Mike about how he could get his alternate personalities back with another hit to the head?"
"Yes, and here we go." I confirm before hesitantly whacking him the back of the head with the shovel.
He's knocked out cold much like that day on the beach where we searched for sculpture pieces. I really feel bad for the guy. Wait a moment. I just remembered how Mal quickly came up after that boulder hit while Mike is still passed out. That means he won't wreak as much (if any) havoc now! I feel quite relieved at that thought.
"Let's take him back to the hotel. He could use some rest." The pigtailed girl tells me after a minute or two.
Both of us pick up Mike's body and carry him there. We place him on one of the beds in the boys' bedroom. She tells me "I'll keep a watch on him. You should leave before anybody catches you here."
I nod my head understandingly and exit. While I'm not supposed to be in the hotel tonight when my team lost, this was an instance I simply had to enter it even if only for a limited time. The pigtailed girl couldn't have carried him here all by herself. Once out of the hotel, I go to find Chef to collect my immunity idol as we agreed I would when I lost a challenge.
The first place I choose to look is the kitchen I visited for meals during season one. Where else could he be? When I enter the building, he's nowhere to be found. That surprises me. Just as I'm about to leave, he then enters. I then ask him "I was just coming to find you for my immunity idol, so do you still have it at the ready?"
Hatchet nods and pulls the idol out from his pocket. He says "If you don't end up using it tonight, then bring it back to me again for safekeeping. We'll keep repeating this process unless you get the majority vote and save yourself with that thing."
I take the idol with one hand and give him a handshake with the other, affirming "Deal, and you have my gratitude for not telling Chris or anybody else about my finding."
"Not a problem." he replies as I exit and put the idol in my pocket.
Even though I'm certain I won't get the most votes tonight, I can't say that to Chef or any other people. It'll be too suspicious. To pass the time, I decide to walk around Camp Wawanakwa. It takes me roughly two or three hours, and the sun starts setting once I reach the girls' cabin. Heather is inside. Gwen on the other hand cannot be seen. I go in to get my law book from my bags and then take that outside to read until it's time for the elimination ceremony.
Gwen shows up after it gets dark, telling Heather and me "Time to go vote.", so the three of us make our way to the ceremony.
Cameron, Scott, and Alejandro join us not long afterwards. I stay towards the back of the group to keep anybody from seeing the idol in my pocket. Not a risk that I'm willing to take right now. Before long, we all arrive and see the Hamsters have already been seated in the peanut gallery.
"Congrats on the victory, heroes. Sam, since you got the most eggs into your team's basket today with three, you win a special prize that'll come in handy at the next challenge." Chris announces after us Vultures settle into the losers' seats.
Never thought he'd have the biggest score among today's collections. I've underestimated what Sam's capable of.
"Score!" the gamer cheers. "Please do tell what it is."
"Sorry, but I'm keeping it a secret until then. I mean, why spoil the surprise? Tonight, a villain goes home. Time to vote!" the host adds.
We vote tonight in alphabetical order of first names. That means Alejandro kicks things off. Cameron goes next. I'm up third and waste no time in making a big X over a portrait of Heather's face once it's my turn to enter the confessional and vote. To add some comedic effect, I draw devil horns on her head before signing my name on the back. Gwen follows me once I finish. Heather is up afterwards and then Scott is the last one to vote. The Vultures all gather around and wait for Chris to count everybody's choice for flushing.
"I've tallied the votes and tonight's flushee is…
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Heather!"
"Halleluiah!" Lindsay proclaims with joy.
I then see a look of sadness on Heather's face, who dramatically shouts "NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" in dismay while dropping to her knees because of her elimination.
My plan worked! Sorry Al, but you don't get to orchestrate her elimination tonight even if you did take part in it. You also shouldn't expect to last in the game for much longer without her.
"Somebody's attempts at trickery didn't work this time." Gwen taunts.
Heather scowls and gives her the middle finger.
"Would anybody care to elaborate on this trickery?" Alejandro inquires.
"She lied when telling me you were ganging people up on Scott, plus tried to convince Gwen you were doing that to Cameron. The only possible truth was insisting that she'd vote for you tonight." I answer and then turn to tonight's loser, stating "Heather, if you really just wanted us all to vote for Alejandro so badly, then you should've just said so. You aren't as clever as you seem to think."
"I can confirm she did in fact vote for Al." Chris pipes in. "It was tonight's only vote that wasn't for her."
"Pathetic. No surprise she'd try to backstab me." Burromuerto quips.
"You just did the same to me, you hypocrite!" she snaps back.
"That doesn't matter." McLean tells her before asking the Hamsters "Now, who's heading to Boney Island?"
I turn to see Mike get up and volunteer "I'll go!", whistling a sample of "In the Hall of the Mountain King" as he makes his way to Chef's boat.
Hold on, that's the tune Mal whistles! Things don't seem to have gone as well as I had hoped. That demon still is among us even if to a lesser extent than when I first lived through the season. Chris then takes a plate of marshmallows out, telling the remaining Vultures "Marshmallows for the rest of the villains." and he tosses them to Cameron, Scott, Gwen, and me in that order before giving the final one to Alejandro.
He did the same thing when I first lived through the season, and it for some reason was edited out of the episode. Our host takes a sad Heather down to the giant toilet afterwards and Al follows. I know in the original timeline Burromuerto mocks her loss and then tries to get flirtatious by telling her "We are a perfect couple" before she angrily pushes him into the lake and is flushed away. Chris will then sign off the episode. Chances are the same will happen here again.
As the contestants leave the elimination ceremony, Zoey holds me back. I have a good idea why. She whispers to me "Can we talk in private?" and has a very worried look on her face.
This cannot be good.
That's right; I'm ending the chapter on a cliffhanger (evil laughter)! Find out in Chapter 10 what Zoey will share with our time-traveler.
Reason for elimination: Even though this has the same ousting as canon, it made sense to me that our CIT would try to outwit Heather in some way given their conflict in the series. She also knows that Gwen would gladly join in voting her off for similar reasons. This additionally was a strategic choice on Courtney's part when Heather is known to be a major threat in the game.
Elimination Order:
Sierra (14th place), Lightning (13th place), Jo (12th place), Duncan (11th place), Heather (10th place)
Remaining Players:
Heroic Hamsters: Lindsay, Mike, Sam, Zoey
Villainous Vultures: Alejandro, Cameron, Courtney, Gwen, Scott
Chapter posted: October 9, 2018.