(Uporstvo Tribe)
The six remaining members made their way back to camp. Nobody looked that happy with the results of the Tribal Council.
"Tonight… I don't know how fully happened tonight. All I know that it sucked me. When we were going to vote off Richard, the others voted off Ronnie." Catherine said sadly before narrowing her eyes. "I am still stumped about what happened but I want answers!"
Catherine had pulled Janet and Oscar to the side.
"All right! Janet, what happened?" Catherine roared. "We were supposed to vote off Richard to get rid of the Idol!"
"…Um, would it do any good to point out that Richard never had the Idol in the first place?" The tomboyish woman asked raising a finger.
"NO!" Catherine yelled making Janet and Oscar wince.
"Okay… Just checking." Janet sighed.
"You think tonight would be great seeing that the person who was going after got voted out right? Wrong…" Janet sighed. "I was literally forced to vote off Ronald sooner than later. Also, Richard got THREE votes. Unlike Sally and Kao split their votes for some reason, there is no other way. In the end, Oscar chose Catherine over me."
"Look. I'll be blunt." The mercenary said. "I feel more comfortable with Richard rather than you and Ronald."
"But we were targeting Richard for a reason!" Catherine scolded. "There was no way you could have known that Sally had the Idol the whole thing!"
Janet scratched the back of her head. "Well, I didn't… Richard did."
"Huh?" Catherine asked confused.
"After Sally sent him to Exile Island, he searched for the Idol and couldn't find it." Janet said. "And aside of the fact that he was right in the end, he seemed very nervous about the vote."
Catherine raised an eyebrow. "One more question. Why didn't you get Oscar on your side? If it wasn't for pure luck, Richard would have gone!"
"I DID…" Janet said sharply. "Or to be more specific, I TRIED."
Catherine looked up at Oscar in surprise as he looked away from the girls.
"So you knew the whole time?" Catherine asked.
"Yes…" Oscar nodded.
"Tonight sucked. This was supposed to be my big decision to choose between Janet and Catherine. One of the good sides is no matter what, I should get a clear majority." Oscar said slapping his head. "But NO. Sally and Kao just HAPPENED to vote for Ronald by chance thus making my whole vote irrelevant. Now I possibly got Catherine as my only clear ally."
The three remaining Aurum members stared at each other for a moment in an awkward silence.
"I am going to bed." Oscar said finally.
"Yeah, same here." Catherine added.
"Ditto." Janet concluded.
With that, the three split up in different directions. Despite the shelter was right next to them.
(Day 34)
Sally and Kao sat on a log talking about what had happened last night.
"Wow… That was… Crazy." Kao said flatly.
"Even now I am stumped what had happened. Despite Sally is the only available target in the minority, she never got a single vote against her." Kao shrugged. "Instead it was between Richard and Ronald. Wow, I knew that this game could get complicated but still…"
"Why do you think they voted for each other instead of you?" The Pianta asked.
Sally gave a deep sigh. "I want to think they voted against each other because they have a backstabbing fetish but there is no way around it. Richard had convinced a couple that I have the Idol."
"Oh dear… So much for the Idol…" Kao frowned.
"Well, it wasn't a complete loss." Sally reminded. "Both of us are still here, the person who were targeting had gone as planned and we may had caused a lot of distrust between the majority."
"Yeah. The tension had gone up a lot more." Kao nodded.
"Yeah. Maybe we could use that tension to our advantage." Sally said.
Kao paused. "Wow, Sally. You had changed."
"Hm?" The braided woman said.
"Well, you had grown so much since we first started." Kao said. "You used to be so unconfident in your skills. But now you are playing big moves left and right. I am quite impressed."
Sally's eyes widened a bit before she looked away with a small blush. "Um, thanks…"
"I was just trying to save Kao and I from being picked off. I knew between him and me, one of us had to step up so I was the one to do it." Sally said. "Everything else… Well, just give me a few minutes to think and… the moves just come to me."
"Anyway, we should see who to talk with." The blonde woman said.
"Um, I don't know who to talk to but I DO know one thing." Kao said.
Sally raised an eyebrow. "And that is…"
"Now is not the best time to do so." Kao said. "The others had been giving themselves strange looks. I am a little nervous to go near there."
Sally just shook her head. "Tell me about it."
Richard and Janet were on a log talking.
"Well, can't say I didn't see this outcome coming but it is official." Janet said. "Oscar will keep Catherine over me."
"You think after all the verbal abuse he had been through, he would have given up." Richard said rolling his eyes. "I don't care how "attractive" Catherine is, her personality is irritating, uncomfortable and just plain confusing."
"I know right?" Janet sighed.
"Well, now what?" Richard asked. "Shall we stick with Oscar and Catherine and flip to Sally and Kao?"
Janet shook her head. "Well, we have to choose between one of them eventually. Still, no matter what we will have to go into a tiebreaker."
Richard paused. "Or do we?"
Janet looked up. "Hm?
"We have to choose between two sides. Each one that if we get rid of, we will go after them in a tiebreaker." Richard said crossing his arms. "Then, it hit me. Do we HAVE to go into a tiebreaker? Do we HAVE to stay loyal to one side to the end."
"All right. Here is what I am thinking." The scientist said. "We side on one pair to vote another one of them off. Then, we will flip to the other side to vote off the other person off."
Janet's eyes widened at this. "But by doing that, we will be angering both sides!"
Richard crossed his arms. "But we can't just put our fate into a tiebreaker!"
"Richard, most of the jury is mad at us for voting them out." Janet explained. "We can't afford to make EVERYONE hate us."
"Then, we'll argue that they would do the same thing in our position." Richard said. "And while I don't know about you but I don't think I would get the jury votes of either pair that easily anyway."
Janet looked down. "Yeah… Sally and Catherine are probably still mad at me."
"Exactly! We don't have that much to lose if we do go with the plan as much as we do if we go into a tiebreaker!" Richard explained.
Janet sighed.
"So much for letting other people take the heat. No matter what happens now, if we go through with Richard's plan, EVERYONE will be bitter at me." Janet said crossing her arms. "Don't get me wrong, Richard's idea is smart but will it make the jurors look past the feeling of being backstabbed?"
(Day 35)
Catherine walked around the shore looking around for someone.
"Oscar! Oscar! Where are you?" Catherine called out. "Ugh, where is this guy?"
The pink-haired girl continued to look around. While she was looking, she failed to see a bunch of bubbles appear on the water. The bubbles slowly made their way towards the surface.
Catherine heard the noise and turned her head in confusion. She then yelped seeing the bubbles. Oscar then appeared from the water.
"Oscar, you creep!" Catherine yelled. "Are you trying to scare me half to death?"
The whale immediately shrank back. "Sorry, I didn't mean to!"
Catherine just grunted. "Whatever, I had been looking all over for you!"
"Um, yeah, I heard my name from the ocean." Oscar said. He then sighed. "What is it?"
Catherine paused for a moment. She then looked to the side making Oscar raise a non-existent eyebrow.
"Um, Catherine?" Oscar asked confused.
The pink-haired girl continued to the side. However, she then sighed. As if she was about to admit a harsh defeat.
"I… Need you more than ever." Catherine said finally.
Oscar's eyes widened at this.
"Oscar was the only one besides me who voted to keep Ronald which means he is probably the only person I could trust." Catherine said. She then gave a weak chuckle. "Heh. I thought I was at Rock Bottom before the merge but in the end, it is when I am willing to admit out loud that Oscar is the only person who got my back."
"Oscar, even though that Ronald had been voted off, I know that you had tried to save him." The teenaged girl said.
"Yeah but my vote didn't mattered!" Oscar insisted. "Ronald got voted off."
"Yeah but you were the only one who didn't vote him out besides him and me, of course." Catherine said. "That means you are the only one who… Who have my back 100%."
Oscar seemed a bit surprised by this. "Really?"
Catherine nodded. "I can't trust anyone else but you. That is why we have to stick together! Especially since the others are in pairs anyway."
"Well, that's true. What good would my vote me?" Oscar asked.
"Well, it is a start. All we need is one more for a tiebreaker." Catherine said.
"Um, right." Oscar said.
Catherine narrowed her eyes. "Oscar!"
The strongman then yelped. "Yes, Catherine?"
"I know that you upset. I know what it is like to lose an ally." The high-school student said. "Heck, I lost TWO. I know how hard it must feel to lose an ally. Especially by your own hand."
"That is why I am so nervous." Oscar said. "I am mostly afraid that Janet will rally everyone into voting me off."
Catherine raised an eyebrow. "Janet doesn't strike me as a vengeful type."
"That still doesn't make her passive over my betrayal." Oscar said. "I meant what I said back there. Trust is a big issue in this game!"
"Good point." Catherine said. "Still, what kind of man makes a big move and spends most of their time moping about it."
Oscar sighed. "Yeah… It is far too late to keep on looking back."
Catherine nodded. "Especially with the rocky road that is ahead of us."
"Right." Oscar said before grinning. "Don't worry. I will stay with you towards the end. I chose to stay to side with you."
"Yeah, about that…" Catherine said looking down.
Oscar paused looking confused.
"Thank you… For staying with me." Catherine said looking embarrassed. "I admit that I am absolutely terrified of being of my own."
Oscar stood in silence before walking over and putting his hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. I know I made a lot of mistakes since we started but I promise that I won't mess this up for you."
"I did it… I think I had I finally made peace with Catherine… I don't know if this means she will be into me or not but it is definitely an improvement." Oscar said sighing with relief. "Truth is, I need her vote just as much as she needs me."
"Yo, Treemail time!"
"Well, might as well get this over with." Catherine sighed.
"Yeah, I used to be psyched to do the Challenges the most." Oscar said. "Now I find it as a way to pass the time."
The two then went over to Kao who had the letter this time.
"Well, what is it?" Richard asked.
"It says "Are you a better climber or swimmer?" Kao read.
Oscar immediately brightened up. "Well, at least we got a good Challenge!"
"Speak for yourself!" Richard spat as the others glared at Oscar.
"At first, I immediately groaned at the easy advantage Oscar will have in the Challenge being an aquatic mammal." Richard said rolling his eyes. "Then I remember Oscar has a tendency to make blunders to cost him the Challenge. If the Challenge isn't revolved completely around swimming, the rest of us may have a fighting chance."
(Final Reward)
The six finalists made their way onto the mat.
"Hello, Survivors. Welcome to your Final Reward." Tiny said. "Take a look."
Everyone looked out to see some kind of fence in the ocean. On one side of it were six large discs floating on the water. Each of them had six holes on them. On the other side were a bunch of red buoy balls with ropes connected to them.
"Here is your next Challenge." Tiny said. "You will swim out onto the ocean and make your way towards one of those giant discs. Once there, you can choose to climb over or swim under the fence to fetch a buoy ball. You then have to take each buoy ball back using either way. First person to put all of their buoy balls in the disc wins Final Reward. Want to know what you are playing for?"
Everyone nodded.
"A helicopter ride to an inactive volcano where you can see the views. You can also eat some delicious food when the surface." Tiny said. "Now let's draw for spots."
(Later)
Everyone got into their positions.
"All right. For Final Reward!" Tiny said. "Survivors, ready? Go!"
Everyone immediately ran towards the water and dove straight in. Despite Oscar was one of the last two to jump in had obviously proven to be the fastest swimmer darting passing several others. Soon, he was the first person to reach the fence.
Naturally, he opted to swim underneath the fence first. In fact, everyone chose to go under the water. Oscar poked his head out first and grabbed the nearest buoy ball next to him before going back under with it. Though due to his strength, he easily carried it with him easier making it underneath the fence.
Between Catherine poked her head out of the water on the other side first and wasting no time grabbing the rope of a buoy ball. She then dove back under.
Only to find that it was harder to carry down into the water than it looked. She scowled.
"Come on, you! How am I supposed to take you under the fence if I can't take you under at all?" Catherine growled before looking up. "Oh, great… I have to carry this thing over the fence."
Janet and Sally on the other hand had an easier diving down with their buoy balls using the rails of the fence to pull their down. Meanwhile, Oscar had headed back and put the buoy ball into the first circle. Suddenly, he realized something.
"Yo, Tiny!" Oscar shouted.
"What?" The host called out.
"Do we have to do it one at a time?" Oscar asked.
"Um, no. But it may be…" Tiny started.
"Sweet!" The whale smirked before diving back under.
"Difficult…" Tiny said flatly. "Why did I have the feeling that I allowed Game Breaking in this Challenge?"
Meanwhile, Richard and Catherine climbed up to fence trying to carry these buoys balls. The two gritted their teeth.
"How am I supposed to carry this over if it is weighing me down?" Richard asked with a growl.
Meanwhile, Oscar poked his head out up in the water. He then grabbed the rope of the buoy ball with each arm.
"Hey! He is carrying two buoys balls at once!" Sally exclaimed. "Can he do that?"
"Technically, I don't know if there is any rule against it because it is near-impossible for a normal person to do so." Janet said.
"I hate it when the contestants pull loopholes on me." Tiny muttered.
Oscar then poked his head out of the other side putting two balls in. Kao saw this putting his first ball in.
"Hmm… I am almost as strong as Oscar… Maybe I should do the same as him…" Kao mused before making his way under.
Richard on the other hand had reached the top of the fence before giving a sigh of relief.
"Well, might as well get this over with." Richard said. "Heave-HO!"
With that, he hoisted the buoy ball over the fence nearly hitting a startled Sally.
"Hey! There are some other people doing the Challenge, you know!" Sally yelled angrily.
"I exclaimed "Heave-Ho"." Richard muttered climbing over.
Suddenly, a buoy ball had popped up from the opposite side of the discs. Kao poked his head out of the water.
"How did Oscar make carrying two buoys balls so easily?" Kao asked in disbelief. He then paused. "Oh, yeah. Because he is a whale."
Speaking of Oscar, he poked up back and grabbed two more buoys balls before making his way back under. That was until he froze in thought.
At the same time, Catherine poked her head back over the water to pant heavily.
"Great! Now I am too tired to hold my breath underwater!" Catherine whined before climbing the fence.
Janet went back over the fence to grab another buoy ball. "Okay. I am doing this at a steady pace. If I could just continue at this pace."
She then turned around and her eyes widened. Oscar was not only holding a buoy ball with each hand but was carrying a THIRD one in his hand. Janet watched as he put the buoy balls back into their places.
"Oh… I could just sit back while everyone congratulates Oscar…" Janet said flatly.
The whale had put the final buoy ball into its slot. "TINY!"
"Oscar has it!" Tiny grinned. "OSCAR WINS REWARD!"
The orca whale let out a loud cheer before diving back into the water.
(Later)
"Congratulations, Oscar! You had won the Reward giving you access to a trip to an inactive volcano." Tiny said. "But of course, you won't go alone! You may choose one person to go with you!"
The strongman grinned. "Catherine!"
The pink-haired girl smiled before walking over while a couple of people rolled their eyes.
"All right, you two will go to the helicopter ride and you will be back for your next Challenge." Tiny said. "But you also have to send one person to Exile Island for the final time. Keep in mind that the Idols are now out of play so any clues there will be pointless."
Oscar actually had to think when he heard this. He looked back and forth between the four people wondering who to choose.
"I… Pick…" Oscar said. "Richard…"
All Richard did was roll his eyes before walking off towards the boat.
"Wow… He certainly didn't hesitate going off. Anyway, he will be back for the next Challenge." Tiny said before looking at the others. "As for the rest of you, I got nothing for you. You may head back to camp."
(Uporstvo Tribe)
Sally and Kao walked along the shore. The latter was looking around a few times.
"Wow… Maybe it is because there are only three people here but this place feels bigger." Kao noted.
"Yeah, things seemed a little more cramped when you are sharing a tribe with four to six people." Sally said.
The two continued walking until they found what they were looking for. Janet sitting alone in the shelter.
"Well, here we go." Sally said taking in a deep gulp.
"Seeing that Janet is the only one at camp besides us, Sally thought it was a good idea to talk to her." Kao said with a shrug. "However at the same time, she is still feeling fishy about her along with the others."
"All right, wish me luck." Sally said as the two walked over.
"Luck." Kao said.
Janet looked up to see the two standing in front of them.
"Um, hey…" Janet said somewhat sheepishly.
"Hey." Kao said.
Sally took in a deep breath. "Okay, there had something that had been bugging me ever since Ronald got voted out. Why did you betray him?"
Janet paused. "Richard had figured out that you had the Idol and told me and Oscar."
"Wow. And we thought that all of you would vote him off." Kao said.
"Yeah, well…" Janet said before pausing. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, WHOA. Sally, did you sent Richard to Exile Island knowing that he would have us suspicious about him having an Idol?"
"Something like that." Sally said. "We knew how paranoid you guys got when it came to Idols."
"Actually it is more Ronald but still…" Janet said.
"While on the subject, I want to know who voted for Richard." Sally said. "Besides Catherine and Ronald, of course."
Janet gave an exasperated sigh. "As much as I hate to admit it, Oscar."
Kao seemed surprised by this. "Oscar? But isn't he your closest friend out here?"
"He is! But he doesn't want to return the favour." Janet sighed. "He wanted someone else."
"Catherine?" Oscar asked.
"Bingo. He wanted to get on her good side since the start." Janet said. "At first I tried to be a little supportive despite not really a fan of the idea. But soon, when things got more hectic, Oscar had to choose between me and her."
"Maybe there is something Oscar sees in Catherine that you don't." Kao suggested.
Janet shook her head. "That may be the point because no matter how hard I try, I am completely blind to what Oscar sees."
"Catherine isn't the worst person in the world and she had definitely mellowed out a lot from when we first started." Janet said rolling her eyes. "But it is still as clear that she is only being nice to Oscar because he is voting with her. For most of the game, she had been insulting him and making him feel like crap. It reminds me a lot like those abusive relationships from anime."
"I honestly can't count one single thing Catherine had treated Oscar nicely." Janet said sternly. "She was always been mean to him and while he DOES deserve some of the verbal abuse, half of it was completely uncalled for."
Kao blinked twice. "If it is THAT bad, why support it at all?"
Janet paused before sighing. "I don't know… He just seems so determined and eager that I didn't want to discourage him."
"Yeah… Don't mean to rub it in but considering the results of the last Tribal Council, that wasn't a bright move." Sally said.
"Please… Don't remind me." Janet said holding her head. "Now my head is filled with insults that Catherine may be throwing at Oscar inside of the helicopter."
Sally and Kao looked at each other.
"Wow… I know that Aurum had lost a lot of Challenges but who knew that their morale was so low? Janet leading on Oscar for an unobtainable dream?" Sally asked. "Oscar constantly in the end of a bad relationship? I know I am going to sound sour but that nails it. I am not looking for to siding with EITHER pair."
(Helicopter Ride)
Oscar and Catherine sat inside of a helicopter heading over to their Reward. The two looked to the side in awe at the view.
"Whoa…" Catherine said in awe. "This is amazing…"
"I say. I never saw a volcano on land before." Oscar agreed.
Catherine gave Oscar a strange look. "Um, you mean because you are always cooped up in the sea right?"
"Huh? Oh no." The giant said. "We have a volcano back in the ocean. Once active too."
Catherine's eyes widened at this. "While underwater?"
"You'll be surprised how much Bikini Bottom gets away with laws of physics." Oscar said flatly as he continued to look out the window.
"Finally, things are looking up for me a bit. I completely destroyed the last Challenge and I won a chance to be alone with Catherine." Oscar said with a small smile. "This had been the best thing that happened to me by far so far."
Soon, the two had arrived on the volcano sitting on a picnic blanket eating some food. Oscar was stuffing his face more than Catherine.
"Good grief, Oscar. We have all day." Catherine said. "You don't have to stuff your face as if you are at an eating contest."
"Are you kidding me?" The whale said in disbelief. "We had been eating nothing but rice and fruit since we started! I NEED this!"
With that, he stuffed another piece of bread in his mouth at once. However, he started to cough before holding his throat.
"Oscar!?" Catherine exclaimed realizing that he was choking. "Oh crap! How do I do the Heimlich Maneuver on someone that bulky!?"
Fortunately for the two, Oscar found a way to save himself. Closing his eyes, he concentrated. Then, the piece of bread he was choking on shot great out of the blowhole on his back straight out into the giant crate of the volcano. Catherine paused blinking twice as Oscar panted heavily.
Catherine sighed in disbelief. "See what happens when you don't pace yourself?"
"Yes, ma'am." Oscar said looking down.
"After we eat our food, we decided to talk about who to align with. I mean both pairs have a lot of reasons on why we shouldn't trust them but we have no choice." Catherine sighed. "We have to side with either one even though they would save each other over us."
Catherine and Oscar then sat on the blanket looking at each other.
"So who do we think we could side with?" Oscar asked.
"I was actually thinking about Janet and Richard because of your friendship with the former." Catherine said.
Oscar's eyes widened at this. "What? Are you mad!? I betrayed that friendship by voting for Richard! She will never want to side with based on previous relationships!"
"Again, I think Janet has a lot more to worry about than having revenge against you." Catherine said. "You don't know she won't go back to you. And even if she doesn't, there is a good chance that Sally feels the same way."
"Gee, I feel SO much better." Oscar said rolling his eyes. "Seriously, if that's the case, how do we decide who to go with? We could be dead here and deader there."
Catherine paused in thought. "Well, we ARE almost into the finale. Maybe we could target the biggest pair of threats."
"On one hand, we have Sally and Kao who are mostly nice and having an underdog story going for them which people like in a winner." Catherine said. "On the other hand, we have Janet and Richard who are mostly in charge of the game more than the other two and made a lot of big moves."
"Who are you comfortable sitting with if you made the Final Tribal Council?" The pink-haired girl asked.
Oscar shook his head. "Honestly? None of them. I even feel that Kao will beat me unanimously."
"Now what talk is that?" Catherine snapped. "Now is not the time for doubts! Especially this late into the game!"
"But every move I tried to do blow up in my face!" Oscar exclaimed. "Even when I was the swing vote, I was nothing more than a hinky vote in the end. Who would vote for that? Bitter jurors?"
Catherine paused. "That's not a bad idea, actually."
"Hm?" Oscar said.
"Janet and Richard did a lot of things to make the entire juror so far angry." Catherine said. "Perhaps they would vote for the both of us over them out of spite. You know, like Kat from last season."
"I dunno. Kat won without annoying that many people." Oscar said. "I think I ticked off a couple of people. Particularly Bill and Coco for leading the charge in voting off the former."
Catherine just shrugged. "Yeah. I don't think I am that liked with those two are well. Still, we will get even less votes sitting with Sally and Kao."
"Tell me about it." Oscar said rolling his eyes. "I just hope that Janet isn't as bitter as the jury."
"So I am going to try to go back to the very woman I backstabbed even though she had barely gotten two days to get over it." Oscar groaned. "I don't know. Maybe Catherine IS right. Maybe I AM being overly negative. Maybe all I have to do is convince Janet why I did the things that I did."
(Exile Island)
Richard got off the boat to Exile Island knowing fully well that he had nothing to do here but wait until tomorrow.
"I had been sent to Exile Island. Normally I would find this as a way to find the Hidden Immunity Idol but seeing that it had been played at the last Tribal Council, it was just for spite." Richard said with a sigh. "At least here, I could think about how to execute my plan."
The Russian man made his way over to the sign and read it.
"Congratulations, you are the final person to stay at Exile Island. That means that the finale is upon you." Richard read. "You have come this far so go all the way."
He then gave a small smirk before sitting against the sign before thinking.
"Now let's see. Which one of pair should target and before targeting the other pair?" Richard paused. "First off, I have to analyse everyone in terms of their status of threats."
He then took in a deep breath.
"Sally is well-liked and started to get into the game after Bill's departure and so far. Some people may vote for her because of her sudden change in self-esteem. Then, there is Kao. Gameplay-wise, he is flawed beyond belief but he is just so… overly-positive without being annoying about it that people may vote for him because of that. Catherine… I am not afraid of sitting next to her at all. Not only does she have a haughty attitude but she had been riding on Ronald's coattails since the start of the merge. And Oscar, he is a smaller threat than Catherine. The only thing he got is his muscle along with his speciality in the water."
"When you count down the days, you may realize that we will have a Final 3 this season. So while I was worried about surviving the vote, I sooner started to be concerned about who I want with me." Richard said. "I am kinda forced to take Janet by default so I have to think carefully about the third person that may be sitting next to me if this plan succeeds."
"Hmm… Perhaps I should choose who is the one I want Janet and I to take to the finals with us." The scientist mused. "Which means we should target his or her ally first before taking away the other pair."
He then got up and walked towards the shelter.
"Hmm… That may work. I just have to talk it over with Janet and ask for her opinion." He said.
"The one thing all six of us have in common is how we know how close we are to the end. Nobody wishes to go home and I assume that the two other pairs will do whatever it takes to get to the end." Richard said crossing his arms. "If they do, then I have to do the same."
(Day 36; Uporstvo Tribe)
Sally and Kao made their way towards the treemail box.
"So who do you want to go with?" Sally asked. "Janet & Richard or Catherine & Oscar?"
Kao raised a non-existent eyebrow. "Why are you asking me? You seem to know more about this game."
"Honestly, I am stumped." Sally said. "I am NOT choosing based on emotion because I don't really like ANY of the pairs."
Kao stayed silent for a moment. "Well, I wanted to vote against the duo of Oscar and Catherine."
Sally raised an eyebrow. "Any particular reason?"
Kao nodded. "Well, if what Janet says is true, then Oscar could be in an abusive relationship. I don't think he deserves something like that."
"No offense to Catherine but you DID say very mean and hurtful things to Oscar. Maybe I wouldn't try to break you and Oscar up if you actually complimented Oscar at least once." Kao sighed. "I just don't want to see Oscar get yelled at for trying to be a team player."
"I don't blame you for suggesting that." Sally said rolling her eyes. "Oscar may not be the most tactful of people but that doesn't mean he should be insulted with each passing second."
"Yes. I can't stand people to being mistreated such." Kao said reaching into the treemail box.
"Well, we got that in mind." Sally said. "Come on, let's go show Janet the letter."
"K." Kao said as the two walked back to camp until they approached Janet sitting on the bench.
"Ah, is it Challenge time?" Janet asked.
"Yes." Kao said before reading. "Can you make a perfect pyramid?"
"What? Is it a physical building one?" Janet asked raising her eyebrow.
"I don't know. It never says anything more than that." Kao said.
"Honestly, I am so confused on where to go, I don't really care WHO wins Immunity. Still, I want to win because it gives me more options." Janet said. "Especially since everyone will be fighting so hard to survive."
(Immunity Challenge)
Janet, Sally and Kao stood on the mat where Tiny was waiting.
"We now bring in Oscar and Catherine from Reward." Tiny said as the two walked in.
"Yo." Oscar said.
"And Richard from Exile Island." Tiny said.
"Greetings, I suppose." The scientist said before joining the others.
"All right. Welcome to your next Challenge." Tiny said. "Take a look."
Everyone looked ahead to see six large panels. Each panel had twenty-five holes in them. Next to each of them were exactly twenty-five sticks as well. Each of them was different sizes.
"Here you are. Each of you has twenty-five sticks and you have to place them into these holes to make a perfect pyramid. By that, you have to the tallest stick in the middle with the smaller sticks around the edges." Tiny said. "But here is the tricky part. Most of the holes are different depths. One hole would be very shallow while another could be deep. First person to get a perfect pyramid wins Immunity."
Everyone looked at each other knowing that this took some mental work but also some luck.
"Now let's draw for spots."
(Later)
Everyone had got into their spots.
"All right, for Immunity." Tiny said. "Survivors, ready? GO!"
Almost immediately, everyone had crouched down trying to figure out which stick to start.
"All right. Obviously the longest stick has to go into the middle so I'll start there!" Oscar said comparing the sizes of the sticks.
In fact, everyone started to do the same things finding out which was the tallest stick. Tiny decided that it was the perfect time to talk to the contestants.
"So, Richard. What is your strategy for this Challenge?" Tiny asked.
"Honestly? Find the longest stick for the middle first." Richard said. "It is the easiest hole to fill."
"I see. Sally, have you ever done something like this before?" Tiny asked.
"No… Not building something like this anyway." The blonde said.
"Oscar, do you think you have a chance of winning this Challenge?" Tiny quizzed.
"I think so. It IS a Challenge based on luck after all." The whale said scanning around.
Soon, Richard had found the tallest stick first and placed in the middle of the pile. He then proceeded to grab a long stick and compare sizes.
"Okay… The thing is finding out which goes where." Richard mused putting in into a hole.
The others then found their longest sticks and put it in the holes before testing it out on the others holes.
"So many holes. So many sticks. So little time." Kao lamented.
Janet tested a stick into a deep hole next to the tallest one. "Okay… That one needs a long stick."
Oscar looked around at the sticks. "Some are practically the same length!"
"Of course they are, Oscar." Tiny said with a smirk. "Because the holes they go in are different sizes."
The whale grumbled before going back to work.
A time had passed since the six contestants had started to build the pyramid. They all seemed to be evenly matched so far. That was when Tiny decided to talk to them again.
"Kao, do you think you are getting close?" Tiny asked.
"Um, I think so. I still need to figure out at least… Ten sticks." The Pianta said.
"I see. Janet, have you got a specific strategy?" Tiny asked.
"Not really." The mercenary said. "Other than memory of the heights of the sticks AND the holes, it all comes down to luck."
"I suppose you have a point." Tiny said. "Catherine, what is going through your mind to keep you focused?"
"Thinking of a world where you didn't had tonsils so you can't keep yapping your annoying gums. Why?" Catherine asked before turning around.
Tiny paused as everyone snickered. "Hey, I got bored…"
"It's your fault we are doing this Challenge." Oscar added.
Tiny grunted as everyone continued to try to finish their pyramids. It was actually a close match between all six of them.
Suddenly, one of them had put the final stick in the slot.
"Hey! Tiny!"
The host looked in the direction of the contestant to see their pyramid. Indeed, it was perfect.
"Catherine has it!" Tiny said. "CATHERINE WINS IMMUNITY!"
The high-school student jumped for joy upon hearing this.
(Later)
"Congratulations, Catherine." Tiny said putting the headdress on the teenager's head. "You had won Immunity guaranteeing a 1-in-5 shot of winning."
"I think I need this more than ever!" She grinned.
Tiny nodded before looking at the others. "As for the rest of you, I got nothing for you but a date to Tribal Council where one of you WILL be voted out of this. You may head back to camp."
(Uporstvo Tribe)
Richard walked over to Janet after the six finalists separated from each other.
"Ah, Janet. Can I ask your second opinion on something?" Richard asked.
"If it is about the vote, shoot." Janet said shaking her head. "I need all the ideas I could get."
"We did to think about who is the best goat to take with us to the Final Tribal Council. Sally, Kao, Oscar or Catherine." Richard explained. "However, we also can't risk a tiebreaker so we have to vote off the partner of said goat and then pick off the other too."
"Here is what I been thinking." The Russian man said. "We are almost at the end of this month right?"
"Right! Who DOESN'T realize that?" Janet asked in disbelief.
"Well, I was thinking on whom to take with us to the end." Richard explained.
"You mean as a goat?" Janet asked.
"Of course." Richard said. "It makes choosing the targets for my plan easier."
"Easier? How?" Janet asked.
"Well, no matter what happens, if our plan succeeds, we have to share the seating with one other person." Richard said.
"Oh, I get it." Janet said in realization. "We will vote off one person while picking off the other pair leaving the remainder person as a goat."
"Exactly!" Richard smirked. "Now I have to ask… Who do you think will be the best goat?"
Janet paused for a moment. "Hmm… Catherine?"
"I thought so too. Then, I realize that Sally and Kao don't have any automatic votes other than Bill and each other." Richard said.
"Yeah but with that logic, Catherine will get Ronald and Oscar's vote just like that." Janet frowned.
"True. We definitely got some bitter jurors." Richard frowned. "What with Bill, Coco and Ronald?"
Janet nodded before giving her two cents before looking past Richard. The scientist noticed this, raised an eyebrow before turning around to see Kao walking over.
"Um, hey…" Janet said.
"Hey." Sally said flatly.
Richard decided to cut to the chase. "I assume you want us to vote off Oscar."
Sally and Kao nodded their heads in unison.
"Any particular reason why we should go with you?" Richard asked.
"I can't believe I am saying this, Richard but I am glad that YOU were the one who said that." Sally said shaking her head.
Richard blinked twice. "Come again?"
"Remember when you tricked me to get rid of Amber just so you could save Mortimer so he could get over his self-esteem issues?" Sally asked.
"Um, da?" Richard asked.
"Well, we were thinking of doing the same to Oscar." Sally said. "We are separating him from Catherine."
"Kao came up with the plan to separate Catherine from Oscar because of all of the verbal torture she had put him through." Sally said sternly. "Janet and Richard may not be the most likable of people but at least they aren't constantly bullying him."
"We want to vote off Oscar so he could be away from her and realize that she is just using him." The Street Fighter said.
Richard blinked twice. "So you are going to protect Oscar… By ruining his chances in the game."
Sally was about to say something until she froze with her mouth awkwardly ajar.
"But it is not our fault!" Kao insisted. "Catherine won Immunity!"
"Yeah, well, I'll be lying if the whole tsundere duo is hard to watch." Richard said.
Janet paused while crossing her arms. "I don't know. Oscar had been wanting to be with Catherine since the start and…"
"…And it was THAT attitude that he kept going after the loveliest rose while all he had been plucking was thorns!" Sally snapped. "It was YOU who kept looking the other way!"
Janet winced as Richard looked surprised.
"You told me! You told Kao! You practically told you led Oscar on like that!" Sally said.
"Now that's a darn lie!" Janet snapped before looking down. "I only did because he was so determined."
"And Bertha was so determined to get rid of Rinky." Richard said. "Does that make her journey a noble cause?"
Janet's eyes widened before glaring at Richard. "Whose side are you on, anyway?"
"Well, if what Sally says was the truth, then you had been setting Oscar up for a fail." The bespectacled man said.
Sally nodded. "He is probably nothing more than a number to her."
Janet looked down. "All right. I'll give it a think."
"Thank you." Kao said before bidding the two goodbye before walking off with Sally. When the two were out of hearing range, Janet glared at Richard.
"A lot of things I am annoyed by you about right now." Janet said. "But I will just settle down they were planting seeds in our heads!"
"I know. I never said that we should join them. I just thought Sally was in the right about you unwittingly misleading Oscar." Richard said. "It is too late in the game to think emotionally."
"Gee, thanks." Janet said rolling her eyes.
However as she did so, she caught someone at the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she saw Oscar walking over.
"Oscar, what are you doing here?" Janet exclaimed in surprise.
The whale let out a big sigh. "I wish to talk to you…"
He then glared at Richard.
"Alone…"
Richard scoffed before walking off. "Nearly voting me out, sending me to Exile Island. I am started to think that you don't like me, Oscar."
"This is it. For my sake in the game, I have to convince Janet to keep me or else I am toast." Oscar said. "But how do I convince someone who I backstabbed just recently? Still, I have to try. It is too late to back down."
The muscleman took in a deep breath as an awkward silence stills.
"Janet, will you please realign with me?" Oscar asked.
The woman's eyes widened at this. "What? What happened to Catherine?"
Oscar nervously poked his fingers together. "Well, that would only be two votes."
Janet crossed her arms. "So you come crawling back with your tail between your legs because you are in the minority?"
"Um, well. I thought I would have been in the majority when I cast my swing vote." Oscar said flatly.
"Was that really the part where I forgive you?" Janet asked in disbelief.
"Aw, come on! You know how much I was trying to get on Catherine's good side since the start!" Oscar exclaimed.
"That's just the thing! I shouldn't have egged you on so much!" Janet snapped.
Oscar stepped back before narrowing his eyes. "Hey, you know I screwed things up for you and you have every right to be mad but you don't have to be entitled about it!"
"Entitled?" Janet exclaimed. "I am saying that because of the way Catherine treats you!"
Oscar's eyes widened at this.
"Have you noticed that she eased up around you recently after Ronald got voted out?" Janet asked. "That was because you were voting HER way!"
Oscar paused.
"Think about it. If Ronald had survived the vote, Catherine will still be fawning over him and not you." Janet said.
"But she appreciates me sacrificing everything for her!" Oscar said.
"That's just the thing! For her!" Catherine said. "She only mellows out because she literally had no place to go!"
By now, Oscar was getting irritated. "Oh? It is funny that you are saying that when I don't vote YOUR way!"
Janet looked stunned. "I beg your pardon?"
"Everything so far went your way! Every vote you cast against somebody, BOOM! They'd gone home!" Oscar said snapping his fingers. "Not a single vote had been written down in your name!"
Janet's eyebrow started to twitch. "What… What are you implying?"
"I didn't vote with you! You are furious at me!" Oscar snapped. "I ruined your perfect game!"
Janet paused in pure shock. She then gritted her teeth.
"How… DARE YOU!?" Janet snapped. "Do you have any idea!? How much of a tool I felt when I voted off Bill when he thought he was going to backstab us even though he never cast a single vote against us? How I wanted to get rid of Ronald pre-merge only to have Cassie quit? Do you even remember why I turned a blind eye to the fight between Andrew and Ronald!?"
Oscar's rage slowly started to drain. "Janet…"
"I got a target painted on my back since Day 1! A target I wanted to avoid!" Janet snapped. "I had to worry about keeping under-the-radar while keeping this target AND not being seen as a complete follower! Don't you think Ronald will give me the evil eye for the rest of the season? I sure as hell won't!"
"Then, why did you egg me into reaching Catherine's affection?" Oscar asked.
Janet growled before holding her head. "I don't KNOW, okay!? I just don't… I didn't want to demoralise you by telling you it was a lost cause! I know that this doesn't sound good because I am telling you this after you betrayed me for her but come on! Isn't it obvious?"
Oscar winced before looking to the side. "Well…"
"I had been nice and supportive to you since the beginning and the hell that I would lie down and just accept you choosing someone who said kind words on Day 33!" Janet snapped.
"But I deserved most of that abuse!" Oscar said. "I won't deny it! I goofed up! A lot! Do you really think Catherine is the type of girl who would say nice things just to be putty in her hands? NO! If she thought I sucked, she'll say it! But I genuinely got her on her good side!"
"How could you tell?" Janet exclaimed.
"I just do!" Oscar said before looking down. "I don't care what anyone says… I-I am staying with Catherine to the end."
With that, he walked off.
"H-Hey! Wait!" Janet exclaimed.
"We are targeting Kao because he is the biggest jury threat in the game." Oscar said continuing walking off. "Please think about our offer."
Janet just watched as Oscar walked out of sight. With wide eyes, she then sighed before looking down at the ground.
"So this must be how Oscar felt. No matter who I vote off so far, I always ended up angering him causing them to vote bitterly against me." Janet said holding her head. "Now there is a chance that I may tick off ANOTHER one."
(Tribal Council)
The six remaining finalists made their way to Tribal Council where Tiny was waiting.
"Welcome, guys. Take a seat." Tiny said.
Everyone obliged.
"We now bring in the jury." Tiny said as the jury walked in. "Mortimer, Bill, Coco and Ronald voted out at the last Tribal Council."
Ronald looked exactly like he was in a mob with his dark purple suit with matching fedora and black tie.
"Now Catherine, could you tell me what happened the last time?" Tiny asked.
"That's what I want to know! We were supposed to vote off Richard because he may have an Idol but instead, Janet sided with him and voted off Ronald!" The pink-haired girl exclaimed.
Ronald narrowed his eyes. "So it was HER."
"Janet, is this true?" Tiny asked.
"Yes…" The brunette said looking to the side. "But I have an excuse. Richard, Oscar and I were planning to backstab Ronald after we vote off Sally and Kao anyway. Not that Kao had found Immunity and Sally had the Idol, we had no choice but to do it sooner."
"Wait. Oscar too?" Tiny said. "But Catherine didn't say anything about this."
"That's because Oscar jumped ship at the last minute." Janet said shaking her head.
Oscar just sighed.
"Oscar, why did you do that?" Tiny asked.
"I had to make this choice from the start. Either Janet or Catherine." The whale sighed. "In the end, I chose Catherine."
The others rolled their eyes at this.
"I saw a lot of negative reaction to that statement." Tiny said.
"Well, everyone thought that Catherine only came to me because she needed a number." Oscar said. "They think I am just a servant to her!"
The high-school student's eyes widened at this. "What? Who spread such rumours?"
"Uh-uh. I am not pointing fingers." Oscar said waving his hands in a defensive manner. "I don't want to cause any unneeded drama."
"Well, if you didn't want that, you shouldn't had told CATHERINE of all people." Ronald said shaking his head.
"All right, you don't want to point fingers, fine!" Catherine snapped. "But I had done something that any of you would had done!"
"So you admit that you don't like Oscar?" Richard piped up.
"Oh dear…" Mortimer said not liking where this was going.
"What? I never said that!" Catherine snapped. "It's true that in the past that I never liked him but recently, we had reached a neutral bond and it started to grow."
"Um, could you exactly tell us when this neutral bond formed?" Sally asked.
"Um, after Ronald got voted out." Catherine said.
Sally narrowed her eyes. "Busted."
Catherine's eyes bugged out. "What? Why would I lead on Oscar like that!? Even if I was a jerk to him after Ronald's blindside, he still has to realize that there is no turning back with me! Why would I pull a Belle?"
"Because you suck at it." Coco spat.
"At least she didn't reveal herself to the whole tribe." Bill piped up immediately making Coco growl.
"Wow… Janet, where did you stand in all of this?" Tiny asked.
"I… Feel like the conductor…" The mercenary sighed. "Because I tried egging on Oscar on a goal that was far out of his reach!"
"WHAT!? Is THAT why this whole thing started!?" Catherine roared. "Because of YOU!?"
"Well, come on, Catherine! You gotta admit that you were pretty cruel to him from Day 2!" Janet said.
"He asked me to touch his muscles?" The teenager said. "How could I NOT react negatively!?"
"But there are a few times that Oscar didn't deserve it!" Janet snapped.
"Janet, what are you trying to pull?" Catherine asked in disbelief. "You got the swing vote! You can vote out anyone you want!"
"I am just trying to redeem myself for unwittingly misleading Oscar!" The older woman said.
"Oh for the love of…" Oscar said. "You only spoke up because I didn't vote your way!"
"Yeah!" Catherine snapped.
"This again!?" Janet asked. "All right! Fine, maybe I did! But can you blame me for getting upset? I got backstabbed by my closest ally because he was strangled by the red string!"
"On the subject, I will let to say that I will NEVER forgive you for the same reason if my torch got snuffed that night!" Richard piped up.
"Nobody asked you!" Oscar snapped. "This doesn't concern you!"
"I nearly got voted out!" Richard insisted. "Of course it concerns me!"
"Oh, yes! Now THIS is juicy!" Coco smirked.
"Well, tough cookies because Catherine has Immunity." Oscar said. "What are you going to do? Vote me off to separate me from her?"
Kao and Sally winced before looking to the side. However, Oscar noticed this.
"Are you freaking kidding me!?" Oscar shouted.
"Oscar, please! We wanted Catherine out instead but she has Immunity!" Sally insisted.
"Oh, I feel SO much better!" The strongman said. "Oh, by the way, I was being sarcastic!"
"Well duh…" Ronald said flatly.
"Wow, we didn't get much question tonight but I think I got more than enough info." Tiny said. "Catherine, you have Immunity. Do you want to give it up?"
"With all these yo-yos giving me the evil eye?" The high-school student asked in disbelief. "Hell no!"
"All right, you cannot vote for Catherine." Tiny said. "Everyone else is fair game. Catherine, you are up."
The young girl wasted no time getting up stomping over to the voting table angrily snatching the pen. "I may have not been nice to him but I am NOT manipulating him!" She said holding up "Kao".
Janet hanged her head as she made her way over. With a deep sigh, she grabbed the pen and started to write down a name.
Kao frowned at all of the hurtful drama that was happening so far. With a sigh, he picked up the pen. "Honestly, I don't know who's to blame anymore." Kao said holding up "Oscar".
Richard adjusted his glasses with a neutral look on his face. After casting his vote, he put in the urn before walking back.
Oscar snarled before stomping over to the table. He snatched the pen before writing down a name. "I know that Sally probably thought of this herself but I feel nothing if you go home." Oscar said holding up "Kao."
Sally walked over wandering who was the one at fault in the end. Realizing it was too late to second-guess, she wrote down a name. "By the way, it was Janet who told us about how much Catherine been mistreating you." She said holding up "Oscar".
With that, she walked back. Tiny then got up.
"I'll get the votes."
Everyone waited eagerly for the votes.
"I'll read them out."
"First vote, Oscar."
All Oscar did was roll his eyes.
"Second vote, Kao. One vote, Oscar. One vote, Kao."
Kao nodded his head expecting this.
"Third vote, Kao. Two votes, Kao. One vote, Oscar."
Sally looked even more worried than Kao.
"Fourth vote, Oscar. Two votes, Kao. Two votes, Oscar."
The two Challenge threats looked at each other knowing that this was it.
"Fifth vote, Oscar. Three votes, Oscar. Two votes, Kao. One vote left."
Oscar shook his head as Catherine looked annoyed.
"Thirteenth person voted out of Survivor and fifth member of our jury…"
Nobody looked eager.
"…Is Oscar."
"Ouch…" Bill winced.
Nobody really looked that pleased with the vote. Surprisingly, Oscar had the closest thing to a neutral face.
"Oscar, you have to bring me your torch."
He then got up.
"Oscar, I…" Janet started.
"No, Janet. You had already voted me out." The strongman said. "I will NOT listen to any lectures."
"But…"
"Catherine, you HAVE to win." Oscar said. "I CANNOT vote for anyone else but you."
The pink-haired girl slowly nodded as Janet hanged her head. Oscar grabbed his torch before making his way to Tiny.
"Oscar, the tribe has spoken." Tiny said putting his snuffer over the torch. "You may now go."
"This always happens…" Oscar said shaking his head while walking off.
Tiny watched him leave before turning to the others. "Well, it seems that you voted out Oscar on personal reasons rather than strategic. Not that is a bad thing but now that you are in the finale, you have to think a lot smarter. You may head back to camp."
Everyone got up and gathered their torches. Janet brought up the rear looking upset. All she wanted was to play an under-the-radar game to avoid stepping on people's toes. Now she had FIVE people on the jury mad at her. With the recent one being her ex-closest ally.
"To say that this sucks is an understatement. I had finally got on Catherine's good side, destroyed a Challenge single-handedly, only to get voted out." Oscar said holding his head. "I know that Catherine had been cruel to me for the long term but I think she is genuinely happy that I opted to stay with me. I know I sound bitter but if the others can't see that then they don't deserve my vote."
RESULTS
Oscar: Janet, Kao, Richard, Sally.
Kao: Catherine, Oscar.
And there goes Oscar. He is without a doubt one of my favourite people to write for. He had his own goals coming in but keeps failing at them. However, he kept going forward hoping trying to impress his crush and the others. In the end, he somewhat succeeds and of course, I had to cut him out here. Harsh…
NOTE: Oscar was originally going to leave on a more negative note. He was supposed to snap and start antagonizing Kao making everyone hate him and vote him out. Thank goodness I changed my mind later on. I felt so sorry for him.
Next Time… We are having our Finale! Who will win?
Janet The Reluctant Leader
Sally The Underdog
Kao The Gentle Giant
Catherine The Bipolar
Or Richard The Schemer?
Only The Finale Know!
(Ponderosa)
Oscar sat on his seat in the limo looking quiet. Touil drove the limo not liking the awkward silence.
"Hey, how are you holding up back there, buddy?" Touil asked.
"Fair." Oscar said flatly.
"Come on, it can't be that bad." Touil said.
"And it shouldn't be that complicated either." Oscar scoffed. "And yet here I am."
Touil stayed silent deciding not to press matters further. He then stopped in front of Ponderosa.
"Here you are, big guy." Touil said.
"Thank you." Oscar said getting out of the car.
"Some people got voted off for being a liability. Some people got voted off for being a threat. Why did I get voted out?" Oscar asked. "To "protect" me from an abusive relationship. Ugh. I can't even express in anger at the others so far. Especially Janet. If you really think what I am doing is a lost cause, then why did you supported me, you idiot!?"
Oscar made his way into Ponderosa where the jurors were there.
"Hey, Big O." Bill greeted trying to be polite.
"Welcome to Ponderosa." Mortimer said.
"Thanks…" Oscar said slowly.
"Are you okay?" Mortimer asked.
"Yeah… Except that everyone accused Catherine of manipulating me." Oscar said flatly.
Bill was going to say something until someone else did it for me.
"Oh please! I could sense the hidden villain trick a mile away!" Coco shouted from the couch. "May I remind you that I used the same trick too!?"
Mortimer, Bill and Oscar looked at Coco with wide eyes.
"What!? It is so obvious. Catherine had been using the same strategy as me on Oscar. However unlike me, Catherine only used it when she really needed Oscar." Coco said. "Making roid-boy look like an even bigger fool than before."
"Excuse me!?" Oscar snapped.
"You heard me! It was dead obvious that she was using you as a puppet!" Coco said.
Oscar paused before walking his way over with a snarl.
"You… How dare you?" He roared. "You had been on your butt here ever since you stupidly revealed yourself! You don't know me and you definitely don't know Catherine!"
"I know enough! I heard her yell at you a few times!" Coco said. "If that is love than Twilight is the best romance novel."
"Hey, she opened up to me!" Oscar snapped.
"Yeah, because Ronnie here got voted out leaving her all alone!" Coco said smugly. "Face it, Blubber-On-Roids. She had been using you. I could tell. Unlike you, I am actually DECENT at this game."
"Coco, that is enough!" Bill scolded.
"It is funny that you are sticking up for Oscar because that is how you got tricked in a similar fashion." The young girl taunted.
Bill growled.
"But to your defence, I don't blame you for being fooled by me. Little Miss Loudmouth on the other hand…" Coco said.
Oscar's non-existent eyebrow twitched before stomping off.
"Screw this! I am going to the pool!" Oscar said.
"Oscar, wait!" Bill shouted. However, it was too late. He was already out the door into the pool area. Bill and Mortimer then glared at Coco.
"You are not a very nice child, you know that, kid?" Mortimer asked.
Coco scoffed. "Who put YOU on the planet? UGH!"
Ronald who was the least animated and expressive so far eyed the pool door.
"Okay, seriously. Does Coco get abused back in her home node? I know that she lost the game in a humiliating fashion but is no reason to be so miserable!" Mortimer said in annoyance. "If I threw a tantrum every time something goes my way, I will… Actually, I would be long dead before my tenth birthday."
In the pool, Oscar floated on his back glaring at the moon in the sky with an irritated look on his face.
"Unlike you, I am actually DECENT at the game." Oscar said purposely mimicking Coco's words. "Heh. I sure hope that she doesn't hope to get away with saying things like that just because she is a child!"
"I know right?"
Oscar jumped before putting himself in an upright position before looking up. He then saw Ronald holding a smoking cigar with one hand.
"Huh, Ronald?" Oscar asked before looking at the cigar. "Where did you…?"
"Get the cigars?" The rat asked. "Apparently Coco pickpocketed them off of a cameraman to relax herself. Bill caught her and gave the cigars to me to keep it out of her reach."
Oscar's eyes widened. "Wait. Coco tried to SMOKE?"
"I was surprised too." Ronald said. "I had to go far out back just to get away from Coco's tantrum."
Oscar paused. "Anyway, I never had been so happy to you, Ronald! PLEASE tell me that you believe me!"
"What? About Catherine not using you?" Ronald asked. "Yes… I believe you."
"Really?" Oscar said with hope.
"Of course." Ronald said. "Catherine always shows who she likes and who she hates. Even if she WAS using her, you could see the pain of saying that through her face."
Oscar sighed. "Well, at least somebody trusts me."
"After talking to Ronald, I cooled down a lot. It was so refreshing to find out that there was someone who believed me." Oscar said. "Then again, Ronald had been aligned with Catherine for the longest time."
The muscleman talked as Ronald inhaled on his cigar before blowing out smoke.
"And I told her we were targeting Kao and why and walked out." Oscar said.
"I must admit, I am surprised." Ronald said. "At least I could see her reasoning for backstabbing me but where did she get off voting you off just so she wanted to "save" you?"
"I know right?" Oscar asked. "If she thought I never had a chance, she should have done it from the BEGINNING."
"Goodness, who knew that Janet was so self-righteous?" Ronald asked. "She seemed like your stereotypical generic good guy leader."
"Heh. Well, she…" Oscar started.
Suddenly, his eyes widened in realization.
Mortimer and Bill were playing video games with Coco staring from a stool at the bar looking bored. Suddenly, they heard the door open.
They turned to see Ronald and Oscar both looking happy.
"Greetings, gentlemen." Ronald said.
"Um, hey." Mortimer said.
"Hey! What am I? Chopped liver?" Coco demanded.
"No. Lower than that!" Ronald said cheerfully making the girl growled. "Anyway, our fellow juror, Oscar would like to share something with us."
Mortimer, Bill and Coco looked at each other in confusion.
"Richard. Sally. Kao. They all have their flaws in their games that I could use to help Catherine win this. However, Janet's gameplay is near-flawless. She had made moves that ticked off people but mostly have valid reasons for doing so which she could use to counter." Oscar explained.
He then smirked evilly before rubbing his hands together.
"…But nobody had seen the fullness of Janet except for me. And seeing that we are no longer allies, perhaps I should be a little bird and tweet out a few notes."