Day 21

The Standard is the Standard

Camp

Men (Joe, Killua, Kirito, Kyon)

Women (Alice, Jasmine, Konata, Michiru)

Once the tribes have made their way back from Tribal Council at midnight, Alice is the first one to speak.

"All right, what the hell just happened?" she asks.

"Here's the story," Jasmine replies. "We approached Joe and Kirito asking for Fire Tokens, cause we had two. If we could get two more, we could get an extra vote and forge a tie."

"But neither of them gave one to us, so we went to Kyon," Michiru says. "And Kyon agreed to give us two Fire Tokens and his extra vote."

"He had an extra vote?" Kirito says. "Wow, that's news to me."

"I gave them to them on one condition, though: that they use them to vote out Haruhi," Kyon says. "I wouldn't give the Tokens to them if they were going to vote out anyone else."

"I see," Konata says. "So, you were so bitter from Haruhi embarrassing you in that challenge that you sacrificed all the leverage you had left in the game to get her out."

"That's right," Kyon replies.

"Well, you're screwed!" Konata says. "The other three in your alliance are going to vote you out. And then you'll be nothing more than another jury member!"

"If that is it, so be it, Jedi," Kyon replies.

"I risked my entire life in this game just to get Haruhi out of here," Kyon says. "And sure, that might cause some closed space which Koizumi is going to have to take care of. But even if it does, I made the right choice. I got Haruhi out while she was flying high, and she never expected it. Plus, she basically got voted out by me, even though I was sitting in the peanut gallery. She has to admit, I got her good."

"It's no fair that Kyon took Haruhi from me!" Konata says. "I want to get him back! I want sweet revenge! The best way to do that is to win the next immunity challenge and for him to go home. That's my goal: win at all costs."

But Alice actually isn't all that sad about losing Haruhi. The next morning, she speaks with Killua, before everyone else is up, as usual.

"I actually wanted Haruhi to go home," she says.

"I knew you were going to say that," Killua replies.

"Here's the thing: without Haruhi, Konata's life in the game relies on me," Alice says. "Had Jasmine or Michiru gone home, Haruhi and Konata could send me home. They had no incentive in keeping me. Whereas now, Konata needs me. And so do Michiru and Jasmine. I'm the swing vote. I'm in a position of power."

"But you also realize that you can be taken out quite easily," Killua says. "Without having a majority, you're in danger of going home tonight should you lose the immunity challenge."

"That's why I've got you!" Alice says, pulling Killua's cheek. "You have some brilliant strategies. What's yours this time?"

Killua sighs. "I suppose just hope for a 2-2 tie. Then you've got a 50-50 shot at surviving. It's better than nothing."

"So, get them to vote for me, so I'm immune in a purple rock tiebreaker?"

"I guess. You know though that Konata will flip on you in that scenario. She has no loyalty to you. She was only being dragged along by Haruhi. So if there's a revote, she votes you out, and you go home."

"Should I vote for Konata? But then I get voted out by Michiru and Jasmine when there are three left."

"No, your best bet is to stay loyal to Konata and for them to both vote Konata. Then, you need to pick rocks and hope you don't pick the one wrong rock. That's a 50-50 shot. It's worth trying."

"I heard that all Fire Tokens expire at the end of the next Tribal Council."

"That's what I heard too."

"So, what are you going to do with your Fire Token?"

"Beats me. Judging by what Kyon did, that means that each of us has one Token remaining, not enough for a Medallion of Power if we combine them. So, we might just be buying food with our remaining Tokens."

"Yeah, I guess there's not much choice left. You pretty confident with your situation?"

"Absolutely," Killua replies. "Kyon is out of advantages and is a clear target. We're going to take him out, then I'll choose between Kirito and Joe as to who I want to go to the end with."

"Makes sense," Alice says. "Looks like Kirito is waking up. We'd better cut the talk."

"Sure."

"Bad luck today at the challenge!"

"Bad luck to you too!"

"Killua has good advice for me, and I'm glad he can help me," Alice says. "But the time has come for him to get sent to the jury so he can help convince the other jury members to vote for me. I've got to find a way to poison Joe and Kirito against him."

"I love Alice, don't get me wrong," Killua says. "But the longer she stays in this game, the more danger there is that I'm sitting next to her at the Final Tribal Council. I can't have her in the Final Three; I need her eliminated long before then, so she can work on the jury for me. That's easier said than done, though."

Jasmine and Michiru, meanwhile, are trying to figure out their best strategy moving forward.

"We've got to assume Alice and Konata are voting together," Michiru says. "So, which one of them do we vote for?"

"I think we vote Alice," Jasmine says. "Konata is more likely to flip on her than Alice is to flip on Konata."

"Okay," Michiru says. "So, you assume that Konata switches in a revote to avoid rocks, but Alice doesn't?"

"That's exactly it," Jasmine says. "But if she doesn't, then we're picking rocks."

"Rocks are a very good possibility here," Jasmine says. "If Konata and Alice stay tied at the hip together, then we are going to have to prove our loyalty to each other by picking rocks. We saw rocks earlier in the game with Mayuri going home. I don't want to be a Cochran, though; I'm going to stay loyal to Michiru to the end."

"I don't know what we're going to do," Michiru says. "I'm going to stay loyal to Jasmine, and I know she will to me, but what happens if one of us pulls the purple rock? Then the other one of us is automatically gone. We are basically relying altogether on the color of a rock. And we've got no Fire Tokens left to change that. I'm very nervous about losing the next challenge; we've got to win it no matter what."

Meanwhile, Kyon tries having a conversation with Joe and Kirito.

"Now's your big chance," Kyon says. "Vote out Killua, and you two have a clear run to the end."

"But why should we do that?" Joe asks.

"Yeah, if we stick with Killua, we can always vote him out next," Kirito says. "We're going to stay loyal to the end."

"And let Killua beat you? Because you just know he will."

"How?" Joe asks.

"He's very skillful with words," Kyon says. "He will blindside one of you two, whether you realize it or not."

"I think you're crazy," Kirito says. "Look, we made this alliance on Day 1, and we're going to stick with it. You're next to go."

"You're making a mistake," Kyon says. "Every day Killua stays in this game, that's another step closer to him winning the million."

"Nah, he won't be around by the Final Three," Kirito says. "We'll get him after we get you."

"We're also nervous about you possibly teaming up with Killua," Joe says.

"Why would I do that?" Kyon asks.

"To force a 2-2 tie," Joe says.

"Plus, we are worried about you making it to the end," Kirito says.

"Why?"

"Because you pulled off a BIG MOVE," Kirito says. "By taking out Haruhi the way you did, you made yourself very attractive to the jury."

"Nonsense," Kyon says. "Haruhi is going to be furious at me over it."

"But the others on that jury are going to look at that as something good on your resume," Joe says. "We can't risk you beating us at the end."

Kyon shakes his head. "You two are making a huge mistake, and you'll soon find out how big."

"Kirito and Joe are too hard-headed to consider taking out Killua," Kyon says. "That probably seals my fate, thanks to the fact that I no longer have an extra vote and own just one Fire Token. But even with two votes, that wouldn't be enough against their three. I shot my bolt last night, and now I'm just waiting for my timely exit."

"I'm not opposed to working with Kyon," Joe says. "But I can't let Kirito know that, because he will immediately turn me into Killua. Killua's the kingpin here, and Kirito and I are following on his coattails. At some point, we need to dispose of Killua, or else we have no shot at winning a jury vote. But at the same time, we've got to make that move at the right time."

Killua talks with Kirito a bit later, as the two walk off into the jungle to have a conversation.

"Kyon wants you out," Kirito says. "He's trying to get us to flip on you."

"Of course he does," Killua replies. "I'm going to tell you something right now. You are my partner to the end. We vote out Kyon, then we vote out Joe. It's as simple as that. Hopefully we win enough challenges so we won't have to vote out Joe, but I'll let you know that 100 percent I'm taking you over Joe."

"That's awesome," Kirito says. "And you've got the same guarantee from me. I'll vote out Joe and not you. Then whatever happens, happens when there are just two of us left."

"Great," Killua says. "I'm glad we're on the same page here."

"I'm definitely worried about Kirito jumping ship and voting with Joe to get me out," Killua says. "But I think that if I can stay very loyal to Kirito, he will think twice about blindsiding me. Obviously there's no Fire Tokens to save me. I've got to trust someone, and that's going to be Kirito."

"Killua thinks he has me in his pocket," Kirito says. "But in reality, I'm definitely thinking about blindsiding him. The question is, when do I do it? Do I go along with Kyon and vote him out now? Or do I vote out Kyon and then turn on Killua when there are three left? I just hope we can win immunity so I can put off that decision as long as possible."

Later that day, Alice pulls aside Joe and whispers in his ear.

"You've got to eliminate Killua," she whispers to him.

"But… but…"

"I know, I'm aligned with him," Alice whispers. "But if I can get him out before the Final Three, he will help me win this game."

"But… I'm not sure that will work…"

"You've got to understand, Killua's going to take you out after he takes out Kyon. If you don't pounce on the opportunity now, you're gonna regret it."

"But I don't want to pick rocks!"

"Then get Kirito with you and Kyon and vote out Killua 3-1."

"Okay…"

"And don't tell Killua or he will spoil the plan for sure!"

"Got it."

"Now is the time in the game to start scheming to get Killua outta here," Alice says. "He's going to be my advocate on the jury, once I've made it there till the end with one or two other Women. I need him to win me the Men's vote. If he can do that for me, I'll win. But it's no good if I'm sitting across from Killua in the Final Three. In that case, he likely wins."

But Killua has the same plan with the Women.

"You've got to get Alice out," he whispers to Konata.

"Why would I do that?" Konata replies.

"Because if you don't, she's gonna win this game."

"But if I do, then I'm eliminated next!"

Killua chuckles. "Not yet, of course! Wait until you're up 2-1, then flip on her. It'll be really good for your resume."

"I suppose you're right."

"Of course I'm right! Now don't let her know."

"Sure thing."

"Killua wants me to jump ship and vote out one of the allies I've had since way back on Day 1," Konata says. "I don't want to do it, but something tells me it may help me if I eventually want to win this game."

Immunity Challenge

"Come on in, guys!"

The two tribes march into the immunity challenge area.

"You guys ready to get to today's immunity challenge?"

"Yeah!" Konata shouts.

"First things first, I will take it back."

Joe hands over the Ranma immunity idol to Jet.

"Thank you. Once again, immunity is back up for grabs. For today's challenge, we will be playing Serpent Turf. Your tribe will start out on a platform in the water. You will then swim to a cage, where you must get inside the cage and pull out a 200-pound snake. Once you've gotten the snake out of the cage, you must bring it to a table. Once it's there, you'll untie some puzzle pieces out of the snake. You will then use those puzzle pieces to build the logo of Survivor: Crazy Game Changers. First tribe to finish, wins reward, guaranteed 1-in-7 shot at winning this game. Losers, Tribal Council, where someone will be the next player voted out of this game. In addition, you are playing for reward. Wanna know what you're playin' for?"

"Of course!" Konata exclaims.

"Winning tribe goes to the Sanctuary, where good things happen," Jet says. "You'll get to eat some KFC, in honor of the Hanshin Tigers winning the Japan Series. In addition, each player on the winning tribe will win one Fire Token. All Fire Tokens and advantages expire after tonight's Tribal Council, so use them wisely and quickly. Worth playin' for?"

"Yes!" Jasmine exclaims.

"Neither tribe has the Tokens to buy the Medallion of Power, so I won't bother asking about it. I'll give you a minute to strategize, then let's get it on!"

The players all take their spots out on the platforms in the ocean.

"For immunity! Survivors ready? Go!"

The teams jump into the water in unison. Killua is the first one to swim to the cage; Kirito is right behind him. At the same time, Michiru and Alice have reached the cage, with Jasmine close behind.

"Everyone into the water quickly! You've got to get all four people to the cage before you can climb over!"

Joe and Kyon reach the cage, giving the Men the early lead in the challenge.

"Men, you're good!"

The Men start climbing up the cage, while Konata finally catches up with the other three and makes it to the cage.

"Women, you're good!"

The Men jump up and over, with the Women closely following behind.

"You've now got to get that snake over the cage!"

Killua and Kirito are the muscles for the Men, as they both get the snake free and start pulling it up. Alice and Konata try pulling the snake up, but they are having more trouble.

"Men with a big advantage in this challenge!"

Killua gets the snake over the cage, then the other Men climb up to pull it all the way off it.

"This is going to take a lot of effort!"

The Men keep pulling the snake, and Kirito goes over the cage trying to get the midsection over. As he does, he slips from his position and lands in the water.

"Kirito takes a big splash!"

Kirito climbs back up the cage to pull the snake's head, which Killua is also working on. The two of them pull it over the side, and Kyon and Joe begin getting the back of it up.

"Men with a lead here!"

Alice and Konata start getting the snake up out of the water, with Jasmine and Michiru pulling at the back of it. But by the time the Women have gotten their snake up out of the water, the Men already have theirs all the way out of the cage.

"Men get their snake out of the cage! Now you've got to carry that thing to shore!"

The Women finally get their snake's head out of the cage at the same time the Men have reached shore. They drag the snake the rest of the way, before picking it up and getting it on the table.

"Men are just blowing out the Women in this challenge!"

As the Men start untying their snake to get the puzzle pieces out, the Women finally have gotten their snake out of the cage. They desperately pull at it to get it to shore.

"Women way behind!"

Kirito unties the final bag of puzzle pieces, and the Men go to work on solving the puzzle, which is a giant wooden logo.

"You should be able to figure out this puzzle based on your buffs!"

The Women drag their snake across the beach and get it over to their table. By this point, though, the Men have about half their puzzle finished.

"Pour it on! The Men are way out in front!"

But the Men start getting stuck on part of the puzzle. The Women are able to untie their puzzle pieces and bring them over to the table.

"That goes there!" Joe exclaims.

"No, it goes there!" Kirito shouts.

As the Men scramble to figure out where they've gone wrong, Michiru and Alice start working on the puzzle.

"Women have made up a lot of time here!"

Michiru and Alice work well as a team, figuring things out quickly, with Jasmine providing advice from behind.

"That's right, Alice!" she exclaims. "And that one goes to the left of it!"

But the Men are starting to unravel, with each of them getting more frustrated.

"That definitely doesn't go there!" Killua exclaims.

"Well, where does it go then?" Kyon replies.

The Women catch up to the Men by completing half the puzzle.

"Women have come all the way back and may have a slight lead here!"

That's when Joe realizes something that was hurting his team.

"We left one of the puzzle pieces behind!" he shouts, racing over to get it.

As he brings back the puzzle piece, the Women get closer and closer to finishing their puzzle. Killua grabs the missing piece and puts it in place, and the Men start catching up again. A couple minutes later, one of the tribes finishes the puzzle.

"The Men…"

"Don't have it! The Women do! And that's it! Women… win immunity!"

Michiru, Alice, and Jasmine all join in a group hug. Konata comes running in from behind and gives Alice a bear hug. Meanwhile, Kirito angrily slams one of the pieces to the ground.

"We were so close," he comments.

"Women, congratulations," Jet says, handing the Ranma immunity idol over to Jasmine. "Once again, you are safe at tonight's Tribal Council, but before you get there, you've got some KFC to eat. Go celebrate the Hanshin Tigers' Japan Series victory!"

"Go Tigers!" Konata shouts, as the Women head on out.

"As for you, Men, I got nothing for you except a date with me tonight for Tribal Council. Head on out."

The Men trudge out of the immunity challenge, all of them frustrated.

"We should have won today," Kirito says. "We just forgot one puzzle piece, and if we would have gotten it, we would have beat the Women easily. It just goes to show you that there is a fine line in this business between winning and losing. The standard is the standard, and we didn't live up to the standard today."

Sanctuary

Women: Alice, Jasmine, Konata, Michiru

Konata takes a big bite into a drumstick, as the Women begin enjoying their KFC reward after they collect their Fire Tokens.

"This is great!" she says. "We need to do this more often!"

"Just keep winning," Michiru says. "That way, none of us have to go home."

"And we want this thing to be four Women at the end!" Jasmine says.

Alice takes a bite of her mashed potatoes, but remains silent.

"I don't want it to come down to four Women," Alice says. "I want to jettison Michiru and Jasmine sooner than later. If they reach the end with me, they're likely to win, since they have such positive personalities. I can't let that happen. I might have to throw another challenge. I didn't want to throw this one, because I need to see Killua go home, but maybe tomorrow. Also, this food sucks compared to my cooking!"

"Who do you think is going home tonight?" Konata asks. "I think it should be Kyon. He deserves payback for what he did to poor Haruhi!"

"Poor Haruhi?" Alice says. "She brought that on herself."

"I don't know if it's going to be Kyon, though," Michiru says. "I get the feeling that Kirito and Joe are going to turn on Killua at some point. And if they do, they will make it to the end together."

"It would make sense for them to do that," Jasmine says. "Because then they could take out Kyon next. If they're smart, that's what they'll do."

"Well, I still hope it's Kyon," Konata says.

"Yeah, I want revenge on Kyon for taking out Haruhi," Konata says. "Plus, if he goes to the jury, he might join Haruhi in voting for me! Haruhi will convince him, I'm sure of it. I've just got to make it to the end, which means remaining loyal to Alice."

"I'm glad we won immunity," Michiru says. "Because in all likelihood, Alice and Konata will force us to pick rocks at the next vote. And while I'm sure Jasmine will remain loyal to me, I don't want either of us to have to pick a rock. I'm going to spend some time trying to win over Konata's vote."

Camp

Men: Joe, Killua, Kirito, Kyon

The disappointed Men return to camp, with no one really saying much.

"This is it for me," Kyon says. "I spent most of my Fire Tokens to take out Haruhi. Now I'm doomed because I have only one Fire Token left, and I gave away my extra vote. So now it's going to be me going home. There's nothing I can do about it."

Killua is also very depressed over the outcome of the challenge.

"This was my big chance, to get Alice blindsided and to send her to the jury," Killua says. "I could have used our Fire Tokens to give to one of the other girls to get out Alice. But instead, Alice is going to skate by. I can only hope that I'm able to keep close enough with Kirito and Joe that they don't flip on me, because they easily could."

Kirito and Joe talk to each other by the beach, trying to figure out what they are going to do.

"Should we vote out Kyon or Killua?" Kirito asks. "Because I think we might be better off voting off Killua."

"We might, but I think we should stay loyal to Killua," Joe says. "We can always vote him out next if we have to."

"I know, I'm just not sure it's the right decision to keep Killua over Kyon."

"Joe is seeming to be too close to Killua for my liking," Kirito says. "I don't know if he's going to flip on me and vote me out along with Killua. I want to get Killua out before he can flip Joe on me. But if Joe doesn't want to vote out Killua, there's no way I can do so, so it comes down to his decision."

"I trust Kirito, and I trust Killua," Joe says. "I don't trust Kyon. I want him to be gone next. I'm just not sure if Kirito's on board, and that worries me that we could end up with a 2-2 tie."

Camp

Men: Joe, Killua, Kirito, Kyon

Women: Alice, Jasmine, Konata, Michiru

The Women come back to camp feeling great after eating, with the Men being jealous.

"How was the chicken?" Joe asks.

"Oh, it was amazing!" Konata replies. "In fact, it was better than I could have imagined! Let me tell you about the chicken…"

Meanwhile, Alice hands over her Fire Token to a producer for a bottle of wine.

"I'm just not gonna sweat it tonight," she says. "Whoever gets voted out, gets voted out. There's nothing more I can do about it."

Konata also buys something with her Tokens.

"Here's three Tokens for coffee and pastries," she says. "Not that I need anything more to fill up my belly, but I might as well pig out while I've got the Tokens to do so with."

Jasmine and Michiru talk with each other about what they should do with their remaining Fire Tokens.

"We've got two total," Jasmine says. "What do we do with them?"

"I don't know," Michiru says.

"We can buy food with them, I guess," Jasmine says. "But we just ate."

"Why don't we give them to one of the Men?" Michiru says. "Then maybe whoever we give it to can use them."

"Okay…" Jasmine says. "But who?"

"I'd say Kyon, to repay him for helping us out," Michiru replies.

"Sounds good," Jasmine says.

The two of them run over to Kyon, and each of them deposits a Fire Token in his hand without saying anything. Kyon silently nods to both of them as they hand over their Tokens.

"The unfortunate thing is that, while I just got two Fire Tokens, I have only one other one, which means I can't buy anything," Kyon says. "The only thing left to do now is try to convince Kirito and Joe to take out Killua."

So, Kyon goes over to Joe and Kirito as they eat some rice. He pulls out his three Fire Tokens and hands them to Kirito.

"These are yours," he says. "But in return for my giving those to you, I am asking you to vote out Killua."

"Sure thing," Kirito replies. "Joe and I were thinking of doing so anyway."

"But…" Joe begins to say.

"Look, I've done all I can to prove my loyalty to you," Kyon says. "And I'm easy pickings once Killua's out. This is just my last attempt at staying in this game."

"No problem," Kirito says. "We trust you."

"But…" Joe says again.

"Use those Tokens wisely," Kyon says. "And use them quickly – we're about to go to Tribal Council."

Killua nods, as Joe remains silent. Kyon then walks away, feeling a bit hopeful.

"That was my last gambit toward staying in this game," Kyon says. "I'm doing everything I can. If they don't use this opportunity to blindside Killua, then they're morons."

Kirito and Joe go over to Killua, who is sitting by the beach, with his lone Fire Token in his hand.

"Look what we got!" Kirito says, showing Killua his four Fire Tokens. Joe also shows him his one Token.

"Awesome!" Killua says. "We've got to use these quick. What are we going to use them on?"

"Well, we plan on being here longer," Kirito says. "How about a regular bag of rice?"

"That's five Tokens," Killua says. "How about the other one?"

"I'll buy us a pizza!" Joe says.

"Great, let's go spend these Tokens so they don't go to waste!" Kirito says.

The three of them go over to a producer and purchase their food items. They set aside the rice, then enjoy the pizza with each other at the beach.

"I'm in a pretty good position here," Kirito says. "I have full control over who's going home tonight, whether it's Killua or Kyon. This is about as good a position I've been in this whole game. I just have to make the right decision tonight, or else it may come back to haunt me."

But after eating the pizza, Joe waits for Kirito to walk away to whisper something to Killua.

"Kirito might vote you out tonight," he tells Killua.

"Really?" Killua replies.

"Yeah, he's thinking of flipping to Kyon," Joe says.

"Okay, Plan B time," Killua says. "You and I, to the end together."

"Right," Joe says.

"So, Kirito is plotting to take me out," Killua says. "Might this be a seed planted in his head by Alice? Even if it isn't, I've got to prepare for it. So, what I'm going to do is pretend to vote for Kyon, then turn on Kirito. It requires perfect precision to pull this off, because they have two votes, but there is a way to get rid of one of their votes – the Shot in the Dark."

"I had to tell Killua about the plot," Joe says. "He has helped me so much throughout this game that I can't just turn on him now. I want to play a good, honest game. Giselle would expect it out of me! Even if she wouldn't do so herself…"

"This is a big vote for me," Kirito says. "My goal – blindside Killua and take control of this tribe. If Joe turns on me, then I can simply turn on Joe, because Kyon has nowhere else to go. I need to make a BIG MOVE now, before it's too late."

Tribal Council

(Men)

The four remaining Men enter the Tribal Council area with their torches ablaze. The Women sit up in the peanut gallery, chomping on some peanuts as they watch the Men walk in.

"We now bring in the members of our jury," Jet says. "Ami, Mine, Spike, Misty, and voted out last Tribal Council, Haruhi Suzumiya."

The jury marches into Tribal Council, with Haruhi pouting as she does.

"All right," Jet says. "Fire Tokens and advantages are no more after this vote. I trust you've all spent them before arriving here, because every remaining Fire Token and advantage is null and void after tonight. How does that change the game, Killua?"

"Well, before, there was the idea that you could always be bailed out by Fire Tokens," Killua says. "That's no longer a possibility. Now it's all about making alliances in the game and playing a good social game. If you don't, then you're going home. Simple as that."

"Kyon, last time I saw you, you were laughing your head off in the peanut gallery as Haruhi got utterly blindsided. Have the tables turned on you?"

Haruhi looks grumpy as Jet says this.

"The tables have turned, for sure," Kyon says. "Last night, I was in the position of power. Now, tonight, my life out here will be decided by the roll of a die."

Everyone looks shocked as Kyon says this.

"I'm playing my Shot in the Dark tonight," Kyon says. "I've got nothing left to lose. If it fails, it fails, but I'm going to play it and see what happens."

Killua, Kirito, and Joe all look at each other and nod.

"Big reaction over here," Jet says. "Kirito, how does Kyon's decision change your game?"

"Kyon's vote isn't important," Kirito says. "There are three of us and one of him. A 3-1 or a 3-0 vote doesn't make a difference. All that matters is what we decide. And we're sticking together till the end."

He nods over to Joe as he says this.

"Yeah, I'm not sure Kyon's vote would have mattered," Joe says. "Ultimately, it's the decision of three over the decision of one."

Joe nods over at Killua as he speaks.

"But if Kyon's parchment reads 'Safe,' you guys realize, one of you's goin' home," Jet says.

"There's always a risk in every vote," Killua says. "We may be taking a risk with this decision, but we feel it is the right one. If things go haywire, then that's just Survivor for you. We're going to go down with the ship, so to speak."

"Kyon, these three seem so united that there's no crack with them."

"Probst likes to talk about cracks in alliances," Kyon says. "The fact of the matter is, in a game like this, no one's really ever super solid. Everyone's got their own best self-interests in mind. It's kind of like the so-called Penn State scandal. Everyone's looking out only for themselves and what's best for them."

"Now there's a topic I didn't think would make it into Tribal Council," Jet says. "Joe, if there was a metaphor for tonight's vote, what would it be?"

"I'd say it's like the United States' reaction to COVID," Joe says. "Once one domino fell, then all the rest fell, and the United States turned into a tyrannical police state. If the domino of Kyon being safe goes, then so does the rest of the tribe with him. One of us three goes home, and the others will leave too in short order."

"Kirito, does Kyon have better than a one-in-six shot at surviving, or is his entire game down to one parchment of paper?"

Kirito chuckles. "That paper better read 'Safe,' or he's joining Haruhi on the jury."

"Very well then," Jet states. "It is… time to vote. Joe, you're up first."

The Tribal Council theme "Tally the Vote" plays as the players go to vote.

Joe goes to vote.

Killua goes to vote.

Kirito goes to vote.

Kyon goes to vote, but instead of voting, he inserts his die into the slot and pulls out a piece of paper.

"This is my last resort," he says.

"I'll go tally the votes," Jet says.

Jet walks over to the voting booth, grabs the voting urn, then returns to the players.

"If anyone has an advantage or an idol, and you would like to play it, now would be the final time to do so."

Kyon gets up and hands the piece of paper over to Jet.

"If this is good, I'm going to play the lottery," he says.

"If this parchment reads 'Safe,' then all votes for Kyon do not count," Jet states as Kyon goes back to his seat. "It says…"

"NOT Safe."

Kyon nods, then begins to pack up his things.

"Once the votes are read, the decision is final, and the person voted out will be asked to leave the Tribal Council area immediately. I'll read the votes."

"First vote… Killua."

Killua looks a bit surprised to see his name.

"Kirito. We're tied, one vote Killua, one vote Kirito, one vote left."

Kirito is in absolute shock after seeing his name come up.

"Thirteenth person eliminated from Survivor: Crazy Game Changers, and the sixth member of our jury…"

"Kirito."

Kirito looks around in utter disbelief. "Why?" he asks.

"Sorry," Killua says. "It was kill or be killed."

"Kirito, you need to bring me your torch," Jet states.

Kyon is astounded, not knowing what to say. Haruhi pouts from the jury bench, knowing that Kyon has survived. Kirito grabs his torch and brings it over to Jet.

"Kirito, the tribe has spoken," Jet says. "It's time for you to go."

Kirito shakes his head as he walks out of Tribal Council.

"Kill or be killed," Jet says. "That's a common theme of Survivor. If you don't kill off your opponent, then they're going to kill you off. Grab your torches, head back to camp, good night."

Killua pats Joe on the back, then gives a thumbs-up to Kyon, as the three leave the Tribal Council area.

"Man, this sucks," Kirito says. "Killua obviously got word that I was going to blindside him, so he blindsided me. Smart move, but no fun for me. If Killua or Joe gets to the end, I'll be sending my votes to either one of them. If they're both there? Who knows. But those guys made a BIG MOVE tonight, and they ought to be rewarded."

Who voted for whom:

Joe – Kirito

Killua – Kirito

Kirito – Killua

Kyon – No vote

Scenes from our next episode:

Konata becomes the lynchpin in all the Women's plans… Joe discusses another blindside with Kyon… And another fan favorite challenge is back up for grabs.