Total Drama Island: Rewritten Chapter 5: Pressure Cooker, a total drama series fanfic

Hey everyone, back again with a new chapter! I'm gonna put the author's note at the bottom. Enjoy this huge chapter!

A few days before…

Liana sat alone in the mess hall, sullenly eating a bowl of cereal. She truly felt like he had been trapped in a corner; Sammy and Vivi wanted her out, and John would more than likely want her out too. Her only allies were in a prior alliance she was all but butting in on as she desperately tried to drum up support for herself, and neither of the two she trusted an ounce.

"Just great," she mumbled into another spoonful of cereal.

"It truly is," A voice responded to her self-pitying comment. She looked up at the owner's voice and was surprised for a moment, before frowning again.

"Oh, hey Godfrey," she depressedly responded.

"Hello, Liana." He grinned. "It's been a while since our last talk. I've gotten things all but sewn up on my side, so why not see how things are going with yours?" He paused for a second, before continuing. "I assume by your demeanor that the answer is not well."

She huffed. "Thanks for rubbing it in."

"Any time," he quickly responded with a grin.

Liana just rolled her eyes. "Well, things aren't so great for me. I'm on the outs. Probably the next to go."

"Oh, how did that happen?" The charmer asked, surprised by the gambler's predicament. "I thought you'd be able to play them like Tchaikovsky played a piano."

"I let my emotions get the better of me," she grumbled. "Two of the power players on the team, Sammy and Vivi, don't like me, I think they can swing votes against me."

"Any allies?" Godfrey asked.

"Barely." Liana scoffed. "Marcellas and Alessia said they'd vote on my side, but I trust them about as far as I can throw them."

"And you can't swing anyone else?"

"Maybe Wind. But I honestly don't know if she'd come to my side." She told him back.

Godfrey tutted her. "Yes, you do seem to be in a pretty bad spot, Liana."

"Thanks for the genius insight, Captain Obvious," she shot back, obviously not in the mood for games. "I'm totally on my own. If we lose the next challenge, I think I'm going home."

"It sure seems that way, unless you had help. Like me!" Godfrey grinned.

"You're on the other team, genius." Liana quipped. "Not a whole lot you can do for me from there."

"No, but I may have something that may," Godfrey revealed, as he reached into his denim coat pocket and procured something from one of his pockets.

Liana's eyes shot open in shock at the wooden immunity idol he now turned in his hands, a smug grin on his face. "How the hell did you get that?!" She shouted in shock.

"During the paintball challenge," he revealed. "It was hidden inside the trunk of a fallen log. I found it as I was hiding from Vivi before she shot me in the chest." He then stowed the idol back in his pocket. "I'm sure that it would help you out, wouldn't it?"

"Dammit Godfrey!" Liana rounded on him. "It's my butt that's hanging over the fire here, I don't have the time or the patience for your stupid games!" She then exhaled, trying to calm herself. "Now, I know that you wouldn't be revealing that thing to me if you didn't want to give it to me. But you're not the kind of guy who'd give someone an idol out of the kindness of their heart. So, just give me your terms. I need that idol."

Godfrey laughed. "That's what I like about you, Liana." He casually replied, not bothering to do what she wanted. "You don't go along with nonsense. You know what you want," he said as he once again procured the immunity idol, "and you go after it. Relentlessly. No matter what. It's not how I play this game, but I can respect it. Especially how you play it."

"Godfrey…" Liana began, getting angry, but the charmer just continued on.

"We're both players. That's why I wanted to work with you on day one of this game. That's why I want you to stay in this game." He eyed her. "But just because that's all true, that doesn't mean I don't have concessions. And believe me, since I know you need this, I'm gonna get a lot out of it."

"Just tell me, Godfrey. Like you said, I'm over a barrel here. I don't have much of a choice." Liana replied snarkily.

Godfrey held up a finger. "One; you take me to the final two. You said that you made a final three with Alessia and Marcellas. That is done once the merge happens. Feel free to lie to them all you want, but I am your final two. I am who you take to the end."

He held up a second finger. "Two. Once we get to the merge, granted, if you manage to get yourself there, you never vote to eliminate me." A third finger. "Three. I understand that you have to play your own game, and I fully respect it. I'm not gonna kneecap you. That'd make this game a lot less fun." He grinned. "But, since I am your final two, you must look out for my safety. If you find any plots against me, you tell me and we work together to destroy it."

A fourth finger rose. "Four. In the event that you get eliminated, and I get to the finale, you must do everything in your power to help me win, or if you're chosen by my opponent, sabotage them to make them lose."

A fifth finger and his entire hand had been held up in demands. "And five. Go grab me some granola bars. I'm hungry."

After only a few moments, Liana nodded. "I don't have much of a choice. I'm in."

"Great," Godfrey smiled. "Glad to have you on board, Liana." With that, he slid the idol across the table towards the gambler, who deftly caught it and stuffed it in her coat pocket.

"Thanks, Godfrey."

"Any time!" He cheerfully replied. "And I prefer the peanut butter granola bars." Liana just rolled her eyes and went towards the kitchen to grab Godfrey's food.

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

Godfrey looks rather proud of himself. "As the days roll on in this game, I feel more and more confident, if that's possible. My game style may be pretty aggressive and unpredictable, but that's exactly what will get me to the end. That's really all that matters to me. Now, do I trust Liana to fulfill her side of the deal?" He shook his head. "Not really. I think she's too smart to just blindly follow me. But as long as I can get some use out of her before she makes herself a liability, I'll be satisfied."

He then grinned. "And as for the idol? I didn't need that thing anyway. I have my side so with me, I was planning on just chucking it into the ocean, to be honest."

Static

Confessional: Liana

She sits in the confessional, eyeing her new immunity idol. "That Godfrey may be many things, but a liar he is not. Sure, I had to basically sell everything I had going for me in the game to get this thing, but it'll really be worth it for the insurance and peace of mind. Well, for one ceremony at least. Maybe after I save myself, I can pick up the pieces after whoever leaves and the sides are settling, and I can start regaining a foothold on the team." She grinned. "It may look bad, but it's not over until the last card is played."

Static

"Welcome back to Total Drama Island: Rewritten, everyone!" Chris McLean announced. "Last time on the show, we had, without a doubt, our most action-packed episode yet! The two teams began to crack and reshape as the game continues on. On the Albatrosses, Liana found herself alone on an island, with two allies she didn't trust at all, Alessia and Marcellas. But Wind, our resident groovy hippy, joined her side for real. And John, meanwhile, had gotten so paranoid about the vote that he ended up inadvertently joining her anyway!"

Chris continued, "Meanwhile, on the Crocodiles, David, Brooke, and Neda founded a new alliance to counter their team's resident self-proclaimed villain, Godfrey. Later on, Brooke and David were seemingly able to convince Godfrey to target Ji over Neda. But we all know how our resident charmer does things; since he didn't give his word, can he be trusted?"

"And to top it all off, after a thrilling archery competition that saw Neda yet again be her team's last chance, and one that she was able to finally pull off the comeback win, the Albatrosses chose to vote off Liana, by a 4-3 vote."

Chris laughed. "But what NO ONE saw coming was Liana procuring an immunity idol, leaving Sammy to be the one to go after all!"

Finishing up, Chris added, "And, to really tie it all together, we revealed to our cast that we have arrived at the merge already! And, I gave them a small disclaimer about today's brutal competition, too. Now that we've reached the merge, what new deals, alliances, and rivalries will form? What will today's challenge be? Who will win our first individual immunity? Well, we're all about to find out on…..

TOTAL!

DRAMA!

ISLAND: REWRITTEN!"

Static

Confessional: Liana

"Already hitting the merge is such a huge deal," she explains as she sits in the confessional booth, a wide grin on her face. "This really has given me a whole second life in this competition. I was able to weasel my way out of that last elimination," she rolls her eyes, "In no small amount thanks to Godfrey, but here at the merge? I can try to find myself some new allies. And with Sammy gone, all that's left is Vivi. I think I can swing John back to my side after that vote, too. And speaking of the vote, my getting eliminated at all means that I was lied to and someone voted against me. Again. Oh well, just another vote to hunt down and get rid of." She sighs contentedly to herself. "Pour l'amour du jeu."

Static

Confessional: David

"Man, this game just doesn't let up, does it?" He asks with a chuckle. "Now, we're all playing for ourselves, just when we were getting our teams set and organized! This is when things really start getting serious, I really gotta watch out from all sides. Thank goodness I have a few alliances I trust."

Static

Confessional: Neda

Neda is practically vibrating with excitement in her seat. "Oh my god! It's really the merge!" She squeals with excitement. "This is the part of this game I've been DYING to get to! This is when I can really start insulating myself!"

She grins widely. "It's gonna be like an onion. I surround myself with layers and layers of alliances. I have the one with Brooke and David. I'm gonna try to form one with John, too. And who knows what others I'll get in! But then, like an onion, if you wanna get at me, you have to peel away the layers of the onion." She then gives a girlish pout. "But who'd wanna target little old me?"

Static

Confessional: John

"Well, after last night's vote, I can say that things are totally out of control," he simply says as he sits in the outhouse with a cup of coffee. "Why not throw us headfirst into the merge?"

He then takes a sip of coffee, and after he lowers the cup, he gives a sly grin to the camera. "But more people all against each other is more opportunity for me to fade into the scenery. And as more and more people leave the game, my vote becomes much more important."

Static

Confessional: Brooke

"This is make-or-break time for a lot of people," Brooke tells the camera with a serious look on her face. "The game is at its most important stages here, where alliances really start forming and settling in for the whole rest of the game. But, I've got my guys' alliance, and my side one with David and Neda, too. Now, I just need to win those immunities and make sure I'm protected."

Static

Confessional: Marcellas

"Thank god for the merge!" He dramatically says. "Just when this game was starting to get a little stale, we launched right into the funnest part! The scheming, the lying, this is when the drama reaches its apex! Ooooooh! I can't wait!" The fashion-minded teen excitedly giggles.

Static

Confessional: Alessia

"Yes!" She says happily. "We're all playing together now. Now, I can start hunting other guys to add to my own alliances. And I can start pitting the girls against each other too! This is gonna be great. I can feel that suitcase of cash in my hands already."

Static

Confessional: Weenus

"Man, I actually made it through four eliminations!" The stuntman laughed. "Somehow, the people here haven't gotten sick of me yet. I guess I'll just keep doin' what I'm doin'," he shrugs. "It's gotten me this far. Who knows, maybe it'll take me all the way to the end? Only one way to find out, I guess!"

Static

Confessional: Wind

"We have stopped playing this game as a team, and we are all now on our own." Wind sighs. "I've been worried for this stage because I don't really feel I can handle this. I was just barely getting by when I had a whole team to rely on, but now? I fear it may just be too much."

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

"Of course, I've made it the merge," Godfrey tells the camera, his self-assured grin plastered on his face. "There was never a doubt in my mind that I wouldn't. Just like there's no doubt that I won't win this whole game. But the merge provides all sorts of new toys for me to play with."

Static

Confessional: Ji

"Making merge is good," she says simply. "Now, I can shift my strategies once more. I have learned that my former team is entirely useless. So, I am completely abandoning the lot of them. I'll find a new home, new allies, and new alliances amongst the former Albatrosses."

Static

Confessional: Vivi

The rocker sits in the outhouse looking irritated. "Merge, schmerge." She scoffs. "I don't care. All I care about is getting Liana back. She wants to take the low road and personally go after me? Fine. In fact, that's great." Her eyes narrow dangerously as a spiteful grin spreads across Vivi's face. "It'll make the hell I unleash on her all the sweeter."

Static

Early the next morning, the Crocodile guys all gathered their clothing and other items in preparation for their big move. "I guess we're saying goodbye to these cabins now, huh?" Weenus asked as he packed more of his clothes into his suitcase.

"Yeah, dude," David replied, "Guess so."

Weenus looked around the cabin with a hint of melancholy. "Really goes to show that everything's changing, doesn't it?"

"For the better, I say," Godfrey remarked. "The merge presents us with many, many new opportunities. Ones I couldn't be more excited to grab by the horns, myself."

Putting the last of his clothes into his case and zipping it, David jokingly replied, "Opportunities to expand your evil empire to a whole new crop, you mean."

Godfrey laughed. "You said it, David, not me." As he placed his full suitcase on his bed, Godfrey told the other two, "We need to keep a united front, you two. We're still the Agency. I have some ideas to fold some other people into an offshoot alliance, but at the end of the day, it's about us three. Never forget that, guys."

"You know it, bro!" Weenus laughed. "It's us three to the end, for sure. You're my boys!"

David grinned too, but it didn't reach his eyes. "Yeah, it's the Agency or bust!" He exclaimed.

Hefting up his suitcase, Godfrey motioned to the door. "Well, let's get to it. Meet our new cabinmates."

As the trio turned and left, Weenus stopped and gave the empty room a fond final lookover.

"Later, Cabin," he remarked to only himself, before switching off the light and closing the door.

Static

Confessional: Weenus

"Haha!" He chuckled. "I'm not the kinda guy that normally gets all sentimental like that. But man, that room was the start of this big adventure for me, where I first met my bros, where we formed our alliance, and where this whole crazy Total Drama thing got rolling. I dunno, it was like saying goodbye to your childhood home, in a way, I guess." He grinned. "I probably don't make any sense at all, huh?"

Static

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

"Must be the new roomies," John casually remarked as he sat on his bed.

"I got it!" Marcellas exclaimed as he shot out of the bathroom and made his way toward the door before throwing it open. "Hey guys!" He excitedly greeted their new roommates.

"Heya," Godfrey replied as he stepped into the room, David and Weenus offering greetings of their own as well while John gave a simple nod in acknowledgment.

"Thank god you two got here when you did, it was just me and John last night, and this guy is a real party animal!"

John rolled his eyes good-naturedly as he said, "It's not my fault I just had to play some Junior Wells, Marcellas. When I play that rusty old harmonica, my soul flies, free as a bird."

"I'm more of a Beethoven and Mozart cat myself," Godfrey smirked at John as he set his luggage on the floor.

John chuckled as the other two set their luggage down too. "So, what's the bed situation like?" Weenus asked.

"Well, there are four bunk beds and five of us. Me and John share a bunk, each of you gets your own bed, and we'll keep bunking." Marcellas answered.

"Works for me!" Weenus enthusiastically said, grabbing the back left bed.

"And me too!" David said as he quickly made his way to the back right bed.

"Marcellas, John, you've been bunking together the longest, do either of you want to have the bed to yourself?" Godfrey asked.

"No way!" Marcellas answered. "Me and John have been bunkmates since the start of the season! Why change it now when it works out so well?"

"As much as I hate to admit it, Marcellas has been a good bunkmate, so I have no complaints," John told him.

"That's pretty high praise coming from Mr. Lane here," Marcellas conspiratorially whispered just a bit too loud to Godfrey.

"That doesn't mean I can't start complaining at any time, Marcellas," John jabbed back.

Godfrey shrugged. "Thought I'd ask, but hey, I'm not gonna say no to having my own bed," he casually remarked as he flopped down on the last remaining one, the front left.

"Well, you know that I love to boogie and Marcellas loves to talk," John growing a smirk as Marcellas casts an unamused glare at the raven-haried artist, "but what about you guys?" He asked. "Anything we need to know?"

"Well, I'm liable to betray you guys at any time," Godfrey informed them with a cocky smile. "So, you should probably watch your backs, lest you find a knife sticking out of it."

John raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Well, I was more so asking if any of you snored or were messy, but good to know, I guess?"

Godfrey laughed. "No problem, John. And as for what you meant, I sleep just fine, and I keep pretty clean. I should be a model roommate for as long as the rest of you are here."

"The rest of us, Godfrey?" Marcellas asked, curious about the charmer's line of conversation. "You're thinking you're gonna outlast us?"

"Nah, Marcellas," Godfrey shook his head, "I know I am. Like ducks in a row, everyone else is going down."

At Godfrey's cocky talk, David looked at Weenus, who met his own gaze and rolled his eyes.

Static

Confessional: David

"Man," David sighs into the camera, "I wish I could be half as confident in this game or when I think about culinary school as Godfrey is in everyday life." He then chuckles. "I hope Godfrey never gets into politics."

Static

"Man, say what you will, Godfrey," John interjected, "But you certainly don't lack belief in yourself."

"That I don't," the teen agreed. "When you're me, why would you?"

"Godfrey," Marcellas began, "You're lucky I love self-assuredness because otherwise, I'd have to call you an egotistical jackass." As Godfrey laughed, stood up, and started unpacking, Marcellas turned to the other boys and asked, "Well, what about you guys? Anything we should know?"

"Well, I haven't gotten any complaints about snoring, so I don't think you guys have to worry about me on that front!" Weenus exclaimed.

"And ditto for me," David added.

"Good!" Marcellas chirped. "I think it's gonna be all sunshine, rainbows, and smiley faces over here, then."

David chuckled at that, which drew Marcellas' attention. "Something funny, David?"

David turned and faced the fashion-oriented teen with a grin. "Oh, that just made me think of how it's going over there with the girls."

"You don't think it's as well as our male bonding session?" John asked with a chuckle.

"I mean, I hope so, but two of the girls on our team, Brooke and Ji, really don't like each other. Like, at all."

"Hey, our team has its own enemies!" Marcellas added. "Liana and Vivi have been at each other for a little bit now. And if you know Vivi like me and John do, you know that she's not the kind of girl to let nasty comments go. And trust me, the stuff that Liana has been saying is rough. And with how emotional and on a hare-trigger Liana is?" Marcellas fanned himself. "I fear the eruption will destroy the island!"

The Croc guys looked to John for confirmation, to which he gave with a nod. "I can't say I know how Brooke and Ji's relationship, but I'd be shocked if it was as tumultuous as Vivi and Liana. As Marcellas said, I worry that the ensuing fallout after their next blowup will leave the whole province an uninhabitable radioactive nightmare."

"That bad?" Weenus asked, shocked.

"That bad," John confirmed. "I expect to hear the wailing and gnashing of teeth that their confrontation will bring any moment, and when it comes, I'm swimming for it."

As John explained the fragility of Liana and Vivi's relationship, Godfrey listened with full attention, a devilish grin on his face.

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

"I gotta thank my man John for the heads up on Vivi and Liana," he explained to the camera. "That's some valuable info. I'm gonna find a way to cause that powder keg to burst somehow. Maybe somehow I can wrap Ji and Brooke's arguments into it too and cause a full-scale four-way brawl." He grinned. "Would that be thrilling television or what?"

Static

Confessional: Wind

"I was very excited when we gathered our things and moved into the new Girls' Cabin!" Wind told the camera. "There are still many people that I hadn't had many conversations with, and I was enthused for all the girls to get together and get to know one another." She then grimaced. "I, however, did not anticipate the sheer tension that would entail."

Static

The seven girls on the island all sat around the bedrooms in various states. On one bed, Liana, Neda, and Wind all sat, smiles on their faces.

"So you really just live in a commune out in the woods?" Neda asked, eyes wide in wonder.

"Yes," Wind nodded. "Well, I find 'out in the woods' to be a bit misleading. It's a 3-hour plane ride from Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon, or a 5-hour one from Juneau, Alaska. It's on the small land territory that is attached to the Yukon, near the border of Alaska."

"So the only way to get there is by plane?" Liana inquired.

"Again, yes," Wind continued. "We have a runway for when we need aircraft, but we try to keep the whole thing very self-sufficient. A few doctors live there, but sometimes, medicines need to be delivered and such."

"And HOW many people did you say live there again?" Neda questioned.

"One hundred and twenty-seven," Wind answered.

"That's just incredible," Liana laughed. "It feels like some of my college classes have more people than that."

"It must be beautiful out there, Wind," Neda said, jealousy tinging her voice.

"Oh, it is!" Wind gushed. "The winter can be cruel, but when spring finally does come, I believe it's the most beautiful place in the world. We are under a mountain range, along the Tatshenshini River, where we get our fish. All meat we eat there is either fish we catch, livestock we raise, or food that is hunted by us."

"And how the heck did you discover Total Drama?" Liana questioningly asked.

"Just because the town is a bunch of hippies does not mean we don't watch television."

The laughter of the three girls reverberated throughout the cabin, but one girl shared no part in the laughter. That girl was Vivi, who lay on the bunk bed that she had commandeered and had told the other girls that, in no uncertain terms, was her own and that she would not be sharing. With Ji and Alessia, Neda and Brooke, and Wind and Liana all opting to share, that left the rocker with her own bed, just the way she wanted.

Rather than laugh or get to know her new cabinmates, Vivi had opted to retreat into herself. As she rested on her bed, she couldn't help but level scathing glares at the back of Liana's head.

'Rat bitch. Who does she think she is?' the girl seethed internally, gritting her teeth as something Neda said made her laugh once again. 'Acting all goody goody when she knows she's been saying crap about me. It makes my stomach turn.' She exhaled roughly. 'She's only here because she was lucky enough to find a damn immunity idol. I'd have loved to smash that idol against her stupid-'

"Excuse me."

Vivi was torn from her hateful internal monologue by a sudden intrusion. Looking up, she saw Ji.

"What the hell do you want?" Vivi snarled at the intruder.

"Well, what I want is for you to stop pouting. It makes you look childish. But what I need is for you to come with me." The Korean girl replied, clearly unimpressed with Vivi's attitude.

Vivi's face quickly began to turn red with anger as she stared at Ji, but the girl continued, "I've been talking with your teammate, Alessia. It seems that all three of us want to achieve similar goals, and she believes you would be interested in joining forces."

Vivi took a few moments in just staring at the smaller girl, but she huffed. "Fine, whatever," she grumbled as she sat and stood up off her bed, and made to follow Ji.

"Hey, Vivi!" Alessia cheerfully replied. "So nice of you to join us!"

"What do you want?" Vivi irritatedly asked in response.

"Oooh, you're not too happy today, are you?" Alessia laughingly asked. "I bet it's because of our mutual friend, isn't it?"

"You're damn right," Vivi sharply retorted. "The fact that I have to sit here, and stare at her dumb face still after last night drives me insane. But what does this have to do with me?"

"I believe that the three of us, plus Alessia's friend Marcellas, can work together to get rid of our common enemies." As if on cue, Brooke emerged from the bathroom, exchanging greetings with Neda, Wind, and Liana as she headed out the door. "Like her," Ji growled.

Vivi rolled her eyes at the thought of working more with Alessia and Marcellas. "Yeah, because you two's big plan was such a success last night."

"Listen, the girl was eliminated," Alessia defended herself. "How was I supposed to know she had an idol? Especially after I've turned this whole island over looking for them," she grumbled the last part.

"Fine, you've got a point, I guess. Just, tell me what you want."

"Simple," Ji stated. "You, me, Alessia, and Marcellas are going to form an alliance. We're also going to try to grab a fifth for an extra vote. I've suggested Godfrey. He seems most willing to go along with our plan, and based on him already eliminating and betraying one of his former alliance mates, I think he is sufficiently treacherous enough to actually follow through. I can't say the same of the rest of my former teammates, or your remaining current teammates."

"And that plan is….." Vivi asked, letting the question hang in the air.

"We form up, have a five-person group in secret, and we take out Brooke and Liana!" Alessia answered. "Back to back!"

"At that point," Ji elaborated, "There will be ten people left. At that point, we try to get John on our side, and we take out the others, one by one, until John, Godfrey, you, I, Marcellas, and Alessia are left. Then, we clip Godfrey and John, leaving ourselves to be the final four."

"You're really putting a lot of faith in people who used to be on the enemy team, Ji," Vivi snidely replied.

Ji just rolled her eyes. "We're at the merge now. The teams are done. Plus," Ji's face scrunched in irritation, "My team was more than useless. All they could do was betray each other. I'm much more confident in shifting my loyalty to your side."

As Vivi thought Ji's words over, she had to admit that it was a good plan. But, she had one very important caveat she would refuse to acquiesce.

"I want Liana to go before Brooke. If she doesn't, I'm not helping you."

Ji nodded her head. "That is very fair. I am just one person, and I am coming to your side. I can agree to that."

"Good," Vivi grinned. "Now, you think you can get Godfrey?"

Again, Ji nodded. "Yes. I have faith that Godfrey will join us. We were former teammates, I'll talk to him and get the vote set up for tonight. I believe he's mercenary enough to turn on Weenus and David if it will guarantee him a farther spot in the game."

"And we can trust him to not rat on us?" Vivi asked.

"I assume so. That's why I'm going to dangle the, at minimum, fifth-place finish to him. I think that'll be enough to get him. But we do need to be careful." Ji warned. "He's been behind seemingly every moment of chaos on my team, so if we can dispose of him when the other side is at three people left or so, when there isn't enough to be a threat to us, that would probably be wise."

Vivi nodded in understanding. "If you say so, Ji, you'd know the guy better than us." Another question then came to the mind of the rocker chick. "But what about tonight?" she asked. "There are twelve people. We'd have to get them all to split their votes enough to actually get Liana out."

"I can get Godfrey to split David and Weenus' votes. He's in an alliance with them and they'll do what he says. Those two, plus us five against Liana is more than enough to get her out."

"If you think that'll work." She replied, to which Ji nodded in affirmation. "Shoot, I like what I'm hearing!" Vivi laughed. "I'm in."

"Good," Ji simply responded.

"Great!" Alessia added "I'll tell Marcellas later. He's gonna be so down!"

"Attention campers!" The loudspeakers blared suddenly, the voice of the show's host blaring over them. "We're one hour away from our challenge! In one hour, I'll have you meet at the campfire pit, where I will personally escort you to the beach, explain, and reveal the challenge! But until then, I highly recommend you follow my advice from last night; find some loose comfy clothes and mentally prepare for the hardest challenge you'll ever compete in!"

One hour later

The campers were all gathered at the campfire pit, awaiting the hosts' arrival. Many of them had taken Chris' advice. Neda was in her running attire, Brooke in her basketball attire, and Weenus, Godfrey, Marcellas, and David were all shirtless in their swim trunks, as well as Liana, who was in a bikini top and swim trunks of her own.

Others, like John, Ji, Alessia, Wind, and Vivi, opted to keep their regular outfits, but in the case of the rocker and artist, they'd shed their jacket and overshirt, leaving just the tanktop and t-shirt underneath.

As the campers chatted, Chris practically ran towards them. "Hey guys, I hope you're ready! I know I sure am! So, follow me and I'll explain on the way!" Motioning for the cast to follow, Chris led them down the path that led to the dock of shame, but rather than taking the dock, they went down the stairs that led to the beach.

"We've been thinking of a way to really make you guys feel the pressure with this season," Chris explained. "We've been coming up with big challenges all season, but for today, for such a pivotal moment in the game, one that can influence how the entire rest of this thing can go, we KNEW we needed something special."

Chris then chuckled as they continued along the beach. "Well, not so special, but more like diabolical!" He laughed but quickly continued. "And for this challenge, we're really gonna dial up the pressure, because in this challenge, the only thing that can beat you, is you."

At that, the cast and host began approaching the challenge.

"What the heck?" Alessia asked, thoroughly unimpressed, "It's just a glass box."

"Not just any glass box, Alessia!" Chris exclaimed as they approached the structure. "This glass box comes with a few special modifications!"

On closer inspection, the structure could be made out to be about eight feet long by seven feet wide. Also, it could be seen to have a multitude of large boxes, arranged in a circle in the center, lying in the sand. Along the sides of the wall were black rectangles, with a second smaller rectangle attached to wires above it. Motioning to the structure's only door in the bottom right corner, Chris threw it open and stepped in. "Come on in everyone!"

When the entirety of the cast came in, the rectangles on the outside were revealed to be pads for bright red buttons, and above each of the buttons was a red light bulb, all of which were currently off. Since the box was longer than it was taller, there were four buttons along both horizontal walls of the box and two on each vertical end. The buttons weren't more than two feet apart, as well.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I welcome you to the Pressure Cooker!" Chris exclaimed. "The rules of this competition are VERY simple. Around you all are buttons. These buttons are attached to these lights." Chris pushed the button closest to him, and the light above it shone a bright red. "When your hand is on the button, this light will be active."

Chris then removed his hand, and the light went off. "The object of this competition is simple. You must be the last person with their hand on their button, with their light on. If you are, you win the challenge! Also, if you sit on your knees, or your butt, you're also eliminated. You have to be standing at all times. Crouching is allowed, but good luck getting out of it later in the challenge!"

Chris then gestured to the boxes. "Every time someone is eliminated, the eliminated person will open one of these boxes. You can choose any box you want. Some have prizes, some have punishments, and a lucky few will make your Pressure Cooker experience all the worse!"

"Furthermore," the host continued, "We're gonna do things a little differently. Rather than leaving the Pressure Cooker when you're eliminated, we will be releasing you in batches of three! So even if you are eliminated from the competition, you may still have to hang out inside for a few more hours."

If possible, the grin on the hosts' face threatened to snap it right in half. "And, perhaps most importantly, this challenge is NOT for individual immunity."

At the confused glances gathered on people's faces, Chris laughed. "No, this challenge isn't for individual immunity, just to say it again! Rather, if you win the Pressure Cooker…..at tonight's campfire ceremony, you will cast the one, and only, vote to eliminate."

That stunned everyone. "So you're saying that tonight, whoever goes home is solely up to whoever wins this challenge?!" Liana asked, stunned.

"That's right!" Chris affirmed. "But, who said anything about it being tonight? If you guys want that power, or that safety, bad enough, this challenge could go all night! It's just about who wants it the most."

Chris then looked at his campers. "That about does it! Does anyone have any questions?"

None asked, so Chris chuckled. "Alright! Then, if everyone could head over to a button and press it down, we'll ensure they're all working before we get this show on the road."

The campers did as told, all of them going to the buttons placed around the box and pressing them, with all the lights coming on and staying on. "Great!" Chris confirmed. "Everyone, hands off."

The campers did as asked, and the lights flicked off. "Alright, on my word, you'll press your button, and this challenge will officially start." He looked at all the campers. "Is everyone ready to go?" He received a chorus of yup, yep, and yeahs, and nodded. "Okay everyone, press your hand on your button, and we'll officially be getting underway!"

A few seconds later, Chris looked and saw all twelve red lights were on. "Alright, that's it. This competition is now live. The last one standing will win! Welcome to the Pressure Cooker, everyone!"

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

"By now, you all know that I have a 'throw all my challenges' strategy going on. It makes me look weaker, and by association, less threatening," he tells the camera. "But not today. To be able to eliminate anyone you want, all by yourself? That's an incredible amount of power that everyone here should want. And rest assured, that's a power that can rock this game to its very core and change the entire landscape. So no, I won't be throwing this challenge. Not when the stakes are this high. The only person I trust with that much power is myself."

Static

Confessional: Ji

"This is an incredible opportunity for our alliance," Ji smiles at the camera. "All we need to do is win, and," she snaps her fingers, "one of our main targets is gone, in the blink of an eye. But on the same side, if someone wins where you don't know where they stand, then you're in more danger than you could possibly imagine. That's why this challenge is absolutely a must-win. Chris wasn't kidding when he said this challenge has the opportunity to change the entire game."

Static

10 minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"Man, this is wild, isn't it?" Weenus asked aloud.

"More like boring," Alessia grumbled from his left on the Northern wall. "All we're doing is standing here pushing a button. What kind of challenge is this anyway?"

"I thought you were good at pressing buttons?" John snarkily asked in response next to her, from his spot as the top button on the Eastern wall. Liana, who was below him, chuckled lightly in response.

"Oh, you know what I mean, John," Alessia groused in response.

"Hey, lighten up, Alessia!" Weenus told her. "This is really cool. It's like a real battle of endurance!"

"Weenus is right!" Marcellas called in agreement from his left. "Stop being such a debbie downer, Alessia!"

On Marcellas' left, Vivi just rolled her eyes, trying her hardest to keep her total focus on the button, and the task at hand.

Static

Confessional: Vivi

"I want this," she states strongly into the camera. "I. WANT. This. I want to be there, in front of the entire group, and tell Liana off before I cut her lying snake head off and kick her off of my island. After that? I really don't care if I go next. But the thought of me being the one to end her?" She grins wickedly into the camera. "That's the kind of thing that gives me goosebumps. I want that. Bad."

Static

"Yeah, just laugh it up at my expense," Alessia groaned. "Gang up on me, why not!"

"Wait, I'm sorry," Weenus quickly replied. "I didn't mean-"

"Don't apologize big guy!" Marcellas laughed. "She's just being a damn drama queen. Let her whine and complain because she's gonna be whining a lot more when it's been 5 hours!"

"Ugh!" Alessia huffed. "Some bestie you are, Marcellas! Turn your back on me almost instantly!"

Directly below Alessia on the Southern wall of the Pressure Cooker, Brooke grumbled, "I'm gonna have to take my hand off the button to make them shut the hell up."

"Brooke!" Wind said aghast from her right. "Don't say such things!"

That gave Brooke a small grin. "You wouldn't be happy at the basketball trash-talk that goes on if that comment gets you, Wind."

"Yeah," David laughed from Brooke's left. "I'm sure that there's some serious bad-mouthing going on there."

"Like you wouldn't believe, David!" Brooke exclaimed.

"So does that mean that you toned it down during the basketball game with David, Sammy, and Godfrey?" Neda cheekily asked from David's left.

"I won't say yes or no, but I'll say that it got shelved before we could really get going. Next time though, I promise I'm not holding it back." She turned and faced David, a competitive glint in her eye.

"It wouldn't be a real game against you if you did hold back, Brooke," David responded.

"Ugh," Ji groaned from her spot above Neda on the Western wall of the Pressure Cooker.

"I know," Godfrey quietly said back from above Ji as he rolled his eyes. "If their chatter got any more mind-numbing, I'd have to start bashing my head against this box to get out of here."

"If I have to hear Brooke talk about stupid basketball one more time, I'm going to rip this button out of the wall and bludgeon her with it," she said sourly.

Godfrey laughed at the image. "I don't think Brooke would appreciate that."

"I'm far beyond caring about what Brooke wants," she irritatedly replied. After taking a second, Ji turned and looked back at Neda, who was looking over at Brooke, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet, hand still firmly pressed on her button. Turning back to Godfrey, she conspiratorially whispered, "When things get a bit farther along, I would like to talk to you about a proposition."

"Oh?" Godfrey asked, interest piqued. "What kind?"

"The kind that guarantees you fifth place in this game, Godfrey."

"Now that's a proposition I can get into, Ji," Godfrey grinned. "I'm eager to hear your big plan here. And you can guarantee me fifth?"

Ji nodded. "If you agree and help with the plan I have formulated, yes."

"Then you've got a date, Ji," The charmer replied. "I can't wait to hear about this scheme you've got."

Two and a half hours into the Pressure Cooker

"Hey, everyone!" Chris called, approaching the challenge for the first time since it started. "How're you doing in our fabulous Pressure Cooker?"

"Bored!" Alessia groaned, making those around her laugh.

"Well, I wanted to let you guys know that you've hit the two-and-a-half-hour mark," He informed them. "And no one's dropped out yet, I'm impressed."

"Sole vote to eliminate tonight?" John asked in reply. "That's too big to not fight for."

"I thought it would be, John," Chris chuckled in reply. "Well, I'm also here just to give you guys a little more info. You are allowed to switch hands that are pressing the button, but you gotta be careful, don't want to accidentally eliminate yourselves, don't you?" He asked with a grin.

At that, many of the campers groaned in relief as they began the tense process of switching hands, many shaking their numb appendages to get the blood flow back into them.

"So, after that, I'm guessing no one here willingly wants to drop out?"

"No way, Chris!" David shouted. "I'm ready to go forever!"

"Same," Vivi replied back, focusing directly on her button still.

"Alright then!" The host accepted. "Well, just so you all know, it's not gonna be super hot today, so you won't get crispy in there, but expect it to get nice and warm in there later." With that, the host turned and left, letting the competition roll on.

Static

Confessional: Neda

The superfan sits in the confessional with her hands folded in her lap. "To be really honest, this doesn't feel like it's a must-win for me. With the merge here, I can really start hiding myself in a jumble of different alliances. Plus, with no more teams, I don't feel nearly as in danger as I did just the night before." She taps her chin in thought. "And if I'm being honest, I feel like winning this and eliminating someone by myself would put more spotlight on me than I'd really like."

She then purses her lips. "But at the same time, you never truly know what's going on around here, so even though I may feel that way, the only way to be truly safe is if I just win it myself."

Static

Confessional: Wind

The hippy looks solemnly at the camera. "While I can fully admit that being able to eliminate one from the game would be a great boon for some, for myself, I just can't bring myself to do such a thing. Being part of a vote is one thing, but the thought of doing that to someone by my own hand?" She shudders. "I truly can't stomach the thought! So, I don't plan on winning this particular competition. It may sound foolish, but it is how I am going to do it. I may wait to remove myself from it, however. I don't want to be the first out."

Static

Three Hours into the Pressure Cooker

At the moment, the Pressure Cooker was quiet. While there was a hushed conversation here and there, it was mostly silence that reigned over the structure, most people hopping up and down or leaning side to side to keep themselves moving. Every so often, one of the camper's faces would grimace in concentration as they carefully switched the hand that was on their button.

One such conversation was between John and Wind. "So you live in some kinda mountain commune?" The artist asked, curiosity clear in his tone.

"Yes!" Wind happily said. "It's in the wilderness of the Yukon." The hippy then looked curious. "Why do you ask, John?"

At that, the artist looked a little bashful. "Well, if the scenery is as beautiful as you make it sound, I'd love to come up there for a while. I bet I could get some killer landscapes. I don't normally dabble in natural art, but again, you make the whole place sound pretty inspiring."

The smile on Wind's face was gigantic. "Oh, John!" She cheered. "That would be wonderful! I'd love it if you came up to visit! And we have plenty of artists there, I'm sure you would get along just fine with them!"

John chuckled. "I've known enough old hippies in my life to know how to get along with them." He then asked, "The answer's probably no, but is there a hotel or something? I don't need a Hilton or anything."

"We do have a lodge where photographers and other artists can pay to reside, but don't even think of that, John!" Wind responded, almost scolding the raven-haired artist. "I insist that you stay at my lodging with me and my family!"

John looked surprised at the invitation. "I don't wanna impose. I can stay at the lodge, it's no big deal."

"Absolutely not!" Wind strongly replied. "I would be honored if you came as my guest. It would be no bother to me or my family at all. We would be most happy to host you for as long as you want!"

John gave a genuine smile. "Thanks, Wind. That's pretty cool. I'll have to take you up on that sooner rather than later I think."

"It would be my pleasure," The hippy hummed. "You are a kind soul, I would be most happy for you to experience my life. If it had any impact on your art, I would be truly joyful."

"Yeah, I'll find a way to contact you after the season," the artist nodded.

"Dammit!"

Heads turned to see that the first light in the Pressure Cooker had gone off.

"I was readjusting my hands, but they were numb, and they just slipped off," Alessia groaned as she kicked some sand.

"Well, hey, at least you get to open a box!" Weenus grinned. "Maybe you'll get something sweet!"

Taking her time, Alessia slowly circled all the boxes, looking for the right one. After taking a full lap, Alessia stopped in front of one. "All right!" She said aloud. "This one's mine! I have a good feeling about this one." Taking the lid off of it, she immediately gagged as a terrible stench assaulted her nose. "Ack!" She choked. "That stinks!"

Peering into the box, holding her nose tight, she grimaced to see that inside the box was nothing more than a large pile of dead fish.

The smell quickly wafted throughout the Pressure Cooker, bringing groans of disgust and cries of complaint wherever it went.

"Ugh, what the hell did you even get, Alessia!?" Marcellas gagged.

"It stinks like hell in here!" Brooke coughed.

"It's a big pile of dead fish," the streamer annoyedly told her fellow competitors.

"Ugh, it reeks!" Weenus groaned.

"And it's gonna get worse as it gets warmer in here," David coughed.

"Oh, that's fantastic," Alessia grumbled. "And I can't even get out of here, either!" She suddenly exclaimed in shock. "I have to wait!"

"That's right!" Chris laughed as he approached the Pressure Cooker. "Don't forget, just because you're out of the competition, Alessia, you can't leave the challenge just yet. You still have to wait for two more people to drop before you can leave."

"But I have to go to the bathroom!" Alessia childishly pouted.

"Then, I hope you can hold it because you're still stuck in there." The host grinned evilly. "Or, maybe you can find a spot where no one's looking and-"

"Shut up!" Alessia interrupted, mortified. "I'm not doing THAT! I think I can wait."

Chris suddenly gagged and covered his mouth. "Woah, that reeks," he groaned. "Looks like you were unlucky enough to get the dead fish." He then chuckled. "That really sucks for the rest of you, doesn't it?"

"Don't remind us," Neda whined. "We're the ones who're stuck in here with it!"

"Yeah, I'm sure that'll start smelling really great as we get on with this thing," Chris taunted. "Well, good luck, you're definitely gonna need it!" He laughed as he walked away.

Three Hours and Forty-Five Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"This sucks!" Alessia complained as she sat on the sand in front of her button.

"We heard you this first time," Marcellas replied, rolling his eyes.

Static

Confessional: Marcellas

"I love my girl Alessia, truly and deeply," the fashion-minded teen tells the camera. "She's my bestie on this island, and we're gonna be besties after this game for sure, but damn, if she isn't being annoying as hell right now!"

Static

"Yeah," Ji said loudly. "We heard your complaints the first twenty times. Stop being a baby and distracting us."

"I have no friends," Alessia grumbled as she brought her legs close and sat her arms on her knees.

Four hours into the Pressure Cooker

"Welcome to the four-hour mark, everyone!" Chris cheered as he once again approached the competition. "How's it going in there?"

"Stupid," Alessia grumbled.

"It's starting to get pretty hot in here," Neda replied.

"Well, it's getting to be the hottest part of the day, so it's gonna be pretty bad in there," The host replied.

"And it totally reeks!" David complained.

"So you're still not over the smell of roasting dead fish?" Chris asked them all with a laugh, to which he was greeted with a chorus of negative responses. "Ha!" He laughed. "The Pressure Cooker wasn't designed to be easy, you know. If you wanna win this, you have to want it more than everyone else. Feel free to drop out anytime if you can't hack it though, I'm sure Alessia will appreciate it."

Hopefully, Alessia looked around, but after a few moments, it was clear that no one was opting out of the competition. "Sorry Alessia!" The host told the streamer, "But they want it too bad, so it looks like you're still stuck in there." He grinned at the girl's sour face.

"Well, as always, just coming to check on you, so I'll see you around," Chris replied as he walked away.

Wiping sweat from her brow, Neda looked at David and said, "Is the heat bothering you?"

"'Course," David replied. "It's really hot in this thing, but I'm just hanging on anyway."

"Same," Neda nodded. Turning to Ji, she asked, "How're you doing, Ji?"

"Fine," She replied shortly.

"That's good," the superfan chirped. "It's getting-"

"Don't talk to me," Ji snapped.

Frowning, Neda turned and stared at her button.

"Hey, don't be so rude, Ji," David replied. "She was just asking how you were doing."

Neda's frown turned into a hidden grin as David went to her defense, and Ji replied, "I don't want to talk to you either. I want to win this. Stop distracting me."

"Fine," David shot back, a bit more venom in his voice than people were expecting. Turning to Neda, he said, "You okay?"

The girl just nodded, and David patted her on the shoulder conciliatorily. "Don't worry about Ji," David consoled. "I still wanna talk with you."

"Yeah, Ji sucks," Brooke said loudly, or at least loud enough for the girl in question to hear. She scowled but otherwise didn't respond.

"Thanks, you two," Neda grinned. "I was just asking how people are doing, but…..I guess I shouldn't be bothering people in a competition like this."

"Don't worry about that," Brooke called. "That's just Ji being prickly."

"Yeah, you're not bothering me or Brooke or anything," David told her. "Don't worry about it, Neda."

The grin on her face grew even wider. "Thanks you two! I'm so glad to have friends like you in this thing."

Static

Confessional: Neda

She sits in the confessional, an accomplished smirk on her face. "Not to toot my own horn, but I'm crushing this act I'm putting on. Is it a little embarrassing to basically have to act like a little kid?" She shrugs. "Yeah, but at the same time, it's what's protecting me so well in this thing. David and Brooke are two of the strongest players on the island, and they've both got me wrapped around their fingers or so they think. And as long as I'm safe and secure, I'll do whatever I can to keep the act up."

Static

Four Hours and Thirty Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

Static

Confessional: Liana

The girl in question sits in the confessional, arms crossed. "At the end of the day, a competition like this is all about mental fortitude. You have to want to win more than everyone around you. Competition drives all of us in different ways. I'm a competitive person by nature, and I want this more than anything. I know that I'm at more risk than most people here. So, I just have to outlast them and win. But, that's easier said than done."

Static

As Liana was deep in thought, she was jarred from a small rub on the shoulder. Surprised, she looked over to see that the person who did so was John.

"Hope I didn't make you almost let go there," the artist told her apologetically.

The gambler shrugged at his words. "You're fine. What's up, John?" She asked.

"I wanted to talk to you about the vote last night," John told her, his voice lowering.

Liana's eyes narrowed. She had been wondering about the vote's results last night, in all honesty. But with the merge, and getting to know her new cabin mates, it had fallen to the wayside of her thoughts.

But, the Pressure Cooker had allowed her plenty of time to think of the confusion of the vote last night.

"You mean the fact that I was voted out?" The girl in question bitterly responded.

"You know, I voted for Sammy last night," John informed her.

Liana's eyes widened in shock. "What?" She asked in a harsh whisper that got Wind's attention, the hippy turning towards her with a confused look.

"Yeah," the artist nodded. "I voted to keep you."

"Why?" Liana asked, the news muddying an already confusing vote picture.

"It was that conversation on the beach that we had, actually," John admitted. "For someone who was looking down the barrel of an elimination, you seemed a bit too relaxed about the whole thing. I was fully expecting a big sales pitch, but you just said your piece and left. That made me think you had a reason to be calm, so I went with my gut."

Liana's face scrunched in concentration, the gears in her head obviously turning.

"I voted to keep you as well," Wind also revealed.

Liana began mumbling to herself. While the two couldn't make out what she was saying, the occasional word like 'vote' would sneak through. After a few moments, Liana immediately looked annoyed.

"Figure it out?" John asked.

"Marcellas and Alessia betrayed me," She growled. "Dammit, I should have known those two were untrustworthy."

"Yeah, those two aren't paragons of trustworthiness," John chuckled. "But nobody here really is, either. Well, except maybe Sammy. But he's gone." John then raised an eyebrow. "Why the hell would you put your faith in those two anyway?"

"It was well and truly my last resort," the gambler explained unhappily. "I was well and truly against the wall and needed numbers. I figured they'd betray me, but I didn't think they'd do it immediately." She then grit her teeth. "Damn those two."

"Well, at least you know now that they're not to be trusted," Wind said in response, trying to be helpful.

"Having to burn my idol because those two morons stabbed me in the back doesn't make me happy at all."

"Yeah, where the heck did that thing come from?" John asked. "That shocked the hell out of everyone."

Taking a second to remember what Godfrey told her, she told the raven-haired artist, "I found it in the woods during the paintball challenge. It was hidden in a log, I found it when I was ducking for cover."

"Lucky break," John sighed. "I spent that competition shooting things with my paintball gun before I got taken out."

"Every time is a good time for art," Wind said, echoing the comments that John had said during the challenge with an impish grin.

John chuckled at his words coming back at him. "I got some good shots at least. Thank god for my portable camera."

Liana couldn't help but chuckle at that. "You just shot paint at the terrain the whole time?" She asked incredulously.

"Not the whole time," John defended himself, before smirking and saying, "Just most of it." He then gestured to Wind. "She became a little artist in her own right."

"It's true," Wind nodded. "Me and John did landscapes together. I'll admit I needed to be coerced to use the gun, but once I did, we had a lot of fun."

"Too bad Chef wouldn't let me keep the paintball gun," John childishly pouted.

"You actually asked?" Liana asked with a laugh.

"You miss a hundred percent of the shots you don't take," John shrugged. "And that paintball gun would have led to a whole new world of possibilities for art."

"As long as you don't consider shooting at us," Liana joked.

"What?" John asked, feigning injury. "You think I'd shoot at my fellow campers to turn them into living art pieces?"

"Yes," Wind nodded in affirmation.

"Yep," Liana also agreed.

"I may or may not have been planning on it before I realized those paintballs come at you with a good amount of velocity, and anyone that was shot wouldn't be in the mood to be photographed," John said as the girls chuckled.

"No!" A cry from behind them. All turning their heads, they saw the light above Neda's head had gone out.

"It's hot, I'm sweaty and my hand just slipped off," Neda said disappointedly.

"That sucks," John said to Liana and Wind.

"Indeed," Liana nodded.

"Don't worry, Neda!" Wind called. "You can hopefully get a box with something good in it."

Taking the opposite strategy of Alessia, the Iranian teen opted for the box that was closest to her. Taking a second, Neda lifted the lid off and was immediately thankful that no offending odors came out of it. Peering inside curiously, she audibly went 'Huh?' as she reached in and pulled out her prize.

"What do you have?" David asked as he saw that she was holding a piece of paper.

"C'mon girl, read it!" Marcellas called excitedly.

Reading the paper, Neda read aloud, "Congratulations! By choosing this box, you have won-" She immediately gasped, and covered her mouth in shock.

"What's wrong?" Wind asked, concern clear in her voice at the girl's sudden emotional reaction.

Fanning herself with her free hand as tears began to come down her face, she continued, "You have won a phone call with a loved one."

"Awesome!" Brooke cheered. "Congrats, Neda!"

"I'm jealous," Godfrey openly admitted. "I'd love to hear from my family right about now. Congratulations, Neda."

"Oh my god, thanks so much," the girl told them, emotion clear in her voice. Continuing the note, she read, "Tomorrow afternoon, a cell phone will be placed in the mess hall, where you will get to have a conversation with one of your loved ones."

Still holding the paper, Neda openly cried into it, holding it to her face. "This is amazing, thank you so much!"

Suddenly, Wind let go of her button as well. "I'm happy to go out so Neda and Alessia may leave."

"Oh my god, thanks Wind!" Alessia happily exclaimed, running over and hugging the hippy.

"You're most welcome," Wind nodded before she made her way towards a box. Looking at them all, she made her way towards one and opened the lid. Peering inside, she frowned as she pulled a piece of paper out.

"You have won absolutely nothing," Wind read aloud.

The others laughed at her letter as Wind grinned and stuffed it in her pocket. "They can't all be winners, I guess," Wind laughingly said as she made her way back to her button.

At that, Chris made his way to the Pressure Cooker. "Well, well! Looks like we have our first group out. Alessia, Neda, Wind, you three are out of this competition." As he spoke, Chris unlocked the door and swung it open. He cringed as the smell of dead fish blasted his senses.

"Gugh!" He gagged.

"It's truly not so great, is it?" Wind asked as she made to leave. Alessia, however, stormed past her and ran straight past the host, making her way towards the bathrooms.

"Good luck everyone!" Neda called as she made her way out of the structure as well, also making her way towards the restrooms. "I'll be back later!"

"Me as well," Wind declared as she made her way towards the mess hall. "I, however, am quite hungry."

As Wind departed, Chris then closed the door and locked it once again. "This competition still rolls on," he told all the campers. "Now, if you take your hand off of your button, you'll have to wait for two more people to also be eliminated before you leave. And you're a sturdy bunch, so that may take a while!" With that, Chris once again departed, leaving the nine remaining campers to continue the Pressure Cooker.

Five Hours and Forty-Five minutes into the Pressure Cooker

The sun was just beginning to descend for the day, but for the moment, it still hung high in a clear, blue sky. On the beach, the nine campers still stood still, fingers on their buttons, hoping that their competition would quickly drop out.

On the beach, Neda and Wind had opted to get a pair of chairs and sit, still keeping close to the competition despite not being a part of it anymore. However, ever since Alessia was removed from the Pressure Cooker, she had not returned, a detail that had not gone unnoticed.

However, a few still stood stock still, their total focus on the task at hand. Vivi had barely spoken a word since the competition started close to six hours ago, while Ji, Godfrey, and Brooke also rigidly stood, their focus on making sure that their hands were on the button at all times.

As Godfrey slowly made to swap hands, Ji spoke. "Are you ready to discuss my proposed deal now?" She asked, straight to the point.

"All business," Godfrey grinned. "I like that."

"Exactly, which is why I have no patience for your games, Godfrey," Ji spat.

The charmer just snorted in response. "Charming. What's my motivation to even hear you out now?" He condescendingly asked.

"Fifth place is your motivation," Ji simply replied. "If you need more incentive than that, you are asking for too much."

"I'll admit, that's a pretty solid motivator," Godfrey shrugged. "Alright, let's hear what you've got."

"We have a plan," Ji began. "Me, Alessia, Marcellas, Vivi. I proposed an alliance with them for the second half of the game."

"Ji, what happened to your team spirit?" Godfrey asked, feigning hurt.

"It was exorcised when Brooke betrayed the other girls," the robot combateer sharply replied. "Which, by the way, I know was you, Godfrey."

Godfrey just shrugged. "I offered Brooke a deal, she took it." He raised an eyebrow. "Surely you're not mad about that? That is the game, after all."

"No, if anything, I wish that you offered that deal to me," Ji admitted. "I would have agreed without the complaining and crying that Brooke did."

"It was you or her," Godfrey plainly told her. "In the end, you're more strategic, but she's more athletic. No offense, but I valued her athleticism over your brains."

"None was taken," Ji replied. "I won't claim to be as athletic as Brooke; it would be a bald-faced lie."

Steering the conversation back to their deal, Godfrey asked, "So what is your big plan, Ji?"

"Like I said," Ji explained, "I've abandoned our side, and have found new allies in the Albatrosses. We wanted a fifth member for our alliance, and I thought you would be perfect. I thought that you would see the logic in the new alliance, and would be most willing to abandon your other alliance."

Before Godfrey could interject, Ji continued, "We would be targeting Liana first, and then after that, Brooke. We figure that with you, you would also be able to use Colby and David's votes against Liana. At that point, we could also scoop up John against Brooke. Then, we'd clip Brooke, David, Colby, Wind, and Neda, and once we no longer needed John, he would go as well. That would leave us as the final five."

Godfrey stroked his goatee as he took in all of Ji's information. Ji just stood, waiting for the charmer to respond.

"I'll admit, you've really impressed me with this plan," Godfrey admitted. "Very thorough. And you were right to ask me to join, too. The others wouldn't be nearly as happy to shift loyalties."

Godfrey grinned. "That's why I like you, Ji. You remind me a lot of myself. A lot of the people here still care about our former teams. Sure, alliances and partnerships will form as the game goes on, but it's mostly all on a team basis still. But you? The moment that the teams disband, you turn. That's the kind of cutthroat style I really respect."

"Save your praise, Godfrey," Ji scoffed. "I'm not some doe-eyed maiden or a child desperate for your approval. What I want is an answer. Are you in our alliance or not?"

That just made Godfrey grin wider. "Really, I do appreciate your mindset in this game, Ji. And that isn't flattery. I'd be glad to join."

"Good," Ji nodded, satisfaction clear in her tone. "You should also be aware that the other team is well aware of the things you've done on our old team. I told them to convince them that you would be a good fit for our alliance. They agreed with me, but they also will not trust you, and there is little I can do to remedy that."

The charmer just shrugged indifferently. "I don't really care if they trust me or not, Ji. I care about results, and bringing me in will bring the results they want. And once the plan goes through, they'll learn to trust me."

"So you're fine with abandoning David and Colby?" Ji asked, and the charmer nodded in response.

"It's just a game. One person can win, and I've already stabbed one of the boys in the back already. Whatever it takes," he responded nonchalantly.

Ji gave a small, cocky, grin. "I knew you were just the person for the job."

"I'm always down to make a few new friends. And fifth place is as good of a guarantee as I can get." Godfrey then leaned closer to Ji. "And once we start getting low on numbers, how about we see about getting rid of Alessia and Marcellas? Going to the end with a duo isn't the best proposition."

Ji nodded in agreement. "We can meet with Vivi, and make a final three within the five. They'd be outmatched."

"Wonderful," Godfrey chuckled. "We'll get these five sorted once this competition is over, and the details once we get deeper?"

"Acceptable," Ji replied.

"Great doing business with you, Ji," Godfrey praised. "And here's hoping to more business in the future."

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

Godfrey sits in the confessional booth, a grin on his face. "You all know me well enough by now! I say that I respect Ji and the way she plays this game, and I sure as hell mean it. And if I were the kind of person that really respected that kind of thing, I'd have said that I want to go to the end with her. But…" He trailed off.

"While I said that I want to get rid of Alessia and Marcellas, who says that the final three will be with Ji and Vivi?" He laughs. "So many options, so little time."

Static

Confessional: Ji

Ji sits in the confessional booth looking irritated. "I was right in thinking that Godfrey would turn his back on his teammates. And, I was right in thinking that Godfrey is a flatterer and cannot be trusted. A small part of me sees why Brooke was so upset at having to work with him, as loathe as I am to admit it. It's like working with a wild animal in that he could turn on you at any moment for any, or even no reason. But, for the time that said wild animal is on your side, it is an invaluable ally. I fully intend to use Godfrey for as long as I can, and dispose of him before he tries to pull some Godfrey tricks."

Static

Six Hours and Twenty Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"Hey, Marcellas?"

The fashion-oriented teen turned at the call of his name and was a bit surprised to see that it was Weenus. A little surprised, Marcellas replied, "Oh! What's up, Colby?"

The stuntman looked bashful. "Well, um, you're good with Alessia, right?"

For just a moment, Marcellas smirked, before donning a grin. "Totally! She's my absolute bestie. Why?" He asked, a tone of confusion in his voice.

"Well, she said during the challenge yesterday that she wanted to hang out with me sometime, and I wanted to do that after this challenge, before our next one. And, I was wondering if you, like, knew anything she liked or anything."

"Oh, big guy, I'd be SO happy to help!" Marcellas gushed, the excitement in his voice not meeting his eyes. "Lessi doesn't really like to talk that much about herself, really. I've found that she can be a bit of a tough cookie to crack. So, really, just talk about yourself."

Static

Confessional: Marcellas

Marcellas sits in the confessional, looking satisfied. "Alessia and I talked about this exact thing! If Colby comes to me, I'd give him some bogus advice.

Telling him to talk about himself is exactly what Alessia wants. If he does that, it's more info she can use to get into his head and manipulate him to our side. Because, we may have that big team with Vivi and Ji, but at the end of the game, it's gonna be the Cali Connection that gets to the final two, and we're gonna splinter this whole game."

Static

"Man, thanks Marcellas!" Weenus said back gratefully. "I really appreciate it."

The teen giggled. "Oh, don't you even worry about it, big boy. Truth be told, I was gonna tell you that sooner than later anyway, because Lessi has brought you up in conversation once or twice."

Weenus grinned at that, but he tried to hide it. "Oh, that's cool," He replied, trying and failing to be nonchalant.

"I take it that's not something you hear a lot?" Marcellas asked in reply, easily seeing through Weenus' display.

"Heh, yeah," Weenus bashfully admitted. "I mean, it's not a lot of shock though. Look at me," he grinned. "Ladies don't usually like flabby short dudes with terrible tattoos and a job where they humiliate themselves on a regular basis."

That put a stop to the fun Marcellas was having. "Oh….I guess that doesn't really surprise me, I guess."

"It kinda gets lonely sometimes, but I'm still happy with my life," Weenus affirmed. "And heck, I know that there's someone out there who'll like me for me, good and bad."

"I'm sure there is, Colby," Marcellas replied conciliatorily. As he reached out to pat Weenus's shoulder, he shifted his hand for just a moment.

But one moment was all it took as the light above Marcellas' button went out. Quickly looking at the light, Marcellas' eyes widened in surprise. "Oh-Dammit!" He annoyedly said aloud when he realized he was, in fact, out of the competition.

"Oh, crap," Weenus grimaced. "Sorry, man," he apologized.

"It's not your fault," Marcellas said disappointedly. "I just lost focus for a second."

"Hey, maybe you can get something cool out of one of the boxes," Weenus said, trying to be helpful.

"I sure hope so," he replied as he took a quick look at the available boxes left. Picking one at random, he made his way over to it. "This one's mine!" He announced to the rest of the contestants left. "No one else can have it!"

As he removed the lid, he was suddenly overcome with horror at the buzzing sound around him. "Ahhh!" He screeched.

"Oh, that's a good one!" Chris laughed as he made his way towards the Pressure Cooker. "You got the box of flies!"

"You sure you still want that one, Marcellas?" John snarkily asked as the fashion-minded teen swatted away the flies that were still coming out of the box.

"After the dead fish, I feel like I can handle anything," Liana grimaced.

"Anyway," Chris continued, "Just letting you all know that we're closing in on six and a half hours. How're you guys doing?" He asked.

"Peachy," John replied.

"I can go all night, man," Godfrey confidently replied.

"Ditto," Vivi agreed. "I'm in this to win it."

"You're all a bunch of warriors!" Chris exclaimed happily. "Color me impressed." He then looked at the two girls in chairs on the beach. "And good on you two for staying around."

"Oh, I wouldn't miss this!" Neda excitedly said back to the host. "This is so cool. And I have to support all my friends."

"I agree with Neda," Wind agreed. "I wouldn't want to leave them alone. And, even if there's nothing happening per se, this is still rather thrilling to watch."

Looking around for a moment, Chris continued, "It seems that Alessia didn't share your sense of camaraderie."

"I know!" Marcellas complained. "Her butt hasn't been here once since she left!"

"Anyway," Chris interjected, "I was just in the neighborhood when I saw the flies were released. I hope you still have plenty of fight in you."

"As long as the prize is to eliminate someone yourself, I'm gonna be here," Vivi muttered determinedly.

"That's what I wanna hear!" The host said approvingly. "Well, I'll see you guys again in a few hours," Chris said as he waved and made his way away from the challenge.

Seven Hours into the Pressure Cooker

The bright blue sky of Wawanakwa had begun to fade into a beautiful orange. And from then, as the Pressure Cooker rolled on, the sky had currently taken on a majestic purple tone that was quickly darkening to black.

"It's such a pretty night, isn't it?" Neda asked Wind from the seat next to her.

"Indeed," the hippy girl nodded as she inhaled a strong breath of beachfront air. "It should be a nice night."

"I hope so for their sake," Neda replied, motioning towards the Pressure Cooker. "Do you really think they're gonna go much longer?" She asked in a hushed tone.

After taking a few moments, Wind said back, "Yes. Only four have left after nearly seven hours, and that is with bad smells and flies. I think, however, that with exhaustion and soreness setting in, we may get a few more."

Wind then looked at the remaining competitors. "But, don't count out human tenacity. If someone wants something, we are capable of great feats."

Neda nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I totally agree."

The two girls sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, just enjoying everything around them.

"It's nice, isn't it?"

Wind looked over at Neda curiously. "What exactly?" She asked.

"Well…..everything." Neda fondly replied. "I mean, this whole moment. It's just…..nice. We're here, on this pretty island. It's a nice evening, the sun is setting, we're watching people press buttons in a glass box on a beach, and we can just….talk."

Wind kept quiet as Neda continued talking. "It's all just so cool. I never thought that this kind of thing would happen to me. I mean, it's so stressful! Like, it really is. I'm worried my hair is gonna start falling out if it gets any more stressful! But still, this is one of the best times of my life."

She chuckled fondly then. "Who would have thought that the little Persian Girl would make it this far?"

Her fond chuckle turned to a frown. "Yet, in times like these, even with all this stuff going on, it just makes me homesick. I miss my mom and dad. And I miss my sisters. This is the longest I've gone without talking to them since they moved away. And it makes me miss Iran too, or more so than usual. My family over there and all my old friends. Especially my maman bozorg. Or my grandma," she said with a small grin, which quickly fell. "I haven't seen her since we left, and it's hard getting communication to and from there."

Neda grinned again. "I'm thankful every day that I'm here, in Canada of course, where I'm free to be myself. That day when we landed in Canada from Turkey, knowing we had really escaped, it's gonna be the best day of my life forever, I think. But still, despite all that, I miss all that was left behind too." She wiped a tear away. "But there's always memories."

She gave a watery chuckle. "Sorry to ramble like that, Wind. I normally don't get caught in my feelings like that."

"Don't apologize," Wind kindly said. "I couldn't imagine going through everything you have. Leaving all you know behind to go to an entirely new country takes immense inner strength, Neda." She then placed her hand on top of Neda's in a comforting way. "I thank you so much for sharing about yourself."

"No problem," Neda shakily replied. "It's nice to get it out every once in a while."

Static

Confessional: Neda

The superfan wipes her eyes and takes a few deep breaths. "Woah!" She exhales. "I didn't expect to get all emotional like that. I guess getting that thing for a call from a loved one tomorrow got me more emotional and missing home than I thought I was." She chuckles. "I hide so much of my real self in order to win this game, I guess the real Neda Atashnak wanted to come out for a minute."

She then takes a deep breath and hardens her features. "But, there's still a lot of this game to be played, and I'm gonna have to really buckle down. I love Wind, but if a stronger player like Ji or Godfey or Vivi was there instead of Wind, I'm sure that they'd be using that against me."

Static

Seven Hours and Fifteen Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"Hey, Brooke," David whispered from her side. "Can I ask you something?"

Curious at the quiet tone, Brooke amusedly asked, "What's up?"

The normally outgoing Newfie seemed a bit bashful at the thought of asking. "Well, um….."

"David," Brooke said, "You asked me something. What is it?"

"Well," He finally said after a few moments, "I was wondering how your, well, you know, thing has been doing since the basketball game."

Brooke's eyes immediately narrowed. "You didn't say anything, did you!?" She asked in a harsh whisper.

"No!" He quickly said back. "Nothing to no one at all. That's why I'm trying to be quiet about this."

The athlete studied him for a few moments, and seeing no deception, sighed. "It's fine. I didn't have a concussion or a brain bleed so I didn't have to leave the game or anything."

"Does it still hurt?" The chef asked.

"You're getting nosy," Brooke defensively shot back. "Mind your own business."

"I'm sorry, Brooke," David acquiesced. "I just wanted to know how you were doing. I still feel bad."

Turning again and seeing the genuine look of remorse on David's face, Brooke sighed. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt or anything. I doubt it's gonna leave a scar or anything too."

David sighed in relief. "That's good."

"David, you don't need to feel bad about it, it's just how basketball is. I was being truthful when I said I'd take an elbow to the face over a broken leg or a torn Achilles."

"I know, and I still feel bad, Brooke," he said back. "I don't like hurting people."

"Then I forgive you if that's what you want to hear."

"What?" David asked, confused.

"If you're so hung up on it, I forgive you. I'll say it again. David, you are forgiven." Brooke slowly said.

David grew a grin. "Man, I didn't even know I needed that! But hearing it…it feels really good."

Brooke shrugged. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, man," she casually replied.

"Oof!" John grunted out of the blue. The competitors turned to see him sitting on his rear in the sand. The artist chuckled as he stood and stretched. "I was crouching to try to get some feeling in my legs, lost my balance, and fell on my ass," he recounted good-naturedly. "That sucked."

Shaking the feeling back into his hands, he made his way towards another one of the closer boxes. "Guess I'll take this one." Shakily crouching down to take the lid off the box, he peered inside. "It's reasonably critter-free so I think you're all clear." Reaching inside, he procured a piece of paper.

"What'd you get, John?" Liana asked.

"Uh-oh," He read aloud. "You have chosen this box. Because of this, at the next campfire elimination ceremony, you will automatically receive one vote against you to eliminate you from the game."

"Ouch!" David said aloud. "That really sucks, John!"

"Yeah, that's not ideal," Marcellas agreed from his spot next to the door.

The artist just shrugged as he put the paper in his pocket. "Yep, not great indeed."

"You seem pretty nonplussed about the whole thing," Liana said to him. "Got an idol we should know about?" She asked cheekily, which made the artist laugh.

"I sure wish," he said, still chuckling as he sat down under his button. "I could probably carve one out of wood myself before I ever found one of the things. But there's no use worrying about it, I already have a vote. I'll just have to show off my sterling attitude so people want to keep me around."

"Oh yeah, John," Marcellas rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "You and your attitude will definitely survive."

"I spent a lot of time cultivating my attitude, I'm proud of it." He joked back. Stretching his legs, he muttered, "Might as well get comfy. I hope one of you decides to drop soon."

Eight Hours and Thirty Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

Night had well and truly fallen on the inhabitants of the Pressure Cooker. The moon hung high and brightly in the sky, even in its crescent form, being one of the few things that offered light to its inhabitants, besides the bright red inside the box.

As the hours dragged on, and the hour grew late, the rigors of the challenge only grew. Chatter had ceased for the most part, yawns were starting to become more and more frequent, as were grunts of irritation or pain.

A few of the campers had started to take to squatting in front of their buttons, despite the risk that it held, as John's fall had proven.

"Ugh, can't one of you just eliminate yourselves?" Marcellas pleaded aloud from the corner of the box. "I need to get out of here!"

The teen was met with nothing but silence as the remaining participants didn't even bother to reply.

"Sounds like that's a no," John snarked from his spot under his button.

"Can't anyone, please!" Marcellas begged. "I'm desperate! I'll make a deal with anyone!"

"Marcellas backstabbed me, if you help him out, he'd do the same to you," Liana suddenly announced, to the fashion-minded teen's surprise. "I wouldn't trust him with a deal."

John snickered at the look on Marcellas' face as he sputtered for a response. Finally finding the words, he retorted, "That's not the whole story, Liana!"

"What more could there be, Marcellas?!" Liana snapped, getting angry. "You formed an alliance with me, and then you immediately voted me out! That's pretty damn cut and dry to me!"

"Liana, you don't under-"

"I understand it plenty, Marcellas!" She ranted. "You didn't even try to deny it, either!"

"Here we go with this crap again…" Vivi mumbled irritatedly under her breath.

"I know it was Wind and John that voted with me! I know that you and Alessia stuck a knife right in between my shoulder blades, and I sure bet that you were happy when I was eliminated!" Liana continued ranting, the floodgates fully opened.

Marcellas opened his mouth to defend himself, but before he could speak, Liana continued, her face growing redder and redder by the moment. "I was such an idiot for trusting you two! That's what I damn get for trusting two total snakes like you and Alessia! And if anyone here trusts these two after this, you're out of your mind, too!"

The red light that Liana was illuminated by suddenly vanished. Stunned, Liana quickly turned to her button and was seethingly angry to see that in her state of anger, her hand had left the button.

"Dammit!" She angrily shouted into the open, as she stomped towards a box. Breathing heavily, she ripped the top off, and after seeing nothing alive (or dead) inside, she reached in and grabbed a piece of paper.

No one bothered to ask what she had gotten, not wanting to risk drawing her ire, but the anger on her face immediately vanished as she read it, being replaced with racking sobs.

"You okay, Liana?" David carefully asked.

"I'm getting a letter from home!" The gambler tearfully announced, clutching the paper close to her chest. "Please, please, please, let it be Ali! That's all I want! I wanna hear from Ali so bad!"

"Ask, and you may receive!" Chris announced as he made his way towards the Pressure Cooker's door. "You'll just have to find out tomorrow when the letter gets here."

As Chris opened the door, Marcellas immediately ran out, trying to put as much distance between himself and Liana as possible. "Woah, Marcellas is off!" Chris laughed.

As John casually made his way out second, the host asked, "Are you happy with what you got, John?"

The artist rolled his eyes. "I got a vote at the next campfire ceremony. I'm thrilled," he sarcastically muttered as he walked past Chris, towards the cabins.

"And like I said, Liana, you'll get your letter tomorrow," He told her, to which the girl could only nod.

As she made her way out of the Pressure Cooker, tears still streaming down her face, she could only nod as she quickly retreated back to the girls' cabin.

"Okay, everyone," Chris said as he once again closed and locked the Pressure Cooker door. "Since we've got only six people left, and we're over eight hours into this, time for some new rules."

The remaining campers could only sigh as Chris grew a sinister grin as he held up a finger. "One, you are no longer allowed to crouch. You must be standing from here on out!"

He then held up a second finger. "And second, you are also no longer allowed to swap your hands. So, right now, you get one final opportunity to swap hands. After that, whatever hand is on your button is the hand that will be there until either you are eliminated, or you win the challenge."

As a few campers opted to switch their hands, John came back to the beach, sketchpad in hand, as he came up behind Neda and Wind. "Mind if I chill here?" The artist asked the pair of girls.

"Of course, John!" Neda happily said. "The more the merrier!"

"Yes, please join us," Wind said with a smile.

"Cool," John simply replied as he sat down cross-legged between the girls, and quickly began sketching.

"Welcome back, John," Chris greeted as he began leaving the area once again.

"Hey," the artist greeted simply as Chris walked by and into the distance.

Eight Hours and Thirty-Five Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"What're you drawing?" Neda curiously asked as she watched John sketch on his sketchpad.

"Just making a sketch of this whole thing," He replied, his concentration fully on his drawing. "This gave me a killer idea for a painting, so I'm just getting it all down so I remember when I get back home."

"That's cool," Neda replied. "Do you do that a lot?"

"Depends," John explained. "I'd normally use my camera, but sometimes drawing it out lets me figure out what kinds of details I wanna add and stuff."

"What are you thinking for this one?" Wind curiously asked.

"I'm thinking of using a lot of the natural lighting," John answered. "People illuminated by the red lights, the box itself by moonlight, along with the waves, stuff like that."

"That is so cool," Neda gushed after a few moments. "How your brain can immediately think of the detail that you want to use in your painting."

"The human mind is pretty impressive, yeah," John agreed, only partly paying attention.

"I think John has been lost to his art," Wind giggled as John continued working on his sketch, which drew a light laugh from Neda as well.

Nine Hours and Ten Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

'God, this really sucks ass,' Vivi groaned to herself. 'My hand's freaking numb, my legs hurt, it's getting cold out, and I'm getting tired. There are bugs everywhere and I occasionally get a whiff of dead fish too.'

Still staring at her button, her focus intensified. 'But, I need to persevere. I need this. More than anything I've needed before. This is a battle of will. And I have more will than any of these punks left.'

As Vivi began to concentrate on her breathing more, a familiar tune caught her ear. Turning, she found the person humming to be Godfrey.

"The Blue Danube Waltz, Godfrey?" She asked, amusement in her voice.

"Of course, Vivi," he grinned in response. "Classical is my favorite kind of music."

The rocker rolled her eyes in response. "Of course it is," she chided. "This is maybe the least shocking thing I've learned about anyone here."

Godfrey leveled a smug grin at the rocker. "I'm surprised that you even recognized it, Vivi," he admitted. "After all, it doesn't even have a guitar solo in it."

Finding Godfrey's jab more amusing than irritating, Vivi retorted, "I'd be a pretty crappy musician if I didn't have an appreciation for the classics. And no, I don't need a guitar solo in a song to like it."

"Fair, fair," Godfrey acquiesced with a laugh.

Outside, John was still gathered with Neda and Wind. He had finished the sketch he had been working on and had just returned with his red overshirt, mentioning that it was starting to get cold.

"Yeah, it's starting to get kinda late," Neda agreed tiredly. "I don't wanna leave everyone, but this has been a busy day and I'm beat."

"You're not gonna miss anything," John waved off. "I was thinking of buzzing off myself, honestly."

"I may just sleep out here," Wind revealed. "Even if they don't really appreciate it, I'd like at least someone to be here for the rest of them, even if everyone is asleep."

Neda and John looked at the girl in surprise at that statement, but before they could say anything, Wind gave the pair of them a look. "I've slept outside plenty of times before. This does not bother me in the slightest."

John shrugged as he stood up and stretched. "Fine by me. Later, girls," he lazily said with a wave.

"Wait, John!" Neda called. Curious, the artist sat back down. "Would you wanna make an alliance with me and Wind?"

The pair of them looked at Neda surprised. "Why do you wanna do that?" John queried, confusion apparent in his voice.

"Why not?" Neda asked back in response. "I like you two a lot, we can look out for each other."

"I'm happy with that," Wind said after a moment, and then turned to the artist. Before John could answer, the pair saw a light in the Pressure Cooker go out. "Oh dear," Wind said concernedly. "It looks like someone's been eliminated."

"Godfrey," Neda said after looking for a few moments and seeing the charmer reaching into a box. "I'm gonna go see what he got!" Standing and dusting the sand off of herself, Neda made her way towards the Pressure Cooker.

"Hey, Godfrey, what'd you get?" The superfan asked.

Grinning, he held up a single dollar bill. "I got a dollar," he chuckled.

Neda giggled at Godfrey's silly prize. "Hey, better than nothing, I guess!"

"I'll frame this dollar when I get back to Baltimore," Godfrey told her as he sat down and made himself comfortable in the sand. "A nice memento of this ridiculous game."

"That's a great idea," Neda gushed. "Well, hopefully, you don't have to be in there for too long," she said as she turned and made her way back towards John and Wind as the charmer gave her a wave goodbye.

"He got a dollar bill!" Neda laughed as she made her way back to them. Wind covered her mouth as she laughed, and John chuckled himself.

"Figures," John stated. "Of course, there'd be a dollar bill in there after nine hours."

"So John," Neda suddenly said, "Will you join me and Wind?"

After thinking for a moment, the raven-haired teen shrugged. "Why not?" He asked. "A little more safety never hurts."

"Cool," Neda said as she also stood up. "Well, I'm gonna get ready for bed. Are you sure you'll be okay out here, Wind?" The Iranian teen asked once again.

"You needn't worry about me," Wind assured her. "I have slept in much worse conditions."

"I can believe that," John responded as he also stood and dusted himself off. "I'm off." As he walked away, he flicked a hand back at the girls in a wave. "See you tomorrow."

"Night, John!" Neda called.

"Good night," Wind joined in. "And good night you as well, Neda."

"Later, Wind!" Neda said, yawning once again. "I'll see you tomorrow! We'll talk more then." With that, the superfan departed the beach for her cabin, leaving Wind alone as she made herself comfortable in her beach chair.

Even outside the Pressure Cooker, the game continued to be played. Marcellas and Alessia were at the abandoned stage in the forest, their designated meeting spot for more clandestine conversations.

"Your absence after leaving that dumb box was noted," Marcellas dryly told the streamer, which just made her roll her eyes.

"So?" She asked haughtily. "Why does that matter?"

"Because, Lessi, Wind, and Neda were there within 10 minutes to just hang out. It had been hours and you never showed."

"What, did Chris explain a rule where the eliminated people have to sit around on the beach and do nothing?" she replied, arms crossed in annoyance.

"Dangit, Alessia, think for a second!" Marcellas uncharacteristically snapped. "It leaves a bad perception of you. And if people have a bad perception of you, that reflects badly on me as well."

Alessia glared back. "Don't take that tone with me," she challenged. "Last time I checked, we were just forming a big alliance. Do you know if Ji got to talk with Godfrey about it?" She asked, changing the subject.

Marcellas sighed in resignation, wanting to avoid more conflict. "I don't know. Maybe. I couldn't really hear it. Knowing what I know about Ji, it seems likely."

The fashion-minded teen then grew a small grin. "And I laid the bait for Weenus, too. He's probably gonna ask you to hang out sooner than later."

Alessia predatorily grinned. "Good job," She praised. "I'm gonna really have to act my butt off to make this work, but, it's Weenus. I'm sure he'll fall for my act anyway. And once we have him…." she trailed off.

"...We have a pipeline to David and Godfrey, and we can totally flip this thing on its head!" Marcellas giggled. "Oh, we are so evil for pulling this," He laughed.

"I'll be crying that the world hates me, and drying my tears with hundred-dollar bills," Alessia flippantly replied.

The pair laughed again for a few moments, the tension in the air vanishing in an instant. "See, Marcellas?" Alessia said after their laughter dissipated. "Who cares if I didn't come back to the thing after I got out? Total non-issue."

Marcellas sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I was just mad that Liana was in there attacking me and you weren't there to defend me."

"I'm sorry about that, Marcellas," Alessia said apologetically. "I really am. I wanna be there to defend you. But I'm not gonna sit on a beach and watch people press a button for hours."

"And plus," she continued, "It's Liana! She was eliminated last night, and people know how she tends to react to things. You said she raised a big scene inside the challenge?" She asked, to which Marcellas nodded in affirmation. "See? She's making a fool of herself in front of literally everyone on the island. A more public embarrassment you literally could not get. So no, even if I am sorry for not being there to have your back, Liana being Liana is gonna be what sinks her."

"Yeah, you're right," Marcellas agreed. "It's been a crazy day, but if we really step back and look at everything, I think we've got one of the best positions in this whole thing."

"And plus, we're not stuck in that stupid box anymore, either!"

The Cali Connection heartily laughed, before again, Marcellas spoke. "What were you even doing all day today?" He curiously asked.

"I was looking for one of those dumb immunity idols," she revealed. "After Liana saved her skin last night, I thought having one of those in our back pocket would be a smart idea, but those things are really well hidden, I guess," She complained.

"Yeah, it'd be good to have one of those," Marcellas agreed, "But like you said, do we really need one? We're in a really good spot right now."

"I know," Alessia responded, "But since I was by myself for a lot of the day, I figured I could have some privacy while I looked around, but even with it, I couldn't find anything."

"Eh," Marcellas shrugged, "It's not the end of the world or anything."

Ten Hours Into the Pressure Cooker

"Weenus, my man, I really am impressed you've lasted so long in this," Godfrey praised.

"Thanks, dude," Weenus replied with a yawn.

"Are you feeling it?" Godfrey asked from his spot on the ground.

"'Course," Weenus groaned. "This really sucks."

"Worse than getting your face rearranged by an MMA fighter?" Godfrey asked with a smirk.

"Ha!" Weenus laughed aloud. "This sucks in its own way. At least the pummeling didn't last nearly this long."

Standing and getting close to the stuntman, Godfrey whispered, "If you happen to win, who are you going to eliminate?"

Weenus shrugged. "I dunno, I haven't really thought about it, if I'm being honest, Godfrey."

'Of course, he hasn't considered it at all,' Godfrey irritatedly thought to himself. 'Meanwhile, I've got a pile of plans and I'm out just because my hand spasmed and left the button. Figures.'

"Well, Weenus," Godfrey continued, his irritation with the Stuntman not reaching his voice, "If you do win, you and I should really talk about it. You're who I wanna get to the end of this with. I wanna protect you."

"Really?" Weenus asked, surprised. "Me?" Godfrey nodded. "Why not David?"

"I love David like a brother," Godfrey explained. "But at the end of the day, it's about trust. I have a lot of trust in you because you've had a lot of trust in me, Weenus. I know I've come up with some pretty elaborate plans, and even when you never fully understood, you still stood by my side, like a brother. I can't say the same for David. That's why I want you there in the end with me, Weenus," Godfrey told him stone-seriously. "Because you are the one who I know has my back."

Weenus felt shocked at that development. "Wow, dude….that's so cool to hear." He finally said. "I don't really even know what to say."

"Don't say anything," Godfrey replied. "We're partners in this. I'm looking out for you, man. So let me help you out if you win this thing."

Weenus nodded, determination clear in his eyes. "You got it, Godfrey!" Weenus cheerfully said.

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

The charmer sits in the confessional seat, a passive look on his face. "Yeah, I felt like I had to beef up Weenus there a little bit. He's lasted a hell of a lot longer in this than I'd thought he would. But, maybe that's on me. He is an expert in the inane and ridiculous." Godfrey shrugged. "But I was running scenarios through my mind, and Weenus was a big blind spot at the end of this challenge. Pretty much everyone here, I know who they'll get rid of. I figure Weenus is the same, but he can be such a wildcard at times, it's good to just double down and make sure that he's on the right track." Godfrey grinned. "Water the seeds of friendship and all that. Plus, when it comes to the end of this game, I'd much rather have Weenus there than David. I mean, look at him. I'm bad at competitions because it's part of my plan. He's bad at competitions because he's Weenus."

"Now, I love that guy," Godfrey suddenly said. "Don't get me wrong. When I say I consider him like a brother, I fully mean it. No one has ever made me laugh quite like that crazy bastard. But, the fact is that he's my easiest route to victory at the end of this game. And while I'm glad that I've got that guy as a new friend, at the end of the day, I didn't come here to make friends. I came here to win, by any means necessary. And if I have to stab him in the back to win, I will do it, without a single second thought."

Static

Ten Hours and Forty-Five minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"How are you doing, Godfrey?"

The charmer opened his eyes and turned, seeing Wind kneeling in front of him outside of the Pressure Cooker.

"I wouldn't mind getting out of this thing," Godfrey muttered. "Laying on the sand like a vagrant isn't exactly the most comfortable thing in the world."

"At least you got a dollar out of it!" David remarked, making the remaining occupants, minus Ji, chuckle.

"Thank god for my dollar," Godfrey rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "And what about you, Wind? Why are you still even out here?" He asked.

The hippy gave Godfrey a genuine smile. "It's as I told Neda and John. I don't mind sleeping outside, and I didn't want all of you to be alone."

Godfrey stood and stretched, saying, "You're a better person than I, then. I'd have been back in the cabins hours ago if I was you."

"That just goes to show what a good soul Wind is," Brooke remarked. "I wouldn't stay out here all day to watch you push a button either." Gesturing her head towards the empty seats, she continued, "And John and Neda weren't nearly as keen on being out here all night, too."

"It's been a long day for everyone," Wind defended. "I wouldn't blame anyone for going to bed at this point."

"She's right," Godfrey declared. "I'm not even trying to hang out with you guys and I'm still in this damn thing. Wind is really the best of us."

"Totally," Weenus tiredly agreed.

"For sure!" David chimed in, his agreement punctuated with a yawn.

Wind looked bashful, and played with a strand of her hair. "You don't have to praise me for just being myself."

"That's why I do want to praise you," Godfrey adamantly retorted. "I think you're among the best of us here."

"You seem quite interested in heaping praise onto someone not in our new alliance Godfrey," Ji bitterly remarked quietly, glaring daggers at him.

"Oh, relax," Godfrey flippantly replied as he leaned in towards the Robot Combateer. "Maybe if you were a little more like me, you'd have a few friends around here."

Ji sneered. "Foolish, Godfrey. I don't need friends. I need numbers. Numbers that will get us farther into the game."

That made the charmer chuckle. "Even after all this, your mind is still sharper than a whip, Ji. I'm glad you're still on my side."

Ji opted to go back to ignoring everyone around her, and as Wind made her way back towards her chair, Godfrey also decided that it was time to make himself comfortable. So, he laid back down on the sand, back against the cool glass, and tried to drift off to sleep.

Twelve Hours and Twenty Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"Wow!" Chris exclaimed as he once again approached the challenge. "It's been over twelve hours, it's past midnight, and we've still got five of you left! I'm seriously impressed."

A half-hearted cheer, if one could even call it that, was all he got in response. "Dang, you guys don't sound so great."

"I'm so tired," David groaned as he rubbed his face. "And I haven't been able to feel my hand for hours now. If it's even been hours at this point."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Weenus tiredly agreed. "My sense of time is completely destroyed. Today and tomorrow are nothing but a big muddled mess in my brain right now. Even more of a big muddled mess than usual, I mean," he added at the end with a tired laugh.

"And he's a lucky bastard," Vivi groaned as she motioned her foot towards Godfrey, who was soundly asleep against the back of the Pressure Cooker, his breathing calm and chest rising up and down evenly.

"You can always drop out," Brooke challenged. "I can go all freaking night."

"Your false act of bravado isn't impressive Brooke," Ji needled back. "Why don't you drop out instead?"

"Why don't you mind your own damn business, Ji?" Brooke lanced back.

Chris heartily laughed. "I love this cast!" he said aloud to no one in particular. "They're still spunky enough to be like this even after all this time!" The host's eyes widened as suddenly, another light in the Pressure Cooker went off.

"Oh!" He cringed. "Sorry, Weenus, you must've let go of the button! You're out, man."

"Dangit," Weenus tiredly groaned as he stumbled towards one of the few remaining available boxes. Picking one he liked, he flopped the top off and reached inside. His face morphing in confusion, the stuntman removed his hand from the box, and what he saw shocked him.

"Congrats, Weenus!" Chris announced. "It's a good thing that I was out here to announce this because you've gotten one of the four immunity idols here on the island!"

"Dope," Weenus said as he stuffed the idol in his pocket and flopped down under his button, almost immediately curling into a ball and falling asleep, while the others held looks of thinly veiled jealousy.

Chris just laughed. "I'd be offended if he didn't just finish standing and pressing a button for twelve hours. Anyway, now all it takes is one of you to drop out in order to leave. So, there's something to think about while I'm here."

Chris took a few moments to see if anyone would take his offer, but, after seeing that the final four weren't going to accept, the host just laughed again. "You guys really have guts! Alright, back at it everyone!" Chris called as he again made his way away from the Pressure Cooker.

Thirteen Hours and Five Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

Static

Confessional: Vivi

"I may put on a brave, tough face, but I really can't lie, this is the toughest, suckiest thing I've ever done in my entire life," Vivi groaned from the Confessional Booth. "My legs hurt like a bitch. I haven't been able to feel my hand for, like, six hours. I went from being hot to freezing because we were dressed for this competition in the day. And you know what?" She asks. "I looked around, and I saw who was left in it. And I came to a realization; screw this! No one here's gonna take me out, and Liana is still going to leave tonight, or today, who cares, anyway? I wanted to be the one who did it myself, but maybe my brains are scrambled, but it's not worth putting up with this dumb crap anymore."

Static

Sighing, Vivi takes her hand off her button. At another diminishing source of light, the occupants turn and look at her.

"I'm done with this," Vivi tiredly groans as she makes her way to one of the three remaining boxes. "I just want to get the hell out of this thing and get some sleep." Eying them, she decides on one and kicks the top of it off with her boot-clad foot. Stiffly bending down to reach into the box, she rolls her shoulders and shakes her hands, desperately trying to get feeling back into them.

"What the hell is this?" Vivi confusedly asks. Going and standing between David and Brooke, her face scrunches from confusion to irritation.

"Great job, Vivi!" Chris exclaims as he once again approaches the Pressure Cooker. "You got a special signed and framed autographed photo of me!" He gives the girl a big grin. "One of my personal favorite rewards in there, if you ask me!"

"Whatever," Vivi annoyedly remarks. "Just let me outta this damn thing already."

Quickly unlocking the door, Chris opened it, and Vivi quickly stormed out, obviously unhappy at her big prize. "Coulda had an idol….." she grumbled in frustration as she disappeared into the darkness.

"Weenus! Godfrey!" Chris shouted. "Wake up!" Startled, the pair opened their eyes in a panic and looked around, momentarily confused about their surroundings. "Vivi's out. You guys can leave now."

"Cool," Weenus tiredly remarked as he stumbled out of the Pressure Cooker next, also making his way towards the cabins. "I'm not even gonna change, I'm just gonna pass out in bed."

Godfrey followed suit, just nodding as he made his way past the host and out of the Pressure Cooker, following Weenus to the cabins. As he passed, he noticed Wind shift in her sleep, causing her blanket to slip off her. Quietly making his way towards her, he grabbed it and draped it back over the asleep hippy. As the blanket found its way over her again, she mumbled something in her sleep as a small grin spread across her face. At the scene, Godfrey just chuckled and shook his head as he also departed to his cabin.

Locking the door one final time, Chris announced, "And then there were three! David, Brooke, and Ji, one of you are going to win the Pressure Cooker. Now, you won't be leaving until someone wins. And knowing how long you guys have held on, that may not be for a while. Also, just for fun, we're gonna wait 'till we have a winner until we open our last two boxes for fun. So, good luck! I'll be here to let you out when we have a winner," Chris proclaimed as he walked away again.

Fourteen Hours and Forty-Five Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

As Three AM closed in, the cold quickly became a new, devastating wrinkle on the final three's Pressure Cooker experience. The lake's breeze rolled in harshly, and the late hour left all three quivering, which made keeping their hands on their buttons even harder.

Ji just remained silent as she had before, gritting her teeth against the perilous conditions, trying to keep her body from moving as little as possible. 'I am almost at the end,' she thought to herself. 'I'm so close to winning this and controlling my own destiny in this game. I cannot give in now.'

"God, it's freezing," Brooke complained, her body shaking like a leaf in the wind. "This sucks!"

"How do you think I feel," David complained as well. "I don't have a shirt on for goodness' sake!"

Even as their bodies shook, the final three didn't give in. "How're you doing over there, Ji?" David called out. The girl didn't respond, merely huddling into herself, losing her fight to stay warm.

'Not having a shirt on was such a terrible idea,' David internally groaned as he also shook from the cold in nothing but his swim trunks. 'I feel like I'm gonna freeze to death in this dumb box!'

Unfortunately, the cold proved to be just too much for one contestant, as they shivered so badly that their hand fell right off their button, eliminating them.

"Dammit," Ji complained bitterly.

"Sorry, Ji," David called. "You did great."

"Yeah," Brooke called as well, surprising even herself, "Great job, Ji, really."

Ji, however, didn't bother to respond, simply slumping down below her button and curling her body into herself, desperately trying to get warm.

"Are you alright, Ji?" David asked, concern clear in his voice.

"I lost," Ji bitterly replied, still shaking from the cold. "It doesn't matter."

"But are you okay?" Brooke pressed. "Do you need to get out of here, Ji?"

"No," she chattered. "Just leave me alone."

David and Brooke stared at each other for a few more moments, before shrugging. "If she wants to be left alone….." Brooke said.

Fifteen Hours and Five Minutes into the Pressure Cooker

"David," Brooke whispered to the chef. Tiredly, he looked over at the taller girl.

"Yeah?" He asked, trying desperately to wipe the sleep from his eyes and shake the cold from his skin.

Brooke stared directly at David, a hard glint in her green eyes.

"You owe me."

After a few moments, David's eyes widened. "But…."

"You. Owe. Me." Brooke growled. She pointed to her eyebrow, which still had stitches in it. "Remember this?"

David scrunched his face in concern. "Do you promise not to take me out, Brooke?" He asked, concern clear in his voice.

"Yes," Brooke said. "We're teammates, David. I'm gonna find out what the team wants. But I promise that I will not take you out."

David took a few deep breaths. "We're square after this?" He asked.

"You owe me, David," Brooke again reminded. "I'm calling in my favor. After this, we're square."

David stood for a few moments, thinking over the pros and cons of it. And after a few moments, David made his decision.

He removed his hand.

Brooke's light was the last one in the Pressure Cooker as he collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. Brooke, seeing her light as the last one, grinned victoriously. "Yes," she tiredly proclaimed in victory, pounding her fist against the glass wall.

"Congrats, Brooke," David exhaustedly remarked. "You really earned this win."

"That you did," Ji agreed with no antagonism or sarcasm in her voice. "You were the best one here. I am very impressed."

Victorious, Brooke let go of her button with a grin as she flopped onto the ground back-first, her arms and legs splayed out in the sand, a huge grin on her face.

"Congratulations, Brooke!" Chris exclaimed as he approached the Pressure Cooker for the final time. "You outlasted everyone else here, and after fifteen hours, you have won the Total Drama Pressure Cooker!"

"Yay…." Brooke tiredly cheered as she struggled to stand.

Meanwhile, Chris unlocked the Pressure Cooker door and made his way inside, and was revealed to be holding blankets as all the red lights came on at once, bathing everyone in red light once more.

"Here you go, you three," the host announced as he handed Ji, Brooke, and David blankets, which they quickly wrapped themselves in to offer some protection from the cold. "I could tell you guys were freezing, so protect yourself a little."

"Thanks, Chris," David mumbled as he tightly wrapped himself in his blanket. Ji didn't say anything but nodded her head in thanks as she wrapped herself as well.

"Brooke, since you won the Pressure Cooker, you get the ability to vote someone off single-handedly tonight. Thus, you don't get a box to open," the host explained.

"Fair," Brooke nodded as she wrapped herself in a blanket too. "I got the best prize, I won't complain."

"That means, Ji, David, both of you get one of the last two boxes. Take your pick!"

David looked over at Ji and tiredly told the girl, "You pick. Let's just get outta here."

Wordlessly and still shivering, Ji quickly went to the box closest to her and flipped the lid. "It's the closest, I just want out of this abominable box."

Reaching in, she was surprised to find that what was inside the box was rather heavy. Confused, she readjusted her grip and lifted, and managed to get the item out…..which was another box. "What the…?" The Robateer trailed off, mystified.

Taking a closer look at the box, she realized it was a….

Chris busted out laughing. "Yes! Finally! I'm so glad someone finally got it!" The host wiped a tear from his eye. "Since you got to participate in the Pressure Cooker, why not get your very own Pressure Cooker to take home!"

As Ji examined the box, she realized that, yes, it was in fact a Pressure Cooker used for home cooking.

"Wonderful," Ji annoyedly remarked. "What the hell am I even supposed to do with this?" She asked. "I can't fit this in my bunk."

"Don't worry, we can hang on to it for you until the end of the season," Chris replied, still chucking. "And David, that means you get the last box. Go ahead and open it!" He continued.

Still stiff, David made his way to the box and tossed it open. His eyes bolted open, the tiredness gone and quickly reached inside. "No way!" He happily exclaimed. When David removed his hands, he held three stacks of money.

"Not a bad way to end this thing, David!" Chris happily remarked. "You just got three thousand dollars!"

"Hell freakin' yeah!" He tiredly exclaimed. "Worth it!"

"Alright, everyone," Chris finally said. "I know you're sore, and stiff, and cold, and tired. Again, congratulations Brooke for winning. Later tonight, you will vote off someone single-handedly. But right now, you three deserve some sleep. Go get some!"

"Don't have to tell me twice," Ji muttered as she quickly made her way towards her cabin.

"Ji's right, I never wanna see this thing again," Brooke grumbled as she followed Ji towards her cabin.

David, instead, made his way towards Wind. "Hey," he quietly said, shaking the hippy girl. "Wind."

"Hmmm?" The girl tiredly asked, her eyes flickering open. "Oh, David," she quietly greeted. "How are you doing?"

'Wait, has she been out here this whole time?!' Chris thought to himself, his face conveying pure shock.

The Newfie lightly chuckled at the tired girl's demeanor. "I'm okay. But, the competition is over Wind. Let's go to bed."

Wind yawned and rubbed her eyes. "That seems like a good idea, David." Lightly standing up, Wind gave a quick wave to David before the girl followed Brooke into the darkness, and David quickly followed suit, making his way into the boys' cabin.

Chris yawned and stared back at the now-empty Pressure Cooker. "Well, you made those teens' lives miserable for fifteen hours. They're sore, they're tired, they're cold, they're grumpy, and they hated you."

The host laughed. "So, I think you did your job just right." As Chris patted the side of the Pressure Cooker and walked away, its red lights turned off for the last time.

Only a few hours after the Pressure Cooker came to an end, dawn began to rise over the island of Wawanakwa. Many were still in deep sleep after the daunting challenge the day before, but one camper, in particular, was just beginning their day.

"Ahhhhh…" Neda sighed in happiness as she made her way back out of the woods, clad in her running gear. "Another good run to start the day," she said to herself as she entered the main area of the camp.

Looking over at the beach, she was glad to see that no one was left inside the Pressure Cooker, which remained on the beach still. "It would have been crazy if there were still people out there," she again mumbled to herself.

"Hey, Neda," a voice called out to her. Turning towards it, the superfan was surprised to see Chris of all people standing in front of her.

"Oh, hey, Chris," Neda casually replied. "You need something?"

"Me? No," The host replied. "But, I have something for you." At that, the host reached into his pants pocket and procured a flip phone.

"Is that-" Neda began to ask, but the host cut her off with a nod.

"You bet it is!" He replied. "Since you won it yesterday, you're about to get a phone call from one of your loved ones." Chris motioned towards the mess hall. "I figure you'd want a little bit of privacy, so why not take the mess hall?"

"Oh my gosh!" The Iranian teen squealed. "I'm so excited!" At that, she quickly darted into the empty mess hall, sat at one of the tables, and eagerly anticipated its ring.

She didn't have to wait very long, as after only a few minutes, the cell phone began ringing. Quickly opening it, she answered with an extremely excited "Hello?"

"Ned Balls?" The person on the other end of the phone. "Is that really my little sister gone good?"

Neda laughed while wiping away tears. "Yasmin! Oh my god! It's really you!"

"Yeah, it's really me, Neds. How are you doing out there? Is it as fun as it always looked on TV?" Neda's sister asked.

"Oh my god Yaz! It's so much better!" Neda exclaimed excitedly. "It's so crazy but it's so much fun!"

"That's good," Yasmin replied. "Are you getting to implement that little plan of yours?"

"Don't you mean my genius plan, Yaz?" Neda asked teasingly.

Yasmin exaggeratedly sighed over the line. "You know that I don't know the difference between that game show strategy stuff, Neda."

Neda playfully huffed. "They're not game shows. They're competition reality shows. For someone who's a big-time teacher in Thunder Bay, you sure can't seem to get that difference down."

"I can't because I know it bothers you."

"Shut up!" Neda laughed, which in turn, made her sister laugh. After the two's laughter subsided after a few moments, Neda continued, "But to answer your question, the strategy is going really well. Everyone thinks I'm not very smart. I've got a bunch of alliances. I don't like being cocky, but I don't think I'm on the radar at all."

Yasmin laughed at her sister's enthusiasm. "Neda, I can tell you're doing great, but I have zero idea what the hell you're talking about. But, at least that whole 'make them think you're dumb' part is working. You were very proud of that part in particular." Yasmin smirked from her end of the line. "It must be hard to hide that you've already got your college lined up and your AP classes aced."

Cocky, Neda replied, "Maybe for anyone else, but I've been planning my strategy in a game like this since I was thirteen. I've got a good idea of what I'm doing."

Yasmin laughed. "I'm sure, I'm sure, Neds. Anyway, how'd you even get this call? I'm curious."

"Oh, Yaz, yesterday was this crazy competition. We had to stand in a glass box and press a button. It was so tough!"

"That's it?" Yasmin asked, clearly sounding unimpressed.

"After six hours in the baking sun, you'd have a hard time with it," Neda defended.

"I guess it'd be tough, especially with your cond-"

"Yas, you know I don't like talking about that," Neda sharply said.

"I wasn't making a joke, I was just saying." Yasmin defended herself. "Chill, Neda. I know that you get all bent out of shape about that."

Neda sighed disappointedly. "I'm sorry, Yas. It's just…..it's come up a few times already. It's embarrassing." Wanting to change the subject, the superfan then asked, "How are you doing?"

"I'm good. The students are little monsters." Neda could practically feel her sister's tiredness over the phone. "But still, it's rewarding. Even if I feel like I'm walking through waist-deep mud, I still feel like I accomplished something when I help a kid understand something."

"That's good," Neda said.

"So," Yasmin continued, "What are your other campers like, Neds?" She asked.

"Oh my god, Yas," Neda laughed. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you some of the people they found to be here."

Yasmin whistled, impressed. "You have to tell me now. I would be very upset if you just left me hanging."

"Well, there's this one guy, Colby. But, he goes by Weenus-"

"Weenus?" Yasmin asked. "That moron who does dumb stuff online?"

"Yes!" Neda exclaimed. "How the heck have you heard of him?" She then asked, confused.

"Neda, I teach middle schoolers," Yasmin deadpanned. "They love that kind of stuff."

Neda laughed heartily at that. "I guess so. But anyway, he's the nicest guy, Yas. He doesn't have a mean bone in his body. Sure, he's strange, but he's very kind."

"Well, that's nice," Yasmin admitted. "I can't imagine doing what he does and having a big head about it."

"Yeah, he's legit such a nice guy. Really. But anyway, there's also these two girls, Ji and Brooke. Ji's this one girl who's from South Korea and does robot fighting, whatever that is. And Brooke is so huge! She's like 6'5 or something, I swear. She's a basketball player, but, oh my god, Yas, they hate each other. They were arguing within, I swear, five minutes of us getting here."

Yasmin laughed. "Knowing you, you were probably in heaven watching that unfold."

"You know it!" Neda giggled. "It was like, oh my god, already? But, at the same time, it's like, hey, if you're mad at each other, you won't be mad at me, so go ahead."

"What else do you got, Neds?"

"Well, there's this girl from this commune in the mountains, and I swear she's from 1972. Hippy to the max. And this guy John, he's this nomadic wandering artist. His whole family's like that. It's so weird. They're so nice though."

"God, they got these weirdos on the show, and you. How the hell did you manage that, little sis?"

"My drive to win this show, obviously, Yaz." Neda chuckled. "Anyway, Yas, how's Maryam, and Mom and Dad?"

"Mary's good, Neda. She told me her veterinary doctorate is kicking her ass, as per usual."

"She's been complaining about it for years," Neda giggled. "I'm surprised she hasn't dropped out."

"You know Mary," Yasmin sighed. "That girl's nothing if not persistent. I'm pretty sure her blood's been replaced by coffee at this point."

Neda laughed again at that. "Probably! Especially that cheap stuff that she's always drinking."

"But, Mary's actually with Mom and Dad now," Yasmin continued. "She's been taking the weekends to study at their place, and help them around the house and stuff."

"That's nice," Neda said happily. "How are Mom and Dad doing, Yaz?" She asked then.

"Good," Yasmin told her younger sister. "They're good. Dad won't stop bragging about how his daughter is on the TV shows now."

Neda giggled. "I told him that it wasn't gonna be airing live like Big Brother!" she laughed. "I just don't think he got it, though."

"And mom is good too. They miss you a ton, you know," she told her.

"I miss them too," Neda admitted. "It's tough being away from them, Yaz. From you and Mary too."

"Oh, Neds, don't start with that," Yasmin scolded her younger sister. "Don't get distracted. You're there to win, aren't you?" At that, Neda nodded, even though her sister couldn't see it. "So don't even get bogged down with us. You gotta keep the strength."

Neda sighed deeply. "I know, I know, Yaz."

"And this way, you can think of it as practice for when you leave for college."

"I guess that's a good point too, but it's just hard, Yaz," Neda admitted. "I've never done something like this before. Talking about my strategy on Reddit and doing those Brantsteele competitions is one thing, but this is real. Every moment of every day, I have to play the game. I never know if I'm being lied to, or if I'm the next target, and my every word is being scrutinized. It's just a lot."

"Neda." Yasmin bluntly said. "You have wanted this for years. You, without a single doubt, are the person that is most prepared for this. You have the strength to do this. Did anyone else on that cast have to live in a theocratic nightmare for the first ten years of their lives?"

"No…" Neda trailed off.

"And did anyone else there manage to escape that theocratic nightmare and live in fear in another country that they'd be abducted in the night and sent back, probably to their deaths?"

"No," Neda said, more firmness in her voice at her sister's words.

"And did anyone there manage to fully escape the government of Iran by getting Canadian citizenship, arriving in the country with nothing but citizenship papers and the clothes on their backs?"

"No!" Neda said, more energy in her voice.

"And, finally, did anyone else there learn the language of their new country by watching competition reality shows as a teenager, go on to become one of the smartest people in their year in school, and finally, manage to get on one of their reality shows?"

"No way!" Neda practically yelled into the phone.

"So, Neda, this is your game. Don't lose sight, eyes on the prize. We're all pulling for you."

"It's my game," Neda repeated. "I've got this. Thanks, Yaz."

"Any time, baby sister. Doostet Daram, Neda. Don't forget that."

Neda began to get teary-eyed once again. "Doostet Daram, Yaz. And tell Mom, Dad, and Mary I love them, too."

"They know, but I'll still tell them anyway. You're in all our thoughts, Neds." Yasmin then sighed. "I gotta run, but I'm so happy for you Neda. Show the world what that Little Iranian Girl is made of."

"I'm so glad I got to talk to you, Yaz!" Neda cried into the phone. "I can't wait to see you all!"

"Bye, little sister!" Yasmin called into the phone. "Stay strong! We believe in you!" And with that, the call ended.

Neda stared at the phone for a few moments, before setting it down and allowing herself a moment of weakness, as she simply cried.

Static

Confessional: Neda

"My family means everything to me," Neda seriously told the camera. "My father gave up an extremely, extremely prestigious Professor position at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences to provide a better life for his girls. Dad had to forge documents to get a job in Turkey, and it took six months before he could get us out there with him. And trust me, being a bunch of women in Iran, without the man of the house being around, is the scariest thing you can imagine."

She continued. "Then, we had to live in a tiny, cramped apartment for nearly a year while my father tried to get citizenship in the West. America was out because we're Iranian, and that relationship is, well, less than positive, but luckily, Canada let us in. Ten months later, we were on a plane to Toronto."

Neda becomes wet-eyed again. "My dad had to give up everything. His family back home. His friends. His job. His citizenship. All for his family. All for his girls."

Neda wipes her eyes. "My dad is my hero. My inspiration."

She then looks at the camera with a serious look. "I may say this season, and this game is the best time of my life. And it is. I love doing this. But this isn't just for me. I need to win this for my Dad. My mom. My older sisters. I want to give back to them, for all the sacrifices they've made so I could live the life I wanted. So I could be happy."

"That phone call revitalized me. It gave me the focus I needed. I am going to win this game. And nothing will stop me."

Static

As the day approached noon, and the sun was high in the sky above Wawanakwa, most of the campers had recovered, and awoken, from their Pressure Cooker experiences. In the girls' cabin, Brooke regaled them all, with the exception of Ji, with how the rest of the competition went.

"Yeah," Brooke explained, "Ji, David, and I were the last three for a while. It got super cold, though. We were all shivering. Ji shivered so bad that it took her hand right off the button."

Looking over at Wind, Brooke said, "And I have zero freaking idea how you were able to just sleep through it. The three of us thought we were gonna freeze to death in there."

Wind just lightly smiled at that comment. "I'm used to sleeping in the cold."

"I figure we can just send you to Mars and you'll be able to find a way to just make it work," Liana laughingly remarked.

"But yeah, I won the competition, David won three K, and Ji got a pressure cooker for her kitchen." Brooke finished

The gathered girls laughed at that. "That is ridiculous!" Alessia laughed.

"Yeah, I bet she was pissed about that," Neda chimed in.

"I honestly don't blame her," Brooke defended. "If I made it to the final three of that thing, and after fifteen hours all I got was a pressure cooker, I'd have been pissed off too."

"Tell me about it," Vivi groaned. "I was there for a long time myself, and all I got was this piece of crap," she said as she held aloft her signed picture of Chris.

The girls had another round of laughter at that, before Wind asked, "So, Neda, did you get your phone call?"

Neda lit up at that. "Yeah! I did! It was so awesome."

"Who'd you talk to?" Brooke asked curiously.

"It was Yasmin, my oldest sister. She told me about how our other sister, Maryam, was doing, and my mom and dad, and we just caught up. It was really nice."

"How lucky," Brooke replied, jealousy thinly laced in her voice.

"I am," Neda carefully replied, knowing that bragging about her phone call would earn her nothing but ire. "I wish you all got it, too. I know we're all missing our families."

Liana sighed. "And I'm still waiting on that damn letter."

"You hope it's your girlfriend, right Liana?" Wind asked.

The gambler nodded eagerly at that. "You bet. I literally have never gone this long without talking to her before, so I just wanna hear from her and know that she's still thinking of me."

"Did you two meet early?" Neda asked.

"Yup, as freshmen in High School." Liana then chuckles as she thinks back. "You wouldn't even believe me if I told you the story. It's so corny."

"Oh," Alessia laughed. "Now, we have to hear it!"

"Yeah," Brooke nodded in agreement. "You've piqued our curiosity. You need to spill."

Vivi, although she said nothing, just rolled her eyes and began to tune the conversation out.

"Fine, but if the amount of sweetness in it makes you throw up, I warned you."

"So, it was freshman year of high school," Liana began. "I even remember the day; October 4th. In my third period Statistics class. I was sitting next to my boyfriend at the time. We had gotten together over the summer, and it was this cute little kids thing. Holding hands at the movies and crap like that."

"Anyway," She continued, "Our teacher says that a new student just moved from Washington and we're going to say hello. And then, Ali walks in."

A very fond smile spreads across her face. "The literal second I saw her, I knew I was in love."

"But you had a boyfriend at the time?" Neda asked.

"Yeah, which, woah did that confuse me!" Liana laughed. "I'd never felt that way about a girl before. So, that was a whole thing for me to work through."

"What next?" Alessia asked, rapt.

"We introduced each other later that day, and we became fast friends. But, there was always a vibe. But, I was a kid, and I didn't know what to do with that. But within about a month, we kissed, and, my god, the world could have exploded at that second and I'd have been happy. And we've been together since!"

"What about the boyfriend?" Neda asked.

"You know what? Considering that we were a bunch of hormonal teenagers, he was really cool about the whole thing. We're actually still friends, we talk every so often." she answered.

"That's nice," Alessia nodded.

Suddenly, a knock came on the girls' door. As she was the closest, Wind stood and opened it.

"Ah, Liana!" Chris exclaimed. "I hoped you'd be in here."

"Do you have it?!" She asked, shooting to her feet.

From his back pocket, Chris procured a letter with the name Liana written on it. "You bet I do, and it's all yours," he said as he held the letter out towards the girl, who eagerly snatched it out of his hands. "Enjoy it," He said as he turned and walked away.

"Read it aloud!" Neda excitedly called. Wind nodded in agreement at the suggestion as Liana gingerly opened the letter and removed its content, which was a neatly folded piece of paper.

Seeing the handwriting, Liana immediately grew wet-eyed. "It's Ali's handwriting," she immediately noticed. "She's got such pretty cursive." With a watery laugh, she added, "I never had neat handwriting!"

After glancing at the letter and composing herself, Liana began to read it aloud.

"To my Liana,

Wow! It's so strange not having around. The peace and quiet was nice for the first few days, but now, it's just so boring around here. In all honesty, I found it a little disturbing just how quiet it is without you around. Your humming, the sound of you mumbling while working out one of those packets of math problems you like so much, your laughter whenever you're watching a rerun of The Nanny, they've all become such regular parts of my life, that now that they're not around, it makes me feel empty.

Empty. That's a fitting word for how it feels without you. I've always been the kind of person who valued her independence. You've known this, and patiently put up with it, just as I have put up with your headstrong attitude (even though I had to convince you to do this!) and, let's say, emotional tendencies.

But now, as I look around our empty apartment, I feel as if a part of me is missing.

Well, that's because a part of me is missing. It's as if someone just grabbed a part of my heart, and ripped it away.

But I think of you on that island, and despite any feelings of loneliness I may be feeling, I know this was the right thing. If you didn't go, I know you would have regretted it. You're a person defined by challenges. You've told yourself that things aren't fun when they're easy, so, by that logic, you must be having the time of your life out there!

But, from this time apart, I've learned that our love is deep and true. I can't wait for your return, so that you may once again bother me while I work on my columns, so that I can console you after you started crying over a particularly moving performance on The Voice, but mostly just so I can have the other half of my heart returned.

And finally, the most important thing I've learned from our time apart is that I don't want time apart. I love you, Liana. You are my best friend, sometimes my worst enemy, the person I love, and will love, for as long as I live, and the person that I want to spend the rest of my life with.

I can't wait to see you again, and for my heart to become whole again.

-Alison"

"She's a writer for our college newspaper, that's why it sounds so professional," Liana chuckled lightly.

"Wow," Neda remarked, wiping her own eyes, "That's beautiful, Liana."

"Seeing two people so deeply in love is so wonderful," Wind agreed. "I'm so happy that you found someone to share yourself with like that."

"Thanks, you guys," Liana replied as she hugged the letter close to her chest. "I'm glad to know that the love in this relationship isn't totally one-sided."

"It makes me a bit jealous if I'm being honest!" Alessia laughed. "I know I'm still young, but I'm a romantic. My parents married young, I can't wait to find that special someone myself."

"Same," Neda responded. "My mom and dad married really young too." Her face scrunching in concentration, "I think they got married a few years before the Revolution."

"My parents too," Wind added. "They knew each other from childhood and got married the minute both were eighteen. I was born in the commune."

Without warning, Vivi got up and abruptly left the cabin, throwing the door open and slamming it shut with a loud bang.

The occupants stared at each other in surprise for a few moments, before Brooke finally broke the silence, asking, "What the hell was that about?"

"That's just Vivi for you," Liana sighed tiredly. "She's normally pretty cool, but sometimes, she gets like, well that."

"Yeah," Alessia echoed in agreement. "To say that she has an attitude is like saying that water's wet."

"I've seen more cuddly cactuses," Brooke bluntly replied.

"Maybe she just really misses her family?" Neda asked. But, as Neda asked that, Wind stood and quickly made her way out the door as well.

"Wind?" Alessia asked, but the hippy girl was already gone.

"God dammit," Vivi angrily muttered as she fumbled with her cigarette lighter. "Work, you piece of crap!"

Finally getting a small flame, she quickly pulled a cigarette from the pack in her coat pocket and quickly lit it, and the object was in her mouth within moments, Vivi already inhaling.

After exhaling the smoke in rings, Vivi held the cigarette limply from her hand as she hung over the porch of the mess hall.

"Heh," she humorlessly chuckled to herself. "So much for ten days cigarette-free."

"Vivi?"

Vivi whipped around to see Wind approaching her. "What the hell do you want?" She snarled.

Undaunted, Wind replied, "I wanted to make sure you're okay."

"Leave me alone," Vivi spat at her.

"Something bothered you, and I wanted to make sure you were okay." Wind said, firmness in her voice.

"I was doing a lot damn better before you got all up in my business, Wind!" Vivi snapped, hate in her eyes and venom in her voice. "Now leave me the hell alone!"

Wind just nodded. "Okay, Vivi. I understand that you don't want company. But if you decide you want to talk, I will be here." With that, Wind peacefully departed, all the while Vivi glared at her retreating form.

After Wind made her way back into the girl's cabin, Vivi exhaled heavily and took another drag from her cigarette.

Feeling tears roll down her cheeks, she roughly wiped them away.

"They just had to talk about family, didn't they….."

"Congrats, Brooke!" Godfrey said as he sat down next to the athletic girl. "I haven't gotten a chance to say it yet, but really, congratulations. Winning that challenge was no easy feat, and yet, you did it."

"Thanks, Godfrey," Brooke acknowledged as she took another bite of her cereal. "But, something tells me you're not just here to give me your congratulations."

"You're right on that front," He confirmed with a nod.

"If I had to guess, it'd be your theory on who I should get rid of tonight?"

"You'd be right on that front as well," the charmer chuckled. "As you know, I prefer to do my business directly, no frills."

"You're all frills, Godfrey," Brooke dryly remarked as she took another bite.

That made him laugh heartily. "I guess I walked into that one! Sure, there may be a few frills, but they're less than you'd get from the less honest participants in this game we play."

"Well then, let's hear your pitch since I know that you wouldn't let me leave this table without hearing it out."

"Correct on that, but first, I have a question. Do you already have a person in mind?" He asked.

"Can't say that I do," Brooke admitted. "I've got a few names, but I was really weighing my options on this. It's a huge responsibility, and I wanna make sure I make the absolute best move for my game with it."

"Perfect!" Godfrey responded. "If you had a name in mind, I wasn't going to bother trying to change it, but if you're undecided, I'd love to get my two cents out there."

"Anyway," Godfrey continued, "If you ask me, I think the person you need to get out is Liana."

"Liana?" Brooke asked, surprised. "Where the heck did that come from? Why her?"

"She's exceedingly smart. I had a talk with her on the first day we got here and she had already picked you out as a threat based on your athleticism. She also was solely responsible for turning her team against Daniel, and single-handedly dismantled an alliance he had tried to create just to get her out of the game."

"Woah, slow down, Godfrey!" Brooke surprisedly said at the torrent of information. "How do you know this stuff?"

"I'm constantly playing this game, Brooke," he mysteriously said. "Anyhow, after that, she had become the team pariah, and last night, she was voted off, but she used an immunity idol to save herself."

Brooke was shocked. "So that's two idols down now?" She asked. At Godfrey's nod, she just muttered, "Dammit!"

"Afraid so," Godfrey told her. "Anyway, I had wanted to work with her farther into the game as my contact on the Albatross side of the game, but this early merge has really thrown me through a loop. She's a loose cannon, and I think that if she spends more time in this game, she will create more problems for everyone, including you, me, and our alliance."

Brooke was silent for a moment, before asking, "And you're sure about all of this?"

"A lot of that is stuff that Liana herself has told me, and if not from her herself, it's stuff I've witnessed firsthand or things I've heard from first-hand witnesses." He confirmed.

Brooke was silent for a few more moments, taking another bite of her cereal. "Well, thanks for the info, I guess." Brooke finally responded. "I'm not gonna say I'm definitely gonna vote Liana out tonight, but from this, I'm definitely not counting it out."

"That's all I aim to do, Brooke," Godfrey said with a grin. "Inform your decisions with all the facts at my disposal. Just know that you have an alliance looking out for you, and we're counting on you to do the best thing." With that, Godfrey stood and stretched. "I've said my piece. The rest is up to you," he told her as he left the mess hall, and Brooke stared at her cereal bowl in deep thought.

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

"Man, I am good at this game," Godfrey openly bragged aloud to the camera. "So many rely on brute forcing their way into getting someone to do what they want. Blackmail, threats. Now, I won't say they don't work, and I certainly won't say that I'm above using them, because I'm not and have used them in this game, and to great effect."

He grinned. "But, sometimes, all you need is to drop a little seed into someone's brain. They'll think about the seed, nurture it, and water it with their thoughts. And before you know it, that small seed is a tree, bursting through their skull, and you can enjoy the fruits of getting what you wanted done in the game, and having all the blood be on someone else's hands."

Static

As Godfrey left the mess hall after his conversation with Brooke, he was distracted by the sky. The sun was well and truly beginning to set, meaning that the ever-important bonfire ceremony would be coming up soon.

"Godfrey."

The charmer turned and saw Ji standing at the foot of the steps, arms crossed and an expectant look on her face.

"Ah, hey Ji," Godfrey greeted casually. "I was just looking at the sky. It's getting dark soon."

"Which means that the ceremony is fast approaching," Ji said back. "I'm hoping you talked to Brooke."

"Well, of course," Godfrey cockily replied as he stepped down the stairs and began walking back towards the cabins, Ji following in lock-step with him. "I gave her all I had on Liana. I'm thinking that she's going to go for it."

"What did you tell her?" Ji asked.

"About some conversations I've had with her, mainly from the first few days. She singled Brooke out on the very first day as someone who needs to be watched out for, so I just told her that." Godfrey chuckled for a moment before saying, "People really do not tend to like it when their name specifically comes out as a target."

"And you think that's enough to get her?" Ji again asked.

"I do," Godfrey replied, seriousness in his tone. "Brooke is smart, and she realizes that this is an individual game now. Liana specifically said that Brooke is a target. Ergo, I think it's enough to get the target onto Liana."

After a few moments, Ji nodded in agreement. "I see."

Godfrey then stepped onto the guys' cabin's porch. "But, humans are funny. We shall see," He said as he stepped into his cabin.

Likewise, Ji made her way into the girls' cabin and was greeted by two of her new alliance mates, Alessia and Vivi.

"Ah, hey Ji!" Alessia cheerfully greeted the robot combateer, while Vivi flicked a hand in greeting. "How's it going?"

"Satisfactory," Ji responded as she sat down on her bed. "I spoke with Godfrey about the vote."

"Oh, what's up with that?" Alessia asked curiously. "What'd Godfrey say?"

"Godfrey sounds very confident that Brooke will clip Liana tonight," Ji said matter-of-factly. "He said that he talked to her and planted the seeds that Liana has mentioned that she will be coming after Brooke."

"And you trust Godfrey?" Vivi asked, distrustfully.

"Not really," Ji said with a shake of her head. "But he said that he's gonna do his best, and from what I've seen from Godfrey, he's a lot of things, but he's not a liar."

"So we're left with a resounding maybe?" Vivi snarkily asked.

"Pretty much," Ji replied. "It's not much, but something is better than nothing."

At that, Vivi sighed in resignation. "I guess you're right on that front."

"Why don't I talk to Brooke?" Alessia asked Ji. "Maybe I can make a little more headway with her."

"That'd be a dumb idea, Alessia," Ji harshly replied. "Godfrey can do it because he was on a team, and in an alliance with her. If you tried to do it, it'd just be fishy and it would make her think that there's a reason two people want Liana to go. Especially with two people on different sides of the game."

Alessia's face scrunched in annoyance at her idea being called dumb, but still nodded in acceptance. "I guess that makes sense….." She trailed off.

"Again, Alessia, we've done all we can do, and by we, I mean Godfrey. So, we just have to sit back and see if Godfrey did his job right," Ji finished.

"Hey, campers!" Chris' voice suddenly came over the speakers of the island. "It's that time once again! Make your way down to the campfire for our next elimination ceremony!"

"Speak of the devil, and he shall appear," Vivi remarked as the girls made their way out of the cabin, towards the ceremony.

As Brooke made her way towards the campfire pit, surrounded by her fellow competitors, she felt a nervousness that was unusual creeping up into her gut.

'It's all on me,' she thought to herself. 'I'm ending someone's game tonight.'

As she kept walking, she knew that she was the star of the show; the main event of the evening.

'Everyone's staring at me, I can feel it,' she paranoidly thought to herself. 'Why'd I have to win that dumb Pressure Cooker!?'

As everyone got to the pit and began sitting down on logs, the anxiety spiked once more.

'What happens if I make the wrong call?' She thought to herself. 'This could end up costing me a million dollars!'

As Brooke looked around, she caught the faces of many of her fellow campers. Neda, laughing at something Wind said. Liana, in conversation with John. Alessia and Marcellas laughed at something inane between the two of them. Godfrey, Weenus, and David in an animated discussion with each other. Ji and Vivi, both content in silence to just stare into the climbing flames of the fire.

'One of these people is leaving tonight, and it'll be all my fault.'

A collage of faces flew through Brooke's mind as she closed her eyes and tried to steady her breathing.

"Hey everyone!" Chris happily greeted as he arrived at the campfire, not even bothering to bring the iconic plate of marshmallows. "How's it going?"

"I'm still exhausted," David groaned. "Last night was a killer."

"I bet!" The host laughed. "I'm very glad that the Pressure Cooker lived up to even my exceedingly lofty expectations in making your lives as difficult as possible."

"At least I got three K out of it!" David then laughed, which was met by irritation from a few others.

"I got a dumbass autographed picture," Vivi grumbled.

"And all I got was an actual Pressure Cooker," Ji sighed in annoyance.

"Speaking of the prizes, how was your phone call with your loved one, Neda?" Chris asked, which made the girl light up.

"It was so great," the superfan gushed. "Getting to actually hear from my sister was such a great pick-me-up that I really needed. I'm really glad to know that everyone's doing good at home, it's something I think about a lot."

"And what about your letter from home, Liana?" Chris then asked. In response, Liana took it from her coat pocket and waved it in the air.

"I'm gonna keep it with me at all times, so I can always feel like she's with me while I'm here. That letter is just the boost I needed, Chris," Liana told him.

"Great!" He exclaimed. "I'm glad that everyone's happy to hear from their families." He then clapped his hands together. "Well, now that we've arrived at the merge a bit earlier than normal, the game has really shaken up, I'd say. What about you, Godfrey?"

"Well, of course, it does, but at the same time, even in teams, this has always been an individual game," The charmer explained casually. "Only two people can make it to the finals, and only one person can win. And if you haven't been playing this game with that in mind, I think it's rather foolish."

"Interesting!" Chris remarked. "So, you've seen this as an individual game since the very start?"

Godfrey nodded. "Obviously."

"John, is that something you agree with?" Chris then asked the artist.

"Yes, and no," John said slowly after a few moments. "I believe that Godfrey's correct in that you gotta plan this game to get to the end as an individual, but at the same time, you also have to have good relationships with your team. Otherwise, what prevents them from just kicking you off early? Like with Daniel. He wasn't playing well with the team, so he got the boot."

"Well, speaking of the boot….." Chris trailed off with an evil grin. "Brooke! Get up here."

The basketball player went rigid at her name being called by the host, before standing and walking to the front of the pit, where she now was the complete and total center of attention, as she was being stared down by everyone in attendance. "Since you lasted over fifteen hours, and beat everyone else in the Pressure Cooker, eliminating someone is your sole responsibility."

He then turned and looked right at her. "Are you ready?"

Brooke sighed. "No, I'm really not."

Chris looked a little surprised at that. "So, do you even know who you're going to eliminate tonight?" He asked.

"No." She thickly said. "I've thought a lot, and I mean really, a lot about it." Her eyes scanned over everyone in attendance. "I've been thinking about it all day, and every time I even begin to think about settling on a name, another one barrels into my brain and shakes it up."

Starting to ramble, she continued, "And I know that this is a huge moment for my game. It's a real literal make-or-break moment for me. What I do here may win or lose me this whole thing. And that's, frankly, terrifying."

Brooke then looked at David squarely. "I promised David that he was safe, and I'm going to keep that promise. So, at least David is safe."

Brooke then looked at Godfrey, who was sitting next to David. "And earlier today, I had a conversation with Godfrey where he wanted me to eliminate Liana tonight."

At that, Liana's eyes bugged out in surprise as she turned and looked right at Godfrey, who had a look of surprise on his face. "You wanted to get me out, Godfrey!?" She asked, the shock clear in her voice. "What the hell?!"

"Hey, hey hey!" Chris interrupted. "You two can argue about this after this ceremony. But for now, don't interrupt."

As Liana crossed her arms and seethed, staring daggers at Godfrey, Brooke continued. "And, if I'm being honest, Godfrey did give me some really good reasons. And, I have to be honest, it's something I'm still considering, even now."

Liana looked about ready to go nuclear. "But, in fairness to Liana, I'm still considering everyone. Because, you hear people throw names around, like Godfrey and Liana, but what about the names you don't hear get thrown out? People who everyone likes, and people who'd never get targeted. That's something I'm still considering too."

"Okay, Brooke," Chris interrupted. "You've gotten to talk it out a bit, and caused a bit of drama, which is always good, but now, it's time to make the choice. Choose who is going to be eliminated from Total Drama Island: Rewritten."

Brooke's eyes flitted over everyone's face once or twice quickly, her mind giving quick pros and cons at each person. However, her eyes stopped on one person's face in particular.

"I'm ready, Chris." She flatly said.

"Alright, Brooke," Chris replied. "It's all you."

Brooke folded her arms. "I really was tormented by this choice all day. Everyone here came up as a target to go, except for David."

Brooke took a deep breath and then exhaled. "I've thought about all the different strategies I could go with, like I said earlier. But, just now, as I was looking at you all, I just had an epiphany."

Her eyes narrowed to slits. "Damn strategy. Damn it all. Rather than strategy, I'm making this personal. Ji, get the hell off this island."

Ji's eyes went as wide as dinner plates and the gathered campers either gasped in shock or sighed in relief.

"WHAT?" Ji screamed, face turning red in anger almost immediately. "YOU'RE GETTING RID OF ME?!"

"Yes," Brooke dispassionately said. "You've been a bitch to me since day one. When we were in a secret final two, you were a bitch. When Godfrey strong-armed me into an alliance, you were a bitch. As I looked at everyone here, I landed on your face, and it pissed me off. I don't care if I win. But, at least for the time here that I have left, I don't have to look at you. Now get the hell out of here. I never want to see you again."

"You heard it, Ji, Brooke can't get any more ambiguous than that. You've been eliminated." The host announced.

Ji's fists clenched in hatred as she glared at Brooke. However, rather than leave with a last word, the girl instead just stomped towards the dock of shame, as Brooke sat back down on her bench, a content smile on her face.

"Alright, everyone!" Chris said to the gathered campers. "This ceremony is over. So, get on out of here! And don't worry, no challenge tomorrow. We'll give you a few days to rest and recover before our next one. So, go on outta here and get some rest."

At those words, everyone departed back to their cabins. As Chris was left alone, he turned and faced the camera. "Wow! How about that for dramatic?" He asked aloud. "An epic competition leading into an entirely personal elimination!" Chris smiled contentedly. "Man, I love my job."

"Anyway, I hope you're as excited to see whatever happens next in this crazy game," Chris told the camera. "And whatever twists and turns it brings, it'll all happen right here on

TOTAL!

DRAMA!

ISLAND: REWRITTEN!"

Static

Confessional: Liana

"Damn that no-good son of a bitch Godfrey!" Liana ranted into the camera. "I should have freaking knew that snake was gonna turn on me! Just like everyone else! I can't trust anyone anymore!"

She slams her fist into her open palm. "I'm not gonna let this crap stand! He's going down. He's not going to beat me. I swear it!"

Static

Confessional: Godfrey

The charmer sat in the confessional, clapping his hands. "Bravo, Brooke, bravo," he told the camera. "I'm really impressed. I was totally, completely fooled today. I had really believed that I had convinced her to take out Liana."

He chuckles. "Not only did Brooke not do that, but she also took that idea, threw it in my face, and then gave me a kick in the ribs for good measure. Completely exposing me to Liana like that, and getting rid of one of the cornerstones of my new alliance was some inspired business."

The charmer shrugged. "It looks quite bad for me now. Almost assuredly, Brooke's splintered from me and is going to form an alliance with Liana to get rid of me. So, the end of old Godfrey may be at hand."

The charmer then tapped his temple with his finger. "But, there's still plenty of game to play. Maybe I'll be able to Houdini myself out of one last big bind. We'll have to see."

Static

Confessional: Brooke

Brooke happily sighs into the camera. "It was so simple, but I was overthinking so much, that I almost didn't go for it. And I'd have been such an idiot not to!" She laughed. "Ji's been crappy to me this whole game, getting to cut her throat and send her out of here pouting like a little kid will make this whole thing worth it, win or lose."

"And," She continued, "I got to completely take a stick of dynamite to Godfrey's game, too. I hope he realizes that our old alliance is dead and buried. I'm absolutely coming for him." She then grinned. "And then, once Godfrey is gone, it's only a matter of time before I win this game."

Static

And there we go. After five years, this chapter exists. Five years of casting. Five years of planning. Five years of never, ever thinking it'd actually exist. But now, I'm here typing this author's note after the final edits. Just, wow.

Future chapters will definitely not be this long. But, this one really needed it. Writing an endurance competition was fun, and maybe there'll be more to come. Who knows?

Ji leaves too. She's someone I really grew to enjoy writing, especially in this chapter. But, you can only get personal so many times before it comes back to haunt you.

Since Thanksgiving was just a few days ago, I am so thankful for the amazing community that has given me the confidence to actually write this story. Thank you all. See you next time!