A/N: Don't mind me, just casually resurrecting Nialasach.
*Chris's Recap*
"Last time, on Total Drama Nialasach,
Zaiyrin led Team Inari on a grueling trek across the entirety of Crios Cath, and the other teams weren't too happy to see them. Meanwhile, Monica began to turn the rest of Hayaji against a down on their luck Christa and Simon, and managing to snag herself the clue to the Force Immunity Medal in the process. The fractures in Team Fudo continued to grow despite the efforts of Watts to bring Erin into the team, and the efforts of Gabriel to control it. On Team Ebisu, Aaron began thinking about potential alliance-mates as the team members continued to bond in pairs. Too bad for Raul, the man he chose, because it turns out he's trying to play Oswald's game from the original Zero Sum! The challenge, courtesy of Zero Sum's Freya, involved using nothing but one's words to get their assigned targets to lose composure, with a twist. Freya let slip to Watts who received which Immunity Medal clue on each team, and gave Monica oodles of information on the rest of the Hayaji team members. As the challenge commenced, some contestants fought, some bonded, some simply undressed-looking at you Raul, you're better than this-, but ultimately, only one team was able to emerge victorious. It was Team Fudo, breaking Ebisu's win streak, and thanks to the Wheel of Reward spin by Alison, making off with the once again losing Team Hayaji's cabin, leaving the dwindling wind team stuck in the Cloch Mountain Range without shelter. At the Tine Naofa Bonfire Elimination Ceremony, Monica rallied Claude and Zaheen against Christa and sent the team mother home, but not before receiving an unexpected hug and words of encouragement from Christa herself. Now Simon is alone on Team Hayaji, Raul's Fish Immunity Medal is in Aaron's hands, and we have en route to Crios Cath right now, one of the most strategic players of early Zero Sum, with a challenge that could spell salvation or doom for our remaining players. 21 are left, and it's soon to be 20! Who will be forced into the curtain call this week? Find out, right now! On Total! Drama! Niiiiiiiiialasach!"
*Total Drama Theme Song Plays*
As the song starts, various cameras come out of the flora and fauna all around the island.
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doing fine, you guys are on my mind
The camera zooms around all of Crios Cath before finally entering into the Nialasach Ruins.
You asked me what I wanted to be and now I think the answer is plain to see,
Aaron is on his skateboard, skating through the ruins, and as he moves forward, Claude can be seen following him, cleaning up the dust left by his skateboard tracks so that he can clear a path for Monica, who smiles at him, but ends up rolling her eyes, annoyed, when she's sure he isn't looking, and begins to pay attention to another part of the ruins, which the camera then shifts to.
I wanna be famous
Watts is looking over Erin's shoulder at an experiment she is working on, and she seems to be attempting to hide it from him, when the ruins wall explodes, causing Erin to fall back into Watts's arms before shoving herself out of them, the two then look over to see that the explosion was caused by Ash accidentally triggering a tripwire. She smiles and waves in an attempt to make the situation less embarrassing for her.
I want to live close to the sun
Camera switches to show Alison sitting on a beach chair and relaxing before waves come crashing in and ruin her clothes. She stands up with a huff and takes the beach chair further inland, but the same event happens, and she appears to let out a scream.
Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won
Camera shifts up to reveal that Simon and Arnold both saw Alison's ordeal, and while Simon starts to snicker at it, Arnold begins to flamboyantly tell Simon off, and Simon plugs his ears and walks away with rolling eyes.
Everything to prove, nothing in my way, I'll get there one day
Camera shifts to Upper Ceol Fields, where Zaiyrin is seen showering Cherry with all manner of gifts and compliments, and Cherry somewhat scoffs at them before blushing with a smile once Zaiyrin leaves and heading over to Ellie to talk excitedly with her about it while Ellie is working on a costume.
'Cause I wanna be famous
Rashi and Phooko both see the events with Zaiyrin, Cherry, and Ellie, and quietly laugh to each other as they both tend to a small garden of growing plants, with Phooko's plants looking quite healthy, and Rashi's plants looking unnaturally perfect.
Na na nananana nanananana na nanananana
Camera shifts to the Glas Woods, where Raul and Vanessa are sketching each other with smiles. Camera first hovers over Raul's shoulder showing a brilliantly done sketch of Vanessa, then switches over to Vanessa's shoulder, where a sketch of Raul can be seen, but Vanessa needs to keep adding wolves to the sketch as they crowd around Raul like he's part of their pack.
I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous
Mark is playing music in Cailleach Bog, but immediately rolls out of the way of a falling tree, he looks over to see an almost seething Mirai, who turns to him and begins to smile sweetly as she begs him to play. Mark is a little nervous at first but as he begins to play, Mirai begins to cheer peacefully as the camera shifts to Lower Ceol Fields.
I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous
In Lower Ceol Fields, Donny and Gabriel are engaged in a rather heated argument, and Christa and Jenae both walk up to Donny and Gabriel respectively, Christa tries to comfort Donny, but he begins arguing with her instead. Meanwhile, Jenae begins to continue to argue with Gabriel, but he stops her when he notices she's moving her hand down his chest.
As the other contestants whistle the rest of the tune around the Tine Naofa Bonfire, Gran and Zaheen both attempt to make the fire grow larger. Upon Gran's attempt the fire blows up in his face, causing Zaheen to snicker as she pulls off the trick perfectly and the flames begin to form the season title: Total Drama Nialasach
Location: Neart Highlands
Contestant(s): Mark, Watts, Jenae
"And you're sure?" Mark asked Watts, who nodded positively. "Christa from Hayaji, Raul from Ebisu, and Ellie from Inari. They found the clues to their teams' immunity medals."
"Huh…" Mark began to tune his guitar. "And you aren't telling Gabe or Erin this are you?"
"Why would I?" Watts shrugged.
"I mean, Gabe seems to like you enough to come to you for advice, and come on, you spend as much time around Erin as I do even thinking about Alison."
"Dude, I swear, we gotta get you better taste in women." Watts laughed.
"Alright then...how about this...of the original Zero Sum contestants...which one should I date?"
"Huh...aiming up are we?"
Mark gave an acknowledging nod. "Just a sort of exercise, for both of us to be honest. You should spend some time away from Erin after all, or else you'll be that much more depressed when she leaves the team first."
"Yeah, she does seem to ignore the social aspect of this game almost entirely, and while I respect her and all, I'm not about to throw my own game away just to keep her around."
"Come on man…" Mark clapped at Watts. "Back to Zero Sum. Best girlfriend material: go!"
"For you or for me? Because the answer is different." Watts grinned. "You'd have the best luck with Kaede, I think. However-"
"You mean the hot Japanese girl who put us in our teams at the beginning of the game?"
"Well yeah but-"
"Hey, Kaede…" Mark gives a finger gun directly at the camera. "How you doin'?"
"Mark…" Watts whispered. "Kaede's kind of off the market. Quite the amount of contestants from that show are."
"Oh." Mark turned back to the camera. "Sorry about that Kaede, maybe in a couple years!"
"Don't worry man, my choice isn't on the market either."
"Oh let me guess…" Jenae walked in on the two of them. "You're going to say Carys, right?"
"Nope!" Watts shook his head. "I was going to say Rudo."
"Suuurrre you were…" Jenae wasn't convinced.
Confessional: Mark: Team Fudo
"Full disclosure, I never watched Zero Sum, so I'm having a hard time putting faces to these names."
End Confessional
"Anyways, I came to see how my two favorite bros were doing this morning and-"
"Oh cut the crap, no one's around." Watts rolled his eyes.
"Fine." Jenae folded her arms. "You two are good with voting Alison first, right?"
"Oh...Uh...Sure, actually." Watts agreed.
"No, not sure, man!" Mark nudged him. "Jenae, what about Erin? She's just a sixth mouth to feed."
"Or Gabriel." Watts decided he might as well extend a little effort to help Mark. "Isn't he your big rival for 'team leader?'"
"While Erin and Gabe are both also great suggestions, they aren't the ones who've locked us out of our own cabin." Jenae sighed. "I swear, that British bitch causes too much harm for what? What does she bring to the table?"
"Being the hottest contestant on the show?" Mark hazarded a guess.
"I'll do you the favor of pretending I didn't hear what I think I heard, music man." Jenae glared at Mark. "So count yourself lucky that I'm allowing you this chance to avoid being medivaced from the game, but mark my words: the very second we lose a challenge, no amount of sex appeal is going to save your little crush."
After she stormed off back towards the cabin, Watts and Mark exchanged looks.
"Dude, we gotta get rid of Jenae. We can't let her control this team."
"I mean, sure I agree in theory…" Watts was hesitant. "But come on man, literally the only time Alison has been useful was in the last challenge, and apparently she's not even letting the rest of us use the cabin we won. Erin might not be social, but at the very least, she isn't actively negative towards the rest of us."
"At least Alison actually has team dynamics with us though. It's more like Erin is just a cranky neighbor, and the rest of us are Team Fudo, you know?"
"You know what, we can talk about this later."
Location: Cloch Mountain Range(Team Hayaji's Campsite)
Contestant(s): Claude, Monica, Simon, Zaheen
The four remaining Hayaji members all gathered around a campfire that was burning wood from what few piles of branches and small logs they could find at their altitude along with their charcoal, one of their two remaining amenities, the other being a shower that, without towels or any other easy way to dry off, didn't see much use in the cold climate.
"We should count ourselves l-lucky…" Zaheen shivered as she curled up further into Monica's arms. "It's spring, s-so the temperature will get warmer as we g-go..,darlings..."
Simon exhaled purposefully and noticed that he could see his breath.
"It better get warmer sooner rather than later. This weather is the worst…"
Confessional: Simon: Team Hayaji
"I wish I could blame Monica for making us lose our cabin, but I also could have been focused entirely on our challenge last week instead of just opposing her. The only thing for us now is to make sure that we're never brought back to Tine Naofa. Ideally we can get a building with insulation through victory so we don't have to huddle like penguins."
End Confessional
Claude tossed more charcoal into the fire as he attempted to crush some bugs underneath his foot. "Too much filth…" He shivered as he brought himself closer into the huddle as well. "Let us claim victory in the next challenge. Anything at all would be of help. I refuse to sleep on such a hastily constructed shack for a second week."
"It's a pretty bad shack," Monica agreed "but it's all we have right now. Anyone here know which Zero Sum contestant designed this next challenge?"
"Sorry darling, too many a day spent street performing to view this show." Zaheen lamented.
"Apologies, Mistress" Claude bowed his head. "I'd not the time to view that show either."
"Are you kidding me?" Simon's eyes widened. "All three of you signed up for this specific season without even researching its spiritual predecessor?"
"Simon, you've seen it?" Monica's eyes lit up. "Who's next?"
Simon sighed, and stared at his visible breath with an agonized discomfort before getting his bearings again.
"His name is Davon Le Rouge."
"French surname, I'm sure that circus girl on Inari will be happy." Zaheen chuckled.
"If memory serves me correctly…" Simon attempted to recall what he had seen of the season. "He was charming, and a little strategic, but not perhaps the smartest or strongest willed. I'll say this though, he was the first person to get the better of one of that season's main villains. He even nearly got her eliminated early on."
"But he was eliminated instead, wasn't he?" Monica guessed, correctly.
"Yes, that's correct. Though I don't know if that will have any bearing on his challenge. He enjoyed preening himself a lot, but he also seemed sincerely interested in the social aspect of the game."
"So you think it might be some kind of speed-dating challenge, Master?" Claude asked.
Simon shrugged.
"I think no matter what the challenge is we're going to have our work cut out for us, so let's win one for once."
Confessional: Monica: Team Hayaji
"So this next challenge could be social, strategic, or both. Great. I honestly would much rather a physical challenge come by again soon. We aren't as well suited for those, true, but I need reasons to get rid of both Claude and Zaheen. Let's just say that thanks to my special information that I got last challenge, I know my teammates quite thoroughly. Simon's by far the smartest and all around most threatening to my immediate survival, but he'll also be someone else's target if I can just hold out until a team swap or something. But Zaheen has an under the radar strategy going on and Claude...let's just say some of his habits disturb me."
End Confessional
Location: Upper Ceol Fields(Team Inari Campsite)
Contestant(s): Ash, Cherry, Gran
"Pourquoi?" Cherry shook her head as she arrived with a bundle of firewood to see both Gran and Ash trying, and failing, to remove themselves from under a pile of rubble only barely now recognizable as Team Inari's grill.
"Now, I know how this looks Cherry…" Ash put out one of her hands. "But I can explain-"
"I swear I didn't mean for any of this to happen!" Gran exaggerated. "We were just getting so bored of doing nothing so I thought I'd put on a little magic show and-"
"Well, I kind of wanted to see one of the tricks up close and-" Ash continued.
The two began to talk over each other, meanwhile Cherry remained apathetic, looking down at her trapped teammates with the same monotone expression on her face the entire time.
Confessional: Ash: Team Inari
"What the heck was Zaiyrin even thinking when he told the two of us to guard our campsite anyways? Who would even want to come over here?"
End Confessional
After both Ash and Gran had explained their predicament, Cherry shook her head.
"Since you are both so accident prone...perhaps you would be better off making life miserable for some other team, oui?"
"Eh-heh…" Ash nervously laughed as both girls began to reassemble the grill.
"Make life trouble for another team, eh?" Gran rubbed his chin in thought. "Like, for instance, head on over to Ebisu and break their hot tub which should by rights be ours?"
"I don't particularly care." Cherry sighed. "Just...if you think you'll break things, don't be here. We have little to begin with, thanks to that 'master strategist' of ours."
Confessional: Gran: Team Inari
"Oh yeah, what is the deal with those two anyway? Are they, like actually together or is this just another eccentricity of Zaiyrin's? Because if it is, I mean, I'd probably vote Cherry off first if given the choice, but I don't think she's mean enough to warrant that kind of insincere behavior. I'll be sure to ask him about it later, in private, but for now...I suppose I can go annoy the Ebisu team!"
End Confessional
Location: Lower Ceol Fields
Contestant(s): Aaron, Gran, Mirai, Raul
Gran didn't expect to see the sight he'd stumbled upon. A wild sheep had been slain and trimmed, and its ribs were roasting over a makeshift campfire. Mirai licked her lips hungrily as Aaron tended to the meat, while Raul prepared skewers for more meat and kept the fire going.
"Didn't you guys get a chicken coop?" Gran asked, confused. "You should be good for breakfast already, shouldn't you?"
"Would you want to eat only eggs or chicken for breakfast every single day? Would you? Huh?" Mirai interrogated Gran. "What are you even doing here, anyway, fox team lackey? Shoo!"
"This is a far cry from your campsite, it's common ground." Gran stood up for himself. "I wanted to relax away from my overbearing teammates, got a problem with that?"
"Well...a sentiment like that, no, I can't say I do." Aaron laughed "however...I do have a problem with you heading over here for the sole purpose of causing us undue chaos. After all, if you only wished to escape your teammates and nothing else, why strike up conversation with the three of us in the first place?"
Confessional: Gran: Team Inari
"Tch. He's too smart for me."
End Confessional
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"What can I say other than I'm a detective? It's kind of my job to ascertain these things."
End Confessional
Raul scribbled down on his notepad, walked up to Gran, and, towering over him, handed him the note.
Gran looked down at it. His eyes widened. He looked back up at Raul, nodded, and rushed back the way he had come.
"What on earth did you show him, Raul?" Mirai's eyes widened.
Raul thought to himself for a moment, before scribbling on the same note, and handing it to Aaron.
Aaron too, thought for a moment, before nodding at Raul.
Raul flipped the note towards Mirai.
"Ewwww!" Mirai turned away from the note. "Why would you draw that?"
"Obviously to intimidate our magician friend into leaving us alone." Aaron answered with a laugh.
Confessional: Raul: Team Ebisu
Raul puts the note up to the screen, it depicts, in gruesome detail, the slaughtering, flaying, and trimming of the sheep the three of them were cooking, with the words "This could be you in the next few seconds if you don't leave" printed at the bottom, as well as the words "Mirai wants to see this Y/N" hastily written at the top of the stationary.
End Confessional
"Alright, sub-team." Aaron announced when he was sure that Gran was out of the picture. "Davon's challenge is up next today. Knowing what I know about him, it'll be some sort of fashion-type challenge on the surface...but be prepared for some unexpected mind games to go along with it."
"How does a fashion challenge bring mind games into it?" Mirai pondered. "If it's just looking cute, I think most of our team can do that just fine. Raul here can sit out."
Raul scribbled on a note and held it up. "I have no objections there. Can't see myself doing well in terms of pop fashion."
"No." Aaron shook his head. "Raul, I want you to be a model, if there is one. You're the only one I completely trust in that scenario. Davon might have left early on in Zero Sum, but he was great at making unexpected plays. If a single tiebreaker had gone his way instead of his opponent's, he likely would have been the one to become that season's main protagonist. We can't use simple logic when it comes to this challenge. It's creative/risky decisions or bust, and I think we can all agree that we don't want to vote anyone off if we don't have to."
Location: Neart Highlands(Team Fudo Campsite)
Contestant(s): Alison, Erin, Gabriel, Jenae, Mark
"Hrm…" Alison paced around inside the cabin, thinking out loud to herself. "Gabriel is the son of a politician, but that's no guarantee that he himself will get into politics, Mark is a rock star though, so I might have to put up with more competition if I go that way...I need a quick way to determine how to get the richest I can be in the shortest amount of time...Hrm…UGH! Why can't there be an easy guy on this lame-ass island?!" Alison kicked the cabin wall with her shoe so hard that her heel ruined the varnish, revealing the strange writing underneath.
"What the-?" She squinted as she looked at it.
"Is this some maths shit or something?" She slowly took off her shoe and began to scrape away at the cabin wall, revealing more of the mad writing and equations that, at least to her, made no sense whatsoever.
"Erin!" She opened the window and called out to Erin, who was busy tending to the fire. "Get in here, I need a geek brain for this!"
"Go seduce one of the guys into helping with that." Erin yawned as she dismissed Alison's claim. "I've got this fire to tend to courtesy of one of your boyfriends."
Confessional: Erin: Team Fudo
"Gabriel stormed my research site earlier this week, and demanded I do something around camp to avoid being eliminated right away should we lose. We eventually reached a compromise in that I'd tend the fire, and he wouldn't ask me to do anything else, in return, Prissypants in the cabin over there goes home before anyone else. So why should I take any time to socialize with her?"
Postpone Confessional
"There's all these weirdo equations I don't understand. Who uses letters in maths?"
Resume Confessional
"I'm heading in there. If any of these equations are scientific in nature, I owe it to this cabin's previous owner to continue their work."
End Confessional
"Well, this was a waste of time." Erin sighed as she looked over the writing that Alison had uncovered. "None of these equations are real. Unless whoever wrote them was using the wrong kind of letters."
"Oh hey, the cabin's finally unlocked-" Gabriel noticed as he walked in to see Erin and Alison looking over the writing on the cabin wall. "What the devil is that? What are you two doing?"
"Uhm trying to figure out what these mean." Alison retorted before realising who she was talking to and skipping over to him.
She began to run her finger along Gabriel's chest. "Maybe someone as handsome and smart as you are could help us out with decoding this, right Gabey-poo?"
"Hands off the chest." Jenae pushed Alison away. "Now, don't stand in the doorway, politics boy, inside we both go. Wind's picking up." She snuck in a butt grab as she shoved Gabriel into the cabin and followed suit.
"Oh, what a damn mess you two have made." She shook her head.
"We didn't make it, it was already like this." Alison responded.
"Are you sure?" Gabriel tilted his head. "Because your shoes on the floor there look like they were used to scrape off the varnish to reveal what was written underneath."
"I-" Alison began.
"Well, I don't know the first thing about what any of those letters or symbols mean" Jenae shrugged "but if we want to know who put them there, I'd say the obvious answer is someone from Zero Sum. I didn't pay attention to their names that much though, mostly the challenges."
"Then we need Watts. He's our historian." Gabriel nodded to himself.
"What do we need Watts for?" Mark asked as he walked in as well. "Oh, Erin's here! That's a first. And Alison! You look absolutely gorgeous as always."
"Thank you, thank you, glad someone appreciates the care I put into my appearance." it seemed as though Mark's words had gone straight to Alison's head.
"Jenae." Mark curtly nodded in Jenae's direction.
"Mark, do you know where Watts is? We have some strange gibberish on the wall here that we think was left by a Zero Sum contestant and want his opinion on it."
Mark frowned.
"Am I my teammate's keeper?" He scoffed "He went off somewhere else, and I didn't quite care to follow him."
Confessional: Mark: Team Fudo
"Watts wants to vote off Alison if we lose, and that's just not going to fly. Sure, she and Erin both do practically nothing around camp, but at least Alison is hot! All Erin has going for her is a good intelligence that she refuses to share, so honestly, how good is it really?"
End Confessional
Location: Upper Ceol Fields
Contestant(s): Ellie, Watts, Zaiyrin
"What are you guys doing all the way at the edge of these fields?" Watts asked as he came across Ellie and Zaiyrin, both seemingly hard at work on something.
"Ah, Watts, the Fudo magus!" Zaiyrin smiled as he looked up from the contraption he and Ellie were creating. "Why, we're simply fastening together a fox trap!"
"The foxes will keep any wild hares at bay though." Watts suggested. "Better for your crops, assuming any are growing beyond all that wheat."
"W-well…" Ellie spoke up softly. "Strictly speaking...it's more of a fox lure than a fox trap. We want to see if there actually are any around."
"Yes, indeed!" Zaiyrin nodded before turning the subject over to Watts. "But that explains very little as to why you have arrived here. I can only assume you've come to grant me the information you learned you learned from Freya last challenge, yes?"
"No, that's not why I'm here." Watts shook his head. "You don't even have anything to offer me that will benefit my game, why should I hand you, a stranger, information that could save me later down the line if I keep it a secret?"
"Fair enough, I haven't raised all your parameter flags yet, it appears." Zaiyrin shrugged "but know this, Fudo mage! I command the mighty Team Inari! To underestimate our abilities in this game is to forfeit the competition! You would do well to stay amicable with us. Come, Ellie! Let us take this fox lure back to camp!"
"I'm right behind you!" Ellie nodded as she picked up the contraption and began to walk behind Zaiyrin.
As they left she turned her head back towards Watts, and mouthed a "thank you".
Confessional: Watts: Team Fudo
"So, things didn't go exactly as I'd hoped. I wanted to find Ellie and ask for an alliance in private. She's quiet, and peaceful, but I'm almost positive she's got some sort of long-term game plan in mind, and well, only Gabriel and Jenae on my own team seem to have that kind of mindset, and I can't say I'm too keen on either of them. Mark's nice and all, but he's simply not going to make it very far in this game if he spends so much time around Alison. For similar reasons, I'm making it a point not to pester Erin this week, hell maybe not even next week. The game is going to pick up soon, and I can't be without allies when it does."
End Confessional
Confessional: Zaiyrin: Team Inari
"I know exactly what that Fudo mage was attempting! He was hoping to find the holder of the clue to the Fox Medal and strike an alliance with them, and since he gave up following us so readily, that holder can only be Ellie! It appears I was right to bring her along with me on this 'fox-lure' mission. She can no longer be left unattended!"
End Confessional
"What a strange boy he is, showing up in our territory out of nowhere and then simply leaving again." Zaiyrin smirked as Ellie walked behind him towards their campsite.
"But...we left…" Ellie thought, confused, to herself. "We never got to learn why he actually came out this way in the first place."
Confessional: Ellie: Team Inari
"But I have a feeling it was specifically to talk to me. He knows I found the medal clue for my team, so he's probably going to ask for an alliance of sorts in exchange for helping me find the Fox Medal. Too bad I've already found it. Still though, it can never hurt to have connections, especially connections with knowledge of the original Zero Sum."
End Confessional
Location: Glas Woods
Contestant(s): Phooko, Rashi, Vanessa
"Who do you guys think Hayaji voted off last week?" Vanessa asked as she finished yet another sketch of a complete Ebisu team to put by the other two at their campsite later. "I know we could always just go up into the mountains and find out for ourselves but...that's like a whole day's worth of travel and it's really cold up there, so I'd rather speculate."
"Hmmm…" Rashi hummed as she looked up at the sky through the conifer trees. "I'd be hard pressed to choose between the guy with glasses and the butler, but I hope it was one of them. There's never been a unified 'girls alliance' on this show, and they had a 3-2 majority. I was hoping it'd end up something like that."
"Hey now, let's not talk about girls alliances while I'm still very much a part of your team and this game" Phooko laughed.
"Well obviously we aren't about to form one." Rashi laughed. "We're team freaking Ebisu!"
Confessional: Rashi: Team Ebisu
"Two challenge wins in a row from the beginning of the game, never been to elimination yet. All we need to do is make it to the merge and then dominate everything."
End Confessional
Confessional: Vanessa: Team Ebisu
"Rashi and Phooko are both, well, they're both silly goofballs in their own ways. It's nice to have them around for a change of pace from Raul's silence, Aaron's strategy talk, and Mirai's...quirks. These two, by contrast, are great at getting me to legitimately relax."
End Confessional
"You ladies ready for this week's challenge?" Phooko asked as they all gathered edible berries to bring back to camp. "I heard from Aaron that it's probably going to be the hardest one until final 18."
"I mean...I'm always ready to destroy the other team!" Rashi grinned, clearly eager to fight it out. "But I have no idea what the challenge is even gonna be sooo...yeah."
"I'll do my best!" Vanessa nodded with a smile. "We couldn't come in first last week, but it'll be a different story this time!"
"Oh, it will, will it?" Chris's voice announced from overhead. "All campers please report to the Tine Naofa Bonfire for an explanation of the rules because it's Challenge Time!"
Location: Tine Naofa Bonfire Pit
Contestant(s): All Remaining
"Wonderful, beautiful, determined, Nialsach contestants!" A voice announced from overhead as a young blonde man parachuted down from the sky. "Allow me to introduce myself! I am Davon Le Rouge, creator and overseer of your challenge for this week!"
"The pretty boy's chosen to come by as well, has he?" Aaron grinned.
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"Davon Le Rouge was arguably the most strategic player on the Killer Waves back in the original Zero Sum season. Had things gone his way, he would have eliminated Melody, one of the season's biggest villains, before she ever even found the Wave Immunity Tiki that, coincidentally, she was forced to use the next episode, thanks to Davon managing to bring her true nature to light in front of the rest of the team. I, of course, frequent fan forums on the show fairly often, and the general consensus is that his wit could rival that of Hubert's to the point where had he survived, he'd be considered the seasons' main male hero in place of the four-eyed detective. Of course, Hubert did lose the game, so I'm not too worried about whatever challenge is being thrown out, but I also need to be extra careful. Davon puts on a pageant sure, but it's only to distract everyone while he brings threats out into the open for everyone to see."
End Confessional
Confessional: Alison: Team Fudo
"OMG OMG OMG! I know him! I know him! He's that hot guy that was eliminated super early, and both of his parents are beauticians! I once modeled my hair for one of his mother's products, and I made soo much money! Screw the challenge, I get in good with him, this show becomes pointless!"
End Confessional
"Davon!" Watts called up. "Wasn't one of your fun facts how you're afraid of heights?! Why parachute?"
"I've asked the producers that very question myself, Sir Wattkins!" Davon called. "I am extremely terrified! Please, allow me to explain my challenge to distract from the inevitability of my not-so-pleasant collision with the sand!"
"Oui," Cherry agreed. "Let us get this explanation over with so that Inari can win a challenge for once."
"Your challenge is wonderfully simple!" Davon explained. "Using nothing but the resources you can find on this island, each team will make a total of three outfits with renaissance themes to them, assigned by random chance. Teams will then choose three members each to model the outfits in front of a panel of judges consisting of myself, Chef, and Chris! In the end, the team with the highest collective score from the judges gets to spin the Wheel of Reward, and the team with the lowest collective score gets to vote someone off! And that's about all there is to the rules of this challenge! Easy, oui?"
"Oui." Cherry nodded.
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"Hrm…." Aaron narrows his eyes as he thinks. "Hrmmm…."
End Confessional
Confessional: Simon: Team Hayaji
"For my sake, we better win. I'd much rather not be at the bottom of my team, but I'd also prefer we all continue onto the next phase of the game, because until we're on the chopping block, those three are the closest things to allies I have. It feels a little gross, but maybe I can appeal to Monica's sense of logic to keep me around over, say, Claude."
End Confessional
Challenge: Crios Cath Renaissance Runway
Rules: Teams will use resources on the island to create clothes reminiscent of certain renaissance vocations. Three members of each team will then wear these outfits and model them on a runway for them to be judged by Davon, Chris, and Chef.
Unbeknownst to the contestants, the three from each team that are chosen to be models will have more than just their outfits in the spotlight.
Assigned Outfits:
Team Ebisu: Minstrel Outfit(Aaron), Courtesan Outfit(Mirai), Blacksmith Outfit(Raul)
Team Fudo: Knight Outfit(Gabriel), Serf Outfit(Jenae), Beggar Outfit(Mark)
Team Hayaji: King Outfit(Simon), Maid Outfit(Monica), Prince Outfit(Zaheen)
Team Inari: Jester Outfit(Cherry), Princess Outfit(Ash), Queen Outfit(Ellie)
Location: Cloch Mountain Range
Contestant(s): Alison, Erin, Gabriel, Monica, Phooko, Zaheen, Zaiyrin
"Ugh...it's so cold up here…" Alison groaned as she clung to Gabriel's shoulder before he shook her off.
"Complaining will not help us find the materials we need for our knight outfit." He explained. "And I want to make sure that both you and Erin put in a fair amount of effort. If I catch either one of you slacking off, you'll be subject to the chopping block should we lose."
"Perhaps our fearless leader should lead by example and help out." Erin scoffed.
Confessional: Erin: Team Fudo
"I can understand Gabriel's concern with how my desire to perform research is greater than my desire to socialize with the team, but I've never once slacked in challenges, that's all the British bitch. I'm also extra annoyed since I was under the impression that my role of tending to our camp's fire was enough to secure my immediate safety. Perhaps I'll have a talk with Watts about getting Jenae and Alison to stop fighting over Gabriel's ass and to kick it off the show instead."
End Confessional
Confessional: Gabriel: Team Fudo
"So, I know Erin's probably going to be pissed at me for saying what I did, but if I confront Alison about her behaviour alone...well, she's sure to take everything the wrong way. She's a basic bitch, but she's still attractive and she knows it, so I've made sure Erin's come along with me, to give a serious air to the challenge and to protect my innocence. Her temporary anger is a small price to pay for my sanity."
End Confessional
"Heeerrreee we gooo…" Phooko hummed happily as he happened across a mineral deposit just inside a cave entrance.
"That sure is a nice haul, Ebisu tadpole." Zaiyrin snickered as he approached with a pickaxe. "No need to worry of course, I'll go further in for my own. I just would like a moment of your time."
"Well, I suppose this deposit isn't going anywhere." Phooko shrugged. "What do you want, fox?"
"Fox! I like it! It's the Inari animal true, but they also have a reputation for being cunning, which fits me perfectly, you know!"
"Come on, enough self aggrandizing. Ask what you want to ask."
Zaiyrin snickered as a smile appeared on his lips.
"Do you happen to have knowledge of the holder of the Fish Medal clue?"
Phooko rose a brow. "That's one of the things Freya gave as a reward for making her blush, right? Information on who had which clue?"
"Indeed." Zaiyrin quickly spun around, flashily showing off his pickaxe. "And I thought I'd let you know yours if you didn't already. After all, in not too long, the teams will be shuffled, and it's about time we made friends with people across the island, don't you think?"
Confessional: Phooko: Team Ebisu
"I have zero clue as to what Zaiyrin might be thinking or planning or plotting or whatever he does to determine the actions he takes, but he's right about one thing: I need friends on other teams. I hit it off pretty good with Gabriel last week, and I suppose Zaiyrin couldn't hurt as an ally."
End Confessional
"Alright, you've got me. I don't know shit about any medal clues." Phooko admitted. "Who found my team's cl-?"
"Your Warrior, Raul." Zaiyrin replied before Phooko could even finish the question. "And if he hasn't told you even now...I'm fairly certain that you can consider yourself on the outside of your team's majority alliance. I encourage you to be careful going forwards. Do not let the fish face the fire, or you might find yourself fried."
"Uhhh-huh…" Phooko squinted at Zaiyrin before returning to mining the mineral deposit.
Confessional: Zaiyrin: Team Inari
"Phooko might be a Level 1 Villager, but I can see excellent growth rates in him, so I've made a bit of an investment. Never hurts to have a spy in the water team. Especially when that sharp-witted detective is keeping me from investigating them in-person."
End Confessional
"I...think we have enough jewels darling…" Zaheen explained to Monica as she struggled to carry a large sack of rubble that contained false gemstones.
"Just a little more, Zaheen, please, I need you to pull through for this." Monica pleaded as she ran her hand along the cavern wall. "I promise to show you something good if you promise to stick with me for a while longer."
"Oh, very well, darling. I haven't much else to do I suppose. But do hurry please, my arms are killing me."
"I'll carry the bag back, but I just need both hands for about a minute… THERE!"
"Where?" Zaheen, jumped with a startle.
"Here!" Monica pryed part of what looked to be a cavern wall off of the cave, to reveal that it was in fact the hidden Force Immunity Medal.
"We've got one Zaheen."
"Devious." The illusionist noted. "You used Christa's clue to find it, I imagine?"
"I needed to." Monica replied. "I can't risk Simon or Claude getting their hands on it. Claude especially."
Confessional: Monica: Team Hayaji
"I've seen their auditions and interviews. Claude's secret hobby...yeesh it's disturbing. That's how serial killers start out, torturing and killing animals, you know."
End Confessional
Confessional: Zaheen: Team Hayaji
"I have the smallest of suspicions that Monica was attempting to force me into an alliance with her by showing me the act of her finding that medal. She's going to find it a little harder than that to keep my loyalty however." Zaheen twists her hat around with a confident smirk. "But for now, let's see exactly where that girl plans to girl, shall we?"
End Confessional
Location: Upper Ceol Fields
Contestant(s): Claude, Ellie, Gran, Mark, Simon, Vanessa, Watts
"And I'm telling you it needs to be Erin!" Mark and Watts were arguing with each other over who to vote off first if they lost the challenge, even as they both began spinning threads to make cloth for the outfits.
"Come on, man, for the hundredth time, it has to be Alison! Look, there's no way she's going to choose you over Gabriel, even if Gabriel rejects her."
"And there's no way Erin's going to ever like you back, she clearly just wants to work on her science shit!"
"Ladies, ladies" Gran laughed from where he and Ellie were working on their own cloth. "Care to take your bitchfest somewhere with less people trying to work?"
Both Mark and Watts noticed Gran, Ellie, Simon, and Vanessa all staring at them.
"Let's just settle this by seeing who can produce more cloth." Watts mumbled.
"Agreed." Mark responded just as quietly.
"Vanessa, where's Raul?" Simon asked. "When Christa and I were looking around the woods, we noticed that the two of you were always together."
Vanessa couldn't fight the blush that appeared on her face. "Oh. He's back down at the bog right now. We're going to have him model one of the outfits, so Rashi's down with the other models, making sure that everything fits them correctly. Not to sound too arrogant, but...well I don't think it'll be much of a problem. I have a bit of a knack for artistic creations."
Confessional: Vanessa: Team Ebisu
"Okay...can I just say...that I really like this challenge? We get to design and make clothes, and then model them, and that's it! No frantic running to beat some clock, no doing gross things, no subterfuge necessary. It's such a peaceful and artsy challenge, and I love it!"
End Confessional
"Damn, Ellie, you're going fast." Gran remarked to his teammate who laughed with a smile.
"Well of course I am! This is my challenge to win, after all!"
Confessional: Ellie: Team Inari
"Knowing Zaiyrin, he's going to make all the women model the outfits we've been given. And since we have a princess and queen outfit to make, I guess it makes some sense, but to be honest...I think it's a bad idea to put Ash, or even Cherry, for that matter, up on the runway. The former is bound to do something to ruin her clothes, and the latter...Well there's no way Cherry will be enthusiastic about showing off her clothes to anyone."
End Confessional
"Hey…" Simon looked around. "Have any of you seen Claude? He was supposed to be here with me."
"No, I haven't seen him." Vanessa shook her head.
"Sorry dude, not a trace since the last challenge." Watts shrugged.
"I think he was further north, but I could be wrong." Mark suggested half-heartedly.
"Well, he better not be going through our camp, that's all I have to say about it." Gran stretched before continuing to work.
Simon stood up. "He's supposed to be the one to put together all these clothes, why is he off on his own?"
Almost immediately, as if to answer the question, a growling yelp echoed throughout the field.
"The trap!" Ellie exclaimed as she stood upright.
Gran and Watts both stood up along with Simon and rushed after her as she led them to where Claude was holding a sharpened stick over the fox trap that Zaiyrin had created.
And inside the trap was a fox, with a red, bloody hole pierced in its hip, about the size of Claude's equally bloody stick in diameter.
"You monster!" Gran shouted. "I'm about to disappear your ass!"
"Gran wait-!" Ellie's eyes widened, worried, but Gran didn't try any magic tricks, instead opting to charge at Claude with a right hook.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Claude rose both his arms as he dodged the blow and backed up. "I get it, it's your animal to torture. I'll find another one."
"The problem was you thinking about torturing it in the first place!" Gran shouted.
He turned to Simon.
"You! If Hayaji loses this challenge, you'll vote that maniac off, right?"
Confessional: Simon: Team Hayaji
"Well, this is an unnerving turn of events, but at the risk of sounding apathetic towards the fox, it's exactly the kind of leverage I need to convince Monica that hey, maybe I should stay in this game."
End Confessional
"Watts, you look ready to kill." Claude observed. "I assure you all, no ill-will is meant towards any of you. I'm perfectly safe to be around."
"That fox probably has a family to take care of, and it's bad enough it was caught in the trap to begin with." Watts shook his head before clutching the dog tags around his neck. "You can't just decide to throw another's life away like it means nothing!" He shouted before storming off.
"I catch you around here again, butler, I kick your ass to last week!" Gran pointed forcefully as Ellie dragged him away.
"Claude…" Simon shook his head in disappointment.
"I...I don't suppose my vote might make up for it and allow you to keep it a secret between us?" Claude asked.
"For now, we should get back to the challenge." Simon sighed. "You have clothes to tailor."
Location: Cailleach Bog
Contestant(s): Aaron, Ash, Cherry, Jenae, Mirai, Rashi, Raul
"Pluck…" Aaron plucked a string on his makeshift dulcimer. "Sounds in tune to me, what about you three?" He turned to his teammates.
"This dress Vanessa made is so great!" Mirai smiled as she admired her rather revealing courtesan robes.
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"Mirai in the outfit of an upper class renaissance whore? Every guy's dream come true. Or well, this guy's dream come true at least."
End Confessional
"It sounds fine, it sounds fine." Rashi replied tensely as she tightened Raul's blacksmith outfit around him.
"This iz ridiculous…" Cherry sighed from her flamboyant court jester costume as she helped Ash into the princess dress. "You remember to move slowly, oui? You will not be the klutz you normally are, will you?"
"Eh-heh." Ash laughed. "Slowly, I hear you loud and clear, Cherry."
Confessional: Ash: Team Inari
"I can do this, I can do this. It's just walking, super super slowly down a runway. That's all it is. And I'll have Cherry and Ellie to help out if I do mess up. But I'm not gonna mess up! I'll be fine! Everything...will be fine…"
End Confessional
"You gotta be kidding me!" Jenae stepped out in dirty farm clothes. "I have to wear this shit and look proud about it? I swear those boys are this close to getting their asses booted off the show!"
"Rough time on your team, I take it?" Jenae read the note that Raul shoved in her face. "Yeah, you could say that, big guy. The other girls rarely actively help out, and two of the guys are always undermining me. The last guy is as aloof about his team's relationships as he is cute."
Confessional: Jenae: Team Fudo
"You know, cute like a puppy dog though! Not like sexy cute. Not like the 'I really want to lay my hands on that forbidden fruit' kind of cute. Just you know, a sort of empirical cute."
End Confessional
"Aaannnnd I think that'll do it campers!" Chris announced. "Everyone appears to be all set in their clothes if they're modelling, so let's meet back up at Ionad for the show!"
Location: Ionad Desert
Contestant(s): All Remaining
"Welcome my most wonderful audience to the first and only Crios Cath Le Rouge fashion show!" Davon announced. "We have with us guest judges Chris McLean and Chef Hatchett who will join me in determining the 'chic' from the 'so last week!' It's a renaissance of fashion, with some Le Rouge passion thrown in! Without further ado, I'll take my empty seat at the judges table and we'll move down the list of contenders. First four, come on up!"
Simon, Aaron, Cherry, and Gabriel all walked out onto the stage.
Simon was clearly dressed as some sort of king, but thanks to the materials used, he looked like some kind of orc king that lived in the swamp.
Aaron was much more clearly portraying a wandering minstrel, the colors complemented his skin and hair almost perfectly.
Cherry's bright yellow jester suit gave Chef and Chris a lot of trouble holding in their laughter.
"She looks like an angry banana." Rashi whispered to Phooko sitting beside her.
Finally Gabriel was in shoddily made armor, but he made a rather convincing case for portraying a knight.
"Now, time for the models to show their stuff!" Davon announced. "We'll start off with King Simon over here. Come on down so the judges can get a look at you, Sir Telamon!"
"Uh, alright, here goes nothing" Simon walked down the stage, unsure, exactly, of what to do. Davon seemed to enjoy it though.
"Bravo, absolutely marvelous! Chris Chef, what do you guys think?"
"Well kid…" Chef responded. "I think any man who can walk like that using only one real leg is worthy of respect, even if he looks like an ogre."
"Wait a minute…" Simon rose a brow confused.
"I think he could go pretty far. Not sure about kingdom though!" Chris laughed. "After all, he came from the same school Stephanie of Nui Kaua came from. He might have inherited some of her bad luck!"
"Oh crud…" Aaron gulped as he locked eyes with a confidently grinning Davon.
Confessional: Davon
"That's correct! It's not simply the outfits being judged! It's the character of the contestants themselves! Beauty is my ultimate ideal, but appearance is only half of true beauty. Without personality to match their hollowness will be revealed for all to see! Of course...one could always just refuse to walk the runway. But that will require quite the amount of explaining won't it?"
End Confessional
"Chris, Chef, final scores for Simon?"
"Well, I personally don't enjoy the neutral competitors in a season, they're too idle. 1.9 is my rating." Chris replied.
"One leg is all you need, soldier!" Chef gave a salute. "8.1!"
"And since someone has to rate your attire, I'll handle that part." Davon laughed. "You might look like a swamp king, but you look like a king nonetheless. You've earned yourself a 7.2! That's a 17.2 out of 30 for Simon!"
Confessional: Simon: Team Hayaji
"17.2 out of 30 isn't the worst I could do, but I definitely didn't need them telling everyone about my prosthetic leg like it was such a big deal."
End Confessional
"Aaron…" Davon called with a finger. "You're up next, get down here!"
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"Think quickly, Aaron, think quickly right now! You can't just not go down there, but you can't let people find out about the real you! That would be devastating! Oh, wait! I know!"
End Confessional
"Here comes the minstrel!" Aaron shouted as he began to play loudly on the makeshift dulcimer as part of his costume.
Chris and Chef both yelled a bunch of words that none of the other contestants could hear before holding up a 0.4 and 1.0 respectively. Aaron then drummed down the song after Davon, still smiling confidently, awarded him a full 10.00 points for pulling off a remarkable minstrel act.
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"He's still happy, why is he still happy? Why is he still happy?"
End Confessional
"Will the good Lady Blanchet please come forward?" Davon requested as Cherry rolled her eyes and strutted down the runway.
Chris broke out into a fit of laughter before giving her a 10.0
Chef also laughed a bit, but wasn't quite as impressed. "Soldier, you should've had the Zaiyrin boy wearing the fool outfit. It really really don't suit you. 4.1."
"I'm afraid I must concur with Chef on this one, m'lady." Davon shrugged. "You'd have been better served wearing the outfit of your family's circus."
"You don't have to tell me twice." Cherry crossed her arms. "It's our problem captain you need a word with."
Gabriel's turn was next.
"Ah, now here's a contestant I only sometimes get tired of!" Chris smiled. "He's like a male Helen, so here's a 6.7!"
"6.3 from me. Too much of his politician dad's rubbed off on him." Chef crossed his arms.
"Sir Peterson, your armor...it doesn't cover your body. It barely covers your essential organs. I'm afraid I must deduct quite a few points. Your total is .4"
"Ouch." Gabriel rubbed his arm.
"And that's our first round!" Davon announced to the audience, now holding the first round models with them.
"Team Hayaji has a total score of 17.2
Team Ebisu has a total score of 11.4
Team Inari has a total score of 17.6
Team Fudo has a total score of 13.4.
However, there are still two rounds left! Let's see if anything changes!"
Monica, Mirai, Ash, and Jenae all walked out onto the stage.
Monica was dressed in a very victorian-looking maid outfit, that seemed to really suit her figure.
Mirai was of course garbed in robes that showed off her body's curves, though the color scheme left a lot to be desired.
Ash was in a large poofy dress that she very clearly did not seem at home in. The color went well with her complexion, and the dress itself fit her figure to a tee, but her posture was that of a deer in headlights.
Finally, Jenae, in her dirty farmer clothes.
"*mumble mumble* racist *mutter mutter*" She grumbled under her breath.
"Lady Sanders…" Davon beckoned to Monica as she walked down the runway.
"Now here is a contestant!" Chris announced. "She's got strategy and isn't afraid of getting her hands dirty. The best part is she's never seen the show so she isn't channeling some other contestant to get by, she's doing this on her own terms! 9.8!"
"She might not be as ruthless as a soldier ought to be to their enemies, but she understands the no man left behind code." Chef nodded. "7.0"
"And that maid outfit looks wonderfully fitted to you, m'lady Sanders." Davon gave a quick bow. "A 9.3 from me."
Confessional: Monica: Team Hayaji
"Yeah, I knew I was going to get a good score, that's why I volunteered for maid. Look, when I'm leading my team, we do well, it's as simple as that, and if Donny or Christa had realized that at the start they'd both still be here." She pauses for a moment. "But don't worry Christa, I'll win for you too. Winning will serve as my apology."
End Confessional
"M'lady Endimion!" Davon called out to Mirai, who happily strutted down the runway.
"Now, I just love the contestants who stir the pot, and Mirai here is a professional pot-stirrer!" Chris announced. "9.8 once again!"
"Girl is strong, that's for sure." Chef nodded. "That's a 7.8 right there."
"And the outfit is wonderful…" Davon added. "If perhaps the colors don't quite compliment the model. 8.2 for generosity's sake."
Confessional: Mirai: Team Ebisu
"Wooo! Mirai on the runway scoring the points for the water team! All the other models can EAT EBISU'S DUST!"
End Confessional
Ash was called up next, and she made it no more than a quarter down the runway before spraining her ankle thanks to a poorly fashioned shoe.
As she fell to the floor of the runway, the broken shoe tore through her dress, leaving her in little more than a girdle and a petticoat.
Her scores were abysmal. A .4 from Chris, a 2.8 from Chef, and a sad .6 from Davon.
"Ah, if only she were able to make the walk…" He shook his head. "That outfit looked wonderful at a distance but I wasn't able to judge it up close."
Finally, it was Jenae's turn for the round.
Despite her grumbling, she very easily strutted down the runway.
"She's too all over the place with her decisions!" Chris announced. "1.8!"
"Hey!" Jenae shouted.
"She takes what she wants by force, good job soldier!" Chef saluted. "5.6!"
"Better." Jenae crossed her arms and looked at Davon expectantly. "Well, pretty boy? Do I look like a serf or what?"
"You do very much indeed, Lady Brooks." Davon bowed with a smile. "A 9.0 for you."
He then turned around.
"Let's see our updated scores at the end of this second round, shall we?
Team Hayaji now has a total of 43.3
Team Ebisu now has a total of 37.2
Team Inari now has a total of 21.4
Team Fudo now has a total of 29.8
There is still one round left however, and any team can come out on top!"
Confessional: Simon: Team Hayaji
"Is it...is it possible...that we might actually win for once?!"
End Confessional
As the final round began, the last model from each team stepped up to the stage for the runway.
Zaheen was pulling of an amazing prince look, dressed in exactly the kind of fancy clothes a prince might have donned.
Raul also naturally fit into his blacksmith outfit, owing to his large size and muscles. The burned throat injury only helped sell his role even more.
Ellie was captivating the crowd with her queen outfit, which not only fit her perfectly, but also had a color scheme complementary of her hair and eyes.
Even Mark, dressed in little more than rags to look like a beggar, was pulling his look off with aplomb.
Davon called Zaheen down.
"Now here's a tricky one…" Chris decided. "She's just as likely to cause a blindside as she is to get hit by one, but I admire the confidence! 7.5!"
"Thank you, dahhhling." Zaheen imitated a fashion designer accent.
"Not much of a soldier, though. Could barely handle the shakes we had a couple o' weeks ago." Chef shook his head. "3.8!"
"You wound me, dahhhling…" Zaheen at least seemed to be having fun.
"The good news is that the suit does wonders for your score, m'lady Bakshi." Davon bowed. "9.1"
He turned.
"This means, Team Hayaji...that your final score is...63.7! That is the score to beat!"
Confessional: Zaheen: Team Hayaji
"All things considered, a fairly good score, if I do say so myself."
End Confessional
"Sir Soto!" Davon beckoned Raul down.
"I can't help it, I have a bit of a fondness for the large and quiet contestants." Chris admitted. "But this one also manages to actually communicate with the others, which is a bonus! He's also got a bunch of guts, allying with his team's clear antagonist! 7.0!"
"This man fought with the destructive force of nature itself and is alive to tell the tale." Chef gave a nod. "Easy 9.5, soldier! You'll get the extra .5 when you get rid of the shark in your lake!"
"And this is all to say nothing of your outfit!" Davon motioned to it. "The genuine ash smears. The sweat on your brow, your throat. Truly you were the choice model. 9.8!"
Davon turned.
"This means, Team Ebisu...that your final score is...63.5! Oooh, soo close to the mark, yet so far from it!"
He momentarily locked eyes with Aaron again. "Good luck" He mouthed to a detective who was smiling back but concealing very real worry.
Confessional: Aaron: Team Ebisu
"No, no, no, NO! I can't let Raul know anything about my personality, that would ruin me! Does he believe anything he heard up there though? Maybe I can convince him to think everything he heard was a lie."
End Confessional
Confessional: Raul: Team Ebisu
Raul spends quite a bit of time writing on multiple note sheets before holding them up to the confessional screen. "I can't tell if what Chris or Chef said had any truth to it or not, but I do know that Aaron get fairly low scores from them during his phase of the challenge, and that's what is most suspicious to me. What did he drown out with that song of his? I'll keep my faith in him for now, since he hasn't steered Ebisu wrong yet, but you know what they say. What good is faith without doubt?"
End Confessional
Immediately, Team Hayaji erupted into cheers.
"We did it! We aren't going to Tine Naofa, finally!" Monica sighed in relief.
"It might have only been by two tenths of a point...but it's good to know we're all safe, and that we can win challenges if we just try to." Simon concurred.
"M'Lady Woods!" Davon called down.
"Now, A quiet girl like Ellie managed to win the original Zero Sum." Chris announced. "But Ellie herself is a little more social and independent. We'll see where her alliance takes her! 7.3!" Chris announced.
"Girl's tougher than a lotta people'd give her credit for at first glance." Chef announced. "8.2"
"And a whopping 10.0 for the outfit!" Davon praised. "Absolutely stunning, tremendous design. Why, one might almost think you were a professional!"
"I...sort of am…" Ellie mumbled with an eye roll.
"Unfortunately…Team Inari...your final score, even with Ellie's tremendous performance just now… is a 46.9. However, there's still time. Let's see how Sir Galaxy's performance will play out!"
Confessional: Mark: Team Fudo
"If it was a physical challenge, I'd probably just give up from pressure, but all I have to do is walk down a runway and stand there for a bit? Easy! There's no tomorrow without today, after all."
End Confessional
"Oh, now I really like this one, because it's only a matter of time before I break him, and I can't wait to see the look on his face when that happens!" Chris laughed. "8.9 for him."
"He understands that picking your battles is important, but he doesn't understand that wimping your way out of battles is unacceptable." Chef decided. "6.8 for you."
"Sir Galaxy's personality aside, his beggar outfit holds its own pretty well." Davon nodded. "I think a...7.2 is in order...yes."
He stood up and turned around.
"And that...Team Fudo...Brings your score...up...to…
…
…
…
…
…
….
….
…. 52.7, a comfortable third place. In second place is Ebisu, and Hayaji has finally managed to win a challenge! Unfortunately, Team Inari...you'll be heading back to Tine Naofa tonight. I'm sorry that you have to go through it again."
Confessional: Zaiyrin: Team Inari
"And we are sent back to Tine Naofa. I am under no illusions of safety, but thankfully, my genius has allowed me a fairly easy escape."
End Confessional
"Not before Hayaji spins the Wheel of Reward, however, and takes away an Inari resource!" Chris announced.
For getting the highest score, Monica was selected to spin the wheel. "Why couldnt a team with better amentities have lost?"
After a quick spin, Hayaji had won some team towels, which all things considered, they were excited to used as blankets against the mountain cold.
Location: Tine Naofa Bonfire Elimination Ceremony
Contestant(s): Ash, Cherry, Ellie, Gran, Zaiyrin
"Inari…" Chris looked disappointed. "What happened? I thought you had found your footing after not seeing you here for the past two weeks. You and Hayaji are hogging all the eliminations. Save some for the other two!"
"Gladly!" Gran spoke up.
"The way I see it, we can blame this loss squarely on two people." Cherry crossed her legs. "The idiot who destroyed her outfit before it could be judged properly-" She pointed at Ash. "Or the idiot who made her a model in the first place." She pointed at Zaiyrin.
"Cherry, as always, getting straight to the point of the ceremony." Chris laughed. "Ash, you think it's you VS Zaiyrin on the chopping block tonight?"
"I know it's me VS Zaiyrin on the chopping block tonight, and I'm rightly terrified, because the other three can always just duct-tape Zaiyrin's mouth shut or ignore him but my...unfortunate-ness...that's something that can't be fixed. I'd argue though, that I'm far more loyal and not nearly as much of a mental pain to be around!"
"The words cut me like a sharpened blade with a high critical hit ratio." Zaiyrin shook his head.
"Let us not be so quick to dismiss that my strategies have spared us from elimination for the past two weeks. Tonight was simply a fluke due to a change in Hayaji leadership. I submit to you that, should I be allowed to stay, I will personally see to it that Inari comes in first place in next week's challenge. If I don't, feel free to vote me off then."
"Oh come on, we have no way to know if that's true!" Ash replied. "Please...guys...even just one of you...help…"
"Well, we're really short on time right now, so let's start the vote! Gran, you're up first!"
Confessional: Gran: Team Inari
"Sorry...but you had to know this was coming."
End Confessional
Ellie walked up next.
Confessional: Ellie: Team Inari
"Ash... This is as hard for me as it is for you."
End Confessional
Then Ash's turn was up.
Confessional: Ash: Team Inari
"Zaiyrin, you needed to stop boasting about how smart you are and start proving it, but you didn't."
End Confessional
Cherry followed her.
Confessional: Cherry: Team Inari
"Pourquoi?"
End Confessional
And finally, Zaiyrin got up and voted.
Confessional: Zaiyrin: Team Inari
"Ash, Your luck stat is just too abysmally low...and Gran's got low enough luck as it is already. I'd rather my party not compound on weaknesses. I hope you understand."
End Confessional
"I'll go tally the votes." Chris announced. He came back almost immediately.
"Like I said, time constraints. I have here with me four medals. If I call your name, come up and take a medal. If you do not receive a medal, you will be asked to enter the Tome of Shame, and give up any hope of winning money on this season of Total Drama. But first...if anyone has the Fox Immunity Medal...and would like to play it...for themselves or another Inari...now would be the time to do so."
"Well Ellie, feel like playing the medal?" Zaiyrin hazarded a guess.
"I don't even have it." Ellie, technically, didn't lie.
She'd left her bag back at the Inari campsite. "Stop looking for shadows in darkness."
"In that case…" Chris started up again when he was sure no medal would be played. "The first medal goes to...Gran."
"Whew." Gran stood up.
"Ellie gets the second one…And Cherry gets the third."
Ellie and Cherry both stood up to receive their medals and stood next to Gran as well.
"Ash, Zaiyrin…" Chris held up the last medal. "This is the final medal of the evening…
…
…
…
…
…
And it goes to…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
… Zaiyrin." Chris smiled. Zaiyrin stood up and grabbed the final medal.
"Inari will win next week. I hereby accept this quest, and will see it fulfilled."
He turned back to Ash. "I'm sorry."
"Yeah…" Ash sighed. "I know, don't worry."
Confessional: Zaiyrin: Team Inari
"For what it's worth, I didn't put Ash there so she could screw up and take some heat off of me, I put her there because I thought she'd be able to pull it off. No true hero would ever want his team to lose after he got to know them."
End Confessional
"Well guys…" Ash shrugged. "It's been fun, but Chris probably has to walk me into the Tomb of Shame, or else I might get stuck in quicksand or something."
"That's right!" Chris nodded as he began to usher Ash towards the Tomb of Shame and looked straight at the camera. "Now only 20 remain! Can Aaron keep up his good guy act? Will Watts and Mark ever make up with each other? Has Monica actually turned things around for Hayaji? Find out maybe one of these...maybe...Next time!
On Total!
Drama!
Niiiiiiiiialasach!"
*Ash's Final Confessional:
"Well...not my finest performance, I'll admit, but at least I wasn't the first one off of my team, that was honestly my biggest fear going into this. I guess I'm rooting for my Inari friends to pull through now. I wouldn't mind if Zaiyrin was dealt a slice of humble pie though, eheh. Well...I guess that's about all I got. I'll leave now before I somehow break this thing."
End Confessional*
The Votes(for those who are curious)
Ash voted for… Zaiyrin
Cherry voted for… Ash
Ellie voted for… Zaiyrin
Gran voted for… Ash
Zaiyrin voted for… Ash
Confessional: Ellie: Team Inari
"I'm sorry Ash...I didn't bring it with me...because I knew I'd be safe…Just know that I would have helped you...because you were honest, and you asked."
End Confessional
Location: Neart Highlands (Team Fudo Campsite, Cabin)
Contestant(s): Alison, Watts
"I'm coming in." Watts announced as he opened the door to find Alison snoring in a corner of the room.
"Attractive my ass…" He mumbled.
Confessional: Watts: Team Fudo
"So, I was heading into the cabin to sleep somewhere away from Mark since I'm still pissed at him, and then I saw it, after turning around from Alison."
Postpone Confessional
Watts turned around to see the wall where the varnish had been stripped off, revealing all the letters and strange equations.
His eyes lit up.
He, of all people, knew what they were and who had left them there.
Resume Confessional
"Now, I don't know if I believe in fate...but this...this feels like it's a gift to me specifically…"
Postpone Confessional
Watts quickly took one of Alison's shoes and, with a near religious fervor, began to scrub the entire wall clean of its coating, revealing the entire wall, one end of the cabin to the other, full of the same writing.
"James?..." Alison stretched. "What are you doing here?"
"Alison!" Watts rushed up to her. "Let me stay in this cabin, please, you have to! I'll vote with you, I'll help you get together with Gabriel or Mark or... whatever! But I need to have access to that wall."
"Oh, you understand that weird nerd-writing after all?" Alison yawned. "And here I thought it might not have been maths."
"It's not math, Alison."
"Maths." Alison corrected.
"You British-" Watts stopped himself. "It's not maths Alison...This cabin...this whole cabin...is covered wall to wall...in specific Zero Sum strategy plays."
Resume Confessional
"I promise you now, Hubert, to use your work to its fullest potential. I hope you don't mind if I put my own spin on them though." Watts winks with a smile before reaching for the camera.
End Confessional
A/N: Alright, let's talk about Ash for a bit.
First off, a huge thankyou to ninjedi for sending her in, and a huge apology to ninjedi for how unlucky Ash was with her placing. Like I say each time in these early boot episodes, Ash was just a victim of being on the wrong team at the wrong time. Ultimately, no realistic plot would take her anywhere, so I kept her around for as long as I could but I suppose that's the fate of characters designed to be unlucky or klutzy. Hard to tie too many long-lasting narrative threads to characters like them. That said, I really liked her character's general optimism, so I knew that when she left, it would have to be for a sad reason (ie Ellie legit trying to help her but forgetting her medal back at camp). Something to highlight how unlucky Ash actually was. Just like Davon's elimination in the original Zero Sum, I was going for a feeling where those who wanted Ash to continue, even if just for a little bit, would say "dang, if only this had happened." All this said, it's not like Ash is gone for good, as she gets to come back for the finale, where she'll have plenty of time to let her confidence shine, they way it was meant to.
For those of you wondering, Ash's alignment was Neutral Good. She didn't have much presence, but she always strove to do the right thing and to keep people happy.
Having gone over her actions this season, Ash has been awarded the status of: Neutral
Why?: Well, mainly because of her lack of presence. When she was there, she was usually happy and friendly, but on team with Zaiyrin, Cherry, and even Gran, it's pretty easy to be overshadowed, and it's not like Ash ever went out of her way to do something good or to oppose some villain. That's why, despite being a pretty good person in general, as a player, Ash receives a Neutral title for me.
Ash's best moment?: Really hard to pin one down, since, once again, she often found herself playing second fiddle to a larger personality in the same scene. I guess I enjoyed her running gimmick of crashing into the grill that Inari couldn't use without charcoal anyways. Like I said though, she was usually swallowed up by Zaiyrin in terms of attention.
But all of that's just me. Let me know what you guys think!
Perci's challenge is up next. What on earth do you think that one could possibly be?
Any predictions for what might happen in the future?
And, as always, thank you for reading!
