Survivor - Heroes vs Villains

by KoopalingFan

(Season 5) The time has come for Survivor to have its very first All Star season with Smash characters and other miscellaneous franchises in the mix. Twenty returning competitors from the previous four season have all come once again to battle one more time in an attempt to earn the title of Sole Survivor. Episode 15: We're All We Have Out Here

43. Chapter 43: Day 37

Survivor - Heroes vs Villains

Chapter 43 - Day 37

Well,... it's here. The finale is finally starting. Long overdue, yes. But hopefully the wait was really worth it. We started out with twenty players, only five players are left, and two more people are getting knocked with a couple chapters in order for us to have our final three. And whoever wins, gets to be the first ever All Star winner of this series.

There is going to be so much to talk about soon between now and the reunion show. Not just about this season, or the whole series, but my entire Fanfiction life as a whole. Because I've been posting fanfictions since December of 2011 and I past the ten year mark during the airing of Survivor - Caribbean. But I never really had the chance to celebrate it properly. So the best thing I can do is to celebrate with this story. And now with this story coming to an end soon, maybe it'd be nice to take a look back on my history and this series history at the same time. Ugh... So much to do. I hope I remember everything lol. I'm even behind revealing castaways for season six, so I'm going to reveal at least two characters per chapter for now on.

We're gonna jump straight in to Master Hand being seen live in Los Angeles as always.

(By the way, I do have the intro for the season playing again one last time for this episode. And if you all forgot how to get to it (it has been a while since I posted anything on there), type in "survivor - heroes vs villains intro koopalingfan" in the YouTube search bar)

~KF

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SURVIVOR - HEROES VS VILLAINS

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This was officially the beginning of the end.

So, the proper way to start the finale of the first ever All Star season was to find Master Hand backstage. The camera was showing a view of a first person's perspective as if the viewer was trying to find his room. And upon reaching his door, out he came.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting. I wouldn't want to miss a special night like this." Alright. So he was late, but still maintained his professionalism. That was the best way to handle it. "How are we doing, ladies and gentleman? I am so glad you are able to join us this evening."

The production member began following Master Hand in the backstage area around as he continued to talk.

"When this series first started, I thought it would be fun little idea to gather twenty people from different worlds and different walks of life to battle each other in the wilderness. It's safe to say that I love watching people compete. So when the first group of castaways came out on Kodai Island, it seemed like they were doing whatever it took for them to twin. Putting themselves into brutal challenges, having sleepless nights, and them constantly dealing with the limited food supply only made things all the more difficult for them. Yet, they still continue to fight until their torches went out. People all over the universe liked what they saw, and so it went from a one off season to a whole series."

"We went on to produce three more seasons. Afterwards, we were able to get to a point where we felt it was appropriate to do All Stars. And what better way to do it than to have ten of the most heroic characters of the show compete against ten of the most notorious villains? A concept like that works for anything. Twenty returning players dealing with the elements and each other once again, and now we are down five." He used his whole entire hand to display five fingers. "Five contestants remain, and I'm glad they all made the finale episode to be part of this special moment."

It appeared that the camera man and the host were finally on the main stage.

"...Welcome to the season finale of SURVIVOR - HEROES VS VILLAINS!"

Music: Battlefield (Super Smash Bros. Ultimate)

And upon the camera showing the entire audience, they jumped and cheered as loud as possible... all just to make a point. Well, it was justified. This was the finale of the very first All Star season of the series, so it was kind of a big deal. There was a reason why a certain song off the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate soundtrack was appropriate to be playing at that moment.

"We are so packed, I better check in with my team in a minute to make sure we're not over capacity." Yes, because even the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Arena had its limits. If the place was overcrowded, it was going to be a safety hazard, and it would have led to things being out of control... such as certain music events in the entertainment industry.

If those caught the reference, they deserved a free cookie. But for those that did not, that was okay too. It was going to be explained at the end regardless.

"But with a crowd like this, it really goes to show how much they care about the series. It wouldn't have went on for as long as it did if it weren't for each and every one of you tuning in episode after episode. Your loyalty is much appreciated. And because of you guys, we actually plan to have the series to continue after this season is wrapped up. The funny thing is, we weren't even expecting ourselves to continue this show." It was no secret at that point, but Master Hand himself probably wanted to make sure everyone knew it. "That fan support is everything, and I gotta say that it is still very strong. So that is why we're going to be continuing the series with Survivor - India, which we will talk about much later on. But for now, we need to finish this season in particular."

"We have five players that are still in the running to win." His full hand needed to be put to use again to count on his fingers. "Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Wolf, Ryu, and Plague Knight. Five different players with five unique strategies. Every one of those players have made their mark on the show in their own way, and one of them is going to be the winner of this season. We are going to have our final three, then we will reveal who received the most jury votes, we will go on to have all twenty players sit down together as they discuss their personal journeys with this show. We may even touch on some more familiar faces that weren't even on this season. There is so much we have planned for the upcoming reunion show that I fear I might be running out of time with this segment, so the best thing to do is to simply stay tuned. Don't you go anywhere. Let's go ahead and start this thing already. It is the season finale of Survivor - Heroes vs Villains!"

The crowd went crazy once more as the camera zoomed in one of the screens nearby showcasing the logo of the season.

---

Twenty of our most notable Survivor contestants have returned to take part in the competition one more time...

There was a brief montage of the players riding on helicopters before they were seen stepping out to reveal themselves to Master Hand, ready to begin their second go at the game.

They all came for either revenge or redemption. Though the one thing they all had in common was that they all yearned for the title of Sole Survivor. But due to theme being Heroes vs Villains, the competitive nature of the game was taken to a new level...

"Usually the villains are the ones that are backstabbing, manipulating, and cutting the throats of other people, but it doesn't mean that it's impossible for heroes to win a game like this. We've had three winners that have won this game before, and another winner where he was not really a hero nor a villain." Golden felt that the bad guys had the ability to say whatever they felt like, yet facts did not lie. "So the villains may be more entertaining to watch, but statistics show that it is actually people like us that have the advantage."

"Obviously I am on here due to me making a couple flashy moves against people that I was aligned with. They already know who they are." And Shadow was the perfect example of what a villain in Survivor was. "But hey, it was what I thought was going to get me further. If that's considered villainous by most people, then I own that. I ain't getting to the end of the game by riding coattails and doing nothing. If you've come out here just for the adventure, you're wrong. And you automatically waste a spot that could have went to somebody else that has actually signed up to play the game. I don't know exactly what I would need to do off the bat this time, but at the end of the day, I'm not changing who I am just because people don't like it."

And so, the bloodbath began. With the immediate eliminations of both former winners, Isabelle and Sonic, these players did not come to mess around...

"Morally I feel like a bad person because I feel like I'm betraying Sonic, since he did seem interested in working with me if he could. But strategically, I don't see any benefits from that." Vector did not care if the blue blur came from the same planet as him. "My season was all about balancing morality and strategic gameplay. But this season, I really gotta get my head in the game. I don't know if I'm part of any alliance yet, but I can scratch the two winners and possibly Mario off my list off the bat. There is no point in us keeping the winners here, and Isabelle is conveniently the weakest of the tribe. She doesn't go home tonight, we're in for a world of trouble."

"Isabelle."

"Mario."

"Sonic."

And there was the snuffing of all three of their torches.

The heroes did not have it easy with them continuing to lose tribe members. Yet it did not stop the blindsides from coming...

"Meta Knight."

"Sheik."

"Foxy."

"Specter Knight."

Poor people. The pre-merge was a brutal time for everyone. But it really went on to show that the thirteen players that survived that phase in the game how desperate they were to win that damn money.

After Ryu finally got his revenge on Specter Knight, he ended up being in the same type of alliance as he did in his previous season: the strongest physical competitors of the game. They have attempted to make a pact so that one of them could come out on top...

"Now that we're merged, me and the other members of the new Strong Guys Alliance finally had the chance to get together consisting of myself, Bowser, Donkey Kong, Golden, and Ryu." Yet unlike in Mexico, it was Ridley that was responsible for coming with the idea in the first place.

Yet due to the constant power shift in the game, every post-merge alliance lost members one after the other...

Shadow, Ridley, Vector, and Golden were all shown on screen with their torches being snuffed.

Wolf even had to relive his past and vote out Bowser in ninth place... again.

"My friendship with Bowser has gotten strong since what happened. And strategically, I shouldn't have even approached him when I did. But as a person,... if I just blindsided him like that (even if he was targeting me today), I don't want to end up putting a price on our friendship over some game like this. So my moral compass told me to just do it."

"Bowser."

They were both saddened, yet absolutely nothing changed pertaining to their friendship.

And just recently, Zelda was voted out of the game for the first time ever leaving Yoshi behind as the last member of his alliance...

Her torch was no more. Regardless, seventy-five days was such a good streak, even though Plague Knight and Yoshi were doing a better job not being written off.

Music: Final Destination (Super Smash Bros. Brawl)

Now only five survivors remain...

DONKEY KONG

In his previous season, he entered the merge with Mario, Bowser, and Sonic who were the last four members of their old tribe. And DK ended up being the reason for Mario and Bowser setting aside their differences in order for all of them to work together to overthrow the Tatakai Alliance...

"Nine to four isn't something that would work in my favor in Survivor at all. There are little chances of me being in the majority at this point. Long story short, I really don't think Mario and Bowser pitting themselves against each other is the best idea. We're already on the bottom, and we're just gonna give up? They're just gonna pick us off one by one."

"Eighth person voted out of Survivor and the first member of our jury, Ganondorf."

Words appeared at the bottom of the screen to show DK whispering thank you to Mewtwo. Wolf was there, too. That was when the two of them both officially betrayed the nine person Tatakai Tribe Alliance.

Unfortunately, Mewtwo flipped two rounds later causing DK to leave the game before getting too deep...

"Donkey Kong."

That was one of the stupidest eliminations in Survivor history... Why did people want Mewtwo back again? He voted the man out for no damn reason. Not even Mewtwo himself came up with a decent excuse to why he flipped on him when he had the chance to explain himself at Kodai Island's reunion show.

Coming into Heroes vs Villains, he once again had to put up his team constantly losing tribe members. It was hard time for him to keep any of his allies around...

From Sonic and Mario's torches going out to Golden saying his final goodbyes due to the ape winning immunity, poor DK never had it easy when it came to both of his seasons. Ryu Hoshi was the closest friend he had left.

Speaking of Ryu, there was the scene where he was talking to him the morning after he got the axe. "Golden is my friend... our friend. And this just doesn't feel right. Only good thing that comes out of this is we only have each other left. ...We shouldn't have to worry about turning on each other. So,... whatever you do, just don't vote me out. Okay?"

"You know, this is probably the biggest roller coaster I've ever been on. It's like every little good thing that happens to you, you move two steps right back and you gotta mentally prepare yourself and do the whole thing all over again. ...But, I'll be alright. Survivor is not going to wait until I cheer myself up. It's gonna go on regardless..."

He has been put through the ringer in both seasons he competed in. But now, he is almost at the finish. Will he finally be able to catch a break?

YOSHI

Friendship was the one thing that meant a lot to him throughout his time in Caribbean. Unfortunately, he was a crucial swing vote for a lot of Tribal Councils. And at times it got to a point where it was too much for him to handle, especially after he stood up to K. Rool and sent him to the jury...

"I played a part of people going home before, but... getting rid of K. Rool, completely changing the game, putting some of my own friends on the bottom? All of this is completely my fault! Friendship really means a lot to me, and if this was back at home where I did something like that, my friends would never talk to me again."

His heart was broken after he had to vote out Val near the end, as he would eventually reach the Final Tribal Council. But with the jury not seeing him as a player, him taking friendships in the game seriously was not good enough to win the million dollars...

"The winner of Survivor - Caribbean, Doc Louis!"

Well, at least Charizard still voted for him knowing he was not the best game player. And even K. Rool voted for him as his own way of apologizing. Still, it was not enough as the master stated.

This season, it was mostly more of the same. Although, midway through the game, he found a hidden immunity idol and he wanted to use that opportunity to save a close ally from going home. But he kept making the wrong calls, causing his allies to be eliminated...

"Vector."

Missed opportunity number one.

"I have to play it on myself."

"Shovel Knight."

"Oh no!"

Missed opportunity number two. The idol was all for nothing! And truth be told, it did play a factor of Yoshi not having any more allies following Zelda's departure.

With his entire alliance being wiped out, Yoshi for the first time ever in his Survivor journey, he has nobody but himself to rely on...

"I may not as be as tough inside compared to big, huge gamers like Ridley, Foxy, Ryu, or Specter. But... I'm learning. I've realized that I gotta get to the end again somehow. I may not be all the way there yet, but I'm learning as I go."

This season it was more of him trying his best to save his allies, versus outright sending them home. Could the jury reward him for how loyal of an ally and friend he is?

WOLF

He's the kind of player that only strikes if has a reason to. If you do cross him, or if he sees you as someone to get rid of, he won't hesitate to do it. He became the first person in Survivor history to find two hidden immunity idols and the only player ever to find two idols in the same season...

There was the only idol he decided to use on Koopa. "I'm playing it for Bowser."

"Samus."

His face was shown with a look of satisfaction after Ganondorf's torch went out. The scene then quickly changed to the lupine finding idol number two during that idol hunt. Though O'Donnell quietly dropped out of the idol hunt early so that he had the opportunity to chill out in the shelter.

"I'm just gonna let these suckers keep searching all day while I am simply gonna chill and relax and wait. Ain't got nothin' to worry about."

However, he made a huge blunder of not saving Bowser with his second idol. His game never recovered, with Sonic being the one to take him down...

"Wolf."

Yeah. That happened...

He has maintain a calm, 'chill' type of demeanor throughout this season. But with him making a tough call by sending Bowser home in the same placement as his previous season, he was not afraid to show emotion.

And he was not any less of a man doing that. Real men knew when to shed tears.

Though not giving up, he seeked his vengeance by voting out his own ally in Springtrap thanks to him strengthening his bond with DK...

"Springtrap."

This was not a time to forget his stone cold face upon seeing Kevin Davis get slaughtered right before his eyes.

"Wolf, Plague, you both got guts for doing this. I wonder how are you both gonna get out of it, though."

"I'm a pretty chill kinda guy in general with a rough edge. On my best days I can actually be pretty polite... But the moment when you cross me I can pretty much be the worst person you'll ever encounter. Pretty much a good reason why I'm glad I'm not on the Heroes tribe. I'm too much of a badass. Simple as that."

After making one of most infamous moves of the game in his first season, could he fully redeem himself?

RYU

Coming from the Brawn tribe in Mexico, he lived up to his title by playing rather aggressively. Without hesitance, he voted out members of his own tribe just to satisfy his own agenda by instead aligning with the biggest challenge competitors...

"I never said that I wanted to be Brawn and Brawn only. I'm trying to increase my options here."

"I would actually not be mad if he's the one to go. And if you two need one more vote, I'd write his name down myself."

"Jet."

"Katt was just talking about the two of you."

"Katt."

Yet by playing too aggressively, his plan eventually backfired after Specter Knight made one of the biggest moves the game has ever seen. And it didn't take too long afterwards for Ryu to be sent home...

"Ryu, the tribe has spoken."

Golden Fredbear was the perfect contrast to Ryu regarding how they both played. He really was the smartest person from that cast... Then again, he foolishly fell for Specter's lie at the end.

As for Heroes vs Villains, Ryu found himself in the same type of alliance once again. Ridley learned what he was trying to do from Mexico and decided to give it another shot. But Ryu was apprehensive in the beginning, not wanting to make the same mistakes again.

"You might have been on something in your season." That indeed came from the space pirate.

"You're actually not supposed to make the same mistakes as you did the first you've played... But thanks to Ridley wanting to make an alliance with Bowser and I, instead of me trying to avoid what I did in Mexico, he's basically asking me to do the exact opposite. And I don't really know how I feel about that..."

Though he decided to go along with it, hoping it was not going to cost him. He finally took care of Specter Knight, but not having enough numbers at merge time cost the fate of a lot of his allies...

He had to see Ridley, Golden, and Bowser all get their heads chopped off. Sort of a nasty way to go if he said so himself. But hey, anyone but him right?

Trying the same strategy that he failed with on his first go, would Ryu actually be able to pull it off this time?

PLAGUE KNIGHT

Known as one of the biggest social pariahs ever, he never had it easy from the very beginning...

"Jimmy."

When that happened, the poor alchemist was completely floored. That was something he was pissed off about for a long time. Espio lied to him, Funky really did not help things, Isabelle went on to win the season, and Golden... saved himself because Jimmy targeted him early on.

"This is an outrage! An outrage! I'm the one that's supposed to be commanding everyone and telling people what to do, not being the one waiting for my torch to get snuffed! If they think I'm done, they are sadly mistaken. They might have outsmarted me in that vote, but because of them voting out Jimmy Hopkins, now it's my turn to outsmart every single person on this tribe! Just you wait!"

He was a target to be sent home, but he somehow made his way to the final three...

"I just don't wanna go home!"

"I'll make sure this one counts. I'm playing it for Plague."

Much to the absolute astonishment of almost everyone at that tribal.

"Plague Knight. Does not count."

"Plague Knight."

"Plague Knight."

"Plague Knight." (x4)

The screen at that moment was divided into four squares, each of them having the master pulling his name from the urn. Those votes as well as the two votes for Golden that were not counted either. Nine votes were negated at that round and only two of them mattered, Plague Knight officially getting his revenge on Espio.

Yet he was not known for his social game, and he made a late game blunder by voting out Incineroar, someone who he had a shot at beating at the end...

It was true though. Had he done either of those things, he would have been a millionaire.

"The winner of Survivor - Mexico (Brain vs Brawn vs Beauty, Isabelle!"

He entered this season with a large target on his back. But once again, he managed to make a deep run. Plague Knight even learned a thing or two from Wolf about putting value into the few relationships he has created on the island...

"Have you ever thought about valuing your relationships you have with others out here? And you wonder why nobody wants to align with you..."

"Maybe there is somebody who cares about me. Now if only I can develop the same kind of energy for other people..."

With him possibly becoming slightly better at the social aspect of the game, does he actually have a chance?

In this final five, there are two former finalists, three villains, two heroes, one last secret advantage, and two more Tribal Councils. It is the biggest finale the series has ever seen. Who will go down as the first ever Survivor All Star winner where they would win the million dollar prize?

It was time to cue in the Survivor intro for the season one more time.

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FINALE - PART I

Episode 15: We're All We Have Out Here

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Darleem

Night 36

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Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Wolf, Ryu, Plague Knight

-/-

There was an owl that was displayed on the screen. An 'ashy-faced owl' to be more specific. And that was not meant in a way to make fun of it or anything. That was literally what they were called. Ashy-faced owls, Puerto Rican owls, and Cuban pygmy owls were just a few types of owls in the Caribbean. Though whoever came up with the name 'ashy-faced' for an owl needed to be arrested. Making fun of innocent creatures was not cute. Why 'ashy-faced' instead of pale or 'gray-faced' or something?

Anyway, the castaways that were fortunate enough to make it to the finale episode of the season leaned their torches against the tree.

"I'm sorry, Yoshi." Wolf was already apologizing. "I'm just saying this on behalf of the tribe because I know the last thing you want to feel is that you're alone in this group. And Zelda might have been your last ally, but you're still part of the tribe at the end of the day. You're still in the game, and I know you know that you're happy to be here."

"Oh no, don't worry." Yoshi did not want his fellow tribe members to feel a certain type of way. "It's all fine. This is a new feeling that I am not used to, but you guys are all playing the game to. At least it's good to know that I've made the final five again with you all."

"Final five is right." Donkey Kong heaved a sigh out of relief. "This season has really been good to me. Making my run in Kodai Island look like nothing."

"I second that. Moved up five placements myself." said Ryu. "Things are becoming growing quieter and quieter."

"I believe I am one of the people on here that has grown the most in terms of placements. I've gone from top ten to top five. And if I make it higher than fourth place, I would be passing Ken. And it would be the first time one of us would be in the finals. Nice to know that I'm still here, but there are still a couple days ahead of me. I know that these last two rounds are going to matter the most."

"As king of the jungle, I'll be the one to make the thirty-seventh tally mark on the tree tomorrow." DK volunteered. "We're really almost done. No matter what happens to us, it'll all be over, and may we achieve great things for the rest of our lives."

With Wolf using the flint to start the fire, he sat down on his bottom calmly exhaling. "I'm thanking Lylat every moment that I was lucky enough to not get seventh place again. That would have been a whole tragedy."

"I actually would have felt sorry for you. You did what you have to do to progress, and that included getting out Bowser. But I still don't think you deserved to get the same treatment as him after you already paid for your mistake in your previous season where Sonic got you out."

"Haha..." He laughed quietly. "It was a great social kind of play. But we all know that if he didn't approach Lucario about it, he would have never had a shot at the million. It was not like he did anything else except win immunities. Why do you think I voted for Link anyway?"

The shade was thrown. ...But did he lie, though? Did he?

"I probably would have voted for Link, too." Plague Knight backed him up. "He'd be nothing if it weren't for that one moment."

"Well based on final results, Sonic got to the end with the right people." The king of the jungle defended, being the loyal friend he was. "Mario and I were far more closer to him than we were with Link, and Mewtwo and Wii Fit were bitter at him for voting them out."

"It doesn't sound fair for Link, though. He flipped from his alliance and worked with Bowser by using his extra vote to finally get rid of Wii Fit's Legacy Advantage." Ryu understood why some people on that jury ended up voting for Link. "He was finally able to convince Pit to flip on Mewtwo, even though that went against his best interest at that point. I mean, Pit had opportunities to turn on Mewtwo before. But I feel like Mewtwo less likely to get jury votes than him."

Donkey Kong turned his head behind him to see Yoshi facing away from everyone.

"He would have been tied with Mewtwo for second place at best if Lucario sat at the end with him." Wolf figured. "And uh, Wii Fit? ...We don't talk about her."

"Hahaha!" Plague laughed so hard, he nearly fell backwards. "Even I would have had my own choice of words if I had to deal with her."

"You wanna join us, Yoshi? I know you're the only one that voted differently today, but you're still a part of our group and we don't want you to feel left out." DK watched his back facing him and the other Darleem members, so his face was completely unreadable. "You tired?"

"I'm... I'm fine."

"You don't strike me as the introverted type. Come join us by the fire. Maybe it'll make you feel a little better."

"If Zelda, Shovel, or Vector were still in this game, Yoshi would have poured all of his feelings out to 'em. But Yoshi only has Yoshi now regarding allies, so now he feels like he doesn't have any friends left. And it did saddened me because it's highly unusual for him of all people to just sit by himself alone with no one to check on him. Sure, I would have probably went home tonight if I didn't win the challenge. But Yoshi being in his own alliance is the consequence of that, and I still can't help but feel guilty." So just like in the previous episode, DK was showing that he was not just a simple gamebot with no soul or depth to him. "I've lost my own folks this season, so I without a doubt know how he's feeling inside. In a cutthroat game like this, sometimes you still have to do the right thing."

He actually walked to Yoshi himself in an attempt to convince him.

"Are you okay?" The neck-tied Smash veteran spoke loud enough for him to hear, yet quiet enough to avoid the others listening to his words. "I understand if you really feel like it's best for you to have a little time to yourself, but you lost your last alliance member and I do feel rather bad about it."

"You don't have to feel sorry for me. You won immunity, so you deserve to stay here." Rather selfless of the dinosaur, which was his main personality trait. Just because Yoshi was miserable did not mean that he had to drag DK down with him. "I just never expected myself to not have... anyone with me anymore. I didn't even have to deal with that when I played Caribbean."

"It is for sure a new adventure for all of us. We are all two-type players, so our new experience with the game might be a little different than the last. But like I said, it's unusual to see you all on your own with no one to talk to." He said while smiling. "I can understand if you need a minute to yourself, but perhaps spending a couple minutes with the rest of your tribe mates should distract your mind for at least a little while. There are people that still care about your well being, and I feel that all the people that you lost care deeply about you as well. They'd want you to just be okay."

Slowly but surely, the green reptile rotated his head to face Donkey Kong directly.

"You don't even have to say much. We just don't want you to feel lonely. Sit beside me if that makes you more comfortable."

"And to think that anything I have gone through this season was going to be nothing compare to what I went through in my old season. But,... this is the very first time where I had to watch all of my allies go home to the point where I'm the only one left. It is me against the entire tribe. There's nothing that can get worse than that. I could have easily cried myself to sleep tonight..." Yoshi confessed, wiping a tear from his eye before it streamed down his face. "But DK went out of his way to make sure I was alright, and he didn't have to do that. But I guess he just didn't want me to feel like I'm the only one left on the whole island or something. He's really a good guy. He might be big like K. Rool, but he's really a gentle giant. It sucks how my entire alliance is gone and he's the reason why Zelda left, but at the same time I feel glad that he's still here. He has no idea how much his words meant to me."

With that, Donkey Kong successfully convinced him to sit at the fire right by his side while Ryu, Plague, and Wolf were in the middle of their own conversation.

"I mean, since we're all making to the final episode of the season, maybe it's good business to do something to capitalize off of it when it wraps up on television." said Wolf. "Any organizations, fundraisers, or anything either of you are wanting to promote?"

"Well I know that more people are going to be traveling to Chivaland." Plague figured. "Maybe some of them would be interesting in having a job at the lab. Mona and I could show them the ropes and how the place runs and I'll have Percy train them."

"Hmm..." He popped an eyebrow. "Sounds like you're actually giving him a chance. I know at first your trust with Percy only went so far. Now you're considering on trusting him training newbies?"

"He may be all over the place trying so hard to impress me, but he does have his highs whenever they come around. And besides, he managed to keep his job this long. I'd give him a chance to show the newcomers of what goes on in there. ...But maybe for safety precautions, I'll probably have to use Mona as a backup if things get a little too hectic."

"Given that I already have a platform outside of this, business is going to be booming more than ever." Ryu was becoming a man of many talents. He was already the most well known martial artist in the Smash universe of all time and he was now a two time player in Survivor. The only way to go was up. "More adults and kids alike would want Ken and I to train them. Bowser's son Roy himself wants me to train him, so... I know I'm gonna be having a lot to think about."

"Maybe I don't mind being a... 'special guest' at times." Donkey Kong volunteered. He and Ryu already had quite a bit in common, and learning self-defense was always a good thing to have. "And my cousin may look as if he wouldn't hurt a fly, but... don't underestimate him. If someone decides to pick a fight with him, they'd learn the hard way of how big a mistake it would be."

"Well, um... I am not really known for using my fists for hand to hand combat like that." Plague Knight admitted. "I'll just stick to using my potions and special powers as my way to hurt people. Thanks..."

Yoshi giggled a little at that. "And I'll just be watching everything not wanting anyone to get hurt."

"It's sorta giving pacifism. Nothing wrong with that, but something tells me that you'd be the kinda guy that will stand up for your friends." In spite of the furry criticizing Yoshi earlier before they left for tribal, Wolf was now giving him a compliment. "You're already known for putting others before yourself. That's one thing I can say about you."

"Aww... No need to uplift me just because of how things went down tonight."

"I do agree with him, though." Ryu nodded. "Not saying you have to do what I do, but maybe you have some ways of your own if you feel like you need to defend yourself or those you care about."

"Like, what? ...Throwing eggs at people? That's the best thing I can come up with."

Well, it was not as if that was literally one of his attacks in the games anyway...

"It was good to see DK wanting to make Yoshi feel included. So maybe Wolf and I joined in just to make sure Yoshi knew that he was still a part of us, even though we may not strategically agree on everything. And realistically speaking, since he isn't really going anywhere, I might need his vote anyway." Ryu felt that it was something that was going to be discussed more later on. "Side note, regarding where I stand with being famous and me already being a celebrity before I even participated in my first season, Ken and I already have our own training courses. We have our channels on SmashTube with lots of videos on what we do, but who knows? Maybe after this season finishes airing, we might be able to get our own network on TV. You never know what the future holds when it comes to anything."

---

Darleem

Day 37

---

"Okay. Let's get this over with while Ryu and Yoshi are retrieving tree mail..."

Donkey Kong and Wolf were sitting down on the logs again, finding more time to sit down with each other and have chat.

"Cool." said the latter. "Is... Yoshi feeling a little better?"

"He seems to be. I know he's more sad than what he's letting on, but hopefully with him sticking with us by the fire did something." The most recent immunity winner sighed. "I know we both have our opinions about him, but... he's such a genuine soul no matter what you think about him."

"Sure, he's an insult to this game. But that much, I do agree with you. I know he's a beautiful person outside Survivor." Wolf was still not going to ignore his other comments about him. "I am pretty sure we can all agree he is getting to the end of the game with no votes. He might be lucky to even get Vector's vote from him. There is literally no reason for him to be voted out under any circumstance."

"Okay..." DK nodded slowly. "So we do see common ground with that. He's having a spot at the Final Tribal Council. It is more of who is going to be sitting at the end with him."

"Exactly. Two more people need to go home, and... we both know what the truth is here. It's been fun having two seasons with you, and we did some great business together for the past few rounds this season. However,... should I say it or do you prefer to say it?"

The gentle giant was already smirking, knowing exactly the point Wolf was trying to make. "We're going after each other."

"Yep. And tonight it's gonna be me or you. Our time together is up, we were fortunate enough to make it thirty-seven days together, but we are both gonna try to axe the other out of this game. There is no other choice."

Fighter number two heaved a sigh knowing of what their relationship was coming to. "It's going to be tough for both of us depending on who leaves and who stays, but I'm glad I got to know you better than ever before."

"DK and I are the last two people here from the first season. Though we were against each other for a good portion of this, we were able to work together for the past three rounds. However, it makes absolute sense for us to target each other to get rid of the other person. Ryu is going to vote DK's way, Plague is going to vote my way, and Yoshi is not going anywhere... But he's going to be the ultimate swing for this." The wolf and ape both friendly embraced one another before going off in separate directions.

The scene quickly switched to show DK abruptly cutting a conversation between Yoshi and Ryu short to pull the street fighter away to have their own talk, Wolf being seen talking to Plague Knight privately. "It's really a shame that we are literally no longer able to work together anymore, but he is obviously going to win this if he gets to the end. And DK knows himself that he's a threat for my game, so that's why we had no problems telling each other to our faces of how things are between him and I."

Alright, so it was a kill or be killed situation. It was on.

"The conversation Yoshi and I had last night? Maybe I can use that to our advantage here." Donkey hoped. "If we can show Yoshi that he does not have to go through this alone, he can gain two loyal allies by his side and we'll all be going to the final three together. We can have Wolf go today, Plague tomorrow, and the three of us will have a nice breakfast. Sounds like a plan?"

"Sounds like a plan to me." Ryu was in agreement. "Wolf and Plague are going to tell him that you are the biggest threat here and that you need to have your torch snuffed. I think either you win immunity, or if you don't, maybe we can tell Yoshi what Wolf said yesterday when you two had your little talk. We can be like, 'Wolf said this, he said that.' I know it's going to piss Wolf off, but we gotta do whatever we can to make sure we have the majority of the votes."

"Of course. Nether Plague nor Wolf have anything, so we are okay as long as Yoshi is with us. Since he values friendship so much, real friends check in with each other to make sure they're alright. And even though Wolf complimented Yoshi last night at the fire, he barely even spoke to Yoshi as far as I know. We gotta throw him under the bus to make sure things go our way..." But in spite of feeling like it was necessary to do, Donkey Kong stared down at the ground in shame. "I am going to just apologize to him afterwards, since I'm going to feel completely gross about this... I'm gonna feel like a villain."

"Hey, at least you weren't labeled as a villain the moment you came here." Nothing compared to the villainous perception Ryu had for targeting his own tribe members. "You know how difficult this has been for the both of us. Being a villain for one day is not going to hurt."

"My partnership with Wolf O'Donnell has run its course, and now we're putting each others name down at the next Tribal Council." The audience appreciated the info, Captain Obvious... "He's going to do everything in his power to convince Yoshi to do the same, so Ryu and I have to unfortunately go out of our character and trash talk Wolf behind his back to make Yoshi side with us. Now I am not one that would usually down somebody just to uplift somebody else, but everyone knows how Yoshi runs. Friendship is the main driving force for him, so Ryu and I have to use it to our advantage. I have to use the things Wolf has told me against him in hopes that'll annoy Yoshi enough to put his name down on the parchment."

They were both with him now literally right after DK pulled Ryu away from the dinosaur.

"We were on the same starting tribe together, we both know what we been through, and I was the one that made sure you were okay last night." Kong counted on his fingers on the number of things he did for him. "I can betcha five bunches of bananas that if I was not here last night, there is no way Wolf would have even thought of checking on you. And when I did it last night, it was not just to you on my side or anything. That was just me having the common decency to check on my tribemate."

"I know, I know... You were being genuine when you did that." Yoshi sighed, already knowing what was happening to him before he had a chance to talk with the other side at the time. "But I am not mad at Wolf for what he didn't do. Me being the last of my alliance is my problem, not his problem. I never made it anybody's issue when I was the swing vote half the time in my season..."

"Okay, so Wolf had no obligation. Still, do you feel closer to me or him? I don't even remember seeing you and Plague together one time."

"..."

And then Yoshi found himself talking to Wolf and Plague Knight.

"It's not even worth explaining. We all know that Donkey Kong is the biggest threat to win the game, we'll all look foolish if we let him get to the end, that's all I gotta say." Wolf felt there was no other way around it. "It doesn't get more complicated then that."

"I'm feeling like this is when I tried to get Funky Kong out in my season." said Plague Knight, remembering one of the most controversial elimination rounds in Mexico. "I tried to get just enough people to help vote him out, but... it didn't work. If we have any shot to win, I don't wanna go through all that again. I didn't think everything all the way through, and it cost me the title of Sole Survivor."

"Yoshi is going to the end no matter what, and hopefully I'm there too." The scientist had no intentions on suffering the same fate as Zelda. "In my last season I didn't sit at the end with the right people and I only got one jury vote where I looked like a goat in front of the jury! I can't allow the same thing to happen to me twice. One thing I know is that you have to get the end with the right people while putting the right people on the jury. DK can literally sit at the end with anyone and still win, so at this point it's his game to lose."

"You, Plague and I can all make a final three pact right now. We get DK out, Ryu would follow right after him, we would be putting the last two big threats on the jury and we're all sitting pretty at final three."

"I know, I know..." He shook his head exhaling. "But honestly Wolf, I feel like DK and Ryu understand me more than you two do. I have a better relationship with both of them, and I was with DK since day one."

"I get it, but Val was your right hand lady since day one in your season. You two went top five together and you cut her throat on this exact day. If you weren't afraid to write her off even though you're even closer with her, what's stopping you from writing off DK?" Not a bad comeback. "The challenge hasn't happened yet. And even he wins, we'll just write Ryu to further weaken him before we get rid of him tomorrow. The jury might not see you as the biggest gameplayer, but I do know that you aren't afraid to get rid of the ones who you care about the most."

"..."

Poor Yoshi exhaled deeply, already feeling overwhelmed before they were even called to head to the immunity challenge. "Okay, first I was all alone, now I'm the swing vote... Here, we go, again! Are you kidding me!?"

Covering his face with his hands, he shook his head aggressively. "I can't ever catch a break out here... And you know what? This is all my fault. It's all because I didn't use my idol right. Now look what I have to deal with! Everyone's pulling me all over the place and I'm going to lose my mind... Oh, Star Spirits. I really need your help on this one..."

---

Day 37

---

"Come on in!"

Two more damn challenges to go through. Just two more to go...

...And it was already raining. Everybody at home knew that challenges were much more fun whenever the clouds cried. But on the other side of the coin, it was nothing but another obstacle for the remaining players.

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

"Yes!" The final five all said in unison.

"Okay. First things first, DK, you're gonna have to give it up." The Master Hand was already floating his way, having a feeling he was not going to simply hand it over. "I know the necklaces means security for you, but the rules are the rules."

"Well I have worked for it before, I can do it again." He spoke confidently as the host placed the necklace back on the stand.

"Once again, immunity is up for grabs. For today's challenge, you will race to unlock three sets puzzle pieces. You will then use those puzzle pieces to assemble your staircase one step at a time. Once you completed all three sections of the staircase, you will solve a puzzle at the end. First person that finishes win immunity and a guaranteed spot in the final four. Losers, Tribal Council where someone will be the sixteenth person voted out of Survivor and will become the ninth member of our jury. You do not want to go home tonight. I hope you are all prepared to give it your all at these last two challenges. Plague Knight was the only one that has participated in this challenge before, but didn't win."

"Yeah, this is the one where my boy Panther needed more water." Wolf realized. "He was exhausted after he won the immunity, so hopefully with all this rain we'll have plenty to drink."

"Always, stay, hydrated." Master Hand used to finger to literally make a point. "There's no way you can function without water. We'll all draw for spots, we'll get started."

And certain people needed to win immunity, too. If they were not giving everything a hundred and ten percent, that should have been an automatic elimination right there.

-/-

"Alright, here we go. For immunity and a guaranteed spot in the final four!" The master raised his hand in the air. "Survivors ready?"

They had to be. It was now or never.

"...GO!"

Run!

"We got a long challenge ahead of us. You will be assembling three staircases before you climb up every one of them. Put your legs to good use." Yeah, because if a castaway skipped leg day at least once, bad decision on their end. "I know it's going to be hard, but you need to use every last ounce of energy you have in that tank."

With them all holding their keys, they reached their first of three chests as they used said keys to unlock them.

Master Hand watched as the chests flew open. "The challenge is indeed physical due to this being a race, but you have to use your smarts at the same time to fit your puzzle pieces in the right places."

It was the perfect mix of brains and brawn at the same time. No wonder the challenge was first used in Brain vs Brawn vs Beauty.

"Everybody's working on their first set of stairs. There are ten pieces each and you can only work on one step at a time."

Yes, because some people acted like one had the ability to do ten things at once. Folks would literally call on a particular person when they clearly saw the person already doing another task... Really annoying.

But for this case scenario, Master Hand had that rule applied to the challenge so that the castaways did not cheat by skipping over the first step for example and working on the next one. Nope. Whatever step they were on, that was the step they had to finish. Bottom to top.

"...Ooh!"

"Yoshi has his first piece in!" Lucky head start for him, but that only meant so much as people were going to be right on him. "Wolf has his first piece! DK has his first!"

The piece Plague Knight was trying to fit in was not going at all, so he had to try another.

"Trying to force it in is not going to work. That means you're wrong and you're only killing valuable time... Plague has his first piece now! Ryu bringing up the rear with his first!"

"Oh, thank goodness I'm wearing my cloak today..." Plague was one lucky man. It was starting to rain just a little bit harder.

"Wolf has his second piece! DK putting in his second!"

Some of the planks took a bit of turning around, yet all of the pieces had to go in one way or another!"

"Plague and Ryu both have their second pieces in. Yoshi, you do not want to fall behind!"

"I know, I know. It's just..." The reptile runaway sighed, tossing the piece to the side for the time being. "I'll just grab something else."

"DK and Ryu with another piece. They're going to be taking the lead if they keep up with a steady pace! Wolf has another piece!"

"He'd better not win immunity..." The pilot mumbled to himself. He very well knew that if DK won the necklace, he was going to end up praying to Lylat and the Survivor Gods for the rest of the day.

...But first, maybe to get rid of the rain first. The water was getting in his eyes hindering his vision.

"Plague working on his fourth piece! DK, Ryu, and Wolf all working on their fifth piece! Yoshi on his third!"

Yoshi's head start was all for naught. Now he had to make sure he was not falling out of the challenge early.

"If you're thinking of giving up now, you're making the biggest mistake of your life. You have two more sets of stairs to build with a puzzle at the end!"

Plague Knight was not really struggling at all. It was just that the front runners were rather faster than him when it came to going back and forth. And with the players all reaching higher levels with each step, there was a high chance that Plague was going to have an even harder time keeping up.

And with them all now jumping back down to grab another piece, it was definitely not going to make things easier for him or Yoshi.

"DK and Ryu have six pieces. Wolf's right there on them. Is it gonna fit?"

All it took was a pounding of the fist.

"Yes!"

"Stay with me, Plague."

"I'm coming, I'm coming..." Wolf needed to give his ally a break. Even Plague himself knew he was not nearly as physical as he was, let alone the big alpha male dudes in Donkey Kong and Ryu.

"DK with the seventh piece. His first set is nearly completed!"

The ape took two steps down before he leaped his way to the ground, right when it began to thunder.

BOOOOM!

All this made one hell of a noise. Even Yoshi thought the ground shook a little.

"Ryu has his seventh piece! Wolf has his seventh piece! Yoshi working on his fourth!"

"Plague, what are you on?"

No, no, no. He was not actually asking if Plague was on any sort of intoxicated substances.

"I'm getting ready to put the fifth piece in!" Obviously O'Donnell needed his alliance member to increase the odds of winning against SGA, Donkey Kong in particular.

"DK has two pieces left! Ryu has two pieces left! Wolf coming up with his eighth!"

Build! Build! Build!

"Yoshi coming with his sixth piece!"

"How is everybody else going so fast except for me!?"

Well it was not that simple to come up with a specific answer, but if one thing was for certain, complaining and worrying about everybody else was not going to be enough for Yoshi to get the job done. He needed to work harder.

"DK with his last piece for his first section. He's gonna be the first to move onto the second section! ...Ryu's gonna be right behind!"

"Okay Plague, I'm almost done here." Wolf was climbing up to put his last piece in. "We need to be in the second section now!"

"It's not my fault your legs are stronger and faster than mine!" To be fair, Wolf was an experienced mercenary. Plague was only good at making potions in comparison... Maybe he should have made a potion to drink that would have automatically just as strong and fit as Ryu Hoshi.

"Wolf moving onto the second section. Plague still has two pieces left in his first section... Yoshi-" Which rhymed with Hoshi, by the way. "-is struggling to stay in it. He still has three pieces left."

Alright. Two sets of stairs to build. Donkey Kong barely held onto the lead with two pieces already being put in, though it took a bit of time for him to find the right pieces to use. Had it not been for Ryu and Wolf having a similar struggle, he would have lost the lead easily. The first couple of planks were a matter of trial and error anyway, due to the one in ten possibility of placing the correct plank in.

"Donkey Kong has tied with Plague for the most immunity wins this season. He might be in danger tonight, so he could use some extra security. Ryu has won immunity once, would love to add another win to his record. Wolf has never won immunity in his entire Survivor career."

The show was nearly rubbing it in at that point.

"Plague and Yoshi still working on their first section. Plague is climbing up to put his last piece in and then he'll be joining the others!"

Rotating it around, he pounded it in place.

"You're good! Plague's moving on now!"

He was still in it, but he had to hurry. The front runners were already nearly halfway done with their second set of stairs.

"Got it..." Yoshi was through with his second to last piece.

There were a few more hits and misses from the three leaders due to them being incorrect at times trying to put the right piece in, yet they were still doing a great job keeping up with each other.

BOOM!

The thunder roared yet again. Though at least the others did not have to deal with Donkey Kong crashing on the ground at the same time to make everything worse. Nonetheless, poor DK and Wolf were not going to be in the best of moods if neither of them were going to win the challenge. It was a whole challenge in itself drying their fur out.

Plague Knight definitely needed to count his blessings for being the only one dressed properly for the inclement weather.

"DK has five pieces in. Ryu and Wolf both working on their forth. Any one of those three could win this challenge. Plague working on his second..." Master Hand took a glance over to see Yoshi climbing up to get in on the action. "Yoshi's finally finished with his first second! Keep it up! You two are still in this challenge!"

"Come on, come on... Damn." That was the wrong piece for Wolf, giving an even bigger advantage for SGA. Not wanting them to have it, he quickly jumped to the ground. And obviously he was not heavy enough to shake the whole ground, unlike Donkey. Just one more piece and he was going to be halfway done.

In spite of him not moving nearly as fast as he or Wolf wanted him to, Plague was doing a great job figuring out the right pieces for his set of stairs. It was no secret that he was pretty good at puzzles. He was already getting ready to apply his fourth piece. Wolf's backup was right up on him.

"Donkey Kong with the seventh piece. Here comes Ryu with his sixth piece. Wolf finishing his fifth piece."

"They are going way too fast..."

And Yoshi? He was only working on the second plank. He was indeed trying, yet he did not have the brains like Plague Knight or the strength DK and Ryu had. Oh well. E for effort.

BOOM!

"One more to go..."

"DK has nine pieces in! One more before he moves onto to his final set of stairs! Ryu, Wolf, and Plague are all threats to overthrow him if they can hurry up!"

"Trying here..." Wolf mumbled under his breath. He still had to pass Ryu again, as the street fighter needed to more while Wolf had three to finish.

And for Plague Knight? He was slowing down again. The alchemist was almost always putting the pieces were they were supposed to go, yet he was not as fast as stated before.

"DK moving onto the final section!"

"Coming up right behind you, DK!" shouted Ryu from his spot. "I'll be right there!"

SGA seemed to have an agenda of their own. Anyone knew what 'both ways' meant? It was just the fact that Wolf was clearly desperate to prevent Donkey Kong from winning the necklace, the ape had the exact same energy towards him, using Ryu to increase the odds so that Wolf would not win immunity. And from DK's point of view, the timing would have been absolutely terrible if he was the one that was set to get it.

It did not matter to anyone at all if Yoshi won it... somehow.

"Ryu move onto the final section!"

Wolf was now working on his tenth and final piece, taking one last look at Plague who was only putting it piece number six. Shaking his head, he climbed his way up to join the front runners.

"Wolf is now in the final section! He still has a chance to catch Donkey Kong!"

Yoshi heaved a sigh in deep frustration. Now he was having a hard time as he was at his fifth piece for a whole minute. Which was the right one to put in?

"Donkey Kong has three... now four pieces in. Ryu and Wolf coming up with his third!"

Plague Knight really wanted in on it, but there was only so much he could have done. But the good news was that he only had one more plank to put down, so he was somehow still in the running.

BOOM!

At this point the castaways were so soaked, they might as well have took a shower... after the challenge was done of course. All they needed was a little soap. The water was already all around them.

"DK, Ryu, and Wolf have all been close together throughout this entire challenge so far. They are all fighting for that immunity! Keep moving!"

There was no need to tell them twice.

"Plague is finally in the final section! Let's go, Plague!"

"You heard the man!" Wolf commented, taking a glance at DK's staircase. He only needed four more pieces while the lupine and Ryu both needed one more than that.

"Everybody is in the final section except Yoshi..." Master Hand floated his way to see that he was working on his eighth piece. "You need to move if you wanna get back in this!"

Was the yelling going to help anything, or in a way give the players extra motivation? Because the host seemed to be doing it a lot with some of the most recent challenges.

"DK's stack is nearly completed. Two pieces left!"

And he was not messing around either, not being afraid all to make big leaps back to the bottom to retrieve his second to last piece.

"I'm almost done here!" Ryu gave him an update of how he was doing.

"Ryu with two pieces left... Wolf with two pieces left."

While Yoshi was working on his final piece in section number two. Was it too late to write him off? Donkey Kong was nearing completion with all three sets of his stairs.

"...DK is all finished! Start working on the puzzle!"

About time somebody was going to work on it. It was a rather long challenge after all, and the rain only added to it. Whew... Then again, it was the final five. Things were getting more intense than ever before. Final five was going to turn into final four real quick, and then the final three was going to come by even quicker.

"Let's see how your brain is on day thirty-seven..."

Fried... But DK's brain was somehow still functioning, so that was a good sign for what it was worth.

"I believe a few gears will have to be turning at this moment. You know you want and need that necklace!"

It was another slide puzzle, but this time it consisted of the Smash Ball... Now that made perfect sense given the series. However since the series itself was not canon, nobody had any clue of what the Smash Ball was about in the first place. Then again, did anyone ever care to ask for it?

...Nope. No one cared. Either it was rather irrelevant to them even though the Smash Ball was one of the most important things in the entire Super Smash Bros. universe, or that Donkey Kong and everyone that has seen the Smash Ball in previous Survivor challenges just felt the need to do what they had to do to try to win the immunity necklace.

"Ryu is finished! He can get in on it! Wolf has one piece left!"

And Donkey Kong had to hurry if he wished to have a winning streak going. Ryu was his buddy, but any opportunity to win the necklace was a genuine feeling. The martial artist felt the need to have safety for his own reasons.

The only thing they shared in common was that both players needed to prevent Wolf O'Donnell from getting it.

"Wolf is now finished with his stairs! He's moving on!"

Aaaand there was DK's main competition...

"Plague might still have a shot if he hurries." He was coming up with piece number seven at the time while Yoshi was on piece number two in the final section. "I am unsure about Yoshi, though."

One knew it was bad for him if not even the master figured that the odds were against his favor. At least with Plague Knight, the one redeemable quality he had when it came to challenges was that him winning the necklace was not impossible. He already won three.

"DK was shuffling pieces around rapidly. He seems to have a bit of something going. But does he have any sense of how the puzzle is supposed to go, or is he just shuffling pieces around hoping they'll randomly come together on their own without the slightest bit of brain power?"

Damn. Master was going in.

The other two front runners were kinda looking at the puzzle funny, too. None of them were brainiacs at all in that department, so the winner was still up in the air. Either the banana eating jungle king, the highly experienced kickboxing street fighter, or the space pilot with a large furry fanbase behind him?

"Ryu seems to be keeping a steady pace. Wolf also keeping a steady pace. I know in his mind he is waiting for Plague Knight to come up and have a shot at this..."

"One more piece left, Wolf. I'm coming."

"He might still be in it, but he has to hustle!"

DK was starting to frown at his puzzle. It appeared he had a couple pieces in the correct spot, but he was shown to be a little dumbfounded.

"Ryu and Wolf are making nice progress..." With the master turning his head, there came Plaguey. "At long last, Plague Knight is finally finished building his stairs. He could start working. This is going to be his big moment if he manages to pull this one off! DK, Ryu, and Wolf had a bit of time on this puzzle."

And just like that, there was another contender for the king of the jungle that day.

"DK's puzzle finally starting to come together!" Yes, it was definitely starting to look like something. "Plague is racing wildly! Hopefully his puzzle solving skills are enough for him to prevail today!"

There was a quick shot at Yoshi working on his fourth piece... He was out of it. It was not fun to be pessimistic, but there was absolutely no way he was winning the challenge at that point. Otherwise, there might as well have been Redemption Island put in place.

"Ryu's puzzle coming together nicely. Getting very close..."

Wolf's was coming together rather slowly in comparison, but his chances of earning the necklace were an immediate danger and Plague only had thirty seconds to his puzzle at the time.

"...Master Hand!"

"Ryu thinks he has it..." He swiftly floated over to see his now completed Smash Ball...

...Alright. No Final Smash for him that day, but he got the job done nonetheless.

"RYU WINS IMMUNITY!"

Whew... It was finally done.

Pumping both fists in the air in the rain, he was greatly relieved. The man was locked in for the final four.

"A few more pieces and I would have gotten it." Donkey Kong sighed, but still clapped a hand on his buddy's shoulder. "You did good today, man."

On the other hand, Wolf sighed and shook his head in frustration staring at his unfinished puzzle. "How are you guys winning these?"

Master Hand made everyone get in line as he always did after the challenge was over. "Okay, we need to get Yoshi up here."

Oh yeah, that was right. Yoshi never even got to the slide puzzle. Poor little critter.

"Just climb up someone else's ladder."

"Okay..."

Upon him finally joining everyone else, the master himself wanted to get his usual routine done and over with before the rain began to annoy him. "Ryu, get over here."

Yes, get over there! Now!

"Feels good to finally wear this thing after a while." The spiky hair fighter commented as the necklace was hooked on him for the second time this season. "Moving one step higher."

"Indeed you are." Master Hand clapped him on the back. "Ryu will be going to the final four, safe from Tribal Council tonight. As for the other four of you, you'd better fight for your spot to stay in it. Tonight, one of you will be going home while being just two days short of making it to the end. I'll see you all tonight at Tribal Council."

"I usually do not get too pissed whenever I don't win immunity, which is... literally every single time. But this time I can't help but feel irritated because it's never a time where I would actually perform poorly in an immunity challenge. It's just that every single time I compete in one, there's always someone who's better than me. Sometimes my own allies would win the necklace over me, and I can't help but to feel jealous of not knowing what it feels like to wear the damn thing at Tribal Council." Wolf was not going to feel anything but vulnerability the upcoming night. "Good news is that at least DK is not going to be the one locked in for the final four. Ryu is not nearly as dangerous as DK is, because in comparison he's not much of a jury threat. DK is the ultimate competitor to win this game based off all he's been through and all he had to with, as well as being well liked by the jury. Hopefully Yoshi sees that, because the two votes from Plague and I aren't going to be enough."

---

Darleem

Day 37

---

Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Wolf, Ryu, Plague Knight

-/-

"That was a long wet, challenge."

The others agreed with Plague there. It was not raining nearly as hard as it was before, so the final five was able to get some type of relief. Still,... there was a low chance of them getting a fire started. That was an automatic major issue.

"...What are we supposed to eat today?" Wolf already knew it was such a rhetorical question to ask. Cooking anything that day was just not possible, and the group needed food.

"We can't eat rice raw." Donkey Kong was glancing at all the wet wood near the shelter. "So,... all we can pretty much do is get coconuts. Maybe for now on if we feel like it's going to rain later on in the day, it'd be best to eat in the morning or something before the challenge takes place."

"Well it's no point of putting that rule in place now. If we are not going to eat any of the rice today, we are going to have more of it tomorrow and day thirty-nine no matter who is left on this island. So whoever wakes up here in the morning could get away with eating whenever they can while still being careful."

"I'd say that the only day we would have to worry about is tomorrow, because day thirty-nine is when we're going to have the breakfast." Yoshi brought up. "That's what I did with Doc Louis and Chrom. It was just all we ate the entire day."

"There was a teeny bit of rice left in my season when I made it to day thirty-nine." said Plague Knight. "The only other thing I could think of is if whoever is left wants to save some more rice for the final day here just so they could say, 'Alright, people. This is going to be our last time eating the rice before we head to final tribal.'"

"Better than going to final tribal on an empty stomach, though." Ryu had a point. He was thinking that if he was going to make it all the way, something needed to be inside his belly for the sake of having brain food. After all, he needed to think of the right words to say to the jury when the eliminated players questioned every little detail about his game.

The remaining StarFox contestant left heaved a heavy sigh. "That is going to be a challenge in itself. Y'all hear a lot of complaining for the next twenty-four hours, you know why."

"Looks like I'll be using that spear tomorrow, just in case." Donkey Kong proceeded to walk away from the other survivors, grabbing Ryu's canteen. "Come on, Ryu. Let's go get water."

"Oh, okay..." Shifting his gaze towards the remaining three, they all gave them their canteens to fill up. "I suppose you three could gather some coconuts."

Wolf turned to Plague and Yoshi folding his arms. "That goes to show how no one cares of just taking off with whoever anymore. We're all gonna do our own thing..."

"Hey, Yoshi!" The voice of DK sounded in the distance. "Wanna join us?"

There was a brief look of worry and confusion on the reptile's face as he glanced between the two that were standing with him and in the direction the monkey was heading.

"Go ahead..." The lupine hunched his shoulders. "We'll talk later. But you already know what I said before."

"...Okay..." Yoshi exhaled shaking his head. He already had a feeling that he was going to be worried to death for the rest of the day. "Alright! I'll be right there!"

And then there were too...

"Well, I suppose we both know what we're doing tonight. All we have to do is wait for Yoshi to come back and see what he says." Having faith in Yoshi's hands of all people was something that was rather off to Wolf, being fully aware of how he ran. "I swear if anyone else was in his position, it would have been no contest at tribal and we'd just be patiently waiting for the producers to tell to get ready. But we're dealing with a player that does not have it all the way up there strategically."

"Hahahahaha!" Plague would have been harsher, but he was just going to stick by what his ally said.

"Not calling him dumb by any means, by the way. Before I get public backlash, I'm only criticizing him as a player and not him as a person. Bottom line is that common sense better be knocking on Yoshi's door. None of us have a chance with DK at the finals, so it doesn't even need explaining. That's why I don't plan on bothering him like that or putting too much pressure on him."

"I'm lucky to have you here, because I know I'd be doing just that." Mona's boo replied truthfully. "I wouldn't have cared. But since you're still around, you are helping me have better control of myself."

"Hey, one more reason why I'm glad I'm still here." Wolf smirked humorously. "If there is a legitimate chance that I'm making it to day thirty-nine, I don't need you to further harm my chances. Your mouth could screw us over if you say the wrong thing. We'll just keep going with the flow like we've been doing and hope for the best outcome possible. That's how I am in my regular life and that's how I've always been out here."

"Specter Knight and Wolf are the only two people that I am comfortable with by having them boss me around. They have both fractured my ego on several occasions, but... I don't find myself to be complaining all that much." The smile underneath Plague's mask proved it. "And it is all because I know that keeping me around has benefited us all. I am usually not one to take advice from most others well, but as much as they are looking around for their own interests, they are also looking out for mine. If I was voted out some time ago, Wolf would have had one less ally to work with and obviously my clean record would have been ruined! If he was gone already, I highly doubt my sanity would have remained intact. We're all we have out here. And today Wolf needs my vote more than ever, or else DK is going to destroy us both."

It was all about what that dinosaur wanted to do. What were DK and Ryu saying to him?

"We wanted to pull you along with us so that you can hear our side of the story, because there are two sides to the story when it comes to everything." The former made his way along the path through the jungle. "Our side is just as important as theirs."

Actually, there were three sides to the story in this case scenario. There was Wolf and Plague's side, DK and Ryu's side, and the truth. Though even with that, Yoshi's one vote was going to be the deciding factor... How many times was this going to be brought up in this episode?

"I applaud you for standing up for yourself at the K. Rool tribal, because even we can say that he didn't give you the most respect despite him being aligned with you. You sending him to the jury was your own way of putting your foot down. And if Wolf barely talked to you throughout the entire season, when he needs you the most, how much is that really worth for you? Sending me home makes perfect sense for his game, but what about yours?"

"Well, I guess it all depends on who I'd rather sit with..."

"Okay, well we have already talked about you not nearly being as close to Wolf and Plague as you are with the two of us. Think about it. This is our second time out here, and we all want to leave this island with our heads held up high. And for Ryu," Donkey went on to slap a hand on his shoulder... Rather rough from a viewer's perspective, but the man never flinched and actually shifted his head to his good friend smiling. "-I am so thankful that he is still here. We have a friendship outside of the game, and we are both very lucky to have made it this long together. All of our other friends have already been eliminated, and he's all that I have left. Though you are more closer to Vector and Shovel Knight, the two of us have at least started on the same tribe together. Wouldn't it be a good thing to have the three of all us all wake up on the final day out here spending time with each other one last time? Maybe you'll get to know the two of us even more. But I know that you know you aren't as comfortable around those two."

"And I can back him up on that." Like the good ally he was. Great job, Ryu. "You and Wolf have completely different personalities. Wolf can say whatever he wants out of his mouth without caring in the slightest. And this is not an attack on you personally, but due to him having no filter, he may say things that could possibly hurt your feelings. DK has already told you on what he said about you behind your back, and I know you don't feel good about it."

"I really don't..." Oh, alright. So Donkey Kong already revealed to Yoshi of what Wolf's conversation was about when the both of them were sitting on those logs. That scene was not shown to the audience... "I mean, it doesn't really make me feel good if I hear someone say that all I'm gonna do is mope around and feel sorry for myself that my ally isn't hear anymore. But, I can't help it! Why would I not feel bad about you all just sending my only ally home? What am I supposed to do? Smile about it?"

...

"That's nothing to smile about." said Ryu. "I only smiled after Golden and I ended off on a good note when he was voted off. But did I feel happy inside? Of course not. I know we had a couple differences in gameplay in our first season, but we've really grown to have genuine respect for one another and it was a shame he had to go home."

"I'm terribly sorry about that, Ryu. I really am." It certainly was not making Yoshi feel any better. "Now I know what that feels like."

"Hey, you did what you have to do. No need to explain yourself."

"Yoshi has sent big threats out of the game before. He was definitely not afraid of voting Ken off in his season, so he probably isn't afraid to send DK packing." And Ryu literally watched the moment when Ken was sent away before his eyes... while he was sitting in a chair at the Survivor finale before he was announced to make his return to the current season. "And he knows that all he could do is tell Yoshi to make his decision based off who he is more fond with. Wolf is probably the first person Plague Knight has made somewhat of a bond with... since Specter Knight, but neither of them have any connection to Yoshi. And if Yoshi gets into tribal with that kind of thought in mind, he'd be willing to keep DK in and send Wolf home."

"Okay. I'm here..."

Wolf was seen lying flat on his back with Plague Knight sitting down next to him. The two of them already got the tribe enough coconuts for the rest of the day, as there was a brief clip of a stack sitting close by before the camera cut to O'Donnell talking while he remained staring up above at the 'ceiling.'

"I mean, what else is there to say at this point? You already heard my take on it, and I'm sticking by it. We don't get rid of DK today, he's gonna win the final immunity tomorrow, and we're gonna get laughed at by the entire Survivor fanbase for letting him get to the end. His own cousin already made a million dollar mistake, but that doesn't mean we have to do the same so that Donkey Kong can get away with winning this."

"I really have nothing more to say at this point. It's self-explanatory. Otherwise, I'm gonna feel like I'm a broken record the more I repeat myself. I don't even feel like going over it again when we discuss the situation with Master Hand at tribal." Sorry, Wolf. That was literally the hand's job to ask the players questions pertaining to the vote.

"I just don't want you guys to think that I'm too scared of putting his name down. It's just that I have to handle myself a certain way again because I'm the swing vote here for the thousandth time."

"You aren't scared, because this isn't your first time sending one of your allies home." Did he need to bring up Val or K. Rool again? "Of course Donkey Kong is going to paint a different picture for you because he knows he's the biggest threat to win. He's not gonna sit down and do nothing to change the outcome of the vote. And honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if even Ryu knows his friend is the larger threat than him. Did he ever actually tell you personally about it?"

"He hasn't really said anything to me on the side as far as I know..."

"Okay, well his vote might not be needed today assuming we have the majority..." He used just a bit of his energy to turn his head toward Plague. "Anything you wanna add before we go in a few minutes?"

"I... pretty much don't have that much to say, because everything has kind of already been said." Other words, Wolf took the words right out of his mouth. "DK goes home now, he doesn't have an immunity idol, which is good because today would have been the last time to play it. But you already played your idol, so nobody has any more idols, twists, or advantages anymore. After DK, we just have to make sure Ryu doesn't win immunity tomorrow, and the two of us will make history as the only players to reach the Final Tribal Council twice without ever being voted out."

"Hey Plague, pass me a coconut. Will you?"

Underneath his mask, he blinked once looking at the man as if he was a crazy person. "Yoshi is already on his feet standing right in front of you!"

"Yeah, but he's already feeling the pressure. I don't wanna make things worse for him, so you do it."

Pouting about, he actually got up from his spot and grabbed the fruit and did what he was told... by shoving it right in his face.

"Here!"

"Hey, hey! Easy one me, now!" He chortled along holding the fruit with both hands. "I still gotta look pretty for the cameras, so don't mess my face up."

Yoshi could not have helped but laugh himself. Anything to cheer up his mood.

"After this round, I am officially giving up my swing vote position for the rest of my life on Survivor. I don't know why I'm such an important person in peoples' eyes all the time, but I am just downright tired of it. After tonight, I'm not going to be the swing vote an-y-more."

Well at the end of the day, it was easier said than done. Survivor was obsessed with throwing curve balls if folks somehow did not notice.

---

Tribal Council

Night 37

---

Okay. This was the first of the final three Tribal Councils of the finale. Hopefully nobody at home ran out of snacks already. Otherwise, shame on them. This was the last episode of the first generation of Survivor. Instead of bringing just snacks, they should properly prepared a full coarse meal with dessert. They should have known better...

From left to right, Wolf, Donkey Kong, Plague Knight, Ryu, and Yoshi were all seated, the two remaining members of SGA being in the back of the other three.

"We'll now bring in the members of our jury." And there came the defeated. "Shadow, Ridley, Vector, Golden, Bowser, Springtrap, Shovel Knight, and Zelda voted out at the last Tribal Council."

Obviously Yoshi was not feeling any better upon seeing the latest eliminated contestant on that bench after already having to deal with the loss of Shovel Knight in the episode before.

"Alright." Master Hand already knew where to start things off with. "Yoshi... Should I even ask a question, or do you feel like you want to just let it all out there?"

Though giggling at the fact that the host expected him to say something, he calmly exhaled. "I guess I'll just start talking. Umm,... I'll probably start by saying that this was not the first time I saw one of my allies getting voted out of the game, since that was what happened all the time in my past season. But today was the very first time that I have lost so many allies, I... don't have anyone left."

"Well, you have people that are literally right behind you that will vote with you today if the three of us are on the same page."

And right away, Donkey Kong was getting into it.

Wolf kept his composure as he calmly breathed in and out his nose.

"DK, when you say 'the three of us', you mean the two of you and Ryu... with Yoshi being in the middle."

"Of course. Wolf and Plague are our opposition, and the only way we'll be getting majority of the votes is if we have Yoshi. I unfortunately wasn't king of the jungle today. My ally Ryu was instead." Jealous much? "I don't have anything against the man from winning, even though I was right behind him. The most important thing was that we needed to keep immunity away from Wolf. Say if I told Ryu to throw the challenge, we would have been more at risk of giving immunity away to him if he managed to put his puzzle together faster."

Oh, okay. No jealousy, then.

"Good team effort against me, I guess." The mercenary mumbled out loud.

"Hey, you were the first one out there encouraging your ally to move faster." DK laughed jokingly. "It's all on camera."

He was right. The castaways were literally being watched 24/7... Come to think of it, how many players left the show annoyed at the production team for constantly shoving their cameras in their faces all the time? Following their every move was surely enough to annoy the hell out of them.

But hey, some people loved the fame supposedly. If they were not complaining, there were no concerns then.

"Alright, I think I can see what might happen tonight." Master Hand was already going to be making his prediction. "Somebody is going to be the sixteenth person voted out of Survivor and will become the ninth member of our jury. Wolf and Plague Knight are aligned together, Donkey Kong and Ryu are aligned together, Yoshi is smack dab in the middle, and tonight's boot is either DK or Wolf."

"That means a fifty-fifty shot of me going back on that island." said the eye-patched pilot. "Sure, the wood was too wet for us to cook anything to eat today. But I'd rather starve than get voted out now and getting a good meal. Why would I wanna leave here now when I have two days left to finish? People want that title of Sole Survivor desperately and I'd be lying if I say that I'm not one of them."

"So Wolf, what is really your side of the story? Because of Zelda going home, you and Donkey Kong know that you have no choice but to turn on each other. The both of you saw it coming, and one of you is set to go home tonight. Now it's do or die. Kill or be killed."

"We literally sat down and had a conversation that it was what we're going to do. Ryu's not going anywhere because he has immunity. Yoshi is obviously not going anywhere. There is no reason for Plague to be voted out here, so it's between me and him. And like Plague and I told Yoshi today: you can only explain something the same way so many times."

Plague nodded in agreement. "The move is so obvious here. Donkey Kong knows he's the absolute biggest threat to win this game."

"He might not be wrong here." Ridley muttered from the jury.

"And I know that I did not start on the same tribe as him this season. But I have heard stories." Wolf went on. "He had to sacrifice his friends in Mario and Sonic so he can progress, got blindsided with Meta Knight going home, successfully played his idol to save Golden at the swap sending Foxy home, only for DK to win a crucial immunity screwing Golden over in the process. Bowser followed right after him. And on top of that, his team loss a lot of the immunity challenges while he went on to win three individual immunities. ...Clearly if he sits at that final tribal, he's going to him some votes. And he's obviously downplay his accomplishments in front of Yoshi to make him appear less threatening."

"He is not holding back..." Bowser was almost chuckling in his spot. "It's hard for me because I'm rooting for both of them."

"All Plague and I have to do is let the facts speak for themselves. Since DK is the bigger threat though, it's not surprise that he's trying to get into Yoshi's head and have him think a different way, rather than him making the most rational decision. I know I'm sounding like 'my way is the right way', but Yoshi has single-handedly ended peoples' games before for how threatening they were. People who had a pretty tight friendship with. I could go on, but... it's self-explanatory."

"Wow." Now what SGA's side of the story? "DK?"

"Okay, I'll admit. I'm a threat. Happy now?" His arms were extended. "I'm a threat. But, I believe it is appropriate to say that we are all threats here in our own right for something. Yes, I have lost allies. I won challenges, and I've been a part of blindsides. Wolf was also a part of blindsides, and he lost some of his folks too. Bowser and I worked together helped get rid of Foxy. And it's no secret that Bowser is closer to Wolf than me."

Haha! The funny thing was he literally just said that he was rooting for both of them. Yet it never meant that he liked one just as much as the other. He had a clear preference.

"Sure Wolf had to get back at Springtrap for making him send Bowser over there, but I wouldn't be surprised if Springtrap still votes for Wolf is he's making it to the finals. They both love this game too much to be bitter towards each other."

Kevin 'Sprintrap' Davis actually kept quiet at that comment. Not giving anything away at all.

"Well we're both just as guilty as the other getting rid of Springtrap, because we needed each other votes for it."

"But again, that was an ally you were closer with. That's two possible jury votes right there."

"So Yoshi, you have heard the pitches from both of them. Now you have to make the decision. But there is a commonality between all three of you here. You have all lost people before in this season."

"I can say you're right about that." The dino nodded slowly. "It's really a shame to see Zelda go. But with both DK and Wolf still here, at least they can understand how I feel. Losing allies and friends is always a hard thing you have to go through. Whether they end up leaving you or if you have to vote them out, it never feels good inside. Like me, they have also signed up to be a part of this game. And I have played with Vector for two seasons and I have outlasted him both times... That doesn't make me feel good. And then on top of that, I had an opportunity to use my idol on him. Did I do it? No, because I didn't think he was going to get enough votes to go home. I didn't think Shovel was going to be the one voted out at seven, so that was my fault too. Zelda followed right after him. I'm the very last of my alliance and now everybody my vote before the same thing happens to them."

"We have all lost people." Wolf brought up. "Our friends and our allies are all on that jury watching us as their dreams are once again ruined."

"And even though sometimes I may not show it," said Donkey Kong. "-I still feel awful knowing the fact that I'm still here while they can only watch us. I'm the reason why Golden is on the jury, because he was not set to go home at the time until I won the immunity challenge. But the only way I should be looking at it is Golden saving me, because me winning that challenge has bought me some time and I'm still here. And you know what, I think relationships are playing a factor of what this season is all about."

"Care to elaborate?"

"The twenty of us have been brought back here. But before we were all asked to compete in this game again, some of us have actually formed genuine friendships with one another inside and outside of our past seasons. And coming back here, we have all tried to protect ourselves and each other as long as we can, but... this is a selfish game. Even I have to remind myself that sometimes."

Ryu was bobbing his head all the while. "No lies detected, my friend. I know Golden and I have our different gameplay styles in Mexico, but we've really grown close over time and we were fortunate enough to actually be aligned together for real this time. I unfortunately did not get to spend as much time with him, but we still have some plans with each other once this is over. And Donkey Kong has told me everything he went through, and I can't help but feel sorry for him. I'm the last core ally he has and I'd hate to see him go, leaving me to be the last of my alliance if Yoshi sides with Plague and Wolf."

"Plague Knight, what's your take on friendship?"

"My take on friendship?" Master should have asked him of how much he valued friendship in general. "Okay, um... Friendship is something I usually don't think about that much. Pretty much the only person other than Mona that I can kinda call my friend is Specter Knight who is not even here right now. He's somewhere in the Caribbean hanging around the others players that did not make it to the jury phase this season."

They were all almost certainly eating all the food possible, too.

"I know in our first season together, we both got on each others nerves so much, we were surprised ourselves of how we were able to form a little... something. He needed me as much as I needed him, and we were all we both have. But like I said, he's not here now. And I have to say that if it wasn't for Wolf, who knows what my game would have been. So if Yoshi actually votes with Ryu and DK, I would be the only one left of my alliance. And like Yoshi, I have actually experienced that before and I still made it to the end. So,... the worst case scenario is that there's a possibility of that happening again. I just hope that Yoshi sees the big picture. That's all Wolf and I have to do."

"On that note, it is time to vote. Plague Knight, you're up."

"Oooh! Wait a minute, master!"

?

All eyes stared right his way. Apparently he was not ready yet. ...Hurry up! Geez!

"I have a little something here..." And the next thing everyone knew, he was digging in his bag... Hold up. Did he not find something on one of the rewards several episodes ago? Oh man... "Tonight my last time to play it!"

"What?" Shadow frowned, he and the rest of jurors staring of what he held in his hands.

"This was found in the first post-merge reward this season. It is a secret advantage."

Ryu and DK dropped their jaws in astonishment. He had it with him for fifteen days? Seriously? And he lied, too. He literally just told Yoshi that nobody else had anything to play right before Tribal Council.

"And with this advantage, I am allowed to take somebody's vote away so that they do have the right to vote at this Tribal Council. Because of that, I will be voting twice tonight. And I have waited so long to use it at just the right time. I know I'm not in any danger of going home, but this is going to be used just to make sure everything goes my way."

That was certainly one way to own up to the criticism Plague Knight received for always throwing tantrums whenever something did not go exactly how he wanted.

"I was on that reward. Why didn't I get that?" Well for Vector, it was a matter of simply not paying attention. Too bad for him.

"Okay, so you have the Steal-A-Vote advantage." No, master. He had the 'give-a-vote' advantage... "Who's vote are you going to steal?"

Being right in the middle of everyone, Plague made a complete turn around to look at the other four remaining players. "I was going to take Yoshi's vote away because he is the swing vote here, and it'd be nice to take power away from him to make sure there's not a chance in him to send Wolf home. But, you know what? Ryu is DK's right hand man who is the most likely person to vote with him. So tonight I'll be taking his vote away instead."

"Alright, then." Ryu Hoshi spoke calmly, shaking his head in disbelief. "Go ahead and rob me."

Donkey Kong brought both of his hands to his face knowing very well what was about to happen.

"Okay. So Ryu, you do understand that tonight you will not get up and vote and Plague Knight will be casting two votes in the urn."

Wolf O'Donnell all the while was grinning from ear to ear. What were the chances that the scientist actually told him about the advantage that day? He had no reason no to unless he wished to see him surprised for no reason. Regardless, he already knew he was not going anywhere.

"Alright. You can go on right ahead."

"I'd love to." Leaving his spot, he literally skipped all the way to the voting urn as if he was a small child.

"I'll be packing my bags..." There was no point blaming Donkey Kong for doing so.

Ryu then turned to Yoshi. "You pretty much have no choice but to vote with them now. Were you going to vote for him, anyway?"

"I was." He admitted sighing. "Sorry, DK."

"It's okay."

D-K

One vote for DK...

D-K

Two votes for DK!

"Hehehe..."

That sneaky laugh of his. Most likely, he had the mischievous grin underneath that mask too. What a gremlin.

Fully realizing the situation, Yoshi breathed out the biggest sigh in front of everyone. There was no point at all going against the majority. Donkey Kong was going to be unanimous. The poor man knew he was going home before the voting even began.

But still, the monkey had to vote for somebody, whether his vote was going to matter or not.

W-O-L-F

"For a second I was going to vote for Plague since there's not anything I can do about this and I still have to vote for somebody, but I'm sticking to what I was gonna do today and that I find you to be the more likely threat."

Well with Wolf making sure he voted for Donkey Kong himself, he could not have cared less.

"I'll go tally the votes."

There was barely any point in doing that! Master Hand already knew the outcome, so it was all pointless to kill more time. It was better to send DK to Ponderosa to get some food into his system. However, protocol was protocol. He had to follow his own rules.

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

The most he could have done was make it quick...

"First vote... DK."

No particular reaction other than the huge amount of disappoint that was already written across his face. His name needed to be called just two more times and he was going to be on his way.

"Wolf. One vote Wolf, one vote DK."

A literal shrug was all that was needed.

"DK. Two votes DK, one vote Wolf."

There was only one more needed to officially send him home, and they all knew it. And with his bags already being packed, all Donkey Kong had to do was stand up.

Plague Knight nodded in absolute satisfaction.

"Sixteenth person voted out of Survivor and the ninth member of our jury, DK. That's three, that's enough. You need to bring me your torch."

Music: Lost In Thoughts All Alone (Remix) - SSBU

Game: Fire Emblem - Fates

"Well played. Good job, everyone."

Getting up, he found himself being embraced by pretty much everybody except Plague Knight separately.

First, his buddy Ryu.

"I suppose this is what it all comes to. You did really well this season." DK said to him. "Funky Kong would be proud."

"Quite fitting for you to be the last of SGA. If I see you sitting at the finals, you'd be finishing what you started."

Next, his rival (yet kind of his friend), Wolf.

"Props to you for winning this round. You're gonna be the only one left from our old season."

"Heh." He snickered. "I suppose representation matters."

Finally, Yoshi.

"You'll be okay, Yoshi. You get props for being the last hero."

"I feel like I'm voting Ken out all over again."

"I'll be fine." He grabbed his torch before walking over to the host. "You guys just do your best at the final challenge... Alright, I'm here master."

"Donkey Kong, the tribe has spoken."

Snuff.

"Time for you to go."

"Okay..." Not before saying goodbye to his now former players one last time. "It's been a really good pleasure taking a part of this experience for a second time to you all, and including the jury which I am now a part of. This is truly the greatest show in the universe. There is no other game that is more fulfilling. I'll see you all soon."

"Bye, DK!"

"See ya!"

"Good job, DK."

"Just two more days..." He mumbled to himself while walking down the stairs. Good thing there was text at the bottom of the screen to pick up on every last word he was saying.

Taking advantage of where Ryu was sitting, there was even more white text shown to pick up his whispers to Yoshi. "You know who has to go home next."

Wolf was too busy watching DK walk right out of his view to notice or really care at the time.

"Well, Wolf, Plague, Ryu, Yoshi, you all have one more immunity challenge to get to. The last challenge of this All Star season. I highly recommend you all get some much needed rest. You're going to need all the energy you can gather to perform at your best tomorrow. Grab your torches, head back to camp. Goodnight."

---

Votes:

Donkey Kong - Wolf

Yoshi - Donkey Kong

Wolf - Donkey Kong

Ryu - No Vote

Plague Knight - Donkey Kong (x2)

Final Result:4-1

5th Place:Donkey Kong

Total Votes Received: 9

Final Confessional Run: 4-5-4-2-4-2-1-1-2-3-3-3-3-5-2 (44)

---

"To think that I was just two challenges away from winning is going to be something to think about it for a while. But hey, I made it a lot further than I did last time despite my rollercoaster journey this season. That by itself shows it was worth it to come out here again. I'll be interested in seeing who's going to be the winner of our season. And when final tribal comes around, they better lay it all out there so that I can make the proper decision of who to give my million dollar vote to."

---

Castaways Remaining:

Yoshi, Wolf, Ryu, Plague Knight

---

SURVIVOR - HEROES VS VILLAINS

---

Back at the Super Smash Ultimate Arena, there was a camera view of Donkey Kong's loved ones clapping in support. Funky Kong, Diddy Kong, Dixie Kong, Lanky Kong, Chunky Kong, and yes, Cranky Kong.

And by the way, there was a bit of a mix up when the loved ones visit occurred. Diddy Kong was the correct loved one that went out in the Caribbean to support DK this season and not Funky. Hate to break the fourth wall, but whatever mistakes that were made were going to be fixed.

"What a guy." Master Hand spoke from the stage. "He got his alliance together in Kodai Island to finally start taking out members of the opposing tribe. Mario and Sonic were both on the same starting tribe as him again this season only for him to realize that he needed to cut them off. He lost some allies, found an idol, lost some challenges, won some challenges, lost some more allies, had a great shot at winning, but fell just two days short. And yet, he never lost his composure. If you want to know how to keep a level head in dire situations, look no further than Donkey Kong. Come on out!"

His fans, family, and friends all got on their feet cheering him on as the gorilla himself calmly made his way to the front of the stage, shaking master's... hand. Hahaha!

"Whew..." He beamed, really feeling all the Survivor love. "This is nice."

"It really is knowing that you have a strong fanbase that supports you. And you know, people genuinely felt sorry for you based on everything you had to deal with. We're going to talk more about it during the reunion show." The host told him. "But I was just telling the audience of how calm and collected you were despite all that you went through. Some things went your way, some things didn't. And you know, that's the beauty of the game. It brings out the worst of you and the best of you. I know that reality really hit you, but you just... kept going. What I want to ask you is what exactly is your secret to keeping your cool? Everyone has their moments, yes. But you are one of the last castaways I'd expect to just lose it out there. Tell us how you think."

"You just... keep surviving I suppose." That was to keep it short and sweet. Though it did not hurt to add a few more words in. "It is never easy playing the game. Your head will hurt just by thinking about everything all the time. And you can't really get too mad at the people who do have a meltdown on the island, because it really exposes your vulnerabilities. And it really lets you know how difficult this game really is. I wouldn't I have a secret to how I am able to keep it together most of the time, since we do have our moments. It's okay to be vulnerable. But as I just said, Survivor is one hell of a game to play. And for the reasons that I just stated, having a full picture of the hardships you have to face on the show, you realize that there's nothing you can do about it aside from quitting."

"And knowing me, I would do anything but quit. So the best thing to do is just keep going. It'll all be over soon, whether our torches get snuffed or we make it to final tribal. The adventure is one of a kind, and even though it is always overwhelming, I can't help but love the challenge. There's a reason why so many people apply for the show tells folks that they just want to see what they're made of. And people that have left the game, myself included, has learned a couple things about ourselves and we just grow from it. It's all thanks to you, and it's all thanks to Survivor."

The audience once again clapped and cheered.

"Very smart words to say. You have played every day of Survivor with patience. And sometimes that's really all you need to get through tough situations in life. I'm glad you were able to have a deep run this season, and it was a pleasure to have you on the show."

"Thank you, master." His grin grew wider, feeling rather proud of his overall Survivor journey.

"We'll be right back after the break, but there is still more to come." If there was time for a bathroom break, this was the perfect time to go. It was best to be quick though, since commercial breaks did not last forever. "We still have four more players that are in the running: Plague Knight, Yoshi, Wolf, and Ryu. One of those four is set to win the title of Sole Survivor. And with one more challenge on the way, someone is going to take the final spot on that jury bench. We'll be right back!"

Donkey Kong clapped his hands together with the crowed before the screen turned to black.

---

(Not revealing the confessional count for the rest of the characters yet, since this round is only one part of the finale episode.)

Okay. That part at the beginning when I was talking about places being overcrowded? I threw a diss at Astroworld 2021 and used it as an example. Not going to further comment on that ;-)

But... whew. Longest chapter I've ever written in my life. I mean 20 thousand words? Have I gone mad or something? If this was the beginning of the story, it would have been split into two parts. But we are nearing the end after all. Poor DK, though. I'm gonna miss him... I loved his talk with Master Hand at the end there.

And I'm gonna finally talk about why this chapter was posted on a Tuesday. Due to this fic being nearly over, I don't really have much to lose at this point. Whenever the chapter is done, it is going to be posted immediately. I wanted to get this chapter done by last week, but... clearly due to the length and with it being the start of the finale and all, it was a difficult chapter to make. And there's no point in keeping you guys waiting, so why not get this out now? So expect updates to be whenever from this point, and that includes Ponderosa.

DK needs whatever last minute support he can get on my poll, so vote if you haven't already!

---

Okay. Let's see who I can announce for India... How about I announce not one, not two, but three castaways for it? Dedue from Dimitri's squad in Fire Emblem: Three Houses (they're not gonna know each other though), Sans's little brother Papyrus from Undertale, and Mega Man's brother Proto Man.

Characters Revealed So Far: Wario (WarioWare), Byleth (Fire Emblem - Three Houses), Blaze (Sonic the Hedgehog), Raven Beak (Metroid), Bill Grey (StarFox), Olimar (Pikmin), Richter Belmont (Castlevania), Jeanne (Bayonetta), Ludwig von Koopa (Super Mario), Dimitri (Fire Emblem - Three Houses), Mona (Shovel Knight), Impa (The Legend of Zelda - Skyward Sword), Ashley (WarioWare), Dedue (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Papyrus (Undertale), Proto Man (Mega Man)