Replies, finally calmed down a bit:
Tech-Star 2.0- I used AZW's Rewritten epilogue to fill in a lot of the gaps for Alessia's conversation with Chris. I had the bulk of it from the app, but her epilogue portion was something that really helped me figure out what I wanted to do with her as we got into the final stretch of the game here. Breaking out the different format was also really fun to try out.
Space Zodiac- As far as the returnees go, I don't want to outright say that they don't have a chance to win. I did recently watch a Survivor season that showed me it's a good idea to keep it like that, but Persephone and Faye, as far as I'm concerned, have just as much of a chance to win. I really enjoyed Sasha's impact on Winslow in the apst episode too, and that's actually gonna keep coming back today for sure, since she's really the only person they've truly bonded with.
lordgemini- Persephone definitely earned that advantage, and was really the only one who completed the requirements for it. Alessia did no work to keep Chris safe, she just followed him and went where Persephone told them to go, so Persephone earned a favor from Chris, which has obviously gotta be pretty big. We're about to find out just exactly that'll entail!
All the chaos is done, it's time to see where we go from here!
Episode 15: No Heat, No Kitchen
The camera opened to see Chris, Chef, and Zenthus in the control room of the upper cabin, where Zenthus was observing all of the hidden cameras that have been around Crevice for some time. "And these have been here since your arrival?" Zenthus asked with a confused tone. "I am shocked to hear that Thea had not found any of these."
"It's tricky to find somethin' you don't know you're supposed to be lookin' for," Chef reminded him. "If Thea knew that there were fifteen more of those cameras just like the one she found, it'd be a different story."
Chris nodded. "Which is exactly why we kept it quiet. Too bad about camera five though. That had some awesome footage from the shaman challenge. We'll have to edit that one when it airs." He then walked over to the main camera that showed off the control room itself. "Now, Zenthus, watch how we kick these things off."
The host smiled at the camera with a pristine grin that had no evidence of having been hunted down the night before. "Previously, on Total Drama Ancient Abodes...where do we begin? I guess last time we talked, Zev was still here. Um...sparknotes, Faye came back, we merged the teams, and a lot of people talked about electricity. Winter and Faye did the best job on their presentations, while Sasha's was a bit too good." Clips played of the suspicious merge announcement, along with some of the presentations. "With the returnee Faye not having to worry about being sent right back to Loser Island, Team Persephone's remnants worked together and made a very clean move of eliminating Zev, making everyone left in the game voting the same." The final clips from that episode that played were of Zev's elimination, and Thea approaching the fire circle. "And...that's it! Nothing too notable happened..."
"Chris got led into the woods by Persephone and Alessia, who were way more helpful than him," Chef added in, his voice taking over the recap. "There, Persephone used her wit to trick Thea into going the wrong way, while everyone else hid for their lives...and failed miserably." Clips played of Persephone and Thea fighting, Winter and Faye escaping a tree that Croshia had knocked down, and Shion and Chander getting caught by Thea. "The only ones who helped a little bit were Sasha and Winslow, who made their efforts known by explaining things to Gregor and Zenthus, finally resolving our secret issue that we've been having. Oh, and Chander and Shion are a thing now, because who saw that coming? Everyone. Everyone saw it coming." Clips played of Sasha and Winslow hashing out the events of Ancient Abodes, while Shion revealed his past to Chander in the shaman temple. "While Sasha and Winslow bonded a bit over the resolution of the attack, it was cut short as Sasha bit the bullet for spilling the most secrets out of any of the contestants. Someone else did way more..." The final clips were of Sasha and Winslow observing the Happy Herd, and Sasha's elimination.
The scene flipped back to Chris and Chef, the former being very unamused at the many slights on him during Chef's recap. "We have seven left now. Alessia, Chander, Faye, Persephone, Shion, Winslow, and Winter. We're gonna lose someone else today! Find out who cooks in the strategy department, who should never cook again right now, on Total! Drama! Ancient Abodes!"
"That seemed awfully long," Zenthus commented. "Do you think people actually watch that part or do you reckon they may skip through it?"
Chris smiled. "Doesn't matter. It pads the episode out to thirty minutes."
Opening Sequence
[Various cameras and other director equipment came popping out of various points of Crevice. The first camera appeared as it popped out of the window to the blacksmith's workshop. The next one popped out of the ground in the training arena, where the spear promptly severed it from its wires. Finally, a camera emerged from the dock that was connected to a small hut, this camera falling right into the water.]
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doing fine,
[The camera zoomed from the top of the cliff all the way down into Crevice, where Chef was seen lifting a heavy piece of stone into place on a house, putting it into place, only for it to be knocked out by a rogue explosion from one of Chander's pranks. Chef sighed heavily as Chander laughed nervously at the result. Nearby, Klase watched this all unfold apprehensively.]
You guys are on my mind,
[The camera turned to the blacksmith, where Harvey could be seen wielding a giant sword he had crafted. He performed a pretty terrible swing at a target, and turned to look at a confused-looking Alessia, who merely sighed in frustration.]
You asked me what I wanted to be, and I think the answer is plain to see,
[The camera switched to the middle firepit, which Nicolette was assisting with the cleanup of. Nearby, Setsuna was pitching in on a rock move with Monty, the archeologist clearly saying some things that made Nicolette nervous and Monty angry. The bassist lost his temper, punching a hole into the rock which startled all three of them.]
I wanna be famous!
[The camera moved from the firepit to the meeting hall behind it, where Syd was tampering with a machine she had created. Meanwhile, Persephone watched her to the side, grinning excitedly as the machine began whirring and lighting up some of the lights that had been placed in there.]
I wanna live close to the sun,
[At the bridge connecting the village to the forest, Shion stood proudly, and acknowledging the camera, gave a wink. He then stared out into the forest, where a pair of eyes could be seen in the shadows.]
Go pack your bags cause I've already won,
[The eyes startled Shion, causing him to quickly turn around, and he ran into Winter, who had followed Shion out to the bridge. Shion sighed and helped Winter back to the village, the bandwagoner confused as to why they needed help.]
Everything to prove, nothing in my way, I'll get there one day,
[The camera flipped to the abandoned shaman temple, where Winslow was digging around in search of something. They encountered an odd staff that was still glowing, which only intrigued them further on what was going on with it.]
Cause I wanna be famous!
[Back in the meeting hall, Chris was having a discussion with Zenthus inside the leader's quarters. Zenthus was accompanied by the other three villagers. The room itself had a dark shadow inside it.]
Na na, na na na na, na na na na, na na na na na na!
[Out by the dock near the hut, Zev was fishing with a very old rod as Sasha poked her head out of the hut, looking around for something, and then sitting down to relax. As soon as she did, Kaif appeared out of the water with a makeshift heart, which Sasha took. As soon as she did, Kaif went from flirty to confused.]
I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous! I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous!
[The camera transitioned to night, where Faye was gazing up at the stars. At one point, the camera zoomed in on one of the stars, which turned into a ball of fire. As the camera zoomed out, it revealed the firepit at night.]
I wanna be famous *whistling*
[The camera panned out further to show everyone circled around the campfire, which the villagers were present for as well, all very confused at the whole situation. Everyone whistled the theme song as Chris stood on the side, holding up a sign that the villagers could not see, which was entitled: Total Drama Ancient Abodes.]
SOUTHERN SHACKS, CREVICE
Winter had wandered down to the southern row of shacks, formerly known as Team Gorgeous. They went up to Alessia and Persephone's shack and knocked on the door. "Hello?" the bandwagoner asked. "Anyone there?"
Alessia was the one to open up the door, instantly throwing on a false smile as she saw Winter standing there. "Winter! It's so good to see you!" she said with a coy smile. "Where are your other friends this morning?"
"Faye's off talking to Zenthus about something," Winter explained, "and Shion and Chander are off on a little morning picnic thing. I think they're finally getting to process their relationship a bit more now that all the running around and stuff is done."
"Oh, that's right, good for them!" Alessia responded cheerfully. "Well, what can I help you with?"
Winter glanced out at the fire circle. "We need more wood for the middle fire circle. Part of the clause of us staying is we do more work, and everyone else is gone, so..."
"Where is Winslow?" Persephone asked with a groggy yawn, poking her head out of her bed and making eye contact with the bandwagoner. "Shouldn't you know where they are too?"
Winter laughed. "Oh, right! Winslow's already at the Shaman temple. They're really trying to get that whatever-it-is that they were trying to get. Left super early this morning." As Winter explained where everyone was, Alessia smirked to herself.
Alessia: "With Sasha out of the picture, I am officially the final flirt," she pointed out. "I mean, we all saw that coming, right? But, Winter is becoming a larger and larger threat by the day. If they stay much longer, I don't stand a chance. Shion is officially lost to me, he's with Chander, and so are Winter and Faye. That means the only way Persephone and I can possibly escape this numbers issue is...Winslow." She groaned. "I shoulda gotten rid of them when I had the chance. Begging for their cooperation will not feel good."
"Well, I can help you!" Alessia offered. "Give me a few minutes and I'll meet you by Rodin's hut. We can cross the bridge near there and cut down some trees from the woods!"
Winter beamed. "Thanks for your help! See you in a bit!" The bandwagoner skipped off excitedly.
Once Winter was out of sight, Alessia turned to Persephone. "You better finish waking up," she demanded, "because now you have a job to do."
Persephone groaned. "You have the nerve to command me around? Which one of us spent all night last night fighting a psycho spear lady because they were the only one who could do it?"
"Oh how selfless of you!" Alessia spat back facetiously. "Look, we're in danger. This Happy Herd is going to pick us off one-by-one, and we're only two ones! You need to go find Winslow and convince them to work with us. Winslow will not agree if I go, so this has to be your idea. You okay taking credit for this elimination if it works out?"
The princess shrugged. "I certainly take no joy in doing things I didn't earn myself, but whatever. It can be my idea. Like always, I'm the one doing all the work. Shouldn't this be you? I have an advantage today, so I'm probably not going anywhere."
Alessia glared back at Persephone. "Okay, then I can just get eliminated today and leave you without any numbers at all tomorrow, how about that?" Alessia's tone rose for a bit, but she sighed and sat back on her bed. "Persephone, we need each other right now. I certainly don't wanna go against you in the finale, and I know you're still probably plotting revenge against me for the Zev and Setsuna tiebreaker. But, if we don't work together now, we're both screwed."
Persephone nodded. "You are right, for once. Fine, I will speak with Winslow, but you owe me. Three people's not enough to make a big vote happen, so you need to keep playing up the charm on Winter. We'll need their vote too, and they're more likely to vote for someone in the Happy Herd over Chander or Shion. Getting Faye out might be a good start."
"Aren't you close with Faye?" Alessia asked with a suspicious look.
"Close?" Persephone asked. "Sure. A million dollars close? Not so much." Alessia gave one more careful look at the princess before leaving to go get firewood with Winter.
Persephone: "I still don't trust Alessia at all," she explained. "As soon as I feel safe in the numbers again, I'm cutting her throat for getting rid of my ally, Zev. At least I'm gonna get credit for the Faye vote. Alessia's caused enough damage already, so someone else getting to be part of the fun is much better, especially if it's me. I worked too hard in this game to drop at seventh or sixth, so getting myself further is exactly what I'm going to do."
MEETING HALL, CREVICE
In the meeting hall, Faye was busy sweeping out some of the dirt and leaves that were tracked in from the previous week. "This is all coming along quite nicely," Zenthus said graciously as he watched Faye clean up the meeting hall. Most of the room was now wiped down with cleaning solution brought down from the cabin above Crevice. "Although, please enlighten me again on these mixtures you are using for them."
"It's stuff made to clean up various surfaces," Faye told him. "I don't know exactly what's in them, but I know you're not supposed to mix them, and that you shouldn't drink them. Though there was a trend in the United States about bleach a while back. Winter would probably know more about that." She paused with a sudden realization. "God, I hope Winter didn't drink bleach."
Zenthus looked mildly concerned with Faye's thoughts. "I suppose that if Winter is here, she likely did not drink that bleach you are speaking of." Faye decided that was probably for the best. "Regardless, your work on the meeting hall has been exceptional. I was not expecting you all to actually step up your assistance this much, but the help is more than appreciated."
"Least we can do for lying to you, you know?" Faye responded. "Anyway, you said that you all had some folklore about the stars from your culture. I really volunteered for this so I could get a bit more insight into that."
Zenthus nodded as he walked over to a shelf inside the building and pulled a book out. "This might be of interest to you then. It is a collection of various star names that we use. I imagine they are quite different from what you call them. We have been quite isolated, and even other developments in astronomy did not reach us before the avalanche."
Faye grinned excitedly as she accepted the book. "This is super cool! Do you have any favorites?"
The guardian put a hand to his chin. "I suppose one interests me in particular. Turn to page thirty-five."
The astronomer flipped to the page and began reading the title of the story aloud. "The Zenthus Preservation and the Ending War- holy crap, that's you!"
Zenthus humbly chuckled. "Alas, it is simply a person I was named after. The battle itself was one where we held our own against an enemy village that was far stronger than us. We did this through some unsavory means. Instead of meeting their head-on assault, we worked our way inside their village and attacked from within in the middle of the night. When we were faced with a mighty foe, we did what we needed to in order to survive."
Faye continued to read it. "This Zenthus was no joke. Lighting all the food on fire to stop their energy from coming back...that's super messed up." She glanced outside. "Is this supposed to be advice? Like, I gotta stop my enemies from gathering food if I want to win this game?"
Zenthus shook his head. "It was not my intention. However, if you are truly that interested in winning this game, that book may be of use to you." Faye clutched her new possession tightly now, as she very much wanted to win. "You may keep that book for the duration of your stay for a job well done here. However, I will warn you that not all of the stories in Crevice history revolve around war. Some of them may not be useful."
"That's okay, I really appreciate this anyway!" Faye responded. "But I should probably go check in with the others on what's going to go on today. I'll be back after the challenge to finish up!" Zenthus nodded in approval, and Faye began making her way outside, reading the book as she walked.
Faye: "After getting eliminated the first time, I was really worried that I wasn't going to have another shot at the money," she admitted. "It's kind of a blessing that I got this chance, plus the whole attack night made the newbie target sorta drift away from me." She shut the book Zenthus gave her and looked at the camera with a determined look. "I have to figure out the best way to get me to the end. If I can keep my friends along the way, that's great, but I need to win this thing."
SHAMAN TEMPLE, CREVICE
Winslow was holding a shaman staff, trying to summon the same thing they had been trying to summon for the past few days. The staff was glowing for quite a bit, but after some time, they let out a dejected sigh and dropped it, the rock on the end halting its glow. "Do you reckon some people are simply not meant to be shamans?" Winslow asked Gregor, who was watching silently.
"Eh, sure. Not everyone is meant to do this," Gregor agreed. "Thea was originally training to be a shaman while I was as well. She dropped out of the training group about a year in. She knew this was not her calling." He shook his head. "That is not you. You have progressed more in a few days than Thea did the entire time she was in training. You have immense potential. It will take time to cultivate that will."
Winslow glanced back at the staff that was sitting on the ground, nothing emitting from it anymore. "I keep being told that I require more time. I am starting to believe that time may be fleeting. When people are looking to keep others by their side, they choose those they can trust, rather than those they are simply close to. I do not fear my immediate departure, but I fear it is approaching quickly."
Gregor nodded. "That's right, you always have a chance of being voted out. I don't think Sasha or Zev saw it coming. Well, Zenthus and I did talk, and we are still open to the proposition that you remain in Crevice after the game. If you would like that extra time, it is yours." Gregor grabbed the staff off of the ground and held it up in the air. "Share with me what I need to do to assist Winslow with their quest," Gregor asked the spirits. Winslow watched as Gregor sat in silence. As he held the staff up, it glowed brighter than Winslow had ever gotten. Gregor was most certainly getting an answer.
"Do you find it necessary to create that Advisory right after I had failed mine?" Winslow asked with a mysterious aura that had many hints of dejection hidden poorly throughout.
"Well, unless you want those answers from somewhere else," Gregor reminded them. "Obviously I was trained to do this, but I was not trained to be a teacher who trains a kid in a few days. The spirits are a bit confused on why you want to learn from them. They seem to think you have the answers already." He chuckled. "I've been there. You can ask the spirits all day long, but they won't talk if they think you're wasting their time."
Winslow shook their head with a sigh. "Does that specify that we are wasting our time here? That is not a result I would hope for."
"Not quite," Gregor noted. "It's more like...the spirits don't want to waste your time. You know what your answer is already, and you already know what you want to do. It comes down to admitting it." He looked right at Winslow. "Do you mind sharing why this decision is so important to you? What is your answer?"
Winslow sat quietly for almost an entire minute. They knew what their answer was. They knew it the instant Zenthus proposed the offer for them to stay in Crevice. But, it was not something that was articulated ever. Winslow took a deep breath and eventually relinquished that information to Gregor.
"No. I do not wish to stay."
Gregor seemed almost surprised by that. "Huh. Not the response I think I saw coming. But...this means that with only a few days left in this game of yours, you have, at best, like five more days of learning about this place. Does it not bother you that you could have so much more time? Do you really wish to not stay?"
"I do not," Winslow said definitively. "My philosophy of life does not allow such a thing. I do not remain in one place too long. Those sorts of things do not do me any good." They let out a sigh. "This is precisely why I need to stay in this game as long as possible. The time in which I have to uncover the mysteries of this game is going away quickly. Even losing one day would be devastating, but not as devastating as if I had stayed after."
Gregor shrugged. "Well, we can certainly keep trying to summon the Advisory if you would like, but there's lots of other things to see. It may do you some good to see some of those instead of being cooped up in here all day." With a dejected look, he added, "I can also speak to Zenthus about your decision."
"It would make more sense to come from me, would it not?" Winslow offered. "I may take you up on such a piece of advice and see some other things. I will be on my way." Winslow began exiting the shaman temple, with a bit of an upset look on what could be seen of their face.
Winslow: "The decision to leave Crevice with the others was not something I had mulled over much, even at all," they admitted. "I wander, I move, and I do not stick around and grow attached to various things. That is the way in which it has been done for ages, is it not? However, it does mean I require assistance to go further. Sasha had a point. I will not survive the...as she addressed it...the Happy Herd."
Once Winslow left the shaman temple, someone was already waiting for them outside with a sinister grin on her face. "Winslow!" Persephone said curtly to the wanderer. "Come here. We need to talk now." Winslow rolled their eyes and began walking over to the princess.
"What could you possibly require from me?" they asked eerily. "I was under the impression that you were aligned with the ilk of Alessia. That is not something that I am interested in pursuing."
Persephone rolled her eyes. "Seriously? That's how you wanna do this? Winslow, without our help, you're screwed. Without our help, you're screwed. If we don't team up, we'll never take that Happy Herd down."
"A curious matter," Winslow agreed. "However, this comes with another issue. Our combined votes amount to three. Do you believe you can break off one of them on your own? We would need four to succeed."
Persephone gave a proud nod. "Yes, I do. As we speak, Alessia's running point on Winter, trying to get them on our side. I think it's got a solid chance of working. Winter's proven to be easily convinced in the past."
As soon as the wanderer heard Winter's name, they gave a weary look to Persephone. "You are likely falling into an irredeemable pit if you try that out," Winslow advised. "Winter is extremely adept at social deception, and is likely lying very convincingly to Alessia. You manner of a fourth vote must come from another. Additionally, it leaves one option left. The astronomer must be persuaded."
"Alessia won't convince Faye," Persephone confirmed. "After getting voted off the first time, Faye doesn't trust Alessia one bit. But, she can be motivated quite easily- money. She requires that money more than anyone else, so reminding her how she needs to get to the end is how that is done."
Winslow nodded. "A likely outcome. All that would need to be done is to convince her that Winter is more crucial to the Happy Herd than her. Shion and Chander are a powerful force, and need weakening. I believe they would see a move against Shion plain as day. We need to oust Chander."
Persephone laughed. "The boy walking around with the perfect story of being thrown into a leader role, navigating tough team relationships with Klase, Alessia, and Nicolette, then finding love in the heat of a life-threatening situation? That's a hero if I've ever seen one. Do you think we could actually take that shot?"
"I am not aware of any idols or advantages that are affecting the game," Winslow confirmed. "It would merely take four votes. However, if I am not convinced that you have the other three, I will not hesitate to oust Alessia first. She herself has quite the ability to cling on for dear life, like a cockroach. Additionally, I despise her."
The princess groaned. "Ugh, fine. You don't worry about a thing then. I'll talk to Faye, it'll be a cinch." Winslow very quietly nodded and simply started walking away from Persephone who let out a huff. She did not expect to have this much responsibility thrown onto her.
WOODS, EAST OF CREVICE
Alessia had wandered out far enough to find Winter using an axe to cut branches off of a tree, splitting those logs into smaller amounts. "Winter, I made it!" Alessia said cheerfully. "You know, I'm so glad you're still here. I feel like with all the chaos, we haven't had a chance to really reconnect since the team swap!"
The bandwagoner waved excitedly. "I know, right? It's a real shame you got moved, I thought our team probably could have won way more challenges." They quickly threw up their hands defensively. "Don't get me wrong, Nicolette was a really awesome person, but we definitely needed a person who was cunning like you. All of us kind of aren't."
The streamer laughed. "Aww, well, I'm glad to be on your side now. Zev was a real pain. Losing Sasha was something I didn't mind either. But, I did want to talk to you about something important."
"Well, just make sure you're still getting wood while you're doing it," Winter advised. "I already caught Thea patrolling the area once today. She's upset she didn't get to do more damage last night."
Alessia, upon hearing that warning, grabbed the other axe and began swinging at branches, not wanting to deal with the huntress one bit. "So, now that we're down to seven, this is the perfect time to make a giant move against people who are dangerous in this game. Right now, who do you think has the best shot to win?"
Winter sat quietly for a second as they thought it over. "Either Persephone or Chander. Both of them have put in a ton of work, so I wouldn't be surprised by either of them winning."
"Bingo, Chander's put in a ton of work," Alessia told them. "He's built that alliance of four, and when it comes down to it, all three of you in that Happy Herd are going to pick to get rid of someone else over him. It could even be you. It probably will be you."
The bandwagoner shook their head. "Eh, probably not. I think Chander and I are really close. I know that's kinda the point you're making, but I don't think I'm gonna get voted out by them. Plus, without any idols or anything here, we're thinking that if Persephone doesn't win immunity today, she needs to go, and we actually wanted your help with that!"
Alessia smirked. "Oh, really?" she asked. "Why do you need my help?"
Winter laughed nervously. "Well, I still think you're an okay person, despite what Winslow keeps saying. Plus, we know you're probably mad from the advantage result last night. If all six of us work together to stop her today...it'd work. But each time we don't do that, Persephone's chances of winning go way up." She looked closely at Alessia. "Do you honestly think any of us could beat her in the finale?"
The streamer was halted for a bit before shaking her head. "I guess not. Fine, we should go after her. But, with that advantage sitting there, she could win today. That means when there's six left, we have to do something. Doing it today feels like she could see it coming."
"So then she'll scramble..." Winter pointed out. "Okay. I like your thinking. I knew it was smart to rope you back in with us!" The two chopped wood for a little while longer before bringing it back, but as they did, the woods were filled with a tense silence.
Winter: "So, Alessia doesn't trust me at all," she decided. "She's never folded on a decision like that the entire time she's been out here. We know she's still working with Persephone because that's the only way things work out for her." She smirked. "As for me? I'll do nothing. I believe that when we hit four, Faye will be chosen to go instead of me, and then I can beat at least Shion in the final three. For now, though, we have to stop Persephone. She's the only one who could go on an immunity run."
Alessia: "Well, that settles it," she decided plainly. "Winter is officially off the menu. That's annoying. Winslow hates me, Chander and Shion have become unavailable, Faye and Persephone were already off the menu, and now Winter doesn't trust me. I spend all this time knocking out the flirts and I still have to play normally? Fine, I got enough intel from Winter. Persephone needs to accomplish her goal today and get Faye with us. If she doesn't? I send her packing."
WOODS, NORTH OF CREVICE
By the bottom of the cliff, Chander and Shion were sitting on a blanket from one of the unoccupied shack beds, while eating an assortment of berries and other things they found in the woods. "Not much of a picnic," Shion admitted sheepishly, "but I thought it'd be fun, even if we're still eating table scraps."
Chander laughed. "I think it's fun still. It feels like something Lenti would drag me out to do, and then complain about the bugs or something anyway. Plus, it'll help get our minds off last night, which while I personally liked it a lot, it was still super stressful."
"Yeah," Shion agreed. "I mean, I don't think any other season has had an actual attack on people before. But, I guess it kept things exciting." He quickly looked around. "Do you...think there'll be a big target on our backs now? You know, because we're...I guess dating?"
The acrobat hesitated. "I didn't really think about that," he admitted. "But, Faye and Winter are with us. That means we have time to work on getting rid of Alessia and Persephone first. They're the two who are most likely to win challenges besides us."
"What about Winslow?" Shion asked.
"They're cool, so I'm okay with them being here for a while," Chander replied. "I mean, they also really like Crevice. I wouldn't want to take that away from them until we absolutely had to. So, the five of us should work together to make sure Persephone doesn't win one of the next two immunities. She's the biggest threat to win this game right now."
Shion smirked. "I like how you think. She definitely carried our team after she came back. We're lucky to not have had any physical challenges up to this point in the merge, unless you count last night...which she won." He smiled brightly at Chander. "I really want you in the game still. Now that we can really work together, I think we'll be unstoppable."
"Me too," Chander said with a smile. "Worst case scenario, we lose one of us at five, but I don't think that's going to happen."
"And what do you think you two are doing?" a voice called out, causing the boys to jump up in shock.
Shion and Chander looked back to see Thea standing there with a scowl on her face and an animal on her spear. "Maybe if you all were hunting like I told you two to do, you would not be scrounging up nuts and berries. We have wildlife in this area for a reason. Use it." She slammed her spear on the ground for dramatic effect before vanishing into the woods.
"I'm not really a hunter," Shion told Chander. "I'm way more of an indoor person."
Chander shrugged. "Eh, me neither. Maybe next time we do this, we can have Winter try and smuggle us some snacks from Chris and Chef's cabin." He laughed. "Did you know they can pick locks? Winter's something else. Ton of skills."
"Good morning, final seven!" Chris's voice sounded over the newly-installed speakers. "It's nice to have these things finally stay up overnight. Meet at Croshia's workshop and we'll get to our challenge for the day!"
Shion smirked. "I hope you're ready, because I won't go easy on you," the cover artist said confidently.
Chander laughed. "Good, because I won't either!"
Chander: "The final seven..." he mused quietly. "This isn't how I thought I'd get here, but I'm happy I am. I think the only thing that would make this more perfect would be if Klase was with us, but now we have a team and a gameplan. The last remnants of Team Persephone and Faye are going to try and knock the other two out. Persephone's too good at challenges. But, she has an advantage today, and we don't know what it is or how she'll use it. Just gotta be careful."
Shion: "I thought my game would be way different," he admitted. "I was ready to spy on the other team, and do whatever I needed to do to get further in the game. But, this is nice too. Chander and I will be okay for a while. Once the big-ticket threats like Persephone are gone...I don't know what happens then. Winslow is smart, they'll try to save themselves, and so is Winter. I guess that makes Faye the wild card."
CROSHIA'S WORKSHOP, CREVICE
In the workshop, prior to people arriving, Rodin and Croshia were waiting quietly, very few sentences being exchanged between them. Eventually, Croshia broke the silence. "Did you know Thea was running her own investigation?" Croshia asked the fisherman.
"If I knew, I would not have let Sasha talk her way out of Crevice," Rodin retorted. "I do not think I care for anyone who's still here. Winslow may be the exception to that, but did you hear? They apparently are rejecting the offer to stay."
Croshia looked surprised by that. "Really? Huh. I guess if they were to be eliminated and go somewhere else, the novelty may wear off. At least today is easy for us, and the kids have been putting in a lot of work. I even saw the pink-haired one getting wood this morning."
"Huh, who could have guessed that?" Rodin said with a small laugh. "I guess the deal worked out then. All of you get what you want, Chris gets what he wants, and I finally get left alone."
The blacksmith shook her head. "You still have to judge the results of today. That is not taxing, but it is work you have to do." Rodin groaned one more time as the final seven, Chris, Chef, and the other three villagers made their way inside.
Once everyone had arrived, Chris waved at them excitedly. "Well, well, well, we finally get to do a full-fledged challenge, and it'll be a Total Drama classic- a cook off! In two hours, we will be working on transforming this workshop into a space with four tables that four teams of two can cook on."
"Wait, teams of two?" Shion asked. "How is that going to work?"
"We only have seven people," Winslow pointed out. "There is something quite amiss."
Chris laughed. "Ah, so innocent still," he said. "That's what too many episodes of secret challenges will do to you. Pairs will be explained in a bit. First, the challenge! You'll need to make a dish that'll wow myself, Zenthus, and one random judge of his choice. Those dishes will be ranked on a scale of one to ten for a possible total score of thirty. Highest score wins immunity and can't be voted out."
Chris then put a map down on the table to show the final seven. "Around the outskirts and inside of Crevice, you'll find various stations of ingredients. Some of these could be useful, others might be worthless, depending on what you're making. It'll be up to you to make those things and decide! You'll have that two hour window we're spending to transform the workshop into a proper kitchen, which will help out the villagers here as well."
"There will still be a location to do metalwork, correct?" Croshia asked pointedly.
Chef nodded. "Yeah, we're not wrecking the whole thing, but we figured a nice kitchen area could do this place good."
Upon hearing Chef's voice, Winter raised her hand. "Hold on a second," Winter asked with a very confused look on their face. "If Chef is a professional cook, why isn't he judging the meals? You said, it was you, Zenthus and one other judge. Is Chef not judging?"
Chris nodded again. "Very good observation, Winter," Chris said. "Persephone, as a reward for your bravery and assistance yesterday, your advantage is that you may receive Chef as a teammate. He will be your partner for the challenge and round us out to an even eight."
Persephone smirked. "I could have won without his help, but that is greatly appreciated."
Chris turned to all of the contestants again. "Now, here's the twist of today. For this challenge, two people will be winning immunity. Both people in the pair that cooks the best dish are safe from the vote." Some people looked happy to see their chances of winning go up.
Winter: "That works out really well for us," she analyzed. "Persephone being on a team with Chef means that Alessia and Persephone are guaranteed to not both be immune today. So, no matter what, we can vote one of them out." They grinned. "I'm hoping Alessia and her partner win, honestly. It'll make the Persephone vote very easy without a secondary target, and even the playing ground in the final six."
"That sounds great," Chander said. "I guess that means we all have to try our best."
Chris laughed. "Oh, Chander, you didn't let me finish. Did you really think it'd be that easy?" The acrobat gulped. "Yes, while the winning pair wins immunity, and you can vote separately today from your partners, you will be voting out a pair today. Two people are getting on that raft today and meeting up with the other losers...permanently. No more Loser Island to coddle your loss." That seemed to shock everyone.
Chef laughed nervously. "Chris, I'm not sure we thought this advantage through. What if I don't win and they vote out Persephone?"
The host stared blankly at Chef for a second before shrugging. "Well, I guess you'd go with her. Out of the game."
The cook gasped and turned to Persephone. "You're in luck, girlie. I just decided to try a bit harder today."
Persephone: She could barely contain her laughter. "This is the easiest win of my life, right?" she asked. "I'm a strong enough cook without Chef, but with him while he's trying? Pack it up, everyone. I'll see you in the final five."
Alessia: "Good news again," she analyzed. "That means without Persephone, as long as I don't get paired with Winslow, I can force one of the Happy Herd members to stay with me. Best case scenario, it's Shion or Chander and it forces the other one to spare my pair. Worst case would be Faye, who's the least connected of everyone. If she pairs with Winslow, that'd be ideal."
Shion: "I'm getting a very bad feeling about this one," Shion said nervously. "Persephone is sitting with a near guaranteed immunity. I need this pairing to go super well. Chander is who I work best with, but Winter or Faye would be good to have too."
Faye turned to Winter. "Do you want to work together?"
Chris put his hands up before Winter could respond. "Hold your horses. I pick the pairs today. Well, honestly, I threw darts at pictures until I got pairs to make it random." He placed a piece of paper on the table in front of them, which had a bunch of pieces of paper with a bunch of dart holes in it, with the other three pairs sitting in front of them.
Alessia and Faye
Chander and Winslow
Winter and Shion
"These are the pairs for today. You should work hard to make sure you and your partner win today, because if you don't the others might be ready to attack! Your two hours of ingredient searching starts...now!" Chris rang an air horn, which made the final seven minus Persephone scramble out the door.
The princess turned back to Chef. "Um, are you coming with me or not?"
Chef shook his head. "For this part? Nah. I'll cook the best thing you've ever seen, but your ingredients are on you. Have to keep it a little fair. Sorry." He then turned back to the workshop and began trying to install a kitchen area, leaving Persephone to grumble to herself as she walked out the door.
RODIN'S HUT, CREVICE
Winter and Shion burst into the hut, which was unoccupied, as Rodin was back at Croshia's workshop. "This dude never leaves this place," Winter said confidently, "so the ingredients might have been sitting here for a while. We should try and find something that lets us make something neutral. We learned from the initial fish challenge that while the villagers appreciate spices, too much could overwhelm them."
Shion nodded as he began looking around for something to use. "Do we think Rodin keeps other food things in here? I wouldn't want to take something of his that wasn't for the challenge." He sighed. "That map was hardly useful. It just had a bunch of ingredient symbols and stuff."
The bandwagoner gasped. "Wait, that's why we're here! This hut is where we caught fish for the fishing challenge. I think that's what we're supposed to do." Winter rushed to the wall and grabbed two fishing rods off of the hooks on the wall, handing one over to Shion. "The faster we can catch a fish, the better. That's something we can use for the main course. And, it's something that my team won, so I can make sure we really knock this one out of the park!"
Shion laughed as he walked out with Winter to the dock. The two cast their lines and began to wait. "We shouldn't wait here too long," he advised. "After a half hour, we should bail, we're gonna need that time to get everything else." He turned to Winter as they waited. "You know, I was excited to have you as my partner," he told the bandwagoner. "You're probably the biggest challenge beast right now, especially with how much we need various skills for these challenges."
Winter laughed nervously. "What? I'm not a threat! I'm just me!" As soon as she said that, a tug appeared on Winter's line. "Oh! We got one already!" The bandwagoner rushed to her fishing pole and began working on bringing the fish in. "Back when they judged video games based on whether or not they had fishing minigames, I went out fishing a lot to try and be good at all the games faster. It uh...didn't help."
After some more struggling, Winter managed to pull a fish out of the water, simply flopping around on the dock. Shion quickly grabbed it and bagged it. "Okay, that's a main course down, we just need to figure out some sort of way to make good sides. What on Earth can we cook with out here?"
"Guess we'll have to find the other stations and figure it out," Shion mused. "Come on, non-threat." Winter laughed at the joke and quickly followed Shion out of Rodin's hut.
As the two exited, they found Persephone standing outside the hut, holding onto some sort of jar of spices. "Whatcha got there?" Shion asked the princess casually.
"Nothing you need to be worried about," Persephone hissed. "Tell me how you did this one!"
Winter shook their head. "Nope, can't do that. Sorry, you're too dangerous!" Before any sort of altercation could go down, Winter quickly flipped Persephone's spice jar in the air and ran off as the princess stumbled around to catch it.
Winter: "I'm not actually a giant threat, right?" they asked with a concerned look. "Last I checked, we were all on board with the idea that Persephone needs to go, but this whole thing with voting out a potential pair...or Chef apparently...means that our alliance is in big trouble today. Luckily, I have Shion with me, so Chander and Faye won't vote me and him out. This whole thing just depends on us stopping Persephone."
Shion: "I'm super worried about tonight," he admitted. "We need immunity badly or Winter and I could be going home. Plus, if Persephone wins, it means I have to vote for either Faye or Chander. At least voting Faye out means Alessia goes too, but that's still not a trade I want to make."
FIRE CIRCLE, CREVICE
Chander and Winslow reached the middle area of Crevice, where they found an empty jar with their names on it. "Would it not make sense to fill these vessels with some sort of taste enhancers?" Winslow suggested as they picked up the jar.
The acrobat nodded. "For sure. We just gotta figure out how we're gonna do that. I don't see any spices or anything around..." Chander's eyes finally landed on a small bag sitting within the fire circle. He rushed over and picked it up, revealing not any food, but rather a note. He picked it up and read it out loud. "It says, 'Nope. No spices in here, but maybe dig a bit deeper to find some within the ashes.' That'll be annoying."
Without another option, the two began to dig around the ashes of the fire circle. Chander occasionally looked up at Winslow, trying to think of something to say, but the wanderer constantly continued to work on the challenge, focusing elsewhere. "So..." Chander said as he continued to dig. "What's been your favorite part about being out here so far?"
Winslow was quiet for a while, not really paying attention to Chander. They dug around a bit more and pulled out one bag, throwing it into the empty jar. "I suppose the various amounts of things to do," they eventually answered. Chander hoped for any sort of follow-up, but was met with nothing in return.
The acrobat sighed. They had been working with Winslow for almost two weeks now, but had nothing to say. Chander finally realized they hadn't interacted ever on their own. There was always one other person there. "What are your thoughts on the game right now?" Chander asked next, trying to make some sort of conversation.
"I suppose it is alright," Winslow admitted. "I am doing things I would not have been able to do without this opportunity. Though, I suppose there are some people I would be okay having never met."
"I take it you mean Alessia?" Chander asked, finding a bag of spices himself. "You two have never really gotten along that well. Though you did join us to vote Syd out."
Winslow shook their head. "That was by force. Alessia had me at the threat of being next had I not conformed to her plans. I believe that voting Syd out was a mistake at the time, and I am grateful that she moved to the other team and allowed me to be free of her."
Chander sighed. "I guess I haven't really figured her out yet. Winter has said they don't trust her, I got played by her, Faye said that she lied to her too about the first time she got voted out, and Persephone doesn't like her either. So...why is she still in the game?"
"It is a simple answer," Winslow stated. "Would it not be simpler to remove the easiest obstacles upon the end of an activity where one is stressed and tired? Alessia is quite literally low-hanging fruit. We can oust her whenever we need to, because she serves no purpose other than her own. She will join in on any vote that isn't her. She has been playing defensively since that Syd vote and will continue to do so. You and I have nothing to fear regarding her. I believe that she will not target us because I am here."
The acrobat looked up. "Wait, I thought that she didn't like you. Why would she keep you around then?"
"Because Alessia knows that she needs my vote to keep going. She is concerned of a foursome emerging of yourself, Shion, Faye, and Winter. If that is true or not, is currently irrelevant, as tonight's elimination requires an odd method...again." They pulled out another bag of spices. "We have enough spices. We need to move now." Chander sat in silence for a second as Winslow grabbed the jar and made their way to the next station.
Winslow: "I have not decided on a course of action yet," they admitted. "While it would prove useful to remain in the game as long as possible, which would mean siding with Alessia, nothing else matters if she wins. I would like to avoid that woman winning at all costs. Becoming a swing vote in the final five may be useful enough to make that happen."
Chander: "Well, that's spooky," he said with a cautious look. "Winslow knows they're not part of the alliance. But I'm not convinced they want to work with Alessia. I just need to make sure Alessia doesn't win, and even if we lose Faye, it'll still be a three-two situation. If I make it through Persephone, I'm certain I could win every other immunity left."
MEETING HALL, CREVICE
Faye and Alessia quickly made their way into the meeting hall. "The map says we can find potatoes in here," Faye observed as she read through the map. "That should be pretty quick, unless they're somewhere inconvenient."
"You mean like up there?" Alessia asked, pointing up at the ceiling, where about thirty potatoes were strung up with string. "If we had a ceiling fan or anything we could just turn it on and watch it cut up the string, too bad we're in the middle of nowhere."
Faye groaned. This was not going to be a fun one. "Okay, let's just get this over with. I don't like you, you don't like me, and us winning immunity is the only way this will end well for both of us."
Alessia laughed. "Aww, you don't like me? Why not?"
The astronomer found a ladder on the side of the wall, which got her a couple of feet, but not enough for the nearly two-story building the meeting hall was. "You're kidding, right?" Faye shot back. "You lied to me the first time I was voted out! You said we would work with Monty and you got rid of both of us back-to-back! I made it back, but he's still stuck on Loser Island, and it's your fault!"
The streamer gasped. "My fault? Don't get that twisted. That was Zev and Persephone. I joined in because Persephone forced me too. Even today, she's been talking to Winslow about getting one of your alliance buddies out!"
Faye shot her head back. "Persephone might have been responsible for Monty, but she wasn't around for my vote. That was all you!" Faye reached up as high as she could, barely knocking down two potatoes before the ladder started to wobble and she quickly climbed back down. "Are you planning on helping?"
Alessia smirked. "Nope." She picked up the two potatoes that got knocked down and tossed them outside. "Grab them!" she shouted.
From the side of the meeting hall, Persephone appeared from a bush, grabbing the food items Faye had been working hard to procure. "What are you doing?" Faye shouted sternly. "If we don't win immunity, we're going to vote you out!"
The streamer laughed. "It's thinking that slowly that got you voted out the first time! If I go, who goes with me?" All of Faye's hostility stopped. "Sorry, space girl. You and I are on the same team today. That means when we don't win immunity and Persephone does, and all the votes are coming our way, the only way you stop yourself from going home is by joining us. Persephone wanted me to convince you otherwise, but this is way easier."
Faye gritted her teeth. She really had no choice. "What do you think will happen when we reach five then? We'll all just turn on you. You think Persephone won't just win immunity and go after you when she realizes she has a clean shot?"
Alessia shrugged. "I feel way more confident in a final five with her and you than I do with Chander or Winter. Now, grab a few more potatoes and we'll go grab some spices. We're making a baked potato and not even using everything else. The goal is to feed us and not really the judges." Faye grumbled as she did what Alessia wanted.
Faye: "It sucks that I got paired with Alessia," she complained. "But the fact she's forcing Persephone to get immunity while forcing our alliance to vote against each other sucks even more! This whole weird vote is wrecking our plans. I guess Chris didn't want three easy episodes in a row, or he's just been eager for drama since he hasn't had much all season." She grumbled. "Whatever. I'm gonna try and rock this baked potato and win immunity myself."
Alessia: "What, are we surprised I did something villainous again?" she asked curtly. "Look, I'm playing the game I need to play right now, and I personally think it's genius. Of course, this whole plan blows up in my face if Persephone can't get Winslow on board. Oh well, at least my final day would have been spent messing with Faye again and eliminating her again. That's worth something."
SHAMAN TEMPLE, CREVICE
Persephone, with a jar of spices and two potatoes, along with a fish, wandered into the shaman temple. "Probably about an hour left," she decided. "It can't have been that long even though everyone's been everywhere already."
"Ten minutes left!" Chris's voice sounded over the speakers. Persephone's face fell a bit.
"That's stupid," she complained. "Whatever." She took a look around the temple, only to realize there was a whole dessert platter sitting there, filled with every single type of candy and gummy product imaginable. "These will probably just kill them if they ate it," she decided, still grabbing a bunch. "Might as well sell it to people as favors down the road though." Persephone took as many possible pieces of candy as she could and ran off with them like a bandit.
As she made it out, she encountered another group. "Hello, you two," she said to Chander and Winslow, who had just arrived at the temple. "I didn't find anything in there worth your while."
"Right..." Chander said skeptically while observing Persephone's bag she had with him. "And then bulging bags you're in possession of are just...like, for fun?"
Persephone shrugged. "Hey, it's all just candy. You're free to serve it to the villagers if you want, but I think they might explode or something if they do. Just trying to look out for at least some people."
"We appreciate the advice," Winslow said, clearly just trying to escape the entire situation. "It is obvious that we do not require this and would be better off strategizing for the cooking phase that is soon to come."
Chander sighed. "I guess. Fine, we'll head back."
"Oh, one more thing!" Persephone said to them, making the two stop. "Alessia is currently throwing the challenge for herself and Faye. The odds they win immunity are basically zero. I think it would do well to just turn the tables on the two of them. Us three plus Shion and Winter could do that quite handily, right?"
Chander seemed suspicious of that offer. "I thought you were trying to convince Winslow to vote me out?" he accused the princess.
Persephone shook her head. "Well, I can't make that work anymore with the pairs how they are. I'm more down to vote anyone who isn't me. You would want Alessia out of the game after the things she did, like the Syd vote, or the Monty vote, right?"
The acrobat hesitated. "I mean...I'm trying to find the trap there...but I don't see one."
"That's because there isn't one," Persephone told him. "Alessia keeps complaining that I got the advantage, I told her to suck it up and I'd save her, and I have no such plans to do so. Join me, and we can eliminate two large threats in this game."
Winslow stayed silent the entire time. They turned to Chander, awaiting his response.
"I'd have to think it over a bit more," he admitted, "but I think I would do it. It really does seem like a no-brainer, right? Maybe I'm just paranoid that it's too easy, but maybe sometimes that's the case."
"Great talk, we better get back," Persephone quickly concluded. As she left, she stared right at Winslow. "Just something to think about." As Persephone left, Chander and Winslow followed her slowly, the wanderer continuing to think.
Persephone: "I don't know much about Winslow, except that they're very smart, and Alessia hates them," she explained. "So, hopefully my messaging got across. I obviously don't want to target Alessia, she's like a free meat shield that people will go after first. I think that they got it though."
Winslow: "Clever tactic," they noted. "Persephone has no desire to rid the game of Alessia. I was hoping for otherwise, but alas, it was not in the cards. Chander agreed to that vote with the full knowledge that it would remove Faye as well. Her message was very clear- it was that I would not stand a chance if I do not work with her. If she does not win immunity, however, this all collapses."
WORKSHOP / KITCHEN, CREVICE
As promised, the workshop had significant changes made to it. The back two tables were replaced with many different stoves and cutting areas. A fridge had even been installed temporarily. "Wow, this place looks way better," Shion commented. "Hopefully everyone likes it."
"We do appreciate it," Zenthus said graciously.
"And yet they have not worked at this speed their entire time here," Thea reminded them. "How annoying."
Chris cut them off and looked to the final seven. "Alright, let's see what everyone gathered!" Everyone poured their bags out and revealed their contents.
Alessia and Faye had two potatoes, one bag of spices, and a pile of meat.
Winter and Shion had seven potatoes, four bags of spices, a larger pile of meat, and two fish.
Winslow and Chander had six potatoes, three bags of spices, and one fish.
Persephone had a jar full of spice bags, three fish, two potatoes, and a giant pile of candy.
"Well, it looks like all of you found most of the stations," Chris said as he inspected everyone's findings. "Now, you'll be cooking whatever you want, but it can only be with what you found. We'll give you two more hours to cook up everything, so make sure you're ready to go when that time's up! You'll get a ten minute warning and a two minute warning!"
Chef then stepped forward. "As a reminder, I'm helping Persephone, who...grabbed candy." He put a hand to his face. "Girl, are you tryin' to get us eliminated?"
"I know what I'm doing!" Persephone spat back. "Let's just get this over with!"
Chris nodded. "That seems fair. Remember, while a pair wins immunity, a pair goes home. Be careful when you cook, it could be a million-dollar meal! He rang the air horn again, causing most of the Crevice villagers to plug their ears. "Go!"
Winter and Shion were the first to get moving. "Okay, I've got the fish," Winter told Shion. "You should work on making some sort of spice combination that will work out and then maybe also start working on the potatoes? I can help with some of that too while the fish is heating up!"
Shion nodded as he opened up the jar with their spice bags, only to realize that none of them were labelled. "Oh, this might be a problem..." Shion muttered. "Winter, I can't identify any of these spices, we could be putting something terrible on this stuff!"
The bandwagoner rushed over and took a look at the spices. "Hmmm..." they mused for a second. "This one's hard to guess...but this one? Cinnamon, for sure."
"Gotcha," Shion said back with a surprised look. "I'm impressed that you recognized that one so-" he paused mid sentence as he took a mental guess of Winter's process. "Winter...did you do the cinnamon challenge?"
"Huh? Not right now!" Winter said defensively. "Oh, you mean like, before the show. Um, yeah. Like, eight times." She giggled nervously. "Each of my siblings wanted to do it with me."
Meanwhile, Chander and Winslow were preparing the one fish they had. "I guess we'll need to use more potato in ours," Chander decided. "We don't have as much fish to work with." He glanced over at his other ingredients, to see the same problem Shion had noticed. "Winslow...do you know what spices we have in our jar?"
Winslow looked really confused. "Oh, I had thought we all knew what they were. This one is paprika, this one is cinnamon, and this one is almost certainly cumin." They took a look at the bag that was sitting over on Winter and Shion's station. "I am unsure of what that one is."
Shion hesitated for a second before sampling the last secret fourth spice. "Is this..." he laughed. "Winter, this one is crushed-up Smarties." He laughed. "That's kinda funny actually."
Persephone had been keeping her ear open as Winslow identified the spices. "Well, that's four of mine settled." She grabbed the bag of powdered candy and tossed it on the floor. "Chef, how are things going with the fish?"
"We've got enough for one for each judge," Chef told her. "I can slow-cook it for a full two hours and make a solid result, but it's going to come down to the wire, and you'll need to do basically everything else."
"Ugh, fine, as long as it keeps me busy," she complained. "I've got what spices are what, except for these two. What are they?"
Chef inspected the last two bags. "Pepper and lemon zest. Those will go well with the fish. The others are not nearly as useful."
The princess hesitated. "Do we trust the villagers won't collapse on the taste of a little lemon?"
"Girlie, sour things existed back then too," Chef shot back. "Just get moving on your potatoes." Persephone grumbled to herself and got to work.
Chef: "Look, I read the applications, I picked the cast," he complained. "But if I ever thought I would have to cook with a contestant, especially her, I mighta made some other choices." He threw his hands up. "Loser Island! My idea." He shook his head angrily. "Look who's payin' the price for that now..."
Meanwhile, Faye was very actively working on cooking solid baked potatoes for her pair. "So you're not going to do anything?" Faye asked angrily to Alessia, who was sitting back and watching.
"That's the idea," Alessia said back with a coy grin. "C'mon, you didn't expect that I would, right?"
Faye sighed as she very carefully heated the potatoes over the stove, trying not to let them burn or do anything that would completely ruin their chances of winning. "What would you do if I told everyone your plan?"
Alessia shrugged. "Tell them I'm forcing you to vote with me? I mean, think about it. That means you're voting against your alliance. They might not like that. You should just let the cards fall where they may."
"You won't win this season like this," Faye warned her. "Bad people get what's coming to them. That money isn't going to be yours. It's going to be mine."
"Oh my gosh, stop talking about the money!" Alessia complained. "It's all I've heard from you!" As the two continued to fight, their voices got louder and louder, getting everyone's attention. "You keep saying how things are so bad for you, but what about us? You think we're here for nothing?"
Shion got quickly tapped on the shoulder. "What? I like the drama!" he said to Winter, who had a disapproving look on their face.
"Really? The multi-million dollar streamer is here for the money?" Faye hissed back. "You're here to cause problems, and the only thing that's spared you so far is luck! You should have been gone ages ago, but you just kept getting lucky!"
Alessia laughed. "Oh, right, I'm the lucky one! Which one of us is back in the game after trusting the wrong people?" Fully aware she had everyone's attention, she gestured to Faye. "We let this one slip through? We should have all sent her right back to Loser Island on the day she came back. I'll say it, I'd rather Zev were here!"
Chander walked over to their station to try and stop the fight as Winslow rolled their eyes and continued to cook. "Come on, you two. Let's not do this right now, we're gonna eat a big meal all together soon."
"No, Chander," Faye said back harshly, "she's had this coming. She's been a horrible person since day one! She lied to you, she lied to Winter, and today she's throwing her challenge so Persephone wins!" Even Winslow was getting distracted by the antics now.
Silence filled the space for a bit.
Everyone was now caught up in this fight...everyone but one pair.
Persephone and Chef were still cooking away.
"And it appears she is still doing it," Winslow noted, rushing back to their fish. Faye gasped as Alessia shot back a devilish smirk.
Faye: "Ugh! I should have seen that coming!" she cried out. "She really called me out on my behavior, and it got to me. Every part of this day gets worse and worse as it goes on, especially knowing that I'll have to vote with her to save myself!"
Alessia: "I was born to do catfights," she bragged. "But, that was more of an insurance plan than a 'help Persephone' plan. I needed another drama-causer around just in case Persephone does lose and gets voted off. It's easier to convince people to eliminate Faye after she's screamed at me."
The cooking area was much quieter after that big fight, but the vibe had shifted more than that. Winter and Shion were moving quickly, but not wanting to break the tension at all, they did it much more quietly. Chander and Winslow were already working pretty non-verbally, but any communication that might have happened was put to a screeching halt. Faye and Alessia had both completely given up.
Persephone and Chef were still cooking away.
As more time passed, the announcement came up. "Two minutes to go!" Chris called out. "Start plating! Oh, by the way, I'll be judging on plating!"
"I think it looks good," Shion said hesitantly as he held up the three plates of cod they made with sliced potato wedges and a cumin/paprika mix for their fish. They also shaved some meat on top of the fish for some extra flavor. Winter gave him a reassuring thumbs-up.
Winslow finished the plating as well. "It is not perfect, but I was much better off cooking on the stoves in here prior to the renovation," they commented. Theirs and Chander's plates had more focus on the potatoes, creating a bowl-like meal for their dish, with the fish inside the potatoes.
"Of course you would be better at the furnace cooking," Chander said with a laugh. "I think this will work out though."
Alessia grabbed one of the baked potato halves and took a giant bite while Faye wasn't looking. "Oh, these are terrible," she taunted. Faye took a deep breath and tried to keep her cool.
Finally, Chef and Persephone finished with seconds to spare. "Took you long enough," Persephone complained. "If I lost because of you, I'd be so mad!"
Chef shook his head. "I don't wanna go to Loser Island either...apparently that's allowed..." He still seemed very bitter at the rule Chris implemented for their pair this morning.
"Time's up!" Chris called out. "Now, Zenthus, who will be our third and final judge?"
Zenthus gestured over to one of the villagers. "He is the one who wanted to see how much their fish would improve with the new kitchens, so Rodin will be our third judge." There were mixed reactions for the fisherman being the final judge.
"First up, pair one, Chander and Winslow!"
Chander and Winslow walked up with their makeshift fish bowl. "I am unsure of what to call this," Winslow explained. "Chander told me they do something of the like in restaurants where the food is in an edible bowl. I found that fascinating. So...here."
"Huh, like a bread bowl?" Chris asked genuinely. Winslow simply blinked a few times. "Kid, you're kinda like a sixth Crevice villager," he teased. Winslow rolled their eyes as the three judges tasted their bowls.
"I am not a fan of the flavor combination," Rodin shared bluntly. "But, seeing as everyone made something like this, I will suck it up. I think you all used too much potato. You should have also used different spices than what you selected. You should have dug deeper into the fire circle for them. I will score this a six out of ten."
Chris shrugged. "I sorta really liked the presentation of it. But, I agree. Too much time in the meeting hall for the potatoes. Not enough time digging in the dirt. Come on, did you think the most important ingredient had a ladder as a challenge? Ladders are a fun thing to build, but not to use. Still plating was good. Seven."
Zenthus took small bites. "I am not overwhelmed by the flavors, but I am not underwhelmed either. I suppose that makes me...whelmed. I did enjoy the fact that you took a modern idea and applied it here, despite Rodin nor myself knowing anything about it. I will give you a seven out of ten as well."
Chander: "Overall, the judges liked our dish," he analyzed. "If they're judging this hard, then I think we might actually have a shot of winning this one!"
"That puts Chander and Winslow a final score of twenty out of thirty. That's not bad, but it's not good. You better hope no one else has much better than that." He looked at the next card. "Pair two will go next- Alessia and Faye!"
"We'd like to forfeit the challenge," Faye pleaded. "Our dish was destroyed."
"Nope, bring out something," Chris demanded.
With a groan, the two brought out the remaining three halves of baked potato that was severely burnt from the lack of attention. "It's all potato, no fish," Alessia explained. "Faye botched the potato. I figured, 'I'm gonna screw up the fish, so why bother even getting any?' So...yeah." Faye shot another glare in Alessia's direction.
Zenthus pushed his plate away. "I would...rather not bother," he admitted. "You did not produce nothing, however. I will allow a one."
Chris shook his head. "Shameful. I expected less than that from you two, but still shameful. Zero."
Rodin was the only one who actually took a bite. "Terrible. Truly disgusting. But, I respect the fish move. If this was this bad, I am glad the fish are still out there. Ten."
Faye: She simply sighed. "With the day I've had...I'll take it."
Everyone was surprised by Rodin's score. "Wow," Chris said with his jaw on the table. "Somehow, by producing three burnt rocks, Alessia and Faye manage an eleven, meaning someone could do worse. Next up, Chef and Persephone!"
Persephone stepped forward with very well-prepared fish. "Unfortunately for those who are a fan of slacking off, I did the work myself to acquire these three fish and prepared all the spices that went on top of them. I also prepared and collected all of these potatoes. They are properly diced up and seasoned to your liking."
Chris went first on this one. "Huh, most of the dishes so far have been toned down to be mindful of the villagers, but I don't sense that here. It makes me like mine more. Potatoes are a bit bland still. Eight." Persephone smirked at the highest number so far.
"I agree, I am not thrilled by the potatoes, but the fish is cooked to perfection," Rodin commented. "Luckily, that is what I judge most of this on. Seven."
Zenthus took a bite. "The potatoes are still the best that I have had so far, so I will rank your meal one point over the other one. Eight." Persephone beamed at the high total.
Persephone: "Who would have guessed? I try on another challenge and I'll become immune again! This game is a joke."
"That puts Persephone and Chef at a total of Twenty-three! It puts her over Chander and Winslow's total, and puts her in contention for immunity! Unless Shion and Winter can manage a score over that, Persephone wins today!"
Winter rushed up with their plates. "Well, you're in luck then! We've got the most diverse flavor palette waiting for you right now!" She served up her dishes to the three judges. "I think you'll find our ability to prepare something like this off the charts!"
"I certainly hope so," Zenthus said as he took a bite of the fish. "Ah, there is something on top of it...may I ask what?"
"We found a bit of meat in the woods, so we shaved it up and cooked it on top of the fish to make some extra flavoring!" Shion explained.
"Ah...interesting," the guardian commented. "I appreciate your interest in diversifying the meal. I will give you an eight." The two in the pair high-fived at their similar ranking to Persephone. The princess sat up a bit with concern.
"Huh. I agree the meat thing is weird," Chris noted. "Normally you pick one and call it. This is...a choice you've made. Potatoes beat the rest though. Six." Shion and Winter looked a bit more nervous. They needed a nine to tie and a ten to win.
All eyes landed on Rodin. "I agree. The potatoes are by far the best out of all of them. However...the spices you have selected for the fish were not what I was hoping for. You only get a seven from me."
Shion: "Well, it was worth a shot," he said with a laugh. "But hey, coming two points off a pair with a professional cook and the resident challenge beast is worth something, right?" He had a hopeful grin on his face.
Persephone let out a big sigh of relief. "And that settles things," Chris announced. "With only twenty one points, Shion and Winter come just short of Persephone's score, meaning Persephone wins immunity!" The four members of the Happy Herd looked around with nervous expressions. They knew that no matter what, one of them had to go home now.
"You'll all have a bit of time before we vote, but remember, just because you're paired with someone else does not mean that you are forced to vote the same way. But with seven people left...why risk it? Anyway, I'll see you all tonight at the elimination ceremony!"
As everyone cleared out, Chef walked up with an angry look on his face. "We need to discuss what you green-light without my say," he told the host sternly. "What would've happened if that girl didn't win?"
"Eh, you woulda been fine!" Chris argued. "Not like you were going to lose anyway with her on your team."
Chef shook his head. "Nah, I'm putting the foot down on this one. If I was eliminated with her tonight, Thea would not be as kind to you without me here. Start thinking through things a little more when you're still at spearpoint."
As Chef left, Chris maintained a devilish smirk. "I'll show you a real decision, then," he said with an eager grin.
WOODS, WEST OF CREVICE
Faye stormed off instantly after the challenge was over, not wanting to be near anyone. Despite that, someone still ended up following her out there. "Not exactly a graceful look today," Persephone said sternly to the astronomer. "People might vote your pair out just because they don't want to see you all fight anymore."
The astronomer let out a small yell as she flopped against a tree. "You're one to talk! You made that strategy to provoke me with her!"
Persephone tilted her head. "That? That wasn't me. I wouldn't dare do something so low. That strategy had Alessia all over it. To be honest, I still like you the most. You are the only one I think had any sense today."
"Why should I believe you?" Faye asked harshly.
"Because you're a fellow returnee, you were screwed over by the same person as me the first time you were voted out, and despite how much she complains about you saying you need the money, none of us are basically homeless...not by choice, at least. Winslow..."
Faye shook her head. "No, maybe I am talking about it too much. I just hate admitting she's right."
"People with money do not understand the struggles of people without money," Persephone told her. "Alessia will never relate to you, she will never like you, and she will never understand why you and I work harder than her. That said, I come bearing two things of good news, so you should wipe that ugly frown off of your face." She held up one finger. "First, Chander agreed to vote you out."
The astronomer sat quiet for a while before finally asking, "Wait...why is that good?"
"Because Winslow heard it," she explained. "Winslow got a front-row seat to seeing that Chander will make that move. In truth, he has no choice. He can't vote out his pair, and Shion is in the other one. You were screwed no matter what. But, Winslow watching that meant they saw that they had no chance. They might make it to the final five like that, but after that? I go, then they go. They know it. It was the nail in the coffin to convince them to work with Alessia."
"...which would make four votes for us," Faye concluded. "I guess that is good news. What's the other thing?"
Persephone laughed. "I have an even better offer for you than a million bucks that will go away. How would you like a job? The rich and talented second child of the D'amours family is looking for a personal assistant? How's that for a shocker?"
Faye did a double-take. "Why me?"
"Because you understand hard work like I do," Persephone explained. "Also, you are more entertaining than the rest of the house staff, because you speak your mind, and obviously can be provoked for my entertainment." Faye flushed in embarrassment at the thought of her earlier outburst. "Establishing my own kingdom has to start somewhere. What say you? I will not offer this again, so think carefully."
"No need," Faye decided. "I'm in. Even if I don't know how to really do that."
The princess smirked. "Well, here is a starting order. Keep yourself in the game. That is only done one way. You will vote with Alessia." Faye wanted to object, but it was her best option. She nodded with a determined look. "Good work."
Faye: "Is this crazy that right now the person I feel closest to is Persephone?" she asked. "Persephone, who was so arrogant that her team got rid of her on the day she carried them on the challenge. Persephone, who I didn't see until the first comeback challenge because she was in the woods? She's the only one who came to look out for me." She shrugged. "Well, at least I'm not going back to the streets if I lose. That's a plus." A smile crept onto her face.
Persephone: "Faye is the only one with the tenacity to keep up with me," she said bluntly. "Everyone else is too coy, too much of a pushover, or just not interested. For that, she is perfect to start my kingdom. I truly think that with a little extra help, we will run this game. If things go to our plan today, it will be easy."
NORTHERN SHACKS, CREVICE
In Winter and Winslow's shack, everyone else who wasn't Alessia was meeting. "Well, that's a giant bummer," Winter voiced as they flopped onto their bed. "The one person we could vote out without any issue is immune. Plus, it would have been kinda funny to vote Chef out."
"Well, we have to figure out something," Chander decided. "There's no way to split a vote evenly with seven people left and force a tiebreaker, and even if we did that, Alessia wouldn't cooperate." He sighed. "I hate to do it to Faye, but this is our chance to get Alessia out."
Shion nodded in agreement. "I don't like it either, and voting for her and Alessia means she won't vote with us anymore. That means we need one more number." All eyes landed on Winslow. "Are you with us?"
The wanderer simply blinked a few times. "I am undecided," they said bluntly. "Speaking plainly, this is the reason I did not form such attachments. It has put you all into an uncomfortable position, hasn't it? The bonds you have formed have turned against you."
"So...is that a 'yes' or is it a 'no'?" Winter asked.
"It is an 'I am undecided'," Winslow reminded her. "Many people have asked for my input on this matter. However, I did hear Persephone was planning to turn on Alessia. If that is the case, you do not need my vote."
Shion flipped his head back. "Wait, she said that? Persephone actually wanted to get rid of Alessia?"
Chander laughed. "I mean, she's been bugging her the entire time she's been back in the game. I can't say I'm super surprised. But Winslow's right. She came up to us during the challenge. Faye's comment was right, Alessia was throwing their challenge to get Persephone on her side, but that doesn't mean she's going to work with her."
"It could also be a lie," Winter reminded everyone. "Persephone ran Team Gorgeous with that final four alliance Shion was in." Shion giggled nervously at that point. "She has lied before and will do it again. I personally don't buy it. With the four of us, Persephone needs Alessia to stay in the game."
Shion shook their head. "That's not exactly true. Persephone could win every immunity. I mean, that seems like an impossible task, but who here could realistically stop her on that front?" No one spoke up to volunteer. "We could just be counting our days until she picks off all of us one-by-one, and she hasn't gotten a single vote since coming back in the game."
Chander looked over at Winslow. "Winslow...we need your help. If we can't stop Persephone now, we need to weaken her. You would be with us, and it would get rid of Alessia. That is the best we can offer you, but we understand if you cannot help us."
"What up, everyone?" Chris's voice then sounded from the speakers. "Time to make your vote and get to the fire circle. It's time to finally send one of you packing. Sorry, make that two. Two of you are gone tonight!" With one last pleading look at Winslow, Chander and the others made their way to the fire circle.
Chander: "This is so nerve-wracking," he said. "I really hope Winslow will work with us. They have more reasons to not do that, but I hope they choose for the good guys to win this fight."
Winter: "Well, this is terrifying," they said with a big gulp. "Winslow is the swing vote tonight. That means they are either voting out Alessia and Faye...or me. I've lived with Winslow for enough time to know they have not socialized with many people. They won't if they can avoid it, and they have so far. Their one friend they made was Sasha, and she got sent home instantly. If they play correctly, they'll vote me out. I really hope they play wrong."
Winslow: "It appears fate has placed its decision-making abilities right on my doorstep," they narrated. "Will the sun or moon creep up on the competition? That decision is mine to make. Unfortunately, had Persephone not won, I would have removed her presence a second time. That is not possible. I must simply take solace that I will likely get no votes. That much is reassuring."
ELIMINATION XIII, MERGE
The final seven trekked to the middle of Crevice. Unlike before, the area was more lit-up, and like the previous night, the five Crevice villagers were waiting for them. They all sat in their pairs at the fire circle- Persephone sitting by herself on the end log, with Faye and Alessia nearby. Chander and Winslow sat in the middle, while Shion sat right next to Chander, holding his hand while Winter took the end spot, anxiously waiting.
Chris entered with, for the first time, a bag of marshmallows. "Well, we weren't certain when these would be able to come out, but here they are! For the uninformed, marshmallows keep you in the game. They are a symbol of fun at a summer camp, fun that will be halted very soon for two of you. In this game, these marshmallows represent your lives. If you do not receive a marshmallow, you will be taken straight to Loser Island by Chef."
"And I'll be coming back," Chef said defiantly.
Chris nodded. "For your stellar challenge performance, yes you will!" he added mockingly. "Here you go, Chef, a marshmallow!" Chef rolled his eyes as he caught the marshmallow. The cook tossed it right into the fire.
"Those things look horrible," Croshia commented.
"They burn nicely," Thea added.
Chris looked at the others. "It is time to vote! Alessia, you're up first! Make sure you write the two names you want on your paper tonight, and make sure they're both in the same pair."
Alessia grinned. "Don't worry, I've got it."
Alessia: She held up the names 'Shion / Winter'. "Shion, you were a pawn in my alliance. At Zev's magical final four, it would have been you who left. Winter...you should have tried harder to convince me that you were still into me. If you did that, I would have gotten rid of Winslow tonight instead. This one's on you."
Chander: He held up the two names 'Alessia and Faye'. "Faye, this sucks. Voting for you is something I really wish I could avoid, and I hope you understand. You just got back into the game too. As for Alessia, I think this is a long time coming, and I'll be much less stressed without you running around and causing chaos in this village."
Once Winter returned, Chris went and grabbed the votes, then came back. "Okay, remember, if you don't get a marshmallow, you need to go right to Loser Island. Head down the path to the dock by Rodin's hut, and Chef is waiting to take you away. First things first, immunity!" Chris tossed a marshmallow to Persephone, who ate it in one bite.
"Oh, that is an odd food," Zenthus said. "Is it...sticky?"
"The next pair that is safe," Chris announced, holding up the next marshmallow, "is...Chander and Winslow."
Chander looked relieved for only a split second, and his attention went right to Shion next. Winslow, however, caught the marshmallow without a hint of expression on their face. That left the two pairs that got votes left.
Shion grasped Chander's hand very tightly, occasionally looking to try and read Winslow's expression to no avail.
Winter kept a calm expression, ready for whatever was coming next.
Alessia looked smug, arrogant, and completely certain she was safe.
Faye did not look as certain, very concerned for herself. She glanced over at Persephone, who simply mouthed the word 'trust'.
"I have two more marshmallows," Chris told them. "Only one pair is joining our other three in the final five. Tonight's eliminated pair is...
...
...
...
...
...
...
...Shion and Winter!" Chander could only gasp when he heard that. He was certain that was a mistake.
"But...Winslow, did you really?" the acrobat muttered. He realized that it wasn't their fault. Someone else must have set Winslow up for this. "You!" he shouted, pointing at Alessia. "You did this!"
Alessia tossed her marshmallow up and down in the air. "Me? You think I convinced them to work with me?" She laughed. "You got the wrong girl. If I only voted out one person it woulda been them. But, I could vote out two and snap your Happy Herd in half!"
Chander's glare switched to Persephone. "Huh? Yeah, I did that. I'm not gonna go home the instant I lose immunity. So I set Winslow up to watch you turn on Faye. I made them realize they had no chance without me. Now they do." The whole time, Winslow simply faced forward.
The acrobat clutched his head. "I don't get it! Why do people keep leaving me?"
Chander was cut off by Shion, who simply wrapped his arms around Chander. "Hey, I'll be okay," he told him. "Honestly, after Monty got sent home, I thought for sure I was next. I dodged a solid four eliminations before that. Not bad!"
"I'll be okay too," Winter assured him. "Just means you gotta keep fighting. I got way more out of this experience than I could have bargained for, and I have the people of Crevice to thank for that." They turned to the villagers. "Thanks for everything." Then they turned to Alessia. "You know you're screwed. You got me now, but you're screwed." They laughed. "What's the most common thing eliminated people say? 'You haven't seen the last of me'? I guess you have, but I'm saying it. You haven't seen the last of me!"
"Alright, time for you two to go," Chris told them.
Shion quickly rushed over to Chander and pulled him in for a kiss. Winter 'aww'ed right next to them, only slightly ruining the mood. "Knock them dead for me," he said with a final wink. "See ya!"
Chander waved as he watched his boyfriend and best friend in Crevice leave the game simultaneously. Once they were both out of sight, he turned and stared at the fire for a bit.
Chander: "Persephone orchestrated that whole thing," he said bitterly. "We lost this because we sat around and did nothing but hope for something to happen. Persephone won because she was proactive. I can do that too. Just you wait."
As everyone began walking back, Faye found Winslow. "Hey, I know we haven't talked much," she said, "but thank you for saving me. I know that was probably a hard choice to make."
"You are welcome," Winslow responded. "I simply believe this would benefit me the most. I believe you benefit from this as well. You were obviously slated for fourth place. Perhaps that can change now."
The scene flashed to Chris watching everything from the cabin control room. "Well, that's how you run a fun elimination!" he said. "Suddenly, there's only five left in the game! Who's going to keep going? Can anyone stop Persephone's immunity run? Will Chander get the revenge he wants? Find out when we hit the final five of Total! Drama! Ancient Abodes!"
LOSER ISLAND
"We got a raft!" Kaif called out, alerting everyone.
"Please be Alessia, please be Alessia," Zev pleaded.
Stunned looks ensued when Winter and Shion stepped off the raft. "Wait, two of you?" Klase asked. "Shion, sucks to see you here. I thought you were gonna win the whole thing."
"Eh, I'll get over it," he bragged. "No one else is walking out of here with a boyfriend."
Setsuna skipped over to Winter. "I'm more interested in your elimination," she said. "You were by far my pick to win. How'd it happen?"
"Winslow was coerced by Persephone to vote out both of us, and Faye had no choice," Winter explained. "It was a rough day."
"I hope Faye's doing alright there," Nicolette said quietly.
Winter shook her head. "She had a rough day, but I think she'll manage. She seemed better by the elimination." Nicolette smiled upon hearing that.
Right before the two eliminated contestants could find their place, a rock came flying at them. Winter reached up and grabbed it before it could hit her. "What?" a stunned Harvey shouted. "How?"
Winter winked. "Quick reflexes! I'm not gonna join the 'getting hit by a rock' trend."
"Wait," Sasha asked. "Which one of you technically got sixth?"
Shion blinked. "Um...well, he did read my name first...but wanna rock-paper-scissors for it?"
Winter nodded. "You're on."
The two threw out symbols. Shion threw out scissors, and Winter threw out rock. "You followed the trend!" Winter told him. "Everyone throws that out first!"
Alessia: She held up the names 'Shion / Winter'. "Shion, you were a pawn in my alliance. At Zev's magical final four, it would have been you who left. Winter...you should have tried harder to convince me that you were still into me. If you did that, I would have gotten rid of Winslow tonight instead. This one's on you."
Chander: He held up the two names 'Alessia and Faye'. "Faye, this sucks. Voting for you is something I really wish I could avoid, and I hope you understand. You just got back into the game too. As for Alessia, I think this is a long time coming, and I'll be much less stressed without you running around and causing chaos in this village."
Faye: "I'm voting out Shion and Winter," she said with a solemn look. "I really don't want to, but they're voting for me. I get it, but it still stings. But just to make this very clear, this isn't me voting with Alessia, this is me voting with Persephone- my friend." She smacked her lips a few times. "Nope. That's still weird."
Persephone: "Well, hopefully I've done enough heavy-lifting today," she complained. "I would truly like to keep Faye around. For that reason only, I want Shion and Winter gone. Winter is the biggest threat to me winning immunities."
Shion: "I guess we're all voting out Alessia...and Faye. I never really worked with Faye the first time, so this was cool. Sorry it didn't work out. Alessia, I'm glad our alliance didn't work out. I never liked you."
Winslow: "I have elected for the moon to befall this game," they elected, holding up a part that said 'Winter Washille and Shion'. "I believe this benefits me the most. It is not a decision I would have come to without Sasha and Persephone's help. I hope that they expect nothing in return."
Winter: "I know I'm a prime candidate for elimination tonight," she said nervously. "But, at least if things go well, I topple Alessia myself! That'd be a fun storyline, but maybe there's too many underdogs around for that trend to work out tonight." They laughed. "Let's just see!"
Final Five:
Alessia, Chander, Faye, Persephone, Winslow
ELIMINATION TABLE:
16th: Harvey Wilder, The Unhinged Man-Child (6-2 Vote)
15th: Kaif Nishida, The Lover First, Normal Person Second (4-3-1 Vote)
14th: Sydney "Syd" Waller, The Silent Whiz With Machines (5-1 Vote)
13th: Klase Svoboda, The Reserved Pianist (3-2 Vote)
12th: Montgomery "Monty" Miller, The Hot-Tempered Bassist (5-2 Vote)
11th: Nicolette Delany, The Kind-Hearted Saint (Winner Selection)
10th: Setsuna Yuki, The Flirty Archeologist (3-3 Vote, Lost Tiebreaker)
MERGE
9th: Zevadiah "Zev" Dimmond, The "Cold" Stone (8-1 Vote)
8th: Sasha Conroy, The Temptress (Disqualified)
7th: Shion Mitsurugi, The Self-Indulgent Utaite (4-3 Vote)
6th: Winter Washille, The Bandwagoner (4-3 Vote)
It's Wintover, everyone :(
And for that bad pun, I guess we're starting with them. Winter was an absolute blast to write, and they came in first place in the Ancient Abodes rankdown on my discord server (and if I put my own rankings in there, probably would have won by more). They were the first character to be accepted into this story. When I read their app, I was certain she was someone I wanted to use. Turning Winter from the down-bad for Alessia pushover into trend master and challenge beast was one of my favorite plotlines to do. It also allowed me to put many phrases into my stories that I would not have used like 'Devious Lick', 'Cinnamon Challenge', and 'Among Us'. I really wanna thank Kadachi for sending Winter in, their inclusion definitely made this story what it was. That said, it was her time to go. I guess if I had to pinpoint a reason, it was to push forward the Chander revenge plot we've got coming up. I needed Chander's best friends in the game to go away at the same time to really make that catalyst go.
Speaking of...
We also lost Shion today too! Shion was a character I accepted among the many flirts where I needed to find something to do with them. Unlike Sasha or Setsuna, I let Shion stay on the flirt path...for two episodes, then moved him to a Monty friendship and Chander/Klase hangout squad member. His mysteriousness worked way different than someone I'm used to, as someone who simply cannot stand revealing things about themselves, even their own last name. It was a challenge for myself to find things for him to do in this regard, because to be honest, this is usually a character I would send home early based on his regular behavior, hence why he found himself in the bottom two on the first (non)elimination. That said, he fit perfectly into the Happy Herd, and I really think his role in this story was well done! Of course, that is just my opinion and always up for debate.
It seems bonkers that we've reached the final five. There's now only 4 episodes left of this story until it wraps up. See, I told ya we'd even it out to 18 somehow. This challenge was always a cookoff where we put the pairs against each other, and these pairs were carefully crafted to make this elimination happen. Originally, Alessia would win immunity and make a vote similar to what she did to Nicolette, but I decided I didn't want her to win this challenge or have that much power again. Instead, I opted for the fight with Faye, which I think works nicely to show off that Faye and Persephone actually have a real friendship, which is more of a testament to how much Persephone has grown here.
Well, as always, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's thoughts in the reviews (a little less than normal cuz of the Winter elim)! This story is about to surpass Fiery Passion's review count, and that means its next Karonverse checkpoint is Submerged's daunting 194 (I don't expect this one to pass that, haha). With that a quick announcement too: I'll probably be on vacation for an amount of time that extends this story's upload schedule. Bi-monthly puts us in June, but I'd expect this next update somewhere in July.
I think that's all I needed to cover! I'll see you all soon!
