All-Star Survivor: Greece Episode #2 Reduced to Rubble

Taygete Tribe: Dirk Been, Carl Bilancione, Jessie Camacho, Debb Eaton, Kel Gleason, Ramona Gray, Diane Ogden
Alkyone Tribe: Ryan Aiken, Gabriel Cade, Sonja Christopher, Stephanie Dill, Hunter Ellis, Peter Harkey, John Raymond, Tanya Vance

DAY 4



Debb Eaton was sitting on the beach, washing her clothes. She had fashioned a small washing basket out of some leaves and strips of wood and was using it to hold the clean garments. The dirty ones were still in a pile in the ankle deep water, where she was scrubbing them with water and coarse sand.

"Last night's vote was a hard one," she said, talking as she washed. She looked up at the sea from time to time, making sure she wasn't going to be hit by a wave. The sea had a nasty habit of blasting the shore with a wave from time to time, without warning. So you had to stay on your toes and stay alert out here. It was essential, because the riptide could be deadly.

And if you went out, you likely wouldn't be coming back.

"Linda was someone that we didn't really want to lose," Debb explained. "She was one of our leaders, and I always felt she was a big asset to the rest of the team. But the problem was that she was small. Linda just wasn't very strong. And on a team that lacks a whole lot of muscle, that was gonna -kill- us."

Indeed, Linda's size had been a big part of the issue. She was strong and capable, but was just not a large person. Although she -was- in the range of normal size, not "three feet tall," as Dirk had joked. But Linda had been a very strong person on the inside, with a great deal of inner confidence and pride. She had been a leader, and the choice had been tough to make. For some of them, anyway.

"I was approached by Kel earlier in the morning," said Debb, glancing up again. "And he said that the Africas were sticking together. He said Carl told him." Debb had believed this without question, knowing it was true. It was something she had feared since day one. All Kel really had to do was suggest that they might vote Debb out, and it had been easy. Because as some of them had learned already, a scared Debb was a controllable Debb. It might not be ethical, it might not be nice, but some of them had already figured out something about her. She was friendly, enthusiastic, and fiercely loyal, but Debb Eaton was also quite naive. In some regards, she was almost like a child. If people told her something, she tended to believe it, without question.

And it was something that could really be exploited, if someone wanted to try hard enough.

"And then Ramona in the boat last night," Debb continued. "She pretty much confirmed that the Africas would vote as a block, and we needed to stop them before they would get a chance." Debb shrugged. "So I just did what I had to do. Get rid of the weakest link in the chain." It was over and done now, but Debb missed Linda somewhat. Linda had been her friend. Linda had been a leader. But of course, deep down, Debb was ecstatic. She was more than happy to still be here. She had survived the first vote. She had done it.

"I've never seen what day four looks like before," she smiled, kind of half grinning, half squinting in the sun. "So yeah, it's great to be here. It's gonna be a good day today."



^^




Across the sea, John and Stephanie were heading off for their morning fishing trip. This was their usual morning ritual, and they were fast becoming a close pair. The only difference today was that they had brought a visitor along. Gabriel Cade was currently loading the boat, next to Steph, as he looked over at the Taygete shore.

"Who's that?" asked Gabe, pointing off towards Debb. He squinted his eyes against the bright sky and tried to make out the shape, sitting alone on the beach. "Is that Kel?"

"That's Debb," said Steph, squinting her eyes in focus. "Debb wears the black bathing suit with the pink and blue stripe."

"Man," joked Gabe, "I can't even tell the color of her hair from here." He then laughed at himself. "Ah--HA--ha."

"So that means," said John, as he climbed in and helped launch the boat, "That Debb survived last night." Stephanie nodded. This had been a hot topic among the fishing duo yesterday, they had discussed at great lengths who they thought would be getting the axe. It had been a toss-up between Debb and Dirk, in their minds. But to be honest, they hadn't had a clue. They thought it would be too close to call.

"I bet it was Carl," said Gabe, as he helped paddle the boat away from shore. "That's who I would have picked."

But as they reached their fishing spot, and cast the net overboard, no one else had come out to talk to Debb. She continued to sit, alone on the Taygete shore, as she finished up the laundry. A few times she looked over and waved to them, but otherwise, she sat by herself.

"Do you think she sits alone like this all the time?" John asked, genuinely curious. Debb was one of the players who fascinated him on the other side. He had absolutely no idea how to read her. She was a riddle.

"I don't think she tries to," said Gabe, "She probably doesn't even realize she's sitting by herself. Maybe she just enjoys solitude."

As the morning passed, the three of them managed to pull in a few small fish, and John himself pulled in a medium-sized tuna. It was going to be a good haul. But that wasn't the sole reason they were out here, of course. Sure enough, John and Stephanie had plans in mind, and they involved Gabe. They just hoped that no one else had approached him yet.

"Ok," said John, talking as Gabe was cutting open the tuna, "Here's the deal." He cocked a thumb at Stephanie. "The two of us are trying to get something together, and work as a team. We'd like you to come with us, and maybe one or two others." Gabe continued to cut as John talked, not responding. He was just listening.

John had this plan in mind from the moment they got out to Greece. Frustrated beyond belief by his last attempt at the game, John had made a vow to do better this time. And it wasn't just a vow to himself, it was a vow to his whole family. His wife, his kids, heck, even his congregation at church, he had told them all that this time, he would do better. John Raymond knew how to play this game, and he was now ready to start. So his goal had been simple: Form an alliance of five within the first three days. He wanted to kick this game in the butt before anyone else had a chance to even get started.

And sure, it was past day three, but he was still early. He just hoped it was early enough.

"Who else are you thinking of?" asked Gabe. He still hadn't looked up, but he was already planning this out in his head. And truth be told, he probably would have approached John on his own, anyway. In time. But John didn't have to know that.

"Tanya," answered John, without hesitation. This hadn't been Stephanie's top choice, but then again she and Tanya just plain just didn't like each other much. They never had. But John was insistent that Tanya had to be in, because she could be trusted. He knew they could trust Tanya to stick it out to the end.

"And maybe Sonja," added Stephanie. John looked at her and shrugged. The fifth person was really irrelevant, but Sonja was sweet and she was weak. She would cause no trouble. That seemed to be a perfect combo.

"Have you talked to them yet?" asked Gabe, as he dropped some of the fish guts into the ocean.

"No," confirmed John. He smiled, his strange, crooked smile. "You're the first, m'man."

Gabe was already doing the subtraction in his head, and he quickly picked out the three that wouldn't be invited. Peter. Ryan. And Hunter.

Interesting.

"No Hunter?" asked Gabe, finally looking up to meet John's gaze.

"Shit no," snorted Stephanie. "Piss on 'im."

John chuckled. Leave it to Stephanie to phrase things so succinctly.

"Okay, one thing," said Gabe. "I'm interested, but I think we should bring in Peter. I'd rather have him over Sonja."

John watched Gabe's eyes, searching for any sign of an ulterior motive. But Gabe seemed genuine enough. Gabe always seemed pretty genuine, which made sense, since he usually was. But Peter seemed like a harmless enough choice. Peter was Gabe's friend. Of course he would want him in.

"Can Peter be trusted?" asked John. It was a legitimate question. Peter was such an enigma that he was almost unknowable. No one knew what might lie behind those eyes and that smile.

"Peter's harmless," said Gabe. "He's just good to have around. He's a good source of strength."

John looked at Steph. She shrugged. She didn't know Peter well enough to have an opinion yet. Nobody did. Only Gabe truly seemed to know the guy.

"Okay," said John. He sheathed his fishing knife and put it away. This was no longer a fishing trip. This was now a strategy session. The wheels were now officially in motion.

"So this is how it's gonna work," he said.




^^




With the Alkyone fishing duo slowly reeling in their third alliance member, Hunter Ellis stood back at camp, munching on a fig. He stood tall and shirtless, enjoying the sensation of the Greek sun against his skin.

"The deal with this place," he said, watching Tanya return to camp, "Is that we're a bit claustrophobic. We have a great island, a great shelter, and a lot of food. But the catch is, the place just isn't that big. It's only about 2 miles in total area, so there's really nowhere to go." He pointed off to the fishing boat, out at sea, where Gabe and Stephanie appeared to be cutting up some fish. "You can go in the boat, or you can walk around. Or," he motioned to the ocean, where Ryan and Peter were tossing the "football" back and forth, "You can go swimming. But those are really the only three choices. If you want to get away, there aren't a whole lot of places you can go."

Indeed, the castaways were finding that life on the small idyllic island was not what it was cracked up to be. The other island, Taygete, was off limits to them, without question. Jeff Probst had made that very clear on the first day. "No cross-pollination," he had joked. "Stay on your own island." And the other four islands were quite a healthy swim away. So it just wasn't worth wasting your energy to go explore.

They were prety much stuck here for a while.

"Hey, Hunter," said Tanya, as she dumped an armload of fruit down onto the table. "Whatcha doin'?"

Tanya was the island's resident worker bee thus far. She was always going back and forth into the woods, gathering fruit. And it really wasn't an issue of them needing food, it was mostly just her attempt to find something to do. The two best conversationalists, John and Gabe, were out in the boat. She didn't particularly have much in common with Peter or Ryan, much to Ryan's dismay, and Hunter had a bad habit of lecturing when he talked. When he spoke to her, it was mainly because he wanted to share his vast knowledge of island living.

"And frankly," she would admit, "It gets a bit tiresome. How many times can you be told how the tidal ebb works?" She laughed at the absurdity of it. "Yeah the water comes in and out, we get it."

"Who do you think they voted off last night?" asked Hunter. The fig being eaten, he tossed the remaining rind out and into the water. It sunk with a soft splash.

"I'd say Debb," she answered. "Debb's too quiet. They wouldn't trust her."

"Can't be," he said, pointing over to Taygete beach. "Debb's sitting right there."

Tanya looked over and squinted. Sure enough, Debb sat on the shore, doing her laundry. Diane was sitting next to her now, helping her out. It looked like the two former first boots had survived last night's carnage.

"Oh, I didn't see her." Tanya shrugged. "I have no idea then. Could be Kel. Could be Dirk. Could be anyone."

"I saw Dirk and Kel in their fishing boat about an hour ago," said Hunter. "They made it, and I think I saw Jessie walking along the beach."

Tanya thought it over.

"Carl?" she finally asked.

Hunter just shrugged.

"I don't know. Guess we'll have to find out at the reward challenge."



^^



The day passed slowly, with both teams eagerly awaiting news of a challenge. But no such news came. Taygete spent the day recovering from the vote. Today, they were just slowly getting back into the swing of things.

First off, Debb had a lot of explaining to do. She had given her reasons for voting Linda to Carl, and then to Diane, and they both had understood. Or at least said they had. All she had to do was say that Linda was small and weak, and they could forgive her.

"And truth be told," admitted Carl, "It was probably the right choice. I mean, I hate to say that, I really do. I love Linda like a sister. But if you come right down to it, we are a weak team. Diane, bless her heart, decided to pick people who she liked, and not the ones who are the best at the challenges." He shrugged. "But whatcha gonna do?"

Carl was sitting atop the Taygete house right now, watching the other team. He was on morning scout duty, and so here he was. Personally, he thought it was a waste of time, but Carl did what was asked of him, even though he was only paying attention half-heartedly, at best. He was more interested in watching the members of his own team. He watched, a small frown on his face, as Jessie and Ramona strolled back to camp, holding a small backpack full of fruit. The two ladies were laughing, sharing a private joke. Carl snorted, silently.

"And here we have the Doublemint Twins," he said, just loud enough for the camera. "Welcome back, ladies."

Sure enough, the two females casually walked near the shelter, not even noticing him atop it. They were in no real hurry, just laughing and talking. Ramona tended to laugh a lot and Jessie, who was a bit more serious and solemn, had picked up on it. You seldom saw the two of them now without a smile on their face, or alone. They seemed to be -always- together.

"Any word on tree mail?" Carl asked down, almost making Ramona jump. She had no idea he was up there.

"Nothing," admitted Jessie. "No mail, no challenge."

"Gonna be a boring day," Carl said, looking around, trying to spot the rest of the team. Dirk and Kel were off fishing, he knew that much. Kel had promised to bring back a big haul today, so off they went. Diane and Debb were on laundry patrol, although he could see Diane hefting a large piece of driftwood back from the beach.

"Slow days make me nervous," Ramona admitted. She looked around, as if waiting for something. "I hate the days when nothing happens. It always makes me feel like something big is coming."

Carl nodded, looking out at the water. He stared at the peaceful blue Aegean Sea, very seductive in its calmness today. But he knew as well as anyone, the sea could be deceptive. It liked to lure you in, and then hit you all at once, when you weren't ready for it.

Just like Survivor.

"I know what you mean," he said, nodding. "I know what you mean."





DAY 5




Elektra is the largest island in the Pleiades chain. Spanning several miles, it features a large forest in the middle, vast sandy beaches, and an outer rim overrun by thick grasses and weeds. It appears to be very untamed. But the thick outer grasses today were serving a much greater purpose, something that was very much intentional.

They hid the Survivor production camp.

Jeff Probst was walking out of the camp right now, whistling happily. After all, today was going to be a big day. This was one the players would never forget. Jeff turned and watched as three stagehands emerged from the gates behind him, pushing a large wooden object. It was big, it was heavy, and it was on wheels.

It was a catapult.

"To the boat," said Jeff, pointing in the direction of the sea. The large fishing liner was docked there, -Chalcis-, the one the players had come in on. "Load it next to the other one." Jeff watched as the stagehands wheeled the heavy catapult down a dock, up a ramp, and onto the boat. They settled it next to the other one, and used a heavy rope to make sure the two large weapons were fastened down. Once everything was tied to their satisfaction, one of them turned and flashed a thumbs up to Jeff.

"Excellent," Jeff called up, laughing. "You guys ready for some warfare?"




^^




Diane and Kel were walking along the Taygete beach, looking for some morning breakfast. They were hoping for lobster, but were more likely apt to get some clams or maybe a crab. At best.

"Can we eat this?" she asked, picking up a large piece of kelp. Large and rubbery, the brownish-green piece of seaweed hung limply in the air, sand still sticking to it.

"We could," said Kel, wrinkling his nose, "But I wouldn't."

Diane made a face and dropped it on the sand, before suddenly noticing the large boat approaching their island.

"Hey, it's Jeff," she said, pointing out. Sure enough, Jeff stood on the bow, a large smile on his face. He was motioning the captain to steer the boat into the middle of the strait, between the two islands. Diane shielded her eyes from the sun and watched as the fishing liner finally came to a stop, directly between Alkyone and Taygete.

"Hey Jeff," she called, waving, but he appeared unable to hear her. He was too far away. He pointed to his ears and shook his head. He then crooked his finger at her and beckoned her to come out to the boat.

"Me?" she asked, pointing to herself. Jeff shook his head and simply held up one finger. -One person. Send one person out here.-

"Is it a challenge?" called Ramona, from back at camp. She was sitting under some shade with Jessie, the two of them relaxing from the sun.

"I think so," said Diane. "He wants one of us to swim out there." She paused. "Any takers?"

Sure enough, Kel already had his shirt off. He had ripped it off the moment Jeff raised a finger, and was preparing to swim out there. No one else had any objections, so Kel ran out into the sea, ready to find out what was up.

"I'll be right back," he called, before plunging into the water.




^^




Gabriel was already on the deck of the boat when Kel arrived, having been appointed as the Alkyone spokesman. Jeff greeted them both, and the two men shook hands. Then Jeff launched right into the rules of the reward challenge today, stunning them both. No one had expected something like this.

"One of you," Jeff explained, "Is losing your house today. I'm gonna come right out and say it, this game is not going to continue in the direction it began. C'mon, what do you think, this is a garden party?" Jeff smiled, clapping them both on the shoulder. "This is Survivor. The game is about to get significantly more difficult." He pointed to the catapults, large dark brown objects which sat behind him. "The challenge today is to destroy the other team's shelter. You will launch rocks from your beach, one team at a time. The first team to get three hits on the other tribe's house will win."

Gabe turned and looked at the catapults. Large. Unwieldly. Destructive. -Dangerous.- He thought of their little white house and winced. It wouldn't even take much of a shot.

"And the winners," smiled Jeff, "Will get the honor of burning down the other team's shelter. Three of you will go over, with torches and some accelerant, and burn the other team's shelter to the ground." He grinned again, his most sharklike smile. "Think of it as the Trojan War, because this won't be your last battle, guys. The game is about to move into a whole new dimension. Now, go back and tell your teams to get ready. In one hour," he paused. "We let the games begin."

Kel dove off the boat and swam back to Taygete, to deliver the news. Mind still reeling with the ramifications of this challenge, he reached the shore and called for the rest of them to come over.

"Everyone," he said, still out of breath from the swim, "Get Carl. Get him over here, this is a biggie."

Gabe was currently delivering the news to Alkyone, in the same breathless, excited tones.

"We have to WHAT?" asked Hunter, in disbelief. "No way!"

"I'm serious, man," protested Gabe, "To the ground. Losing team is reduced to rubble."

His team watched as the boat was now approaching Alkyone beach, in preparation to unload their catapult. Peter looked up at it, disbelief on his face.

"Anyone here ever fired a catapult?" he asked. No one had. Not even Gabe, whose bio and activities read like an encyclopedia. None of them had any experience. They would all be rookies today.

"No, but I always wanted to," Gabe smiled, like a little kid. "This is gonna be a blast."



^^



One hour later, the challenge was ready to begin. The boat had been removed from the strait and now the two tribes sat on their respective beaches, surrounding their individual catapults. The imposing structures sat a good eight feet high, and featured heavy rope, thick wooden beams, and, most importantly, large, dangerous looking rocks. The rocks had come with the catapult, of course. It was a package deal.

"They're shooting first," explained Gabe. He had explained the rules to all of them, and the methods of firing Jeff had explained to them. Loop the lower rope over the crossbar, and attach it to the arm. Use the winch on the side to draw the arm back, until the tension on the rope was taut and angry. Then load the rock, hit the release lever, and watch it fly.

"How far can these things shoot?" asked John, as he studied the mechanics of the machine. He was trying to figure out the tension they would need to hit a target roughly 350 feet away.

"Jeff said up to five hundred," Gabe explained. "Use about three-quarters power." He looked out, squinting at the white target. "Of course, it's all about aim at that point."

"And wind," pointed out Hunter. "We might be shooting into a headwind."

Alkyone had no choice but to sit and watch as the Taygetes lined up their first shot. Luckily the teams sat far down the beach, away from the houses, so there was no chance of anyone getting injured today. But still, you didn't want to see your shelter hit. That was going to hurt just as much.

KA-CHUNK

Taygete's cataput arm slammed angrily against the crossbar and they launched their first rock. It sailed across the strait and slammed harmlessly into Alkyone's soft beach, embedding in the sand. It was close, but still short, by about fifty feet. But it had been on line. That was a bad sign.

"Ok," said Hunter, in full leader mode, "Load it up, guys"

Tanya tied the rope to the arm of the catapult, and Stephanie and Hunter were in charge of turning the winch. They cranked the heavy wooden handle several times, as the catapult arm was drawn back and back, creaking a little with the effort. Finally, when it was about 60% cocked, it was set. Ryan and Peter loaded a rock onto the round gray holder and they were set to go.

"Who wants the honor?" asked Hunter. Smiling, he pointed to Sonja. "Sonja? Ever destroyed a house before?"

Sitting on the sand, Sonja smiled and declined, but they all insisted. Tanya and Stephanie actually picked her up under her arms and, laughingly, hoisted her to her feet.

"Oh, if you insist," Sonja smiled. She walked over to the catapult and looked at the release lever. It was a lever you just had to pull down. It would release the rope, swinging the arm forward and into the crossbar. The impact would launch the rock. She took a deep breath, said a silent prayer for the other team, and pushed the lever.

KA-CHUNK

The catapult shuddered from the violent impact, but launched its rock high in the air. It looked to be straight and on target, John having been in charge of alignment, and sure enough, the rock clipped the side of the Taygete shelter, knocking a small chip out of it.

"That's one," Jeff announced. He was sitting in a small boat in the strait, midway between the two tribes. "One for Alkyone," he said, holding up one finger. They couldn't hear him, but he could still use hand signals. They knew what he was saying. Alkyone was now ahead.

On Taygete beach, Debb watched with dismay as a wall of their house was now damaged.

"Crap," she said. But this was no time to mourn. They had a little retribution to enact of their own. "The rope needs to be more taut this time," she yelled out. "We need more power!"

Carl and Kel cranked the winch as hard as they could, the two strongest men trying to get enough pressure behind the arm. Dirk and Diane loaded the rock onto the platform, and Ramona pressed the release lever.

KA-CHUNK

This shot was too far, and sailed helplessly over the Alkyone shelter. It crashed into the trees on the far side of the island instead.

The challenge passed for the next fifteen minutes, the two teams trading misses back and forth. Alkyone appeared to be closer with their shots, as Taygete's varied wildly from short to long, and side to side. But finally, after much trial and error, Taygete scored their first hit.

CRUNCH!

The boulder smashed through Alkyone's roof, shattering a big piece of it. A large hole was all that remained up there now, along with a puff of dust. The big boys had taken a critical hit.

"That's what I'm talking about, baby!!" screamed Dirk, giving Ramona an unplanned hug. Dirk was always a furious competitor, and things like this brought up his inner fire. "Bullseye!"

"Yeah!" smiled Debb, a large grin on her face.

"Let's see you match that one!" yelled Carl, cupping his hands around his mouth.

Alkyone's return shot was too long, as they just missed Taygete's left side. It was close, but no cigar. The score was still tied.

"Load it up!" announced Debb. Carl and Kel cranked the winch back as far as they could, and Diane took the time to mark a notch on the wood where the arm rested. Jessie and Dirk rolled a large boulder onto the holder, and Debb had the honor of launching this one. She walked over to the lever.

"Put it through the middle of that damn sun," said Carl, referring to Stephanie's large painting. It was large enough to be visible even over here. "Punch a damn hole right through it."

Debb pressed the lever and the rock shot out into the air, as if from a cannon. And you could practically hear the Alkyones groaning across the strait as the rock tore through the front wall of their house. The front white wall crumbled into a pile of dust and smoke. Stephanie's sun disappeared, and the roof half collapsed upon itself. It had been a direct hit.

And win or lose, the Alkyone shelter was basically worthless now.

"Yeah!!!" screamed Debb, thrusting her fist into the air. Diane screamed with joy and Ramona shrieked in excitement, as the two ladies hugged wildly. Dirk starting jumping up and down, his fists in the air. And even Kel showed some emotion for a change, a strange little smile on his face.

"That's two for Taygete," announced Jeff, holding up two fingers. He turned to look at Alkyone. Suddenly, the power tribe was in deep, deep trouble.

Hunter turned to look at the damage to their shelter. The rock had gone directly into the front, almost where the door would be. It had punched through the front, directly into their eating area, and had exited through the back wall. It had passed through both walls, and the whole top of the shelter looked precarious now, what was left of it. It was no longer a house. Now it was simply a pile of scrap.

"That shot pretty much killed it," he said, inspecting. "I don't think we can sleep in there now. It's liable to fall on our heads."

"Geez," complained Stephanie. She surveyed the damage as well. It looked bad, bad, bad. The whole thing looked like a flimsy house of cards now.

"Well, let's go," said John. "We can still get two shots on them." He and Gabe had been in charge of alignment so far, so they turned it over to Stephanie, figuring maybe she could tie this thing up. A little change could never hurt.

The gangly firefighter stood behind the catapult, trying to line it up. She had Peter and Gabe turn it slightly to the left, and move it backwards, up the beach. Maybe that would give their shots less arc.

"Like a line drive," she explained, in her thick accent. "Just a straight shot right into their bathroom."

Gabe and Hunter wound the winch and pulled back the arm. Ryan rolled a rock over and into the holder. And this was not just any rock, this was their special weapon. Ryan had taken the time to paint on it with Stephanie's art kit. He had drawn a large white skull and crossbones on it. This was the house-killer.

"House-killer, dude," he said. "This guy'll take 'em out."

The rock in place, Sonja was chosen to launch. After all, she had been good luck before, might as well go back to the well a second time.

"Make it count," smiled Gabe, watching as the older woman pressed the lever.

KA-CHUNK

They all held their breath as the spinning rock shot through the air. But it was all for naught, as it embedded into the sand in front of Taygete. The rock stuck in the sand, just in front of the house. It was a devastating shot, and would have knocked the house flat off its rafters. But it had been just ten feet short.

"Ahhhhh," said Peter, disgustedly, his normal good cheer gone for a rare moment. He waved his hands, dismissively.

At this point, it was all over but the shouting. All Taygete had to do was line up their shot to the same notch on the wood. Diane's idea had been the key. They pulled back their arm, lined up the shot, and loaded the rock.

"Who wants it?" asked Debb. And, of course, they all did. All seven of them walked over and placed their hand on the lever. It was going to be a group effort.

"To Taygete," said Diane.

"Taygete!" yelled Carl.

"Game's over!" shouted Dirk.

They all cheered as the lever was pressed. The rock shot into the air and, despite a little less wind this time, it clipped what remained of the Alkyone roof, knocking chips of wood into the air. It wasn't a direct hit, but it would do.

It was the third. And that was the game.

"Taygete," announced Jeff. "Wins reward!" He pointed at Taygete, congratulating them. They cheered, jumping up and down, celebrating their victory over big, bad Alkyone. Dirk lifted Jessie in the air, spinning her around, as Diane and Ramona shared another exuberant hug. They had done it. They had won a challenge. They had actually beaten the superteam in something. One challenge win was in the books.

And they only hoped now that it wouldn't be the last.




^^



Carl, Kel and Dirk had been elected as the torch bearers. Jeff had ferried the three Taygete men in the boat over to the beach of their defeated rivals, and now they were all here. The defeated Alkyones stood off to one side, watching, as Jeff explained how it would work.

"This," he said, holding up a red canister, "Is lighter fluid. You can pour this all around the house, but be careful not to get any in the grass. The houses were built on the sand for a reason, we don't want to cause any damage to the island. The houses are made mainly of brick and wood, so they will burn. You won't need to use too much to get them going."

He handed the canister to Dirk, and two torches to Carl and Kel. The two torch bearers exchanged a quick laugh and a chuckle. This was going to be fun. The torches were then lit, as Jeff ignited them personally.

And now, it was time to burn.

"Sorry, fellas," said Carl, not sorry at all. He turned to the Alkyones, Hunter in particular, and shrugged. Carl was more than happy to torch their house. Maybe this would help even the odds, at least a -little-. "Gotta do it."

Dirk splattered the fluid all around the walls and inside the house. And within moments, everything was saturated. It was now officially a firetrap. No personal items were included, of course, those had been removed. But the shelter walls were just as valuable. This was their home. This was their protection against the elements. This was all they had.

Sonja had to turn her head, she didn't want to watch this. It was going to be too painful.

After Dirk poured, Kel and Carl followed with the torches. They lowered them to the base of the side wall, and then it was over. Peter Harkey winced as he watched their house suddenly go up in flames. It was almost instantaneous, as Kel then tossed his torch into the house, just for good measure. But it was over in a matter of seconds. -POOF.- Just like that.

Alkyone was now homeless.

"Well," said Jeff, turning to face them. They all looked a little depleted now, as they stood in a single file line. Hunter had his arm around Sonja, trying to console her. Some of them looked sad, like Peter. Some of them looked angry, like Stephanie. And some of them were just blank, like Gabriel. But they all looked like the fight had gone out of them.

All but one, anyway.

Ryan Aiken stared at the sand, hands on hips, an angry glare on his face. His white buff wrapped around his fist, he looked like he was ready to punch somebody. This wasn't something he was going to forget anytime soon. He had already vowed his revenge.

"It's past lunchtime now," said Jeff, looking at his watch, "And you don't have a whole lot of time. I'd recommend you try to build something as soon as possible, just to have a roof over your head." He watched as John slowly started picking driftwood up from the beach, already starting the process. "Remember that you have an immunity challenge tomorrow, so you want to make sure you are well rested." He paused. "Best of luck, guys."

Jeff then returned to his boat, where he sat with the jubilant Taygetes. Dirk had a grin on his face that seemed to go from ear to ear, and Kel, face blackened with smoke, smirked softly as he watched the smoldering Alkyone house. But it was time to go now. Time to return to their beach. Jeff shuttled the three men back to their island, where their females stood on the shore, cheering and applauding their returning heroes.

"Burned to the ground!" Carl announced, when they were in earshot. "They're done!"

"Woooooo!" cheered Jessie, clapping her hands.

But the Taygete women could all see the smoke on the horizon, and the flames. Some were a little saddened for the other team, like Debb. Alkyone was going to have a tough night tonight. But for the most part, the feeling in the air was that of victory. Screw the other team, let -them- deal with their problems. This is -our- victory. But the men exited the boat, were greeted with hugs, and shared the details of the carnage. Taygete had a lot to talk about tonight. This was going to be a night of celebration.

Jeff just sat back in the boat, watching, and smiled. This had been a good day. The game had been kicked up a notch, one team was homeless, and there would likely be some -very- real anger between the two sides now. This game wasn't funny anymore. It had just turned deadly serious.

In other words, things were going -exactly- according to plan.

Jeff laughed.

The war had begun.





DAY 6




Luckily, it was a dry morning. Since it was spring, the rains did not come as frequently as they would in the winter, so Alkyone was not drenched last night. They had the small fortune to be dry on their first night as a homeless tribe.

Peter and John were the first two up, and they emerged from under the tree cover to go start the fire. Peter was a little bleary-eyed, his hair sticking up at odd angles, the result of sleeping on dirt. Mother Nature was great, but she simply did not offer much in terms of a comfortable pillow.

"Morning," he said, watching as John stoked the early morning fire. John turned and greeted him, and went back to starting breakfast. Sonja was sometimes the cook, as was John, or even Tanya or Stephanie. They liked to rotate tasks, a little ritual that Gabriel had carried over from his old Rotu days. Right at the start, Gabe had mentioned how well that worked for Rotu, where everyone had worked together to do everything, rather than settle into defined roles. He loved the communal aspect of it, and the way people interrelated in such a setting. And sure, Gabe was playing to win this time, but he still preferred to live his life in a certain manner. It was just how he had been brought up.

And the Alkyones had been more than happy to go along with it. After all, the survival part of the game had been easy so far, no one really had to worry about work, or who did what. They were well fed and they stayed warm, in relative comfort. In fact, the main aspect of the first four days had been boredom.

Until yesterday.

"Do you think we can get a shelter built by the challenge?" asked John. He was stirring a pot of boiling water now, ready to cook. He turned to look at Peter. Peter, the tall man who was, in some ways, his polar opposite. Although they both shared the bond of being a #1 boot, they also had some key differences in their personalities. Whereas John was very intense, and almost single-minded in his cunning to outwit and outplay, Peter was just a laid back guru-type who seemed to have no interest in strategy whatsoever. He seemed to be here just to have a good time. Or so it appeared.

"We have to," said Peter. "We're not gonna be able to handle another night or two without a roof ovah us." John nodded, still stirring. But then Peter came out with the strategy talk, without warning, catching John off guard. Peter tended to do that to people.

"Gabe told me about the alliance," said Peter, coming over to sit closer, doing his best to keep his voice down. "And I'm in. You have nothing to worry about from my end." John looked up, surprised. He didn't think that Gabe would have had a chance to talk to Peter yet. Dang, that boy moved quick.

"I actually brought it up to him first," admitted Peter. "I asked him on day one, who he thought we should bring in. And he said John." Peter smiled slyly, belying his cunning mind. Maybe the new age guru stuff -had- all just been an act.

"You sly dog," John grinned, admiringly. "I didn't think you cared about playing."

"Hey," added Peter. "I'm heah, ahn't I?" He simply nodded. "No one's heah for a vacation. I want to win as bad as anyone. I'm just not prepahed to run over people to do it."

"No one's here to hurt anyone," said John. "But we -do- have to make plans, if we want to get this thing going. No one has ever won the game by sitting on their butt, and it's not gonna happen out here, either."

John clammed up, quickly, as a form emerged from the trees. It was Tanya, coming out to help with the food. She was always good about stuff like that. If she saw a task was being done, she would come over and help, no questions asked. It was just part of her nature.

"Hey, Tanya," greeted Peter. The name always sounded strange coming out of his mouth, with his Boston accent, and it ended up sounding more like "Tanyer." She always had to stifle a small smile when he said it.

"Hey guys," she said, plopping herself down next to Peter. "What's up?"

"Breakfast," added John, as he stirred the pot. "Figs and fish."

"Just like mom used to make," joked Peter.

The morning discussion focused mainly on shelter today. John desperately wanted to talk strategy with Tanya, but he wasn't sure if she had been approached yet, or would even be up for it if she had. He found her to be a bit intimidating to talk to, for whatever reason. Maybe it was because she had helped vote him out in Thailand. Or maybe he thought she just wouldn't be interested. So for whatever reason, the strategy talks dropped, and they mainly dealt with the prospect of building a shelter today instead. After all, it would take pretty much the whole day, if they wanted a good one.

"Hunter's out gathering wood already," admitted Tanya. "He's already obsessing over it. Gabe and Sonja are helping."

"Where's Ryan?" asked Peter.

Tanya shrugged. She had no idea.




^^




Ryan Aiken was trying to pull something together.

He was currently walking with Stephanie, the two of them deep in the forest, as he made his sales pitch. He had waited long enough, and it was time for this outcast to start getting himself some protection.

"This is how I see it," he said, facing her. No one else was around, they were free to talk out here. "Hunter and Gabe are gonna run this show." Steph just nodded, saying nothing, so he continued. "And you know Gabe has Peter in his back pocket, so that makes three. They get one more, and they will be unstoppable."

"I think they already got four," added Stephanie. "Sonja. You see how Hunter protects her. She aint goin' anywhere."

Ryan bit his lip, thinking. He had been planning this sales pitch out for a few days now, after watching things develop and feeling people out. He knew right off the bat on day one that things were going to be hard for him, being the last pick and all. He was being dumped on a team with pre-existing relationships, and established friendships. Ryan had none. He was as close to a sitting duck as one could be. So he had watched, looking for people who might be open. And sure enough, as a ladies man, he had zeroed in on Stephanie and Tanya. The two younger females. Ryan loved females, and they loved him. And the two of them were likely the only chance he had. No one else would give him the time of day right now.

"I can get Tanya," added Ryan, his voice a little lower. "She's up for it. You, me and her, we stick together and we got something going."

Stephanie just snorted, a strange look of amusement on her face. This was too funny. First off, Ryan actually thought he could form an alliance this late in the game, nearly two days after John had roped Stephanie and the rest of them in. And secondly, Ryan actually though Tanya and Stephanie would willingly co-exist in an alliance together. No chance. The two of them plain didn't like each other, and never had. Stephanie had already had words about this with John. No Tanya or no deal. Simple as that.

"Sorry to tell you this, dude," she concluded, "But I think you're too late. I don't think you'll be able to do much with anyone." Ryan kept his icy stare on her, not reacting, so she continued. "Look, I'm not here to lie or cheat or any of that, so I'll tell you straight up. You're probably the first one out if we lose tonight. And nothing I can do will stop it."

"Damn," Ryan murmured, averting his eyes. "Who is it, then? Who's calling the shots?"

"All of 'em," she added. "They -all- want you gone." And this was true. Stephanie really was not here to lie, she was giving him the straight answer. Gabe was the biggest proponent of Ryan's dismissal, for the fact that Ryan was just not much of a team player. He had that gleam in his eye, the one that made people like Gabe nervous. And John was more than happy to go along, and take out an athletic male. Sure, Sonja was weak, but she could be trusted.

Ryan could not. Simple as that. And they knew it. He was just a kid.

"You just have to hope we win the challenge," she finally added. "Or fate will pretty much be out of your hands, dude."




^^




Kel and Jessie were off checking the tree mail for Taygete. It had been her idea to make the trek, and Kel was more than happy to tag along. After all, Jessie liked him. Always a big flirt, she had been going out of her way to talk to him lately, almost like a schoolgirl. And Kel was, of course, -more- than happy to reciprocate. After all, he was only human.

"Jessie's a pretty, pretty girl," he had said, in a confessional. "And a lot of fun to hang around, Plus, she's here to win, and will come right and say so. So we get along great. We're both on the same page. And you're darn right I'll hang out with her if she wants. It beats hanging out with Debb, that's for sure."

So now the two were at the tree mail box, retrieving a small wooden puzzle. Jessie pulled it out, her hair tied back in a ponytail, and looked it over. It was a block of wood, with small carved lines in the middle. And if you squinted, it sort of looked like...

"A maze," she said. "Look at it." She held it up in the light and turned it in a circle. Kel pointed out a few of the notches on the side and, sure enough, Jessie was right. It was a maze.

Or, as they say in Greek terms, a labyrinth.

The two of them started the walk back to camp, and Kel took the opportunity to start talking strategy. The last vote had gone smoothly enough, and it was time to prepare for the next one. They hoped to win tonight's challenge, of course. You'd be a fool to start throwing challenges at this point. But it was never too early to plan. If they lost, they needed to know who would be the easiest to let go.

"I'd vote out Carl," Jessie said, ducking her head under a branch. "And I love the guy, but he's hard to deal with." The dentist from Florida was their hardest worker, that much was clear enough. But he just rubbed her the wrong way, for whatever reason. She liked him outside the game, as she had known him for a while. She loved his family, and his kids, and his work ethic. But inside the game, that was another matter. Inside the game, Carl had been on her hit list since day one. Friendship or not, the man was a pain in the butt to deal with. She would not be shedding a tear when he left.

Few of them would.

"I think we need Carl, though," Kel said. "He's one of the few strong ones, and we're not exactly overflowing with athletes." Kel was thinking logically, of course, in terms of team strength. But underneath it lay a very powerful ulterior motive: Kel's own position. If a male went, Kel would be surely soon to follow. With Carl around, Kel was hidden more, and didn't stick out so much. Kel was simply thinking in terms of his own survival. Carl was a wonderful smokescreen, and he knew it.

"I'd pick Debb or Diane over him," Kel added.

Currently, the alliance situation in Taygete was rather tenuous. It all started and stopped with Jessie and Ramona, which had not been intentional, but had just worked out that way. Jessie was no more a schemer than anyone here, but when people started to gravitate towards her, she was more than happy to take advantage of it. Ramona and she had hit it off right away, and Kel had started to hover around them as well. Jessie suspected he was sweet on her, but it wouldn't be the first time. Clarence had acted the same way back in Africa, hovering over her shoulder at all possible moments, and she had just dealt with him for as long as she had to.

Jessie Camacho was no stranger to unwanted suitors.

"I'd pick Debb over Diane," Jessie added, sticking up for her best friend from Africa. Jessie didn't want to vote Diane out if she didn't have to. "Debb just gives me the creeps."

So at this point, their carefully chosen little alliance was in place. Ramona seemed to be the strategist behind the operation, although Kel had a pretty good idea of what he was doing as well. And with Kel and Jessie now on board, Ramona had felt that they really needed a fourth. A three person alliance meant nothing. Only with four could you have any sort of power at all.

And since the goal had been to break up the older Africans, they had needed to get either Debb or Dirk. There was no other choice, one of them had to come in as the fourth. And when Debb had agreed to vote with them against Linda, it had all appeared settled. They had a foursome. But there was a catch, of course. Wasn't there always?

The catch was that no one really wanted Debb along for the ride. Jessie didn't seem to like her much. Ramona -knew- she didn't like her much, they had issues even before coming out here. And Kel wasn't the biggest Debb fan in the world, either.

No, if they had their way, they wanted Dirk. Dirk was fun to talk to. Dirk was a laugh riot. Dirk was enthusiastic and always positive. And most of all, Dirk was younger. He was their age. Dirk just fit in with the three of them much more smoothly. Debb never really had.

But the catch was that Dirk had said no. Wasn't interested, he said. Wasn't going to be.

"You guys do what you want," he had said, turning down first Ramona, and then Kel, and then even Jessie. He had done it with a smile, of course, and in his normal jovial, laughing manner, but it had still been a dismissal. "But let me know, okay?" Dirk had added. "Just let me know when my name's on the chopping block."

And now, with a possible second Tribal Council approaching, Kel was trying to work up enough steam to approach Dirk again. He knew they needed him. And he knew they would need him soon.

"We can only get rid of Debb," Kel pointed out, "If we have Dirk. It won't work any other way. Otherwise, we'd have to vote out Diane."

"I know," Jessie said, pouting slightly. She didn't like the ramifications of this vote. Diane was her friend. Diane was one of her best friends. And Jessie was big on friendship and loyalty. It was going to be -horrible- to vote out Diane Ogden. But still... maybe there was a way to get around it.

"I can get him," Jessie promised, nodding. She watched as the camp suddenly loomed on the horizon, and turned to Kel. "I can get Dirk. Trust me."

Deep down she felt this would not be a problem. Well, okay, it might be -difficult-, but she could do it. Jessie Camacho was a swimsuit model and beauty pageant contestant. She loved to flirt and loved to be playful, and knew how to push all the right buttons. Even if she wasn't interested, as sometimes she just was not, she knew how to be flirty and how to smile at all the right things. She knew how to look people directly in the eyes as they spoke. She was just like that. It was her inner nature.

And Dirk was a 25-year old virgin missionary. How difficult could it be?

But, stunningly, he had flat out turned down her alliance talk last time. It hadn't even been an option. He had been perfectly nice and respectful about it, almost apologetic, but it was clear he wasn't interested. Dirk just didn't seem to care.

"Do we have mail?" called Diane, as she saw Jessie returning to camp. Jessie held up the block of wood, smiling, and waved it.

"We're running through a maze," Kel announced. "And we have thirty minutes. Let's get ready!"





^^





The two teams arrived at Maia Island at the same time. This was their first trip to the island, and they surveyed it, looking all around. It was the smallest of the bunch, without much in the way of trees or fauna. But it -did- feature a small herd of sheep, something that Hunter eagerly pointed out to his tribemates. That was something they would have to exploit at some point in the future.

After all, sheep were fat, they were slow, and they were delicious. An excellent combination.

"Welcome, guys," said Jeff, as he looked over the two teams. Taygete looked fresh and alert today, and quite eager. Dirk stood in the front this time, his blue buff wrapped around his forehead, his lean frame looking taut and ready for battle. In fact, all the Taygetes looked ready to go, which was quite the opposite of their opponents. Alkyone looked tired, and sluggish, and deflated. It was obvious that the loss of their shelter had hurt them.

"How are you guys holding up?" Jeff asked, turning to Hunter. The tall Alkyone leader just grimaced and looked over at his island.

"We're struggling a bit," he said, being honest. "We still don't have a shelter built, we just didn't have time yesterday. We've cut down some trees, and thrown down a leaf cover, but it's gonna take some time to get it all together."

"Well," said Jeff, "Good luck to you guys. I know it's gonna be tough." He turned and motioned to the large maze behind him. Constructed of wood, the imposing structure measured a good hundred feet by hundred feet. It had taken the art department a long time to get together, but it was quite intricate and well-designed. And why wouldn't it be? After all, it was a labyrinth. They were generally designed to be hard to escape.

"Today's challenge," explained Jeff, "Is based on one of the earliest myths in Greek history: The story of Theseus and the Minotaur."

Gabriel chuckled to himself. He knew this story. He wasn't sure if the others would, though.

"Basically," continued Jeff, "It went like this. The Minotaur was the most feared creature in ancient times. Half man, half bull, this thing could rip apart even the strongest of heroes. And it lived in one of these." He touched the wall of the maze. "A labyrinth, which sat on the island of Crete. Now, every year, the King of Crete would send fourteen teenagers down into his maze, to see if they could escape without being eaten. And, of course, none of them ever did. The only one who ever came out alive was a guy named Theseus, who killed the Minotaur and became a great hero because of it." Jeff smiled, his most wicked, feral grin. "It's your job today to see if -you- can escape the maze. Are you going to be the hero, or...", he smiled, "Are you going to be lunch?"

Jeff pointed to the opening of the maze.

"You will both enter here. All players on your team will be chained together. Since there is no obvious advantage to having an extra member, you will all run this one."

Sonja looked up at Hunter, nervously. She knew she would be a liability to her team on this one. Sonja could hold her own in most of the challenges, whether they were strength based or mental. But there were some things she just could not overcome. A fast runner she was not.

"Now," finished Jeff, "The goal is to exit the maze on the other side. There are three ways to solve the maze, so you can both take different paths if you want, but the first team to get out will win immunity, and be safe from tonight's vote."

Jeff paused, and then smiled. It was the smile they knew all too well. -Uh oh.-

"Of course, this wouldn't be Survivor if it was just a straight maze race. We can't have that, now, can we? We figured we'd make it a bit more... stressful." Jeff walked over to a table and pulled back a cover. On the table rested two large handaxes. Double-headed and gleaming, they looked heavy and dangerous.

"We're going to have a couple of Minotaurs to chase you."

Tanya rolled her eyes and sighed. A nervous titter arose from the players.

"Each team," explained Jeff, holding up one of the axes, "Will be chased by a Minotaur. If the Minotaur catches you at any point in the maze, you are disqualified, and the other team wins immunity. The Minotaur will start five minutes after you, and carry around this axe." He saw a few anxious looks caused by that comment. "No, no. Not to hurt anyone. Just to weight them down. Since they are running by themselves, they need a handicap or else they will catch the other team too fast." Jeff pointed at Alkyone. "Alkyone, elect your chaser. Pick one of your teammates to try and catch the Taygetes in the maze. And Taygete, you do the same. Select your Minotaur."

The two teams quickly conferred, trying to choose the best person. It was obvious they wanted someone fast and clever, someone who could track down the opponent with relative ease. Dirk and Kel seemed like the obvious choices for Taygete, and they decided to go with Dirk. When in doubt, choose the youngest. Dirk would be their Minotaur.

Alkyone's choice was a bit more difficult. They were a team full of alphas, although most preferred to be the ones solving the maze, -not- chasing the other team. Gabe declined the nomination, as did John. Hunter wanted no part of it, he wanted to lead the team to victory. And even Tanya, their ace track star, preferred to do the solving instead of the chasing. And so it came down to just two people. It would be either Ryan or Stephanie. Both of them had the same seek-and-destroy mentality. Both of them were rather cutthroat. And both of them were dying to do it.

It was clear that either one of them would be perfect.

"Should we flip a coin?" asked Gabe. "That's the most fair way to do it." Indeed, it was settled, so they asked Jeff to produce a coin. He pulled one out, flipped it, and it ended up tails.

-Stephanie.-

"Okay, Steph," smiled Ryan, slightly disappointed. But he patted her on the back. "But you owe me one."

"You got it," she answered, her strange bemused half-smile on her face.

Dirk and Stephanie walked over to pick up their axes, the traditional weapon of the Minotaur, and hefted them to test out the weight. They were probably about ten pounds each, and it was going to make things significantly more difficult. It was like running with a barbell. Except for the fact that this thing could probably lop off your foot if you dropped it.

The rest of the players lined up at the start of the maze, where Jeff chained them all together. Kel stood in front of the Taygete chain, while Gabriel led the Alkyones. Both teams looked taut, excited, and ready. And after a few minutes of last minute preparation, it was time to begin.

"This is for immunity," announced Jeff. "And remember, you have five minutes before the Minotaurs come in after you. So use your time well!" He held up his right hand. "Survivors, ready..." He held the arm in the air for just a second, wanting to prolong the drama.

"Go!"

The teams ran into the labyrinth and split at the very first fork, Taygete heading left and Alkyone going right. Kel led the Taygetes around a corner and down a large passageway, Jessie and Diane right behind him. They weren't the fastest team in the world, but they were all relatively the same speed, and it made working together that much easier. Carl brought up the rear, with Debb just in front of him.

"Don't go too fast," Carl called ahead, "We have plenty of time!"

As the corridor narrowed, it started to get darker. Whereas the maze looked bright and sunny from the outside, they hadn't noticed that parts of it had a roof overhead. And now they were suddenly plunged into about fifty feet of darkness.

"Hold onto each other!" Ramona yelled, placing her hands on Diane's shoulders. She felt Debb's hands grab onto her. "Just go in a straight line!"

As they came out of the darkness, they came to another fork. Kel decided to turn to the right, towards the center of the maze, and they followed. Diane suddenly noticed large red streaks of paint along the walls, in great splotches. It was obviously meant to look like blood, and it gave her the creeps.

"It's not blood," Kel reassured. "It's just paint!"

"Just get us out of here," said Ramona, only half-joking. "Find the exit and win this thing for us!"

"Two minutes until the Minotaurs come in!" Jeff yelled from the outside. "You guys better be far along!"

Suddenly the Alkyones came into view. Gabe in the front, he was pointing down a corridor to the left. He didn't see Taygete, but a few of the members in back did, and they waved. But then Alkyone was off, down a side corridor, and out of sight. The two teams were split up once again.

"It splits up ahead," yelled Gabe, as he pushed his team along. Tanya was just behind him, and the two fast runners were struggling to keep the team moving, straining to keep the slower members going at a steady pace. "C'mon guys," Gabe called back, "Keep the pace up!"

As she had feared, Sonja was causing the team to slow down. She was doing her best, but she was simply not a track star. She stood second from the back, just in front of Hunter. He was trying hard to keep her going, with his hands on her hips, but she was still having problems.

"Don't worry about it," he kept saying into her ear. "Just go as fast as you can, we can win this. We're much faster than them."

"Thirty seconds!" called Jeff from the outside, gleefully. This caused the teams to put forth an extra burst of effort. No one wanted to be stuck in a corner when the Minotaurs started coming in.

Gabe and Tanya flinched as they rounded a corner and came face to face with a large statue. Part man, part bull, the statue glared at them, partially filling the corridor. It held a large axe in its hand, and it was meant to frighten them.

And it worked.

"Jesus!" yelled Peter, as he hadn't been looking up. He stopped dead in his tracks, causing Ryan and John to collide into his back. The whole team became tangled for a moment, before trying to work their way around the statue. It was blocking the path, so they had to squeeze around it.

"Three... two... one....," Jeff counted down from the outside. "Okay, guys, the Minotaurs are in the maze. Be warned!"

Stephanie and Dirk sprinted off into the first corridor, both of them with wide smiles across their face. The thrill of the hunt in their blood, they raced down separate forks, Dirk's gangly sprint greatly contrasted with Stephanie's casual half-stroll. They apparently had their own preferred methods of hunting.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" Dirk yelled, sprinting at top speed. "I'm comin' for you, Alkyone!" He was clearly enjoying himself, a wide grin stretched across his angular face. "Gabriel, where you at, man? It's time to play!"

While Dirk sprinted and teased, Stephanie preferred to go more for intimidation in her approach. She slowly walked down a corridor, slamming her axe from side to side against the walls. Loudly. She knew they could hear her, and wanted to make sure they didn't forget she was in the maze by now.

"Fee!"

-SLAM!-

"Fie!"

-SLAM!-

"Foe!"

-SLAM!-

"Fum!"

She rounded a bend and thought she saw movement off in the darkness. Hefting her axe into both hands, she started loping in that direction, eager to catch her prey. She ran through a dark passage, passing more red streaks along the wall, and came face to face with a team of runners. But it was the wrong team.

"Hey Steph," Gabe greeted, raising a hand, as the Alkyones had stopped for a breather. Sonja was trying to catch her breath, and the rest of them were accomodating her. She had already fallen once, and there was no use trying to push her now. Their best bet right now was to hope Steph could catch the other team first and earn them a win by disqualification.

"Last I saw of them," said Peter, "They were down there." He pointed back and to the left. "Maybe five minutes ago."

"They're not running very fast," John added. "You can catch them." So Steph thanked them and took off in that direction, ready for the kill.

At that same moment, Dirk stopped and perked up his ears. He thought he heard voices off in the distance. He zeroed in on the direction he thought they were coming from, running as silently as possible. He had stopped taunting. He knew he was close now, and the cat and mouse games had already begun.

At the same time, as Stephanie was slowly closing in on them, the Taygetes were making excellent progress. Kel had found a medium-sized hole in the wall, and the team squeezed through it, looking at a long open stretch of passageway.

"That's a straightaway," Debb called out, "It probably goes right out of here. Go!"

"Run!" yelled Carl, from the back. "Let's get that immunity idol!"

Kel and the team took off at a fast trot, clearing the hole and running down into the passageway. And they were in luck, too, as at that moment, Stephanie peeked her head around the corner, looking at the spot where they stood not more than twenty seconds ago. She stood and stared, listening for any movement. And suddenly, she heard Kel's voice, not far off in the distance.

"I see daylight!" he called, as he peered ahead. "That's the exit!"

Taygete cheered and picked up their pace. But just then, Stephanie appeared in the hole behind them, spotting Carl's loping form in the back. She grinned. She had them.

"I see you!" she sang, happily. She slammed her axe once against the wall to get their attention, and was rewarded with Carl turning around to meet her gaze. He screamed at the rest of his team to hurry, at which point Steph started running down the corridor after them.

It was only a matter of seconds now.

"Run!!" called Ramona, as the entire team felt a surge of panic. The exit was no more than fifty feet away, a bright square of daylight in the wall, but they had to outrun Stephanie to get there. They all picked up the pace, trying to run as a unit, hoping that none of them would get tangled and fall. Because if they fell, it would be all over.

Jeff Probst stood outside the exit, hands clasped behind his back. He patiently waited, as he heard screams of joy coming from within. Or maybe they were screams of panic, it was hard to tell. Suddenly, a head popped out of the entrance.

Kel. He was followed by Jessie, then Diane. Then Ramona. The females were shrieking with delight at the top of their lungs, and soon the entire team was out. Taygete had escaped. They had won.

"Taygete!" announced Jeff, "Wins immunity!"

The older team erupted into cheers, Ramona and Diane hopping up into Carl's arms in a big hug. Kel leaned over with hands on his knees, smiling and catching his breath, as Jeff handed him the marble immunity idol. But they were safe, and they had beaten the younger and faster team in the process. And that was two challenges in a row.

Stephanie popped out of the exit not more than four seconds later, exhausted and panting. The sprint with the axe had been too much at the end, and she had fallen just short. She hadn't been able to catch them, and had to watch as they escaped just moments before she could stop them. It had been -that- close. And although Steph was upset at herself, she was no poor sport. She accepted defeat gracefully. She went over and congratulated them on their victory.

But now, the game was suddenly different. Alkyone would be making their first trip to Tribal Council tonight. And the teams would once again be equal, at seven.




^^




As the challenge had taken place late in the day, Alkyone had no time to go back to camp. They were to be shuttled directly to Merope Island for Tribal Council.

Gabe and Hunter sat in the back row of the boat, sitting directly in front of the rear rower. As the dark blue water glided by, the two of them were quietly discussing how the vote would go tonight, but trying to do so without being obvious about it.

Gabe pointed at Sonja. She was sitting two rows in front of him, silently looking out at the water. She looked like she knew she was going, and was resigned to it. She had apologized repeatedly after the challenge, but no one had really held it against her. After all, she was nearly 20 years older than anyone else on the team, so she was bound to be a bit slower than the rest. But they all knew it was sure to come up tonight at Tribal Council. Gabe looked at Hunter and mouthed the words "How is she holding up?"

Hunter looked at Sonja. He was probably her best friend on the team, and he had taken the time to look out for her, and help her out, since day one. But it was clear that she -was- a drag on the team, despite all his reassurances otherwise. Things like this would likely happen in future challenges as well, unless they could find a way to sit her out. She was just that slow.

"She's doing okay," Hunter mouthed, holding up a thumb. "But in challenges..." He made a see-sawing motion with his hand. "Not so great."

Gabe nodded, turning his gaze to Ryan. Ryan sat in the front, with Tanya. He was eagerly chatting with her, discussing something. Strategy, more than likely. Tanya had already told Gabe and John that Ryan was pulling to pull something together. Tanya had been an excellent mole so far.

"And I've been more'n happy to just play along and listen," she would smile.

"What about Ryan?" Gabe mouthed to Hunter. Hunter scrunched up his face slightly and made a frown. He then just shook his head, silently. -We don't need him.- Gabe nodded, agreeing. On a team full of athletic males, they could certainly spare a scheming little weasel like Ryan Aiken. No one would miss him.

But would this be the right time?

John suddenly turned around from the row in front of Gabe. He made eye contact and silently drew a finger across his throat, in a quick pantomime. That was the sign. That meant that Peter and John had discussed the two options, Ryan or Sonja, and had come to a consensus. Gabe knew the signal and nodded, agreeing with its logic. He passed along the word to Hunter, while John nudged Stephanie. The plan was now in effect.

And it looked like the tribe had already spoken.



^^



The Alkyone tribe got their first look at Tribal Council as nighttime was just beginning to fall. The flames from the fire licked off the small set, with columns and trees surrounding them. Jeff explained the purpose of the gate, and the ferryman, and how it symbolized death in Ancient Greece. And now, he was going through his litany of questions. They had already discussed the destruction of their shelter, an event which all of them had found devastating. No one really wanted to talk about it much, as it was still too fresh. So Jeff moved to strategy talks instead.

"John," he said, watching as the pastor perked up, "Is it fair to say that this is the stronger team?"

"In terms of physical strength," John answered, "Yes, I think you can say that. We're simply a younger team. And come on," he chuckled, "You just look at Hunter and Gabriel, and you just know this is the team you want to be on."

"In keeping with ancient times," Peter smiled. "The gods are indeed on our side. And we have both of 'em."

"Okay," said Jeff, turning to Sonja, "Fair enough. But how does that fare for the people who aren't as strong. Sonja, does that make you feel extra vulnerable out here, knowing that this is such a strong team?"

Sonja smiled.

"Jeff, I do the best I can, but I'm not going to fool anybody. My value to the team isn't in the challenges. It is in the camp spirit, and relationships."

"Jeff," piped up Hunter, "Sonja is a great worker, and has been our cook more often than not. I think she's done a heck of a job out here."

Jeff nodded, and turned to Ryan.

"Ryan, feeling vulnerable tonight?"

Ryan's face twitched just once, but he gave a straight answer, talking quickly as usual.

"Absolutely. I've really kind of been an outsider on the team, and I know it. It really wouldn't be that big a deal for them to vote me off."

"Do you feel you deserve to go first?"

"No way," Ryan answered. "I feel I've done my part, and I can hold my own in the challenges. I don't have any enemies, and in fact I've been pretty close to a few people. I think I've done okay for myself."

"Okay guys," said Jeff, as he walked back to his podium. "Here's the deal. This is the same offer I gave to Taygete last time, and you'll get it tonight. I know that a lot of you are worried about being first, with good reason. No one wants to be the first voted off your team, especially a second time in a row. So I'll cut you a deal." He paused. "One time only. If you want, you can opt out of voting someone off tonight. You can all go back to camp right now, all eight of you, and put this off until the next vote."

"What's the catch?" Peter and John asked at nearly the exact same time.

"Aw," teased Jeff, "What makes you so suspicious?" He chuckled, but continued. "The catch is that at the next Tribal Council, you will lose -two- members, and Taygete gets to decide one of them."

Hunter immediately dismissed this, as did Gabe. It was too risky. But a few members of the team thought it over. Ryan immediately liked the idea, as did Sonja. John even carefully weighed the idea over in his head, considering its strategic possibilities. He made eye contact with Stephanie, who simply shrugged, non-commitally.

"Care to take me up on it?" Jeff asked. The tribe looked around at one another for a moment, and finally Hunter spoke.

"I vote no. If we're taking votes, my vote is no. I don't want them picking us apart."

Gabe quickly agreed, knowing all too well how risky it would be. Sure, it might be an easy way to get Hunter out of here, but it could also backfire. And that was a chance he simply could not take.

"Does anyone want to vote for it?" asked Jeff. He looked around, and only Ryan's hand shot up. Ryan really had nothing to lose, he felt he was going tonight. Stephanie had so much as told him. Sonja's hand finally rose and joined him. That was two votes. Still a minority.

John looked at Tanya. He thought she might be considering it. He looked at Steph. He knew she would love to get Hunter or Gabe out of here. But in the end, none of them raised their hands. Nobody wanted to show their cards so soon.

"Okay," said Jeff. "Standard vote. You know the rules. You'll walk over there, write down a name, and speak your piece. Gabe, you're up first."

Gabe stood up and walked over to the voting platform. He pulled out the pen, wrote down a name, and sat down. He was followed by Tanya, Peter and then Sonja.

Ryan Aiken was the fifth to cast his ballot. He held up a vote for Sonja, figuring she would get others tonight. He wanted to make sure that he would be here three more days, and this was the best way he knew how. When in doubt, pick off the weak. That was always his motto.

"Too old. Too slow," he said, before stuffing his ballot into the box.

John followed, as did Stephanie. Then Hunter Ellis strode to the podium, to cast the final vote. His white buff tied around his neck, the former Navy pilot wrote down the name of his friend, Sonja. And it really hadn't been that difficult. She simply had to go. There was no other way around it.

"Sonja, I just want you know that this wasn't the plan tonight. But we made a group decision today to keep the team strong, and I know you didn't want to cost us any more challenges. So take care of yourself, and stay strong. You're a wonderful lady and we'll miss you."

Hunter went to sit down as Jeff tallied the votes. And moments later, the host returned, carrying the ballot box.

"The person voted out must leave the Tribal Council area immediately." He pointed to the gate. "Through that gate, down the corridor, and onto the ferry. And with that," he nodded, "I'll read the votes." He pulled out the first one, paused, and then revealed it.

"Ryan," read Tanya's vote. The original plan had been to vote Ryan out, of course, but Tanya simply had not been told of the change. She had been too busy chatting with Ryan, and John couldn't catch her attention in the boat. So she had gone with the old plan instead, although it wasn't going to make a difference tonight.

"Stephanie," read Sonja's vote. Sonja liked everyone on the team, but Steph was the only person who made her the slightest bit nervous. She couldn't even place why, either, it was just a gut feeling she had. Something about the look in that girl's eyes...

"Sonja," read the third vote. It was Gabriel's. Sonja nodded and smiled.

"Sonja," read the fourth vote. That was Ryan's. And the smile remained on Sonja's face.

"Souna," read Stephanie's vote. Steph had thought that was funny. She had a strange sense of humor.

And finally, Jeff pulled out the deciding vote. Everyone knew who it would be.

"And the first person voted out of the Alkyone tribe." He paused and turned it over, revealing her name.


"Sonja."


Sonja Christopher picked up her torch and gave a few goodbyes. She hugged Tanya, gave Peter a kiss on the cheek, and Hunter whispered something into her ear, giving her a big hug in the process. But the cancer survivor then walked over to Jeff and had her torch extinguished. And as per her trademark, the smile never left her face the entire time.

"Sonja, the tribe has spoken."

Sonja turned to her team, to give them one last message. She wasn't that upset, she probably would have voted herself out too, had she been allowed. Tonight's vote had not been a surprise.

"Win this one for me, guys," she said. And she nodded as Hunter gave her a small wave. She was clearly talking directly to him, and he knew it. But the team then all said goodbye and she was gone. She walked through the dark gate, down the passage and onto the ferryboat. The mysterious ferryman in black said nothing, he just turned his back to her and started rowing her away, with slow, deliberate strokes, off into the dark Aegean night. In a few moments, the boat had disappeared.

Sonja was gone.

"Well," said Jeff, "Looks like you had a pretty easy vote tonight. I just hope for your sake that all the votes will be this easy." He nodded. "I know you still don't have a shelter, so pack up and get back to camp. You're gonna need a roof over your head soon, so you have a busy day ahead of you tomorrow."

They packed up and loaded back into their boat, thoughts of a new shelter filling their heads. They knew they had some work ahead of them in the next few days. They knew that it would be an uphill battle to regain their strength and morale. They knew that Taygete was not going to roll over and die.

But Alkyone had no idea that things were about to get much, much worse.







- Read Sonja's Final Words!

- All-Star Survivor: Greece episode notes.

- Email Mario with comments.

- Back to the All-Star Greece episode archive.