All-Star Survivor: Greece Episode #9 Four Tiny Daggers

Taygete Tribe: Ryan Aiken, Jessie Camacho, Stephanie Dill, John Raymond
Alkyone Tribe: Gabriel Cade, Ramona Gray, Peter Harkey, Tanya Vance

DAY 25



Ramona Gray rubbed her eyes, sleepily, as she sat up.

The morning sun was already beating in, through the walls of the Alkyone shelter. She squinted her eyes against it, and looked around, to see who was already up. Peter wasn't here, but that was no surprise. He was probably out, doing his morning yoga on the beach, like usual. Gabriel wasn't here either. She could see his teddy bear, Jimmy, propped up against his pillow, but other than that, there was no sign of him. He was already up and out.

Ramona looked around. Was Tanya still sleeping?

The answer was no.

Tanya Vance, usually the only other late sleeper of the group, was already out, probably on her morning fruit run. So that meant that Ramona was alone. Alone in the shelter. But it -was- pretty fitting, of course. After all, she was the last of her kind. She was the last Taygete left over here, a sheep among the Alkyone wolves.

"I was ecstatic that they chose not to vote me off," she had admitted, in a confessional late last night. "I was -sure- they would keep Debb over me, and I have no idea why they chose me instead. No one told me. No one warned me." She had shrugged, confused. "No one made any attempt to let us know who was going. Not even Tanya. So I hope you'll pardon my lack of eloquence at the moment. I'm trying to make sense of it all as much as you guys are."

But now, it was a new morning. A nice morning. The day after, and she was still here.

She smiled as she exited the shelter, and was greeted by the unmistakable aroma of frying fish. She glanced over at the campfire, and saw Gabriel preparing the morning's breakfast.

"Mona!" he greeted her, with his usual wide smile. It was the infectious boyish grin that Gabriel Cade possessed, the one that made it all but impossible to hold a grudge against the guy. For no matter how comfortable he was in his position in the game, and how cocky he sometimes seemed to outsiders, it was really hard to hold it against him. He was just... Gabriel. And he was always happy. That was just his nature.

It didn't mean, however, that Ramona -wasn't- a bit jealous of him. After all, Gabriel Cade had an unbelievable sense of security at the moment. The guy was perfectly safe, in no danger whatsoever, and he knew it. Or seemed to, anyway. But deep down, it did kind of get on Ramona's nerves. She wasn't really mad at -him-, per se, but more mad at the unfairness of it all. And sometimes, when she really thought about it, she would get a little pissed off.

Why should he always be so happy? Why shouldn't he have to sweat things out once in a while, like the rest of them?

"Hey Gabe," she replied, happily, wisely suppressing any of her jealousy. After all, Gabe was a nice guy. He really was. He tried hard to include everybody around camp, and he was always smiling or joking around. Plus, he had that laugh. That little-boy laugh. It always made people giggle when they heard it, and Ramona was certainly no exception. She just plain liked the guy. And in spite of it all, Gabe's charisma was giving her some deep-seeded mixed emotions. Sure, she wanted to stop him. She just didn't want him to win.

But... why?

Why should she care if he was going to cakewalk his way to a victory? What business was it of hers, anyway? And if she couldn't win, wouldn't she prefer that someone like Gabriel did?

"Fish today," Gabe said, as he picked up a piece to show her. The pink skin of the tuna glistened in the morning air. It looked, and smelled, heavenly.

"Oh, cool," she said, as she sat down next to the fire. "You catch it?"

"Nah, Peter did. He brought in a few with Debb last night, this is the last of 'em."

"Cool," she said, absently.

She sat in silence for a few moments, watching the sea from her perch, as Gabe finished up the cooking.

"So," he asked, a little curious as to what was on her mind. She always seemed so quiet when she was thinking about something. "Do you think we'll be merging today?"

Ramona shrugged.

"I don't have the first clue," she said. "Every time I think one thing, we do just the opposite. Every time I think I'm gone, I stay." She laughed, to herself more than anything. "I've given up trying to predict things."

"I don't think we're going to," said Gabe, as he took the fish out of the frying pan, and started breaking it up into a small bowl. "I don't think we're merging until we get down to two. Or..." he nodded across the sea. "Until -they- do. I think we're gonna be a team for a little while more."

"Well, that's great and all," she said, "But it doesn't really help me none." She looked up at him. "You know?"

"Look," said the young man, sighing. "I know you're kind of stuck in a bad spot. But everyone wants you around, Mona. There's no hard feelings towards anyone here. Far from it, actually. Everyone likes you. I like you. That's why you're still here."

Ramona nodded, only half-listening.

"We kept you for a reason," Gabe continued. "And that, plan and simple, was for morale." He shrugged. "You bring it, Debb didn't. And there was no way around it. Low morale can -kill- a team. Any team. So I'm not gonna sit here and try to B.S. you about how things have changed. But...," he smiled, "At least know you were liked, and that was why we wanted you here."

"Well, I appreciate that you guys like me," she countered, "But I know I'm dead meat next vote. It's three against one! And do I think you'd ever vote against Peter or Tanya? Or they would vote against you?"

He looked at her, smiling somewhat.

"No way!" she said. "You guys are all in this to the end, and I'm no more than a parasite. I'm latching on to your butts for as far as I can go, but I know it's kind of hopeless. Unless there's some sort of a merge, I'm gone at the next vote. And if you want to convince me otherwise, you can just save your breath, 'cause it would be a lie."

Gabe was silent, as he continued to prepare the fish. But he was a little surprised at her pent up anger. He had no idea she had been unhappy here. He thought they had treated her like family. That had been his goal since day once, to make sure that everybody belonged, and everybody felt important.

But somehow, it appeared not to have worked with Ramona. And that troubled him.

"Look," he tried to explain. "I know this is kind of a stressful time in the game, but we need you, Mona. We all do. This is a team... this is -our- team. We are the four people who are Alkyone at this moment. And whether we all came from different teams, or all started together, this is why we are here." He looked over at her. "We can't do it without you, Mona. You're one of our best all-around players."

She chuckled, to herself, but remained intent on listening to his speech. At least he was trying.

"And if we've done anything," he continued, "That pissed you off, or hurt your feelings, just tell us. Or if -I've- done anything, just let me know. It's no one's intention to make this a prison camp. We're just doing our thing."

"So," she asked, grinning "Are you saying I'm -not- next?"

"Um..." he said. Then he made an exaggerated expression with his face, trying to be funny about it. "Err... ahhh..." He paused for a second, and then looked over at her. He laughed, self consciously.

"That's what I thought," she said. But she smiled. He had taken her advice, and had saved his breath. But at least he was trying to be diplomatic about it.

"I like you, Gabe," she added. "But you got it -way- too easy around here. I just thought I should let you know that." She paused. "Waaaaay too easy."

He looked over at her, and smiled.

"We still got a lot of game left to play," he said. "No reason to start writing out checks yet."

"Oh, trust me," she bantered back, "I'm not."

"Good," he said. And with that, he scooped some of the fish out onto four plates. It was breakfast time.

"Specially prepared," he said, as he handed her a plate. "Just for you, m'lady."

With his navy blue baseball camp turned backwards, and his normal boyish grin, she realized once again that it was impossible to be angry with the guy. What was the use? So with that in mind, she went back into normal mode. The normal laughing, smiling and joking Ramona was back.

"Uh..." she said, "Can you get me some rice with this? Tuna is a little bland by itself."

"Well, I could," he replied, "But we didn't get any rice out here. Unless you wanted to magically make some appear."

"I thought that was your area," she said, smiling. "Aren't you the one who can do just about anything out here?"

"Um..." he said, getting caught up in the harmless flirting tone. "I guess it depends on who you ask."

"Welllll... let's say I ask Peter, then."

Gabe smiled.

"Peter would probably say I could find some rice."

"Well, that's too bad," Ramona winked. "'Cause he also told me I'd be going home last night. So maybe I should be careful about listening to what he says."

Ramona grinned. She knew she had won. You knew you won when you were rewarded with a Gabe laugh.

"Ah HA ha."



^^



While Alkyone slowly adjusted to life without Debb, their counterparts across the sea were in for a little bit of turmoil. It was going to be a long day today. And a stressful one to boot. You see, the proverbial shit was about to hit the fan at camp Taygete. And all it would take was one man to light the fuse.

And who could have guessed? His name was Ryan Aiken.

"Today is go time," he said, as he walked along the beach. "No more time to wait. It's gotta be now."

Holding a walking stick, the young man from Maryland walked at a brisk pace, with a very definite destination in mind. He was not just strolling. He was not just beachcombing. No, he was going to deliver a message. He had something he had to say.

And John Raymond probably wasn't going to be pleased when he heard the news.

"Jessie and I have decided we're going to vote out Steph next," he said, talking as he walked. His blue buff wrapped tightly around his forehead, and his black t-shirt cut off at the sleeves, Ryan looked like he meant business today. And he did, too. This was his big moment. This was his showdown with the big boy. The day that Ryan Aiken not only took over this game, but forced John Raymond to defer to him as the new decision maker.

And it was about time. It seemed like he had been waiting for this chance -forever-.

"Yo, what up, J?" Ryan called out, as he saw the pastor returning in the blue fishing boat. Ryan waved, a friendly smile on his face, and was greeted with a return wave from John.

"Watch this," Ryan bragged to the cameras. "Watch the look on his face. He's gonna realize he just got clowned, and it aint gonna be pretty." Ryan laughed, silently to himself. This was going to be awesome.

"Can you help with this?" asked John. He held up a thick piece of tether rope, and tossed it over to shore. Ryan walked over, picked it up, and looped it around a thick piece of tree branch, successfully anchoring the boat in place. John thanked him, and stepped onto dry land. In his hands, he carried a bucket full of fish.

Lunch.

"Look man," said Ryan, placing his hand on the older man's shoulder. "We gotta talk."

"Sure. What's up?"

John looked at Ryan. The pastor was a little suspicious, but then again, he wasn't entirely sure what the young model was doing out here. Ryan -never- came out to help with the fish. That wasn't like him at all.

"About the next vote," said Ryan. He tailed off slightly, waiting for his teammate to reply. And after a few seconds, John did.

"Jessie," said John, slowly. "That was always the plan. Vote off Jessie next. Get rid of the last Taygete."

"Nuh uh," corrected Ryan. "Sorry, man." He shrugged, trying his best to look bad. "It's gonna be Steph."

"Now come on..." John started, but he was quickly cut off by Ryan's prepared speech.

"Sorry," said Ryan, "But that's just how it's gonna be. Steph's a nutcase. She can't help us. She can't even help -herself-, man. Have you seen her? She sits there and talks to a pair of chickens all day!" Ryan patted John on the chest. "You know it as well as I do. She's a loose cannon. She's gonna flip out when we get to the end. She'll probably take our axe and kill us while we're sleeping or something!"

John snorted, so Ryan quickly clarified.

"I'm joking."

"About what?" asked John. "About voting her off?"

"No," said Ryan, flatly. "She's gone. If we go to Tribal Council again, she's done." He paused, and then delivered the final line. "And I hope you're in on this."

"Forget it," said John, quickly calling the young man's act as a bluff. "We need Steph, and she's been with us since day one. I have no intention of getting rid of her." He fixed Ryan with a stern glance. "And frankly I think you're full of crap coming out here and trying to pull this stuff. Just stick with the plan, and we all have a great shot at being the final three. You, me -and- Steph."

Ryan glared at him. He wasn't about to be rebuffed so badly. Not this time.

"Well Jessie has vowed her loyalty to me. All the way. And Steph has too. All I have to do is say the word, and you'll get three votes."

"Ryan," said John, exasperated. "You're not gonna vote for me, and you know it. We made a pact, I saved your sorry butt once, and you know you wouldn't do that. Not now, anyway." He shook his head. "You're not a backstabber, and you know it. So just save it."

"Fine," said Ryan, still doing his best to look intimdating. "You're right. I said I wouldn't, and I won't. I aint no liar."

"Good," said John. And with that, he started walking back to camp. This conversation was over.

"We may even be merging today," he said, as he hoisted his fish bucket across the sand. "So it don't matter whatever plans we have. Just see what happens at the challenge." He turned to look back at Ryan. "If you're thinking of making some sort of power play. Okay?"

Ryan stood for a moment, staring. Then he silently followed John up the beach. That probably could have gone better. But for now, it was over. Ryan had failed.

But he had no idea that the chain reaction had already begun.





^^




"Tree mail," announced Tanya, as she yanked a small piece of paper out of the ivory box.

"Sweet," said Ramona, as she watched her younger teammate read the mail silently to herself.

The two remaining females on Alkyone had taken this trip together at Ramona's request. It had been her idea, had been her invitation, and been her plan. Mostly because she felt it was her very last chance at survival. This was the moment where Ramona needed to get Tanya on board, for good. This was Ramona's big pitch.

But she had no idea about one thing. Ramona had -no- idea that the exact same idea was also on Tanya Vance's mind. In a lesser form, anyway.

It was another reason why Ramona had been spared last night.

"So what do you think?" Ramona asked, as she followed up on the earlier question from the walk. "Do you want to help me bring down Gabriel and Peter? Do you want to help me do it?"

Tanya looked over, coyly. She didn't answer.

"Come on, girlfriend," teased Ramona, "You know you want to. I can see it in your eyes. You want to bring the guys down, and you want to do it real bad. Just admit it."

"No -way-!" laughed Tanya. "I'm not admitting to anything!"

"But you -gotta- do it," said Ramona, as she leaned up against a tree. "You gotta do it sometime, cause they aint gonna let you win. You'll get up to third place, cherry picking behind them all the way, and then you're done."

"Well, I can probably win immunity at the final three," Tanya explained. "If it's balance." She looked hopeful. "Or willpower. I can beat Peter, no problem."

"And Gabe?" asked Ramona. "You honestly think you can beat him?"

Tanya paused. Of course she wasn't sure about that. That was really the only question in her plan. Defeating Gabe. Did she really think it could be done?

"What you need," explained Ramona, "Is an alliance. You don't have one now. And you know it."

Tanya nodded.

"You team up with me," finished Ramona, "And maybe... just -maybe- you can get past them. But I can't promise anything. All we can do is a tie at this point."

"Unless we merge," explained Tanya.

"Right. Unless we merge."

Tanya continued to smile throughout all of this. And it was a bit disconcerting to Ramona. What was that little grin supposed to mean? Why the smile?

"So what is that? Why are you so happy?" Ramona poked her younger teammate in the shoulder. "Are we an alliance now?"

Tanya smiled and shook her head.

"So what then?" asked Ramona.

"Oh, just something that's funny," explained Tanya.

"Mind letting me in on it?"

The young social worker just smiled. Once again, she put her finger to her lips. -Sorry, not telling.-

"Oh, nothing," Tanya finished. "But I'll think about it, okay? I mean, really, I know what you're saying, but I'm not sure I really want to do anything about it now." She saw the disappointed look on Ramona's face, so she quickly added, "Just look at it from my point of view. I got a good thing going on, and there aint much reason to jump ship. The guys aint gonna vote for me, and I don't really have much reason to vote for them. So..."

She shrugged. That just about summed up her place in the game. Nothing more needed to be said. Even though she was interested in teaming up with Ramona, she wasn't going to admit to anything. No way.

Not yet.

"Okay," said Ramona, slightly frustrated. Tanya seemed to always end up frustrating her, to no end. She was simply the biggest alliance tease in the game. You never seemed to get anywhere with the girl.

"Let's go do our challenge," said the chemist, as she turned and walked back to camp. "We'll talk about this more later."

"Yeah," said Tanya, as she clenched the white piece of tree mail in her hand. They would most -definitely- talk later. But even then, Tanya would have to be careful what she said. Because she was hiding something. She was hiding something that made her grin, something that she thought was hilarious.

No one knew about this secret yet. Well, nobody on Alkyone, that is. She still had them all so snowed.

And it was hilarious.

And she meant to keep it that way.




^^




"Welcome, guys," Said Jeff, as he stood before them. This was their reward challenge for the day. And it was going to be a big one.

"You're playing a game today," finished the host, "Called 'Run and Row.'" He smiled. "I know that most of your challenges so far have been based on mythology, but we decided to give you guys a break today. It's just a normal challenge, a normal race, and no elements of Greek tragedy are included whatsoever."

"Good," piped up Peter, "Cause I don't want to sleep with my mother and poke my eyes out."

Several players laughed.

But Jeff just smiled.

"Nah," said the host, "That comes in a few days. Oedipus will show up later."

He winked.

After this short interlude, Jeff went on to explain the rules of the race. The players would be paired off, randomly, into four teams. And these teams would embark upon a most grueling race across the sea and the land. It was going to be a doozy.

"You will be traveling," explained Jeff, "To -all- six of the main Pleaide islands today. Working your way clockwise, you will start here, on Taygete, and go north." He pointed along the horizon as he charted their path. "To Maia, and then Asterope, and then the rest. You guys know the order by now. I don't need to name them all."

Jeff reached down and pulled a small yellow flag out of a box.

"On the center of each island are six flags. A different color for each island. Once you get to shore, your sprinter will race onto land, and go collect a flag." Jeff held up the flag. "The first team to Alkyone Island, with four of these, wins the race." He smiled. "And the two winning players will have one -heck- of a day waiting for them tomorrow."

Jeff wouldn't elaborate. So that meant it was time to pick teams. And today, it would be done a little differently.

"You guys are mixing it up," Jeff explained. "You will be paired with someone from the -opposite- team. You know... just to make things fun."

He grinned.

"So, wait a minute," asked John. "No merge? Merge? What's going on then?"

Jeff looked at him.

"I don't know," said the host. "Do you guys -want- to merge today?"

He was met with silence. No one said a word. They weren't going to play his game.

"Come on," teased Jeff, "I know some of you do." He turned to Jessie. "What about you? Do you want to merge today?"

Jessie lied. She had to.

"Sure!" she said. "Let's do it."

"Nahhhhh," grinned Jeff. "Can't do it today. Lots of fun still to be had. Nice try, though."

The players all grumbled at his mental toying, but all was soon forgotten. There was still business to take care of. And ten minutes later, after a random drawing of names, the teams for the race were set. And much as Jeff had promised, they were all paired with players from the opposing team.

Jessie and Gabriel.

Tanya and John.

Peter and Ryan.

Stephanie and Ramona.

And one of those teams would be basking in luxury at this time tomorrow.

Within a few minutes, the teams were all loaded into their small canoe-type boats. Each boat had one oar, for the rower, while the other player would be the sprinter. It would truly be a team effort today.

"This is for reward," said Jeff, as he took a step back. He watched as the four teams poised, ready to race. They were all set to go, ready to leave Taygete beach, and go conquer the waters of the Aegean Sea.

"Survivors ready... GO!!!!"

All four teams paddled away from shore, with Gabriel taking a quick lead over the other three rowers. With Jessie yelling encouragement and cheering from behind him, the young man from Celo used his powerful arms to row their boat towards Maia island. The smallest one. The one with the sheep.

And within a few minutes, they were here.

"Go!" shouted Gabe, as their boat touched up against the sandy beach. And with that, Jessie hopped out, stepped into ankle-deep water, and started to race across the sand, heading for the middle of the island.

"Let's go," said John, as his boat touched shore just behind Gabe. Tanya hopped out, landed on the sand, and followed in Jessie's footsteps across the beach. The social worker was in second place, but not by far. And she appeared to be a bit faster than Jessie.

Peter and Stephanie's boats were cutting through the surf a little more slowly than the faster rowers, but they bumped up on shore at about the same time. Ryan hopped out of one, and Ramona out of the other. Both of them took off across the warm sandy beach, with Ryan appearing to be quite speedy indeed.

It looked like he was a lot faster than people expected.

The four rowers waited, and waited, until finally two heads popped out of the Maia woods. Tanya Vance and Ryan Aiken were running pretty much neck and neck, and each held a green flag in their hands. Their teams were now tied for first. Both of them came back to shore, hopped into their boats, and were soon shuttled away. Ramona soon followed the leaders, coming back to Stephanie's boat, and now just one boat was left on shore. Alone.

"Where is she?" asked Gabriel, as he scanned the landscape of Maia island. He looked frustrated, as he searched for any sign of Jessie Camacho. But she appeared to have vanished. And he watched, vainly, as the other three teams were now well on their way to island number two. That was going to be a tough lead to make up. And where -was- she, anyway??

Asterope Island was number two on the course today. Lush, green, and teeming with grass and flowers, it was a nice island to explore.

And Tanya Vance was already racing across its rolling hills.

The Tanya-John team had reached the island first, as John had easily outpaddled Stephanie and Peter to get here. John sat now, waiting, as Tanya's young legs sprinted across the landscape, as she searched for their second flag. And within moments, she had it. Holding up the red flag proudly, she started to run back to John's boat, just as Ryan and Ramona were starting their runs from the beach.

Tanya ran back, tossed the red flag into her boat, and patted John on the shoulder. The two of them were making a great team. And then they were off, off to Elektra Island. Island number three.

With John-Tanya clearly ahead of the pack, the Gabriel-Jessie boat -finally- arrived at Asterope. It turned out Jessie had gotten lost in the woods, and couldn't find her way back. Frustrated with herself, and for letting her rower down, she hopped out of their boat, determined to make up some time. She could see Ryan and Ramona ahead of her, and vowed to catch them. After all, she was no slowpoke. She could do it.

Jeff Probst watched with amusement as the team of John and Tanya finished off their third island. This contest was turning out not to be close at all. Tanya returned with her third flag, a blue one, and the dream team set off for Kelano Island, the only one no one had been to yet. They were close to winning now, and no one else was really close. Ryan had become winded on his second island, and had already run out of steam. Ramona had also failed to pace herself, and Jessie was just proving to be too slow to compete with the faster runners of the other teams.

John and Tanya were a full two islands ahead of the rest by now. And they laughed, happily, as they reached Kelano. Tanya jumped out, John wished her "good luck!" and off she went. Just like before. And in about five minutes, she came running back, holding a purple flag. She cheered loudly as she plopped it into the boat. She sat down, John grabbed his oar, and he started paddling them to the finish line. They could see it now, Jeff Probst waiting for them on the shore of Alkyone Island.

That was where they were headed. And they were going to win this thing, in as decisive a manner as possible.

"Welcome, guys," said Jeff, as John Raymond brought the boat through the water with powerful, overhand strokes. The boat bumped up against the shore, Tanya held up her four colored flags, and Jeff officially declared them the victors.

"John and Tanya," he said, loudly, "Win reward!"

The two winners stood up and hugged, embracing wildly as Tanya cheered. And in time, the rest of the teams showed up. Ryan and Peter were second, as they had made up surprising ground at the end, and didn't finish all that poorly. Gabriel and Jessie were third, slinking back to shore minutes later. And Stephanie and Ramona were last, simply not having the horsepower to compete with the male teams.

But they all congratulated the winners, and all of them were gracious in defeat.

Mostly because they didn't realize Tanya and John were going on a cruise ship tomorrow.






DAY 26






Jeff Probst arrived at Alkyone beach around breakfast time.

He stepped off the transport boat, hopped down to the warm golden sand, and waved to the team in white.

"You guys seen Tanya?" he asked, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"She's picking fruit!" Ramona called back.

"Go get her!" called Jeff. "It's reward time!"

As Gabriel headed off into the forest to find Tanya, Jeff walked over to have a little chat with Peter and Ramona. The two of them were preparing some shellfish for breakfast. Peter was working on the fire, prepping it, as Ramona removed the slimy clam-like creatures from their shells. It was gooey work, and she looked less than pleased to be doing it, but hey, she was still here. She wasn't going to complain.

"What's the reward?" she asked Jeff, as the host had finally reached their camp.

"Oh," he replied, "Didn't I tell you? You guys get your shelter burned down again."

"The hell we do!" laughed Ramona.

Peter shot a look of worry at Jeff, to which the host busted out laughing. He had only been kidding.

"Sorry," he replied. "I couldn't resist. I had to see the look on poor Peter's face."

"Yeah," joked Peter, "Let's see your face after I whack it with this fryin' pan." He held up the aforementioned piece of cookware, in a menacing manner. But he also had his usual grin on his face. Peter was just playing around, too.

"Hey Jeff!" called Tanya, as she returned back from the forest. Gabe trailed behind her, scanning the sea for any clue as to where Tanya was headed.

"Okay," said Jeff, as he took the young woman by the arm, "I'll bring her back in a few hours. Have a good one. You guys are on your own for a while."

And with a laughing wave from Tanya, Jeff whisked her away.

Her day was about to begin.




^^





The cruise ship -Poseidon- was docked just off the Greek mainland, sitting about ten nautical miles out to sea. It was here that John and Tanya now sat, eating their lunch, and relaxing for the day. It was going to be nice to get away from camp life for a while.

"So," asked John, as he leaned back in his deck chair, "How's life been over there without me? You guys still finding fish?" He smiled. "Peter didn't drown or anything, did he?"

Tanya laughed. Her brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, and dark sunglasses covering her eyes, she was having the time of her life out here. And most importantly, John was proving to be an excellent travel companion, just as he had been when they were both voted off in Thailand. The pastor was funny, charming, and very, very entertaining. She had been laughing since the moment she had sat down to lunch.

"We're doin' fine," she said, as she popped another bite of croissant in her mouth. "Gabe catches the fish mostly, but Peter made this net thing out of some rope. We do okay, I guess."

"Good," smiled John. "Good to hear."

The two of them touched on light topics for a while, trying hard not to really talk about the game. Things were getting too complicated on the islands for that. But they sat, eating pastries and fruit, as they relaxed and unwound. For the most part, they were just chilling out. And they did a good job, too. The break from the game lasted for almost a -whole hour!-

Eventually, in due time, John started to lament the latest events at camp Taygete. He had -not- been pleased with Ryan's power move, not at all, and now, he simply needed to vent. And even though this probably wasn't the most prudent time to spill his guts, he had to. He just -had- to. He simply had no one else to tell.

And as fortune would have it, Tanya Vance was an -excellent- counselor.

"Ryan did -what-??" she asked, amazed.

"He came to me, and told me he was voting out Stephanie. He flat out told me!"

"Over Jessie?" asked Tanya, amazed.

"Ryan thinks," explained John, as he took another sip of orange juice, "That he and Jessie are some sort of Bonnie and Clyde. He thinks they're gonna be the renegades of Greece, and run all over everyone."

Tanya giggled. Ryan Aiken... puppet master? Um, she wasn't too sure about that one.

"Ryan told me," John finished, "That I needed to vote for Steph, because otherwise we'd have a tie next time. He said the plan was in motion, and with or without me, they were gonna do it."

"That little..."

But Tanya caught herself before she could cuss him out. That wasn't the image she wanted to give off. That wasn't the Tanya they knew.

"It sounds just like him," she agreed. "I can just hear him sayin' it."

"Yeah," sighed the pastor.

"Well," asked Tanya, "Have you at least told Steph? I figure she'd probably want to know, right?"




^^




Sure enough, John had told Stephanie. And, as expected, she wasn't particularly fond of the new plan. She expressed this, too, with an appropriate degree of maturity and eloquence.

"Fuck you, Aiken!"

Stephanie Dill currently had Ryan cornered in the forest of Taygete. She had come after him the moment John had left for his cruise. Livid, the tall woman from Arkansas wanted to have it out with Ryan Aiken once and for all, and let him know -exactly- how she felt about his big grand alliance with Jessie.

"Whoa," said Ryan, as he held his hands up in a defensive posture. He knew he was bigger than Stephanie, and probably stronger. But he still thought that deep down, she was insane. He had no idea what she was going to say or do right now.

"So you want John to vote me out?" she accused, her face uncustomarily reddened with anger. She felt incredibly betrayed by the bluntness of Ryan's attack. Ryan was supposed to be her friend. This wasn't the way you were supposed to find out information about your friends. Not second hand. Not like this.

"I told him," said Ryan, not backing down, "That Jessie and I are probably voting for you next. So yeah, I did."

"Were you gonna tell me?" Steph asked.

"No way!" answered Ryan. "You think I'm nuts?"

"Well John aint gonna do it," she replied. "He told me this morning. He says, 'Steph, they want me to vote for you, but I won't. I told you I wouldn't, and I won't. You and me are tight to the end.'" She paused, crossing her arms across her chest. "And if you sure as piss want to vote us out, we could just vote you for you instead. What do you think of that?"

"You wouldn't do it," said Ryan, with his devilish little grin on his face. "You wouldn't take a dive for John, just to spite me."

"Oh yeah? Watch!"

"Jessie has nowhere else to go," Ryan explained. "John hates her, she doesn't trust you, and she knows I'm the only one who has less of a chance than her. You're not gonna break us apart. Admit it."

"Jessie will turn on you so fast..." Steph said, exasperated. But she didn't have much more to add. "Are you just a freaking idiot? Haven't you been watching the game so far? She votes out everyone she doesn't need anymore!"

"Look," said Ryan, trying to calm her down. "We're down to the final four. I know it sucks, but this is the way we gotta do it. I'm not voting for Jessie. I'm not gonna do it. So unless you want to vote for John..."

"No!"

"... Unless you vote for him, we'll probably have a tie." Ryan grinned. "And I know you don't want that."

Stephanie said nothing. She just glared at him.

"Look," finished Ryan, "I asked John to do something, and that's it. I don't like that it has to be done, but that's just the game. Don't take it personally, cause we're friends. It's just business, Steph." He shrugged. "Just business."




^^




With the day progressing slowly, and no sign of tree mail on the horizon, it looked like this would be an off-day, for all parties involved. And that was always a good thing.

Peter Harkey spent the day whittling a piece of driftwood. Relaxing on Alkyone beach, he sat shirtless, letting his mind just float away into relaxation.

Ramona Gray spent the day chilling out. She rested in the shelter, talking to Gabriel for a while, but mostly just relaxing and eating oranges from the meager Alkyone stash.

Gabriel Cade went for a swim, relaxing in the blue Aegean Sea, as he did two slow, lazy laps around Alkyone island.

But on the island across the sea, it was a much different story. The Taygetes were now embroiled in turmoil.

After his blowout with Stephanie, Ryan had gone immediately to Jessie, and explained the situation. He explained that Stephanie, already stubborn to begin with, had pretty much made it her life's mission to get Ryan and Jessie out of the game now. She was simply that upset.

Jessie, ever the opportunist, had wanted to go talk to Steph, and maybe smooth things out.

"I don't think that's a real good idea right now," said Ryan, as he stood shirtless before her. "She needs some time to calm down. You go over there and get all up in her business, and she's likely to smack you."

"Oh come on," said Jessie. "She's not -that- bad. You just gotta know how to talk to her."

"I don't know..." said Ryan, skeptically. "She was pissed, dude. -Pissed.-"

Jessie paused to think about this for a moment.

"Well..." she began, "What if we changed the vote to John? Vote him out instead? Would she go for that?"

"First off," explained Ryan. "I'm not voting for John. Not now. I told you." He was referring, of course, to the debt he still owed the pastor. The debt that was currently clogging this whole situation up. If Ryan didn't have -that- hanging over his head, a vote for John would be a gimme.

"Would Steph vote for John?" asked Jessie.

"Uh... let's see," said Ryan, a half-smirk on his face. "She said 'No.'" He paused, and then added. "Although I think her exact phrasing was something along the lines of 'Piss off.'"

"Great," muttered Jessie.

She sighed.

Why did Ryan have to always make things so difficult?

"I'm gonna have to go talk to her," she said, finally. Tying her hair back with her blue buff, Jessie stood up and started the walk back to camp.

"Good luck," called Ryan, as he watched his alliance partner recede off into the distance. Then he put his hands on his hips, stared off at the sea, and brainstormed.

There had to be an option he wasn't thinking of. It shouldn't be this hard.

Should it?




^^



Completely unaware that his team was falling to pieces without him, John raised a toast to Tanya, his cute young boat companion, and to the little mini vacation that they were currently enjoying.

"Here's to success in the rest of the game," he said, lifting his glass of grape juice up into the air.

"To a million dollars," said Tanya, raising her glass of Coke.

Laughing, they shared their toast, and then polished off the dinner that had been provided. Barbecue ribs, hamburgers, hot dogs, you name it. It was all spread before them. Plates full of rice, and beans, and vegetables... all the stuff they had been missing for a month. It was all here.

"So what are you gonna do?" asked Tanya. She pushed her plate away from her and sat back in her chair. She was finished. The Greek breeze ruffled through her hair as she watched him, intently.

"Do about what?"

"About your team?" asked Tanya. "If you guys go to Council, all heck's gonna break loose."

"No kidding."

Tanya smiled at him, waiting, but John didn't know what his plan was going to be. He simply didn't have a clue.

"well, what about you?" he asked. "You still thinking of pairing with Ramona?"

"I dunno," she replied, looking down at the table, sadly. "I want to. I mean, that's why I kind of lobbied to keep her over Debb. But it's kind of early, you know? I don't wanna piss anybody off."

"Gonna have to do it sooner or later," John advised.

"I know..."

Sighing, Tanya looked down at the deck of the boat. And that's when John hit her with the offer. The one that he'd been mulling over in his head for the past two hours now.

"Here's what I'd do," he smiled. "If I were you. I would dump Ramona. If you guys go to Tribal tomorrow, just vote with the guys and get rid of her. You don't want her around. She's -too- much trouble, and she's got her best friend just waiting over with me, and those two are bad news together."

Tanya nodded.

"And if we both make the merge," John continued. "You and I can make some sort of deal together. You'll need an alliance. I'll need an alliance. And together, we can find some way to get to the final two. And best of all, nobody will really suspect us."

Tanya smiled.

"I've been with Steph," finished John, "And that's about to get flushed down the toilet. I don't even know where that's gonna go once I get back to camp. And I've been with Ryan..." John had already explained his own most notorious sneaky maneuver, the one in which he had "bought" Ryan's loyalty before the Hunter vote. But Ryan-John was officially dead now. Apparently, loyalty and trust didn't last a heck of a long time with Ryan Aiken.

"But that's clearly over with," finished John. "No more pact with Ryan. It's done."

"So you need a friend," Tanya summarized.

"Pretty much."

"Well, my friend," she said, reaching over to shake his hand, "I think you just found one."

"Great," said the pastor. He was ecstatic. This was the sort of opportunity he had been a looking for. A clever, desperate, trapped Tanya Vance. Someone he could trust. Someone he had always wanted as an alliance partner, even back in Thailand. This was going to work great!

"To secret alliances," he said.

"To secrets," agreed Tanya. But then she paused, catching the irony in her statement. Her secret. Her big secret. And at that moment, she caved. She couldn't keep it in any longer. She had to tell someone, and John was about to be the lucky recipient of what would be the biggest bombshell of the game.

"You want to hear another secret?" she leaned forward, whispering.

"Sure."

"Well..." began Tanya. She smiled, guiltily.

She paused, and John just waited as she decided how to phrase it. But in the end, she decided upon blunt honesty. After all, honesty was always the best policy. When convenient, that is.

"You know how Steph and I don't get along real well?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "You two mucked up all my plans early on. You two were like a bunch of first graders, wouldn't sit on the bus together cause the other one would look at you funny."

Tanya giggled.

And John suddenly realized he had been had. He smacked his head, groaning. Why hadn't he seen it?

"That's just an act," she confirmed, grinning proudly. "We get along fine. We've been fakin' it since day one."

"Why you..." he said, feigning anger. But he was laughing at the same time. "You sneaky little scamps."

"It was her idea," said Tanya, protesting. "Don't be mad at me. She wanted to do it before we even got out here. She thought it would be funny."

"Well..." smiled John. "You want to hear my secret?"

"Hit me."

"I actually suspected that all along," he said. "I told the producers that back on day two. I said, 'You know, they got along fine back when we traveled around during Thailand. When we were all stuck together on safari, those two girls got along great.'"

Tanya nodded.

"But then I convinced myself," he continued, "That you guys must have had a falling out. I figured there was a fight somewhere and you guys weren't speaking."

"Well just remember," she said, "I never actually told you guys why we didn't get along."

"No," he admitted. "No, you didn't." He whistled. "Wow."

"So there ya go," she said. She smiled, happily. "Me and Steph. And no one else knows but you."

"Well..." said John, shaking his head and smiling, "That's all well and good. But if we're gonna do this alliance, I need to know I'm your number one out here. Not Steph. Not Gabe. None of them. I need to know it's me and you."

"Absolutely," she said, in all sincerity. "Just don't tell anyone, please? It's kind of our own little inside joke."

"Alright," he agreed, "I don't tell, and you don't waver on me."

"With Steph?"

"Especially with Steph."

Tanya sighed, pouting somewhat, but she was fine with that. After all, this was for a million dollars. Sometimes, sacrifices had to be made. Friendship simply wasn't going to get in the way. Not in Survivor. Not a chance.

"That's cool," she agreed. "I'm here to win, anyway. So piss on 'er."

"Oh great," said John, chuckling. "I thought it was just her. You say that too?"




^^




John and Tanya returned to their respective beaches just after dusk. And they both came back to scenes they pretty much expected.

Taygete were not talking to one another. Stephanie and Jessie had had a blowout. A -big- blowout. Steph had accused Jessie of betraying her, and going behind her back to team up with Ryan.

"I saved your butt!" Steph had said, "And you said you'd be loyal! You lying sack of..."

Jessie, never one to back down, had hit back just as fiercely, calling Steph "crazy" and going right for the jugular.

"No one likes you here anyway. They all make fun of you when you talk to the chickens. And people make fun of the way you talk. They think you have mental problems."

It had gotten quite heated and, at the moment, it was really best that everyone stayed apart. John returned to see Jessie sitting alone, in tears, as she ate her dinner all by herself. Ryan and Stephanie were nowhere to be found.

"Have a good cruise?" asked Jessie, as she smiled at him.

"Yeah," said John. "It was great. We had a blast."

"That's good."

John immediately knew something was up, but was wise enough not to ask. He figured it would all come out soon enough. But then he remembered... his backpack.

"Oh, wait," he said, as he slung the pack off his shoulders. "I brought you guys back some stuff." He reached into his pack and pulled out a small napkin ball. He opened it up, and Jessie's eyes just about popped out of her head.

"French fries!" she exclaimed. She reached over, excitedly, and took a few. She popped them in her mouth.

They were delicious.

"They're cold," he said, "Sorry."

"They are the best fries I've ever tasted," said Jessie, almost moaning in ecstasy as she chewed.

"Good," smiled John. "Cause I got some onion rings in here too."

As John made all of Jessie's snack food dreams come true, Tanya came back to pretty much the same camp she had left. Peter was cleaning the frying pan out from dinner. Gabriel was tending to the fire. And Ramona was folding up their blankets.

Nothing had changed at all, and she was greeted happily by her teammates. They were all glad to see her.

Especially Ramona.

"Girl," she whispered to Tanya, "We gotta talk. Lemme run this alliance by you one more time. If we go to Council tomorrow, you and me have to get Gabe out. We've -got- to!"

Nope, some things never changed at all.





DAY 27




With the day off yesterday, that meant the immunity challenge would be early this morning. That was the usual pattern, one day off, one day on. And all the players were used to it by now.

"So let me get this straight," asked Tanya. "You want me to vote against my friends... vote against Peter and against Gabe... and force a tie. For no apparent reason but to save you?"

"Yup," smiled Ramona.

The two of them were currently walking back to camp, leaving footprints as they stepped through the dewy grass just off the beach. Ramona held the tree mail in her hand.

"But why on -Earth- would I do that?" asked Tanya, for the second time.

"Because you -have- to," explained Ramona. "And you know it. This could be your last chance in the game to do anything about the Yoga Twins." That was her pet name for Gabe and Peter. "If we lose tonight, and I go, you're screwed. You'll never find another ally!"

Tanya smiled to herself. Obviously Ramona didn't know about Steph yet. Tanya's trump card. And she wasn't going to find out, either. Not today, anyway.

"Besides," added Ramona, "You couldn't give a rat's butt about Peter, anyway. You're just in with him cause he's friends with Gabe. Don't kid yourself."

"I know... but... I just don't see it," Tanya said. "I mean, no offense to you and all, but I can't trust you to go with me to the end. I know about you and Jessie. Debb told me. She told all of us."

"Debb wanted me out of here!" Ramona pleaded. "She would have said -anything- to get me out."

"So, what?" asked Tanya, incredulous. "You and Jessie aren't close? Please."

"We -were-," explained Ramona, as she grabbed the arm of her younger teammate. They had to stop, they were almost back to camp. "We were close, we were really close. She's a good friend. But I have no idea what's going on over there. I've waved to her, I've tried to find out what's up... But she aint givin' me the time of day. I think she's ignoring me on purpose."

Tanya nodded. She had seen this. And she had seen that it was quite frustrating for Ramona. So this all rang true, in Tanya's mind.

"Ok, then," said the young social worker, suddenly much more chatty, "How about this? Can I get your word that you won't be running back to Jessie if we all make the merge?"

Ramona smiled.

"Honey, I'll promise you anything you -want- if it gets my butt out of the frying pan."

"Well," finished Tanya. "No promises. I haven't said I'd do anything."

"But you know Gabe has to go," pushed Ramona. "I know you do. He's too close to being unstoppable."

"Gabe is my friend," Tanya finished. Then she shrugged. That should say enough. No need to elaborate.

"Come on," she finished. "Let's get ready for the challenge. This one should be fun."




^^



"Welcome, guys," smiled Jeff Probst. He stood before both teams now, bright and early. It was another popular 9:00 AM immunity challenge. And neither of the teams looked to be fully awake yet.

"So, you guys had a rough day yesterday?" asked Jeff, as he nodded over at the Taygetes. And the four of them looked like death warmed over this morning. No one looked happy to be here.

Stephanie Dill had her arms folded across her chest. Wearing her black sports bra, her blue buff headband and a scowl across her face, she still looked pissed off at yesterday's events.

John Raymond stood behind her, his trademark crooked smile missing from his face. He had a blank look today, a dull look. It was clear he hadn't gotten much sleep last night.

Jessie Camacho was her usual quiet self, standing just off to the side.

And Ryan Aiken, of course, looked like he was ready for the kill. He appeared to be ready to rip somebody's throat out today.

"Just a bad day," admitted the young man. "Happens all the time. We're fine. We're gonna win today."

"Okay," said the host. "Here's what you guys are gonna do."

He turned around, and pointed to three objects. Nestled in the soft sand of Alkyone beach, these three things would be the key to victory today.

A pile of metal bars.

A large iron pot.

And a mold. A mold of a thunderbolt.

"This one," continued Jeff, "Is gonna take some teamwork. Because you guys are gonna be making yourselves a thunderbolt."

John Raymond smiled, as he looked out at the melting pot. Something told him some metallurgy would be coming into play today.

"The god Hephaestus," said Jeff, "Was well known for several things. Number one, he could barely walk. He was crippled, and was thrown out of the heavens as a child because of this. His parents just didn't want to look at him." Jeff smiled, as he saw a look of compassion flash across Tanya's face. He knew she would be a sucker for this story.

"Number two," added Jeff, "He was -so- good with metalworks, and all forms of craftsmanship, that he later became the blacksmith to the gods. It was said that Hephaestus could create -anything- with a hammer and an anvil."

Jeff paused, grinning.

"And third... he is the one who created the thunderbolts for his father, Zeus. The same father who once threw him off a cliff for being misshapen. Hephaestus made the thunderbolts, Zeus ruled the sky with them, and today you guys will be doing the same." He paused. "The first team to successfully make a thunderbolt will win immunity."

With the overview in place, Jeff explained how it was going to be done. And it was very simple, actually. Take the metal bars, melt them down in the pot, and pour it all into the mold. It wasn't that hard to do, at all. It would just take a little patience, and a little teamwork.

Which was good. Because both teams wanted to win this one very, very badly.

"Survivors ready!" said Jeff, as he held up his right arm. He watched as the eight of them poised, ready to go. And with that, he dropped the arm.

"Go!"

Both teams made a beeline for their pile of metal, racing over to pick up as much as they could. The bars were actually a composite, made mostly of lead, but also featuring some graphite, aluminum, and rubber as well. And they were hollow, with which to faciliate the act of melting. In short, they looked thick and impressive, but were really nothing. A raging fire would melt them down within minutes.

Although as the players found out soon enough, the bars were also -heavy!-

"Geez," said Tanya, as she struggled to lift up one of the four Alkyone bars. And she couldn't do it, not by herself. It was too heavy. So Gabriel had to come over, and the young man helped her lift it off the sand. And with that, the two of them started to carry the first bar the long distance over to the big iron pot.

"Somebody needs to build a fire," pointed out Peter, as he and Ramona hoisted up the second bar. "We're gonna need that fire built before we get these bahs ovah!"

"I'll do it," said Ramona. "Tanya and me. You guys carry the bars. We'll go get some wood."

"Good deal," said Gabe, as he watched Tanya drop her end. Peter picked it up, and now the two men were in charge of the heavy labor. And they had a long task ahead of them. It was about 200 feet from the bars to the pot. And they would have to do this four times.

"Steph and Jessie," said John, from across the sand. He was speaking to his Taygetes. "You two go get the fire started. Ryan and I will carry the bars."

"Screw that!" said Steph, as she struggled with the weight of one of the bars. "You get the fire. I'll carry 'em."

"You sure?" asked John, dubiously.

"Positive!"

So with that, John and Jessie raced over to pick up some pieces of driftwood. That left Steph and Ryan alone, hefting the large lead bars between them. And they weren't really happy to be teamed up. Neither of them were... but, after all, this was business. They were still a team. And they needed to win today.

"They've got their first bar," said Ryan, as he held the piece of lead up on his strong right shoulder. "We gotta hurry."

"Don't wait for me," panted Steph, as she struggled to keep her end up. "I can do it, just go fast. Don't worry about me."

And with that, the contest had begun.

Taygete had their fire built first, as John had found some excellent kindling. Within ten minutes, he and Jessie had a roaring fire under their metal pot.

"Awesome!" smiled Jessie, and she watched the man work, with awe. John Raymond was a bit of a prodigy when it came to starting a campfire. And they were well ahead of the Alkyones. From a fire perspective, anyway.

"It won't stay lit!" said Tanya, as she blew on the wood at the base of the Alkyone fire pot. She was simply having no luck.

"Let me try," said Ramona, frantically. She grabbed at their matches and lit a fifth one. She placed it under their wood, and watched as it fizzled out in the wind.

"Crap!" she said, loudly, just as Peter and Gabe dropped their second bar into the pot. It resounded with a large -CLANG-.

"No luck yet?" asked Peter, as he watched a frustrated Ramona try to light the fire again. But it was clear she was shaken. She could see John's roaring blaze across the sand, and it was psyching her out. She was rattled.

"Let me try," said Peter, as he knelt down. "You and Gabe go carry the last two bahs." He lit a match, and noticed that Ramona hadn't left yet. "Go! He can't do it himself!"

Within ten minutes, both teams had a fire going. The Taygete blaze was intense, as John had torn off his shirt and added it to the flames. The fire licked around the sides of the pot, reaching towards the sky, as Steph and Ryan finally dropped off their third bar.

"Both teams have three bars delivered!" announced Jeff. "One more to go!"

Gabriel and Ramona reached down and picked up the final Alkyone bar. Gabe's arms and shoulder already ached from the labor, and Ramona's hands were raw. She was having a hard time with this, and had to muster up every last bit of will just to pick the darn thing up.

"This is it," Gabe said, encouragingly. "Last one. You can do it, let's go melt this sucker down."

About the same time, Ryan and Stephanie were picking up the fourth bar for Taygete. They were joined by Jessie, who had run over to help. And between the three of them, they appeared to be making faster work than their opponents. And within 90 seconds, Taygete had dropped their fourth bar into the pot.

CLANG!

"Let's go!" yelled Ryan, as he reached over to high-five Stephanie. "Burn it! Melt it!"

John stood back and watched, as his fire engulfed the metal pot. And he could see the soft metal already softening inside. The pot they had been given was a traditional Greek blacksmith urn, an -alkaeus-. It heated up to an incredibly high temperature, due to its rounded angles. And the urn was already hot. -Very- hot. This wasn't going to take as long as John had feared.

"How do we get it to the mold?" he asked, looking over at Jeff. "When it melts, how do we get it over there?"

"You gotta carry it!" said the host. "Use the gloves, you're gonna need them."

John looked around and saw four pairs of gloves in the sand. Thick leather gloves. So -that- was what this was going to come down to, after all. Strength...

And a little tolerance for pain.

"Let's go!" said Peter, as the Alkyones had now deposited their fourth metal bar. He watched, nervously, as their fire roasted beneath the pot. It was the fire he had created, along with Tanya. This was all on his shoulders now. And he looked, nervously, over at John's fire. The pastor had done a -much- better job. Peter's fire looked small and ordinary in comparison, although it was still hot down there. Peter hoped that would be enough.

Jeff watched, fascinated, as both teams waited for their bars to melt. And after about twenty minutes of yelling and encouragement, Taygete's last bar finally dissolved into the liquid at the bottom of their pot. They could now pour it into their mold.

"We got it!" yelled Jessie. "We got it!"

Jeff ran over to check. He looked in, verified they were good to go, and gave them the go ahead. They were now on their final stage.

"Lift it up!" yelled John. He handed out the gloves to his teammates, and directed them how to hoist the pot up. "I'm in back. Jessie, you and Ryan on the sides." And then he pointed at Steph. "You get the front."

Jessie took a moment to put out the fire underneath, with a little sand and smothering, and now it was time to lift the pot.

"Okay guys," announced John, "Be careful. One. Two. Three. Lift!"

With grunts and groans, the four members of the blue team lifted their pot into the air. They were ecstatic. They were winning. But they also did this at the -exact- same moment Ramona cried out from the Alkyone side.

"Jeff! We're done! It's melted! We got it!"

And maybe it was just bad timing. Maybe it was a distraction. Maybe it was karma. Or maybe it was just bad luck.

Because Ramona's yell startled Stephanie, and caused her to suddenly lose her grip.

She cursed under her breath as the Taygete pot came crashing down. It landed partly on the sand and partly near John's left foot. But even worse, it tipped, and it spilled. Just a little.

"Straighten it!" said Ryan, as he frantically pushed the pot to stay upright. Together, he and Jessie managed to keep it from tipping onto its side, but still, the damage was done. A small puddle of liquid metal now sat in the sand.

"Do we have enough to fill the mold?" called John, but Jeff only shrugged. He thought they would, but he had no idea. They would just have to try and find out.

With a grunt, the Alkyones had now lifted up their pot as well. A wide grin on his face, Peter Harkey led the way, smiling as he walked right past his opponents, and towards the Alkyone mold. John and Ryan struggled, frantically, to get Taygete's pot back up in the air, but it was clear they were no longer winning. The stronger team had passed them by.

"Dump it in the mold," said Gabriel, strained, as he struggled to keep the pot upright. But with a little dash of teamwork, the four Alkyones poured their mixture into the thunderbolt mold. And they had plenty left over to spare.

Taygete reached their mold about a minute later. They tipped the pot over, filled the mold, and now there was just one step remaining. One final step.

Cooling the mixture. And then they would be done.

Both teams had been provided with a bucket, with which to fill with water. They were supposed to race to the sea, fill up the bucket, and race back. And with this water, they would soon have a thunderbolt. A real metal thunderbolt.

And Tanya Vance was already halfway down to the water. Alkyone was very close to winning.

"Go catch her," said Steph, as she patted Ryan on the butt. This was going to be Ryan Aiken's job. He had the mentality for it, as well as the athleticism.

Seek and destroy.

Catch Tanya.

Win the game.

Without so much as a word, Ryan grabbed his bucket and took off down the sand. He raced as fast as he could, watching as Tanya reached the sea. She reached down, scooped up some water, and turned around to come back. And he watched with glee as she was having some trouble with the weight of the full bucket.

It appeared she wasn't quite as strong as she thought she was.

Ryan passed her now, and came to the sea. He scooped up some water, turned around, and looked at the final leg. Tanya had been given a sizeable headstart, but he thought it was possible. He could still do it. He started running, lugging the heavy bucket with him, as he ran with all his might.

He ran.

And ran.

And ran.

And noticed that, much to his dismay, the gap wasn't narrowing. Tanya was just too fast. She made it back to her team in short time, as the Alkyones cheered and clapped wildly.

Ryan couldn't believe it. If anything, she had widened the gap even -more!-

Peter poured the bucket over the Alkyone mold. With a loud hiss, a cloud of steam filled the air. And after about a thirty second wait, Peter and Gabriel used a piece of wood to pry the now completed thunderbolt from its mold.

Peter hoisted it into the air.

And the team in white had won.

"Alkyone!" announced Jeff, "Wins immunity!"

Peter and company celebrated, just as Ryan finally reached the Taygetes. Frustrated, he dropped his bucket onto the mold, watching as it clattered and water splashed all over. Incredibly angered, Ryan couldn't even bear to watch. He didn't see Jeff hand the immunity idol to Ramona. He didn't watch as Ramona kissed the statue of Zeus, gratefully. And he didn't see Tanya get a big bear hug from Peter, for her amazing performance at the end.

All he could do was look forward to tonight. And Tribal Council. And the big Taygete showdown.

Ryan grinned, in spite of his anger.

This was going to be a war.




^^





The rest of the day went relatively quickly for both teams. The challenge had taken a long time, and they were all starving, as well as tired. Alkyone went right back to their shelter, ate the rest of their fish, and all took long naps.

Ramona Gray had the most peaceful sleep of them all. After all, she had a whole new lease on life. For three more days, anyway.

Tanya Vance curled up in a ball, dozing peacefully. Little did Ramona know that Tanya would have -never- forced a tie tonight. Tanya wasn't about the break the status quo, and now she wouldn't have to. She could sleep well now, and she -did-, knowing that she would not have to make any enemies tonight. Nope, it was a good day to be Tanya.

Peter Harkey slept in the corner of the shelter, his large frame wedged in tight against the wall. He was still in aperfectly good position to win this game. And it showed. He slept like a baby.

The only one who was a bit restless at the moment was Gabriel Cade. The young leader of Alkyone woke up every now and then, thinking.
Just thinking.

After all, he had a little something on his mind right now. It had only been a little comment... something that Peter had said, offhand. Peter probably didn't even realize he had mentioned it. But Gabe had. Gabe had caught it, and now it was weighing on his mind. A lot. A lot more than it should, anyway.

"Have you noticed," Peter had asked, "That Tanya is spending a lot of time with Ramona? And not, like, girl talk stuff, but like long walks to get mail and stuff?"

Peter had brushed it off, jokingly, but Gabe couldn't do that. He was still thinking about it. In the past few days, he had been so busy planning out his strategy for the rest of the game, and paying attention to camp details, that he very well may have overlooked somebody. He had been careful to plan for Ramona, and talk to her about staying with Alkyone after the merge. He had been careful to talk to Peter, and reaffirm their final two alliance to the end.

But had he really talked with Tanya? About strategy?

He looked over at her sleeping form, taking another glance at her youthful and innocent looking face. Sure, he knew Tanya. They were good friends in real life, and knew each other well. Heck, they even watched Survivor together, every Thursday night!

But did he -trust- her? Did he really trust her to stay with them to the final three?

What was her plan for the end of this game?

Did she ever tell anybody?

Would she ever vote against him?

Did people even take her seriously?

Sighing, Gabe closed his eyes and tried to go back to sleep. There were just too many questions, and this was no time for silent accusations. Alkyone had just won immunity. This was a happy time. This was a day to chill out and do nothing.

But still, the stress of the game was finally starting to kick in. He was feeling it now. Finally.

And it took him a long time to fall back asleep.




^^




Taygete's tribal council was destined to be a 2-2 tie. And they all knew it.

And really, none of them seemed to care that much.

"I have to go with Ryan tonight," said Jessie, as she sat in the crook of a tree. "I -have- to. I don't have any other choice, he's the only one I can team with to get anywhere. John doesn't want me here, and Stephanie wants me dead. So really..." she shrugged. "What can I do?"

Jessie was trying her best to look forward to the endgame. She knew that hiding behind Ryan would be her best bet. And she was willing to force a tie tonight to try and get there.

Even if it would be -so- easy to backstab the guy.

"He wouldn't see it coming," she added. "No way. He's too focused on himself." She smiled. "But I can't. I -can't.- It wouldn't get me anywhere."

Likewise, Ryan Aiken was dead set on teaming with Jessie to the end. She was the one he wanted, and she would be absolutely essential to the vote tonight. They needed to vote together. They had no other choice. Their fates were bound together now, by fate. The moment he had alienated both Stephanie and John, Jessie had suddenly become his only lifeline to the end of this game. He needed her, and she needed him.

"We're like Siamese twins now," he grinned, as he prepared for the vote. "I'm joking."

But their opponents were no less dedicated to their alliance tonight. John Raymond and Stephanie Dill were dead set against letting Ryan take this game over. They had come too far together to start splitting apart. Ryan was simply -not- going to beat them tonight. Not Ryan. No way.

"He finally told me," Steph admitted, "That he'd vote for you if I would go along with it."

"For me?" John asked, not really that surprised. He knew Ryan was desperate.

"Yeah," she admitted. "Yesterday he told me I'd be going. And then I got pissed, and we had our thing. And then today he comes up and says he'd vote for you, if I wanted in."

She laughed, almost snorting at the absurdity of it all.

"Well," added John, "So much for the kid's sense of loyalty. What'd that last, about a week?"

"Well, I aint votin' for you," said Steph. "I told him. I told him what he could do to himself instead."

She smirked, happily.

"Lemme guess," said John, grateful. "Did it involve a four letter word?"

"Yeah," grinned Steph, "A couple of 'em. I didn't even think I knew that many."




^^




The dark set of Tribal Council loomed ahead, as four sullen members of Taygete waited on their transport boat. They each sat in their own row, alone, not speaking to anyone else. It was a very quiet ride. The only sounds in the air were the rower grunting with exertion, and the gentle lapping of the sea against the side of the boat.

But not a word was said. Not by anyone.

Ryan sat in the front row, all by himself. He was wearing his cutoff black T-shirt, blue shorts, and had his red backpack slung over his shoulder. His head down, he had his eyes closed, going over tonight's Council vote in his mind. He was trying to go over all the possibilities. Just in case. Although his mind, ever paranoid, kept coming back to the big one.
The one he feared the most.

The one where Jessie backstabbed him tonight.

John Raymond sat in the second row, just behind Ryan. His wide-brimmed tan hat tipped back on his head, John also carried his backpack. He was looking out to sea right now, just staring at the moon. But he wasn't really seeing anything. He was actually praying. His eyes open, he saw nothing at all. He just waited. And had faith.

Stephanie Dill sat in the third row. She sat, slouching down, as her eyes watched the looming land mass ahead. Merope Island. She didn't want to go there tonight. She really didn't want to go. In fact, tonight was the first time that she had finally felt afraid of the creepy little island. And with good reason, too.

Tonight, any one of them could be leaving. She had absolutely no clue what was going to happen. And that was an -awful- feeling.

Finally, Jessie Camacho sat in the back. She sat far away from the rest of them. As far away as she could get. She had been trying her best to stay invisible the past two days. She had been trying to stay out of the way, and let the three of them fight it out.

But she was still -well- aware that she was the outsider here. All the drama in the world couldn't change that. Jessie was simply the last of her kind.

Ten minutes later, the boat had come ashore, and it was time for them to face the music.

Tribal Council.

One by one, they walked into the dark filming area. The lights seemed even dimmer than usual tonight, and Jeff looked particularly sinister as he stood by the fire pit. Debb sat alone, in the jury box, having already been seated. But the four players entered the area and sat down. Two on one side, two on the other.

A perfect split.

"Welcome, guys," said Jeff, as he watched their symbolic little entrance, with an amused look on his face. Ryan and Jessie sat on the left. Stephanie and John on the right. Man, he wouldn't even need to ask questions tonight. It looked like all he would have to do is light the fuse... and run for cover.

And that is -exactly- what he intended to do.

"So," he started. "I hear you guys have had some interesting moments the past few days." He smiled. "Stephanie, what happened?"

Exactly seven minutes later, Stephanie stopped talking. She had gone over it all. Ryan's plan to vote her out. His misguided attempt to get John on board. John breaking the news to Stephanie. Stephanie's argument with Ryan. Stephanie's blow-up with Jessie. All of it.

And she had pulled no punches in the process.

"Basically," she finished, "Ryan's an ass. If that answers your question, Jeff."

"So," asked the host, "Would it be safe to say that you're voting for him tonight?"

"Yes, sir. Although I wouldn't mind if either one of 'em went, personally."

"And what about you, John?" asked the host. "Are you sticking with Stephanie tonight?"

"Absolutely," answered the pastor. "She and I have been together since day one, Jeff. I told her I'd never vote her out unless there was a strategic reason to do so." He laughed. "And I really don't see one right now, do you?"

"Even if it means you might have a tie?"

"Even then," said John. "Because some things are just more important than playing for yourself, Jeff."

And with that, he shot a look at Ryan. Ryan wouldn't return the stare.

"So," said Jeff, as he turned to Ryan. The young model wasn't smiling. He wasn't joking around tonight. His right knee bounced, nervously, as he splayed his fingers together in his lap.

"What's your plan tonight, Ryan?" asked Jeff. "Cause from what I'm hearing, your strategy up to this point has been the following." He counted off the items on his right hand. "Alienate your teammates. Betray a guy who has, up to this point, been the only reason you're still here. And then go around and pick fights with everyone until no one speaks anymore." Jeff smiled, sarcastically. "Please correct me if I'm wrong here."

"Nah," said Ryan, shaking his hand, dismissively. "It's not like that, Jeff. It wasn't like that at all. This is all about strategy. I'm not tryin' to make enemies. I never wanted to do that in the first place." He glanced over at Stephanie. "My only crime has been telling people what's gonna happen. And if they take it personally, that's not really something I can control. You know?"

"So who are you voting for?"

"John or Steph."

"John or Steph? You don't know?"

Ryan smiled, the cocky smirk coming back to his face. Then he winked.

"They'll find out."

With that, Jeff sighed. He didn't like Ryan Aiken much. He never had. So he turned to Jessie instead.

"Jessie, don't think I forgot about you. I know you've been trying to hide up there."

Jessie smiled at him, shrugging.

"I wasn't hiding. I was just watching."

"Watching what?"

"Watching everything."

"So," asked the host, "Do you know who you are voting for tonight?"

"Absolutely." She smiled, and then elaborated. "I don't have much of a choice. I'm voting with Ryan. I have to."

"How so?"

"Because it's my only chance."

"Even after," grinned Jeff, "You promised Stephanie your loyalty, not more than six days ago?"

Jessie shrugged, a helpless look on her face.

"Sometimes things change," she said, meekly.

With that, the host stood up. He announced it was time to vote. But he had one more thing to say, as well, just because he could.

"Although I don't know what the point of this will be, since you guys have -clearly- stated that we're gonna have a tie. So go do what you gotta do, and I'll see you back here in a minute."

One by one, the four members of Taygete stood up, walked to the podium, and cast their ballots.

Then they were back. And Jeff humored them by reading the votes out loud.

One for Ryan.

One for Stephanie.

One for Ryan.

One for Stephanie.

No surprises at all. It was a 2-2 tie.

"Well," said the host, as he smiled and sat down. "Looks like we have some fun in store for us tonight. A tie vote."

Four pairs of eyes looked around nervously. The players were looking for some hint... some sign. They wanted to know what the tiebreaker was going to be.

"What you may force me to do," said Jeff, "Is this."

He reached under his podium and pulled out a dagger. Well, a sheath was more like it. The sheath was black, and covered with small green emeralds. It presumably held a dagger inside, although they could not see the blade. They could only see the black handle sticking out the bottom.

Then he pulled out another. This one was encrusted with rubies.

Then he pulled out a third. This one was encrusted with sapphires.

And then he pulled out the fourth. It was covered in diamonds.

Four daggers.

Four sheaths.

Four players.

"We have a new way of breaking a tie," said Jeff. "If it gets that far. If you guys can't come up with a decision, you're all gonna be picking daggers."

Jeff placed the four sheaths on his podium, side by side. They all looked the same, save for the different gems lining their casing. That was their only distinguishing feature.

"Three of these daggers have a silver blade," he smiled. "And one of them is black. If you don't break the tie, you'll be leaving it up to random chance. You'll all pick a dagger, and pull it out of its sheath. And the one with the black blade..." He paused. "Will be eliminated from the game."

Stephanie whistled, in awe. But no one said a word. No one knew what to say.

"We're not gonna have a revote," said Jeff. "I'm gonna give you..." He looked at his watch. "Two minutes. You guys have two minutes to talk about this, and decide what you want to do. You'll either -all- decide to vote for Steph, or -all- decide to vote for Ryan." He smiled. "Or else we're picking daggers."

With that, the discussion was under way. And John -immediately- made his stance public. He wouldn't be switching his vote tonight.

"I'm not voting for Steph. Sorry, Ryan, but I promised her, and I'm not gonna do it."

With that, everyone turned towards Jessie. It was all going to come down to her. The ex-cop from Orlando. This was her call.

"Jessie," said Steph, "You stick with Ryan, and he'll just crash and burn. He aint gonna win this, and you're making yourself look like a jackass by goin' with him. He'll drag you right down with him when he starts to screw things up."

"He's already screwed it up," pointed out John. "Just watch how he handles people. Jessie, I know you're smarter than that. Just save yourself the trouble, and vote him out."

"No one will miss him," added Stephanie.

"Hey now," said Ryan, protesting. "Hold on just a second. Jessie, you go with them, and they'll vote you out so fast, you won't know what hit you. They're gonna hook right back up with Gabriel and them after a merge, and you'll be tossed out like yesterday's trash." He paused. "Just like I would be."

"Jessie," added Stephanie, angrily, "You promised me you would be loyal. You -promised-! Are you gonna look like a big fat liar on national TV?"

John smiled, inwardly. -Nice one, Steph.-

"Just switch," finished Stephanie. "Because I think you owe it to me."

But Stephanie had seriously miscalculated with that last statement. She had underestimated the fact that Jessie Camacho was stubborn, as stubborn as a mule sometimes. And despite the fact that Jessie had been considering backstabbing Ryan, Stephanie's final demand had suddenly made that impossible. After all, there was still bad blood between the ladies, leftover from yesterday's argument. Jessie said some things she had regretted. Stephanie said some things she had regretted. Both of them had ended up in tears. And that was something Jessie did not forget. You didn't make her cry. And you -especially- didn't tell her what to do the very next day.

All of a sudden, Jessie's reason for voting had changed. Now she wasn't voting Stephanie out for strategic reasons. Now it was personal. Now she was doing it out of spite.

"I'm voting for Stephanie," said Jessie. "Sorry. Let's draw daggers."

"You sure?" asked the host. But he could see that they were. No one was going to change their mind. They were all just too darn stubborn. Everyone had a point to make, and no one was going to back down.

"Okay," finished Jeff. "One by one, you guys come up, and pick your sheath. Pick any one you want, but keep the dagger inside until I tell you. You'll all draw them at once, when we're ready." He paused. "Got it?"

One by one, the four players walked up to Jeff's podium, to choose.

John selected the emerald sheath.

Jessie selected the diamonds.

Ryan selected the sapphires.

And Stephanie was stuck with the last one. The ruby sheath. The one that looked like the color of blood. And an ominous feeling suddenly filled her gut. She didn't want to be drawing the red one.

"Crap," she said.

With that, the four players went back to their seats. Jeff instructed them to stand up, and they stood in a single file line. Four of them. Jessie, Stephanie, John, and Ryan. In that order.

"This is it," said the host, as he counted backwards from five.

"Five."

Jessie Camacho held her sheath at her side, taking a deep breath. She desperately didn't want to go home tonight. She didn't want to go out simply because of stubbornness, and she -especially- didn't want to lose to Stephanie tonight. Not in a head to head showdown. That would look -terrible.-

"Four."

Stephanie Dill held the ruby sheath in her left hand, staring at the fire. She could feel dread already taking over her body. She knew it would be her. She just -knew- it. And it would be her own damn fault, for being so stubborn.

"Three."

John Raymond was weighing the emerald sheath in his hands, testing its weight. He also had his eyes closed, saying a quick prayer. He hoped God was listening right now, because John didn't feel very enthusiastic about this. He didn't like one in four odds at -all.-

"Two."

Ryan Aiken was seething in anger at the end of the line. He was already vowing revenge against John and Stephanie. Whichever one survived tonight, they were going to regret taking him on. They were seriously going to regret it. Because he knew that he had a silver blade. Ryan wasn't going home tonight. He just knew it.

"One."

Jeff paused. It was time for the moment of truth.

"Reveal your blades."

One by one, four daggers were whipped out of their sheaths. Jeff watched them flash out into the dark night sky. And he also heard a moan of frustration, as one player suddenly realized his game was over.


John Raymond held a black blade in his hand.


And that was that.

"John," said the host, watching as the pastor said something angrily under his breath. "Please bring up your torch."

John turned around to get his torch. He slung his backpack over his shoulder, and caught Ryan grinning at him. Ryan couldn't have been more pleased. And with that, John turned to Stephanie. He had a little message to deliver.

"I know about you and Tanya," he whispered quickly. He then looked over at Jessie and Ryan. "Make sure you guys kick their butt for me."

Steph looked up at him. She was filled with emotion, for perhaps the first time in this game. She felt alternately grateful, relieved, and thrilled to still be here, of course. But she was also terrified now, because she had officially become a sitting duck. Plus, she had lost her best friend in the process. John was gone. This was gonna suuuck.

"Catch ya later," she said, as she patted him sadly on the hand. "Be cool."

John walked up to Jeff, and the host extinguished his flame. And with that, the pastor was out of the game. He walked through the large metal gate, down the dirt path, and boarded the boat of shame. Then he disappeared into the cool night sky, ferried away into the darkness.

And Taygete was down to three.

"I hope," said Jeff, "That you guys can come together for the home stretch of this game. Because you're gonna need it." He nodded at Ryan. "You're gonna need all the allies you can in this game, so keep that in mind."

But Ryan wasn't worried. He was too ecstatic about the results. It had worked. He had managed to take over his tribe, and get rid of John, without so much as breaking a promise. He had never voted out John Raymond directly. He had never written the man's name down. He had kept his word... well, from a certain point of view, anyway.

And now he had his tribe. His tribe of females. Just like he had planned. And the end was realistically within reach.

But first, he thought, as he cast a glance at Steph, I just need to do a little damage control...

- Read John's Final Words!

- All-Star Survivor: Greece episode notes.

- Email Mario with comments.

- Back to the All-Star Greece episode archive.