Survivor: Okinawa
Episode #12- Friends to the End
by Mario Lanza



Miyagi Tribe (red): Michelle Kin-Fraley, Joni Newman, Mike Ruff, Isabella Smith, Amy Twieg




Day 34


The rain had been falling on Yamako Island ever since last night's Tribal Council. It had come down in torrents. It had come down in buckets. And now, nearly sixteen hours later, the skies were showing no signs of letting up. The rain was still pouring down from the heavens, and the players were still huddled inside their musty little shelter. This is where they had been ever since last night.

"I don't think it's going to let up today," Michelle noted to the tribe, as she stared anxiously up at the angry-looking black clouds. "I think we're stuck in here all day."

Next to her, Isabella and Joni huddled together, the two smallest women in the game trying desperately to stay warm. And though Joni was almost numb from the cold and salty sea winds, Isabella was practically trembling. Because despite all her bluster and despite all her bravado, Isabella Smith was -not- good with cold. She never had been, never would be, and was hating life right about now. Her little body just wouldn't stop trembling.

"I think we need to plan for this tonight," Michelle now added, "Just in case it's still going on. We need to have a plan in case the rains don't let up."

"Hopefully it involves us all staying in here," Amy joked, "And never going out there."

"I think we need to take shifts today," Michelle said, "And possibly tonight. I think one of us needs to be on fire watch all day. One of us needs to make sure the fire shelter doesn't collapse." She pointed to the horrifically wet wooden frame that sat over their meager little fire. "And that means we need to take turns tonight too. We can't let that fire go out. If we do, I don't think we'll ever get it relit."

Amy groaned. Joni grimaced. Isabella shivered.

"If the rain stops at least I can reinforce it," Mike shrugged.

"Well I hope so," Michelle looked up again. "Because honestly guys... I think we're gonna be stuck in here all day. I don't think we'll be going -anywhere- today."



^^



But despite Michelle's prediction, the rains -did- let up somewhat around lunchtime. And it wasn't dry, not by any means, but the downpour started to abate just around 11:00... and just in time, too.

"I should go check the fish traps," Mike said. And with that, he hopped out of the cramped little shelter.

"I think we could use some fruit," Isabella smiled. And she hopped out of the shelter as well.

Soon all five of the Miyagis had dispersed into the morning air. And it was a relief too, because sitting so closely together for the past half day had more or less driven them all batty. In short, there was no way to talk strategy when everybody was sitting right there. There was no way to plan for the endgame when everybody else was within earshot.

And as Isabella Smith stole down to the beach, she had a wry little smile on her face. She was still freezing, she was still shivering, but deep down her old cockiness and confidence was starting to once again rise to the surface. Now that she was away from the tribe and able to speak freely, she was happy. Because she could feel it. She could -feel- the old endgame juices starting to flow again within her. Because as of this morning, with the removal of Lance McHale firmly behind her... things were now -really- starting to get fun. Because the final five was here. And, like in Tonga, that meant it was now time to start her final run to the end. It was now time for Isabella to start working her magic.

Just like before.

"Well, so much for Lance," she said, as she packed her backpack into one of the fishing boats. "Another one bites the dust." She laughed. "And it's not that I disliked the guy. I mean... he was a deeply thoughtful and philosophical person, which was always interesting. And when he was in a good mood and willing to talk to you, he was really a wonderful person to be around." She shrugged. "And I respect -anyone- who is willing to devote their life to working with children."

She paused, then grinned slyly towards the camera.

"But at the same time he did not play this game very well. His inner conflict -always- got in the way of his strategy. His ethics got in the way... his morals got in the way..." She chuckled. "And frankly, so did the stick up his butt. His sour grapes contributed to his downfall more than anything, but hey." She shrugged. "All that mattered to me was that he didn't fit into my plans. And as with anyone else who was useless to me, all I can say is this..."

She unlatched her boat from its watery mooring.

"See ya Lance. Wouldn't want to be ya."

Isabella sat down in the boat and started paddling slowly over to the mainland. It was a job that most players would have hated, because it was the sort of tedium that most of them seemed to loathe. Gathering fruit was a mindless and repetitive task that needed to be done every day. But for Isabella, it also meant a solitary trip across the sea and a chance to sit here and think in silence. And as most players wouldn't be able to stand the thankless drudgery of this job, deep down this was Isabella's favorite part of the day. She looked forward to her daily escape as much as she looked forward to Jeff handing her that million dollar check. Because that check presentation was going to happen this time around. Of that she had absolutely no doubt.

"You know what else bugged me about Lance?" Isabella asked as she paddled. "It bugged me that he was such an angry and hypocritical person. I mean... just look at last night." She kept paddling as she talked. "After he was voted out Michelle handed Lance his torch, just as Lance had done to Chris so many Tribal Councils ago." She chuckled, now shaking her head. "It was typical Michelle, of course, completely overboard and unnecessary. But at the same time it was almost like Lance got some sort of karmic retribution. It was like fate was paying him back for the way he had treated Chris."

Isabella started to giggle now, still amused by all that had happened.

"I mean... Lance -talks- about morals and ethics and sportsmanship, but why would you hand somebody their torch after you voted them out? Is that not rubbing it right in their face? Where's the sportsmanship in that?" She laughed again. "And what's funny is that Lance tries and tries so hard to be "right"... yet he just ends up with repressed anger and bile built up towards those he thinks are "wrong." And then he does things that are completely unnecessary and unsportsmanlike, like handing Chris his torch." She shook her head. "Unbelievable."

But then Isabella got that wicked gleam in her eye.

"Anyway," she added, "Michelle did it right back to Lance, which was just as unnecessary but of course made me laugh. Because it will just help me in the end... when I'm up against her in the final two."

Sure enough, Isabella's mind was now firmly made up. She had been debating between Mike and Michelle for days now, trying to figure out which one of the two would be the perfect opponent in the final two. And while she knew people loathed Mike's ass-kissing ways and general whininess, deep down she knew that Michelle was the one who needed to be sitting next to her. Michelle needed to be her final two patsy. Because -nobody- would be voting for Michelle to win this game. Nobody in their right mind wanted to reward her with a million dollar check.

"And I know I'm sniping a little more than usual today," Isabella now admitted, "But I'm just kind of getting fed up with people's attitudes towards the game and how their actions have started to change for the cameras. Because I know a -lot- of people are just now realizing this will one day be on television and their actions will be spelled out for all the world to see. But you know what I say to that?" She smiled, still paddling through the rain. "I say -fuck it-. I don't regret a thing. The editors can do whatever they want with us and personally I hope they're rather merciless. Everything I've done here I've done knowing -full- well it will be shown on TV, and I'm fine with that."

She laughed.

"Because we're playing for a million dollars! And this game isn't called "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?", it's called "Who Wants to be a Mastermind?"" She grinned at the cameras, coldly. "Good lord, -everyone- here has thought they were the only mastermind since day one. And all I can say to them is... get over it!"

She shook her head again, her paddling speed starting to increase as she got a little worked up over this issue.

"There's only going to be -one- winner of this game, not sixteen. So all I can say to my teammates is to accept that fact that you've played the way you have. What's done is done and you won't be able to change a thing. The only person you can be true to is yourself, so please just shut up and deal with it for a change."

Isabella sighed, still paddling alone through the choppy sea. True, she was a little bit worked up over the game right now but at the same time... this was Isabella. And there was a reason Isabella was different than someone like Michelle. Because even when Isabella got a little bit worked up, her mind still remained focused and calm and 100% directed on the strategy at hand. And she proved it right now, by finally giving away her master plan to reach the end of this game.

"My move before the next vote," she admitted, "Is to put 'Operation Smear Joni' into effect. And if that doesn't work, I can use my backup plan of 'Operation I'm Still an Angel!' if she somehow wins immunity." Isabella nodded as she spoke, enjoying the sound of her plan finally being verbalized out loud. After all, she had been thinking about it for so very long now.

"My plan," she continued, "Is to convince Michelle that Joni is too much of an immunity threat to go any further. And at the same time I have to convince Amy and Mike that Joni is too much of a threat in general to go any further." She shrugged. "It's risky, because I need to balance it all very carefully. I can't make too many new alliances, and I can't close off my doors in case Joni wins immunity. I don't want them turning the vote around against me instead."

She shook her head. That would most definitely be bad.

"And I'll be subtle at first," she finished, "But once someone else wins immunity, that's when I'm going to pounce. Because that's when Amy will come to me looking for a deal, and I'm sure others will too. I'm sure Mike will be right behind her, and Mike will be kissing my ass pretty much as usual."

She smiled once more, with that wicked gleam again in her eye.

"And all I can say to Mike is this: If and when you get voted out, I'll put down a tube of Chapstick to represent you in your little garden. Because it will be just a little reminder... of all the constant and obvious ass-kissing you've done so far in this game..."



^^



Though Isabella was slowly and happily plotting his demise, Mike Ruff was actually feeling pretty darn good on the morning of day thirty-four. Sure enough, he had already gone down to his Fallen Comrades Garden, where a small pile of green leaves... green for Sato... now sat representing Lance McHale's fate in this game. And now the garden was nearly full. Only three more spaces remained empty.

"I received my first votes last night," Mike confessed, as he sat down under a tree. "And normally I would have been upset, but last night it was down to me or Lance, so the votes were pretty much by default. I knew they weren't personal and I knew I wasn't going to go home."

He shrugged, dismissively.

"What was great," he added, "Was that even though Amy voted for me, I knew she didn't really want to. Because like the others, Amy -still- views me as one of the most honest and well-liked. Which is hilarious, because I may be the most deceptive one out here! I think I'm the biggest dichotomy of us all!" He laughed. "And should I be worried that I'm the last man standing? Should I worry that the girls will now team up against me?"

He shrugged again.

"It's possible, I suppose. But I really don't think that Emma and Michelle will betray me. I think my final three berth is sitting right there." He grinned. "And with the amount of energy I've saved up, I doubt they could stop me if they wanted. They don't realize that I've been sandbagging almost -every- single challenge. They don't realize that I'm not a big clumsy oaf like I try to appear. None of them have caught on to that at -all-."

He smiled, slyly. Because, like Isabella, he -also- had a plan for the endgame.

And again like Isabella, it -also- included Michelle.

"I intend to face, and beat, Michelle in the final two," he added, "Though of course I worry about what Lance said last night. I worry that he might have been serious about wanting to vote for her..."

Mike paused for a moment to think about this.

"... He -could- have been telling the truth, but deep down I doubt he would really do it. I just don't see Lance voting for Michelle over me, especially with the way I presented myself to him." Mike grinned. "Because as you may have noticed, as I've been doing ever since the merge, I've made sure I was on the good side of the jurors before they were voted out. And as you may have noticed... every juror in that box will think favorably of me at the end..."

So today's mission was simple. Mike needed to go make nice with the two females who were going to be the next two players voted out of the game. He was going to continue his mission to woo the jurors, and he was going to do it without being detected. And if he had anything at all to say about it, Joni and Amy would have -no- idea what was about to hit them.

"...And I was a bit troubled by some of your comments last night," Mike now explained to Joni. "Some of your answers at Tribal Council seemed directed at me, and I wanted to ask you if everything was okay."

"Oh of course it's okay," Joni smiled. "Why would there be a problem?"

"It's just... you made it sound like I dismissed you early in the game. You made it sound like I had been mean to you, when in reality I hadn't meant to do that at all."

"Oh, psh," Joni clucked, "That's old news, Mike. We all had issues at the start. But it's no big deal."

"Okay," Mike sighed, looking relieved. "But if I -ever- did anything to make you feel left out, please accept my apologies. Please know that it wasn't personal. I never meant to treat you poorly at all."

"It's not a problem."

"And anyway, thank you," Mike smiled. "Thank you for not voting me out last night. And thank you once again for your loyalty, it meant a lot to me."

Once Mike had finished with Joni, he went off to chat with Amy. He found the young woman up by the campfire, trying her best to keep the pathetic little flame alive in the rain.

"I just wanted you to know," Mike said, "That I understand about the vote. And I don't take it personally at all. You simply did what you had to do."

"Good," smiled Amy, "I was hoping you would see it that way."

"And truth be told," Mike shrugged, "I would have thought less of you had you voted for Lance. I don't think he would have liked that at all."

"Well thanks," Amy laughed, "... I think."

"Anyway, congrats," Mike said, "Final five. Can you believe we both made it?"

"I know!" Amy said. "But seriously... the buck probably stops here for me now. Wouldn't you say?"

"If I had to place a bet, I'd say yeah..."

"And I would love to make a move," Amy said, "But you guys are pretty solid. I didn't think you were, but you guys have been tight since the merge, haven't you?"

"Yeah," admitted Mike, "But I do have to say one thing."

"Hmm?"

"Jeff asked an -awful- lot of gender questions last night. He seemed dead set on making me worry about the formation of an all-female alliance."

"You noticed that too?" Amy smiled.

"So I'm just saying..." Mike said, "And nothing concrete here. But I need to find out what's up before I make up my mind for sure. I mean, I probably intend on sticking with Kamiya, but if someone decides to make a move, it very well could be me."

Amy nodded.

"Well just know," she said softly, "That I'll give you as much of my loyalty as you want. I have no more allies here and you know it. Heck, I'd sell you my -soul- if you wanted to break away from the pack right about now."

Mike chuckled.

"I know you would," he said. "But let me see what Emma and Michelle want to do first, okay? Just let me see what their plans are before I give you an answer for sure."

And this was the phrase that really got Amy's ears to perk up. This was the comment that sent Amy's radar scrambling into overdrive. For Amy thought Mike had just slipped up... and perhaps he hadn't even realized it.

"Wait..." she said, "Emma and Michelle? Why those two? I always assumed Michelle and Joni were the ones who were together..."

"Well they -all- are," Mike backpedaled quickly, "All three of them are a team, as far as I know."

"Ah, okay," nodded Amy.

"It's just that I worry about Joni's loyalty," Mike added, "She's always been the one I worry about..."

But Amy's mind was already whirring. She didn't hear a word Mike said for the entire rest of the conversation. Because either Mike was trying to get Joni out... or Mike had just slipped up and given away the -real- power duo of this game. But in any case, Amy's sharp mind quickly decided on her next move. Suddenly she knew the course of action she needed to take, if she wanted to stay alive in this game...

She needed to go find out if this was true. She needed to find out if Michelle and Isabella really -were- the brains behind the organization.

And she also needed to find out if that could be exploited.




^^



"I'm not sure what to think of Amy right now," Michelle had confessed just this morning. "Because yeah she's a smart player and also I know that she's planning something. She's too smart to just sit there and hope one of us drags her to the final four. So if -I- were her I would try to come up with some plan." Then Michelle had shrugged, helplessly. "But right now I still haven't figured out what she's going to do..."

And sure enough, Amy now had a mission. She needed to go chat with Isabella and see how tight her bond with Michelle was. And if it appeared that Isabella would never turn against Michelle, Amy would have to go to plan B. If Michelle and Isabella were indeed peas in a pod... the only plan left would be to try to turn them against Joni. Because surely they would need Joni out of the way eventually, right? Wasn't that just common sense? Surely these weren't just the insane ramblings of a desperate Sato woman...?

But the only kink in the plan was that Isabella was gone. Isabella had sailed over to the mainland and wouldn't be back for a while. Amy wouldn't be able to talk to her until then.

"Crap," she sighed.

And as Amy sat down and waited for her meal ticket to come rowing back across the sea, she spotted Michelle and Joni out in another boat. Michelle and Joni were having a little strategy talk of their own, about two hundred feet out to sea. And all Amy could do was sit here and watch them, sitting here alone in the rain. There wasn't much else she could do right about now.

"Hey, can I ask you a question?" Michelle had just asked Joni. "Why do you hate or dislike Mike so much?"

The two Kamiyan women had always been next to worthless with a fishing pole, so their frequent trips to sea had always been for the sole purpose of talking strategy. They knew it, Amy knew it, and the whole rest of the tribe knew it. Joni wouldn't be out in a fishing boat unless she wanted to get some privacy for a little while.

"I don't hate Mike!" Joni laughed. "I don't! I just never liked that he underestimated me. I never liked that he assumed so much about me at the start of the game."

"Yeah," nodded Michelle.

"And he apologized to me for it today," Joni added. "He's been acting super nice lately." She scrunched up her face. "But at the same time he only really talks to me for strategy. If he doesn't need my vote he couldn't care less about me."

"I've always got that sense too," Michelle said.

"But I don't hate him personally," Joni shrugged. "He's not a bad person. I just dislike him for the same reason I didn't like Ryan... and Murtz... and Henry. I don't like the way they wrote me off."

"Those guys wrote us -all- off," Michelle grinned. "They all wrote off the Angels."

"Ha!" laughed Joni.

"But I -do- have to tell you something," Michelle leaned in close. "And this is something I probably shouldn't tell you... but it will just make you laugh."

Joni looked curious.

"Mike came up to me today," Michelle reported, "And asked me to make a final two deal with you." She started laughing. "He was like..." Now she did a fairly credible job of imitating Mike's deep voice. "We can fool Joni into thinking she's safe. So go make a deal with her and throw her off the scent." Michelle laughed out loud. "So do you want to make a deal, Joni??"

"Sure!" Joni laughed. Then she paused. "But wait a minute... that might be a problem. Since you've only been my final two partner since... what was it?"

"Day one?" suggest Michelle.

"Yeah," nodded Joni. "But sure, what the heck. I'll make another deal with you, if it makes Mike happy."

And the two friends started giggling. They laughed and laughed, as the members of the Angels tended to do when together. Neither of them had even touched their fishing pole yet, neither one was even planning on it.

"So you have two brothers back home?" Michelle said, trying to get back to seriousness.

"Yup," nodded Joni. "Although I call them both Spawn of Satan." She grinned. "Just kidding."

"Any sisters?" Michelle asked.

"Yeah. I have a little sister named Alli. She's four."

"Awww," said Michelle, "That's cute. I always wanted a little sister. I was cursed with an older brother but that was it. I never got the sister I wanted."

Joni nodded.

"I was jealous of my friends who had sisters," Michelle confessed, "I thought that was the coolest thing. And I bet your sister really looks up to you too..."

And though neither woman discussed it out loud, the subtext of this conversation was starting to drift towards something a bit more personal, and they both knew it. Because in many ways Michelle and Joni -were- like sisters. An older sister and a younger sister. That relationship had been there all game, interrupted only by Joni's temporary banishment to Sato, and had started up again with a fury when they were reunited at the merge. And though Joni had been loyal to Christopher to a fault, she had -always- been closer to Mich and always would be. Michelle was her best friend in the game, her closest ally and... in many ways... a surrogate big sister out here. It had been that way since day one.

"I just hope that Mike doesn't win immunity next," Joni suddenly changed the subject. "Because I know he's saving up his energy. And I don't want him to have any negotiating power if something starts to go down. I don't want him to have -any- idea he is going home next."

"I agree," nodded Michelle. "But what if he does? I mean what if he ends up immune?"

"Hmmm," thought Joni. "Well I suppose we can go for Amy then."

She paused.

Then chuckled.

"...Or Emma."

Michelle laughed.

"I -knew- you would say that!" Michelle clapped her hands, happily. "And I'll tell you that if Mike is immune and Emma isn't... things could get very interesting around here. Because I've been wanting to stick it to her ever since we let her back in."

"So have I," smiled Joni.

"But as long as it isn't me or you," Michelle shrugged, "It really doesn't matter. Besides, Mike wants Amy gone anyway, he's too worried she'll put together some sort of immunity run. At least that's what he told me." Then she shook her head. "I swear, sometimes I think Mike believes he's the king of the island and we're just his servants."

Joni laughed.

"Oh yes King Mike," Michelle mimicked, "I will gladly do this for you. Yes King Mike, I will make a fake deal with Joni. Yes King Mike, I'll try to swing the vote around against Amy..."

"He gets to have his own fifties housewives!" Joni giggled. "We can make babies and make dinner so long as he tells us what to do!"

"No kidding," laughed Michelle.

"He always reminds me of a line from Empire Strikes Back," Joni said. Then she delivered it dramatically. "I am -not- a committee."

Michelle laughed again, always enjoying the fishing trips with her Okinawan kid sister.

"In fact I think I'll use that when I write down his name next," Joni grinned. "That'll be my voting comment at the next vote. I think it would be hilarious..."



^^



Michelle and Joni came back to shore just as Isabella was returning as well. The small blonde woman came paddling through the misty rain, her boat stocked with another healthy load of fruit. Once again it looked like Isabella had come through when they needed her. As always.

"Go help Emma if you can," Michelle suggested to Joni, "I don't think she can carry all that." Then she nodded over towards a tree. "I have to give a confessional, producers have been on my butt all day."

"Okay."

And as Joni left, Michelle sat down in the light rain of Yamako Island. And once Joni was out of earshot, Michelle started to speak. And like usual, she -definitely- had a lot to say.

"I know I'm close to the end," she explained, "But that doesn't mean I'm getting cocky. And I know you guys -think- I'll get cocky but I won't. I'm too smart to fall into that trap, I'm well aware there could be surprises for me somewhere down the road."

She suddenly thought of an example.

"Like Lance's last words warning everybody about me last night! I mean, those sure as -heck- caused some damage and today I've had to go do some damage control. But what else do you expect from Lance, really? I mean he goes on about honor and integrity, then he lies about me making a final two deal with him just to make me look bad. What a sore loser!" She shook her head, angrily. "The guy didn't have the balls to plan or strategize while he was in the game. So he just waited until he was leaving, then he suddenly grew a pair... a -coward's- pair... and tried to drag me down with him on his way out."

And now she smiled, happily.

"But at least I managed to give the prick his torch on the way out. I handed it to him just like he did to Chris. So that was for you, Sugar! I hope you like that when you see it on TV!"

But as much as Michelle liked to joke about Lance's last-ditch effort to take her out... deep down she knew it had done some damage. Michelle was aware that Lance had done some -serious- damage to her reputation during his final hours in this game. It worried her so much, in fact, that she had already decided to change some things around today.

"My new strategy," she confessed, "Is to stop making people think they can beat me. That's been what I've been doing all along... which Lance so helpfully pointed out to the rest of the world." She grimaced. "Ugh. So anyway, my new strategy is to make people think they can't beat anybody -else-. Instead of making me look bad, I have to make everyone -else- look good." She shrugged. "And it should work in theory. After all, if everybody else is unbeatable, why not take me to the end instead? I want them to look at me as their best shot."

And as usual, Michelle now lapsed into a rundown of what she thought about her final four opponents in this game. And also as usual, she showed a keener grasp of strategy than she liked to let on around camp.

"Emma has ridden coattails every step of the way," she explained. "She hasn't played the game all along, she only started with the Ryan vote. So there's no way a Kamiya would ever vote for her to win. We all know that she didn't do jack shit for half the game and nobody would reward her with a vote for that. No matter -how- assertively she has played lately."

Michelle paused for a moment, thinking this over.

"But... at the same time, there will be four Satos on the jury by the end, and they may not -know- how worthless she was at the start. They may just see her for what she's done since the merge, and they may say it was a brilliant strategy to wait to make her move."

Michelle grimaced again.

"So Emma could very easily win this game if the Satos like her jury speech. That wouldn't surprise me at all. It's not the strategy -I- would use, but it's gotten her this far and could very easily put her in that winner's circle."

Michelle paused, then she moved on to the third Angel in the game.

"Joni has been underestimated all game," she explained. "Because you forget that while the rest of us had it easy through the twist... Joni had to fight it out over on Sato. She got put in the trenches early on, yet she outlasted Murtz, Chris, Henry, Hogan, she beat them all!" Michelle exhaled slowly, realizing how much different Joni's game had been from her own. "You don't get to the final five without being a player. And right now I'd have to admit that I'd vote for Joni over most anybody. She's had to take the long road to get here, and you have to respect that."

Michelle paused to catch a few raindrops on her tongue. After all, it was still raining. So why not?

"Amy was always the most dominant Sato, yet she ended up being the last one standing. Her alliance fell apart, she had no help whatsoever, yet she has found a way to stay alive." Michelle sounded impressed. "She even managed to stay alive after failing to get -me- out, and that doesn't happen much!" She laughed. "But even now I can see Amy's mind working. She's trying to save herself and she's going to move from option to option until she finds one that works. And though I'd rather not have her win..." Michelle shrugged. "If she manages to get there, I'd give her my vote. She's faced a -lot- of odds just to get where she is today."

Then Michelle paused. There was just one more Miyagi to discuss. And it was the only one she knew wasn't going to be winning this game.

"Mike has thought he was in control since day one. He thinks of himself as the leader, he thinks of himself as the mastermind and he thinks he is the final word on all decisions to be made. But what he -doesn't- realize is how badly he's been played. He has no idea he's been manipulated since day one."

Michelle let loose a sly grin. She had always found this aspect of the game to be hilarious.

"I've dropped subtle hints in front of Mike since day one," she admitted. "I always get him to do my bidding and he doesn't even realize he's doing what I want him to do." She laughed. "But the most ridiculous thing is that Mike doesn't realize everybody here is onto his little game of sucking up. We all -know- he's trying to make brownie points with the jury and we all -know- his "honesty" approach is a load of BS. And Mike is the -one- person I would never vote for in the final two." She looked angry. "If he manages to get there, it's because he's been strung along by the rest of us because we know we can beat him. Hands down."

And that being said, Michelle was just about done. She had spoken her piece and it was time to get back to business.

"My job today," she added as she stood up, "Is to make people think they can't beat anybody -but- me in the final two. I just need to start placing those thoughts in their heads. I need to make everybody else look like a bigger target... and make me look like a "bitch" who would be an easy win because I won't kiss the jury's ass like someone else would. Because if they think my brashness will hurt my chances in speaking to a jury..."

Now she smiled.

"... Then let the games begin."



^^



Isabella noticed that something was up the moment she returned to the island. And it wasn't the way that Joni came running up to her to help carry things. No, it was more in the way people stared at her as she disembarked. There were three people paying close attention to her as she returned-- Mike, Amy and Michelle-- and all three of them looked like they wanted to have a chat. They all wanted to have a chat in private.

"Well this should be interesting," Isabella remarked to the cameras.

And though Amy thought she would be first, she was dismayed to see Isabella making a beeline over towards Michelle on the south beach. Michelle and Isabella had some business to attend to... which only heightened Amy's suspicions that Mike had been telling the truth. Maybe Michelle and Isabella -were- the ones making the decisions right about now.

"So who's the target right now?" Isabella asked under her breath. She was trying to appear casual but it was awfully hard to be nonchalant on an island the size of a small baseball field.

"Mike or Amy," Michelle whispered, "But it's really up to you. It depends on what you want to do."

Isabella nodded.

"Amy's turned into Sandra today," Michelle said, "She'll basically vote for anyone right now, so long as it isn't her. And that's going to make her dangerous."

Isabella nodded again. "What about Joni?" she asked casually. She was wondering if Michelle would take the bait right off the bat. But Michelle didn't.

"Joni is too gung ho Angels," Michelle shook her head. "She's an easy voting bloc with us right now. Plus Mike wants her out anyway, so that just helps us in the end."

"Yeah," nodded Isabella. And though she wasn't going to press the issue further, she knew there would be time later. Michelle could be swayed. And if she couldn't... well there were just ways around that, weren't there?

Isabella was soon approached by Mike, who also wanted to talk game. And sure enough, here came the other deal she knew would be tossed at her today. It was like people were running around with their heads cut off today. Maybe it was the rain that was doing it.

"I know you're going to final three with me and Michelle," Mike confirmed, "But I just wanted you to know that I'll take you to the end if I win that last immunity. I just wanted you to know that. It's because I always appreciated how you tried to save me in the Hogan vote. I just don't think I'll ever forget that."

"Thank you Mike," she smiled.

"So do you want to talk about your plans?" Mike asked under his breath. "Do they involve me somehow?"

"Of course!" she nodded.

But the biggest surprise came from Amy, who wasted no time once she had finally cornered Isabella against a tree. Amy was going to be blunt and direct about this, since she had already seen enough. She had seen Isabella and Michelle and the way they talked. She had seen Michelle and Joni and the way Joni was dismissed. And she had seen Mike and the way he had acted so aloof around the females. Just watching the Kamiyas interact for the past thirty minutes had been enough.

Mike was right. Michelle and Isabella were the key. And those two were never going to break.

"I just wanted to run something by you," Amy said, "And you can tell me if it's hopeless, but I just wanted to know."

"Sure."

"Let me know if you want help getting Joni out at the next vote," Amy said. "Because I know she's going to be a threat to you guys down the road, and she's going to be awfully hard to get out without any help..."

"Operation Smear Joni" already had three members today, though they had been completely unaware of each others' existence. Until now. Mike had been working to get her out, Isabella was planning to get her out, and now Amy was lobbing the first salvo in what was to become a three-person effort to get the young dancer out of the game. The parties were slowly starting to draw together. The plan was slowly starting to become a reality.

And it started when Isabella surprised Amy... by saying yes.



^^



Treemail was delivered to the island just before dinner, as Amy went to retrieve it from its box. And Amy's eyes nearly popped out of her head when she saw what they would be doing.

"A mental challenge!" she shrieked. "A mental challenge!"

Tossing the scrap of paper into the air, she spun around in a happy little circle. Just for a moment she dropped her game face and her seriousness and reverted back to the joyous celebrations she would have had as a child. Because she couldn't believe it. A puzzle challenge. Finally!

"The last mental challenge we had was the codebreaker," she explained happily, "Back on day five." And Amy grinned from ear to ear as she told this story. She had been waiting a -long- time to say something like this. "If you remember, that was when Henry was chosen to do our tiebreaker and represent Sato as our champion. He whined and whined about doing it, but when I offered to do it instead, he refused. He claimed I wasn't smart enough, nor any good under pressure."

Amy snorted. Because Henry had managed to hit her in the one area where she was very sensitive. You could trash talk her, you could call her names all you wanted, but one thing you couldn't do was call Amy stupid. It was the quickest way to get on her bad side, as well as the quickest way to make her your enemy.

"Are you kidding me??" she now exclaimed. "Some punk college kid is going to come to a single mother of two and point fingers about who cracks and who doesn't?! He's got no -idea- about pressure. And I have -not- forgotten that moment. I don't think I ever will."

Now she started to walk back to camp. She carried the treemail happily in one hand, loving the fact that she would finally get her chance to shine. Here she was, a card-carrying member of the High IQ Society of America, head to head in a puzzle challenge for some sort of fantastic reward. What else could she ask for?

"I want to see Henry's face," she grinned, "When production tells him I won a puzzle challenge. I want him to eat those words when he finds out he was wrong. And I hope they taste as good as the rest of the food he's had in Loser Lodge..."



^^



The reward challenge started just after dinner, as the five players lined up on the beach. And despite the letup of weather earlier today, the rain was just now starting to come back with a vengeance. It was raining so hard, in fact, that the players now stood huddled under a large blue tarp. They were under here because it was essential they all stay dry right now... for a reason they were just about to find out.

"Today's challenge," continued Jeff, "Consists of five puzzle stations, each with a mental puzzle you must solve to move on."

He pointed behind him into the rain, where twenty-five bamboo crates rested in the sand. There were five for each player, and the crates tapered inwards... in the shape of a flower.

"You will start at your outside station." He pointed. "That's the crate on the outside ring of the circle. Written on top of your crate will be a logic puzzle. And it is -your- job to read the puzzle... solve it... and then move inwards to your next station. With each correct answer you will move in... and in... and in... with the goal being to get to the center of the flower. And in the center will be your fifth, and final, puzzle."

He smiled.

"The first one to solve their fifth puzzle wins reward. And... as you may have noticed... this is our -LAST- reward challenge in Okinawa, so it's gonna be a biggie."

He grinned.

"Wanna know what you're playing for?"

Before the players could answer, a lone man stepped out of the jungle. And the players didn't recognize him at first, not under his blue hood. But when he revealed his face, that was when Joni let out a cry of surprise.

"Joni," said Jeff. "Here's your father Mark."

Joni's father waved happily as the young dancer clutched her hands to her mouth, in total shock. She then started to jump up and down, excitedly. And now another man came stepping out from the trees.

"Emma, it's your brother John."

Isabella nearly laughed at the sight of John walking towards her. Because this wasn't her brother. John was her ex-boyfriend, who happened to be from Georgia and also happened to have helped with her southern accent before she arrived. But John was in on the plan and John was ready to act the part. Today John would be her brother.

"Michelle," said Jeff. "Here is your brother Scott."

Michelle teared up almost immediately upon seeing her husband. For like Isabella, this wasn't Michelle's brother at all. This was her husband Scott. Michelle had been hiding the fact that she was married since day one. And now, seeing her husband, Michelle had to cover her eyes to keep from crying. She had to keep up the act. No way was she going to let these people see her start bawling.

And then a commotion came from the jungle, as two small boys noisily darted out from between the trees. They were yelling and laughing as they ran through the rain... as they made a beeline directly for their mother.

"Amy, I think you know your sons Alex and Brandon."

Amy started crying at the sight of her 4 and 5-year old sons. The producers weren't going to make her choose after all. They had actually let -both- her sons come to Okinawa! But the boys were shooed away from Amy and over to wait with the rest of the loved ones instead. Amy waved to them from her spot under the tarp.

"And finally," smiled Jeff, "Mike, I know you've been missing him. It's your partner of three years, Joe."

A heavy-set man with glasses and a mustache stepped out, looking remarkably like a cloned version of Mike. But Mike called over to Joe happily, obviously pleased to finally see him. Mike had been the most homesick player of them all.

The loved ones stood together under a separate tarp, doing their best to stay dry. Well, all except for Amy's boys, who were both happily running around in the rain. Amy laughed as the production team was having a hard time controlling them.

"The winner of today's challenge," explained Jeff, "Will get to spend a full day with their loved one. They will be coming back to camp tonight... meeting the rest of the tribe... and then eating dinner with you back at camp. Then tonight, you and your loved one will be whisked away to a luxury resort to spend the night. You will return tomorrow, fully refreshed and relaxed, having spent a full day with your loved one." He grinned, laughing. "And most importantly, you'll get to spend a night away from -this-." He squinted as he looked up at the rainy sky. "Sound good?"

Once the initial excitement of seeing the loved ones had worn off, the five players walked out into the rain, to take their positions. Each one stood in front of a crate, eagerly awaiting the start of this game. And while Joni and Michelle were certainly no slouches... this contest was already shaping up to be a battle between three superstars of the puzzle world. This one was shaping up to be epic, as three of the final five Okinawans had IQs that would normally be classified as "genius."

First off was Amy Twieg, who had chewed up and spat out puzzles since she was only four years old. A member of the Mensa High IQ Society, Amy had been waiting for a challenge like this ever since the start of the game.

Next up was Isabella Smith, who had rocketed through her early years of schooling like a comet streaking through the night. Already a master of the Survivor game, she was eager to put her mental abilities on display for all the world to see. And what better chance than to beat Amy at her own game? Right in front of her kids?

And finally there was Mike Ruff. And Mike was perhaps the most underestimated genius in the game, with few players really even grasping how good he was at strategy games and logic puzzles. As he had once written in his Survivor application, Mike -never- lost games of strategy. Ever. And today was the day he was going to finally show it off.

"This is for reward!" said Jeff. "First one to solve five puzzles wins!"

He raised his hand into the air. And he looked over at the players. Mental challenges always tended to bring out the old competitive juices and today looked to be no exception. The players looked -psyched- to win today's challenge. Even Isabella looked pumped up and ready to win. And the loved ones looked on in anticipation as Jeff finally dropped his arm, signaling the beginning of the contest.

"Survivors ready... GO!"

All five players looked down and opened up their crates. Michelle was the first one to read the puzzle aloud:

"In this series what number comes next...?"

The players looked at a series of numbers... frantically trying to figure out the pattern in their heads. They were cheered on by their loved ones on the sidelines. And in seconds, both Amy and Joni scribbled down an answer. Both of them had written down "11." Both of them were correct.

"Amy and Joni, moving on to station two!"

Joni was the first to scamper ahead to the second crate. She grabbed the wet bamboo lid, opened it up, and read the second puzzle out loud in a clear voice:

"A girl is 5 years old and her brother is three times as old..." Then Joni screamed out, frustrated, into the rainy sky. "I hate math! Jeff, why??"

Joni did her best but soon the other players had caught up. Mike was here, so was Amy and so was Isabella. The only one back at the first station was Michelle, who was still struggling to work out the number pattern.

"Four players at station two," said Jeff, "Michelle still stuck on one. Still anybody's contest."

But within thirty seconds, Amy had solved the second station math problem. She scribbled down the number "Twenty two" and waited for Jeff to come check it. And she hopped up and down happily as she waited for him to confirm.

He checked.

And Amy was correct.

"Amy! Moving on to station three!"

By now Isabella's passion for competition had started to wane. She wanted to win, and she knew she could beat Amy... but at the same time she was well aware of the target the winner would have on their back if they won this. So Isabella more or less dropped out of the contest. She doubted she would be advancing beyond station two.

Amy was followed to the third crate by Mike and Joni, as the teenager was putting on an impressive display of hanging with the big boys. And all three worked on another math problem, another one that had inevitably been designed to drive poor Joni mad.

"Third question," Amy read out loud, in her distinct northern accent, "Twenty women can paint 40 houses in 30 days, so ten women can paint 20 houses in how many days...?"

And Amy didn't even hesitate. As Mike thought about it and Joni shrieked in agony, Amy wasted no time in writing down the number "30." Again, she was correct.

"Amy is moving onto station four!"

Amy had now opened a bit of a lead. And as her sons cheered her on from the sidelines, she ran to the fourth crate. There, brushing her wet hair out of her eyes, she read off the next question.

"Station four," read Amy, "What letter comes next in this sequence?"

And though Amy was running away with the contest, suddenly the answers just weren't there. Suddenly her mind locked up, as she stared down at the question blankly. Suddenly her mind was a blank. She just couldn't see the pattern!

"Come on, mommy!" yelled her son Alex.

But the answer wasn't there. Amy was choking under the pressure. Panicked, she wrote down the letter "O". Jeff came over to confirm, but he said that she was wrong. She was going to have to try again. And then, Amy heard the words she didn't really want to hear.

"Mike, moving on to station four!"

Mike now ran up beside her, as the two geniuses started to battle it out for first place. Amy wrote down a second answer, but again Jeff told her it was incorrect. Amy's mind was spinning out of control.

As Amy struggled, Mike calmly wrote down the letter "Q".

Jeff came over to check.

"Mike! Moving onto the final puzzle!"

Joe let out a loud whoop from the sidelines as Mike now ambled over to the final puzzle station. And he was all alone, with Amy now taking a breath to regroup and begin her puzzle over. Joni was still stuck on station three and Isabella and Michelle had now come up to join her. This was now Mike's game to win or lose.

Squinting through the rain, Mike read the final puzzle out loud:

"On another planet, there is a language known as Zianios..."

The puzzle was about deciphering a made-up alien language, and Mike's eyes boggled as he read it. Uh oh. This one was going to be rough. But he started to work it out in his head, sounding out the nonsense words along with their English translations. And as he worked, he could hear Joe clapping and cheering for him from the side.

"Amy," shouted Jeff, "Moving on to station five!"

Suddenly Amy was here, and now she was back with a vengeance. She had finally overcome her block and now was back in a position to win. Like Mike, she started to work out the nonsense language in her head. And she smiled as she could see that Mike was starting to struggle. Mike just wasn't grasping this one at all.

"Amy and Mike!" announced Jeff, "First one to solve it wins a day with their loved one!"

And suddenly they were joined by a third finalist. Out of nowhere, Joni had come up to join them at the fifth puzzle. Even Jeff was surprised to see Joni up here with a chance to win. How had she solved number three and four so fast??

"Amy, Mike and Joni!" he announced. "Who will solve it first...?"

Mike was trying to parse the alien words out loud. He was trying to parse them into some sort of order... some sort of logical sense he could make of them in his head. But he was definitely struggling. He knew it, and he could feel Joe's frustration off to the side. Joe was cheering for him so hard!

Amy was using her finger to move the words into their natural order. And unlike Mike, she had that cocky little grin of confidence. Amy knew she was going to win this. She had her little swagger back. She knew she was going to prove Henry wrong.

And as Joni started to work on the puzzle, suddenly one voice shouted out an answer. A female voice called out loudly, confidently, for all the world to hear.

"It says in English," Amy shouted, "Drinking... hurts... my... throat!"

"Amy!" shouted Jeff, to a delighted shriek from the young mother, "Wins reward!"

Amy screamed with joy and thrust her fists in the air, thrilled beyond belief. The other players came around to congratulate her, though Mike just stood with hands on his hips, staring at the ground. Mike was flat out disgusted with himself right now. How had he managed to blow that lead? How?

Amy was thrilled at her victory but the crushed look on Mike's face was enough to dampen anybody's celebration. She came over to apologize in his ear, telling him she knew how much he had wanted this visit. Mike said nothing, he just continued to stare at the ground. Amy didn't even think he had heard her.



^^



After the challenge, it was unfortunately time for four of the loved ones to say their goodbyes. The players lined up under the tarp, grateful for the chance to at least share one last hug with the people they loved from back home.

Michelle and her husband exchanged a tearful hug out in the rain. Scott whispered some sort of last minute advice in her ear before they shared one last laugh... and then he was gone.

Mark Newman came over and picked his daughter up into a big hug. And Joni laughed and cried at the same time while her father whispered some final encouragements into her ear. And then he was gone.

Isabella's ex-boyfriend John came over and the two friends tried their best to share what looked like a fraternal hug. The tall man from Georgia then told her to "knock 'em dead" and that was that. He was soon escorted away as well.

And finally, a most reluctant Mike came over to say his goodbyes to his partner Joe. The two men hugged for a long while, with Mike clearly upset at himself for ruining his chance to get a visit from Joe. Mike fought back tears, but then it was time for Joe to leave. He and Mike exchanged a sad little wave as Joe soon disappeared into the jungle.

And with that... only two remained.

"Amy," smiled Jeff. "You've got a four year old and a five year old just -waiting- to run over here and see you. But I have to warn you first... they're a little hyper because they had a -lot- of candy on the way out here. So just be warned."

"Oh I don't care!" smiled Amy, as she happily squatted down. And with that her two boys ran over to give a big hug to their mommy. Both of them appeared to be chattering a mile a minute as Amy tried her best to keep some semblance of order. And then Jeff came over to ask what she wanted to do.

"Amy, do you want to take them back to camp?"

"Not in this weather, Jeff." She looked concerned. "Could we just go to the hotel instead? I don't want them to get sick."

"Of course."

He nodded, and motioned over towards a few deckhands. The men came over to help Amy and her two sons into their waiting boat.

"I'm sorry guys," said Amy to the rest of the tribe, "But I don't want them out in this. I promise you all can meet them tomorrow, okay?"

And with that, Amy was gone. She smiled happily as she was whisked away to spend a night in luxury with her two little boys. The three of them were going to have a blast.

And the other four players were forced to trudge back to camp. They walked back single file, saddened and alone, through the wet, humid misery of an Okinawan storm.



^^



Back at camp, the mood was understandably somber. The weather was bad, the challenge had been depressing, and people were generally getting on each other's nerves. This was going to be a very long night indeed.

"The Survivor gods are against me I guess," Joni said in a nighttime confessional, and she was only half-kidding, "I swear. They've had it in for me since day one!"

Joni was on boat duty tonight. It was her job to go bring all the fishing boats up along the beach, so they wouldn't be pulled out to sea by the inevitable storm. Because tonight's storm looked to be a doozy. Tonight's storm was going to be the mother of all storms, and things were likely to be destroyed.

"I was sooo close to seeing my dad tonight," Joni moped, as she pulled in the first of the four boats. "And don't get me wrong, I'm excited for Amy. A day with her kids will be good for her, plus they are -adorable-." She shrugged. "But I really wanted a day with my dad. I just really could have used a day of escape from the game."

Joni sighed.

"Ah well, I suppose it could be a good thing. After all, I'm here to win and I don't exactly enjoy being away from camp anyway. I'll see all my family in a week anyway. Besides, -plenty- of things can happen when you're away from camp. I think we've all seen that firsthand before..."

Joni appeared to be chipper, but deep down she still resented that she had lost because of a math problem. Out of all the things to stump her, why did it have to be math? Why must the Survivor gods curse her like this?

"I hate question three," she grumbled. "Bleh."

Across the island, Michelle was doing her best to collect all the fishtraps. She was walking along the shore, pulling the small bamboo cages out of the water to keep them safe. Because like the boats, the fishtraps would likely wash out to sea if the storm was as bad as they had feared.

"Today was a tough day," Michelle admitted as she worked. "First we get the storm, then we're drenched all day, and then Scott gets to come out and see me looking like a complete mess." She laughed to herself, bitterly. "And I thought I was gonna hold it together, but when I saw his face and his smile, my heart broke. There was just no -way- I was gonna win after that. I was too rattled to even compete."

Then she shook her head.

"But -everybody- here thinks that Scott is my brother. Arrrrgh! Why did I listen to Chris and tell them all that I wasn't married? Why? Darn you, Chris!!!"

Michelle let out a deep breath, as she only paid half-attention to the task she was trying to complete.

"Scott is the most wonderful man in the world and I'm just truly privileged to be his wife. And I just wanted to grab him and go running into the bushes and give him a kiss, but I couldn't." She laughed. "And when Jeff said he was my brother, Scott didn't have a clue what was up. When he found out why, he just asked me to let him know when the divorce was final!"

Michelle scowled once again.

"Ah well, it sucked not being able to spend time with him, but at least he gave me the strength to go on. So here's to you, Scott. I'm bringing it all home for you, handsome hero man!"

Mike had intended to give a confessional, but deep down he was really too depressed to even speak. He had simply come back to camp, lay down, and stared at the fire. That was all he would be doing the rest of the night. Not seeing Joe had really hit him hard.



^^



The final member of the Miyagis to weigh in with her thoughts was Isabella. And though she was ready to start talking strategy again, deep down even -she- had been moved by the family visit she had just seen. And sometimes she could be awfully philosophical about things like this, even during a game like Survivor.

"I'll admit," she said as she scavenged for fish, "That it was hard to see all the other castaways with their loved ones. Though for me it was hard mostly because my -real- loved ones are back home." She grinned, almost shyly. "I mean, it was a blast seeing John and all but I would have loved for my dad to be here. Because he's the one I would have most loved to come spend some time at camp."

Isabella paused, staring reflectively off into the distance.

"I never really talked about this before, but one of the best moments in my Survivor life was when my dad won the family visit in Tonga, and we got to go horseback riding together. That was one of the best moments of my life and I will never forget it. So it's too bad he wasn't able to come this time as well."

Isabella wasn't having any luck with the fish, so that meant it was time to give up. She packed up her bag and started to walk back to camp. All around her, the rain came down in buckets.

"Amy's children," she smiled, "Alex and Brandon, are adorable. It was a blast to see them and I'm glad Amy got the chance to spend time with them as well. It's obvious they mean the world to her." She paused, looking almost misty-eyed. "I'd love to have children some day, but I also know I'm not mature enough yet. I know I need to do some growing up first, which doesn't appear to be the case with Amy at all. She seems to be a wonderful mother. I respect her a lot for that trait; it's a sacred privilege that I someday hope to be able to share as well."

So Isabella walked.

And though she thought the world of Amy in many ways, deep down she knew that Amy Twieg was not going to win this game. Amy would have to go soon, just as the rest of them would have to as well. And though Isabella was not an emotional player, she knew that the Amy vote was going to be a toughie. Because in some deep, rudimentary place in her heart, Isabella almost considered Amy to be a friend. Well, not quite a friend -yet-, but the mutual level of respect was definitely there.

Her big strategy conversation with Amy this morning had been fascinating, as Amy had come right up to her and flat-out asked if Isabella and Michelle needed help in voting out Joni. And the fact that Amy had been on the same page as her had been no surprise to Isabella. She and Amy were often like peas in a pod, strategically. They often had the same ideas, often at the same time. The two of them had been inexorably linked almost since day one.

"I just wanted to talk endgame," Amy had smiled at the start of their big chat, "If you're up for it." And then Amy had flashed that big old "Let's just be friends here" Tina Wesson grin. And truth be told, Isabella thought Amy had that grin down even better than she herself did. That grin was the first thing she had ever noticed about Amy.

"You helped me out earlier by voting out Ryan," Amy had explained, "And now I'd like to help you return the favor. I'd like to help you get Joni out of the picture for good. Because both you and I know she's the only thing standing between you and the final two right now. She's the only one who's playing your same type of game."

Again, Amy had been correct. And Isabella hadn't even needed to play along. She simply nodded and smiled. Amy was on the right track, all right.

"If you have a final two with Michelle," Amy had warned, "And a final three with Joni and Michelle, you might want to start worrying. Because those two are tighter than you might think..."

Again, bingo.

"I've always wanted Michelle and Joni out," Amy had reasoned, "And that's why I've targeted them before. Because I don't think we should go through the same thing in Thailand with a female version of Brian and Clay. I don't like broken alliances, I don't like multiple deals, and I don't like a trail of shattered feelings and loyalties at the end."

And then Amy had hit her with the good stuff. At this point Amy had moved in for the kill.

"I think you and I might need Mike if we want to have a real shot at this game. Because as long as Joni and Michelle are together... they're just too powerful to get past."

Isabella had nodded, as if this was a sudden revelation. As if this thought hadn't occupied her head ever since day two.

"Wow," she had whispered breathlessly, "You might be right, Amy. But... I don't know..."

"Think about it, Emma," Amy had explained, "Mike refuses to make a move without Michelle. Joni and Michelle tag team me to make these stupid all-female deals when you know as well as I do that it's a load of crap. Michelle sics Joni onto Hogan to tame him before the vote, just like she herself does to Lance. It all comes back to Michelle and Joni! It always has!"

"I just don't know what to think," Isabella said, "It's all just so much to think about..." She then paused, finally coming to the one question she wanted to hear Amy answer out loud. "So what do you suggest we do next?"

"I suggest that we use Mike," Amy said. "We need him to get past those two... then we take Mike to the final three. Because whoever is on the jury will hate us both. We'll be at an equal level if we face each other in the final two."

Isabella had nodded.

"I'm convinced this is the only chance we have," Amy added, "If we want to get to that final two."

Isabella had nodded once again.

"And if you want my advice on who to go for first," Amy finished, "I'll just say that I -know- Mike's been trying to get Joni out for a while. I don't think he'd have any problem casting a vote in her direction at the next vote..."

So that had been Amy's pitch. The move they had all expected had finally come, and Isabella had to admit it had been a good one. Amy was going for the glory now, with her back to the wall, and she had made the same moves Isabella would have made herself.

"But the only problem," Isabella sighed now, "Is that as much as I like Amy, I'm just not going to keep her here over Michelle. Oh sure, I'd love to keep her around as insurance, but a sneak attack tomorrow against Joni? And then against Michelle?"

Isabella rolled her eyes.

"Sorry, but no. Keep my final two partners out of this. I need Michelle's big mouth against me at the end, and not even the great Amy has enough persuasion to make me change my mind."

She chuckled.

"Against a lesser player, it might have worked. But while Amy might be a smart player, and this move may have worked against anybody else in this game, she seemed to forget one thing."

Isabella paused, then let out a Tina Wesson grin of her own.

"She forget who she was dealing with here."

So in the middle of the pouring rain, in the middle of the biggest rainstorm Okinawa had seen in a decade, Isabella came up to Michelle and Joni and spilled her guts. She came up to the Angels and told them -everything-. And in just a short matter of time, Michelle quickly realized that Isabella Smith had just been responsible for saving her life in this game. Isabella had just prevented her from being blindsided.

"Well," said Michelle, gratefully, "At least with me, you and Joni as a bloc, we know that Amy can't do a damn thing against us. Either we knock Amy off, or we take out Mike. Either way, it doesn't really matter to me."

"Yeah," nodded Isabella, "And Amy seemed to think she had a chance to take us out too. She actually thought I was going to help her. Now if that isn't the biggest, smelliest load of crap I've heard in this game, I don't know what is..."

Michelle laughed.

"Wouldn't it just rock," Joni grinned, "If the Angels stuck together and made final three? After all we've been through, wouldn't that just -rock-?"

"Oh, Chris would be so proud!" Isabella laughed.

"Hey, don't laugh," Michelle said, putting an arm around each of their shoulders, "Because you know it's going to happen. There's very little they can do to prevent it right about now. As long as we stick together, we should all be good to go."

"Well we better," Joni said through the rain, "Because that's really the only way the story can end, right? Isn't that the only fitting conclusion to this game? An Angel victory?"

"Especially when we're all gonna do it for Chris," Michelle smiled.

"For Chris," Isabella agreed.

"For Chris," laughed Joni.




DAY 35


When the rain came down in Okinawa, it -really- came down.

That was the lesson the players learned on the evening of day 34, as the four remaining Miyagis huddled inside their hapless little shelter all night. Terrified, they clung together in a cluster for nearly six hours as the skies fell down around them, seemingly without mercy. And with each crack, or smash, or creak they heard around them, the players knew that their camp was systematically being destroyed. Mother Nature was attacking with a sledgehammer of her own... and nobody looked forward to seeing the carnage that would be left tomorrow morning.

In truth, not one of the four Kamiyans slept a wink all night. They simply sat here in a cluster, terrified beyond belief that the wind was going to rip the roof right off of their shelter. Because the wind sounded more like the wail of a banshee as it screamed across their tiny little island all night. But luckily, Mike and Matt's construction job held firm. Oh sure, maybe the south wall might have disappeared at some point during the night... and perhaps the bottom of the shelter was now only so much muddy ooze... but the roof had held firm and that was all that counted. They had made it through the night and as dawn broke, the four of them stepped out of the shelter to survey the damage.

"Holy crap," Michelle whispered, in awe. She was looking at the mound of sand where the tribe's breakfast nook used to sit. There had once been a table there, made out of wood, where Joni or Amy could prepare the tribe's meals for the day.

The table was now gone.

The tribe's firepit was also destroyed, as was most of the nearest tree. The fireshelter was gone and, unbelievably, two of the fishing boats were -missing-. The wind had actually pulled two of the big heavy boats out to sea!

"This is unreal," Michelle said. But then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mike. And she saw that Mike looked upset. She turned and looked... and saw -why- Mike looked like he was going to start crying. Through the rain, just visible through the early morning mist, she saw that Mike's Fallen Comrades Garden had been destroyed. The storm had obliterated it into smithereens.

"Oh Mike," she said, laying a hand on his shoulder, "I'm so sorry. Your garden..."

Mike didn't say a word. He just stared, blankly, as if catatonic.

"Let's go see what's left," Michelle added, "Let's see what we can salvage."

The two of them walked through the sand towards the spot where the garden used to be. And though she held out hope, Michelle soon realized that there was going to be nothing left. For goodness sake, the storm had destroyed two boats and half a tree! What chance did a hockey mask, a book and some homemade shrines have against such a thing?

Mike didn't say a word the whole time. He simply walked out to his garden, looked around... and then sighed. He appeared to be in shock, and Michelle couldn't tell if it was an act or not. Mike was just like that sometimes... you never really knew what was going on in his head. But Michelle could tell that he was upset. Even from here she could tell that he was taking this thing pretty hard.

She intended to go give him a hug but Mike was already gone. Mike was already lumbering down to the beach, walking alone through the rain. He was off to set out his fish traps again, and he apparently wasn't in the mood to talk. He hadn't even said goodbye. So, shrugging, Michelle went back up to camp to join the shivering Isabella and the sleepy-looking Joni under their shelter.

And here the three of them would sit, huddling, until the weather cleared up for good just around lunchtime.



^^


As the Kamiyan women sat together back at camp, Mike was indeed lost in a bout of depression right about now. And he hated when he got like this, but it was a condition he had battled for much of his life. Mike was just a deeply sensitive man, often prone to mood swings, and the combined events of the past twenty-four hours had more or less sent him into a tailspin. First it had been choking in the reward challenge... then it was not getting a chance to see Joe... then came the storm... and finally, the loss of his handcrafted garden. Individually, each one of these events would have been bad enough. But combined... well that was whole different story altogether.

And that meant that Mike Ruff was clearly at his lowest point of the entire game. And as the cameras followed him down to stand by the sea, he looked like he wanted to just give up and quit.

"This moment," he confessed, as he stood out in the rain, "Has been the hardest day yet for me in Okinawa. I had to come down here because I knew I was going to break down. I knew I was going to start bawling when I saw my garden and I didn't want anybody else to see it."

Mike sighed as he set out the second of his traps. And truthfully, his whole demeanor was different for this confessional. Gone was the cockiness. Gone was the confidence. Gone was the swagger. This morning, under the rain, Mike almost appeared to be a broken man.

"Yesterday's near win in the reward challenge -crushed- me," he admitted. "And I was so close too! I was in the lead and then stupidity and panic caught up with me. But that's always been my problem. I always get careless under pressure and that's when I make stupid mistakes."

Mike gritted his teeth, still frustrated by how close he had come last night.

"I wanted to share my experience with Joe. I wanted him to be able to come out here and spend some time with us, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be. Instead I had to settle for a quick hug and his overwhelming feeling of support. But...man." He sighed. "Being able to get away and out of this storm would have done -wonders- for my morale. That would have meant the world to me."

He shook his head in disgust.

"But no, Amy had to win and that was another huge blow. Because Amy was -already- a big challenge threat before, and now she's going to come back rested and refreshed. She'll be coming back to four people who all want her gone, and we can't afford to have her winning immunity tomorrow. She -needs- to lose this one, so we can get her out while we still can." Mike then smiled, faintly. "Although hopefully we can rely on Survivor history a little here. After all, the winner of the final reward is usually voted off next anyway. So hopefully the last reward curse will continue in Okinawa..."

Mike shrugged, then got back to work laying out his fish traps in the rain.

"It's bad right now," he admitted, "But at least I still have that endgame to look forward to. I mean, that's really the only thing that keeps me going right now. We only have four more days to the end, and hopefully I'll still be there on day 39. With my alliances, my luck, and my energy... I still think I have a good chance of winning this. And I better."

He grinned.

"Because I've never wanted anything so much in my -life-."


^^


Amy's return to camp came after the weather had finally lifted. Just after lunchtime, a speedboat appeared on the horizon, coming towards them from the mainland. And the four Kamiyans came down to greet her at the shoreline. They waited and waited... and were greeted by the sight of Amy stepping out of the boat, along with her two young sons. There was Brandon and there was Alex.

And for the two of them, this now was officially playtime at the beach.

"Alex!" yelled Amy, as her four year old came racing over towards the other players. He ran right up to Isabella and started to have a conversation with her. It was as if he had known her for years.

"I like watching movies and Teletubbies all the time on Thursday and Friday and Saturday!"

"Oh wow!" Isabella said, "Teletubbies are great! How old are you?"

"I'm four years old. My name is Alex!"

"My name is Emma!"

"I like talking to Emma!"

Isabella smiled at the other players as they watched her, amused. And Amy stood off to one side, laughing, watching as her chatterbox son made a new friend.

"You're such a big, grown-up boy, Alex," said Isabella. "And your mommy is a good friend of mine!"

"Well, I'm glad that my mommy loves someone else too."

Isabella started to giggle. Amy was still laughing, as was Joni to the side. And then in typical four-year old fashion, Alex decided this conversation was now over. He apparently now had other things to do.

"Bye Emma!"

Alex turned and ran over to Michelle, where he attempted to have the exact same conversation. Next to him, his brother Brandon trailed just behind. Now they were a tag team act. And as Michelle chatted with the boys, Amy reached into her pack and brought out some soap and shampoo she had smuggled back from the resort. She had come bearing gifts, which Isabella and Joni accepted from her, happily.

"Your kids are cute," Isabella smiled.

"Yeah -now- they are," Amy rolled her eyes, "But you should have seen them fight over who got to sleep on the big bed last night. But for you guys they put on a good show."

"Well it looks like you've done a great job with them. It's probably one of the hardest jobs to do, and I know how responsible you are."

Amy just smiled. Then she noticed that her oldest son Brandon was coming over to talk. Apparently he had tired of Michelle and was coming back to talk to his mommy.

"Hi Brandon!" smiled Isabella.

Brandon remained stone-faced.

"I've heard a lot about you from your mommy!"

Brandon said nothing.

"Brandon is autistic," Amy said softly, "He might not say a lot."

"Oh that's not a problem," Isabella said, squatting down to get to his level. "So how old are you, Brandon?"

"Five."

"Wow," smiled Isabella, "Five years old! Well you have a great mommy and a great brother, Brandon."

And like Alex, Brandon suddenly decided this conversation was over. "I'm done talking now," he said. And with that, he was gone.

"Wow," joked Joni, "It's like talking to Lance."

"He just got overwhelmed," Amy explained. "But anyway guys, we can only stay for a little bit. Jeff said they could just come and say hi and then they have to get going." She looked back at the crew members on the boat, adding this next line extra loudly, "And they better have -CAREFUL SUPERVISION-."

Amy called over to her two boys, who were busy exchanging high fives with Mike and Michelle. They heard their mother and started racing each other across the sand.

"Well they're great kids, Amy," said Isabella. "Thank you for bringing them here."

"Well thank -you-," smiled Amy. "I wouldn't let them come hang out with just anyone." Then she giggled. "They wouldn't be here if Henry was around."

Isabella laughed.

"Well from what I hear," she winked, "That's probably a pretty wise decision."



^^



Once Amy's sons had been properly (and safely!) escorted back to Okinawa, it was time for the game to start right back up again. And while Amy had cleaned up and had a wonderful night's rest, back at camp she was now surrounded by four very soggy, very sleepy, grumpy, unhappy Kamiyans. And though there could have been a lot of jealousy towards Amy's night away from the storm, she wasn't really the target that Isabella Smith had in mind right about now.

No, now that the game was back on, Isabella was ready to escalate her smear campaign against Joni Newman. And along with just about everything that happened at camp... it was all going to start, and end, with Michelle. Because now that Isabella had proven her worth and her loyalty by exposing Amy's plan... well that just meant she had Michelle right where she wanted her. And as always, Isabella Smith was going to get her way.

The only catch was that Michelle Kin-Fraley was -far- more observant than she liked to let on. Michelle was no dummy. And Michelle had already started to put the pieces together about what her young friend from Georgia was trying to do.

Or in layman's terms... Isabella hadn't fooled her at all.

"We had an interesting development last night," Michelle confessed, as she sat down near the beach to reflect. "Apparently what happened is that Amy went to Emma to try and get me out. Amy tried to make an alliance with Emma, and then wanted to pull in Mike as a third. Her plan was to take me out, and then Joni, then those three would end up being the final three." She paused, grinning. "Seems like Amy doesn't like me very much, doesn't it?"

Michelle laughed out loud.

"Yeah that's right. Amy wants to blindside me and it's not really a surprise. I -knew- she wouldn't just sit by and let her fate be decided by others. I -knew- she wasn't gonna take it lying down. And I didn't know -when-, but I knew a move was coming."

Michelle paused, taking a glance up back at camp. Amy was talking to Mike, and the two of them were trying to keep their voices low.

"Amy wants me out," Michelle continued, "But not as bad as I want her out. So I'm sorry but no, we're just not gonna let that happen."

Then Michelle turned her attention towards the sandy beach to the north, where Isabella walked by herself, collecting shells.

"Amy's plan is no surprise at all," Michelle now added, "But what's -interesting- about all this is Emma. Because Emma came right to me and told me the plan. She came to me without hesitation and spilled her guts. And you -know- she wouldn't do that unless it was in her best interest to keep me around. So she obviously still thinks I'll take her to the final two, and she thinks she can beat me."

Michelle nodded to herself, having identified Isabella's endgame plan to a tee. And she knew it.

"I happen to know," Michelle added, "That Emma -also- has an agreement with Mike. So she clearly wants to keep the two of us around, which would be a great idea. Because she can't beat Amy. And she can't beat Joni. But she probably has a chance against me and Mike."

Michelle paused for a moment, carefully thinking this situation over from all angles.

"So my fear," she finally said, "Is that Emma will want to take Joni out before she takes out Mike. And it wouldn't surprise me at all either, since Emma and Joni aren't particularly close. The two of them have always used each other to get to the top, and it's inevitable that one of them will have to fall eventually."

And this, of course, created an issue for Michelle.

"My problem is that I want to keep Joni here. I know that Joni will be loyal and I know Joni would take me to the end, so it's really in my best interest to keep those two around me for a while. Joni because I like her and Emma because I know she wants to keep me around."

And Michelle's solution for this was simple. Once she had come to it this morning, she was surprised it hadn't happened sooner. Why hadn't she had this idea before?

"Joni needs to go make a final two deal with Emma," she explained. "And I think it needs to happen soon, before Emma gets any more leverage to take over this game. Because it you look at if, Emma has a win/win with almost every player here in this game. She's set herself up nicely and she's almost guaranteed to go to the final two." Michelle nodded, impressed. "Very nice. She's a smart girl."

Then Michelle turned to look over at Joni.

"But yeah, that's the next step that has to happen. Joni -needs- to convince Emma that it's safer to keep her around over Mike. Because while Joni thinks we have this "Angels Pride" final three deal, I don't think she realizes that Emma might not think that. I don't think Joni has any idea the Angels might not be as close as she might think..."

Michelle shrugged.

"Anyway, so long as Amy doesn't win immunity this isn't a huge deal yet. But if Amy wins immunity... then Joni better make sure she's close to Emma. Because I don't want to think what might happen if those two don't have some sort of a deal in place first..."

Sure enough, Michelle's next move was to go warn Joni about what was going on. Because after all, not only was Joni her kid sister, but Joni was also her best and most trusted ally. Joni Newman simply wasn't going to turn on Michelle, and most everybody knew it. Those two were going to be in this together to the end.

"I'm worried about Emma today," Michelle explained casually. "And I think you should be too."

"Oh I'm -always- worried about Emma," Joni confirmed.

"I'm afraid that if Amy wins immunity," Michelle said, "Mike might try to turn the vote against you. Because both you and I know he wants you out. And Emma could be the swing vote he needs."

Joni nodded.

"Back at New Kamiya," Michelle said, "Emma and I had a deal. We had a final two deal to the end, and she still thinks it is in place." Michelle then laid a hand on Joni's shoulder. "But it's -not-. My only deal has been with you and you alone, and she might suspect that. She might worry about me and you being so close, and if she gets the chance you -know- she won't hesitate to get you out of the picture. Just because it would make her deal with me a little bit more secure."

"So what do you want me to do?"

"You need to go make a final two deal with her today," Michelle finally said. "And I don't care how, I don't care what you say... but just say something. Just find some way to convince her why you... and -only- you... should be her final two partner. Find some way to convince her that she can beat you more easily than anybody else here." She nodded her head. "And you're a smart girl, I know you can convince her. Besides, you're an actress!"

"Do you think I need immunity too?" Joni asked, worriedly.

"I don't think just yet," Michelle shrugged, "Because if Amy's vulnerable we all still have that easy vote. If anybody -but- her wins immunity I think you'll be okay."

"Good."

"But don't take that chance," Michelle said. "So make sure this happens today."

"Not a problem."

"And make sure to badmouth Mike a little if you can," Michelle grinned, "Just tell Emma the flat out truth. Tell her he's been kissing up to the jury members and there's no way anybody can beat him. Just tell her that, remind her that if anybody goes up against Mike, Mike is going to win. Make sure she realizes that!!"



^^



Sure enough, Joni came to Isabella, ready to wheel and deal. She didn't waste any time at all.

"Hey Emma," she said, smiling happily at her fellow dancer, "Do you have a minute? There's kind of something I need to run by you."

"Sure!"

"Well I was thinking..." Joni paused to look around. "I was wondering what you would say to a final two agreement?"

Isabella just stared at her for a moment, blankly. That was it? That clumsy thing was Joni's attempt at throwing her off the scent?? That was supposed to be an alliance offer? Please!

"Oh wow," she said, pretending to be floored. "Well I don't know, Joni. I mean, I'm really glad you're offering it to me, and I really appreciate it..."

"I just think it would be better for both of us," Joni added. "Because I don't think either of us could win against Amy or Mike or Michelle." She paused, then added clumsily. "Besides, Mike has been sucking up to everybody in the jury."

Isabella almost burst out laughing at this last line. Why if that didn't sound like a Michelle-coached job, she didn't know -what- did. In fact, Michelle's paws were all over this little bit of misdirection. And Michelle and Joni actually expected this to -fool- her??

"Well..." Isabella thought out loud, "Do you have a deal with anybody else?"

"Nope."

"Well sure then," Isabella smiled. "I would like that."

"Good!" Joni chirped. "Oh, I'm so glad."

"But if you're really serious about this..." Isabella grinned, "I think we need to talk. I think we need to discuss some things right off the bat."

"No problem," Joni said, relieved. "And I'm sorry to spring all this on you but I just kind of felt it was time. And I was worried that neither one of us could beat any of the others. It just seemed like a deal was going to have to happen..."

"No problem," Isabella shook her head. "But I'm really glad you asked me. Oh, this is just going to be so great!"

"All I've ever wanted," Joni admitted, "Is for the Angels to take it..."

And then she smiled. Her best, most trustworthy smile. The one that Isabella didn't buy for a New York minute.

"...And you know that I'd much rather do it with you."

So a deal was struck, right there on the spot. Although as Joni walked away, Isabella simply shrugged and rolled her eyes towards the camera.

"Well that was lovely," she joked. "Gee why doesn't Michelle just write it on the side of a plank and beat me over the head with it? Maybe that would at least be a little more subtle."

And then Isabella snickered at the thought of Joni trying to outsmart her. Really, did she think that was actually going to happen? Did Joni honestly believe that had worked?

Well, in any case, it was no matter. Because Isabella still had plans today. And her plans most definitely did -not- involve making a final two deal with Joni. Nor did they involve Joni being in the final three. Heck, they really didn't even plan for Joni to be in the final -four-. Because right now, it was the evening before the twelfth Okinawan immunity challenge. And that meant just one thing.

It was now time to begin the push... to rid herself of her last remaining obstacle in this game. For as Michelle had feared, Isabella had decided it was just about time for Joni Newman to go home.

"Michelle," she said, sidling up to the fiery Angel leader, "I have a question."

"Sure. Hit me."

"You have a final two deal with Joni, right?"

"Oh yeah," Michelle smirked. "We made one on like day one or two. But I've never intended to keep it. My plan is to go to the end with you, and I hope you believe me when I say that."

"Well I'm only saying this because I just heard something," Isabella said, now looking worried. "Something about Joni. Something we need to talk about."

"Oh?"

"She just came to me," Isabella reported, "Joni I mean. She came to me and tried to strike up a deal with me. And basically the gist of it is that she wants to take me to the final two... and vote you out at final three instead."

"What??" Michelle tried to act shocked as well.

"That's why I was asking if you guys had a deal," Isabella said. "I was just curious if she was breaking a pact or anything. Like... trying to play us both to get to the finals." She paused, letting this message sink in for a moment. "She also told me that if I won the final three immunity, I should take her to the end, because nobody can beat you."

Michelle nodded, slightly.

"And Mich," Isabella tried to act panicked, "I'm really worried about her. She's starting to act all funny and it's kind of giving me the creeps."

"Well I'm still not planning to vote her out..."

"Oh no," Isabella smiled. "I didn't mean that. And it's not like she said it meanly or anything. You know what Joni is like, she was trying to be super nice about it."

"What did you say?" Michelle asked.

"I told her I would get back to her. But... I don't know Mich. Do you think I should take it?"

"As long as you want to keep her over Mike, I say yeah."

"Okay," sighed a visibly relieved Isabella. "It's good to hear you say it. Because it's not like she was against us or anything. She's still very pro-angel and she said she wants both of us in the final three."

"But I don't want to vote her out," Michelle restated. "Even if Amy wins immunity, I don't want to take her out before Mike."

"Well I'll go wherever you go," Isabella smiled. "Whichever choice you make, I know it will be the best. So I'll vote for whomever you vote for tomorrow."

"Same here," Michelle nodded. "I'll go with whatever you want to do too."

And as the day went on, Isabella made it a point to never stray far from Michelle's side. She clung to Michelle like a second skin, helping with her tasks, talking strategy when needed. And also planting subtle seeds of doubt about Joni. Because when the day was through, Isabella wanted to make sure Michelle had just an inkling of doubt about the loyalty of her young friend. Just an inkling, that was all it would take. Because with the way Michelle tended to blow things up in her mind... an inkling of doubt would probably be -more- than enough. It wasn't like she hadn't seen it happen before.

"Hey I have an idea," Michelle told Isabella later in the day, "And I think it would be really funny."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, what we should do is start hoarding food." Michelle grinned. "Every day we should put away a little stash of fruit over on the mainland. Like hide it behind a tree or something." She laughed. "That way on the last day you and I can have a feast. We can just kick back and chill out and eat all the food we've been saving up."

"Oh that's hilarious!" laughed Isabella. And it was, too. Especially because Isabella had been doing this on her own since the first day of the merge. She already had a nice-sized pile of oranges and sugarcane stashed behind a pile of rocks, along with a leftover bottle of wine she had swiped from the merge festivities. You see, Isabella had been planning a day thirty-nine party for a -long- time now.

"And then at the final two," Michelle added with a laugh, "We can hold hands at the final vote. And then we can kiss, right in front of everybody." She started laughing hard now, almost out of control. "That's right guys, Emma isn't the only one who will kiss a girl around here!"

Michelle stopped to laugh for a long moment, finally wiping her eyes once she was done. This was too funny.

"So do you want to head over to the mainland tonight?" Isabella finally asked. "Just you and me?"

"Sure," Michelle nodded. Then she got an idea. "Ooh, but check this out. We should take Amy with us too. Take her over to help pick up some supplies." Michelle got that big shark-like grin again. "We take Amy over and make her row one of the boats. Maybe we can tire her out a little so the bitch won't win immunity tomorrow."

Isabella laughed.

Michelle laughed.

And at the moment, this was the most solid final two pact in the game. Michelle wanted Isabella next to her, and Isabella wanted Michelle next to her. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement that both women fully intended to keep. Their path to the end was now almost completely set in stone. Because if everything went right over the next three days... if there were no major hiccups... Michelle and Isabella would be having that feast on the morning of day thirty-nine.

Along with one final ceremonial bottle of wine.




DAY 36


It was a bright, sunny day today and Michelle went down to the beach to catch some rays. After all, with all the rain around camp lately, it was fairly wise to try and enjoy the sun whenever you got the chance. So Michelle hightailed it down to the beach first thing in the morning. And now she just relaxed. Resting in her swimsuit, her red buff shielding her eyes from the sun, she simply lay here and relaxed.

"Looking back at the past thirty six days," she said to no one in particular, "I'm amazed at the transformation that has taken place inside each one of us. Because all of us have changed in some way or another, and I don't think a lot of people have really even noticed."

She was silent for a long while now, just enjoying the tranquil peace of the ocean waves directly to her right. And when she started speaking again, she began to list off her opponents left in the game, and how she had seen them change since day one.

"First off, I really don't know what Amy was like in the beginning because I didn't know her. And it's not like I care about her anyway, so I'll just concentrate on Kamiya."

She chuckled, eyes still covered by her buff.

"Now Joni at the beginning, well she was basically cast off and thought of as nothing more than a number. But you look at the math now and you realize that she managed to outlast -two- of the people who treated her like crap: Muntz and Ryan. She's proven that she is able to adapt and persevere. And she's -always- been smarter than people realize, as well as being far more savvy. She hides her intelligence, she plays dumb when she can, but she never lets them forget that she's still just a teenage girl playing with a bunch of grownups. She never forgets who she is and that's why she succeeds."

Michelle smiled, thinking warmly about her young friend from Utah. Then she moved on down the list.

"Emma, of course, is smart and savvy and has snowed just about everybody since the start. And I remember saying back at the start that she would sneak up on people and bite them in the butt. Well, look at what's happened. Was I right or was I right? Anyway, Emma is a -prime- example of an under-the-radar player, but I think she even takes it up to the next level. The wheels are -always- turning in her head and everything she's done has worked perfectly." Michelle paused for a second, then her tone darkened just a bit. "But at the same time, she's been a coattail rider, even though she's been quite successful at it. And all I know is that she wants me in the final two, which is the only reason she's gotten so close to me right now. That's the -only- reason. And if I don't win Okinawa, I fully suspect that she will be the last one standing at the end. Right now I think it's down to me or her."

Michelle paused for a moment before moving onto Mike. And as expected, she wasn't as complimentary about him as she had been towards her fellow Angels. Apparently some things were just never going to change.

"Mike is an interesting guy," she started. "But he's always wanted to be the leader, and he needs to be in control, and that's always been his fatal flaw. He's been -so- driven by calling the shots that he doesn't realize how people have manipulated him. And yeah, I love the guy to death, but you can basically make him do whatever you want. All you have to do is make him feel vulnerable, then offer him protection, and he falls for it every single time!" She laughed. "He and I have been manipulating each other all game, and I'll even admit he's fooled me a few times. But that being said, I think he's done a great job positioning himself for the endgame. He's in a great spot right now, even if I don't think he will win. Because even if he gets to the final two, even with all the butts he's kissed, I don't think he will ever win this game."

Michelle thought she was done, but then realized she had left somebody out. She had forgotten to talk about herself!

"I came into this game wanting to be a friend to those around me. I wanted to present myself as a smart person, as somebody they could trust. And if they were backed into a corner I would be the person to stand behind them and watch their back."

She now shrugged.

"But at the same time I said I would do anything to win. If I had to manipulate, I would manipulate. If I needed more than one alliance, then that's what I would have to do. I said I'd always keep my options open and that's pretty much why I am where I am today. I've played -exactly- the way I wanted to play."

She paused, then let out a deep exhale.

"But the hard part is that I need to play a new game now. I need to start playing the waiting game." She scowled slightly, just visible on her partially covered face. "I need to sit here and wait and hope that someone here wants to take me to the final two. I need to sit here and rely on the fact that people think the jury will hate me. Because that's what they -do- think. They all think that the jury will hate my guts."

She paused one last time, then let out a sly smile.

"Which is great for me, because I have a pretty good idea the jury will think otherwise. Sure, they may hate me... but I also think they will respect me. And that calculated hatred may be -just- the thing I need to get myself into that elusive final two..."



^^



With the big immunity challenge looming on the horizon, it was just about time to go check for treemail. And today the duty was going to be done by Joni and Isabella. At the moment, the two petite females were walking across the sand towards the treemail box. And as usual, the two of them were busily chatting away.

"Amy looks more tired than usual today," Isabella noted as she walked. "Did you catch that too?"

"Yeah," nodded Joni. "She even slept in this morning and she -never- does that. I noticed she was acting weird."

Isabella giggled.

"Well you know why, right?" she said. "It's because Mich and I took her over to the mainland last night. And since we were carrying back supplies Amy had no choice but to row. We kind of tricked her into using up her energy."

"Ha!" laughed Joni. "That's awesome."

"So it looks like one of us can win immunity today," smiled Isabella. "I don't think she'll be too much of a factor."

The two females finally reached the treemail box, where Joni took a moment to read the piece of parchment out loud.

"Oh cool!" she said, excitedly, "An obstacle course! We're doing a military course."

"Ah."

"Michelle will probably win," added Joni. "I don't think it will really even be close. She's the only real athlete here."

"I agree."

"So anyway..." Joni finally turned to Isabella. Now that they were alone out here, she wanted to follow up on the fake final two deal she had started on yesterday. Because like Michelle had said, if Isabella didn't feel safe there was no telling -what- she was liable to do. And Joni didn't intend to take that chance. Not even if Amy -would- be vulnerable at the vote tonight. "... Emma, have you thought about the deal we talked about earlier?"

"Yes I have."

"And?"

"And I'd like that," Isabella smiled warmly. "I mean, I had to think about it for a while but you're clearly right. You and I are each other's best bet."

"That's great!" smiled Joni. And then she surprised Isabella by giving her a big hug. "So what do you think the best plan should be? Amy then Mike?"

"Yeah. And then one of us needs to win final immunity."

"Definitely," grinned Joni. And deep down she was thrilled. "This should be great though. Now that we're back to the "true" form of Survivor we shouldn't have too much to worry about. Let's just hope some sort of new twist doesn't come into play..."

"I hope so too," smiled Isabella. "I hate twists."

So Joni and Isabella parted on good terms, both of them knowing full well that this deal was going to be completely worthless. They were both aware of this, of course, though they both hoped the -other- person wasn't quite so aware of it. But as Isabella walked alone back up towards camp, suddenly she saw another figure walking towards her. Suddenly somebody else wanted to have a little strategy chat.

"Well look at this," she joked to herself, "Looks like I get to be a debutante again today. Here come all my suitors!"

Sure enough, Mike was here and Mike again wanted to talk endgame. Mike wanted to reaffirm the fake final two alliance that neither one of them expected would ever work out. Because you -never- said no when somebody asked you for a final two deal. Especially when you were dealing with the snakes of Camp Miyagi.

"I'd love it if we were the final two," Mike said, "Because I -do- know that neither of us can beat Joni or Amy. I don't think either of us stand a chance against them."

"Oh I agree. Amy would destroy any of us. She's survived so much."

"Same with Joni," Mike added.

And Isabella smiled as she saw Mike doing his best to poison Joni's reputation among the Angels. He was clearly trying to get them to dump their youngest member right after Amy, and he had been doing it for a while. And because Isabella was trying to do the same thing anyway, she thought it was kind of cute. Here they were, she and Mike, working towards the same goal without even realizing they were working as a team.

"Amy's tough but Joni would be tough too, you're right," she pointed out helpfully, knowing full well Mike was about to make this same argument in a few minutes. "After all, she's the only one here who was switched and survived. I'm real worried that she would win the respect vote just for that."

"Joni can't be there," agreed Mike, "And neither can Amy."

"And that's why I want to be there with you," Isabella smiled.

Yes, it was going to be another fun day of Kamiya final-two pact musical chairs, here on display at Camp Miyagi. Because at the moment, everybody had a deal with just about -everybody-!



^^


The pre-challenge alliance plans for the Miyagis may have seemed complicated, but in reality were actually very simple. All the jockeying in the world could do very little to disguise what each player had in their mind... as the immunity challenge drew closer and closer on the morning of day 36.

Amy Twieg was just looking to survive. At the moment all she cared about was winning immunity. And if by some chance she lost immunity... well then she pretty much would be praying for a miracle. And she was under no misconceptions otherwise.

Mike Ruff was planning on getting Isabella and Michelle to the final three. He had no desire to see Amy there and he had no reason to want Joni around either. He didn't care which order they went in, but those two had to be out of the picture. And fast.

Joni Newman was still riding the success of the Angels, and she planned on riding it all the way to the very end. Her ties were to Michelle and Isabella, in that order, and Mike and Amy she could really take or leave.

Isabella Smith was dead set on a final two showdown with Michelle, with a backup pick of Mike if things happened to fall apart. But her immediate priority was removing Joni from the sight lines of Michelle, because Joni would be too much of a tempting distraction. And besides, Amy was such final two kryptonite that having her around wouldn't be a problem at all. Amy could be removed from the picture at any point before the end of the game, and Isabella knew it.

And Michelle, of course, was wavering between a multitude of endgame pacts at the moment, trying to weigh which one might be the best for her. Should she stick with Isabella, who was the easiest of the four to beat in a vote? Or should she go with Joni, who she knew would have her back until the end? Or what about Mike? What if she picked Mike over Isabella, just to stick it to Isabella one last time for daring to betray Kamiya earlier in the game? Because Michelle hadn't forgotten about that. Oh boy, she hadn't forgotten about that betrayal at -all-.

And as the time for the challenge drew closer and closer, Michelle pulled Mike and Isabella aside for a last minute strategy chat. Joni was off for a swim somewhere and wasn't able to join them, but Michelle wanted to shore up everyone's plans one last time before they went off to compete in the challenge.

"Look Emma," Michelle said, "I know you're thinking about voting Joni off over Amy but I have to tell you I think it would be a mistake. I think it would be the biggest mistake in the game if we let Amy stick around one more minute. And here's why..." She paused to look Isabella in the eye. "Two words: Fallen Comrades."

Mike nodded, in agreement.

"Amy asks a -lot- of questions," Michelle continued, "And she pays attention. And if she somehow sneaks into that final four, what if there's a challenge that's question based? What if we can't stop her?"

"God," said Mike, "Fallen Comrades would suck."

"And I have -no- problem lying to Amy," Michelle added. "Hell I don't care, tell her we're going to save her then stab her in the back. I don't have -any- problem with that because the bitch pisses me off. Amy deserves whatever she gets."

"Well..." Mike piped up, "I just have to tell you guys that I -am- a bit nervous about tomorrow's vote. Because you guys say I'm safe, but I've also heard a lot of talk about an all-female alliance..."

"That's bullshit," Michelle said. "Complete crap."

"You're perfectly safe, Mike." said Isabella.

"I know, but that doesn't mean I'm not a little nervous..."

"Awwww, come here, big guy," Michelle laughed, as she reached over to give Mike a big hug. "You have -nothing- to worry about. We're strong. We can do this."

"Good," sighed Mike. "Because I just wanted to make sure our final three pact was still on. The three of us here until the end..."

"I promise," nodded Isabella.

"I promise," smiled Michelle.

"Because you know," Mike again pointed out, "That none of us could beat Joni or Amy."

"They'd kill us," Isabella helpfully added.

"And the three of us are disliked immensely," Mike grinned. "So here's to the pact of the dislikeable! Keep the nice ones away from the final two!"

The three of them laughed but Isabella then noticed that Joni was coming. Joni had seen them congregating and was walking over to join the rest of the Kamiyans.

"Hey Jones," Michelle called over, "You set for the challenge?"

"Sure!"

Joni arrived but the subject of the conversation soon changed. Now the Kamiyans just stood around and made various predictions about how Amy would take the fact that she had been voted out tonight. Would she be mad? Would she cry? Would she be upset?

"All I know," Michelle pointed out, "Is that she will push -hard- to save her butt after the challenge. She's gonna be like a hurricane tearing through our camp, so we just have to stay together."

"I have -no- intention of voting for a Kamiya," Joni said.

"Neither do I," Mike shook his head.

"Well then if that's the case," Michelle smiled, "Let's go get ready for the challenge. Because if I'm not mistaken, I believe one of us has an immunity to win. I think one of us needs to go out and get that necklace. For the sake of -all- of us."

The Kamiyans put their hands in a circle, formalizing their pact to the end. And then they started to disperse, separately so as to not arouse any suspicions. First Joni left. Then Mike. And then Michelle and Isabella were all that remained. Just the two women standing here, alone on the beach.

"Wow," said Isabella, nudging Michelle in the ribs, "Just you and me."

She giggled.

"Just like it'll be at the end..."


^^


The first -true- individual immunity challenge was to be held on the neighboring island of Tayo. It was a sandy spit of land in the middle of the sea, almost identical to Yamako, though the players could see one crucial difference in Tayo as their boat came closer to shore.

They all saw a large, military-style obstacle course, which had been carefully constructed in the sand.

"Oh man," said Joni, as she stared in awe at the grueling-looking course of ropes, tires, walls and swings. "This is -not- gonna be fun."

"No kidding," agreed Mike.

But as the players looked on in awe, one member of the tribe sat in the far back, keeping her head low. For Amy Twieg had already seen something like this before, and Amy was aware that most of the other players were, at the moment, horribly intimidated. Because Amy had once been a member of the Armed Forces, not too very long ago. And Amy had been through basic training. And Amy had done obstacle courses like this before... while none of the others had even come close. So in short, Amy -knew- she needed immunity today... but she also knew she was going to have a distinct advantage as the Miyagis battled it out today for immunity. After all, she had done this sort of thing before.

But the rest of them didn't have to know that, now did they?

"Come on in, guys!"

Jeff helped bring their boat into shore, then he watched as the five players stepped out of the craft and onto the sand. They moved to a small grassy clearing located just off the beach, where they lined up in a single file line in front of the host. And they immediately noticed that Jeff looked -much- smaller without that damned Wheel of Fortune standing behind him. Now it was just him and them. It was mano a mano for immunity, and may the best athlete win.

Jeff smiled at them and finally pulled something out of his pocket. It was large... it was shiny... and once again, it was shaped like a sun. It was exactly what they had all been waiting to see.

It was the new immunity amulet.

"This is what you'll be playing for," he said. "This sun amulet goes to the winner of today's challenge, and it will -ENSURE- you a spot in the final four." He scanned his eyes across their eager faces. "So the stakes are pretty high today, with just one immunity at stake."

And though the players expected this to be a straight obstacle course, Jeff had something a little different in mind for them today. And they weren't going to like it one bit. Because from within his pocket he now pulled a large black jewelry box.

He opened it up.

And revealed five large jewel-encrusted eggs.

"Your job today is to protect one of these. It is a traditional paper, glass and fiberglass egg, as you will see on many of the mantelpieces in homes around Okinawa. It is very valuable... as -well- as very delicate. And therein lies the challenge..."

He turned to point to the obstacle course laid out behind him. And Amy was relieved to see that it was actually much easier than it had looked from the sea. This wasn't a basic training course at all. This was pretty much just another Survivor obstacle course.

"You'll be running your egg through that course," he explained. "So you'll have to run, swim, climb... all while trying to protect this fragile little egg in your hand." He grinned. "And I know it sounds difficult but I will warn you now; if your egg does -not- make it through the course, you'll be disqualified. And that means -any- damage whatsoever. Any crack... chip... dent... -anything-, and you lose."

The players nodded their heads slowly, in obvious states of concern. Was protecting an egg even going to be possible??

"The first one to complete the course," finished Jeff, "And protect their egg, wins immunity... as well as a guaranteed spot in the final four." Then he smiled. "Any questions?"

Five minutes later, the players were soon lined up at the starting line. And they poised now, tensed, all five of them ready to begin.

Joni lined up on the far left of the line, her silver egg held gently in her tiny left hand.

Isabella stood next to her, looking over her red egg, trying to figure out how strong it might be and how much damage this fragile little thing could take.

Mike stood in the middle, staring out at the obstacle course, trying to figure out in his mind the fastest way to run it. He held his blue egg between both his large hands.

Amy stood fourth, her hands on her hips, staring out at the obstacle course that she knew would make or break her destiny in this game. She clutched her green egg in her right hand.

And Michelle stood on the end, her eyes closed in concentration. She was apparently trying to psych herself up for this one, knowing full well it would be her and Amy left standing at the end of the course. Her golden egg was balanced in her left palm.

"This is for immunity!" called out Jeff. "And a trip to the final four!"

He raised his hand.

"On my go!"

The players tensed, all five of them ready to run.

"Survivors ready... GO!"

All five players darted down the beach at full speed, racing towards the water. Because the first leg of the course was swimming, and one by one they all plunged into the icy blue sea. And for now... Amy appeared to have the lead. Her egg held gently in her right hand, Amy swam ahead of the pack, a few strokes ahead of Mike and Michelle, as she neared a small wooden platform, raised above the water.

"Amy's in the lead!" said Jeff. "Now let's see if she can get herself up there."

Amy reached the platform in first place, and she quickly spotted the metal stepladder running up its side. Holding her egg as gently as she could, she -daintily- climbed up the ladder and onto the platform. And on the platform were five flags... one for each player. Amy grabbed one... jumped back down into the water... and started to swim back towards shore.

"Amy still in the lead!" announced Jeff. "Mike and Michelle just behind!"

Mike dove into the water after Amy, and then was followed by Michelle. Isabella lagged in fourth, while Joni was still far behind the rest of the pack. But Amy was outclassing them all, her swimming ability enabling her to open up a large lead in the water. And within moments, Amy was back at shore. She placed her flag in a holder and turned to face the second portion of the obstacle course.

"Amy is at stage two!" announced Jeff. "The wall climb!"

Amy looked at the large wooden wall in front of her. There was a rope hanging down from the top and she figured that was the only way she'd be able to get over. But then she looked at the fragile little green egg in her hand. -How on earth do I do this-, she thought. -How am I supposed to get over THAT and not break THIS-?

But then, as if an epiphany, she quickly got an idea.

Amy slipped the egg into her pocket, arranging it as best she could to keep it nice and cushioned inside. Then, with a war cry of pure determination, she ran towards the wall, grabbed the rope and started scaling up the side.

Back at shore, the three Kamiyans had reached the sand more or less at the same time. Mike, Isabella and Michelle placed their flags in their holders, and now turned their attention towards the lone Sato in front of them. It was now three against one... and Michelle had to stop and smile.

Because Amy was having trouble making it over that wall.

Amy had made it halfway up the wall, but eventually her momentum had given out. Her lack of energy, combined with the general weakness in her body, was starting to overtake her, and she cried out in anguish. Frustrated, she slid back down to the ground, plopping her feet in the sand with a un-Amy-like curse. And she could only watch in horror as Michelle had soon arrived, followed by Isabella, and then Mike.

They had caught her.

Michelle grasped the rope in both hands, and more or less willed herself up to the top of the wall. Isabella did the same thing, quickly moving her limber body over the large brown wall. Now all of a sudden the race had a new pair of leaders.

"Emma and Michelle moving onto stage three!" said Jeff. "The sprint!"

Back at the wall, Mike was having no luck at all in trying to get over. He was simply too big and too clumsy to get over something like this. And Joni was finally arriving back at shore, having finally made it out of the water. But Amy felt like she still had a chance. She felt like she still had a chance to win this thing. And gripping the rope with renewed determination, she grunted and groaned and finally made it up and over the wall. She plopped down to the sand on the other side, in third place. Isabella and Michelle were still in front of her, the two women racing as fast as they could across the sand.

Just behind her, Amy now heard a sound like glass breaking. Apparently Mike had tumbled down awkwardly from the wall and landed on the ground on his side, cracking his egg. Cursing at his misfortune, Mike was immediately disqualified from the contest.

And with Joni helplessly trying to get over the wall, the contest was now down to three.

Isabella had started to outrun Michelle across the sand. Her thin, muscular legs pumped furiously as she outdistanced her older opponent and finally made it to stage four-- the balance beam. Smiling happily, she hopped aboard. And to a former dancer like Isabella, walking a balance beam was barely even much of a challenge. For her, walking across a beam was like walking across a room.

Isabella had been carrying her egg in her mouth for most of the contest thus far. And now she spat it out, into her right hand. The egg was still in pristine condition. With that, she stuck her arms out to either side and started to traverse her way across the fifty-foot beam.

Behind her, Michelle had finally reached the beam as well. And in an attempt to catch Isabella, Michelle unfortunately walked a little too fast. She walked a little too quickly for her own good and... just like that... she fell. With a curse, she stumbled and fell to the sand.

And that was all the opportunity that Amy needed.

Seeing Michelle fall, Amy redoubled her running speed and soon reached the balance beam in second place. She saw Isabella in front of her, having no trouble whatsoever with the beam. So Amy hopped on, held her arms out to her sides, and started to walk.

Behind her, Michelle had fallen off the balance beam for a second time. And now she was beginning to get upset. Her face reddened to nearly the same color as her buff, as she watched Amy walk confidently across the beam in front of her. But now Michelle was slowly starting to fall out of contention. She was losing, and she hated it, and now she could only rely on the skill of Isabella to pull this thing out. Because it was now Isabella against Amy, in a head to head showdown for immunity.

And it would be up to Isabella to protect the Kamiyans at tonight's vote.

Isabella moved smoothly across the beam as if gliding across ice. She reached the end well before Amy, though the determined young Sato was moving as fast as she could, trying to make up ground. And now Isabella was confronted by a second wall. A second brown wall, much like the first. It was a bit smaller, of course, but that was because she wouldn't be climbing over it this time. No, this wasn't a climbing wall at all.

"Emma is on the final stage!" announced Jeff. "The pole vault! If she vaults over the wall and protects her egg, she wins immunity!"

Isabella had never pole vaulted before in her life. But she picked up one of the poles in the sand, looking at it dubiously. It couldn't be that hard, could it? She gingerly ran towards the wall, making sure to pop the egg back into her mouth first. And her first attempt was close, but she didn't quite make it over the wall. She nudged up against the top, then fell back down to the sand. Isabella's first attempt had fallen just short.

And now Amy was here.

Filled with renewed determination and energy, Amy grabbed one of the poles out of the sand as well. And letting out another wild war cry, she ran for the wall at full speed, having been energized by the sight of Isabella failing to make it over the top.

And then, as Amy went airborne, it was as if time itself seemed to slow down.

She saw Isabella underneath her, looking up as if wondering how the hell Amy had caught her on that beam.

She saw Jeff on the other side, standing next to a ribbon stretched between two poles. Jeff appeared surprised to see that it was Amy, and not Isabella, who had a chance to win this challenge.

She saw a mattress laying in the sand. That was the mattress she was supposed to land on... if only her vault had been high enough to get over the wall.

And just like that...

-PLOP-

Amy cleared the wall, let go of the pole, and tumbled down onto the mattress on her back But she had done it. Cheering wildly, she picked herself up, limped slightly to the finish line, and watched as a surprised Jeff raised his right hand into the air.

"Amy finishes first!"

Isabella made it over the wall just seconds later, a very frustrated look on her face. She still couldn't believe Amy had managed to overtake her. How had that been possible? And on the balance beam portion too!

"Okay Amy," smiled Jeff, "Let's see the egg."

Suddenly a small flash of concern raced across Amy's eyes. Because in her mad dash to catch Isabella, she had completely forgotten that she had a small, very delicate egg in her right front pocket. She had completely overlooked it. And now all she could do was say a small prayer as she reached down and pulled the little green thing out of her picket.

Jeff and Isabella looked on with interest as Amy brought it out into the sun.

And her heart nearly broke in two when she saw the large crack running across it. The egg had cracked when she had tumbled down to the mattress, and she hadn't even heard it.

"Nooo!" Amy gasped, in silent horror. Her whole body immediately went numb... as she held her hand over her mouth, seemingly in shock.

"Okay Emma," Jeff turned to Isabella, "Let's see yours."

And Isabella smiled, sweetly. Because she -knew- that her egg was still in one piece. After all, she'd had it in her mouth nearly the whole time. There was no way that thing could have broken. So she spat it into her hand, blew on it to dry it off, and then held it up proudly between two fingers.

The shining red egg was still in flawless condition. There was not a scratch or a dent to be seen.

"Emma! Wins immunity!"

As Jeff announced this, Amy slammed her fist against the wall in an uncharacteristic display of anger. How could she have been so stupid! Her egg! How could she have forgotten about her egg? But the rest of the Miyagis came over to congratulate Isabella, who wore the brand new sun amulet around her neck with pride. Amy came over to give her a hug, but deep down she really wasn't feeling it. She wasn't feeling very gracious right about now. After all, she had come so close.

So close!

The rest of the Miyagis were all here now. They milled around in a circle, congratulating and joking with Isabella. And all Amy could do was stand off to one side, sadly looking down at her cracked egg, as Jeff said the words she had desperately been hoping to avoid all day.

"The rest of you, I'm sorry. But tonight, one of you four is going home."



^^



Back at camp, Amy wasted no time. She was scrambling for a foothold almost from the moment her foot hit the sand.

"If your vote is coming at me tonight," she explained to Mike, "I understand. But at the very least I hope you'd talk about it with me first. I'd just kind of like to share my thoughts with you before you decide."

Mike nodded thoughtfully as she spoke to him.

"Because there's some information that you might be interested in," Amy continued. "There have been some deals being discussed between Michelle and Joni, and I just thought you'd really like to know..."

Amy had made her little pitch, Mike had nodded and offered sympathy when appropriate, but then of course he had reported all this right back to Michelle. Because sooner or later, it -always- came back to Michelle. She more or less had her finger on the pulse of -everything- at the moment.

"I still say take Amy out," Mike explained to Michelle and Joni. "Just take her right out, and finish the Pagonging in style." Then he grinned. "I say we just go up to her and tell her no on her little deals. Just tell her to shove her deals where the sun don't shine."

Michelle laughed.

"I mean," Mike added, "I'll put it nicer than that of course. But I just want her to know we're too strong to fall for her little games. Because you know she's going to try -everything.-"

"Well I'll say straight out," Joni smiled, "That I will -never- vote for a Kamiya. I have no intention to vote for anybody but Amy tonight." She pumped her fist in the air, happily. "Vive Kamiya!"

"Amy's been all over me too," Michelle confessed. "If she doesn't get the answer she wants from you, Mike, she comes to Emma. And if she doesn't get the right answer from Emma, she comes to me."

"I suppose me she could just take or leave," glared Joni.

"Yeah," nodded Michelle, "That's the impression I get. But anyway, I already talked to her and told her no. I said sorry Amy, but no deal. And she's not real happy about it either. She keeps telling me that Mike needs to go tonight instead."

"Heh," Mike smirked.

"So yeah," finished Michelle, "She is -pissed-. She's alone, she knows it, and I fully expect Hurricane Amy to be on the warpath today. But it's not like I care. So what? The last Sato is going down tonight, and I don't give a crap what she thinks about it."



^^



Sure enough, Amy Twieg was drastically running out of options. Michelle had already told her there would not be a deal tonight, and she had explained it in no uncertain terms. Isabella, of course, was about as helpful as talking strategy to a wall, that route had been a dead end almost right off the bat. And as for Joni...

"Well let's just say that Joni and I aren't on the best of terms," Amy explained in an earlier confessional. "And that I don't care for her at all, and we'll leave it at that."

So with all her other options completely closed off, Amy once again went for the hard sell on Mike. Because in many ways, Mike had -always- been the only Kamiyan who was ever really open to some sort of deal. He was the only one who never brushed her off, the only one who never slammed doors in her face and... quite frankly... he was pretty much all she had right now.

And as annoying as he found her to be today, Amy Twieg simply wasn't to go away.

"Well," she sighed, as she came over to sit next to Mike for the tenth or so time today, "I guess that's pretty much it. I suppose it's just about time to say my goodbyes now..."

Mike looked over at her, smiling slightly. Great, here we go again.

"I mean I'm gone tonight," Amy reaffirmed, "Because Michelle and Joni have a final two and Emma has immunity. So that means it's you or me, buddy, and we both know it aint gonna be you."

"So how do you know about Michelle and Joni?" was all that Mike would say.

"I know because they once had a deal with -me-!" Amy exclaimed. "They had a final three deal with me, just like they had one with Hogan. And like they probably have with Emma..."

Mike shook his head, seemingly brushing her off.

"It's true though!" Amy hissed. "Lance was telling the complete truth, Mike. Michelle has deals with -everybody-! She's Brian Heidik and Joni is her Clay. And Joni's going to take all the heat for her while Michelle just waltzes her way to the end. That's the way she's set it up since day one!"

"Well no matter what you want me to do," Mike added, slowly, "I can't. Because Joni has been insistent that you're going to be the target. She doesn't like you and... frankly... if she picks you over me, I'm not going to shed a tear. Because she could just as easily have wanted me out instead. Joni's not a fan of either one of us."

"So there's no way you would switch," Amy concluded.

"Doubtful," Mike shrugged. "Because look at it from my perspective. What on earth would be in it for me? And I mean that seriously. What is there to gain for me stabbing the rest of the Kamiyans in the back?"

"A final two pact," Amy added without hesitation. "You save me tonight and I'll do everything I can to get you to that final two."

Mike nodded. Interesting.

"It's good," he said, "But I want to go one step further. Because what if I save you tonight... and you get voted out next? What if I save you and you just end up on the jury anyway?"

"Then I'd vote for you to win," Amy promised, without hesitation. "If you're in the final two and I'm not, you will have my vote without question. And I can promise that down to the last bone in my body."

Mike grinned, slyly. Well if that wasn't a masterful job of playing the jury, he didn't know what was. Amy, along with nearly every juror in the game thus far, had more or less just guaranteed that she would vote for him in the end. His growing army of friendly jurors was growing stronger by the day.

"Well let me ask around," Mike said, faintly under his breath. "Because maybe I can pull something off... if I feel it can benefit me as well."

"Of course."

"And does it matter to you who goes instead?"

"If it aint me?" Amy looked stunned. "Heck no, just give me a name that isn't Amy and I'll be a happy girl."

"Okay then," Mike said, nodding his head. And then just to be certain, he once again reiterated what he thought he was hearing her propose. "If I manage to save you tonight, you not only promise me a final two pact... but you also promise me your vote if you end up on the jury."

"Absolutely."

"Well just be aware," Mike explained, "That I know there's some growing tide against Joni from within the ranks. I know Emma has been wanting her out, and I'm pretty sure I can do it if I tried..."

"Mike," Amy smiled, laying her hand on his knee, "You don't have to tell me -what- you're going to do. All I want to hear is that you did it."

"Okay," he smiled. "But just be aware that -if- I manage to save you tonight, I might not be able to save you after this vote. I can offer protection, but this might be the only vote I can guarantee. Because I'm not facing a final four tie just to save you."

"I don't care," she grinned. "Just tell me what I want to hear and we'll be perfectly fine. Just tell me you got the vote to turn against Joni. Just tell me that I'm not going home tonight."

"I'll see what I can do."

Sighing, Mike stood up. And he knew a sweet deal when he heard it. If he could somehow manage to save Amy tonight, he knew full well that her influence on a mostly-Sato jury would be like him being able to print his very own million dollar check. Because Sato did what Amy did. It had always been that way and likely would stay all the way to the end. Whoever controlled Amy's vote was going to be the one to win this game. Of that he was absolutely sure.

But the problem was that there were still only two Joni votes at the moment-- his and Amy's. And if there wasn't a clear-cut majority, well then Mike had no choice but to simply go along with the status quo. And the status quo in Okinawa meant relaying everything Amy said... back to Michelle.

Which he did.

"I -never- had a final three deal with Amy!" Michelle protested. "What the hell is she saying to you guys??"

"She said you also had one with Hogan."

"Well Amy is a lying bitch," Michelle spat. "She's lying through her teeth and she is -so- going home tonight." Michelle started to redden. "I just hate her with a passion, she is so full of crap."

"A few minutes ago she compared you to Brian Heidik," Mike smiled, loving it when Michelle started to lose control and go off. It never failed to amuse him when she did this. "She said you are Brian and Joni is your Clay."

"Well I say that she's a bitch and I'm her master." Michelle glared, angrily. "She's full of bullshit. I mean, what the fuck?"

"Well that's what she said," Mike shrugged. "Oh, that and she promised me her soul if I managed to protect her tonight. But I'm sure you knew she would do that."

"Mike, I don't think I could possibly hate her more."



^^



And deep down, though Michelle knew Amy was still a sure thing... something about the way Amy wouldn't give up was starting to spook her. There was just something about Amy's resiliency with Mike that was starting to unnerve her. Because Michelle knew that Mike could very -easily- switch to Joni tonight. Mike had no ties to Joni, he never had, and frankly he didn't care much for her to begin with. And that lack of a bond made Michelle very, very nervous. Especially before a big vote like tonight's.

The only thing that made matters worse was that there was a -second- member of Kamiya without a specific bond with Joni. Because despite all of Joni's attempts to get in good with Isabella, Michelle didn't think it had worked. Michelle knew that Isabella could very easily flip-flop between the two sides tonight, and it wouldn't even be all that hard.

So that meant it was time for a confirmation.

"I just wanted to make sure about the vote tonight," Michelle asked quietly, as she pulled Isabella aside just after lunch. "I just wanted to make sure it's still going towards Amy. Nothing has changed in the past six hours, has it?"

But the answer she got sent chills down her spine.

"I think the three of us should talk," Isabella said carefully. "You, me and Mike. I think the three of us need to have a -serious- talk before we start planning out what's going to happen."

Uh oh.

"No, no, no," Michelle said, trying to head off what she thought was about to happen. "Joni wants to vote out Amy. I want to vote out Amy. All we need is one more vote and this thing is in the bag."

"I think we need to talk to Mike."

"Emma!" Michelle hissed, "No! I don't want to vote for Joni! I thought we agreed it was going to be Amy!"

"Let's just talk to Mike first."

And Michelle had no choice but to watch, helplessly, as the two founding members of the "Smear Joni" campaign finally had a chance to meet up. And right from the bat, Michelle didn't like a -word- of what she was hearing. Because with immunity having been decided, and Joni being vulnerable for the vote, Isabella knew what had to be done. She had been laying low and being coy about this for -too- long now. It was now the perfect time for Isabella to move in for the proverbial kill.

"Have you ever noticed that Joni never does well in the challenges?" she asked under her breath. "Have you noticed how badly she dogs it in every challenge, trying to show that she's not a challenge threat at all?"

"Well maybe she's just weak..." Michelle said.

"Weak my butt!" Isabella said. "She's a dancer just like I am! And if I can do these challenges, she should be able to as well. I've been watching her since the start, and I know she's -much- more capable and athletic than she lets on."

"Emma," Michelle tried her best, "Joni is no threat at all in the challenges. I know this for a fact. She can barely compete with the rest of us..."

"Well if you guys want to vote for Joni," Mike grinned helpfully, "Then I'm all for it. I don't really care who goes, as long as it isn't the three of us."

"But we can't vote Joni!" Michelle protested. "Amy's a Sato! Amy has to go!"

"Well Amy is sneaky," Isabella said, "But don't forget that Joni has survived just as well. Joni's overcome the same obstacles Amy has. Joni is a -lot- bigger threat than I think any of us even realize."

"So what are you saying?" Mike said, knowing full well what Isabella was saying. "You'd rather take out Joni over Amy?"

"I think we have to," Isabella said, trying to look sad about it. "And I know that sucks, Mich, but you do have to realize I think she's been dogging us and making us forget about her since day one. And I think she has a -lot- more energy than she lets on." She now shrugged, helplessly. "If the three of us want to be the final three, I think she's going to be a little glitch in the road once we get to that next vote. I think she'll be -much- more difficult to get around than Amy will."

"You know," Mike said, eager to fan the flames a little, "Now that I think about it... it's like Joni has gotten -worse- in the challenges lately. I really think maybe she -is- saving up energy somewhere."

"And she got all that extra strength from the monk temple visit," Isabella added.

By now Michelle's sense of strategy had more or less been sent into a tailspin. What the hell was going on here? Where had all of this come from? Why the last minute change of heart?

"So if we vote Joni," Isabella asked, "Should we tell Amy? Should we at least let her know she's safe?"

"I'll tell her," Mike volunteered, eager for the chance to take credit for this new plan. "I'll make sure she votes Joni too. That way we'll know we will all be safe."

"Damn," sighed Michelle. She now shook her head, forlornly.

"Oh I don't like it either, Mich," Isabella said, moving to give her a comforting hug. "But I think this is the best move. Amy is just out of gas after all she's gone through and I know Joni is well rested and waiting. Joni will be -hard- to get around once we get down to final four."

"I agree," nodded Mike. "She's going to be trouble."

"Well I don't like it," Michelle said, very clearly. "I don't like that it's happening and I don't like the way this is going down. I don't like the way -any- of this is happening."

"But you're still going to vote with us," said Mike. "Right?"

"Of course," Michelle snapped. "I said I would and I will. I'll vote for Joni. But I'm going to -hate- it."

"I'm going to hate it too," Isabella sighed.

"And I want to tell both of you," Michelle glared, "That I will give her a big hug after we do it. I know she's going to take it personally and I know she'll be hurt, and I just want to give her a hug." She crossed her arms, now looking to be near tears. "Because yeah we need to vote her out tonight or tomorrow... but still... to be blindsided like this..."

She let out a big sigh, shaking her head as if in denial.

"I just think she deserves a hug after all we've been through. I think we at least owe her that much respect."



^^



Sure enough, Mike went right to Amy with the big news. He went right up to her as she sat, preparing an early dinner. And he knew just the way to spin it, too.

"I saved you," he whispered, "You're golden."

"What??"

"Just keep your head down tonight and your mouth shut," Mike suggested. "Just write down Joni's name at the ballot and you'll be seeing us in the final four."

"Holy hell," Amy exclaimed. "When did this change?"

"Right now. I managed to swing Emma and Michelle around to your side."

"I don't believe you."

"Well you can believe me or not," Mike grinned, "But do -not- tell Joni. If I hear so much as a peep that you squealed, I can just as easily swing it around to you again, and I will. So please, just keep this on the down low for now."

"Okay," she grinned, only halfway humoring him. Yeah, the Kamiyans were going to spare her and vote off Michelle's little sidekick instead. Yeah, right. She'd believe that when she saw it.

"And just remember," Mike added, "When you're still here tomorrow. Just remember who saved you and why I did it. And just remember that I was a man of my word. So just keep that in mind as this game winds down to its conclusion..."

And as the last minute scrambling had now it reached its apex, suddenly Michelle realized what Isabella was trying to do. The warning signs had all been there, the clues had all been evident for the last few days. Isabella was trying to negate Michelle's role in this whole process. Isabella had somehow gotten Amy and Mike's votes for Joni in the bag, before they all had even had a chance to discuss it. This whole thing hadn't been a last minute plan at all. Isabella had never intended to vote for Amy at all!

And as the afternoon wound down into early evening, Michelle finally caught up with Isabella down near the beach. Finally, she would get a chance to talk some sense to the girl. Finally, the two of them were going to have a heart to heart over this decision.

"Are you -really- sure this is the best plan tonight?" Michelle asked, concerned. "Because you know Joni is a surefire ally down the road and all. Can you really say that Amy is a better option to keep than Joni?"

But no matter how hard Michelle tried, Isabella was adamant. She would smile, she would laugh, she would fret her little brow... but when it came down to Amy or Joni, Isabella never -ever- wavered.

"All I care about right now," Isabella said, quite truthfully, "Is to get me and you to the final two. And what I'm worried about is Joni slipping past us into final three. She could win that final immunity, and then she couldn't pick both of us. And I'm worried that she could get in a position to -make- that kind of decision."

"But this is just -wrong-!" Michelle shouted. "It's wrong on so many levels, Emma. And now you've got Mike and Amy involved and I just don't think this is the way we should be playing this!"

"I disagree."

"Emma!" Michelle was now flustered. "History has shown that you -don't- keep a player like Amy around if you can help it. If you pass up an opportunity like this, it -always- comes back to bite you in the butt!"

"Michelle, I know you hate it, but neither one of us can beat Joni in the final two. And if we let her get past this vote, I have a very good suspicion she will be winning this game."

"Joni -cannot- beat us!" said Michelle.

"I think she can."

"Joni can't beat -anybody-! She hasn't done a single thing strategically on her own since the merge. She's done everything we've told her to do!"

"Joni's an actress and she does debate," Isabella explained, "And if she got in front of that jury, she could make it seem like she was responsible for anything. And you don't realize how much everyone likes her. Hell, Hogan is still in love with her, and he'd be on that jury!"

Michelle tried and tried, but was just not having any luck at all. And then, as if on cue, Michelle started to cave. The once feared bully and master intimidator was letting meek little Isabella walk all over her. And the worst part was... she didn't have a single clue as to how to stop it!

"Emma, this is bullshit and you know it. And you know as well as I do that I'm shooting myself in the foot if I vote for Joni. My chances of winning this game will plummet and I'm only doing it because I have to."

"It won't hurt you at all!" Isabella explained. "Amy has no idea that you and me are together. She thinks it is you and Joni. And when Joni goes, she'll be too confused to do anything about it!"

"God -damn- it, Emma!" Michelle was nearly shouting every word now. "I hate it! I hate it, I hate it, I fucking -HATE- it! I don't want to vote for Joni!"

"But it's the best thing for us..."

"I don't want to but I will," Michelle glared. "I'm not about to turn on our alliance, Emma. But you know how hard Joni is going to take this. Don't even tell me you haven't considered that."

"I hate it too," Isabella sighed. "Amy's much more evil so it sucks. But remember that Joni has been hiding things from us... and she's definitely playing you and me just to get to the finals..."

Though it appeared to be over, the discussion went on from here for nearly two full hours. Michelle tried, and tried, and tried to get Isabella to change her mind, changing tactics from pleading, to begging, to crying, to simple logic. But Isabella was like granite. Never once did she even come -close- to changing her mind. And in the end, finally, Michelle just threw up her hands in concession. Fine, whatever. Do what you have to do, Emma.

Though as Isabella left to go talk things over with Amy and Mike, Michelle took a moment to give an anguished confessional of disbelief. How things had changed, she really had no idea. But she didn't like the idea of blindsiding her little sister at the vote tonight. No siree, she didn't like what was about to happen at -all-.

"I tried," Michelle explained to the cameras, "I tried so hard to change her mind... but she just wouldn't budge! And I know this is gonna bite me in the butt. This is a stupid decision that shouldn't happen and I can't do a damn thing about it. Emma has set it up so I can't save Joni even if I tried. And I -hate- it!"

Michelle slammed her fist against a nearby tree in frustration.

"This is a terrible decision! I just want to strangle Emma right now! Why does she have to pull crap like this??"



^^



With the vote having been decided, the majority of the evening was spent in quiet solitude. The players mostly kept to themselves, as most everyone knew what was going to happen at the vote. Well everybody but Joni anyway. She still thought the plan was for Amy, and she hadn't even noticed that people had been avoiding her all night. Joni hadn't realized it because she had been avoiding them herself. That was Joni's usual method of operation... to lay low and hide before each and every vote. So she really hadn't noticed that the tribe was giving her the cold shoulder tonight.

But just after dinner, Joni came up to Michelle, wanting to confirm the plans for the vote.

Michelle could see her coming, Michelle could see the look of blind trust in the young girl's eyes, and Michelle knew she was going to have to say something. Joni was going to have to be warned. There was no -way- she would let Joni face this vote blindsided. That wasn't what big sisters did. That wasn't what Angels did to their own. Joni was going to have to be warned.

"So tonight's the big night," Joni smiled.

"Yeah," nodded Michelle.

"I was sooo excited when Emma won immunity," Joni said, looking relieved. "And I know I can't always stand her, but today I was like... go Emma!"

Michelle laughed, somewhat self-consciously. She didn't really know what to say.

"I can't believe it though," Joni said, "Because we're going to make the final four. Three of the four Angels are going to make the final four! Can you believe it?"

"I really can't," said Michelle. And her face looked pale. Suddenly she wasn't sure she would be able to go through with this. She wasn't sure she would be able to warn Joni, let alone vote for her, let alone do anything the rest of her alliance wanted her to do. Suddenly Michelle was filled with doubt. It was as if her failed showdown with Isabella had somehow broken her. Michelle just didn't know what to say.

"We're all just really good," Joni said, "Or amazingly lucky. Though I'd like to think that we're just good."

"Heh," Michelle tried to smile. "I'd like to think both."

"Well I don't mind luck," Joni grinned. "After all, there are -some- good things about being Irish, right?"

And this was the point that Michelle wanted to warn Joni. This was the point that it all should have come spilling out. This was the perfect moment to break the young girl's heart, and to tell her that she indeed would be going home tonight. But as much as Michelle wanted to, as much as she intended to do her sisterly duty, all that came out of her mouth was...

"Joni, good luck tonight. Hopefully we'll both see each other tomorrow."

And the two sisters exchanged a hug.

The last hug they would ever share in this game.



^^



The trip to Tribal Council was more somber than usual, as four out of the five Miyagis knew that Joni was about to be hit right between the eyes. She wasn't going to see it coming at all and this one was going to be brutal. In fact Michelle, normally one of the chattier members of the bunch, refused to give a pre-vote confessional this evening. She simply sat in her boat and sulked. She wouldn't look at Joni, nor would she make eye contact with anybody around her. Michelle knew what she was doing was wrong and knew she wouldn't be able to -live- with herself if Joni didn't at least get a warning. And the only problem now was when. When would she get a chance to actually warn her?

Hopefully she would get another chance before they took the actual vote.

The only member of the tribe who was in the know... and didn't quite believe it... was Amy Twieg. Amy sat in the very front boat, sitting alone with a cameraman and a rower, as she gave a very cautious confessional about what she thought was going to go down tonight. Because despite the fact that Mike claimed he got the vote switched to Joni, Amy was still the very same cynic she had been on day one.

In other words, she would believe it when she saw it.

"The vote tonight," she said quietly, "Is going to go one of two ways. It will be me or Joni, and I doubt we'll see any other names come up at all." She turned to glance back at Mike's boat. "It's funny to me that everyone claims they will vote for Joni, simply because she's an immunity threat down the road. And this just makes me laugh because -Mike- is the one saving his energy around here. Not Joni. Mike has done -just- as horribly as Joni in the challenges and nobody has seemed to pick up on that except for me."

Amy smirked, shaking her head in amusement.

"But hey, if they want to vote for Joni, more power to 'em. I'm not gonna argue, and it's not like I care much for Joni anyway. If she goes I won't be shedding a tear, nor will she cry if I go. Sorry but that just isn't going to happen."

Amy paused.

"The only problem I can see," she admitted, "Is that they warned me not to say a word about it to Joni. They said if she found out, I would be getting the axe tonight instead." Amy grimaced. "Well -I- didn't tell her, but what if someone else did instead? What if they used that to set me up? I'm sorry but that loophole was just -way- too big for me to be comfortable right about now."

Amy shrugged again, then sighed and slumped down into her boat.

"So yes, I do think I'm going home tonight. It would be stupid of them to keep me around. I wouldn't be surprised to see my name come up at all. Frankly... It'll surprise me a heck of a lot more if I stay."

And finally, a very contented looking Isabella sat in the boat to the far left. She sat there calmly, staring out across the water towards Tribal Council. And she knew she had played this perfectly. She knew that, deep down, she was buying herself a ticket to the final two tonight. With Joni out of the picture for good, there would be no more obstacles in her way. And at this point, nothing short of a miracle Amy immunity run could keep her from her rightful place at the head of the Okinawa totem pole.

Tonight's vote, and the removal of Joni... well that was all it was going to take.

"If you asked me," she confessed, as she stared out to sea, "All five of us deserve to be here. I feel that all five of us have played the game well and all five of us deserve the title of Ultimate Survivor." She grinned. "But that being said, I am -incredibly- determined to win this game. I will stop at nothing, as you've seen in my actions of the past twenty-four hours. Because after tonight, I think it should be quite clear to anyone who watches that -I- am calling the shots at camp Miyagi. I call the shots, I decide who goes, and people end up doing what I want them to do."

She turned to face Amy, who was currently slumped down in her boat, appearing to say a prayer.

"Do you realize that if I had wanted, I could have easily shifted the vote towards Mike or Amy tonight? Well it's true. Basically I got to choose which one of the three I wanted to go, and it ended up working like a charm. I took out Joni, I saved Amy, and I went from a Fallen Angel to a Guardian Angel. And because of that, life is good."

She chuckled, then turned towards Michelle.

"It's also true that I really didn't even -need- Michelle's vote tonight. There was no need to get four votes when I only needed three... well, except for the fact that I just felt like it. You see, sometimes I just try to do things to see if I can do them. Like today, I wanted to see if I could bully Michelle into voting out her best friend, when it was clearly -not- in her best interest to do so." Isabella let out a small little mischievous smile. "You see, I didn't even need that vote, but I just wanted to show that I could do it. I just wanted to put her in the corner, and tame the wild animal. I just wanted to get us into the final two, -my- way. And.... I don't know, maybe I was just a little bored today too..."

Isabella shrugged, almost guiltily.

"Anyway, I like Joni, but she only has one use for me, and that is as juror number five. I have no regrets there at all. Joni is the person who least needs me in the game and the person who plays the most like me at the same time. So by that rationale, she simply has to go."

Isabella took one last moment to stare at the rapidly approaching Tribal Council set. They were all now just about here. Joni and Mike had already disembarked.

"I honestly don't think anybody is onto me yet," Isabella added. "Though just because they do what I say doesn't mean they aren't aware of what's going on. You have to never let your guard down, or that's the minute you underestimate your opponents."

She stepped out of the boat now, letting her feet touch down in the soft sand of the mainland.

"But in truth," she finished, "It really doesn't matter if they're suspicious of me or not. Because the great thing is they need me. They -all- need me right now. And like I said way back on day one... I fully intend to -keep- it that way."



^^



Michelle took her seat as far away from Joni as possible once they were inside the temple. And though she still knew she had to warn her, deep down something in Michelle's gut just wouldn't let her. Deep down some force wasn't going to let her do this, she was just too nervous to go up and tell her. So Michelle just took her seat in the far back corner, watching as Joni sat down in the front.

And Joni was smiling. Because Joni still didn't have a clue.

"From what I see here," Jeff said, starting off with his questions, "We have four Kamiyas in the tribe, and one Sato. So is it going to be that easy tonight? Is the vote going to be just that simple? Joni?"

"Of course not," Joni answered. "-Nothing- is simple at this point in the game."

"What about you, Amy?" Jeff turned to the lone Sato, sitting in the front row. "Do you think you're going home tonight?"

"Well..." Amy said, "I -hope- it isn't that simple. But yes, I've been told I'm getting votes tonight. It just wouldn't be much of a shock at all."

She turned to look at the mostly Sato jury. She saw Lance shaking his head, sadly, as if in empathy. Hogan and Matt just looked at her, mutely. They all thought they were witnessing the end of the Satos tonight. Because the moment they had seen that amulet around Isabella's neck, the jurors had all known that tonight... this was going to be Sato's last stand.

"Emma," Jeff turned to the immunity winner in question, "What about you? Is the vote going to be that simple?"

Isabella just smiled at him.

"Simple is as simple does, Jeff."

Jeff chuckled slightly, then moved on to the next topic.

"So what was the reward challenge like for you guys? I mean, you had Amy winning a phone call with her sons four days ago... then she got to actually -see- them two days later!" He turned towards Amy. "Do you worry the other players might be jealous that you won twice in a row?"

"Well I hope they aren't jealous," Amy said, wincing slightly at the subject of this question. "I mean if I hadn't won, somebody else would have instead. In fact my -real- concern was that I got to see both my sons and everybody else only got to bring one person. So I just hope people don't mind that production didn't make me choose."

Jeff saw Joni and Mike shaking their heads in the front row.

"Mike, you didn't mind that Amy saw her sons and you didn't get to see Joe?"

"The only thing that made it hard for me," Mike explained, "Was that it was so close. I was just frustrated with myself because the challenge had been so close. That really kind of hit me hard."

"But no jealousy towards Amy?"

"Of course not. A mom and her children shouldn't be apart. It made me happy just to see her with them."

"And my heart went out to Mike in particular," Amy added. "I know how badly he wanted to see Joe. I felt -awful- that he had come so close and it hadn't paid off."

"And Joni," said Jeff, "I see you shaking your head too. You weren't jealous of Amy winning twice in a row?"

"I was only mad at myself," said the teenager. "Because I am -really- hard on myself when I fail at something. Especially something like math." She groaned. "And I was like... why had I missed question three? The answer was so -obvious-!"

"So tell me about the storm," Jeff said, changing tactics. "You guys got hit by -quite- a storm two nights ago, and I know it took out about half your camp. So what was it like seeing the damage the next morning?"

He turned to ask Michelle, but Michelle sat in the back row, pale as a sheet. She looked like she was making herself sick stressing over Joni. So Jeff decided to skip over her this one time. Just this one time he was going to be nice. So he turned to Mike instead.

"The hardest part for me was the Garden," Mike admitted. "Seeing that destroyed was heartbreaking."

And though Mike would freely admit that the Garden had mainly been a jury-pandering tool, deep down he really -had- been devastated by seeing it gone. And he couldn't explain it any better than that. He really had been heartbroken, and still hadn't gotten over the shock of it all today.

"That garden represented people I cared about," Mike continued. "People who had dreams in this game. And sure, I had a hand in voting them out, but I felt I had made amends with them through the garden. So when the storm came and kicked them all out again..." He shook his head, sadly. "It just stirred up my guilt and caused me a lot of pain. And though I know it sounds kind of silly, that was by -far- the lowest point of the game for me."

In the back row Isabella just rolled her eyes. Whatever, Mike.

"Though I wasn't too fond of doing so poorly in the immunity challenge either," Mike tried to joke. "I mean... if I see an egg, I scramble it. Case closed!"

"Jeff," piped up Joni, "Do you know what that storm did? All it did was remind us of how much little things matter back at home. It reminded us that back home we have a water source. Back home we have transportation. Back home we have a warm house around us, and a warm fire..."

Michelle couldn't even look anymore. Now she just dropped her head into her hands. Joni just didn't see it coming at all, and Michelle hadn't even warned her. Why couldn't she just warn her?? What was stopping her??

"... I'm sixteen years old, Jeff," Joni continued, "And back at home driving by myself is something I like to do. I mean, I can just ask my mom for the car and go." She laughed. "But here, there's -so- much more to worry about. You need to worry about the tides... and the boat... and who is rowing with who..." She shook her head. "It's hard here, Jeff, but it just makes us appreciate what we have waiting for us back at home. Because that's the bottom line. Anything that was broken here can be fixed. You move on, because you don't have much of a choice."

"So Joni," Jeff grinned, "You're three days from the end. What's going through your mind right about now?"

"Um..." she laughed, "I'm thinking that Gandhi ate more than we do." A few people laughed. "No, seriously, I'm just so grateful that I've even made it this far. I think I've been very lucky."

Jeff saw Michelle sag even further at that answer. Michelle just wasn't having a very fun time here at -all-. So he decided enough was enough. No one got a free ride at Tribal Council. Not even when you were agonizing about voting off your best friend.

"Michelle," he asked, "So how are the votes determined around camp? Is there an alliance? Does one person make the decisions?"

Michelle looked up only slightly. And though Jeff knew that normally such a question would elicit a glare of pure venom, this time Michelle only looked defeated. She looked guilty, she looked pale and she just looked horrible. It was obvious she didn't want to be here tonight at all.

"Yes there -is- an alliance," she said softly. "There's always been an alliance, Jeff, and we've always been able to decide unanimously. That's why it's worked so well for so long."

"So you're just saying flat out that yes, there -is- an alliance?"

"Yes," nodded Michelle, "And we've always stuck together, even when we don't agree. That's always been the number one rule."

"So is there anything someone who's -not- in the alliance can do to break it apart?"

"No," Michelle shook her head. "People have tried and it just doesn't work. Even when people try to make up lies and drive us apart, it just doesn't work." She paused. "That's why we're the best alliance in the history of Survivor."

And though Michelle had been heartened by saying these last few words, her heart was just about ready to break for good. Because she saw Joni nodding in the front row. And Joni was smiling.

Because Joni had no idea that the "Greatest alliance in the history of Survivor" no longer included her.

"Well," said Jeff, standing up. "With that, I think it is just about time to vote." He nodded towards Joni. "Joni, you're up first."



^^



Joni Newman walked briskly up to the podium, her red buff tied around her right wrist. And as expected, she cast her vote for the lone remaining Sato in the game. Her vote was going towards Amy tonight and there had never been any discussion otherwise. As Joni had promised, she would be voting along tribal lines right up until the very end.

"Sorry Amy," she said, holding up her vote. "I know you're a great person outside the game, and your kids are adorable, but right now you stand between me and the title of Sole Survivor. So thanks for the friendship we've shared off and on throughout the game." She paused for a moment, doubt appearing to flash just momentarily across her eyes, and then added, "Hopefully you won't be able to pull something off like you did the other times I tried to get you out."

Next up was Mike Ruff, who was the first Kamiya to cast a vote for Joni. Sure enough, he was going with the plan. Like Isabella, he was getting rid of the player who least needed him to stay in this game.

"You're a great girl," said Mike, holding up the vote. "And you know I love you. But first you targeted me, and now we see that you're holding everything back. So that makes you too much of a threat to keep around. See ya!"

Third up was Amy Twieg, who cast what she considered to be a very meaningless vote for the only other Mormon in the game. Because no matter what the Kamiyans told her, no matter what Mike promised her, she would still believe it when she saw it. She didn't think this vote was going to matter tonight at -all-.

"There's two reasons for this vote, Joni," she said, holding up her ballot. "First and foremost, others have said they are voting for you. At this point, I'd vote off the love of my life just to stay in this game, so casting this for you isn't much of a problem for me." She paused, then added. "And secondly, you told me this morning that you were casting a vote for me, so I'm well aware that one of us is going tonight. It's going to be you or me, and I'm going to do -everything- I can to make sure it isn't me."

She folded up her ballot, then placed it in the box.

"Either way Joni, no matter who goes, I won't be seeing you for a while. Take care."

And now it was time for Michelle to vote.

Now it was time for her to choose.

The once-fiery woman strode up to the podium slowly, her head down, as if in great agony. She hadn't looked at Joni on the way up, she hadn't looked at Isabella, heck she hadn't looked at -anybody-. This part of the game just sucked. And though she didn't like it, though she would probably regret this decision until the day she died, Michelle uncapped her pen and wrote down the name "Joni."

"Joni," she said, holding up the fateful ballot. Then she drew a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Joni. I just want you to know that I was set up on this vote. I argued with Emma for well over an hour and she just wouldn't budge. And then when Mike said he would vote for you too, I knew I couldn't do anything to stop it."

She paused, shaking her head.

"Joni, I love you and I wish I didn't have to do this, but I have to."

She dropped the ballot into the box, then hung her head and said one last thing under her breath.

"I'm sorry."

And though the vote was all but decided, Isabella still had yet to weigh in with her comments. Because she wouldn't miss this part of the game for the world. After all, she liked to go last for a reason!

"Joni," she said, holding up her ballot, "First off, I liked you as a teammate, and I know you aren't going to be happy when you find out what happened behind your back. But secondly, you were always just one more obstacle in my way, and I'd rather like Michelle to myself, thank you very much."

She smiled, then started to fold up her ballot.

"You've said all along that all you've ever wanted was for an Angel to win Okinawa. Well I'd like to say that an Angel -will- win, it just won't happen to be you. Your fate in this game has been pre-determined for a long, long time. So I'm sorry, but you have no more use to me and now it's time for you to go. Goodbye."

She placed the folded ballot into the box.

Then she grinned.

"Angels Forever!"



^^



Jeff returned with the ballot box moments later. And in her heart, Michelle knew she still had one last chance. She still had one last chance to make things right. All it would take was one little nudge... one small wink... one little -anything-. Because Joni had to know.

And as Michelle opened her mouth to speak, she was horrified to hear that no sound came out at all. She was suddenly unable to say a word, apparently something inside her was preventing it. And at that, Michelle knew there was going to be no warning. Joni was going to be in for the shock of her life, and Michelle wasn't able to do a thing in the world to prevent it. So she simply lowered her head into her hands. And stared at the ground. And listened.

"The person voted out tonight," said Jeff, "Must leave the Tribal Council area immediately."

And with that, he nodded and pulled out the first vote.

"Amy."

The first vote was the lone vote from Joni, though who it came from didn't matter all that much to Amy. All she cared about was that there weren't two more with her name in that box. The actual logistics of who voted who didn't matter to her in the slightest.

Jeff pulled out the second vote. He looked it for a moment, then revealed.

"Joni."

Joni scowled somewhat at the sight of her name on the parchment. Sure enough, that vote had come from Amy... which pretty much hadn't been a surprise at all. Amy and Joni were going to swap votes tonight. That much had always been obvious.

And now Jeff pulled out the third vote.

And this was the one that sent shockwaves reverberating down Joni Newman's spine. Because she hadn't expected her name to come up twice tonight at all.

"Joni."

Joni just stared blankly at the ballot, not knowing how to react. Because surely the Angels hadn't turned on her tonight. Surely they wouldn't do that to a friend. Not without some sort of a warning, at least...

And now Jeff pulled out the fatal ballot.

He paused for a long moment. And Joni could only listen in horror as he said the words she really hadn't expected to hear.

"And the twelfth player voted out of the game... and fifth member of our jury..."

He turned Michelle's ballot around.


-"Joni"-


Joni probably should have been angry, or at the very least should have been depressed. But this had been such a surprise that she didn't have a clue how she was supposed to react. All she could do was reach for her torch, numbly. She didn't say a word to anybody, she didn't offer a hug, and she most -definitely- didn't make eye contact with Michelle or Emma. All she could do was walk up to stand before Jeff, looking much like Amber when she was voted out in Australia. Because Joni just appeared to be in shock.

"Joni," said Jeff, "The tribe has spoken."

He lowered the snuffer, and she was then out of the game for good. Just like that, the game was down to four. Joni pivoted, started to walk down the dark path, and then stopped. She stopped for just a moment, and then turned around. She turned to face the rest of the players in the game.

And that was when she finally caught Michelle's eye.

And though Joni was famous for her glares in Okinawa, this was the glare for which she would forever be remembered. This was the glare that forever defined her, for the glare she shot Michelle was one of pure, unadulterated anger, betrayal and hurt. Michelle had no choice but to look away, as she didn't have the heart to see that face for another second. And then Joni was gone.

And the final four Okinawans were -finally- revealed.

"Well," said Jeff, with a slightly troubled look on his face. "I've seen a lot of strange things in this game, and I've seen a lot of things that have surprised me. But I -do- have to say this."

He nodded, holding his hands behind his back.

"This is gonna be an -interesting- last three days. Because I have a pretty good idea we'll be having a -very- angry jury when all this is said and done, especially if the last few votes were any indication."

Jeff looked over towards the jury, where most of the players sat in stone-faced silence. The only two who appeared to be smiling were Hogan and Lance, who weren't losing any sleep over the fate of Joni tonight. The two of them smiled, while both wearing matching green shirts in the jury box. Apparently Lance's theory of Sato Pride was contagious.

"Anyway," shrugged Jeff, "You guys are to be congratulated, because you have now reached the final stage of this game. You guys are the final four. You each now have a -one- in four shot at a million dollars." He paused, smiling. "So congratulations to all of you... and I'll see you bright and early tomorrow morning. We've got a lot of things we've got to do."

And with that, Tribal Council was over. The final four Okinawans rose from their seats and walked out of the Tribal Council area, exiting the temple in a neat, single-file line.

Isabella Smith, the young psychology student from New York City.

Mike Ruff, the burly cameraman, also from New York.

Michelle Kin-Fraley, the feisty manager's assistant from Tennessee.

And Amy Twieg, the young stay-at-home mom from Wisconsin.

These were the final four. These were the four best players in the game. These were the final four left standing.

And starting tomorrow... the -real- race for the end was about to begin...








Visit the Okinawa Official Homepage for Joni's final words and all the cast bios. Also check out the Official Okinawa Message Board for behind-the-scenes info, trivia, cast interaction, and to submit questions for Joni's Early Show interview. Her post-game interview will be up in a few days.

Episode Thirteen, the finale, will be posted in three consecutive parts. The first part, episode 13a (Untitled) will be up in less than a week.