Episode Four

[thiago]

I'll get to my thoughts in a moment, but I'd like to start this Episode off with an image!



Somehow, once again, I've found myself in a fence-riding position pre-merge. Slowly, two camps seem to be forming (one anti-Ellen, the other anti--the-anti-Ellen). There are idols on all three sections [Chase (I think), Mark, Ellen]

Should make for an interesting game. I'm shocked that I'm not a massive target at this point. What happens every All Star game I play is happening again. People play too early, get person, and I just sit and watch them duke it out while I actually get to make some important decisions.

Of course, my assessment of where everyone stands could be completely wrong, as a lot if it is essentially what my intuition tells me. We'll soon find out, I guess!

[thiago]

Mark and I have really been working well together. I think that our trust is strong, for the time being, and we're nearly back to our old ways; however, I think we are both hesitant to make a "to-the-end' type deal, and are more satisified working together to benefit one another, or at least I think.

The swap was not unexpected for anyone I don't think. I found it really interesting that I ended up on a tribe with all the people I know, which isn't really a huge advantage but it takes out the mystery of a stranger.

I think I've realized that I'm in a middle position.

Quincy has been a terrific source of information, and he is my most true ally in this game. I care about him very much and I would be very happy if he won this game. He deserves a win if you ask me.

Quincy is growing close to Cassie, has told me Ellen told him he's her F2 (which is something even she has yet to say to me), and Luca told him that he thinks he has Colleen, Dominic, Selena.

Mark told me that Gloria showed him texts from Ellen which revealed that Dominic, Luca, Colleen, Selena, Ben, Ellen were all together with Gloria but when they realized Mark has an idol (apparently this is common knowledge, lol) they gave up on Gloria and threw her to the wolves essentially. We think Ben/Dom were trying to get Mark to use his idol but thankfully he didn't.

AJ/Chase/Cassie are together. They have been telling people that they think I have an idol. Knox and Mark told me about what happened on Eduro, how Selena betrayed them and said she'd vote for Luca, and that AJ/Chase/Cassie all tried to get Luca off and Hannah/Knox went for it, and Knox is very upset because he betrayed Luca, and now he's afraid of Ellen.

I think that myself, Mark, Wendy, Quincy, Michael, Knox, and to an extent Selena (she, like last season, is trying to find her place in the game and is a hot mess) are in the middle, with AJ/Cassie/Chase on the side, who seem to have Michael closer to them as per Cassie, and also I think Henry prefers that side. I think Colleen and Ben are not completely with Ellen/Dom/Luca but prefer them.

Wendy put me her and Henry in an alliance, and told us that Mark told her he has an idol and that we should blame Ben. I told Mark what happened and he said Wendy was telling him that Ben is telling people he has an idol, LOL! I love that Wendy is being loyal to me but she is scarily crazy. I can't trust her at all.

Mark and I both discussed eliminating Ben. I don't bond with him at all, I feel he's sneaky and I don't want him making the individual portion of this game again. Wendy is on board and I think we can spin it. I want to keep Ellen around because she's a massive target and with her gone, Chase/Cassie/AJ would stop their witch hunt and go after me, I'd say.

Quincy revealed to me that Cassie doesn't buy what I said about me and Ellen not being close, and that I was going to be the first boot on Legatu; AJ told him that they all think I have an idol (which to me seems like an attempt to cover up the fact that Chase has it); and Ellen told him that she thinks I try to trap people into saying bad things about her, and then copy and paste them to her to make her hate them.

I'm hurt by Ellen's comment the most, because I have never tried to get someone to say something bad about her. I have always been genuine in telling her what people have said about her. I do now realize she has more loyalty to Quincy, and unfortunately for her I think Quincy has more loyalty to me. I have decided that I'm not going to hold our friendship strong in this game anymore, because she doesn't give me the benefit of the doubt. I have expressed my sorrow in what I have done when trying to disassociate us, and how I feel bad making her look bad, and that I would stop. However, she is so wrapped up in her own safety that she is saying I am not a good friend and that I'm trying to hurt her, which is completely untrue. As a result, I will play this game for myself and forget about Ellen's safety at this point. I can't help someone who doesn't appreciate what I'm doing for them. It hurts me.

Cassie is an evil player, she is very devious. I've said it from the start but she is onto me and is aggressively campaigning against me. She is someone to watch. Chase also, but he lacks the finesse that Cassie has. AJ's lies to me have been vapid and highly disappointing. Colleen also told me she doesn't know Luca, which is a lie, so I have been disappointed by her also.

I am playing this game for myself, Quincy, and to an extent Mark at this point. Everyone else is fodder and I will do my best to keep this in-the-middle spot as long as possible, taking out people from both groups without ever destoying a group enough to where the "war" ends. I think that Luca will be leaving on Proelia, so AJ/Cassie/Chase need a hit, but I think Ben will have to do... for now.

This is a crazy game, and I cannot believe that Mark and myself are finding one another in a very similar situation pre-merge as we did last season: right in the middle.

I do feel like an animal at the zoo, though. People talk to me, oogle at me, fish for information a bit, but many people don't want to fully strategically engage with me. It's like they want to view me but don't want to touch me. Little do they know, I'm a caged animal about to wreak havoc on these rookies! Well, not really, but it sounds badass, doesn't it? Rawr.