The confessional of Scar

They thought that they could keep me locked up in here, hmm? That brat Simba. As if the Hyenas weren't enough, now I've been sent to this Alcatraz place. Fortunately, I'm fitting in well. I won the Snitch competition, and sent Murphy into Solitary. Why did I do that?

Because of the die roll, of course. I decided that thinking this through properly is too much of a hassle at this point in the game.

There are drawbacks to this. Anyone with any sort of intelligence could tell that someone from our tribe had taken Murphy out, and and filled in his place at the Immunity challenge. I doubt John has that kind of intelligence, but maybe someone else -- like Dana Scully, perhaps -- could see that obviously a snitch would sabotage the other team by putting in 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 at every step in that challenge.

Or Murphy could figure out that someone on Rock snitched on him, of course. But maybe I can tell him the truth about what happened later. He would probably know best if something is fishy. But we won the challenge, and for now, I'm resting. Overthinking these things can only cause trouble. Let the bones fall where they may.

Thoughts on my tribemates:
Godney -- Must keep an eye on her. Don't know much at this point, and uncertainty is dangerous. She pulled her wait at the challenge, which means she's competitive. Watchlist, see what happens.
Murphy -- Due to his time in solitary, he can't be contacted right now, but I think that maybe he could be a good ally. Or maybe not. Keep watch on him, and if necessary, strike up contact.
John -- This guy is either a complete idiot or much smarter than he looks. First off, he's taken the role as leader of the tribe. This is a position that will probably get him killed. Anyone with as much power as him is begging be to voted out, because everyone is afraid of someone who's so vocal in getting the tribe organised. Unfortunately, if he is voted out, I accidentally set myself up to fill his role. So I may need his help, which puts me in a predicament.
His feud with Waluigi is only making him look stupid. But if he has already made an alliance with Waluigi, then voting for either of them could be dangerous without support. He says that he wants Waluigi gone, but how am I to believe that? I need someone else to say that they're voting for Waluigi before I can make that move. And what's so bad about Wally anyway? He's trolling to get a rise out of John, and John's biting, which is only showing how stupid John is. I think Wally knows what he's doing and why, and is probably trying to get John out. Or, as I mentioned, they are working together. In which case, woe betide anyone who doesn't have a strong alliance that stands in their way.
Peeta Mellark -- Hasn't done too much yet. He may be a valuable resource. Keep watch.
Waluigi -- Like John, this man is either a fool or a very intelligent player. He seems like more of a threat, due to his seemingly calculated behavior against John's outspokenness, but both could be dangerous if left alone. I want to get rid of him quickly, if possible, but it may not be viable if I can't get support. And if I raise said support, I draw targets to my back. I need someone else to enlist me, and let them take the blame. Or perhaps I'm just seeing conspiracies everywhere. For now, I just have to breathe and wait.
Dana Scully -- So she showed up for Snitch but didn't come to Immunity, huh? Well, we got on without her. Keep an eye on her, she may be dangerous, and she may be a good ally.
Lechero -- Also on the watchlist. I don't know much yet.

My main strategy at this point is just to wait for contact, and hope that I don't get voted out in the meantime. I don't want to lead an alliance, because the ringleaders are the most endangered. I don't want to team with John or Waluigi unless one of them is gone, but I may have to. I just want to sit on the sidelines and watch the others eat themselves. Let's see what happens.

It looks like Waluigi is going out for inactivity. Godney wants him out, and I'm beginning to talk with Murphy to see what he thinks. Of course, if Waluigi, Murphy, and John are all together, I could be in serious trouble.

Which is why I mentioned that this was Godney's idea.

Of course, if Godney and Murphy are working together, I could be in serious trouble.

I'm trying to get the award for IMDb's "Most Paranoid Player of the Year." Do you think I'll win?

Dana Scully just contacted me. She says that Murphy and John won't give her the time of day, and she wants to side with me. This could be a blessing or a curse. The fact that she's leeching off of me means that she'll be willing to turn at a moment's notice, but having that help in my corner could be very useful. I'm keeping her in mind, but right now, I'd prefer to work with Godney and Murphy.

Things have gotten too complicated, too quickly.

Godney is taking control of the game. She has the snitch vote, and she wants Lechero gone. She thinks that Dana, herself, me, and Murphy if we can enlist him can work in our favor to take us. If I do this, we have to kill John. This will put us at a disadvantage in challenges, because only John knows what he's doing.

If we can't enlist Murphy, she thinks maybe she can get Peeta. I'm in a pit of quicksand, trying to figure out whether to vote with John and Peeta to take out Dana, and try to enlist Murphy (possibly Peeta) later, or to struggle out now and side with Godney to vote Lechero out. The consequences of jumping now are losing our best workers and to flounder in the challenges, working our hands with dissatisfied Citadels after the merge, or to go into merge strong and hope that I survive to ruin carefully laid plans down the line.

Or I could jump here, and jump back afterwards. I'd need Murphy's support, and John's. This sets me up as a turncoat, though, and no one likes turncoats.

That darn Murphy. Always hiding in that cell. Can't work out what to do with him.

So what will be my decision? You'll just have to find out.

Jumping early cost me, but hey, it was fun. I've told Godney to vote John, that way Peeta and Murphy will be safe if they decide to jump. I'm gonna sleep now.

I just want to give one message to John: Lighten up. We made a decision knowing full well what the risks were. Showing yourself to be a big baby on the welcome thread isn't going to help you win the game. And that's what you should be looking at. I figured that running all over the place switching sides could do something for me, because being loyal has never helped before, so I made a choice to stab Lechero in the back.

It's only a game, after all.

Sucks that I couldn't make the challenges today, but that's the way things work sometimes, I guess. What also sucks: That we won the challenge. Dana snitched on Murphy (luckiest guy in the game, getting fingered all the time), but couldn't work it so that we'd lose again. With her vote, we could even up the score. And after the Godney fiasco, we need every edge we can get. Well, no point worrying about it now. "Always look on the briiiight side of life... Always look on the riiight side of life... Life's a piece of shit/When you look at it/Life's a laugh and death's a joke it's true..."

"Let's just call it even, you took out Lechero I took out Godney.. Now we have each other" -- John Patrick Murphy

I sold Godney out to you before we even voted, John. I knew that I was in danger because I had shown myself to be not wholly devoted to your cause, so I told you about her little stunt in throwing the challenge so that she would be the first victim of any wrath, and not me. Surely you remember this. I even thought I could vote her out before Lechero, but everyone had voted already.

What makes you think that I could trust you after I've shown myself to be a backstabbing, lying, double dealing, murderous snake?

No sir, I may sit with you for a little while if we go to merge, but it won't be long. If I can get some sort of alliance truce going with someone else, I'll move to them, and then I'll probably dump them at the first opportunity to keep moving and feinting. This isn't really my style, but I will lie, cheat and steal at every chance I can to stay on top, because I have been cast in that role. And I will fulfill it

The show must go on.

MY MEATSHIELD IS DEAD!

Um. My partner, I mean. Yes. My ally with equal rights to myself. Certainly not my disposable armor to use in case of emergency with the words "It's all her fault."

And oh yes, I have absolutely no idea what's going on. The Godfather is saying vote Murphy and to "trust him" on this. But no qualifying statements saying why I should trust him. You should always have reasons. They should be good, truthful ones as well. You want people to understand why you're condescending to align your interests with theirs.

Sorry about breaking this up. I'm doing this while hoping to get some messages from other players that I shot off to.

Right now, I don't know what I'm doing with my vote. I don't like Michael and his "trust me" attitude. I have no reason to trust him. I have more reason to trust someone that I've never spoken with before than someone who tells me to do something with no reason attached. It's like doing exactly what an anonymous letter tells you to do without knowing why the letter wants you to take all of your money out of the bank and throw it into the Potomac.

The difference between this game and a REAL Survivor game? People have to talk with you when you're face to face. Lizzie, Penny and Ke$ha ignore everything I send their way, Michael is refusing to spill any beans on why he wants my vote, the only things I know for certain are that Peeta voted against either Murphy or I last round, John has the HII, and John is lying through his ass to get me and Smurfy voted out (I always wanted to put Smurfy on a vote, but it never materialized). I admire John. Not as much of an idiot as I first thought. Godney, Dana and I could have gotten rid of him if his flunkies weren't as stupid as he is, but with one of those three getting Dana's vote with that one snitch challenge, Murphy lost his chance to be rid of the cankerworms that did him in. I was always willing to include you, Murph. I wanted to bring you with me when I killed off Dana and Godney. Now I've lost all my options.

Angie, I want to thank you for messing up the challenge tonight. Quick moving games are fine and all, but sometimes, you just need to breathe. And negotiate. Mainly negotiate.I finally got some response from Ke$ha, and a plan may be forming.

Everyone wants to flush the idol out, and I've told everyone within earshot that John has it. Ke$ha seems willing to work with me, and by her admission, it looks like she has Lizzie and Penny with her. If the four of us vote together, and if I can coax John into using his Idol and voting elsewhere (NOT ME!) I can perhaps get, say, Michael or Jake voted out. Jake is probably a better option, due to his connections with John. Even if we lose one of our votes, if my plan works, we'll have a 3-3 tie. And John will have used immunity.

Please, Ke$ha, trust me on this. And you too John. I don't like you, and I think savaging people on public threads is the height of poor sportsmanship, but if this works, John will lose the idol, and one of my most dangerous enemies will be gone.

Hmm. A small hitch. I won't do anything about it yet. John has told me that he doesn't have the HII. Considering that he gave me the answers of Jim Cooks and Brooks Hatlen, I find this to be suspect. But I never did try sending a message, 'til now. I won't worry about it until I get an answer back from Kathy. If no one raises the HII, though, that could be dangerous for me. I doubt even John would be that petty.

Oh wait. This is John. He would surely be that petty. I complain a lot, but I limit the said complaints to this confessional so I don't annoy the other players.

Anyway, I'm working with Michael and Ke$ha now. Strictly on a temporary basis. I don't plan on making it to the finals as their lapdog. But for now, I'm happy to let someone else steer me for a while.

Okay. John didn't have the HII. My plan was to flush out John's idol, and then wait and see what happened. Plan A was stick with Michael and Ke$ha voting out Jake, John and Peeta until final 5 (maybe final 4, or even final 6) and make a jump, taking Michael out. This is my current plan, with John gone. I don't trust Peeta at all. Plan B was to keep John around while Peeta and Jake were voted out. I didn't think I had enough pull to manage it, but I was thinking I'd try to convince people of the truth: that no one in their right mind would vote for John in the winner's circle against someone who had proven that they could adapt, especially if it was known that he only made it there because he was kept alive for the sole purpose of making his opponent look good. Third plan: Join Jake, John and Peeta, weaken Citadel, and jump over again. But that would be excessively dangerous with little chance of reward. So now, I stick with A, and hope that I can get Michael out when he loses a challenge. Which may never happen, but I can dream.

My options are limited at this point. I'm voting Jake now, and then sitting still. I want to join Penny and Lizzie later, because no one will vote for a lapdog who gave up a life of treachery to get into the finals.

Well, I wouldn't.

However, I have to make sure that I have Penny and Lizzie's backing. One word mentioned to Michael and Ke$ha, and it's all over. I have to convince them that their best interests lie with keeping me alive, and I'm not sure I can do that. I don't have anything to offer. I could offer Michael's head to them, but that's a very small reward for taking me with them. I think Lizzie would be a better choice to convince, but she's in solitary right now. I may put a word in with Peeta, see if we can work together. I could tell him the truth, saying that I don't think I have much opportunity or reason to keep him alive, but I want his weight in the votes anyway. But my double dealing could turn against me in so many ways. Best to stay quiet, keep my head down, and pounce when the opportunity arises.

Just when I thought I could sleep. I sent a message to Peeta to gauge what he plans later, and it sounds like he's got an alliance with Penny and Lizzie. This means one snitch could decide our fates. This does give me an excuse to contact Penny, though, and offer my services, which I have explained to Kesha is merely a ploy to see if Peeta's gotten in with her. It's not entirely a ploy, and I do mean (sorta) what I offered to Penny, but right now, I'm just trying to get Peeta out, if possible.

Huh. Penny tells me that Lizzie and her aren't all that close, and that she thought she was solid with K&M. Maybe I can make an ally of her yet. I told Kesha about the whole thing, and I think Penny's clean of having Peeta's vote. So now, I'll vote Peeta. Because Kesha doesn't trust anything with that HII about.

Ah, Ke$ha. Woman after my own heart. I'll be very sorry to stab you in the back if I ever reach that point.

So, here's my chance to betray Ke$ha and Michael. Penny wants me to vote with her against Ke$ha, saying that the plan is to split a vote against me and Peeta, still looking for that HII. Ke$ha says that everything is going against Peeta. This is my chance to shine, to show the world what a double crossing Machiavellan really looks like!

But why am I so reluctant? Is it because I've developed an affinity with Ke$ha? Nah. I'm reluctant to switch now because Peeta and Lizzie seem to be in closer with her than I am.

Still... How many more chances will I get to jump?

By "her," I mean Penny, by the way. Peeta seems to be in cahoots with Penny, and who knows what Lizzie is up to.

*Whistle* Well well well. So Michael's jumped ship. An unforeseen complication, but I'll have to deal with it. I need to get Lizzie's ear as soon as she's out of solitary, see if I can get her hand to play with Kesha and I. Once again, I'm on the losing side, but at least I have a shield. At this point in the game, though, shields aren't very useful. Allies are useful. I always intended to bring Lizzie with me to finals, if I could. If I get her vote, and we win snitch, I can try that. If Kesha brings me to finals, she deserves to beat me, but staying on her side may be my best choice, because I can keep Lizzie with me to the final 3, and maybe pull a coup. All assuming that Lizzie is willing to side with us, of course.

But then, there's always the chance that Kesha loses tonight. I trust that she won't. She's a stronger player. But if she loses, then I set all my chips on a losing bet. But that's the way things happen sometimes, I guess.

"You've told me stuff that you would have no benefit telling me unless you were really with me." -- Ke$ha

Yes, that's exactly why I tell you this stuff. So you think that I'm with you, and will never betray you. I don't want to betray you right now, especially since Michael has handed himself to me so neatly. Sure, it all comes down to Lizzie's vote, and I may very well lose this round. But I trust that Lizzie will see that aligning herself with me, at least on a temporary basis, is her best course of action. I will have to vote Kesha out next round, I think, because in a tiebreak, I don't think I could beat any of my opponents. Especially since I'll be working again tomorrow night, and can't make any challenges.

Anyway, it's all in the axe murderer's hands now, unless Kesha lied and is voting for me. I'm voting Michael, and that's the end of the matter.

I figured that this would happen this round, one way or another. Once the snitch fell out of my hands, I had to trust Ke$ha and Lizzie's wildcard to pull me through to next round. But I have no regrets. I didn't aim for final four, or final three, or final two. I was aiming for final one. Everything I did was for the purpose of standing up to the jury and being able to say that I took big risks, made some big mistakes, but always fought my way through and came out on top. I wanted to prove that I couldn't just survive, I could thrive. And while I didn't quite make it this time, I don't think I could have done better, being such a poor hand at sheer strength.

Good luck Michael, you're showing yourself to be the most devious player in the tribe right now.
Ke$ha, either you just made a brilliant coup and are still working with Michael after what happened last round, or you're caught in his web, and you should abandon him and hope the others buy the story that he's a challenge threat.
Lizzie: Do you just do whatever you're told by whoever has power? That 's what things look like from here, and there's only one thing I despise more (that one thing being John Patrick Mason). Shape up or get crushed in the final two, which is where anyone with intelligence will want to bring you.
Penny: Seeing as how you were in solitary, I couldn't raise you this round, and don't know what your overall plans were. But beware of Michael. I was honest when I told you about the possibility of joining you. Getting Michael onto your side, though, is a bit more dangerous. He may still have Ke$ha's ear, and he is the strongest player in the game. Setting up a final four with two challenge monsters is a big risk.

Final thoughts: Wait, Michael had the HII? WTF!? Did he even go to Solitary!?

Well, this will be a boring ending. I don't think I have to ask questions, I pretty much know who I'm voting for. You'd better be one master at public speaking, Lizzie, 'cause I'm predicting a 7-0 vote unless you show us that you didn't get here as fodder.