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Akihito had never been so excited in his life. The very first faint tendrils of light stained the horizon a slightly lighter grey than the dark surrounding them as they sailed over the dark ocean. He had no doubt that soon it would paint the world in beautiful reds and oranges and he was excited for it to usher in his first view of the island. The island that he would call home for the next two months. He had watched the reality TV show growing up. People cast away on an island and forced to fend for themselves while competing for rewards. A feat that required fitness, cunning, alliances, and a little bit of luck. Akihito loved parkour; climbing, running, jumping, and add to that a love of beaches and swimming and as far as fitness was concerned, he was set. His friends had all applied as well but none of them had gotten in so it was just him with a group of strangers. His friends teased him that he was way too trusting for the backstabbing that people took part in on survivor but he just scoffed. Initially they had tribe members that he could trust so he could use that time to suss out everyone before it gets a bit hairy. But nevertheless, he was determined to win the one million dollars prize money. Shadows were cast over the people in the boat with him as he looked around the mostly excited faces. People were craning to see outside while a few looked a little bored. A gasp drew his attention back outside and he looked out the window to see the hulking shadow of what had to be the island in the distance. It loomed larger and larger and glowed a soft orange in the early morning rays. It had been worth getting up at 3am for this view alone. What he would give to have his camera right now.But no, all he had was the clothes on his back. Excitement danced through him again as they got closer and closer. With the greater light, Akihito took a moment to glance around the people with him. A beautiful man with long luscious hair, a bouncy blonde girl, a bored looking golden eyed man. There were seven others with him for a total of eight people. Did that mean these were the people he would be working together with? There where twenty four people total so three groups of eight and this could be his tribe. Still, he couldn’t be certain so he would keep his mouth shut for now. Lush green plants waved in the slight breeze as the island took over their view. Two other boats came into view beside them and the three made their way into an idyllic bay. People from the other boats laughed and pointed and waved and Akihito found himself laughing too. It was just so exciting to be here! What a dream come true.The boats pulled up and they all clambered out staying with their little group as instructed as they assembled before a familiar blonde man. Colour flags were set up on the beach and three small lumpy bags sat at the man’s feet. Machines swept huge camera rigs around them a few times before the man began to speak.“Welcome to Samoa! I am Mikhail, and welcome to Survivor. You are all here to prove your mettle and compete for the one million dollar prize money. Are you all excited?”Akihito whooped along with the rest and was slightly put out when a few people from his group seemed less than enthusiastic. “You think you got what it takes?”Akihito whooped again. He was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet now. He was pumped.“Take a good look around at the people standing right next to you.” Akihito sceptically glanced to the sides. “These people are your tribe members. Right now, they are your greatest allies.”“Called it,” Akihito muttered under his breath.“You,” Mikhail said as he pointed to Akihito’s team, “Are the red team. Introduce yourselves.”He threw over a small cloth bag with red survivor bandanas in it. One of the girls picked it up and began excitedly handing out the bandanas as she introduced herself as Aoki. Akihito couldn’t stop grinning like an idiot as he tied his around his head and proudly introduced himself.Asami was the bored looking golden eyed man who tied his bandana around his arm and said nothing more. Momohara was the bouncy blonde who was just as excited as Aki. Fei Long had the beautiful long hair, now tied back by the bandana. Fujioka an ex-military man, Mizuno a busty brunet, and lastly Tamura, an athletic looking woman who loudly proclaimed that they could rely on her.An evenly split team; four males, four females. The yellow and blue teams were just as quickly bandana’d up before they were turned to face the water again. The three boats that brought them in were leaving and being replaced by another boat pulling some rafts and one behind that pulling a large raft. “Survivors!” Mikhail called and they turned back to face him. “We have a beginning challenge! You are all stuck here on a remote island with nothing more than the clothes on your backs. What you need is supplies. Food, tools, building materials. These will make starting on this island much easier. There will be many challenges along the way. The rewards will be things that might make your life more comfortable, or perhaps it will be immunity so that you can keep your chance to win that prize.”The boat pulling the smaller rafts pulled up to a stop near the beach while the other one remained much further out. It dropped the large raft that was piled high with things too far away to make out and left it there, bobbing up and down in the ocean. Three coloured smaller rafts bobbed in the gentle swell of the ocean shallows while that boats left them.“You will have ten minutes to get your raft to the boat and claim any supplies that you choose. At the end of the ten minutes, you can keep anything that is on your tribe’s coloured raft. There are eight of you in each tribe. Will you all fit on the raft? What will you grab? Are you going to be able to get it there in time to get anything at all?”Akihito looked at his team. “Tools,” he said urgently. “Tools, rope, flint. Food that won’t go off,” Asami’s deep voice added.“I’ll swim ahead,” Fujioka pitched in. “I’m a strong swimmer.”“Me too!” Akihito jumped back in. “We can try and grab the best things ahead of the other teams.”“Get ready survivors!” Mikhail yelled just as Tamura and Asami agreed to go straight for the rafts paddles with the others agreeing to help push it off. He had said nothing about the fact that their entire team needed to be on the raft; just that they had to get the raft there and load it up within ten minutes. “GO!”Akihito and Fujioka kicked off their shoes and pulled off their t-shirts as they ran slightly behind the rest of their team. Finally free of the material that would only weigh them down, they both zipped past the rafts and out into the water. The water was too shallow for swimming but too deep for fast running for a long time and it was frustratingly slow progress. It was a relief when it was finally deep enough to start swimming and Akihito dove in, his years of beach going finally becoming useful.The other man bet him to the raft and clambered up, the first of all the teams to reach it. It was a surprising distance away and Akihito was out of breath when he pulled himself up. He was quickly followed by a blue team member and Akihito dashed around, gathering what he thought would be useful. A machete in a casing, a piece of flint, a large coil of rope. The yellow team straggler finally boarded and Akihito made sure to keep the things he chose close to him, least another team pinches it. He turned to see the rafts struggling to arrive but he was pleased to see his red tribe in the lead. Only Asami and Tamura remained on the raft while the others brought up the rear. They were paddling furiously. “Takaba!” Akihito spun around to see Fujioka loading up a wicker basket with smaller supplies and he put it in the water as he approached. It floated and Akihito quickly put a few of his supplies in there too. Nothing was said about them not taking the supplies to the raft. He grinned as the other man dove into the water and passed the basket over. He left to try and find another while he ferried it to the raft. The yellow team saw what they were doing and stole the second basket but Akihito zipped in and grabbed a light wooden crate before throwing it overboard with a shrug. May as well see if it floats. It did! With a whoop, he grabbed a few long wooden poles and pushed the crate out towards his team’s incoming raft. A loud horn screamed the timer. Only two minutes left. Asami hefted the crate onto the raft as Tamura and Fujioka pulled the raft up. Akihito wasted no time in haphazardly trowing whatever he could get his hands on over. The rope from earlier. A sealed bag of rice. A second machete. A huge branch of green bananas.The final horn sounded and Akihito tossed the last thing he carried over. That was it. The yellow boat hadn’t managed to reach the supply raft in time but they had used the floating basket technique to get a few things on board while the blue raft was nearly as loaded up as theirs was. They cheered out their relief that the first challenge was over. Akihito was already exhausted after that swim and they still had to get the raft back to shore! At least they didn’t have a time frame now.A small boat zipped up beside them with Mikhail standing on the back with a loud speaker.“Well done to the red and blue teams! You all have the rest of the day to make your way back to shore and find a place to set up camp. Good luck Survivors and enjoy your first night in Samoa!”Akihito and the others who were on the supply raft dove into the water as a larger boat came and hooked up to it to pull it away. The two boats left towards the mouth of the small bay with only the circling camera crews for company. He swum leisurely beside the raft as they steered it back to shore. “We should leave the supplies in the raft until we pick a place to set up but maybe someone should guard it, just in case?” Aoki said as they gathered on the beach once Fujioka and Akihito had retrieved their clothing.Fujioka was left guarding it so that he could rest a bit after all the swimming while the tribe set off to find a good location. It all looked much the same to Akihito but they managed to find a spot a little off the beach that wasn’t too far away but had a little bit of a clearing in the middle with trees around to help set up shelters. By the time they had settled on that place, the sun was high in the sky and the heat had them all sweating ridiculously. The exercise had Akihito’s stomach rumbling too. He was staying with two others to clear a camp area and dig a fire pit while the others went to retrieve the raft. Both Asami and Fei Long stripped their shirts off revealing drool worthy rippling muscles before they left with Aoki and Mizuno. Akihito gulped as he stared at their retreating backs and his brain supplied him with Fujioka’s rippling chest during the swim. He had been so busy with the challenge that he hadn’t really been paying attention. But oh, was he paying attention now. He found himself wishing for his camera once again. Bless his gay little twink heart, it was going to be hot enough that they would be shirtless 90% of the time. It hadn’t even occurred to him previously. All he was focused on was proving himself on the challenges and the prize money. Oh, this was going to be even more fun that he thought it would be.
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So, digging out a fire pit with your bare hands wasn’t the most enjoyable task to be left with. Akihito huffed as he widened the sandy dirt pit even more. So far, that was the only thing they had agreed on as a group. A fire pit right here. Momohara and Tamura were gathering nearby large green leaves and piling them up along with any sticks they could find. Akihito had just finished digging out his hole when the voices of his returning tribe mates got his attention. He turned and just watched them all approach, taking note of the glistening bodies bared before his eyes. All three of the men were ripped as hell and Akihito briefly wondered if he had died and gone to heaven instead. Hot Damn. Tearing his eyes away, he waved enthusiastically and went to help them drop the supplies on the ground.“Is this everything?”“Guess what was in the big crate?!” Aoki said excitedly, pointing to the large wooden crate being hefted up by Asami’s bulging biceps. “Oh, that’s the one that floated. Vegetables?” Akihito guessed after glancing inside as it was dumped to the ground. It seemed to be laden with food.“Even better,” Fujioka replied. “The only thing inside was a tarpaulin. It’s just the one but it will be really useful when it rains.”Akihito gaped in surprise. It had been such a large box that he would have ignored it had he not wanted to see if it could float. It wasn’t worth the risk otherwise because it was one of the few things unmarked with what was inside. “Sneaky!”“Yeap! We got a pretty good haul really,” Mizuno chimed in as she sat down her load and stretched.Sorting out their prize, it turned out they had a really good haul. Two machete’s, a flint, a long coil of rope, a tarpaulin, a sealed bag of rice, four large canteens, a cook pot, and a decent amount of fruits and vegetables. Even the wooden crate the tarp had come in was useful all on its own.“I suggested we keep the raft,” Fei Long spoke up as he examined a machete with a little too much intensity. “It might be useful for fishing later or even to cannibalise for supplies.” The other’s all nodded their agreement.“Okay, so we need shelter and fire,” Tamura announced.“There is no way in hell that I’m sleeping on the ground,” Aoki exclaimed. “Uh uh. Not happening. Who knows what kind of bugs there are?”“We’ll need decent to cut down trees to build a raised platform,” Akihito chimed in. “I don’t know anything about building but I’m game to help carry stuff.”“We’ll need a decent amount of firewood too.” Fujioka grabbed the flint and the other machete. “I reckon I can spark off a fire but it’ll get cold overnight and we’ll need a lot of fuel to keep it running for that long.”“We’ll need try and find a source of water too.” Momohara checked the canteens and discovered that they here already full. “I’m glad everyone here seems to have an idea of what to do! I was worried we might be doomed from the get go.”The offhand comment pushed everyone’s spirits high and they set about their tasks. Akihito trailed after Fei Long who proved more than capable to chop down some trees. He snuck more than one long, lingering look at the man’s glistening body as the muscles contracted as he swung the long knife. Trying to hide the awkward boner that was trying to make itself known in his shorts, he instead tried to strike up a conversation with the other man.“So, what brings you to the show?”Fei Long grunted as he cut the next branch free and he took a moment before replying. “I needed to get away for a bit, this seemed like a good place to go. Not even in the same part of the world anymore and just a remote little island. Perfect opportunity really.”Akihito nodded as he took over pulling the branch. “I want the money, but I also want to prove myself, you know? Prove that I’ve got what it takes, show my family and friends what I’m really capable of.”Fei Long shot him a considering look before nodding slowly. “I can understand that.”Akihito grinned at him, happy at the response and feeling like he might have made a small connection with the long-haired man. He hoped so, he would need alliances to make it through the competition. He waved before heading back to their campsite with the long tree in tow. Asami and Tamura were tying the tarp to a branch suspended between two trees, lean-to style. It would barely fit all eight of them under it and it was only big enough to cover one side like how they had it but it was still a great find. It was the only thing they had right now that was completely water proof and would go a long way towards keeping them dry.“Fire!” A deep voice crowed in delight and Akihito tore his eyes away from Asami’s flexing abdominal muscles to gape at Fujioka. The man sat back on his haunches and fanned the small flame licking up the dry kindling. The little fire pit had been surrounded by rocks and piled high with wood in the time that Akihito had been ferrying back the slender trees that Fei Long was chopping down. The pile of firewood had been stacked high as well. Momohara and Mizuno had been weaving the long leaves together to try and form a sleeping mat to go over the hard wood of their sleeping platform but dropped them in favour of coming over to marvel at the fire. Akihito hauled the tree just a little further before giving up and dashing over to marvel at what would be cooking their food. The flames quickly burnt away the scrapes they had used to light it and they threw some larger logs on it with glee.“Looks like we are cooking tonight!” Mizuno laughed. The heat from the flames just made the day seem even hotter so Akihito quickly went back to work. He wanted to get everything finished so that he could take a swim in the ocean. He was just pulling up the tree when Asami grabbed the other end and helped him manoeuvre it to the pile of others. Akihito grinned at him in thanks before heading off to get the next one Fei Long had no doubt already chopped down. The man was a machine.And so, the afternoon wore on. It must have been hours for them to get all the wood, prepare the trees, and set up the shelter. The sun was low in the sky when they were finally finished. A lean-to that would just fit them all, but at least they were off the ground, complete with a merrily dancing fire nicely encased in a ring of stones. Everyone just stood or sat around in a state of exhausted relief at the hard work being complete.“Last one to the water is a rotten egg!” Akihito yelled like some kid but he didn’t care, he couldn’t think of anything better to say and all he wanted was to sink into that cool ocean. He giggled as he ran and he could hear the other people following behind him. He barely paused to removed his clothing before leaping into the waves. The ocean water was warm but still refreshing against his sweaty skin and he waded deeper into the shallows before lying back to float. His limbs were sore all over from the effort but it all felt worth it right at that moment.Especially when he looked up at more splashing. The girls had removed their clothing revealing bikinis but what Akihito’s attention was the three other men. All bare chested and stripped down to their swimmer’s underneath. Oh yes, what a sight for sore eyes. Thigh muscles, arm muscles, tight abdominals. What a score. Not one but three pieces of eye candy in his tribe.Akihito laughed as he splashed Momohara and had to swim away to avoid retribution before they all just floated quietly for a while. They really did have a good team. Not one of them really knew what they were doing but they had all been able to put their heads together and actually build a shelter and get fire! The supplies they had chosen had certainly helped and he had to wonder how the other tribes were doing. The yellow team in particular hadn’t done so well on the raft challenge.No doubt his curiosity would be sated tomorrow when they all gathered for the second challenge. The light began to fade and they headed back to the shore, grabbing discarded clothing and moving towards their camp. Akihito strategically placed himself behind Asami and took the opportunity to ogle the man’s toned ass as they walked. Aoki caught him looking and shot him a conspiratorial grin and he hoped he might have another friend on the island. They cooked up some of the rice using water from the one of the canteens for dinner and paired it with some fruit for desert. They didn’t have a lot of food just yet and weren’t sure where they might be getting more from so they ate sparingly. But mangos and coconut and rice wasn’t that bad of a meal. They didn’t have any utensils and had to make do with fingers and leaves but Asami managed to lop the top off a coconut with those arm muscles that Akihito kind of wanted to lick and made their first bowl. The sweet coconut water went everywhere so that was a little bit of a waste but still, it was a good start.They didn’t know yet where they would be getting their water from, if the salt water would be okay to just boil or something else, and with only four canteens between eight of them, they had to share and be careful. But it had been a hot day and they had worked up a sweat so they were all very thirsty. It was a tough situation to be in but the juicy fruits and coconuts eased some of that need. The dark set in very quickly and the cold followed not long after. “So, do we all just kind of pack in somehow?” Mizuno asked dubiously, eyeing the rickety shelter that they had put together. The tarp had dictated the size and quite frankly, it was going to be a tight squeeze. Akihito helplessly shrugged but moved forward anyway.“We will be close together which is good for body heat, right?” he replied as he cast a look at the guttering fire. It was warm close up but at most it might just keep their feet warm in the night. Tamura topped up the fire and the heat rose a little but it still didn’t really seem big enough to get them through.The wooden floor of their shelter was lined with woven leaves and it didn’t make for the most comfortable sleeping mat as Akihito found out when he sat down. The only light was from the fire now, even the moon seemed to be hiding tonight. He jumped when Asami sat down next to him, right at the end and Fei Long took his other side. Nervously, Akihito lay down and tried to get comfortable but he was extremely conscious of the two attractive men either side of him. He lay with his back to Asami and could almost feel his hot breath on his neck. Fei Long’s back was in front on him and he held him arms tight against his body so that he wouldn’t invade the other man’s space. But it was so cold. The fire did offer some warmth but not enough and Akihito soon found himself shivering. He squeaked in fright as a large arm wrapped around his waist and pulled him flush against Asami’s chest. Fei Long shifted and after a moment he backed right up into Akihito as well.He found himself trapped between the two men and was oh so very aware of the firmness of the muscles under their skin. Any other situation that involved being trapped between two hot men would be a dream come true but right here, right now, it was just awkward. But neither of them seemed to care and after a while, Akihito began to notice the warmth that seeped in between them. He relaxed slowly and was soon the overwhelming exhausted forced him into sleep.
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Waking up spooned in between two hot men was a disappointingly mortifying experience. Akihito had totally had more than one teenaged fantasy about this very situation but none of them involved drooling on the guys bulging bicep he was using as a pillow. Or having a face full of, admittedly luscious, hair. Nor did it prepare him for dealing with his awkward boner or the rather hard thing pressing into his ass.Holy shit Asami was huge.He kind of wanted to take a peek but there was no way he could do so in such an awkward situation. He had no idea if the man was awake but he was plastered to his back. In fact, Fei Long was pressed close enough that he might just be able to feel something poking into his back too. Bright red with embarrassment, Akihito pushed the heavy arm around his waist off and leapt to his feet.Except he was still kinda tangled in Fei Long’s hair and he promptly landed on his ass as the man yelped.“Sorry!” Akihito yelled out and sat up on his knees to make sure he was okay, embarrassment and boner temporary forgotten. The pretty man narrowed his eyes at Akihito as he rubbed his scalp and the blonde bit his lip in worry. The rest of the tribe slowly sat up to see what was going on and so started their second day on the island.Breakfast was a quiet and rather grumpy affair all told. No one barring Akihito had seemed to sleep well and Fei Long hadn’t said a word to him since that morning. He was fretting about it but wasn’t sure how to approach him. The pretty man had been sitting with Asami during breakfast talking quietly but Akihito had been quickly mobbed by Momohara and Aoki and so hadn’t been able to approach them. The fire had guttered out during the night but thankfully it hadn’t been hard to get started again and they huddled around it while they waited for the sun to rise high enough to bring the warmth back. They spent some time speculating on the challenge they would face later on in the day. Survivor was known for physical obstacle courses with the elements of problem solving and they went back and forward discussing their own strengths and weaknesses. It wasn’t the obstacle courses that really had Akihito worried though. What happened if they were playing for immunity and their tribe lost? They would have to vote someone off. Their tribe had meshed so well, he couldn’t image who he might choose to vote for or what that tension would do to their budding friendships. The subtle politics were bound to come into place sooner or later but Akihito was determined to do his best on this next challenge so he would have more time to suss out his tribe members. He wasn’t the best judge on character, after all. He was aware that he tended to be a little too trusting but he would keep his eyes peeled and looking out for potential threats.And peeled for excellent views, mmhmmm. It took every inch of will power not to blatantly follow Asami’s shirtless back with his entire head as he walked past carrying more firewood. That would be a little too obvious. Keep it together Akihito. Instead he followed him with his eyes and totally missed his mouth with the mango he was trying to eat. Damn, maybe that was still too obvious. Deciding that he should help and not laze around, Akihito jumped up and followed after Asami. May as well, right? He followed just slightly behind on the pretence of there being a little too much vegetation and used the advantage to continue his ogling of the man’s defined back and tight ass. “So.” It came out a little too high pitched and Akihito cleared his throat before continuing, “What brings you to survivor?”Amused golden eyes glanced back at him and Akihito got the distinct feeling that he had been caught. Ah well. Worth it. “I lost a bet,” Asami drawled as he gathered up fallen plant debris. “Really?!”“Mm. Technically the bet only specified that I had to apply but it was with a rather high profile business partner and I feel like he might have pulled some strings.” Akihito stumbled after him as he tried to find any dry wood. It was all a little damp which wasn’t good for fires. “So, you aren’t in it to win it?” That thought was a little disappointing somehow.“I didn’t say that,” Asami replied. “I agreed to the conditions of the bet and I’m not going to half-ass something just because I lost. I’m going to give it my all and honour the terms of my agreement. My pride demands nothing less. You won’t have an easy run of it, if that’s what you were thinking.”Akihito grinned, fired up over the note of challenge in Asami’s voice. “Ooh, watch out! I’ll admit defeat only to someone who fights harder and outplays me. You better be prepared!” Asami chuckled at Akihito’s loud declaration. He thought over the man’s words as they began to walk back to camp. “So you aren’t after the money, then?”“Not particularly.”“What would you do with it if you won?” Akihito asked, curiously.“Donate it.” Was the immediate reply. Akihito nodded, pleased with the response. They passed by Momohara who was braiding Fei Long’s hair and he shot the pretty man a worried look. He still hadn’t worked out how to test the waters and make sure he wasn’t still upset with him. “And don’t mind Fei Long.”He turned his attention back to Asami. “Huh?”“We are both smokers,” he said by way of explanation. “Going cold turkey isn’t fun even without adding in our unique situation.”“Oh!” Akihito exclaimed and looked closer at Asami in concern, immediately worried about how he was feeling. The older man waved him off with an amused half-smile.“We will be fine, maybe irritable though. I did try to smuggle some cigarettes in so it wouldn’t be completely cold turkey but the security was unfortunately thorough.” He laughed as he placed his bundle down near the fire. “I can guarantee you he’s not still mad about this morning. It was an accident, after all.”“Okay. And let me know if you need anything, okay?” Asami turned to consider him and Akihito squirmed under the weight of the unreadable gaze. “We are tribe mates.”He finally nodded after a long drawn-out moment, offering him the smallest of smiles. The genuineness of the smile sent Akihito’s heart thumping wildly in his chest. A loud horn interrupted their conversation and allowed him a moment to calm his flustered state. Their tribe quickly grabbed their banner and headed off up a forest path that a survivor staff member had pointed out during their breakfast. Just one of the little things that wouldn’t make it onto the TV episodes but really, all they had done was point out a path that Akihito swore hadn’t been there yesterday. The trek was surprisingly long. Mizuno was grumbling and dragging her feet by the time they reached the destination. The yellow tribe was already there and they milled around trading hostile glares while they all waiting on the blue team stragglers. They all looked rather worse for wear and Akihito noticed just how tired everyone seemed.“Survivors!” Mikhail greeted from beside a small table. “Welcome to the second challenge. Blue tribe, how was your first night on the island?”There was some uneasy shuffling before a man with an awful goatee finally spoke up. “Shit.”“Oh?” Mikhail raised an eyebrow as though that wasn’t what he had expected. Akihito was sure he knew exactly what was going on and who to target. “Was there something wrong with your camp?”“We got no flint so no fire. It was cold as fuck last night.” The other members nodded looking a little disheartened. “All those supplies yet the most important item was missed. Yellow tribe,” Mikhail called out as he turned his attention to the next team. “You had the least supplies from the first challenge, run me through last night.”“We had flint and a small knife,” a tall woman stepped forward to say confidently, “and we were able to get a fire going for warmth and cooked food. Not much of a shelter though.”“Red tribe, you had the most successful night of all the tribes. How are you feeling about today?”“Pumped!” Akihito exclaimed with a little jump of excitement. The rest of the team laughed at his enthusiasm but he caught nearly everyone nodding their agreement.“Looks like the challenge has been set. Today you are fighting for immunity from the first tribal council.” Mikhail turned and pulled an ornate wooden pole off a table behind him to sink it into the ground at his feet. “The first two teams to complete the course will win immunity and a reward. The losing tribe will be seeing me for tribal council where the very first person will be voted off the island.”They were gestured forward and Mikhail walked them past a huge obstacle course. Two huge berlin walls, a cargo net, a thin walkway with planks that looked like they would have to be moved between platforms to get across, and at the end a huge box attached to a rope. The box would have to be hauled forward and two people who would sit out of the obstacle course would have to untie the intricate knot, retrieve puzzle pieces from inside, and carry the pieces over to a table to complete it there. It seemed simple enough. Maybe.Tour complete, they line up at the starting line again. “The rewards you will be playing for.” Mikhail swept a cover off the table beside him with a grand flourish. “The first team to cross the obstacle course will receive the ultimate camp starter kit along with their immunity. Eight canteens, two machetes, two long coils of rope, one large cooking pot, and one flint. The second tribe to complete the course with also get immunity along with four canteens, one large cooking pot, and flint.”Mikhail walked over to weird stone structure sitting off to the side of the path and rested a hand on the side. “This, survivors, is very important. Water.” He paused for dramatic effect and looked over the people assembled. “This well is three kilometres from each of the camps and provides the only non-salt water that you will have access to. This is accessible to all tribes from here on. But do you have anything to carry water in? How many times in one day will you have to make the six-kilometre round trip just for water? Is it safe to drink on its own?”Akihito bit his lip in thought. They already had four canteens and they were fairly large but it was split between eight of them. They could load up one or two people to make the trip but it would have to be done multiple times each day. The walk in the heat of the day would cause dehydration by itself. Suddenly it became so much more important to win the challenge. Dehydration would bring sickness and discord to the tribe, it had to be avoided at all cost. And the water would most likely have to boiled, adding another step and more effort, just to be able to drink it.“Alright tribes, you have ten minutes to discuss your strategies! Time starts now!”Voices exploded all at once in a desperate attempt to be heard and it took a moment before they were able to give their ideas one at a time. The berlin walls would be hard for those who could not jump high enough to reach the top or have the body strength to pull themselves up. They would need people who could get themselves up to pull up the others who couldn’t. They needed their entire team over the course before they would even be allowed to start pulling the box up for the puzzle pieces. The cargo ropes shouldn’t pose a problem but the walkways only had very small in-between points and there would be a trick to manoeuvring the small wooden planks to get the entire team over quickly. Mizuno and Momohara would be their puzzle solvers while Fei Long and Akihito would scale the walls first to help pull the others up with Asami and Fujioka helping from the bottom.“Survivors, line up!” Mikhail called after the horn blared out time.All right, game on.