There have been few duos in Australian Survivor like Kirby and Feras. Their story started in one of the many alliances of Titans V Rebels that crumbled after one vote. The ensuing power struggle followed them through tribe swap and into the merge, with the pair taking shots at each other’s alliances, knocking out their closest allies, and eventually coming together again to dominate the end game.

Nearing the pointy end of the game, Kirby and Feras spoke at length about standing beside one another at the final tribal. But on Sunday night, that all came to an end. With Mark winning individual immunity, Kirby was exposed without an idol.

Feras, meanwhile, had held onto his immunity idol for weeks. But when he stood up to play it, he made the decision to end his biggest competition’s game, playing it for himself rather than for Kirby.

Standing up to play his idol Feras, in an emotional speech, told Kirby, “I finally get to land this shot”.

“That was the first time in the entire game that I felt really nervous that my game might be up,” Kirby told 10 Play. “My heart felt off, it was the first time. When he didn’t [play the idol for me] I put my head in my hands and was like, far out…”

When Feras initially stood up, Kirby admitted that she thought he would still play the idol for her, but that quickly changed.

“I think when he looked at the jury he realised that he may not have the votes against me if he did take me [to the end]. That was the moment, and I wish he didn’t look at them,” she said, laughing.

“Feras made the right decision. If I had won the next [challenge] I would have taken him through to the end, but neither of us knew what the next lot looked like,” Kirby continued. “Everything changes. It changed on the daily, on the hour.

“It was heartbreaking, I was devastated because I was so close, but at the same time I was so grateful for the opportunity.”

Despite being a major player this season, Kirby admitted that she had barely even watched the show before heading out, and went in “pretty blind” to how the game worked.

“I used to work with Luke Toki… when I saw he was on the show I tried to watch an episode and I just couldn’t understand it,” she said. “I need to be able to do something to get it, for it to land in my mind, so I had no idea what the game was about.

“I saw it like a challenge to figure out the way that I think, and to know who I was more than anything else.”

It wasn’t until later in the game, on Titans’ beach, when Feras came up to her following Garrick’s blindside and begged her to take him to the merge that she started to see herself in a power position, and also cemented her secret alliance with Feras moving forward.

The entire season of Titans V Rebels has been one of constant fluidity, with alliances flipping and allies voting separately at every tribal council. Having not watched the show before, Kirby felt free to figure out her own strategy and what worked for her, meaning she always had an open mind when it came to working with people.

“From an athlete’s perspective, if you play the same game and stick to the same people it becomes predictable and people can see that,” she explained. “I was always open to what is possible, who is next in line and what does that look like for my game moving forward? Who is great at a strat chat, who is intelligent? All these layers and components, that’s why I was so open to working with whoever.

“I’m big on relationships, so my biggest game style was getting to know people on a deeper level, and they were all genuine connections,” Kirby continued. “There was no way I was able to pull people without them knowing I knew them and connecting.”

As for her friendship, with Feras, Kirby said, “He’s an Arab man and I’m an Aboriginal woman in Australia. We have this understanding of what it means to have a diverse background, to know what it’s like to go against the grain and to have to hustle.

“We had that mutual respect for each other, we had great banter, we went head-to-head for each other but we didn’t take it personally. It was a game. We were there and we were loving it. Even when we were fighting, we were laughing.

“I didn’t play emotionally, I just played.”

With her game coming to a heartbreaking end, Kirby said the one thing she’d do differently if she had her time again would be to research how to find hidden immunity idols.

“I looked for idols and it was mission impossible,” she laughed. “I’m a tracker by nature, it’s in my blood, I should be able to find stuff but I just couldn’t!”

As for if we’re likely to see the queen back on the beach for another attempt at the title of Sole Survivor, Kirby said she’d go back “in a heartbeat”.

“I’ve got so much to learn. I went in blind and there are things I’d do differently in my game, which I don’t want to be saying in interviews because I don’t want people to see it and try to outplay me.

“My experience was amazing. I went in, played the game, read it in the way that you’d see life and adjusted to that. It was so much fun.”

Don't miss the final episodes of Australian Survivor: Titans V Rebels on Monday and Tuesday at 7.30 on 10 and 10 Play