It was a particularly cool night on Vinta Island. There was a faint breeze blowing eastward. A lone figure stood on the edge of the dock eyeing the reddish-purple sunset. The man was tapping his foot off of the creaking plank of wood nearest the water in a particularly irritated manner.
"Where are they" he thought to himself. He eyed his wristwatch; it read 8:19. "I was told the first of the contestants would be arriving by 7:30, but no of course not. It better not be much longer. I have more exciting things I could- and should- be doing." The camera positioned in front of him had been running for a while already and the filming needed to begin.
Not much after the man thought these things to himself, a loud horn blared out from the ocean signaling the first arrival of the show. The man looked eagerly out into the sunlit water and saw a small tugboat approaching the dock with modest speed. The boat took only a little bit longer before it docked on the left side of the wooden stairs of the dock. The captain honked the horn two times in rapid succession, as if to say "hello" to the man on the dock.
The man on the dock waved and smiled back as a girl stepped off of the boat and climbed off of the steps toward the man. The girl was African-American and wore a yellow two-piece outfit with a pair of comfortable black sandals. Her reddish-brown hair began to get caught in front of her eyes as she made her way to confront the man on the dock.
"Welcome to Vinta Island!" the man exclaimed. "I'm Lance Turner, the host of this season of Total Drama. And who might you be?"
"Monique. Pleasure to meet you," the girl said with a genuine smile as she shook Lance's hand. "So, I don't see anyone else here. Does that mean I'm the first to arrive?"
"That would indeed be correct. While I stay here to introduce the rest of the contestants, feel free to walk over to the campfire area we have set up down this path," Lance said as he gestured toward the fire pit area.
Monique nodded and carried her luggage and took a seat of a small stump on the end of the ring of stumps.
As Lance turned his focus out toward the ocean once more, he witnessed Monique's boat heading offshore at the sunset's horizon, only to be replaced with an identical boat coming toward the island. As the second boat docked in the same place as the first, a tall boy with shaggy blond hair walked up onto the dock and towards Lance. He seemed to walk with a sense of being "out of it" as he trudged his worn orange high tops, which matched his shirt, along the creaking wooden boards.
"Welcome to Vinta Island!" Lance exclaimed with the same enthusiasm as before. "My name is Lance, and I'm the host of this season of Total Drama. And who might you be?"
"Bram," the boy said with a very groggy voice. "Where should I put this stuff I brought?"
"Follow this path toward the fire pit and wait for everyone else to arrive. Thank you."
Bram trudged down the path, kicking dirt up and began to scratch his arm sporadically as he sat down on a fallen log and looked disinterestedly at the ground.
By this time a new boat had arrived and rather tall girl had gotten her and her baggage onto the dock. She walked down the wooden planks with the noticeable sway of her hips. Her shoulder length orange hair flowed in the breeze and her tight white crop top and olive green jeans complemented her figure very well. She walked until she was right in front on Lance.
"Hey, I'm Rowena. I assume you're the host?" the girl said.
"You'd be correct with that assumption. Welcome to Vinta Island, the location for this season of Total Drama. I'm Lance," Lance responded. "Please walk down this path towards the campfire. There should be two others already there."
Rowena nodded and carried her bags and took a seat on the log next to Bram. "Are you excited?" she asked.
Bram looked at her with bloodshot eyes and shrugged indifferently.
Rowena was taken aback a bit and made her way over to Monique and started a conversation.
By this point, a new boat was only a few yards from the dock. A shorter Asian girl stood up and waited for the boat to settle before she climbed the stairs. Her long black ponytail waved in the breeze as she walked her rolling suitcases over the planks.
"Welcome to the island, and more importantly, the newest Season of Total Drama. I'm the host, Lance. And you are…?"
"Angelica, it's a pleasure. So when does the excitement begin?" the girl inquired.
"Well, we have to get through all 24 contestants, and you're only the fourth to arrive, so it'll be a bit. Please, feel free to follow this path toward the campfire area. Everyone else should be there," Lance noted.
Angelica rolled her two suitcases down the dirt path towards the others. She was thankful that her green long-sleeved shirt and black pants weren't too hot for the current weather. She took a seat on a stump away from the other three. She looked over and saw Monique and Rowena talking.
"Hi," Angelica said in a slightly unsure way as she introduced herself to Monique and Rowena.
"Hey," Rowena answered. "I'm Rowena, and this is Monique," she said as Monique waved to Angelica.
"What's your name?" Monique asked.
"Angelica. …Hey, do I know you from somewhere. You look really familiar," Angelica asked Monique.
"Well, not personally … I don't think, but there's a really embarrassing video of me that went viral. I'm that one girl who got attacked by those chickens." Monique admitted with a chuckle.
Rowena and Angelica both gasped. "Wait, that's you?! I've seen that video quite a few times," Rowena said.
"Geez, how did you recover? Those claws must've sharp," Angelica noted.
"It was rough, but after using a special prescription lotion, the healing didn't take so long. I just don't want anything like that to repeat on this show. I probably just jinxed it… oops," Monique said with a laugh.
Rowena and Angelica laughed as well.
A new boat had replaced Angelica's at this point and a short guy with large glasses and a gray turtleneck sweater under a large white overcoat stood in front of Lance.
"The name's Carson. You're the host. Blah, blah, blah. I know the deal," the boy drawled as he walked past Lance. "I'll be down this path if you need me, bye."
Lance looked a bit offended, but brushed it off and ignored Carson.
Carson walked the path and sat as far away from the others at the fire pit area. He pulled out his phone from one of the deep coat pockets and began to nonchalantly browse his social media. He looked up after a while and looked at the others: the three girls were still talking and Bram was sitting on the log, drawing random designs in the dirt.
Bram looked up and noticed three new people at the campfire area. "Have I really been out of it for this long. Well, this is what I get for playing it safe and leaving the weed at my house. Ugh this already sucks," he thought to himself. He contemplated joining a conversation, but didn't really want to get up.
Lance once again looked out over the dock. His watch read almost 8:40 and he wasn't even a quarter of the way through the introductions. This was going to be a long night.
As he looked up from his watch a new boat sped through the water and made it to the dock in modest time. "Maybe this won't be as long as I thought, as long as it's at this speed. Don't jinx yourself," Lance thought to himself.
A girl of average height stepped off of the boat with her luggage and stepped up onto the creaking planks. She walked with a feeling of confidence, as her black, shoulder-length hair blew into her purple shirt. She had rather fair skin that contrasted somewhat with her hair color. She smiled as she stopped in front of Lance.
"Welcome to Vinta Island, but more importantly, the newest season of Total Drama. I'm Lance, the host," he greeted with a genuine grin.
"Hello," the girl said with a similarly returned smile. "I'm Michelle. When do we start with the challenges?" she asked.
"Not likely for a while. You're the sixth out of 24 total to arrive, so yeah. You're going to have to wait a bit," he said while gesturing towards the path. "Walk down there, please. Wait with the others at the campfire area."
"Will do," Michelle responded as she carried her two bags. As she sat down on a log next to Bram's, Lance's voice seemed to appear out of nowhere.
"Attention, first quarter of contestants: to the left of the fire pit area, you'll notice a shed-type building. This is your confessional for the season. Feel free to use it now, later, or whenever, if it at all, to tell the viewers what's on your mind. There's 100% security, so there's no harm in your words. Well, that's a lie, but no one else will hear what you have to say. I'm out," Lance detailed through a PA system.
Immediately, the six campers formed a line to test out the confessional.
Confessional:
Monique: This show should be a blast to compete in. Should be. There are just so many questions I have, though, and I don't want to fall behind or anything. Let's just hope I end up remembered for this and not that damn chicken video. (She chuckles and sighs)
Rowena: This'll definitely be a summer to remember, that's for sure. I just need to get my game plan down early and I should be all right. Besides, being sociable can't hurt, right?
Carson: Well, I can't say that any of the other people here have as much sheer class as I do, but being cocky isn't the way to go about expressing my thoughts. I guess I can passively enjoy this show. I guess.
Angelica: I don't think it's much of an overstatement to say that I get along with Rowena and Monique. Though, everyone plays each other here, so I just need to stay level-headed and take things with a grain of salt and I'll be golden.
Bram: Hmm, not bringing anything to get a high off of to this island seems like a mistake, huh. Well, I guess winning the prize money will suffice, but it'll be a rocky journey that's for sure.
Michelle: (She shows the camera a notepad full of writing and things crossed out) So, yeah, I've been planning my time on the island for long, long time. Not to stroke my own ego, but I've had some pretty nice ideas, if I do say so myself. Now, onto the hard part: actually applying my ideas. Where to start: alliances? Eh, why not.
After walking back to the dock from using the PA system, Lance took his place back at the dock. Just moments later, a boat appeared over the horizon and docked in the usual place.
Soon after, a tall, thin boy came off of the boat and stepped onto the dock holding just one bag. His baggy purple sweatshirt hood was blowing behind his short hair quite rapidly due to the increasing wind speeds.
"Hello, camper!" Lance exclaimed. "Welcome to Vinta Island, the home of this season of Total Drama. I'm Lance, the host, and you are?"
"Sebastian," the boy responded with a slight smile. "Is there a place I can put my bag?"
"Not yet, as not everyone's here yet, but follow this dirt path and wait at the campsite."
Sebastian politely nodded and took his bag and walked down the path. Once he walked into the campsite, he took a seat on a stump off to the right by itself. He noticed few conversations, but he decided to just sit and wait by himself.
Lance looked out a saw a boat approaching rapidly, slicing the ocean seemingly in half. A tall, very muscular boy wearing a light blue tank top and black shorts got out of the boat and jumped all of the way from the boat to the edge of the dock in one stride. He carried his suitcases and motioned towards Lance.
"Sup, the name's Devin," the boy told Lance. "Where does this crap go?"
"Just walk down the path toward the campsite. My name's Lance, by the way."
Devin nodded and jogged off and took a seat next to Bram on the log.
"Hey, bro, what's good?" Devin asked Bram.
"Uhh, I don't know really. Not much I guess. I guess it's polite to ask what's up with you." Bram returned.
"Well I'm glad you asked, dude. I'm just trying to get my mind focused on winning this game. I mean, I don't think anyone would top my strength here, so I'll use that as for as it can take me," Devin explained.
"Well I guess that's good for you. I need to go walk around or something; I'm really not feeling too great," Bram said as he got off up paced around the perimeter of the stumps and logs.
Back at the dock, a tall, thin girl wearing a brown and white school uniform faced Lance.
"Hi, I'm Liv," the girl said shyly.
"Hello, I'm Lance and this is Vinta Island," Lance responded. "Please take your bags down this dirt path and wait with the other campers."
Liv took her bags and walked toward the camp. She gave the other contestants a polite wave and a smile and took a seat by herself and sat cross-legged waiting for the show to begin.
A few seconds later, a new boat had docked at the pier and a new camper walked up to the deck with his luggage. He was of Arabic descent and was very attractive. He walked with toward Lance with almost a sense of pompousness.
"Hello, camper. This is Vinta Island, where the season of Total Drama will be taking place. I'm Lance, and you are?" Lance greeted.
"Greetings, dear sir," the boy said. "My name is Adrian."
"Nice meeting you, Adrian. Please follow the path; it'll lead you to where you'll be waiting with others for the rest of the cast."
Adrian walked down toward the path and took a look at the waiting campers. He decided to go sit next to the group of Rowena, Monique, and Angelica.
"Hello, ladies," he said with charm. "What might your names be?"
The girls all introduced themselves eagerly, but Rowena inched closer to Adrian and began to have a conversation separate from Angelica and Monique.
"Uh, maybe it's best that we leave them alone," Monique noted to Angelica.
Angelica nodded as she and Monique went and sat near Michelle and Carson.
"You're really cute, you know that?" Rowena admitted to Adrian.
"Trust me," Adrian said with a smirk, "I've been told before. Numerous times, in fact."
"Well, I mean, I doubt anyone would lie to you about that. So, if you had to say just one thing for an answer, what would your biggest advantage be in this show?" Rowena inquired.
"Well, I don't think people will vote out someone as good looking as me," he said in a cocky manner. "And if I would, hopefully the viewers would want me back in, so I have that as a very unlikely possibility. So, yeah, I'd say looks are my advantage."
Rowena nodded and they continued their conversation.
A few seconds later, a girl wearing a baggy black hooded robe stood in the front of all of the other campers. She made her way toward the fire pit in the center of the stumps and logs and pulled out a match to light the fire.
"Heheheheh," she chuckled to herself as she viewed the fire.
Suddenly the PA system crackled and Lance began to speak.
"Helena, I told you to just go sit and wait, did I not? The lighting of the first fire was supposed to be the opening ceremony, but no, of course not. Put it out, now," Lance said with a strong hint of frustration.
Helena sighed, sounding quite ticked off, and found a bucket, which she carried to and from the ocean and put out the fire. She then took a seat in the grass behind all of the other logs and stumps.
By this time, another contestant, this one a stocky blond boy, was conversing with Lance.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, Landon," Lance said. "Please make your way to the fire pit behind me."
"Aight," Landon responded as he walked off and sat next to Michelle.
Michelle turned around and smiled politely at Landon.
"So, how long have you been waiting here?" Landon asked.
"Too long. Way too long for my liking," Michelle responded.
While Landon and Michelle were conversing, Lance went over to the PA system and made a similar announcement about the confessional. The next 6 campers all eagerly made their way over.
Confessional:
Liv: So this show seems fun, but it really brings out the worst in people. I really want to try to not double-cross anyone at all so my name never gets any bad mentions from anyone else.
Devin: Okay, so if anyone else arrives here with a better physique than I have, I'll be stunned. While by physical capability makes me a threat later on, I'll just work round that by winning invincibility every time. It can't be that hard.
Helena: Ugh, why does Lance have to spite me? I'm obviously not going to win this game, but as long as I'm a thorn in Lance's side, I'll be happy. Quite happy, indeed.
Landon: I'm still not sure exactly what my real prowess in this game is, but if I stay relatively unnoticed and join alliances I know I won't be anyone's main target. But who can I really trust in an alliance here?
Adrian: So yeah, I'm the best looking guy here, hands down. There can't be many girls here that would want someone like me gone, and the ones that do will just have to go before I do. Simple.
Sebastian: I'm a genuinely good person, so maybe I'm not best suited for a show like this. But I'm sure that I'll make friends and even if I don't make it real far, then so what. This is meant to be a fun summer, so I won't ruin that promise that I made myself.
Landon and Michelle continued to talk as another boy, this one Asian walked his way into the firepit area and sat on the log closest to where Helena was. He began to get up to go talk as he noticed something inching closer to his belongings. He turned around and saw Helena crouching behind a stump adjacent to the log.
"Um, what are you doing with my stuff?" he asked.
Helena ignored him and opened his smallest bag and read the label inside.
"Well, Felix, is it? I'm starving and since you were leaving your stuff here I assumed you wouldn't notice if I took some of your food. But I didn't plan this all out well enough, apparently."
Felix scoffed and snatched his bags and went over toward Liv. Helena walked back into the brush behind the campsite.
Back at the dock, Lance took another look at his watch. It read 9:34.
"This is taking too long," Lance thought to himself. "I guess if I call the producers they'll be able to speed up the arrivals."
As this glanced up towards the water, he saw two boats coming in close succession. They both docked at the same time and 2 contestants came on the dock. The first was a tall Hispanic boy with a red t-shirt and black shorts, and the second one was an average height Caucasian girl wearing a pink t-shirt and black leggings.
"Hey, I'm Henrique," the boy said. "You're Lance?"
"That's right just make your way down the path behind me towards the campsite."
As Henrique walked down the path, the girl introduced herself.
"Hey, I'm Sabrina," she said cheerfully. "I guess I'll go follow him, right?"
Lance nodded and Sabrina followed Henrique.
"Heyyy, Henrique," Sabrina said. "How's it going?"
"Umm, fine I guess… why do you care?"
"I just want to get to know the people that I'll be spending the summer with. That's all."
"Well, you should go get to know the others," Henrique said as he sat down on a stump. He saw Sabrina walk away and sighed in relief.
Another boat was docked at this time and two more contestants exited.
A girl with short brown hair and a blue and white sundress went up to Lance.
"The people working at the other dock are getting tired because it's so late so their stuffing us on together to save time," the girl said.
"Well that's good news for everyone then," Lance noted. "And you are?"
"Emily, it's a pleasure," she said with elegance and made her way down the path.
The boy who boated with Emily introduced himself as Xavier. He was a shorter boy of Native American descent.
Xavier followed Emily down the path and sat down next to Monique and Angelica.
"Hey ladies," he said almost comically.
"Oh, … hey," Monique responded. "Um, who are you?"
"Xavier. I'm excited to be here, as I assume you all are also."
At this time, a short, curvaceous Hispanic girl walked down the path and sat down next Bram, who moved away from the rest of the other.
"Hey I'm Daniella," she said.
"Hello," Bram responded indifferently and callously.
"Hey, I'm trying to make a kind gesture, so it'd be nice if you were respectful of that," she retorted.
"Well, I'm not going to lie and act like I care about what you have to say right now. Sorry."
Daniella, offended, stormed away and sat next to Felix and Liv.
Lance made a third confessional announcement on the PA system, and the 6 most recent contestants headed over.
Confessional:
Sabrina: I'm a very friendly person, so that should come in handy here. Some people have the nerve to call me nosy, which is obviously false, but I'm going to play as a fake version of myself here. If people get annoyed, then too bad for them.
Felix: I'm very intelligent. You can ask pretty much anyone from my school and they'll agree. Sometimes that can be someone's major flaw on a show like this, but I'm confident that it won't make a difference because I've been planning for this show for what feels like an eternity. I'm not going down early.
Emily: I come from a very wealthy family, so the money isn't really a driving factor for me. I go to school with a bunch of filthy rich snobs, so above all else, I want to make friends who are real and have genuine personality. That can't be too much to ask.
Daniella: I would definitely describe myself as a matchmaker. This show's drama thrives on romance, so I feel like I'll only be helping the producers. Now, who would make a cute couple? Michelle and Landon? Hmm, maybe. What about Henrique and someone? Hmmm…
Henrique: I'm a sarcastic person. Naturally, that means sometimes people take me seriously when they shouldn't. Could that hurt me? Sure. Will it? I hope not. Besides, I just know that I'm not the one here with the worst personality.
Xavier: There are plenty of okay people here I think. I'm being honest here: no one can be friends with everyone so that's the one thing you don't want to be. I don't want to be an invisibly player, but then again: someone who's out of sight is out of mind. Did that sound philosophic? It better have.
After Xavier left the confessional, another boat docked and this time, three campers stepped out on the dock with their belongings.
A boy with short-cut blond hair introduced himself to Lance.
"Greetings, I am Otto. Nice to meet you," the boy said in a German accent.
"Hello, Otto," Lance responded, as he gestured Otto down the path. "Welcome to Total Drama!"
A short, skinny girl with a tight black outfit and obnoxiously red lipstick walked passed Lance.
"I'm Lara. I get the idea," she said as she followed behind Otto.
The third contestant from that boat walked up to Lance. He was a small, thin African-American boy with faded clothing and two small bags walked up to Lance.
"Hi," the boy said quietly. "I'm Jaime. I guess I'll just follow them."
Lance nodded and Jaime walked toward the campsite. As he sat down on a stump by himself, he looked around and saw pretty much everyone conversing. Even Lara and Otto were already talking to Carson and Devin, respectively. Not long after, Liv and Felix walked over to him and introduced themselves.
"Hey, we couldn't help but notice that you were sitting all by yourself and we thought we'd join you. Is that okay?" Liv asked.
"Sure," Jaime said with a smile as he talked to Felix and Liv.
Lance looked down at his watch one more time. It read 10:02. "Not bad," he thought. "Maybe we'll be ready to go at 10:30. Maybe."
One final boat containing the final contestants arrived on the dock. The first to walk out was an average height girl wearing a yellow blouse and black jean shorts with a plain gray suitcase.
"Hi, I'm Shayli," she introduced.
"Welcome to Vinta Island; please make your way down the path and wait with the others."
The next contestant, this one a rotund boy with shaggy brown hair made his way to Lance. He was chewing a chocolate bar, so instead of waiting to finish chewing, he simply walked right past Lance and mumbled "Tom."
Lance rolled his eyes and greeted the 24th and final contestant. She had pastel pink hair tied into a bun with a choker and a dated outfit.
"I'm Lotus, by the way," she said without even acknowledging Lance and wheeled her inefficiently-shaped floral suitcase towards the campsite. Eager to kick off the season he followed Lotus and met the 24 contestants at the campsite.
"Before we start," he began, "if you haven't used the confessional yet, go do that now. Quickly." As he finished his announcement the last 6 to arrive went to use the confessional.
Confessional:
Tom: I'm not a hard worker. Or a super trustworthy friend. Nor do I have any real skills. Why exactly did I sign up for this show?
Lara: The word edgy has such a joke of a connotation nowadays. But, that's the best word to describe how I am and how I'll play the game. I take risks and I say what I feel. If people don't like it, then they shouldn't pay attention.
Shayli: I've been told that I'm a forgettable person. I don't wear the newest fashion, I don't have a car that's considered "cool", and I certainly don't have the "coolest" friends. But from what I can tell, people like me do well in this game, so, yeah, there's that.
Jaime: Coming from an undesirable childhood didn't really give me an equal treatment to pretty much everyone else my age. On the other hand, I'm used to living with less. The sympathy that people give to people like me won't hurt either.
Lotus: There are no cultured people on this show I swear. Yeah, not everyone on this show can be as productive member of society as I am, but some of these people here are just so irrelevant that thinking about them hurts me. I just need to make sure that I don't say this stuff to their faces.
Otto: I am from Germany, so I might not have a good advantage here in terms of understanding people, but I will try my best to fit in with everyone else. I am athletic, so I can prove my ability that way, but I need to be very social to have a chance to win.
Lance stood next to the fire pit, now holding a lit torch in his right hand.
"Since everyone is now here and accounted for, it's time to officially start the ceremony. This show is not one where there is a simple, clear-cut way to victory, as I assume most of you are aware of. I can't really give any of you specific advice, but I can give these basic words to keep in mind: keep an open mind in your strategy and always be aware of those both close to and distant to you," Lance stated, as he dropped the torch into the fire pit.
Immediately, a blaze erupted and Lance motioned for all of the contestants to come as close as possible. With everyone's face lit up with the ember, Lance began to speak again.
"Now, another very, very important factor of this show: the teams. There are 24 of you, so the producers have decided on 3 teams of 8. And now, the teams."
As he was speaking, 2 interns went around and passed out lanterns, each of which would light up a different color when activated. Lance took out a button from a pocket and pressed it. At that moment, all 24 lanterns lit up in 3 different colors: aquamarine, magenta, and gold.
"Now that you all possess a working lantern, join the others with the same color as you."
All 24 contestants began to shuffle themselves and their bags into their new teams.
To the left of Lance, the magenta team gathered. It consisted of Emily, Devin, Xavier, Lotus, Angelica, Henrique, Liv, and Sebastian. Gesturing to the magenta team, Lance announced that they would be called Team Krypton.
Almost directly across the campfire from Lance, the aquamarine team was gathered. It consisted of Danielle, Michelle, Landon, Tom, Monique, Carson, Felix, and Lara. Lance dubbed this team Team Xenon.
To the right of Lance, the gold team gathered. It consisted of Jaime, Sabrina, Rowena, Otto, Shayli, Bram, Adrian, and Helena. Lance declared this team Team Neon.
"Now that you all have your teams decided, it's time to make your way to you cabins," Lance began again.
To the north of the campfire area, there was a path through some moderately dense forest. After Lance guided the contestants through, there was a clearing that led out to a small beach area with cabins along the shore. They were painted with "beachy" designs of the three teams' colors.
"So there's a problem with the lighting in the cabins right now, so you'll have to use the lanterns as a light source for now," Lance admitted, resulting in the sighs and disgruntled looks of numerous contestants.
"Regardless," Lance continued "It's nearing 11 o' clock and the first challenge is tomorrow. It is an elimination challenge, so I'd advise everyone to get right to sleep for tomorrow." After this, Lance walked off and left the contestants by themselves. They all walked into their respective cabins and made their way to the bunk beds that they'd be sleeping in for the rest of the show.
Back on the dock, Lance was in front of another camera, ready to begin his outro.
"So now that the show's parameters have been set, the action and drama are ready to begin. With such a large variety of characters we have here on Vinta Island, it's a given that things will heat up real soon. What will the challenges be? Who will thrive and who will break? What twists will unfold? Find out next time on Total Drama Tropic!"
"Cut! Great work, Turner," the cameraman said to Lance as both packed up and left for the employee cabins.
A/N: So, the first chapter of a new story has officially begun. My goal for this story is to having a story that mixes humor and drama with realistic and genuine personalities. I'll be very diligent with my update schedule, but of course that is subject so change. With all that being said, if you read this chapter and have any feedback, I would greatly appreciate hearing from you!