Author's Note
Right on schedule, it's the second chapter of season two! And, of course, I've already written the third chapter for next week - it was a bit tricky, especially since I ended up changing who I wanted to eliminate the day before I started work on it, but I think I did it justice.
But that, of course, if for next week. Right now, I have the first reviews for this story to answer!
acosta perez jose ramiro: Congrats on being the first to review this fic! And yeah, good point about Scarlett - she's a wordy person, but perhaps that scene with the beds was too wordy.
JinxQueen: Haha, yup! Just another of the many minor differences that come as a result of an almost completely different cast.
Identification: Thanks! And yeah, Action wasn't as bad as All-Stars, but it didn't exactly live up to the first season either. And yeah, canon Beth's fickleness with guys really bugged me too.
I. M. Poik: Haha, yeah, I can already tell I'm gonna have a lot of reviews that look forward to that special.
Ddynamo: Yeah, I've been making it a point to reduce the amount of making out those two do.
Star Saber21: I'm glad somebody finally noticed the association between Shawn and bears I've been putting in. Thanks for the review as always!
PizzaTheBomb: Thanks! Always great to hear from new readers.
ultrablud2: Thanks! And yeah, I figured the new schedule would be a minor disappointment, but it really it something I've been wanting for awhile now.
Cole D. soul: Well, you're not alone about liking Action, at least among the reviewers. There's a lot about it I like myself, but I still personally only have it at 4th place overall. Thanks for the review and predictions!
FOWLKON: Yup, I'm quite familiar with those trope terms. I've made it a point not to flanderize Bridgette and Geoff like in canon, but as for the belligerent sexual tension between Sierra and Topher...well, the belligerence is there at least. Not so much the sexual tension, though, at least not intentionally.
Knifez: Always great to hear constructive criticism! I'll try to tone down the italicized words, and I get your point about a few of the captures seeming forced, although I wanna say it was the same for canon. And as for Dawn, her actions (or lack thereof) in the first part of the challenge were what I felt was a natural extension of the phobia I gave her way back in Phobia Factor; I also wanted to give Sammy a chance to shine a bit. Of course, I may have overdone it - Dawn's a tough person to write afraid. Don't worry, though, it's unlikely to happen again since there's not many robots in this series. As for the other stuff you mentioned...as usual, I'll try not to comment on future events if I can.
Madison Wooten: Thanks! And I'll tell you right now that the aftermath hosts and the person who will almost certainly take Courtney's spot will be revealed in the opening sequence next chapter, so you won't have to wait long to find out.
80jj: I'm glad you liked it! I really didn't like that scene overall in canon, since it was basically just one big fat joke at Owen's expense. The 'taking 10 hours to run three city blocks' was especially bad considering the guy ran all that distance during the finale. Having it take the weight of two larger contestants to cause the breakdown, as well as having them actually get to the trailers in a reasonable amount of time, were changes I just thought were natural to do.
Lowland Warrior: Thanks! Although I can't really take credit for the Gilligan Cut gag, since I was just piggybacking off what was already there in canon - it just had Trent instead of Shawn in this case.
Mr. CyborgPineappleIsland II: Thanks, and good to hear!
bruno14: Thank you very much!
With all those out of the way, here's a weekly reminder of who's still left in the game:
Girls - Beth, Bridgette, Dawn, Jo, Sammy, Scarlett, Sierra
Boys - Alejandro, B, Beardo, DJ, Geoff, Lightning, Shawn, Topher
Well then, let's get on with the show!
- Fangren
Episode 2 – Alien Resurr-eggtion
"Last time, on Total Drama Action!" The recap opened on a long-distance shot of the film lot, a film slate being held in front of the camera and clapped on the final word of the title. "Fifteen teenagers," the castmates were shown assembled with their luggage outside the main gate as the host drove up in the tram. "One engaging host," Chris said slowly over close-ups of him driving the tram and smirking at the camera, as well as one of the gleaming golden statues of him. "A dilapidated film lot," he continued over a shot of the tram driving past the numbered studios, as well as Beardo and B hiding behind a cutout of a car. "And a whole lotta coin! KAA-CHING!" Topher was shown giving a knowing nod and Dawn and DJ were shown trembling before the image of the treasure chest on a strip of film used early in the previous episode was reused. "Oh, and did I mention?" Chris added as the cast ran screaming through a beach set. "A remote-controlled monster?" The shadow of the monster fell on B and Beardo; the monster's tail slammed into a radio tower; Chef struggled to raise his fist in the motion capture suit; and all the while Chris laughed. "I love this show!"
"Some," Sammy was shown leading DJ and Dawn through the streets of a city set, "fared better than others. B and Beardo ran for their lives," the two boys were shown running through the lot, "and Dawn managed to ace the fake food challenge," the camera panned across the buffet table before she was shown holding the key triumphantly above her head, "scoring reward: first pick of the cast trailers!" The monster was shown stepping on the trailer on the right, followed by Dawn pointing at the uncrushed trailer. "Shockingly, even though she picked the right one," the other girls were shown cheering while the guys looked disappointed, "the girls' hope of victory were crushed," the monster stepped on their trailer, "along with their new digs." The seven girls were shown inside the rebuilt trailer getting to their beds, the roof visibly patched together.
"Who will be one step closer to the million bucks?" Chris asked the camera as the recap ended, revealing him standing between the two cast trailer. "Find out, on another thrilling episode," the camera pulled back with each of the next few words until the entire lot was included in the view, "of Total! Drama! Action!"
xxx
(Fade to Opening Theme)
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doin' fine;
You guys are on my mind!
Ya asked me what I wanted to be,
And now I think the answer is plain to see!
I wanna be...famous!
I wanna live close to the sun!
Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won!
Everythin' to prove, nothin' in my way;
I'll get there one day.
'Cause I wanna be...famous!
(Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
(Fade to Episode)
xxx
The episode proper began with a shot of the craft services tent, the camera flying towards it and cutting inside to show Chef serving out something yellowish and lumpy to Lightning with an ice cream scoop. He dumped the food onto the jock's tray who then left to sit down, and Sammy moved up with DJ right behind her. The camera pulled back to show the serving window, a bowl of fruit on the left side of the counter, napkins and condiments on the other. A pan left took the shot to Bridgette, Geoff, Jo, Shawn, and Scarlett.
"Come on, Bigfoot," Jo grunted to the crutch-using party boy, "keep it movin'! We don't have all day!" Bridgette scowled at her, but Geoff looked somewhat sorry as he walked forward a few steps.
"More eggs and bacon for me!" DJ said with a smile as the shot cut back to the front of the line. The gentle giant was given a scoop of breakfast, and he eagerly added "Keep 'em comin', Chef!" The hulking man growled, causing DJ to back down and move along.
Bridgette stepped forward, but cast a look of concern behind her. "Are you sure you don't want any help?" she asked Geoff as he came into view. "I can totally help you carry your tray."
"Nah, I got it babe!" the party boy told her with a smile as she was served her breakfast by a grumpy-looking Chef. "I mean, it's just some eggs. And by the way," he told the older man as he stepped up to get served, "breakfast looks, like, not half bad!"
"Thanks," Chef said dryly while doling out the boy's meal.
"Sorry if I'm being overprotective," Bridgette said as Geoff rejoined her side. "I just wanna make sure you can still do this even with a broken ankle. You're feeling okay to compete today, right?"
"Aw, you know it!" the party boy told her as they walked past a table with a pitcher of water and some extra condiment containers on it. "I mean yeah, I can't run that fast any more, but that doesn't mean I'm helpless. And besides, I know I can always count on my sweet Bridgey-bear to back me up!"
"Aww," the surfer cooed as she leaned in to kiss her boyfriend.
"Hey, you mind taking the lovey-dovey crap somewhere else?" Jo said as she walked past them. "Some of us wanna eat."
"Jeez, chill," Geoff told her. "Nothin' wrong with us showin' a little love. We don't have to be serious all the time."
Jo snorted. "Sure, by all means, keep paying more attention to each other than to the competition. Just gives me two less people to play against."
The blonde couple scowled as she kept on walking.
/
The footage skipped forward to show Alejandro frowning at his plate of eggs. "As awful as the usual fare, no doubt," he said as he approached the condiments table. "Though perhaps some pepper will distract from the taste." As he grabbed a shaker and started sprinkling the black powder over his plate, the camera panned left to show Beth and Beardo watching him.
"Y'know," Beth said, "ever since I got a boyfriend, Al and Topher just haven't been looking quite as cute to me."
"To be honest," Beardo said, "I haven't thought Al was that great ever since he-" The hairy boy stopped in mid-step and blinked. He made the sound of a videotape rewinding as he reversed his step and raised an eyebrow at his friend. "Hold up, did you say boyfriend?" he asked her.
"Uh-huh!" the short girl nodded enthusiastically. "I have a boyfriend now, and I love him. Sorry for not telling you yesterday, I guess I just got distracted by the monster."
"No prob," Beardo answered with a smirk. "But you gotta fill me in. Who is this dude? When did you meet him?"
"His name is Brady," Beth explained. "We met between TV seasons."
"You tellin' me you hooked up in that two-day break?" Beardo asked.
The wannabe nodded. "Yup! We met at the orthodontist. He was getting his braces off at the same time as me! At first, I wasn't in to him," she continued as she and Beardo lingered at the condiment table, "but after the braces came off, look out!" She took a photograph out of her pocket, and the camera zoomed in to show an incredibly attractive white boy in a red polo shirt and a dashing smile.
Beardo whistled. "Dang, you really scored on him!"
"Excuse me," Topher interrupted, walking between them and swiping the picture out of Beth's hand before she realized it. "Hmm...I don't buy it," the handsome boy said, rubbing his chin as he examined the photograph, turning it over and raising his eyebrows as he saw several lines of print. "Looks like it's got a bunch of stats on the back," he said, "and I've been to enough poise classes to know a model's comp card when I see one. I think it's obvious that Beth here doesn't really have a boyfriend," he said dismissively, flicking the card over his shoulder and walking away.
"Hey!" Beth exclaimed as she quickly caught the photo. "I do too have a boyfriend! So what if he gave me a comp card? That just means I'm dating a model!" Beardo looked around awkwardly for a few moments before Beth finally stomped off.
xxx
"Uhh, not that I'm doubtin' her or anythin'," Beardo admitted in the confessional, sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck, "but a dude that hot has gotta have people linin' up to ask him out. Hard to believe he'd fall for Beth of all people."
xxx
The standard dramatic tune began as the footage cut back to the breakfast tables, Shawn, Bridgette, Geoff, Jo, Scarlett, Lightning, and Sierra were shown sitting on a variety of chairs and stools at one before the camera panned left across the room – and a garbage can in the background – to show Topher, Alejandro, DJ, Dawn, Sammy, Beth, Beardo, and B sitting at the other.
"Welcome," Chris said as he walked into the tent wearing shades and a red cravat-beret combo, and carrying a canvas backpack "to Day Two of Total! Drama! Action!" He held up a film slate and clapped it on the last word.
"Uhh, are you just gonna do that each time or what?" Shawn asked with a mouth half-full of food.
"Yes," Chris answered, "yes I will." The survivalist shrugged in acceptance, and the host continued. "Today's movie genre, Aliens!" Jo perked up at the announcement, as did Scarlett, Lightning, and Sierra next to her. "Our unpaid interns have been hard at work figuring out what makes an alien movie successful! Chef?"
He motioned across the room and the camera cut to Chef Hatchet as he stirred a pot of an unidentified viscous green substance. "You got three basic rules," he explained, holding up his spoon. "Aliens want to take over the world and start makin' lots off baby aliens. People fight back. Then the military's called in." He casually threw the scoop of whatever was in his spoon into the room, and Lightning barely ducked under it.
"Yo Chris," Chef asked angrily, "where's my paycheck at?"
The host looked shocked at the sudden question and quickly answered "It's...in the mail!" A piercing note played as Chef's scowl deepened.
"Today's challenge," Chris continued without a second thought, holding up a folded piece of paper which unfurled into a simple map with a dotted line curving between points marked '1' and '2', as well as an 'X'. "Find an alien egg," he pointed at the spot marked '1', "and return to home base before Mama Alien finds you," he moved his finger to the 'X', then pointed it at the castmates. "The two fastest get to pick the teams this season," Chris finished, tossing the map over his shoulder and holding up a pair of fingers.
"Might as well just give me a team now," Jo announced confidently. "I've seen enough of those kind of movies to make winning this easy."
"Oh really," Scarlett said with a small smirk. "I didn't expect you to be the type who enjoys science fiction."
"Meh," the jock-ette scoffed, "I'll watch anything with enough action and a kick-butt girl as the star. It just so happens that a bunch of alien movies are like that!"
"Hmm, well, I'll admit I've watched several of them myself," the brainiac said. "I like to list all of the scientific inaccuracies, and as a result I've familiarized myself with the tropes and idioms common to the genre. Don't count on an easy win."
Jo shrugged cockily. "Hey, I'm fine if you get second place," she said, "but don't think for a minute that you'll be able to beat me."
Scarlett just scoffed dryly.
xxx
"Ever since Jo prevented me from being the sole winner of the original million-dollar challenge at the end of last season," Scarlett told the confessional camera, "I've been plotting ways to get my revenge. Beating her in today's challenge will be a nice start."
xxx
"Hey, I don't really know much about aliens," Shawn said from across the table, "but if they're anything like zombies then I wouldn't count me out of the running either."
"While I'll admit that you possess a number of physical abilities that would be useful against a hypothetical extraterrestrial," Scarlett told him, "that likely won't be enough in a challenge based around the conventions of a film genre."
"Sorry, Shawn of the Dead," Jo added with a short laugh, "but you just aren't gonna cut it."
Shawn scowled. "Yeah, well, I guess we'll just have to see."
"Yo Chris!" DJ spoke up as the camera cut to the other side of the room. "You got some laser-shootin' monster playin' Mama Alien?"
"Not quite," the host said slowly before the shot cut to the serving window as Chef Hatchet walked forward in a rubber green alien costume with a bulbous head that didn't cover his large neck. "You call that slime?" Chris waggled a finger at him. "MAKE-UP!" he called. "MORE SLIME OVER HERE!"
Jo and Scarlett watched as a bright green slime poured onto Chef from the kitchen ceiling. "I hate my life," he grumbled as the camera pulled in for a close-up.
"Here are your GPS devices," Chris continued after pulling a tablet-like device from the backpack he'd brought with him, "complete with maps of the film lot." He tossed the GPS across the room where it was caught by a smirking Scarlett; another followed moments later and was caught by Jo. "Find the alien eggs," Chris said as DJ was shown receiving one of the devices, "but be careful! Cause today, you're all on Chef's menu!" He smirked, and his hulking assistant giggled menacingly.
/
A few dramatic notes played as the scene flashed over to the challenge set: it was entirely indoors, and had a sort of futuristic industrial feel reminiscent of the inside of a spaceship in a science fiction movie. There were ramps and walkways all around, and the wall seemed to be made up of machines, valves, tubes, and wires. The whole room had a bluish-green tint to it.
One of the GPS devices was shown in a close-up, with buttons on either side of the screen which showed a map of the area. A trail of flashing lights marked the holder's location, which as the camera zoomed out was shown to be Sammy. As the set around them creaked and groaned, she shot a look back at DJ, who shot a look back at Dawn, who looked around before the camera panned to B walking behind her.
"Do you think we should stick together?" the cheerleader asked. "I don't really know a lot about aliens, but there's supposed to be safety in numbers, right?"
"I hope so," DJ told her. "This place is giving me the creeps."
They passed by a large metallic door, and Dawn lingered to look at it. "Oh my," she shuddered, "I can sense the soulless evil in that room from out here!" She paused a moment to think. "Probably just where Chris is."
/
The shot pulled out to show Chris sitting in a chair before a wall of monitors, all of which were viewing Dawn. "Well she's not wrong," the host smiled amidst the beeping of computers. "Now take that," he laughed, pressing a button on the keyboard in front of him.
/
A jet of smoke burst out from the wall above Sammy and DJ, and the two yelped and huddled close together. The cloud dispersed quickly and they locked eyes, then blushed and stepped away from each other.
xxx
"Okay, I know DJ doesn't wanna go out with anyone right now," Sammy told the confessional camera nervously, "but a big part of me still wants to try to get him to change his mind. That doesn't make me a bad person, does it?"
xxx
"Man, this whole 'liking two girls at the same time' thing is tough," DJ said in the make-up trailer. "Especially since I know Sammy likes me back. Maybe I should just ask Dawn how she feels? Or would that be weird? I dunno, man." He scratched his head and looked into the camera helplessly.
xxx
Another close-up of the GPS in Sammy's hands was shown as she nervously walked forward with DJ. The camera panned left to show most of the others following behind – Dawn, B, Beth, Beardo, Sierra, Lightning, Topher, and Alejandro at the tail end.
The charmer was watching a GPS of his own, raising an eyebrow and looking around the room. "Odd, it looks like we're the only one on the map right now. Has Chef not entered the area yet? I feel we should-"
"Uh," Lightning interrupted, "you'd better not be thinkin' of tellin' the rest of us what to do now."
"Yeah," Sierra added. "In fact, why are you and Topher even following the rest of us? Nobody likes you."
"Well it's not like we had anywhere else to go," Topher shot back at ber. "And besides, plenty of people like us!"
"Hmmph," Sierra sniffed, crossing her arms and looking away from her enemy, "that's what you think." She walked ahead of the pack, leaving Lightning and Alejandro mildly bewildered and Topher looking annoyed.
"Uh, just so you know," the uber-jock said, "Lightning don't care if people like you or not, he ain't gonna listen either way."
xxx
"If there's one thing Lightning sha-learned last season," the overachiever confessed, "it's that you gotta watch who you team up with. I helped Alejandro a whole bunch, but he never did squat for me! Plus, he even voted me off! Well not this time," the jock crossed his arms. "This time, Lightning's gonna be the one callin' the shots for any alliances he's in."
xxx
The footage cut back to the challenge, where Jo and Scarlett were seen walking together, each holding a GPS. A sudden noise echoing through the hallway gave them pause; it was followed by a peculiar two-toned sound that almost sounded like a groan. The two young women looked around suspiciously, then camera angle shifting to show Shawn just behind them, and Sammy and the others just past him.
"I believe we're in need of a volunteer to investigate the sound we just heard," Scarlet said quietly with a light smirk. "Someone who possesses courage and athleticism...such as you, Jo."
"Oh no," the jock-ette replied, "I'm not gonna be your bait and be the first one out. Get someone else to do it. Zombie Boy," she turned to Shawn, "how 'bout you?"
"How about not," the bald survivalist deadpanned. "Heck, I'm about ready to just get out of here, and..."
He trailed off when he spotted Dawn calmly walking past, surprising both him and the two girls ahead of him. She stopped at the intersection near where the sound was coming from, and looked around without fear.
"As I thought," Dawn announced, "it's only Bridgette and Geoff. Oh, but they don't look to be in the best of shapes."
The viewpoint shifted to show the two blondes lying on the metal floor, groaning as they held their heads and tried to get back to their feet.
"What," Jo asked as she rounded the corner, "did you two have an accident while making out or something?"
"No...," Bridgette spat.
"I just figured I'd go on ahead a bit...," Geoff began to explain after he shook his head a few times.
"...which I thought was a bad idea considering the condition he's in," Bridgette added in an annoyed tone as she stood up.
"So she followed me, but then tripped over my crutch when I stopped walking and pulled me down with her," Geoff finished sadly. "Sorry for spookin' you guys, I guess."
"Well, I guess it was kinda my fault," Bridgette said as she helped Geoff back up. "But I don't want you to go off alone like that, mister."
Jo just rolled her eyes.
xxx
"Sure, I coulda taken Chef had he actually been there," Jo explained in the make-up trailer, "but that would mean letting Scarlett think me going out there was her idea. And I got enough of other people thinking they could use me last season."
xxx
Another GPS close-up showed a single green dot on the screen, flashing and beeping rapidly. The viewpoint changed back to show the device in Jo's hands and all fifteen castmates looking towards it with various levels of nervousness. Scarlett and Shawn were still closest to the jock-ette, but Sierra had also gotten closer. Next to them were Dawn, Sammy, and DJ, then Geoff and Bridgette, Topher and Alejandro, and Lightning, Beth, Beardo, and B clustered together on the right side of the scene.
"Has it struck anybody else that maybe bunching up like this wasn't a good move?" Shawn asked.
"Agreed," Scarlett said, "it was a poor tactical decision on the part of everyone who wasn't in the front of the group."
"DANGER! DANGER! DANGER!" an electronic voice began to repeat. Jo and Scarlett quickly looked back at their devices, and the camera panned across the group to show them all looking around nervously. At the very end, Beth and Beardo shared a look.
The teens stood around nervously for a few more seconds before Topher spoke up. "Umm, so, are we gonna get out of here, or what?"
"Where would we even go?" Bridgette asked.
Beth was shown tapping her chin. "Oh! I know! Creepy stuff is always in the basements of places, so let's go down!"
"Sounds good enough for me!" Beardo said before he, Beth, and B ran off in the direction they'd originally come from before turning and going down a ramp to a lower level.
The camera focused on Dawn, DJ, and Sammy as they clustered together, the shortest member of the trio looking around quickly before pointing to an upwards ramp behind them. "Ooh, perhaps the Mother Alien will have built its nest somewhere higher off the ground!"
"I guess it's worth a shot," DJ told her, and the three circled back to the ramp and ran off.
"Pfft, losers," Jo scoffed. "Obviously the eggs will be somewhere warm and steamy, like a boiler room." She blinked, then quickly checked her GPS. "Pretty sure there was one around here somewhere..." She focused on her device for a moment before she heard a footstep behind her, looking around and spotting Scarlett carefully tiptoeing off.
"Wait a minute," Jo said, looking between the GPS and Scarlett, "you're heading to the boiler room in the east, aren't you?"
"...crap," Scarlett muttered before turning and running.
"You're not gonna win that easily!" Jo yelled, chasing after her. Shawn and Sierra shrugged at each other, then followed as well.
"You should totally go with 'em," Geoff told Bridgette, taking her by the hands. "I'll only slow you down if you keep stayin' with me!"
"I'm not gonna abandon you to Chef!" Bridgette countered. "I'll make sure you get through this, don't worry about a thing!"
"Aww, thanks, babe!" the party boy replied, and he moved in to kiss his girlfriend.
A sudden thump interrupted the display of affection, however, by causing the surfer to turn her head in alarm. "What was that?" she exclaimed, oblivious to her boyfriend's annoyed look.
/
The scene cut to a pipe and some tubes and wires somewhere up higher. Steam was released in a burst from a vent on the side of the pipe, and the camera panned down to show Chef running across another walkway in his costume, a gray-and-orange paintball gun in his hands and a smirk on his face. He heard the sound of footsteps nearby and jumped to a lower level, landing with a metallic clang. He took off running to the left, heading briefly out of sight before reappearing in the foreground in front of a tube that cut diagonally across the scene.
/
The scene cut back to the five castmates who had remained on the original walkway – Bridgette, Geoff, Alejandro, Topher, and Lightning. None of them had made any signs of moving away, and their eyes were all darting around the room.
"Amigos," Alejandro finally said, "we really should get moving. May I suggest that the five of us work together?" He looked around hopefully, but was met with three stony stares.
"I agree!" Topher said enthusiastically. "We need to-"
"Who asked you, dude?" Lightning interrupted. "And why should Lightning form a team?"
"Yeah," Bridgette added, "like we're just gonna work with you after everything you did last season."
"Ah, you misunderstand!" Alejandro said quickly, holding his hands up defensively. "I merely meant that we should continue to travel together for this challenge, with no commitments for the future! Surely it would be easier to find the eggs that way?"
"...I hate to say it," Geoff spoke up, "but the dude's kinda got a point. Maybe the five of us should keep goin' together."
"Well...," Bridgette said uncertainly, "I guess that should be fine. Just don't expect us to trust you."
"Believe me," the handsome boy said, "I won't! But still, I'm glad you're willing to at least stick around. And Lightning?" he added, looking at the fifth person present.
"Hey, long as none of you try to tell Lightning what to do," the overachiever said, "Lightning's fine walkin' with y'all for now." As the camera focused on him, the formerly-quiet background music came to a sudden rising peak as Chef lowered himself down head-first behind the jock, smirking briefly before he suddenly fell to the ground with a thud.
"Whoa, sha-what?!" Lightning exclaimed, jumping slightly upon getting startled and quickly looking around.
xxx
"Working with the others will be difficult, especially so soon after the end of season one," Alejandro told the confessional camera. "But even if I can't make any long-term alliances, staying around the others will have its advantages."
xxx
Bridgette, Geoff, Alejandro, and Topher were shown looking shocked at Chef's sudden appearance. The focus cut back to Lightning, his eyes going wide as the hulking Mama Alien rose up in front of him with a vicious grin on his face. The overachiever turned to flee just as Chef uttered "Say hello to eternity!" and fired the first shot.
The footage slowed down as the camera followed the lime-green paintball through the air. Lightning saw it over his shoulder, then looked ahead at a cringing Topher. Still in slow-motion, the uber-jock grabbed the pretty boy by the arm and spun back around, using the other young man as a shield. The footage sped back up just as Topher saw the paintball, and it hit him right in the face.
"Why is it always the hair?!" he cried as Lightning dropped him to the floor and turned back around. The other three also turned to flee as Chef grimaced at them, but with the two blondes in front and Geoff's broken ankle limiting his pace, neither the charmer nor the overachiever could get past.
"Aww man, it can't end like this!" Lightning cried, looking back over his shoulder as Chef took another shot and hit the uber-jock square on the back of his jersey. The force of the hit sent him tumbling to the ground just as the other three made it to an intersection.
xxx
"I knew it was a bad idea to stick around those guys," Lightning griped in the make-up trailer. "Had Lightning just gone off on his own, he woulda won that challenge! Man, how's he gonna get his own team like this?" He crossed his arms and pouted.
xxx
"Which way do we go?" Bridgette asked in a panic, still standing at an intersection with Geoff and Alejandro. The camera quick-panned over to Chef, who began to cackle menacingly as he slowly walked towards them.
"We should split up," Alejandro suggested quickly as the focus moved back to the contestants. "That way, he'll go after the slowest one of us but allow the others to get away!"
"Are you suggesting we just let Geoff get shot?" the surfer replied angrily. "What happened to traveling together?"
"The situation has changed!" Alejandro told her. "We need to escaperight now, and we can do that by sacrificing Geoff!"
"Or you," Bridgette countered, stomping down hard on the handsome boy's foot before quickly grabbing her bewildered boyfriend by the hand. "Come on, Geoff, let's get out of here quick."
"Uh, okay," the party boy said hesitantly as Alejandro jumped up and down holding his foot in pain. The camera lingered on him as the blonde couple left, and he just barely regained his composure in time to duck below a paintball shot.
"Are you sure you want to be doing this?" the young man asked coldly as he rolled out of the way of another shot. "After all, you're in enough trouble with me as it is. Any more unnecessary roughness will just help me make my case against you!"
Chef scowled at him, but it quickly morphed into a sneer. "Too bad for you I get to shoot as much as I deem necessary!" At that he tossed his gun over his shoulder and jumped high into the air; when he landed, he was holding a much larger eight-barreled minigun-like weapon.
Alejandro's eyes bulged, but were quickly narrowed. "Don't think you've beaten me just because you've gotten a little upgrade," he said before turning and running. The background music picked up its pace as Chef gave chase, shooting volley after volley of paintballs. To his credit Alejandro managed to dodge several, but he soon grew visibly overconfident and stopped watching the ground in front of him. He tripped over a wire not too long after that, and slammed face-first to the ground.
As he rolled onto his back, he saw Chef approaching him with a dark smile on his face. "Please don't shoot my face!" Alejandro said quickly, throwing his hands up in a panic.
The Mama Alien stopped, pursed his lips, and scowled. "Whatever, pretty boy," he grumbled, his smile briefly returning as he leveled his oversized gun at his fallen prey and fired eight rounds at once. They all hit Alejandro's torso, and the paint-splattered boy groaned in defeat.
/
The shot pulled out, transitioning to the control room as it did so. "Well that wasn't as good as I hoped it would be," Chris sulked. "Still, nothing that I can't fix," he added, throwing away his cravat and beret and putting on a camouflage-print cap. "I really should wear camo more often," her remarked as he checked his new look in a hand mirror.
/
"Okay, I think we should be safe," Bridgette said as she pulled her head back from looking around a corner to her right.
"Thanks for savin' me back there," Geoff told her. "But, I dunno, I kinda get the feelin' that I shouldn't be relyin' on you for everything during challenges, y'know? Maybe I really shoulda tried to go off on my own for a bit!"
Bridgette frowned and opened her mouth to reply, but a voice from behind them cut her off. "Too late for that, kiddies," Chef said darkly as the two turned their heads and gaped at him. He cocked his gun, and shot another multi-shot blast that knocked them both to the ground.
/
A blinking line of red dots was shown on a GPS screen again, the camera cutting to a different viewpoint to show it in the hands of Scarlett, who was running down a corridor with Jo, Shawn, and Sierra hot on her tail. Another cut took the view to a door, a klaxon sounding and lights on the left side turning from red to yellow to green as it opened towards the camera with a hiss.
The brainiac peeked inside, the other three joining suit a moment later, and the viewpoint switched to show a large boiler, fire visible throw a small window in front and steam bursting out vents on either side. A sickly green glow came from a pit just below, and the camera panned down to show a load of pale green eggs resting amongst the steamy haze. The four looking in from the doorway smiled.
/
A flash transitioned the scene to a close-up of a thick wire running just below a ceiling. A spider dangled down through the gap on a line of silk, then crawled to the right for about an inch before the camera finally panned down onto Dawn, Sammy, and DJ as they walked through the machine-lined corridors of the set.
"I hate to say it," DJ said as he checked his GPS, "but I think we might be lost."
"Yes, it does seem that way," Dawn said sadly. "I'm quite sorry for leading us up here, especially since we haven't even found the alien nest."
"Well, y'know, it's not like you ever knew for sure where the eggs were," Sammy said. "I mean, even you can't see everything."
The mystic sighed. "Yes, I suppose that's true. Reading auras and sensing the gifts of the Earth Mother can only do so much in a movie set."
"Hey don't feel bad," DJ told her, "it's still way more than either of us can do. You should be proud of what you can do, even if it ain't always that useful."
"Thank you," Dawn said with a faint blush, "but I-hmm?" She paused her statement when a spider landed on her shoulder. She narrowed her brow as it wiggled its front pair of legs at her, then gasped. "Oh no!"
"What happened?" DJ asked, cringing in fear.
"Is Chef coming?" Sammy added.
"Yes!" Dawn told them as the spider ascended back up its line of silk. "Quickly, you must hide before he sees you! I'll try to draw him away!"
"But-" the gentle giant tried to say, but his petite friend cut him off with a shale of her head.
"Please, just do this," she told them. "It's for the best, I can just feel it."
"I-If you say so," Sammy said uncertainly.
"Quickly!" Dawn cried, pushing them back towards a three-way intersection, then turning around once they'd finally run around the corner themselves. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before turning around and running.
She headed straight for another three-way intersection, but Chef came sliding into view from the left path before she could reach it. Dawn hesitated before turning around, but she was unable to dodge the grinning man's barrage of paint product.
"Hmm," Chef mumbled as he walked up to the fallen girl, "now where the heck are those two crybabies she's always with?"
/
The shot cut to the interior of a dark and box-filled room as DJ and Sammy ducked inside it, the door sliding down shut behind them with a noticeable whirring sound. The two hid behind a stack of boxes, trembling in silence as they heard heavy footsteps run by outside.
"I think he's gone," DJ whispered.
"Yeah," Sammy said. "Umm, this is probably a bad time, but I promised myself I would tell you something the next time we were alone together, and I've really been trying to do the things I say I'll do lately, so-"
"I get it," DJ told her, "but make it quick and quiet. Chef might still be nearby."
"R-right," Sammy stammered. "So, the thing is," she paused to take a breath, "I'm bi and I like Dawn too!" she said quickly and at a volume just a bit above a whisper.
"W-what?" DJ said, abandoning his hushed tone in shock. "For how long? Uh, the likin' Dawn thing, I mean."
"I...I'm not sure, I guess about as long as I've liked you, DJ," she told him. "I'm really sorry for telling you this out of the blue, but I thought maybe knowing that I also like Dawn might help you make up your own mind. Not, uh, not that you have to make up your mind right now or anything, I just-"
"Hold up," he interrupted, "I'll admit I woulda liked it if you'd told me this some other time, but...you're really tellin' me that even when you wanted to talk to me about the two of us at the party a few days ago, you had feelin's for Dawn like me?"
"Y-yeah," Sammy said, rubbing her arm nervously. "But ever since I...umm...overheard you in the woods that night, I figured it would be better to try and date the person I know likes me back instead of trying to figure out how Dawn feels."
"Huh," DJ said blankly. "Sorry, I just...I never thought of it like that. But somethin' in my gut is tellin' me you're right."
"R-really?" Sammy said hopefully, blushing as she inched closer to her crush.
"Yeah, really," DJ replied, mirroring her movements. The pair slowly moved in to kiss...
And had their moment ruined by a splattering of lime green paint from the direction opposite the door they'd come from. The camera changed its angle to show another open doorway had been behind them, and that Chef was standing in it shaking his bulbously costumed head. "You two really shoulda picked a better time."
/
The set groaned as Beth, B, and Beardo walked into what seemed to be a dead-end room, the only visible exit being the door on the left they had come in through. The room itself was empty save for the same sort of futuristic-looking machines that lined the walls.
"I wish my boyfriend were here right now," Beth said idly as she looked at her GPS.
"Why?" Beardo asked her while looking at his own device. "He know how to read a GPS map?
Beth tapped her chin in thought, then shrugged. "Who knows? But at least we'd be together."
The hairy boy rolled his eyes. "B, you're smart," he told the third member of their group as he handed the device over, "you think you can figure out where we are?" The silent genius shrugged but took the GPS and immediately began to press the side buttons and look around the room.
As soon as he turned back towards the door it slammed down shut, and the background music rose ominously. His eyes popped open, and the camera cut to a shot of his two companions looking in that direction as well.
"Uh oh," Beth said, "I think we really shouldn't have come in here."
/
The shot cut to the end of a wall-mounted section of piping as Chef hooked a tube up to it. "We gotta hire an effects crew," he told the camera before turning the valve and snickering as liquid began to surge through the tube, making it bulge ever-so-slightly.
/
A green slime started to spray from a pair of fire sprinklers, the shouts coming from below making it obvious that Beth, B, and Beardo had been the ones to get hit. Sure enough, as soon as the sprinklers shut off the camera panned down to show them three of them dripping with green slime.
"Uggh, gross," Beth said while her hairy friend made a 'sad trombone' sound effect.
"Man," Beardo added as he started to wring out his tremendous mane, "this is gonna take forever to get out."
"I bet my boyfriend would know how to get it out," Beth sighed. "I bet he knows loads of stuff about hair."
xxx
"Y'know what," Beth told the confessional camera, "models are people too! They're not just pretty faces, they know things and have feelings about them just like the rest of us! They even have dreams! My dream is to marry Brady," she said with a smile. "My mom says that if I concentrate really hard," she scrunched up her face and hands in mock concentration, "one day, all of my dreams will come true!"
xxx
/
The shot cut back to the mist-shrouded alien eggs, the camera panning up to show Sierra, Jo, Shawn, and Scarlett looking down from the edge of the pit they were in.
"So I guess this means we've almost won, right?" Sierra said. "I mean, all we have to do is get these back to home base."
"Essentially, yes," Scarlett replied. "Only two of us will actually be able to win, but as all four of us are present and there doesn't appear to be a way to reach the eggs unassisted, we may as well continue to cooperate until either we near the finish line or Chef shows up."
Shawn looked at his GPS, which still only showed a line of blinking red dots on the map. "Well, we'd better make it quick."
"Lower me down, Blogger Girl," Jo told Sierra, "and Zombie Boy can do the same for Red."
Sierra and Shawn shrugged at each other, but the footage flashed forward to show that they had complied. The background music picked up its pace as the camera focused on Jo dangling upside-down over the eggs; she picked one up but it immediately burst into green goo. "Dang it! What are these made of, tissue paper?"
"Unlikely," Scarlett said as the shot panned to the right to show her in a similar position. "But nevertheless, it seems we must be careful in handling these."
The footage skipped forward again, panning across from right to left to show an egg in the hands of all four castmates. The door they'd entered the boiler room from was shown again, klaxons sounding as the panel of lights changed from red to yellow to green and the door finally swung back open.
Mama Alien Chef stuck his head inside and smirked, the camera cutting back to a startled Sierra and Jo as the former was quickly shot with a single paintball. The blow knocked her over and the egg out of her hands; it burst on impact with the metal floor. Jo, Shawn, and Scarlett immediately took off running in the opposite direction as Chef charged at them screaming, leaving their former companion to watch their departure with a pleading look that turned into an annoyed frown as soon as the other door slammed shut behind Chef.
/
The point-of-view immediately cut to a door on the outside just as the three remaining castmates burst out of it and ran out onto a Wild West-themed set.
"Attention, civilians!" came a familiar voice through a megaphone above them. The background music tapered off as they skidded to a halt and looked up, the camera following their gaze to reveal Chris hovering above them in a red helicopter. "The military is here to protect you now. Unfortunately," the host told them as Chef was shown coming up from behind with a grin on his face and the larger gun in his hands, "we can't let you leave with any alien eggs."
"But you told us to retrieve these eggs!" Scarlett shouted up at him. "It was the stated goal of the challenge!"
"Right," Chris replied happily, "I did!" He laughed and the camera zoomed in on the bottom of the helicopter, showing a pair of bombs strapped to the underside which were promptly dropped.
"HIT THE DECK!" Jo shouted as the bombs whistled downward, jumping to left with Chef as Shawn and Scarlett ducked off to the right.
The two bombs landed right where the four had been standing and exploded into a wave of green slime that reached up so far that Chris had to back to helicopter away and close its door. Even still the entire front of the vehicle got splashed, and he was laughing when he rolled the window down. "Woo! Glad I don't have to clean it up!"
Down below, the camera focused on Jo lying on her hands and knees in the middle of the slime-splattered area. She stood back up with a squelching noise, and the other two castmates were shown sticking their heads up from behind a pair of well-placed barrels, completely clean but without their eggs.
"Darn it!" Jo griped as the three regrouped. "I can't believe I lost like that!"
Scarlett smirked at her. "Well, it appears that your knowledge and skills simply weren't sufficient," she said. "Perhaps you should reflect on your failure and realize that you never truly had a chance to begin with!"
"Oh please," Jo scoffed, "the only reason you and Shawn didn't get slimed is because you got lucky! So don't go thinking this is some big failure on my part."
Scarlett rolled her eyes.
xxx
"That girl is really starting to get on my nerves," Jo told the confessional camera. "I mean seriously, who does she think she is? Has she forgotten that I made it to the Final Four last season and she only got sixth? Because I haven't! And even though she might have gotten lucky this time, sooner or later she's gonna have to admit that I'm better than her."
xxx
"Uhh, I hate to burst our bubbles," Shawn spoke up, "but I don't think we can win either if we don't have those eggs."
Scarlett blinked and looked down at her empty hands. "No! Where did it-" she looked around frantically, as did the bald boy next to her, but abruptly stopped after only a moment. "Correction," she told him with a smirk, "you don't have an egg." The camera panned to the left to show a slime-covered egg perched on top of a broken wooden plank, which in turn was balanced over the fallen form of Mama Alien Chef Hatchet. The shot cut back to the three teens as Jo and Shawn noticed it as well. Scarlett acted first, however, shoving the survivalist into the slime and running towards the only way to victory in sight.
xxx
"Yeah," Shawn said bluntly in the make-up trailer, "kinda remembering why I don't like her. Although to be fair, she does have a pretty good survival instinct."
xxx
Tense background music picked up as Shawn scrambled to pursue Scarlett, slipping a little on the slime but quickly getting into a good pace regardless. The brainiac reached Chef first, but due to the slime on the ground she ended up sliding past him. She managed to turn around quickly, though, and went in for a second pass at the egg.
The costumed man stirred awake with a groan. He shook his head and looked to his right, seeing Scarlett running at him. His eyes widened and he looked to his left to see Shawn headed his way with arms outstretched. He ducked down and put his hand over his head in preparation for the impact...
...which came just in front of his face as Scarlett and Shawn, more focused on the egg than anything else, slammed into each other and fell backwards. The background music immediately faded into something softer and sadder as the force of their impact caused the egg to wobble and fall, striking Chef on the head and dazing the older man as he tried to stand back up.
"You three gave it a valiant effort," Chris announced as he parachuted down into the scene just as Jo rejoined them as well. The host landed, his chute detached and blew away, and he continued. "But, you're still losers!" He pointed at them and laughed while his assistant finally crawled out from the wreckage between Scarlett and Shawn.
"Actually," the bald boy said as a grin formed on his face, "maybe not." A mischievous sort of tune began in the background as two more slime-covered alien eggs were shown to have been resting on the ground behind where Chef had been laying. "Looks like we might still be able to finish this thing after all!"
He quickly grabbed one of the eggs before the sulking Mama Alien could react and ran off. Scarlett did the same shortly after, narrowly dodging an attempted grab from Chef once she'd regained her egg.
"I'll get you next time! Oooohh!" a frustrated Chef said as they ran off, shaking his fist menacingly.
"Can't you do anything right?" Chris asked him in an annoyed tone.
"Where's my money?!" Chef immediately – and angrily – responded. "Hmm? Give! Me! My! Money!" he thrust a rubber-covered finger at the smaller man, who quickly ran away in fear.
/
The scene cut over to the cast trailers, where the thirteen castmates who had been eliminated from the challenge waited around a few benches, still bearing the paint and slime they'd accrued. Shawn and Scarlett reappeared moments later, breathing heavily but with their alien eggs intact.
"We have our two winners!" Chris announced, walking in with Jo shortly after. "Our only two winners. The rest of you really stink," he said as the camera panned across the losers – Bridgette and Geoff holding hands on a bench; Dawn giving the splattered faces of DJ and Sammy an odd look; Beth, B, and Beardo sitting on the second bench; and Sierra, Alejandro, Lightning, and Topher all looking mildly annoyed behind them.
"As our winners," the host continued as the camera cut back to him and the two egg-holders, "Shawn and Scarlett will now be able to pick their teams, which means they'll be competing against each other."
"As expected," the brainaic responded with a small smile.
"Yup, no surprise there," Shawn added.
"Uh, y-yeah," Chris said, looking around nervously, "totally not meant to be a surprise twist or anything. But," he quickly regained his composure and grin, "first we gotta vote off two cast members in the most thrilling Gilded Chris Ceremony yet!" At the end of his announcement the thirteen losers uttered a collective gasp.
"Yes, you heard me," Chris told them. "I said two!" A few dramatic notes accompanied his words as he held up a pair of fingers. "I'm likin' the twos today. Must be Tuesday!" He made the quip happily, but the castmates just rolled their eyes awkwardly as the sound of crickets chirping filled the void. "Yeah," he shrugged, "I don't get paid to write this show."
/
The scene faded into a shot of the film lot's amphitheater at night, a quartet of searchlights moving back and forth across the sky. A deep orchestral tune reminiscent of those used for actual televised award ceremonies began to play as two strips of scenes featuring Chris McLean came onto the screen from either side, a third coming down from above over a pale yellow star-burst pattern as the first two ended, and two larger scenes of the host emerging from either side of that. The screen faded into gold and the camera pulled back, showing one of the shining golden statues of the man himself, flanked by searchlights and surrounded by fireworks.
The award show tune reached its conclusion as the footage cut back to Chris walking on-stage, the cast members watching from bleachers on the right. The camera zoomed in on the central podium and the host, who had put on a dashing blue tuxedo with a red bow tie.
"It's time to cast your votes," he said into the microphone. "Under your seats you'll find your voting devices," he explained as the camera panned across the seated contestants – Scarlett isolated on the front row with Bridgette, Geoff, Shawn, and Sierra further on; Beth and Beardo at the far right end of the row above; B on the row above and to the left, with Alejandro and Topher even further to the left; Lightning sitting in the center of the fourth row; Dawn, DJ, and Sammy together on the right end of the top row with Jo on the opposite end to them.
The castmates looked under their seats, and a close-up of a voting device in DJ's hand was shown – it was a dark gray thing small enough to be held in one hand, with a flashing red light on top and a touch screen that dominated its front. Scrolling up across the screen was a picture of each cast mate in sequence, with an empty box next to them. "Just press the button of the person you want voted off," Chris explained. "Oh," he added over a shot of Sierra leaning over to try and look at Shawn's device, "and no peaking," Shawn frowned at the girl and she looked away, whistling nonchalantly, "or it's nanana, nana nanana, hey hey-eeyy, good bye!" He pumped his fists into the air as he sang, and finished with a laugh.
"The votes have been cast," he announced as a few deep and dramatic beats began to play, and a close-up of someone with dark skin walking across the stage in black heels and a sparkly translucent dress was shown. A few of the cast mates giggled and the camera pulled back to reveal that it was a rather grumpy-looking Chef in the same dress and jewelry he'd worn for a few challenges during the previous season; he was holding a number of golden Chris McLean statues in his arms.
"If you get a Gilded Chris," the host continued over the snorts and laughs of the audience, "it means you're safe. For now." Chef glared at the castmates while Chris continued. "And the Gilded Chris's go to...Shawn! Scarlett!" The angry assistant tossed one of the awards into the audience for each name read off, and the two challenge winners were shown making their catches easily.
"Samey, Lightning, and Topher," each was shown catching their prize.
"Great tux, Chris," Topher called, "you really look like you deserve to be up there!"
"Thanks!" the host said cheerfully before continuing. "Beardo, Beth, and B are also safe," he called out, and the three cheered in their seats before catching their awards.
"So are Dawn and DJ!" Chris added. The mystic and gentle giant were shown catching their awards with a "Yay!" and an "Alright!" respectively, and they shared a group hug with Sammy. They quickly broke it, though, with blushes on all three faces – but DJ and Sammy were the last to fully break, and they ended up exchanging a shy smile before the camera cut back to Chris.
"Next is Jo," the host announced as the sound of a catch and an excited "Yes!" came from off-screen. "Surprisingly Alejandro," another catch was heard, "and last but not least..."
The camera cut to Bridgette, Geoff, and Sierra looking worried, with Shawn between them looking down nervously as the tension built in the background music. Sierra's face was shown in a close-up, followed by Bridgette who looked up at her boyfriend, and Geoff who looked right back at his girl. There hands were shown resting together on the bench, and the injured party boy smiled.
"...Sierra!" the host finally announced, and the tall girl jumped into the air with glee.
"Ohmygosh yay!" she said, clapping her hands together before looking at the shocked looks of the two whose names hadn't been called and laughing nervously. "Oops..."
"B-but," Bridgette stammered, looking around at the others, "I thought everyone liked us?"
"Perhaps," Alejandro leaned over to tell her, "but you nearly won last season and your boyfriend has a broken ankle."
xxx
"It's obvious who should go this week," Alejandro said in the confessional. "And it's almost poetic that they should be a couple."
xxx
"Like anyone would want them on their team anyway," Jo told the make-up trailer camera.
xxx
"Sorry, friends," Dawn confessed, "but I can see in both of your auras that this is what you need the most."
xxx
"Any final words?" Chris asked them.
Bridgette and Geoff looked at each other before the party boy finally spoke up. "Anybody wanna sign my cast?" He held up a pen and smiled expectantly at the others.
"Why not," Shawn told them with a small shrug
"Okay!" Beth said.
"Sure thing, brother!" DJ added.
Chris and Chef looked at each other and shrugged.
/
The footage skipped ahead to show Bridgette and Geoff walking down the red carpet hand in hand, the cast on Geoff's left foot much less white than it had been when he'd first arrived on the film lot the day before. They reached the dilapidated limousine at the end, Chef Hatchet already holding the door open for them. Geoff tossed his crutch inside before sliding in himself, and once he had gotten in safely Bridgette joined him. Chef slammed the door shut, and the limousine sped off.
"Who will Shawn and Scarlett pick for their teams?" Chris asked at the podium, the classic reverent tune that had been used to begin and end each episode of the season starting up. "Will Jo ever live up to her own hype?"
"Hey!" the jock-ette exclaimed off-screen.
Chris continued as thought the interruption hadn't happened, although his expression quickly changed to a scowl. "Will Sierra please stop looking at her award like that?" The uber-fan was heard giggling off-screen, and the host rolled his eyes before resuming his smile and his speech. "Tune in next time for another exciting episode of, Total! Drama! Action!" The camera zoomed out with each word of the show's title, revealing Chef standing just off to the side. His eyes went wide upon noticing he was in the shot, and he quickly backed off-screen.
(Fade to Credits)
/
/
/
[Bonus Clip]
The scene faded in to Geoff and Bridgette sitting in the back of a limousine, the party boy with his injured foot up on the seat between them.
"Man," he said, "who knew getting kicked off first would bite this much. I mean, I totally figured I wasn't gonna make it very far, but still..."
"I know!" Bridgette said before sighing. "Having a million bucks really would've been nice."
"True that," Geoff nodded. "Although, now that I think about it maybe getting kicked off wasn't that bad! I mean, at least we don't have to through another uber-harsh competition."
"I guess," Bridgette admitted. "I mean, it was pretty stressful making it to the finale last time. Plus, now we can finally spend some time together."
"Heck yeah, baby!" the party boy grinned. "Oh, and I totally got everyone to sign my cast. I kinda hope we can meet up with the dudes who didn't get to compete this season so they can sign it too!"
"Haha, yeah, that would be pretty cool," Bridgette chuckled before leaning over to kiss her boyfriend. As they began to make out, the camera panned down to the cast and zoomed in, showing several legible signatures on its surface – a cute 'Beth', flowery 'Dawn', stylized 'Topher' and 'Alejandro', ridiculously ornate 'B', plain and simple 'DJ', neat and orderly 'Scarlett', even a small and thick-lined 'Chef Hatchet' and an oversized 'Chris McLean'.
Author's Note - Post Script
Wow, lots of stuff to talk about...I'll begin with what's the freshest on people's minds: Bridgette and Geoff.
I can guess that a bunch of you are shocked that I had them eliminated here as in canon. My goal with them, and with this elimination, was to make it actually make sense. In canon, they resorted to flanderizing Bridgette and Geoff into making out all the time, which obviously wasn't taken very well by the fanbase. I decided early on that I wanted to prove those two could be eliminated in a way that actually works, and with Geoff's broken ankle and Bridgette both being a former finalist and spending a lot of her energy worrying over her boyfriend, I think I made their elimination work. Geoff also managed to get everyone to sign his cast - and I do mean everyone, the rest of their signatures were on the other side of the cast - and I hope you all like that scene as much as I do.
For Beth and Brady, I wanted him to be introduced at a point that actually made sense, rather than several episode in after she'd already been spending most of her time drooling over someone else. And since she's never met Justin, it gives me another reason to have her bring up Brady sooner since she's much more smitten with him.
The almost-kiss between DJ and Sammy was admittedly rushed, at least from my perspective. Looking back, I should have had it (or something similar) back during the special, but at that point I wasn't certain exactly how I wanted to develop the relationship between DJ, Sammy, and Dawn in Action. And, well...I wanted to have some kind of development before the teams are picked.
Speaking of which, Shawn and Scarlett will be the ones picking teams! Hopefully their challenge win makes as much sense to all of you as it does to me. I look forward to hearing your predictions for the Grips and Gaffers!
Until next week,
- Fangren
Appendix: TSA Eliminated Contestants
Geoff - (Tied for 14th Place)
Bridgette - (Tied for 14th Place)