"Last time on Total Drama Mario World Tour: Our contenders, after a long, two-year break, returned to the show once more, and took off on the trip of a lifetime! Eighteen passports. Destination: One million dollars! Our first stop was Firelulu! The contestants, split into three teams, had to go into small submersibles and dive into the great deep blue: The Pacific Ocean. There, they had to find the hidden treasure chests, each containing their various treasures.
"It was one heck of an adventure down there, if I do say so myself: Shipwrecks, skeletons, sharks, giant squids…and a whole lotta drama! Tensions were high, arguments and anger rose, and Optimist went psycho due to his sub-a-phobia, or whatever it's called. Thus, he earned his passport a stampin', and was sent packin'! But the real twist came when the newcomer psycho girl was locked in the cargo hold by the scheming new guy, Blayke! She managed to break out, only to be knocked right off the plane by the falling Party Boy, after yours truly had to escort him out! Both took a tumble, making last week a double elimination!
"Who will be voted off this week? Where will our challenge be? What will our challenge be? Find out right here, on Total…Drama Mario…World Tour!"
Since the events of the previous week, Mr. L, Wendy, Rain, and Wario had all been relaxing in the first-class area.
Well, some of them.
Rain couldn't get over Tanooki's elimination, and was over on the sofa, still sobbing lightly into her hands. She had actually gotten better in the few days since it happened; previously, she had been crying uncontrollably. Wendy had long since given up attempting to console her, and had just let her tire out. Fortunately, she had eventually resorted to venting in the Confessionals.
Cockpit Confessional
Rain – TANOOKI! Why? …(Sob, sniff) I just don't understand why so many people would vote you out! You were an awesome guy, and still are! (wipes away several tears) I know you want me to be strong…I remember what you said. I'll win this for both of us, I promise!
Chef Isabelle – (In the background, rubbing his forehead with one hand and sighing in exasperation) Hey, flying a plane here, girl! Give me a little slack!
Rain – Well, you're the one who insisted on us first-class passengers having to use this Confessional instead of the other one in the first place!
Chef Isabelle – Yes, because the Lavatory is reserved for the losers down in economy-class!
Rain – This isn't the Titanic; we don't have to separate the classes anymore!
Chef Isabelle – Not in the rest of the world! Here, it's different! Deal with it.
Wario – This is sweet! Winners of the first challenge, what a deal! I could get used to this!
Mr. L – We had better keep winning; but if we did lose, at least it would spare more carpets from getting soaked up and ruined by Rachael's tears.
Chef Isabelle – She's staining the carpets? Aw, man! Those are hella expensive!
Mr. L – I know!
Wendy – This is great and all, but I still believe something's wrong with Mr. L. He shouldn't be so smug about winning. It's too much to simply call team spirit like with WarCongressionalat in one of the seats, reclining back and with one of the glasses in his hand, full of sizzling Dr. Pepper. Wario sat opposite him in a seat that was struggling to stay in one piece.
"Ah…I tell you, Wario. This is the life, eh?"
"You said it! I could get used to winning like this all the time!"
"Couldn't we all? Especially for the losers in the economy-class area right now. Sucks to be a loser."
"I know, right?"
Both boys shared a jolly laugh over their sick, competitive jokes. It was a moment before Wario introduced some sense into the situation.
"You know…you could be a little nicer to them."
"Yeah…"
"I mean, they could win, too."
"But then why didn't they? Exactly." He answered before James could respond.
"Well…"
"No wells. They lost, we won. That's all that's important." Mr. L ended it with a sip of his Dr. Pepper, the glass resting between his fingers. Wario looked on incredulously.
Farther behind them, Wendy was sitting at the conference table, playing Solitaire with a deck of cards that was already kept in the first-class area. She heard Matthew's comments and glared over at him.
Economy-class…
One contestant's screams were beyond annoying and exhausting to all of the others.
"Ugh! I'm sitting on rust! This is repulsive! I didn't get any sleep last night, or the night before that, or before that!"
But for once, someone agreed. "Tell me about it, eh. For once, I actually agree with her. I mean, this place is danker than a tank."
"Pauline, we mustn't be so negative."
"How can we not be negative? It's been, what, three days? Three long days of staying with the rats, dripping water, and safety harnesses!"
"We can't have it all." Logan reminded her. "Besides, this is what transportation was like for the Pilgrims to Plymouth back in 1612."
"But these benches are made of plywood!" Susan complained, rubbing her backside discontentedly.
"Not plywood, Plymouth!"
"Potty-Mouth? Who's a Potty-Mouth?"
"Argh!" Logan slapped his face in frustration.
"Not the sharpest tool in the shed." Mona muttered, to which Logan looked at her and grinned slightly.
"Augh! How do I get out of these things? It's stuck again!"
They looked over at Skyler; she was stuck in the safety harnesses, again. One was wrapped around her torso at a slanted angle, and the other was round her neck, with her right arm bent in it, stuck between her neck and the harness.
"Oh, dear." Blayke muttered, grabbing one harness and sliding it over her arm, pulling the other off her chest.
"Thanks."
"No problem." Blayke grinned.
Lavatory Confessional
Logan – I don't know who's worse: Whiny Isabel, or dim-witted pea-brain Susan! I can't stand either of them, and could not live with being on the same team as them! I just hope that those aren't official team arrangements…
Blayke – I've got to stop being nice! Being nice is not my forte! I need to focus on forming my alliance…but that's hard to do on my team. I've got Napoleon, Animal-Lover, Goth girl who hates being here, Perfectionist, and Mute Girl. Not easy. Argh! I wish I was on that other team with all the girls! …Er, not for that reason, though! Because all of those girls are perfect sheep! They would be the perfect alliance! Maybe not a team, but definitely a good alliance for post-merge.
Rosalina – Yeah, our spirits are down right now…but we need to toughen up! We'll win sooner or later…right?
Just then, the contestants all heard the voice booming over the intercom.
"Alright, fruitcakes! Wherever you are, report to the elimination area effective immediately! Isabelle out."
"Finally!" Isabel exclaimed. "Let's get out of here!"
Like a bullet, she was out the door, with everyone else behind.
Mr. L, leaning in his seat, heard the announcement and opened one eye.
"Ah. The next challenge awaits."
Mr. L sat up, pulling the seat back into place, and stood up, stretching and straightening out for a few moments as Wario and Wendy walked past. He finished off his drink and placed it on the bar, sliding his fingers along the elegant counter as he walked off.
Wendy stopped and looked back, seeing Rain still on the couch.
"Oh, dear." She hurried over to her friend. "Rain, honey, come on. We've got to go now." She put an arm on her friend's shoulder.
"Oh…I don't know how I'm gonna do! Maybe I should just quit now to be with Tanooki…"
"No! That's crazy talk, Rain! Tanooki told you that you are going to win this, and that's what you're going to do! Now get up on your feet, and let's go win us a challenge!"
She grabbed her friend and lifted her off the couch. Rachael barely had her feet on the floor to keep herself up as Wendy guided her over to the door.
A few minutes later, all sixteen contestants stood in a massive group in the elimination area, in front of the stage, with the door to their right, and bleachers to their left.
Isabelle stood in front of them, arms behind her back.
"Now…it's time for our second challenge! Can you believe that we've already lost two competitors in one day?"
"I'm not as surprised by the fact that we lost two people, as I am with who we lost." Violet stated with a shake of her head, still in disbelief.
"Yeah…but it makes all the more drama! See, I knew that changing the format to you guys voting again would make it better!"
"You made that choice?" Wario asked.
"Heck, yeah! I'm the host and co-producer now! I make a lot of the decisions, but mainly those centering directly around the show itself. And personally, I always hated the idea of the viewers voting. See, they know what goes on on-camera; i.e., the stuff that some of you guys ain't supposed to know! You know, Confessionals and stuff like that!"
Off to the side, Blayke nervously tapped his foot once on the metal floor.
"So, they could go and vote off, say…Prom Queen over here!" Isabelle jerked a thumb towards Isabel.
"Hey!"
"Just because she was evil when the rest of you didn't know it."
"That wouldn't be the only reason, eh." Pauline muttered. Blayke and Rosalina heard, and both chuckled. Fortunately for them, Isabel didn't hear it.
"With you guys voting, you make the choices based on what you know. It can affect some of your friendships, and even relationships! More drama, more ratings!"
"What are you saying? I'm not evil! I'm a little angel!"
"You never know. With this show, anything can happen." Mr. L shrugged. Isabel glared at him.
"True. Anything…hee, hee, hee…" Isabelle chuckled evilly.
"So what is the challenge? Where are we going?" Mona asked, looking around.
"Oh…you'll see…you'll all see…"
"Yeah, shouldn't we be landing right about now?" Blayke asked nonchalantly.
"Oh, glad you asked that!" Isabelle exclaimed delightfully.
Cockpit Confessional
Blayke – (Once again, the confessional is empty save for Blayke) (Sigh)…I never, ever, should've asked that.
"You'll be landing…right now!"
Suddenly, the contestants felt the floor give out from under their feet. The whooshing of air was all they heard as everything flew up around them. Before they all knew it, they were falling through the newly-opened trapdoor. Blue sky was all around them, with a few clouds for them all to fall through, and the Jet above them was flying away, growing smaller and smaller.
"AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHH!"
"NOOOO!"
"HELP!"
"I CAN'T DIE LIKE THIS! I HAVE PETS!"
"It figures, eh."
"Pauline! How can you be so…so casual?" Rosalina asked incredulously as they fell. She arched her body and dipped at an angle to fly closer to Pauline.
"I knew we'd die sooner or later on this show. It's so typical. I mean, our challenges would kill regular people; we're just freaks. Besides, we've seen interns die; why can't we?"
"Hey! Who are you calling a freak, Goth Girl?" Isabel shrieked.
They both ignored the Prom Queen.
"There was no way we could know that we'd free-fall to our deaths on this show! What IS it with you?" Rosalina asked, now enraged with Pauline's attitude.
"Isabelle is glad to be rid of us. Remember how willing she is to throw knives at people, or push people off cliffs? Now we're all gonna die, eh. And die hard."
Then, incredibly, they heard the sound. Even in mid-air, it still registered clearly.
Ding-ding!
"OH, NO!" Rose the general cry from the group of falling teens.
The Jet swooped overhead, Isabelle in the door with a megaphone. "Hear that, kiddies? Time for our song!"
"NOW?" Wendy roared. "We're about to DIE!"
"They did it last season, ya know! You can do it, too! And, maybe, if you sing, you'll live! So just sing
''Musical Number – Before We Die''
'''Wendy: ''We're singing as we're falling!''
'''Isabel: ''While some are cannon-balling!''
'''Katelyn:''' Yeah!
'''Blayke:''' ''Our lives begin to flash before our eyes!''
'''Mr. L and Wario:''' ''We might just go ka-blooey!
'''Rain and Rosalina:''' ''Get smushed and become chewy!''
'''Everyone: 'Cept there's tons we wanna do before we die!''
'''Isabel:''' Billionairess!
'''Iggy:''' Billiards champion!
'''Katelyn:''' Marry Iggy!
'''Mona:''' Catch a barrel!
'''Skyler:''' Be an actress in a drama!
'''Rain:''' Corporate lawyer!
'''Wendy:''' Prom destroyer!
'''Pauline:''' Be a ninja with throwing stars!
'''Blayke:''' Lion tamer!
'''Wario:''' New food namer!
'''Logan:''' Repairman for the parallel bars!
'''Blayke:''' ''But first we must cease dropping, our goal here would be stopping!''
'''Susan:''' ''Before we smash into the ground from the sky!''
'''Logan:''' ''Flat into little pieces!''
'''Pauline:''' ''Heads merged with our feet-ses!''
'''Skyler:''' ''That would really suck and here's why:''
'''Mona:''' ''We'd like to keep on living!
'''Blayke:''' ''So Isabelle, we hope you're giving:''
'''Toadette:''' Some wings!
'''Mona:''' A jetpack!
'''Wendy:''' A rift in time!
'''Isabel:''' Parachute?!
'''Pauline:''' Waterbed!
'''Logan:''' A trampoline!
'''Katelyn:''' Springy shoes!
'''Blayke:''' Rocket boots!
'''Skyler:''' Flying squirrel!
'''Susan:''' Bubble bath!
'''Skyler:''' I change to bubbles, too!
'''Wario:' Pizza! No! ''Chips and some dip will do!''
'''Everyone: Cause there's still so much to do before we die!'' Yeah, we said it! ''There's still so much to do, there's still so much to do, there's still so much to do before we die!'' Yeah!
'''Wario: Yeah!"
''End Musical Number''
"Very good, maggots! Now, go ahead and pick up where you left off."
And with that, Isabelle flew off and into the clouds…literally.
The contestants immediately picked up the screaming once more, flailing and tumbling towards the ever-approaching ground. Looking down, they could now see tall buildings and streets. A city. There were even bustling groups of people below them. Soon, the peaks of most buildings had risen around them…
The sixteen teens then felt the stinging, blasting sensation of cold water as they landed. Their world became confusing and disoriented as it swirled up around them, a mix of swirling blue and muffled sounds. After struggling to find which way was up, they all popped up on the surface, gasping like fish.
"UGH! This water is below freezing! Where are we, Antarctica?"
"I thought Hell would be hotter than this…" Pauline muttered as she poked her head above the water.
"Aren't you ever grateful?" Rosalina asked with disgust.
"Who cares? We're alive!" Wario cheered. "YES! It's good to be alive!"
"Wow…we seriously lived…I just can't believe it…" Rain rambled.
"Falling…falling…falling…falling…falling…" Madison was repeating, cradling herself in the fetal position in the water.
"Ha! I knew that Isabelle would have something for us to land in!" Mr. L exclaimed. "But where the heck are we?"
"I know." Iggy muttered in shock, looking up with the most bewildered look on his face.
"Well? Spit it out!"
"Look up there…" Iggy raised a shaky finger out of the water and pointed up. Most of the contestants followed his gaze, and similarly, their eyes widened and jaws dropped.
Farther away from them, but still towering enough for their shadow to fall on them, were two crystalline towers. They were twin towers; both exactly the same, wide at the bases and growing thinner towards the top, climaxing in pinnacle antennas. There was a skybridge between them, and the towers themselves were of a silvery color that glowed in the sun. The shadow of one was draped over the teens in the pool of water.
"Do you know what those are?" Iggy exclaimed as he already started climbing from the pool of water, onto some nearby rocks. The others followed suit.
"I know." Mr. L replied. "The Petronas Twin Towers."
"Precisely, my friend! We're in Sunset Heights, Dawn Kingdom! Yes!" Iggy pumped his fists into the air, his wet shirt clinging to his soaking body, and his hair a flattened mess. Specks of water clung to his glasses. It was quite a hilarious sight; as messed up as he was, he was still celebrating.
"What are the Twin Towers?" Susan asked dimwittedly. "Weren't those, like, destroyed by plane-."
"NO!" Iggy shot back quickly, interrupting her. "These Twin Towers were constructed much later." He then went into an intelligent-sounding, narrative voice. "Constructed from 1992 to 1998, these two buildings together were the tallest in the world, surpassing Rabbit Ridge's Carrot Tower. In 2004, they were upstaged by the Taipei 101, but still remain the third-tallest building in the world. They have approximately 88 floors and are approximately 1482.6 feet tall, or 451.9 meters. They are a popular destination for skydivers, building-climbers, and other thrill-seekers."
"That's right! And you are today's thrill-seekers!"
The contestants, some still in the water and some on the perfectly-situated rocks around them, looked over as Isabelle walked up.
"Welcome to Sunset Heights! As Napoleon here pretty much already laid it all down for ya'll, there's really no need to explain any more. But he's right; today's challenge will involve these here Twin Behemoths in the sky: The Petronas Towers! These landmarks are ours to use just for this one day, and we can do whatever we want with 'em for our liking and filming…as long as no one dies."
The last comment sent nervous glances through Isabelle audience.
''Half an hour later…''
The sixteen teens, and Isabelle, were standing on a large wooden platform that had been crudely and poorly attached to the antenna of the east tower. It was square, with a hole in the middle for what little remaining part of the pinnacle of the tower to go through. There were long, thick wooden beams underneath that went from the bottom of the platform into the side of the thick antennas, and did not look securely attached. Most of the contestants even swore that they could feel the platform swaying in the wind.
But that wasn't the worst part.
The contestants were all staring, wide-eyed, at the long tightrope stretching from their platform all the way to a similar, matching platform attached to the opposite antenna on the west tower. Isabelle stood before the tightrope, a bundle of balancing poles on the floor next to him, and the smuggest of grins on his face.
"No…way!"
"Now we're really gonna die hard!"
"My heels will never fit on that flimsy little rope!"
"I'd like to express some concern over the safety of…"
"All of your stupid questions' are answered by what you see, punks! Two huge, matching towers and a free day to have them to ourselves? You think we were gonna miss out on this? As if! So, you will be tightrope-walking from here to the other tower. You may use a balancing pole if you so wish, but be careful; the poles were expensive!"
Lavatory Confessional
Wendy – Jerk.
Iggy – Cool! Sunset Heights! This is awesome! I've always wanted to study the intriguing architecture of the Petronas Towers…well, now I'll get to study them, alright. In a way I never would've wanted to! Heh, heh…gulp.
Mr. L – Tightrope-walking between two of the tallest buildings in the world? Bring it on!
Isabel – (One bare foot up on the sink, and a high-heel shoe in her hand) See this? This will never be able to balance on that skimpy excuse for a tightrope! I can't do this!
Pauline – We survived falling once; let's see if there's a children's water park beneath this.
"Wait, Isabelle!"
"What is it, Drama King?"
"What are the team arrangements for this challenge? Or is this just a free-for-all?"
"Oh, yeah! I almost forgot…see, your teams are the same ones that you all picked last week!"
"Say what now?"
"You're kidding, right?"
"I just didn't tell you that those were official arrangements! Yep, your teams based on last episode's pick are the three official teams for this season! I just told you that would be a one-time arrangement so that you would be more randomly mixed, because you wouldn't care who you were with, thinkin' it was just for one day. So you could be stuck with your worst enemy, for all we know, and now you're with them for the whole season!"
Lavatory Confessional
Logan – Man. That guy is good.
"Now quit your whining and get with your respective teams! Take a few minutes to come up with a team name."
"This is a load of bull!" Pauline exclaimed. "I didn't want to be on this team all season!"
"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" Rosalina asked angrily, putting her hands on her hips.
Pauline quickly went on the defensive. "Ah! No, eh! I didn't mean it like that!" She then leaned closer to her. "I just can't stand Napoleon over there. He's a little creepy, eh."
"What do you…?" She looked over at Iggy, who was leaning against the antenna of the tower. He slowly brushed his fingers along the slick metal, then sniffed his fingers. "Hm, the paint is growing a little dry."
She leaned in to Pauline. "I see what you mean. Just try to deal with it, alright?" She gave her a quick, reassuring pat on the shoulder. "At least you're not over on that team."
She gestured over to the girls' team, where a heated debate over the name was going up.
"I'm telling you, 'Team Glamour' is the best name!" Isabel protested.
"And I'm telling you, it should be 'Team Dominance'!"
"What about Team Amazon?"
"Uh, Susan? That name has been used already."
"I think, maybe, it should be Team-."
"SHUT UP!" The girls yelled back in Logan's face.
"And…Time's up!" Isabelle declared. "Team names?"
"Team Victory II!" Wario and Mr. L simultaneously declared over on their team. "As an homage to the original Team Victory," Mr. L explained, "only we will actually win more challenges, unlike those pathetic losers from last season."
"Team Madison." Madison promptly declared before the others could even say anything.
"What?"
"It's the superior choice. Trust me."
"Fair enough!" Isabelle declared before anyone else could protest.
Meanwhile, the members of Team Three were still torn.
"This is ridiculous!" Rosalina explained. "We need more time."
"How about Team Rabid?"
"Or Team Clever?"
"Just say Team Sahara and get on with it." Blayke declared.
"Team Sahara? Ooooh, that has a nice tune to it." Mona agreed.
"Eh, it sounds good to me."
"Fine." Isabelle quickly interjected. "You guys are Team Sahara. OK, now that we've got all that settled, it's time to get on with the challenge. Team Victory II, you're up first. You can all choose which person goes first."
"I'm not going until you tell us what safety arrangements you've made to properly insure the non-lethality of this task." Wendy declared.
"Fine. Crybaby. If you must know, you'll all have to wear these parachutes." Chef then pulled out an example, which looked exactly like the one Tanooki had to wear before…
"You will wear these, and if you do start to fall, deploy it to save your life. Isabelle will drift softly, slowly, and safely to the ground below. That 'safe' enough for ya?"
"Relatively."
"Good. I'm glad to hear it. Now send someone up!"
"I'll go."
Mr. L approached Isabelle, taking the offered parachute and balancing pole, and stood at the start of the tightrope. He held out the pole, taking a few moments to position it just right. It wobbled for a moment, so he straightened it out. Behind him, Isabelle tapped her foot.
"Anytime…"
"I know." Mr. L shot back quickly. He inhaled deeply, then took his first step onto the rope.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" Isabelle called after him. "The forecasts predicted winds at roughly thirty miles per hour today!"
Mr. L stopped dead in his tracks, one foot on the rope, as he heard the distinctive rushing of wind kick up as if on cue. He quickly brandished the balancing pole, straightening out.
"Whoa!"
The others watched in mute astonishment as Mr. L started to tilt. But he managed to pick up the balance and place his other foot on the rope carefully. He slowly took another step forward, swaying briefly. Then another step.
"Don't want to lose…don't want to lose…" He continuously muttered to himself with each step.
Before anyone else knew it, he was halfway across.
"That's it, L! Don't stop!" Wendy called after him.
Mr. L didn't acknowledge his girlfriend, but instead simply stared straight forward, continuing to move towards the end.
"My God, he's actually doin' it!" Isabelle exclaimed in shock. "We thought he'd fall after the first step, especially considering how heavy that parachute must be…"
Mr. L's eyes widened, and he paused suddenly. He gulped at the realization that the pack was heavy. Or maybe it only seemed to get heavier…
Mr. L shook it off and continued moving, now three quarters of the way across.
He took several steps more, now finding himself just three steps from the end. Everyone was watching nervously. Mr. L, with a new resolve, did the unthinkable: He dropped the balancing pole and leapt the remaining distance. However, in doing the jump, he took one foot off the rope completely to lean back, so that he would gain more momentum. However, just as his remaining foot started to lift up off the rope, a gust of wind kicked up, and the foot slipped halfway through. Thus, the jump was not nearly as high or long as he hoped it would be, and he was falling before he even began to jump.
Everyone, even Madison, gasped in shock, then horror, when they saw him start to fall past the rope.
"L!" Wendy called in fear.
Mr. L's mind was racing fast, evaluating his situation in less than a millisecond. Looking up, he could see the platform's edge right there, in front of his face. Then, a moment later, it was above him, rising away from him. Only at the last second did he reach up with his right hand and manage to grab onto the edge of the wooden platform. He kicked his legs wildly as he dangled, then swung his other arm up to grab hold as well. He could hear the collected intake of breath from the others behind him. He was holding on with only his palms, but he had a solid determination. He started using his upper-body strength to lift himself up onto the weak, old wooden platform.
To everyone's immediate shock (and relief, for some), Mr. L actually managed to pull himself up onto the platform completely. Almost instantly he leapt to his feet, tore the parachute off his back, and chucked it down into the chasm, where the pack fluttered to the ground below.
"YEAH! Boo-yah! How's that for determination? I just defied death! Take that Isabelle, and your stupid 30 mile-per-hour winds!" Mr. L was jumping up and down eagerly, pumping his fists into the air.
Several of the contestants laughed at this, while Isabelle looked both horrified and angry. "You…you stupid, cocky little brat! You just ruined a good balancing pole and parachute! I told you to take special care of that equipment, dang it! You know what? I'm gonna automatically declare you disqualified from this challenge for that!"
"WHAT? You can't be serious!"
"I can, and I am. I'm the host; so you do whatever I tell you to!" Before the fuming Mr. L could reply, Isabelle spun around to the others, who were mainly staring in disbelief. "I make good on my word, and that little stunt was an outrage! So that point does not count!"
Most of Team Victory II groaned in frustration, but Wendy glanced back at Matthew. One millisecond of a glance at his face at that moment, and Wendy never looked at Mr. L the same way again.
Lavatory Confessional
Mr. L – (everything he says is a long string of bleeps)
Wendy – (looking suspiciously at the sink, which is dented and battered severely) What could've…? Never mind. Yeah, it's L. Something's seriously wrong with him. I mean, I know that what Isabelle did was totally unfair, but Matthew shouldn't care this much about the game. Why is he acting so competitive? I hope that I can clear this up with him soon…I never want to see his face like that ever again.
"OK, Team Madison; you're up next! Send over one member!"
"I'll do it." Almost instantly, the team's self-elected leader grabbed a parachute, picked up a pole, and advanced towards the rope. The various members of her team didn't know whether to be concerned or hopeful were she to fail.
Madison took a step onto the wavering rope, unfazed by the sudden rush of wind. She was just as determined as Mr. L had been, but now knew what to avoid, and how to not make the same mistakes Mr. L had. She swallowed nervously, then took another step forward. She slowly weighed out the balancing pole when it started to tilt. She lifted one foot up and balanced precariously. She heard a few gasps behind her. She slowly put the foot back down and took two more quick steps.
And then, quick as a wink, it happened. Madison didn't know what happened, whether she got scared, lost her balance, or if it was just the wind. All she remembered was falling to the side, the pole slipping from her hands as she started to tumble.
She could've sworn she could actually hear some cheers above her. But she had to ignore it for now. Grinding her teeth nervously, she reached to her side and felt around the parachute as the wind whistled around her. She eventually managed to find the two ropes, and quickly pulled the left one first, then the right. She could hear the whooshing sound, followed by the sharp tug as she jerked up quickly, then the feeling of resistance as her speed decreased suddenly. She grabbed onto the straps as she floated the rest of the way down.
They all watched when the white parachute finally deployed, and Madison floated down gently to the ground. They could see her hit the ground, followed by the parachute covering her. Squinting hard enough, they could see the enraged girl tear out from under the chute and look back up at them.
Isabelle walked over to the massive antenna at the center of the platform, where there was a small speaker attached to a long wire, similar to a typical radio. The wire ran down beneath the platform, beyond where anyone else could see it.
Isabelle pressed a small black button on the side and spoke into it. "Yo, girl! Can you hear me?"
He released the button, and after a moment, Madison's voice shot back up at them. "You jerks! Now I'm stuck all the way down here! What do I do now? How can I even talk to you right now? Where are you?"
"Listen up! I'm communicating with you through a small radio that's attached to your parachute pack. You probably can't see it, but you can still speak to me through it. This is how I'll communicate with you suckers down there!"
"OK, so what am I supposed to do down here?"
"Just sit tight! We'll send our helicopter down to pick you up and take you up to the platform that you were heading for! Oh, and by the way, you didn't score any points for your team."
"Oh, gee, ya think? I'm pretty sure I had that figured out for myself!"
"I know. I just like reminding you of your failures."
"Why you stupid little-."
Isabelle quickly pressed down on the button on her speaker again, cutting off Madison's rude message.
"OK, so while she's getting picked up, it's time for Team Sahara to send someone over!"
A few seconds passed, and no one said a word. After a moment, however, Iggy buffed out his chest, trying to look manly and tough, and boldly said, "I'll do it!"
He walked over and took the parachute Isabelle handed him. Iggy studied it for a moment, a confused look on his face.
"Wait…so there's actually a radio in here?"
"That's what I said, smart one!"
"So…that's the reason you want us to take such good care of them?"
"Yep."
"And it's why you disqualified L for ruining it?"
"Bingo."
"Oh, yeah, sure!" Mr. L yelled across the chasm. "Now you tell me!"
"Shut up, kid!" Isabelle yelled back. "I'm still mad at you! Just zip it and watch!"
Chef then grabbed the nearest pole and handed it to Iggy, who had just finished putting on the parachute. However, the moment Chef placed the pole in Iggy's hands, he almost instantly buckled under its weight.
"Augh! Gosh, how heavy is this thing?"
"It's not that heavy!" Mr. L yelled across. "I was able to carry it across! Madison was able to carry it across! So you should be just fine!"
But Iggy still wasn't convinced. Several of the others truly knew that it was too much for his weak, skimpy frame. His knees were shaking, and he was already sweating.
"Iggy…you can't do this." Katelyn told him immediately.
"No! I can! It's been one of my dreams to see this fascinating architecture; what better way to really get closer to it than putting your life on a tightrope walk between them?"
"Iggy…that doesn't make much sense."
"I don't care! I'm doing-."
At that moment, Iggy started to take the first step onto the rope. However, he missed the rope completely, as he wasn't even looking where he was going. His deep, raspy scream immediately followed as he tumbled down. As far as the others could tell, he wasn't making any effort to deploy his parachute. And one girl in particular noticed this instantly.
"ISAIAH!" Katelyn screamed down after him. Without even thinking, she jumped after him, much to everyone's shock.
"Wow…now there's an obsessive fangirl." Pauline muttered.
Isabelle actually had a brief bit of concern in her eyes. However, the contestants soon found out why.
"Aw, man! She can't die! She's one of the newbies! Newbies are major drama-bringers, and we've already lost one!"
Down below, Katelyn was dipping down to fly closer to Iggy, who was still panicking and screaming wildly, flailing his arms and legs.
"IGGY! DEPLOY YOUR PARACHUTE!"
"How?"
"Like this!"
Katelyn then reached over and grabbed the two strings one each side of his parachute. She pulled the left one first, then the right. The white chute shot up, jerking them both up briefly. Katelyn grabbed onto Iggy for dear life, since she wasn't attached to the parachute like he was.
"Katelyn, what are you doing? Why did you jump down after me?"
Katelyn, still clinging tightly to Isaiah awkwardly, answered. "I could see that you were too panicked to deploy the parachute. I didn't want to watch you die."
"How did you know that…"
"It says on your online bio that there have been multiple significant instances in your life where you could've solved the problem with the slightest bit of common sense, or the answer was staring right at you, but you were too panicked to think."
"Really? Like what?"
"Well, there was the time that you started a fire in your school's chemistry lab when you were a sophomore, and you happened to be at the desk right next to the fire extinguisher. But you were so scared you didn't know what to do, and you got a burn in the second degree on your right arm."
"Uh…that's…right. How did you…?"
"Like I said, your online bio."
"But…I've seen my online bio; it's not that detailed."
"Oh…well, maybe it was the bio in your own fan club on the Internet, which I happen to be the President and founder of."
"Oh…huh."
Lavatory Confessional
Iggy – It was cool of Anna to save me like that…but how does she know so much about my personal life? That incident scarred me forever; and there weren't even many people around when it happened, since it happened right in the middle of sick season! It was kept away from all the papers, and everyone else swore they'd never say anything about it! How did she know all of that stuff about me? Oh, God…I hope she's not a…(gulps nervously) Sierra-type.
Katelyn – Yeah, maybe I creeped Isaiah out a little back there. I really should tone it down a notch. It's a good thing I didn't mention the time that his aunt's cat attacked him, and on the counter next to him was a box of fresh cat nip, but he instead simply ran around the house until there were scratches all over his face. Or this one other time where-.
The two members of Team Sahara finally fluttered down to the ground, landing near where Madison was. The parachute fell on top of them, and they both fumbled around a moment before Iggy tossed it off. Much to his surprise, Katelyn was still clinging to him.
"Uh…Katelyn? You can let go now."
"Huh? Oh! Sorry." She quickly let go of him, and Iggy brushed himself off.
"Enjoy your flight, lovebirds?"
"What? We're not lovebirds! Gosh!"
"Yeah! And besides, you shouldn't be making fun of animals as cute as lovebirds! Have you ever seen one?"
"You think all animals are cute, weirdo."
"For your information-."
The argument was cut short when a massive thumping approached them, kicking up wind and drowning out all other sounds. The three teens, shielding their eyes, turned around as the familiar, red and yellow-striped bubble helicopter slowly touched down. A fairly well-built intern, about five-six, with long blonde hair, blue shorts, and a white, sleeveless shirt, was piloting it.
"Hello, kids!" He yelled over a speaker in the helicopter. "I'm Carl, the intern who's in charge of taking you back up to the top of the tower!"
"Carl, huh? Fine." Madison mumbled quickly.
She climbed into the cockpit next to the friendly intern, who smiled.
"Enjoy the trip down?"
"Bite me."
"No, I wasn't being sarcastic! Really; it's a thrill to parachute down. At least, on this show, if you're not doing it after being eliminated. It's kind of an adrenaline rush."
"Maybe, but it also means I lost the challenge! Just get me out of here!"
"Wait! What about us?" Katelyn called to him.
"Yeah! There's not enough room for all four of us!" Iggy agreed.
"Oh, you can just grab onto the landing struts! And hang on tight!"
"That's encouraging." Iggy muttered.
"Hey, at least we do get a ride back up." Katelyn replied.
"But what if we let go?"
"Just hang onto me! I've got a strong grip!"
Iggy raised an eyebrow. He opened his mouth to speak, but Katelyn was already sitting on the landing strut, grabbing on tightly. "Come on! You don't want to be left behind, do you? Do you?"
"Ugh. Fine."
Iggy walked over and sat down next to her. His still-sweating palms gripped the metal strut tightly, so tightly that his knuckles were turning white.
The helicopter slowly started to lift up, and there was a brief jerking motion that nearly made Isaiah fall over. He felt a hand grip his shoulder and pull him back up.
"Whoa! Uh…thanks, again, Katelyn."
"I told you; hang on tighter!"
"Alright, fine! Gosh!" He squeezed the struts even harder, his fingernails digging into his palms as they were wrapped completely around the metal pole. By now, they were well above the ground, at least by eighty feet. The sleek, shiny, metal and glass facade of the East Tower rising up past them…
''Meanwhile…''
Isabelle's radio crackled, and he picked it up and pressed the button. "Isabelle here. What is it, Carl? Over."
"I've got the three kids and am heading up. Over."
"Roger that. You know where to drop them off. Over."
"Yes, sir. I do. But one question, sir? Over."
"What might that be? Over."
"Do we have to keep saying 'Over' like this? Over."
"YES! We do! Because I happen to LIKE saying it! And you will too! Over!"
"Copy that, sir. Over and out."
As Isabelle placed the radio back in her pocket, she turned back to the contestants.
"OK, so here's the rundown as of this point: Even though that animal-lover girl didn't even get her turn yet…we're just gonna go ahead and say that her jumping off like that counts as falling off, so neither her nor Napoleon scored any points for Team Sahara. So, as of right now, four people have gone, and no points are on the board yet. Team Victory II, you're up next! Send over another member!"
After a few long moments, Wendy slowly stepped forward. Without a word, she donned the parachute, grabbed the pole, and stood before the long rope.
"That's it, Wendy! You can do this!" Rain called encouragingly.
"Yeah! Go Wendy!" Wario added.
"Don't screw this up, Wendy!" Mr. L yelled over. "I could do it, so you can, too!"
Wendy took a deep breath, then slowly stepped onto the rope. She seemed to do surprisingly well, as her steps were long, quick, swift, and graceful. Once or twice, she started to stumble. But ultimately, she made it across without any long pauses.
"And with that, High-IQ scores the first point! Team Victory II now has one point, while the others have zilch!"
"YES! That's what I'm talking about!" Mr. L cheered. "Nice work, Wendy!"
"Thank you. It was actually pretty exhilarating."
"OK. Team Madison: Your turn again!"
All of the members refused to even say anything. Everyone took a step back…except for a certain cell-phone-a-holic.
"Ah! And Cell Phone Girl steps up to the plate!"
Toadette didn't even move.
"Toadette! Go!" Skyler encouraged.
Toadette barely lifted her head as she walked right over. With one hand still texting, she reached down with the other and picked up a parachute. She put it on, and resumed her texting. She then started walking right down the middle of the rope with no pole.
Everyone gasped incredulously.
"No pole?"
"She's nuts!"
"She's not even looking where she's going!"
"She's dead."
Toadette continued her dull, unfazed walk across the swaying rope. She was just at the point of no return, the dead center of the rope, when the unthinkable happened. The wind kicked up, and the small screen of her phone, with her forming messages on it, froze. Toadette did the exact same, stopping dead in her tracks. The screen shook for a moment, lines of thick static stretching across it. Then, a white box appeared, with two cursed words in it.
"No…service?" She squeaked.
"Toadette! Why'd you stop?"
"What's wrong?"
She repeated the last two words again, in a drastically different tone.
"NO…SERVICE! I've gotta get off this stupid rope!"
And, with that, she let herself lean to one side and fall off the rope. The moment her feet left the rope and she started free-falling, the whit box disappeared, and a smile returned to her face.
"Ah! That's better."
She then resumed texting.
"HEY! PSYCHO GIRL!" Isabelle called down to her. "YOUR PARACHUTE!"
With one hand, she pulled the left string first, then the right. She already had her other hand back on the phone by the time the chute was fully deployed.
As she floated down, eyes never straying from her phone, Isabelle shook her head. "Kids and their toys these days…OK, so Team Madison is down two players with zero points. Team Sahara, you're next! And you better make good with this next one; you've also lost two players."
"Game on." Rosalina said firmly as she walked over.
"Are you sure you can do this, eh? I never pictured you as the physical type." Pauline admitted.
Mary, parachute strapped on and pole in hand, turned to her girlfriend. "Oh, really? Watch and learn."
She then began to walk across the rope. Pauline actually raised an eyebrow at how quickly she was moving, and how agile she seemed. He couldn't help but crack a brief smile.
Lavatory Confessional
Pauline – Man! That girl never ceases to amaze me. That's what I love about her; she's so many different things in one person! She can be an intelligent-talking, perfectionist type one second, and then the world's greatest tightrope-walker the next!
Pauline, as well as the other various members of Team Sahara, watched in astonishment as Rosalina reached the halfway point in under thirty seconds. However, she started to sway nervously when the wind was kicking up, much more powerfully than before. She barely managed to keep both feet on the rope, to the point where it was swaying wildly.
"You call these winds thirty miles per hour?" She called back to Isabelle.
Just then, the real source of the "wind" arrived: The helicopter, with Madison, Iggy, Katelyn, and Carl all onboard. Its propellers sent strong gusts against Rosalina and the rope.
"No! No! Stop!" Rosalina yelled helplessly, moments before she finally lost her footing.
Pauline watched in fear as her girlfriend fell, then sighed with relief when he saw her parachute deploy. As she fluttered safely down, she leaned over to Blayke.
"I didn't learn anything, eh. Did you?"
"Besides how to fall off a rope? Nope." Blayke replied. Both snickered.
"And with the perfectionist's tumble, Team Sahara still has zero, with three people down, and three to go! Next up is Team Victory II…again. Either friendly girl or chubby has to go."
"Oh! I'll do it! This'll be fun!"
Wario, with all of his enthusiasm, failed to notice the general chorus of snickers and giggles behind him.
"Er…actually, on second thought, I dunno about that, kid. Maybe you should just sit this one out."
"No way! I want to have fun, and prove that I can do this! Just gimme a chute and a pole!"
Isabelle sighed. "Fine. It's your funeral."
Wario strapped on the pack, raised the pole, and then started charging towards the rope.
"COWABUNGA!"
Lavatory Confessional
Pauline – That Wario isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, eh.
Isabel – Was there any way at all for us to not see what was coming?
Rain – Poor Wario. His enthusiasm just got the better of him.
Almost instantly, Wario' cry of "Cowabunga" transitioned into a long, hi-pitched scream of pain. He had missed the rope with his first step and fell…only for the rope to be caught between his legs.
Everyone behind him cringed as he continued to scream in pain, which eventually turned to moaning as he slowly bent over.
"The pain…the pain…"
"Hm. He didn't break the rope! Isn't that a mirac-."
Just then, there was a loud snapping sound, and the rope gave way. James immediately plummeted straight to earth, barely managing to reach up with one hand to pull both strings, one after the other, and deploy his parachute. Wario was still groaning in pain and clutching where it hurt when he landed.
"O…K…that looked like it really hurt." Isabelle stated. Most of the contestants could only nod, still staring down incredulously.
"Well, uh, we've gotta fix the rope right now…so just talk amongst yourselves until we get this whole thing sorted out. And just a rundown: The score is now one to zero to zero, Team Victory II's favor. Team Victory II is down to only one person, while Team Madison is down to four people, and Team Sahara has three people left." Isabelle then turned to the cameraman. "Will someone else actually be able to score another point, or will they all fail miserably and take the tumble? Which team will win this challenge, and which teams won't? Find out right after this!"
After a moment, the cameraman lifted up his head. "And…we're good."
"Good! Now get on the horn with Carl!" She tossed the radio to the cameraman. "And tell him that he needs to get his little birdie up here so that someone can properly fix the rope! Tell him to pick up the other kids first."
Several of the girls started conversing almost instantly, forming their own little tight huddle.
"There's no way in the name of fashion that I can do this! My heels won't get a good grip! And what if one falls off? These cost, like, three hundred dollars!" Isabel complained again.
"Where'd you get them?" Skyler asked, looking down at the fancy shoes in fascination.
"They were a birthday present from my mom. I never asked where she got them, because I don't care. I consider them to be my seventeenth finest pair, after the other sixteen: Three that are fine brown leather with studded diamonds, two that are a ruby red, one that's fine Lochladies silk…"
"Oh! Lochladies silk is so cool! I have a blanket made of that, and it's so comfy!"
"I have curtains, towels, and two pairs of socks made out of it!"
"I wonder what the difference is between Lochladies silk and regular silk, anyway?"
"Well, duh! It's from the Lake Kingdom!"
"So…why don't we just call our own silk American silk?"
Logan, off to the side, groaned. Even though he didn't have to be near them, he couldn't escape their loud, high-pitched, excited voices and nonstop chatter; the platform was too small, and their conversation easily dominated over all others. Logan walked over to the antenna and started banging his head repeatedly against the metal.
Meanwhile, a certain redhead was off to the side. He happened to notice Logan's dismay over the girls' nonstop, irrelevant, and annoying chatter.
Lavatory Confessional
Logan – So, they go from talking about hi-heels…to talking about different names of silk. And I'm stuck with this, for an entire season. I'm going to go nuts! I seriously…cannot stand this! Just the very thought of it…it…ARGH! (starts banging his head against the sink repeatedly)
Wendy – (staring at the sink and scratching her head) Is it just me…or is this thing even more banged-up than it was before?
Cockpit Confessional
Blayke – It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out; Logan is the only guy on that team, and he can't stand the girls that he's with. Similarly, I can't stand the team I'm with due to hardly any of the members being worthy, or willing, of an alliance. So, of course, I was willing to lend a hand in a way that would benefit both of us.
As Logan was banging his head, Blayke silently strode up to him. Logan wasn't even aware of the redhead's presence until he heard the clearing of a throat.
The Drama King stopped the head-banging and looked up.
"What do you want? Can't you see I'm kind of busy right now?"
"I couldn't help but notice your…ah, predicament. I'm willing to help you out."
"Ha! The only way you can help me out at this point is if you either throw me off this building, or…"
"Offered to switch teams?"
Logan perked up instantly. "You…seriously would?"
"Yes. I have much more patience with annoying girls. After all, I have three younger sisters."
"Wow! That would be awesome of you, dude!" Logan exclaimed eagerly.
"No problem. Now, we just need to get Isabelle over here…"
Both boys suddenly gasped in shock when the host was already there, towering over them.
"I couldn't help but overhearing your little chat. What's all this about swapping teams? I don't usually allow something this irregular."
"No! Please, man! I'm begging you! I have to get off this team!" Logan pleaded.
"And why should I be nice to you?"
Almost instantly, Blayke took a firm hold of Isabelle's arm and dragged off to the side, away from everyone else. With unbelievable strength, he yanked Isabelle's huge head down to his own, and leaned in so that his mouth was next to Isabelle's ear in an instant.
"Listen closely, Major Pain. You've heard my Confessionals; you know what I'm up to. I told you that I could bring serious ratings to this show. If you know what's good for you, and the show, you'll allow this swap. Trust me; me mixed in with those girls will make for some big drama. More than you can imagine. It will draw in ratings like a magnet. So just let me and Louis switch, or else you'll regret it."
He released Isabelle, who stood back up. Ordinarily, the dog would've been enraged at being treated like such, but she took Blayke's words into consideration. He tapped his chin in thought for a moment, reflecting on all the promises that Blayke had made in the Confessional since the season began…
"OK, deal! You two can switch!"
"SERIOUSLY? YES! THANK YOU!" Logan cheered enthusiastically, jumping up and down like a giddy school boy. He turned towards Team Sahara almost instantly, and greeted them with open arms (literally).
"Hello, my new team!"
"And hello, Team Madison." Blayke said with a confident smile as he approached them.
Meanwhile, across the chasm, everyone else (at that point, consisting of Mr. L, Wendy, Wario, Toadette, Madison, Rosalina, Katelyn, and Iggy) could also hear the exchange, mainly due to Logan's loud and enthusiastic cheers. And a certain someone was not pleased with the swap.
Lavatory Confessional
Madison – Rats. I cannot believe that Isabelle actually allowed this! I didn't mind having that Logan on my team, but this guy? There's something about him…I'm sure most of us still have his arrival well in mind. I have a feeling that he's up to something. And in this game, you always trust your gut.
Logan – YES! The miracle that I was praying for all this time! The universe ISN'T out to get me! YES! Thank you, Blayke!
Cockpit Confessional
Blayke – Is this a good team? Pfft. No. But, is it a potential strong, post-merge alliance? Yes. And besides; I'm confident that many challenges this season won't involve completely physical challenges, like today's. And if it is a challenge that mainly focuses on determination, mental strength, or psyche, then I'll be sure to motivate this team enough to win it, or at least avoid having to send someone home. That's the advantage to there being three different possible outcomes for a team in each challenge this season. You either win it, lose it, or lose it and have to boot someone. Overall, it's a fairly clever strategy, but one that balances on a lot of "ifs." Still, I'm confident in succeeding. Nothing will stop me.
"And we're on in four…three…two…!" The cameraman silently pointed at Isabelle, the sign that they were rolling.
"And welcome back to Total Drama Mario World Tour! We've finally managed to get the rope fixed, and we're ready to pick up where we left off! But first, I need to inform you all of something very important: During the commercial break, I decided to allow two of these punks to switch teams! That's right, being the kind and courteous gentleman I am, I agreed to let Logan move over to Team Sahara, and Blayke to Team Madison! So…yeah. Nothing really different for either team; still just another guy on each team, and it won't affect their status in the challenge…yet. So it's Team Madison's turn, once again!"
Chef turned to the team, now consisting of only Isabel, Skyler, Susan, and Blayke.
"Send someone up!"
"I'll do it." Skyler said, with a look of firm determination on her face.
"Oh, boy." Blayke mumbled, rolling his eyes.
Skyler walked up, oblivious to the snickers and chuckles behind her as she took her parachute and pole. The moment she walked off, Isabelle burst into a laughing fit.
"Oh, man! This is gonna be just as good as when Fat Boy did it!"
Skyler raised the pole and took a step…
…only to miss the rope.
The same basic routine: She fell and screamed for a short while before she deployed her parachute. As she started to fall, she could only do one thing: Curse herself for doing it again all while free-falling for several hundred feet.
"NO! DARN IT DARN IT DARN IT DARN IT DARN IT!"
Lavatory Confessional
Skyler – (Nearly sobbing) I can't stand it! I want to prove to people that I'm not a klutz! Everyone remembers me as "Clumsy Girl," or "Klutzy," or "Miss Three Left Feet" on this show! I'm sick of it! Oh, I wish there was a way I could redeem myself!
"And with the Klutz's fall, Team Madison is down to three! Team Sahara is up next!"
Without a single word, Pauline stepped forward, snatched a parachute, put it on, and walked up to the rope.
"Wait up, kid! You forgot your pole!" Isabelle said to her, holding out one of the balancing poles.
Pauline simply turned and looked back with a grin. "Watch me, eh."
And with that, Pauline did the same thing that Toadette did: She walked right out onto the rope, no balancing pole save for her own two arms.
Once again, there was a rise of gasps behind her.
"She's dead."
Across the way, all of those who had either made it across or failed watch with incredulous looks, even Madison and L had to raise their eyebrows. Rosalina watched with a fearful look, eyes wide. She was nearly to the point where she was about to start biting her fingernails.
But Pauline remained completely nonchalant and casual as she walked across, her movements swift, synchronized, and perfect. Whenever the rope swayed, she swayed with it. She slowed down when the winds really kicked up, then picked up the pace once they died down. She maintained her dull look, eyes straight ahead and locked on the end.
Then, before anyone else knew it, she was at the end. She nonchalantly removed the parachute and dropped it at his feet.
After a moment of pause for it to sink in, there was a burst of cheers from both sides, even from rival teams, in congratulations to his incredible feat. Rosalina immediately ran up to her and hugged her.
"Pauline! That was amazing! No pole or anything! That was just…incredible!"
"I'll say!" Iggy agreed. "That was awesome! That was reminiscent of the great French tightrope-walker Philippe Petit!"
"It was nothing, eh. Really."
"And, for once, a point has finally been scored again!" Isabelle declared. "Team Sahara is now on the board, and tied with Team Victory II for the lead, with one each! Team Madison is still in the dust with zero!"
This earned more cheers from the two tied teams, and glares from the members of the losing team.
Lavatory Confessional
Logan – (Wiping sweat off his brow) Phew! Did you see that? MAN, am I glad that I made that switch! Not only with the multiple failures on my old team, but now someone actually scores a point for this team? As incredibly as Pauline did! This was the best choice ever! Hello, first-class!
"OK, so Team Sahara still has two members left! Team Madison has only three. So, Team Victory II…or should I say, the only remaining member of Team Victory II? You're up!"
Rain swallowed nervously and closed her eyes.
Remember what Tanooki said…I can do this. I can do this…
She slowly approached Isabelle and grabbed a parachute, followed by the balancing pole. She approached the rope.
All the members of Team Victory II across the way watched nervously as she paused, closing her eyes, sighing, saying a quick, final prayer in her mind. She slowly opened her eyes and took a step. She gasped as she seemed to hang in midair for a second…then realized that she had stepped onto the rope. One foot was ahead of the other, and she was holding the balancing pole just right.
Not daring to look down, she took another step forward, then another. Before she knew what she was doing, she was going at a remarkable, considerably fast pace. Even Pauline raised a stunned eyebrow at the sight.
And then she was on the other side.
There was a long pause before the eruption of applause.
"And with that, all members of Team Victory II have crossed, with half of them actually making it! Their final score is 2!"
"Rain, that was amazing!" Wendy congratulated her friend.
"Thanks…I don't know what happened." She replied, clearly amazed at herself and still maintaining a calm demeanor. "I just got out there and…did it."
"Well, you just keep 'doing it' like you did, and we'll win!" Mr. L said, albeit curtly, but encouragingly nonetheless.
"Time for Team Madison! Who's up?"
"I'll do it!" Susan said.
She ran up and snatched one of the poles and parachutes. She held the pole in one hand, dragging it along the wooden platform, and the parachute in the other, holding it by one of its straps.
"Wait…how do I put this parachute on again?"
"Like a backpack." Blayke said to her, rolling his eyes.
"Ugh. I hate school."
Then, before she knew it, she was falling; as she had been walking along while talking, looking at the parachute in confusion, without even looking where she was going.
Blayke simply facepalmed as she fell, screaming, before the parachute deployed.
"O…K…" The stunned Isabelle slowly stuttered. "I…guess that counts. Team Sahara…you're next."
"I'll go…if you don't mind?" Logan said to Mona. "If you want to go first, it's…"
"No, no. Please do."
"Alright."
Longag casually approached Isabelle, donned the parachute, and accepted the pole.
"Don't worry; I had to do something similar for a play I was in."
"Except that was probably no more than ten feet off the ground!" Isabel shot back. "This is over 1,000 feet, you idiot!"
"All in good time. It's just a matter of balance and precision. In fact, the very thought of losing your balance is in the mind. You just distribute your weight evenly, and before you know it, you're…"
And then, he was on the other side.
"…across." He gave the remaining three a sly smile, having crossed the long rope while finishing that conversation, and not even faltering in his balance or speed.
"Whoa." Mona murmured.
"The score is tied once again! Team Sahara and Team Victory II both have two points, and the former still has one member to go. Team Madison, or should I call ya, Team Failure, you'd better pick up the pace and send someone up! If one more person fails, you automatically lose this first challenge. So, who's it gonna be?"
"I nominate Isabel." Blayke said nonchalantly.
"What? No!" She cried back in protest. "I nominate Blayke!"
"One of you's gotta go. And when you gotta go, you gotta-."
"OK, shut up." Blayke hissed. He then turned to the prom queen, grabbed a handful of her hundreds of earrings, and yanked her close.
"Ow!"
"Shut up and listen to me. You said you want to redeem your poor performance last time, right?"
"Right, I guess. Quit pulling on me!"
"Shut up and keep it down. Now, you want to last farther, right?"
"Duh!"
"So, if you want to do that, you'll have to prove yourself a worthy teammate. To do that, you must do…this…challenge. Capiche?"
"I…I guess so."
"Good." He then released her earrings. "Now get up there and show them who's boss!" He yelled in an encouraging, enthusiastic voice. "You can do this, Isabel!"
She glared back at him as she approached the rope, taking the balancing pole and parachute.
"I told you, I can't do this in my hi-heels!"
"Then take 'em off, girl!" Isabelle muttered, clearly as annoyed as everyone else there.
She hesitated for a moment, then slowly reached down and removed one boot, then the other. Tossing the overpriced brown boots aside, she approached the rope in her bare feet.
"You don't even wear socks?" Logan asked in slight disbelief.
"Well duh! Socks are so lame and overrated."
And with that, she took the first step onto the rope. She swayed briefly, but maintained her footing, whimpering and nearly sobbing before she even began. When the other foot left the safety of the platform and touched down on the rope, all of her weight rested on that rope.
And that was not comfortable for her bare feet.
"Oh…ow! Ow, ow! Augh! This thing's digging into my feet!"
"Just ignore the pain and focus on the game! You can do this!"
"Oh…"
She lifted one foot and took another step, with the platform still at an arm's length away.
"Ow…OW!" She cried with a fourth step, as she accidentally shifted all of her weight onto that foot, and dug it into the rope.
"AUGH! I can't do this anymore!" She then tossed the pole into the air and started to pivot on her left foot, thus scraping its sole hard against the rope, which resulted in a…
"BURN!" Isabel screamed as she jumped back towards the platform. However, at the moment she pressed off of the rope, the balancing pole came back down and impacted right on her head, thus cutting off her jump. She practically fell straight down, with only one hand managing to grab onto the edge. But even then, such a loose grip (with only three fingers and the top half of her palm) didn't hold well, and her hand slipped right off.
As she plummeted, her scream was cut off by the deployment of her parachute. She jerked once, then started to fall slowly. And the first thing she did after saving her own life…
"What? A plain old white parachute? Couldn't you afford a polyester-cotton pink parachute like my cousin has?"
Lavatory Confessional
Isabel: (holding both feet up on the seat with her and rocking back and forth in pain like a baby) Never…physical…challenges…again.
"And that settles it for Team Madison! Even if your final member, Blayke, were to cross now, there'd be no way you could win. It's now down to Team Sahara and Team Victory II. The fate of this tie rests with one person."
"After you, Mona." Blayke said with a sly smile.
ButMonan was anything but willing to go. "Oh, I don't know…"
"I'm sure you'll do fine. At least better than Toadette, Skyler, Wario, Susan, and Isabel did."
"But…I…"
"Your online profile says you're a cheerleader; thus, you must have some athletic abilities, correct?"
"Well…yes…"
'''Lavatory Confessional'''
Mona: OK, so when I was a freshman, I tried out for the gymnastics team. I failed the qualification test. I was devastated; it had been my dream as a little girl to be a gymnast in high school. So, for the rest of the year and the next year, I practiced twice a day, with my own courses and routines set up, ready to try again. But, in the meantime, I was at least able to become a cheerleader, which still involved some athletic abilities and was a way of perfecting my gymnastic skills. Before I could try again, I auditioned for this show. Let's hope all that practice pays off. Heh, heh…(gulp).
Mona, with the parachute on, slowly approached the rope. Isabelle held out one of the poles.
She didn't take it.
For a few long moments, she simply stood there, staring at the long, impossible rope before her. Isabelle grew impatient.
"Anytime, girl! You gonna take your pole, or not?"
Mona then slowly turned her back on the rope, and those across the chasm. She was facing the only person left: Ethan.
She sighed, took a deep breath, slowly exhaled it, then closed her eyes.
Several more moments.
Then she leapt into the air backwards, flipping around and landing on her hands just at the edge of the platform, before the rope. She took a millisecond to orient herself and where the rope was before shoving off into the air again. She flipped again and landed on her feet, both side-by-side, perfectly on the rope. She didn't hesitate to continue leaping up, flipping, landing on her hands, then jumping again, landing on her feet even further ahead on the rope, and so on.
By the time she finished her incredible routine, and landed on the other side, perfectly flat on her feet, all jaws had slammed to the floor.
Lavatory Confessional
Wendy: (Wide-eyed and jaw dropped)
Rosalina: (Wide-eyed and jaw dropped)
Chef Isabelle: (Wide-eyed and jaw dropped)
Pauline: (Wide-eyed and jaw dropped)
Iggy: (Wide-eyed and jaw dropped)
Toadette: (Still texting)
"Oh…my…God."
Then the rupture of applause from all sides, even from rival teammates. If Mona even heard any of it, she didn't acknowledge it. She just stood there, her head down and breathing heavily, as if she was still at the starting line and nervous to begin. After a few moments, she looked up at the crowd congratulating her, and a smile slowly formed on her face.
Lavatory Confessional
Mona: I guess all those years of practice did pay off, even though I didn't get on the team.
Logan: Wow. Did you see that? I mean, seriously! That was one of the greatest physical feats I've ever seen! Risking life and limb by doing a bunch of backflips on a rope, over a thousand feet in the air with no balancing pole? I mean, yeah, she had a parachute on…but still! That girl is nuts. In the good way.
"Team Sahara wins the first challenge!"
The six members of Team Sahara all loudly cheered their team's name and joined together in a six-way hi-five.
"They have won the advantage for the second half of the challenge. Whichever team loses this time will be sending someone home." Isabelle then turned to the camera. "Which team will win this time? Which will semi-lose? And which team will have to boot one of their own? Find out next time, on…Total…Drama Mario…World Tour!"