"Welcome back to Total Drama Alpha Party!" Chris said to the camera from the Dock of Shame.
Chris looked to his right, then to his shoes, then back to the camera.
"Er, in the last episode, I decided to be nice and give the campers a non-elimination round," Chris continued. "On top of that, the final five each got a special visitor to participate in the challenge with them, with a reward on the line for a fancy dinner cruise with said visitors. Amelie and Genesis formed a lategame alliance with intent to take power from Isidora. Isidora and Warwick are starting to get over the awkwardness of the one-sided romantic feelings between each other. And Vardaman's just doing what he can to stay alive in the game. Isidora and her mother Hannah won the challenge, by the way, and opted to bring Vardaman and his brother Cassius and Warwick and his butler Hawthorne on the reward with them. Vardaman and Hannah discussed their respective relationships with Isidora, Warwick and Hawthorne discussed self-growth, and Isidora and Cassius flirted a lot. Like I said, nobody went home that night, but tonight will be a different story. Who's it going to be? Find out, right here, on Total! Drama! Alpha Party!"
Amelie built a sand castle on her own when Isidora approached her.
"Hey," Isidora greeted. "You don't seem to be in a swimsuit, so I hope I don't have to be to talk to you this time."
"No, it's fine," Amelie giggled. "What's up?"
"I just wanted to touch base with you," Isidora said. "You're still in my ideal final three, and I just wanted to be sure you're still good with our final three deal."
"Well..." Amelie trailed off. "I don't know. Of course, I want to be in the final three, especially if that really is the finale like everyone is saying, but..."
"But?" Isidora asked with a raised eyebrow. "Is this about me voting out Stormy~?"
"Kind of," Amelie admitted. "You told me and Stormy~ to our faces that it was Genesis going home, and then I find out you had no intention of actually following through with it... How do I know you're going to follow through with this?"
"Because taking Genesis or Vardaman to the end would basically be sacrificing my game," Isidora explained, perturbed. "Vardaman is obvious, and Genesis, even though she's no star athlete, is at the very least taller than the rest of us, which means longer legs, plus, let's face it, you, Warwick, and I are all pretty bad at challenges. The only people we'd stand any chance against is each other."
"That's true..." Amelie conceded.
"So are you in or not?" Isidora asked.
"Um... maybe?" Amelie stammered.
"I see," Isidora said. "I guess I could always ask Genesis for a final three deal. Sure, she'll be harder to beat, but at least she'd be willing to do it."
"I'll do it!" Amelie pleaded.
"It's the smart game move, Amelie," Isidora explained. "You're just going to have to trust me on this."
"I guess..." Amelie muttered.
Confessional:
Isidora: Amelie is too honest for her own good. I know she isn't - or at the very least, wasn't - planning on sticking with me. I can't imagine why. I'm the easy one to beat in the finale. I understand being upset at me for voting out her ally, but is it really worth risking your game by taking Genesis or Vardaman to the end just to get closure on a petty grudge?
Amelie: Isidora does make a lot of good points, but I can't ignore what she did to Stormy~. I don't think Isidora is a bad person, but backstabbing Stormy~, and me by extension, wasn't a very nice thing to do. At least I have all day to think about it.
As Vardaman entered the mess hall, he noticed Warwick with a plate of egg whites.
"Morning, Warwick," Vardaman greeted with a tip of his hat. "Are those egg whites?"
"Verily!" Warwick confirmed. "As of last night, I am dedicating myself to losing weight!"
"Well how about that? Good for you," Vardaman smiled.
"Say, any advice on exercise?" Warwick requested. "You're in great shape. How'd you get that way?"
"To be honest, I ended up like this naturally," Vardaman admitted as he rubbed the back of his head. "All the work at the farm and the metal shop are my workouts, plus I eat from the farm, too, so just about everything I eat is healthy and organic."
"So you're saying I should become a farmer?" Warwick asked. "The exact opposite of a king... hmmm..."
"I ain't saying that," Vardaman chuckled. "Sorry I can't be of much help. If you want to know how to exercise, I wager Ephraim, Mondo, or Tori would be better suited to answering that than I am."
"I'll just go right ahead and ask them then!" Warwick responded sarcastically.
"After the game, I'm sure you could," Vardaman shrugged.
"Perhaps," Warwick figured. "Never really got to know any of them. All the strong people really were on your team."
"And yet the Boldface outnumber us three to two right now," Vardaman realized. "Good thing we ain't going by team lines, huh?"
"It'd be a good thing for me," Warwick smirked. "Then again, the Boldface were always kind of a mess. Working together just couldn't have happened."
"Hugh and Jasper didn't make life on the Italics easy, either, let me tell you," Vardaman chimed in.
"And don't even get me started on Xingrong!" Warwick continued.
"I'd forgotten about him," Vardaman chuckled.
"Oh, that I could be so lucky!" Warwick cried.
Confessional:
Vardaman: Losing weight or not, I guess he's still the same old Warwick. It can be easy to let the game cloud your judgment of others sometimes. I know Warwick's going to vote me out as soon as I'm vulnerable. But I think we can still be friends despite that. Funny how that works out.
Warwick: I must admit, it does my heart good knowing that Xingrong was able to go home so early, and yet I could last this long! I wonder what the old sod is up to. Still going on about sandwiches and dark angels and such? I bet he is.
Genesis sat on her bed in the girls' cabin, fiddling with her phone, when Isidora entered.
"Ah, Genesis. Here you are," Isidora greeted.
Genesis smirked as she opened her text-to-speech app. "Well look who's come crawling back."
"Excuse me?" Isidora asked.
"You throw me under the bus, probably saying all kinds of nasty things about me to get Amelie and Stormy~ to see me as a viable target, and now you're looking for me, presumably to talk game," Genesis texted.
"Excuse you. I don't need that smug attitude of yours," Isidora grimaced.
"Am I wrong?" Genesis texted.
"Yes, I threw you under the bus, and yes, I want to talk game with you," Isidora conceded. "That doesn't mean we can't still talk game. Believe it or not, I do want to take you to the final three."
"I'm sure you've told Amelie the same thing," Genesis texted.
"I cut my ties with Amelie when I voted for Stormy~," Isidora responded. "Besides, it's not like you haven't played multiple sides before. Who are you to act like this to me?"
"I'm the girl whose game you put in danger," Genesis texted.
"You were able to work it out with Ursula, weren't you?" Isidora asked. "See, you're becoming the Ursula in this situation."
"Is that a threat?" Genesis texted with a leer.
"What? No!" Isidora clarified. "It's me pointing out the outrageous hypocrisy on your part."
"I had reasons to vote for Osric," Genesis texted. "By the way, I voted for Osric, not Ursula. Crucial difference."
"And Osric went home. You didn't. Crucial difference," Isidora retorted.
"Get out of my sight," Genesis texted.
"Somehow that doesn't sound as threatening with the monotone of text-to-speech," Isidora scowled as she left the cabin.
Confessional:
Isidora: Genesis legitimately cannot comprehend being in the wrong here, can she? She honestly believes she is an entirely blameless victim, and that I'm the big bad guy trying to ruin her game. Give me a break. ...Oh God, am I going to have to rely on Vardaman to maintain a majority? After everything that's happened over the past couple days?
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) See, the thing is, I don't need Isidora. I already have a nice majority with Amelie and Vardaman. Isidora is a snake in the grass, and there's only room for one snake in this particular field. If I can get rid of Isidora, I'll have all the power in this game, not her.
Amelie sat on the Dock of Shame, idly skipping stones across the water when Vardaman sat next to her.
"Morning," Vardaman greeted.
"Morning, Vardaman," Amelie smiled back. "What's up?"
"Has Genesis talked to you about her plans?" Vardaman asked.
"Yep," Amelie confirmed. "She wants the three of us to take out Isidora."
"Glad we're all on the same page, here," Vardaman said with a sigh of relief. "Er... you are onboard with voting her out, right?"
"I honestly don't trust her to keep me around if you win today's challenge," Amelie admitted. "She made her loyalties to me clear when she voted for Stormy~ the other night."
"Didn't you vote for her that night?" Vardaman asked.
"I did," Amelie confirmed. "She'd gotten under my skin a lot that day."
"She did seem to be in a bad mood that day," Vardaman nodded.
"Oh! Before I forget to tell someone and it ends in some huge misunderstanding," Amelie said. "I told Isidora I'd vote with her tonight, but... I don't really plan to. I lied to her and I feel kind of awful about it."
"She's still after me, I wager?" Vardaman inquired.
Amelie nodded.
"Well, I guess I'll just have to make sure she can't," Vardaman chuckled.
"You should be safe either way," Amelie pointed out. "Assuming Genesis holds up her end, and I don't see why she wouldn't since this alliance was her idea in the first place."
"Genesis did backstab Tori. That can't be ignored," Vardaman recalled.
"I'm willing to trust her," Amelie said. "I don't think she has any reason to lie to us."
"She could be playing both sides," Vardaman suggested.
"After Isidora got a huge target on her back for doing that?" Amelie asked.
"Never thought I'd be the skeptical one between us," Vardaman chuckled. "But this late in the game, with as big of a target as I am, can you blame me?"
"Not at all, honestly," Amelie assured him. "I'm just trying to be more trusting of people, you know?"
"You're a good person, Amelie," Vardaman said.
Amelie's giggled as her face turned pink.
Confessional:
Vardaman: Call me paranoid, but I find it weird that Genesis wants to side with me when siding with Isidora and Warwick could still get her to the finale, and they'd both be easier to beat. I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth since she's the only one who really wants to include me in her plans right now, but it still strikes me as peculiar.
Amelie: I think Genesis and I have a silent agreement, er, so to speak, to take each other to the finale. We both wanted to align with each other, and I think we stand a similar chance at winning the final challenge. I'm actually feeling fairly optimistic about the whole thing.
Warwick sat atop the thousand-foot cliff when Genesis approached him.
"Good morning, Warwick," Genesis texted.
"Ah, Genesis!" Warwick greeted back. "What brings you to my domain."
"Just felt like conversing," Genesis texted. "How are things with you and Isidora?"
"People always ask how things are with me and Isidora," Warwick said as he shook his head. "No one ever wonders how I'm doing unless it's in relation to my friendship with her. It gets old."
"Alright. Tell me how you're doing in a way which completely excludes Isidora," Genesis texted as she rolled her eyes a little.
"I'm contemplating what manner of exercise I should do today," Warwick explained. "I'm considering running laps around the island. I remember that football player from the Italics used to do that every day. But I'm honestly not sure I can get a lap in before the challenge starts."
"Well, the more you run, the easier it gets," Genesis texted.
"Perhaps," Warwick figured.
"Also, wait, exercise?" Genesis texted.
"Indeed!" Warwick confirmed. "I've decided to start losing weight."
"How come?" Genesis texted. "To impress Isidora?"
"On the contrary!" Warwick refuted. "This is but the first step on my path to getting over her. I've decided to stop focusing on her, and start focusing on me. Improve myself. Make myself respectable rather than trying to force people to respect me!"
"I see," Genesis texted. "Actually, as it happens, there is a push against Isidora right now. Don't suppose you'd be willing to vote for her?"
"Over Vardaman?" Warwick scoffed. "Letting him stay would be dumb. He'd destroy us all if he made it to the finale."
"Okay, fine," Genesis texted with a slight twitch in her eye. "Will you vote for her if Vardaman is Invincible tonight?"
"I shall consider it!" Warwick declared.
"Glad to hear it," Genesis texted.
Confessional:
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) Of course, I run the risk of Warwick telling Isidora. I know they're still friends. But I could use the safety net, just in case. Amelie's really flaky, and if Vardaman is Invincible, then he doesn't have any reason to vote alongside me anymore. A good majority is hard to maintain in the final five, and I want to cover all my bases.
Warwick: I am trying to get over Isidora... could the best way to get her out of my mind be to vote her out? That doesn't seem fair to her. Especially since she plans on taking me to the final three. I didn't hear Genesis giving me any kind of final three promise, I can tell you that much! I'll leave my vote undecided until I know who's Invincible and who the targets are!
In the staff building, Chris approached a door which had a small placard that read "Lindsay" on it. He knocked on the door.
"Lindsay? You in here?" Chris asked.
No answer.
Chris took a set of keys from his pocket and unlocked the door to see Lindsay in her pajamas, facedown on her bed, with three empty pints of ice cream on the floor surrounding her bed.
"Lindsay?" Chris asked.
"GAHHHHHH!" Lindsay jumped. "How'd you get in here?!"
"I'm the host," Chris said as he showed her his keys. "I have to be able to access places."
As Chris got a better look at Lindsay's face, he noticed her makeup was smeared and runny.
"What's with you?" Chris asked.
"I'm an awful assistant," Lindsay choked.
"Where did this come from?" Chris asked, confused.
"I ruined the challenge yesterday!" Lindsay sobbed. "My question had to be skipped, which meant that the other questions didn't even matter!"
"Hey, look, nobody could have seen that coming," Chris said. "That's just one of those things that happen sometimes, you know?"
"It's not just that," Lindsay continued. "I ruined that fencing challenge a while back. And I heard some of the interns say once that my scores for the talent show were totally stupid. I thought helping you host would be fun, but all it's done is show how completely useless and stupid I am!"
By now Lindsay was bawling. She covered her face with her hands.
"Hey, that's... uh... not true," Chris suggested.
"You never liked having me around," Lindsay sniveled. "You would always complain about having me around and shocking you."
"Which you've been doing a lot less. I appreciate that," Chris told her.
Lindsay wiped her eyes.
"Look, hosting isn't as easy as I make it look. You know that from experience," Chris said. "In seasons past, I've been able to depend on Chef. Or so I thought. Seriously, where does he get off kidnapping me? ...Anyway, the point is, I can't do this alone. Everyone makes mistakes, especially during their first time hosting. So, even if you mess up sometimes, I can't do this without you."
"...Really?" Lindsay asked as she rubbed her eye again.
"Tell you what," Chris said. "Why don't you decide what the next two challenges are? Not the finale challenge, because we've been putting that one together for a while, but you can choose what the rest of the challenges besides that are."
"You sure?" Lindsay asked. "What if my challenge ideas don't work?"
"I can help you work out the kinks if you want," Chris offered.
"...When did you become so nice?" Lindsay smiled.
"What can I say? This season brainwashed me," Chris said as he scratched at his shock collar.
Lindsay went over to her sock drawer and fished a key out of it. She walked up to Chris, inserted the key into a small hole in his shock collar, and turned it. The collar unlatched itself from Chris's neck and fell to the floor.
"You could have done that this whole time?" Chris asked.
"Only when I decided that you no longer needed it," Lindsay recited. "Those were my instructions."
"Almost feels kind of weird not having it on," Chris remarked.
"I could put it back on," Lindsay genuinely offered.
"I'm good! I'm good," Chris assured her.
Confessional:
Lindsay: Chris is right! The season must go on, and he can't do it without my help! Now, what kind of challenges should the campers do...?
Chris, Lindsay, and the campers all met up in the campground.
"Good afternoon, guys!" Lindsay greeted.
"You seem to be in a particularly good mood today," Vardaman noted.
"That's because I got to decide the challenge!" Lindsay said chipperly.
"That's a relief," Amelie said under her breath.
"Today's challenge is one I'm very familiar with," Lindsay said. "Follow me to the arts and crafts center!"
The campers all looked at each other in confusion before following Lindsay and Chris.
Before long, everyone had arrived at the arts and crafts center.
"Today's challenge is easy," Lindsay said. "First, you have to build a bicycle out of whatever you can find in here."
"Oh boy," Isidora said flatly.
"You guys will have until 5 to get that done," Chris told the campers. "When your time is up, I'll sound the alarm over the PA system. Then meet Lindsay and me at the beach for part two of your challenge."
Confessional:
Amelie: This might not be so bad. I know how to ride a bike. Building one might be difficult, but it's a challenge for a reason, right?
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) They've been particularly lazy with challenges this season, haven't they? So many of them were ripped from previous seasons. How unoriginal.
Isidora: I'm going to need all that time to get ready for this challenge. See, here's the thing... I don't know how to ride a bike. Never thought I'd need to know how. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and right now, I'm honestly not sure I have the majority anymore.
Vardaman: This challenge couldn't be more perfect for me. I work in a metal shop back home, so I reckon I could make myself a bike. I know I can ride one. Thanks in advance to Lindsay for the Invincibility I desperately need. ...Was that cocky? I feel like that was cocky.
Warwick: Bicycles? Fixing things isn't my job around the house. Actually, I don't have any job around the house. That's what Hawthorne, Julianne, and Karina are for. ...Geez, I really am spoiled, aren't I?
The campers entered the arts and crafts building to find an assortment of various parts one could use to build a bicycle.
"So... does anyone know how to build a bike?" Isidora asked.
"I do," Vardaman smiled.
"Awesome," Isidora drawled.
"Looks like there's an instruction book," Amelie said as she walked up to a table and picked up a bike manual. She flipped through the pages. "It doesn't say how to build a bike, but it looks like it tells you about all the parts. I think we can figure out what to do using this."
"Only one of us will be able to use it at a time," Genesis texted.
Vardaman had already begun looking through the parts and setting aside the ones he wanted to use.
"We can take turns," Amelie suggested. "The cutoff for building our bikes isn't for another several hours."
"No doubt so Chris and Lindsay can enjoy even more downtime today," Warwick added.
"How will we decide who goes first?" Genesis texted.
"I was going to suggest we do it alphabetically, but..." Amelie trailed off.
"I'm fine with that," Isidora shrugged.
"As am I!" Warwick agreed.
Genesis nodded.
"Oh! Thanks," Amelie smiled.
Vardaman exited the building with his arms full of various parts.
"I'd better hurry up," Amelie realized as she rapidly flipped through the book's pages.
"What happened to 'we have several hours'?" Genesis texted.
"So, like..." Warwick said to no one in particular. "Should I just go do something else?"
"Might as well," Isidora shrugged as she left the center. Genesis and Warwick followed suit.
After Amelie finished reading the book, she found Genesis and gave the book to her to read, before returning to the arts and crafts center to begin work on her bike. By now, Vardaman had already made substantial progress on his bike. Genesis studied the book until she was finished before giving it to Isidora. Genesis returned to the arts and crafts center to begin her bike. Vardaman had finished his bike by now, while Amelie made slow progress. Isidora made quick work of the book and gave it to Warwick in little time. By this point, both Amelie and Genesis were about halfway done building their bikes. Once Warwick had finished the book and returned to the arts and crafts center, Amelie and Genesis had finished their bikes, and Isidora neared completion of hers.
Confessional:
Amelie: I hope the bike I built can support my weight. This is my first time building one, so I have no idea how well I did. ...Maybe I should have practiced riding it.
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) I used to ride my bike all the time when I was a kid. My parents really limited my time on the computer and video games because they didn't want me to be a complete shut in. Now that I have my phone, though, I don't ride it as much. I don't like not holding my phone.
Isidora: Alright, I got enough practice in that I think I can at least finish the race. Normally I wouldn't be trying this hard, but I know I'm a target, and Invincibility would be a huge load off my mind.
Vardaman: You know, I can't help but feel a little disconnected from the others these days. In the back of my mind, I feel like they just see me as an obstacle to overcome instead of a person. I know Amelie and Genesis are aligned with me, but how much can I trust them? (He chews on a tongue depressor.) Just a few more rounds. I can do this.
Warwick: For my first time building a bike, I'd say I did a pretty darn good job! Now let's see if I can win my first bike race!
The five campers, with their bikes ready, all stood next to each other behind a line drawn in the sand at the beach. Chris and Lindsay stood off to the side of them.
"Alright, this is really simple," Chris said.
"Just one lap around the beach," Lindsay explained. "First person to make it all the way around and cross this line again wins!"
"I can't imagine there are any questions, but I've given you guys too much credit in the past," Chris said. "So, any questions?"
"Any obstacles to worry about?" Amelie asked.
"I'll leave that for you to discover," Chris grinned.
"That's code for 'yes'," Isidora told Amelie.
"On your marks!" Lindsay announced as Chris held a starter pistol in the air.
"Get set..." Chris continued.
The campers got on their bikes, ready to go.
"GO!" Chris and Lindsay shouted in unison as Chris fired the pistol.
The campers took off. As they did so, a seagull which had been flying above landed upon Warwick after being hit by the bullet Chris had fired, knocking the larger boy to the ground.
Amelie, Genesis, and Vardaman didn't take long to get a good start going. Isidora, meanwhile, struggled to maintain her balance.
"This challenge does not like us," Warwick grumbled to Isidora as he grabbed the seagull's body and tossed it aside.
Isidora mumbled something in response.
"What?" Warwick asked. "Eh, you can tell me later. I have a challenge to win!"
Warwick got back onto his bike and took off.
Isidora dropped her bike into the sand, sat down onto the sand, and buried her face in her hands.
Confessional:
Isidora: I can't do this challenge. I tried practicing riding a bike, but they wouldn't let us on the beach before the challenge started, so I only practiced on solid ground, not sand, and even then I didn't do that well. God, I hope Vardaman loses this one.
Vardaman maintained a slight lead over Genesis, who maintained a slight lead over Amelie.
"You girls think you can catch up?" Vardaman teased as he looked back at the girls.
Genesis gave him a determined look.
"Um, maybe?" Amelie figured.
Just as Vardaman turned his head back to face the path ahead, he found himself riding straight into the ocean.
"I changed my mind. I can definitely catch up," Amelie added as she and Genesis passed Vardaman.
"I deserved that," Vardaman told himself as he got back on the path. Warwick had just begun to pass him.
Genesis and Amelie had widened the gap between themselves and Vardaman.
"I think I can do this," Amelie said to herself.
Genesis paid focus to the path ahead of her.
The two noticed a large ramp which took up the entire width of the beach approaching.
"Uh oh..." Amelie gulped.
Genesis sped up her pedaling as she approached the ramp. As she launched off of the ramp, her bike tilted forward, causing her to wipe out into the sand below. Amelie took notice of this, and, as she came off of the ramp, stopped pedaling in midair. She landed on the wheels of her bike and continued biking.
As Genesis recovered from her wipeout, Vardaman and Warwick passed her.
"Yes! Not in last!" Warwick cheered.
"What about Isidora?" Vardaman asked.
"Oh... right," Warwick recalled.
Confessional:
Warwick: Isidora gives up too easily on physical challenges. That's a flaw of hers. ...This "getting over her" thing is starting to work out, I dare say!
"Guh... why are you so fast?!" Warwick called out to Vardaman.
"I ain't falling for that again," Vardaman muttered. "Eyes on the path, Vardaman."
Genesis caught up to Warwick. She looked him in the eye, smirked, and passed him.
"Oh come on!" Warwick cried.
Back at the starting line, Chris had left to use the restroom, leaving Lindsay alone with Isidora.
"Aren't you going to try?" Lindsay asked.
"I can hardly ride a bike, and even if I could, I'd probably just get a dizzy spell at the worst possible time," Isidora explained.
"So you're giving up, just like that?" Lindsay asked.
"It's not giving up, it's picking my battles wisely," Isidora insisted. "I want to conserve as much energy as possible for the final challenge."
"What if you don't make it to the final challenge?" Lindsay asked.
"The others would be foolish not to take me... right?" Isidora responded.
"I don't think I'm allowed to talk about this kind of thing with you," Lindsay admitted.
"I guess," Isidora said. "So, you seem awfully active in cohosting this round. And Chris's shock collar is off. Did I miss something?"
"I'm not sure I'm allowed to talk about that with you either," Lindsay admitted.
"Back," Chris said as he arrived. He took notice of Isidora and turned to Lindsay. "She didn't win, did she?"
Lindsay shook her head.
"Just making sure," Chris said.
"You give me too much credit," Isidora said with a hollow laugh.
Confessional:
Isidora: I've been in kind of a weird mood recently. I think the fact that we're so close to the end is getting to me. There's a ton on the line right now, and I don't want everything to be for nothing. And with Amelie and Genesis honestly considering voting me off... (She sighs.) I don't know.
The four racers were all very close to each other as they approached the halfway point of the race. Square pillars raised and lowered themselves from the sand ahead of the campers in timed intervals.
"Aw geez," Vardaman said as he grit his teeth.
Vardaman swerved to his right to avoid an oncoming pillar, only to crash into Amelie, who had swerved to her left to avoid a different pillar. The two fell over, leaving Genesis and Warwick to pass them.
"Hahaha! Victory is mi- AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Warwick boasted before biking over a rising pillar, launching him into the air.
Genesis moved slowly through the pillars, keeping an eye on where they would rise and fall. Vardaman biked right past her. Genesis leered at him.
"I'm okay, by the way, since you asked!" Warwick called as the two passed him; he had been recovering from being launched by the pillar.
"That's good," Amelie commented as she passed him.
Warwick shot Amelie an annoyed, deadpan look as he got back onto his bike and continued the race.
The campers approached a part of the track which was peppered with trap holes.
"Don't fall in!" Warwick called to the others.
"Wouldn't it be better for you if we did?" Amelie asked.
"I was trying to be patronizing!" Warwick clarified.
"That's not very respectable," Vardaman pointed out.
"Neither is falling in a hole!" Warwick smirked.
"No, but-" Vardaman's sentence was cut short as he fell into one of the trap holes.
As Amelie watched Vardaman fall into the hole, wincing, she fell into a hole of her own. Warwick passed the two as they made their climbs out of their respective holes.
Confessional:
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) Not being able to talk means I can stay focused on the race itself. Honestly, you'd think the ones who can talk would still know better, but evidently, that's not the case.
Genesis and Warwick had passed Amelie and Vardaman by a lot and had now made their way up to an oil slick which covered the width of the beach and stretched out to cover a good portion of the path ahead.
"That can't be good for the ocean!" Warwick commented.
Genesis slowed her pedaling down as she made her way onto the slick. Warwick, noticing this, followed suit.
Vardaman and Amelie began to catch up and approached the oil slick without slowing down. As Vardaman's tires hit the oil slick, he quickly slid out of control. His bike went straight for the rock wall directly to the right which separated the beach from the island. He jumped off his bike just in time to avoid crashing along with it. As the bike made contact with the wall, it broke into several pieces.
"Well..." Vardaman winced as he picked up two of the pieces. "That ain't good."
Genesis had turned her head to witness the crash, causing her to subconsciously turn her bike, which led to her losing balance and toppling over, allowing Amelie and Warwick to pass her.
Amelie and Warwick had made it to a part of the beach which was covered entirely in rocks, all roughly the size of a baseball.
"When I was singing 'I Wanna Rock' in the shower this morning, this is NOT what I meant!" Warwick cried.
"...That was terrible," Amelie admitted.
Warwick did a small hop on his bike to make his way onto the rocks gracefully. Amelie made no such maneuver, however, and her bike tripped over upon hitting the rocks, launching Amelie into the pile of rocks. She cried out loudly upon making contact.
"...I think I'm done..." Amelie whimpered as she slowly got to her feet, holding back tears.
"Vardaman's out of the challenge!" Warwick called behind him. "He can fix you up probably!"
"Maybe..." Amelie sniveled as she backtracked to where Vardaman might be.
Genesis had now approached the rocky terrain. She did a brief wheelie to keep her bike from tripping as she made her way onto the rocks.
Confessional:
Vardaman: Well... I ain't winning this challenge. Guess all I can do now is hope and pray that Amelie and Genesis hold true to their word tonight. (He begins to chew on a tongue depressor.)
Warwick and Genesis had both made it off of the rocks. Genesis, having fallen behind, increased the rate of her pedaling in order to catch up to Warwick.
"Hey!" Warwick objected.
Genesis did not acknowledge him as she passed him.
"Fine! Don't respond to me!" Warwick huffed. "...Wait! I just realized what I said! I didn't... GAH!"
Genesis smirked as she kept her focus on the path before her.
Before long, the two campers found themselves at a stretch of the path which had been mostly dug out save for a slim stretch of sand which could still be biked upon. The parts of the beach which had been dug out had filled with ocean water.
Genesis screeched to a halt upon reaching this stretch. She put her hand to her pocket and felt her phone.
"Har! Scared of some water?" Warwick taunted.
Genesis showed him her phone.
"Why would you bring that thing with you?" Warwick asked as he passed her.
Genesis bit her thumbnail as she watched the rotund boy drive over the sliver of sand. She took a deep breath, pocketed her phone, and slowly made her way across the sliver herself.
As Warwick continued pedaling, he saw the finish line off in the distance.
"Is that... the finish?!" Warwick gasped.
Sure enough, Chris, Lindsay, Amelie, Isidora, and Vardaman all stood in wait to see who would win the challenge.
"There's Warwick!" Chris announced. "Genesis is nowhere to be- oh, wait! Here she comes!"
Indeed, Genesis began to catch up to Warwick.
"Oh no, you don't!" Warwick objected. He picked up the pace of his pedaling.
Genesis also picked up the pace of her pedaling.
"This is close!" Lindsay commented.
The two teenagers both approached the finish line, neck-and-neck. Just as they crossed the finish line, one of them gained a bit more speed and managed to cross a mere second before the other.
"And that's it!" Chris announced. "The winner of the challenge and Invincibility..."
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"Warwick!"
"Haha... hahaha... wait, really?" Warwick asked, astonished.
"Yep. Warwick cannot be voted out tonight," Chris confirmed. "The rest of you are all free game, though. Better hope it's not you tonight. Heheheh."
Confessional:
Amelie: Well, I'm all bruised up, but I didn't break or even sprain anything... according to Vardaman, at least. I'm going to take a nap.
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) If not for the water, I would have won that challenge, easily. It doesn't matter, though. What matters is that Isidora is vulnerable tonight and can go home. Although the Vardaman option is awfully tempting, too... Hm...
Isidora: Vardaman losing the challenge is exactly what I needed. Voting me out when he's an option is game suicide. I just need to get Amelie and Warwick to vote with me. I think that's doable.
Vardaman: I've been working on a mental case to plead to the others. Despite my majority alliance, I'm honestly real scared that it could be me going home tonight. Wish me luck, y'all.
Warwick: Ha! If I can win this challenge, surely the finale challenge should be a cakewalk for me! Assuming I make it that far... and really, with threats like Genesis, Isidora, and Vardaman on the table, how could I not?
Amelie, Genesis, and Vardaman all met up in the boathouse.
"Alright, I hate to seem paranoid, but with me being vulnerable tonight, I hope you understand why," Vardaman started off. "I just want to make sure y'all are still fixing to vote for Isidora."
"I am," Amelie confirmed.
Genesis nodded.
"If Isidora survives tonight's vote, she and Warwick will have all the say in who to take to the finale," Vardaman continued. "And I honestly couldn't tell you which one of the two of you they'd prefer to take. Genesis has known them longer and has been aligned with them both, but Amelie would be easier to beat and hasn't done anything to betray them per se. They have good reasons to keep or get rid of both of you. If I were either of you, I wouldn't want to take the risk."
"You make a good point," Amelie said.
Genesis nodded. "You don't have to worry," she texted. "Isidora is going home tonight."
"Glad to hear it," Vardaman said as he began to chew on a tongue depressor.
"You should relax," Amelie told him. "Stressing out about it isn't going to help anything. Take a load off."
"Maybe..." Vardaman sighed.
Confessional:
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) I don't know... I'm honestly not sure if we'll ever get another chance to vote out Vardaman. Although he does make some good points about Isidora and Warwick running the game should he leave... I certainly don't want that. Talk about a lose-lose situation.
Vardaman: Maybe Amelie's right about me needing to take a break. Easy for her to say since she's not a target right now, but stress certainly ain't good for the mind or body either. Maybe I'll go take a shower or something.
Isidora and Warwick met up atop the thousand-foot cliff.
"I can't believe Vardaman actually lost the challenge," Isidora smiled. "The physical challenge, no less."
"Verily," Warwick nodded.
"Good job on beating him, by the way," Isidora said. "You may have just saved my game."
"It's not like I can give my Invincibility to you," Warwick said. "At least not without a statue, which, last I checked, we're fresh out of."
"No, but with Vardaman as a target now, surely one of Amelie or Genesis will reconsider voting for me," Isidora explained.
"Were they both planning on voting for you?" Warwick asked, taken aback a bit.
"Yep. They told me as much themselves," Isidora nodded.
"I knew Genesis was, but Amelie...?" Warwick asked.
"But things can change," Isidora reiterated. "They'd be foolish to keep big, strong Vardaman in the game over frail, weak Isidora. Especially this close to the finale."
"Perhaps, but both have made foolish moves in the past," Warwick reminded her. "We should probably talk to them both before the vote."
"Yeah, probably," Isidora conceded. "Can I just sit down for a bit and take a break from the stress, though? I've been stressed all day. I need this."
"Fair enough," Warwick nodded.
Confessional:
Isidora: I know I shouldn't be so calm when I'm still a target and can still be voted off, but I just needed a moment of calm. I know there's still a game to be played, and believe me, I will be playing it tonight. Just not right now.
Warwick: You know, I did contemplate doing a lap around the island for exercise... Guess I fulfilled that, no? It wasn't even that difficult. Perhaps I could make a habit of it. Why I daresay I feel healthier already!
It was dinnertime, and Genesis and Vardaman had sat down at the same table as Warwick.
"Hey, can we talk?" Vardaman asked.
"She can't," Warwick joked.
Genesis rolled her eyes.
"Shoot, that crossed the line, didn't it?" Warwick asked.
Genesis made a gesture that implied that she didn't really care.
"You said that you're trying to distance yourself from Isidora, right?" Vardaman asked.
"And you want me to vote her out?" Warwick guessed.
"I told you he'd figure it out," Genesis texted jokingly.
"Getting rid of Isidora tonight would prove that you really are your own man and can make your own decisions," Vardaman explained. "This whole game, you've let her or Zarardo do all the dirty work for you. You said you wanted to start leading a respectable life, right? Why not start by solidifying your independence?"
"But then I'd just be doing what you want," Warwick rebutted.
"I ain't saying you have to," Vardaman said. "But I think it's something you should consider."
"If you go through with this," Genesis texted. "I can guarantee you final three. We will vote out Amelie next round if you vote for Isidora with us."
"I'll consider it," Warwick answered.
"Glad to hear it," Vardaman smiled.
Confessional:
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) Yeah, I did just make a final three deal with Warwick in front of Vardaman's face. If Isidora goes tonight and Amelie is invincible in the next round somehow, I will be voting for Vardaman. That's assuming he doesn't go home tonight, of course. (She smiles deviously and shrugs innocently.)
Warwick: I will be coming to my own conclusion on how to vote tonight. There are good cases for either Isidora or Vardaman to go, and I am weighing all the pros and cons in my head. Gah! Why can't this game ever be simple?!
Amelie and Isidora both relaxed in the girls' cabin.
"Feeling any better?" Isidora asked.
"A little bit," Amelie answered. "Vardaman says I should still be sore tomorrow but should probably be better by the day after."
"Makes me glad I couldn't really do this one," Isidora commented.
"Because of your anemia?" Amelie figured.
"That plus I don't really know how to ride a bike," Isidora admitted. "No reason to learn since I do get dizzy and weak so often."
"Makes sense," Amelie nodded.
"...So, I don't suppose you still want to vote for Vardaman?" Isidora asked.
"Uh!" Amelie jumped a bit.
"That's a 'no', isn't it?" Isidora sighed. "Look, I'd be really easy to beat in the finale. Vardaman wouldn't be. You want to win, right?"
"Of course," Amelie said.
"I guarantee you will not win if you keep Vardaman tonight," Isidora said. "His loss today was a fluke. He will most likely win tomorrow's challenge and the finale challenge if he stays. I mean, he might fluke another loss, but 'might' isn't worth banking your whole game on."
"That's true..." Amelie thought aloud.
"You can't afford to make rash decisions this late in the game," Isidora concluded as she grabbed a book from her bag and opened it.
Confessional:
Amelie: ...Isidora might be right! I do want to win this! And letting Vardaman survive this round might cost me the game! But I promised him I'd vote Isidora! I don't want to break my promise! What do I dooooooooooooooo?!
Isidora: I heard Amelie screaming in here before I came in. I hope I didn't break her. She might be more inclined to vote for me if I did...
The five campers all met up at the firepit for elimination. Chris was there, holding a platter of marshmallows.
"Welcome, boys and girls, to the all-important marshmallow ceremony!" Chris greeted. "Four of you will walk away with a marshmallow in your belly and another day in the game. One of you will take a one-way trip down the Elevator of Shame. Heheheh. Now, who's safe...?"
"Warwick!"
"Amelie!"
"Genesis!"
Isidora and Vardaman both began to sweat.
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"Vardaman," Chris finally said.
"Thank y'all," Vardaman could barely speak as Chris tossed him his marshmallow.
Isidora took a deep breath before standing up and making her way towards the Dock of Shame.
"Well, uh..." Chris started. "If anyone wants to see Isidora off, you can follow us to the Dock of Shame. The rest of you can head to bed."
Isidora, Warwick, and Chris all came to the Dock of Shame.
"Isidora..." Warwick said. "I voted for Vardaman."
Isidora turned around and pulled Warwick in for a hug, which he returned.
The two broke the hug and Isidora looked at Chris expectantly.
"That's it? No sappy goodbyes?" Chris asked.
"Oh..." Warwick muttered.
"Cool. Easier for me," Chris said as he took a remote control from his pocket and pressed a button. After a few seconds, the Elevator of Losers came up from the water and opened its doors.
"Later, Isidora..." Warwick said with a slight wave as he left the Dock of Shame. As he left, Isidora entered the Elevator of Losers.
"Isidora, you have finished the game in 5th place," Chris said.
Isidora did not respond.
"Going down!" Chris announced as he pressed the button on the remote control again. The doors to the Elevator shut, and it went back down underwater. Chris turned to the camera.
"If tonight proved anything, it's that people live and die by their social game here on Total Drama," Chris said. "That or people don't understand how challenge threats work. But hey, I'm not the one playing the game."
"And now we're down to four!" Lindsay added as she arrived on scene.
"Indeed we are," Chris nodded. "Will Vardaman make good use of his challenge strength to keep himself safe? Will Genesis continue to sneak her way past elimination?"
"Will Warwick make a respectable man of himself?" Lindsay asked. "Will Amelie take control of her emotions?"
"I can hardly wait to find out myself," Chris said.
"The answers, next time!" Lindsay announced.
"On Total!" Chris announced.
"Drama!" Lindsay added.
"ALPHA PARTY!" they both finished.
Votes:
Vardaman: Sorry, Isidora. I didn't want it to come to this, but it's you or me right now, and I'd rather it ain't me.
Isidora: I can't win this game as long as you're still in it. For what it's worth, you're a good person, but I'm here to win. I vote for Vardaman.
Genesis: (She types into her phone. The phone speaks.) If I keep Vardaman, there's a chance he'll win challenges and cause me to lose. If I keep Isidora, she'll definitely have all the power and cause me to lose. I'll take a chance of losing over definitely losing. So I vote for Isidora.
Warwick: A respectable man would stay loyal to his allies and true to his word. At least I think that's pretty respectable. Zarardo taught me that the opposite isn't very respectable. So I'm standing with Isidora, and voting for Vardaman.
Amelie: I'm sorry, Isidora, but keeping you is just too risky. I have no idea if you'd keep me or not, and I don't want to be paranoid again. Also... you did kind of backstab my best friend. I hope you understand.
A/N: If anyone in this story was a universal fan favorite, it's probably Isidora. Honestly, I didn't expect that reaction at all, but I definitely enjoyed writing her, don't get me wrong. Believe me, she was originally supposed to go home WAY earlier, but the praise from the readers plus how much I enjoyed writing her led to me bumping her placement up quite a few times until we landed here. Sadly, though, she was never meant to win, so here she lies at 5th place. Which, out of 26, isn't bad at all, I'd say.