Author's Note: Just a short episode before the finale, time to take a look at how our beloved losers are holding up! :D
A boy with very messy brown hair, a gray and purple striped shirt, and mauve shorts was riding a ski lift up through a snowy section of the mountain.
"H-hello there," he said through the cold. "My name is Rich, you may remember me as last season's fifth placer…or maybe you don't, that's okay too, I wasn't that great I guess. I mean, fifth place out of 24 is nothing too shabby…but enough about me! Today I'm going to be meeting with the losers of Uber Drama Mountain of Madness, those that got voted out short of making the finale, whether they left way back in teams, or just in the last episode. I'll be getting the inside scoop on how they felt about the game, and what they think of the final 3."
Rich hopped off the lift and landed in a cushion of snow. Just ahead of him was a luxurious lodge with smoke puffing out of the chimney.
"As I'm sure you recall," Rich continued, "last time Duke won immunity and forced the girls to turn on each other. It all ended with Charlene leaving in a 3-1 vote, making her the last person officially voted out of Uber Drama Mountain of Madness. Ah, here's some players now."
A group of three were excitedly playing in skis through the humps of snow. Rich was soon passed by Florian zipping by him in skis.
"Make way!" Caullie called as he approached next. "I've lost control and I don't know where the brakes are on this thing!"
Caullie flipped over and ended up crashing into the snow. Coming up behind him, Trina had no time to stop and ended up colliding with him and also falling to the ground.
"Oh you rotten little scoundrel!" she snapped. "You did that on purpose, didn't you!? Didn't you!? Why do you hate me!? WHY MUST YOU MAKE ME SUFFER EVERY DAY OF MY LIFE!? WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU!? HM! TELL ME!?"
"No, no, it's not like that," Caullie said defensively. "It was an accident I swear."
"Oh is that so!?" Trina asked, before her face switched from stern to soft. "Then you really are the best friend I've had in all my life."
Trina began to sob and hugged Caullie.
"Uh yeah, okay, there there," Caullie said awkwardly as he patted her on the back.
"Hi you two," Rich said as he walked up to them. "I'm here to ask you about your time on the game. What sort of reflections did you come across since arriving here?"
"Oh the game was great," Caullie said. "I had a lot of fun, it was crazy and sometimes I didn't know what was going on, but I met some great people and just had a blast. Wish I didn't have to leave so early, but at least I got to chill out here."
"Well, I have a lot I'd like to say!" Trina exclaimed as she stepped up to Rich aggressively. "Actually not really. Can't complain. It was a season."
"Oh…okay then," Rich said, "How do you feel about the final 3?"
"I'm hoping Mary-Anne can win," Caullie said, "we may not have been able to ever meet again, but she was the first girl I've ever been with…even just a little bit, so rooting for her."
"Haylor can get roasted over a fire for all I care," Trina spat, "serves her right for all that craziness she caused. And Mary-Anne, oooh don't get me started on her, lying about having an idol. That little WITCH! I hope something eats her! I never met Duke but I'm sure he's a lovely gentleman and I wish him all the best."
Trina began to tear up again.
"Every season needs its hero and I'm just so blessed to share my season with someone so noble," she sobbed.
"You just said that you never met," Rich pointed out.
"I can FEEL it!" Trina insisted. "Don't judge me!"
Florian returned up to join the group.
"Oh hi," Rich said, "how do you feel about this game, Florian?"
"I got exactly what I wanted out of it," Florian replied, "I've been filled with memories that will last me for a lifetime."
"And how about the final 3?" Rich asked.
"Haylor did succeed in getting me out, so for that she has my respect," Florian said, "but all of them have journeys and stories to tell, so whoever wins I believe will fully deserve it."
"Thank you all," Rich said, "let's move along and see who else we can find."
Closer to the building, Banner and Wesley were working on a snowman.
"Our abominable snowman is ready to destroy his enemies!" Banner exclaimed as he used a few fir tree branches as angry eyebrows.
"Aw, can't he be a friendly snowman?" Wesley asked as he moved the branches to become a moustache instead.
"That's lame," Banner replied.
Angel slinked over to Wesley seductively.
"Is it just me or is it so cold out here?" she said as she tilted towards Wesley.
"Oh well, I think there's some coats inside," Wesley remarked.
"That's fine, all I need is to be held in your protective arms, hero," Angel replied as she got closer to Wesley.
"Oh, um…gee…okay…you sure?" Wesley said as he awkwardly fumbled with her.
Banner palmed his face and dragged Wesley off behind a snow fort.
"You are not messing this up," Banner said, "she's hot and as your friend, I cannot allow you to squander this opportunity."
"But I don't know anything about her," Wesley said, "it's just weird."
"Oh well, you'll probably never see her again!" Banner shot back.
"Um, I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Rich said as he approached them.
"Actually—" Banner began.
"Nope, nothing at all!" Wesley said, "What's up?"
"I just wanted to hear your thoughts on this season and your experience with it," Rich said.
"Well I can tell you one thing, my biggest regret was not playing my challenge advantage when I had the chance," Wesley sighed. "But I guess I had a bit of a rough deal being stuck on Team Topher for the first half. I'm glad to have gotten out of that alive…and sane. Can't win'em all."
"I still say these people made a mistake getting rid of me," Banner said, "evidently, not Duke, Haylor, and Mary-Anne, but I was basically a free vote, and I could have made the difference for someone. I hope they regret it every day."
"And how do you feel about the final 3?" Rich asked.
"I never even met any of them," Wesley said with a shrug. "I guess good on them for making it that far. I have to give credit to Duke for fighting the target and still making it there."
"I met them, but not for long," Banner said, "they seem boring and I don't really care who wins."
"What is going on?" Angel demanded as she marched up "Why am I being ignored!?"
"Ah, I was just getting to you," Rich said. "What did you think of your time on the game, Angel?"
"My game was rigged ever since I got put with that awful Charlene," Angel scoffed. "I still cannot believe how terrible Team Beethoven was and I was sickened to see them all outlast me."
"I see," Rich said uncertainly, "I take it you don't have many fond thoughts on the final 3 either."
"Haylor is vile for enabling Charlene, the other two can win, sure," Angel said. "But I suppose there's always some good that comes out of something bad."
Angel inched closer to Wesley again.
"Okay, I'll leave you love birds be," Rich said as he entered the building.
Rich stepped in to a foyer filled with various games. Reggie and Cesar were both playing a game of pool.
"Hey, guys," Rich said as he approached them. "Any chance you want to share your thoughts on the game?"
"I thought I played a good game," Cesar said, "when you're not strong and know it, it's easy to become a target, and I worked against that and turned it to my advantage. It just came undone at the merge, mostly thanks to Mary-Anne's awful vendetta. I should have made more of an effort to get rid of her."
"I think I learned a lot during the game," Reggie said, "I may not have won, but it was a huge growing experience and that's what matters, right? And more than that, I made some true friends."
"That's right!" Arlo said as he squeezed in between Cesar and Reggie and strung his arm around. "We're all the best of friends now, yeah? And that's the only thing that matters, yep. Uh-huh, who cares about the game? Right, I don't, you don't either, of course you don't, because we're friends now, yeah."
"I am so uncomfortable right now," Reggie said under his breath to Cesar.
"So how do you three feel about the final 3?" Rich asked.
"Mary-Anne sucks," Cesar said.
"Yeah, got to agree there," Reggie said.
"No, no, you're going about it all wrong," Arlo interjected, "don't focus on the negatives, right, look at the positives."
"I'm supporting Duke I guess," Reggie said, "It really did seem like him against the world at times and he fought hard."
"I'd give Haylor credit too," Cesar said, "she played the game well and it's shown."
Rich moved along and entered the kitchen. There he found Serendipity working at multiple stations at once, seemingly preparing several meals simultaneously.
"Hi," Rich said, "I was just—"
"Be a dear, hun, and help me chop these," Serendipity said as she placed Rich in front of a pile of bell peppers. "It's for the stir fry tonight and you can never have enough pepper in one of those."
"Oh, uh, okay," Rich said, "and while I'm doing this maybe you could—"
"Um, excuse me!" Charlene said as she barged into the room. "Where is my Angel Food Cake platter that I asked for!? You said you were working on it, hm!? I've been waiting for five whole minutes, starving!"
"Okay, first of all you asked for a fudge platter," Serendipity said.
"Well I changed my mind, obviously!" Charlene ragged. "How am I supposed to soften this blow without some comfort food!?"
"Uh, ahem, perhaps in the meantime, both of you could talk about your time on the game," Rich suggested.
"Well, I—" Serendipity began.
"Um, nobody cares about you, you irrelevant premerge boot," Charlene scoffed, "I can't even remember your name, but I can assume it's something ridiculous!"
"Well, how rude," Serendipity said. "No cake for you!"
"Well good because I wanted fudge actually anyways!" Charlene said.
"You're not getting that either!" Serendipity retorted.
"This game was stupid and rigged and I hated every second of it!" Charlene spat at Rich.
"So uh…how about the finalists?" Rich asked awkwardly.
"That Haylor girl seemed rather nice," Serendipity said, "I do hope she wins."
"I do NOT support Haylor stabbing me in the back," Charlene said, "however if she wins then she can adequately make it up to me by taking me on a trip to Paris."
"I see…" Rich said as he backed out the door. "Well this has been enlightening…bye ladies!"
Rich walked out into a hall and soon passed Gabriela and Antonia.
"Oh, hello girls," he said. "Mind sharing a few thoughts about the game?"
"Oh this game was just lovely," Antonia said, "I got to push myself to my limits, I never thought I could make it so far in this game, but I really proved that I'm capable of more than I ever thought."
"Personally, I thought I could have done better in this game," Gabriela said, "I started off on a really awkward team and having to return to the game meant that I was short on connections, it was always going to be an uphill battle, and I guess just not one that I was meant to win. All I can say is you'd better make the final 3 work hard for that win, they do not deserve to get off easy."
"So what are your thoughts on the final 3?" Rich asked.
"I thought I had something to work with Mary-Anne and she stabbed me in the back so screw her," Gabriela said, "Duke and Haylor I've got nothing against, so if they can earn it then good for them."
"Yeah, Mary-Anne was nothing but a hassle for me," Antonia said, "And I don't care for Haylor's 'too cool for you' treatment of me, so I'm definitely supporting Duke here."
"Gabriela!" Vance exclaimed as he came bounding down the hall.
"Oh my god," Gabriela groaned before grabbing Rich. "Keep him busy, I've got to find a new hiding spot!"
"Um, hi Vance," Rich said as he blocked Vance's way, "Think you could take a few minutes to talk about the game?"
"The only thing that matters about this game," Vance said, "is that I found my soulmate. That makes going early meaningless since I won something that money can't buy!"
"I see," Rich said, "I take it you don't have much to say on the finalists either then?"
"Nope, never met them," Vance said, "Good luck to all of them. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a woman to woo!"
Rich continued along until he came to another door and entered a library. He found Faith, Shaylin, and Osmond all seated reading books.
"Hi, guys," he said, "I was hoping maybe you could take a few minutes to talk about your thoughts on the game."
"I was clearly playing the best game!" Osmond exclaimed. "Taken out too early because people saw me as a threat!"
"Right, that must be it," Faith remarked dryly.
"Well I'd rather be taken out as a threat than for not threatening enough, like you!" Osmond retorted.
"I was just waiting for my time to shine," Faith replied.
"Waited too long if you ask me," Osmond said.
"Look, I'm sure both of you think you're so smart for your 'revolutionary strategies,'" Shaylin said as she turned around, "but who's the one who actually made it anywhere? That's right, me. I was controlling the game and people didn't even recognize it."
"Until they did and sent you out," Faith pointed out.
"Okay, I'm sure you're all very smart!" Rich said, "So uh, how about the final 3?"
"Well, of course I'm going to support Mary-Anne for sticking by me to the end," Shaylin said, "And honestly Haylor deserves to lose after her awful move of thinking it was a good idea to eliminate me."
"Really? Because if it was such an awful move it didn't seem to stop her from getting to the end," Faith pointed out.
"Oh shut up, she got there by a lot of luck and crazy coincidences," Shaylin said, "I had my game planned out every step of the way."
"Want to know what I would have done in that position?" Osmond exclaimed.
"No," both Faith and Shaylin shut him down.
"Anyways, I'd say I'm supporting Mary-Anne too," Faith said, "Her and I clicked so I'm glad she could carry on."
"I will support Haylor for her ruthless gameplay!" Osmond exclaimed. "None are safe from her wrath!"
"Thanks guys," Rich said.
He left the group and came up to a staircase in the back of the room. He climbed the stairs and found Raven, Deirdre, and Hunter sitting by a fire together.
"Hello guys, looks like you'll be wrapping up this interview segment," Rich said, "Think you could share some thoughts about this game?"
"This game was certainly experience," Deirdre said, "I came in expecting a game, nothing more. Instead it was an emotional rollercoaster. I was all over the map, there's certainly no way to keep your emotions in check. I've learned that about myself. I can't plan for everything and sometimes you just have to let it happen."
"This game was supposed to be just me," Hunter said, "until Duke had to chime in. Who knows how differently it would have played out without him."
"I don't think you'd have lasted quite so long without him," Deirdre remarked.
"Oh don't take his side, he only put a target on me," Hunter said, "our placements mean nothing, the rest of the game only ever saw us as 'the twins' and that was a stigma I could have totally avoided without him."
"Well, as for me," Raven said, "I just wish I got to experience more of the merged game. I had a lot of game to bring and I felt I could have been a force to be reckoned with, but I just ended up on the wrong side."
"So who would you like to see win now then?" Rich asked.
"As much as I would loathe the constant boasting I'd have to endure," Hunter said, "I wish for Duke to win so that I may share in the victory."
"Obviously I'm supporting Duke as well," Deirdre said, "that should come as no surprise."
"I will also be predictable and say Duke," Raven said, "Haylor seemed like a bit of a mess, and I just never know Mary-Anne that well. I think out of all of them Duke's held himself with the most integrity though."
"Well I guess that wraps it up for us then," Rich said, "Duke, Mary-Anne, and Haylor, all of them have some support, some of them caught some hate as well. They clearly left their impact though and have made names for themselves. It doesn't matter what anyone here says, though, what matters if which of those three can bring the fight to their fullest at the final challenge. We will see you all there for the finale of Uber Drama Mountain of Madness!"
Author's Note: And there you have it! Haylor vs Duke vs Mary-Anne! It all comes down next episode, after all this time, who will finally be crowned the winner of my eighth complete season!?