Prologue: The Host

"You're giving him a season two!?" The raven-haired, cleft-chinned, arrogant psychopath known as Chris McLean was furious. "He's a terrible host! I've got this whole awesome plan for season seven of Total Drama, and you're just gonna give him the time, and not me!? What happened to the 'Total Drama Presents' part!?"

"Didn't we add that at your request?" The head producer, a tall, deep-voiced, balding man, put a finger to his lips before finishing the rhetorical question. "Why yes, I think we did. Because of Owen, Noah, Geoff, and Leonard participating."

"Yeah, those traitors Owen, Noah, and Geoff!" Chris growled.

"And Leonard, yes. Sure, traitors," the producer replied flatly.

"Who?" Chris asked.

"From Pahkitew Island. The second out."

"Who?"

"The wizard kid."

"Who?"

The producer sighed heavily, giving up. "Look," he said, "Don's Ridonculous Race garnered much better ratings than your latest season, and almost five times the viewership. If that's not a clear message that Total Drama is on the decline-"

"Decline!?" Chris interrupted. "Pahkitew was barely a fluke! People just forgot to tune in, that's all. It was hilarious! The father and son team in that sh***y race thing liked watching it!"

The producer gave him a stern look. "So that's one positive review, congratulations. Most of the reviews were negative! Besides, after the All-Stars fiasco, half the fans didn't even tune in!"

"And by fiasco, you mean Mike, right?" Chris smirked and rolled his eyes. "What's there to be mad about? The kid was ratings gold! People loved the inside-the-mind stuff!"

"What's there to be mad about!? You're kidding me, right!?"

"Okay, okay," Chris said with a chuckle, "let's calm down now. I know that he, Zoey, and Cameron took up too much of the edit for some people's liking. It won't happen again, trust me."

"But it DID happen again! Literally the very next season!" The producer glared at him. "When it wasn't the Dave and Sky show, it was the Shawn and Jasmine show, or the sheer absurdity of Sugar and Max."

"Hey!" Chris frowned. "Don't remind me of the fat purple midget who shall not be named."

The producer groaned. "And you still ignored the Mike issue! The guy would take steroids mid-competition, play up a stupid stereotype, and call it an alternate personality! A legit mental illness! Not only did you let him, you let him win! And then you decide to film this 'inside-the-mind stuff' off camera, with CGI, just to play into the kid's ego? To feed his unforgivable lie?"

Chris shut his mouth for once. It seemed like he had no retort. Until that devious smile crept back onto his face, and he replied with one word: "Ratings."

"Ratings? You think that stunt is good ratings!?"

The head producer was fuming, glowing red with anger, but Chris either didn't notice or didn't care, since all he said was, "Yeah. You know it, dude."

As much as the producer wanted to throttle him, to smack that grin off Chris's smug face, he kept it professional. "In that case," the producer, Albert, took a deep breath, "a decision that used to be hard just became very easy. We're terminating your contract."

It took a few moments for Chris to register what just happened. Then, all at once, his smile gaped open in shock and his eyes went wide. "Wait, WHAT?"

"You're fired. Gather your things and go."

"Fired!? You all need me!" Chris began ranting. "You think Don is worth your money? He's a pale imitation of me! Hell, he's a pale imitation of Topher, who's already a pale imitation of me! Without my show you'll be nothing!"

Already walking away, the producer berated him. "I said, gather your things. We'll be just fine without you."

Chris opened his mouth wide to yell back, before the producer added, "Oh, and remember, I can and will call law enforcement if necessary. You're acquainted with them, right?"

The police card was the only card that could shut up an angry Chris McLean. There are no chances for him to pamper himself while in prison, and pampering himself is a Chris necessity. If prison wasn't a legitimate threat to the famous sadist, Total Drama would be an incredibly different show. And with no producers breathing down his neck, anything goes… the show would be the most hilarious, chaotic, and - of course - dramatic, hell on earth imaginable.

Those thoughts weren't yet on Chris's mind as he removed everything he wanted to keep from his studio. Portraits of himself, statues of himself both tall and small, standees of himself, awards dedicated to himself, awards he made up to give to himself, pictures of himself… he tried prying a poster of himself off of the wall before realizing it was actually a mirror. Every piece of his memorabilia bore his trademark grin, but he did not. Chris's expression was a deep scowl.

Chris wasn't fully there, as he was busy thinking about the producer. He imagined pushing his former boss off Wawanakwa's famous cliff, tossing him in an active Hawaiian volcano, firing him out of a cannon, and feeding him to Chris's all-time favorite pet, Larry. The glory days of Total Drama may have gone and passed, but Chris's passion for the show, and his passion for the torture he brought with it, could never be quenched. Total Drama was Chris McLean's ultimate gift to the world.

And now that the network has cut him free, the show is just as free.

As soon as he got home, Chris started searching through the thousands of old applications from teens. Even if he couldn't send out a new application without getting the network on his tail, he could still browse new contestants from their past submissions. If they wanted to sign up in the past, they'd better still be ready for it now. If they're not ready... well, that's their problem, isn't it?

Chris isn't poor, nor is he dumb. By combining his manipulative mind, his excessive wealth, and his sheer determination to continue the series he started, Chris is an unstoppable force capable of anything he desires, with producers or otherwise.

Will it be the wildest season yet? Who knows, but one thing is certain… the world is not ready for it.

A/N: Hello again, Total Drama community! I'm PurpleShadowManipulator, aka Shadow to make things easier, and I've decided to join the glorious chaos that is SYOCs. I told myself I'd never do one, but sometimes inspiration just slaps you upside the face and all you can do is take it in stride. In other words, whatever man, let's do this!

As you can pretty clearly see, this AU branching off the original Total Drama continuity is quite a bit darker than the series itself was. My take on Mike shows that more than anything else, so I might as well set the record straight: depending on the characters I receive and the themes I decide to implement, this story may reach a Fiction M rating. This Chris no longer cares about his image, so his attitude may be ruthless, and his challenges will be more lethal than ever. I may explore mild sexual themes, addiction, mental illness, etc. as well, so you have been warned.

But if the story still sounds fun to you (and I hope it does), by all means apply! Total Drama lives by its cast, so I can't wait to see who I get!

RULES

1- Please follow the exact app as is, and send it through PM only. I'm a very analytical person, so it can stress me to see things missing or out of order. If you want me to send you the app in PM so you can fill it in more easily, feel free to ask!

2- You may send in two characters maximum, and if you do, they must be of different genders.

3- If I don't at first accept the character, I will allow you to revise their application, and give you advice about what you could change/improve. After the third draft of a character, if I still don't think they'd fit the story, then that character is out of consideration.

4- This is not first-come first-serve. I will not save spots, but the more you talk to me, the longer I'll be willing to wait for you.

5- The cast size will vary based on how many apps I get. If a lot of people are interested, it could go up to a maximum of 24!

6- Please, please, PLEASE read the prologue. The first time you send me a message, I want you to send me the name of the head producer, which I said exactly once throughout this prologue. If you do, I'll be much more open to accepting your characters!

7- Even if these rules sound harsh, try to have fun with it! I want to see your characters, and even a glimpse at the passion you put into your application is going to make me love them!

APPLICATION

(Anything marked with three asterisks is entirely optional. Also, feel free to erase anything in parentheses, like this statement here)

Personal Information

Full Name:

Nickname(s)***:

Age: (16-20)

Gender: (I will accept any, but keep in mind, this version of Chris has little to no human decency)

Sexuality: (Same as with gender. Anything goes, but don't expect Chris's respect)

Ethnicity:

Religion***:

Personality: (Lots of details! As much as you can say about them)

Backstory: (It can be dark; as dark as you want it to be. However, it doesn't HAVE to be dark. How dark a character's backstory is will have no effect on whether or not I'll accept them)

Why would Chris want them?: (This is crucial to the application. How does your character appeal to the host's desires?)

Appearance

Face:

Hair:

Body:

Markings***:

Usual Attire:

Swimwear:

Sleepwear:

Accessories***:

Personal Traits

Strengths: (Maximum 5)

Weaknesses: (Must have the same number as strengths)

Rank the following from best to worst for your character: (Athleticism, Endurance, Strategy, Sociability, Adaptability)

Likes:

Dislikes: (Must have the same number as likes)

Talent(s): (Maximum 3)

Phobia(s): (Maximum 3, please give reasons)

Habits/Quirks***:

Aspirations***:

Interactions

Who would they be friends with?:

How would they treat friends?:

Who would they be at odds with?:

How would they treat enemies?:

How would they treat people they feel more neutrally towards?***:

Are they looking for romance?: (If your character isn't looking for love but you'd like them to find it anyway, please say so here)

Who would they fall in love with?: (Optional if they aren't looking for love)

How would they treat a crush?: (Optional if they aren't looking for love)

Reactions

To being kidnapped: (Whoops, spoilers!)

To being one of the first 4 eliminated***:

To being eliminated close to the merge:

To being eliminated after the merge:

To being eliminated in the top 4:

To being the runner-up***:

To winning:

To Chris's shenanigans***:

Unnamed Final Part

How much are you okay with your character going through, pain- or trauma- wise?:

Do you want a guaranteed happy overall ending for your character?:

How long ago (ex. for which season) did your character apply to be on Total Drama?:

Audition Tape:

Anything else?: