The forest held a serene atmosphere to it. It was peaceful and somewhat quiet with only the faint sound of birds chirping in the distance and the rustling of the soft breeze blowing the green leaves of the large oaks.
There were two birds perched on a tree branch, one light blue and the other a pale green. They chirped back and forth with each other, almost as if they were in conversation. Just then, a small squirrel scampered by them, running down the trunk of the tree. The view followed the squirrel down as he made it to the bottom.
The squirrel leaped onto the ground and picked up a fallen acorn. He gave a smile at his find, making his cheeks puff up slightly. He will be fed well tonight, that he was sure of.
Then all of a sudden, the quiet was broken by a loud, booming whistle. This horribly startled the squirrel as he dropped the acorn to the ground and clutched his chest. Moments after, his eyes rolled back into his head, and the squirrel landed on his back with a tiny thud. I guess he won't be needing that acorn anymore.
Another blast of the blaring whistle screamed out as the camera switched its view from the deceased squirrel to a small, rusted tank engine that was chugging along. The red paint on it was chipping off and the body and wheels of the machine seemed to be covered in rust. The train seemed worse for wear, and the fact that it was able to start up seemed to have been a feat all in itself, but this train was managing to pull a large storage car behind it.
All of a sudden some low beats could be heard as the camera started to slowly zoom in towards the storage car. It transitioned to the interior of the car, which seemed to be filled with crates and other storage boxes. It was dull and slightly dusty inside. As the camera panned to the right slightly, a slightly tanned boy with blue glasses and black, medium length hair with bangs that covered his right eye was laying down on a couple of crates with a gray tarp over himself.
Just then, the beat immediately picked up with a saxophone blaring out as the boy threw the tarp off of himself, revealing his full outfit which consisted of a red hoodie, simple headphones, black jeans, and red trainers. He started to sing in with the beat, giving the audience a true show.
"Oh, oh, oh! Woke up today, feeling the way I always do!" He sang, lifting his left hand to his chest.
"Oh, oh, oh! Hungry for something that I can't eat, when I hear that beat!"
Giving a twirl before walking to the left slightly, he continued. "That rhythm of the woods starts calling me down. It's like a message from Chriiiis McLean!" He sang as he lifted his arms into the air.
"Oh, oh, oh! Pulling me out to the backstabbing and lies that I love! Good morning Tot-"
"Will you shut the hell up!?" Screamed another voice. The boy stopped his singing and turned to the voice that interrupted him.
The camera panned over to show another boy, but this one appeared to be a lot younger with his appearance. He had pale skin that was dotted with freckles, green eyes, and medium length ginger hair that goes down to his neck. He wore a white shirt underneath a black sweater with a queen pawn on it, black trousers, and a black and white checkered scarf.
The first boy gasped. "I'm making a memorable entrance though."
"Well you're being too fucking loud!" Screamed the ginger boy.
Tears started to well up in the first boy's eyes as he started getting worked up. "You're being loud too!"
All of a sudden, a third party entered the scene and quickly got between the two. "Hey, what's with the fighting? We haven't even exited the game lobby yet!" This girl was slightly above average height, standing at 5'8 with a lollipop body type, green eyes, and pale skin with freckles. Her ginger hair was done into two low pigtails that rested on her shoulders and her fringe had been dyed hot pink. She wore a burnt orange and dark teal sweater over a band tee with a white tennis skirt, striped coral and white knee-high socks, and white sneakers with orange stripes on them.
"He interrupted my performance,'' said the boy with the red hoodie. "He said I was being 'too loud.'"
"Because you were!" Yelled the younger looking boy. "You need to shut the fuck up!"
Realizing that the smaller boy was being something of a hypocrite, the girl decided she should say something. "I mean, you're kinda being hypocritical. You're being really loud and doing a lot of unnecessary cursing. It's kinda weird such a cute little guy has such a foul mouth."
This only upset the smaller boy more. "Caleb Davidson is not cute you fucking pedo!" Now he was getting worked up. "Screw this, I don't want to talk with you people!" Caleb yelled before storming off to go cry in the corner.
After Caleb made his explosive exit, the guy in the red hoodie introduced himself. "Thank you for standing up for me, no one has done that before." said the other boy. "My name's Jeremy." Jeremy stuck out his hand to shake the girl's hand.
She accepted it with a smile and replied, "My name is Claire! My streamers call me Moony, but I'm down with either."
"I'll take note of that!" Jeremy told her as the camera panned over to a new set of contestants.
The two had been sitting on some of the crates next to each other. The first was a naturally skinny caucasian girl who was about 5'6 with brown eyes, and dirty blonde hair that went down to her shoulders that was currently in a ponytail. She wore a dark blue v-neck shirt, with a white shirt underneath, earrings, a small bracelet with the initials 'EC' on it, shorts, and sandals. She appeared to not have a care or thought in her head, slightly swinging her legs back and forth.
"This is so fun, right?" She asked the guy next to her. "My name is Erza by the way!"
The guy next to her gave an uncaring glance in her direction. He had tan skin, black eyes, and short black hair that was under a grey beanie. He was 5'6 with a lean and skinny body and wore a black t-shirt with a knife on it over a long sleeve white shirt, blue jeans, a grey hoodie tied around his waist, and black sneakers with red accents.
"I'm Kevin." He replied with a monotone voice. "And I don't see what's so exciting about it. We're here stuffed into a dusty and dirty train car waiting to partake in a death-defying game for a million dollars which only one of us is going to win. Which, odds are it's not going to be either of us, so we may as well quit when we're ahead."
Erza's facade dropped for just a split second, but she quickly regained her composure and giggled. "You should believe in yourself more silly!"
"Why should I? My life up until now has been nothing but pure crap. Nothing will go my way here either." Kevin told her.
Erza didn't know how to reply to this. So instead, she just gave a strained smile and just stayed silent. This was going to be a long competition…
As the camera panned over some more, there were three more people who appeared. The first was a girl who seemed to be enthusiastically explaining something to the other two. She was short with a medium build, caucasian with brown eyes that sat behind a pair of purple glasses, and short dark brown hair with red streaks. She wore a purple mario-styled cap on her head with a puzzle piece sticker on the front, a black t-shirt with purple polka dots, blue jeans, and red running shoes.
"But yeah, it's super crazy in the Total Drama fandom currently. There's a lot of creeps out there and some of us bigger name fans are trying to whittle them out of the fandom." said the girl.
The other two people glanced at each other before the guy spoke. "The hell does this got to do with anything?"
He was 5'9 with a lean and athletic body, chestnut colored skin, piercing brown eyes, and short black hair that was well kept and styled with a tapered fade on the sides and back. He wore a red basketball jersey that had the number '1' on the front and back in white lettering, tight fitting ripped jeans with holes around the knees and the thighs, as well as red Air Force One's.
The girl shrugged. "I was just having a conversation. We should get to know each other better since we're now castmates. The name's Beek by the way."
The guy raised an eyebrow and let out a mocking chuckle. "Right… Well, uh, Beek, you've got a great point. I'm gonna converse with some of the others here. So, uh, you two have fun." He then walked away from the two.
The other girl frowned at being left alone, but didn't say anything. She was caucasian with blue eyes, stood at 5'10 with a thin and slightly muscular build, and straight brown hair that went to her upper back. The end of her hair was dyed a dark blue and she wore a handmade black fur jacket with a brown shirt, black leggings, and black sneakers.
"Man, Jacque didn't even give us his name. How rude!" Beek said.
The other girl raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, my good friend Sierra showed me the cast list from this season!" Beek explained. "Don't worry, I only know people's names. But you're Sharron, right?"
Sharron slowly nodded, not sure of how to react to Beek knowing everyone's names already.
"Y'know, you kinda remind me of B." Beek told her. Then her eyes lit up and she remembered something. "Oh! I have this super cool theory about B, so like-"
The camera started to pan away from the two as Beek started telling one of her theories to Sharron. It landed back to Jacque, who walked up to another girl with lightly tanned skin, ocean blue eyes, and waist-length golden blonde hair with icy blonde streaks through it. She stood at 5'10.5 and had a lean and athletic build to her. The girl wore an off the shoulders white sweater with her lacy hot pink bra straps showing, a black mini skirt, black designer knee-high boots, and a heart locket.
The girl was currently fiddling with a charm bracelet on her left wrist. Jacque put on a suave smirk as he walked up to her.
"Well hello there, didn't think there'd be any angels on this train." he greeted.
The girl looked slightly shocked at being referenced, but quickly regained her composure. "Oh, well hello there, didn't think anybody would have learned my name already." Her voice was sweet and held an elegant British accent.
Jacque raised an eyebrow at this.
Seeing this, the girl giggled. "Oh, well I guess it was just a coincidence then. My name is actually Angel."
Jacque just smirked at this. "Ah, an angel from the U.K. didn't expect that, but I can't complain. Well, Angel, if you ever want to feel like you're in heaven, you can just give your boy Jacque a call." He said, sending a wink her way.
Angel playfully rolled her eyes, and flipped her hair back. "I have to say Jacque, you really know how to lay it on thick rather quickly."
The sheisty dude gave a nonchalant shrug. "What can I say, I like to get down to business sweetheart."
Angel sent a smile his way. "I can see that. I have a feeling we'll get along wonderfully."
With that, the camera panned over to the next two contestants who were talking.
The first was a tall guy that stood at 6'1 and was skinny with slightly toned muscles. He had pale skin that was covered with freckles, blue eyes, and short red hair that was straight and also had been cut with a fade on the sides and back. He wore a green t-shirt with white and orange stripes, navy blue shorts, and black sneakers.
The girl with him had cream skin, brown eyes, and dyed purple hair that was done up in a side ponytail. She was short, standing at 4'10 and had a pear body type, being relatively thin with wide hips. Her outfit exuded a dorky energy as it was a purple t-shirt with a pink vest over it that had various pins of dorky things, a green skirt, and dirty white sneakers. She was currently chewing on a wad of gum.
"Ah fuck, I had a bit too much of the black stuff last night. My head is killin' me." said the guy, a thick Irish accent seeping through his words.
The girl raised an eyebrow at this. "Black stuff? Is that a type of gum? Actually, it sounds like something in Dungeons and Dragons…"
Despite his headache, the Irish guy let out a hearty laugh. "Nah mate, I'm talkin about Guinness. I had a little celebration for leavin' for the show last night. I may have overdid it though."
The girl nodded in understanding. "That makes sense." She took out a pack of gum from her pocket, and handed him a stick of it. "Try chewing some gum. It usually helps my headaches. I'm June by the way!"
The guy graciously took the stick of gum and unwrapped it before popping it into his mouth. "Yer a life saver. The name's Kevin, but my mates just call me Kev."
June beamed at the compliment. She rarely received those!
Continuing the pattern of panning over to the next group of contestants, there was an intimidating looking girl leaning against some of the crates. She had peach skin, teal eyes, and black hair that went down to her waist and was styled into a waterfall braid. She was dressed fully in black with a blouse, skirt, fishnet stockings, and laced up high-heel boots that went up her legs. She was 5'8 and had a slender build.
Then, another guy tried walking past her, but accidentally bumped into her. "Ah! S-sorry!"
This guy was 5'11 and was pretty thin with pale skin, aquamarine eyes, and messy light brown hair that was under an Ohio State Buckeyes baseball cap. He wore a matching red OSU t-shirt under a grey OSU hoodie, dark blue jeans, and red and white sneakers. He held a sketchbook to his chest, and after bumping into the girl, his face turned bright red from embarrassment.
The girl snarled. "Don't bump into me again unless you want to leave with broken bones." She threatened, getting in the guy's face.
The color drained from his face and his pants got a lot wetter in the crotch area as he had a look of pure fear on his face. "Y-y-y-yes m-m-m-ma'am."
All of a sudden, another girl walked up between the two. "Hey dudes, let's get along over here."
This girl definitely appeared to be an artist as she was covered in paint stains. She had tan skin, emerald eyes, and dirty blonde hair. She was short and had a petite body, standing at 5'4. She wore a black shirt with the logo of an obscure band on it, ripped skinny jeans, and she had a ukulele on her back.
"This has nothing to do with you." the girl in all black told her. "You have no reason to get involved."
"Yeah, but we need to spread our love to each other. No hostility, good vibes only." The painter said. She then held her hand out and gave a lazy smile. "My name's Tess by the way."
The black haired girl gave an unamused look and glanced at Tess's hand. "You're very naive if you think life can only be full of 'good vibes'." She turned on her heel and started to walk away. "But the name's Brittany."
Tess gave a relaxed smile before turning to the boy in the baseball cap.
"Ah, thank you!" he told her gratefully. "I feel like she would've made mince meat out of me."
"It's no problem dude." Tess told him. "I just want good vibes only, y'know? What was your name by the way?"
The cowardly guy slightly blush. "O-oh! My name is Joshua." He held out his hand. "It's very nice to meet you."
Tess smiled and went to shake Joshua's hand. That's when she noticed the sketch book he was holding.
"Wait, dude, is that a sketch book?" she asked excitedly, her eyes lighting up. "Are you an artist?"
Joshua nodded. "I am."
"Same man!"
The timid guy chuckled. "I kinda figured from all the paint stains."
Tess looked down at herself remembering all the paint stains that were on her. Chuckling, she replied. "Ahah, yeah that would be a give away, wouldn't it? Hey, mind if I take a peek at your art?"
Joshua looked away bashfully. "I-I don't know…"
"Ah, c'mon dude, we're both artists. I'd love to see your work!"
He looked back to her, cheeks a little red. After a couple moments, Joshua gave a small smile and nodded. "Okay."
"Sweet!"
As the two started to look through Joshua's sketch book, the camera panned over once more. Sitting on a crate were two more contestants. The first was an overweight girl who stood at 5'7 and had dark brown skin and brown eyes that sat behind blue rimmed glasses. She had straight black hair that went down to her upper back with dyed blue tips. She wore an unbuttoned sapphire and black flannel over a black tank top, dark grey jeans, a black beanie and black combat boots.
The second was a tall guy, standing at 6'1 and was quite thin with slightly rosy skin and hazel eyes. His short hair was dyed a bright orange and his bangs went across his forehead right above his eyes. He was dressed better than most of the other contestants, being in a white dress shirt, black dress slacks, and brown formal shoes. He wore glasses as well to help with his poor eyesight. The man's arms were blotched with burn marks.
The two were already chatting with each other when the camera focused on them.
"I wonder what the location is going to be for this season," said the girl. "I mean it can't be an island since we're getting there by train."
The guy pondered this, and then nodded his head. "That is a good assumption madam. As long as there is actual food and a kitchen, I will not have any qualms about our location." He glanced in another direction for a moment, noticing something, he turned back to the girl. "Oh, pardon me Madam… Diamond, was it?"
Diamond smirked and put her hands on her hips. "Yup, that's me."
"Well, that gentleman over there seems to not be engaged in any conversation. Would it be okay with you if we included him?" he asked. "It would be awfully rude to leave someone out."
Diamond glanced behind the man, and saw who he was talking about. Leaning up against the wall was another guy, standing at 5'10 with fair skin, green eyes, and dyed messy black hair that goes just past his ears. His body was tight and leanly toned, and he wore a v-neck rainbow tie-dye shirt, a bright red hoodie with white drawstrings and pink lining on the inside. He wears moderate azure jeans with the bottoms rolled up and a number of horizontal rips around his knees, black boots with faint "Oil Slick" rainbow blotches, a pair of black leather fingerless gloves, a black leather collar around his neck, and a square-nails belt with a square silver buckle. Hanging from his belt are a pair of square-nails chains that hang around his thighs.
Looking back to her conversation partner, she gave a smile and agreed. "Yeah, why not?"
They started walking over to the loner, who noticed them. Right as they were close, the orange haired guy tripped over his own foot and fell into the loner's arms.
"Well, I'm not usually one to kiss before introductions, but I may make an exception for a cutie like you." said the black hair guy.
Blushing furiously, the clumsy guy got off of the other, face beat red from embarrassment. "M-my apologies sir, I had managed to trip over my own foot." He straightened his shirt out and held out his hand. "My name is Felix, it is a pleasure to meet you."
The loner raised an eyebrow at the hand before shaking it and smirking. "The name's Kit." His smirk turned into a shit-eating grin. "But, ah, next time you want a piece of me, you just gotta ask first."
Felix's face went red again as Diamond stepped in. "Uh, excuse me. Him falling into you was an accident. You're clearly making him uncomfortable, so you need to stop."
Kit gave her an unimpressed look. "Sheesh, you need to have a cow, it's just light teasing." Looking back at Felix while smirking he continued. "I like a little teasing, it helps-"
"Ugh, I said stop you pig!" Diamond snapped, cutting Kit off.
Felix frowned. "I must agree with Madam Diamond. You are making me quite uncomfortable."
All of a sudden the train came to a halt, brakes squeaking loudly. Felix almost fell back, but Kit grabbed him by the waist and kept him steady.
Once the train had come to a full stop, Felix pushed on Kit's chest. "Unhand me you beast!"
Kit feigned offense. "Beast? How dare you." His shit-eating grin reappeared.
Diamond frowned. "Let's go, we're here." She grabbed Felix's wrist and dragged him towards the exit. Kit chuckled to himself before following them and the others out of the train car.
The scene flashed, now with all of the contestants outside. They stood right in front of the train in the middle of the forest with Chris standing in front of them.
"Welcome losers to your own personal hell for the next month." Chris greeted, a sadistic smile spread across his face.
Some of the contestants gave each other nervous glances.
Then, Chris took out a blue clipboard from behind him. "Alright let's see here… We have Angel, Beek, Brittany, Caleb, Claire, Diamond, Erza, Felix, Jacque, Jeremy, Joshua, June, Kev and Kevin, Kit, Sharron, and last, but not least Tessa." He read off each name, and glanced up at each contestant when he read off their name. Chris put the clipboard back behind him and announced, "Yep, all 17 of you are here!"
Diamond quickly counted everyone, and confirmed there were 17 of them. "Wait… why are there seventeen of us? That doesn't divide equally at all."
Chris gave a knowing grin. "Why does it matter if the number of you can be divided up equally?"
"Uh, so we can be equally divided up into teams. Duh!" Diamond responded. "It's not fair for a team to have an extra member."
Chris scratched his chin in thought. "Huh, you make a great point there." His demeanor changed quickly though, turning into a more cocky one as he smirked and crossed his arms. "But it's not one that really matters since we're not really doing regular teams this go around."
There were murmurs of confusion. "Wait, but like, what does that mean?" Erza asked, feigning dumb.
"Wait, are the teams going to be shuffled each challenge?" Claire asked. "Dude, that'd be crazy!"
"Not exactly." Chris said. "Because from the start, there will be no teams. It's every man for himself."
Gasps filled the air and the tension rose. Everyone's game plans had just been turned upside down due to this. They had to change their strategies quickly.
Chris continued, "Now there will be some challenges that are done in teams, but pretty much, you may as well act as if you've reached the merge."
Beek jittered with excitement. "That's so cool! Never has Total Drama changed up the format like this since World Tour with three teams!"
"Where the fuck are we going to stay?" Caleb asked, his arms crossed. "I don't wanna build my own shelter like last season."
Chris's brow furrowed in annoyance. "I was getting to that part, Caleb." He took out a walkie talkie and spoke into it. "Alright Chef, move the train."
The train whistle rang out loud once more, making the contestants cover their ears. Then the train started to chug forward again.
"Behold the setting for this season: Fort McLean!"
Everyone turned around and their faces became filled with awe. Standing in front of them was a towering structure. It stood so high that the top of it couldn't be seen through the thicket of the forest and the white, fluffy clouds cruising through the sky. The fortress was built with black brick, which had to have taken ages to build, and it was surrounded by a high wall with spikes protruding from the top. And surrounding that was a moat which seemed to be housing some dangerous underwater creatures.
"Holy shit." Kev muttered.
Kit just snorted. "Seems like someone's trying to compensate for something, eh Chris?"
Some of the others snickered, but the host wasn't amused at this jab. He sent the cynical loner a small glare before saying, "I'd watch your mouth if I were you, I can and will eliminate you on the spot for disrespecting me."
That shut Kit up real quick.
"But yes, this season you're all going to be battling it out in this towering fortress." Chris explained.
"Roll credits." Claire joked.
Chris scowled at the breaking of the fourth wall. But he continued. "Anyway, every other floor has a completely new and dangerous setting for a new challenge." The host gave an evil snicker. "Expect some creative ones this go around. Also, in between each of these floors is a sort of rest area where you guys will be sleeping and spending your off days in. These are equipped with beds, baths, a kitchen and feeding area, as well as a lounge area. I know, I know, I am truly a gracious host."
"Whoa how did you afford all of that?" June asked.
"You manage to get what you want when you're as big as I am." Chris told her, stretching the truth. "Now, onto our first challenge."
"Aw, but we just got here!" Jeremy pouted.
"Cry about it." Chris told the musical nerd. "Your first challenge is simple: make your way into the fortress."
"That's it?" asked Claire. "Sounds like easy mode to me."
"Oh, but it won't actually be that easy. This is a fortress after all." Chris told the contestants. "You will have to find a way to make it inside while paying heed to the moat with man eating piranhas,"
The camera quickly panned over to the moat as a couple piranhas leaped out of the moat, snapping their jaws. Joshua gulped.
"And if you make it past that, there is also the spiky wall to deal with." Chris said as the camera showed a shot of the wall, and if you make it over that we have our specially trained attack poodles guarding the entrance." The camera finished with a shot of some mean looking poodles walking back and forth in front of the fortress door before flashing back to Chris.
"Why poodles?" June asked.
"Along with the front entrance, there are also other secret entrances hidden in the area. The entrance you use doesn't matter as long as you make it inside." Chris explained, completely ignoring June. "Oh, and by the way, this first challenge will be an auto-elimination."
"This keeps getting more brutal by the second." Joshua said.
"And one last thing, I promise." Chris said. "There will be a proper confessional once you get into the fortress, but for the time being, we set up the good old outhouse for you to let out your thoughts during this challenge."
"Alright, that's about it. Get on your marks." Chris said, making the contestants get ready to start the challenge. "Get set… Go!"
With that, the contestants took off to try and not be the last inside.
Confessional Beek
"This is so crazy! I'm actually in the Total Drama confessional!" She exclaimed, looking around excitedly. "There's already such cool twists, and I'm excited to see what else is next."
End Confessional
Confessional Jacque
"Man, the first time I'm technically in the merge in a fic, and it's by default." He frowned before regaining his usual cocky smirk. "I gotta say, these girls are easy on the eyes. Especially that Angel." His expression became more serious once more. "Je ne lui fais pas confiance du tout. Son sourire n'atteignit pas ses yeux. Elle est bien plus dangereuse qu'elle n'essaie de le laisser croire. Je garderai une bonne distance d'elle… pour le moment. (Translation: I don't trust her one bit. Her smile didn't reach her eyes. She's a lot more dangerous than she's trying to let on. I'll keep a safe distance from her… for now)."
End Confessional
Confessional Erza
She looks around the outhouse confessional with disgust. Her former innocent facade was fully broken as she spoke. "This place is gross. Ugh, so apparently we're not in teams this time around. That totally just messed up my entire strategy." She crossed her arms and thought to herself for a moment. "I need to make allies and fast. With it being every person for themself, it's more crucial than ever to get allies early on." She smirks and puts her hair into a ponytail. "I better work my magic."
End Confessional
Erza was a little further ahead than some of the others. She looked backf or a quick moment an formed a plan to get a potential ally. The blonde tripped herself on purpose to see if there was anyone who would help her.
And there was! June stopped next to her and helped the blonde up. "Oh gosh, are you okay?"
Erza just laughed lightly. "Yeah I'm okay! I can just be a little clumsy sometimes."
"I can be like that too." June responded sheepishly.
"Thank you for helping me July! I really appreciate it!" Erza said.
"Uh, actually it's-"
"Like, do you think we could team up for this challenge?" Erza asked, cutting the gum lover off, "I don't know if I'll be able to do this by myself."
June looked taken aback. "I- do you mean it?"
"Totally!" The blonde nodded.
June beamed from ear to ear. "Thank you!" She said a little too enthusiastically.
She noticed Erza's slightly uncomfortable look, and quickly backpedaled. "I-I mean, yeah that'd be cool."
"Yay! Thank you so much April!" Erza exclaimed, clapping her hands.
"Uh, it's Ju-"
"Let's go!" Erza said, once again cutting the gum lover off.
June deflated a little, but was still happy to have someone talking to her. The two started heading closer towards the fortress before the scene flashed.
Diamond and Felix made their way towards the fortress. Diamond had been trying to be observant and was looking around for any sign of a way to get in, so far no dice. Felix wasn't paying as much attention as his head was somewhat in the clouds. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going and walked right into Claire.
This caused the streamer to fall over.
"Ow..."
Diamond helped her up while Felix flushed red.
"Oh! My apologies Miss!" Felix quickly apologized.
"It's no problem!" Claire told the chef.
The two heard a gasp, and looked at Diamond. The programmer had her hand covering her mouth and looked at Clair with a surprised expression.
"You're CLAIREISDEAD!" she said excitedly. "I watch your streams all the time while I work!"
Claire sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "Oh, yeah I am. I didn't think I would be recognized here."
"Wow, that's so cool, I didn't think I'd be on the same Total Drama season as CLAIREISDEAD!" Diamond exclaimed. "Did you want to pair up with me and Felix here? The more the merrier."
Claire rubbed her arm for a moment before giving a small smile. "Sure."
Confessional Claire
"I'll admit I'm not sure how to feel about being recognized." The gaming streamer said, awkwardly rubbing her arm again. "I mean I came here to make friends, but I don't want people to like me only because I'm a semi-known streamer… But it also doesn't help to get allies."
End Confessional
Confessional Felix
"I'll be truthful, I did not understand a word that those two said. Why did Diamond say Claire was dead? And isn't a streamer a sort of decoration for parties? I cannot make any sense of it."
End Confessional
Caleb searched around the moat to see if there was a way for him to get past it.
"Ugh, this is so stupid!" He yelled. "What's the point of this damn challenge? Why can't we just be let in?"
The chess prodigy kicked a nearby tree, which proved to be a mistake as he recoiled in pain. "Ow! Fucking tree!"
He glared up at the tree, and as he did he noticed a thick tree branch that extended past the moat about six feet in the air.
"Eureka!" Caleb exclaimed. He tried to jump up to reach it, but the smol boy was nowhere close enough to reach it.
"Ugh! Screw my stupid short body!" He yelled. The chess prodigy moved over towards the trunk of the tree. "Maybe I can just climb up it." He tried to shimmy his way up the tree, but he quickly started sliding down due to the large radius of the trunk.
"Ugh! Nature is such shit!" He screamed. Caleb started looking around again, and that's when he noticed Jeremy who had his headphones on, singing another song.
"You came my way, and I knew a storm could come too! You'd lift me high, or let me fall."
Caleb ran over to him. "Hey you! I need your help."
Jeremy simply didn't hear him though, getting even more into his song. "But I took your hand, promised I'd withstand any blaze you blew my way! 'Cause something inside, it solidified, and I knew I'd always stay!"
"Uh, hello!" Caleb scowled.
"You can build me up, you can tear me down. You can try but I'm unbreakable!" Jeremy flung his left arm in the air, clearly too invested in the song.
"Ugh!" Caleb had it. The chess prodigy ripped the head phones off of Jeremy's head. "Will you fucking listen!"
Jeremy quickly turned around, sending a glare towards whoever took his headphones. "Hey! What's the big-" He scowled at seeing it was Caleb who interrupted him. "What do you want?"
Caleb gasped. "Don't talk to me with that tone you asshat!"
Jeremy just rolled his eyes and took back his headphones, putting them around his neck.
"Listen, I found a way across the moat, but I require some assistance." the chess prodigy explained.
This piqued the musical nerd's interest. "Oh? Where is it?"
"Over here." Caleb said, motioning Jeremy to follow. He took Jeremy to the tree and pointed to the low branch. "There! That branch will take you over the moat, but my stupid height won't let me reach it."
Jeremy smiled. "Nice." He jumped up and grabbed onto the branch, pulling himself onto it without Caleb noticing.
"So I was hoping you would help boost me-" Caleb turned around, but saw Jeremy wasn't there. "Wait, where did you-" He looked up and saw the musical nerd making his way across the branch. "Hey what the fuck!? Why are you leaving me here?"
"Why would I help you when you were so mean earlier?" Jeremy asked him. "Have fun getting over."
Caleb seethed with anger. "Fuck you!"
Confessional Caleb
"Fuck that stupid singing shithead!" Caleb screamed. "He just made an enemy in Caleb Davidson, and he won't be shown any mercy!"
End Confessional
Confessional Jeremy
"Can you blame me? He was totally mean to me in the train car. He doesn't deserve my help." Jeremy crossed his arms with a huff.
End Confessional
Jacque strolled up towards the moat with confidence in his step. The sheisty dude had snuck his way into more secure places before, this should be nothing.
He noticed Brittany at the edge of the moat, looking down at something. Smirkinh, he sauntered over to her. Couldn't hurt to do a little sweet talking, maybe make an ally.
"Hey, I couldn't help but notice you were alone." Jacque greeted.
Brittany quickly turned, stuffing something into her back pocket. She sent a glare towards the sheisty dude. "What's your business with me?"
Finally getting a good look at her, Jacque's eyes widened and he tensed up. "O-oh, uh, I just saw you here by yourself and thought you needed some help with something. I could see I was wrong, so I guess I'll just leave."
"Good, I don't need your help." Brittany told him coldy, looking back towards the moat. Jacque quickly walked away.
Once he was a good bit away from her, he relaxed. "Of all goddamn people to be here…"
Confessional Jacque
"Look, I'm not one to spook easily, but that bitch right there? Yeah, I don't want to fuck with her. She's Brittany Drake, a known mob boss around my area. I've never gotten involved with her myself before, but a couple of my buds have. Let's just say, it didn't turn out so hot for them. I'm steering clear of that bitch."
End Confessional
Confessional Brittany
Brittany took out a phone as she started typing something on it. "That was a close call. That guy almost caught me on this, I have to be more careful. I'm trying to see if one of my mob members, Blackbird, can send me a map of the entrances to this place." Brittany pauses for a moment before speaking. "Y'know that guy looked somewhat familiar… I'll have to ask Blackbird to get info on him. I may be able to use it."
End Confessional
Joshua and Tess decided to partner together since they already had gotten along so far.
"So Josh, you gotta tell me about yourself." Tess said.
"Ah, I prefer Joshua if you don't mind." The cowardly artist said. "And, I don't know what's really to talk about."
"Oh c'mon dude, there's lots to talk about." She nudged him with her elbow.
"What about you're, er… Why not talk about yourself?" Joshua asked.
"Hm? Well I love traveling." Tess told him. "I basically just make my way around meeting new people. It's so interesting getting to know all these different types of people, y'know?"
"Oh? Does your, um, family... travel a lot?"
Tess got an awkward expression. "Ehh, not exactly." She looked over and noticed Kevin. The free spirit smiled, completely dropping the conversation, and started walking over towards him. She was happy to try and make conversation with yet another person.
"Ah, w-wait!" Joshua exclaimed, trailing behind slightly.
"Hey, sup guy!" Tess greeted the pessimist.
He looked at her with bored eyes. "What?"
Tess gave a relaxed shrug. "Just thought I'd say hi. Making friends is what I do."
"I don't need friends, they disappoint me." Kevin responded.
Joshua pulled down the brim of his hat awkwardly, not knowing how to take this.
The traveling artist just laughed however. "Dude, that's not the way to think like that."
Kevin just shrugged. "Whatever. It's pointless for me to make friends anyway, I'll probably just be cannon fodder."
Tess wrapped an arm around Kevin's shoulders. "Hey, that's no way to think. Try to be more optimistic."
Kevin rolled his eyes and nudged Tess off of him. "Optimism is just another way to set yourself up for disappointment." He started walking away. "I'm out of here."
After he walked away, Tess put her hands and her hips and smirked. "He seems really interesting. I can't wait to get to know him better."
From next to her, Joshua just raised an eyebrow. "Uh… Right?"
Confessional Joshua
Sitting in the confessional, the timid artist awkwardly picked at his cap to avoid directly looking into the camera. "So, I've kinda learned that Tess is really friendly, but… ah how do I put this nicely… I think her friendliness could be a downfall for her." He gives a sheepish expression. "I hope that isn't too mean."
End Confessional
Sharron had decided to search in the woods close to the fortress for a secret passage. It was a long-shot, but maybe it's something that Chris would do. She smiled softly to herself, taking in the scenery. She missed being in the woods.
"Oh, hello there!" came a British voice.
Sharron jumped and turned towards the source of this new voice.
Seeing Sharron's freaked out expression, Angel held her hands up in a surrender position. "Oh my apologies dear, I didn't mean to cause a scare."
Hearing Angel's accent, Sharron gasped. "You're British too?" She spoke, exposing her own British accent.
The high class girl clasped her hands together. "Oh, I'm not the only Brit here, how delightful!"
Sharron slightly flushed. "Sorry for immediately pointing that out. I hate when people do that to me, yet I did that same thing."
Angel waved her hand dismissively. "Oh, you have no need to worry dear. It's admittedly nice to know there's someone else here who shares that commonality with me."
The archer smiled. "Same here." She looked around awkwardly. "I was trying to see if maybe Chris had a secret passage out here, did you want to join me and try and look for one."
The blonde smiled. "Yes, I would like that!" Angel glances at Sharron's fur coat. "Oh my, I love your coat! It looks very chic."
Sharron looked down at it and gave a sheepish smile. "It's actually handmade."
"Really?" Angel took a couple steps closer and felt Sharron's jacket. "It's so well made. I have to say, I'm pretty jealous."
"Thanks!"
Confessional Sharron
The archer gave the confessional cam a smile. "Y'know, finding out there is someone else here who is British really calmed my nerves. I despise it when people try to refer to me as just their British friend. And, I don't think I'll get that from Angel. And hey, this commonality we have could lead us to becoming good allies."
End Confessional
Confessional Angel
Angel tapped her chin, pondering. "Hm, I definitely didn't expect to run into another Brit here, but it could be in my favor." The backstabber gave an evil smirk. "She'll be easy to deal with… I did actually like her coat though.""
End Confessional
Beek and Kev had decided to pair up together for the challenge. The two, both being more extroverted, managed to keep a conversation going. Currently, Beek was explaining one of her many theories to Kev.
"But yeah, I'm pretty sure the real reason fake cried in TDA was so she'd be able to have Leshaniqua tell her father about Harold." Beek said.
Kev was fully invested. "But wasn't it said she did it to go to the spa?"
"That's what she wanted everyone to think!" Beek said. "I don't think she wanted Harold to know about the situation with her father."
"Oh, that would just make him voting her out even worse of a betrayal." Kev said, thinking about it.
"Exactly!" Beek exclaimed, raising her arms in the air. "That dunderhead McGrady totally screwed LeWaifu over!"
"I have to say mate, that sure is interesting." Kev told her.
Beek smiled. "Thank you! Now, let's actually focus on this challenge. I don't wanna be the first out!"
Kev laughed. "You and me both."
Beek thought for a moment. "I haven't seen any secret ways to get in yet… But knowing Chris there should be at least a couple."
"Yeah, I haven't seen any." Kev told her. The only thing I would think of is maybe something with the moat."
Suddenly, a light bulb lit up in Beek's head. "Brain blast!"
"Who?"
"The moat! I'm sure Chris probably put a passage in there." Beek said. "The moat is filled with piranhas, and he wants someone to get chomped on by them." She shook with giddiness. "It's just like the secret door in the moat of Peach's Castle!"
"Wha-"
"Let's go look in the moat!" Beek said, running off.
Confessional Kev
"That lass is quite the eccentric one, ain't she?" He chuckles. "I have to say it's a wee bit charming."
End Confessional
Kit was just walking around by himself. He had his hands in his hoodie pockets and was just looking around the area of the fortress.
"Well this bites." He said.
Confessional Kit
"I know everyone else is partnering up and stuff, but that's just not my style. I prefer to go at it alone." He shrugs. "It is what it is."
End Confessional
The trio of Claire, Diamond, and Felix made their way to the back of the fortress.
"I'm hoping there's some back way that we can get in." Diamond said.
"That would make sense. There's a lot of video games that do that sort of thing." Claire told her.
"Are we sure that is a sort of trope Chris would go for though?" Felix asked. "Our host does not seem to be the type to partake in games like that."
Claire shrugged. "I mean it's worth a shot."
The three walked a little further until they saw a break in the moat. But in its place was a wall of lasers.
"See, told ya Felix." Diamond smirked playfully.
"Yes, I do stand corrected." Felix sighed.
"Look, there's others over there!" Claire pointed out.
The two looked ahead, and sure enough, Joshua and Tess were in front of the wall of lasers, staring up at it.
"Maybe we can see if they have any info." Diamond told the two.
"Good idea madam." Felix agreed.
The three made their way towards the pair of artists.
Tess noticed them approaching and gave a friendly wave. "Hey dudes, what's up?"
"Hi!" Diamond greeted. "We were wondering if you guys have any info on the lasers here."
Joshua shook his head. "No… We, uh, were gonna, er, we're thinking of trying to go through it."
"That seems somewhat dangerous…" Felix said. "Admittedly, I'm a tad too clumsy to be able to do that."
Tess shrugged. "I mean we don't know how else to get through. There's this strange panel on the wall, but we don't know what it's for."
Diamond lit up. "Strange panel? Leave that to me! Where is it?"
"Over here." Tess said, she beckoned the programmer to follow her. Felix followed as well, leaving Joshua and Claire alone.
"Hi, I'm Claire." the streamer greeted.
Joshua looked at her and his face blushed. It was as if a choir of angels started singing when the artist looked at her.
"I-I, um…" He could barely speak. "J-Joshua."
Claire laughed off the awkwardness, thinking he was just shy.
Joshua continued to stare at her before another voice interrupted him.
"No way! You like Mr. Coconut and the Grapes band too?" Tess said excitedly, returning to the two.
Clare looked down at her shirt and then at Tess's. She smiled when she noticed the two were wearing the same band shirt. "Yeah, I love them!"
"Dude, same! They're so indie and so cool!" Tess said. "Oh, by the way Diamond said she could see if she could deactivate the lasers using the panel thingie, but it may take a couple minutes.
"Nice!" Claire said.
Joshua just nodded at Tess, the blush not leaving his face.
Confessional Joshua
"Ah, Claire is really pretty…" He blushes and puts his head in his hands. "Oh, I hope I didn't seem like a creep staring at her!"
End Confessional
Back with Jeremy, the musical nerd managed to finally make it past the moat. He smirked as he hopped down from the tree branch onto the ground.
"Fuck me gently with a chainsaw! I made it past the moat." Jeremy smirked. He turned his attention towards the large wall. "Now how the heck am I going to get past this wall?"
Jeremy looked up at the top of the wall, the spikes were protruding out at certain points. While it wouldn't be impossible to avoid them, it would be difficult. "I know! I think I'll try defying gravity."
And he did. The musical nerd started to float, defying gravity just as he- okay that didn't happen.
Jeremy walked towards the wall and started to look around to see if there was an opening anywhere. Walking a bit to the right, Jeremy spotted a small opening on the bottom of the wall. It looked like a crack in the wall that he may be able to fit through, but it would be a tight squeeze.
"Eureka!" The musical nerd exclaimed. He dashed over towards it and got down on all fours, examining the opening. "This'll be a tight squeeze, but I can try to get through."
Jeremy went and pushed his head through the hole. That was simple enough, but he had a little trouble pushing his shoulders through. "I think I might still be able to-"
He was cut off by a vicious growl. The musical nerd's eye widened as he turned his attention to the pair of vicious poodles who were snarling their teeth at him. "Uh… nice puppies?"
This did nothing as the dogs barked and dove for him. Jeremy screamed before pushing himself back from the hole. Luckily for him, the poodles were just a bit too big to get through the hole. Their mouths could be seen snapping at the hole, but after a bit they stopped.
"Why the hell are they so vicious!?" Jeremy yelled.
Speaking of yelling, a familiar voice could be heard yelling, "I'm coming for you asshole!"
"Oh come on!" Jeremy whined, his anger rising more and more.
Confessional Jeremy
"Why can't this guy leave me alone?" Jeremy groaned. "He's so annoying!"
End Confessional
Somehow, someway, Caleb managed to make his way onto the tree branch. The chess prodigy was crawling his way across the branch at what he would describe as super speed. But to others, it was simply a leisurely pace.
He finally made his way to the other side of the moat and dropped off of the tree branch with a thud!
Caleb stormed over to Jeremy. "Now you listen here you big fat meanie! Screw you for leaving me back there when I helped you find a way over the moat."
"Ugh, shut up!" Jeremy yelled back, finally letting his anger boil over. "It's a competition stupid, I don't have to help you!"
Caleb was taken aback at Jeremy's yelling. His lip started to quiver right before the tears started to fall. "Y-you don't have to yell at me." He sobbed.
Jeremy groaned in annoyance. "Really!? It's okay for you to yell, but not me?"
Caleb just sobbed harder.
Jeremy deflated. "Fine, if I show you a way past the wall, will you stop crying."
Caleb calmed down a little. "Y-yes."
Jeremy sighed. "Fine. Over here there's a small opening. But it's kinda hard to get through."
"Hmp, that should be easy for me." Caleb said, immediately stopping his crying.
Jeremy showed Caleb the hole. "Here it is. Like I said, it's really small."
Caleb got on the ground and crawled through it with ease due to his small body. "Ha! That was nothing stupid! And now I'm ahead of you!"
"Hey!" Jeremy scowled.
"Later!" Caleb turned around to start dashing towards the front door, but was stopped by the pair of poodles. The dogs growled at him as Caleb gave a look of pure fear. "U-uh, nice puppies."
This had the safe effect on them as it did when Jeremy said it. They started chasing after Caleb, who ran away screaming. "No! Stay away!"
Jeremy smirked at Caleb's screaming as he made his way through the hole.
Once he made it past without attracting the poodles' attention, the musical nerd dashed over towards the front door of the fortress.
Stepping inside, he was greeted by a beautifully decorated room and Chris standing in the doorway.
"Whoa, this place is cool!" Jeremy said, looking around.
"Nice job on making it inside first Jeremy." Chris said.
"Wait, I'm first?" Jeremy said excitedly.
"Yep, feel free to look around and relax." Chris told him.
"Will do!"
Confessional Jeremy
"I've never been first in anything before!"
End Confessional
Just then, the door opened again and Caleb stomped in. His clothes were a little askew and slightly ripped, but he was still mostly in tact.
"Hey, sup little guy." Chris greeted the chess prodigy.
"Shut up!" Caleb yelled. "You!" He pointed towards Jeremy and stomped over to him. "You tricked me!"
Jeremy just shrugged. "I just told you where the opening was, I didn't trick you at all."
This made Caleb only angrier. "Liar! You led me to get chased by those stupid dogs!"
Jeremy just stared at him blankly. "That just sucks for you."
Caleb growled. "Just watch you back asshole! I'm coming for you."
"Yeah, whatever." Jeremy responded, not at all looking nervous.
The scene flashed to Brittany, who was looking at her phone. "Hm, according to Blackbird's coordinates, there should be a secret entrance coming up."
"Wow, cheating using outside help. That's sad." said a new voice.
Brittany turned around quickly and took on a fighting stance. There in front of her was Kevin.
Brittany sent a glare his way. "You better not tell a soul, I'll break every ligament in your fingers."
This didn't seem to phase the pessimist at all. "I don't really care to be honest."
The mod boss spent a couple more moments staring at him, trying to get insight into whether Kevin was telling the truth or not.
She seemed to reach a decision as she took down her fighting stance. "Good. And I don't believe I'm cheating, I'm simply using the arsenal that is at my disposal."
"I mean if you weren't cheating, you wouldn't be so on edge about someone catching you." Kevin told her.
The mob boss sent a glare his way. "You have balls talking to me like that."
Kevin just shrugged. "Whatever."
She hated to admit it, but she was kind of impressed by how little he cared. "I'll cut you a deal. I take you to the secret entrance I was given the coordinates to, and you don't tell anyone of this, deal?"
Kevin shrugged again. "Sure, whatever."
"Good, now let's hurry and get there. I don't want to be the last to arrive." Brittany said, walking in the direction of the secret entrance.
"Kay." Kevin followed suit.
Unbeknownst to the two, a pair of British girls overheard this exchange.
"That's so not fair!" Sharron whispered to Angel. "She's going to cheat her way through the competition with that."
Angel smiled and put her hand on Sharron's arm. "Don't worry dear, we can take care of her later, but for now we can use this to our advantage."
Sharron raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Well we can sneak and follow them to the secret entrance." Angel told her. "We can't do much if one of us is eliminated first so we need to make getting into the fortress our top priority."
Sharron caught on. "You're right. Nice thinking!"
"Thank you hon. " Angel responded. "Now let's hurry before they get too far away!"
"Right."
Confessional Sharron
The archer smirked. "Y'know, the more time I spend with Angel the more I'm thinking I could really use her as an ally. She's proven herself to be quite the smart cookie."
End Confessional
Beek and Kev were walking around the perimeter of the moat, trying to seek out an entrance in the water. So far, they haven't had any luck.
"Ah, I don't know how good of an idea this was to be honest." Kev said. "I'm not seein' anything. We could just be wasting our time."
"No! I'm sure there's something around here." Beek told him.
They continued to search for something for a bit, and they ended up running into Jacque.
"Oh great." The shiesty dude muttered seeing Beek again.
"What's up mate!" Kev greeted.
"Sup. What are you two up to?" Jacque asked.
"Well Beek over here thinks there may be an entrance in the moat." The Irishman explained.
Jacque thought for a moment. "Y'know that's actually not too bad of an idea."
"That's what I thought too at first, but we haven't found anything yet." Kev said.
"That's wrong!" Beek exclaimed. "Because I think I found the entrance. Also, hi Jacque!"
"Hi." Jacque put on a fake smile. "So where's this entrance?"
"Right over here." the theorist said, bringing the guys closer to the moat. Once on the edge, she pointed to the other side. "See right across from here, the ground is slightly raised."
Kev and Jacque squinted their eyes and looked to see if they saw what Beek was talking about.
Jacque noticed it. "Ah, good eye there girl."
The wildcard beamed. "Thanks."
"So how are we getting to the entrance?" Kev asked.
"We swim!"
The two guys gave Beek questioning looks.
"Uh, but ain't there piranhas in the moat?" Jacque asked.
"Yep." Beek responded. "But we gotta go for it! Besides, it'll be good t.v. if we have a little run in with the piranhas."
The sheisty dude didn't look like he was buying it. "Right, well I don't really feel like getting chomped on by rabid fish."
Kev rubbed the back of his head. "We may not have a choice bud, we haven't found any other way in."
Jacque scowled. He hadn't found anything either.
"Ugh, fine. Let's just do this quickly. " He said, giving up.
"Nice, let's do this!" Beek exclaimed.
"Hell yeah!" Kev hollered.
The three jumped into the moat and started swimming towards the bottom of the moat as the scene flashed.
Erza and June hadn't had any luck finding a way in either.
"Man, this is hopeless." June said, feeling defeated already.
"Don't be so down yet August, we can still do this!" Erza told her partner.
"It's Ju-"
"We have to use our heads." Erza said before deflating slightly. "I'm, like, not that good at doing that though. It'd be really cool if you could try to figure out a way to get over the moat and the wall."
June perked up. "Ah! Really? It really would be cool?"
The blonde smiled. "Totally!"
This added a fire under the gum lover. She took a couple moments to think, chewing on her gum loudly.
This started to grate on Erza's nerves slightly. And the longer it went on, the more annoyed the blonde got.
"Do you have to be chewing that gum!?" Erza snapped, taking June aback a bit.
Erza realized that she yelled and quickly started backtracking. "Oh, I'm so sorry that was so mean of me. The gum chewing along with the stress just got to me I guess."
Then, an idea finally came to June. "That's it!"
"What?"
"I got an idea, let's go!" June grabbed Erza's hand and ran in a direction.
The scene flashed as the two made it to the moat and June started putting a lot of gum into her mouth.
This slightly grossed Erza out. "Um, what are you doing?"
"Mmph. I'm gonna blow a big bubble to carry us over." June said in between chews.
Erza raised an eyebrow and tried to give a fake smile. "Oh, cool."
Confessional Erza
"That is the stupidest thing I've heard. I don't know how she expects this to work." She rolls her eyes and crosses her arms. "Maybe trying to use her as an ally was the wrong choice, but at this point I'm stuck with her, at least for this challenge."
End Confessional
June shoved more and more gum into her mouth and it became harder for her to fully close her mouth.
Erza didn't attempt to hide the look of disgust on her face.
Finally, June started to blow a large bubble. "Grab on!" She managed to get out.
Erza listened and grabbed onto the gum lover's torso.
June continued to blow and the bubble got bigger and bigger. Eventually, she managed to do what Jeremy failed to as the large gum bubble began to lift up both June and Erza into the air. Because cartoon logic.
"Holy crap, it's working!" Erza said, the surprise emanate on her face.
The scene flashed again to Diamond fiddling with some wires from the wall panel.
"How are you doing over here madam?" Felix asked.
"Pretty good." Diamond responded. "I've almost got it."
Felix nodded, not really understanding what she was doing.
Pretty soon, the programmer managed to turn off the lasers. "I did it!"
"Nice job!" Claire told her, excitedly.
Diamond smiled. "Thank you! That means a lot coming from you." She let go of two wires she was holding together. As soon as she did, the lasers came back on.
"Aw man." Tess frowned. "That sucks."
"Ugh, that makes no sense, I thought I had it." Diamond said. She picked up the two wires again and pushed them together. The lasers turned off once more when she did.
"Wait a second…" She repeated the motion of putting the wires together and pulling them apart a couple times. Each time the wires were apart, the lasers turned on. And each time they were touching the lasers were off.
"Ugh, I need to keep these wires together in order to keep the lasers off." Diamond said. "You guys go ahead, I'll keep them off."
"But what about you?" Joshua asked. "It's not fair for you to be stuck out here when you were the one who figured out how to turn them off."
The programmer gave a small smile. "It's no biggie, I'll manage just fine." She put the wires together once more. "You guys hurry and get going."
"Thank you Diamond." Tess said, walking through. The others thanked her as well before passing through.
"Okay guys, good luck." Diamond told them as she was about to let go of the wires.
But then, "Madam, wait!" Felix called out.
"What is it?"
"There's Kit over there." The chef said, pointing over to the loner who was still trying to find his way in. "Perhaps we can let him in as well."
Diamond rolled her eyes. "Ugh, why should we help that pig?"
"It's simply being polite." Felix told her.
"Yeah, why not let him in with us." Tess said. "It's kinda messed up to just leave him there."
The programmer groaned. "Ugh, fine. You can allow him to come in."
"You have my gratitude madam, and I'm sure you will have his as well." Felix told her. He then called out towards the loner. "Sir Kit! Over here!"
Kit perked up at hearing his name called. He looked around for the source of it and saw the big group. He smirked noticing it was Felix who called for him.
The cynical loner jogged over to the others. "Hey, there your highness." He greeted Felix. "It seems like you guys are having a party over here."
Felix nodded. "Madam Diamond managed to take down lasers that were set up over here."
"Huh, really?" Kit said, glancing towards the programmer. "I have to say I'm impressed.
"Yeah, uh huh, just hurry up before I let these go and bring the lasers back. Diamond told him, giving him a sassy tone.
"Sheesh, I'm going." Kit responded, giving a sassy tone of his own.
Diamond scowled and just before Kit got out of the range of the lasers, she let go of the wires and smirked.
The lasers came out and one managed to catch Kit on his bottom. The loner yelped and jumped forward into Felix.
The chef tried to catch him, but the two fell to the ground and bumped heads.
Diamond felt bad for Felix, but couldn't help but snicker at what she did to Kit.
"Ow…" Felix groaned.
Kit rubbed his head as well, but seeing he was on top of Felix, he couldn't help but smirk. "Well, well, well we just can't seem to stay out of each other's arms today. I'm sensing a pattern."
Felix's face turned red once again. "It's simply a coincidence! Now get off!"
"I don't know I kinda like the position we're in." Kit teased.
"Ah, actually you, uh, should probably get up, Kit." Joshua told the loner. "The lasers burned part of your pants."
Kit raised an eyebrow and looked at the back of his pants. Indeed, the lasers managed to burn off a part of his jeans in the buttocks region.
From the other side of the wall of lasers, Diamond couldn't help but snort at hearing this."
Kit slightly blushed and got off of Felix. "Let's just go." He started walking away towards the front door, taking his hoodie off and tying it around his waist.
Joshua, Tess, and Claire followed suit as Felix hesitated for a moment. "I wish you luck madam!" He called over to Diamond.
"Thanks." Diamond called back. "Now hurry up and get inside, I'll be there soon."
Even though she couldn't see, Felix nodded and ran to catch up with the others.
Diamond looked at the wall of lasers and gave it a nervous glance before going in to get past it.
Confessional Diamond
"Ugh this is a big risk that could end up biting me in the butt." She said to the confessional. "As you can see, I'm not exactly the thinnest so I'm scared about making it past the lasers. But if this works, I'll have five people who are grateful that I helped them and maybe that'll keep me safe. At least for a bit."
End Confessional
The scene flashed to inside the fortress with Chris, Caleb, and Jeremy. The musical nerd had his headphones on, listening to some music and humming along while Caleb glared at him and Chris stood, waiting for more people to show up.
And they did as the group of five pushed their way through the door.
"We made it!" Joshua smiled.
"We're safe!" Claire exclaimed.
"Correctomundo." Chris told them. "You guys can just sit and relax as we wait for more people to show up."
"Nice." Kit smirked, going to make himself at home.
Felix gave a nervous look. "I do hope madam Diamond is able to make it in time."
"I'm sure she will bud." Tess told him, putting a hand on his shoulder.
Then, Brittany and Kevin made their way into the room via a secret passage. They walked in from the side as Chris greeted them.
"Hey dudes, it seems you've made it here in time as well." the host told them.
"As expected." Brittany said. Kevin just shrugged and the two joined the others.
On cue, a door on the other side opened, and in walked Jacque, Beek, and Kev. The three looked had at their clothes were all shredded up and they were covered in scratches and bite marks.
Chris just laughed. "I was hoping someone would go through that way."
"Bite me." Jacque scowled.
"Seems like the pirhanas did." Kit snarked.
The sheisty dude sent a small glare his way.
Confessional Jacque
"That's the last time I'm listening to that Beek chick."
End Confessional
Kev turned towards the theorist and gave her a crooked smile. "That was some nice thinkin' lass, we managed to make it here."
Beek was otherwise distracted by Kev's bare chest which had been exposed by the piranhas eating through his shirt.
"Uh huh."
Kev didn't notice her distracted tone as he went over to mingle with some of the others, leaving Beek to her own devices.
Confessional Beek
"Wowie! Seeing Jacque and Kev with their clothes all shredded was so hot!" She said, going into a daze and somewhat drooling. "Mama wants a piece!"
End Confessional
And joining the party was another pair. Angel and Sharron made it through the same way Brittany and Kevin came in from.
"Oh, I hope we're not too late!" Angel said.
"Nope, you guys made it too." Chris said. "Now, we're just waiting on three more."
"Nice!" Sharron exclaimed, holding up her hand for a high five.
Angel was taken aback at first, but returned it nevertheless. The high class girl walked over to mingle with some of the others since that seems to be what most of the others were doing.
She came up to Jacque, and couldn't help but snicker at his shredded clothes.
The sheisty dide sneered at her. "Something you find funny."
"My apologies, I just didn't expect to see you in such a state." Angel told him.
"Yeah, well that's what I get for listening to a loon." He told her, nodding his head towards Beek.
"Well we live and learn." Angel gave him a smile, one that didn't reach her eyes.
And once again, Jacque noticed. He sent a fake smile of his own back at her. "I guess you're right."
"Well, since there is only three contestants left, I guess I'll announce it to them." Chris said. He took out what seemed to be a walkie talkie and spoke into it. "Attention losers,"
His voice rang out from some loud speakers that were scattered around the fortress and the wall.
"There are only three more people who have yet to make it in the fortress." the host announced. "That means there are just two spots left! I repeat, there are only two spots left. You better kick it into high gear if you wanna stay in this competition!"
Hearing this, Erza gasped. "Does this bubble move quicker? I don't want either of us to lose!"
"I'm trying." June muttered.
"Well hurry!"
Over with Diamond, the programmer was almost past the lasers. She started panicking a little, hearing Chris's announcement.
"Crap!" she yelled. "Okay, don't psych yourself out too much Diamond, that'll only mess you up more."
She tried to pick up the pace a little more, but still tried her hardest to not touch any of the lasers.
June and Erza finally made it over the wall, but now their problem was to get down. They were pretty high up and just popping the bubble could lead to injury.
"What are we going to do?" Erza asked.
"We have to chance it!" June told her.
"That's a high fall, we can get hurt!"
"We have to do it though." the gum lover said. "Just brace yourself."
The blonde gulped and looked down. "O-okay, pop the bubble."
And that's what June did. She popped her gum and the two fell down back towards the ground, screaming.
Somehow, June hit the ground first and Erza landed right on top of her.
"My spleen…" groaned the gum lover.
Erza inspected herself. "I'm not hurt… Yes!" She celebrated and quickly got off of June. "You're okay, right?"
"Yeah... all good." June responded.
"Good. Well, It was nice for your help, but I'm not risking losing at all. Later sucker!" With that, she ran off.
June groaned again and slowly got up, clutching her side. "Wait!" She started running after Erza.
Confessional Erza
"I'll admit, I did feel bad just leaving her there, but also I'm not risking being the last one inside. This is a game for a million dollars, and I'm not giving that up!"
End Confessional
Erza quickly dashed towards the door. She was almost there when suddenly, the two poodles jumped in her way, snarling at her.
Erza screamed and came to a stop. "Wait, don't hurt me!"
One of the dogs barked and they both gave chase to her.
"No!" Erza screamed, running away from the rabid dogs.
This gave June enough time to make her way to the door. "Sorry Erza, I don't want to lose either!" The gum lover opened it and went inside.
Once again, Chris's voice came onto the speaker. "And there's one spot left ladies! Who will be the last to get here?"
"Oh no." Diamond said. She had finally made it past the lasers. "I gotta run there and quick!" She started dashing towards the front.
"Are you serious!?" Erza yelled. She looked back towards the dogs. "I need to lose these dogs!"
She ran closer to the wall, picking up the pace and going at her full speed. This made the poodles pick up their pace as well.
The dogs started gaining on her as Erza ran closer to the wall. Then, at the last second, she turned quickly and started running back towards the door. The dogs didn't stop in time, and they ran right into the wall.
Erza smirked as she focused on running back towards the door.
Diamond was doing the same. She looked up though, and saw Erza running towards the door. "Crap!"
The camera went into a split screen of the two girls making a full on sprint to the door. They both were full of determination, and were adamant on not being the first one out.
Then the two both held an arm out, reaching for the door.
But only one of them made it first. And that person was…
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...Diamond.
The programmer made it through the door just before Erza could reach it. She panted heavily as Felix and Claire went up to greet her.
"Diamond! You made it!" Claire exclaimed.
Diamond fell to her knees, still panting. "I… I did."
"Congrats on being the last one to make it here." Chris told her. "And that means, Erza is the first one eliminated from Total Drama Towering Fortress."
Everyone celebrated not being the first one eliminated. Cheers were heard throughout and everyone was in a good mood.
That is except for June, who looked down, somewhat sad.
Confessional June
"I kinda feel bad for Erza, she seemed nice. I thought we could've been friends."
End Confessional
"Congrats to you all for making it past the first round." Chris told the contestants. "But just know, it's only going to get harder from here."
Joshua and Sharron shared a nervous glance.
"But for tonight, you're free to celebrate." Chris said before turning towards the camera. "And that concludes the first episode. We're already one down, with fifteen more to go before we crown our winner. Stay tuned for what will be one of the craziest seasons yet! Find out what crazy twists will happen next on Total. Drama. Towering Fortress!"
The scene faded to black, but the show wasn't fully over just yet.
It faded back in to Erza, who pounded a fist against the door, upset that she managed to lose.
"Ugh, this is stupid!" She yelled. "I hate this!"
Then, she heard growling coming from behind her.
She turned around and was met with the snarling of the two poodles. "Oh come on!" She groaned.
She sat there, just waiting for her fate when all of a sudden, Chef appeared behind the dogs and whistled to them. They immediately stopped growling and sat down.
"You here to take me to some playa des losers or something?" she asked.
"Hm, something like that." Chef told her. "Come with me."
Erza just raised an eyebrow, but she did was was instructed of her.
The scene flashed to a dark and dank dungeon area. The walls were built with gray brick and the floors were covered with dirt.
There were 14 cells in the place, each one with a similar layout.
Chef and Erza made their way in, and the blonde looked around annoyed. "The hell is this place?"
"This, little girl, is the redemption dungeon." Chef told her.
Reasoning: So coming into this story, I knew I didn't want a first boot that felt like a first boot. I was playing around with a couple different scenarios in my head, but I decided to have Erza leave first. She's an OC that definitely has potential as a main antagonist, but sadly it wasn't her time yet... Or is it?
Remaining Contestants: Angel, Beek, Brittany, Caleb, Claire, Diamond, Felix, Jacque, Jeremy, Joshua, June, Kev, Kevin, Kit, Sharron, Tess
Redemption Dungeon: Erza
17th: Erza
Woo! First chapter done baby! Y'all, I'm so excited about this! This chapter is over 13k words, which is an amount I've never written before. So, I reckon this'll be a longer story, word wise, that any of my others. Now onto the chapter... Introductions are never fun. They're repetitive and boring, but they're super necessary. I hope the introduction portion wasn't too much of a slog to get through. I tried to capture each OCs personality in it though, so I hope that came through. Speaking of which, please tell me if I've written your OC correctly so far. Obviously, this is my first time writting most of these guys, so I'm still trying to get a grasp on them.
So this season is definitely gonna be a lot different that other ones I've written. For starters, there's no teams! I knew coming into this, I wanted to do something kinda original, and I thought this would be an interesting idea. The merge portion of TD stories is always the most exciting for me to get to since that's where things really tend to get interesting 's also the fact that I feel one of the biggest things I was lacking in with my last SYOCs was inter-team interactions. So, this kinda helps make it easier for everyone to really interactions with almost anybody else. It's also definitely going to shake up the game play. It may be a little hard to figure out how to write the eliminations at first, but I think I'll be able to manage. Also a new dynamic is the redemption dungeon. There will be more info on that later, but I'm pretty sure you'll be able to figure that one out.
Lastly, starting next chapter I think I'm going to start replying to the reviews at the end of the story. I'm kinda inspired by SkyFan2077 (who's stories are all so freaking great. Please go check out their work) who responds to his reviews at the end of each TDFAS chapter. I really like the potential conversations that can take place with that, and it'll be a nice way for me to respond to everyone.
One last thing. You may have noticed the thumbnail picture on the story. I had drawn all of the OCs, and I put them as the thumbnail pic. Hopefully the OCs look at least somewhat similar to what you imagined them as. If you want to see the full images of each character, I posted them in a discord I've made for this story. If you want to get the invite to it, just pm me and I'll get back to you when I can. But yeah, it's just a place we can chat, talk about theories and even RP your OCs if you'd like.
Ok, I think I'm done for reals. I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I shall see you beautiful bitches next time! ~MG