It was the next day. Duncan and Scott were carving into the Bass cabin when Harold came outside. "Okay, who's made s'mores out of my underwear?" he accused. Duncan and Scott only laughed at this. Beardo and Destiny soon walked outside. "Leave the dude alone," Beardo told them.
"Yeah," Destiny agreed. "He's had enough. No hard feelings, Harold?"
"In way, I'm impressed that a girl could think of a way to humiliate a guy on international television," Harold admitted. "But I hold no grudge against you, Destiny."
"Really? Whew! I am SO relieved." The loudspeakers came on. "Listen up, you little cockroaches!" Chef's voice boomed, "I want all campers to report to the Dock of Shame at 0900 hours." Most of the campers got confused looks. "That means NOW, soldiers. NOW!"
"Sir, yes, sir!" Brick saluted as he ran out of the cabin, but he tripped on one of the steps. "Ow!"
"Having trouble there, Cadet?" Jo teased.
"I'm fine, Jo. Let's go to the dock, everyone." Everyone ran towards the dock, save for Mike. "Mike, come on!" Brick told him.
"Fine, fine," Mike replied. "I'll go see what he wants." As Brick jogged off, Mike put a hand to his forehead. "This is going to be a long day," he muttered. Soon, everyone was standing on the dock while Chef, in a military outfit, held up a megaphone. "Line up and stand at attention!" he ordered. "You call this proper formation?!" He used a stick to whack Geoff's legs. "Feet together!" He then whacked Duncan's arms. "Arms down! Eyes forward!" He whacked Heather's chin. "Head up!" He whacked Sam a few times. "This is going to be a fun day," Gwen muttered to Trent.
"What did you say to me, soldier?!" Chef barked at her.
"Uh, nothing?"
"And you'll continue to say nothing until I tell you that you can say something!" Chef walked back to the end of the dock. "Today's challenge will not be an easy one. In fact, I do not expect everyone to come out alive." Owen chuckled at this until Chef whacked his back with a stick. "That hurt!" Owen exclaimed.
"My orders are to make sure that all the babies in front of me drop out of my boot camp except one," Chef explained. "The last one standing wins immunity for their team."
"What happened to Chris?" Heather asked.
"Rule number one: you will address me as Master Chief. Have you got that?"
"Yes, Master Chief!" everyone but Mike replied.
"You will sleep when I tell you to sleep, and you will eat only when I tell you to eat. Is that clear?!"
"Yes, Master Chief!" Scott quickly answered.
"Rule number two," Chef continued, "When you are ready to give up, you will walk to the end of the dock and ring the bell. Which brings me to rule number three: I like to get one quitter before the end of the first day, and that day will not until someone drops out. Now get your butts down to the beach, soldiers. NOW, NOW!" Most of the campers rushed to the beach. Mike, however, didn't move. "I said NOW, soldier!" Chef barked. "Move your butt or else!"
"Or else what?" Mike challenged. Jo, Duncan, Greg, Destiny and Brick gasped at this. "What did you say to me, soldier?!" Chef demanded.
"I'm not scared of you, Hatchet," Mike told him as he looked him in the eye.
"That's Master Chief to you, punk!"
"You're a master, all right. A master motormouth!"
"You looking for a fight? Because a weakling like you couldn't last one minute against me!"
"Bring it, maggot! I'll show you how just long I can last!" Duncan, Destiny and Brick had to hold Mike back and drag him to the beach.
Confessional: Jo (Killer Bass)
"Whoever's sick, twisted idea to put him in charge of the challenge, I have to say...I'm a little bit impressed."
Confessional: Duncan (Killer Bass)
"I was planning to defy Chef, but apparently Mike beat me to the punch. I mean, going fist-to-fist with him like that? That's pretty impressive. Or pretty stupid. Still, it's something. May the best man win."
End Confessionals
"Listen up," Chef told everyone once they got to the beach. "Each team must hold the canoes over their heads. I catch you taking your hands off the canoe, and you will be eliminated. And no one eats lunch until someone drops out. Canoes up!" The Bass held up the red canoe while the Gophers held up the green canoe. "This isn't that hard," Rodney commented.
"Piece of cake," Scott agreed. A few hours later, everyone was still holding up their canoes. "Come on, you sissies," Chef told them. "It's only been three hours."
"Looks like they missed lunch today," Chris commented.
"Guess they weren't hungry!" Chef and Chris were sitting on top of the canoes. "Unless someone wants to quit now." Owen's stomach rumbled. "Don't you dare, Owen!" Jasmine told him. Soon, nighttime fell. Owen and Lightning fell asleep while holding their canoe. "Twenty-five of us went in the jungle that night," Chef recalled, "Only five came back out."
"What war were you in, anyway?" Sky yawned.
"Did I ask you to speak? Because I don't remember asking you to speak!"
"There goes his motormouth again," Mike muttered.
"Guys?" Lindsay began. "I-I can't do this anymore." She began to walk off. "Same here," Topher agreed. They walked to the end of the dock. "Looks like we've got ourselves two quitters," Chef told everyone.
"Don't do it, guys!" Owen told them. They rang the bell. "Listen here," Chef told the duo. "You have nothing to be ashamed of...except being a little baby to let your team down! As for the rest of you, head to the mess hall. Dinner is served."
"Sweet Marie!" Owen exclaimed. "Thank you!" Soon, everyone was in the dining hall. "Alright, maggots," Chef told the remaining campers, "Open your ears. You've got ten minutes to eat before night training begins, so get to it!" This got some complaints. "Um, Master Chief?" Echo asked. "Where's the food?"
"You're looking at it," Chef replied as he pointed to the trash cans.
"That's the leftover garbage from this morning's breakfast," Beardo noticed.
"Darn right. When you're at war, you take what you can get!"
"You expect us to eat garbage?" Mike complained. "Do we look like raccoons to you?"
"Take those rations while you can, punk!"
"No, rations are bread, canned meat, stale crackers, and water from a nearby creek. They're not garbage!"
"Looks like you've got a little rebellion," Chris commented to Chef.
"I wouldn't underestimate the one-manned mutiny," Greg told them. "Desi told me that she, Brick and Duncan had to hold Mike back to keep him from punching Master Chief's lights out."
"He was, like, so Breaking Benjamin then," Destiny commented.
"Right," Chris said, not believing her. He turned to Chef. "Well, I'm off to Craft Services. Coming?"
"Serve me up some of that," Chef replied as the two walked off.
"I am NOT eating this," Heather decided.
"Me neither," Courtney agreed.
"Don't care for today's specials, Miss C.I.T.?" Jo asked her.
"I am going to be running for office one day, and no one is going to pull up a file of me eating garbage."
"Yeah, yeah." Jo turned to Mike. "Gotta say, I'm impressed that you're defying Chef like that. But it's not like you could actually take him."
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Mike asked with a glare.
"That one-man army of yours won't last long with Chef, let alone me. All you are is talk, talk, talk."
"I do more than just talk the talk, Jo. If I say I'm going to do something, I WILL do it! And if I were you, I'd start treading very carefully."
"Tread carefully over what?" Echo cut in. Mike shoved her away with his elbow, landing her straight into one of the trash cans. "A little help?" she asked as her legs waved up in the air. "I'm stuck."
At the beach, Chef turned on some music. He began to do a dance, and the campers repeated the steps. When he moved his legs, the others moved theirs. When he flexed his muscles, the others followed suit. Suddenly, the music was cut off by Mike. "Mike!" Zoey warned in a whisper. "What are you doing?"
"If I remember Master Motormouth correctly," Mike began, "The day ends when one of us drops out."
"We're done when I say we're done!" Chef barked back.
"Just ignore him over here," Jo replied as she walked over to Mike. "He's just bluffing." She turned to face him. "Aren't you, runt?" Mike gritted his teeth before throwing a hard punch, sending her to the ground. "I do not bluff, Jockette!" he told her.
"And that black eye on her face proves it," Sam gulped. Jo put a hand to her now-swollen eye. "You little-" she began but Chef jumped down between them. "Enough!" he barked to both of them. "Now, drop and give me twenty!" Jo went ahead and started doing twenty push-ups while Mike just stood there. "Did you not hear me, soldier?!"
"No way am I listening to your mouth!" Mike lashed back. "I. Am. Done!" He began to walk off. "Come back here, maggot!" Chef ordered. "Or I'll hunt you down myself!"
"I'd like to see you try!" Mike stormed away. "Anybody else got something to say?!" Chef barked.
"Permission to speak, Master Chief?" Brick spoke up. "Can I use the bathroom?" Soon, Brick was in the bathroom while holding up a mop. "Not exactly what I had in mind," he mumbled. Soon, the remaining campers were back in the dining hall. "For your next challenge," Chef told them, "You will complete a 300-word essay about how much you love me. Anyone who falls asleep or fails to complete the challenge will be eliminated!" After a few minutes, time was up. Some of the campers had bags under their eyes, and others were sound asleep. Chef collected the papers, and began to read Jo's essay first. "'I love Master Chief Hatchet because he is very, very, very, very, very, very, very...' This is just one sentence with five pages of 'very's' in between!"
"It's 300 words exactly," Jo told him. "You can count them if you want." Chef walked over to Owen but he slipped in a puddle of drool. "Wipe up that drool, you little baby!" he ordered. He slammed his fist down on the table, waking Trent, Ella, Max, Scarlett, DJ, Sam, Beardo and Anne-Maria up. "You slackers are out," he told them. "The rest of you get to bed and report to the playing field at 0500 hours."
"Master Chief?" Brick told him as he held up a rag. "You've missed a spot."
"Do you want to run fifty laps around this camp right now?!"
"If that is your order, sir!" Brick began to run outside. "What a suck-up," Duncan muttered.
"No kidding," Jo agreed as they shared a fist-bump. Soon, everyone gathered at a muddy obstacle course. "You will all run this course until you can all complete it in under one minute," Chef told them. He faced Jo. "Am I making myself clear?"
"Crystal," she replied.
"Yes...sir..." Brick panted.
"Go, maggots!" Chef ordered. "GO!" They all began the course. Some struggled on the wall, like Leshawna and Scott. Some struggled to go through the tires, like Owen and Rodney. While Geoff and Samey ducked under the swinging axes, Gwen and Sky grabbed the ropes and swung over the gap. Harold climbed the wall and landed straight in the mud. He began to spew it out. "General Crazy," Jo told Chef, "We've got a situation here."
"Too...much...mud," Harold coughed out.
"Ring the bell and report to the infirmary," Chef ordered. "Your tour of duty is finished."
"Poor guy," Jo sarcastically commented.
"Back on the course, soldiers! Now! One false move, and I'll be onto you like stink on a poop wagon!"
"Yes, sir!" Brick answered as he dragged Jo off. The others tried to complete the course. Owen and Lightning tried to climb the wall, but it fell down on them. Heather and Courtney got tangled up on the ropes. Cody and Dave struggled to get through the tires. Brick was crawling under the axes when he began to sink in the mud. "Fallen soldier," Jo mocked as she passed him, "I salute you!" She then noticed Chef staring at her. "You just bought yourself twenty more push-ups!" he told her.
"Thank you!" Jo answered before kissing his nose. He growled in anger. "I think that was the straw that broke the camel's back," Duncan told Jo.
"I think you're right," she agreed.
"One night solitary confinement in the Boathouse," Chef decided. Everyone went wide-eyed at this. "Big deal," Jo scoffed. "How scary can it be?" Soon, she was in the Boathouse, with all its hooks and shark jaws. "Should've kept my big mouth shut," she muttered.
(cue commercial)
Mike, meanwhile, was eyeing the craft services tent. "That big-headed chef thinks he can enjoy all that food while we all starve," he muttered angrily. He noticed Dakota and Brian walking around the entrance. "Looks like I found my way in." He crept up behind them and pulled them over a distance. "Hey!" Dakota complained.
"Shh!" Mike told her. "Just listen for a second. Why were you guys over there?"
"Chef told us to guard it," Brian squeaked. "In case of thieves like Echo."
"Echo?"
"Yeah. But if she steals again, she'll break her parole a-and get arrested."
"Really? Well, have I got a deal for you guys."
"What kind of deal?" Dakota asked.
"I want you two to help me pull a heist on that chow in there."
"What? But that is, like, so wrong!"
"It's for a good cause," Mike assured her. "You don't want to let the others starve, do you? Especially people like Sam, right?"
"Well...okay," Dakota decided.
"But what do we get out of it?" Brian asked.
"Whatever you can carry, you can keep," Mike told them. "Does that sound like a fair trade?"
"O-okay. I'm in."
"Perfect. Just follow my lead." Soon, the three of them were in some bushes and sneaking towards the cabin. They crept inside. "Slowly," Mike whispered as they crawled under the table. They soon reached the fridge. Dakota opened the bags and started to quietly fill them. "If we get caught," Brian whispered, "We are so dead!"
"Just relax and fill the bags," Mike assured them as he pulled some stuff off the table. Chef and Chris continued to talk, unaware that all their food was being stolen. "We've got it!" Mike told them in a whisper.
"What now?" Dakota asked him.
"Dakota, you leave first, and we'll follow behind you. That way, if one of us gets caught, you still got your goods." Dakota nodded as she grabbed her bag bolted out. Brian and Mike soon followed her with their loot. "We've got it!" Brian exclaimed once they were in the clear. "Man, that was fun!"
"And you and I have one thing left to do," Mike told him. "Mind if I ask you for one last favor?"
Dakota ran up to the Bass cabin and knocked on the door. "Huh?" Sam wondered as he opened it. "Hey, Dakota! What brings you here?" Dakota opened her bag, revealing all the food inside. "Wow!" Sam exclaimed. "Where did you get all of this?"
"It doesn't matter," Dakota replied. "But I couldn't let you guys starve, right?"
"Thanks. I'll tell the others. You're an angel, Dakota!"
Confessional: Dakota
"Okay, Sam's a little...geeky, but not even people that are geeky deserves to starve to death! Especially Sam. What? Don't judge me; the guy's sweet!"
End Confessional
Soon, everyone was enjoying the food. "Man, this is so good!" Greg told Destiny as he ate a cookie.
"What is with those war stories of Chef?" Gwen commented between bites. "He is so demented!"
"These nails weren't made for combat," Anne-Maria put in. "So not my style."
"If I wanted to join the army, I would've," Zoey added. She noticed Echo grabbing another piece of cake and eating it. "Careful, Echo," she warned her. "You might puke it back up."
"Just-just one more," Echo begged. "It won't hurt anyone." She gulped it down before gagging. "Oh..." she moaned before she gagged and ran outside. She leaned over the railing and puked. "That was a mistake," she moaned.
"Couldn't handle the treats?" Mike taunted as he walked over to her.
"Why are you here? Did you come to get your brains back?"
"Please. I just wanted to check that everyone's getting their fill of food that I got."
"You stole that stuff, didn't you?"
"Guess it takes a thief to know a thief."
"So what? After your little performance, who's going to believe a word you say? I'm going to enjoy seeing your butt on the catapult."
"That ain't happening anytime soon, Little Miss Sunshine."
"We'll see about that."
"Attention, remaining boot camp recruits," Chef announced over the loudspeakers. "The next evolution of your training begins tomorrow morning at 0700 hours. And if I catch the sucker that took my desserts, your butt is mine!" The next morning, Jo, Brick, Geoff, Sky, Gwen, Echo, Heather and Owen were hanging from some tree branches. "What you are experiencing is an ancient form of torture," Chef explained to them. "By now, the blood has begun rushing to your head. The next stage is nausea, followed by dizziness and a flushed appearance." Jo began to strain a little. "As the blood begins to pool to your eyes, you may experiencing fainting spells." Jo soon fell down. "Jo!" Brick shouted.
"She's alright," Bridgette assured him as she walked over. Everyone left grabbed onto the branch with their hands, though Owen struggled to reach it. "Come...on," he strained. He let out a fart. "That's it," Heather decided as she hopped down. "I'm done." She landed on the ground, and Owen soon fell onto her. "Off of me, you big ox!" she muffled.
"You got this, Gwen!" Zoey assured her.
"Oh, yeah," Gwen answered. "I can do this all day."
"I live for the head rush, dude!" Geoff shouted. "Feels...so...good..." He soon fell out. "Great," Scott muttered.
"Careful up there!" Sam told Brick and Sky.
"Don't worry," Brick assured his teammates. "We won't let you down! Right, Sky?" He looked to see that Sky was sound asleep on the branch. "This seems really tricky, Gwen," Echo told her. "Ah! I'm starting to slip!" She grabbed Gwen's hand to stop her fall, but it only dragged her down with her. They soon fell off the branch. "Sorry about that," Echo apologized. Soon, Brick and Sky were being carried by their teammates. "You two," Chef told them as they were being put down. "Congratulations, soldiers. I'd go to war with you anytime."
"It's an honor, sir!" Brick saluted back.
"Yeah," Sky slowly replied. "We'll keep that in mind when we choose our careers." The Bass ran off in celebration. Chef turned to the Gophers. "You Gophers losers are headed to the bonfire tonight!" he told them. He walked up to Mike. "And I'll be happy to boot one of your scrawny butts."
"Like who?" Mike teased.
"Like yours, you scrawny weakling!" Mike then threw another punch, knocking the wind out of Chef. "Still think I couldn't take you?" he told him.
"It won't matter," Heather told him. "It's obvious that YOU'RE the one going home."
"I wouldn't bet on it," Mike replied with a smile. "See you at the elimination, everyone." That night, the Gophers were at the campfire ceremony. Everyone but Mike and Echo was standing and holding a marshmallow. Chris held up a plate with only one marshmallow left. "This is the final marshmallow I have left," he told the duo. "Echo, because of you, you blew your best chance at victory. And Mike, you tried, and failed, to cause a mutiny against Chef Hatchet. I mean, really? You against Chef?"
"I am not one to be underestimated," Mike replied.
"Anyway, the last marshmallow goes to...Echo." Echo caught the last marshmallow. "Sorry, Mike," she told him. "But it seems like you lost."
"Mike, looks like you're-" Chris began.
"Oh, this little ceremony isn't over yet," Mike interrupted.
"Meaning?"
"You're not the only one with surprises, McLean."
"You lost, Mike," Echo told him as she stood up. "A sad fact. But it just can't be-" A loud noise cut her short. "What's that noise?"
"Echo," an officer said as he walked up to her, "You are under arrest."
"Arrest?" Jasmine asked. "What for?"
"Parole violations. We've got an anonymous tip about her stealing some stuff around here, which makes her a parole violater."
"What?!" Echo exclaimed. "I did nothing of the sort!"
"Then explain this," Mike told her as he pulled out a book from his pocket. "A buddy of mine told me I'd find this in a pillowcase on your bed. And inside, it says to return it to Luna Monique Beauregard. That proves it's stolen property."
"No!" Echo screamed. "You scribbled it in afterwards! It's mine!"
"So, you're saying this book on dark magic is yours?" Everyone gasped at this. "Looks likes Miss Sunshine is more of a solar eclipse," Mike told her.
"You little BRAT!" Echo screamed as she tackled Mike to the ground. The officer pulled her away. "This is far from over!" Echo swore as she tossed her red hair clip at him. "When I'm out of prison, I'll make your life a living nightmare!" Soon, she was wrapped up in a straight-jacket and on a police boat. "Vengeance will be MINE!" Echo shouted. "Oh! And don't trust a word out that sorry son of a-"
"Man, that girl was all sorts of crazy," Leshawna commented as the boat sped away from the island.
"It's people like Echo that make people like Heather seem nice," Gwen commented.
"Looks like we're stuck with you for a little bit more," Heather told Mike. "By the way, who was that buddy of yours?"
"I'm not answering that," Mike replied. "If you want to know so bad, figure it out yourself." Later, at the bonfire, Bryan was sweeping around it when he pulled out a paper with a phone number on it. "Mind if I ask you for one more favor?" Mike had asked him.
"Sure. What is it?"
"What you said earlier about Echo...any chance you could get word of that to the police?"
"Umm...well...okay. I saw
her a few times when I was sweeping, and she didn't seem as nice as she claimed." Bryan smiled as he held the paper closer to the fire. "Dear boy," he muttered, "Don't you know it's better to deal with the devil you know than the devil you don't?" He gave an evil laugh as he tossed the paper into the flames.
And here's another chapter! And, oh boy, does it have twists to it! Bet the elimination was the biggest shocker yet! I wanted some other antagonists to shine some more, so one of them had to be cut, and that villain was Echo due to being arrested. Karma really bites, doesn't it?
Mike an Jo had about the same role as Duncan did in canon here, while Brick and Sky ended up winning it for their team. (Brick was a pretty clear winner here, don't you think?)
The next challenge will tell the brave from the liars. Until next time, this is Dunsparce519 saying enjoy and happy holidays.
P.S. The song Destiny was referencing was Breaking Benjamin's 'I Will Not Bow', in case you're curious.
P.P.S. Starting now, I'll make a list of the booted campers. (Thanks for the idea, LaCuevademisgustos!) Anything with 'SC' will mean special circumstances in how they were booted.
59) Ezekiel
58) Eva
57) Noah
56) Staci
55) Justin
54) Dakota
53) B
52) Sol
51/50) Katie/ Sadie
49) Sugar
48) Phoebe 'SC'
47) Tyler
46) Amy 'SC'
45) Izzy
44) Leonard
43) Beth
42) Austin
41) Echo 'SC'
Hopefully this is all accurate so far.