About two days had passed since the last elimination. Brick was busy lifting a log like a weight when Lightning walked over. "Let Lightning show you how it's done!" he bragged as he snatched the log and lifted it with one hand. "Don't bother trying to best me. Team Lightning will sock you Bass to the sha-ground!"
"Team Lightning?" Brick asked him.
"No, not Team Lightning," Mike cut in as he joined the duo. "Ignore Bolt Breath, Brick. Guy's ego is as inflated as a hot-air balloon."
"What are you doing here?"
"I was looking for someone to spar with, and you two are prime candidates."
"Sparring? With you? Um, no, thank you, Mike."
"Sha-please," Lightning scoffed. "Only a sha-wimp could be beaten by Scrawny here."
"Recall that Mike was able to give Jo a black eye from one punch," Brick pointed out.
"But that dude ain't as strong as Lightning!"
"But-"
"Let it go, Cadet," Mike told him. He stood ready to fight. "If he wants to learn the hard way, just let him." Lightning charged at him, but Mike dodged him and sent him back a few feet. "Come on, Thunder Head!" Mike taunted as Lightning got back to his feet. "Is that the best you can do?" He quickly leaped up, landing right next to Lightning. "Want to go another round?" Mike asked him. "Come on, I don't bite." Lightning stared at him for a moment before speaking. "Uh, Lightning has sha-other stuff to do," he told Mike. "Bye." He ran off. "Aw, come on, Lightning!" Mike moaned.
"I think he doesn't want to hang around," Brick told him.
"But we were just starting to have some fun! But hey, I can have a little fun with this." Mike began to run off in the same direction Lightning had. "I'll find him again. It's like a game of Chase." He giggled as he kept running. Brick just shook his head.
Confessional: Brick (Killer Bass)
"Sometimes I wonder about Mike. At times, he can be cold like Heather, reckless like Luna, or as kind as Ella. He's a complete enigma."
End Confessional
In the Bass cabin, Courtney was playing on her violin, which was now completely fixed. "You got that fixed," Sky told her. "Nice!"
"Destiny and Greg helped me with it," Courtney admitted.
"Greggy and I know the ins and outs of any instrument," Destiny boasted. "I...may have wrecked a few guitars and drums when I was rehearsing. Uh, speaking of drums, Greggy fixed a set for your buddy."
"What buddy?"
"Duncan, of course." The sound of a drum solo was heard in the cabins. "Knock it off!" Courtney shouted. "I'm trying to practice!" She tried to play her violin over the sound of the drums.
Soon, everyone had gathered in the dining hall. "Let's get this disgusting joke we call breakfast over with," Jo said.
"We can't," Cameron told her. "Chef isn't here, and neither is breakfast!"
"Plus, Mike and Lightning aren't here yet," Cody pointed out.
"Here we are," Mike announced as he carried Lightning over his shoulder. "Sorry about the delay."
"Mike, please put him down," Zoey told him. Mike dropped Lightning on the floor. "Careful!" Zoey warned.
"Sorry," Mike told her. "I can't help if I'm as careful as a pit bull."
"Whatever," Lightning scoffed as he stood up and brushed himself off. "Lightning needs meat! M...E...uh, E...never mind. Let's just make our own food." Everyone began to search the kitchen for food. "There's nothing in the fridge," Bridgette said after looking.
"No food in the cupboards, either," Zoey replied after searching.
"Maybe we should check the walk-in freezer," Chef told them from outside.
"Yes!" Max agreed. "The freezer! I'm so glad I thought of that." He opened the freezer door and ran inside. "Blast!" he exclaimed. "Only meat?!" Lightning and Mike looked at each other before they charged into the freezer and created a fight. "It's mine!" Mike shouted from inside.
"Nuh-uh!" Lightning argued. "This is Lightning's meat-sicle!"
"There's enough for everyone, guys," Greg told them as he ran up to the door. He turned to the others. "Come on!" Soon, everyone else ran into the freezer. Suddenly, a metal door slammed shut behind them. Chef then drove the freezer truck off. "Challenge time, suckers!" he told them through the slot.
"This is highly unorthodox!" Cameron screamed as he clung onto a hanging ham.
"Where are you taking us?" Zoey asked.
"You'll see," Chef ominously answered. He laughed as he closed the slot, though he cried out in pain as it shut on his thumb. "Great," Heather moaned.
"Look on the bright side," Ella encouraged. "We got something to eat."
"Correction," Gwen told her. "They got something to eat." She pointed to Mike, Lightning and Owen, who were chowing down on some of the meat. Sky began to turn green in the cheeks. "You okay?" Owen asked her. "Maybe some food will make you better." He held up a ham, but it only made her gag more. Soon, the sound of puking was heard in the truck.
The truck then parked at the entrance of a mine. A monitor with Chris on it was also there. Chef dumped everyone off. "Good," Chris told them. "You're here. Finally. Today's challenge is to find a Chris statue in your team color hidden somewhere in this old, abandoned mine. First team back wins."
"Sha-done and done!" Lightning declared. "Go, Team Lightning!"
"Your team?" Max argued as he tried to get closer to his face. "If anything, this is a team of EVIL!" He gave an evil laugh until a huge bag was tossed at him. "Don't worry," Chris told them as Chef kept tossing bags out of the truck. "There are enough packs for everyone."
"What's in these bags, rocks?" Jo asked as she began to open it.
"Uh-buh-buh. No peeking. Those fifty-pound bags are purely for your torment and my amusement. Enjoy." Scarlett rummaged in her bag and pulled out a metal bracelet. "Chemical badges?" she wondered. "Why do we need to measure our exposure to radioactive material?"
"No reason," Chris casually replied, "Except that's where most of the toxic material's stored at." Everyone gasped at this. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," Anne-Maria told him. "Are you demented?"
"No, which is why I'm in a studio right now." A wave of groans and complaints rose up. "Relax," Chris told them. "It's perfectly safe...for thirty minutes. When your badge turns, you have fifteen minutes left. Red is your five-minute warning, and if you see a skull and crossbones, we'll dedicate your episode to you. But no way is it gonna come to that."
"You seem awfully sure about that," Alejandro pointed out.
"That's because I've asked our intern Dakota to test the mine out by staying in there for 40 minutes."
"Is she okay?" Sam asked, concerned.
"She's fine...ish." At the medical tent, Dakota was waking up on a stretcher while Bryan held up a mirror. "Where am I?" she asked. She then saw her reflection in the mirror, and she screamed when she saw her bald head. "AHH! NO! Chris is a dead man!" Bryan had to back away from her.
"Now move it, peeps!" Chris told the campers.
"Can you at least give us a hint about where to find the statues?" Zoey asked.
"No can do. That would make it too easy, now, wouldn't it?"
"I-is it well-lit down there?" Brick gulped.
"It's a mine, bro. Pitch-black all the way. There are flashlights and fireflies inside. First come, first serve. Anywho, time's a-wasting, and so are your healthy blood cells. So go!" Lightning was the first to rush inside the mine. "Yeah!" he cheered as the rest of the Screaming Gophers followed him. "Lightning comes in first. SHA-BAM!" The sound echoed and made some rocks fall on them. "Smooth moves, Sha-Duh!" Heather scolded.
"Enjoy the elimination ceremony, maggots!" Jo taunted as she and most of the Killer Bass ran past.
"Should we help them?" Brick asked her.
"No way! They'll slow us down!"
"Calm down!" Dawn cut in. "Brick and I will help the others while Jo leads the rest of the Killer Bass."
"Finally!" Jo breathed out. "Someone who knows who's boss! Bass, move out!" The Bass hopped into the mine shaft. "Flashlights!" Sam exclaimed. "Cool!" The mine shaft began to creak, and soon, everyone was free-falling down.
Brick and Dawn were pulling some of the Gophers out from the rocks. "Thanks," Gwen breathed out. "That was...that was scary right there."
"Someone get me out of here!" Jasmine screamed from under the rocks.
"Oh, my gosh!" Sierra exclaimed. "Jasmine's claustrophobia! Hurry and get her out!" Brick pulled Jasmine out from the rocks. "There," he told her. "Safe and-" Jasmine squeezed him in fright. "Happy to help," Brick squeaked out.
"How do we get down there?" Topher wondered as he looked down the mine shaft.
"We go down fireman-style," Cody replied. "We slide down those wires down to the bottom."
"Great idea, Codykins," Sierra gushed. "So, who's first?"
"I'll go," Mike volunteered as he walked over. "Make sure it's safe and whatnot." He grabbed one of the metal beams. "Are you sure it's safe?" Zoey asked him.
"As safe as being in this mine. But someone has to test it out, right?"
"EVIL does not wait around!" Max demanded as he ran over to the beams. "Make way!"
"Wait!" Mike warned as Max jumped over. "It's only good for one at a-" Max crashed into him, and the two screamed as they began to fall. "Mike!" Zoey cried out. She grabbed the metal beam. "I'm coming!" She began to slide after the boys.
Down below, the Bass were still recovering from the fall. "Is everyone okay?" Bridgette's voice called out.
"I think so," Sam's voice answered. A THUD soon rang out. "What was that?" Dave's voice worriedly asked.
"Just me," Mike's voice weakly answered. "I, uh, lost my grip."
"The flashlights!" Greg's voice called out. Soon, light flooded the mine. "Creepy," Courtney shuddered.
"It just needs a little TLC," Destiny told her. "A few lanterns, copper swirls on the walls, and some flakes of emeralds and peridots, and this will feel very mine-chic."
"You can think of decorating later, Desi," Greg told her. "Right now, let's focus on finding the statue."
"Yeah," Mike moaned as he got to his feet. He heard Zoey screaming before she landed right on top of him. "Sorry, Mike," she apologized.
"It could be worse," he told her. "It could've been Owen. Uh, guys? Have any of you seen Max? He came down about the same time I did."
"Can't say that I have," Duncan replied.
"I got a statue!" Luna exclaimed as she ran over to Mike and Zoey. She held up a pale pink statue of a hairless gopher. "I win!"
"Um, aren't we looking for statues of Chris?" Zoey asked her.
"Mine's much better, though. Bye!" Luna hopped off into one of the tunnels. "Should we go into the tunnels, too?" Sam asked the others. A loud squealing echoed in the mine. "S-sounds good to me!" Sky stammered. The Bass ran into a different tunnel. Zoey was helping Mike to his feet. "You okay?" she asked him.
"Yeah," Mike replied. "I've had worse."
"What do we do now? Should we follow the Bass or wait for the others?"
"Let's follow the Bass. At least we can get a jump start on looking for those statues. Let's go!" Mike grabbed Zoey's hand and the two raced after the Bass. Up in the entrance, Brick, Dawn and the rest of the Gophers were looking down the mine shaft. "Guys?" Cameron called out. "Hello?"
"They probably got squished," Heather told him.
"No," Dawn told her. "They are safe. I can still read their auras."
"Then let's find them!" Brick told everyone. He grabbed one of the metal beams. He gulped when he looked down. "C-come on, let's go."
"You might need this," Samey told him as she tossed the jar of fireflies to him.
"Hey, thanks!" As Brick grabbed the jar, he released his hold on the beam, and he began to fall. He used his legs to slow his decent, and he soon reached the bottom safely. "Made it!" he exclaimed. Owen soon crashed onto him, making him drop the jar and releasing the fireflies. "No!" Lindsay cried out as she and the others slid down. "Brock, why did you do that?!"
"It was an accident, ma'am," Brick told her as he slid out from underneath Owen. "But let's move ahead and retrieve them!"
"But be gentle now," Dawn told him. Meanwhile, Max was in a room with a rock throne. "A fitting setting for an EVIL ruler like myself," he commented to himself. A squealing cut his thoughts short. Giant, pink, hairless gophers surrounded him. "Down, rodents!" he demanded. "Your master commands it!" Surprisingly, the gophers began to bow down to him. "Wise choice, rodents. Since you know who's your master, I shall spare you from my wrath." Luna's laughter suddenly rang through the room. "Mutant gophers!" she squealed.
"Gophers, seize her!" Max commanded. The gophers surrounded her, to her joy. "Max!" Luna greeted. "Wow, this is so cool! A prisoner of this mine ruled by such EVIL! Max Mayhem, Tyrant of EVIL!"
"Hmm...that does have a nice ring to it. Me likey. As a form of mercy for recognizing true EVIL, I shall give you a mild punishment for your intrusion." A moment later, Luna was hanging upside-down from a rope tied to a stalactite. "You truly are the best EVIL ruler there is!" she told Max. "La-la-la-la-la..."
The Bass were walking down the tunnel. "I hope we find those statues soon," Sam moaned. "I think this mine's starting to wear on me."
"Radiation can do that to a person," Greg told him. "But he's correct. The sooner we find the statues, the sooner we can get out of this place."
"Look, Greggy!" Destiny called out. "I found this hat!" She held up a fedora. "Is that Jasmine's?" Shawn gulped.
"Dunno. But it kinda suits you a little." Destiny placed the hat on top of Shawn's beanie. "Like a real explorer!"
"Gee, thanks," Shawn told her in a monotone voice.
"Is it me," Sky began, "Or are we missing some people? Besides Brick and Dawn?"
"Luna, Bridgette, Geoff and Alejandro have vanished!" Dave gulped. "Is something grabbing them? Grabbing them with their dirty, grimy hands?"
"They got themselves lost," Jo told them. "They can get un-lost. Zombie Freak, which way do we head?" Shawn was examining the ground in front of two tunnels. "On the right, a tunnel carved out by giant rodent teeth," Shawn told everyone.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa," Anne-Maria told him. "Rodent?"
"Maybe the prolonged exposure to the radiation in this mine caused an adverse mutation to the creatures inhabiting this place," Greg explained.
"Uh, what?"
"He said the toxic waste may have done something to the rodents," Courtney clarified.
"On the left," Shawn continued, "Mining car tracks. We go left."
"I say we take the one on the right," Scott argued, "Cause it's the right tunnel. Get it?" The others gave him a confused look. "We're going left," Jo told everyone. "That's an order." Sky and Dave shrugged as everyone followed Jo and Shawn.
In another area of the tunnel, Mike and Zoey were walking and talking. "I hate to bring this up," Zoey began, "But some of the others are noticing you being a bit, um..."
"Hot-headed?" Mike finished.
"Yeah... I'm not trying to be mean, but I think it's starting to be a problem. You almost got eliminated because of it last time."
"I didn't know you cared about me that much."
"Well...I'm just...concerned, is all." A loud squeal cut them short. "What was that?" Zoey worriedly asked.
"I...don't know," Mike gulped. A hairless gopher grabbed at Zoey's feet. "Zoey!" Mike screamed. He grabbed her arms and pulled her out of the gopher's grasp. "Keep your mutant mitts off of her!" he shouted to it.
"Th-thanks," Zoey stuttered. "What was that thing?" More squeals rang out. "Let's not stand around and find out," Mike decided. "We'd better keep moving!" He pulled Zoey as he ran down the tunnel.
"Get your shiny hinies in this jar!" Heather told the fireflies as she and the other Gophers chased them. "Lightning, lure them over to me, and I'll catch them."
"Lightning's on it!" Lightning exclaimed. He ran after the fireflies. "Alright, fireflies, I'm gonna-AH! AH!" The fireflies swarmed around his head as he ran back. Heather slammed the jar onto Lightning's head, trapping the fireflies. "Looking good, Light Source," Topher teased, to Lightning's annoyance.
"Guys?" Brick gulped. "D-Dawn's vanished."
"Leshawna, Rodney and Helga are all gone, too!" Cameron realized.
"We'd better hurry, then," Gwen breathed out. "I-I don't like staying down here."
"And Jasmine's taking it much worse," Cody noticed. Jasmine was in a ball, trembling with fear. "No way out," she muttered. "No way out. Someone let me out of here!"
"Calm down!" Scarlett told her. "As soon as we find the statue, we'll be permitted to leave." The Gophers continued down the tunnel, with Sierra dragging Jasmine along.
"This will speed things up!" Greg exclaimed as the Bass found a set of mining cars.
"No way!" Scott protested. "Too dangerous!"
"Maybe if you're a girl," Shawn countered.
"What?!" Sky remarked, upset.
"Excuse me?!" Anne-Maria told him. Her badge turned orange. "Anne-Maria's badge turned orange!" Greg exclaimed with worry.
"Oh, my gosh! I only have, like, fifteen seconds to live or something!"
"It's fifteen minutes."
"Oh, well, that ain't so bad." Anne-Maria casually filed her nails, to Greg's confusion. His badge turned orange, as well. "Shotgun!" he called out as he hopped into the first car.
"Wait up!" Destiny told him as she hopped in next to him. Shawn hopped in after her. "Let's go!" he told them.
"Where are Harold, Sam, DJ, Courtney, Duncan and Jo?" Greg asked him.
"We'll find them later," Scott told him. "I'll keep the ladies safe in the back."
"I don't need your help!" Anne-Maria lashed back. Scott just pulled her, Sky and Dave into the back car. "Rail ride!" Destiny exclaimed with joy. Shawn picked up the rock from the car's wheels and pulled the lever, and the Bass began sliding down. "WHOO!"
Mike and Zoey were trying to navigate the dark tunnel. "It shouldn't be much further," Mike told Zoey.
"I hope so," she replied. "I think I found a flashlight!" She tried to switch it on. "Please work! Um, Mike? Are you wearing any, um, perfume?"
"No. Why would I?""Nothing. Come on, flashlight." Zoey turned the flashlight on. She and Mike looked up to see a mutant gopher standing over them. It let out a loud squeal, frightening them. "Please leave us alone!" Zoey begged it. It grabbed her and started to drag her away. "Let go of her!" Mike told it.
"Mike! Help!"
"I said LET GO!" Mike tackled the gopher, releasing Zoey. She could only watch as the gopher and Mike fought, and soon, the gopher was cowering at Mike. "Get lost, gopher!" he told it, making it run off.
"Um, th-thanks?" Zoey told him.
"I think those weird gopher will leave us alone now," Mike told her. "That's something, right?"
"Mike, are you sure fighting off one of those things is a good idea? It might come back angrier or with more of them!"
"I can handle myself. Besides, I've had worse."
"Really?"
"I once got attacked by a bear."
"A bear? But you were able to take that bear during that camping challenge."
"Well, how do you think I figured that out? I learned a few things the hard way, you know. Anyway, I don't think that gopher will go after us again. That memory of me beating him will stick like glue."
"I hope so...We'd better find the others." The duo ran down the tunnel.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Gophers were walking down a different tunnel. "Good thing firefly bites aren't fatal," Topher told Lightning, "As far as we know."
"I hear you, dude!" Lightning replied.
"Puh-lease," Heather scoffed. "I just want to get out of this dump."
"I-it's a bit dark," Brick stammered. "W-wait a second. Where are Cody, Sierra and Owen?" The trio had vanished. "We might get a penalty for lost players," Heather thought. "Brick, go ahead and search for the others."
"I-It's dark...and my code..."
"NOW!"
"Y-yes, ma'am!" Brick jogged ahead. "That's one problem out of the way," Scarlett remarked.
"Your badges!" Lightning suddenly exclaimed. "They're orange!" He pointed to the others' badges, which had turned orange. "You only have fifteen minutes to live!"
"Well," Samey replied with panic as she pointed to Lightning's badge, "So do you!" His badge turned orange, as well. "This isn't right!" Lightning declared. "Man, I've never kissed a Super Bowl ring!"
"And I never received a kiss from sweet Prince Michael," Ella moaned.
"She's joking, right?" Trent whispered to Gwen. Back at the mine cars, the Bass were sliding down the rails. "As long as we keep together," Destiny told her teammates, "We'll be peachy-keen!"
"Easier said than done," Greg told her as he pointed to the back car, which was on a different rail. The front car crashed onto a rocky ledge while the back car kept going. "The track!" Sky exclaimed when she saw the broken track up ahead. "I'm too young to die!"
"And I'm too HOT!" Anne-Maria screamed as they fell off the rail into the water below. Chris was watching this in his studio room. "Looks like our players are doomed," he narrated. "Will any of them survive? I have my doubts. But find out for sure when we return with more Total Drama!"
(cue commercial)
Down in the water, Sky managed to surface first. "Water!" she shrieked as she flailed her arms around. "I'm in the water! Help!" Dave surfaced underneath her, raising her up. "I got you," he assured her. Scott surfaced next. "Where's Ann-Maria?" Dave asked. Anne-Maria surfaced last. "Do I look like a life boat?!" she told Scott as she pulled him off her hair and put him underwater. Dave and Sky had to hold her back. "I'm sure it was an accident that Scott landed on you," Sky told her.
"Yeah," Scott agreed as he resurfaced, unaware that a figure was watching them. "An accident. I hope you three realize whose fault this is. The mine carts were Greg's idea."
"But he didn't just try to drown me!" Anne-Maria argued. The figure quickly went after her, making the others back away. "Anne-Maria!" Dave cried out. "Sh-she's gone! Wh-what should we do?!"
"Get out of here before something drags us underwater," Scott told him.
"G-good idea," Sky shuddered as she held Dave's head tighter. Up on the cliff, Shawn, Greg and Destiny were all recovering from the crash. "Is everyone alright?" Greg asked.
"We crashed from a high-flying rail cart and landed mere inches from a plummet to our doom," Shawn snapped. "How do we think we feel?"
"Not swiller," Destiny moaned as she got to her feet.
"Hello?" a voice called out.
"Who's there?" Brick came jogging over to them. "Hello, Brick!" Destiny greeted as she dashed over to him. "We're all so glad to see you again. Right, guys?" She turned her head to find that Greg and Shawn had vanished, and a mutant gopher was in their place. "RETREAT!" Brick shouted as he and Destiny began to run off. The gopher chased them down another tunnel until they crashed into a large rock and fell over. The gopher sniffed at Brick's boots before whimpering and backing off. "Huh?" Brick wondered. "What, you don't like my boots?"
"Yuck!" Destiny replied as she sniffed them. "Fashion-friendly for cadets, not so good as perfume." Brick gave a confident laugh as he held one of his boots in his hand. The gopher ran off as Brick marched down the tunnel. "What's the matter?" he taunted. "Can't take the smell of war?" Brick kept marching on as Destiny followed behind from a distance. "Note to self," she muttered, "No War-scented perfumes or lipsticks."
In the throne room, Anne-Maria was on the floor when she woke up. "Where the heck am I?" she wondered.
"In a nightmare," Alejandro answered as he and some of the others stood in a cage. "I hope." Some mutant gopher began to surround Anne-Maria. "Stay back!" she warned them. "You touch my poof, I'll touch you!" A figure snapped his fingers, and the gophers backed away. "There is no point resisting, minion!" the figure spoke. He stepped out of the shadows to reveal the figure to be Max. "Hey, you're that weird villain kid," Anne-Maria realized. "Max or something?"
"That's Max Mayhem, Tyrant of EVIL!" Luna corrected while she hung from her rope. "And you might be lucky enough to be his queen!"
"Ew!" Meanwhile, Lightning and the rest of the Gophers were running down the tunnel. "What's taking that cadet so long?" he panted.
"I know that head's just for show," Topher told him, "But isn't Brick becoming more large and in charge? I think we should inform Jo of this, don't you agree?"
"Are you suggesting a guy's pact?"
"Yeah, let's make a 'guy's pact'." The two shook on it. "Hurry it up, you two!" Heather snapped as she, Lindsay, Scarlett and Ella came over. "Or so help me, I'll-" The gopher squealing past them in fright cut her short. "Ha!" Brick scoffed as he and Destiny chased after it. "How do you like it when the boot's on the other foot, huh?"
"Told you he's too big for his camos," Topher whispered to Lightning.
"I found you guys," Brick sighed in relief as he and Destiny walked over to the group. "I was engaging the enemy with my secret weapon!"
"What secret weapon?" Heather asked him. He held up his boot, making her back away from the stench. "The smell of war," Destiny nasally answered as she held her nose.
"Victory is ours!" Brick declared. Gopher hands soon grabbed everyone's feet. "Unless they do that." They were all dragged underground.
"Would you stop it already?" Anne-Maria told Max and the mutant gophers as she sat on a pile of bones and carrots. "No way do I wanna be queen next to you!"
"It's merely a status of yours," Max explained. "EVIL such as myself does not do romance, but someone like yourself could be a powerful ally!"
"You're truly insane!" Courtney told him from the cage. The gophers roared at her, making everyone in the cage back away. "You don't wanna be queen to great EVIL?" Luna asked her. "Think about it. Once Max Mayhem, Tyrant of EVIL conquers this world, he might make you the Empress of Valuables! Gold, silver, and jewels of all colors, shapes and sizes!"
"Did you say jewels?" Anne-Maria asked, intrigued.
"Perhaps I should show you what you might receive if you're wise enough to align with me," Max told her as he walked off.
In the tunnels, Samey was carrying Cameron on her back. "First signs of chemical exposure are fever and nausea," Cameron moaned before burping.
"I hope the others are okay," Gwen said as she, Trent and Jasmine jogged behind him.
"You doing okay, buddy?" Samey asked him.
"Buddy?" Cameron asked. "Really? Cool!" Everyone's badges turned red. "Oh, no! My first buddy, and we've only got five minutes to live!" They soon crashed into Sky, Dave, Scott, Zoey and Mike. "Thank goodness you guys are okay!" Zoey breathed.
"What happened to you guys?" Gwen asked her.
"Mutant gophers," Mike replied. "But I took care of it."
"You mean you pummeled it," Trent told him.
"It worked for me."
"We should hurry," Sky told everyone as they got to their feet. "Something grabbed Anne-Maria, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't a gopher."
"We should dump these packs first," Scott decided. "They're slowing us down."
"Those packs of pain stay on until I tell you otherwise," Chris told them over the loudspeakers, "Or your whole team is disqualified."
"I knew Chris was watching over us," Zoey breathed in relief. "He won't let us die down here."
"Uh, don't count on it. I'm more of a watcher than a saver."
"Whoo-hoo!" Anne-Maria's voice cried out.
"That's Anne-Maria!" Samey realized.
"It's coming from this way!" Mike pointed out. "Follow me!"
"Why should you lead?" Dave asked him.
"Who else would you have received the blunt end of a bunch of angry, mutant gophers?"
"Good point." They followed Mike down the tunnel until they reached the throne room. Anne-Maria was holding a large, shiny diamond in her hand. "Yeah, baby!" she exclaimed with joy. "Now THAT'S more like it! Bada-bling!"
"Congratulations, Helmet Head," Jo sarcastically told her as she and the others were in the cage guarded by some mutant gophers. "Now get your freaky boyfriend to let us go!"
"Max, stop the gophers!" Scarlett demanded.
"Max Mayhem, Tyrant of EVIL is ruler," Luna told her, "So he doesn't have to listen to you. Nyah!" She stuck her tongue out at her.
"That's a lot of gophers," Dave whispered.
"Oh, well," Scott decided, "We'll never get those statues now."
"Keep it down," Cameron warned. "Those mutant gophers look blind, but they can probably still smell us." A gopher came over and squealed at them. "And we've got more competition," Jo angrily muttered.
"Hang on there!" Brick told them. "Fire in the hole!" He flung his other boot at the gophers. They smelled it and gagged before dashing off. "Great help, cadet," Heather lashed at Brick. "I'll get us out." She removed the jar on top of Lightning's head, releasing the fireflies. They swarmed around the gophers and scared them off. Duncan used the distraction to break the cage door down. "We're free!" Destiny exclaimed.
"Not for long, fools!" Max declared. "Minions, capture them again!" The gophers recovered and began to chase everyone again. "Lightning, grab the statue!" Heather told him.
"I'm on it!" he answered. He hopped over one of the gophers and grabbed the green-based statue, to the Bass's shock. "Oh, yeah!" Topher exclaimed. "Head for the mine carts!" He pointed to a set of cars on a track leading out of the mine. "What goes in must come out." Lightning was about to head over when a mutant gopher blindsided him, making him drop the statue. "If you can hear this," Chris announced over the loudspeakers, "Congrats. You're not dead yet! Wherever you are, immediately discard your bombs-I mean, backpacks, and run!"
"Bombs?!" Jo cried out when she opened her pack. "Too far, McLean! Too far!" Everyone began to remove their packs in a rush. Scott and Brick set their statues on the throne. "I got it!" Brick exclaimed as he grabbed the red-based statue.
"Brick?" Sky moaned as she dragged Dave and Sam with her. "We're not feeling so great." A mutant gopher squealed at them. "Hold the statue, Scott," Brick told him as he passed it. "Hang on, men! I'm coming!"
"Whoops!" Scott cried out as he tossed the statue away. "Butterfingers!" It landed in Anne-Maria's poof. "C'mon, sweetheart," she told the diamond she was carrying, "Mama's gonna take you home!" Lightning swung his bag at the gopher, knocking him out. "I got the statue," Mike told him as he held it in his hand. "Let's go." Nearly all the Bass and the Gophers were in the mine carts. Mike was about to get in when he heard Sky, Dave, and Sam's screams. "Mike?" Heather told him. "Mike! Forget those losers! We have to leave!"
"Help!" Zoey's voice cried out as another gopher surrounded her, Cameron and Samey. Brick was struggling to hold off the gophers. "If this is the end," he told everyone, "I just want to say it's been a pleasure competing with you." A THUD rang out, and one of the gophers fell over. Mike was standing behind it, holding the now-broken statue. "You're not planning to go out that easy, are you?" he asked Brick. He turned to the other gopher, who backed away and joined the others. "What are you doing, minions?" Max asked them.
"Those gophers may obey you," Mike told him, "But they fear me, and they're smart enough to see that."
"Ridiculous! I am their master! And they shall-"
"And this is the scene where the magic-user plays her cards," Luna interrupted as she held up her gopher statue. "Xam ot netsil." Purple swirls came off the gophers, and suddenly, they turned around and growled at Max. "What are you doing, fools?!" he demanded. "I am your ruler, and-" They all began to attack him. "Quick!" Mike told everyone. "While they're distracted!" He and Brick loaded the rest of their teammates into the mine carts. "That everyone?" Brick asked. Max went flying and landed in one of the carts. "Yep," Mike answered. They pushed the carts before hopping in, and the carts rolled down the tracks, out of the mine.
Outside, Chris and Chef, both wearing hazmat suits, were waiting for the campers. "They're really cutting it close," Chris told Chef. A moment later, everyone went flying out of the mine, and the Bass's statue landed at Chris's feet. "The Killer Bass win!" he announced, making all the Bass except Scott cheer. "Great," he muttered.
"All clear?" Chris asked Chef. "Executing Operation Doomsday!" He pressed a button, and the mine exploded, sealing it up. "This wasn't about the statues," Sam realized.
"Sure, it was, Chris told him. "And as an added bonus, you helped me seal off the last live toxic waste forever. It's a win-win, for me."
"That's low, McLean," Leshawna pointed out. "Even for you."
"Yeah, I just keep getting better. Screaming Gophers, hope you're hungry for marshmallows tonight. But first, before there's permanent genetic damage..." Chef fired a hose, blasting everyone with water.
At the campfire ceremony, the Gophers were all seated. Heather, Leshawna, Lindsay, Jasmine, Scarlett, Max, Topher, Sierra, Cody and Owen were in the back row while Mike, Zoey, Samey, Cameron, Rodney, Helga, Lightning, Ella, Gwen and Trent were in the back row. "The votes are in," Chris began. "The following are safe: Cameron...Amy... Heather...Gwen...Lightning...Ella...Zoey...Rodney...Lindsay...Helga...Trent...Scarlett...Sierra...Topher...Cody...Leshawna...Owen...Jasmine...and...Mike."
"What?!" Max cried out. "I shall invoke revenge on you all!" Chef just carried him off. Soon, he was seated in the Hurl of Shame. "Any last words?" Chris asked him.
"Bye, Max!" Luna waved to him as she walked over, with Sam, Destiny and Greg following her. "Hope we get to do that again! Maybe minus the betrayal stuff. A little momentum?" She tossed the gopher statue at him, hitting him in the eye. "One gopher under your heel."
"Just because you've beaten me now," Max began, "Does not mean that I, the Tyrant of EVIL, will stop-"
"One side," Anne-Maria interrupted as she hopped on the Hurl of Shame. "I've got a jeweler to see and a bank account to open!"
"Uh, the catapult is for exits only," Chris pointed out.
"Good. I quit. I don't need this two-bit show anymore! Look at this thing. I'm rich!"
"Not unless cubic zirconia has suddenly become priceless."
"Zirconium dioxide?" Greg wondered. "But diamonds are 100% carbon."
"What?" Anne-Maria realized. "It's not...a real diamond?"
"Nope," Chris answered. "Practically worthless. Lamest mine ever. Why do you think I dumped all that waste in there?"
"Wait! I've changed my-" Anne-Maria and Max screamed as they were being flung off. "Killer Bass," Chris announced to Sam, Destiny and Greg, "You're down a player. And one of my interns just isn't working out. But I can't fire her or Daddy will want all his money back. So, say hello to your new teammate: Dakota!"
"You can't do this to me, McLean!" Dakota protested as she was wheeled on a trolley by Bryan.
"Oh, yes, I can. Contract. Iron-clad." Dakota moaned at this. "Dakota's back?" Sam gasped. "Alright! Yeah!" He did a little dance. "Whoo!" Destiny cheered as she joined in. "Dance party! Greggy, come on!" Greg just shrugged as he joined in the dancing.
Another chapter right in time for Christmas! So, this one kinda threw you for a curveball. Max had a little power over the mutant gophers, thanks to Luna, but was thwarted in the end and got the boot, and Anne-Maria quits like canon.
And Dakota comes back! You probably saw this coming, and I bet you know where this leads, but I'll keep you in suspense.
The next challenge will take the campers on a treasure hunt for life itself. Until next time, this is Dunsparce519 saying enjoy and happy holidays!
P.S. The 'Max Mayhem' was a reference to Total Dramarama.
59) Ezekiel
58) Eva
57) Noah
56) Staci
55) Justin
54) Dakota
53) B
52/51) Katie/Sadie
50) Sol
49) Sugar
48) Phoebe (SC)
47) Tyler
46) Amy (SC)
45) Izzy
44) Leonard
43) Beth
42) Austin
41) Echo (SC)
40) Beardo
39) Max
38) Anne-Maria (SC)