Disclaimer: I do not own Total Drama, lol
Authors Notes: Howdy. I know it's been a while so I'll keep this very brief. But there's some stuff I want to talk about regarding this story moving forward.
I. How chapters will work (usually) is there will be a challenge chapter(s) followed by a non-challenge chapter. Non challenge chapters are more introspective and to move the plot along in regards to interpersonal relationships. Challenge chapters are where the challenge actually happens. Writing styles between both of them will differ as if I wrote all the challenge chapters in the style of a non-challenge chapter it'd take way too long and wouldn't be entertaining, I feel. Some challenge chapters may take one chapter, but this one takes two. I guess you can call this a competition fic now sorta? lol
II. Next chapter will come out by Sunday, if not sooner. If it's not, please assume that I am kidnapped or have found a lost map to buried treasure
III. The reason for the long break is that I've literally tried to write this chapter five different times, scrapping each because I thought it was way too slow. Now with the new system I feel like it's better and hopefully it'll be better to describe action-y stuff and what not. Every non challenge chapter should, roughly, come out within the week after the challenge chapter, and challenge chapter should be churned out pretty fast.
IV. Dialogue from challenge chapters will be borrowed from canon, unless something different happens. Naturally as the elimination order starts to diverge from canon (or doesn't) things will naturally change or naturally stay the same. Feel free to give me pointers in a review if you think I inserted them well, or if they clash poorly with the original dialogue! Also, I'll change the episodes names to be more in line with what's happening in the story.
V. There will be songs/singing in challenge chapters! :D
VI. Enjoy reading my dudes, dudettes, and however you identify! End-note (there's only one) and authors notes as always are after the story :)
I present: A Greek Tyler-agedy! Part I
But first, a flashback to a, while not stormy, dark night where this very tale began. Just with a different perspective.
(Skies over London, Jumbo Jet, Thirty Minutes before elimination ceremony of 'I See London')
Tyler fidgeted with his hands nervously in the hallway out of economy. It hadn't been a good day for the jock. Not only had Noah and Owen left him on the torture rack, but he was captured by a returning Ezekiel and was forced to wait out the rest of the challenge in First Class. He hated feeling useless as his friends were off competing, but at the same time he felt more than a little sore from being left behind. Things went from bad to worse though when Alejandro had begun to discuss with him his intentions on eliminating Noah if they lost after seeing what he said about him.
His team had yet to face a true elimination ceremony before, but now that Team Victory had withered away to nothing, the prospect of having to face one was very real. That prospect turned to reality quick when Chris had decided to award the Amazons immunity for nabbing Duncan, someone who Tyler was less than fond of. Though Alejandro didn't even have to tell Tyler that the punk's presence on his team would be very important to his plan.
Hearing the click of boots growing nearer, Tyler straightened up and saw Alejandro walk through the curtains that divided economy to the hallway he was in. He greeted the jock with a warm smile, "It seems that your old teammate is willing to go along with us in the vote."
"Makes sense, Duncan never really got along with Noah." Tyler shrugged indifferently, hoping Alejandro wouldn't pick up on his unease over the matter.
His effort failed though, as Alejandro's expression softened, "Is there anything wrong Tyler? If you want to talk, I'll be more than happy to listen."
"Actually yeah, thanks," Tyler jerked his thumb behind his shoulder, "Mind if we walk to the cafeteria, though." He took a nervous glance toward the curtains and Alejandro immediately knew what he meant.
"Of course," The Spaniard nodded his head, "Despite us being on a reality show, a man needs his privacy."
Tyler smiled back at him, his melancholy lifting just a tad. After a brief walk, the duo soon found themselves at the dining area. The jock was worried Noah or Owen might've been there, as Duncan and Al were the only ones in economy from before, but to his relief they weren't and the two found seats at one of the tables easily.
"Alright, I know it makes sense to vote off Noah." Tyler decided to get right down to the point. "He dissed you for no reason, which was seriously uncool." He looked to the side, "I just hate having to blindside people, you know?" He looked back to his friend, worried if he sounded like a rambling idiot. His spirits lifted when Alejandro gave him a reassuring smile to continue, "You remember in Germany when Owen and I were talking to you about Total Drama Island?"
"Yes." Alejandro nodded, "I seem to recall you left out of the part on how you got eliminated."
"Yeah, that's the thing. When I got voted off, I had no clue that I was being targeted." Tyler sighed, remembering the night of the ceremony. "I get that I messed up with conquering my fear. But so did Courtney, Harold and Geoff! And, I don't know, I just thought because of how bossy Courtney was to everyone, she'd go. If people had a problem with me, they should say it to my face right?" He shook his head. "And in the next season after, Lindsay got blindsided by-
"Duncan and Courtney." The Spaniard finished for him. "You told me after Paris." He narrowed his eyes, "Terribly cruel, as I recall you telling me that it was after your dear girlfriend had chosen Duncan to share her reward with from the previous challenge."
"You're telling me," Tyler let out a rare snort of cynicism. He left out the part of Lindsay actually voting for herself by mistake, but in his eyes Duncan and Courtney were the sole culprits of her downfall.
"Well mi amigo," Alejandro clasped Tyler on the shoulder, a suave smile accompanying it. "I must commend your compassionate and trusting nature. Not all of us would keep one with a million dollars on the line." His cheerful face turned into an analytical one, "However, I'm afraid to say that this may have been your downfall. Lindsay's as well."
Tyler was surprised, "How?"
"Well, your trusting nature towards your teammates caused you not to question if you were one of the candidates for elimination. You were so trusting that because no one told you about it, you assumed you weren't going to be axed." His analytical tone changed to one most somber, "And your poor Lindsay has failed to recognize this as well. She trusted Heather to her word during the first season, and it led her to be taken advantage of. I expect this is similarly to how in the next season she was roped into following… Justin?"
"Yeah, you got it right."
"Yes. Whoever he was to eliminate Gwen without hearing her side of the story with… Terry?"
"Trent."
"Right. And I expect it had to do with her being eventually eliminated by Duncan and Courtney as well." He shook his head. "It's usually correct to take people at their word, but in this game, when the stakes are this high, people who seem to be your friends may have," He paused, "more malicious intentions than you think."
"Like when Noah talked behind your back and not to your face?"
Alejandro hid the slightest smirk by nodding his head, "Correct." His expression turned serious for a moment, "I've had to learn this lesson far too young Tyler. My brother Jose was like the devil himself. Taking advantage of me because I believed him at his word. Over and over and over." He stopped. Losing his cool would only drive Tyler away. What he required now was tact. Clearing his throat, he continued. "You have to remain strong. Those who seem to be your friends can actually be your enemies. Our dear friend Owen even admitted to me himself in the Amazon that he struck a deal with Chris to return to the competition to stir up discord with his friends for money."
"He didn't tell you he needed to do that because his folks were bankrupt?"
"Alas, when I went back to find him during the challenge he confessed to me that his parents had put him up to it. It was all a ruse to gain sympathy, I'm afraid, there was never any cheese cellar. And when Chris offered him the deal, he took it on his own accord despite it all being a lie."
"R-really?" Tyler blinked, his mouth now a gape, "Dude... and I thought..." He now looked as pale as a ghost, "You're right. Even Owen lied…" He looked down at the table. Alejandro took this opportunity to smile darkly. Even he was surprised that his influence of Tyler ran so deep that he would believe such a lie without even talking to Owen about it first.
The Spaniard stood up, "I leave you with this my friend: always remain vigilante. This is my first time competing in this game so I have yet to be hardened by it, but I fear our friends have already abandoned their morals. Stay strong and do not let them take you for a fool."
Tyler nodded his head meekly before returning to stare at the table. Alejandro couldn't help but grin. The jock may be more annoying to be around now, but he was now completely in his pocket. As long as he guided him, the jocks newfound fear would only aid them both in the game, until he himself would become victorious. Especially with Noah out of the picture.
Tyler himself hadn't noticed that Alejandro had left as the Arch-Villains words were still spiraling through his mind. Those he thought were friends were now to be regarded as enemies. If he didn't, he might very well let Lindsay down!
Wanting to very well sort everything out, Tyler sprang up from his seat and walked quickly to the confessional. He wouldn't get to use it. Little did he know that after a short conversation with Noah, what would transpire in there would change his course on Total Drama World Tour forever.
And he would have to chart that course without Alejandro.
The episode began by the black screen slowly fading onto the animation of the Jumbo Jet flying onto the British Isles with Chris's narration, "Previously on Total Drama World Tour,"
Soon the camera began to cut to various shots from the last episode, with the host continuing, "London, England. Home to royalty, history, and some very hard buses." The screen flashed white for a brief moment before centering on a shot of Owen flattening Noah on a bus when the contestants were parachuting down, "Crunch!"
"Here, Heather went through a painful growing period," the camera flashed to when she was being tortured on the rack by Courtney and Gwen, "and we said a surprise hello to Duncan," the camera yet again flashed to the end of the challenge where Gwen and Courtney had revealed from their burlap sack the apprehended delinquent, "which Gwen was very happy about." The scene changed to Gwen and Duncan making out in the confessional when Noah walks in, shocked. "Give props to yours truly for messing with the lock, eh."
As Chris continues to narrate over the footage the scene skips ahead to the point where he bookworm initiates his plan to blackmail them, "In the end, knowing that Alejandro was out for his butt, Noah blackmailed Duncan into voting for him or else he'd blab about his little 'accident' with Gwen. That, coupled with Owen's vote, sent Alejandro to the Ale-drop-o-shame!." The Arch-Villain was shown being shoved out the plane by Chris, his face dumbfounded.
After a white flash the scene centers on Chris and Chef in the cockpit. The host had his arms crossed, delivering the camera a wolfish grin, "But it didn't end there. For folks who haven't seen the spicy extra footage on the Total Drama website, here's what went down after the challenge."
"Duncan got sick-y, and then kiss-y with Courtney." The camera flashed between the delinquent holding his stomach on the floor to First Class where he and Courtney were seen embracing one another, "Gwen found Noah in the cargo hold, where the stress of everything finally caught up with her. This turned Noah into a bit of a softie, reneging on his promise to expose her and Duncan if he gets voted off if she just doesn't tell him about it, as he still needs him to oust Tyler if they lose." As Chris recounted this footage was shown of Gwen and Noah chat in the cargo hold, from them screaming at one another to bonding over horror movies and finally to Noah making his deal to Gwen.
"After Noah split, Duncan came in and he and Gwen cemented themselves as a new couple," A shot of the two kissing flashed on the camera, "with the delinquent even vowing to tell Courtney about it… or will he?" The footage went back to the previous scene of Duncan and Courtney kissing in First Class. "Which makes the deal Noah just made with Gwen null and void… if Duncan reveals it all." Three shots, each separated by black lines were shown by the camera. The leftmost and rightmost ones had Gwen and Duncan respectively looking guilty, while Noah had a face of fiery determination in the center, although Heather could be seen glaring at him from the background.
Another white flash occurred which revealed the shot to be back to Chris and Chef in the cockpit. The host mimed wiping sweat from his brow, "That was a lot of drama to go over. We've got nine competitors left and a million dollars on the line. Whose game is getting old? And who's strong enough to grab the gold? Find out right now on Total," The shot zoomed back so the front windows of the plane could be shown, "Drama," The shot zoomed back even further so the entire Jumbo Jet could be seen, "World Tour!" The final zoom out showed the plane at a much farther view, with a flock of birds flying underneath it.
After a brief clip of the Jumbo Jet soaring through the air, the shot goes to the Amazons in First Class. It briefly shows Cody and Sierra relaxing with slices of cucumbers on their eyes before panning over to Gwen and Courtney, talking on the couch.
"So good," The C.I.T was kneeling on the couch, positively glowing. "Doesn't he look good?"
"He looks great…" Gwen unintentionally swooned as she said those words, her eyes glanced at the door which led to economy class, "I'm so happy…" realizing who she was talking to however, the goth snapped back to reality, "For you, happy for you!"
"And so relieved…" Courtney let out a sigh before asking, "Did he tell you how he even got to London?"
The loner jumped in her seat a bit, "Sorta, for a little. Not like we were hanging out for super long after the challenge." Gwen looked down at her knuckles. She was happy she was on good terms with Courtney now, but talking to her knowing that Duncan would spill the beans to her today made the goth feel like she was back on the Aftermaths in Total Drama Action, with Noah's words ringing through her head.
"Letting Ms 'Counselor in Complaining' make you freeze up looks pathetic."
"Relax, Gwen." Courtney put her hand on her teammates shoulder. "Look, I might've been wrong before about how I treated you last season." Gwen's head shot up to face hers, "You and Duncan are obviously just friends. I'm not going to go berserk on you just because you two hang out."
"Really?" Gwen blinked, hardly believing what she was hearing. So much relief poured into Gwen's mind at once that for a moment she had forgotten her current predicament and chuckled, "What brought this on?"
"Honestly? After hearing how he got from Egypt to London made me realize how lucky I was to even see him again." Both girls inwardly shuddered, no doubt recounting the punks voyage on the Mediterranean on a human smugglers ship, packed to the brim with dozens of other families. "That I realized my behavior has been less than… stellar in regards to him." Courtney held up her hands, "Don't get me wrong, I'm going to absolutely crush him in the challenges. But I don't want to drive him off in other ways, you know?"
"Yeah," Gwen looked down at her shoulder, beginning to rub it, "Totally gotcha."
(Confessional: Gwen)
Gwen grasps her head, "Ugh, what am I doing?" She puts both of her hands on the sink and turns directly towards the camera, "The moment I become friend-ish with Courtney, I kiss her boyfriend! I'm a horrible person!" She sits down and lets out a sigh before continuing, "I'm surprised Duncan even offered to be the one to tell Courtney about what happened. I mean I'm glad he will but if he does-"She begins to blink her eyes, as if she suddenly gets hit with a realization, "Noah won't have any 'fake leverage' over him!" The goth puts her hands to her hair again, "Why didn't I realize this sooner!?" She sighs again, returning to her seat, "The next time I see Noah alone, I'll tell him. But how am I ever going to get alone with him again before the challenge ends…"
(End Confessional: Gwen)
(Confessional: Courtney)
"It's so nice to have another girl to talk too," Courtney says standing up with a smile, "Especially now that Duncan is back," her face quickly goes from joy to suspicion, "Gwen still probably has a crush on him… no, no." The C.I.T shakes her head, "Don't go there again Courtney, don't go there again." Her face looks onto the camera with fiery determination, "Being controlling over Duncan was my downfall on the film lot. Noah and Owen were stupid enough to ditch Alejandro last time. I have the perfect opportunity to make my team dominate until the merge and I will not waste it."
(End Confessional: Courtney)
The camera flashes white before showing a shot of economy class, complete with three out of four members of Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot sleeping on the benches. Duncan was toying with his knife while Owen snoring loudly with his back on the bench next to him. Tyler was across from the two on the other bench, though he was beginning to talk in his sleep, "Lindsay… wait don't go over there… Where are you Al… Noah! Noah!" The jock began to flail about his arms wildly before he felt his fist collide with something that would cause him to wake.
"Ow!"
Tyler scrambled to his feet, dazed and confused. His eyes were still cloudy from sleep and couldn't quite recognize who had yelped in pain. He quickly turned to Duncan, who was laughing hysterically. "What happened!?"
It took a few seconds for the delinquent to stop laughing, but when he did her pointed to the floor with his knife, "You got spooked sleeping and decked book-dweeb,"
True to his word, Noah was on the floor, cupping his left eye with his hand, "Please tell me the reason you freaked out wasn't because of chickens."
Instead of answering his question, Tyler hopped into the air. "Oh jeez I'm so sorry Noah! I, really didn't mean to and-uh I'll go get Chef and he'll-," The jock stopped dead in his tracks as the bookworm clutched his sleeve with his hand, revealing a blackened eye that it was once covering.
"Dude, calm down. Now." Noah narrowed his one good eye at the jock, "You're acting like a lunatic."
"But I - it was an accident-
"Then why are you so defensive?" He let go of the taller boy and stepped back a few paces. Seeing Tyler's petrified expression caused to softened his a bit, "Look, I'm sorry for snapping. but you need to-"
"Be careful!" Tyler finished for him, "Yeah, yeah I'll be more careful." He pulled up a bit of his sleeve to look at a non-existent watch, "Oh snap, I'm late for my morning workout!" He nervously took a few paces backwards, jerking his thumb behind his shoulder, "See you guys at the challenge!"
Though none of them could see it, Tyler's face was now beat red as he pivoted as ran out of economy class. Both Noah and Duncan blinked before turning to face each other as the pounding of Tyler's court shoes on the ground began to wake Owen up, "Hey guys, what happened?"
The only answer he got was Duncan letting out another bout of laughter while Noah face palmed.
(Confessional: Duncan.)
Duncan was pounding his knee, still rife with laughter, "Oh man! All last night Tyler was so nervous around him but now the dude's petrified." The delinquent put two hands behind his head and delivered the camera a grin, "This makes things so much easier. After the talk I had with Gwen last night, I realized all I have to do is to team up with Tyler in a vote and the Noah is gone. Not like I need to listen to the twerp anymore since I agreed with Gwen to go public." The delinquent's stomach began to rumble, "And I promised to be the one who would tell Courtney about us." He let out a long sigh, and silence stretched over the recording for about thirty seconds.
"I've been running from this show from Greece to London. But I'm not going to run from Courtney. I just have to man up and do it." His unibrow begun to perk up, "But that doesn't mean I need to before I ditch Noah…"
(End Confessional: Duncan)
(Confessional: Noah)
He was holding a bag of ice onto his blackened eye as he began to speak, "Okay, what the hell was that? Is Tyler this scared of me because I got rid of his precious Alejandro?" He let out a bitter laugh, "Maybe he'll be too scared to try to team up with Duncan's plan to get rid of me." He blinked with his one good eye, "I'm assuming Duncan is trying to get rid of me. From when I launched my plan I kind of expected him not to just sit back while I tell him what to do." He shrugged his shoulders, "But that doesn't matter. Whatever he tries to plan with Tyler in terms of voting won't happen because he fears Courtney far more than he hates me." He let out a chuckle, "Once I remind him what information I have, he'll vote off Tyler for sure." He paused, removing the ice pack for his eye and inspected it. He soon realized it was very different from ice, "Rustic Men's Cold Press for Smoother Elbows?"
Chef popped his head through the door, "Times up, scrawny." He swiped the pack from him before walking off, "Time to get these as smooth as butter..."
"Please tell me you haven't used that one before!" Noah called out after him.
"Since the seventies, scrawny!"
Noah facepalmed.
(End Confessional: Noah)
(Confessional: Tyler)
A loud groan erupted from the jock as he was seated on the toilet, "I still don't get how Al could've got dumped!" He threw his arms in the air, "I mean, he even told me himself before the vote that Duncan was going to vote for Noah with us! And like," He motioned with his hands to aid his description, but failing to find the right ones he shrugged his shoulders, "I like Noah. And Owen." His eyes shifted to the side, "Not really Duncan. But now that Al's gone I have no idea what's happening in terms of alliances and stuff.
Noah's way smarter than all of us combined so that just makes me really worried he's gonna kick me off." He began to look directly at the camera, "Don't worry Lindsay, I got this. Tyler's gonna walk away with a big stash of cash for you to shop at anywhere you want!" He gulped, "I hope."
(End Confessional: Tyler)
"Seriously guys, what happened?" Owen asked. The footage skipped back in time to just after Tyler ran off and Owen awoke. The big blonde was standing in the center of economy whilst Duncan and Noah were sitting on opposite benches. His eyes widened and a smile began to beam on the large teens, "Did Izzy come back!? Like she did the last two times!"
"I wish." Noah rolled his eyes, revealing to Owen the blackened one.
"Shiver me timbers! What happened to your eye little buddy!?"
"Tyler had a nightmare and slugged him." Duncan yawned, standing up. "He's just sad your little buddy over there kicked off his boyfriend."
Owen squinted his eyes, confused. "Didn't Lindsay leave a while ago?"
"Yes, but she is his girlfriend. Duncan was talking about Alejandro."
"But Duncan said his boy-"
"Duncan was being a dick." Noah cut his friend off.
The delinquent glared back at him from across Owen's shoulder, "Watch it."
"Oh I did. I watched the whole thing. And can tell anyone about it." Noah said through a hardened smirk.
The delinquent's nostrils flared. He took a few paces forward but bumped into a large object, who both locked his body and Noah's into a bear hug.
"No fighting guys. Come on, we're a team!" Owen hugged them both in a tight hug, hoping to diffuse the tension, "Remember, like Al said, all for one and one for all right!"
Noah and Duncan both glared at each other as they were wrapped up in the tree trunks of arms Owen had. Their one common friend has his arms so tight around them that both decided it was best to put their conflict aside for now to refill their lungs with oxygen.
"Fine." Noah drawled.
"Sure man," Duncan said through behind gritted teeth.
Though both knew this wasn't over by a longshot.
The camera cut to a shot of the dining area, with Chris standing behind a table. Both teams were also shown surrounding the table, with the emblems of Team Amazon and Team Chris flashing on the screen for a brief moment. For an even briefer moment one could see Ezekiel closing one of the floor boards under the table.
"Prepare yourselves for challenges of an amateur caliber," Chris started to begin his explanation. Most contestants began to look excited aside from the bored expression of Noah, "Because we're recreating the original Olympics!" the excitement in their faces turned to confusion, "And we're headed to the birthplace of the Olympics right now, in-"
"Greece!" Courtney chirped.
"Atlantis!" Sierra said.
"Mount Olympics?" Owen asked.
"Wrong, fictional and… what?" Chris threw a weird look at the big guy, "We're going to Rome, Italy!"
Most of the contestants gave each other questioning glances while Owen cheered, "Pizza party!"
"Don't get excited, big guy." Noah walked into frame next to his friend, "He's wrong."
Chris crossed his arms, delivering the bookworm cheesiest grin imaginable, "Sorry my former assistant but for once, all that book learnin' can't save you from being wrong."
"Book learnin'" Noah snorted, "How old even are you?"
"Thi-"
"Ooooh, I know!" Sierra bounced up and down with her hand in the air, "He's-
"Thirty!" Chris repeated forcefully.
Sierra did not waver, "You're not-
"I'm thirty! Anyone who says otherwise gets instantly eliminated!" Chris stamped his foot on the ground. That quickly shut everyone, including the talkative fangirl and snarky bookworm, up quick. The host took a stern look at the group of nine before dusting off his shirt with his hands, "Alright, that's better. Now if we don't have any more interruptions we can-"
"Noah is right though," Courtney cast a frown towards the bookworm, "unfortunately."
Chris blinked, "But-"
"Greece, they're right." Gwen smirked. Though she didn't notice, Noah instinctively smiled at her from across the table.
The host looked like he was about to say something but instead paused and pulled out a stack of papers from behind his back. After flipping through them for a few seconds he scowled, "Interns!" Two male interns quickly sprinted from off screen to the hosts side. He glared at them for a moment before looking back at the teens, "Everyone should probably hang onto something. Everyone except you." Chris pointed to the intern on his right with his now rolled up pieces of papers.
The scene cut to outside of the Jumbo Jet where it made a harsh turn to the right where it was very near sideways. The intern Chris had pointed too had been kicked out of the plane with only a parachute, screaming.
As quick as it came, the scene went back into inside the Jumbo Jet where everyone was standing. Chris tapped the other intern with the pieces of paper, "You might want to find some info on Greece," The intern cautiously took the papers from the host, "quickly." Not wanting to risk the same fate as his friend, the intern sprinted out of frame. "Greece it is… hehe…" Chris chuckled to himself as he walked back to his quarters, leaving the contestants to themselves.
Knowing they had little time before their challenge began, some of the teens walked away to prepare. Sierra dragged Cody back to First Class to do god knows what, Tyler sprinted away from the group as fast as he could and Owen made his way towards the kitchen for some last minute snackage. Noah and Duncan both decided to just hang in economy until the plane landed, but were both pulled aside by someone.
"We have to talk after the challenge." Gwen whispered to Noah. She had pulled him aside near to one of the walls.
"Can't you just tell me now?" Noah saw the goth biting her lip, as if she could but was struggling to find the right words, "Alright, that's fine." His eyes darted towards the door where Heather was idling around, glaring at the two from across the room. "I need to tell you something too. Heather might be onto us."
Gwen's eyebrows shot up, "How?"
"Apparently she was snooping and saw Duncan and I go in the cargo hold with you. She confronted me last night about it, but the most she thinks she knows about is that all three of us are in an alliance." Noah's eyes wandered back to the Queen Bee, who was glaring daggers at the both of them. "I wouldn't suppose you'd try to throw the challenge for your team so you can kick her off, right."
Noah was afraid for a second he had gone too far with that joke, given her past run in Total Drama Action, but Gwen once nervous face turned into a grin, "Not a chance."
"It was worth a shot." He smirked right back at her.
As Noah and Gwen were strategizing, Courtney had pulled Duncan to the other side of the room for a cross team chat of her own, "So, I guess you're going back to Greece."
"I guess," Duncan murmured, his eyes locked onto the other side of the room where Noah and Gwen were talking. He blinked his eyes and returned them to Courtney, "Besides being crammed in with Maximos at night, it honestly wasn't that bad." He smirked, "I worked in the ritzy part of Athens so I managed to make decent coin."
"Well hopefully we'll be going there then." Courtney smiled back at him. She tilted her head and saw as well Gwen and Noah talking and frowned, "Ugh, is Gwen actually making friends with him?" She turned to Duncan with a mischievous smirk on her face and began to walk her fingers up his arm, "After I destroy your team in the challenge, could you ditch him?" His brow rose, "I know he has Owen in his pocket, but maybe you could get Tyler to-"
"Already on it, Princess." Duncan cut her off with a smirk of his own.
After a quick cut the camera revealed that both teams were now outside the Jumbo Jet and standing in front of Chris. A large white ancient looking building was looming behind the host, accompanied by crumbling white columns that surrounded them. All nine of them, including the host himself, took a moment to take in their surroundings, especially Noah and Gwen.
With sheets of paper in hand and intern beside him, Chris began to speak, "Welcome to the Acropolis in Athens, Greece home to many of the first Olympians. Who, as my intern has informed me, competed naked."
Owen sighed and reached for his belt, "Alright, time to drop the laundry…"
Most of the contestants flinched back in horror, but Chris was quick to correct him, hands covering his eyes, "No, no, no! That was just a quirky fact, not an order. There's no need to be one hundred percent accurate. Stay dressed. Very dressed. We only have to resort to nudity if there's a tiebreaker." He shoved his papers into the intern's hands before taking a few paces forward, "Today we're going to do things a bit differently. Since Team Chris is Really Really Really Really Hot just booted their strongest player, and Team Amazon is an all-girl team." Tyler and Cody both sighed while Noah and Sierra crossed their arms. Heather couldn't help but glare at the bookworm from across the way.
The shot began to pan slowly over the group of teens as Chris continued, "To make things fair, all of today's challenges will be one on one matches. Every victory gets you a gold medal. The Team with the most golds wins First Class tickets to our next destination. Second place wins a brutal elimination ceremony."
"And Silver medals! Right? Second place gets Silver?" Owen raised his hand.
"There are no Silver medals. Just gold."
"But in the Olympics-
"Just gold. That's it."
(Confessional: Owen)
He puts his hand to his chin with a look of nostalgic joy on his face, "When I was a kid I always fantasized about being an Olympian." He stands upright, hands by his side, "Standing proudly on that podium with my head held high. As I listen to the national anthem of some other country bringing home another silver from Canada…" Owen suddenly blinks, as if he remembered where he was and wiped a tear from his eye.
(End Confessional: Owen)
The camera zooms in on Chris guiding the teens through what looked to be like an outdoor area packed to the brim with ancient columns and pillars. He stopped in place and turned to the competitors, "Our first historical event: A Grecian scavenger hunt!" The camera began to zoom in on the pillars and pan slowly over them, "The inside of the Odeon of Pericles is filled with maze like rows of huge columns. Players must search through this ancient forest of columns and return with the Grecian treasure that awaits them inside." The camera cut back to Chris, "The first one to do so takes the gold! So, who's going in."
Gwen glanced at Noah before each of them stepped forward.
"Me."
"Meh, I'll go."
"What!?" Duncan and Heather both managed to splutter out at the same time, though the latter louder than the former.
"Noah vs. Gwen it is." Chris said, pointing finger guns to both the selected teens. Heather crossed her arms with a face of disgust while Duncan quickly tried to mask his anger, hoping no one noticed his outburst. None did, except for Sierra, who was looking at the two with suspicion.
Confessional: Sierra
"Did you see those sparks?" Sierra gasps, leaning into the camera while sitting. "Heather and Duncan almost lost it when Noah and Gwen were chosen for that challenge! But why?" She leaned back and squinted her eyes, trying to focus. She stares off for a bit before waving her hand away, "Psh, who cares? As long as I have my Cody-wody, everything will be fine! Won't hurt to keep an eye on it though."
End Confessional: Sierra
Duncan turned to the rest of his team as Noah walked forward, "Are we really going to let a shrimp like him go up against Gwen? He'll get creamed."
Before they could reply, Chris narrowed his eyes and walked towards him, "My decision is final, Duncan." The delinquent muttered something uttered his breath, "Excuse me?" Chris took another few paces and leaned into the delinquent while Tyler and Owen scooted back.
"I didn't say anything," Duncan looked to the side.
"And you won't say anything else," Chris waved his hands away from each other with finality, "til' the Olympics are over. Between now and then you can zip it or sing it. That'll begin to make up for the songs that you missed when you were in breach of your contract." The host now sported a mischievous grin, hands behind his back "And if you speak instead of singing, you'll earn a lash from Chef's Olympic towel."
"Ooooh a towel I'm so scared!" Duncan cried in mockery.
"You should be, exhibit A." Chris held out his hand. The camera zoomed out a bit to reveal Chef was just standing out of frame dressed as a gladiator, holding a towel. He pulled the towel back on one side while holding it taught with the other until with a quick motion it-
*WHIP*
"Ow!"
"Shucks," Chris shook his head, "Really should've sung that 'ow', bro."
*WHIP*
"Oooooowwwwwww." The delinquent sang in pain before collapsing on the ground.
"Duncan!" Courtney cried, breaking off from her Team, who all gave her a strange look for doing so, running to his safety. She kneeled down, "Let me help."
As Courtney was helping Duncan up, Noah turned his head to look his fallen teammate and snickered, "I've barely competed on this show in comparison to you and even I know not to make the scary former military man mad."
*WHIP*
"Ow!" Noah collapsed to the ground from Chef's towel whip to his behind.
The hulking cook squatted down besides the bookworm and growled, "That was for breaking that little deal we had last night." He stood back up and walked towards Duncan, now back at his team.
"Somehow, I deserved that," Noah turned on his back and rubbed his head.
"Here," Gwen extended her hand with a smile. The bookworm blinked for a moment as his heart rate accelerated but took it, pulling himself up. Before he could thank her, Chris tossed them both garbage can lids.
"Uh, why do we need these?" Gwen looked at hers warily.
"These authentic Spartan shields will help you in your treasure hunt because the treasure you seek is tied to an ancient Greek boar." [1]
The camera did a quick cut to a Bear snarling, wearing a golden medal around its neck and fake tusks before quick cutting back to the previous scene.
"How stupid am I for actually thinking this would be a simple maze challenge?" Noah muttered.
"Incredible stupid!" Chris answered with a cheery smile. "Good luck! The rest of you," Chris walked past the two towards the remaining teens, "Follow me."
"Wait, we aren't going to stay and watch?" Heather held her hands up as the rest of her team followed the host.
"Nope, time to flip channels." The host looked directly at the camera, "Just like the real Olympics."
Hearing this Heather crossed her arms and begrudgingly followed the host. Team Chris was still lagging behind.
"Now I can relax," Tyler breathed a sigh of relief. Both Duncan and Owen gave the jock weird looks causing him to hold his hands up in defense, "Not like I'm scared of Noah or anything! But because… all these white columns remind me of… chickens, you know?"
"Nice save Tyler!" Noah sarcastically called back from pillars, causing the jock to jump. "While I'm gone you're in charge, Owen!"
Duncan furrowed his brow and sang in a low baritone, "Wait, in charge?"
"Aye-aye!" Owen saluted his friend from the distance. He turned back to his two teammates, "Aw man this is so cool! I'm team leader in Greece! That means…" Putting two hands on his shirt and with one quick motion he teared it off his body, revealing a toga underneath. "I am Owen-dysseus! God of Gyros! Come on my followers, we march to victory!" He yelled and sprinted forward, leaving Tyler and Duncan in the dust.
The pair stared at him for a couple seconds before Tyler asked, "W-When did he get that toga?"
"Let's just go!" Duncan growled in song before running after the fatboy. Seeing two of his teammates spring away from him, the jock sighed.
"Really wish you were here right now Al…"
The camera flashed to Chris and two teams, minus Gwen and Noah, standing over a large brown circle like arena, "Pankration is an ancient Greek martial art with no rules. Last man standing wins the gold. And it'll be two one on one matches."
Courtney began to grin and took a few paces forward, "As the strongest Amazon," She held up her arm, "I volunteer to fight for our team."
"I'm pretty sure I'm the strongest." Cody walked out his front of her, puffing out his chest while flexing his nonexistent muscles.
The C.I.T looked down at the much shorter tech geek and scoffed, "Hehehe," she turned back to both girls as Cody looked up in embarrassment, "As I was saying…"
"Ugh!" Sierra erupted. She eyed the C.I.T with venom and pointed, "I volunteer to fight Courtney!"
Chris had noticed the disarray on the Amazons, "Uhhh," He turned to the others, "I need someone from I'm Really, Really, Really, Really, Hot to get involved here. Anyone?"
"Come on Dunc!" Owen, still shirtless save for his toga, had the delinquent into a friendly headlock, "We can take them!"
Tyler had managed to shake off his jitters and piped up, "Wait! I was on the wrestling team in grade school."
Duncan broke out of Owen's headlock and walked over to him, muttering in a smooth baritone, "If you want to get clobbered by Courtney, then be my guest." Tyler flashed a thumbs up to a punk before all three boys heard a call from across the way.
"Aww," Courtney had her hands on her hips with a smirk across her face. Sierra was still glaring at her, but her eyes were on Duncan. "And I really wanted to go another round with you after I beat you in the ball pit last season…" Her smirk was turning into a playful grin, "But if you're too scared…"
The usual no nonsense C.I.T's taunting had caught everyone off guard, including Duncan himself. His mouth was now a gape, utterly surprised, and time seemed to freeze around him. Yesterday the C.I.T had been friendlier than usual towards him, but that was in private. Now she was sporting the unrestrained, care free nature that she possessed in the latter half of the boot camp episode on Total Drama Island.
Another moment passed, and he remembered how he felt during when he wrestled with her during the sports movie challenge of Total Drama Action. True to what Courtney had just said, she had beat him to a pulp. For a split-second, Duncan was awash with resentment, the same resentment he felt towards her over being humiliated during the reprieve from last season to this one.
But it was only for a split-second. As he looked at Courtney's face, sporting a flirtatious grin that said she would crush you while having fun doing it… it reminded him of how he felt competing alongside her on the Film Lot. A rush of feelings that drove him wild.
Duncan began to wear a smirk of his own, "I spent so much time here that it's basically a home field advantage." Courtney continued her smirk right back at him, saying not another word. His head turned to Tyler, still in deep bass, "Back off tracksuit, I have a score to settle."
The jock looked disappointed, but quickly jogged back as Owen ran up next to Duncan, "Prepare to be conquered, worthy adversaries by Owen-dysseus!" He proceeded to growl as a couple chords of an electric guitar sounded, sweat flying everywhere as he shook his head.
"Sold! Into the ring with both of ya!" Chris smiled.
As the delinquent got into a readied stance, Owen seemed to be basking in the moment, "My first Olympics, this is so cool!"
Though he had little time to take in the glory. Cody was charging at him with a determined face with a warlike shriek to go with it. The usually chipper like blonde readied his stance with an intense glare on his face. Sucking in his larger than life gut, he waited until the tech geek was right in front of him before puffing it out with a large thrust. Before Cody could know what was happening, he was launched into the air at a comically high speed towards the Odeon until he was completely out of sight by the naked eye.
"No!" Sierra gasped, reaching her hand out to the direction the tech geek went.
"Yeah," Courtney looked around to the direction Cody was launched before focusing her eyes on Owen and Duncan, "I hope Gwen's doing better than we are."
"You really sure ditching the lid was the right call?" Gwen asked Noah. It was about five minutes since Chris had thrusted them into their first challenge for the day and they were already deep into the mazelike rows of columns and pillars. Both had decided to walk together from the start, when the bookworm quickly dropped his "shield" Chris had given both of them at the outset of the challenge.
"Meh, it wouldn't do much." He shrugged. Gesturing to the rust on her lid, he continued, "I wouldn't be surprised if these 'shields' are older than our totally thirty-year-old host man."
Gwen whipped her head towards him, "Did you see how defensive he got when Sierra challenged him about his age? He was like my little brother," She faced front again, laughing, "When he was like, five."
"I remember back on the Island when he was just a cheesy dork." Noah narrowed his eyes, "Now he's just a cheesy psychopath."
Gwen chuckled at that, returning her head forward. A minute of silence returned to them as they walked until the goth stopped, "I still need to tell you something."
"Oh, right." Noah stopped as well, turning to face her, "I'm surprised I forgot about that."
Gwen blinked, "I thought the reason we both chose this challenge was so that we could talk privately."
"You're slicker than me then. I just volunteered because McLean made it seem like a simple treasure hunt, which is probably the only challenge I'd be halfway decent at in these totally authentic 'Olympics'."
Gwen smirked, "Sports still not your forte?"
"Indeed they aren't horror show, they are not." Noah shook his head slowly, saying the last three words slowly. "What has changed is that I'd gladly volunteer to play dodgeball if it meant I didn't have to tango with a bear."
"I'm glad to see you've gotten less lazy."
"I'm still just as lazy, honey. But if I'm mauled to death I would have no more time to be so." Noah found a mostly intact pillar beside them and leaned his back on it, crossing his arms, "Though on the bright side, because I did volunteer for this challenge there's no way your boyfriend can peg me as lazy for not pulling my weight."
Instead of another quip or snarky reply like the bookworm would have expected, Gwen rubbed her arm and looked down to the side, "Right, speaking about Duncan." The bookworm's brow immediately grew, "He's sort of why I needed to speak with you before the challenge ended."
"Oh." Noah stood up right from the pillar he was leaning on, giving Gwen his full and undivided attention, "Shoot."
"After you left the cargo hold last night Duncan and I got to talking and kind of came to an understanding on how to move forward." Gwen smiled unconsciously, remembering yesterday. She quickly shook her head, remembering that while this was great news for her, it wouldn't be so for the person she was talking to, "I'm still surprised it happened, but he promised me he's going to tell Courtney today about what happened." Noah's eyes widened, "With us."
Upon hearing this information, Noah's eyes closed and he bit his lip in thought. About a minute of silence passed between the two of them, with the only sound breaking it being a calm gust of wind. When Noah opened his eyes, he could see the goth looking directly into his own, waiting for a response. Her face reminded him of their talk last night, his face flushing briefly. Quickly shaking away those feelings, he finally replied, "This certainly changes things."
"I know this came so soon after you and I settled things last night. And it was really cool of you to come up with that 'fake-blackmail' plan with Duncan. But now-"
"I get it." Noah cut her off, "Like I said before, it's better for everyone involved if you guys just go public." He looked down and to the side, "Except for me, strategically. And both of you have to deal with Courtney wanting to hurl you off the plane."
Gwen sighed, crossing her arms, "Honestly, I've been holding in my feelings about Duncan for so long that it didn't even occur to me. With him quitting the game from the start and only being here because Courtney and I literally dragged him back in a burlap sack," She shrugged, "I don't think either of us care that much about the competition at this point."
"Clearly." The word slipped through his mouth with enough bitterness that later on Noah wished he hadn't said it. "But if you both want to throw away a chance at a million dollars, then so be it."
Gwen frowned, sensing his restrained anger, "I know this kind of ruins your plans for the game, but considering you were trying to blackmail both of us-"
"To get rid of Alejandro." He frowned back at her. "I only needed to blackmail Duncan to vote for that eel because I knew he was either to stupid or to selfish to care about what he did. It's not my fault you decided to lock lips with an idiot." In that moment, Noah realized he had gone too far. Gwen was now glaring at him with the same intensity as she was when they were first talking in the cargo hold. "Look, Gwen –
He never got to finish. In one quick motion, Gwen pivoted to the left before jumping at him, tackling Noah on his side. Hitting the ground with a thump, both were now laying on each other, faces nearly touching. Gwen eventually pushed herself up with her hands to face him, leaving the bookworm stunned, "What the hell is wrong with you!?"
"RAWR!"
Suddenly a loud roar echoed throughout the Odeon. It was quickly followed by a loud noise that sounded like someone splitting a boulder in two, before following up with another loud bang. Gwen rolled off Noah and pointed to where the sound came from, "Watch out!" She cursed out a slur that was censored on screen before shouting, "Run!" and sprinted by Noah.
The bookworm got to his feet, and looked in horror. The camera cut to a shot behind him, revealing to the viewer what he saw. A very angry brown bear with a gold medallion around its neck, next to the now fallen column that Noah was leaning against only two minutes ago.
Noah shrieked another word no doubt bleeped by the censors before the camera cut to another scene.
The scene the camera cut too was just as exhilarating as the last. With battle music playing in the background, Sierra was on Owen's shoulders using her leg as a headlock, "This is for hurting Cody!"
"Argh, af, argh!" The fatboy could only gasp as he stumbled backwards.
It wasn't the only fight going on. Courtney was unleashing a barrage of punches and kicks at Duncan, who could only block and dodge them.
The punks heart was pounding. Not since competing against her on Total Drama Action that he felt this much rush of adrenaline. During the time they dated during the six-month gap, before things went south relationship wise, he and Courtney had actually sparred together. Mostly they were just short playful bursts of energy that soon turned to make-out sessions, but quite a few times they had actually went to a gym to kick box. Courtney had wanted to learn how to defend herself (though he believed she could take anyone) but Duncan offered to teach her some tricks in fighting he picked up in juvie.
And right now it was just like back in the ring. Duncan was purely acting on impulse, blocking and parrying Courtney's thrusts like it was four or five months ago. Happier times.
"That's it Courtney!" Heather cheered from the side, "You show him who's boss, woohoo!"
"Be careful not to hurt her bro! She's still a girl!" Tyler called out.
The jocks shout broke Duncan's trip down memory lane, causing him to lose focus and trip right over Courtney's right leg. Instead of falling on top of her, the Latina instinctively parried with her elbow, right into the delinquents left eye.
"Yowch!" Duncan yelped in pain, staggering backwards. Though he would yelp soon after, in a much different way.
*WHIP*
Chef came up behind the two quick as lightning, snapping his towel, "Sing it!"
"Owwwww!" The delinquent yelped again, now in a high tenor. He fell to the ground, exhausted and in pain.
"Duncan!" A now Courtney knelt to the ground beside him, holding up his face. "Are you okay!?"
Heather's respite towards being supportive quickly ended with an angry order, "Just pin him already!"
Courtney whipped her head back, a bit of her hair getting into the punks face, "Shut up!"
Instead of returning her eyes to Duncan, she was focused on someone else. Cody was running back from the Odeon straight towards them. Courtney was surprised, but considering but the geek had once healed from a bear mauling in just a few weeks, being launched fifty feet in the air wouldn't incapacitate him for too long. He skidded to a halt, in a readied stance, "Never fear ladies, I'm back to save ya!"
From Heather yelling at her and Duncan getting hurt, Cody's interruption put Courtney's anger over the top. She stood up, "Stay out of the way pipsqueak!"
"Pipsqueak!?" Sierra whipped her head towards her, still on Owen's shoulders. "That's it!" She pounced off the big guy's shoulders directly onto the C.I.T causing them both to fall to the ground in a struggle.
As Heather face palmed at the disarray on her team, Tyler began to cringe, "Uh, come on you don't need to," He winced, "Yikes."
Both girls eventually were squatting down beside each other in a dual headlock, "Respect. My. Cody!" Sierra grunted between gasps.
"Same. Team!" Courtney yelled back.
"Girls, Girls!" Cody walked over to them, trying to quell the intra-team scuffle. The only response he got was a quick backhand to his face by Courtney, causing him to stagger back, "Oof!"
"Cody!" Sierra cried, looking back at her crush staggering back. She quickly turned back to Courtney with a hardened glare, "You'll pay for that!" Both girls' grips began to grow tighter and tighter, with their knees slowly beginning to buckle, until –
"Get off!" Duncan had jumped up from his knocked out stupor, yanking Sierra to the ground. He stood over her and with a death stare, "Freak." He spat on the ground beside her, rage reaching his boiling point. Seeing someone he barely even knows treat Courtney like that…
He shook his head, blinking. Did he just do that? For Courtney? He had allowed Gwen to go it alone with the person that was single-handedly responsible for all the grief they had last night, but saved Courtney?
"Duncan," His eyes looked down towards her. Breathing a bit heavy, she was surprised herself Duncan had done that. Though far from the same reason. She thought he was knocked out cold.
Sierra looked downright flabbergasted, her face looking at Duncan with a mixture of anger, confusion and fear. Not knowing what to do or say, her head immediately jerked towards the one person that made her feel safe, "Cody!?"
"Just stay down Sierra!" Cody walked back over towards the group, rubbing his face. He faltered, "You've done enough."
"No, then we'll lose!" Heather yelled back from her side.
"Well somebody better do something." Chris walked over, pausing the action. He held up his arm and tapped his watch, "We're paying by the minute to film here and if someone isn't punching someone then we're wasting money. Either pin someone or I'll make sure no one wins." Cody jerked his thumb at the tech geek, "Cody was the original one participating and Owen had already knocked him out of the ring a while ago, so Courtney needs to either pin Duncan to even the score or he can pin her for double the medals."
Heather held up her hands in exasperation, "Then why did you let Sierra fight Owen?"
"Thought it would be funny." The host shrugged. "Ended up mostly boring."
The shot whipped to Owen still breathing heavily, clasping his throat, "Hiya-huff-hiya-huff."
Chris continued, "But since Cody was the original one up it didn't even matter." His gaze changed to the delinquent and C.I.T, standing next to each other, "What's it gonna be?"
Courtney and Duncan stared at Chris for moment before whipping their heads back to themselves. Duncan knew what was coming, and didn't have the energy to stop it.
She ducked down and did a sweeping kick, causing the punk to land on his back before putting her hands over his chest, "Thank you so much." She whispered with a smile.
"No problem." Duncan croaked in bass back to her, smiling back.
"Okay it's settled," Chris looked off to the camera man was, "We'll just edit that in post to make it seem less… uncomfortable…" As he stepped over to where Owen and Courtney were, Cody helped Sierra come off the field back to where Heather was standing.
"Freak?" Sierra blinked as she repeated the word Duncan lashed out at her with.
"Don't worry Sierra, Duncan's just a jerk sometimes." While his words were comforting, Cody's tone was decisively not. He looked uneasy as he led Sierra to the area where Heather was standing.
"3, 2, 1, and…" Chris counted off to the camera crew before continuing on, "And with that, Owen and Courtney snag the gold for their teams!" He tossed both the victors their tokens of victory.
"Woohoo!" Owen cheered holding his high in the air. Courtney had quickly put hers in her pocket before helping the delinquent up. In a rare act of public affection, she kissed him on the cheek and Duncan could only put his hand to the face where she pecked him as she strolled off back to her team.
Chris walked in front of the delinquent, "In a world where Owen can win an Olympic gold medal, do the Amazons really stand a chance? And can Noah actually win against Gwen and the boar? And will Tyler wet himself in fright if he does?"
"Hey!"
"All this and more when we come back on Total Drama," Owen popped out behind the host to sing the last part of the title, "World Tour!"
Endnotes:
[1] - Chris doesn't say "ancient Greek boar" in canon. He says something that I can best guess is "Ermantheon boar" but when I tried to google it I literally couldn't find the right spelling of what he's saying, so I just changed it to ancient Greek boar. If anyone knows what he is actually saying with the correct spelling it'd be dope if you show me in a review or a PM cuz I'm super curious now! :D
Authors Notes: How'd you like it? I think it's pretty good, but a little dry. I debated between holding off on making this a two prater and just having one big 17,000 word chapter but I don't think that's very user friendly reading wise.
Halfway through the challenge and we still have a lot to cover:
Will Noah and Gwen make amends?
Will Heather begin to close more in on the truth between the two?
Will Tyler keep his cool?
Will Duncan keep his promise to Gwen to tell Courtney the truth?
And how's Alejandro doing with Sanders and MacArthur?
All this and more, but you gotta read to see on Nnnnnnnnoah's Gaaaaambit! Sunday night!
Unrelated Note: Folks at the Total Drama Writers Forum have given a good deal of confidence in myself. Both to write stuff on here and in my general life. If you like Total Drama (or Fire Emblem and Daganronpa, believe it or not) consider stopping by and say hello. They've always been super accepting and supportive, even when I was decidedly not.
For those on there who have helped me through my anxiety by a private message or on one of the topics, thank you so much :)
- ewisko
