For once, Topher wasn't the one starting off this challenge. Instead, Nelly was silently snacking on some chips while dipping them into what looked like sausa. Though, she was eating it while performing surgery on someone so who konws how much of that was actually that.
"Um, miss Nelly, are you sure that's… sanitary?" Lana looked sick just watching her.
"I'm not dropping any of my chips in the patient, relax!" Nelly rolled her eyes "And what are you doing here anyways? I thought I told you that I don't like when people watch me while I work! Can't be arrested for crimes against humanity if there's no witness"
Lana just looked more uncomfortable "P-please don't bring that up when I'm in here please. I just wanted to tell you Topher's out to talk to the producers"
This piqued the nurse's interest "So that means… I'm hosting today. Right?"
"Saddly, yes"
Nelly silently smirked to herself, taking a deep breath before pushing her patient off of the operating table. "Last time on Arcade! Uh… shoot I totally wasn't paying attention"
Lana looked like she was about to say something before Nelly interrupted "I got it. Last time they we're playing Crazy Taxi, bringing some older woman back to her home. The problem was mostly on the Kombatants, who just couldn't manage to work together"
The camera showed Veronica and Camila fighting over the driver's wheel "If I were Liz, I would have just ripped their spinal cords out"
"But, that's just me. In the end, the two of them seemed to actually get along and eliminated poor Mimos. Such a shame, the strong athletic types always have the healthiest organs. Who would've figured. But let's see if this alliance can last in today's episode of… Arcade!"
Intro Starts
"Dear Mom and Dad, I'm Doin' Fine," Topher and Nelly stood at the front of the island, with the nurse rapidly measuring Topher's limbs and where his organs should be.
"You guys are on my mind." The camera zoomed past the two hosts to an abandoned-looking city. In the middle of the plaza was a giant pool that the camera dove into. At the bottom, Dylan was trying to pull a chest up to the surface.
"You asked me what I wanted to be And now I think the answer is plain to see," Dylan felt someone tapping her on the shoulder. She turned around, only for Ian to come out of nowhere and swim away with the chest. Bubbles floated up to the surface, where Bobby floated on a raft. Bobby looked nervous about the water.
"I wanna be famous!" Colmillo was holding Mitch in a chokehold on land as the writer desperately tried tapping out.
"I wanna live close to the sun," in one of the abandoned buildings Camila was waving her hands around mystically over a crystal ball as Marty just stared past it and at her chest. Veronica meanwhile just crossed her arms skeptically.
"Go pack your bags, 'cause I've already won," inside the crystal ball Camila saw Ellis having a casual friendly conversation with Thomas whose fingers were crossed behind his back.
"Everything to prove, nothing in my way" past the duo, Michael and Mimos were sitting on the ground in the middle of nowhere just enjoying some peace until Vinnie fell down on top of him with a beehive in her hands.
"I'll get there one day" past them Matt was using his walking stick to walk around when Vinnie ran past him with the bee nest in her hands while dragging Micheal behind her. Matt fell to the ground as the bees quickly swarmed him.
"Cause I wanna be famous!" back in the abandoned city Mitzy and Tess were lying on the ground, smiling to themselves as they drew a comic. Liz looked down at her work and gave her a thumbs-up before feeling Bailey hug her from behind. Making blood come from her nose. However, Maxine came in and stomped on her paper
"Na na na na na na na na" in one of the buildings Therion and Charlotte are playing a game in a room before Charlotte laughed confidently once beating the gamer. That was before another character suddenly beat both of them. They turned to see a rocker girl easily beat her while looking away from the screen.
"I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous" Walter was looking around the dock to the island, as he walked he could see some footsteps on the ground as he slowly followed them. As he got closer to the camera he flashed a flashlight at the camera.
"I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous" The light from the flashlight turned to the moon as it slowly moved down to the cast. Jaz and Antoinette were sitting together by the fire. Jaz saw the camera on them and quickly pushed Antoinette out of the way, trying to get the camera to focus on her before the other girl pushed her right back. The other contestants slowly whistled
Intro Ends
The contestants were all sitting together in the cafeteria. Almost everyone was eyeing each other suspiciously, seeing as the merge was just around the corner.
"We should've last that last challenge" Walter murmured "Ian might get away with the merge if we merge today…"
"We do need to do something about this…" Mitzy immediately nodded in agreement.
Ian silently glared at them "You know I'm sitting here right?"
Vinnie shrugged "You already know what we think"
"That's… true" He sighed softly, slouching in his seat.
As Vinnie and Walter started talking to each other, Mitzy and Ian could hear Veronica coughing loudly for their attention.
The two gave each other a deadpan expression before turning to look at the rich girl. She had her phone raised in the air as she threatened to tap the 'photos' button.
They glanced at each other before going right back to insulting each other.
Confessional: Mitzy
"I don't know why she even bothered bringing up her phone. I mean really, everyone knows I'm a paragon of justice that wouldn't dream of messing with Ian."
Confessional: Ian
The thief scoffed "Worrying about Mitzy's reputation is the last thing on my list. Besides, that photo was ages ago, who cares? I'll be eliminated if we lose here either way"
XXX
Veronica was seething where she sat, clearly pissed off by their blatant ignoring.
"Oh, that was a nice try darling" Camila playfully taunted her "I think you almost got them with that one"
"Oh quiet down. It's your turn to make a plan" the Rich Girl placed her cheek onto her palm.
"It will all depend on what challenge we receive after lunch I'm afraid. My crystal ball was hazy on the specifics"
Liz smiled a little at their cooperation.
"Oh that's so likely" Veronica deadpanned.
"It's more likely than using a random photo again someone" Camila deadpanned back.
Liz frowned a little at their lack of cooperation. Both of them seemed to quickly notice this and changed their tune.
"I-I meant it was a wonderful plan Veronica. Simply great, even if it failed to garner any results"
"And I'm sorry for talking to Mitch about you looking like a cow. Clearly that was just too far"
This didn't seem to make Liz feel any better as Mitch silently examined his sandwich. "They really like fighting" Mitch murmured "But at least they'll die before I do"
"Don't say that about your own teammates" Liz shook her head dissaprovingly at him.
"Hey, we're almost at the merge. I'm not the type to get a big head but that's where I'd thrive!" Mitch smiled, getting a confused look from Liz. He sighed softly "Because I'm weak and unchallenging. Who would vote for someone like that when there's bigger threats?"
"That's an… interesting strategy" Liz smiled softly "Just know even after the merge I'll be sure to watch after you"
Confessional: Mitch
"My strategy is basically being like an opossum. If I don't come off as threatening, or play dead, people won't feel the need to go after me because I'm that pathetic. No way anyone would vote for me when even Liz has more social game than me!" he actually had a natural smile for once, before he heard a creaking outside the confessional door, causing him to scream like a little girl.
XXX
This left the last of the remaining three teams, the Maggots.
"Oh I'm so happy we're getting close to the merge!" Therion gushed excitedly "I can't believe it's going so well!"
Colmillo slowly nodded at him "Yea… it's pretty cool. Are you feeling ok? I don't think I beat your head in that hard last time"
"I'm just fine, in fact I'm feeling wonderful today!"
Bobby smiled at his excitement "It is pretty good day today. There was some mud outside and I got to roll around in it"
The couple turned to Bobby, seeing his entire body was coated in mud. He shook his head slightly before some of the mud fell and coated his burger in some of it, before he just started chewing on it.
"That's the nastiest thing you've done yet…" Marty stuck out his tongue as he looked to be getting sick.
"Oh, did you want some…?" Bobby turned to Marty, who just glanced away from him. He rapidly shook his head as Bobby continued his meal.
Marty coughed softly before smiling slightly to himself "I'm pretty excited for the merge myself. There's a lot of people I wouldn't mind getting to know better"
He waved flirtaciously to Vinnie, Mitzy, and Walter over at the Plumber table. Vinnie just frowned at him, Mitzy looked slightly offended, and Walter was just confused.
"I don't see that going anywhere" Colmillo deadpanned with an amused smile.
"Yea… well, there's always the Kombatant girls. Or Mitch"
Therion chuckled a bit "I-I maybe wouldn't bet on that either"
Marty put his chin on his hands "Can't believe I got so distracted with challenges I didn't try getting with anyone. What a silly mistake"
"Yea, you've been focusing too much on challenges!" Colmillo laughed while slapping his back hard enough to slam him into their team's table "Good one"
The photographer just groaned softly in pain, before suddenly all the remaining contestants could hear a loud 'boom' coming from outside the cafeteria.
Veronia groaned "You think it's another challenge?"
"Almost sure of it" Ian deadpanned, before being the first contestant to stand up "Might as well get this challenge over with so I can be done with these goons"
All of the teams walked out of the building, and to their surprise they find a massive crater where the crash came from. "Oh, this must be an alien challenge" Mitzy grinned a bit.
"Or the apocalypse is finally here" Mitch whimpered.
Therion and Colmillo were the two contestants with the confidence to look over the crater to look inside. Almost immediately the thing lying in the middle of the crater shot up and got straight into Therion's face.
"Finally found you, fucker!" the figure cackled like a mad woman.
The gamer just looked shocked as she pulled him into a headlock "Didn't think you could hide from me forever huh!?"
While she was giving him the business, the other contestants could only watch in silence. The woman had very long black hair with red highlights. Her hair almost reached the floor. She wore a black, long-sleeved button top with a zipper above the right breast and two more on the right side of the stomach, and between the zippers are the words Punk, Rave, and Free Drugs. The Left side is longer than the right and adorned with various diaper pins in the midsection. Adorning the neck is a red tie with a number of tin chains and a single cross. Below that, she wore a plaid skirt that stops halfway down her thighs and a black leather knee-high boots with metal buckles. Her upper body also seemed rather well developed.
Marty had a small grin "Who's this, and how do I get to know her better?"
"Yea, you two seem to know each other" Colmillo crossed her arms skeptically.
Therion smiled nervously as he slowly pulled himself out of her grasp "This is, uh, my friend Asuka…"
Liz stared at her for a moment before the realization hit her "Wait, you mean Roxanne Mercury? The Queen of Punk Rock?"
"You just simp anything woman huh?" Vinnie silently gave Liz a 'seriously?' look.
"More or less. I have a friend back home who's such a big fan!"
"Always good to meet a big fuckin fan!" Asuka smiled at Liz "You want an autograph or some shit?"
Liz quickly nodded as she handed the rocker girl a piece of paper. Asuka was happy to write down as fast as humanly possible.
"Hey" Marty pulled Therion closer so he can put his arm around the gamer's shoulder "Any chance you can have us introduced?"
"I… don't know how much you're her type" Therion murmured with a faint blush.
Veronica just frowned at all the attention the rocker was getting "It's cool she's here and all but… When's the host going to kick her out?"
"Why would the host kick me out?" Asuka smirked confidently at Veronica, before arching her back to double her smug confidence "I'm here to fuckin stay!"
"Oh, is that right?"
Asuka froze in place before slowly turning around, finding Nelly standing there with a small smile on her face "I don't quite remember you being a contestant…"
"What? I've always been a contestant!" Asuka smiled innocently "Don't you remember when I threw the old lady aside in the last challenge?"
Nelly stared at her in silence. She was clearly having to think about the last challenge, but she didn't really watch or pay attention to any of it "Ah, right… you… are… the loud girl"
"My, you've got me to a T" Asuka smirked.
"Of course I do" Nelly glanced away from her "A-anyways, all of you report to the dark forests just outside this plaza for today's spook-themed challenge!"
The host coughed, standing there in silence "So. See you there…" she awkwardly started walking away as Asuka waved her goodbye.
"Well, better not keep her waiting right!?" Asuka smiled at the others before grabbing Therion's arm and dragging him to the forest Nelly mentioned.
It took a few moments but the others started walking. With the very back featuring annoyed or upset Camila, Veronica, and Colmillo.
Confessional: Veronica
"I can't believe that woman was just allowed to compete! We all worked hard to get to where we are now and she just gets to come in like it's nothing!? When Topher comes back I'm going to deliver him the angriest review I've ever formed" the Rich Girl started writing down angrily on her phone. "Get Liz excited for someone else will you…" she murmured.
Confessional: Colmillo
The wrestler had her arms crossed with a small scowl "Therion's been acting weird recently, I was going to ask this morning before Asuka suddenly came around. The two of them are so close I don't think I'm even going to have the chance to talk to him now. But I'm not the type to get jealous, that stuff's stupid. I'm just skeptical of her, I mean being aggressive, loud, and swearing is my fucking thing!"
XXX
The contestants arrived at the entrance of the deep dark woods. The trees were so numerous that it almost made no light reach the undergrowth. In front of the forest itself was a crate filled with flashlights.
"Oh, this looks like a fun challenge" Walter smiled "Halloween is always so much fun"
"Hope no one shits themselves while out there" Asuka grinned "Also, shouldn't the host be here or somethin to tell us the challenge?"
"I'm right here" Nelly smirked when she casually walked out from behind a tree "And I will do exactly that"
The stand-in host slowly walked in front of all the contestants, eyeing up all their flesh. She was clearly trying to see if their organs were healthy or not "In today's challenge, there are eight pieces of paper pinned up all around the area. And the contestant who captures the most of these will be safe. Any questions?"
Mitch raised his hand immediately "We all know there's more to this than what you're saying so tell us what the big twist is!"
She sighed softly "Yes, something will be hunting you while you look around. Happy?"
"I was hoping you were going to say there wasn't a twist…" Mitch admitted sadly.
"Now, you can all go ahead no-" she noticed Therion had suddenly raised his hand. Nelly quietly groaned. "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees?"
"You said contestant who grabbed the most notes. Do you mean team?"
Nelly shook her head "Nope. And you know why? Because I'm taking the merge from Topher while he's still gone" she cackled while arching her head back "That'll show him! Anyhow, since you all annoyed me with the questions I'm throwing in another gimmick"
The remaining contestants didn't celebrate as they silently glared at Therion and Mitch.
"I've got it" Nelly smirked after spending a few moments to think "The winner of the first merge challenge can eliminate any one contestant of their choice! Doesn't need a vote or anything else, they're just doneso!"
To the contestants surprise, that actually motivated a good few of them to get excited for the challenge.
"So, any more questions?"
"No ma'am!" they all quickly turned her down before they started sprinting into the forests while grabbing their flashlights, running over the nurse and leaving her as a pancake.
Confessional: Vinnie
"About time we got to the merge, honestly. Sure, it might be harder to eliminate Ian, but at the same time I'm just happy I won't have to work with him anymore." Vinnie had a small smile "I just hope I can get deep into the merge so Bailey's elimination won't be a waste…"
Confessional: Camila
The psychic smirked to herself "Ah, yes, the merge. As I expected to reach it. Once again my ball is never wrong"
She continued to smile, just pretending she didn't hear the nagging noise in the back of her head about her earlier prediction not being done.
Confessional: Marty
"Well, well, well. My prediction just got a lot more interesting" Marty chuckled "Asuka's really pretty at that, so I can't say I'd mind the prediction being right. Even if they never are."
"I just wonder if she's been watching the season" he rubbed his chin "Better be safe than sorry and try impressing her this challenge. If it goes well she might at least kiss me for competitional gains. Like Veronica and Camila with Liz. I wouldn't mind that"
XXX
The contestants all moved deep into the forest, so everything was pitch black. Walter, Vinnie, and Mitzy were naturally still sticking to their group, thinking it would be their safest outcome.
"So we have to find some papers" Mitzy tapped her chin "This forest is massive, I don't know why they think we'd know where to even start looking"
Walter smiled innocently "I'm sure there's some landmarks that just have letters on them"
"That would make the most sense," Vinnie nodded. As they continued to walk they suddenly noticed a note was seemingly laid out in the open for anyone to see or grab. "Or it's really just random notes…"
The bear enthusiast walked over to the note, reaching out to grab it. The moment her hand got close to the paper, everything around them seemed to go totally dark.
She pulled her hand back, causing everything to brighten up again. She did this multiple times getting the same result each time. "Do… you two see this?"
"Oh, good. I was worried my eyes were going crazy on me" Walter mused "Do you think it's some kind of weird trap?"
"Even if it is, it has to be one of the notes, so we might as well just take it" Mitzy decided.
Vinnie shrugged before taking the note and putting it into her pocket. Almost immediately it looked like it was night out now. "It's a good thing Nelly at least gave us flashlights" Walter smiled before switching his on.
The other two also turned on their lights, barely illuminating where they stood. "This is an unsettling challenge…" Mitzy murmured.
"Just wait until we get to whatever's out here" Vinnie murmured, walking ahead of the others.
"I'm sure it's just gonna be Lana or Insignificant in a big scary costume or something" Walter guessed.
The trio would walk together in silence. Using their flashlights to see where they were going, however, a figure seemed to suddenly appear behind them. All the camera showed was a tall thin man with a strapping black tuxedo.
In another area, the Kombatant alliance was still going together. Liz naturally led the other two as they had their flashlights on. "I don't see how it's physically possible for it to get so dark" Veronica growled as moths continued to fly towards her and her flashlight.
"Well, I can sense the supernatural out tonight" Camila murmured "That would explain the sudden nightfall and constant noise around us"
"You wouldn't assume the constant noises are just the animals that naturally live on this island?" Veronica deadpanned.
Camila just shook her head condescendingly "Oh Veronica, Veronica… Your lack of knowledge is truly piteable"
The rich girl was about to insult her back when Liz walked back to smile at the two of them "Hey, hey, hey. Let's not fight girls. Right? I thought we agreed to not get into a big argument"
"It's just so hard for us" Veronica groaned "She's unbearable!"
"Coming from the spoiled rich girl" Camila snarked back.
Liz silently stared at the two of them, causing them to immediately shut up. That's when they found a small building that looked totally abandoned.
"Oh, now what's this" Camila silently smirked at the building, slowly opening the door to find what looked like a middle school's locker room.
"This… isn't what I'd expect out here" Liz frowned as the three girls walked inside "Maybe the host wants us to strip once we get in here" she started drooling with an excited smile.
"I'm almost sure that's not the plan" Veronica gave Liz an annoyed look.
"R-right, probably not that" she chuckled softly "But I wouldn't be surprised if there was a piece of paper in here"
Camila silently closed her eyes as the two other girls thought over what they should do. In her mind's eye, she could sense a dark aura coming from one of the rooms. A smirk formed on her face.
"I think I know where one of these notes is…" the psychic opened one of the doors, finding an office desk on the other side of the door.
Veronica and Liz followed her into the curved room, finding multiple windows to the forest outside. The Team Mom silently looked out the window as her companions started looking around.
"Nelly really had to make a whole forest full of junk just to make this harder for us" Veronica groaned in annoyance.
Camila moved the door she opened to find a note "Well, well, well. Looks like my psychic predictions are sill 100% factual"
She took the note with a smug smile as Veronica and Liz turned to her. "Well done" Liz praised "Already have one, we just need three more and we can at least tie with someone else. Now maybe you deserve a kiss as a reward!" Liz smirked excitedly.
Camila silently raised her hand, blushing deeply "M-maybe after we actually win"
While they were getting to 'know each other' Veronica was looking out the window. Prior, Liz didn't notice anything out there but the Rich Girl could now see a figure standing outside the building and staring directly at them. However, it was hard to tell this, as his face was pitch white without any actual facial expressions.
"H-hey, guys?" both girls turned to Veronica, who was pointing outside the building. Almost immediately Camila went pale at the sight.
"What's that supposed to be?" Liz frowned at the figure, squinting to try getting a good view of him "Is that Insignificant? He looks kinda weird dressed in professional attire"
Instead of answering her, Veronica and Camila were sprinting to the doors, pushing lockers or chairs to the doors to try locking the figure out of the building. They get most of the doors shut, with Veronica running to close the last door when the figure silently walked into the building slowly.
Veronica whimpered in fear before immediately running back to the other two.
"Did you lock the last door?" Camila nervously asked the rich girl.
"Uh, well, about that…" Veronica smiled, just as nervous as Camila as the figure slowly walked into the room they were in and stared at them.
Camila looked ready to pass out as Liz stepped in front of the other girls "Woah there monster man. We're just here collecting some papers. We don't mean any trouble whatsoever"
The man simply stared at her for a moment before it started walking closer to them. Veronica then noticed one of the pieces of paper set inside one of the lockers. She had a small smirk as she opened it and got close enough to grab it.
"Listen here, jerk. I know you only appeared after we grabbed a note so you better just calm down or else I'll grab this one too"
This seemed to work, as the man froze in place. Just making the rich girl smirk wider. "That's right, you just calm down and let us get out of here or else"
It nodded slowly, before immediately jumping forward at Veronica. Liz responded by slamming the monster against the open locker door while Veronica grabbed the paper and started running out with Camila.
After a few moments Liz joined them outside the building, closing the door behind herself as she leaned against it to try keeping the monster stuck inside.
"S-so do we have a plan for escaping this thing" Camila whimpered nervously.
"Well, maybe you two can find a way to barricade this door?" Liz suggested "it had to use a door to get inside so maybe that would work"
Camila and Veronica nodded to the idea, seeing that it could work well. However, before they could go and grab something, they could see multiple thin black tentacles begin crawling through the cracks in the door.
Liz turned slightly pale "Ok, change of plans. You two need to run away from here as fast as possible"
"B-but what about you?" Camila actually looked worried.
"Yea, we can't just leave you behind" Veronica frowned.
The Team Mom just smiled at them before reaching her hands up and pulling Veronica's face into a quick makeout session "It's just a challenge. And I know you two girls can do just fine without me. So make me proud!" Liz had a wide grin on her face.
Veronica looked entirely flabbergasted while Camila just looked annoyed.
"Let's just get going" the Psychic growled before dragging Veronica along, leaving Liz to guard the door as more tentacles snuck from the room to started absorbing her.
Confessional: Camila
Camila looked annoyed, probably moreso than she was intending "Of course Veronica would just let Liz kiss her like that. Even if we have this truce she's still trying to win her over. Can't trust anyone in this show"
"Oh will you stop being a baby? It's not my fault she knows which one of us is prettier" Veronica responded from outside the confessional.
She just glared at the door, where Veronica was.
XXX
In yet another of these post-merge teams, Therion was walking in his mini-harem of Asuka and Colmillo. Asuka was constantly skipping around Therion, asking question after question about Colmillo or just anything that suddenly met her fancy.
The wrestler silently walked behind them, frowning a little in annoyance but she wasn't saying anything about it.
"I just wonder where they're hiding those fuckin notes. I mean, how hard should they be to find?" Asuka frowned while flickering her light on and off over and over again at Therion's face.
"G-good question" Therion murmured trying to move his eyes so he wouldn't constantly be flashed.
Colmillo was about to say something before they suddenly found a random statue standing out in the open. "Oh, I bet this is it!" Asuka grinned before jumping over to the statue.
"Hey, wait, Suka, you need to be careful. We don't know if that's a trap!" Therion quickly started running after her.
Asuka stopped right in front of the statue, going quiet at the sight. Therion stood next to her with a small frown "Asuka?" he moved his hand in front of her head "I… don't think I've seen you stay quiet this long before"
"Just look at it" the Rocker pointed at the statue, which got his attention. Therion gulped slightly when he saw the statue looked like a disurbed version of him on a small gold platform. Its most notable feature was its small, creepy smile plastered on it.
"This statue looks so good, hot damn!" Asuka gushed "I gotta take this home once we're done here. It would totally tie my room together"
"Hey" Asuka and Therion turned to Colmillo, who was standing next to a tree. She was just leaning on the tree before pulling up a note "I'm pretty sure that's just here to spook us. We still gotta get the most notes"
"Oh, that was such an amazing catch!" Therion clasped his hands together and smiled from ear to ear "You always handle things so well"
Asuka stared at Therion, clearly shocked by his cheery attitude. Colmillo, meanwhile, just had a very smug grin on her face.
"Thank you Therion. I'm pretty great at everything I do. That much is obvious" the Wrestler proclaimed proudly while Therion nodded quickly in agreement.
Asuka chuckled a bit at their interaction. She turned to playfully nudge the statue before she noticed it just wasn't there anymore. The Rocker froze silently, not sure what to say to the others.
"Guys, um…" Asuka turned slowly as they continued to talk. That's when she saw the statue was standing right behind Therion. Its figure hadn't moved at all, still standing in a proper upright posture. "H-holy shit…" Asuka stared at "That's totally cool!"
The Gamera looked back at her, slightly confused. "What's so cool?"
Therion turned to where he was looking and froze in absolute fear. His face was just written with fear as his teeth started chattering.
Asuka ran over to the statue, shoving it onto the ground suddenly and out of nowhere "Feel less of a worry wart now?"
"Well, uh" Therion chuckled slightly "It is less scary when you know you can throw it onto the ground. Thank you Asuka"
Colmillo scoffed as she stomped over "Please. I could knock this stupid shit over better than her"
The wrestler delivered one quick kick to its side, which didn't seem to cause any damage to it. She scowled further "Everything I hit breaks, so break before I get serious!" she kicked it again and again.
Therion's statue didn't seem to change shape with either of the kicks, just continuing to lie on the ground. However, when she delivered her fourth kick, she suddenly couldn't move her foot any longer.
"Hey, wait-" Colmillo scowled as she raised her foot, trying to shake the statue off "Get off of me you estúpido trozo de madera!"
She tried to punch the statue, but the moment she did that just got stuck as well. Colmillo started to consistently swear before suddenly she began to be absorbed by the statue, disappearing in a flash.
The statue started phasing in and out of reality when it suddenly appeared again. This time, it was standing like before but its creepy design was now based after Colmillo. The note she had was now just lying next to it.
"C-colly bear!" Therion sounded shocked, getting ready to punch the statue just out of rage before Asuka grabbed his arm.
"We should probably get going!" Asuka warned him as she snatched the note and started dragging him away as fast as she could. She glanced back to see the statue wasn't moving.
Therion continued to swing his fists and kick his legs. He was so angry his face was just entirely red "Let me destroy that thing!"
"M-maybe latter" Asuka chuckled nervously.
Confessional: Asuka
"I know I just saw a statue just absorb Colmillo, which maybe wasn't as cool as I was thinking, but I'm really more scared shitless by Therion. Guy's the calmest dude I know, and whenever he talks to Colmillo he just flounders like a fucking fish. The awkward conversation part comes before you start dating, did he just skip that!?"
XXX
With that, the only new group left looking for the notes would be Ian, Marty, and Bobby walking together through the forests. They were just walking about, not seeing any of the diabolical evils just yet. But that was probably just because they'd spent a whole hour looking around not finding any notes.
Marty and Bobby were walking together, with Bobby walking ahead of them while sniffing the air like a bloodhound. "You find anything yet, boy?" Marty smiled encouragingly at him.
Bobby leaned back onto his legs in a squatting position. That's when he suddenly nodded furiously "Yea, yea I smell thing!"
"Lead the way boy, lead the way!" Marty smiled as Bobby ran off on all-fours. The Photographer was quick to follow him, but Ian kept using his walking speed.
He eventually came to a stop in front of a bush, sniffing inside of it with a wide smile. When Marty caught up he looked down to the bush "Nelly hid a note in there? Seems a bit out of the way…"
"Doesn't matter to me" Ian smirked when he arrived, nudging Marty and Bobby out of the way to look in the bush. But, instead of finding a note they just found a weird red fox doll lying down.
Ian silently leaned away from the bush to look at Bobby, who was smiling innocently as always. "I thought you said you could smell the notes!?" Ian grabbed Bobby by the collar and started shaking him "I wouldn't be following you two if I knew you were going in circles with no idea where you were going!"
"Isn't the real note the friends we make along the way?" Bobby shrugged, still smiling.
"Not even close to that! The note is the note!" Ian continued to shake him as Marty casually grabbed the doll and started examining it.
"Weird that Nelly would just leave this out though. I mean, dolls like this aren't really the kind people are scared of"
Ian shrugged "Doesn't really matter either way if you ask me. The slob here still has to find that note for us or else I'm personally giving him a bath when we get back!"
Bobby actually seemed scared of this new threat "I'll find a note, I can promise you that much!"
"I'm hearing a lot more talk than action" Ian glanced back at the slob, who was quickly going back to his hunt for the notes.
"Ok, now I've got it" Bobby smiled, still on all fours as he started galloping away. Ian silently walked behind him with his arms crossed. Marty took a few moments considering what to do about the doll before just shrugging and throwing it over his shoulder as he followed them.
The doll's eyes seemingly glowed in response to this, but no one was there to witness this. The group of three boys continued their journey until reaching a large tree. It was wider and taller than just about every other tree in the forest.
In front of the tree was a note held on by a nail. Ian lit up as he ran over and grabbed the note "Alright! One down, who knows how many more"
"So… who are you going to vote for if you win exactly?" Marty asked casually "You won't for either of us at least, right?"
Ian chuckled "No way, you're both as threatening to me as slices of bread. I'm after Liz. Nothing would show Camila who's boss that having that dweeb get sent home because of moi. OH, just imagine how much she'd cry!"
"How wholesome" Marty deadpanned.
While they were talking about who they'd eliminate, Bobby was silently standing behind them. He was just smiling, knowing that he won't be getting a bath once they get home.
Bobby stood there in absolute silence, not moving a muscle when the doll from earlier slowly floated from the forest and at them. Claws and fangs now appeared on the doll as it became more and more threatening and dangerous.
The Photograther and thief were just choosing to move on as it floated closer. Before long it was right behind Bobby. It looked like it was about to cut Bobby in half before the slob suddenly turned around and grabbed the doll with both of his hands.
He smiled absent mindedly before unhinging his jaw and shoving the doll down his gullet. The doll didn't even have a chance to respond before Bobby shut his mouth and licked his lips.
"That actually tasted pretty good…" Bobby rubbed his tummy.
"Hey, hurry it up Bobby, you're not out of the clear yet!" Ian called from off screen. This terrified Bobby, who started galloping after them as fast as possible.
The search for the notes continued as the one contestant choosing to ignore the challenge just continued to hide. This contestant, Mitch, was just hiding up in a tree. He was silently playing chess with himself, just trying to pass the time for when the challenge would finally be over.
"And that's a king me" Mitch smiled as he knocked the opponent's piece away. As he sat in his safe space, he could hear people running below them.
He steeled himself before glancing down at the noise. It was primarily just Asuka and Therion running as fast as they could. Mitch chuckled slightly "I guess they are actually trying today…"
Asuka came to an immediate stop under his tree, which terrified the horror enthusiast "Oh no…"
"Hey scaredy cat!" Asuka grabbed Therion before shoving him up the tree. Once he was set Asuka climbed up after him "Sorry to intrude and all that, but we're kinda running at the moment"
Mitch nodded "I'm sure you are… but where does that include me? I don't want to die with you two throwing me at your monster!"
Asuka stared at him silently, causing Mitch to start sweating nervously "W-what are you thinking right now…?"
"Just how good of an idea that would be" Asuka smiled like normal, but for some reason Mitch knew it was filled with malicious intent.
"We're not throwing him down there" Therion stated sternly, trying to contain his rage. However, it was still bursting at the seams.
"Fine, fine" Asuka waved her hands "I was mostly joking anyways"
"M-mostly?" Mitch whimpered.
The Rocker was about to continue before Therion covered her and Mitch's lips. Both of them looked to Therion then at the ground, finding the Colmillo statue was silently standing under them.
Mitch looked like he was ready to cry just staring down at it. The statue stood there for a few moments, before phasing past them.
Therion pulled his hands away as the trio sighed in relief. "C-can you go now?" Mitch whimpered hopefully.
"Yea, you're starting to cramp our style dudes!"
The trio went silent again as they glanced at the voice. Standing on one of the branches was a blue humanoid hedgehog with bloody, hyper-realistic eyes "Any of you guys got a chilly dog or something?"
"Um… no?" Therion shrugged his shoulders slightly.
"Ah, that's a bummer!" the creature smiled, showing off his sharp teeth "I guess I can just eat the three of you instead!"
Mitch screamed in fear, flailing his arms as he almost fell out of the tree "Eat the other two first, I'm just bones, there's nothing tasty on me!"
His screams just seemed to attract the hedgehog monster, which was about to devour him when a figure seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Unlike the one Liz saw, she now had black hair.
"O-o-oh, it's her again" Mitch wined nervously, which seemed to confuse Therion and Asuka.
The woman didn't respond to him, instead staring at the hedgehog that was eyeing her up and licking his lips. "Not interested" she growled at him before pointing at its heart.
It cackled at its weak attempt, getting ready to attack her when he suddenly just imploaded "Like I said, not interested" she grinned slightly before suddenly vanishing.
Mitch was silently having a heart attack as he held his chest. "I-I'm going to die…"
"You'll be fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine" Asuka rolled her eyes as she patted him on the head. That's when she noticed, where the woman had been standing was now one of the notes.
"Ooooooo!" she grinned before snatching the note "Two down, not bad!"
"You just got here Asuka, is there someone you want to eliminate that bad?" Therion frowned up at her.
The Rocker silently glanced at Mitch, who was silently staring back at him with a confused expression "W-what?"
"Oh, nothing" Asuka shrugged. "But we should go down and keep the hunt goin!"
The Rocker started pulling herself down, with Therion following after her. "I think I'm fine staying up here" Mitch smiled from his perch "The monsters only came when you guys showed up!"
"Your choice man" Therion shrugged a bit as they started walking away from him.
Once they were far enough away Asuka turned to him with a stern expression "So, now that we're safe do you want to stop cuttin the shit and tell me why you're acting so funny?"
"A-acting funny?" Therion blushed slightly "I'm really not acting that weird…"
"Colli-bear?" Asuka raised an eyebrow at him "You and I both know you'd never say that girly shit!"
The Gamer sighed "Ok, well, I maybe don't know how to act around Colmillo. I haven't really been this close with a girl since… last time. I-I don't really know how to act with my emotions when I'm around her"
"Oh gee thanks" Asuka stated playfully "But that's absolutely fuckin adorable having you like a girl that much"
"Yea…" Therion blushed "D-don't tell Colmillo, I don't need her worrying over nothing. I'm sure I-I can get it under control in no time!"
"Yea, yea. It'll be fine" Asuka waved before walking away. When she did, she accidentally smashed into the Colmillo statue. Almost immediately it absorbed her, shocking the remaining member of that group, who was now stuck with the notes as the statue dissapeared.
Confessinonal: Mitzy
The comic artist had an annoyed frown on her face "I don't know how many of the notes have been taken, but seriously, it's starting to get annoying just walking around without anything going on. How are we going to eliminate Ian if we're apparently just missing all the notes?"
XXX
The camera was at a bird's-eye-view, showing Mitzy, Vinnie, and Walter were walking down a middle path together; Camila and Veronica down the right path; and on the left was Ian's squadron. All of them seemed to be going in the same direction, straight to what looked like an abandoned cabin made of wood.
"This looks like the perfect place for the last note" Veronica smirked at the cabin, walking with pure confidence.
"Yea… probably" Camila murmured quietly.
"Are you still upset about Liz losing?" Veronica rolled her eyes "It's just a challenge, relax. She'll be fine by the time it's all over"
"That wasn't some robot" the Psychic scowled "Are you that unable to see the supernatural? It practically devoured Liz! She could be dead"
"Look, I'm concerned about her as well, but you just need to calm yourself" Veronica gave her a quick slap.
"Ow! You enjoyed that, didn't you?" Camila scowled.
"Immensley so" Veronica snickered "But you should just focus on the challenge. Maybe then she'd be willing to kiss you"
Camila didn't look any happier with the rich girl, but continued to move ahead either way. "That one strike a nerv?" Veronica deadpanned with a snicker. The Psychic just rolled her eyes as she looked down.
"You two are still fighting as always, aren't you?" they could hear Ian mock and snicker at them.
This naturally caught their attention. Both girls looked his way to find the Thief leaning against the cabin while waving two notes in his hands "You two should start hurrying up unless you want me eliminating Lizzy~"
To his sides Bobby and Marty stood. Marty was very happily waving at them, while Bobby was silently watching Vinnie, Mitzy, and Walter sneak into the house without anyone actually paying it any mind.
"So, how about you two just had me your notes? I'm sure neither of you will mind if we send her home so just give it" Ian smirked confidently.
"How about we steal yours instead" Veronica snarled back at him "Shouldn't be hard to take them from your greasy hands"
"Hey, uh, Ian-" Bobby started before Ian smacked him with the back of his hand
"I'm in the middle of my villain monologue Blobby, quite down right now"
Bobby silently rubbed his cheek as he stared up at him. He had a small smile before silently walking away while dragging a confused Marty.
"Good help is almost impossible to find these days I swear" Ian shook his head "Anywhooooo, hand me your notes!"
"Well, I hate to argue with you Ian… but you seemingly lost your entire army" Camila snickered. The duo were now staneding right in front of him.
"In fact" Veronica smirked "Maybe you should give us your notes"
Ian just snickered back at them, sticking the notes in his shirt "I'm not scared of you two. I know your types. Obsessed with how they look. One shiner on you two should have you whimpering into the dark"
Veronica just moved forward to kick him in the groin "Try threatening me again and see how quick I sue you into an endless cycle of debt!"
Camila ignored their back and forth as she just tried taking the notes from Ian, who was still managing to put up a good fight. "Oh could you please stop struggling? We won fair and square"
"That doesn't mean I'm going to just give up!" he growled, kicking and scratching at the girls to try making them get away.
The three of them continued to fight over their notes when they heard something crack behind them. They turned around to see Slenderman was dancing behind them, clearly mocking how distracted they were.
Almost all of them sat there in silence as Slenderman's dancing slowly stopped. It stared at them for a moment before its black tentacles started stretching towards them.
"S-shit" Veronica's eyes widened before Camila and her jumped off Ian and started sprinting to the door.
"Should we wait to make sure Ian makes it in?" Camila asked, sounding actually worried. They looked at each other before giggling and closing the door, making sure that it was locked firmly.
"Now, we have to make sure we get that last note" Veronica frowned as she looked around the building "If the slob and perv didn't already find it"
"I'm sure the challenge would be over if the last one was taken" Camila pointed out.
"Then let's stop talking and get looking!" Veronica spat out before giving each room a quick but not thorough look over.
Neither girl managed to find anything of note, just a simple run down cottage. However, by the end they were both silently standing at the door to presumably the basement. Neither of them looked remotely ready to mess with the door as it panned down. In this basement, Vinnie, Walter, Mitzy, Bobby, and Marty were all looking around the room. It was filled to the brim with absolute junk.
"Do you think this building even has the note?" Walter frowned in annoyance "Ian found one at the door, maybe that was it?"
"They wouldn't just leave this stuff around if there was nothing to it. Right?" Vinnie shrugged while throwing a few random items over her shoulder.
Mitzy sighed "Maybe we should just get going while the monster is distracted with the other three"
Marty chuckled "I don't know how much that will work…"
"Why not?" Mitzy turned around to frown at him when she saw the monster's tentacles were slowly crawling through the ceiling. "O-oh…"
Almost immediately the five of them were starting to back away from the tentacles. Mitzy could see this and stepped forward "Hold it right there monster! I won't let you get to my friends!"
The monster's tentacles seemed to totally come to a stop. The group stood in silence, staring as the tentacles seemed to slither back up.
"Woah… Mitzy. Did you do that?" Vinnie wasn't quite sure what to chalk that up to.
The Comic Book artist had a small smirk on her face "I… think I might have actually"
"Greetings campers!" Nelly suddenly announced "You've all beaten the challenge, since the last note has been taken! Report back to our plaza for the big announcement on the winner!"
The group of five stood there in silence before she continued "And if you don't hurry up so help me I'm going to drag you back here in body bags…"
"W-well, I guess it wasn't me" Mitzy chuckled nervously "But we should probably hurry!"
"I'm behind that" Vinnie nodded, a bit more panicked as they ran out the basement door.
Marty and Bobby were the last two to come out, following after them "Who do you think got the last note?" Marty looked back to the slob.
He just shrugged back at him "Probably…" he tapped his chin "Camila and Veronica. Or Therion's group"
"Yea, safe to say it's not either of our groups" Marty chuckled slightly.
Every group made their way back to the entrance, with many taking much longer than others. Primarily being Mitch who had no idea where to go.
"Good job out there…" Bobby walked up to Camila before suddenly patting her on the back.
"Ugh, don't touch me blob boy" Camila scowled slightly, swatting him away from her. The slob just smiled to himself, not seemingly minding the slap.
After some time Nelly stepped in front of them all with a smile "So, is everyone here"
"No" Therion scowled "We're still lacking Colmillo and Asuka"
"And…" Walter counted everyone "I believe we're also missing Ian"
"Don't you forget Liz" Veronica scowled.
Nelly sighed "I was hoping no one would notice them missing" she grumbled before snapping her fingers, causing four black voids to appear in the ground. The missing contestants shot from the ground, landing while standing next to the others.
"Welcome back campers!"
"W-wha- what happened?" Colmillo frowned as she looked around, clearly ready to deck something.
Nelly waved dissmisively "It's really not important. Honestly. Now, how about we see how many notes you've got on you then?"
The hostess walked in front of every contestant, holding up a clipboard. Therion was holding two notes in his hands as she wrote this down. She moved to Ian, who also had two. Vinnie only seemed to have one.
She walked up to the last one in line holding any notes. There stood Camila just holding two notes. Nelly wrote down with a black expression "Well, we have our winner!"
"Ugh, a tie" Colmillo groaned "Annoying"
"No tie at all" Nelly tapped her paper with her pen "Camila, you've won our first merge challenge. Must say I didn't see this one coming"
Everyone, even the Psychic seemed shocked by this.
"But she's only holding two notes" Ian scowled "I have just as many!"
"No. you don't" Nelly scowled threateningly at him, causing the thief to shut up as she walked to Camila. The Psychic was now getting worried before she suddenly ripped a piece of paper off her back "Here's the third one right here"
"When'd you get that?" Ian scowled at her.
"I've always had it" Camila smiled innocently "But… don't I have a reward of some kind?"
Nelly simply nodded "That you do. Camila, you can eliminate any contestant with no jury or trial. And after that, you can bring one contestant of your choice to first class!"
Camila smirked "Sounds like something I deserve. But… oh, I would hate to eliminate any of you…"
She silently eyed Asuka, Colmillo, and Mitzy. She was clearly considering all of them "I must consult my magic ball first"
"Oh hurry it up!" Veronica whined in anger, pulling her and Liz closer "Let's just agree on who gets eliminated, fine?"
Liz slowly nodded "If we have to eliminate someone that sounds fine to me"
The three girls whispered quietly to each other. Every single contestant was on edge as they watched them talk. No one was sure who would go or what would happen.
Eventually they turned around. Veronica and Camila both looked very confident and smug. "So… I think fate has given us the perfect person to eliminate. And that contestant will be…
…..
….
…
..
.
…..
….
…
..
.
Ian!" she proclaimed.
The thief looked shocked "You're eliminating me!?" he scowled "How can you do that!? I didn't do anything to you"
"You clearly don't remember the early pre-merge" she rolled her eyes at him "And your action towards Bailey was simply dreadful. It's just awful"
"I know you don't care about her" Ian grumbled angrily, barely holding back his rage as he balled up his fists.
Before he could do anything he'd regret, a pipe appeared under him, covering his entire lower half "Screw you guys" he growled before the pipe sucked him away without much fanfare.
"And there goes our first merger to be sent home. Camila, who would you like to be spending the night in first class with?" Nelly smiled over at her. The Psychic had a faint blush as she glanced over the others.
"I see…" Camila closed her eyes "Yes, Liz would make the most sense" she nods.
Liz beamed in surprise "Oh, me? Well, I suppose I wouldn't mind that too much" she moved closer to wrap her arm around Camila, who's blush just got worse.
"It's purely because fate tells me to. Keep the excitement to yourself" Camila murmured before the two of them started walking away.
"Where do the rest of us sleep?" Vinnie question "The rooms we have couldn't possibly hold everyone at once"
Nelly frowned, nodding slowly "You're right… which is why you can all follow me!"
Almost all of them were naturally suspicious of the hostess, but were more afraid of what would happen if they didn't follow her. So they trailed as fast as they could.
While Camila and Liz went to the top floor, the others had to follow Nelly into the second elevator. It took a lot of squeezing but they all managed to cram inside before going up. They came to an eventual stop, with the door opening to the second floor. Inside were 14 separate doors.
"Wait, do we… all have a room?" Therion asked hopefully.
Nelly just nodded as they all barreled out of the room.
"This is so rocking!" Asuka cheered, kicking down the first door and running inside. Colmillo was just as quick to claim her room, dragging Therion into the room next to Asuka's. Which, naturally, Nelly didn't care at all about.
Almost all rooms were set as Walter and Veronica went to the end of the hall. Before the lawyer could go into the room Veronica grabbed him "Hey, I just need you for a moment here"
"Oh, yea, sure" Walter smiled innocently "What can I help with?"
"Oh… nothing" Veronica smiled softly "I just… need you to apologize to Mitzy for me. Liz's mothering has really taught me to put other people first… and I feel bad for what I did to her. And I was hoping we could all work together to take out the antagonists still around"
The Lawyer lit up "That sounds great! But… where is the antagonist"
"You hear Therion's whimpers of pain?" Veronica gestured over her shoulder to Therion screaming in pain "She's constantly beating him up… Sounds antagonistic to me"
Walter slowly nodded "I'll talk to them tomorrow! That sounds like something the hero squad should handle"
"Great name" Veronica smiled "But see you tomorrow then~" she waved him goodbye before going into her room. Now that she was alone she smirked confidently.
Confessional: Veronica
"Now that Ian's gone, I think the closest thing there is to a threat would be Mitzy. The Therion squad are all kinda dumbasses in their own way, Marty's a simp we could manipulate if need be, Vinnie's… I'm not too sure on her. But Walter's dumb enough to believe Camila's predictions. So those other 'hero squad' members should be more than easy to handle. I must say, this is going to well"
The rich girl looked off screen and scowled "Bobby and Mitch? All I see is two homeless men who'd eliminate themselves if they got paid"
XXX
The scene then cut to Nelly smiling to herself "Topher still isn't here yet…" she glanced around while a smirk formed "Oh this is perfect. Next time on Total Drama Arcade, we will be doing-"
"Nelly!" she suddenly heard Topher suddenly scream her name "You better not be around here. Insignificant told me what you did today!"
She whimpered slightly, clearly terrified "Ok, um, see you all next time!" Nelly laughed awkwardly before running away as Topher suddenly appeared with a newspaper rolled up in his hands.
"Just get back here!"
Nelly chuckled "No way hosse- ow!" she whined once he wapped her in the head.
AN: And there goes Ian. He hasn't had too much attention as of late, like a few of the other eliminations, but his survival as a big bad was fun. It's always fun seeing an antagonist try surviving on wit or skill, like Al in AS. He just had a few too enemies going his way at this point. But just as important, we've reached the merge with a debutee! I hope Asuka's debut wasn't too jarring, but I thought her appearing would just be a fun way to change things up. I also hope everyone enjoyed Arcade's lil Halloween special, even if it's a good bit early.
24th: Matt—-15th: Jaz
23rd: Tess—-14th: Ellis
22nd: Antoinette—-13th Ian
21st: Charlotte
20th: Thomas
19th: Michael
18th: Dylan
17th: Maxine
16th: Bailey
Mergees: Walter, Vinnie, Mitzy, Asuka, Bobby, Marty, Colmillo, Therion, Liz, Camila, Mitch, Veronica