It's here now, the next chapter of Total Drama. Hope you all enjoy the show as the campers go through another day of difficult horrors. Who will win and will get lost? Find out today.
"Last time on total drama island." The voice of Chris narrated from somewhere. "The first challenge was given and while most of the campers took the plunge a few chickened out and were thus forced to the wear matching chicken hats for their cowardice. Courtney the so-called C.I.T of her team backed out as part of some strategy wagering on her opponents chickening out as well. That plan literally bombed when Owen the last camper standing found the guts to jump in a literal explosive cannonball that literally washed away the competition in a tsunami. Man, that was awesome to see from the top of the cliff! Luckily for her however she was spared from elimination which her teammates had been considering when Ezekiel revealed his sexist point of views on girls. As expected, the girls were not happy and united to teach him a lesson as they voted him off the island. Thus, we learn the valuable lesson on how homeschooling and reality TV don't mix very well. Who will be the next one getting voted off? Will the Killer Bass manage their first victory today? Find out tonight on Total. Drama. Island!"
It was early morning in Camp Wawanakwa as all the campers were sleeping peacefully in their cabins. Sadly, however that peacefulness wasn't going to last for much longer.
POOOOOOOOOUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!
"GAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!" Several of the male and female campers cried out as they awoke with a start. A few falling out of their bunks while others hit their heads against the bunk over their heads. For Ben Tennyson he has part of the latter as he rubbed his now aching head.
"Owww! What the heck is happening!" Ben questioned loudly as his ears were still ringing a bit. He got out of his bed to see what was going on.
"I'm pretty sure that was an air horn!" An equally loud and irritated Noah spoke up as he lifted himself up after falling from his bed.
"Is it breakfast time already?" A dazed Owen asked as he also lifted himself off the floor after falling over.
"No but I bet it's time to teach someone a lesson!" A frustrated Duncan exclaimed as he and everyone else already figured who was responsible for the rude wake up call.
"IT'S SEVEN IN THE MORNING FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! DO I LOOK LIKE A FARM GIRL!?" The voice of Leshawna yelled out as the guys went to a window and lifted it. Ben and Duncan stuck their heads out to see the girl doing the same. They turned their eyes elsewhere to see Chris standing close by with earmuffs holding his megaphone in front of an airhorn, the cause of their rude awakening.
"YOU COULD'VE TOLD US TO SET AN ALARM OR SOMETHING!" Ben yelled out, wanting to give his own complaint.
"I TOLD YOU I DON'T LIKE SURPRISES MCLEAN!" Duncan reminded the host while shacking a fist at the host.
Chris meanwhile simply raised an eyebrow confusingly before pulling off his earmuffs. "Sorry I didn't catch that." He then put a hand to his ear as if to mock them. "What did you say?"
The three of them silently glared at him. The desire to complain now replaced with irritation.
"Forget it." Ben broke their silence.
The host smiled. "Ok then, rise and shine campers because it's go time!" Chris said while ignoring their complaints. "Get dressed and get set for today's difficult challenges! I want you all outside in by ten minutes so we can begin!"
With some grumbles from both cabins the campers prepared themselves. Everyone got dressed and walked out their cabins to join Chris. Several of them had noticeably tired looks as in the case of Justin, Tyler, Noah, Lindsay and Harold. Eva was listening to music on her MP3 player, her eyes soon saw Cody looking at it interestingly. She made her point clear when she growled at him and tried to bite his hand when it got too close.
"Did you all have a good night's rest?" Chris asked the group.
"What do you think?" Leshawna retorted harshly.
"I think this is going to be a good day… hehehe." Chris chuckled while rubbing his hands almost evilly which made the campers nervous at what he was planning today. "Anyway, I hope your all prepared because your first challenge begins in one minute." He emphasized by showing his watch.
"But that's not enough time to get to the lodge and eat breakfast!?" Owen panicked.
"Oh, don't worry Owen you'll all be getting breakfast. AFTER you all complete a nice, long 20 kilometer run around the lake!" Chris pointed in the distance.
Noah's eyes widened. "That's over 12 miles! You expect us to run 12 miles in the morning with no breakfast!"
"Yep." Chris simply said before adding. "And it starts in 30 seconds, so get to your starting lines people!"
"You're enjoying our misery, aren't you?" Ben accused with a frown.
"Well, they do say misery loves company so yeah." Chris admitted with a mischief smirk. "So why don't you take some enjoyment from the other camper's misery to help yourselves get through this?"
"Well maybe the viewers will love seeing the misery I'm about to inflict on you!" Eva growled before marching at the host only to be quickly held back by a panicked DJ, Duncan and Geoff.
"Eva." Courtney whispered to her getting the girls attention. "Try to control your temper otherwise we'll be getting another loss. The only response she got was a small growl, but Eva relented her attempts to harm Chris… for now.
"If it helps you can think of this as a workout to see how far you can go without food and water." Dawn spoke up earning their attention.
"Yeah, what she said." DJ quickly agreed. Anything that could help reign in the beast that was Eva's temper.
"I can work with that." Eva said, suddenly finding the challenge more appealing. No way was she coming in anything other than first place.
Confessional
"Eva needs to get a grip on that temper of hers." Courtney stated flatly. "She's only been here one day yet she's already broken a window and one of the locks one the bathroom door while we were using it!" She then crossed her arms. "Plus, the girls and I had trouble sleeping cause Eva growled in her sleep a few times."
(Static)
"Waking up early isn't something new for me." Ben began recalling. "During a summer vacation my grandpa had me and my cousin spend time on a farm. They woke us up just as early to do chores around the place." He then frowned. "However, that was years ago so I'm not used to waking up this early again since high school starts at a later time."
(Static)
"I'm already feeling like I want to put Chris in a bag and throw him off the cliff we jumped." Duncan growled.
(Static)
"Waking up at 7am better not be a constant thing, I need my beauty rest." Heather grumbled.
(Static)
"I don't mind waking up early." Dawn told unbothered. "Seeing the sunrise is something I've always enjoyed watching. The beauty of mother nature's phase from night into day and day into twilight before night again is such a sight to see."
The campers all lined up at the starting point. Owen, Justin, Geoff, Tyler, Bridgette, Eva, Harold, DJ and Courtney each took a running position to help them get a fast start. The others simply stood straight as they planned to pace themselves to avoid tiring out fast.
"Okay campers on your mark." Chris forewarned as they all tensed up. "Get set." He watched as several began to lean forward preparing to dash out. "GO!"
All at once everyone moved out. With several running fast while others trailed behind at a slower pace. Considering the fact they haven't had breakfast yet the latter group had the right idea. This would be a test of their limited endurance.
Over an hour passed as the campers covered some ground in their long run. The more athletically fit ones like Eva, Bridgette, Tyler, Geoff, DJ, Courtney, Izzy and Justin were maintaining a lead as they had slowed down to a more jog like pace. Coming up behind them were Noah, Trent, Beth and Cody who were also jogging but at a slower pace. Behind them Ben walked alongside Gwen, Dawn and Duncan and at a moderate pace. On their tail was a tired Heather, Lindsay, Leshawna who were almost dragging their feet forward. Finally in the back was a wheezing Harold along with a collapsed Owen and Sadie with Katie trying to help her BFFF up to keep going. The two overweight campers weren't going anywhere till they caught their breath and got their second wind.
"Anyone know how much we have left to go?" Gwen questioned tiredly.
"No and I think it's better we don't know otherwise we'll start counting and go crazy." Duncan answered while wiping his forehead of some sweat. They say patience is a virtue, but he preferred the term ignorance is bliss even more. It's simpler and required no hard work to accomplish.
"Can't argue with that." Ben agreed through controlled breathing, figuring it's better this way. He can't remember the number of times he got impatient waiting for a new movie or video games release as he counted the days before it's arrival. That kind of waiting was such a bother to endure. At least he was in good shape thanks to all that soccer practice.
"I'm sure we've made good distance." Dawn added looking the freshest of the group as she wasn't out of breath or sweating much to their disbelief.
"How are you not even winded after walking this much?" Gwen asked the girl incredulously.
"The same way shamans walked on hot coals, it's mind over matter." Dawn answered honestly earning looks from them.
"Are you saying you're a shaman?" Ben asked curiously.
Dawn shook her head. "No, I'm just a very spiritual girl who loves nature."
"Uh huh." Ben hummed while hiding his suspicion, recalling the strange things she's done, he then turned to Gwen. "So Gwen did you enjoy the hot tub party we had?"
The goth blinked at the change in topic. "Why are you asking?"
Ben shrugged. "Just trying to keep some conversation going to take our minds off this long race."
Gwen stared for a moment wondering if she should answer. She did think distracting herself from the challenge would help but she wasn't exactly an open person. Still Ben did show support for her getting the first turn for the hot tub. She finally relented and answered. "It was alright, certainly relaxing after that crazy first challenge."
"At least this one isn't dangerous." Ben remarked gaining a look from the goth.
"No but I think it'd rather repeat the first challenge because it didn't last as long nor was it as exhausting." Gwen bitterly stated as she continued walking. She looked back to the collapsed teammates from both teams. "Shouldn't we be worried about those who fell behind?"
"Nah." Duncan rebuked the idea. "This is about the first team that crosses the finish line. So, whoever has the bad luck of coming in last and ruining it for their team." He smirked a bit. "Well, that person will be pretty much blamed for the loss and might get voted off at the next ceremony. So, since I'm not trailing behind it's no skin off my back."
"That's cold." Dawn remarked at the punk's indifference.
Duncan turned to the petite blonde with a condescending look. "That's how the game works miss sunshine and rainbows. In this game its survival of the fittest. If they can't keep up, then that's the end of them."
"Why are you talking with us anyway?" Ben brought up. "Me and Gwen are part of your opposing team."
"I'm bored and I'm not going to run faster to catch up and talk with the others." Duncan answered as if it were clear before looking at his teammate. "What about the hippie here, you got no problem talking with her?"
"She's easier to talk to and seems nice enough." Ben stated the fact.
Dawn gave an appreciative smile. "Thank you, also congratulations on making MVP in your soccer match."
Ben suddenly stopped walking as he had a startled look causing the others to stop and look at him. "How the heck do you know that?"
"It's all over your aura which is a very nice shade of bright green." Dawn said as if it were obvious. "Along with your dislike of bullies and love of chili fries and smoothies." She smiled. "Grape also happens to be my favorite flavor for drinking."
Ben leaned away from Dawn as he wondered how the heck, she knew that.
"Pick it up people!"
But before he could ponder on it further the group heard Chris's voice disturb them. They saw him on a moped and speaking into his megaphone as he drove past them. "I've you're not back by lunch time then none of you will eat!"
"I hate that guy so much." Duncan growled wishing he had a rock to throw at the host's head.
"He's got to be a sadist." Gwen pointed out in equal dislike.
"Whatever let's just start moving a bit faster, I actually want to get a meal already." Ben retorted while increasing his speed a bit to walk fast. Also, to put some distance between him and Dawn after revealing what she knew about him.
After close to another 2 hours the teams finally completed their 12-mile race. Well, at least most of them anyway since some were still behind. Practically everyone who finished was now in the lodge collapsed. Most were sitting on by the tables with their heads lying down while others were laying on the floor. At least Chris had ice cold bottles of water waiting for them when they arrived. Which they eagerly gulped down to cool off and rehydrate. Out of everyone Eva and Dawn were the only ones who looked tired.
Suddenly the door swung open as Owen came tumbling into the room before falling onto the floor. His entire shirt mostly soaked in sweet as he took deep breaths as if he were having an asthma attack.
"Sweet gumballs… huff huff… I made it… huff huff." Owen said through panting breaths.
Ben came over and offered him a bottle of water. "Here you go big guy."
Owen saw the bottle and looked at it as if it were the Holy Grail. He tried to reach for it but was too tired to even lift his arm. "Pour it… huff… on my face." He requested earning a look from Ben.
"Umm are you sure?"
"Do it!" Owen practically screamed like a madman as he literally felt so burned out right now. Immediately Ben removed the cap and tilted the bottle as its contents poured on Owen's head. To his surprise he saw some steam form when the water made contact. The big guy tilted his head and opened his mouth as some of the water flowed in. He eagerly drank the cold H20 before he finally regained enough strength to take it from Ben's hands and gulp the remaining amount down like a large baby. He soon got a relieved look. "Ahhh that feels better."
"Did we win yet?" Lindsay asked out of the blue.
At that her teammates blinked as they looked around and did a headcount. And sure enough with Owens arrival all 24 of them were now in the lodge while the opposing team was still missing one. No sooner that they noticed that did Harold finally appear and enter the lodge holding his chest and taking deep breaths.
"Where were you?" Courtney berated her teammate. "We lost the challenge because you took too long. I mean how did Owen manage to arrive before you!?"
"I think I'm having heart palpitations." Harold wheezed out while trying to catch his breath.
"That means we won." Gwen said before smiling. "We won the challenge!" At that both she and all the Screaming Gophers cheered at having won again.
"Whoa there people! Hold your horses." Chris called out as he was more than happy to burst their bubble. "That wasn't the challenge."
Suddenly the Screaming Gophers froze where they sat or stood.
"What did you just say?" Gwen questioned as her mood did a complete 180 from happy to disbelief.
Chris ignored her question and went to a large purple curtain that had been hiding part of the lodge from view. Some of the campers had tried to see what was behind it but were quickly denied by Chris and Chef saying it was for later. "Who's hungry!" he then gestured at the curtains which pulled away to reveal a magnificent sight… food.
But this wasn't the regular pasty slop Cheff makes nor was it even regular looking food. It was extravagant looking food that looked like something out of a magazine. There was white rice, bread rolls, mashed potatoes, large salad, a whole pie and a gorgeous fully cooked turkey in the center of the table. There was also salt and pepper shakers, a gravy boat, roasted beans, corn and a tray with a cover on top that hid another kind of food underneath.
"Breakfast is now served." Chris declared before gesturing to the delicious looking buffet. "Bon appetite."
Everyone looked to the buffet with awestruck expressions.
Confessional
"Ok I'm not going to lie, that looks even better than the meals prepared at my home during the holidays or the restaurants I've been to." Heather confessed to finding the presentation to be amazing.
(Static)
"After those days of eating Cheff's pasty slop, I had almost forgotten what real food looks like." Gwen mentioned with longing in her voice.
(Static)
"I told you Cheff was hiding his real cooking skills. Now you've seen it for yourselves." Dawn reminded.
(Static)
Owen was nearly crying as his eyes were watery. "It's… so… beautiful."
(Static)
"I smell a rat." Duncan told with a very suspicious look.
(Static)
"Given the fact Chris just said our race wasn't the challenge and he didn't mention any rules before telling us to eat it's clear he's setting us up for something." Ben told with a thinking pose. "The question now is, setting us up for what?"
"Oh man that looks so delicious." Tyler spoke while drooling a bit.
Needless to say, almost everyone quickly went to get their plates and fill them up with as much food as they wanted. Who knows when they'll ever get to eat like this again so they'd better make the most of it. They wanted to stuff themselves until their bellied were completely satisfied.
"Finally, a real meal." Courtney exhaled in relief and anticipation. She wanted to taste some of that turkey and pie.
"It's a trap." Duncan whispered gaining the girls attention.
"What do you mean?" Courtney asked her teammate.
"Does the phrase: Too good to be true, not sound any alarms?" Duncan questioned in a dull tone. "Because it did when I was in juvy and I'm getting a feeling I'm being punked somehow."
"What you think the food is poisoned or something?" she questioned skeptically.
"No but for all we know it could be laced with laxatives or something." The punk guessed at what the trap might be.
Chris's face suddenly popped into between them, startling the two. "Actually, it's not." He then gave a mischief smile. "But I like the way your mind thinks Duncan." He then walked away after laughing a bit.
Courtney blinked as she considered the punks words. Now that she stopped to think about it, Duncan might be onto something. Chris didn't say anything about the challenge being eating. She suddenly thought the challenge might be something that would be hard on the stomach and cause them to vomit. The image that flashed in her mind wasn't pretty and she scrounged her face in disgust.
"Ok maybe you have a point." The C.I.T admitted. "So, let's not go overboard with filling ourselves." She suggested earning a silent nod from Duncan as she looked to the others. It was already too late to warn their teammates as they were already chowing down. The two of them will have to play it smart on their own.
However, they weren't the only ones to consider the possibility that the food was a trap. Noah had considered this as well and therefore chose to eat light but filling since he wanted to enjoy the food. Ben also considered this and chose to eat to satisfaction but not overconsumption while also telling Gwen of his suspicions. The goth girl decided to heed his word since it did make sense to her. Dawn meanwhile had chosen to avoid the meat and took a piece of bread, corn, mashed potatoes, salad and rice and beans. She either didn't suspect the potential set up, didn't care or though eating non-meaty food wouldn't affect her the same way that eating meat would.
By the time everyone was done eating there wasn't a single scrap of food left on the table. Ben, Gwen, Dawn, Courtney and Duncan had eaten carefully while everyone else were now holding their bellies which were now larger from their overconsumption. A few were starting to regret their actions giving the discomfort their stomachs were experiencing.
Chris suddenly jumped on top of the table and spoke into his megaphone. "Alright campers!" many of said campers cringed from hearing him so close. "It's time to officially start the second part of your challenge!"
"Urgh, I knew he was setting us up." Duncan groaned while holding his stomach. He ate less than everyone who didn't restrain themselves, but the food tasted so delicious he ended up chowing on a bit more than he intended. He suspected Chris did that to make the temptation for more even stronger.
"Oh, come on! We just finished eating." Gwen complained at the constant change without break. "Can't you give you at least give us five minutes to digest even some of that food?"
"Oh, you won't need to worry about that. You'll have plenty of time to digest." Chris said with a mischief smirk. "Because it's time for you all to compete in your next challenge, the awake-a-thon."
Everyone blinked and Owen asked. "The what a though?"
"The Awake-a-thon." Chris repeated as he jumped off the table. "This is a simple one, the last team with a camper still awake wins the challenge and gains invincibility."
"So let me get this straight." Ben began listing. "You woke us up early in the morning to deprive us of some sleep. Sent us on a 12 mile run without breakfast to tire us out and then when we finished you feed and let us stuff ourselves all in order to make it even harder for us to stay awake for this challenge."
"Yep." The host confirmed cockily.
"Man… he's good." Ben admitted on the well thought out plan.
"Like an evil genius." Gwen added also impressed but not happy.
Some of the others couldn't help but silently nod in agreement.
"Alright people everybody outside now!" Chris shouted as they all slowly got up and started walking out. "Move it! Move it! Move it!"
Trent who was passing by Gwen stopped to talk to her. "How long you think it'll be before everyone is out cold?"
"About an hour give or take." Gwen answered while looking at Owen who already looked like he was going to pass out with his eyes already halve shut and his mouth drooling.
"Something tells me we're not going to be that lucky." Ben remarked by the door after overhearing them.
Everyone was now gathered where the elimination ceremony is held.
"Okay people as I said the rules of the challenge are simple. Last camper who stays awake wins it for their team." Chris reminded them.
"So that means we're not even allowed to close our eyes besides for blinking?" Noah questioned.
Chris paused for a second at the question as he rubbed his chin as if in deep thought. Suddenly his eyes widened a bit and a smirk surfaced as he seemed to figure something. "Noah you've just given me an interesting idea."
Noah suddenly looked a bit unsure. "Can I take it back?"
"Nope!" Chris rejected as he turned to everyone. "I've decided to add some more rules for some fun so listen up. You can all close your eyes to try and rest but if you do so you must be standing up or sitting up straight. So, no leaning against anything for support. If I see so much as a single sign that you dozed off for even a second, then you're out. If you lie on the ground or lean against something while sitting down, then you must keep your eyes open." Chris smirked. "Now then let the challenge begin!"
12 hours since waking up
Time had long since begun to take its toll on everyone. Dark circles could already be seen under everyone's eyes showing the exhaustion and desire to sleep increasing. The only exception was Dawn who was sitting in a lotus position on one of the stumps with her back straight and eyes closed. Others had tried to close their eyes while standing straight but faced a conundrum. If they did that then their minds would start to fade into sleep and even if it didn't having to stay awake while seeing nothing made the mind go nuts with boredom. At least with their eyes open they could look at stuff to help them pass the time. Trying to stand with your eyes open was also a nightmare cause it involved twice the work trying to keep yourself up and awake at the same time. So needless to say, this challenge had nothing they could exploit for any relief or advantage.
"It has now been 12 hours since our campers started their day and all 23 remain awake so far." The voice of Chris could be heard narrating as if it was a documentary. "They've all held out strong so far but it's clear somebody's going to fall any time now."
Trent who was sitting on one of the stumps hunched overturned to Gwen who was sitting next to him. "So much for an hour huh?" He asked with a bit of humor to try and lighten the mood.
Gwen gave him a tired look. "I've been wrong before." she then lowered her head. "But I really wish I had been right this time."
"Well, it could be worse." Trent remarked.
"How?" Gwen asked not seeing what could make this whole thing worse.
The guitarist smiled. "I could be going through this without being able to talk to you." He said sincerely.
The boy's words lifted the goth's mood a bit as she smiled but also looked away to hide it. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all if she could talk to someone who she didn't mind the company.
Unknown to the two however was that Heather saw their interaction and was not looking pleased.
Confessional
"Okay, so my strategy is to get two other campers to form an alliance with me so we can get to the final three. So that they can help me avoid ending up in last place on some of the challenges and to help control the voting for who we eliminate if we lose." Heather put a hand to her chin. "The only question is who can I get who is either desperate or dumb enough to do whatever I say?"
(Static)
"The Awake-a-thon is the most brutal thing I've ever done in my life." Gwen confessed.
(Static)
"I once went three days without sleep escaping from the RCMP." Izzy laughed almost excitedly. "Man, those guys were so persistent that one time." She then smirked triumphantly. "Of course, they still failed to catch me since I was too slippery for them." She shrugged her shoulders. "Too bad there's no excitement to keep me awake cause boy let me tell you." Her eyes seemed to get a crazed look. "When my adrenaline gets started, I don't know when to stop till I drop."
"What're you doing?" Gwen questioned Lindsay who for some reason was trying to balance herself upside down.
"Trying to get the blood to rush to my head." The girl answered while continuing to do so.
"Ok but why?" A wondering Leshawna asked.
"To help me stay awake." Lindsay said as if it was obvious.
"How on earth does she think that'll help?" Several campers thought on the girl's actions.
"Can I try?" Beth asked the blonde wondering if it really would help. Clearly the exhaustion was affecting her brain and she wasn't thinking straight anymore.
"Perfect." Heather thought as she looked at the two with a small smirk. "Oh Beth, Lindsay, can I speak with you two for a moment."
"Sure." Both girls said as they rightened themselves and followed her to a corner to talk in private.
Ben looked at the action with a suspicious look. He could already tell that Heather would be trouble. One thing he learned from his childhood was recognizing a bully. Although Heather clearly wasn't the physical kind of intimidator. He would need to keep an eye on her in case she did something untrustworthy. With that thought put aside he was brought back to his own current predicament.
He and Noah looked equally tired despite having eaten less then the others. The same with Duncan and Courtney as it seemed like the sheer boredom was making their wills slip. This challenge was clearly one that required mental strength to endure. Ben knows he has that but even so he can only wonder for how long he can hold out.
"You know Chris." Ben glared at the host earning his attention. "In many countries, sleep deprivation would be considered a form of torture and illegal to use on civilians by none authorized personnel."
"Only if I was forcing you to stay awake against your will." Chris mentioned that all important fact with a smirk. "You can sleep whenever you want but if you do your out and risk elimination. The choice is yours but I'd chose to hold out till at least a few others drop first."
"Jerk." The former hero thought bitterly.
"Whoohoo!" Owen's loud cheer got everyone's attention as he was waving his arms like a train as he looked like if he were on a sugar rush. "Man I can keep this up all night long! 12 hours is nothing to me, I could probably go for 48!" he finished by raising his hand to the sky in a fist bump. And then immediately fell over like a chopped tree as he passed out.
"And we have our first sleeper ladies and gentlemen from the Screaming Gophers." Chris narrated again as the team's logo was shown on the televised screens with a 12 under it which changed to an 11 now.
Courtney was fighting to stay awake and aware like everyone else. She was sitting on the ground and doing little things to keep her blood flowing and distract herself. Like wiggling her toes, rolling her shoulders and clenching her hands.
"The boredom is the worst part, isn't it?" a familiar voice asked.
The C.I.T turned her head to Duncan's eyes were looking angry and irritable.
"Yeah." She answered while stopping her small movements. "I guess this is what it feels like when people say they might die from boredom, it's worse than I thought."
"If I wasn't being tortured by this, I'd actually compliment McLean for his idea." Duncan remarked as this certainly topped any misery that he gave someone with his past antics. He thought physichal torture was the worst but apparently mental ones are just as bad.
"Don't give him credit." Courtney remarked sourly at the idea of giving Chris praise for making them go through this ordeal. She then looked at the punk with a slightly softer look. "By the way thanks."
The punk looked to her with a question look.
"For the warning at breakfast." She elaborated.
Duncan scoffed with a tired smirk. "Well we're on the same team so we need to show a little cooperation."
Courtney smiled at his new commitment to the team. It seems like he's finally starting to work with others unlike their disaster of a first challenge. It was surprising since Duncan seemed like one of the few on their team that wouldn't work well with others. Maybe she had misjudged him a bit after all.
"Plus, I couldn't let you mess things up for us a second time." The punk added.
And just like that Courtney lost her good mood as she frowned. Just when he says something encouraging for the first time, he goes and ruins it with his rudeness. She felt like slapping him in the back of the head, but she was just too tired and didn't want to waste precious little energy.
Eva suddenly got up. "I'm going to the bathroom."
"Alrighty then but you're going with a witness to make sure you're not faking." Chris said as one of the female interns holding a camera stepped forward. "Don't worry she'll just be waiting outside but if you take more than 5 minutes then she will come in to investigate." He quickly added when the girl looked raged at being filmed in the bathroom.
"Fine." Eva grumbled as she turned and left for the restroom. As she did so, her MP3 player fell out of her pocket unnoticed by its owner.
Heather smirked after seeing this, an idea suddenly forming in her mind. She stood up and prepared to get the MP3 player only to stop when she saw someone else already walking towards it. It was Dawn who went and grabbed the dropped item and walked back to her seat. She now held it in her hands and seemed to be patiently waiting for Eva to return if her look in the direction of the restroom was any indication.
"Urgh that weirdo ruined my plan." Heather growled in her mind. She couldn't even call Dawn out as having taken it because others just saw her go and pick it up. She paused in thought when she saw Dawn suddenly looking her way for a moment before turning her head back. She didn't notice the small smirk the nature lover got.
A few short minutes later Eva returned followed by the intern.
"Hey Eva." Dawn called over.
"What?"
The moonchild then showed her the MP3 player. "You dropped this on your way to the bathroom."
Eva's eyes widened as she quickly took it and looked it over. She was relieved to see that it wasn't damaged as she turned her attention to the girl. "Thanks." She said while taking her seat again.
"What kind of music do you listen to?" Dawn asked curiously.
Eva raised an eyebrow, she felt like telling the girl it was none of her business. But then paused as she recalled the nature lover hadn't done anything to make her mad or annoyed. In fact, she didn't feel any negative emotions towards the girl, other than the few times she was weirded out by seeing her read a person's aura as she called it. The girl was probably getting bored as well from doing nothing. Since she was nice enough to return her MP3 player, she figured just talking with her a bit wouldn't hurt.
"Loud music." She answered cryptically not revealing specifics.
Dawn tilted her head a bit with a small smile. "I bet it helps you get into the zone when you're working out right?"
Eva blinked. "Yeah, it does." She admitted.
"Do you prefer listening to the loud instruments playing or the person singing the lyrics loudly?" Dawk asked in wonder.
Eva paused at that question, having never really thought about it before. She always just tended to use it to block out the sound of others around her so she could focus more. The music helped her get into a rhythm to her routine sets but the singers words were what secretly made her express her determination to finish and maybe beat her own records in her mind. How would she choose between the two?
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." The moonchild's words broke her thoughts.
"I… don't know." Eva confessed. "I never thought about it before, I just used it to not listen to others while I worked."
"Oh." Dawn hummed curiously. "Were there that many distractions around you?"
"I just preferred listening to what I wanted." Eva remarked.
"Do you have a favorite exercise machine?" Dawn asked.
Eva nodded confirming she did and mentioned which one she favored and why. The two continued just talking with one another as Dawn got to know the girl with the strength of a body builder.
24 HOURS SINCE THE CHALLENGE BEGAN
Hours passed as time dragged on for the campers. During that time from the Screaming Gophers, Izzy and Noah had collapsed and fallen asleep while from the Killer Bass only Bridgette had fallen. Everyone was looking incredibly tired as they were mostly hunched over in their seats looking ready to collapse. Everyone except for Dawn who after she ended her talks with Eva had gone back to her lotus meditation stance. Sitting up straight while her eyes were closed and never faltering in place. Another who seemed to follow her example was Justin but unlike her he was standing up straight with his eyes closed and hands on his hips. He had been like that for a long while and hadn't faltered in the slightest.
An amused Chris was looking over everyone after coming back from taking a nap.
"Attention campers." He called out getting Dawn and Justin to open their eyes to see him. "First of all, congratulation's campers, you've now made it to the 24-hour mark and only a few of you have fallen." He then smirked. "So, in light of that I've decided to include a little something to make things harder."
"Great what now?" Heather asked already dreading it.
"First I'm pleased to say that I am now revoking the rules for being allowed to keep your eyes open if you sit or stand up straight." He mentioned which got alarmed looks from Justin, Dawn and others who had been trying to find a way to do that. "Next I'm going to be having you both watch and listen to something incredibly boring like you can't imagine."
"Is it you making this speech? Cause it's already working." Ben joked earning a few smiles from other campers, but they were too tired to laugh.
"No." Chris said unbothered by Ben's joke, if anything it seemed to make him more eager for what he was going to do to them. "Now if you'll all arrange yourselves so that your looking in that direction." He pointed to an area on the other side between the teams. Set up was a digital projector connected to a laptop with loudspeakers attached to it and a large projection screen at a distance.
"We're watching a movie?" DJ guessed tiredly.
"Not exactly." Chris trailed off knowingly. "Movies are fun to watch but what I have in mind isn't." he raised his hand revealing a DVD of some kind. "This is an audio biography a man gives, which you will all watch and listen to. If you look away from the movie or cover your ears, then you will be eliminated regardless."
"How bad could it be?" Leshawna asked trying to stay strong but damn she was tired.
At that Chris suddenly chuckled fiendishly. "Oh you'll see." He then went and installed the DVD and set it up to play.
"Good day, my name is Ahmed and I will be making my first log in my studies of the Egyptian desert." A voice spoke out while the screen showed the endless looking sight of the sand of a desert that seemed to expand over the horizon in all directions. There were no rocks, animals, or anything else to be seen. Just endless grains of sand that seemed to have no end forming small and large hills.
"Today I will talk about the sands that envelop several miles of land. A single grain of sand is 1/400 inch (0.06 millimeter) to 1/12 inch (2.1 millimeters) in diameter. Yet in the desert there is said to cover a total of 28,000 square miles with the sands reaching over 300 feet in height. Taking that into account that means there would be a total of one septillion, seven hundred seventy-six sextillion, sixty-five quintillion, eight hundred three quadrillions, four hundred forty-four trillion, five hundred fifty-three billion, three hundred sixty-eight million, ninety-seven thousand, six hundred seventy-four grains of sand in this desert. Which is but a mere one corner of the world's vast areas of sandy terrain. This brings me to my next discussion of sand where-"
"Oh god could there be anything more boring than this! Make it stop!" Duncan complained while gripping his face, already feeling like the desire to sleep was getting stronger.
"This is the most boring thing I've ever had to listen to in my life." Gwen almost wailed in misery.
"And I thought history class was boring already." Geoff said with a frown as he listened to the horribly boring telling.
"This is worse than listening to a lecture from a Galvan when they're not dumbing things down for our understanding." Ben thought while fighting the urge to not shut his eyes.
"I really don't like deserts." Dawn though in displeasure as those kinds of environments weren't to her liking. Land masses should be filled with trees, flowers and plants to provide harmony and stability. But deserts were devoid of all those things and were practically death valleys. How could anyone stand to live in such a desolate place.
60 HOURS SINCE THEY BEGAN
After the worst documentary began playing the will of the campers began break. Several couldn't stand sight and sound of the boring film any longer and collapsed in blissful sleep. The only ones still awake were Ben, Gwen, Heather, Leshawna, Trent, Eva, Courtney, Duncan, Justin and Dawn. And each of them was looking worse the longer they kept this up. They only thing they were happy about was that the documentary had finally concluded after a staggering 24 hours of none stop talks about sand.
"I never want to hear the word sand ever again for the rest of my life." Leshawna declared with bloodshot eyes.
"I don't think I'll ever look at a beach the same way again." Ben added his own trauma with less red eyes.
"You and me both man." Duncan added having wished he had lost his hearing during that horrible film.
"At least we made it through." Trent said trying to keep their spirits up. He turned his head slightly to see the others who had fallen asleep and got a small humorous smile when he noticed something. "Hey Gwen check that out."
The goth who practically had her head between her legs slowly raised it to see what he meant. She was greeted to the sight of Sadie and Katie sleeping right next to each other like two cats lying down with their paws tucked in.
"They even sleep together the same way." Trent laughed a bit at the odd but kind of cute sight.
"I wish I could catch some sleep myself." Gwen glanced downward and shook her head a bit to keep awake.
"We can't last much longer, can we?" Ben asked only to get uncertain looks.
85 HOUR MARK
Apparently, they could as Leshawna, Trent, Heather, Courtney, Justin and Eva finally gave into sweet slumber leaving only Ben, Gwen, Duncan and Dawn remaining. During those passing hours they had been treated to some very amusing and strange sights. Owen had sleepwalked naked for some weird reason, though Ben was glad he looked away before he saw the unpleasant sight. Duncan had pulled a prank on Harold by dipping the boy's hand in a cup of water to make him wet himself. Noah and Cody had a frightening and scream filled wake up when the bookworm woke up to find himself sucking Cody's ear. They were just glad most campers were either sleeping and missed it or those who remained were so out of it they didn't pay attention.
"I can't… believe we're… still awake." Ben trailed off in exhaustion, surprised at his own will power.
"What I can't… believe is that…" Gwen paused in equal exhaustion. "dang it… I forgot."
"You guys are… tougher than you look." Duncan remarked as he slowly turned to Dawn. "Especially you… hippie."
Dawn blinked as she took a small breath, no longer was she in her meditation pose. After having to watch that horrible film documentary her mind was almost driven insane by all the talk of sand. There were very few things the peaceful girl had a genuine dislike of but a desert was one of them. A place devoid of plant life except for some cactuses was somewhere she'd never want to go to. That horrible film had messed her up more than the others due to not being permitted to look away or block out the sounds. Her chi felt all messed up because of it and now she was feeling all the exhaustion she had willed away.
"I'll accept… your compliment." Dawn said while starting to wish the challenge ended so she could sleep.
"What I'd give… for a cup of coffee." Gwen mentioned in slight longing.
Apparently, the universe saw fit to taunt her because Chris had come back again after getting some more sleep. In his hand was a freshly warm cup of what seemed to be coffee. "Man, what is the matter with you people." The host said as if he were talking to sick patients. He took a sip of his drink and let out an exhale of being pleased. "Go to sleep already, your next challenge was supposed to be today for crying out loud." He reminded them.
Gwen was suddenly on the ground and grabbing at the hosts leg almost desperately. "You gotta hook me up man, I'll even eat the grinds raw." She then tried to reach for the hosts drink almost the way a drug addict would, but Chris kept it out of her reach. "Anything please!"
"Okay people tell you what." Chris began before reaching behind his back and pulled out the air horn from before. Eyes widening in horror the still awake campers immediately covered their ears right before the host let it roar.
POOOOOOOOOUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!
"GAAAHHH!" The formerly sleeping campers awoke with startled looks and still baggy eyes from their long lack of sleep.
"What the hell McLean!" A now awake and angry Leshawna yelled.
"I was finally getting some beauty sleep!" Heather complained.
"So was I." Lindsay added tiredly.
Tyler smiled at the blonde bombshell. "You're already looking better after that short rest." He said earning an appreciated smile in return from the girl.
"You better have a good reason for waking us up otherwise you're going to find yourself looking like a pretzel!" Eva swore with red eyes that almost seemed to be flaming with fury.
"A few things." Chris began unbothered. "I wanted you all to see who is still standing in the challenge." He gestured to the remaining four as the campers saw who from their team was still in it.
"So two from each team are still in it." Bridgette stated before rubbing her eyes, dang she was still tired.
"Way to go Gwen." Trent cheered as the goth gave a small smile, this time too tired to hide it from him.
"Where's Owen?" Izzy questioned when she noticed he wasn't present.
"Oh he's around." Chris trailed off cryptically with a smirk. "Somewhere." He added before chuckling knowingly. "Anyway, I also woke you people up so you could hit the showers. Cause let me tell you, all of you reek." He pinched his nose for emphasis. "After that go back to your cabins for some proper rest cause tomorrow your next challenge awaits."
Without any complaint all the none still competing campers left to get some long-awaited sleep with comfort. Sleeping on the ground and in the sunlight wasn't so relaxing. Their bunks beds weren't the best, yet they were certainly more comfortable than the ground.
"Now then people." Chris turned to the remaining four while sipping his drink. "Since this has gone on for far longer than I expected I've decided to help speed it up to a conclusion already."
"How are you gonna do that?" Ben dared to ask.
"By having a sudden death match to decide it all." Chris said with a certain glint in his eyes. "In this sudden match you will be facing each other in a sudden elimination round. So both teams sit apart while facing each other."
With a little grumble from all but Dawn they rearranged themselves as he instructed.
"Perfect." Chris nodded. "Now then for this sudden death match, you just have to follow the same rules. Stay awake while trying to endure something." He then grinned. "Or in this case, these!" he pulled out two objects from his pockets that looked like large cans.
"What're those?" Duncan questioned suspiciously.
"These are my special custom-made gas grenades." Chris revealed earning stunned looks from the four much to his delight. "That's right, your challenge will be to try and stay awake while breathing in these knock out fumes. So you must stay seated at all times, if you stand up and take any steps away then you lose automatically." He then raised a finger signaling a but coming on. "However, these babies aren't your regular knock out gas. Unlike those that would knock you out in mere seconds these elegant one's release a less concentrated version. They will slowly increase drowsiness, slow down your heart rates, give you feelings of being disoriented and maybe even make you hallucinate."
"Hallucinate!?" Ben repeated the final word he spoke.
"Don't worry there's no other side effects to it." Chris promised before adding. "Although you may wake up with a pungent smell tomorrow, so I advise an early shower." He grinned at them. "Are you ready?"
With somewhat hesitant nods they silently answered. Chris handed each team a can and told them to press the button at the same time. Once they did, he quickly warned them how breathing through their mouths wouldn't make a difference and how holding their breaths wasn't allowed. The almost invisible gas began to slowly seep out of the can. Surprisingly it was also near odorless as it looked like smoke, you'd see come out of a frying pan after lifting the lid.
"I wonder if this is what it feels like to smoke pot." Duncan asked out loud.
Ben raised an eyebrow. "You never did drugs?"
Duncan gave an annoyed look. "I need to stay tough, plus drugs are always bad for your health."
"Huh that's surprisingly considerate of yourself." Gwen added.
"I still enjoy junk food as much as anyone else would." Duncan rebuked.
"Hey so do I but I al…so." Ben suddenly began to slur in his speech as he started to feel off.
"I'm starting to… feel… something." Gwen told while holding her head as her world started to go in and out of a blur.
"I don't like this." Dawn said while looking a bit dizzy as her head spun small circles.
All at once they began feeling dizziness and even blurry vision. Not to mention felt an increased need for sleep as they started to get blackened vision as if they were about to pass out.
"Can't… hang…" Gwen couldn't finish her three-word sentence as she fell forward and collapsed. She was already asleep before she even hit the ground.
"Gwen!" Ben reached for her in small panic at her dropping first. Now it was all up to him to bring his team the victory.
Duncan chuckled at how it was one on two now. He was about to make a comment when he suddenly heard something.
"You still enjoy causing trouble don't you."
The punk turned and his eyes widened when he saw a grown man with black hair and partially graying areas. He wore a green business shirt and green tie over a beige undershirt. He also had on long jeans, brown shoes and worse round glasses. The most interesting thing was his face which looked a lot like Duncan's.
"Dad!" Duncan whispered loudly in disbelief.
Ben and Dawn looked to Duncan at overhearing his words. Looking to were he was gazing but saw nothing. Both figured he was hallucinating, Ben considered trying to help him but held back since his team was counting on him now.
"You can't escape me Tennyson!"
Ben almost jumped out of his seat in alarm as he recognized the voice. He quickly turned his head and saw the image of Vilgax looking like he did back when he was 10. The alien warlord stomped towards him with claws raised and eyes looking murderous. The former hero quickly looked to Dawn and Duncan, seeing them not reaction which was all he needed to know he was also hallucinating.
Quickly he looked away while covering his hears and repeating to himself. "You're not real, you're not real, you're not real!" this wasn't real, Vilgax wasn't truly here. No way was he going to lose it and fight with a hallucination.
"Don't bring mom into this!" Duncan yelled out getting their attention as he shook his fist in the air. Supposedly quarrelling with the image of his father. Either that or some other new hallucination that had manifested in its place. "Oh yeah! Well I'm glad I got away from you!" Duncan then stood up and marched over to his hallucination. "And another thing I-" he suddenly stopped with a pointed finger right before he suddenly fell over out like a light.
Now only Ben and Dawn remained.
Dawn was gently slapping her face as she felt sleepiness trying to claim her. Ben was doing a similar course as she shook his head trying to dispel himself of his delusions.
"Guess it's just you and me now." Ben's voice broke her thoughts.
She turned her sights on him as he looked fidgety. Not that she was much different given the gasses effects on her.
She gave a tired smile. "I guess so."
"So what's your deal anyway?" Ben asked.
The girl blinked in confusion. "Pardon?"
"Are you a psychic or something? Cause the way you seem to know things about people is so strange." He specified as he wanted to know about that.
"It's just a gift I have." She answered without hesitation. "It's something that my mom taught me how to use. For as long as I can remember I've always had a sort of sense about people. Like telling if they're a good or bad person. It's something people can actually do on their own when they sharpen their instincts to trust their gut."
"Huh." he hummed. "So you can't read minds?"
She gave a giggle which he thought sounded cute. "Course not silly."
"Make objects levitate?"
"Nope."
"What about talking to animals?"
At that question she gave a teasing smile. "I think I'll leave you without all the answers."
"Ahhh come on. Can't you answer that last one?" Ben playfully whined as it was one that he really wanted to know about. Well to be honest he would've preferred asking about her supposed teleportation it seemed like she wouldn't answer.
Dawn blew a raspberry. "Sorry but not happening."
"Yeah well, I'll at least win this challenge." Ben reassured himself while slapping his face when he felt himself slipping.
"Not if I win." Dawn gave a challenging look that was about as intense as a drowsy kitten.
The two remained silent at that point as the entered a staring contest. Each looking into one another's eyes hoping to see signs of weakness. It didn't take long for them to see the other's eyes begin to squint from the desire to sleep. Both began trying to fight the growing desire for sleep that started over 3 days ago. Their bodies were just so tired it was a wonder they were still awake and not going under from the sand man (Garghhh why'd they have to think about sand)
Minutes passed as both campers started to look worse. Ben's eyes were half shut, his mouth was hanging open a bit and even had drool leaking out. Dawn's eyes were looking red and puffy as if she cried which he knew for a fact she didn't.
Chris who had been standing at the side watching this spectacle sipped his coffee. "Man these two are freaks." He thought amusingly at seeing them almost looking like zombies at this point.
Time continued to pass as Ben continued to stare at his opponent in silence. He had long since lost his ability to track time thanks to the lack of sleep. If he had his sense, he'd have known that about 19 minutes had passed since the canisters were opened. He continued trying to hold on but his will and determination kept being eating away.
"Man, she's tough to have held out for this long." Ben thought as he saw Dawn continuing to stare back with tired eyes.
He honestly never expected this from the peaceful girl. Duncan, Eva or Courtney he thought would be the last ones standing on the opposing team. But the moonchild had shown surprising resilience. Now however he wasn't sure if he could win this one. He was just so tired and was having trouble just thinking. It's a wonder he hadn't fallen over in blissful slumber at this wretched point already.
"Uh oh." Ben suddenly felt all remaining strength and willpower leaving him from his train of thoughts. He fell over out of his seat with his face planting on the ground and his eyes now beginning to close. "I lost…" he whispered as he finally began to go to sleep.
"We finally have our winner… BEN!" Chris declared.
And just like that Ben's eyes reopened with new energy at hearing the hosts words.
"Say what!?" Ben questioned as he somehow found the strength to raise his head to look at the host. "How did I win? I collapsed before Dawn did?"
At hearing his words Chris raised an eyebrow before giving his usual smirk of amusement. "Actually, you might want to look again." He gestured to his opponent and Ben managed to turn his head slightly to see Dawn was lying on her back passed out and breather lightly as she slept.
"I'm still confused?" Ben questioned.
"Well, the truth is that Dawn passed out 7 minutes ago." Chris revealed earning a shocked look from Ben. "Seems like you were so out of it that you hallucinated she was still sitting there staring back at you."
Ben was now feeling aggravated. "And you didn't declare me the winner earlier because…?" he trailed the question.
"Because I wanted to see how much longer you could stay awake or would take for you to finally snap back to reality." Chris shrugged his shoulders. "Whichever came first."
Ben glared at him "And you just decided to keep the audience waiting in boredom just for your own amusement!?" he accused him.
Chris chuckled. "Of course not, that's why I secretly showed them this." He then pulled out large cue cards which he flipped through to show the words...
"And the winner is Ben Tennyson, yet for some reason he appears completely unaware. Since he seems to have lost contact with reality we'll now wait and see how long it takes him to either pass out or regain his senses. If this goes on for over a half hour I will snap him out of it myself (insert chuckling). Now let's see how much longer this poor boy can continue to hold out before the obvious happens."
Ben read each word with distain. "Chris… I'm really starting… to hate you." He expressed right before his head fell back down and sleep finally claimed him.
"And I'm really loving my job." Chris smiled at the camera before walking away.
4 Hours Later
"I can't believe we lost again." Courtney pouted with arms crossed. Her eyes still had bags like the rest of her team.
"Hey, at least we were close this time." Tyler tried being positive. "Dawn almost won the whole thing for us."
"I'll give the girl points for lasting as long as she did but we still lost." Duncan remarked with arms crossed. He was feeling grumpy after having been woken up by Chris for the third time in one challenge. Only to be told their team lost and they needed to decide on who to vote out tonight.
"I'm sorry I lost." Dawn apologized with a yawn as she rubbed her eyes. They were still red and puffy from the gas and her lack of proper sleep.
Bridgette put a hand on her fellow blonde's shoulder. "Hey it's ok. You did the best you could." She reassured. The moonchild gave an appreciated smile in return as she said thanks.
"Should we wake up the others?" Courtney asked.
After Chris gave them the results and told them to vote for tonight some of the Killer Bass had gone back to sleep. Saying how they wanted to be well rested for tomorrow's challenge. Those included Katie, Sadie, Harold, Eva and DJ. Which left the others awake currently discussing who they should vote off.
"Sure, go right ahead and wake up Eva." Geoff asked in a sarcastic tone about the obvious outcome that would bring. His usual positive attitude was greatly diminished as he needed sleep to regain it.
"We have a majority here to decide who we should vote off." Duncan stated with a small glare. "So, let's decide on it already so we can go back to bed for a few hours."
"Yeah, but the question is who?" Bridgette asked with some uncertainty. The voting off was the part she disliked most. It would be so easy if there was someone on the team that she disliked but after Ezekiel there wasn't anyone like that.
Everyone stood silent as they were uncertain who to consider removing.
Later that night
The time had finally come for the next elimination ceremony. After a few more hours the Killer Bass had all gathered for the nightly event. They were all looking a bit more rejuvenated after sleeping for a few hours again. Come by tomorrow and they might be back to normal after a full night's rest.
"Killer Bass, once again you have cast your vote for the second time in a row." Chris began as he approached with the tray of marshmallows. "One of you has spent their last night on this island. On this tray I have ten treats for all but one of you. When I call your name, you may stand up and claim your prize. The camper that who does not get a marshmallow must immediately return to the dock of shame to catch the boat losers and leave. And you can never come back… ever." He punctuated the last word.
The 5 campers who had spent more time sleeping looked especially nervous for some reason.
"The first marshmallow goes to… Duncan." Chris called as the punk smirked and went to get his treat. "DJ, Geoff, Bridgette, Courtney." He called each name after a short pause between them. The campers coming over to claim their symbols of life. "Tyler, Eva, Dawn." The three went and got their treats.
The eyes of Katie and Sadie both widened in alarm as they noticed neither of them was called. That now left the two of them and Harold as the only ones who weren't called yet.
"Things are now looking severe wouldn't you say Katie and Sadie?" Chris asked with a particular fiendish grin at seeing their panic starting to surface. The two BFFF's were starting to bite their nails in fear.
They weren't the only ones as Harold was shaking in his seat with anxiety.
"Now then the next camper who is safe is… Katie." Chris continued earning a look of relief from the girl as she went to claim her white treat which she ate with delight. Only to then remember that her close friend was now looking fidgety as she and Harold were looking at the final marshmallow with hope and fear. "Campers, this is the final marshmallow of the night." He emphasized by gesturing to it as if it was sacred. "One of will be spared and the other will be out of here."
Harold and Sadie looked at each other in slight apprehension before turning back at the marshmallow.
"The final marshmallow goes to…" Chris paused as Sadie had her hands to her mouth in anxiousness while Harold had his fingers crossed and eyes shut as he waited to hear the answer.
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
…
"Sadie." Chris finally answered.
The girl had paused for a moment as if she almost didn't believe what she heard. That quickly vanished a moment later as she jumped up and squealed as she went to get her treat. After eating it she quickly went to Katie as the two embraced and jumped together in excitement. Happy to see they were both still in the competition.
"Ahhh man." Harold let out as he looked down casted.
"The team has spoken Harold." Chris said softly as he gestured to the dock. "Now it's time for your departure."
Harold stood up and turned to his now former teammates. "It's your loss, now you won't have my mad skills to help you win." He emphasized by doing what looked like some karate poses.
"Somehow I think we'll manage." Coutney told with a deadpan look.
With that Harold silently walked down the dock of shame to the boat waiting for him.
"Enjoy your well-deserved sleep, you're all safe… for now." Chris told the surviving campers. "But come tomorrow, if you can't pull out a win then I'll be seeing you all back here in 24 hours."
With the ceremony complete the now 10 surviving campers returned to their cabins for a long night's rest.
Tomorrow the war continued.
And Harold goes down as his team votes him off. Why Harold? Well things as you see are beginning to play out differently. Since Heather failed to make Eva go angry by stealing her MP3 player, she didn't go nuts in the cabin looking for it and her team didn't have more insentive to vote her out. So they chose Harold due to how he came in last at the race which made them see how he's not very reliable on long physichal ordeals.