To all of the reviewers out there, I can't thank you enough for your kind words! And to all who favorited and followed, I really appreciate it!
Here's the second chapter of "Noah, the Schemer," where the small changes between this universe and the actual "World Tour" universe will become a bit more frequent.
"And, with three votes against him - Noah!" Chris read the votes rather unceremoniously, as the team had seen this coming. In spite of this, Owen and Noah still appeared shocked. "It's time for you to say tally-ho, pip pip! Cheerio! Toodle-oo!"
"If I jump, will you stop?" Noah huffed. He was already crushed by his elimination, and Chris' obnoxiousness was only making him more annoyed.
"Goodbye, buddy!" Owen cried dramatically. "I'll win for you!"
"Whatever," Noah sighed, standing up and accepting the parachute pack from the host. "Just beware of eels . . ."
He turned to see Alejandro, but where the manipulator had been sitting was now an empty seat. Owen, Tyler, Duncan, and even Chris seemed to have blank expressions on their face.
Suddenly, Noah was pushed out of the plane by a massive, squirming mass of eels, seeping in from every corner of the room. Noah screamed as he fell, watching for the ground below - but it never came.
Instead, an absolutely immense Owen (more immense than usual, that is) sat where the ground was supposed to be.
"LITTLE BUDDY!" he shouted, in a demonic voice. "LITTLE BUDDY!"
"LITTLE BUDDY!"
"AHHHHH!" Noah shrieked, sitting up. He was immediately met by Duncan, who was standing in front of him, clutching his sides in laughter.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"In the few hours he's been here, Duncan's taken to calling me 'little buddy' in some sort of parody of Owen's nickname for me," Noah explained in his typical deadpan. "But to tell you the truth, I'm glad he woke me. I think my mind is still on the defensive mode from dealing with Alejandro."
"Ah, I'm just messin' with you, man," Duncan punched Noah in the shoulder, before taking a seat next to him. Across from the two sat Owen, who was soundly asleep, and Tyler, who yawned as he awoke.
"So this is Team Chris is Really Really Really Hot, huh?" Duncan laughed as he said the team's name. "Apart from the obvious lie of a name, we got a pretty good thing going in here. No whiny chicks, am I right?"
"Hear, hear," Noah rolled his eyes.
Now that Tyler was fully awake, he looked at Duncan with discomfort. This look did not go unnoticed.
"Am I offending you, Tyler?" Duncan said angrily, almost as though he knew what was making the jock uncomfortable. "You're welcome to go hang with the chicks if you want."
"Uh . . . n-no, that's okay, it's . . . I like it here," Tyler smiled awkwardly. "I like chicks, and all, though. I like kissing them . . . I, um, I mean . . ."
"You know what? Maybe you should go back to sleep," Duncan suggested bluntly.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"What's their deal?" Noah asked.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Oh, gosh, why did I have to look into that confessional?" Tyler clutched his face in agony. "What's that saying? Ignorance is a miss? Whatever, I wish I didn't look!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"If Tyler really thinks I didn't see him out of the corner of my eye last night, then he better not be stupid enough to think I didn't hear his big, loud court sneakers as he ran away," Duncan rolled his eyes. "If the jock's got even one brain cell, he'll keep his trap shut."
Team Amazon was also beginning to awaken after a nice night's sleep in victory class.
Cody's eyes slowly crept open to find the expectant sight of Sierra in front of him, smiling widely.
"Hello, sleeping beauty!" Sierra whispered. "Have a good night's sleep?"
Cody sighed. "Yeah, it was . . . great."
Sierra squealed. "I'm so glad to hear that!"
Cody groaned as he looked up to see Gwen, Courtney, and Heather snickering at him.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Look, the Codemeister is a major ladykiller," Cody pointed at himself egotistically. "It's a shame I can't be living up to my full potential with Sierra here. She's nice and all, but last week I tried to flirt with Gwen, and Sierra growled at her! Growled! Like . . . like Ezekiel, or something!" He sighed.
"I just can't believe Duncan is back!" Courtney sighed dreamily. "That dumb oaf made a fool of himself and, more importantly, a fool of me, when he quit in Egypt, but I'm just glad he's here again."
"Yeah, me too," Gwen said, involuntarily sighing as well. This did not go unnoticed by Gwen.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Don't think I didn't pay attention last season," Courtney frowned. "Gwen and Duncan totally bonded. I wouldn't be surprised if she developed a little crush on him. It's annoying, but it's harmless, I guess. So I've been pretending not to notice. I know neither of them will try anything, obviously . . . if they value their lives."
"Duncan is an enemy right now," Heather was quick to remind the two girls. "That snake Alejandro is probably in their wrapping him around his little finger as we speak."
"I highly doubt that," Gwen laughed. "Didn't you hear? Alejandro got the boot last night."
"H-He what?!" Heather gasped, as the rest of the team cheered.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I never got to know Alejandro, but he was basically the other team's leader," Courtney smiled. "With him gone, I'm up against the fart machine Owen, the idiot klutz Tyler, that big-headed nerd Noah, and Duncan, who's too in love with me to be considered a major threat."
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I'm not upset Alejandro is gone," Heather rolled her eyes. "Why would I be? I should be happy! He was the only other person in the game with a brain, and he's gone! Now I can cruise to the million . . ."
Despite her words, Heather's eye twitched, and a small tear peeked out.
"ATTENTION, TEAMS!" Chris' annoyingly loud voice boomed over the loudspeaker. "PLEASE REPORT TO THE COMMON AREA FOR A VERY, VERY SPECIAL SURPRISE INVOLVING THE COMPETITION! HAHAHA!"
Both teams gasped at this.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Is Chris really merging the teams now?" Sierra gasped. "We are the final nine, so I guess it's not totally out of left field, but still . . . I don't know, I wasn't expecting it! Codykins and I could have used the support of Team Amazon for a little longer!"
In the common area, the two teams sat at two tables. Chris walked out with Chef in tow.
"Hello, contestants," Chris grinned. ""Let me start off by saying that the teams are not merging!"
"That's a relief," Gwen smiled at Courtney.
"Aw, I wouldn't have minded flying solo," Duncan commented, shooting the petrified Tyler a glare. Owen and Noah shrugged at each other.
"Nah, you guys aren't done messing with each other yet before I let you off on your own," Chris laughed, before turning serious. "And fortunately, Duncan McQuitterpants, your opinion does not matter to me in the slightest."
Duncan rolled his eyes. "Whatever."
Chris cleared his throat. "But for the actual announcement. Check out this footage of Chef and I dressing up Ezekiel as the Ripper!"
Chef wheeled out a portable television set and old footage appeared on it.
Ezekiel finished putting on the costume, and grabbed the fake knife from Chris, attempting to repeatedly stab him with it.
"Yeah, as if we'd give you a real knife," Chris laughed at his attempts. "You're imitating Jack the Ripper, we're not trying to make you the next one."
Ezekiel snarled at him.
"Look, dude, if you can bring down everyone, you're back in the game, okay?"
This shut up the slightly feral boy, who still had the determination in his mind to win.
"Seriously, dude," Chris said, stifling laughter. Chef stood behind him, similarly holding back laughter. Finally, neither one could contain it, and they burst into fits of laughter.
"HAHA, as if you'll be able to!" Chris laughed, angering Ezekiel, who gripped the fake knife tighter. "Seriously, bring down a single team, even! Just one measly team! That's how little faith I have in you!"
The fake knife snapped in Ezekiel's hand, which stopped Chris and Chef's laughing.
"We're gonna need a new fake knife out here," Chris yelled at an intern.
"Wonderful history lesson," Noah rolled his eyes.
"Would I have shown it to you if there wasn't a point?" Chris grinned his signature grin once more. "In the footage, I said Ezekiel could rejoin the game if he could even manage to bring down one team."
"He never brought down a team," Courtney pointed out. "Owen and Noah captured him, and Gwen and I never even encountered him!"
"You're right about the second part, but let me show you a shocking picture," Chris revealed a photograph. It was a printed screenshot of the previous challenge, and showed a confused Ripper looking on as Owen was attacked by corgis on the double decker bus.
"That was right before we nabbed him," Owen recalled.
"True, but look! Alejandro and Tyler are gone," Chris gestured to the photo. "Noah's in a glass box. And Owen is being set upon by dogs."
"In that moment, Ezekiel had brought down a whole team," Chef finished the host's thoughts.
Chris glared at him. "I'll do the dramatic revelations around here, okay? You just go fetch the homeschool."
As Chef grumbled and walked into the other room, the contestants whispered in anticipation.
"Why bring back Ezekiel?" Cody asked.
"Why are you honoring your words for once?" Heather asked.
"The answer to both of those questions is the same," Chris replied. "Because bringing a previously eliminated contestant just makes things so much more interesting!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"His favorite word," Noah deadpanned.
Chef carried the confused-looking Ezekiel out of the back room. He looked as though he had been somewhat cleaned up, and the injured interns that followed out of the room proved this to be true.
"This is so not fair," Heather groaned. "The other team just got a new member, and now they're going to get another one?"
"Weird assumption that they get Ezekiel," Chris teased. "Seeing as you guys won the last challenge, I think it's only fair if the Zekemeister joins Team Amazon!"
"Have fun with that," Duncan laughed.
The feral prairie boy crept cautiously over to his new team, all of its members staring uncomfortably at him. Finally, Courtney pushed Cody out to make first contact.
"Uh, hey, Zeke," Cody waved.
Ezekiel stood up on his hind legs, stretching. "Ah, hey, Cody, eh."
"Y-You can talk?" Owen asked. Tyler fainted on the spot.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Yeah, I haven't really been myself lately, eh," Ezekiel admitted. "But last night I had a nice hot bath, and some actual food and water, eh! Now Zeke's head is back in the game!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"The Amazons have yet to lose a player, and now they gain Ezekiel," Noah sighed. "It's like the universe is stacked in their favor."
"Okay, teams, we're approaching today's destination," Chris began. "The birthplace of the Olympics, the beautiful, ancient city of Rome, Italy! I hope you guys are ready to be a bunch of little Olympians!"
"Italy?!" Owen squealed with delight. "PIZZA PARTY!"
"Um, Chris? The birthplace of the Olympics is Greece," Courtney corrected the host.
"Pretty sure you're wrong, Courtney," Chris shot back. "This research the interns did clearly shows that -"
"No, Courtney's right. The ancient Greeks started the Olympics," Gwen backed up her friend.
Chris looked down at the papers again. "Dang it! Okay, Chef, go turn the plane around! We're going to Greece!" He walked off into the back room. "WHOEVER FOUND THIS RESEARCH ISN'T GETTING FED TODAY!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Wouldn't it be easier to just go to Italy anyway and do a different challenge?" Noah retorted. "I guess I'm not complaining, more time to chill. There is someone I've been meaning to talk to . . ."
As Chris stormed off to torture an intern or two, the ten contestants sat around the common area, before spreading out to do their own thing.
"Haha, it's great to be an Amazon, eh," Ezekiel offered Courtney and Gwen a smile.
"Really?" Courtney raised an eyebrow distrustfully. "You sure there aren't too many girls on this team, homeschool?"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"People are still dwelling on that, eh?" Ezekiel remarked with disbelief. "I was only saying what my pop told me, eh. Girls are weaker and dumber than guys are. It's, like, scientific, eh."
Sierra popped into the confessional. "Um, as the only female administrator on the Ezekiel fanpage, I should warn you to stop talking like that, or you're going to get booted pretty early."
The fan was gone as quickly as she appeared, leaving Ezekiel worried. "Um . . . okay."
Noah walked up to Duncan, who was carving a skull on the wall of the common area.
"What's up, little buddy?" the punk smirked at him.
"Hey, dude, can I ask you something?"
"Shoot."
Noah turned around to look at Tyler, who nervously fiddled with his fingers. "What's up with you and Tyler?"
"Sorry, little buddy, but that's classified intel," Duncan replied, glaring daggers at the jock once again. "Let's just say he stuck his big meaty head somewhere it didn't belong."
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I don't know why I thought I could get anything out of the guy whose only interaction with me has been grabbing my lip on the dock of Camp Wawanakwa," Noah sighed. "Maybe I can get Tyler to say something later."
The plane reached its descent, and soon the ten contestants were standing outside in the salty Mediterranean air.
"Welcome to the Acropolis, Olympians!" Chris greeted. He and Chef both wore togas.
"Shouldn't you be wearing Greek costumes instead of Roman togas?" Courtney criticized.
"You try buying two full sets of Spartan armor in four hours while piloting a plane," Chef shot back.
"We had the costumes for our planned stop at Rome," Chris growled at a hungry-looking intern by the plane. "But did you know that the ancient Olympians actually competed naked?"
"Alriiiiiight!" Owen chuckled, loosening his belt.
"Buuuuut we won't need to do that outside of a tiebreaker," Chris said quickly, as all present shielded their eyes.
"Seriously, dude, you are way too eager to strip," Noah told Owen.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I like to show off what my mama gave me," Owen shrugged.
"Due to Team I Am So Wicked Hot's tragic player count and Team Amazon being made up of girls and Ezekiel, you won't be competing in each of these Olympians as a team, but as one-on-one matchups," Chris walked through the challenge, purposefully offending everyone in the process.
"What's the first challenge?" Tyler asked.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Haha, yeah! Sports always get my mind off of drama," Tyler laughed. "Now I don't have to worry about . . . what was I worried about again?"
"For the first challenge, I'm going to need a volunteer from each team to hunt for a gold medal in a maze of pillars, guarded by a vicious ancient Greek boar!" Chris looked around. "Any takers? This one's probably gonna take a while."
"I'll go," Gwen and Duncan both coincidentally stepped forth at the same time. They stared at each other in shock. Courtney also looked angry at this, while Tyler began sweating and Heather looked on intently.
"Actually, maybe I won't," Gwen and Duncan again said at the same time.
"No backing out now!" Chris smiled, throwing each of them a spear. "Enter the pillar arena and neither one of you come out until someone has a gold medal!"
"Perfect," Duncan sighed.
"Actually, Duncan, I think you mean peeeerfeeeect!" Chris dramatically sang.
"No, I most certainly did not," Duncan rolled his eyes.
"Well, since you were a big whiny baby and quit the show because you didn't want to sing, I've decided that, for this challenge, you have to sing everything you say!" Chris explained. "That, or face a towel-whipping from Chef."
"Ooo, I'm so afraid of a little towel," Duncan feigned fear. "What, is it still damp from somebody's pool party?"
In a rapid display, Chef curled up a towel into a rat's tail and whipped Duncan with it.
"OW!" Duncan cried out, before clearing his throat. "I-I mean, ooowwww!" He sang.
"That's more like it!" Chris said. "Chef, why don't you keep an eye on Duncan while he and Gwen are in the maze of pillars? Make sure he doesn't slip." Chris eyed the other eight contestants. "The rest of you guys, follow me to the second challenge."
While walking towards a large wrestling ring, Noah elbowed Owen to get his attention and walked closer to Tyler. "So, Tyler, is everything alright?"
"Huh?" the jock replied to the bookworm.
"I mean, you looked crushed today," Noah shrugged.
"Oh," Tyler looked around. "Uhhhhhhh, well, I was, um, thinking about Lindsay! Yeah!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I don't care if Duncan's in a pillar maze, that dude scares me," Tyler shuddered. "He would know if I spilled."
"Oh, okay," Owen smiled. "You don't have to worry about that."
Noah, however, still appeared unconvinced that this was the cause of Tyler's woe. "Oh, sorry, dude. I thought it had something to do with Duncan, seeing the tension between the two of you."
Tyler opened his mouth but was interrupted by Chris.
"It's wrestling time!" Chris grinned maliciously. "In this no-rules squabble, one person from one team must bring down a member of the other team. Choose who you'll be sending up."
"Isn't it obvious, eh?" Ezekiel stood proudly. "I'm the strongest person here, I can take down any of those guys in a second flat!"
"Yeah, that is absolutely not happening," Courtney said immediately. "I'm the strongest Amazon, so I'll wrestle."
"Guys, guys, you're both wrong," Cody pointed to himself confidently. "I've got this. Check out these biceps!" He attempted to flex his string bean arms, resulting in Sierra swooning.
"I second that! Cody wrestles!" Sierra said.
"No, I am wrestling," Courtney insisted.
Across the ring, Noah winced. "Yeah, there's no way I'm wrestling."
"I can do it!" Tyler volunteered. "I was the captain of the wrestling team in fifth grade!"
"We might need you for a challenge down the road," Noah argued. "Owen is the biggest one here, he can hold his ground."
"Fair enough," Tyler smiled at Owen. "Go get 'em, big guy!"
"Start wrestling whenever," Chris said sarcastically. "It's not like we're on a time constraint, or anything."
Owen strode out into the ring. On Team Amazon's side, Cody marched out confidently, only to be held back by Courtney.
"Be honest with yourself, Cody," Courtney reasoned. "There is no way you can take out Owen."
Cody looked at Owen, before gaining a look of determination on his face. "Yes I can!"
"No, you can't," Courtney tried to drag the boy out of the ring.
"GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF CODY!" Sierra snarled, pouncing on Courtney. Free from Courtney's grasp, Cody charged at Owen, ultimately bouncing off of him and landing out of the ring.
"That tickled," Owen giggled.
Courtney and Sierra held each other in chokeholds, which took their toll as both passed out. Owen walked out and put his foot on both of them.
"Team Me wins the wrestling challenge!" Chris tossed Owen two gold medals for "taking out" both Courtney and Sierra.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"That display was hard to watch," Heather scoffed. "My stupid team actually let that babbling ball of lard win?"
She rolled her eyes. "And I'm not just saying that because he voted off Alejandro. I mean, why would that be the reason? Seriously!"
In the maze of hurdles, Gwen worriedly kept her eyes peeled for the boar she was supposed to be hunting. She froze when she heard some marble crumble from a nearby pillar. Something was moving nearby.
She swallowed a lump in her throat and jumped out, spear ready, only to find Duncan in the same stance.
"Oh, hey, I just -" both said at the same time, Duncan singing. "You go first."
However, the secret lovers froze in horror when they heard a familiar bell.
"Oh no," Duncan sang meekly.
"Oh yes!" Chris peeked his head around a pillar. "You skipped out on half a season of singing and you're surprised I'm making you do it now? Start singing!"
As Chris left, Chef began strumming out a tune on a bouzouki guitar, leading into a duet.
"I know what you're thinking, I'm thinking it too," Duncan sang.
"I'm not sure what you're thinking, so maybe that's true!" Gwen shrugged.
"I don't know what happened, but I have no regrets."
"Really?" Gwen expressed doubt. "Or because you-know-who doesn't know yet?"
"Oh, it's just between us," Duncan sang, as the music picked up.
"Not exactly, someone made a fuss," Gwen said, gesturing to a statue of a familiar-looking tracksuited Olympian holding up the globe.
"They sure weren't meant to see," Duncan agreed. "But that locked door couldn't secure our privacy!"
The other contestants stood by, waiting for Chris to introduce the next challenge.
"He's got such a great voice," Courtney bragged to the other members of her team. "I just can't make out the lyrics. SPEAK UP!"
"SHHH!" Chris shushed the CIT.
"Fine, let's do it," Duncan said, guiltily staring at a statue that resembled Courtney. "Let's clear the air."
"Save it for later," Gwen pointed to a slightly more dangerous situation. "Look out for that bear!"
Duncan turned too late, as a bear with boar-like fake tusks and a gold medal around his neck pounced on him.
"AHHH! THE PAIN, THE PAIN, TOO MUCH TO EXPLAIN!" Duncan cried out in agony.
"Gotta stop what we're doing, 'cause this is just insane!"
"The boar-bear's got me," Duncan moaned. "And that's seriously lame."
Gwen used this opportunity to grab the medal from around the boar-bear's neck. "Thanks, Mr. Boar-Bear, I guess I win this game!"
Quickly finding her way out of the maze, Gwen showed off the medal for her team.
"Nice one, Gwen!" Courtney high-fived her teammate.
"And Team Amazon secures their first medal!" Chris nodded. "Unfortunately for them, if Team Chris wins this last challenge, the girls are going to have to send someone home."
"We're not girls, eh," Ezekiel pointed out.
"Just get used to that," Cody advised.
"What is the last challenge anyway?" Sierra asked.
"A traditional hurdle race!" Chris gestured to the hurdles behind him. "Each team sends one member to hop the hurdles and make it to the end. First one there wins a medal!"
"Now this has your name all over it," Noah advised Tyler.
"Haha, yeah!" Tyler stood proudly.
"I guess I'll go," Heather volunteered.
"What?" Ezekiel argued. "I want to go!"
"You'd screw it up," Heather replied quickly and bluntly.
The Queen Bee made her way to the hurdles, where Tyler was already stretching.
"Alright, ready, set, GO!" Chris called off, and the two contestants took off.
Tyler effortlessly made his way over hurdle after hurdle, and the distance between him and Heather only grew.
"WOO! Go Tyler!" Owen cheered with Noah.
"RUN, HEATHER!" Courtney screamed.
"Hey, at least if she loses, we have an excuse to vote her off," Gwen shrugged.
"Hm, yeah," Courtney nodded, though she did not smile.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I don't trust Gwen and Duncan together," Courtney admitted. "And the fact that they sang a song together while being alone in that maze earlier is really rubbing me the wrong way."
"Ha! I could do this with my eyes closed!" Tyler laughed.
"Please don't," Noah deadpanned. But it was too late; Tyler had abided by his words and predictably slammed into a hurdle, which dragged him to the ground.
"TYLER! GET UP!" Owen cried.
"Wha?" Tyler looked up from the ground, his face bruised. Heather quickly passed him. "Oh no!"
"Oh yes!" Heather replied, crossing the finish line.
"And Team Amazon earns itself another medal!" Chris gifted Heather with the gold. "But this means that we're tied. And you know what that means?"
"A naked tiebreaker?" Owen prepared to strip.
"No!" Chris covered his eyes again. "Well, sort of."
Duncan stood up, severely injured from boar-bear bites. The creature in question had run off somewhere. Chef stood in front of the delinquent and helped him up.
"Dude, is it over?" Duncan sang. Chef nodded. "So I should get back to my team?" Chef nodded again. "Do you know where the exit is?" Chef shook his head. "Perfect!"
The delinquent fortunately managed to find the exit fairly simply, and ran as fast as his injuries could carry him to catch up with the others.
"I'm gonna need the two contestants who haven't done anything yet to please step forward," Chris said. Noah stepped forward, followed by Ezekiel and Cody. "Hey! I said two contestants."
"Neither of us did anything, eh," Ezekiel shrugged.
"Well, Cody did more stuff when he pathetically tried to quote-unquote 'wrestle' Owen, so Zekester, I'll use you," Chris called the homeschool forth.
Noah and Ezekiel gave each other a look before turning back to the host. Abruptly, Chef stepped forth and handed the two costumes that looked slightly angelic.
"Put on these Icarus costumes, and fly up to claim a medal for your team from the top of that crane!" Chris gestured to an out-of-place crane that held a medal on its tip.
"Very ancient Greek challenge choice," Noah quipped.
"Really?" Ezekiel stared at the crane. "I didn't think they had cranes in ancient Greece, eh."
Noah facepalmed. The two boys got changed into their ridiculous costumes.
"Oh, and to get up there, you're going to have to flap your wings," Chris informed.
"You can do it, little buddy!" Owen rooted.
"Do it or your toast, homeschool," Heather hissed.
Chris aimed an arrow at the sky with a bow handed to him by Chef. "On your marks . . ."
"YOU!" Duncan's voice rang out from nearby. Everyone but a focused Chris turned to see Duncan angrily approach Tyler. "You spilled, didn't you?"
"What?" Tyler asked. Chef looked around for the towel but realized with disappointment that he had left it in the maze, Duncan could continue counting.
"Get set . . ." Chris continued.
"Don't play stupid with me," Duncan growled, shaking a terrified Tyler under his shoulders. He stared at the bruise on his face. "Courtney beat you up, right? I recognize Courtney bruises anywhere. And she must have only beaten you up because I wasn't around!"
"Why would I beat up Tyler?" Courtney asked. She squinted. "Why would I beat up you?"
"Because I kissed Gwen!" Duncan rolled his eyes. "Obviously!"
"You what?!" Owen and Noah gasped.
"YOU WHAT?!" Courtney shrieked.
"You what?!" Cody and Sierra gasped.
"Which one is Gwen again, eh?" Ezekiel tried to whisper to a shocked Sierra.
"Go!" Chris let the arrow fly loose. Noah and Ezekiel tried with great difficulty to get up into the sky. Meanwhile, on the ground, Duncan was beginning to realize the error of what he did.
"Wait, you . . . you guys seriously didn't know?" the delinquent said in mortified shock. He looked to Tyler, who smiled sheepishly. "Meathead, you didn't squeal?"
"N-No," Tyler revealed.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Uh . . . wow," Duncan rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "I always imagined it going down in a way that involved Tyler spilling the beans. Still, I have no regrets."
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Is he serious?!" Gwen nearly ripped her hair out.
"Are you serious?!" Gwen cried, glaring at Duncan.
"Is he serious?! ARE EITHER OF YOU SERIOUS?!" Courtney shrieked, pouncing on Gwen but being held back at the last second by Sierra.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Gwen . . . and Duncan?" Cody sighed. "I always thought . . . I'd be after Trent . . ."
Noah and Ezekiel, having of about the same level of physical prowess, struggled to flap their fake wings as they eyed the medal on the crane. The shock of the news certainly did not help Noah.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Tyler must have seen Duncan and Gwen kissing in the confessional! Of course!" Noah facepalmed. "But still . . . pretty shocking revelation. And that's coming from someone who isn't easily shocked."
"EZEKIEL!" Courtney screamed from the ground.
"Yeah?" Ezekiel asked.
"If you have any hope of remaining in the game, you will come back to the ground and stay here," Courtney ordered.
Ezekiel thought this over. "But then we'll lose, and you guys'll vote me out, eh!"
"Trust me, we won't be voting you off tonight," Courtney glared at Gwen.
Ezekiel watched the looks between the two of them, before it finally clicked. "Ohhhhhhhhhh! I got you, eh!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I don't really know what's going on, eh," Ezekiel confessed. "But when Courtney yells at you to do something, you do it if you value your hide."
Ezekiel landed swiftly to the ground, where Cody ran up to him. "Zeke! I need your wings!"
"I don't need 'em anymore, eh," Ezekiel shrugged, taking off his wings and giving them to Cody. Cody quickly put them on and flapped his way up.
"CODY, NO!" Courtney tried to grab Cody's leg, but Sierra held him back.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"I wouldn't mind losing to get Gwen out of here," Sierra rolled her eyes. "But what Cody does, goes. Courtney better remember that."
"SIERRA! LET ME GO!" Courtney snarled.
Owen and Tyler watched Noah fly in silence.
"So . . . that's crazy about Duncan and Gwen," Owen said softly.
"You have no idea," Tyler sighed.
Standing away from them was Duncan, who appeared uncomfortable and glared at his feet. Up in the air, Noah was extremely close to grabbing the medal with his teeth. Suddenly, the feathers on his wings peeled off, and the bookworm was sent careening to the ground. Not long after, Cody managed to make his way up to grab the medal.
"Cody, you're not the one I sent up there," Chris glared, but then shrugged. "But I suppose Noah has no feasible way to get up there, now, so Team Amazon wins!"
"NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Courtney screamed dramatically.
"Team Chris, I'll be seeing you in the elimination area tonight," Chris smiled.
"It's messed up, if you ask me," Tyler told Owen as the two sat outside the confessional, waiting to cast their votes. "I could never do that to my Lindsay."
"Well . . . think about it this way," Owen showed off his two gold medals. "The way I see it, Duncan is the only player in Total Drama history to get with two hotties. He's got two gold medals in the Total Drama Babe Olympics."
"Gwen and Courtney," Tyler nodded. "That's a good point."
"Hey, big guy," Noah stepped out of the confessional. "How would you like it if Izzy dumped you for another guy, and said she was just getting another medal in the Babe Olympics?"
"That would . . . suck," Owen looked down sadly, remembering his beloved ex-girlfriend. "Oh, Izzy!"
"Exactly. So Duncan's really nobody to be proud of," Noah said.
"I . . . I guess not," Owen agreed reluctantly. "I just really don't want to think of the guy as a bad person! We get along really well! We were friends in season one, after the merge!"
"Sometimes your friends are bad people," Noah shrugged. "Remember Alejandro?"
At the door to the hallway, Duncan listened in on the whole conversation, cursing under his breath.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Owen better keep his little buddy quiet or there's gonna be a nerd-shaped splatter on the floor in economy class tonight," the delinquent growled. He sighed. "I guess in retrospect, I should have ended things with Courtney before . . . look, I don't have to explain myself to you!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
Noah shrugged. "I don't feel guilty. The only conversation I had with this guy before the last twenty-four hours, he grabbed my lip and threatened to force a piercing on me. Not a big loss."
==CONFESSIONAL==
"What Duncan did today was stupid and reckless," Gwen said scornfully. She frowned. "But I still don't want him to leave!"
"I want to say this was a difficult choice," Chris read the passports to himself as Duncan, Owen, Noah, and Tyler watched on. Gwen sneaked into the room and hid behind one of the decorative tikis. "I really, really want to say this was a difficult choice. But ultimately one of you let your team down, both in the challenge and on a moral basis.
"And so, tonight's drop-of-shame victim will be . . ." Chris prepared to announce the loser. Owen, Noah, and Tyler instinctively looked at Duncan. The delinquent sighed as he stared dead ahead.
". . . this intern!" Chris turned on the scrawny-looking intern behind him, shoving him out of the plane.
"What?" the four contestants simultaneously asked in shock. Gwen silently sighed with relief.
"You guys seriously think I'm gonna get rid of Duncan right after this whole thing with Gwen happened?" Chris laughed, showing the four passports to Team Chris. Three were pictures of Duncan, while one was a picture of Noah. "Ha! No way! Think of the ratings!"
"That's not fair!" Tyler protested.
"No, I'm a pretty fair guy," Chris shrugged. "Next time Duncan gets voted off, I'll throw him out of the plane for real. Heh. But he's safe for now - don't you guys want to see how this pans out? Haha!"
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Unbelievable," Noah rolled his eyes. "Luckily, I have Owen and Tyler on my side, so Duncan's gone next time we lose.
In first class, Courtney sobbed deeply into a plush yellow chair. Sierra patted her on the back, while Cody sighed.
"I wonder where Gwen went," he asked no one in particular.
"Who cares?" Heather rolled her eyes from her seat. "Word to the wise, Cody, Gwen is a massive target, so unless you want to associate yourself with a target, stay away from him."
"As much as I hate both Heather and her threats, Heather is right on this one, Codykins," Sierra advised. "GWEN IS SCUM!"
"Gee, thanks," Gwen sighed as she entered the room.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"So I'm still in it to win it," Duncan smiled flirtingly at Gwen.
"You know what, both of us are totally screwed now, and I feel really bad about making Courtney cry, but . . . despite all of that, I still don't regret a thing," Gwen looked out the plane window. "Is that selfish?"
"We have each other," Duncan shrugged. "We're survivors."
With this, they began a fresh bout of making out.
The door opened and Tyler's head peeped in. "Hey, sorry, I didn't know anyone was . . . oh, COME ON!"
Duncan slammed the door in his face without opening his eyes.
Noah walked to the common area, tasked with getting some late night snacks for Owen and himself. Though he hated economy class food, he hadn't eaten all day. As for Owen, well, that didn't require any explanation.
As he entered the dining hall, he saw Heather at a table. "Hello, Noah."
"Hi, Heather. Sitting by yourself in the dark, are we?"
"I know you're responsible for Alejandro's elimination."
"What?"
Heather chuckled. "Owen and Tyler are too stupid. And Duncan had just stepped foot on the plane. It had to be you." She looked up at him. "I hope you know this means that you're the new Alejandro. The only person on your team with a brain, and my rival. And you're going down."
"Uh . . . okay," Noah turned and left the room.
==CONFESSIONAL==
"My reputation precedes me, I guess," Noah said with confusion. "Oh, and Duncan voted for me. Comforting."
==CONFESSIONAL==
"Noah can pretend to be a little schemer all he wants, but he's going down," Heather smiled.
"Whoa!" Chris feigned shock at Heather's tone as he sat in the cockpit with Chef.
"Sounds like tensions between the two teams are really heating up! Actually, tensions in the two teams are heating up too! I wonder who will be the next to take the drop of shame? Tune in next time to find out! I'm Chris McLean, and this has been Total! Drama! World Tour!"
That's a wrap on chapter two! Things are really starting to branch off from the main series. Why did I bring in Ezekiel? Why not! And Tyler doesn't have the same target on his back that he did after he spilled the beans in the actual show. What could this mean for him? Only time will tell!
And I finally tackled the Gwen/Duncan/Courtney stuff. I'm sorry if you disagree with my portrayal of the three characters and the situation, but this is the hot button issue of the Total Drama community, so I'm sure no matter how I portrayed it there would be people unhappy with it. Regardless of all that, thank you all so much for reading! See you in the next chapter!
