Author's Note
Well folks, here we are again. It's kind of hard to think of it this way, but this episode makes the end of the first third of the story, more or less - first three boots and a swap; with the next four episodes as the middle third, and the merge up to the finale as the last third.
But hey, that's what happens with a thirteen episode season. Anyway, on to the reviews!
TD is awesome: Thanks, and as I explained in the Post Script last week I decided to move the swap up because I felt it wouldn't work as well in this week's chapter for reasons that hopefully will be more apparent by the time you finish reading it.
Gage the hedgehog: Thanks as always!
DSX62415: Hmm, interesting point, and we'll see how things turn out for Justin. And again, I hope you're able to find a solution to your computer woes soon.
Glowing Insanity: Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed Courtney and Gwen's dynamic last week - hopefully I can keep it up as they continue on in the competition. And yeah, it certainly seems like Justin is doing better as a villain so far than in canon TDA...
P. T. Piranha: Mmm, well, I do try and foreshadow most eliminations to at least some extent, just so they aren't completely out of left field. And yeah, these past few episodes have been really character-focused rather than challenge focused, which I've been enjoying fairly well.
Sarcasm is a Habit: Glad you're enjoying the development, even with Harold and Leonard! It's always nice to hear that people like how I portray certain characters even if they don't like those same characters in general. Hopefully the plans I have for this cast won't ruin anybody's opinions of them, though...
Call Me Ishmael: Glad I was able to surprise you then! And interesting thoughts on the cast, too...
acosta perez jose ramiro: Thanks as always, and yeah, Justin certainly got lucky with the team composition.
Animation Adventures: Thank you, thank you. Looks like I'm doing well with Justin and Leonard and especially Courtney, then. Honestly, her getting laid into like that just seemed like such an obvious thing to do; this version of Gwen just isn't the type to put up with Courtney for long, especially in the middle of a challenge. And as for Harold's grappling gun, I came up with the idea when I saw how Zoey ended up using the hook to climb up in cannon, and figured a high-powered gun was something that both could get the Maggots to the top quickly and could conceivably be built by Harold.
moka evans: Haha, I'm glad you enjoyed Courtney's little development last week. She's really not the type to admit she's in the wrong or at fault very easily, and really only did so here because it was very apparent that the others were fed up with her and would almost certainly vote her out if they lost regardless of if it were her fault or not. For someone as competitive as Courtney that puts a lot of pressure on her to give in and play along, just so that she can stay in the game. But yeah, her development isn't nearly over yet.
Other than that, good luck with your AleNoah World Tour reboot, and thanks for liking my writing so much!
Guest: Oh, don't worry, they will - at least as much as I can, since they're all written in about a week each.
ashDanLand: Thanks! And yeah, Courtney might have changed a bit, and Cameron was able to stand up and lead his team. And I'm glad I was able to surprise you with the non-elimination! Although it alone doesn't mean that there will need to be a double elimination down the road, since with thirteen episodes and thirteen campers there has to be a non-elimination sometime.
turn forever you and me: I'm glad you enjoyed the episode last week, as well as Leonard's beetle whispering. I hope you enjoy what becomes of Harold being on the Rats as well. Though as for Cameron/Izzy...don't count on it.
Explorer of the Unknown: Technically speaking, there doesn't need to be a double elimination at all this season - with thirteen episodes but only thirteen contestants, thee has to be a non-elimination round in order for two people to make it to the finale. The only reason there was a double elimination in canon was to allow Dakota to come back into the game and get mutated. But what I do intend on doing with those plot bits...well, you'll see when the time comes. And yeah, Harold being on the same team as Leonard and Noah and Courtney is going to be...interesting, I think, even if everything doesn't happen immediately. And I'm glad you enjoyed Cameron standing up and getting Courtney to back down, it's something I feel is coming about because rather than Jo demeaning him, Courtney is much more respectful of him so he's been able to grow more confident. And as for the cameo this episode...well, you'll find out soon enough.
Elizabeth Fire Ice Heart: Thanks!
bruno14: Glad to hear it! I'm glad so many people actually liked Leonard last week, it means I'm doing a good job with his portrayal. And yeah, poor Harold getting betrayed by who he thought were his friends. But, at least he's still in the game. I'm happy you enjoyed Justin actually being fairly kind towards Lindsay even if it was just to make sure she was on his side, and of course Cameron and Gwen taking over for Courtney in some respects. I hope you enjoy the rest of the season.
PizzaTheBomb: No, you're right, the Rats are up six to five right now. And certainly, Courtney's anger isn't going to just disappear. Though when and where it'll show up again, only I know... Other than that, I'm glad I've been able to keep everyone in-character so far. Hopefully I'll be able to keep it up as the series progresses.
StayOuttaMyShed: Ah, yeah, it appears you never did review last week. Oh well. Moving on, I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Seems like pulling the team switch last week was the right move, building up one outcome but changing it at the last minute in a reasonable way to keep some tension...yeah, I'm glad I did it. And yeah, the Toxic Rats are just jam-packed with nerds now, and it's made for some amazing scenes I think. And yeah, I'm definitely going to be mixing things up with Jasmine's storyline compared to canon, and this betrayal is just one aspect. Glad you're enjoying the rest of the Maggots fairly well too, and yeah I think the Trent-Harold friendship is something I've enjoyed. They weren't really friends in canon, but the Shuffledverse is different enough that they've basically been forced to have each other's backs more. And as for the Rats, I'm glad you're enjoying Gwen and Courtney's dynamic, as well as Noah's potential. And once again, I'm glad yet another reviewer is enjoying Leonard so far. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this week's episode.
The Misguided Angel of Death: I'm glad you enjoyed it so much! In particular the Zoey-Harold friendship, it's an unusual pair but I think they could really get along. Although, of course, Zoey has just metaphorically stabbed Harold in the back - as has Harold, and this is definitely going to have consequences. And as for the spider monster...well, you'll find out soon enough.
FOWLKON: Yeah, pretty much! There just wasn't anyone I was willing to wrap up just yet last week. I'm glad you enjoyed Courtney's development, she and Gwen certainly have a lot of potential as a duo and I'm glad I was able to push them forward so smoothly. As for Harold, he was trusting more that it would be him, Jasmine, Zoey, and Trent voting for Justin, even if it wasn't explicitly stated. But instead, Jasmine and Zoey flipped to Justin's side with Lindsay. And as for the Rats, considering Cameron spent the canon episode trembling in fear and clinging to his team's flag I figured it would be better if I had him actually do something. I figure that with Courtney around as the female leader instead of Jo, Cameron would be a bit more encouraged and so would be able to take charge a bit more. And hey, it's all worked out so far, so I'm happy. Hopefully I can keep it up, especially with Leonard.
RAn: Ehhh, I don't know if I'm going to do anything like that with Mike's alters. Noah is most certainly not my least favorite (I'd say...Amy probably is? not sure), and as for the ship...I don't really know why you put 'jihad' there but I don't really like it, and I also don't really like the Jasmine/Izzy ship itself.
OMAC001: Yup! And I think this week's episode is gonna be pretty interesting.
I. M. Poik: Well, the non-elimination challenge had to happen sooner or later. And I wouldn't say the episode is just sort of 'there' without it, it ended up setting some stuff up and developing some people, all in all a pretty good episode I think. But hey, that's just me, you're entitled to your own feelings and opinions regarding my work. I am glad you enjoyed Leonard being the one to have booked the wrong hotel, though.
Ddynamo: Yup, there's a good chance that Noah would still be competing if I did a Shuffled RR, though I might also just replace the Reality Pros team with another pair entirely. If I did go for a Nemma rewrite, then Noah's partner...well, it's hard to say since I don't know exactly how he and others are gonna develop, but I'd say Izzy, Gwen, and even Harold are possibilities. And yeah, I won't technically need a double elimination this season as long as I don't have any returnees...though what I'm going to end up doing on both fronts, I admittedly haven't finalized yet.
link9753: Ah, well, I'll admit to being disappointed that you wish Harold would have gone home last week, but to each their own I suppose. I'm glad you still liked the chapter, though, and I think you'll love this one even more.
wifishark: Well, I'm happy to hear you're happy about Harold sticking around. And as for the cameo this week, and the whereabouts of Izzy...well, perhaps you'll find out soon enough.
And that's it for this week's reviews. As a reminder, this is how the teams currently stand:
Toxic Rats: Cameron, Courtney, Gwen, Leonard, Noah, Harold
Mutant Maggots: Jasmine, Justin, Lindsay, Trent, Zoey
And of course, as always, the plug: a TVTropes page for this series exists, and as per usual with such things, could always use more work. I thoroughly appreciate those who've already been working on it, and look forward to seeing what you all add next.
I hope you're all ready for a spooky episode packed full with, well, lots of things! Enjoy.
- Fangren
Episode 4 – Finders Creepers
"Last time, on Total Drama Revenge of the Island!" Chris opened over a stock shot of the camp, the recap montage starting off with a clip of the contestants racing off towards the side of Mt. Looming Tragedy. "Our eleven remaining campers battled it out in a brutal display of brawn and brain," Chef was shown gleefully dropping ice blocks on the climbing campers, catching Jasmine and Zoey but narrowly missing Courtney and Gwen; Noah was shown getting punched by the mutant beetle; and Harold was shown completing his high-powered grappling gun that won his team the first challenge. "Courtney clashed with Gwen over their team's leadership," the goth was shown protesting after Courtney tried to name herself team captain in the ice shack, "while handsome devil Justin used his looks to usurp control of the Maggots from Jasmine," the supermodel's seduction of Zoey in their team's ice fort was shown as well.
"In the end, the Rats finally came together," Courtney and Gwen were shown working together to steal the Maggots' flag and get it back to their base. "and Justin used his newfound power to give super-geek Harold the boot," Justin was shown seducing Jasmine, and then her and Zoey were shown looking ashamed as Harold was announced as the loser of the vote. "...Or not," Chris laughed as Chef opened his strongbox to reveal the lack of Toxic Marshmallow of Loserdom. "Yeah, I decided to switch him to the Rats instead," the host finished over the original announcement of the twist and Harold's grateful bow.
"And now," Chris said, popping up in front of a shot of the full moon in a cloudy sky with a lit candle in his hand, marking the end of the recap montage, "tonight's challenge is about fear." He made a devilish look and clenched his fingers menacingly. "And everyone knows fear is a dish best served, in the dark!" he said in an exaggeratedly spooky manner, an eerie sound playing as he laughed evilly. "Huh?" he stopped suddenly, the camera pulling back to reveal Chef Hatchet standing next to him...dressed like a showgirl with lots of peacock feathers. "Chef!" the host said in annoyance.
"Wardrobe was all out of vampire costumes," Chef explained as the series' capstone them began to play.
"It's all scary!" Chris said, walking off to the left. "Other than that," he scowled and gestured back toward his off-screen assistant. "Right here! Right now!" he resumed his usual demeanor. "On Total! Drama! Revenge, of the Island!" He adopted his spooky tone as he finished the title, and ended with another evil laugh.
xxx
(Fade to Opening Theme)
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doin' fine;
You guys are on my mind!
Ya asked me what I wanted to be,
And now I think the answer is plain to see!
I wanna be...famous!
I wanna live close to the sun!
Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won!
Everythin' to prove, nothin' in my way;
I'll get there one day.
'Cause I wanna be...famous!
(Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
(Fade to Episode)
xxx
Frogs and crickets chirped and croaked, joined by an owl's hoots as the episode opened on a shot of the full moon. The camera panned down to the cabins as the sound of snoring was added to the nighttime mix, and the scene cut inside to the girls' side of the Maggots' cabin where Lindsay and Zoey were sleeping peacefully in the bunk they shared. Trent and Justin were also shown sound asleep on the boys' side, and the scene cut to the Rat girls to show Courtney and Gwen also sound asleep.
The camera cut next to Cameron's sleeping bag cocoon, then panned up to show Harold sleeping with his butt sticking up in the air and without a doubt the source of the snoring. Cutting to the other side of the room showed Noah, his eyes open and slightly bloodshot as he tossed and turned.
He groaned in annoyance and pushed his pillow over his ears, and after a moment he seemed to have gotten to rest...until the sudden shrill wail of a blowhorn pierced the air.
"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Chris hollered from off-screen as the scene cut back outside, the blowhorn continuing even over the panicked shouts of the campers.
The music turned tense as the shot briefly cut to a close-up of the blowhorn still blowing, then over to the Maggots' cabin as they ran outside fully dressed – first Justin screaming "No, please, no!"; then Zoey just screaming; then Trent calling out "What's happening?!"; then Lindsay wailing "I don't wanna die!"; and then finally Jasmine dropping down calmly from the roof more annoyed than afraid, calling out "What's going on?"
The Rats were shown next, Courtney grunting "Out of my way!" and pushing Leonard aside so she could slide down the railing; Leonard quickly running after her; Cameron and Harold screaming at the top of their lungs; and Gwen and Noah coming out last at around the same time – Gwen shouting "What now?!" while Noah answered "You're asking me?!"
They assembled nervously in the common area between cabins, where Chris – wearing a pair of heavy earmuffs – finally eased up on the blowhorn. "Glad you all could make it," he grinned as he took off his headgear. The camera focused in on Harold as he blearily looked around and soon met the gaze of Jasmine and Zoey; the two girls smiled and waved sheepishly, but Harold just crossed his arms, huffed, and looked away.
xxx
"I'm still pretty peeved that Jasmine and Zoey tried to vote me off," Harold confessed. "I mean, gosh, I thought we were becoming friends! It must've been Justin's doing," he said, slamming a fist onto his open palm, "he probably used his good looks to get to them." He paused for a second before trembling and putting his arms across his eyes, adding "At least I hope so!" in an almost sobbing tone.
xxx
"I hope you're all ready," Chris continued, "'cause it's challenge time!" He stepped to the side as Chef rolled up a large widescreen television on a wheeled cart. It was currently displaying an aerial map of the island with several additional colored icons – six bright green skulls scattered around the island; three yellowish envelopes over the campfire pit, the western edge of the campgrounds, and deeper into the forest; and a large purple spider in the middle of it all.
"Really?" Courtney spoke up in annoyance. "We're having a challenge now?!" As she voice her grievances the camera panned away from her and on to Leonard, who was rooting around in his sleeves with a confused look on his face. He eventually pulled out what appeared to be a wadded-up napkin, unfolded it, and widened his eyes.
xxx
"It's a message!" Leonard said in amazement, holding up the napkin to the camera so it would have a better view of the faint writing upon it. "Though from whom I cannot say. Let's see...," he put a fist to his mouth as he cleared his throat, then started reading. "To Leonard the Mighty," he paused to smile at the camera, "I apologize for contacting you in such a way, but I would prefer to remain anonymous at this time for my own mystical reasons. Know, however, that I am your teammate – and on your side, if you would have me. I propose an alliance between us, though more for your sake than my own as I fear you will be the next victim of the vile Hurl of Shame should it come to it. I will contact you with more details at a later time, so for now I request that you keep this a secret from the team."
Leonard blinked, then looked up at the camera. "Wow, I wonder if this is actually legitimate!"
xxx
"Your challenge," Chris continued as though there'd been no interruption, "a scavenger hunt for three creepy souvenirs. Your locations? A haunted forest," he walked across to the other side of the television, "a scaaary pet cemetery, and an extra spooktastic cave. First team to each location gets a special clue," he said, the camera zooming in as he pointed towards the westernmost letter icon on the screen. "But watch out for booby traps," he added jovially as he moved his finger to one of the skulls, "I really went to town with them, heheh." The campers were shown watching warily.
"So move fast," the host added, "and stick together. You'll be penalized for each player you lose!"
"Umm, what does the spider represent?" Cameron asked nervously.
"Oh yeah," Chris answered as the shot zoomed in on the icon in question, "some kinda gigantic mutated spider showed up in the woods the other day, and it's running around loose on the island."
The cast immediately started to voice there fears and protests, the shot zooming on on Cameron in particular as he shivered and looked around, moaning "Oh no..." in terror.
xxx
"I have a severe case of arachnophobia," the bubble-boy explained, already beginning to panic. "Spiders are just so creepy, literally! Anything with that many legs must be evil!" He grabbed himself and shuddered in fear, then recoiled away as a small spider dropped down next to him on a line of silk.
xxx
"But, because I'm feeling nice," Chris continued with an almost smug look, "I decided to call in some back-up for you guys. Say hello to classic competitor and freelance monster hunter, Shawn!" An unexpectedly heroic tune played as Chris motioned to the top of the Maggots' cabin, the camera panning up as well to show a familiar silhouette against the night sky. The scruffy form of the zombie-obsessed survivalist leaped down with a flip and a smirk, landing on his feet next to Chris and Chef.
"Technically," he corrected the host, "I'm a freelance zombie hunter who also accepts non-zombie jobs on the side. Also," he added with a more hesitant expression, "I'm getting paid for this, right?"
Chris looked away suspiciously, and the camera panned over to the face of Jasmine as she smiled excitedly.
xxx
"Okay, this is probably gonna sound cheesy," Jasmine told the outhouse camera, "but Shawn is my favorite of the classic competitors. He's cute, he's funny, and he's got an amazing amount of knowledge and skill in the outdoors, so he's sort of like...my idol, I guess. The zombie thing's a little strange," she admitted with an uncertain look, "but I suppose it's just a part of what makes him, well, him."
xxx
"Shawn's gonna be hanging around to keep watch for the spider monster," Chris explained, "and will try to capture it when it comes to it. But he is not gonna interfere with the challenge otherwise, got it?" He sent a stern gaze both to the campers and to Shawn, all of whom stared blankly or nodded in implied agreement.
"Good," Chris smiled, and the dramatic and almost heroic tune started playing again. "With that said, there's nothing to fear but mortal terror itself! Talk soon," he added impishly, sounding his blowhorn once again.
The eleven campers ran off towards the woods, with Shawn right there with them.
/
The footage flashed ahead to another shot of the full moon over the forested hills of Wawanakwa, an owl hooting as the scene cut down to ground level. The logo of the Toxic Rats appeared in the corner of the screen just before the team itself did, running up and stopping in front of a tree with a loudspeaker set up in its branches.
"Okay guys, we're off to a great start," Courtney said confidently just before the loudspeaker whined into activity.
"Welcome to the Haunted Forest!" Chris announced over it, the shot panning downward to show the six Rats gathering around a small crack in the ground. "Your clue can be found at the base of this tree!"
"As the newest member of the team, I volunteer to grab it," Harold offered, earning an eyeroll from Courtney as he bent down, reached into the hole...and gasped in pain as something metallic snapped inside the hole.
"Inside a bear trap," Chris finished his announcement with a laugh.
Harold withdrew his hand from the hole, the trap clamped down firmly on his arm – though he was at least clutching a note in his hand. "Take it, please!' he said, passing it to a mildly shocked Gwen. Just as the goth was about to read it, the sound of approaching footsteps distracted her and her teammates.
"Aww man, we got here last," Justin lamented from the front of the five Maggots. "Thanks a lot for not leading us through the woods, Jasmine," he shot back at the amazon, standing in the back and looking around with an almost concerned expression.
"Hey!" Zoey shot back in outrage. "It's not her fault!"
"Hmm?" Jasmine said, finally looking back towards her teammates. "Oh, yeah, no big deal, let's keep moving," she said, running ahead and waving for her teammates to follow.
"Hmmmm...," Courtney murmured, watching with narrow eyes as they ran past.
/
The shot cut to the Maggots as they stopped at a clearing further along the trail. "So, what's the plan, Jasmine?" Zoey asked the girl in front.
"Easy," Jasmine answered, "we just hide out here and see where the Rats go, then follow them to the next clue."
"Great idea," Trent told her. "Everyone find a place to hide." He quickly looked around, then dived into a thorn bush; Zoey joined him a second later; Jasmine jumped up and started climbing a tree; Justin hid behind another one; and after a moment of panic and indecision Lindsay joined him.
"Now we just have to keep quiet and wait," Trent whispered to Zoey, their eyes peering out of the thorn bush.
"I hope they come by soon," Zoey added in between pained 'Oww's.
/
"And, why are we going off the path?" Noah asked dryly as the scene cut back to the Rats.
"So the Maggots can't follow us," Courtney answered irritably as she cleared a path through another thorn bush, her and her teammates stopping just beyond it. "Okay Gwen, read the clue," she told the goth.
"Inside a knot is a nest," Gwen read. "Your souvenir lives with a pest. Find Polaris to travel northwest? Not as creepy as I was hoping for."
"Well I think it's fascinating," Leonard smiled.
"And easy," Harold added confidently. "Since Polaris, the North Star, is there," he pointed up at the sky through the trees, "northwest is in that direction!" He ran off eagerly, the rest of his new teammates following suit.
/
"Greeaaat, we're back on the path again," Courtney said in annoyance, the footage having flashed ahead to show her team passing through a familiar-looking area. Once they'd left the screen, the five members of the Mutant Maggots poked their heads out of their hiding places and smiled.
/
The Rats' logo reappeared as the footage skipped ahead again to them running along through the woods; Gwen in back then Noah, Cameron, Harold, and Leonard, with Courtney in front.
"Inside a knot is a nest...a souvenir...then something...," Noah muttered to himself as the shot zoomed in on him. "Hey gruesome, what was the rest of that poem again?" he called back without taking his eyes off the path ahead.
He was answered by the goth's bloodcurdling scream, and immediately skidded to a stop. "Oh no!" he yelled rising panic, a sharp note playing as he looked back to see nobody behind him.
"Gwen?!" Courtney called out in fear and concern as the shot cut back to show that the rest of the Rats had stopped in their tracks.
"The monster spider must've gotten her!" Cameron screamed, gripping the sides of his head in panic. The shot cut outward as he did so, showing a large purple spider crawling down though the shadows of the forest trees.
"We lost Gwen," Courtney repeated in disbelief, her breathing becoming faster and more shallow. "We get penalized for each person we lose, and we're already down the only one of us that's at home in this stupid scare-fest..."
"W-we must remain calm, fellows, lest the beast pick us off one by one!" Leonard said, unable to hide his own fear.
Harold nodded, and put a hand on Courtney's shoulder as she tried to control her breathing. "Just focus on the challenge," the dweeb told her. "We need to find a knot with a nest."
"Th-that's right," Courtney said. "We can look for Gwen later...just...focus on finding the knot with a nest for now...EVERYBODY LOOK FOR A KNOT WITH A NEST!" she demanded, startling the others out of their fear.
"I think I see one! And it has team colors!" Cameron announced immediately, pointing off to the right; the camera quick-panned over to a large tree with a noticeable hollow knot in the trunk with the hints of a nest inside; a few green and red marks had been spray-painted on the bark under it.
"Good," Courtney said, immediately rushing towards it, "great! We'll get this, and then start looking for Gwen!" She started climbing up the trunk as the rest of her team ran up to join her, and soon began to root through the tree hollow with one arm.
Suddenly, a large eye opened up inside the hollow and stared directly at her. She screamed, and the music rose dramatically as several squid-like tentacles reached out of the tree's other hollows. One quickly grabbed her around the neck and held her up, while another gave her a few wet slaps then poked her in the eye.
"Hey! Watch it!" she yelped in pain and terror. In response the tentacle tightened its grip, and Courtney began to choke.
"Aaahh! What do we do!?" Noah yelled, gripping his head in panic.
"I don't know!" Cameron replied in panic of his own.
"Oh, curse my feebled powers!" Leonard added.
"H-help me!" Courtney gasped.
Harold looked around, then bent down and picked up a handful of small stones. "Quick, throw rocks at it!" he commanded, tossing the stone he'd picked up one by one.
The other boys quickly followed suit, but they seemed to be hitting Courtney more than the mutant squid-tree monster. Eventually, the thing just raised its captive up even higher, then slammed her down onto the ground and hissed at the others.
"RUN!" Noah shouted, turning to flee as a tentacle shot towards the four nerds, forcing them to scatter. Unfortunately, the thing was still able to catch Harold by the leg, and lifted him up into the air.
"We should have thrown something else!" Harold cried in pain as the mutant began to punch him in the stomach with a curled-up tentacle.
The sounds of pain and wet punches caused Courtney to stir...and quickly become angry. "Okay, that is it!" she declared, getting back on her feet and storming towards the tree-squid while it was distracted. "I am not gonna take that from some overgrown piece of calamari!" She climbed back up the trunk, and with a roar of rage she punched the mutant right in its eye.
The beast bellowed in pain, dropping Harold and retracting into its tree.
"Finally," the former CIT muttered in frustration as she reached into the knot once again, quickly and triumphantly pulling out a brass key. "I got the souvenir!" she called down to her teammates...just before a strand of spider's webbing shot down from above, sticking on to her head and pulling her away into the treetops.
The key dropped down to the forest floor, and landed in front of Harold who grinned when he saw it, unaware of what had just happened. "Score! We got the key!"
"But at what cost?" Noah said anxiously as he, Cameron, and Leonard rejoined their fellow nerd.
"We've lost our two strongest members!" Cameron added, still panicking.
"W-well, this isn't the first time I've had to face such a terrible monster," Leonard spoke up. "I'm sure if we all band together and make use of our many skills, we can achieve anything!"
As he spoke the shot changed to a perspective further away, and the footage switched to an infrared shot of the four boys.
"Agreed," Harold nodded. "We have what we came for, so we should keep going. Wouldn't the girls want it this way?"
"I...I guess so...," Cameron said, his panic fading slightly as he forced himself to think.
"I don't know if I can trust the judgment of a guy who's only been on our team for less than a day," Noah said nervously as the scene returned to normal, "but I really don't wanna stick around here so yeah, let's go with that."
Just then, the five Maggots arrived on the scene. "Hey guys!" Zoey greeted. "Glad to see you're all still here!" She and Jasmine looked at Harold in particular, but the dweeb just huffed and looked away earning a disappointed frown from both of the girls.
Leonard quickly cleared his throat and stepped to the front of the group. "Yes, greetings to you as well. As you can undoubtedly see," he said with an enthusiastic cheer to hide his nervousness, "our party has split up to better search for the artifact we seek, and the ladies have gone elsewhere. We'd best leave this place as well, right fellows?" he looked back and asked the remnants of his team.
All three smiled and nodded their agreement, backing up with Leonard before turning and running off.
"...well, that was odd," Jasmine remarked, hands on her hips and brow quirked.
"Ooh! Ooh! I see something!" Lindsay piped up excitedly, pointing off to the camera's right – the direction of the squid-tree. "I think it has our colors on it!" The camera briefly cut over to the knot in question, with a focus on the marks below it in the two teams' colors.
"Good catch, Lindsay," Jasmine told the beaming blonde before dashing off and quickly climbing the tree. A few seconds of rummaging later and she smiled, pulling out the key. "I got the first object! Catch!" she told her teammates, tossing the key down to them.
Trent caught it and held up so he and Zoey could get a better look at it. "Huh, I guess maybe we're gonna have to unlock something," he suggested. "Cool. Maybe we can get ahead of the Rats now."
"Yeah," Zoey said. "Also, I think Harold's still mad," she added anxiously.
"Well why wouldn't he be?" Trent asked. "I mean, he nearly got hurled the other night!"
"I know," Zoey said. "And I'm feeling really guilty about it."
"Why?" Justin asked. "I mean, we had to vote out somebody, and Harold was the obvious choice!" Despite his smile, both Trent and Zoey glared at him.
xxx
"Uggh, why did I let him talk me into voting out a guy I actually have things in common with?" Zoey berated herself. "I have to try and resist his looks from now on. His...incredible looks...," she said, her resolve visibly wavering.
xxx
"Man, that twist with putting Harold on the other team is kinda messing up my game a bit," Justin told the outhouse camera. "I'm gonna have to step things up a notch if I wanna keep my hold over Zoey."
xxx
The static cut back to a close-up of Justin, his eyes closed as he shook his head. "Look, Zoey, I know-" he began to say, the shot pulling back as he opened his eyes to see Zoey and Trent walking away from him. Before he could say anything, however, a line of spider silk shot down from the treetops, wrapped around his mouth, and pulled him up out of sight.
The camera cut over to the Trent and Zoey and Lindsay, who had just regrouped with Jasmine. "Okay, I reckon the Rats must've been trying to throw us off, and-" she paused and furrowed her brow, looking behind her teammates. "Wait, where's Justin?"
The other three looked behind them and gasped. "Oh no, Justin!" Lindsay cried out. "Justin!" she called out, beginning to run around the area. "Justin, where are you?!"
Jasmine sighed. "Look, I don't like saying this, but I think we're gonna have to move on without him. I'm sure Shawn's around here somewhere, we can trust him to do the rescuing."
"Man, I hope so," Trent said as he and Zoey exchanged a nervous look.
/
The scene flashed to the survivalist in question, currently clinging to the top of a pine tree and scanning the forest below. "Oh man," he said to himself, "where is that thing? If I can just find its lair then maybe I can figure out a way to trap it."
/
"Well, that might have bought us some time, at least," Noah said as the scene moved back to him and the other remaining Rats running through the forest. "So good job, Leonard the Green."
"Thank you," the LARPer replied, not taking his eyes off the path.
"Umm, Leonard?" Cameron spoke up hesitantly. "When you said you'd faced terrible monsters before, what did you mean exactly?"
"Hmm, let's see," Leonard thought, slowing down and counting off on his fingers. "There was the Umber Colossus, the Ruby Dragon of Coramathea, the Lich King of Quebec, dozens of vampires, and that's not even counting the hordes of lesser evils I have vanquished," he told his teammates. "No spider monsters of note, though, at least that I can recall."
Cameron's eyes narrowed in disbelief.
xxx
"None of that made any sense!" the bubble-boy exclaimed. "I can't figure him out, it's like he's living in a completely different world!" Cameron stopped and sighed. "But I don't think I can handle figuring him out while I'm worrying about Gwen and Courtney. Maybe I can ask one of the others for help on this."
xxx
"Darn," Harold told the wizard as the scene moved back to them now walking at a steady pace. "But at least if we make it through this, you can add the Spider Monster of Wawanakwa to that impressive list of yours."
"Oh, I'd certainly like that," Leonard nodded happily.
"Okay, enough with the chatter," Noah interrupted, snatching the key from Harold and jogging ahead. "Let's get this graveyard train a-rolling, boys!" The other boys followed him, but the camera kept its focused on Noah as he passed a tree stump, then a rock; then stepped on a mysterious clump of dirt...which exploded and sent him flying.
His teammates stopped immediately, the shot showing only the shock and occasional glow on their faces as they watched Noah get launched from one land mine to the next off-screen.
The camera finally cut back to him, singed and groaning on the ground in an awkward but still holding the Rats' key. A group of people approached him moments later, but rather than his teammates it was the Maggots; Lindsay brought up their rear. "Hi Nick," she cheerfully stopped to tell Noah, "thanks for clearing those out for us. By the way, have you seen Justin anywhere?"
"No," Noah said bitterly.
"Aww," Lindsay said in disappointment before running off to rejoin her team.
"Well then gentleman," Noah added dryly as his teammates warily approached, "it seems the graveyard train has been delayed." With that and a grunt, his body collapsed into a flatter position.
/
A low, ominous tune played as the scene cut to the lantern-lit cemetery. The camera panned left across its headstones and crosses, several of which were pet-themed, to the entrance as the four remaining Mutant Maggots arrived, huffing and puffing from their run.
"Welcome to the Wawanakwa Pet Cemetery!" Chris greeted them over the loudspeaker.
"Looks like we're first," Jasmine said with the key in her hand, looking around as her teammates started to fan out. "The first clue should be nearby."
"Found it!" Zoey called out moments later, directing her team's attention to a small coffin lying in a small open grave. The camera cut in close as she opened the lid, revealing a ragged piece of paper within bearing a list of numbers: 1 in the first row; in the second; 1 in the third. Notably, while most of the numbers were plain black the three 6s and the 18 were all an eye-catching red.
"Whoa...," Trent said as the perspective cut back to its usual sideview, showing him, Lindsay, and Jasmine reading over Zoey's shoulders. "Three 6s is some baaad mojo, man, even with that 18 in the middle of 'em."
"Don't worry," Jasmine told him, "I'm sure it'll be fine. Now let's split up and search for numbers," she directed her team before taking off into the cemetery alone. Zoey took off in a different direction a few moments later with a rather nervous and bewildered Lindsay following her, leaving Trent all alone.
The musician took a deep breath. "Okay man, you can handle this. You're only in a creepy cemetery in the middle of the night looking for three 6s, it's no big deal." He paused a moment, then took out his lucky rabbit's foot. "But just in case...," he murmured, raising the charm to his forehead and counting as he tapped it, "one-two-three-four-five-six-seven-eight-nine."
/
The scene flashed to Jasmine crouched down, wiping some moss off a headstone. She frowned upon seeing the lack of 6s, stood up and started to back away as an eerie tune played
The music quickly peaked as she bumped into something, which shrieked "Zombie!" as the two spun to face each other.
"Shawn!" Jasmine said upon seeing the scruffy survivalist.
"Oh! It's you!" the veteran player said, quickly calming down a little bit. "Sorry, I'm just a little on-edge being in this cemetery and all. And, uh...what's your name again?" he added, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.
"It's Jasmine," the Aussie said, extending her hand which Shawn promptly but briskly shook. "So, any sightings of that monster?"
"Nice to meet you, Jasmine," Shawn replied. "And to answer your question, not many. And even those are usually just before or after it abducts someone. Unfortunately, it's either too fast or too camouflaged for me to keep track of it in the dark."
"Really?" Jasmine asked. "So who else has been captured besides Justin?"
"Uh, assuming Justin is that Hawaiian guy on your team, then it's just those two girls from the other team."
Jasmine let out an impressed and almost fearful whistle. "I thought as much, but it's still hard to believe they got picked off first."
"Yeah, seeing who they were with I can kinda see what you mean," Shawn said.
/
The scene flashed to Zoey and Lindsay, the redhead looking at a headstone of her own while the blonde stood around behind her looking somewhat lost. "So, umm, what are we looking for again?" she asked.
"Three 6s and an 18, remember?" Zoey answered, standing up from the headstone she'd just determined was blank. "It should be our next souvenir."
"Oh, right," Lindsay nodded happily, but frowning again after a second. "Wait, what about Justin? Shouldn't we be looking for him too?"
"I...guess so," Zoey admitted as she began to check a large cross. She was silent for a minute as Lindsay finally started spinning what looked to be a grave marker in the shape of a hamster wheel, then finally said "Hey, do you think we made the right decision the other night when we voted out Harold?"
Lindsay looked over and raised a brow in thoughtful confusion. "What do you mean? Justin had a point about Harold not really fitting in with the rest of us, and it's not like we were gonna vote out a super hottie like him," he expression briefly turned dreamy, "you know?"
"I guess...," Zoey said uncertainly.
/
"Okay, no black cats or ravens," Trent said warily as he backed through the graveyard clutching his lucky rabbit's foot, "and better yet, no spider monsters. I think I really am safe," he told himself, pausing to smile. "Now, lets see if I can find any numbers..."
He turned around and started examining the nearest headstone, the music building ominously until the shot cut to a view from afar, the footage switching back to infrared. The monster serving as the camera's viewpoint blinked, and when it opened its eyes it had gotten much closer to the musician, and had extended four sharp limbs with tiny claws on the end towards him...
Trent's scream echoed through the cemetery, quickly catching the attention of Shawn, Jasmine, Lindsay, and Zoey as they looked up in shock. "Trent!" the three girls cried out in concern, the footage quickly skipping ahead to show all four arriving at the location the superstitious young man had been snatched from.
"Oh no...," Zoey said in shock, picking up his dropped lucky rabbit's foot.
/
The scene flashed to the Rat boys, who were walking through the pet cemetery in a loose pack, stopping to check the headstones as they passed by. The camera focused on Leonard as he squinted and looked around, quickly spotting something and smiling. "Hark, men!" he called, the camera zooming out to show the others giving him their attention. "My Arcane Eyes of Farsight have detected something secret!" He pointed off to the right, the camera panning over to show a large, grimy coffin propped upright against a couple statues.
"I don't know," Cameron said warily as the four boys approached, "I don't see any 6s."
"Meh," Noah shrugged, walking forward with their key in hand, "it can't hurt to check."
Mere inches from putting the key in the lock, Fang burst out of the coffin with a menacing grin.
"I was wrong!" Noah said in terror. "RRRRUUN!" The four boys ran away screaming.
Fang moved to chase after them, but paused after a single step. The camera moved to his other side as his brow furrowed and he sniffed the air, then growled angrily – showing off his missing tooth.
A strand of spider web shot at him from above and behind, quickly wrapped him up, and moments later the rather startled mutant shark was being dragged off into the night...
/
A flash took the scene back to the four Rat boys, now catching their breath against a statue of a happy-looking dachshund.
"It's a shame my magic powers are being blocked," Leonard lamented. "I easily have enough mana to banish Fang with a simple displacement spell."
"Ssuurree...," Noah said slowly, looking away and rolling his eyes.
"Personally," Harold spoke up, "I'd have thought a transmutation spell more appropriate." Cameron was briefly shown raising an eyebrow at his newest teammate.
Leonard shrugged. "Either-or, I suppose. Now if you don't mind, I'll go check and see if the danger has passed."
He left unopposed, and the camera stayed on the other boys. "Excuse me, Harold?" Cameron spoke up, tapping the dweeb on his shoulder. "You seem to have a better understanding of Leonard than the rest of us. Do you mind sharing your insights into his abnormal mental state?"
"Abnormal?" Harold replied, raising an eyebrow in confusion. "What do you mean abnormal?"
"He means Leonard thinks he's a wizard," Noah clarified.
This just seemed to puzzle Harold even more. "Wait, you guys really didn't see through it?" Now Cameron and Noah were looking confused, but Harold just smiled confidently and stood up – just as Leonard returned.
"Well, no sign of Fang," Leonard told them cheerily.
"Awesome," Harold said, putting a hand on the LARPer's back and gently guiding him to the others. "But before we move on, do you mind talking for a bit out-of-character?"
"Certainly!" Leonard beamed. "In fact, I was beginning to think nobody was gonna ask me that and I was just gonna have to keep up the wizard RP the whole time I was here!"
A flat note played as Cameron and Noah were shown sharing an utterly stunned look, then slowly turning their heads to look back at Leonard. "You mean...the wizard thing..." Noah began to say.
"...was all just some kind of act?" Cameron finished.
"Well duh," Leonard said in mild offense. "I don't really think I have magic."
"Wait, wait, wait," Noah said, pinching the bridge of his nose in irritation. "This still doesn't add up. What kind of guy willingly roleplays during a reality TV competition without telling anybody? Did you want us to vote you out first?"
Leonard drooped sadly, and actually took off his wizard's hat – and beard, for it was attached to the hat. "Look, fellas, here's the thing. Aside from LARPing, I'm not good at much of anything. I really didn't think I'd be able to get on the show if I'd just been my everyday self, and even if I did I figured I just would've been the first one out anyway. But as the goofy wizard kid, then at least I could be a memorable first one out, challenge myself by staying in-character as long as possible, and get to do something I love along the way. And who knows, maybe I could even get some people interested in LARP!"
"Wow," Noah said, sharing another stunned look with Cameron while Harold smiled proudly. "That's almost...respectable, in a really dumb kinda way. Sorry for thinking you were just some kinda screwball."
"And I'm sorry too," Cameron added sheepishly, "for thinking you were something I should study."
"Don't worry about it, I've dealt with worse," Leonard said with a cheerful yet dismissive wave. "But for now," he said, putting his hat and beard back on and adopting a dramatic tone as he raised a fist as a dramatic tune welled up in the background, "onward, to the next artifact!"
"Onward!" Harold chorused, raising a fist of his own.
"Yeah!" Noah and Cameron chimed in, right before a line of webbing shot in from the left, wrapped around Noah's head, and dragged him off with a muffled cry for help.
His three teammates stood there stone silent for a beat with their fists still raised, then broke out screaming and ran in the opposite direction.
/
The scene cut to Chris, who was watching feeds of both teams on a trio of monitors and laughing hysterically as the background music turned low and ominous. "Will anyone make it to the spooky cave?" he turned and asked the camera, holding a covered cup with a straw in it. "And if so, how can they possibly make it all the way to the finish line? Less brain, more pain, when we return!" he said, finishing with a sip of his drink.
(Fade to Commercial and Back)
The episode resumed with a dramatic tune, the shot panning down from yet another shot of the moon onto the three Maggot girls plus Shawn walking warily through the pet cemetery, keeping their backs towards each other.
"You, uh, you don't have to stick with us, you know," Jasmine told the veteran player.
"True," Shawn admitted, "but that spider monster is probably gonna try to pick off you girls so I'd rather stick around."
"Thanks, you're quite the gentleman," Jasmine said with a smile.
"Hey guys," Zoey called out, gaining the attention of both, "I think I found something over here!" The shot zoomed out to reveal that Zoey and Lindsay had separated from the other two, and were now proudly flanking a large headstone. "See?" the indie girl said as the shot came in for a close-up, detailing both a skull mark and a date engraved below it. "June 06, 1806," Zoey read. "That's 6, 6, 18, 6, right?"
"Yeah!" Jasmine said with a smile. "Good eye, and look," the camera cut back to the headstone's close-up as the taller survivalist pointed a finger at the skull mark's oddly-shaped nose hole, "there's a keyhole too."
The shot cut back out to show the whole group as Jasmine eagerly inserted the key, turned it, and was promptly flung backward into Shawn and out of sight by a large, spring-loaded coffin bursting out of a trap door in the ground.
"Oh, heheh, whoops," Jasmine giggled and snorted, now face-to-face on top of Shawn. "Shoulda thought to check for booby traps first," she said as she stood back up.
"Haha, yeah," Shawn said before becoming abruptly more serious. "But seriously, for some reason Chris wants you in zombie territory right now, so you gotta be careful around graves. You never know when a brain-muncher is gonna pop out and drag you into the ranks of the undead."
"Yeah, haha," Jasmine laughed awkwardly, "right. I'll keep that in mind."
"Hey Jasmine!" Zoey called out, getting the two survivalists' attention yet again. "We got flashlights!" The camera cut to the inside of the now-opened coffin, revealing several flashlights standing on a shelf in it.
"Score," Jasmine smiled, rejoining her teammates with a wary-looking Shawn behind her. "Grab 'em and let's head out."
Zoey and Lindsay smiled and scooped up the flashlights, then ran off. Jasmine lingered long enough to close the coffin and shove it back into its hole, then ran off with Shawn.
The music became tense as the camera panned in the opposite direction, eventually stopping on a large tree. After a moment Cameron leaned out from behind it, followed by Leonard stooped over him, and Harold standing over both. The three boys met eyes and nodded, then ran out into the open and to the grave they'd just seen their rivals make use of.
"Okay," Cameron said as Harold slowly reached out to put their key into the keyhole, "we have to do this carefully so we don't get flung."
"Right," Harold nodded, and the three boys moved to the other side of the headstone.
Harold bent over, turned the key, and was flung off-screen when the spring-loaded coffin caught him in the chin. Leonard and Cameron winced at the sound of his crash, and looked at each other when their fellow nerd moaned "I should've been more careful!"
/
The music became tense and trilling as the footage flashed to Shawn and Jasmine standing before the entrance to a cave, the mouth flanked on either side by flags bearing the team logos.
"It's... smaller than I was expecting," Jasmine said with a nervous look.
"Welcome to your final destination!" Chris announced over an unseen loudspeaker, startling both survivalists and laughing evilly before adding "The clue is just inside the entrance...aaand down the tunnel...into total darkness. Good luck! Yooouuu'll neeeeed iiit!"
"You should probably go find your teammates," Shawn told the current camper. "I'll go ahead and check for the monster."
"Right," Jasmine said with a hint of anxiousness, "but before that, do you mind if I ask you something?"
"Uh, sure, I guess?" Shawn answered hesitantly.
"It's about Harold," Jasmine said, quickly adding "he's the redhaired guy on the other team," upon noticing Shawn's blank look. "See, he was actually on my team up until the last elimination ceremony, where we kinda voted him out? Only Chris decided to put him on the Rats instead of sending him home."
"...huh," Shawn said blankly. "Sounds like a heck of a twist."
"Yeah, and its just made me feel awfully guilty since I basically let Justin talk me into voting for the guy when he didn't deserve it," Jasmine said, hanging her head in shame. "I really wanna make it up to him, but I'm not sure how. Do you have any advice?"
Shawn raised an eyebrow. "Well, uh, seeing how I've never been in anything like either of your situations, it's kinda hard to say. But if I had to guess, I'd say apologize to him and vote that Justin guy off. People who use their looks to get their way are bad news, trust me."
"Right," Jasmine said with an embarrassed smile, "I probably should've thought of that myself. I'll just, umm, go find Zoey and Lindsay, okay?"
"You do what you gotta do," Shawn told her calmly, and she ran off without another word. "And I'll do what I gotta do," he said to himself before entering the cave.
/
The scene flashed inside and Shawn peered around, slowly walking into darkness. "Probably should've asked Chris if I could have one of those flashlights," he said right before bumping in to what appeared to be the skeleton of an intern suspended in a web, a note taped to its tattered plaid shirt. "This is probably their clue," Shawn remarked, looking closely at the note then reaching out and lightly touching the web. "Hmm...I wonder...," he said thoughtfully before hearing a skittering sound behind him and stiffening up.
"Who's there?" he shouted, whirling around with his hands in a fighting pose. He was answered by a line of webbing shooting down from the ceiling and wrapping around his body; and he gave the camera a wide-eyed "Crud...," before he was pulled up and away.
/
A hollow, eerie sound played as the scene cut to a close-up of Jasmine's boots as she ran through the graveyard. The camera cut outward as she ran up to Zoey and Lindsay, who were wandering the area with flashlights in their hands, and said "Okay girls, Shawn and I found the cave. Let's move!"
"Right," Zoey nodded, following Jasmine as she turned and ran back the way she'd came.
"Ooh, I can't believe we're gonna do it!" Lindsay squealed happily, running alongside the redhead.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Lindsay," Jasmine cautioned. "We're doing good, but we don't know where the Rats are and we still have to deal with that," she shuddered, "tiny little cave."
Her teammates furrowed their brows and shared a look of concern. "Wait, Jasmine, you're not scared of the cave, are you?"
"Yeah, we have flashlights so it's not like it'll be dark," Lindsay added.
"It's more the tight spaces that I can't stand," Jasmine admitted. "But don't worry about me, I'll be fine, trust me."
Her teammates just shared another nervous look.
/
The scene flashed back to the cave entrance. "Shawn!" Jasmine called out as the shot cut to her, Zoey, and Lindsay standing just inside, flashlights already turned on. "Shawn, where are you?"
"Sorry, Jenna, I don't think he's here anymore," Lindsay said while Zoey moved on ahead.
"I know what is, though," Zoey spoke up, waving for her teammates to join her in front of the intern's skeleton. "The clue!" she said, picking the note off the webbed-up corpse. "'By hook or by crook, the end is near if you look'," she quickly read.
"Okay, now can I be excited that we're gonna do it?" Lindsay asked Jasmine. "Because we totally are."
xxx
"Okay, even though Todd and Justin were totally kidnapped by that spider monster," Lindsay gushed to the confessional, "I am so feeling pumped for this. I mean, sure I have to run around in the dirty cave, but I also get the chance to really do something and show that I'm more than just the prettiest girl on the show!"
xxx
"Ooh! Ooh! I see another something!" Lindsay piped up eagerly as the static cut away to the three Maggot girls walking through the cave, Jasmine hunched over and shivering nervously in the back. The camera panned ahead along their beams of light to show a creepy skull-like rock with several metal hooks sticking out of it, and all three girls smiled.
"Good, these must be the last souvenirs," Jasmine said with a hint of franticness, rushing over to the skull-shaped rock. "Let's take 'em and get outta here."
"Wait, Jasmine, watch out!" Zoey cried out in sudden panic, the music rising sharply as Lindsay gasped in fear.
"Huh?" the taller girl said, looking back nervously just as a line of web shot down from the ceiling and quickly wrapped her up, encasing just about everything but her head. "Oh no," she moaned before getting hauled up by the spider. It hissed at her menacingly but she didn't seem to notice, clenching her eyes shut and squirming against her bonds. "So tight...," she groaned again, and with a hiss of effort the spider tossed her to the side.
She landed on a larger web suspended in the ceiling, and the shot zoomed out to reveal that the others who'd been captured were with her – Gwen, Courtney, Justin, Fang, Noah, Trent, and Shawn.
"Well, there goes our last good chance at getting out of here," Courtney remarked in annoyance.
"Would you stop saying that?" Gwen said, more panicked than any of the other captives save Jasmine. "Being wrapped up like this inside this cave is freaking me out enough as it is!"
"Hey, come on now," Trent said calmly, "I'm sure one of the others will figure something out. The spider can't get all of them, right?"
"I wouldn't count on it," Noah replied.
The shot cut back down to the cave floor, Zoey and Lindsay still looking up nervously just as Harold, Leonard, and Cameron finally arrived on the scene.
"Well, I guess we've found the right place," Leonard commented in a dry shock, moving his flashlight from the hook-bearing skull-rock up to the web full of captives.
"I'll say," Harold added, his knees trembling.
"Oh no," Cameron moaned, hiding behind Harold and looking up at the giant hissing spider, "it's even more hideous and terrifying than I imagined!"
The spider seemed to take offense to that, narrowing its eyes and shrieking. It turned around and shot a line of silk out of its abdomen toward the five campers; all of them shrieked, but only Zoey, Lindsay, Leonard, and Harold were able to duck away in time. The webbing hit Cameron and quickly wrapped him up, and seconds later the spider pulled him up to the ceiling and threw him screaming into the web without a further gesture.
"Oh my gosh, what do we do?!" Lindsay asked in a panic.
"We have to save them!" Zoey answered, not looking remotely confident. She looked around at the others, and added "Maybe if we all work together we can take down that spider and save our teammates?"
"A truce between opposing forces for the greater good?" Leonard questioned. "Perhaps that would allow us to vanquish such a mighty foe," he added, looking upwards.
"Well I don't like it," Harold objected. "How do we know you won't just try to run off and win the challenge while we put our butts on the line?" he motioned to his teammate and himself.
"W-well, you're just gonna have to trust us," Zoey told him.
"Trust you?" Harold scoffed. "After you tried to vote me off? As if."
"Please," Zoey pleaded, "we might need your help to rescue the others!"
The camera panned up to Jasmine and Cameron on the rightmost edge of the web, the former snapping out of her claustrophobia-induced panic to listen in as Harold said "Might?! You want me to trust you and you aren't even sure if I'll be useful?"
"I-I didn't meant it like that..." Zoey tried to say off-screen.
"Oh no," Jasmine moaned softly, "how could I have let this happen?"
"I think we have bigger things to worry about," Cameron spoke up nervously as the music became tense. "SPIDERRRR!" he screamed, the shot cutting outward to show the giant mutant arachnid crawling towards them, its fangs dripping green venom.
"Somebody do something!" Jasmine shouted, earning gasps from the four who hadn't been captured.
"Harold, please!" Zoey told her former teammate again, Lindsay joining in next to her giving the dweeb a pleading look.
The nerd grimaced a bit, then spat out "Fine!" The twos girls gasped happily, then all four began to run off...but only got a few steps each before a panicked murmur dew their attention back up to the web.
The spider was hissing right at Cameron, and the shot cut in for for a close-up of the the boy's sweating, trembling, and utterly terrified face.
And then, with a mighty scream, Cameron burst free of his silken cocoon and tackled the giant spider clear off the web. They swung away on a line of silk attaching the spider to the ceiling, and the bubble-boy began to pound furiously on the back of the mutant's abdomen.
xxx
"Ahhh, adrenaline," Cameron said confidently in the outhouse confessional, his arms crossed proudly, "nature's super strength formula. Someone should really bottle it."
xxx
"Well, I guess that takes care of that," Leonard said blankly as he and the others continued to look up. "I guess all that's left is for one of us to finish the challenge," he turned and told Harold, Zoey and Lindsay looking at them as well.
"Oh yeah," Lindsay said, looking over in the direction of the hook-bearing skull-rock.
"Don't you think we should at least wait until the others are free?" Harold asked his teammate.
"Hey, I thought you didn't want to rescue them," Zoey asked in disbelief as the camera zoomed in on her and the two boys.
"No," Harold corrected, "I just didn't want to work with someone I can't trust anymore."
"Excuse me, Harold?" Leonard interrupted, earning the attention and annoyance of both redheads. "Pardon the interruption, but the fair Maggot Princess has already procured their final souvenir," he said, motioning to the side.
The camera panned to the skull-rock, revealing that Lindsay had already pulled a hook from it. "Woo! Yeah!" she cheered, excitedly giving the hook a kiss.
Harold and Zoey gasped. "Fear not, I shall defeat her!" Leonard declared, pushing up his sleeves and running off towards the skull-rock as well.
"Wait, no, stop!" Courtney hurriedly called out from the web as she and the others watched Leonard pull a hook from the stone and hold it above him dramatically while Lindsay, still present, watched on. "You're gonna make us lose!" Courtney finished her objection.
Leonard huffed in annoyance. "No I'm not," he countered matter-of-factly. "I'm doing the opposite of that, just watch!" He quickly looked around, spotting a zipline tied to a nearby stalagmite that led down over an underground cliff. He smiled and ran towards it while the dramatic background music rose up, and after a few moments Lindsay gasped and chased after him.
The two managed to reach the start of the line at about the same time, but Leonard was just able to hook himself onto the line and took off just as Courtney cried out "Leonard, NO!"
Lindsay sent a nervous look backward, then hooked herself onto the line and jumped off as well.
"No...," Courtney whispered, a look of shock on her face. Next to her, Gwen was sweating and trembling with her lip bit and her eyes clenched shut. The camera panned over to Jasmine who was looking rather panicked as well, then to the ground as Harold and Zoey made moves to follow their teammates...
...until a sudden cry of "LET ME OUT OF HERE ALREADY!" from Gwen and Jasmine shook the cavern, and startled the two redheads into turning back again.
The music picked up as they raced towards the cave walls and began to climb up, but the shot quickly cut to Cameron and the spider, then diminutive young man now jumping up and down on the mutant's back.
"Stop being such a bully!" he told it. "You can't hurt me anymore!" The shot cut to the stalactite the spider's line was attached to, the rock beginning to crack. "I mean it," Cameron continued, "get lost!"
With one final jump the silk line snapped, sending him and the spider to the floor and causing rocks to fall from the ceiling. Harold and Zoey coughed and dropped from the wall and those stuck in the web screamed as dust filled the air, and there was an ominous snap followed by thuds and grunts. The dust dissipated to reveal that all the captives – and indeed the web itself – had fallen to the cave floor.
Several groans filled the air as everyone tried to recover, the silken prisons beginning to unravel.
/
The scene cut to near-complete darkness, lit only by the eyes of some unknown creatures – and two known ones, based on their screams. Leonard and Lindsay zipped through the darkness screaming, and soon enough made it to the other side – a smaller tunnel in the side of a cliff face, with the zip line tied to the end of a small stalactite on an overhang just outside. Leonard arrived first and dropped when his hook slammed into the end of the line; Lindsay arrived moments later, and landed on top of the wizard when her hook slammed to a stop as well.
The shot panned down to them as they quickly shook away the effects of the impact and started to get to their feet. "Wow, I can't believe I really got here first!" the LARPer said, dusting off his robes.
"And I'm surprised that both teams made it out," Chris chimed in, walking up from the left and looking the two over. "Mostly, anyway. Today's winning team iiiiss," he announced, pausing for effect as victorious music began to build, "the Maggots!"
Lindsay immediately squealed and clapped in victory, but Leonard just looked dumbfounded. "What?" he asked. "But I got here first!"
"True," the host admitted, "but remember when I said stick together, 'cause there'd be a penalty for each team member you lost?" He placed a hand on Leonard's shoulder, and said "Yeah, you lost five out of six while Lindsay only lost four out of five. So, the Maggots totally win!"
"Woo hoo!" Lindsay cheered.
"But...but we each still only have one member," Leonard objected. "This isn't fair!"
"Hey, if you'd stayed behind and helped bring even one more teammate with you, you'd have won even with arriving second," Chris told him. "It's your fault for jumping the gun."
Leonard bit his lip in disbelief, then raised both hands and intoned "Time Reversal Spell!"
All that happened was that the music scratched to a halt and Chris and Lindsay gave him confused looks.
"Yeah, I knew that wouldn't work," Leonard said, hanging his head in depressed defeat.
/
The scene cut back to the cave as Cameron approached the camera coughing. He looked down as an eerie tune played, and gasped. "It can't be?!" The music rapidly grew more tense as the perspective inverted and the camera panned across what looked like a canister of artificial webbing, nuts and bolts and the tattered remains of a spider costume, and the all-too-familiar legs and torso and arms and groaning head of...
"Izzy!" Cameron exclaimed, getting the immediate attention of the other campers still nearby – as well as the unbound Fang, who promptly growled.
"Boo! Hahaha...," Izzy laughed, holding her head as she got to her feet. "Nice to have some fun with you guys again, but I gotta go!" she said, giving Cameron and the others a quick salute before running off into the caves, an angry Fang quickly chasing after her.
The other teens just watched them go with wide eyes and gaping mouths.
"...huh," Shawn said after a moment.
xxx
"Well, I guess I've been cured of my arachnophobia," Cameron told the confessional camera as he calmly allowed a small purple spider to descend down onto his finger. "Although now I'm completely terrified of Izzy..," he added with a fretful look.
xxx
The scene cut to the six members of the Toxic Rats sitting by the campfire pit once again – Cameron and Courtney in the front row closest to Chris; Noah and Gwen roughly behind them; and Harold and Leonard on the far left.
"Looks like as hard as you tried, you just couldn't avoid coming back here for long," Chris taunted them as a few deep notes opened the background music. "A shame, too – you seemed to be doing so well for a minute there. But hey," he shrugged jovially, "I guess you just can't shake the loserdom that easily."
"Could you stop rubbing it in and get on with it already?" Courtney asked.
"Yeah, and where's that brick wall of muscle and rage you call a chef?" Noah chimed in.
"Maybe the toxic marshmallows got him," Gwen suggested, earning a smirk from Noah.
"Actually, Chef's out trying to catch Izzy again," Chris explained with a stern glare. "Luckily, we have a back-up," he added with a smile, turning to the side as a much shorter person in a hazmat suit arrived holding the usual strongbox in the usual tongs.
"Okay," Shawn said through the helmet, "this can not have been in my contract for the episode."
"You'd be surprised," Chris told him plainly before smiling and turning back to the six campers. "Anyway, on to the votes! The following campers are safe: Gwen. Noah. Cameron. And Harold."
One by one the four Rats were tossed their utterly ordinary marshmallows, until only Leonard and Courtney remained. With only empty seats between them the two immediately locked eyes, the LARPer sweating nervously under the former CIT's glare.
"And the Marshmallow of Toxic Loserdom goes to...," the host said as the elimination music rose up, "Leonard."
"Aww, really?" Leonard said in disappointment. "I thought I was really coming around to you guys."
"Well, it's not like we still don't like you," Cameron admitted.
"That little out-of-character chat earlier did win you some points," Noah added.
"But only with the guys," Courtney interrupted sternly. "Look, Leonard, I'm sure you're an okay and tolerable guy and all, but the thing is that you cost us the challenge today, and we just can't justify keeping you around. So...no hard feelings, okay?"
"But...but I thought I had a secret ally!" Leonard added, standing up and fishing the note he'd received earlier out of his sleeve. "There was a note and everything!"
Noah leaned over and snatched the note from him, and read it with a bored expression. "Yeah, because you can totally trust a mysterious note to have your back," he told his fellow nerd. "I mean, did you even get any follow-up from it?"
Leonard sighed and hung his head. "No..."
"Then I guess you're still going home," Gwen told him.
"I'll miss you, comrade in the world you magic and adventure," Harold stood and said, giving Leonard a sympathetic pat on the back.
/
The scene flashed to the Dock of Shame, Leonard already in the catapult's bucket with Chris, Shawn, and his former teammates standing nearby.
"Well, I guess this is goodbye," Leonard said. "May your quest for the Dragon's Eye bare many fruits, my friends. That's, uh, a Dwarvish saying meaning I hope you do well in competing for the million," he clarified.
The shot cut to the Rat boys, and Harold in particular, as they smiled and nodded. Leonard smiled and waved, and was promptly Hurled into the night with a scream.
Chris sighed happily. "I love doing that," he commented before clapping his hands in satisfaction, turning around, and freezing when he saw Shawn. "Oh yeah," he deadpanned, "I forgot you were still here."
"Look, am I getting paid for tonight or what?" Shawn asked.
Chris sighed in exasperation. "Well, seeing how you failed to catch the monster, which turned out to be one of this season's losers anyway...I'd say no! But," he smirked impishly, "I am in a good mood right now, so I'll provide transportation off the island free of charge."
"Uhh...," Shawn said uncertainly, and a clockwipe put him in the bucket of the Hurl of Shame. "This isn't really what I was hoping for..."
The shot cut out as a few footsteps were heard on the dock, revealing that the Rats had left and that Jasmine had just arrived.
"Oh hey, come to see me off?" Shawn asked with a smile.
"Yeah," Jasmine smiled back. "It was, y'know, nice to meet you. Maybe...we can see each other again sometime?"
"Yeah," Shawn smiled, "I think I'd like that."
Chris was shown pursing his lips and rubbing his chin in serious thought, then shrugged and smirked. "Well, that's enough of that," he said, pulling the catapult's lever and flinging the former contestant into the night with a startled scream.
"Wanna know who I'm gonna catapult off the island next?" he turned and asked the camera as the capstone theme began to play, Jasmine staring sadly at the sky behind him. "You'll have to come back and find out, right here on Total! Drama! Revenge, of the Island!"
(Fade to Credits)
Author's Note - Post Script
And thus we come to Leonard's elimination. I will admit, had it not been for the early swap last week he almost certainly would've been eliminated next week instead, but ultimately I figured it would work better if he was eliminated here in an almost tragic manner - not because he was annoying, but because even though he'd gained some friends he still messed up and cost them the challenge.
I hope the whole 'Leonard doesn't actually think he's a wizard, he was just deeply in character' thing doesn't, like, off-put anyone or anything. It's how I've intended to portray him from the start, since honestly the whole 'taking what was presented of him in canon at face-value and saying he's delusional but never really exploring what that would really mean' just seems like really lazy writing to me. Either figure out what it would really mean to have someone be legitimately delusional, or figure out some other way to explain his behavior like I have.
It may not all have been made explicit in the story, but this is how I think of the Shuffled version of Leonard: He;s a lot like Harold, in that he's a nerd with a penchant for the dramatic. But unlike Harold, Leonard is more specialized in his focus and is much less confident in himself outside of LARP. So while he likes Total Drama and wanted to get on the show, he didn't think his non-wizard self would be enough to get on, much less do well. But at some point, he came up with the idea that maybe if he applied while in-character, it would be enough - which it was, obviously. And once on the show, he figured he'd try to keep up the act for as long as he could, figuring that he'd be an early boot anyway. Because hey, if you know it's gonna happen, why not have some fun with it? So he basically decided to just roleplay in the game as a challenge, while also leaving an out for himself that he'd drop the act if someone asked him to in the right way. And even while he was in-character, he still tried to come up with ways for that part of him to mesh with the others and maybe get a little further in the game - his alliance with Izzy, toning down his spellcasting in a way that made sense in-character, and just generally trying to be helpful.
And personally, writing him like this has given me a greater appreciation for the dramatic little dork, and even knowing he was gonna be an early boot I enjoyed myself writing him, and I think maybe some of you readers enjoyed him as well. Ultimately, how well a character fares in the story depends a lot on the author's mindset in writing them - if you think they're annoying, they will be annoying. If you think they're pretty funny, then maybe that'll just rub off on them in text.
In a sense, Leonard is kind of like an inverted Mike - rather than someone with a serious psychological disorder that plays himself up like he's an actor, Leonard is an actor who people think has a serious psychological disorder.
Let's see, what else...well, the note thing will be brought up at a later time. I know it's a little cliche, but it's something I wanted to experiment with.
Izzy being the spider here just seemed to be so obvious a choice to me, and is part of the reason why I made her an early boot.
The second to last thing I want to mention right now is how the events of this episode ended up making me decide to move the Harold swap earlier. Well, basically, I figured that between the spider kidnappings and Shawn being around to distract her a bit, there's no way Justin would have been able to get Jasmine to vote out Harold, meaning there wouldn't be enough votes to get rid of the guy, meaning I'd either have to swap someone else (which would, in retrospect, have to be Leonard in order to get the two on the same team), or I'd have to move the swap earlier. Which, of course, it what I did.
And the last thing I want to mention? Well, there's an...interesting little poll on my profile that I'd like you all to check out and vote on. Note that I'm not gonna bind myself to the results, it's more a way for me to gauge the opinions of my readers. Late edit: Apparently, Polls aren't visible on a profile by default, but I've fixed that so it should be up now.
Until next week, I look forward to hearing from all of you.
- Fangren
Appendix: TSROTI Eliminated Contestants
Cody - (13th Place)
Izzy - (12th Place | Still AWOL)
Leonard (11th Place)
