Hey, sorry this took so long to write. I've been sick for the past three weeks and have not been well enough to have even begun to write the beginning of this chapter. And with all the school work I've had to catch up on, it's not been a pleasant month.
Then again, that's what I have yous guys and gals for. I honestly would not have written this story had I not gotten some beautiful, wonderful, and down right funny reviews and comments about the past chapter. So, here I am now.
Oh, before I forget! The challenge idea for this chapter came from a reader by the name of Nomnomasaur. Give them a round of applause!
As always, comment, review, suggest, and request down below!
Onwards!
"Last time, on Total Drama: Pahkitew's Vengeance! In a challenge where each member of opposing team had to get up on stage and sing their hearts out, we found some surprising things about our contestants; Alan actually knows how to sing, Maurananei can actually survive without her man, and Kiko is full of surprises. And, in an ironic twist that pulled at the heart strings, Kiko ended Micheal and Caroline's sweet relationship with a simple kiss!" Chris announced. "But it was Tajira, not Kiko and her fully functional Animatrix, that went home!"
"Will Wilson's plan succeeded? Just how long can Kiko keep things under wraps? And will Micheal and Caroline ever get back together before the season ends?" Chris asked the camera with a smug grin. "I seriously doubt it. But, that doesn't mean you should! So stick around for the more dramatic bonfire ceremony yet! On Total! Drama! Pahkitew's Vengeance!"
(theme song plays)
The mood around the camp was depressing, to say the least.
No one had spoken much after the events of the last challenge, not even for the three days they had to themselves. Those times were spent in near total silence and isolation from each other; Wilson, back to normal after the last challenge, was utterly confused to what had happened and had been trying to find someone, anyone would explain what had happened to him; Toni and Paul had been spending most of the time together, simply enjoying each others company and too worried for their friends to get passionate; Alan had unconsciously been spending more and more time with Maurananei, who actually seemed to enjoy the moments she shared with the awkward, little pervert. When he wasn't tempted to stare at her that is; Trey was usually found by himself, playing his guitar down by the beach; Zelda was desperately searching for Kiko, though she often questioned herself why she was doing so when Kiko clearly disowned her during the challenge; Mitchell had mostly been on his own or with Anuok, trying to help her find their missing friends with little success.
In fact, Micheal and Caroline seemed to have disappeared altogether without leaving a trace of evidence to their whereabouts. Even Chris and Chef, who had eyes everywhere watching the contestants from every angle, didn't seem to have a clue where they were, though they could only confirm they were still on the island for unknown reasons; Anuok had her suspicions, but decided not to push it.
Kiko was the only one who simply wasn't under the weather, and it wasn't hard to guess why. Not only had her secret alliance with Zelda paid off, but she had separated the power couple of the season with ease, and it was all thanks to the little, purple watch that sat on her wrist. And she was enjoying every minute of it. When she wasn't dodging the food that was thrown at her during meals or ignoring the poisonous glares the other contestants gave her, she could often be found using her new weapon in secret; and the fact was that she didn't care.
No matter how many trays of mystery meat she had to run from, no matter how many times she often found fire ants in her bed, she never once in the least felt sorry about what she had done. Not even the lonesome cries of a wolf off in the distance could deter her. And the thing was, those howls had only started after the challenge she had won in.
Confessional
"I can't say I approve of what Kiko did," Maurananei began. "Okay, I totally don't approve of it. I may be heartless and rather rough at times, but I don't bother with relationships. Next time we lose, she's going home."
Change Confessional
"When I get my claws on Kiko, the doctor won't know what side to sow her traitorous lips back on!" Toni roared.
Change Confessional
"Normally I'm not a vengeful guy," Mitchell said rather uncomfortably; whether this was due to the smell of the outhouse or strictly how he was feeling was up to debate. "But I swear, I am going make Kiko's remaining days here a living hell." he finished darkly, a ball of flame appearing in his hand. Only then, did he realize his mistake as a sudden explosion filled the outhouse, destroying the camera.
End Confessional
"What was that?" Alan wondered aloud. He and Maurananei, simply enjoying each others company because there was nothing else to do, were out on the lake paddling a canoe around in aimless circles.
"I dunno, but that sounded like an explosion of some kind if I ever heard one," Maurananei replied, dipping her oar in the water. "And let me just say that I've heard plenty before I came onto this show."
"Do ya think Chef might be getting a bit more . . . experimental . . . with his cooking?" Alan asked fearfully.
"If that BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! knows what's good for him, he won't." Maurananei growled, her grip tightening around her oar until it suddenly snapped in half and both ends fell into the lake.
Alan gulped. "Uh, I'm no expert on people's emotions, but I'm pretty sure you're upset about something." he observed.
"Is it that obvious?"
"It was even more obvious when you threw your lunch back at Chef and forced his head into the vat of stuff he was trying to feed us." Alan replied, turning the canoe away from the island and trying to push it forward; it was rather ineffective considering they only had one paddle.
"All I can say is, he better be glad he's only number two on my list of people I hate right now." Maurananei frowned, folding her arms over her bust; Alan averted his eyes, wanting to remain in one piece and not suffer a fate worse than what Reese had gone through.
"Yeah, I can't believe Kiko would go that far," Alan muttered. "I haven't seen any sign of Caroline since the challenge, and Micheal just vanished after the bonfire."
"Can't Toni just change into a dog or something and pick up their scent?" Maurananei wondered.
Alan shook his head. "Tried that right after the fire; she can't get anything on them. It's as if they never existed and all that's left are memories."
"What about Ms. See-into-the-Future?"
"Anuok hasn't found anything. And if she has, she isn't saying anything."
"She never says anything, you idiot." Maurananei said with a small smile.
Alan feigned injury. "Oh, you hurt me with your jest! I shall die right here and now!" he said with mock drama. Maurananei cracked a smile and stole the oar away from him, turning the canoe around and heading back to shore.
"What, you don't like my acting?" Alan pouted.
Maurananei shook her head. "Nah, just hungry."
"Think you can manage to keep your food on your tray this time?" Alan joked.
Maurananei rolled her eyes. "I am never going back there. I'm just gonna eat what I find in the woods. I mean, the original Pahkitew cast did it, so it can't be that hard. Man, I wish I had some fish right now." she muttered to herself after hearing her bellowing stomach. As if granted a magic wish from an invisible genie, a massive salmon was thrown out of the water and smacked Alan in the face, dropping to the bottom of the boat where it flopped about as the two contestants starred at it, stunned.
"Wow. Can you call 'em, or can you call 'em?" Alan grinned as Maurananei furiously whacked the dying fish over the head with her oar to put it out of its misery. It was only then that they noticed that their canoe was slowly but steadily moving back to the shore by itself, like someone was pushing it.
"Look!" Alan suddenly exclaimed, pointing behind them. Maurananei jerked her head up from the salmon to see a large, green fin sticking up out of the water behind the boat, looking like it belonged to some kind of large fish. The fin then seemed to realize it was noticed and quickly slipped beneath the surface of the water. Alan looked over the side to see something the size of a large man moving beneath the surface before quickly swimming away from the boat and off into the distance, where a large creature leaped out of the water in a wet spray. It was rather far away, but Alan could swear the large sea creature had a fish's tail, a pair of muscled arms, and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth that looked capable of ripping clean through steel with ease.
"Was that-" Maurananei began, stunned.
"Quick! Get back to shore! We've gotta tell the others!" Alan exclaimed. Without hesitation, Maurananei thrust her oar into the water and powered them to shore, not stopping when they crashed onto the beach and easily powering the canoe across the sand, up the shore, and into the campgrounds with Alan at the helm, pointing forward. All in all, it was pretty comical.
"So lemme get this straight," Toni began as she forcefully dragged towards the docks by Maurananei with Alan and Paul jogging behind them, trying to keep up. "You were out on the lake and wished for some fish, when a fish suddenly fell from the sky, given to you by Micheal?"
"No," Maurananei corrected her. I was out on the lake and wished for some fish when a fish from the lake fell into the boat. And yes, I'm pretty sure Micheal gave it to us."
"Why would he do that?" Toni asked as they finally came to a stop on the dock.
"I dunno, but you have to find him before he gets away! And quickly!" Maurananei roared, shoving the girl into the water with a splash. Normally, Toni would have done the same thing back, but she decided to let the movement slide and instead focused on an image in her head. And the changes soon began.
The first thing that happened was her skin. It went from a smooth, slightly rough mocha brown to a shiny, rubbery gray in color and texture. Her skull began to scrunch and compress as her jawbones began to bulge outward into a bottle-nose beak as her arms were slowly being sucked back into her body, looking like dried out pieces of spaghetti with massive hands hanging limp from them. Her organs started to slosh and grow and shrink inside her as her skeleton ground and crunched against itself. A triangular dorsal fin started to sprout out from the middle of her back as her arms disappeared altogether, leaving just her hands to move feebly at her side. Her spine began to stretch out as her hands became larger and more triangular in shape, her fingers fusing together into smooth flippers as the dorsal fin got bigger and slightly rounded at the tip. Her left leg suddenly wrapped itself around her right leg, like a coil of rope; it looked painful and it should have been excruciating, but for some reason it wasn't. All of it was completely painless.
Her snout continued to move outwards a few centimeters at a time now as her teeth became sharper and more cone-shaped. Her nose was sucked into her as her eyes rotated to either side of her head, giving her a wider range of vision. Not that it mattered; her eyesight wasn't exactly the greatest. She felt an opening, a hole of sorts suddenly appear in her neck, connecting itself to her lungs as a flap kept the hole shut tight, preventing any air from escaping as she continued to morph. Her legs were now fused together into a single limb as her feet became flat and fleshy, forming into triangles that ran horizontally in the water. The final piece of her transformation was her head, as her skull was pushed forward by her massive brain. It only grew slightly bigger than her human brain, but it was far more adept where underwater survival was concerned.
Toni blinked her new eyes and furiously pumped her tail, pushing herself towards the surface where she could see the sparkling sunlight from beneath the waves. And then suddenly, she was out of the water and into the slightly warm air of the surface, a good half a dozen feet out of the water as the hole on her head instinctively opened and sucked in some air as she clicked and whistled happily, her friends watching from the docks with happy and wistful looks. She reentered the water with a splash before pumping her tail and leaping out of the water again, waving a flipper as she came back down again. With a cheerful laugh that could only be made by one animal on the planet, the bottlenose dolphin swam away from the shore, filling the water with low frequency clicks and whistles, a sonar of sorts, that she was using to search her surroundings. Toni sent out a low burst of clicks and razes, the sound passing through her melon and out into the water. A few minutes later, she felt a tingling sensation in her jawbone as the vibrations came back and traveled to her inner ear. A sudden image appeared in her head, a black and white picture of her surroundings. She repeated the process much more quickly now and sooner got a much more clearer image in her head, something like a very old black and white flip book.
To her left were some rocks and shallower water leading to the shore. To her right was deeper water and school of fish. In front of her was the empty expanse of the lake, with not much in it; she opted to continue moving forward, twisting her head from side to side to widen her vision in the hopes of finding her friend.
She searched for what seemed like hours circling around the lake, using her echolocation to search the lake around the island; she had little success. In what success she did find, all she was able to do was get fuzzy images in her head of a large creature moving off at the very end of her vision. By the time she was able to get far enough to possible pick it up on her radar, it was long gone. With a mental sigh, she beat her tail against the lake bottom and pushed towards the surface, breaking the liquid barrier and sucking in air without the usual glorious leap she had enjoyed before.
She concentrated on another image in her head and felt the changes quickly begin. Arms suddenly sprouted from her sides, her dolphin flippers stuck at the end as her new, human arms thickened and grew muscles as her flipper separated into five digits of varying lengths. Her pointed snout crunched back into her face, becoming flat once more as her human lips and teeth emerged. The dorsal fin retracted into her back as the hole in her head filled with flesh as her nose came back into existence. With what little strength she had, she pumped her still dolphin tail and broke the surface once more, sucking in precious air as her changing eyes rotated towards the front of her face. Her tail suddenly split in half into two strong legs that grew fat at the end as bones started to grow within them, ten toes in all sprouting at the ends. Her rubbery, gray skin turned mocha brown once more as fine, dark brown hair sprouted from her scalp as her outfit thankfully returned to her.
Now that that was out of the way, she focused on a second image in her head. Her mocha skin began to horribly blister as feather patterns formed all over her body, thousands of quills suddenly popping out at the same time. Her head, back, chest, arms, legs, all of them suddenly sprouted feathers like she in a stop-action film of plants growing. Her lips grew as hard as fingernails, pouting outwards into a sharp, hooked beak. Her arms and fingers stretched outwards, her fingers molding together into fine points as the joints in her arms loudly repositioned themselves. She was shrinking all the while, her toes all molding together in three larger ones that were perfectly for grasping things as sharp, hooked talons formed on the ends. Her heel ground and shifted as a fourth toe grew out from behind her, also sporting a razor sharp talon as her feet and ankles hardened and became krusty. Long tail feathers sprouted from the base of her spine as a small bump of flesh on her butt became her tail as her feathers turned black on top and snowy white and gray under her. Flight feathers suddenly popped into existence on her arms, completing the transformation as her eyes turned golden and sharpened to almost a thousand times better than they were before.
With several quick flaps of her large wings and kicks of her taloned feet, the osprey took to the air, shaking its wings to get the excess water out of them as it flapped them to gain altitude. Soon, she was soaring over the island with her six foot wingspan, staring downwards towards the water. Unlike most birds of prey, unless they happened to eat a lot of fish, ospreys had eyes specially designed to see beneath the surface of the lake as it flew overhead, perfect for spotting schools of fish. And once a fish was found, it could tuck in its wings and dive towards the water before suddenly kicking its feet and slamming into the fish, digging its talons into the flesh and lifting off of the water with its prize.
In a way, she was also searching for a fish. Or something like a fish. Based on Alan and Maurananei's descriptions, Micheal had turned into the fish-man that she had seen on their first day on the island. That day seemed so long ago, when they were all so new to each other and uncomfortable around each other. Now, it seemed like they had almost known each other for a life time. She had become friends with virtually everyone, and this worried her a little. What would become of them after their wild ride on Total Drama ended? What would happen to her friendships? Her relationship with Paul? Would she be forgotten so easily like a few of the previous Total Drama contestants had?
Her thoughts were shaken from her when movement caught her eye. It wasn't in the water, no it was far above it. She focused her sharp eyes on the iconic 1,001 foot tall cliff that towered over the island, giving it the iconic look that everyone had come to know. Amongst the sparse trees that covered its slope, she could see a figure slowly walking up the mountain towards the very edge. She pumped her wings and steered herself in for a closer look, her eyes quickly picking up who it was; the oversized sweatshirt was unmistakable.
She watched, curious, as Caroline walked to the very edge of the cliff and paused, watching a few stray pebbles tumble over the edge and into the surf below with almost microscopic splashes; Toni saw it all in high definition. And what happened next nearly threw her out of the sky.
Caroline jumped off the cliff.
With a loud screech, Toni tucked in her wings and shot off after the tumbling girl as she fell closer and closer to the water below. The tide was out, leaving the shore mostly barren with small pools scattered here and there. Mostly however, there very big, very hard rocks covering the shoreline beneath the cliff. Her mind racing, Toni quickly caught up with Caroline's falling form and saw every detail of the small girl with her sharp eyes. Everything from her long, wavy brown hair that rushed past her red face to her closed eyes. Her body was completely loose and limp, as if she had given up absolutely everything in life. And she most likely had.
But not if Toni had anything to say about it. Another loud screech escaped from her black beak and she stuck out her legs, sinking her talons into the soft material of Caroline's sweatshirt. She glanced down at the girl and noticed she hadn't moved at all. Ignoring Caroline, Toni opened her wings and nearly felt them torn out of their sockets from the amount of force being pushed down on her. She fruitlessly flapped her wings, struggling to slow Caroline's fall as the ground edged closer and closer. It was hopeless though; raptors were built to glide, not power. Now out of ideas, she opened her wings and turned them horizontal, allowing the wind and air to push up on them gain her a little altitude. She turned her body and Caroline towards the right, thanking her lucky stars there was strong wind that pushed her towards the forest. It wasn't enough to prevent injury, but with luck they would both live. The ground came closer and closer until it was only a few feet beneath her. Toni had no choice but to let go, and she released her hold on Caroline's sweatshirt, the snap back almost sending her into unconsciousness as her wings were nearly, very nearly, retched out of their sockets. She recovered and watched as Caroline tumbled to the ground, rolling for a couple yards before crashing into the trunk of a large tree, not even moving the entire time.
Worry now coursed through her as she soared down to the ground and landed on the soft grass. She focused on her human self and felt the changes begin as her feathers sucked into her body. She shot straight upwards, her legs becoming terrifyingly long compared to the rest of her body as they bent forward into the familiar joints. Her arm reconstructed itself as fingers formed on the ends and the flight feathers disappeared. Her talons split into five toes, her fourth talon sucking back into her foot and becoming her heel once more as hooked beak pushed back in on itself and formed soft lips as her head became large bulbous. Her clothes reappeared on her body as the last of her feathers disappeared and her golden colored eyes turned light brown.
She bent down and picked up Caroline's frail form in her hands, holding her ear to her chest and sighing with relief when she heard a steady beat. She held her close as Caroline buried her head into her shoulder and started to sob uncontrollably, soaking the clothing. Toni didn't care as she rubbed the girl's back and whispered kind words into her ears as the elements raged around them in their usual manner.
"Why?" Caroline managed to croak; her throat was dry and her eyes were red and puffy from so much crying.
"Why what?" Toni asked.
"Why did you save me?" Caroline sniffed.
"Anyone with any sense would have saved you," Toni told her. "Now tell me, why in the name of God's green earth did you decide to commit suicide?"
Caroline turned silent for a minute, casting her eyes down towards the ground as Toni continued to hold her. "Because I've got nothing left to live for," she eventually said. "All the kids bully me at school, my parents completely ignore me unless they want me to do something for them, and my boyfriend just cheated on me on international television. What else have I got to lose?" she sniffed, tucking her legs tight up against her chest and hugging herself as she sobbed once more.
"What about us? Your friends here on the island?" Toni asked.
"Like anyone would want to keep in contact with me." Caroline's muffled voice came. "I'm just an animal loving loser that nobody cares about!"
"But I do care about you! We all do!" Toni protested.
"Oh, sure. If we went to the same high school together you'd probably want to hang out with me." Caroline sniffed sarcastically, eventually raising her head to look at Toni with tear stained cheeks.
"I would!" Toni assured her.
"How do I know you're not lying? How do I know you aren't just saying this so you'll drag me into an alliance? How do I know you won't treat me like garbage like everyone else has, huh? Answer me that!" Caroline cried, fresh tears streaming down her cheeks again.
Toni paused. How could she prove to Caroline she wasn't lying? She liked the girl, she really did. She was a kind, sweet person who loved animals as much as she did. How could she possible prove to someone who had been hurt and ridiculed her whole life that she was different?
Then, on an impulse to simply prove to crying girl wrong, Toni lunged forward and pinned Caroline to the ground with the stature of a hungry lion, pinning her shoulders and legs to ground and restricting her movement as she attempted to move. Toni ignored the screams of mercy Caroline cried as she bent down towards her head, a glint in her eyes.
"Don't move." she instructed in a low voice that sent a shiver down Caroline's spine when it was whispered into her ear. Toni then moved a little lower, towards Caroline's neck and chose a section that wouldn't cause any injury to her main system. She opened her mouth and probed the fleshy skin with the tip of her tongue, recoiling at the taste of human flesh but pushing herself on. Once she found a suitable spot, she opened her mouth wide and grew her canines a little longer and sharper.
And then she bit Caroline.
The girl didn't move as Toni sank her teeth into her neck, merely only gasping as Toni twisted her head slightly. The teeth sunk deep into her skin, waves of pain coursing through her body as Toni did her work. The shape-shifter hated the taste of blood, but what she was doing to Caroline was necessary. She loosened her jaws a little and dipped the tip of her tongue into the red tissue, her tongue soaking up the blood like a sponge before she retracted it back into her mouth; her human half hated the taste, but her other half, the animal side of her, relished it. It wanted more, but Toni quickly suppressed the urge to continue feeding.
She then climbed off of Caroline and allowed the girl to climb to her feet and edge away a few feet to stare at her with confusion and fear in her eyes.
"This is a sign of trust in my family," Toni began. "That bite will easily heal, but it will permanently scar. The venom will assure that."
"Venom?" Caroline trembled.
"Don't worry. Completely harmless," Toni brushed it off. "But this will signal to all that know it that you are my life-long friend and that I will never abandon you for any reason. I will forever be friends with you, for as long as I live, and anyone that hurts you will know my wrath. That I will make sure of," Toni practically recited. "This is my ultimate sign of trust."
Caroline stared wide-eyed at Toni, completely stunned, but the shape-shifter wasn't done yet. "In order for the ceremony, so to speak, to be complete, you must repeat the action. Only then can I truly trust you and you trust me." Toni said, cocking her head to the side, exposing a large patch of fresh skin for Caroline to bite as she waited.
"Um, what?"
"Bite me." Toni said simply, waiting.
"You seriously want me to bite you?" Caroline sniffed, wiping her eyes.
Toni patiently nodded her head; indeed, the idea sounded a little odd, but if she was ever going to get Caroline to ease up, she needed to trust someone and except that she had a friend for life. And who knows? She might decide to extend the offer to their other friends.
"Are you sure?" Caroline asked cautiously, ready to be turned down like always. Toni nodded her head a second time, pointing out she had already bitten Caroline. Her body trembling, Caroline edged forward and up to Toni, who didn't move a muscle as Caroline moved her head towards her neck. "Wait, I don't have any fangs or venom like you do." Caroline suddenly remembered.
"It will scar on my skin anyways," Toni simply said. "Now hurry up before Chris ruins the moment."
Caroline nodded her head and hesitated for a brief moment before biting Toni's neck as furiously as possible, which really wasn't much; to Toni, it like being bitten by a mosquito. As Caroline attempted to at least draw blood like her friend had done, Toni remained perfectly still, patiently waiting as Caroline suddenly tensed and Toni could feel something warm starting to drip from her neck.
"Drink some," Toni instructed. "It may sound gross, but that's how it's done."
She felt Caroline's tongue edge out between her teeth and tentatively lick the wound before shooting back into her mouth, the precious liquid sliding her throat rather uncomfortably. She then quickly scrambled off of Toni after realizing she had been hovering rather uncomfortably over her for a few awkward seconds.
"So, we're now friends?" Caroline asked shakily.
"For as long as we live," Toni agreed, pulling the startled girl into a hug. Caroline froze for a few seconds before returning the gesture, relishing how good it felt to finally, after so many years of hatred, bitterness, and utter betrayal, to finally have a friend. And for life, for that matter.
"Where the heck are they?" Chris wondered aloud, tapping his foot with incredible impatience. It had been nearly a half hour since he had called the contestants to meet him at the bonfire, and only Paul, Mitchell, and Zelda had actually shown up. Paul, ever loyal to his girl, was slightly concerned, constantly glancing towards the sky for any sign of his girlfriend. Mitchell, bored as ever, as simply spinning three flaming coals around his fingers without a care in the world. And Zelda, for some reason, looked like she was about to drop dead.
Confessional
"I knew I should have installed a locking mechanism when I had the chance," Zelda yawned. "Every time I try to get close to Kiko, she always changes form and gets away before I can get anywhere near her. And it's not just that; the more she uses that thing, the more the pure savagery and raw power will corrupt her until she'll destroy anything in sight." she sighed with a worry. "I would ask for help from the others, but they'll be so mad at me, especially Micheal! He trusted me, and what did I do? I go and build a copy of his most prized possession behind his back for some psychopath!"
End Confessional
Just when it seemed Chris was going to lose it, the other contestants finally arrived. Toni emerged from the forest with a nervous Caroline, who refused to travel anywhere without Toni between her and what was ahead; Paul immediately jumped from his seat and ran over to his girlfriend, pulling her into a hug and pecking her on the cheek as Caroline watched wistfully. Maurananei and Alan trudged up from the beach, a rather large salmon over Maurananei's shoulders as Trey came out from the woods, a rather tired and bored expression on his face as he plopped down on a log and absentmindedly began to tune his guitar. Anuok dropped down from a tree with a deadpanned look on her face that turned into mix of relief and shock when she caught sight of Caroline hiding behind Toni and Paul; Wilson came skipping up from the beach, a happy, go-lucky smile on his face as he sat down on a barrel. And then she came.
Kiko sauntered out of the woods with the biggest of smirks on her face as she walked over to the bonfire. She ignored the glares she received from the other contestants, absentmindedly ducking low to the ground as Trey swung his guitar to try and hit her. She paid no attention to the violent gesture and merely sat down on a stump, crossing her leg over her thigh and polishing her nails with a nonchalant look; nobody noticed that she kept her left wrist dug deep into her pocket.
Confessional
"What a bunch of losers," Kiko scoffed. "I can't believe nobody's noticed my Animatrix yet. Shows how observant they are. Am I worried that Zelda will tell the others? Not in the slightest; she's too worried about what they'll do to her if they find out what she's done, so my secret is safe. And when the time comes?" Kiko asked before drawing a finger across her throat with a sickening, slicing sound.
End Confessional
"Now that everyone has graced us with their presence," Chris continued in an annoyed tone before brightening up. "It's time to start today's challenge!"
"Wait! Micheal isn't here!" Mitchell protested.
"Don't care!" Chris frowned. "Today's challenge is the classic game of hide and seek."
"Again? You are seriously losing your touch, McLean." Kiko huffed, ignoring the glares thrown at her by the rest of the cast. Chris merely chuckled at the comment, a sound that sent shivers down everyone's spine; generally when Chris wasn't bothered by an insult thrown at him, it couldn't be good for anyone else other than him.
"Ah, but this time it'll be different," Chris announced. "Seeing as all of you are freaks in your own right, we'll be making this time around a little different. This time, you'll be handcuffed together!" Chris cried happily as the contestants yelled and protested, but the sadistic host would hear none of it. "The rules are the same as from Season 1: avoid getting blasted by Chef from his water blaster and get to the lifeguard chair at the end of the dock." Chris instructed, pointing towards the rickety looking lifeguard as a seagull landed on the seat. The seagull lasted exactly thirty seconds before a massive tentacle shot out of the water and wrapped itself around the chair and pulled into the lake.
"Um, on second thought, you'll have to make to the buoy way over yonder." Chris added, pointing towards a derelict buoy a couple hundred yards off shore. The contestants groaned further as Chris produced six pairs of handcuffs and proceeded to handcuff the teens together.
"Why exactly are we chained together?" Maurananei grumbled, holding up both of her wrists, which were chained to Caroline and Alan. Both smaller teens were pulled up into the air by Maurananei as Chris continued to explain the rules. "Now then, a quick review of the rules. The object of the challenge is to stay hidden from Chef while making your way to the buoy off shore. Once you touch the buoy, you're safe."
"What happens if we get found by Chef?" Trey asked, raising his hand and consequently pulling Mitchell's arm up with him.
"If you can't avoid his blast, you must help him find other players. If you find them, that means you are back in the game and Chef must close his eyes and count to ten." Chris explained as Chef, holding a massive water pistol, grumbled and folded his arms over his chest. "And with his military background and advanced degree in man-hunting, he is guaranteed to make this game excruciatingly hard." Chris added with a grin.
"Ooh, so we're gonna get sprayed by a little bit of water!" Kiko said sarcastically with a healthy dose of mockery in her voice.
"Yes, yes you will," Chris grinned maliciously. "Watch as he demonstrates."
Kiko smiled wickedly and covered her ears and eyes; she had seen the hide and seek episode, and was fully expecting Chef to blast Chris a good dozen yards away with his water pistol and avoid soaking her and Zelda altogether. Unfortunately for her, Chef had other ideas when he pulled the trigger on his water gun and blasted the unlucky girls with a tidal wave of water, sending them flying through the air and into the arms of a pine tree, which they fell down numerous branches and eventually were left dangling twenty feet above the forest floor a good twenty yards away from the cast.
"Too far away to be seen," Kiko said to herself as she grunted and reached with her free hand for the Animatrix on her exposed left wrist; she didn't know how Chris managed not to see it in the first place. Or maybe he did and thought it was a better idea to keep a secret. Whatever the reason, the Animatrix was still fixed to her wrist. And against Zelda's wanrings, Kiko activated it and was engulfed in a flash of purple light.
A hulking Nisilaha took Kiko's place and gripped the tree trunk with two of its four arms and hauled itself up into the branch before easily pulling Zelda up with one hand. While the alien was indeed similar to Micheal's form, there were differences, most notably the attire and stature of Kiko. While Micheal was incredibly buffed and the picture of health (by Nisilaha standards), Kiko was noticeably smaller and slimmer than him, have an hour glass figure and less muscled arms than Micheal. She wore a pair of black shorts with purple trimmings with a purple and white belt around her waist that separated her shorts from her black and purple tank top that exposed her midriff. Two pairs of fingerless gloves were enclosed around her hands and she had a curtain of raven black hair on her head, where Micheal was normally bald.
"You really shouldn't use the watch all that much," Zelda warned her. "It could have unforseen consequences."
"Why should I listen to you?" Kiko barked, easily yanking Zelda up to her eye level and glaring at with all four of her golden colored eyes. "Besides, Micheal can use his Animatrix whenever he wants!"
"That's because he has the complete version!" Zelda yelled.
"What did I tell you before?" the Nisilaha growled, drawing her closer to her face so that they were less than an inch apart.
"N-never t-talk back." Zelda stammered.
"Exactly. Fortunately for you, I will let this little incident slide," Kiko growled. "Just remember that I could easily kill you."
"Y-yes, master." Zelda whimpered. Kiko steely nodded her head and jumped off the branch and down to the ground, carelessly letting Zelda fall on her face as the Animatrix timed out and returned Kiko to her human form, just before Chef came trudging up the hill to take them back, an annoyed look on his face.
Meanwhile, Chris was finishing explaining the rules to the rest of the contestants. "Remember! Avoid being found and make it to the buoy to be safe! First team with the most members safe wins. Now, are there any questions?"
"Yeah, what's to keep us from slipping out these things anyway?" Toni asked, holding up her and Paul's assigned pair of handcuffs. "Most of forms could either easily slip out of these things or bust right through them!"
"Ah, but these little babies will grow or shrink with whatever form you take!" Chris chirped happily. "Turns out the kid who invented the Virtual Reality machine is also a topnotch inventor too. Asked him to make these for us." he grinned as Toni pouted.
Wilson raised his free hand, reading a message Anuok had scribbled out for him to read. "Uh, what about Micheal?"
Chris frowned at the mention of the contestant who had caused him so much trouble over the season; destroying his cottage (some continued to argue it was a mansion), constantly threatening his health and life, causing millions in property damage were but a few of the issues Micheal had caused Chris over the course of the season. "Anyone who finds and captures the shape-shifting, watch-wearing freak known as Micheal instantly wins it for their team. Now, you have exactly five minutes to hide before Chef comes hunting for you. Now go!" Chris ordered, letting out a loud blare from his air horn as the contestants all yelled and scrambled in different directions, all searching for a place to hide.
Paul and Toni jogged through the forest, panting and pumping their arms fiercely as they ran through the woods, trying to put as much distance between them and their psychopathic hunter as possible. As leaves crunched under their shoes and branches slapped at their face, Paul tried to keep his eyes ahead of him, but he found it near impossible. As much as he wanted to admire Toni's beauty right now, he knew he needed to focus on the challenge. But he couldn't keep his eyes off of her. Or, to more specific, a rather crude looking, scabby ring of half-healed flesh on her neck. The wound looked rather frightening, and he more than concerned for his girlfriend. He was about to ask her about it when they ran around a tree in opposite directions. The chain that joined their handcuffs together was caught on the tree trunk and forced both of them to run towards the other, both of the slamming face first into each other before slumping to the ground.
"Ow . . ." Toni moaned.
"I think I just lost a tooth," Paul groaned, blood dribbling down from his lip. He blinked his eyes to try and clear his vision and ended up looking at Toni's face, which was a dark shade of red, earthy brown. Paul cocked and eyebrow, following her eyes before yelping and jumping to his feet, yanking his hands off of her breasts faster than most people could blink.
"I swear I-" Paul cried before Toni put her lips to his, silencing him and breaking apart after a few heated seconds.
"I know," she replied with a small smile. "Now hold still." she then instructed. Paul did as he was told as Toni's eyes flashed a venomous yellow and became reptilian in appearance, her brown iris's turning into black slits. Her teeth sharpened into fangs, and her skin turned a rough brown that almost looked like scales. The changes stopped there as Toni edged her head to Paul's neck, a long, forked tongue slipping out between her jaws and gently tracing itself around the skin. Paul shivered, but remained still as instructed, even when Toni suddenly lunged forward and savagely bit into her boyfriend's flesh. Like with Caroline, she sank her teeth in deep and twisted her head to further enhance the wound before dipping her tongue into the blood and pulling away, her fangs stained pink as she shifted back to her human form.
"What was that about?" Paul asked after a few awkward moments, bringing a hand up to the wound.
"Its a sort of tradition in my family," Toni explained. "When we come across someone we trust and love, we give them this mark to let others know it. You and Caroline are technically now family to me."
"Uh, okay?" Paul said awkwardly. To be honest, he had no idea how to feel. He felt both honored and slightly weirded out, but it was Toni; he trusted her more than anyone, and she clearly trusted him as well. "Wait, Caroline's in on this too?"
Toni nodded her head. "She tried to kill herself only an hour ago. Not only was she in serious need of comfort, but I couldn't help but do it. Besides, she isn't exactly a lair." she smiled.
"If you say so," Paul nodded. "Biting rituals aside, shouldn't we be running for our lives right about now?"
Toni blinked before slapping herself upside the head. "Duh! How could I have forgotten?" she berated herself. "Now hold still and don't freak out."
"Are you going to bite me again?" Paul joked.
Toni rolled her eyes and focused on an image in her head; the changes soon followed. A light coat of fur sprouted all over her body, remaining the same mocha brown color as her skin as her arms were sucked back into her shoulders like pieces of spaghetti, leaving her hands to be perked on her shoulders, frozen like that as other changes continued. Her black hair ran down her neck and between her shoulder blades like river as her face bulged outwards into a pointed, rounded muzzle. Her teeth became square and flat, perfect for grinding up plant material as her eyes rotated to either side of her head. Her ears migrated up to the top of her head and became pointed as muscled built themselves up around her chest. A pair of equestrian legs suddenly burst out of her gut like some alien nightmare as her hand finally slithered into her shoulders that moved down toa bove her new legs with a grinding sound. Her toes fused together into a single toe, a hard covering surrounding her changed feet, forming a solid hoof as her clothes vanished off her body. Her new form ground and shifted into its final state as a tail made entirely of long, black hairs sprouted out from the base of her spine.
"Alright then." Paul marveled at the brown mare that stood over him, the pair handcuff indeed having grown and somehow shifting to be around the horse's neck like a leash. Without protest, Paul climbed onto Toni's back before the horse reared into the air and took off at a brisk gallop through the trees.
"Would you mind slowing down!?" Alan cried as he and Caroline were dragged across the beach by Maurananei. The greaser barely even registered that the other two were even chained to her as she ran as fast as she could, skidding to a stop and letting them get up. Alan climbed to his feet, spitting out a mouthful of sand as Caroline shook her head, shaking a bucketful of sand free from her head as Maurananei rested on a rock.
"So, where the heck do we hide?" Maurananei asked.
"We try what Leshawna did last season," Alan suggested. "How are you two at holding your breath?"
Caroline frowned. "One thing you're forgetting Alan: we're chained together, and we're girls. You're a boy."
Alan looked confused for a moment before realization crossed his face amongst a furious dark red. "Okay, um, anyone else got an idea?" he asked sheepishly. Maurananei tapped her chin, deep in thought. It was hard to think however, when her eyes kept on tracing to a perfect, red circle positioned on Caroline's neck. "Um, I'm pretty sure I'm gonna regret asking this, but what's that mark on your neck?" she asked Caroline.
The nervous girl seemed confused at first before she realized what Maurananei was talking about, her face turning red in color as she answered. "Oh, uh, Toni . . . bit me." she replied.
"WHAT!?" Maurananei screamed, sending a flock seagulls flying into the air. "When I get my hands on that animal-changing freak of-"
"Wait! Wait. It's not what you think!" Caroline protested. "She's just my friend for life!"
When she saw this didn't clear things up for any of her fellow contestants, she sighed and explained it to them. "I . . . I tried to . . . kill myself earlier," she sadly admitted.
"WHAT THE BEEP!" Maurananei swore.
Caroline sighed and rubbed her temples. "I know it was a stupid idea, but after what happened last challenge, I felt like I didn't matter to anyone!"
"What about us? What about your parents?" Alan argued.
Caroline lowered her face. "My parents only notice me when they're too lazy to do something themselves, and I didn't think you would still like me after the show was over. I mean, we live all across Canada, what are the odds that we'll see each other again?"
Maurananei was about to protest, but closed her mouth. Now that she thought about it, what would have become of them if the show was over? What would have happened if she had won? Now that she thought about it, she had originally only come to win the money and move out from her father's house, living in a huge mansion overlooking the beach with half a dozen yachts at her disposal and Chef Hatchet as her husband. It had never occurred to her that she might actually become attached to anyone else in the game, and now that she and Chef were over, her dream was starting to crumble. She had to admit, she had never thought once about meeting up with the others after the show was over. She only assumed that they would go back to their normal lives and never see each other ever again.
"Well now that you mention it . . ." Maurananei sadly admitted.
"See what I mean?" Caroline sighed. "Toni saved me from killing myself and promised we would be friends for life. This mark is to prove it." Caroline explained, pointing to the bite wound.
"So, it's a club of some kind?" Alan summed up.
"Never actually thought about it, but I guess," Caroline admitted. "Toni said that anyone with the mark could give it to others if they felt they were trust worthy and you really cared for them," Caroline explained before realization crossed her face. "Now that I think about it, you've been here for me ever since this game started." Caroline realized, pointing a finger as Maurananei.
"How about we talk about this later, okay?" Maurananei said holding up a hand. "I think I hear Chef coming."
"Then lets get outta here!" Alan cried, jumping into Maurananei's arms. The greaser didn't argue even once and gestured for Caroline to jump on her back, taking off at a brisk jog after she had climbed on.
"HOT! HOT! HOT! OH, SWEET MOTHER OF BANJO STRINGS, IT BURNS!" Trey screamed.
"Oh, come on. It's not that bad." Mitchell argued.
"SAYS THE GUY WHOSE ON FIRE!" Trey shot back. "AND DID I MENTION I HAVE A FEAR OF HEIGHTS?"
"Ya know, if you keep on screaming like that, Chef's gonna find us in no time." Mitchell pointed out.
"WELL EXCUSE ME FOR BEING FLAMMABLE, CAPTAIN OBVIOUS!" Trey cried as he dangled almost a hundred feet above the forest floor. He constantly glanced back and forth between the ground far below him and Mitchel'' fiery form, trying to ignore the fact that the metal ring latched around Mitchell's magma rock wrist was almost a hot yellow in color from the sheer temperature of his skin. With hands thrust out behind him, Mitchell soared through the air, oblivious to the fact that Trey was suffering from burns on his skin and scorched clothes.
"WHAT DID I EVER DO TO DESERVE THIS!?" Trey wailed.
"You really don't understand the concept of hide and seek, do you?" Mitchell sighed.
"Why (oof!) are we (ugh!) doing this (oof!) again?" Zelda asked Kiko as she was pulled after her through the tree tops, being yanked along as Kiko jumped from tree branch to tree branch, not at all concerned about Zelda as she was slammed and knocked into trunks and branches.
"What did I say about asking questions?" the Nisilaha growled, yanking her top right arm to pull Zelda along.
"It just seems illogical to be leaving such an obvious trail behind us." Zelda pointed out.
Kiko stopped cold just before she was about to jump to the next tree branch ahead of her. With a frown upon her alien lips she yanked Zelda forward and held the pink covered girl up to eye level, dangling her a good fifty feet above the forest floor. It was then that Zelda actually remembered that she was afraid of heights and started screaming, jumping into Kiko's arms and holding her tight. Kiko rolled her eyes and easily pulled the terrified girl off of her, dangling her so that she couldn't possibly reach her again.
"Explain what that last comment was about and I'll bring you back in." Kiko narrowed her eyes.
"E-every time y-you j-jump, you leave a t-trail of d-d-destruction behind you," Zelda replied, pointing behind them at a trail of broken branches, fallen leaves, and dazed squirrels and birds that hadn't gotten out of the way fast enough. "A-anyone c-can follow us." Zelda gulped. Kiko was silent for a moment as she studied the issue and Zelda feared Kiko would let her plummet to her death; she nearly cried with relief when Kiko slowly pulled her back in and place her on the branch.
Confessional
"I am about this close to seriously ditching Zelda," Kiko snarled, pinching her fingers to something barely viewable. "In fact, why am I still carrying her around? I got the most powerful device in the world strapped to my wrist!" she cackled. "The only thing standing in my way of winning is Micheal. And once I'm done with him, not even his pathetic little watch be left!"
End Confessional
"Good time as any to try this one out," Kiko grumbled under her breath, slapping the Animatrix watch face that resided on the belt around her waist. There was an explosion of purple light and a sound that sounded similar to a futuristic bomb being set off. Zelda covered her ears and jammed her eyes shut as the Animatrix forced Kiko's DNA to change into something it shouldn't have been. Nanoseconds later, the sound and noise died down and the Nisilaha was gone from the world. In its place was a large creature that bared resemblance to a giant sea turtle that decided to stand on its hind legs. The Tolkobee was less bulky than Micheal's form, the shell more oval shaped and pointed at the ends. The flippers were thinner but had large bumps and ridges on them where Micheal didn't, allowing for less air resistance.
Zelda gulped nervously as Kiko balanced her new body on a pair of stumpy legs with dull claws on that ends on the tree branch, holding her flippers out into the air. The pink genius didn't question how Kiko managed to acquire the DNA for her new form, all she cared about getting out the tree and back onto solid ground. She yelped when Kiko suddenly dived over the side of the tree branch, pulling her with to what she could only assume was her death. She nearly wet herself with relief when she found she was still in one piece, hovering a couple dozen feet above the ground; Kiko had thankfully began spinning her flippers in a fashion similar to a helicopter's blades, allowing her to hover or fly depending on how she angled her body. And as an added bonus, at least on Zelda's part, the Animatrix had moved the chain that held them together around Kiko's neck so she wasn't forced to spun around in continuous circles until Kiko decided to land.
Kiko then proceeded to shoot straight up into the air and through the forest canopy, tilting her body just right so that she could zoom forward, pulling Toni behind her at a high speed. Zelda gulped and curled up into a ball as she tried not to look down below her at the forest so far below as Kiko flew on, unconcerned.
Instead, Zelda decided to focus on Kiko's form above, trying to focus her intelligent mind on anything else other than the fact that she was high above the ground. She decided to try and figure out how in the world a creature so lrge could fly without the use of wings, how in the world it could possibly fly simply by spinning its flippers, especially with the six large holes in the Tolkobee's carapace. The flippers clearly kept the large creature aloft, spinning in a fashion similar to a helicopter, but this did little to figure out the purpose of the holes in the Tolkobee's shell.
She was distracted from her thinking by a combination of two sounds. The first was Chris's annoying voice ringing out over the loudspeaker, announcing that Chef was now on the move and hunting them. The second was a combination of terrified screaming and several rounds of swearing and cursing that made her cheeks turned red upon hearing it.
Maurananei, after running for what seemed forever, finally collapsed from exhaustion, dropping Alan into a puddle of mud and Caroline into a pile of wet leaves as she fell across a rotting log. "We've been running forever!" Maurananei panted.
"Actually, it's only been ten minutes," Alan corrected her. "Either way, where do we go from here? We can't keep running like this! We need to hide!"
"Where?" Caroline wondered. "Chef's a master tracker! Did you see how quickly he found the others first season!?"
The trio fell silent as the wind rustled through the trees overhead. A bird tweeted from somewhere as a pair of squirrels wrestled over an acorn. "Okay, I've spent a lifetime on the streets running from my Dad and the cops. I know a thing or two about hiding from the fuzz."
"Don't you mean your Dad?" Alan wondered.
"No, my Dad's a cop. Or at least, my adoptive Dad is. Never knew what my real Dad did for a living." Maurananei shrugged. Caroline and Alan merely starred at her. Maurananei sighed and got up from the log, stretching out her sore arms and legs before walking off in a direction, pulling Alan and Caroline; it took both of their combined strength to hold her in place for a few precious moments.
"What's your deal?" Maurananei growled.
Alan didn't anything, merely pointing ahead of Maurananei. She followed his direction and froze on the spot at what she saw. Straight ahead, a mere half a dozen feet away and sitting on a rock, was a seriously ticked Diamondback rattlesnake. The reptile rattled its tail rapidly as it flicked its tongue in and out, smelling the air as it stared expressionlessly at the three contestants.
"What do I do?" Maurananei whispered.
"Maybe I can try talking to him?" Caroline suggested. Upon hearing this, the snake rattled its tail even harder, creating a loud buzzing noise, and opened its jaws to let its razor sharp fangs swing forward, sickly orange venom dripping from the hollow ips.
"How about not?" Alan whimpered, yelping and jumping into Maurananei's arms when the snake slithered down from the rock, still buzzing its tail, and across the forest floor. The reptile slid over branches and through leaves before slithering over Maurananei's foot and nearly making her scream in panic. She managed to keep her cool however and watched with fearful eyes as it quietly slithered under a bush, the tail slowly down to the occasional rattle.
"Move." Caroline whispered.
Maurananei didn't need to be told twice and quickly fled the scene, still carrying Alan in her arms as Caroline was dragged alone behind her. The sudden motion didn't bother her however, as she much more concerned with something she had seen. Or something she had thought she had seen. She couldn't stop playing over the image of the rattlesnake slithering over Maurananei's shoe, focusing more and more on the snake's scales and body. And then she suddenly realized something.
There was a red ring around the snake's tail. And not just a natural mark on the tail, but like something was caught around it. Something with an opened jaw symbol on it.
Chef stalked through the woods, his large hands clutching his water pistol tightly. For once in his long career as a free lance man-hunter (he chose to keep this fact to himself), he was actually worried he wouldn't find his quarry. He found every man, woman, and child he had been hired to find within a day of being hired, and not once had he ever had a case that the missing person could not be found. But today, the burly cook might have met his match. Not since Izzy was Chef so concerned about holding up his reputation.
"Hiya, Chefy!"
Chef winced at the loud and obnoxious sounding voice in his ear. Against his better judgment, Chris had hired Izzy back into the game to boost the depleting ratings (what people found so borinng about super-powered teenagers was a mystery to him). Chef had fought tooth and nail to keep his arch-nemesis from getting back on the show, but Chris would have none of it. In the end, Chef managed to 'negotiate' with Chris into making Izzy his eyes in the sky rather than his hunting partner. Now, as much as he hated to admit it, he actually wanted Izzy by his side, cackling her insane laughter as she fired off her water gun.
"Whatya want, Crazy Girl!?" Can't ya see I'm huntin'?" Chef snapped.
"Sure ya are, Chefy! Yer huntin' real hard!" Izzy's voice laughed from the microphone embedded into Chef's ear.
"Course I am! Now unless ya got anything useful to say, shut yer pie hole!" Chef yelled.
"That's no way to treat Esquire!" Izzy yelled. "Now she won't tell you where the freaky powered munchkins are!"
"Knock it off, Crazy Girl! Do your dang job and tell me where them teenagers at!" Chef yelled, stomping his foot down with anger.
"Not until you apologize to Lady Esquire!"
"I ain't apologizing ta nobody!" Chef argued back. "Now tell me where them teenagers is at!"
"NEVER!" Izzy bellowed into microphone, Chef howling at the loud noise and tearing the device from his throbbing ear drum. With gritted teeth he raised his clenched hand, ready to throw the ear piece down onto the ground and crush it underneath his boot but stopped himself. He took several calming breaths before shoving the ear piece into his other ear, grumbling incoherent things under his breath as he cocked the water pistol and continued his march. He kept his senses peeled, his ears attuned to the world around him, listening for any disturbance that would signal the location of his prey.
"Not that Esquire forgives you, but you might wanna duck!" Izzy's voice rang out in his head. For once, Chef didn't argue or yell back about stopping such nonsense and merely threw himself to the ground as a shadow whizzed over his head. The psycho hash slinger popped back up onto his feet, cocking an water pistol and ready to douse whoever had tried to get the jump on him; he had seconds thoughts when he saw who it was. Or rather, what it was.
Glaring at him with a pair of golden eyes ringed in topaz was a large leopard. The cook flinched upon seeing the big cat, his eyes tracing over the massive muscles under the black spotted fur and the large, saber-like teeth that barely fit into the jaws. The long tail snapped back and forth as the leopard stared down Chef, its eyes never blinking as it flexed its razor sharp claws. Chef slowly backed away from the carnivore, his mind too frightened to even question why there was an African big cat in Northern Ontario; he had heard tales of big game hunters, masters at what they did, track leopards for days without ever finding them, only to find out the cats had been tracking them. And by then, it was too late for the hunters to even call out for help.
Izzy was yelling something in his ear, too scared to even attempt to listen to the insane babbling the Psycho Hose Beast was spitting out at him. He wisely chose to ignore her nonsense and slowly back up, never turning his back to the big cat; he wasn't sure how a leopard managed to get this far from its homeland Africa, and he currently didn't care at the moment. He was almost a dozen feet away from making a break for the woods when Izzy suddenly screamed in his ear.
"WHAT ARE YOU, BLIND!? LOOK AT HIS FREAKIN' NECK!" Izzy roared in Chef's ear, making Chef yelping in surprise. He did as Izzy told him and glanced with wild eyes, looking for whatever Izzy was trying to tell him. The leopard narrowed its eyes and stalked forward, its shoulders pumping up and down as it padded forward, a low growl escaping its lips; Chef couldn't keep his eyes off of those wicked teeth. He was about ready to lose his nerve and make a run for it when his eye caught something. It was dark red in color and wrapped itself around the leopard's muscled neck. A small disk with a symbol that looked like an open pair of jaws sat on the front of the collar.
"You!" Chef roared angrily, jabbing a finger forward.
"I tried to tell ya!" Izzy chastised him. "But you wouldn't listen to Esquire!"
"Knock it off, Crazy Girl!" Chef yelled back at her, cocking his water pistol. "Now hold still, ya hooligan! I'm about to get a bonus!" he grinned maliciously. The leopard actually seemed to grin at hearing this and reached up with a large paw and smacked it down on the toothed symbol around its neck, a bright flash of red light washing over the big cat and blinding Chef. By the time the light died down, the leopard was gone. In its place was a creature that Chef could only compare to a dinosaur of sorts. It was dark purple in color and wore a black and red track suit across its body, a long, whip-like tail trailing out from the spine. Spikes ran down the back and poked out from the elbows and knees as the creature regarded Chef; the cook noticed that instead of hands, it had three blades that fused together into solid points and instead of feet, it had black spheres that were held in place by razor sharp claws, a single claw rising from the others that looked as it were meant o be used as a slashing tool. The head was pointed, hidden under a crested helmet with a black and red visor that protected the creature's eyes.
The alien gave a mocking salute and stuck out its tongue at him. Chef frowned and pulled the trigger on his water pistol, determined to catch the shape-shifter and earn his bonus. But faster than he could blink the alien was gone, having disappeared in a black and red blur and leaving nothing but a trail of dust that was kicked up in its wake.
"That boy ain't right," Chef grumbled, turning on his heel and marching through the woods again.
"You don't talk much, do you?" Wilson asked.
Anuok shook her head and yanked him forward, trudging through the mud and trying to ignore the squishy feeling between her toes; the mud had long since stolen her shoes, forcing her to march forward on bare feet. She ignored the bugs that buzzed around her head and brushed a lock of hair out of her face, running her fingers across one of the feathers that she had tied into her hair; she was fond of the memories they gave her, of spending hours outside away from her annoying brothers and simply enjoying nature, collecting stray bird feathers she found lying on the ground.
Unlike those times however, she was not enjoying her time in the outdoors right now. Being chained to someone, especially someone from the other team, was not her idea of having fun. Being hunted down by a psychotic cook was also not very fun for her, and if her predictions were right, things were going to get a whole lot worse in the coming hours. That she was sure of. Anuok pushed the thought aside and pressed onwards, pulling Wilson behind her without a word.
"So, uh, made any friends since you came here?" Wilson asked awkwardly, not use to so much silence.
Anuok nodded and pressed on through the armpit of the island, the swamp from the some of the previous challenges. The mangrove trees seemed to have gotten bigger and more threatening since she had last been here, vines draped over their branches in thick curtains that obscured most of her view. A constant chorus of frog croaks and dragonfly wing beats filled the air, the atmosphere thick and heavy from the heat. And the smell of rot was absolutely overwhelming.
"I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but can you even talk?" Wilson asked.
Anuok gave him an annoyed look and made a series of rapid hand gestures without saying anything close to word. When Wilson asked her what she had just said Anuok rolled her eyes and pressed on, yanking Wilson with her through the mud. They traveled on in silence after that, ducking under the sweeping branches of the mangrove trees and avoiding the suspicious shapes that lurked beneath the surface of the water. After what seemed hours of trudging through slime and muck, only occasionally finding dry enough land to rest on, they finally found a way out of the swamp, water dripping from their everything.
Anuok sat down on a stump, Wilson having no choice but to sit down on the ground next to her and wait until she decided to get up and move. As she wringed out her soaked hair, Anuok assessed her situation; she was stuck out in the wilderness being hunted down a crazy cook that looked more like a serial killer than a cook and she chained to fellow camper who she wasn't even on the same team as. As this thought crossed her mind, another came after it; how could she possibly win this challenge with Wilson fully prepared to sabotage her at any point?
A large shadow passed over head, a loud beating sound accompanied by an excess amount of screaming coming from it as it soared through the air; Anuok ignored it; she couldn't do anything to stop it until much later, when Micheal was found.
That led her to another thought; where was Micheal, and why was he hiding in the first place? It wasn't that she blamed him for wanting to stay away from Kiko and Caroline for the time being, but why did he want to put distance between his others friends such as her, Trey, Toni, and Paul? Why had he disappeared so that even Chris and Chef, with their hundreds of cameras covering their every move, could only confirm that he was in the vicinity of the island?
She decided to see if she could find any sign of him and crossed her legs over each other, assuming a Lotus position and closing her eyes as Wilson waited patiently on the ground. She slowed her breathing and reached out with her senses, her mind clearing and an image slowly forming in her head of Wilson face down in the mud and her nowhere in sight; this slightly worried her, but she swept passed the image and to the next one. It was of Pahkitew up in flames, fire covering nearly every inch of the artificial island. This prediction greatly frightened her as she saw so sign of her or the others, only two massive creatures of unbelievable proportions seemingly locked in a battle to the death. Before Anuok could get a closer look at this, her concentration was interrupted by Wilson.
Confessional
A seriously annoyed Anuok sat on the rotting toilet seat of the outhouse confessional, taking out her notepad and scribbling something down before holding it up to the camera to read. Not cool, Wilson. Not cool, it read. The silent girl then proceeded to give the camera the one-finger salute.
End Confessional
"Anuok! Anuok! Creepy-Future Girl!" Wilson yelled in panic. Anuok opened her eyes with annoyance as Wilson gave a girly scream and dove to the ground, face first into a mud puddle. Anuok cocked an eyebrow and turned to see a black and red blur speeding towards her. It seemed the very trees were whipped aside by the sheer force of the anomaly as it zoomed towards her. Faster than Anuok could ever hope to blink, the blur slammed into her, a metallic slicing sound meeting her ears, and then silence with nothing but the sound of the rushing wind to tell her where she was. She blinked and looked up to stare at a face that was vaguely human in appearance, with the exception with the fact that it had no visible nose and had a set of sharp teeth lining its jaws behind its black and red mask. She glanced down to see that she was being carried bridal style in the creature's arms, sharp blades that seemed to act as the creature's fingers holding onto her tightly as it ran at an impossible speed.
The strange creature pulled to stop after it just seemed to start running and set Anuok down on a rock before resting by leaning back on its tail as if it were a chair of some kind; the creature didn't say a word as Anuok studied, noticing how reptilian it looked appearance yet so intelligent at the same time. Her eyes were continually drawn to the creature's strange feet, four claws that held a pair of black spheres in place with a slicing claw jabbed right between the front two toes. She continued to study the creature as it picked its sharp teeth absentmindedly with its blades until she saw a familiar symbol stuck fast to a neck brace around the alien's neck; she quickly whipped out her sketch pad and jotted something down on it before holding it up for the alien to read.
The alien glanced over the writing before grabbing her pencil and her notepad in its claws, much to Anuok's surprise and quickly scribbling something out faster than Anuok could read.
Yes, it's me, Anuok.
Anuok nodded and took the pad back from him, writing something and handing it back.
Why do you refuse to talk? she asked as Micheal took the pad back from her and scribbled something out.
I don't deserve the right to speak. Not after what happened. he answered, his head drooping in shame.
Stop with that nonsense. The only reason I don't speak is because I don't want to. Plus, I have a horrible voice.
I have a hard time believing that. Seriously though, why does this always happen to me?
What do you mean?
I thought you knew?
I can read see the future, not the past.
Fine. Lets just say that people that I get too close suffer the consequences for it.
What about your family?
I actually had to kill someone to drive the point home that they were off limits. I swore afterward that would never stoop that low again.
Can you please at least say something? I'm running out paper. Anuok asked.
"Fine," Micheal grumbled, giving Anuok her notepad back. "I meant to grab Wilson by the way. You just happened to be in the right place at the same time." Anuok cocked an eyebrow, and the Velocidadian rolled its eyes. "We may be friends, but this is still a competition, remember?"
Anuok couldn't but smile at hearing that. Indeed, Micheal seemed to be making a come back.
"Be very quiet," Mitchell instructed Trey.
The guitarist silently nodded his hand, covering his mouth with the hand that didn't smell like crispy bacon; Mitcehll had thankfully resumed his human form for trey's sake after finally realizing he was in agonizing pain, but the damage was done. They were perched on a tree branch about a dozen feet above the ground, watching carefully as C picked himself through a bramble thicket, cursing under his breath as the thorns scrapped against his skin. The cook eventually managed to get out of the thicket was heading their way, oblivious to them as he seemed to have an argument with himself. And the sad thing was that he actually seemed to be losing.
"Girl, I am not blind," he snapped. "I know there's someone around here. I can smell them, but I can't see them." he grumbled as Trey glanced nervously at his smoking hand. Mitchell tightened his grip on the branch they were sitting on, worry wracking his body as Chef marched closer.
"Get to it, Chefy Dog!" Izzy cackled in his ear.
"I dunno know why I put up with you," Chef grumbled under his breath. The burly cook put his nose to the air, sucking in a deep breath and picking through the different scents of the forest with his dog-like senses; he could smell rotting leaves and wood, animal feces, bird feathers, even Chris's hair gel that somehow managed to seep its scent into every nook and cranny of the artificial island. But there was something else hidden amongst those different smells, something unnatural and unusual. He could smell faint traces of it all over the island, but there was also some that was actually pretty close by. He stooped down to the ground, his keen eyes picking through the leaf litter and twigs that carpeted the forest floor, searching for anything that would give him a hint to his quarry's whereabouts. He soon found it; a smoldering ember that was dangerously close to a pile of kindling. Chef quickly snuffed it out with a loogie. His quarry was close.
Directly over his head, their shadows hidden by the tall trees behind them, Mitchell and Trey held their breath. Mitchell dug his nails into the tree branch, biting his lip nervously as Chef continued to search for evidence. Trey clutched his guitar tightly, suppressing the urge to pluck a few strings to calm his nerves. The burly cook pressed his sensitive nose to the ground, inhaling the many scents and sniffing around their tree with the stature of a dog just about to uncover a huge feast; this worried Trey a little. And was it just him, or was he smelling something too?
Trey took a few quiet sniffs of his nose, not quiet sure if his senses were playing tricks on him. He quickly decided they were not the red hot pain returned to his hand, it taking everything he had to stifle a scream of agony as he turned with an anxious head to see Mitchell engulfed in flames, his magma rock skin barely viewable under the layers of fire that covered his body.
"What are you doing!?" Trey rasped through gritted teeth.
"I'm sorry! It happens sometimes when I'm nervous!" Mitchell hissed.
"Well you better keep it under control 'cause not only is there a psycho chef directly beneath us, but you're setting fire to our hiding spot!" Trey shot back, the smell of burning rubber reaching his nose as the tiny bits of flame that had ignited on the branch began to eat away at his sneakers. Trey now had zero doubt that Chef would now find them, especially when a loud cracking sound filled the air and the branch holding them in place suddenly snapped under their weight and dropped them to the ground, landing them in a thorn bush of all places. Seriously, it were as if Chris had intentionally planted the prickly monsters under every tree on the island to inflict as much pain as possible.
"With any luck, Chef didn't hear us." Trey groaned.
"Wanna bet?" Chef cackled, jacking the piston on his water gun and pulling the trigger. A tidal wave of water shot out from the nozzle of the toy weapon, soaking the two boys to the bone and extinguishing Mitchell's flaming body and drowning Trey's guitar in dyed green water. "You suckers are comin' with me." Chef grinned.
"Aw, man." Mitchell groaned.
Confessional
"Was I upset that we were the first ones out?" Trey asked, water dripping freely from his hair and onto the floor of the outhouse. "Absolutely. Was I ticked off at Mitchell getting us caught? Definitely."
Change Confessional
Boy, did we get burned on that one," Mitchell grumbled. "No pun intended."
Change Confessional
"Do you think Chef will find us in here?" Paul asked Toni, who was sitting on his lap in the small space. His girlfriend shrugged her shoulders, the handcuffs making a small clinking sound as she moved. "I dunno. Probably can't smell us, but I don't think we're desperate enough to stay in here until the challenge is over."
"Good, because I was having serious second thoughts." Paul laughed nervously, trying to keep his lunch down.
End Confessional
Kiko gritted her teeth, silently counting to one-hundred in her head. She had tried counting to ten, but that didn't work; she nearly out right killed Zelda, but restrained herself just in time. The pink genius was dragging behind her, her feet scrapping against the ground as she struggled to keep up. Kiko didn't have this problem. She felt like she had enough energy to run forever without even tiring. The one problem she did have was that her Animatrix was recharging, the fanged face plate faded and dull in color as it charged itself from some invisible power source.
"Kiko, we have to actually hide," Zelda panted. "That's the whole point of the game!"
"Chef can't find us if we keep moving!" Kiko snapped.
"But the odds of us and him running into each other-" Zelda protested.
"I don't care!" Kiko roared, all the birds in the surrounding trees falling silent. "Just stop with your senseless lecturing! I don't want to hear anymore out of you! In fact, this partnership is over! I don't know what I ever saw in you, but now that you've fulfilled your purpose, we're through!" she bellowed.
"Kiko, calm down! Chef will hear you!" Zelda pleaded.
"I don't care!" Kiko repeated herself, a bright beeping sound meeting her ears. She lowered her wrist to see the Animatrix was fully recharged. Without hesitation, Kiko slapped the watch face and let the purple light consume her, shifting and changing her body structure to whatever she had ordered the watch to turn her into. Nanoseconds later, her female Nisilaha form towered over Zelda, yanking the girl up by the chain and stretching the chain taunt between her teeth. With a sudden movement that Zelda was barely able to register, the chain was severed with a loud snap! and Zelda was dropped to the ground.
"You are pathetic," Kiko growled, giving a swift kick to Zelda's ribs with enough force to seriously bruise them. "You were so naïve to believe that someone as powerful as me would actually be your friend! You fell for it like the simple child you are!"
"I'm smarter than you'll ever be!" Zelda shot back, wincing at the pain in her side before Kiko stomped her foot down on her hand, a sickening cracking sound filling the air as bone snapped. The Nisilaha reached down and picked up Zelda by the throat in one of her large hands, clenching her fist and making the pink genius's face turn purple in color as she struggled to breath.
"Don't ever talk back to me, slave." Kiko hissed. "Don't forget about what I did to you. Or would you rather have the entire viewing world see your shame?" she snarled, reaching with her lower set of arms for Zelda's shirt. The genius roughly shook her hand, clawing at Kiko's fist with her nails, her eyes bugging out of her head as Kiko tightened her grip.
"That's what I thought, you worthless BEEP!" Kiko swore, drawing back her fist and throwing Zelda's body into a tree. The girl hit it with a sickening thwack! and slumped to the ground, unconscious as the color slowly started to return to her face.
"I AM THE MOST POWERFUL PERSON ON EARTH!" Kiko bellowed to the heavens. "AND NO ONE WILL STOP ME FROM GETTING WHAT I WANT!" she cackled madly, grabbing another tree in her grip and tearing it out of the island's grip, snapping it in two over her knee and throwing the remains into another tree, decimating it with ease. "MUAHAHA-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
Wow. I did not I could be this dark.
Yep, that's right, folks. Another two parter! The first cliff hanger was unintentional, but this is intentional. And also unintentional. Basically I'll be too busy tomorrow to work on this and meet my schedule requirements, so I decided to kill two birds with one stone (don't let Toni, Caroline, or Micheal know I said that).
Anyways, I should hopefully have the other half of this chapter up before the end of next month. Again, I'm really sorry for the inconvience to my loyal readers, but that's the way the cookie crumbles.
As always, comment, review, suggest, and request down below!
Hastat Luego!