(How Deep Is Your Love?)
Spectacular Webhead 11: Yeah, it's a shame about the Sisters, but I just didn't have a lot of stuff going for them, so I figured better get rid of them now. Leshawna's cousin being Sanders, an interesting idea. I'll keep that in mind.
OmniIBIBUltraInstinctGodzilla: Yep, though to be fair, any team getting ahead of the Ice Dancers would piss off Josee, but I figured the Performers deserved a win.
OmniIBIBUltraInstinctGodzilla: Yep, being neck and neck with the other team would drive either one of them crazy, and their rivalry isn't over yet. I hated having to cut the Sisters from the race, but they did have a good run.
SuperSonicHeroes: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. Given that I've dropped plenty of hints about Geoff's plan, I figured it was only right to give confirmation before people started to get other ideas about it. Plus you said it yourself, others already know about it, so I think it only makes sense. Truth be told, I was a bit uncertain about going through with eliminating the Sisters here, since I know they're one of the fan favorites, but like I said, I didn't have a lot for them to do going forward, and they still made it pretty far after all.
Blagoj Pejov1: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it.
Frosty Wolf: Thanks, I'm glad to see you liked it. You do have a point about Heather, and even in this story she's shown a fair bit of growth. As far as Josee goes, yeah it's hard to imagine her getting redemption, but to be fair, we don't know for certain how old she is. As far as Devin is concerned, while he'll still go through a fair bit of strife, I can guarantee that he won't end up getting eliminated from the race by injury like in canon. Getting rid of the Sisters was a tough decision, but they were the only team I really could get rid off at that point. Well aside from maybe the Goths that is. Good to see that you're on board with Geoff's plans, and trust me, the two of them will get their happy ending soon enough.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Last time on the Ridonculous Race: There are plenty of fish in the sea, but none of them were as ugly as the ones we had to look at in Vietnam. Devin's eye problems ended up giving his team a real disadvantage, but luckily, for him at least, the Goths are apparently as strong as they are unsettling. A temporary three-way alliance ended up tyring the Axis of Corruption, those being the Ice Dancers, Performers and Surfers for first place, while the other three-team alliance, those being the Best Friends, the Sisters and the Goths, had to head underground. In the end, we had to say goodbye to Emma and Kitty of the Sisters. It's a damn shame, they're actually one of the fan favorite teams. Hopefully this week I get to kick off a team that I don't like. There's only one way to find out, and that's to tune in now. The time has come for the next exciting installment of… the Ridonculous Race!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
One intro later…
"And here we are again." once the intro had come to an end, Don started off the new episode at the Chill Zone from the day before "Allow me to welcome you back to Vietnam, which serves as the Chill Zone from yesterday and the starting line for today. By now, we only have five teams still in the running in our race around the world for one million dollars. Now a new and very unexpected alliance has the advantage, both in numbers and receiving the first travel tip of the day."
"Yeah, and apparently some of them are getting the better end of that deal." Leshawna gave a scowl as she made her way up to the camera with Trent by her side "I'm just gonna go ahead and say now that this alliance ain't gonna make use buddy buddy with the Ice Dancers. It's just an agreement to work with people we hate."
"But we're not gonna cheat or sabotage any of the other teams." Trent told her firmly "We're not like that and we're not gonna stoop to that level."
"No arguments here. Besides, knowing what the Ice Dancers are like they're probably gonna take the first chance they get to kick us to the curb. We just gotta play it cool until we can do it to them." it was then that they noticed the Ice Dancers laughing maniacally in the background "And that's just proving my point."
"Yeah, I am noticing that. In any case, we're just making sure to keep our cool and keep a close eye on them, and we'll be fine."
"We'd better be, last time I got to the final five I got screwed hard by that sadistic (bleep) of a host McLean."
"I've never been to the final five before, so I don't want to screw it up either. We have to play it smart from here on out."
"Got it. Anyway let's go, we've gotta get our tip." and so the two of them made their way over to the Don Box and pulled out a travel tip "Looks like we're going to Siberia."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Yep, that's right, this time we're going to be heading to Siberia. This refers to a massive province of Russia that happens to be home to the siberian tiger, the siberian husky and I'm sure a lot of other stuff that has the word Siberia in front of it. At least according to Wikipedia, where we got a lot of the info we use on this show. Teams will book flights and land at a certain Russian airport and find the Don Box dressed in the ushanka, the furry Russian hat, in order to receive their next travel tips."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
One cab hailing scene later…
"Alright, we're heading to Russia!" Geoff pumped a fist in triumph as they made their way to the airport in their cab, only to notice Bridgette looking rather downcast "You okay babe?"
"Yeah, I'm just… thinking is all." Bridgette breathed a sigh "Being in Russia again, it kind of brings back some bad memories."
"You mean like when Blaineley stuck you there in that blizzard?"
"No. Well yeah, but that's not what I meant. Russia is actually where I landed after I got voted off in World Tour after… what happened in the Yukon."
"...Ah. Gotcha." Geoff cringed slightly at the memories, but after a moment he gripped Bridgette by the shoulders and gave her a smile "Yeah that sucked and all, but it happened and it's in the past. Sure you made mistakes back then, but God knows I've screwed up a bunch of times. What matters now is that you and I are together and we ain't gonna let anything like that stuff happen again."
"Yeah… Yeah you're right, thanks Geoff. I love you."
"I love you too babe." the two of them shared a quick kiss as they embraced.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, in another cab…
"Okay, I'm thinking we oughta go over the game plan here." Leshawna looked over at Trent "I say we go after the Goths or the Best Friends. Right now it's about time to go with survival of the fittest."
"You serious about that?" Trent shot her a raised eyebrow "I figured you'd want to jump at the Ice Dancers the first chance we got."
"Don't think I didn't think about it, but sometimes you gotta take out the supports first if you want to bring down a bridge. We gotta take out the other teams first, then go for the big dogs, and then we get our million bucks."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, in another cab…
"The Ice Dancers and Performers are in an alliance now." Crimson looked over at Ennui "They'll more than likely wish to target us, or the Best Friends."
"You wish to make sure it's them?" Ennui guessed.
"If they target us or them, it makes no difference. But you did choose to help them yesterday, so you might have an opinion. And you practically smiled."
"As I said, they're survivors like us. I felt a kinship."
"But we don't want to form an alliance with them."
"No. Yesterday was a saving grace, a sign of respect, but a one time thing. What happens to them now is up to them."
"...You think he'll actually tell her his true feelings?"
"That's about as likely as Loki loving hugs and not mauling complete strangers." he was met with a low growl from Loki "See? He agrees with me."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
At the airport, following the cab ride…
"Come on, please let the gate still be open!" Trent and Leshawna were the first ones to reach the airport, with the Surfers and Ice Dancers trailing right behind them, all of them making a mad dash for the gate "We gotta hurry, if we miss this one then the next flight isn't going to be for another 8 hours!"
"I'm failing to see the problem with that." Josee shot him a smirk as they made their way onto the flight "This plays perfectly to our advantage, if the Best Friends or the Goths miss this flight then they're toast for sure!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Unfortunately, there was one thing they didn't count on.
"Welcome uh… aboard everyone, uh… We're going to be, uh… closing the, uh… doors to the cabin any, uh… second now for the taking off."
"Oh for the love of (bleep), just close the doors already!" Josee finally lost her temper, which was followed by the sound of the door closing, to which she breathed a sigh of relief "There we go, that's much better."
"Oh thank god, I didn't think we were gonna make it." this was when the Best Friends rushed past them and into some nearby seats, with the Goths doing the same "That was way too close for comfort, for a second I thought we were gonna have to jump through the door like those two guys did in Weekend at Bernie's." this was promptly met with a scream from Josee.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"By an extreme stroke of either luck or incompetence on the part of the pilot, all of our final five teams have taken off on the same flight. Some of them are happier than others."
"You've gotta be (bleep) kidding me." Josee was left fuming at their current situation "Now all of us are on the same flight, and it's all because of that (bleep) pilot!"
"I don't see why it's his fault." Jacques gave her a teasing grin "He was just doing his job, so what if he uh… so slow that uh… the other teams were able to-" he was promptly cut off by a fist to the face "Ow!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with one of the good teams…
"Okay, maybe we should try and talk some strategy." Devin looked over at Carrie "And focus only on that right now."
"Okay…" Carrie looked at him with a bit of confusion "What do you have in mind?"
"We still have a bit of a fight on our hands, but if we work together with one of the other teams, then I think we can still do this."
"You mean like with Bridgette and Geoff?"
"Yeah that's one option, but the Goths are a really strong team too, and I think we should be with them instead of against them. I'll try and talk to them when I get the chance."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
One plane flight later…
"Come on let's go, the Don Box is right outside!" Devin and Carrie were the first team to reach the Don Box located right outside the airport, and the former pulled out a tip, with the other teams following immediately after "Okay, it says that we have to take an ice yacht until we get to the super deep Kola Borehole… wearing nothing but our swimsuits."
"Oh yay!" Jacques was more excited about this than the others "I happen to look magnifique in my swimsuit."
"Right… so am I the only one who has no idea what an ice yacht is?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Each of our five remaining teams will have to take one of the ridonculous ice yachts that we have provided, and then sail due north while wearing nothing but their swimsuits. That's how the Russians used to do winter sports to show how tough they were. Also if you plan to flex during this, make sure to watch where you're steering. Teams will then five the Don Box with their next tip located at the Kola Borehole, where there are oddly enough, no soft drinks for sale for any visitors. However, this is where the racers will get their regular clothes back. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go and see if I can get a cream soda."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Once all five of the teams have collected their tips, they manage to hail taxis and arrive at the changing site with the ice yachts. The race for first place is officially on."
"Come on let's go!" once they reached the changing site, the teams moved to change into their swimsuits, the Best Friends being the first ones out, and the first to comandeer an ice yacht and take off.
"That's one team gone already." Bridgette (now clad into your wetsuit) glanced over towards the booth where Geoff was changing "Not to rush you sweetie, but could you try and hurry it up a little bit? It's insanely cold out here."
"No worries babe, time to show them what we're made of!" Geoff stepped out of the booth in his swim trunks, then gave Bridgette a grin "I don't get it babe, it doesn't make sense how you can be cold when you look that hot."
"Appreciate the flattery, but it's way too cold to really be effective right now."
"You got it babe, now let's do this and win the-"
"Whoops!" this was when Josee shoved Geoff to the ground "Oh wow I'm so sorry about that, it sure is slippery out here.
"Ow!"
"Hey, that's so not cool!" Bridgette shot a pissed off glare at the Ice Dancers, then turned back to where Geoff lay stuck to a trash can "Are you okay sweetie?"
"My tongue ith frozen to the can." Geoff let out a pained groan.
"What? Sorry I can't… Wait, your tongue is stuck to the can isn't it?" she was met with a nod, and then let out a sigh "Hold on, let me just… We'll have to do it on the go, we're far enough behind the other teams as it is!" and so she grabbed Geoff (and the trash can by extension) and the two of them took off in their ice yacht.
All the while, Josee just made her way over to one of the ice yachts, a smirk spreading across her face "All according to plan."
"What plan are we talking about again?" Jacques gave her a raised eyebrow.
"The Performers and Surfers have been riding our coattails too much."
"They only did it once because of the Zip It Ticket."
"Once is far too much for my liking. I think a little bit of a push into last place will do the two of them some good. Go ahead and say it, you love it when I talk evil."
"Doesn't it seem a bit… counterproductive? Shouldn't we just go ahead and catch up with the other teams instead of wasting time back here?"
"Oh we will, but I have one more thing to take care of first."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Right now it's a back and forth battle between the Best Friends and the Goths for first as they race their ice yachts to the borehole. It gets hectic pretty fast."
"Come on, come on, how do you steer this thing?!" Carrie was having a hard time with steering the ice yacht, which led to a siberian yeti (that was fishing in a nearby ice hole) hooking onto the back of it with his fishing rod and being dragged along with them, until he flew off a nearby rock like a makeshift ramp.
"Keep going straight." Ennui and Crimson continued racing neck and neck with the Best Friends across the frozen terrain, until a loud crash drew their attention, and they looked up to see the yeti clutching their sail "That's unexpectd."
"Agreed." Crimson looked over at him "What should we do?"
5 minutes later…
It didn't take long for Crimson and Ennui to get sailing again once the yeti was off, and it even gave them a push back into the lad "That went well."
"It did, but we lost time." Ennui pointed to where the Best Friends were now a short distance in front of them.
"Let's go." and so they picked up the pace.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the start of the frozen lake…
"Josee what are you doing?" Jacques looked down to see Josee fiddling heavily with one of the ice yachts "We're far enough behind the other teams as it is, we have to go!"
"Pipe down and give me a second." Josee gave a smirk as she stood upright and showed a series of bolts in her hand "The Surfers are one thing, but now let's just say that the Performers can't catch a break."
"I'm not sure I understand."
"And that's why I'm pretty sure you're the one who has a screw loose. Just hurry up so we can get another boat." and so they made their way over to the last ice yacht.
"Well at least we're not the only ones still stuck here. Note to self, next time you gotta change for a challenge, grab a changing booth the first chance you get." Trent (let out a small sigh of relief as he looked over to see the Ice Dancers by the ice yachts, then looked and saw Leshawna make her way out of the changing booth in her swimsuit "Hey I'm just gonna throw this out there while I've got the chance, can we not turn this into the whole dune buggy thing again?"
"What the hell does that mean?" Leshawna shot him a raised eyebrow.
"It means that I don't wanna have to get turned into a living crash test dummy again because of grudges you have with the other teams."
"Come on, I don't drag you into crap that much."
"Just about our entire run in the race begs to differ. Most of it comes from you losing your cool and picking fights, and I just get dragged along with you."
"Come on white boy, you're exaggerating."
"I'm really not."
"Agree to disagree and save this talk for later, I ain't coming in last yet. Go ahead and get your suit on, I'll go and grab us a ride" she made their way to the start of the path to comandeer an ice yahct only to stop when they noticed the Ice Dancers leaving the scene "Well that's just (bleep) ominous."
"What, the fact that they're leaving behind the rest of them?"
"That and the fact that she's not even taunting us. Something's up."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Thanks to what we will now refer to as the yeti incident, the Best Friends have managed to gain a short lead over the rest of the teams, but with the Goths and the Surfers right on their tail, they may not hold onto it for too long."
"Devin look, the other teams are catching up!" Carrie looked back to see the Goths and Surfers hot on their trail "So much for our lead."
"Are the Performers or the Ice Dancers there yet?" asked Devin.
"No, it's just the Surfers and Goths and-" Carrie cut herself short when she noticed Geoff had the trash can stuck to his face "Um… what exactly happened to…?"
"To make a long story short, the Ice Dancers." Bridgette told her from her place in the Surfers' ice yacht "Josee shoved Geoff and got his tongue stuck to the trash can."
"Can't you just pull it off?"
"It's too cold out to do it without hurting him, and we couldn't risk falling any further behind the other teams than we already have."
"Fair enough I guess. Are you sure he's okay to race like that though?"
"Hey no need to worry about me. I'm a trooper, if I can handle all the thtuff the race hath thrown at me before, I can handle anything!" Geoff stood upright and gave a grin… only to be yanked downwards by the weight of the trash can "Ow."
"...Right. So what about the Goths, how far back are they?"
"They fell behind a bit, but they're closing in on us fast." Devin told her.
"Do you still think we should try and form an alliance with them? I'm pretty sure they're going to say no."
"Maybe they are, but all things considered they're not bad people, even if they are kind of on the creepy side. They did save us from getting eliminated in Vietnam. It couldn't hurt to at least check it out, right?"
"I guess…"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the start of the path…
"About time you got out." Leshawna glanced over to see Trent make his way out of the changing booth in his swim trunks "We're far enough behind as it is."
"Alright I get it, changing booths are first come first serve. I figured they were gonna give us enough for everyone to change at the same time." Trent told her "Anyway let's get moving, we have a lot of ground to cover."
"Got it." and so the two of them took off for their ice yacht,
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the frontrunner teams…
"There it is, I see the hole!" Geoff pointed to where the Kola Borehole sat in front of them at the end of the path "Pull the brake babe!"
"I'm on it!" Bridgette grabbed hold of the brake and tried to pull the lever, only to find that it wouldn't budge "It's frozen shut, you're gonna have to help me open it!"
"I'm on it!" Geoff grabbed hold of the brakes, and the two of them tried to open it together, managing to bring the ice yacht to a halt right before they hit the hole "We good?"
"Yeah, we stopped just in time."
"Oh thank god, that was way too close." a brief pause "So… you wanna make out?"
"After we get to the Chill Zone."
"Aw man. At least we're not frozen to death yet."
"Anyway let's go get changed, we still have a challenge to finish."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
One quick changing scene later…
"Oh god, that feels so much better." Geoff breathed a sigh of relief as he rubbed his sore face and shoved away the trash can "Didn't think they were gonna leave hot water in the changing booths around here, but I ain't complaining. You want me to get the tip?"
"No you go ahead and rest for a few minutes babe, I've got this one." now back in their regular clothes, Bridgette pushed the button on the Don Box and pulled out a tip "Who's ready to go deep? Oh boy."
"Wait, what?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"After they lost the race to the moon to the United States, the Russians decided to try and win the race to the center of the Earth. But they stopped after reaving the 7 mile mark when they realized that no one else was going to try. Probably for the best, otherwise they'd probably open a gate to another dimension like the Upside Down. Anyone get the reference? No? Anyway, for today's challenge, one member of each team will have to lower their partner in a harness all the way to the bottom of the hole, so they can find one of the balls that we've hidden along the bottom, before they get cranked all the way back up to the top by their partner. Once they reach the top with their ball, it's a foot race to the Chill Zone, which in this case is located at a local Russian steam bath. As is to be expected by now, the last team to arrive, with their ball in hand, may be cut from the race. Personally I hope they're not in too much of a rush, considering I took the chance to book a rejuvenating caviar body scrub done by a hot Russian woman."
"Привет, красивый."
"Oh yeah, I love this job, I really do."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the other teams…
"We're almost there." Crimson looked ahead and saw the borehole "Ennui, go ahead and pull the lever."
"Right." Ennui pulled the lever, only to find that it wouldn't budge "This could turn out to be a problem."
"Do you need me to come and pull it with you?"
"No need, Loki's got this." Ennui was then proven correct by Loki dropping down from his shouler and then grabbing onto the lever with his paws, the two of them pulling it until the ice yacht came to a halt right in front of the hole.
"One side losers!" this was when the Ice Dancers screeched to a halt next to them, and Josee was quick to shove them out of the way as she and Jacques rushed to get changed "Now we're all the way up to second place, and the Performers will come in last and be eliminated! I love it when things go my way. I can only imagine how freaked out they must be right now."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the last place team…
"Oh yeah, they must be loving this right about now." Leshawana gave a scowl as she and Trent made their along the frozen terrain, a fair bit behind the other teams "The Ice Dancers are probably all sunshine and rainbows cause they think we're about to lose."
"I think it's pretty obvious they enjoy it more than they should." Trent pointed out dryly "But I'm pretty sure that's their whole thing."
"Well duh, they like it when other people gets screwed. It's total schadenfreude."
"Okay, two questions. One, what does that mean? Two, can you say it on TV?"
"Schadenfreude, it basically means enjoying when someone else (bleep) up. People use that word in Germany."
"I'm gonna go ahead and guess that you learned that from Harold?"
"Nope, he never brought it up. I actually picked it up during Total Drama World Tour, after I took the Drop of Shame. I was brooding over Alejandro playing me like a sucker, then when I landed I got attacked by that goat, but a couple of guys saved me from the thing and brought me to some Bratwurst restaurant in a town nearby. That was where the producers picked me up and brought me to the aftermath."
"Huh. I didn't think you'd be so interested in picking up a few things from the locals."
"You'd be surprised the kind of things you pick up when you're forced to jump out of a death trap of a plane. You never know how those kinds of things are gonna turn out."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the borehole…
"So I'm going seven miles down…" Bridgette glanced over at Geoff from where she had been strapped into the harness "It's times like this I'm glad I'm afraid of being alone in the woods and not heights or enclosed spaces. But being stuck in a dark hole with no way out on my own isn't exactly a good way to inspire confidence."
"Think of it this way babe, at least you're not gonna get drowned in hale. That stuff is seriously messed up." Geoff then looked over to see the Ice Dancers show up, posing, smiling and blowing kisses in their typical way, and he shuddered as he lowered Bridgette into the hole "Seriously, they get creepier every time they do that."
"The only problem I have is that they feel the need to lord it over everyone else. People get sick of that stuff after awhile." and so Bridgette disappeared into the hole.
"Hang tight babe, I've got you covered up here no problem.
"Oh, so badmouth me did they?" Josee turned to Jacques and lowered her voice, a nasty smirk spreading across her face "I'm going to make sure that big mouth Barbie reject never comes out of that hole."
"Um… sure, let's see how that plays out." so Jacques made his way over to the crank and handed a harness over to Josee "You know you're going to have to put this one."
"Wait what?! You know better than anyone that I don't do well in tight spaces!"
"Believe me, I know that all too well. But the cranking requires upper body strength, you would never be able to get me back up to the top."
"But I can't…"
"Look you don't have to worry about, if you feel your claustrophobia getting to you then I give you my solemn vow that I'll pull you back up to the top."
"...I know I'm going to hate myself for this later." Josee snatched the harness and strapped herself into it, and then prepared to get lowered down into the hole "I'm ready, do it."
"Right, here goes." so Jacques started to crank, until…
"PULL ME UP!" Josee almost immediately lost her cool, which prompted him to stop craning, and she quickly composed herself "I'm sorry, that was unprofessional of me."
"Not the worst one you've done. You good?"
"Yep, I'm good. Put me back down."
"Alright then, here goes." so he started to crank again, until…
"Back up! BACK UP!" the cranking stopped "No get a grip Josee, you can do this. You have to do this."
"You sure this time?"
"Yes, now do it!"
"Right." and so Jacques went back to cranking, and he turned to the camera as he did so "What's the old saying, every cloud has a silver lining? Say what you will about challenges like this one, but at least the constant cranking is keeping me warm. Plus it helps to improve my physique, and you need then when you're with someone like-"
"PULL ME BACK UP!"
"...You know she actually lasted longer than I expected."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the hole…
"Alright, I made it to the bottom." Bridgette finally touched down at the bottom of the hole and looked around "You know aside from being so dark and possibly infested, it's actually kind of nice down here. Pretty warm too."
"That's great babe, but it's not so hot up here. Literally. You might wanna grab that ball and get back up here soon, or else I'm gonna end up making another ice sculpture using nothing but my nipples. Hey by the way, you want me to make once when we win the race?"
"...Maybe take a rain check on that." Bridgette then took a swift look around the bottom of the hole and grabbed a ball perched on a nearby rock "I've got a ball, now pull me up!"
"You got it babe." and just like that, Bridgette was being hoisted back to the top of the hole, just as Ennui was being lowered to the bottom "Hey."
"Hey." was all Ennui said, and then he started looking around for a ball.
"...Okay then, good talk."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Just like that, the Surfers have secured their first place position, though from the looks of it, the other teams aren't far behind them. The Goths are already at the bottom of the hole, and the team in fourth place is about to get in for a smashing good time. Give it a second, you'll see what I mean soon enough."
"There it is!" Carrie pointed to where she could see the hole in the distance and promptly tried to pull the brake, to no avail "Devin it's not working, the brake is frozen!"
"Hold on!" Devin grabbed hold of the lever and the two of them tried to move it, but they still didn't have any luck "New plan, gonna have to TUCK AND ROLL!" he quickly wrapped his arms around Carrie's waist and the two of them rolled out of the ice yacht and onto a giant pile of snow as the yacht crashed into the changing booths. Once that was over, Devin opened his eyes and realized he was right on top of Carrie "You uh… you okay?"
"Yeah, I think so…" Carrie looked up at Devin and the two of them locked eyes… though after a moment they both became flustered and quickly backed away from each other "So we'd better get dressed and go get started on the next challenge."
"Yeah, yeah that totally sounds like a good idea." and so they backed off and rushed into two separate changing booths.
"...Well that was super awkward." Jacques broke the silence from where he was watching that scene unfold, until a realization hit him "My bathing suit!" and then he made a beeline towards the changing booths, leaving the crank to its own devices in the process
"JACQUES!"
"Oops." luckily for them, Jacques realized his mistake and caught the crank lever just in the nick of time "So sorry about that. Are you okay down there?"
"Yeah, yeah I think so… I'm okay… I'm okay! No I'm not! PULL ME UP! PULL ME THE (BLEEP) UP!"
"Wait wait hold on a minute, just listen to me mon petit chou. We're only in third place at the moment, but the Best Friends just arrived on the scene and Bridgette is already on her way back up here! If we want to get through this then you need to focus. Take deep breaths and get ahold of yourself! Now listen to me Josee, I want you to take a moment to imagine yourself doing one of the things that you love the most."
"Yeah… yeah, you're right. And you know one thing I love the most?"
"Dancing like the wind across the ice without a care in the world?"
"Nope, messing with other teams without a hint of shame! Lower me down, I think I finally got my groove back!"
"...I'm not sure if this is a good or bad thing."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the other teams…
"Okay, I've got the gear." Carrie made her way over to Devin with a harness in hand "I don't want to waste too much time going over who does what since I'm still freezing to death, so can we just-"
"Hey hey take it easy homie, don't worry about it." Devin reassured her and gave her a smile that he tried to make as charming as he could "You get into the harness, I'll take care of the cranking stuff."
"Are you sure?"
"Hey I carry you a lot of the time, how hard could this be?" his smile quickly fell when he realized what he just said, and noticed the look Carrie was giving him "Crap! Sorry that came out wrong, I meant that-"
"I know what you mean, just give me a minute to get strapped in." and so she went off to get strapped into the harness.
As she walked away, Devin could only slap his face in frustration "God dammit, I am such an idiot!"
"That was painful to watch, and not in a good way." Crimson noted dryly from where she was working on her own crank, Loki perched on her shoulder.
"That's not helpful!"
"It's not supposed to be. It has the same energy as the Ice Dancers pretending to be friendly, the presence of trying too hard. It's disgusting."
"Yeah well…" Devin fell silent as he failed to come up with a retort, and then another thought came to mind for him "Is that what… Carrie thinks too?" he was met with silence, and so he let out a sad sigh and made his way over to the crank "I'm an idiot."
"Okay, I'm ready." Carrie made her way back over to him strapped into the harness "Go ahead and lower me down."
"Right. And Carrie?"
"Yeah?"
"I wanted to say… Nevermind, it can wait." he looked away from her and got to work on the crank.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, further down into the hole…
"Well what do we have here?" with her plan in mind, Josee met Bridgtete as the two of them went in opposite directions, the former going down and the latter going "So quick question, are the balls in plain sight down there?"
"If you've got the light from the helmets then it's actually-" Bridgette was cut off by Josee smashing the light on her helmet and snatching her ball "Hey what the-"
"Thanks for the input, now pull me back up Jacques!" and then she promptly got hoisted back up to the top.
"Hey get back here, that's not fair!"
"Guess what Malibu Barbie, no one cares!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the top of the hole…
"Hang tight babe, I'll have you out in a minute." Geoff continued cranking Bridgette up out of the hole until he noticed Josee rise out of the hole "How did they get down there so fast? Good for them."
"No it's not, she punched out my light and stole our ball!"
"Wait what?!" Geoff rounded on Josee in a rage, letting go of his crank in the process "Hey! You did NOT just try to punch out my uber babe! Anyone who touches my girl is gonna go down HARD!"
"GEOFF!"
"Crap! Sorry babe, sorry!" he caught the crank and stopped it from spinning "Okay that one is totally my bad, but we both know they're total cheaters!"
"Oh my heart bleeds for you." Josee's tone was dripping with sarcasm "I'm gonna cry for you right into my bag of one million dollars. You keep saying cheaters, but the only thing I hear is winners. Seriously, stuff like this is easier than taking candy from a baby that you hate with every fiber of your being."
"You dudes are totally gonna get what you deserve!"
"If by that you mean us getting the gold and leaving the rest of you in the dust, then that day has arrived." and then she took off running, with Jacques right behind her, leaving Geoff pissed in one of those rare moments.
"How the heck do they get away with stuff like that? They gotta go down."
"Tell me about it." Crimson muttered dryly, earning a chipper of agreement from Loki "We grew to agree with that after what they did to Loki in Mexico."
"Count me in too, nobody screws with my uber babe and gets away with it." Geoff then turned back to his headset "How you doing babe? You okay down there?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the hole…
"How you doing babe? You okay down there?"
"Not too bad, considering I'm back where I started." Bridgette let out a sigh as she touched down at the bottom of the hole once again "Not to mention that when Josee stole my ball she wrecked my light too, I can't see anything down here. Starting to get the vibes from being alone in the woods again."
"Think of it this way, at least Cody isn't dressed up like some trash monster out of the Walking Dead to freak you out."
"Not helping sweetie."
"Sorry babe. Or maybe it's the pain talking, my arms are killing me. Not that you're heavy or anything, don't think that."
"I wasn't thinking that, it's a heavy metal crank that's hard to move, especially when it's so cold out. I'm gonna start feeling around, but it's pretty spooky down here with no light and I actually am getting pretty freaked out down here." Bridgette breathed a sigh of frustration as she tried to feel around the bottom of the hole "I can imagine the Ice Dancers are probably gloating over their win right now."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the frontrunners…
"The gold is ours!" Josee and Jacques leapt onto the Carpet of Completion, only to lose their pose when they found that Don wasnt there "Don? Hello?"
"Hey guys, here's the thing." this was when Don showed up, clad in only a towel "I've got a bit of bad news, at least for you guys. The thing is, because Josee didn't go to the bottom of the borehole to collect the ball as the tip instruct, I have to, and frankly want to, give the two of you a 30 minute penalty."
"You're seriously stopping us from getting the gold?! That is so not fair!"
"To which I counter with: Considering that you're both horrible people, one of whom is settling for a clear sociopath, and you've both taken more penalties than the other teams combined, and you're more than likely going to get more penalties before you get eliminated, I think the two of you are getting off quite easily. Now then, please wait over there on the benches."
"...The (bleep) I have to put up with to get the gold." Josee's scowl deepend as she stomped her way over to one of the benches, Jacques sitting down next to her "You know what screw it, I'm not worried."
"Plus thing of it this way, how can it be considered a penalty if you get to enjoy a free steam bath for 30 minutes?" Jacques leaned back as he put his feet up.
"Okay yeah, there are some benefits to this."
"Just make sure to keep your clothes on while you're there." Don told them dryly.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, with the stragglers…
"There it is!" Leshawna pointed to where the Kola Borehole could be seen lying in front of their ice yacht "Alright white boy, hit the break!"
"Way ahead of you." Trent was quick to throw on the break… only for it to end up coming off in his hand "Okay, that's never a good sign. Oh crap, we're about to fall into the borehol now aren't we?"
"Not on my watch. You know how to tie a knot?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Then get to it." Leshawna tossed a rope to Trent, prompting him to tie it onto the yacht, while she tied the other end onto herself, and then she grabbed Trent by the arm and leapt out onto the ice, dragging Trent with her and using both of them as a anchor, leaving them to screech to a halt right before the yacht could touch the hole.
"So we're good now?"
"Pretty much yeah. One of those times having the motherload in both the front and the back sure as hell comes in handy. But I'll be damned if the arms and legs don't hurt like (bleep)."
"For me it's just one of my arms. I wonder why." Trent shot her a dry look.
"And I wonder how our break is shot when the others worked fine." Leshawna paused, and then she burst out laughing "I'm just (bleep) with you. She's gonna get what's coming to her before we get to the final three, that much I can promise you."
"You're not gonna do anything illegal right?"
"Well duh, I'm impulsive and temperamental but I'm not stupid."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the bottom of the hole…
"Okay, still nothing so far…" Bridgette let out another frustrated sigh as she continued to crawl around the bottom of the hole "This could be going better."
"I take it you suffered a setback?"
Bridgette let out a yelp and jumped back when she saw Ennui standing in front of her, but she quickly composed herself "Sorry, you just kind of startled me."
"I've been here for the past several minutes."
"Really? I thought I would've noticed you."
"I was just one with the darkness. I simply stand so incredibly still, that I blend in with several dark backgrounds within the area."
"...Good to know. Well good luck with the challenge, I'm gonna be stuck down here for awhile without my light."
"Didn't you finish it earlier?"
"Yeah but Josee punched out my light and stole my ball."
"Oh." Ennui paused, then held out his ball to Bridgette "You can take this."
"Wait what? I can't just-"
"I'm not offering it, I'm just giving it to you. If nothing else, you can at least get to the Chill Zone before the Ice Dancers' penalty expires."
"What makes you think they got a penalty?"
"Josee didn't come all the way down here to get a ball like the tip instructed. And he hates the Ice Dancers."
"Well that's true, but if I did take the ball you would still be stuck down here."
"That's not a bad thing. I enjoy a dark and cold space like this. It's better than being surrounded by fluffy white snow or having to endure the heat of a steam bath."
"You're really okay with lowering your rank in the race just so you can enjoy dark places like this?"
"It wouldn't be the first time."
"Um… if you're sure…"
"I am."
"Then I guess… thank you. I swear I'll pay you back for this."
"Just get to the Chill Zone before their penalty expires, and we'll call it even."
"Fair enough… I guess. Alright Geoff, pull me up!" and then she started getting hoisted back up to the top "Thanks again!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the top of the hole…
"Okay seriously, I don't get what's so hard about this." Leshawna picked up the harness and tried to shove it into Trent's hands "I'm the one with the muscle on this team, why are you so against going down there? It's not like you're the one with claustrophobia."
"No, we've already established that's Gwen and the crazy ice dancer." Trent told her dryly "But the reason I'm skeptical about this is because this hole goes down 7 miles, and you've got a long history of losing your cool."
"Hey come on, I might be impulsive and reckless but I ain't gonna put a partner's life at risk if I don't have to. I have standards you know. Tone down on the skepticism, I've got this."
"Alright way to go homie, you're at the bottom!" Devin pumped his arms in triumph… only for them to drop to his sides in an instant "Okay that hurts, a lot more than I thought it was going to actually."
"Alright I'm up, now let's go!" Bridgette reached the top of the hole and was quick to dismount her harness, and then she and Geoff took off running "Thank god things worked out the way they did."
"No kidding, you were pretty gnarly down there babe." Geoff gave her a grin "How did you get the ball so fast without the light though?"
"Actually I had a lot of help from one of the Goths, Ennui I think his name was. He gave me his ball."
"Wait, seriously? Just like that?"
"I was surprised to, but he said something about enjoying the darkness down there and wanting to bask in it for a little while. Though now that I think about it, they probably don't want to go to the steam bath either."
"What, why?"
"Remember what happened to them in Finland? The steam melted their makeup and they had to go… how did Gwen put it? Un-gothed. They probably don't want that to happen again."
"Huh. Good point, I didn't think of that."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the Chill Zone…
"Hm." Jacques glanced up at the timer on the wall in front of them "About 30 seconds left on our penalty."
"Which means 3 minutes left to enjoy the steam bath." Josee put her feet up as she leaned back in a very nonchalant way.
"You don't seem remotely concerned."
"Like I said before, we'll still be in first by the time our penalty is up. All of the other rejects are back at the hole, there's no way they'll be able to- Do you hear footsteps?"
"We're here!" this was when Geoff and Bridgette bolted into the steam bath and screeched to a halt on the Carpet of Completion "Did we make it?"
"Oh thank god, I thought I was gonna have to let the Ice Dancers win." Don breathed a sigh of relief "Congratulations to the Surfers, you're in first place. Cheating doesn't pay after all. Good thing we got the chance to send out that message, we've been kind of pushing that family rating as it is."
"Yes!" Geoff pulled Bridgette into a tight hug, and then they started making out.
"Okay if you're gonna do that then do it off the carpet, we've still got a race to finish." Don was then met with a buzzer sounding, prompting the Ice Dancers to leap onto the carpet "The penalty has expired, second place to the Ice Dancers. So much for proving that you guys are better than everyone else right?" he was met with the sound of a low growling "Thought so."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the hole…
"Okay, two more teams still here, not too bad…" Devin looked around at the other teams that were still present, then peered down into the hole "Carrie how's it going, you still okay down there?"
"Better than okay, I just found one of the balls! Can you pull me up?"
"No worries, I'm on it." Devin was quick to get to work to cranking.
Crimson was quick to take note of this and looked down at the hole "Ennui, you've had enough time down there. Did you find a ball?"
"Not yet. I'm just enjoying the darkness."
"Three teams are already done, if we're going to get moving then we should do it now. Plus I want the chance to sit in a dark hole like that at some point while we're here."
"If you want, I can leave you in our hotel room later with the blinds closed, the lights off and the heat turned up. That would recreate the feelings of down here."
"...That could work. Now go and find a ball."
"Give me a moment, I'll et you know when I have one."
"Come on, nothing to it." Devin gritted his teeth as he continued cranking, up to the point where he finally got Carrie all the way out of the hole "You good?"
"I feel great, if not still freezing to death. Now come on, let's go!" Carrie quickly got to work on removing her harness, though once she was done she looked over at Devin "Are you okay? Your arms must be pretty sore after that."
"Nothing too it, what did I tell you?" Devin gave a shrug and took off running.
"Apparently just that." Carrie paused and looked over at the camera "I have to be honest, I really am impressed. I didn't think that Devin had the upper body strength. Just when I think I finally have him pegged, he manages to surprise me all over again. He kind of has a way of doing that, always has for as long as I've known him."
"Carrie come on!"
"I'm coming!" and then she took off after Devin.
"Okay enough squawking, we're wasting time." Leshawna watched as the Best Friends took off running and turned back to Trent "The only other team still down there are the Goths, now are you gonna put the thing on or do you wanna lose?"
"...Fine, but remember what I said before. I don't wanna end up getting turned into a crash test dummy or something." Trent breathed a sigh as he started strapping into the harness.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the Chill Zone…
"And here comes the cavalry. Part of it at least." Don looked over to see Carrie and Devin rush onto the carpet "Nicely done Best Friends, you're the third team to arrive." he was met with a series of cheers "Now it's down to the last two teams in today's leg of the race, those being the Performers and the Goths. The race to avoid coming in last place is on."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, at the hole…
"Come on, come on…" Leshawna was beginning to grow frustrated as she continued working on the crank "How you doing down there?"
"I'm almost halfway to the bottom, so far so good. I think we can do this."
"We'd better, I ain't coming in last before I kick those icy little (bleep) to the curb."
"Ennui are you there?" Crimson tuned into her headpiece "The last team is heading your way, so what's your status?"
"I just found a ball. What's the status of the other team?"
"One of them is making their way down, but the other is getting impatient."
"Fine, go ahead."
"Right, I'm pulling you back up."
"Now she's coming back up?" Leshawna gritted her teeth "Trent I know what you're gonna say, but we're gonna have to pick things up already."
"Leshawan what are you doing? Don't do anything reckless!"
"The Goths are about to move, it's this or we get cut from the race." so Leshawna released her hold on the crank, sending Trent hurtling down towards the bottom of the hole and screaming all the while.
"...That seems unnecessarily reckless." Crimson noted dryly from where she was working on her crank.
"You guys are about to finish, if I don't this then I get eliminated. Besides Harold helped me to get through algebra, I can calculate how long it's gonna be before he hits the bottom."
"This seems more a matter of principle."
"Don't worry about it, I'm getting him down there right about… now!" she grabbed hold of the crank and brought it to a quick halt, resulting in the sound of a loud snap "Hey Trent, you doing okay down there?"
"ARE YOU (BLEEP) KIDDING ME?!"
"Uh… is that a yes or a no?"
"It means ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR (BLEEP) MIND?!"
"Hey man, I did what I had to do in order to get us to the bottom. Now grab a ball, we don't have much time." she was met with silence "You still there?"
"...Pull me back up."
"Did you find one?"
"Nope. I'm quitting."
"What?"
"I said I'm quitting!" his tone was sharp and full of anger, which caught Leshawna off guard for a moment "I told you I didn't want to be turned into some kind of crash test dummy, and you flat out ignored me!"
"But you… didn't crash."
"That's not the point! I've been putting up with a lot of the stuff you've been doing during the race, but this is where I draw the line! I'm not gonna get dragged along like that anymore. Pull me back up. I'm done."
"Are…" Leshawna paused as she looked down the hole "Are you sure about this?"
"Yeah, I am."
"...Alright. Give me a few minutes to pull you up." and so she got to work turning the crank the other way, her expression unreadable.
All the while, Crimson just watched the scene unfolding in silence, and then turned her focus back to her own crank "Did you hear any of that?"
"I heard all of it, he's not that far behind me."
"Do you think he'll really quite?"
"Give me a minute to find out."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Meanwhile, down the hole…
"I'm about done with today." Trent was left grumbling as he found himself being pulled back out of the hole, only to find Ennui being pulled up right alongside him "I thought you would've been on your way to the Chill Zone by now."
"I wanted to enjoy the darkness for a bit longer." Ennui told him flatly "I take it you intend to quit then?"
"Well I gotta do something, she could've killed me doing that. Seriously, even comic books go into how that can kill a person."
"The Night Gwen Stacy Died, I've ready numerous times. I'm not fond of that storyline, mostly due to the bias of the writer, but I do understand the point you wish to make."
"That's not even my main point. I joined up with Leshawna for this race because I thought it would be fun, and a chance to win the prize money. I had to draw the line at some point. What else am I supposed to do?"
"Not give up the chance for a million dollars."
"Is it really worth it if I gotta keep putting up with this? What am I supposed to do?"
"Perhaps you could accept her for the way that she is."
"That's what I've been doing this whole time."
"Then given your recent prompting, she's been given the chance to change. Wait and see if she takes it." and then he got hoisted up and out of the hole.
"He says it, but what are the odds of it happening?" Trent asked this only to himself as he let himself get pulled out of the borehole, with Leshawna quietly lowering him back down to the ground "Let's go."
"Just tell me something." Leshawna looked up at him as he removed his harness "Do you still want to quit?"
"...Let's get to the Chill Zone and see."
"Fine." so the two of them calmly made their way along the path to the Chill Zone, though as they did, Leshawna fell back a bit and looked at the camera "He ain't wrong about what he said before. I do get carried away, and I don't think a lot before I do stuff. My mom told me that if I wanna succeed in life, I gotta dig in my heels and never show weakness. Don't think, just do, that one is my dad's motto.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
One anticlimactic race to the Chill Zone later…
"And here they come now." Don was quick to count off the next team that arrived at the Chill Zone "The Goths are in fourth place."
"Yay." and then Crimson and Ennui turned on their heels ande made their way out of the steam bath as quickly as they could.
"And then there was one." Don's expression turned solemn as he watched the Performers make their way onto the carpet "Trent. Leshawna. I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but you are the last team to arrive. And with no ball, but that doesn't really make a difference. But the good news is that this is a non-elimination round."
"That's… definitely something." Trent muttered.
"Trent, we heard what you said in the hole, mainly due to the fact that we have cameras pretty much everywhere we go. If you wish to stand with your decision then we won't stop you, but I will need a final confirmation."
"...Give me one second." Trent turned over to Leshawna "I was probably too hasty with wanting to quit, but I meant the other stuff I said before. You get that right?"
"Yeah, I do." Leshawna gave a simple nod "Whatever you want to do, I'm cool with. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry."
"Thanks for that." Trent took a breath, then turned back to Don "I'm not sure how this is going to turn out, but Don… we're not out of the race yet."
"Very well." Don gave a simple nod "I admire the tenacity you're showing, and I wish the two of you good luck moving forward. Now if you don't mind, I have to sign off."
"Got it." so Trent started walking away, with Leshawna following at his side, though as he did he glanced over at the camera "Ennui wasn't wrong about the things he said. Given how far the two of us have come in the race, it wouldn't be right to just up and quit without a fight. Plus I am still mad about all the stuff Leshawna's been putting me through, but it's not like she's pure evil or anything. I know what that looks like. I'm giving her another chance, and then I guess we'll see how it pans out." and then they left the scene.
"And there you have it." Don turned to the camera to sign off "Five teams remain in our race around the world for one million dollars. Who will be kicked to the curb next? There's only one way to find out, and it's to tune into the next exciting installment of… the Ridonculous Race!"
A/N:
Yeah, it shouldn't really come as a surprise to anyone that this episode turned out to be a non-elimination round. I've got five teams here with a fair bit going on, and I didn't think I could get rid of any of them just yet. As for which team goes next, I wonder how many of you are going to guess who it is.
Given that this challenge is taking place in Russia, I thought it made sense to mention certain events that happened during Total Drama World Tour, at least with the Surfers. Specifically, how Bridgette got stuck there by Blaineley. And how she had landed there in her Drop of Shame after what happened in the Yukon. I know it might seem like I'm just doing this for drama, but I do this to show how the Surfers have grown and matured and moved past that, and how the faith they have in each gother can't be shaken so easily.
On another note, this is another step in the story arc for the Performers. I'm sure you guys have noticed that a good chunk of what they do in this story revolves around Leshawna being impulsive and Trent being dragged along for the ride. I did make it clear that Leshawna has certain standards and she's not like MacArthur of the Police Cadets, but she still has her moments. The same can be said for Trent in another regard. Sure he's a chill and easygoing guy, but even his patience has its limits too, as we see here. He's not gonna get dragged along for the ride by her impulsiveness anymore, and we'll see how that plays out from here on out. It's got some similarities to the Police Cadets' arc sure, but its got enough differences to set it apart from them. I will admit that I was a bit unsure about this part, so let me know what you guys think.
Ranking:
Surfers- 1st
Ice Dancers- 2nd
Best Friends- 3rd
Goths- 4th
Performers- 5th
Elimination order:
Sisters- 6th
Rockers- 7th
Reality TV Pros- 8th
Brains & Brawn- 9th
Father & Son- 10th
Stepbrothers- 11th
Adversity Twins- 12th
Mother & Daughter- 13th
Fashion Bloggers- 14th
Vegans - 15th
Geniuses - 16th
Tennis Rivals 17th
LARPers - 18th