Physical Strength Isn't Everything

A fly buzzes around the inside of a tent. It lands on somebody's forehead and is immediately smacked down.

"Ugh!" Colleen sat up, her own hand mark on her forehead. Her reddish brown hair was down, but she immediately tied it up. She was wearing her pajamas, a green v-neck and black shorts. She had some back pain and held her back with a hand while rolling her neck. "This sleeping situation is terrible." She stepped out of the tent and noticed Grace, sitting a few yards up with a cup of tea. She walked up and sat next to her. "Where'd you get the tea?"

"I went and grabbed some from Delanie." Grace said. She was already in her usual get up. She sipped on some tea and looked on at Ignatius, who was collecting firewood.

"Did you sleep well?" Colleen asked.

"No way." Grace said. "I'm trying not to complain too much about it, but I could use some padding between me and the ground." She sipped and kept watching Ignatius.

"Same here." Colleen said. She noticed who Grace was watching. "Sorry that you have to deal with that again."

"I had the slightest bad feeling about coming back to play." Grace said. "I mean, it's Total Drama. My gut feeling was right. Of course they would bring him back too. Our drama was a big part of TDH."

"It was." Colleen said. "I remember when it was airing live. It was the talk of the town." She looked over at Grace. "Sorry, I didn't mean to."

"It's fine." Grace said. "It happened. I thought this would be a chance to move on and show people the real Grace, but now I have to deal with him."

"You aren't alone." Colleen smiled at her. "I see the good in you. I have your back!"

"Good to know." Grace smiled. "But this time he's acting strange."

"Strange?"

"Different." Grace said. "Like, we all know who he is. What he's capable of. This time he's been a bit quiet… Too quiet… I don't trust him at all."

"Nobody trusts him." Colleen said. "He's a sexist, immature criminal. He'll probably drag our team down."

"Then let's get him out as soon as we can." Grace said. "I can't stand him."

"I told you I got you girl." Colleen smiled. "Forget about him for now. Come with me to get some tea. Yours looks pretty good."

"Sure." Grace stood up and the two girls walked away.

Confession Cam:

(Grace) "I'm tired of my story being tied to Ignatius. I won't be satisfied until I see him go down." She states firmly.

Ignatius dropped another piece of wood in the little pile he was making. He noticed Grace and Colleen walking away. He rolled his eyes and spit at the pile of wood.

Confession Cam:

(Ignatius) "I know me being here is driving her crazy. It's hilarious to watch her squirm over me." He laughs. "I thought I wanted to get rid of her annoying ass first, but maybe I'll let her stay for a couple rounds just for the comedy." He chuckles.

Pencil to paper, both Eun and Brendan sat next to each other in the small woods writing in their notebook and notepad.

Eun stood up with a big bright smile on her face. "I'm so happy we actually got some time to write together!" Her Korean accent was not as thick as it was the last time she played, but still there. "You're super nice, Brendan! I hope I get to read Brendan's poetry some day."

Brendan smiled and got up as well. "You are so sweet. Thanks for joining me. It's nice to have someone else's company while writing."

"Loved your company!" Eun said. She pushed her hair behind her ear and placed her pencil on it. "Let's do it again soon!"

"I was just about to say the same thing." Brendan said.

Eun smiled and nodded. They started parting ways.

"One more thing." Eun said, turning back to face him. "Next time, we should write somewhere else. I don't really like the woods. Makes me feel like I'm hiding something and really, there's nothing to hide." She smiled at him.

Brendan just nodded.

Confession Cam:

(Brendan) "Deja vu." He takes a deep breath. "I can't help but think about my time with Lola in the woods of Wawanakwa. How much I longed for those meetings in the woods. How… obsessed I became… I don't want to make that same mistake twice. I have to tread very carefully here because at this rate, I might just fall…"

A loud scream is heard. Janae ran out of the tent she was sleeping in and ran right into Eun. "That is not okay!"

"Huh?" Eun was confused.

Janae pointed at the tent and Luigi stepped out of it.

"My queen! I am so sorry!" He said. "I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable."

"I was until the moment I opened my eyes and saw you." Janae said.

"I will do anything to make you feel better, beautiful." Luigi reached out a hand.

Janae was disgusted. "How about…" She began to smirk. "You get me one of those teas from Delanie."

"Will do." Luigi nodded and quickly walked away.

"Actually…" Janae watched him leave. "I thought I didn't want to deal with him again, but after last season I'll take anyone I can get."

"Count me in." Eun smiled.

"Oh, you're still here!" Janae turned toward her. "Wait, really?"

"Sure!" Eun said. "We're from the same side of the world, we gotta stick together."

"Thanks… I was born in Canada, by the way." Janae said.

"Okay." Eun smiled. "But I will say… I'm not someone you can tell what to do! I would like to have a say in things as well."

Janae sighed. "Fine." She put her hand out to Eun, who extended hers and they shook. "Last season, I didn't have many options. But at least it seems like you have more than a single brain cell, so."

Eun laughed. "Don't be so negative. We will do great if we just work well with the team."

"We have some of the worst players in Total Drama history." Janae said condescendingly.

"That's the point of this season!" Eun said. "We're all so underrated. You shouldn't judge anyone on their past performance. Most of us are pre-mergers here."

"Well I intend to change that fact about me." Janae said. "So with you and Luigi, we almost have a majority."

"You're in game mode even as you're waking up." Eun giggled. "Not surprised."

Janae shrugged. "I gained you as an ally didn't I?"

"Hmm, you're right." Eun shrugged. "I'm going to go get some tea, seems like everyone is there anyway."

"Well, I'll come with you then." Janae said.

Confession Cam:

(Janae) "Maybe I should ask Eun what to do to win the season. I mean, the girl writes Total Drama fanfiction for a living. She must write her own fictional seasons every now and then, right?" She shakes her head. "I sound even more delusional than Stephan did in Holiday."

Janae and Eun arrived to their team's wooden table to find Joshua standing at the head with Janet, Micky, Asandra and Luigi paying attention to him. He noticed the two approaching.

"Oh good! You are here!" He smiled and motioned for them to sit.

"What is this?" Janae asked.

"I was just giving everyone some teamwork pointers." Joshua said. "If we all want to make it to the merge, we have to make sure we work together and play on each other's strengths and weaknesses."

"Oh really?" Janae rose an eyebrow and looked around the table. Janet was smiling and eating some undercooked bacon, Micky looked bored, Asandra had her hands folded, and Luigi smiled and winked at her. "What does everyone think about that?"

"He's right." Janet said in between chews. "If there is any eating challenge, I can take over! Ooh! Or anything green related!"

"Joshua said me being tall could come in handy." Luigi said. He leaned forward and whispered. "I also have a super good ear. I can hear the faintest of sounds."

"And I bring star quality to the team." Micky smirked.

"HA!" Delanie exclaimed in the background, causing Micky's smirk to drop.

"I still don't really like to dig…" Asandra said. "But, I think I'm good at adapting to things!"

"Your track record says otherwise." Janae said.

"Be nice!" Eun said.

Janae moved on. "And you?" She looked at Joshua.

"Well, I believe I can lead the team to success!" Joshua smiled.

Janae let out a loud cackle. "Do you really-"

Eun stepped in. "Wow! Looks like everyone has great strengths!" She looked at Janae, subtly giving her a note to stop it. "I'm very creative and Janae here is a super genius. Our team rocks!"

"I think so too!" Joshua said. "Now let's bring it in, everyone! Team Chicken on three!" He put his arm in front of him and everyone else but Janae followed. "Come on, Janae." He said.

Janae rolled her eyes and finally put her hand in.

"One, two, three!"

"Team Chicken!"

Confession Cam:

(Joshua) "I don't really like how I was portrayed the first time I played." He says, rubbing the top of his head with a hand. "This time, I'm going to try super hard to be likable and a better team player! I know Total Drama is an individual game eventually… But for now it's all about the team and making sure we win!"

(Janae) "Having to bite my tongue is excruciating… But Eun is right. If I want to make it farther this time, I have to play a different game."

Grace and Colleen sat at their team's table.

"Looks like the chickens are all getting along." Grace commented. "Meanwhile on Team Earth…"

"Yeah, with Ignatius and Lesley here, it'll be a bit harder on this side of things." Colleen said. "We'll have to work much harder and put our pride aside for the team."

"Teamwork is essential." Grace said. "And so is an effective leader. They will smoke us if we don't make this team work."

"No way." Colleen said. "Our team is much stronger. With the guys we have, we'll easily take all the physical challenges."

"Sure, we are physically stronger." Grace said. "At a glance. But a team that works better is best even if they are weaker."

"I guess." Colleen said.

"She's right!" A new voice shouted, scaring both Colleen and Grace away from the table. It was Sandy.

"Sandy?! What are you doing down there?" Grace asked.

"How long were you under there?" Colleen followed.

"Doesn't matter!" Sandy said. "I heard everything. We need to work together!"

"Yes." Grace nodded, knowing she had just said that.

"Us." Sandy waved her fingers at Colleen and Grace, then at herself.

"Us? As a team?" Colleen was trying to follow whatever point Sandy was trying to make.

Sandy loudly sighed. "What I mean…" She then quickly shielded herself. "Nevermind! Hi Brendan!"

The girls turned to see Brendan walking up. Colleen looked back at Sandy, confused, then to Brendan.

"Hey girls." Brendan smiled and held his hand up before sitting with them.

Lesley and Ignatius followed right after and both sat at the table. There was silence for a few minutes. Nobody really knew what to say but the tension was loud and clear. Colleen felt uncomfortable around Lesley, who didn't even look at her. Grace avoided all eye contact with Ignatius, who wouldn't stop staring at her face. Brendan and Sandy sat in the middle, feeling all the energy.

Confession Cam:

(Colleen) "Great…"

(Brendan) "This team is gonna be tough."

A very loud blow horn went off, startling all the contestants.

"Just making sure you're awake." Chef marched up.

"Geez, Chef." Grace said.

"NO SPEAKING." Chef yelled. "And get used to being up at this time, cause I ain't gonna let you sleep in next time. Understood?" No one spoke. Just nods. "Good…" He looked around and did a head count. "Aight. You all have to get to the top of the stairs to nowhere and come back right here. First team back gets the advantage for the next part of the challenge." Nobody moved. "This starts now! Move you're behinds!" He yelled, getting everyone to jump up and start running.

Confession Cam:

(Sandy) "Chef is like, super cool when he yells at us! It's so exciting and bouncy! And everyone is so tense which is, like, fun! He's like half a cup of soda - without the sugar and artificial flavors."

(Joshua) "Chef is no joke! Reminds me of one of my uncles in a weird way… Except my uncle went into pottery."

(Chef) He sips on a cup of tea. "I gotta start off hard, earn some of the respect Chris got." Sip. "But I demand even more respect." He nods and savors the tea. "Mmmm, chamomile."

"Okay team, let's get through this nice and swiftly!" Joshua said, leading the charge for the Chickens, who were already trailing behind Team Earth.

"We're trying!" Micky said.

"We aren't fast enough!" Asandra breathed.

"We suck." Janae said. "Stop!"

"No! We have to keep going!" Joshua said.

"No, stop." Janae halted, stopping the rest of the team. "We need to do something about her." She pointed at Janet, who was struggling a few meters back to catch up. "We haven't even reached the stairs yet."

"She's right." Janet said, finally catching up and gasping for air. "There's no way I'm getting up those stairs before sundown."

Micky laughed. "Are you trying to be funny?"

Janet frowned. "I'm serious…"

"That was hilarious." Micky said.

"Enough talk then." Joshua said. He then looked at Luigi and himself. "We'll carry you."

"Me?" Luigi asked. "But I'm doing just fine."

"No, let's help Janet!" Joshua motioned for him to help pick Janet up. They did. "Wow, Janet. You're not as heavy as I thought you'd be."

Janet giggled and blushed. "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me!"

"Let's go!" Janae said and everyone started running once more.

Meanwhile, Team Earth was already halfway up the stairs.

"WOOHOO!" Sandy whooped several times as she flipped up the stairs, ahead of everyone else.

"How does that girl have so much energy?" Colleen asked.

"She's a nutcase." Ignatius said.

"That energy will probably come in handy later." Grace said to Colleen.

They raced to the top, quickly turned back around and started heading down.

"Piece of cake!" Lesley smirked.

"Cake?!" Janet's voice was heard. The Chickens were close to halfway up.

"We have to think of something fast." Janae said. "They're ahead of us but if we find a faster way to get down…"

"We can roll down!" Janet said.

"Easy for you to say." Janae said.

"We can slide down the rails!" Micky said.

"They are made out of wood." Janae said.

"Great ideas, Janet and Micky!" Joshua said. "I know the perfect way to combine both!"

Cut to the Chickens all at the top, with everyone looking at Luigi, who is frowning.

"Please, Luigi." Joshua said. "You are our only hope. Do it for the team!"

Luigi sighed and removed his cloak, revealing his black shirt, pants and boots.

"I didn't know you were so stylish." Eun said, pointing at his look. "The boots are so cute."

Luigi blushed.

"Let's do this!" Joshua said and they all sat on the cloak and slid down the stairs with a lot of speed. They reached the bottom quick, but they still didn't beat the other team.

Once everyone had arrived back to the eating area, Chef looked them all up and down. "Where is it?"

"We got here first!" Sandy said.

"That's not what I asked!" Chef snapped. "Where are your keys?!"

"Keys?" Micky asked.

"YES. KEYS." Chef groaned. "Don't tell me all'a'y'all ran up there and came back down empty-handed." Nobody spoke. "WELL GET BACK UP THERE! AND DON'T COME BACK TILL YOU HAVE YOUR TEAM'S KEY."

There were a few groans as everyone headed back in the direction of the stairs. This time, it wasn't much of a race because both teams ended up at or near the top looking for keys.

"There isn't enough room to even look around." Lesley said.

"Yeah, cause you're taking up most of the space." Micky said. "Move!"

"For once I agree with him." Janae said. "Perhaps it's better to let the smaller people look around."

Lesley looked down on both of them. "The smaller people." He chuckled and stepped out of the way, motioning for the girls on his team to step ahead.

"Excuse me." Colleen made eye contact with him as she stepped forward. He smiled at her but she quickly looked away, starting her search for a key.

"This is ridiculous." Grace said. "There are no keys up here. We would have found them by now."

"Found ours." Micky said, causing everyone to look in his direction. He was looking down over the rail. Joshua, Janae and Eun all joined him and looked down to see their brown key with their team's chicken head logo on it dangling several feet down the side of the drop.

"Well would you look at that." Grace said, observing her team's green key on the other side. "Okay, here's our game plan-"

"I can probably climb down and reach it." Lesley smirked.

"No! Let me do it!" Sandy exclaimed. "I'd love a good thrill!"

"What if we make a long stick to reach for it?" Colleen suggested.

"Someone should just jump for it." Ignatius said. "The fall won't be too bad."

"You jump for it then." Brendan looked at him.

"I'll jump for it!" Sandy exclaimed and she quickly jumped before Grace could stop her. Everyone looked down to see if Sandy could do it, but she failed to reach the key and landed belly first on top of the water.

It looked like it hurt. "I'm okay!" She yelled before sinking in.

"Guys-" Grace was interrupted yet again by everyone on the team shouting out ideas.

"This is perfect." Janae said to the Chickens. "It gives us time to strategize."

"I think we should try to jump for it too." Joshua said. "Odds are, one of us will reach it."

"That's a terrible idea." Janae said. "If nobody gets it we'll have to climb the stairs again."

"You just don't want to try." Micky smirked. "Allow me to get it." He pushed his way forward.

"Wait, Micky. Are you confident in your swimming abilities?" Joshua asked.

Micky looked down at what seemed to be an endless drop. He gulped and stepped back. "I'll hear your ideas out." He crossed his arms. "I guess."

Back on the Earth side, Grace was still trying to lead but couldn't grasp control. Finally, Lesley just started to lower himself down and find some good footholds on the way down to the key.

"What are you doing?" Grace asked.

"I'm just gonna climb down and get it." Lesley said.

"Be careful!" Colleen said, then quickly changed her demeanor.

Lesley smirked and looked up at her. "Thanks for your concern, beauti-" He was interrupted by an explosion that knocked him several feet away and sent him hurdling down towards the water. "(BLEEP)!"

"Oh my gosh!" Colleen got wide eyed and ran to look down the ledge.

"What on Earth was that?!" Grace exclaimed.

"It wouldn't be Total Drama without some explosions." Brendan said.

"Could have been more impressive." Ignatius commented, causing everyone to stare at him with disapproving looks.

Confession Cam:

(Chef) He has his arms crossed. "What?! Ya thought I was gonna make it easy for them?! Half of those rats don't deserve a second chance anyway!" He chuckles.

Joshua was in position to climb down but he quickly stopped himself. "Maybe I shouldn't do the same thing."

"Try it!" Ignatius said from the other side. "Maybe your side doesn't have any." He grinned.

"Don't listen to him, Joshua!" Janet said.

"I have an idea." Luigi said with his white-gloved finger up. He then pulled everyone in a huddle.

"This better be good." Janae said.

"It will be, my sweet." Luigi said. "I propose a human ladder."

"That's a great idea Luigi!" Joshua exclaimed.

"That way, there's no need to touch the sides." Luigi said.

"And no explosions!" Eun smiled.

"And just how is this human ladder going to work?" Janae asked.

"Janae is right." Eun said. "I don't think I'm strong enough to hold up anyone here."

Janet frowned. "It took two people to carry me earlier…"

"I'm not the strongest but I can probably hold Micky." Asandra said.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Micky asked, offended.

"I got it." Luigi said. He looked over the edge at their key. He then looked over at the Earth side and saw Brendan trying to climb down, and failing as another explosion knocked him down below. He then rejoined the team. "Lower me. I'm the tallest one here and I weigh almost nothing."

"Thanks for volunteering yourself." Joshua said. "Excellent teamwork!"

"You're tall, but not tall enough to reach it if we just lower you." Janae said. "So how do we solve that?" She turned to Joshua and crossed her arms. "Huh? Mister team captain?"

Joshua smiled. Then the scene cuts to Luigi hanging off the ledge with Joshua on one leg and Eun, Asandra and Janet on the other. Luigi was holding on to Janae's legs.

"This is NOT what I had in mind." Janae groaned.

"This is amazing." Luigi smiled as he looked down on her.

"You're gross." Janae said. "Let's make this quick." She looked down at the key, which seemed to be just a couple more feet down. "I just need to be lowered a little more!"

Micky was watching over the edge. "Okay guys. Lower them down a bit more. More. More."

"They actually thought of a good idea." Grace said, looking over at the other team. "Lesley, Colleen, help lower me."

"You aren't gonna ask me for help?" Ignatius smirked at her.

"I'd rather land face first on one of those land mines." Grace said.

"Well get ready to do just that." Ignatius rolled his eyes. "Girls… Always bitching and moaning."

"Excuse me?!" Grace said, pulling away from Lesley and Colleen. "I'm not going to let you talk to me like that!"

Ignatius smirked and stepped closer to her. "You let me talk to you like that last time we played together." He stepped even closer. "Let me remind you of that night we shared together by the bonfire. When you let me put my hands in your-"

"Asshole!" Grace swiftly slapped him across the face. Ignatius took it like a champ and smiled. Grace then proceeded to push him over the ledge.

"You bitch!" He yelled as he fell down into the water.

Grace was left there with Lesley and Colleen, who were both in shock. But it was Sandy who broke the silence.

"That was so badass!" She exclaimed. She whipped her pony tail around in excitement and her wavy brown hair nearly whipped Colleen in the face. "I can't wait to see that on TV, and like, play it over and over again!"

Grace just remembered that they were on international television. "Oh crap."

"I'm so close!" Janae said, they key nearly within her reach.

"That's what she said." Micky smirked, proud at himself.

"Grow up." Janae said.

"Micky, we're gonna need your help for these last few inches." Joshua said.

Micky laughed. "How many inches?" He winked at Joshua, then quickly joined the rest of his team.

"I think we just need to swing them back and forth a little." Asandra said, looking down.

"Yeah, do that!" Janae said. "Slowly. I said slowly!" She started swinging back and forth and finally grabbed the brown key. "I got it!"

The Chickens cheered, and in their excitement they sent Janae and Luigi swinging right into one of the land mines, causing it to explode and send the entire team down into the water. Micky, Janet, Joshua, Janae, Eun, Luigi and Asandra all screamed as they fell and landed in different spots in the water one at a time.

"That'll make it easier for them to get back to the eating area!" Grace groaned. "Quick! Sandy will hold me and Lesley will hold Sandy."

"I have a better idea." Sandy said, preparing to jump for it again.

"No, Sandy, don't!" Grace demanded but couldn't stop Sandy, who laughed maniacally before jumping. This time, she grabbed the key from its little string and laughed all the way down into the water.

"It worked." Grace said.

"Well now it's a race!" Lesley said, picking up Colleen in one arm and Grace in the other. "Let's go!" He started running down the steps.

But it was no use. Team Chicken had already reached Chef first.

"Bout time you showed up!" Chef said to the rest of Team Earth as they trickled in. "The Chicken's smoked ya! That's why they're getting a head start in part two of today's challenge!"

"Sweet!" Joshua smiled.

Chef carried out one big wooden chest and Delanie followed behind him, slowly pushing another one forward. "Hurry up Miss Gemmy!"

"Actually, Delanie doesn't have any Gemmy's." Eun said, smiling. Delanie just glared at her and kicked the wooden chest, hurting her foot. She groaned and stumbled away.

Confession Cam:

(Eun) She's looking at her notes. "What? It's true! She's been nominated two times for supporting roles, but hasn't won one just yet." She looks at the camera now. "But it's okay, Delanie! You still have so many years left of your… career…"

Joshua used the key to unlock the Chicken's chest. In it were a bunch of building supplies. "What's this?"

"Oh don't tell me we have to build something." Micky said.

"Your next challenge is to build a completely new shelter." Chef said. "A cabin for the winning team to sleep in."

"That's it? That's the challenge?" Janae asked.

"YEAH IT IS!" Chef announced. "I'm still taking it easy on you weaklings. So if you have any complaints take it to the confession cam." He pointed in the direction towards the lake. "Cause I don't wanna hear it. Chicken's, you get first pick on the supplies. They're on the beach." He then turned around and looked at Delanie. "You. Come with me."

Delanie groaned. "This is not how you treat Delanie freaking Rios…" She mumbled.

"I treat my chef the way I WANT to treat my chef." Chef snapped. Then he smiled. "Come on now… We have to go watch the cameras and gossip about these fools."

Delanie suddenly perked up. "Now THAT I can do." She smiled and followed Chef.

Confession Cam:

(Janet) She was twiddling her thumbs. Her pale freckled face was slightly pink. "He said he's taking it easy on us! Easy and I'm already exhausted! I can't even imagine what the hard part looks like!" She pulls out another piece of fried chicken from the pocket of her green short shorts and starting chewing at it. "Time to stress eat."

The Chickens were now at the beach, looking through all the supplies there. There was a big amount of wood, glass, frames, paint, furniture and much more.

"Okay, we need a bunch of wood." Joshua said, picking some pieces up and setting them aside. "Glass for windows… We have to make bunk beds too I guess."

Janet pulled aside some cans of green paint. "We have to make it look cute too!"

"Green is their team's color, not ours." Micky said. "How embarrassing."

"We have to share it anyway." Eun said. "I think painting it is a great idea!"

"So you'll both be on paint duty then." Joshua smiled. "Luigi and I can do most of the heavy lifting."

"I'll design the cabin." Janae said with pride.

"I can help with the building." Asandra said. "I think if we start on opposite ends we can get it done faster."

"What if we don't align in the middle?" Joshua asked.

"We should set all the pieces down in place before we put it all together." Asandra proposed. "That way, we'll know if it'll work!"

"That's a great idea!" Joshua said. "Hey, I'll work on your side. Micky and Luigi can work on the other side."

"Sounds good." Asandra smiled, happy with herself.

Confession Cam:

(Asandra) She's humming along with the birds. "I'm still a singer. Still always open for new friends." She smiles. "But this time around, I'm in game mode! I know I'm not the most athletic person and not on the most athletic team, but it's time to use my brain even harder than ever before. I just hope it doesn't get in the way… I need to prove everyone wrong." She says, focused.

"What's taking them so long?" Lesley asked. "They're taking all the supplies or something?"

"We have to be patient." Said Colleen.

"I hate being patient!" Sandy jumped up. "I want to get started already!"

Brendan pulled Grace aside. "Hey Grace. Remember during the last challenge when you me and Janet made that alliance?"

"Yeah." Grace nodded. "Pity she's on the other team."

"Yeah…" Brendan paused. "Just wanted you to know that I'm still down to work with you. We can get Ignatius out of here if that's what you want."

"Absolutely." Grace nodded and shook Brendan's hand. "You have my word. I'm with you."

"Perfect." Brendan said. "Just covering my bases."

"Consider them covered." Grace smiled.

Sandy interrupted them. "Let's go! Let's go!" She nudged Brendan forward. "Earth squad to the beach! The Chicken's are done with their pick!"

"Alright, alright!" Brendan laughed and headed toward the beach with the rest of the Earth squad.

Confession Cam:

(Brendan) "I'm happy to have Sandy on my team. True, she goes nuts sometimes, but she means well. Maybe I can bring her in with Grace and I."

Sandy stopped Grace and let the others forward. "I got something to say to you!"

"Hey Sandy." Grace rose an eyebrow. "You okay?"

"I'm great!" Sandy exclaimed. She then got closer and spoke in a one on one voice with her. "But to be honest, everything would be better with soda."

"Well, maybe if we win, you can have a celebratory pop." Grace said.

"That would be AWESOME!" Sandy exclaimed. She then tried to compose herself. "So. I propose to you, Grace, a girl alliance!"

"A girls alliance." Grace repeated. "With Colleen?"

"Yes!" Sandy said. "We are already half of the team. Won't take much for us to start running it!"

"Girl power doesn't sound so bad." Grace thought. "Promise me we'll get Ignatius out first?"

"I promise." Sandy spit in her hand and held it out. "Let's shake on it."

Grace looked at Sandy's hand. "I'm not going to shake your hand but consider it a deal."

"Fine." Sandy smiled, then jumped back to her energetic side. "Now let's go win this thing!" She rushed away.

Confession Cam:

(Sandy) "I'm all about girl power this season! Too many boys have won Total Drama. Let's even it out!" She punches her fist up in the air as a bird flies by, knocking it out.

(Grace) She runs her hand through the lake water right beside her. "I know. Making too many promises could bite me in the butt, but as long as we get Ignatius out of here and keep winning after that, everything should be fine."

Team Chicken were at the campsite already starting to organize their structure as Team Earth rummaged through whatever was left on the beach.

Joshua, Janet and Micky were working within close proximity to each other. Micky smirked and spoke to Janet, making sure Joshua could hear. "Janet, I bet you're going to make it far this season."

Janet smiled and blushed. "You think so? That's sweet! I would love to, but I don't know what Chef will pull from his sleeves."

"Don't underestimate yourself. That's the whole reason we're here." Micky said. "We are the best people on our team, really."

"You think?" Janet asked. "But we aren't the strongest people on our team. We aren't the smartest."

"BUT." Micky said. "If we work together as a team… We could be unstoppable."

"Hmmm." Janet smiled. "So true!"

"We do make a good team. You, me…" Micky grinned, then nudged Joshua. "And this guy over here. Right Josh?"

Joshua had been eavesdropping. "Us?" He smiled at Micky and Janet. "Well you know I'm all about the team."

"You're a good leader." Micky said.

"Micky, I never thought I'd hear that from you." Joshua said. "Thanks!"

"I have your back bro." Micky said. "Janet does too. Do you have ours?"

Joshua thought. "Actually, that would be great! We can work together just in case we lose. We don't vote one another out."

"An alliance! EEE!" Janet beamed out loud before being hushed by Micky. "Sorry." It was fine though, only Asandra was around and she didn't seem to notice.

Confession Cam:

(Janet) "First Brendan and Grace wanted to be an alliance with me, but they ended up on the other team. Now I have Joshua and Micky! I can't believe so many people want to work with me!" She is so happy. She licks her lips and goes to dig in her pockets.

(Joshua) "It's nice to have insurance on the team. Micky and Janet aren't the strongest teammates I have, but trust is of most importance here. With my leadership, we'll make it to the merge and beyond!" He fists his palm.

(Micky) "I know I'm labeled as the cocky guy." He smirks and crosses his arms. "It's confidence, by the way… But, I had to let Josh think that he was the one in control because he's so set on being the leader of the team. I need him to think he's in control so I can use him to get me to the merge." He smells the air. "I already made it past the first elimination. Now, it's only up!" He points up victoriously, but then bird poop lands on his blonde head.

Janae was doodling on some paper when Luigi came near her and picked up some wood. "Let me help you with this, my sweet. I don't want you to strain your little bones."

Janae sighed. "Luigi, please stop calling me that."

Luigi nodded. "As you wish."

"Look, if we're going to be working together this season, I need you to stop being such a creep." Janae said. "Being a lolicon, or whatever it's called, is pretty gross and immoral, honestly. I won't sign you off just yet, but if you ever want to make it far in life, you should drop this act."

Luigi nodded and walked away.

Confession Cam:

(Janae) "It pains me having to work with this guy again, but I need him just as much as he needs me. With him and Eun in my corner I have a one way ticket to the end! I just need one more person on this wretched team. But who?"

(Luigi) He sighs. "It is not I who needs to change. I know one day a beautiful little Loli will come right along and see me. Really see me. Janae doesn't see me."

Grace tried to bring together the team, but everyone was working on their own little thing. Brendan was working on a window while Ignatius was putting together the front door. Sandy and Colleen were working on some steps and Lesley had built a wall that he was now painting on.

"Guys, we really need to plan things out better." She said. "I have a few ideas." Nobody stopped what they were doing to listen to her. "Hello?" Brendan looked up and smiled at her, then continued working on his window. "Earth to team Earth!" Grace said, then she groaned and stomped away.

Confession Cam:

(Grace) "My team needs to understand that without a leader, we won't make it far!" She snaps. "We're already trailing behind the Chickens! Physical strength isn't everything."

Ignatius chuckled as he watched Grace stomp away toward the lake. "Gonna blow off some steam in the confession cam, eh little Grace?" He then looked over at Lesley, who was working on a big masterpiece on this wall he had constructed. "Nice painting." Ignatius said. "But there are three more walls to make."

"I don't see you making one." Lesley said, focused on his painting. "Isn't it a beauty?" He revealed his mural of many different colors and shapes, swirls and symbols. "I know it is. It's my work of art."

Ignatius flicked on a lighter. "And it could be gone in just a moment."

Lesley cracked his neck and turned to Ignatius. "You may be some type of felon but do you think you scare me?" He snatched the lighter out of Ignatius' hand. "I weight 220 pounds bro. You're just some white boy with dreads. I can and will crush you."

Ignatius put his hands up in peace. "Come on, I was just messing with ya." Lesley handed him back his lighter. "I just wanted to let you know that I have a certain level of respect for you." He grinned. "And I wanted to let you know that, as the macho men on our team, I think it would be a good idea not to target each other during this stage of the game."

"And why should I trust you?" Lesley asked.

Ignatius shrugged. "I don't know. I could just vote you out tonight and break this little deal, but it wouldn't benefit me. You see, if you go, I'm the next target. I think the same applies to you if I go."

Lesley thought about it.

"Think about it." Ignatius said. "You see how far Vincent went last season? They aren't gonna let you anywhere near that final if they know what's good for them. At least a deal with each other could buy us a couple rounds."

"I see your point." Lesley said.

"So do we have a deal then?" Ignatius said, playing with his lighter.

"Sure, for now." Lesley said. "Just keep that lighter away from my creations." And he went back to working on his mural.

Ignatius chuckled as he stepped away.

Confession Cam:

(Lesley) "I don't care about making a deal with that guy. Look at Vinnie from last season. He was threat number one and kept winning his way to the end. Who's threat number one here? Me. But as long as I got Iggy around to distract the rest of them, I have a few free passes."

(Ignatius) "Baldy will be a good shield for me moving forward." He plays with the lighter, flicking it on and off. "Ha! And he comes with a little bitch on the side so we have the majority we need to get to the merge. That's all I need. Just gotta get to the merge." He picks up a leaf and sets it on fire.

It was already mid-day and Team Chicken was still in the lead, pretty much on the finishing up side of things whereas Team Earth had just a bit more to go to catch up to them.

"Your side is looking really good." Janae said to Asandra.

"Thanks." Asandra smiled. "Wouldn't have done it without this guy." She nodded toward Joshua.

"Right." Janae said. "Joshua, why don't you switch places with Luigi? Micky could use some extra help on the other side."

"Hey!" Micky objected but was ignored.

"Sure." Joshua happily swapped with Luigi.

Janae then got closer to Asandra. "Hey Asandra, I'll make this quick. I want to work with you."

Asandra looked up. "Really?"

"We want to work with you." Janae brought Luigi in.

"Yeah." Luigi just chimed in.

"Us and Eun." Janae said. "We'd have the majority on this team."

"We need you." Luigi smiled at her. "You're no loli like the other two, but you're pretty cool."

"Thanks, Luigi." Asandra said, unsure about his statement.

"All right!" Joshua announced. "Looks like we're ready to put everything together. Isn't that exciting!"

"Think about it." Janae smiled at her, then joined Joshua.

Confession Cam:

(Asandra) "So Janae came up to me with a plan to work with her and Eun and Luigi… But earlier I overheard Joshua making an alliance with Micky and Janet…" She gets wide-eyed. "Do you know what this means?!" She's excited. "It means I'm in the middle! That gives me a lot of power here!" She sings a celebratory vocal run, which actually isn't that bad.

Joshua was looking at Janae's notes and directing the team. "Okay, Micky and Luigi just nail those two sides together. Eun is working on the furniture… Asandra, put the finishing touches on the windows and Janet, great job at the painting."

"Thanks!" Janet said. The entire cabin was almost covered in bright green paint.

"Bathroom break." Micky said, dropping his things and rushing off to the woods.

Joshua kept directing the team and watched as it all started coming together.

"This is so ridiculous!" Grace said to her team. "Do you see the Chicken cabin right now? Look at them, they're actually working together as a team! They're being led by someone and they're smoking us right now! Here, everyone is doing their own thing." Nobody listened to her as they were all focused on their little areas. "I'm so annoyed right now." She crossed her arms, then groaned as she saw Ignatius approaching her. "Back for more?" She raised her hand up at him.

"Just came to give some advice." Ignatius said. "Maybe if you stopped complaining so much and put your little girl hands to work, we'd be finished by now."

"You're such an asshole." Grace said. "At least we have a clear first target when we lose." She looked him up and down, then walked off.

Ignatius glared at her. "Not on my watch." He spotted Micky and headed towards him. "Hey, Mickster."

Micky rose an eyebrow. "Hey? What's up?"

"I was saving this for my team's cabin." Ignatius said, pointing to a small box with some wood in it. "It's supposed to be a fireplace, but since your team is winning, I think you should have it."

"Really?" Micky looked at it up and down.

"I just want it to be there so both of our teams can use it." Ignatius said.

Micky laughed and picked up the fireplace. "Silly guy, your team will never see the inside of our cabin! We're gonna smoke you guys!" He walked away and Ignatius smirked.

Ignatius looked at the camera. "I drenched that thing in some gas." He then walked over to where Micky had put it, beside the Chicken cabin, lit a match and threw it. The fire didn't take long to engulf the entire Chicken cabin.

"FIRE!" Joshua screamed. "Everyone get away from the fire!" He picked Eun, Janae, and Micky up and ran to the beach. Everyone joined.

"What just happened?!" Micky asked.

"Half the campsite is ablaze!" Colleen said with worry.

"This is not good." Brendan said.

"Where's Chef?!" Sandy exclaimed.

Suddenly, Chef and Delanie appeared from the woods with extinguishers in hand. They put out the fire quickly and once the smoke cleared and the ash settled, all that was left was the cabin Team Earth had built, and just one loser tent. Everything else was gone.

Chef stared at the contestants with a clear look of annoyance, then held up what looked to be the remains of the little fireplace Micky had just moments before the fire. "Team Chicken, it looks like this fireplace you made started the fire."

"But nobody made a fireplace!" Joshua said. "I was overseeing everything!"

Micky groaned. "I brought it over after he gave it to me." He pointed at Ignatius.

Most people looked his way and Ignatius shrugged. "It caught on fire after I gave it to him."

"You tricked me!" Micky swung at the air. "You're going to pay for that!"

"Team Chicken, you have disappointed me." Chef sighed. "You are disqualified. I'll see you all at the fire pit behind the lake later. One of you is going home." He walked away.

"I'm not cleaning this up." Delanie said before following Chef out.

"You're kidding me, right?" Janae glared at Micky.

Confession Cam:

(Janae) "Micky just blew it for us. We were in the lead!" She shakes her head. "At least this error puts him on the chopping block. Bye, Mick."

(Eun) "I don't blame Micky for being tricked by Ignatius. The villain always has the upper hand in the first part of the story…"

(Micky) "This is so not cool. If they know what's best for them, they'll keep me around. Luckily I have Janet and Joshua on my side."

Team Earth celebrated by starting a little bonfire on the beach and roasting marshmallows.

"Well, great job team." Grace smiled.

"Great job Ignatius." Ignatius corrected her.

Grace rolled her eyes and ignored him. "It'll be nice to break the cabin we built in."

"I can't wait." Colleen smiled and took a bite of her marshmallow. She placed her other hand down and it landed on Lesley's, who looked up at her and winked. She quickly looked away.

"WOO!" Sandy jumped around the campfire and did a few somersaults. She had a can of soda in her hand and downed it, crushed the can and threw it into the fire. She then pulled another can out of her pocked and cracked it open. "THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVERRRRRRRR!" She continued to jump around and started chanting gibberish around the fire.

"Who gave that girl soda?" Brendan laughed.

As the Chicken's started heading to the fire pit, Janae pulled Asandra aside once more.

"We're voting Micky tonight, got it?" She said.

Asandra nodded.

Joshua then came up to Asandra. "Hey. I would love it if you voted with me tonight. I think you're a really good team player, and-"

"Who are you voting for?" Asandra asked quietly.

"It's me, Micky and Janet." Joshua said. "We want you to join us. It can be, like, the Total Drama Adventure alliance!"

"But who do you want to vote out?" Asandra asked again.

"Tell you what, you decide." Joshua said to her.

Confession Cam:

(Asandra) She's a bit nervous. "I wanted to lay low for a while, but now I have a very important decision to make. I have to side with either Joshua's alliance or Janae's, and whatever decision I make can make or break me in this game… I'm basically deciding who's making it to the merge. I just hope that, whoever I choose to go with, I'll be in their long term plans." She takes a deep breath. "Okay, here we go."

The seven members of Team Chicken all took up a stump of wood behind the fire, with Chef at the podium and Delanie standing beside him with a tray of marshmallows.

"Marshmallows again! Sweet!" Janet licked her lips.

"Yes." Chef said. "Welcome to this season's elimination area." He presented the space with his arms, then cleared his throat. "Here on Total Drama Underrated we're going back to the basics with marshmallows, but this season we're introducin' something brand smackin' new." He looked at Delanie.

"The contestants up for elimination are allowed to have a short discussion prior to the vote." Delanie had clearly rehearsed her one line.

"A discussion before the vote?" Micky pondered.

"This is weird." Joshua said.

"This is unprecedented!" Eun exclaimed.

"Discussing what?" Asandra asked.

"Well I do have one thing I want to say." Janae started. "We need to vote off the weaker players if we want a chance to even get near the merge. I didn't want to name any names, but a certain someone blew today's challenge for the team. We would not be here if it weren't for Micky."

"It wasn't Micky's fault that Ignatius tricked him." Joshua said.

"That was Micky's excuse, but how do we know it's true?" Janae asked. "Micky's track record shows that he just screws the challenges up. He didn't even get a ball last time. I think he's done enough this time around."

Micky laughed. "How bold of you, Janae. To point the finger at me when you're just a weak player. I'm stronger than you."

Janae laughed back. "Good strategy transcends the physical." She looked at the rest of her teammates, with emphasis on Asandra. "I promise you, keeping Micky is not what's in our team's best interest."

Micky stood up. "I get it. I'm a target because of what happened today. And because of my performance in TDA, but Janae is an even bigger target! You can't just let this wannabe leader tell you what to do!"

Janae shook her head and took the high road. "I said what I needed to say. I'm not going to argue with this first boot."

Chef and Delanie were eating this up. "No, keep going." Chef said.

"I don't think arguing is going to do our team any favors. This is just like baseball. You have to coordinate each game with a certain level of teamwork, strategy and hope. And I hope that tonight we can leave here stronger as a team."

"You know the way to do that." Janae said.

"Does anyone else have anything to say?" Chef asked. "Anyone that hasn't said anything?"

"Can we vote?" Asandra asked.

"Yeah, I'm pretty hungry." Janet said, still drooling over the one marshmallow she was certain she was going to get.

"Alright, go." Chef said, exchanging a disappointed look with Delanie. "One by one, each person went to vote."

Confession Cam:

(Janae) "Micky, you have a one way ticket back to last place."

(Joshua) "Asandra would be a great ally to have! I hope she's voting for who she said she was."

(Asandra) "Time to draw the line."

"Alright, the votes are in." Chef said. "Ready?"

"Yes! Yes!" Janet exclaimed.

"Just give her the damn marshmallow." Chef rolled his eyes. "Janet, you are safe."

Janet caught the marshmallow with her mouth.

"Joshua, Eun, Luigi… You are safe." They all caught their marshmallows with smiles. Joshua gave his to Janet, who smiled wider.

"Micky… Janae… Asandra…" Chef pointed at each one of them. "One of you will be going home tonight! And you know what Chris says, you can't come back ever. Especially not to my boot camp!" He cleared his throat. "Asandra, you're safe."

Asandra smiled and caught her marshmallow.

"And the last, and final marshmallow. THE last and final marshmallow… is going to go to…. The person that received fewer votes…. The one that is living to see another day on underrated island… the person who gets this last and final marshmallow is….."

Micky suddenly felt nervous, as did Janae.

"Micky."

"No way!" Janae shot up. "Who betrayed me?!"

Micky stuck his tongue out at her before shoving his marshmallow in his mouth and chewing it loudly.

Janae quickly composed herself. "Whatever, it's fine. Just a dumb competition."

"How sad, your brother made it farther than you both times he played." Micky teased.

"I'm still better than him!" Janae snapped.

"Allow me to introduce you to the trapdoor of shame." Chef said, picking her up and placing her on top of the square shaped metal trapdoor off to the side by the edge of the island.

"A trap door?" Janae rose an eyebrow. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." Delanie smiled and pressed the red button on the remote she had in hand, opening the trap door and sending a screaming Janae down into the oblivion. "That was fun!"

Chef looked at the camera. "I guess I have to sign off the episode now, huh? Well, see ya next time on Total Drama Underrated!" The shot zoomed out to reveal the island.

"How anticlimactic." Delanie said.

"Shut it, intern!" Chef snapped.

And there you have it! Episode 2! Some of the storylines are already starting to take shape, but there are more to come. What do you think? Also, I think I'm going to do trailers like the one that follows this note. Do you like the idea? Can't wait to hear your thoughts and continue to write!

NEXT TIME ON TOTAL DRAMA UNDERRATED…

Chef pointing at two helicopters. "Get in."

Janet in confessional. "I love a good field trip!"

Luigi and Eun discussing something on the beach with Asandra looking at them. Asandra in confessional. "They know they're on the bottom and that's dangerous."

Grace in confessional. "It's clear who the target here is."

Grace talking to Colleen. "Ignatius is done."

Lesley to Brendan. "Grace is the biggest threat."

Brendan to Grace. "We gotta get rid of Lesley."

Sandy talking to Ignatius. "I'm voting out Grace."