Chapter 2: Malevolent Orangutans, Ballistic Panthers

"HI CHRIS!" Emma waved energetically.

"Hey!" Chris waved back. "Glad to see you all again… oh-ho! I hope you all had a great year away from this place. I also hope you're ready for the rematch because it's about to make last season look easy!"

At these words, everyone gasped audibly except for Scary Girl who clapped and Zee who was choosing to snore at this time. Priya shifted her feet uncomfortably. She had considered last season to be of moderate difficulty especially compared to other seasons. But if things were tougher this time around…

"Relax… there's nothing that will actually harm your life," Chris said sassily. He pulled out his phone and frowned. "Well…OK, maybe just a couple of things are a little more dangerous than normal but… it's necessary to make the challenges you know… challenging." He put his phone back into his pocket. Time to get on with the formalities.

"We have business to take care of first. Alright, sleeping arrangements are still the same. Crummy bunk beds. Losing team heads to the bonfire ceremony where all but one will receive a white fluffy marshmallow. Yada-yada," Chris read in a bored, monotonous tone. How many times had he recited this?

"Loser heads to the Dock of Shame to take our Boat of Losers" – Chris clapped his hands – "That's right. We brought it back just for nostalgia!"

"Good. Because that drone was seriously messing up my back!" Chase scoffed as he high-fived Ripper.

Chris pointed to the dock up ahead where they could clearly see a large boat waiting for them. Chef poked his head out from the front and grinned. Everybody celebrated at this news except for Scary Girl who looked down disappointed.

"Aww I miss the drone!" she pouted.

Zee finally woke up as everyone else cheered loudly. His leg jerked so violently it knocked the soda can he was holding in his hands into the air, sending liquid orange flying everywhere. "It's just orange soda officer, I swear!" he yelped as everyone turned and looked at him in confusion.

An awkward moment of silence –

Chris pocketed the paper with instructions and clapped his hands. "Now for the interesting part. Your teams. Chef and I had a little chat about how we were gonna do this. Unlike last season where we picked the teams for you, this time you are going to pick your teams. Schoolyard-style with two captains. As usual, first ones chosen feel good and the losers who get picked last feel like chum."

Ripper certainly had something to say about this.

"HA! If you're smart you'll pick me first!" he boomed, placing one foot on a stump and pointing at himself proudly.

"And why would we do that unless we want to be used as a literal human meat-shield?" Priya glowered at him.

Ripper jumped and scratched the back of his head.

"Because I play hard! I showed everyone last season I'll do anything for a win! And OK fine… I guess my strategy last time was kind of brutal…"

Priya blinked. Had she really heard that right?

"Oh, wow. You changed," she said stunned.

"NO I HAVEN'T!" Ripper roared. This comment greatly offended him and he had to remind Priya he was still the same alfalfa-male bully he was last year. After all, he did not want to be mistaken as weak.

"Alright, let's get this started," Chris said, rubbing his hands excitedly. "Now, to determine the captains we decided to check in with the networks. They released a popularity poll last month. Viewers all over the world submitted their votes on who they enjoyed seeing on their screens the most. The results are in and the top two will be this season's captains."

"So me and … someone else I guess?" Julia immediately said with an arrogant smirk.

Bowie rolled his eyes.

"If Julia's top two most popular, her followers must have flooded this poll," he mumbled.

"Funny that you two should talk because the results are 1. Julia and 2. Bowie!" Chris announced.

"YEAH BOWIE! GOOD ON YOU MATE!" Raj thumped his boyfriend on the back as Bowie chuckled. Of course he had expected to be one of the more popular contestants but… to lose to Julia? That was absurd!

"Oh? Well this is a surprise…" Bowie drawled. "Wait, no it's not. The only surprise was Julia coming in first."

Julia scoffed as she fluttered her fingers sassily. "Why is that surprising? Obviously, I take the crown. I'm getting really used to this. And you'd better get used to second place, you've been getting that a lot lately," she sneered as she stared directly at Bowie's offended face.

Bowie scowled. Not the forbidden second place roast. That was hitting below the belt…

"Julia, Bowie…please step over here and… here," Chris said, pointing beside himself. Bowie and Julia made their way over to Chris' left and right respectively. As Chris stood innocently in the middle, Bowie and Julia were sizing each other up, looking daggers. Bowie had still not forgotten about Julia's antics during the finale where she had deliberately slowed him down with the annoying contract and taking away his saw.

Meanwhile, Julia had not forgotten about Bowie betraying her just before the finale. She had been so close and she was certainly not going to let herself get blindsided like that again. Raw hatred was etched in both of their faces as they continued to glare at each other for another minute until Chris felt it was time to break the silence.

"Julia. Seeing as you were voted most popular and since we might as well follow the ladies-first rule, you get to pick your first teammate…"

Julia gave a little laugh. "Awesome" – she turned and looked around at everybody –"Hmm…" she thought to herself as she brought a finger to her chin.

Julia confessional: *sits confidently* The strategy is simple. I want to get to that finale the easiest way possible. That starts by picking a few desperate allies and easy boots if we lose a challenge. *makes a hashtag sign with her hands* #cannonfodder!

Julia narrowed her eyes as she scanned everybody one more time. Finally, her mind had settled on her first teammate.

"Ripper," she said, flicking her eyebrows.

Bowie blinked. This answer had certainly caught him by surprise. What was going on?...

Bowie confessional: *throws hands on head* Ripper?! What are you up to Julia?...

"WHAT?!" everybody else said in unison. This was certainly the biggest curveball of the day. Everybody had been expecting Ripper to be chosen last. Even Ripper himself temporarily looked shocked but quickly played it off.

"Smart move Julia!" Ripper roared as he rushed up to Julia and shook her hand enthusiastically. Julia shook his hand with a slightly disgusted look before pulling it away. She desperately hoped she was not going to regret this, but it had been a smart move. Ripper was extremely unpopular and could easily be voted out at any point in the competition. To Julia, he was nothing but a pawn to be discarded later on.

"Ripper?... Really?..." Chris muttered as he looked confused at Julia, struggling to see her strategy. As far as he was concerned, her logic was not logic-ing.

"HAHA!" Ripper guffawed as he stood proudly next to Julia. "What's wrong Chris? Surprised she went with the best move?"

Julia shrugged carelessly. "Like he said, he'll do anything for a win. I'll do anything for a win. That's the kind of teammate I want," she replied smoothly as Chris continued to look doubtful.

"Good luck getting him to listen to you Julia…" Bowie frowned, a hint of shade in his voice.

Julia cast Ripper a side-eye as she crossed her arms. "Oh he'll listen to me…" she whispered dangerously so Ripper would understand she was in charge. "If he doesn't, he's going home first."

Ripper faltered slightly as Julia's tone was indicating she was clearly not fooling around. However, he wanted to show her he was not afraid and the best way to do this would be to throw in a joke.

"Whoa Julia… I didn't know you were so controlling! We should have gone all Lady and the Tramp over that tapeworm!" he laughed.

"Ew no. Gross," Julia glared at him. What a vulgar comment!

"Bowie, your tur – " Chris began but there was no need to finish as Bowie instantly responded.

"Easiest decision ever. Raj!" Bowie smiled slightly cockily. He had already claimed his boyfriend, a great team player and a useful ally. Raj went up and hugged Bowie affectionately around his waist.

"Let's do this Bowie! Julia's team is going down!" Raj cackled as he stood next to Bowie and glared at Julia and Ripper. They were the enemy now. And they needed to be crushed!

Raj confessional: *punches fist into palm excitedly* Julia's team is enemy. Enemy no good. Enemy go DOWN! *Makes caveman noises*

Julia smirked. It was time for her next pick and for this one she was going to employ a different strategy. It was also important to split certain duos up. If they were together they would be a threat.

"You're not getting both hockey bros and I don't mind extra strength. Wayne, come here," she cooed.

Wayne gave a big cheer as he got up from his stump, made his way over and fist-bumped Julia. He was very happy to have been selected for her team as he considered her a strong player. Although it would mean being separated from Raj, they could still be best friends off the ice. He had to focus on the competition. Bowie's team was now the enemy.

"Some real strength eh Jules? Wait till you see how hard I slap pucks in the net. You haven't seen anything yet," he chortled.

"Awesome! Give me that energy every day and there's no way we lose," Julia smiled.

"You ready to crush em Julia?" Wayne grinned as he beat his chest like a gorilla. It was just the competitive side of him coming out. No hard feelings.

"I am. I hope you are," Julia nodded. This was exactly what she was going for. She wanted one other competitive player so that they wouldn't lose every single challenge.

"Gotcha!" Wayne said energetically as he made his way next to Ripper, his hockey bag slung over his shoulder.

"Let's go Priya," Bowie said as she gave Millie a good-bye hug and strolled over to Raj and Bowie happily. Julia narrowed her eyes. She hated seeing people happy together.

"Don't let me down fellow finalist. I'm sure we can rack up a lot of victories," Bowie winked. Priya giggled as she was thinking the exact same thing. Hopefully, Bowie would pick Millie so then they could form a potential Season 1 finalist alliance! After all, they had the biggest targets on their backs. But then –

"Gotta split the nerds up too. They were so annoying last time. Millie," Julia laughed harshly as Priya looked like she had just swallowed an entire lemon. Julia's eyes glinted hungrily as Millie carried her large suitcase looking extremely distressed. She and Priya exchanged a sad look, knowing full well they would be competing against each other this time.

Another easy target Julia thought to herself satisfied. That girl will be so alone she'll have no choice but to leave first. Millie sagged her shoulders as she stood next to the straight-backed Wayne who gave her a friendly wink. She returned a weak smile.

Millie confessional: *buries face into hands and groans* I'm separated from Priya? Oh NO! What do I do?

Bowie bit his lip as he stared around at what was left. Truthfully, he wanted his team to consist of himself, Raj, Wayne, Millie and Priya but now that Julia had stolen two of his preferred picks, he would have to adapt. But who to choose?...

And then his mind settled on someone who he still cared about very much. Though they had ended things roughly last season, Bowie decided he was going to make the first move to repair his friendship with –

"Emma. You always played well when you weren't distracted by Chase!" Bowie winked. Emma adjusted the flower in her hair awkwardly as she looked up gratefully at Bowie. Was he really giving her a second chance? Part of her felt she didn't deserve it. She was so ashamed of what she did last season when she went back and rewatched everything! Still… Emma laughed nervously as she dragged her pink carry-on over to Bowie's side.

"Hehe, thank you…" she said quietly, giving Bowie a thumbs-up. He nodded.

"Axel's going to be my right hand woman. I need someone else who can control Ripper," Julia said softly as she motioned for Axel to come over. This was the first potential alliance member she had mapped out in her head. Axel's strength was much needed.

"No problem," Axel gave a sharp jerk of her head as she hugged Julia.

"AYO, AYO It's Damien comeback season!" Bowie pumped his fist into the air enthusiastically.

Damien sprang up.

"WOO-HOO! YESSIR!" he said, extremely hyped. He was thankful to be put on Bowie's team as he felt Bowie was much more easier to work with than Julia. It was time to put this training to use!

Julia bit her lip as she pondered on her next pick. Should she go for it now? There was a slight risk Bowie would choose this person next as there weren't many people left… Julia decided she was going to go for it. She needed another easy boot in case things went south for her team, and given the Hollywood star's reputation around here…

"Honestly I would love for Nichelle to join my team," Julia waved at Nichelle passionately. Nichelle's jaw dropped. Deep inside, however, she was beaming with pride.

Ripper looked at Julia incredulously. "Seriously Julia?! She's about as useful as a rotting log!" he said indignantly. As far as he was concerned, Nichelle would be dead weight. Heck, maybe even negative dead weight! Julia stomped her foot on the ground. She had no time for Ripper's big mouth and wanted to remind him of who was in charge on this team.

Julia turned and got up in Ripper's face, an inch away from his nose. "I'm sorry? Are you the captain? HUH?" she said fiercely to a startled Ripper who was cowering away in fear. "Exactly! So zip it Ripper!" she spat.

Nichelle ran over, arms flailing around excitedly. She had even forgotten to bring her bag with her. She was just grateful to have been chosen. "YESSS! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I LOVE YOU JULIA! PRAYER HANDS EMOJIS! KUMBAYA MY LORD, KUMBAYAAAAA!" she said to the sky, absolutely elated. Julia laughed as she hugged Nichelle.

"MK I want to see more of what you can do when you're not with Julia," Bowie squeezed his fist, determined to see how useful the pickpocket would be this time around. After all, MK's handiwork had catapulted him into the finale last time. Perhaps she had more tricks up her sleeve…

"YEAH BABY! THAT OTHER TEAM IS TOAST!" MK sniggered as she squeezed her fists.

"I need some athleticism. Chase," Julia smiled.

Chase was not amused. It wasn't because he was on Julia's team but rather because he had been picked so late.

"Why am I second last?" he muttered, crossing his arms and pointing his nose up to the sky. He brushed by Julia without even looking at her.

Julia rolled her eyes. "Just be glad you weren't last," she hissed.

"And then there were three. Zee, Caleb and Lauryn," Chris said, unsurprised by two of the three still being there. He was however, shocked to see the big man still left unpicked.

Bowie sweated nervously as he looked apprehensively at the last three campers.

Bowie confessional: *face-palms and sighs frustrated* Not really the best three to work with…

Suddenly Priya tugged his arm. Bowie turned.

"I heard Caleb got an early acceptance to MIT, benches 350 – er – I mean 405, and volunteers at a kitten orphanage!" Priya said, slightly out of breath and with sparkling eyes. Emma gasped excitedly at the words 'kitten orphanage.' This was a win in her books.

"Come on Bowie!" Emma nudged her head towards Caleb.

Bowie faltered.

"That's… fascinating… " he said under his breath. He turned around. "Uh, Scary Girl. No other explanation," Bowie said, trying not to imagine Priya and Emma's faces behind his back.

"Bowie… are you sure?" Priya shrieked.

"Are you for real? What about Caleb?" Damien said angrily. He had prepared for many things over the past year; dealing with Scary Girl was not one of them.

Bowie whistled to himself as he tapped his shoe up and down. Raj chuckled nervously as Priya, Emma and Damien continued to stare sour-faced behind Bowie's back.

"And we're down to the last two… Zee and Caleb! Julia your pick decides both teams!" Chris announced.

Julia laughed to herself as she looked at the relaxed Zee sipping his soda and the unamused Caleb who was crossing his arms wearing a scowl on his face. In her mind, this was an easy choice. She had just been dealt the best hand at the casino and now it was time to go all out.

K this is so good. I'm about to ruin Bowie… she thought happily to herself. It must have shown in her expression because Bowie was eyeing Julia apprehensively, his forehead sweating profusely as wrinkles of stress started to form.

"Come on Julia… don't please don't…" Bowie pleaded under his breath. He knew it was no use though. Julia was vicious, vindictive and unforgiving after all.

Julia gave Bowie a little smirk as she curled her lips triumphantly. "I hope Bowie doesn't expect me to play nice after he sabotaged my shopping cart. He's trying so hard to avoid his nightmare but it's pointless. Zee, come on over!" she said strongly.

Zee strolled over happily. "Thanks for picking me Julia! You rock!" Zee said delighted. Julia gave Zee heart-hands.

"I love you Zee. You just made my day," Julia said softly as she gave him a hug.

"I don't even know what I did!" Zee chortled but nevertheless, he was just happy to be reunited with Ripper and Chase. He high-fived his boys as he made his way over next to them.

Blood was pounding Caleb's ears. He had been left for last, picked by nobody. How was everyone still underestimating him?! Did first boot really leave such a horrible stain on your reputation? How could everyone just ignore his massive size and his superhero strength? This was ridiculous!

"I'm LAST?! AND I'M ON BOWIE'S TEAM? THIS IS GARBAGE!" Caleb spluttered.

"Caleb, please join your team," Chris chuckled as Caleb made his way over with thundering steps. Bowie gulped and tried to avoid Caleb's eyes. Instinctively, Raj put a protective hand on Bowie's shoulder.

"Tension already? We haven't even started the challenge!" Chris laughed. He tossed two banners to Emma and Nichelle who caught them and unrolled it all the way to their feet.

"Julia, your team will be the Ballistic Panthers!" Chris said, as they all stared proudly at their banner of a giant black panther with golden eyes roaring intimidatingly.

"Bowie, your team will be the Malevolent Orangutans!" Chris turned to Bowie's team, who likewise were staring at their banner of a ferocious auburn orangutan pounding its chest with flames for eyes.

Now that all the formalities had been settled, it was time to get to the exciting part…

"Put your stuff away in your cabins and then meet me at the beach where you'll see an enclosed set. The one with the children's playsets drawn on them! MOVE!"

AUTHOR'S NOTES

As you can see, these are very different teams from canon. Hope you enjoy these new teams I made! They're going to be a lot of fun.