The camera fades in to reveal Camp Wawanakwa, with the classic Chris Mclean getting ready to recap the events of the last episode.
"Last time, on Total Drama, The teams went head to head in a Maze of Despair!"
Flashback to the Falcons running down a long corridor.
"Izzy made a return, and Zhang upset his teammates….more than once."
Flashback to Zhang looming over Daniel in bed, then flashes to Zhang throwing Starr's phone.
"In the end, the Sharks won an awesome reward: a night at Playa Des Losers! Where the team got a clue to the hidden Chris head!"
Flashback to dinner, where Bryce looks nervous.
"But not everyone was happy with their reward, Bryce, who was nervous after getting on a certain teammate's bad side, stirred the pot by trying to throw Tiffany under the bus."
Flashback to Tiffany yelling at Zhang.
"Did it work? Only time will tell, and this challenge is sure to heat up the competition, literally! Find out, right now, on Total, Drama, Island!"
Camera Fades out.
—-
Intro Plays:
—-
Camera fades in.
Playa Des Losers - 6:00 AM
Daniel was the first awake, which was somewhat unusual. He quietly got out of his bed, and stretched. But he froze when his eyes adjusted to the dim, gray light that filled the room.
Everyone was gone, except for Zhang, who was across the room, facing the wall. Creepily close. His face seemed to be pressed up against the drywall.
"Uhhh. Hi?" Daniel began, clearly uneasy. "Where…..where is everyone?"
No response.
This caused Daniel to scowl, "Hey! I've had enough of you being creepy! Answer me!"
Zhang responded this time, but not in a way that Daniel would have liked. Zhang turned his neck 180 degrees to stare at Daniel, without moving his body, effectively breaking his spine and neck.
"GAH! WHAT THE HECK?" Daniel screamed. Backing away from Zhang, and falling back onto his bed.
"Dreams, dreams can be funny things," Zhang started. "They make you think about the choices you've made…. Or didn't make."
Daniel turned from terrified to confused. "Hey, you already said that to me a few days ago! Why are you telling me this again!?"
"Like say, voting for the wrong person?" Zhang picked up without listening to Daniel. His head began to spin 360, twisting his neck into a tighter and tighter knot.
Daniel gasped. "AHHHHHHH-
-HHHHHH!" Daniel said as he flew up from his bed, drenched in sweat. He whirled his head around wildly, as if he had forgotten where he was.
"Wha- what…where?" Daniel heaved between labored breaths.
To his surprise, and dismay, he had had another nightmare. He got up from his bed to find that everyone was already awake, and was packing up to go back to camp.
"Finally, he's responsive." Bryce said as he entered the room. "I was going to find medical help, but then I realized you were my competition."
Jade and Starr looked at Daniel, "yeah, we were worried about you, man. Thought you were having a stroke or something…." Jade said.
"No, no. Just a nightmare, I'm awfully prone to them, if you couldn't tell." Daniel reassured.
"Oh," Tiffany said, "do you want to talk about it?"
Daniel looked around the room until his eyes fell onto Zhang, who was sitting on his bed, enjoying a sweet.
"No, no I don't…..I don't… feel comfortable talking about them right now."
(Confessional: Daniel)
"That was probably the worst one yet, none of my other nightmares have been as…..graphic…. Irony is a piece of crap. I'd thought that sleeping in a comfy bed would've helped, but I guess not."
(End confessional: Daniel)
Daniel awkwardly stood in the bedroom. "Alright then…" Starr said. "Looks like it's time to head out…"
Jade took the snack crate and the team walked out of their room, and eventually out of the resort. Daniel brings up the rear, staring at the ground with his hands in his pockets.
When the team reached the dock of the resort, Chris met them there.
"Good Morning, Sharks! It's a hot one today!" The host said while finishing a drink.
It was true, many of the campers were already beginning to sweat.
"Chef'll be here in a few minutes to pick you guys up. There'll be breakfast back at camp waiting."
Chris began walking away, but was interrupted by Tiffany.
"Wait, where are you going? How are you going to get back to camp without a boat?" She asked the host.
"Who? Me? Haha! I have other means!" Chris said, before walking out of sight, and a few moments later, revving sounds could be heard, and a visible helicopter with Chris inside could be seen talking off.
Around that same time, the boat of losers arrived. Tiffany dropped the snack crate on the small "deck" out of sheer exhaustion and the boat sped away.
—-
Fearless Falcon's cabin - Girl's side:
Olivia is awake, and combing her hair as Harmony groans from her bed having been awoken by the sounds of Chris's helicopter landing on the island., She rubs her eyes and yawns.
"What time is it?" She groggily asked.
"Time for you to get a watch." Andrea responded, causing Harmony to give her a low, dry sarcastic laugh.
"Very funny, but seriously, why is he in a helicopter at the crack of dawn!?" Harmony said.
By this time, the helicopter sound was much louder, Harmony covered her ears.
"He's probably trying to mess with us." Olivia chimed in.
The two other girls didn't say a word, but eyed each other silently.
(Confessional: Harmony)
"Okay, I thought Olivia was a weak little cry baby, but the way she jumped on Chef at the challenge kinda scared me. Maybe I was too quick to judge her?"
(End confessional: Harmony)
"It doesn't matter what that man does, we shouldn't be worrying about him." Andrea snapped.
"What do you mean?" Harmony asked her.
"What I mean is that we lost two challenges already! I don't want to lose another, I'm not used to losing, and I've been lenient enough!"
"Lenient?" Olivia scoffed and laughed at the same time. "I think you mean overbearing!" The fashion freak finished.
"I think you should shut up." Andrea retorted.
—-
The other side of the Falcon cabin opened their front door, and Jack, Logan, and Felix piled onto the porch.
Jack yawned and stretched. "What is that noise! It's making my ear's bleed!?" He yelled over the sound of the helicopter.
"Looks like that's probably it." Logan said, staring at the helicopter. He then blinks his eyes, and rubs his forehead.
"Is it just me, or did the temperature rise by 30 degrees just now?" Felix said, somewhat confused. Jack and Logan looked at each other as the Helicopter sounds ceased.
The trio made their way over to Chris, who was stepping out of the helicopter. The host noticed them rather quickly.
"Morning, loser team. How'd you sleep?" Chris asked.
"Like crud." Logan said.
"Oooh, that's too bad, because it's about to get even worse…. For you, that is." The host said before starting to laugh.
The cabin door behind everyone opened, and the girl's entered.
"It's the hottest day of the year here at Camp Wawanakwa! And I have just the challenge for it, it'll be awesome!" Chris said. "But first-"
Everyone was interrupted by the sound of chopping water, Chef was pulling into the dock with the boat of losers, with the Sharks hopping off, Tiffany carrying their food reward. Everyone was drenched in sweat.
"Jesus, they look terrible!" Harmony said, catching up to everyone first.
The Sharks' lumbered toward their cabin before closing the door. The host turned from the cabins to Chef, who stared at the host.
Chris tapped his watch. "You know what time it is, time for breakfast." Chris told Chef, who grumbled tiredly. "I have to do everything around here." He muttered in a gravelly voice.
Just as Chef was heading to the mess hall, both doors of the Shark's cabin flung open, and in a stampede, the entire team was racing into the forest.
The Falcons blink in confusion. Felix scratched his forehead. "Uhm, what the heck was that?"
Jack was just as confused. "Are they like….running away or something?" Andrea looked over at him, then at Felix.
"I don't give a crap what they do, we should worry about our team." She scolded.
"Sure thing, mother." Logan said before the boys walked off to the mess hall. Leaving Harmony, Olivia, Andrea, and Chris.
"You wanna explain what that was?" Harmony asked the host, but she was annoyed when she got no response.
"Let's go, I'm starving." Andrea said.
The girls walked off.
—-
The Sharks were looking for the Chris head, not that the other team needed to know. Tiffany and Zhang ran together for a while. Jade, Daniel, and Starr seemed to be teaming up, all looking in the same set of foliage as the other three raced down a dirt path.
"It's mine if I find it first, just so we're clear!" Tiffany directed towards Zhang, who picked at his skin.
"As if you'd know what to do with it. Here, let me give you a refresher." Zhang said before sticking his foot out, tripping Tiffany and sending her into the dirt and roots.
"OW! YOU-"
Zhang sped past Tiffany, but was met with Bryce. Zhang got into a defensive stance, but was surprised that Bryce didn't try and attack him to get even farther ahead.
(Confessional: Bryce)
"I need to get on Zhang's good side in case my plan with Tiffany didn't convince him enough. I don't really think I have many allies, so a fake ally is better than no ally, right?"
(End confessional: Bryce)
"Hey there! I was wondering if you would like to work together, and whoever finds it, earns it! Four hands are better than two, right?" Bryce said in a strangely sweet voice.
Zhang stood there, stone faced.
(Confessional: Zhang)
"This game is merely a business trip. And I'm going to get that Chris Head either way, if I don't find it, I'll steal it from the person who does. And Bryce is making it extra easy for me to narrow it down. I'd say it's a win-win."
(End confessional: Zhang)
Zhang faked a smile, causing Bryce to also fake one. "Sure, let's work together!" Zhang said. And the two walked off.
—-
Jade and Daniel look at each other as they search through some bushes. Both of them look sad.
"This is pointless, why are we being so hateful to each other today? We just got back for a Luxury Resort for god's sake!" Jade said.
Daniel spoke up as well. "I guess you're right. I'm hungry anyway. Do you want to go get breakfast?"
"Yes." Jade began, before she looked around. "Where did Starr go? I swear she was right here!"
Daniel shrugged, "beats me, I'm too frazzled to think. I'm just going to go."
Daniel walked off, Jade following him. The camera panned away from the two over to a tree, where Starr hopped out from behind it, and began searching by herself.
(Confessional: Starr)
"Even since dinner, this team has not been getting along. Especially Tiffany, Zhang, and Bryce. I swear they're always butting heads with each other now. Daniel's acting weird too, he doesn't want to talk to us anymore. And I'm kind of getting worried."
Starr fidgets in her seat.
"I want to find the idol, mostly because it would make me the leader of the team strategically. But I don't get why we have to be rude about it! Also, Zhang's lucky I found my phone earlier, and it was undamaged. I still want an apology though, he should've let me know what he was planning first."
(End confessional: Starr)
—-
In the mess hall, the Fearless Falcons were munching on bacon. Jack and Logan were chatting away as usual, while Harmony ate in silence.
Jade and Daniel entered. Causing Jack to open his mouth.
"What were you doing in the forest? We all saw you running." He said.
"Oh, didn't I tell you?" Daniel asked Jack.
"Well, no." Jack responded.
"Well, then it must be none of your business then!" Daniel shouted, before taking a plate and then sitting down. Jade sat down next to him.
"Hey, just because you guys can't get along, doesn't mean you get to take it out on my team!" Harmony said, Logan nodding in agreement.
Jade rolls her eyes and Daniel looks down at his food, not saying anything.
Chris strolls into the room. "Morning, campers! I see- uh…. Sharks, you're still missing most of your team it looks like."
"Don't mention it." Daniel said.
"Well, you need every single member of your team for this challenge, otherwise-"
"You can stop talking now, we're here." Zhang panted as he and Bryce walked into the room, drenched in sweat. The Falcons once again looked confused and concerned. Chris shrugged and walked out.
"Why do you look like you ran a marathon?" Jack said.
"It's hot outside." Zhang bluntly stated.
Bryce crossed his arms "Oh, sorry. I forgot we're dealing with the Fearful Falcons. Guess a little sweat is enough to scare you all. Do you need a fan?"
Everyone on the Falcons exchanged annoyed glances. Jack grunts angrily.
"Yeah, real funny, Maybe we'll just ask you for tips on how to be a loser." Felix said.
Bryce's face contorted into a scowl before he went and sat down. Grabbing a fist full of bacon.
Logan turned towards Zhang, "Excellent strategy, looks like your shirt is ruined from all those stains you have on it. Such a shame."
Zhang looks down at his shirt, then up at Logan, then down at his shirt again, his mouth slowly gaping wider. He takes a step closer, narrowing his eyes.
"I don't need strategy to beat you. I don't need to do anything to beat you. You'll beat yourself on your own."
The entire table laughs in mocking amusement, Causing Zhang's skin to turn to a shade of reddish purple. Zhang's face hardens, shifting to something more sinister. His eyes narrow, and his voice drops to a cold, almost eerie tone. The table stopped laughing.
"You think this is funny? That…. That's okay….. Laugh it all up. Because when I'm finished, none of you will be left to snicker…. We wouldn't want any… unfortunate accidents to happen during the challenge, now would we?" Zhang said in a slightly crazed voice, quiet enough that his team was unable to hear.
The Falcons looked at each other anxiously.
"No, we wouldn't want that… that would be…bad." Zhang finished. Shaking with anger.
Jack coughed nervously, "you're crazy."
"Is that so? If that's what you think, I'd suggest you proceed with caution."
Felix stared strangely at Zhang. "Hey, Sharks, come collect your teammate, I think he's lost a few nuts and bolts."
Zhang leans back, and smiles creepily, "enjoy your breakfast." He says. Before walking over to his table grabbing a plate.
Just then, Starr and Tiffany exhaustively entered the mess hall. Dripping with sweat, and covered in either dirt or leaves.
(Confessional: Starr)
"Long story short, I didn't find it."
(End confessional: Starr)
"There you are!" Daniel says. "What took you so long? We were almost short for the challenge."
"Chris probably would've disqualified us." Bryce added in.
Tiffany brushed at her clothes, the black stained with brown. "Well, maybe I could've made it back sooner, but somebody sent me into the dirt, and hurt my leg!" She said as she shot daggers at Zhang.
"Really? Why'd you do that?" Daniel asked Zhang, who was eating rhythmically. "Well-" he started, but Bryce interrupted.
"She's obviously lying. Remember what happened yesterday?"
Zhang looked in surprise at Bryce, then went back to eating his food. "She clearly isn't trustworthy." Bryce added.
Starr sat and grabbed her breakfast without a word, beginning to chow down on breakfast.
"That isn't true either! You honestly can't believe that!" Tiffany defended.
"I don't know, Tiffany, you were acting really weird after that. Why get so defensive if it wasn't you?" Daniel said.
Zhang abruptly stood up from the table. "Excuse me, I need to use the restroom. I'll be right back."
Zhang speed walked out, and the Shark's table looked at each other, except for Tiffany, who sat with her head held low. Looking at her food.
(Confessional: Zhang)
"I think it's about time to get this over with, It's dragging."
(End confessional: Zhang)
—-
Zhang exited the mess hall, yet he did not go towards the bathroom, he went into his cabin, where he heaved the snack crate his team won last night into his arms, and carried it onto the porch. Already beginning to sweat from the heat of the day. He grabbed some snacks from the bag and threw them onto the floor, almost as if he was pretending to play Hansel n Gretel.
He then entered the girl's side of the cabin, and dumped the contents of the crate onto Tiffany's bunk. Smashing the crate along with it.
He then took a step back, looking at the scene he'd just created, and a devilish smile began to grow on his face, accompanied by a cold laugh, he dusted his hands off. And turned to go outside.
Outside the cabin.
Zhang exited the cabin and walked back to the mess hall. Where he met Chris heading back towards the same destination.
Zhang and Chris entered the mess hall at about the same time. Zhang immediately took a seat. His team glanced at him for a brief moment, but quickly paid their full attention to Chris.
"Hello, campers! It's a hot one outside today!" Chris said after a moment of silence.
"You don't say." Logan responded.
"Before I explain the challenge, I'll need everyone to follow me!" Chris said before exiting the mess hall.
A lot of the contestants groaned before tiredly getting up from their tables and exiting the mess hall.
Daniel and Starr were the last to exit, Starr looking quite concerned with Daniel.
(Confessional: Starr)
"He's been looking very distant lately, especially today. I wonder if there's any way I can help! After all, he and I are friends."
(End confessional: Starr)
The contestants walk through the woods, led by Chris, to their challenge. They're walking through the same part the Shark's were scavenging for the Chris Head earlier, so it looks quite disheveled and torn up. Footprints and branches are all over the ground.
"What the heck happened here?" Felix asked. "Did a tornado come through here?"
Andrea, who was next to him, shrugged. Not looking at him. Felix took note of this.
(Confessional: Felix)
"She's been reluctant to talk to me for a few days now, it's starting to worry me. I thought we had a good alliance, but it looks like I'll have to pry some info out of her."
(End confessional: Felix)
—-
The 12 campers are standing inside a walled in area, the walls are made of ply boards, sheet metal, tires, trashbags, and debris. It looks to be a giant scrapyard.
Not only that, but it was incredibly hot inside this area. Even Chris was sweating. "Welcome to your next challenge, campers! This one was designed and brought to you by none other than Chef Hatchet!"
"Oh….god it's hot." Jade said. "I might pass out."
"Don't worry," Chris attempted to reassure her, "If you faint, or are injured, we have medical personnel on the side waiting to take you to the infirmary."
The camera flashed to the other end of the scrapyard, where two interns were laying face down in the dirt.
"See?" Chris said, "you'll be fine! Now, for this challenge, it's going to be a little more physical. See those two shacks built into the wall?"
The camera flashed to one of the shacks, it was built by mostly sheet metal, metal wiring, and dirty wood boards, sticking out the top was a green flag, the camera flashed to the other end of the end of the challenge area, where an identical shack stood, only this one was a red flag.
"Oh, I think I know what this is…." Logan said expectantly.
"You'll be playing a good ol' game of "Capture the Flag!"" Chris announced.
Some of the campers actually smiled for once. To the surprise of Chris.
"This is how the game will work, each team will start in their respective "fort." Your job? Defend your flag at all costs, three of your members will be offense, while the other three will be defense. Defense will defend your flag and fort, while offense will try and steal the flag from the opposing team. First team to successfully steal the other team's flag, and cross the "center boundary," the area marked with a white line to divide the team's side ...wins the challenge. Loser's will send somebody home."
"Ha! Bring it! We're gonna wreck this thing!" Jack said, pointing at the Sharks.
"All right then, get into your starting positions, for the Falcons, Offense will be Logan, Jack, and Harmony." Chris announced.
Logan and Jack exchanged a nod, while Harmony looked upset at her new role.
"And on the Shark's, Bryce, Zhang, and Tiffany are Offense." The host also announced.
"Greeeeeaaat." Bryce said dryly.
—-
Falcon's fort:
Inside the Falcons' shabby fort, Andrea, Felix, and Olivia huddled close, but it was clear that the sheet metal the fort was made out of was absorbing heat, making it even hotter than outside. Olivia fanned herself with her hand, clearly uncomfortable.
"Ugh, could this place be any grosser? I think I saw a rat!" Olivia whined, wrinkling her nose.
"Focus, Olivia," Andrea snapped, adjusting a broken piece of sheet metal to reinforce their fort's entrance. "We need to defend the flag, not worry about the decor."
Felix, crouched by a gap in the wall, peered out at the scrapyard battlefield. "We should set up some kind of trap. Maybe use some of this junk to our advantage," he suggested, pointing to a pile of tires and rusty barrels.
"Oh yeah? Like what?" Andrea pressed. This caused Felix to stand back up and look at her.
"What is your problem? You've been eithe rude to me, or completely avoiding me, why?" Felix snapped.
Andrea scoffed. "I'm not avoiding you, I don't know what you're talking about!"
Olivia walked over to the corner of the fort, and sat on a tire on the ground.
On the outside, Harmony, Jack, and Logan stood in a running position in front of the entrance, which was a thin metal sheet acting as a door. Hands touching the fort, they got ready.
—-
Sharks' Fort
Over at the Sharks' fort, Jade, Daniel, and Starr were also preparing. Jade, looked like she was dealing with the temperature a-okay, Daniel however, was less durable, already dripping with sweat and fanning himself with a scrap of metal.
"Whoever thought a metal fort in this heat was a good idea deserves to be fired," Daniel mumbled, half-heartedly adjusting their defense.
Starr scanned the opposing fort, "we need to find the best path to attack, it should be hidden, but effective.
Jade looked out the "doorway", "I guess that's a good idea, Daniel, grab that pile of debris and stack it by the entrance. We need to make it harder for them to break through."
Daniel groaned but complied, dragging the trash bags and debris to block potential entry points. Starr positioned herself near the flag, locking her stare onto Daniel, looking sad.
"Don't let them get past us," Jade instructed, her eyes narrowing at the Falcons' fort. "We're going to crush them."
"Yup, can I rest now?" Daniel asked, wiping his forehead.
Jade glowered at Daniel, who gulped.
On the outside, Zhang adjusted his watch as Bryce stared at the playing field. He noted a large hill made of gunk, metal, and tires.
Jade stuck her head out of the fort. "Find a path that's hidden, but fast." She instructed Zhang, who faked enthusiasm.
"Got it." Zhang said as he glanced at Tiffany, who was standing as far away from him and Bryce as she could while still touching the fort. They got into a sprinting stance.
—-
Chris, standing near the white line marking the center boundary, turning on an air horn.
"Three… two… one… Go!" Chris bellowed.
The challenge had officially begun.
Both sides raced away from their fort, The Falcons were considerably quicker, Jack was psychically fit, and Logan was somewhat of an athlete. Harmony wasn't super slow, either.
The Shark's however, weren't as prosperous, Bryce was decently fast, but he had absurdly poor coordination, and he stumbled over the gravel and rocks on the ground, losing his shoe.
"Goddangit! Are you kidding me!" He yelled as he ran back to re-tie his shoe
Zhang was rich, but he wasn't a fast runner, more used to sitting in a chair all day, he ran very slow.
Tiffany was barely average in speed, and was so far somehow in the lead. This didn't last long though, as Bryce quickly caught up, leaving a red-faced Zhang behind in a fit of rage, clothes all sweaty. He traipsed far behind everyone else, eventually coming to an obstacle.
The playing field was cut in half by a small middle area, marked in white, and two very high mounds of junk on either side of that area. The Falcons choose to run directly towards the Shark's fort.
The Sharks could see this, and quickly, Jade, Daniel, and Starr ran outside, lining up to block off the entrance.
Jack, Logan, and Harmony mirrored on the opposite side of them, and the six formed a stand off.
Zhang noticed this, and quickly turned around, and ran the opposite direction, much to his exhaustion. He was moving painstakingly slow.
Jack made the first move, he body checked Daniel, and the two got into a pushing and pulling match, and Daniel was slowly losing.
Logan did the same, very quickly overtaking Jade, while Starr successfully held off Harmony. As Starr was much taller than the short girl.
(Confessional: Jack)
"The other team is so weak compared to us, they're just lucky that most of them are nerds. This'll be like taking candy from a baby!"
(End confessional: Jack)
On the Falcon's offense, Felix and Andrea stood watch on the outside of the fort, while Olivia sat inside, picking at her blemishes.
Felix suddenly got an idea. He stood up, and turned to Andrea.
"You're strong, cover for me, I'll be right back! I gotta get something!" Felix said, before running off.
"Wait! Where are you- ugh." Andrea said. "Making me do everything…."
(Confessional: Felix)
"I think I gots some building to do!"
Felix pulls out a hammer and wrench from his toolbelt attached to his waist.
(End confessional: Felix)
—-
Felix ran to the wall behind his team's fort. He studied it for a moment, and noticed that all of the plyboards were connected via wrought head nails. He grinned.
Using his hammer, he pried off the nails one by one. Straining as he did so. But eventually, he made a little pile of eight or so nails by his feet. And the plywood board came loose.
Felix picked up the nails, and tossed the plywood in a random direction before running back to the fort. But froze when he saw Bryce and Tiffany approaching the fort. Although Andrea stood guard, it was still two against one.
"Where the heck did Zhang go?" Bryce asked, somewhat panicked, when he finally noticed his teammate was AWOL.
"Your friend abandon you?" Andrea mocked him.
"He's not my friend!" Bryce yelled as he charged at Andrea, but he was stopped by her muscular arms.
"Ahhck!" Bryce strained against Andrea. "Tiffany! Do something!"
Tiffany went to run inside, but Felix intercepted her, knocking her to the ground with an "umph!"
"Good, looks like I made the right assumption." Felix said as he placed the sheet metal "door" in its cutout frame. He then began to hammer in the nails into the sheet metal, slowly sealing off the fort for intruders.
Bryce tried to wiggle free from Andrea's grip, but to no avail. Bryce gave up, and watched Felix hammer more nails in with BANGS.
"Oh, that's not good, not good at all." Bryce said in dismay. The entrance, was sealed.
And for Olivia's case, the exit. Felix had locked her inside. She tried to pry the nails out of the metal with her fingers, but that obviously failed miserably. "Hey!" She called out, banging on the sheet metal, "let me out of here!"
"I will," Felix said. "After we win."
"Help!" Jade's voice echoed from the other side of the scrapyard. "Bryyyyce! Zhaaang!"
"Oh, crap!" Bryce said as he tried to run away to help, but Andrea tackled him to the ground, pinning him down.
Tiffany however, managed to run away to help.
—-
Zhang had reached his team playing defense, and Jack was almost inside the doorway. Daniel tried to hold on with all his strength, but it wasn't working.
Until…..
Zhang reached Jack, spun him around, much to his surprise, and sucker puched him right in the jaw. Jack made a weird garble, let go of Daniel, and fell to the ground in pain.
Logan let go of Jade, putting his hands in the air. "Woah! Woah! You can't do that! It's obviously against the rules! Chris!"
Everyone froze as the announcements crackled, and Chris's voice boomed over the challenge area.
"I didn't say you couldn't get physical." Chris said. "Technically, anything goes."
The announcement ended.
"Uh-" Logan said, as Jack got up and grabbed Zhang by his shirt. Punching him in the gut repeatedly.
This angered Zhang even further, and the two got into a gnarly fist fight. Jack and Zhang both took blows to the face and body, and Logan wrapped his arms around Zhang, trying to pull him off his friend.
Just then, Tiffany made it back, panting. "Other team…sealed off...their fort…can't get flag." She croaked.
Everyone stopped moving. "What?" Starr asked. "How?"
Logan smiled, while Jack wiped his face and gritted his teeth in anger.
Tiffany began to explain, but Jack took advantage of the situation, tackling Zhang to the ground.
"Stop fighting!" Jade said as her and Logan shoved themselves into the middle of it.
Starr joined in as well, leaving Harmony alone. She looked at the open fort, then at the fight, then back at the fort, before running inside and grabbing the red flag.
Nobody noticed at first as she bolted away from the fort, until Zhang managed to wriggle his head free from a headlock by Jack.
"You imbeciles! She's got our flag!" He screamed.
Starr gasped and let go of Jack. She tried to sprint after her, but it was too late. Harmony crossed the center boundary, and successfully won the challenge for her team.
The announcements clicked back on. "And the Fearless Falcons win! They get immunity for the night. Shark's, I'll be seeing you at elimination tonight!"
The camera pans to the members of the Shark's team as Chris laughs.
"Clear out!" The announcements said one last time before clicking off.
—-
The Shark's walked back to their cabin, varying expressions of sadness/anger on their faces. Zhang was covered in bruises, while everyone else was covered in dirt and sweat.
"Can't believe this." Jade said angrily, "we were on a roll, and now…."
Bryce looked sad, and placed a hand on Jade's shoulder, surprising her. "There….there? It'll be alright, we'll win the next one." He said.
"Since when did you show empathy?" Tiffany interjected. "Probably a lie, Jade. Ignore him." Tiffany said.
Bryce gasped dramatically, "I am not lying! I genuinely care about you guys." Crossing his arms.
Jade smiled, "well thanks, I appreciate that."
Daniel chimed in. "I know I've been a little down lately, but I think I'll be fine from now on, I just got a lot…. Going on right now. Kinda stressed."
Daniel smiled wearily, but it didn't last long. The team approached their cabin, and immediately noticed the trail of food on the cabin porch.
"What the heck is that?" Zhang asked, pretending to be concerned.
Bryce looked at the mess, then at his team. "It leads into the girl's side, this better not be what I think it is…."
The team crammed into the doorway as they pushed the door open. All of their jaw's dropped.
The room was trashed with food bags and chunks of wood. Tiffany's bunk was covered in food.
Tiffany walked over to her bunk. "Wha- what…"
Bryce's eyes widened, and he turned to Zhang, who happened to be staring directly at him. He quickly turned away.
(Confessional: Bryce)
"I knew it! I knew that whoever he thought voted for him at our last elimination ceremony, would be targeted."
Bryce laughed in nervousness and relief. "I really dodged a bullet. Now Tiffany's getting the Hayden treatment. Looks like my plan worked."
Bryce's look faded.
"But…am I next?"
(End confessional: Bryce)
Everyone gathers around Tiffany's bed. Looking at the mess. Starr looked closer. "Tiffany, what is this? Why is all of this one your bed?"
"I don't know! I keep getting blamed for everything! Like making alliances, and…and doing this! I didn't do this!"
Zhang crosses his arms. "Who's bed is this on? I know it isn't mine."
"Shut up! I don't know why anyone would trust you." Tiffany said.
Zhang turned his cold gaze towards Bryce, who gulped. "I don't believe you, you've acted really weird ever since Playa Des Losers, who's to say this wasn't you?" Bryce accused Tiffany, although his voice was unsure and weak. He looked ashamed of lying.
Tiffany started to cry. "You guys are unbelievable! Siding with them!" She stormed out of the room. Kicking the door open and slamming it behind her.
"See? Whenever she's upset, she breaks things." Zhang said, looking around the room. Bryce nodded. "Also, she was useless in the challenge, she just stood there while the other team ganged up on me."
Daniel looked at Tiffany, who gasped and sputtered in fear and embarrassment.
"I….I…."
"Jesus, I can't deal with this anymore." Starr said in frustration. "I need some fresh air."
"Me too." Daniel said.
Starr and Daniel walked out, Jade looked back for a moment, before filing out along with them.
Zhang watched the others leave, his eyes narrowing as the door finally clicked shut. His attention shifted to a fidgeting Bryce.
Zhang took a step closer towards Bryce. Bryce swallowed hard, "What do you want, Zhang?" he asked, though his voice wavered slightly.
Zhang's lips curled into a sinister smile. "I've chosen to forgive you for what you've….. done. Let's just say you might not be next on my list."
Bryce went pale. "How….how did you…"
"It's simple. I knew you voted for me. And you're lucky you did what you did yesterday, otherwise I wouldn't have considered saving you." Zhang said, before giggling devilishly.
"You know what they say, everyone deserves a second chance." Zhang added. Pressing his body against Bryce, who backed away.
"Don't…screw it up." Zhang finished before backing off. His smile widened, but it was devoid of any warmth. He then turned back around. "Besides! It'll be easy! Just… do what I say!"
And with that, Zhang left.
(Confessional: Bryce)
Bryce sat in the confessional, clearly rattled. He rubbed his temples,
"I thought I had this under control," he said, "but he knew this whole time…."
Bryce shifted in his seat.
"What…. What if I…flip instead?" He asked himself. "No… that would make backstabbing Tiffany all for nothing… but…. Maybe she'll forgive me? But if Zhang doesn't go home, then…. But… taking risks is good? No… I can't…I could?...No!?"
Bryce continued to weigh the pro's and con's in his mind.
"Ugh! I don't know!"
(End Confessional: Bryce)
—-
The six Shark's sat around the campfire at the elimination ceremony. Chris walked onto the screen, with a plate of five marshmallows.
Chris smirked, enjoying the suspense. "Alright, campers, you've all cast your votes. The following people are safe,"
"Starr."
Starr smiled and grabbed a marshmallow thrown at her.
"Jade."
Jade received her marshmallow with a neutral expression, glancing at Zhang. Who was subtly smirking.
"Daniel." The host said as Daniel popped his marshmallow into his mouth with a weary smile.
There were two marshmallows left, Chris raised the plate for extra effect. "Bryce, you're safe."
Bryce looked at the ground as he ate his marshmallow. This left only one marshmallow left.
Chris placed the final marshmallow in his hand, holding it in the air."Tiffany, Zhang, this is the last marshmallow of the night, it goes to….."
Tiffany looked sad, as if accepting an uncertain defeat. Zhang's almost non-existent smile faded into an emotionless stare.
"Nobody!" Chris announced.
The campers gasped, with murmurs of confusion rippling through the group. Bryce looked around as Tiffany sighed in relief.
Zhang however, slowly craned his neck to Bryce, who turned away, and did not look back.
"Looks like we've got ourselves a tie. Zhang and Tiffany will now go head to head in a tie breaker challenge. Loser's outta here."
Tiffany stood up. "Bring it on!"
Zhang slowly got up.
—-
The scene transitioned to a small, makeshift obstacle course set up nearby. It wasn't elaborate, just a series of hurdles, and a final sprint to grab a flag hanging from a pole. The campers watched from the sidelines.
"Here's the deal, first one to clear the hurdles and grab the flag at the end wins and stays in the game. Got it?" The host asked.
Only Tiffany nodded in understanding.
"On your marks… get set… go!"
Tiffany bolted ahead, being faster than Zhang. There were at least 10 hurdles before the flagpole. Tiffany cleared the first 3 as Zhang cleared his first.
Zhang was quickly falling behind, his face practically radiated anger as he struggled to clear the hurdles.
Tiffany was smiling as she cleared her 6th.
Zhang stopped and picked up a rock on the ground, he continued to hurdle, clearing his 4th.
"Oh no." Daniel said.
By the time Tiffany was about to clear her ninth hurdle, Zhang was on his seventh. As Zhang jumped for the seventh time, he threw the rock at Tiffany's hurdle. Knocking it over as she jumped, and she caught her leg on the edge of her hurdle as it hit the ground.
Her eyes widened in surprise as she stumbled, her balance faltering. With a gasp, she tumbled forward, hitting the ground hard. A collective gasp rippled through the audience, and Chris raised an eyebrow at the unexpected fall.
"Get up, Tiffany!" Bryce shouted, beginning to panic.
Tiffany scrambled to her feet, but Zhang was already clearing his tenth hurdle. She darted toward her final hurdle, wincing slightly from the fall but pushing through the pain.
Zhang was now slightly ahead of Tiffany, and he sprinted as fast as he could(which wasn't very fast.) To the flagpole.
Tiffany's hurt leg made her only fall behind more. "Noooo!" She cried as she ran after Zhang.
Zhang, already nearing the flag, shot a glance back at Tiffany, as if to say, "it's over, give up."
He reached the flagpole first, ripping it down. Though he showed little joy at winning.
Chris blew the whistle, "And the winner is… Zhang! Which means Tiffany, sorry, but you're outta here!"
Tiffany stood frozen, her eyes tearing up as she looked at the hurdle, then at Zhang, who was staring at Bryce. Some of the campers exchanged uneasy glances, some looking concerned, while others seemed to accept the outcome with a shrug.
—-
Back at the campfire ceremony, everyone was sitting down again.
"Good job, Tiffany, you did good too." Starr said, trying to console her.
"For winning the tie breaker, Zhang gets the final marshmallow of the night. Enjoy." Chris said as he tossed the last marshmallow to Zhang, who turned to Bryce and stuffed it in his face.
"That's not fair, he cheated, clearly!" Daniel protested. Bryce nodded along with him.
Chris looked at Daniel, "all game is fair game, dude. Besides, just think of the ratings! Tiffany, time for you to head out."
Tiffany's face hardened as she turned to face her team one last time. Her eyes lingered on Zhang, "you're a snake, I want you to know that. I hope you feel really crappy tonight." She said to Zhang.
"He did what he had to do." Starr said. "It's a million dollar game."
Daniel turned to his friend, "Why are you siding with him? I honestly can't believe it."
Tiffany looked at Bryce. "And you, you're a coward and a liar. That's all I have to say."
Tiffany turned on her heel, walking resolutely towards the Dock of Shame. She didn't look back, not even when she reached the edge where the Drone of Despair awaited. The buzzing of the drone filled the air as it hovered beside her, and it grabbed her hair bun as it lifted her up and away.
Chris clapped his hands, breaking the tension with his usual enthusiasm. "Alright, campers! You're all safe, for now, time to head to bed. You'll need the rest."
The campers filed into a five person crowd, and left the campfire ceremony. Byce was at the front of the pack, and glanced behind him to see Zhang staring at him in anger. His eyes wide and menacing.
He quickly walked ahead of everyone else and entered the cabin first, he shut the door behind him as he did this, and breathed heavily.
"Oh…..crap."
—-
Camera fades out:
Editor's note:
This episode was out pretty quick if I do say so myself, this is another episode that's similar to the beta season, albeit toned down a little….. I wanted some more conflicts, and now Zhang is done with Bryce, so that'll be interesting to see. Andrea distancing herself from Felix is something that will develop as well. And I'm excited to write about that.
See you for episode 6!
Fearless Falcons: Jack, Felix, Andrea, Olivia, Harmony, Logan
Savage Sharks: Zhang, Daniel, Jade, Bryce, Starr
Placements:
14th - Ace - "The Midshipwoman"
13th - Hayden - "The Burnout"
12th - Tiffany - "The Melancholic Girl"
Votes:
Tiffany: 3(Zhang, Jade, Starr)
Zhang: 3(Tiffany, Bryce, Daniel)