Author's Note: New episode time. Not gonna lie, I really struggled with this one. I lowkey hate writing fight scenes, which is what's been stopping me from writing a book series I've been kicking around in my head for about... ten years at this point? Not much else to say there, but! I'll be sharing sone info about all the OC's (evolution of design, fun facts, the works) in the Post Scripts for those interested. Starting today.
Disclaimer: I don't own Total Drama, the shuffled concept or the (most of) the characters.
And to answer some reviews:
Crash x Fusion: I don't have HBO Max, so I haven't seen the reboot yet. No spoilers please. Glad you liked the ending, because looking back on it, oof. That was not my best work. And I love the designs for the OC's.
TheChrisanthemum: Thanks for th enthusiasm and support. I've never played D:OS2 but I'm thinking about getting it. That said BG3 definitely deserved GOTY and Shadowheart is my new obsession. Britney's days were numbered as soon as her Yandere mode took over. It's not my favorite part of her character, but it is one. Without a major flaw like that, she almost winds up being a Mary Sue. Well, I've had to rethink a few eliminations so far, so Ella might wind up going the distance. And don't worry about the review. I'm not the best at answering them anyway.
Derick Lindsay: Glad to be back though. And regarding Britney, the point of both Brave and Skytor was to give Dave and Sky relationships with people who would be a natural fit for their canon personalities. Because those two did not match well in canon. I'll try to get some development for the other couples as soon as I can. The issue is it has to be natural so it doesn't feel like I'm shoehorning it in. Olivessa's reception is proof of that.
Guest: I haven't seen the new cast in action so I can't answer that question yet.
LittleMermaid: Glad to be back. There's a TD Discord? And people talk about my fic on it? I'm still amazed people talk about it on reddit! I've seen all the edits and I love them! For Jaxon, might I suggest Harold. They're both skinny pasty and have a flair for the dramatic. And now that I say that I really should've had the two of them tlak more while they were on the same team. Oh well. At least the chapter was fun to read for you. The funny thing about Lindsay is, if you stuck to the later half of Island and most of Action, it's not that far from her canon self. Glad you liked the Sharly moment. I was worried it was forced. So... your idea for Britney was way better than what I wrote. Though to be fair, I purposefully toned her down in PI. Britney has always been super obsessive not just over guys but anything she forms an attachment to. It comes with not really having a place to call home due to how she was raised. Like how most military kids learn to do clan breaks when they're forced to leave, she just went way in the other direction.
Remaining Campers:
Ferrets of Failure: Dakota, Dave, Ella, Ezekiel, Gwen, Harold, Lindsay, Sam, Sky
Llamas of Loserdom: Amy, Cameron, Carly, Eva, Rodney, Sadie, Scott, Shawn, Sierra
Season Nine! Fight!
Episode 08: Sword and Spiel
"Last time, on Total Drama Redemption!" The recap began with a clip of the two teams on the docks, with a focus on Sky and Amy as they looked at their teammates with nervousness and disdain respectively. "The teams were forced to put their trust in each other. The rock-climbing challenge showed just how much Amy what rock-bottom was like," the cliff was shown, as was Amy falling off while Rodney tried to get pepper juice out of his eyes, "and Dave got a pizza pain courtesy of Lindsay's crappy cooking." Dave was shown eating the slice, then keeling over.
"Scott continued to push Britney closer to a breakdown," the globetrotter was shown talking with Dave before the challenge, then arguing with Sky in the infirmary, and finally with Scott, "which ended up being a huge mistake when she decided to put an end to Sky." Britney was shown chasing Sky around, followed by Scott losing his blindfold for a moment, and finally the reveal that that caused them to lose. "The Llamas returned to Loserdom, and it looked like Scott's goose was cooked. At least it did until Amy used the Protection Idol to save his butt." Amy's reveal, Britney's elimination and her final goodbye to the others finished the recap. "Is this the beginning of a Ferret winning streak?" the host asked from the docks, "Find out on the most dramatic bonfire ceremony yet, on Total! Drama! Redemption!"
XXXXX
[The opening theme began similarly to the way it did in season six – a shift into letterbox format for a shot of a rocky forest waterfall, a broken stagelight rotating up from behind some rocks and flickering a bit before the light died. Then a rusty spotlight swings down from the unseen branches of some mossy, mushroom-ridden tree. The shot moves to a pond where a brown bear wearing a scuba mask sits in the water glaring at a frog on a lily pad, both animals looking surprised as the lily pad is suddenly lifted into the air by a duct tape covered security camera rising up from below it. A rabbit sitting on a rock on the beach is pushed away by a panel in the rock slamming down on it, another broken camera emerging from within, and a pair of white-skinned hands clap a film slate in front of the main camera.
As the film slate is pulled away the camera flies forward past the camp facilities, and over the top of the host drinking coffee in a director's chair just as the lyrics start.]
Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doin' fine;
[The camera flies through the trees and up to a cliff, peeking over to see the interns swimming away from Scuba Bear.]
You guys are on my mind!
[The camera dives off the cliff and into an underwater shot; a fully-clothed Cameron gagging.]
Ya asked me what I wanted to be,
And now I think the answer is plain to see!
[Cameron frantically swims up and grabs on to the end of an oar. The camera pans up to reveal Eva as the one rowing the boat; she pulls her oar out of the water and is startled to see Cameron clinging to it, and even more so when something starts pulling him back. But with a fierce yet muted roar, Eva manages to pull the oar away from the the thing...and in doing so, throw Cameron high into the sky.]
I wanna be...famous!
[Cameron hangs in front of the sun for a moment before coming back down into the woods. The camera pans down to Gwen drawing on a stump while surrounded by a guitar playing Trent and a singing Ella. Cameron falls from the sky and knocks Gwen down, startling Trent and Ella. The camera zooms out to show Scott watching the scene and laughing, and then again to show Lindsay crossing her arms and pursing her lips at him.]
I wanna live close to the sun!
[The camera zooms to another part of camp, showing Leonard and Gary surfing down a river.]
Well pack your bags, 'cause I've already won!
[The shot pans forward a bit, showing Harold and Sierra also on surfboards. Leonard and Gary arrive on screen, but while the three boys are busy showing off, Sierra's eyes widen and she ducks. She just barely misses getting hit by a low lying branch that the boys smack into.]
Everythin' to prove, nothin' in my way;
[The camera rapidly pans over to the outhouses. Ezekiel opens the door to one and a thick green cloud comes out of it, causing him to look nauseous and pass out. The camera pans over to the craft service tent.]
I'll get there one day.
[The camera moves in past the window to show a smirking Chef, stirring a large pot of something sickly green. He looks behind him to where Sam is sitting and playing on a handheld game console. Dakota is looking over his shoulder as he plays.]
'Cause I wanna be...famous!
[The camera pans left to show Sky and Dave chatting. Britney comes out of nowhere to separate the two and sit on Dave's lap, glaring at Sky all the while. The camera zooms pans left again to the opening of the tent and flashes to an open field. Amy knocks a bouquet of flowers out of a kneeling Rodney's hands, then pushes over Sadie as the the girl bends down to pick up a shell.]
(Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
[A pan rightward shows Jaxon making a screen gesture with his fingers. He looks from the left to the right and rolls his eyes in irritation.]
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
[Another pan to the right centers the camera on Anne Maria spraying her hair. She notices the camera on her and glares, spraying it enough that the thick cloud covers the whole screen.]
I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous! (Na-na nanananaa, nanana-nanaa, na-nananananaa)
[The cloud dissipates to reveal Carly and Shawn sitting at a campfire in front of a large full moon. They lean in for a kiss but are interrupted by Chris's sudden appearance between them while wearing a zombie mask, startling them both into running away. As Chris takes off his mask to laugh, the shot zooms out to show the other campers also sitting around the fire - Ella, Trent, Gwen, Sky, Amy, Sam, Dakota, Ezekiel, Gary, Scott, and Rodney with Carly trembling behind them on the left; and Anne Maria, Britney, Dave, Cameron, Sadie, Eva, Leonard, Lindsay, Sierra, and Jaxon with Shawn trembling behind them on the right. The zoom continues even further, showing the signboard over the firepit's entrance which now read 'Total Drama Redemption'.]
XXXXX
A pleasant, lilting tune played as the scene opened on the common area, both the Craft Tent and Costume Tent included in the shot...until the music suddenly turned deep and tense as the shot quick-panned away. It landed somewhere in the woods, where Dave was walking side-by-side with Lindsay. "So, what did you wanna talk to me about?" he asked the ditz.
"I wanted to talk to you about what happened with Britney," Lindsay replied seriously, frowning when Dave sighed at the mention of his girlfriend.
"I know it was a possibility," the germaphobe whined. "But I still can't believe she's gone." He sighed again. "I don't even know if I wanna be here any-"
"NO!" Lindsay shouted, grabbing the boy's shoulders and startling him. "Don't finish that thought."
"But," he weakly protested. "It's not like I'm gonna win this or anything. So why stay and get hurt, humiliated, or worse..." he shuddered, "dirty?"
"You have surprisingly skewed priorities for someone so smart," Lindsay told him. "Look, I feel bad about poisoning you the other day and I wanna help." Dave raised an eyebrow. "I'll help you get revenge."
"Revenge on who?" Dave asked with a head scratch.
"Scott," Lindsay said decisively. "And maybe Amy, but mainly Scott. He's the reason Britney didn't trust you right?"
"It all worked out in the end," he said brightly. "Well, it did if you ignore her going home."
"But what if it hadn't?" Lindsay said. "What if instead of doubling down on trying to keep you, she just dumped you?"
Dave's eyes widened. "You're right!" He exclaimed.
"Then how about we work together, and take him down once and for all?" Lindsay added, the music rising quickly and ominously as both Ferrets shared the same devious look.
\
A much calmer tune quickly replaced it as the scene flashed to the inside of the Craft Tent where most of the Llamas were eating plates of what looked like brown eggs, white bacon, and black toast.
"Ew," Amy said in disgust as she picked up her discolored slice. "My breakfast is furry!"
"I think I liked it better when the losing team starved," Sadie frowned next to her.
"So?" Shawn interjected, suddenly taking a seat next to Carly, making her duck her head to hide her blush. He picked up his own piece of toast. "It might look nauseating, but you'll be glad to have this stuff when the undead have destroyed the cities and you have a cold."
Sadie shuddered and held back a retch, and Eva and Sierra both looked at him warily. "Uhh, whatever you say... hehe," Sierra said with an awkward chuckle.
"Has anyone seen Dakota?" Sam asked, his eyes darting around curiously as the camera cut to the Ferret table. "I wanted to talk about my streaming channel."
"She said she was having a make-up crisis," Gwen answered. "But she should be here soon." She widened her eyes as the camera cut to the entrance to the tent as Dakota yelped and ran away.
"That was weird," Dave said when the camera cut to him.
"She's just been rather nervous lately," Ella answered. "Her cru-oof!" The singer started before Gwen lightly elbowed her in the stomach. Ella glared at her cousin, but let it slide when the goth glanced at Sam.
\
The shot cut to the boys' side of the Llama cabin, Scott raising an eyebrow curiously when Cameron and Rodney walked in.
"So..." the farmer started overly-casually. "You're probably wondering what happened at the campfire."
"Pretty much," Cameron shrugged. "I mean, I didn't exactly expect Amy to save you."
"Neither did I," Scott said to himself. "The way I figure it, either she thinks this will make me owe her," he said while holding up a finger, "or she's got a thing for me."
Rodney just burst out laughing. "Well it can't be the second one."
"I don't know," Scott said, dragging out the words. "I'm sarcastic and smart. Pretty sure that's her type," Scott shrugged.
Rodney frowned and left the cabin, leaving Cameron to look between Scott and the door suspiciously. Scott just shrugged helplessly.
XXX
"Honestly, I was thinking of doing a little sabotage," Scott told the confessional. "Blame Amy, she gets the vote and Rodney uses the idol to save her. But this works too. The guy's built like a hundred brick houses. I'm not letting him get to the merge. No way."
XXX
"Ferrets! Llamas!" Chris announced over the loudspeaker, breaking the boys' attention away from each other. "All campers to the clearing ASAP!" The shot cut to the vibrating loudspeaker as the announcement finished up. "It's time for you to hurt each other!"
\
"Welcome to the new Coliseum!" Chris greeted, a shot of a recreation of the 'Chrisiseum' giving way to the host and campers standing inside. Chris himself was standing in what looked like a regulation boxing ring, while to the campers' left and back a ways was a scoreboard at the top of two tall wooden posts.
"A boxing ring?" Scott asked, unimpressed.
XXX
"Let this confessional be the last will and testament of Cameron Corduroy Wilkins," the bubble boy said.
XXX
"Great," Dave rolled his eyes. "Another challenge we have no real hope of winning."
XXX
The shot cut back to Chris. "Today's a fun little treat," he opened coolly. "We're mixing season seven's dueling challenge," he explained, "with season two's fairy-tale adventure."
"How is that supposed to work?" Gwen asked.
'The rules are simple," Chris explained. "One person from each team will meet in the ring and fight. K.O. your opponent or knock them out of the ring , and win the match. Win the match, and earn your team a point. First team to five points wins."
"And we'll be choosing at random?" Sadie asked.
Chris shook his head. "Not this time. You'll be volunteering. Now, it's tiiiiiiime for a sword baaaaatllllle!" he said in a deep fight announcer's voice as a suitably grand theme rose up in the background.
\
The scene cut to the Ferrets - focusing on Sky and Gwen. "So how we are gonna do this?"
"I think Zeke and Sky should go last," Harold said. "Save their strength 'til the end just in case."
"Henry's right," Lindsay replied. "It's a win-win no matter what they do."
Dave raised an eyebrow. "But what about the rest of us?" he pointed out. "We're pretty outclassed as far as strength is concerned."
Gwen gave a low sigh. "We'll just have to make it work," she told him.
"But don't we need to figure out who goes first?" Dakota interjected sheepishly.
"I'll go," Dave volunteered, shocking all present.
XXX
"Well it's obvious I'm not gonna win," he scoffed in the outhouse. "But if I go first and we lose, maybe someone else's loss will be more fresh in everyone's minds. I'm not dumb enough to think a couple of allies is enough to keep me safe."
XXX
"Now that I have Rodney and Scott under my thumb, I think it's time I started making my move," Amy told the outhouse camera. "I figure I just need two more losers on my side to take this all the way to the finale. Cameron and that fat girl he's always hanging around should work."
XXX
A few deep notes played as the static cut away to Amy walking over to Cameron and Sadie. "You two are our smartest players," she told them. "Figure something out."
"I got an idea," Scott said.
"Too bad," Eva scoffed. "We wanna win today."
"I told you," the schemer glared. "I didn't throw the game last time."
"And you expect us to believe you after the way you played last time?" Sierra huffed.
XXX
"I hate to say it," Scott confessed, "but right now Amy's got me right where she wants me. The others clearly don't trust me. I wouldn't be surprised if the guys drop me from the alliance."
XXX
"I think we should give him a chance," Shawn said when the camera cut to him. "I mean, how can we all say we deserve a second chance if we won't even give Scott one?"
"Rodney's right," Cameron said with a decisive nod. "We can't really blame him for Britney going off the rails."
XXX
"I'm pretty sure Scott had something to do with Britney's snapping," the bubble boy confessed. "But I'm also sure he meant for things to get that out of hand. He's too smart to try the same thing twice."
XXX
The girls looked at each other and sighed. "Fine," Eva said. "What's your big idea?
\
"As winners of the last challenge," the host explained as the camera cut to his close-up, "the Ferrets will get a choice of being the hero or villain in this final fight." Several hands went up, "Basically," he continued with a frown, "they choose between a sword and shield," the camera pulled back to show the host wielding a shortsword and kite shield, "or a zweihander," the camera cut to Chef holding a sword almost as long as he was tall over his shoulder single-handedly.
"So," Chris asked with his usual smile, "who's rumble-ready?"
"I am!" Cameron volunteered, walking past his team.
"Guess I'm first," Dave meekly raised his hand.
\
The camera flashed ahead to both nerds in the ring. Dave was wielding the sword and shield while Cameron was sagging under the weight of his greatsword.
"How is this fair?" Eva asked in disbelief. "He can't even lift that thing!"
"Just a little something to even the odds," Chris said. "Otherwise this challenge would be pretty easy to guess who wins. Now, FIGHT!"
Cameron continued to struggle to lift the giant weapon and the shot cut to Dave running against a blue background.
The shot quick-panned to the Llamas watching. They winced at the sound of impact, followed the sound of Cameron's screaming with their eyes, and winced again at his thudding impact.
"And the Ferrets of Failure get the first point!" Chris said as the shot cut to Cameron's crumpled and twitching form. The nearby scoreboard updated to show 1-0 in favor of the Ferrets, and the eight bystanders cheered.
"Okay, looks like I was wrong," Dave said as he rejoined his team. "Looks like this challenge is practically ours."
"No offence Dave, but Cameron's like 50 lbs soaking wet," Gwen told him. "We can't get cocky or we're going back to the campfire.
The germaphobe laughed nervously. "Fair point."
"You almost had him!" Sadie said as Cameron rejoined his team
"I'd prefer it if you didn't lie to me," Cameron frowned.
"In that case," Amy scowled. "Get ready to pack your bags if we lose."
"And now it's time for round two!" Chris announced as the camera cut to him. "Who's ready to battle?"
"I'll go next," Carly said with a grimace that was likely meant to be a smile.
"Why not?" Sam added with a shrug.
"Fine," Chris sighed in annoyance, "You two go, but if I don't see some interesting fights, I'll get bored. And by now I'm sure you know what'll happen if I get bored." He motioned to the boxing ring, and the footage flashed ahead to both campers in the ring: Sam wielding the sword and shield while Carly was resting the tip of the greatsword on the ground.
"FIGHT!" Chris's voice rang out, the challenge music starting up.
Sam chuckled giddily and charged the pantophobe. "Sorry about this!"
Carly gulped, then took a deep breath and started spinning. The force of her movements making it easy to lift the massive weapon. She let loose the sword and the camera followed it as it flew through the air and hit Sam in the head.
The force of the hit knocked the gamer back a few feet and he landed on his back with a thud and groan, then Chris blew on his airhorn. "KO!" He announced. "Carly wins!"
"Carly's unstoppable!" the pantophobe cheered, her teammates joining in when the scoreboard updated to 1-1
"So," Chris smiled. "Who's next?"
\
A dramatic challenge tune slowly built up as the scene flashed to the ring, Shawn now wielding the greatsword but not looking especially enthusiastic. "Okay, you can do this," he told himself. "You just have to take him down before his weird luck kicks in."
Harold hefted his sword over his shoulder and smirked. "You can do it Shawn!" Carly cheered from off-screen. The camera panned to the grinning pantophobe, then back to the survivalist. He grinned, then charged at his opponent.
When the shot cut to Harold, he simply crouched and angled his shield upwards before charging after Shawn. The two met in the middle of the ring, but Harold's positioning meant that Shawn was flipped into the air and over the far right ropes out of the ring.
"Ringout, and Harold wins!" Chris announced from the sidelines, earning a small but happy smile from the dweeb. "The score is now two to one in favor of the Ferrets," he added over a shot of the changing scoreboard.
The camera cut back to the right side of the ring as Carly tried to help Shawn stand up. "Don't worry, I got you," she told him, the boy still dazed and groaning. "Look on the brightside, at least he wasn't a zombie." She smiled softly at the boy, and the shot cut to Scott. The farmer pursed his lips.
Shawn wobbled slightly as he got to his feet. "Wha?" he said, slowly regaining his senses as he swayed between Carly's hands. "Carly?" he added with a slight blush. "Uhh...thanks."
"No problem," the girl said with a blush of her own.
XXX
"I just realized," Shawn said while rubbing the back of his neck. "Carly's cute, understands a healthy dose of paranoia, and isn't weirded out by my mission to avoid the undead."
"She's basically my dream girl!"
XXX
"Hilariously pathetic losses like that are exactly what I was hoping to see today," Chris laughed to himself. "Round Four!"
"I got next!" Scott volunteered with an eager grin. Lindsay growled, before her eyes widened.
"Let me do it," Lindsay said seriously. "He still needs to answer for what he did to me last time."
"Remind me to never get on your bad side," Gwen added. She smiled lightly as Ella laughed.
"That was an accident," Scott said with an eye-roll. "But if you're that eager to lose, then let's go."
A dark and dramatic riff played as both former teammates glared at one another across the ring,
Sierra gasped. "This...might not be so good for us," the blogger said worriedly to Eva. "We're already down 2-1. If Scott loses this one, we'll need to win everything to avoid the campfire."
"Yeah," her companion agreed. "Not the best situation."
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Chris said with a gleeful smile. "Will Lindsay finally be able to get her revenge?" he asked the camera. "Or will Scott actually manage to help his team? Find out after the break, right here on Total! Drama! Redemption!"
\
(Commercial Break)
\
A deep note played as the episode resumed on a long-distance shot of the island, a bell ringing as the scene moved to a shot of Lindsay facing down Scott from a viewpoint just behind the schemer's feet. The perspective moved up to a sideways view of Scott's face as he narrowed his eyes and smirked, the shot pulling back to show him lift his greatsword over his shoulder.
The focus then moved to Lindsay as she glared. "Ready to pay for what you did to me?" she asked.
Scott rolled his eyes. "For the last time," he said. "I wasn't trying to put you in the hospital. How was I supposed to know what would happen?"
"It was a landmine," the ditz protested. "How could you not?"
XXX
"On one hand, if I win then that'll help put me back in okay graces with my team," Scott told the confessional camera, raising his left hand like one half of a set of scales. "On the other, if we lose I can try and take out Rodney," he said, raising his right hand. "If Rodney gets the Boot, then Amy'll be out of allies and less likely to backstab me. And honestly, considering how much Lindsay hates me it'd be pretty hard to accuse me of sabotage if I lost."
XXX
"Rodney," Amy said flirtatiously as the shot cut to the two of them. "Is something wrong? You haven't been talking to me all day."
"I thought you'd be talking to Scott," the country boy scoffed. "Considering you're crushing on him."
"Wha-?" Amy said with a light blush before catching herself. "No I don't. Where'd you hear that?"
XXX
"Notice how she never denied it," Rodney pointed out. "I won't let them make a fool of me."
XXX
"And there's the problem with pretending to be into someone," Amy complained. "Past a certain point it's near impossible to make a clean break. And since I already used the Protection Idol I pretty much don't have a reason to keep Rodney around anymore."
XXX
"Stop staring at each other and start fighting!" Chris demanded, punching his own fists together as the bell was rang once more.
"You never gave the signal Chris," Scott said with another eye-roll.
"Oh right," the host chuckled sheepishly. "FIGHT!" he added, the bell ringing once again.
The dramatic challenge music quickly rose up again, and Scott laughed, slowly turning back to face his foe. "Just don't think this is gonna be-"
He was interrupted by a swing to the face, staggering back a step as the shot cut outward to show the entire ring once again. "Whoa-ho," he said as he recovered, "touchy!"
Lindsay quickly stepped forward with a quick shield bash, forcing Scott to sidestep in the opposite direction as the perspective moved slightly above them. He quickly countered with a strike of his own, but to his surprise Lindsay blocked it with her shield and used it to push him back a step. She followed through with a quick flurry of swings, and while Scott dodged them all he was still forced to move backwards.
"Guess the nerd taught you a few things." he laughed as he sidestepped another straight jab...only to find himself in a corner. "Crap," he muttered, quickly raising a sword over his head as Lindsay drew close.
He began to bring it down on her head, only for Rodney to suddenly scream "LOOK OUT!" Startled out of his strike, Scott was quickly slashed in the gut and hit the turnbuckle. A series of savage blows to the head and chest ensued, shown only by way of Scott's body reacting to the hits against a radiant red-and-white background.
After only a few seconds Scott fell forward, battered and bruised, onto the mat. Lindsay tossed her sword and shield to the side, dusted her hands off, and walked away with a satisfied look as her rival groaned in pain.
"Ooooh," Chris mock-cringed from the sidelines. "Looks like Scott lost! Ferrets now lead 3-1."
The shot cut to Rodney walking over to his angry teammates. "What was that for?" Eva asked harshly, grabbing him by the collar.
"Yeah, he lost because of you!" Sierra chimed in.
"I-I was only trying to help, I swear!" Rodney said in a defensive panic.
Eva snorted, but let him go. "Yeah, I'm sure," she said scathingly, walking away with Sierra.
Rodney just frowned as they left, then leaned sideways over to Cameron and put a hand up to shield his mouth. "But at least we can blame Scott if we lose, heheheh," he whispered with a devious snicker. Cameron just stared at him.
XXX
"Well that was out of character," Cameron mused, "I wonder if that had anything to do with our conversation this morning."
XXX
"Llamas! Perhaps you're confused. The point is to win these matches." Chris said, a low and tense trill beginning in the background. "Who's gonna be next to take a shot?"
"I will!" Amy declared, stepping forward with confidence. "But if any of the others mess up my hair, they're dead."
"I'll take this one," Dakota said with a fierce determination.
XXX
"I know it's not really the same," Dakota told the outhouse. "But Amy's a lot like Olivia was back on Danger Island. Maybe if I take her down here, it'll show the fans that I'm not the same girl that helped Olivia.
She shrugged. "I don't know, it made sense in my head."
XXX
"FIGHT!" Chris said from off-screen as the footage skipped to both girls in the ring and wielding their weapons.
"Ready to lose?" Amy asked in a cocky tone.
Dakota narrowed her eyes. "The only one losing," the heiress said. "Is you! Now bring it on"
"Ohoho," Amy chuckled, "believe me, it'll be brought alright."
"Oh yeah, that's what I like to hear!" Chris said excitedly, pointing off-camera.
The bell was rang, and tense challenge music swiftly rose up as the two competitors approached one another.
"Didn't you get the boot in a challenge like this last time?" Amy taunted.
"Oh no," Dakota replied with a shake of her head, "you're not getting in my head."
Their guards were up with their blades, and the camera cut from Amy's smirk to Dakota's glare as the Ferret made the first move. "Take this!" she said, feinting left before swinging at her from the right.
"Too slow!" Amy taunted, ducking under her strike and stepping forward to deliver a two-hit combo – the slash from the left connected, but the follow-up was knocked aside by Dakota's shield.
"Not a chance!" she said, launching an uppercut strike only to have her foe pull away from it.
"Hah! Think again, Daddy's Gir-Watch it!" Amy's jibe was interrupted by a jab, her opponent having taken a step to chase her even while her sword arm was still raised. Amy was only barely able to slip past it to the outside, but she managed to counter while Dakota's guard was down with a brutal strike to her stomach.
The shot cut to Dakota's teammates cringing in sympathy, then back to the ring as she staggered backwards. "C'mon, Dakota," Amy said with a taunting smirk. "I thought you had more than that. I guess you're still not one to put forth any effort."
Dakota growled. "I'll show you," she said in a quiet tone. "I'm not the same girl I was back then," she added with a sudden and determined grin as she got back into stance.
She darted forward and gave Amy a strong left slash only for her to hastily block it; but before she could take a step back Dakota bashed her shield into the cheerleader's face. She followed it up with a left to the side, the camera showing a slow-motion close-up of the impact, then went for a finishing uppercut.
Amy widened her eyes and pulled back just in time, then narrowed them as she stared her opponent down. "It is on!" she barked at Dakota before charging forward, sword raised at the ready.
"Bring it!" Dakota answered, charging forward to meet her.
A rapid flurry of blows ensued, the camera cutting directly from one impact to the next with a jittery note played for each one. First Amy landed a strike to Dakota's face; then Dakota landed a strike to Amy's; Amy slugged the heiress in the gut with another strike; and Dakota sent the cheerleader reeling with a shield bash to the face. Finally, the two battered and bruised competitors charging again and locking their blades against one another. Dakota stepped back and slashed at Amy one last time.
The music cut out as they held for a moment, the shot cutting to Chris, to the Ferrets, and to the Llamas as they all watched expectantly. Finally, both twitched – Dakota fell to her knees, and Amy fell flat on her back.
"Heh. I did it," Dakota said in breathless exhaustion.
"And Dakota wins!" Chris announced as the bell rang. "The score's now 4-1," he added, the shot briefly cutting to show the scoreboard updating. "The Ferrets only need one more point to win the whole thing!"
The Ferret boys began to cheer as Gwen and Ella helped a still-exhausted Dakota stand on her feet.
\
The scene flashed ahead to show Chris standing by the Wheel of Misfortune. "Alright," he said, "Who's next?"
"Guess that's me," Gwen said with a shrug.
"I'm goin' in," Eva scowled.
\
"FIGHT!" Chris said as the footage skipped to both girls in the ring and wielding their weapons.
The bell was struck and Eva smirked at a rather nervous Gwen. "Look," she said as she walked up over to the iron woman, her sword not even raised. "We both know who's winning this, so can you at least make it quick and painless?"
"Yeah sure," Eva said with a confident smirk, walking forward and hefting the massive sword over her shoulder, "But I can't promise it being painless."
The camera cut to Ella wincing in sympathy at the sound of a strike and Gwen's shout of pain, then followed the goth as she flew out of the ring.
She landed face-first in the dirt, and flopped down onto her belly with a muffled groan.
"Well that was fast," Chris commented over the shot of the twitching goth. "Score is now 4-2. Who's next?"
"I'll do it," Ella volunteered.
"My turn," Rodney raised his hand.
An oddly dramatic riff played over a shot of both campers, with weapons in hand and walking towards the ring.
"And remember Rodney," Chris announced, "if you lose this, the Llamas return to the campfire! No pressure bro!"
The bell rang as the shot cut behind Ella, now standing in her corner of the ring facing her larger opponent She brought her shield to the front and took a deep breath.
Chris laughed. "FIGHT!" he said.
"H-hello there," Ella said with barely-contained panic. "Would you care for a song before we have to fight?"
Rodney paused to think, and the camera moved behind Ella as she cautiously began to sidestep to the right. "You don't seem sure. So how about I just go over here," the shot cut back in front of her as she pointed further to her left, "and you can just figure it out."
"I thought about it," Rodney said. "And I think I should get my team a point." With a burst of dramatic music the country boy raised his sword and charged. The point-of-view shifted to his own as he ran towards Ella, the screaming singer trapped in a corner of the ring. At the last second the terrified girl ran to the right, leaving Rodney careening head-on towards the turnbuckle.
The camera cut away to the other Llamas as they winced at the sound of the crash. The shot cut back to the ring, showing Rodney folded over the noticeably bent turnbuckle and attached post . Ella, still wide-eyed with fear, quickly took advantage of his daze and managed use her shield to push him over the side and out of the ring.
The bell rang. "And Ella scores a point for the Ferrets!" Chris announced from the sidelines. "That makes it 5-2. The Ferrets of Failure win!" The Ferrets all raised their arms and cheered, with Ella joining in off-screen. The shot panned to the eight sidelined Llamas as they sagged and sighed in disappointment.
\
A flash took the scene ahead to dusk and back to the Llama's treehouse. The camera panned downward and to the left, cutting to Amy waiting at the base of a large tree. She looked around for a moment with an annoyed expression, then flinched in surprise when Shawn suddenly jumped out of a nearby bush, landing in a crouch and looking around warily.
"Alright, what did you wanna tell me?" he asked.
Amy sighed. "Look, you don't like me and I really don't like you," she told him. "But I need your help."
"You've gotta funny way of asking," Shawn said accusingly. "What makes you so sure I'd say yes?"
"You did spend half of season two helping out Heather," the cheerleader pointed out.
Shawn's face fell into a stunned surprise. "Fair point," he said. "I guess there's no harm in hearing you out."
"I want to get rid of Rodney," she said. "He sabotaged Scott because he thinks I have a crush on him."
"He does seem to be your type," Shawn said with a decisive nod. "But," he opened his eyes and frowned at the scowl he received, "I can agree with giving him the boot. As long as you don't expect an alliance from me. Deal?"
He extended his hand, and she shook it. "Deal," she smirked.
Amy walked away with a satisfied smile, and Scott entered the frame. "Did you convince her?"
"Didn't have to," Shawn shrugged. "She asked me."
"Well it's nice when things work out isn't it?" Scott smirked
XXX
"Amy and Scott are both trying to control the game," Shawn explained in the confessional. "Basically putting me in the same position I was in back in season two. Allying with Scott is a gamble considering his history of sabotage, but if he is pulling that trick again I'd rather not be a potential target."
XXX
The scene skipped ahead again, this time moving to the usual long-distance shot of the island at night. The ceremonial theme began to play, and another flash transitioned the shot to the campfire pit where the nine Llamas of Loserdom were already seated. A pan across them from right to left showed Amy, Sierra, Eva, Carly, and Sadie in the back row and Scott, Cameron, Shawn, and Rodney in the front.
"There are only eight marshmallows on this plate," Chris said as the ceremony resumed. "If I call your name, that means you're safe. If I don't, you're out. Simple as that." He picked the first marshmallow off the plate and tossed it across the campfire. "Shawn. Eva. Cameron. Sierra. Sadie. Carly. Amy." One by one, each camper had a marshmallow thrown at them. Most made their catch, but Carly's went high and Sierra's hit her in the eye.
"Campers," Chris said, holding up the last bit of white as the music turned dramatic, "this is the final marshmallow tonight." Rodney and Scott were shown glaring at each other in split-screen, then each looked at Chris with dread. The host eyed the final marshmallow, and uttered a single name. "Scott."
"Whew!" the farmer sighed in relief, swiping his prize and pumping his fist. "That was way too close for comfort."
"Rodney!" Chris interrupted. "The Boot of Shame awaits!"
\
The somber farewell theme began to play as the scene moved to the dock. "Goodbye everybody," Rodney said sadly as he waved from within the orb. "And Amy, I have to know. Was there ever a chance for us?"
"Hmm?" the cheerleader perked up upon hearing her name. "Yeah no," she said, idly filing her fingernails. "Never gonna happen."
"Yeah," he said. "That's what I thought-"
"Too late for you to start doing that!" Chris mocked, holding up his remote.
He pressed the button, and Rodney was kicked off into the night with a scream.
"Thrilling grudge matches! New alliances! Surprising twists!" Chris told the camera as the capstone theme began to play, tossing away his remote. "Can we top it? You better believe we can! Next time, on Total! Drama! Redemption!"
(Roll the Credits)
\
\
(Bonus Clip)
The clip opened with Rodney landing in the pool with a scream. He surfaced and spat some water out of his mouth with a rather confused expression. "Uhh," he asked himself. "Where am I?"
"'Bout the fanciest hotel I've ever seen," a familiar voice answered. Rodney perked up and turned to see Mitch tipping his hat to his former teammate with a smile.
"Oh, hey Mitch," Rodney smiled. "It's sure good to see a familiar face."
"I'll bet," the cowboy said as. Rodney pulled himself out of the pool and shook himself dry. "So what happened?"
"I made the same mistake again," Rodney sighed. "I fell for a girl and she wasn't even into me."
"I wouldn't pay it much mind," Mitch waved him off. "I mean, she's still stuck on that island and you're livin' it up here. Come on," he waved the country boy over, "Our old teammates are throwin' a slumber party. We should get there before Owen eats all the food."
Rodney smiled, and followed the cowboy off screen.
Author's Note Post Script: Yeah, Rodney was supposed to go last time and Britney this one. It's not that I particularly dislike him. I just don't really see him as someone who can go far in any circumstance. But anyway, the original plan was for the last episode be where Rodney got the boot after being tricked into using the Protection Idol on Amy. The plan hit a snag for several reasons. First, how the heck was I gonna get both of them in the bottom two. Second being that I just couldn't in good conscience make him dumb enough to tank his own chance at the million like that. This one, I think works better.
Scott's alliance grows. Now he's got half the team working with him. So he's pretty safe. Of course he still needs to act like he needs Amy to keep her from getting suspicious, but he should be okay until the teams merge.
Speaking of alliances, Dave and Lindsay? What? But seriously, it can't have escaped your notice that Lindsay is also collecting allies.
We saw a little more of Sharly and I swear I haven't ditched Evzekiel. I'm just finding it really hard to find moments for them
OC Fun Fact #1: So, you're probably wondering why Kitsune's earlier characterization here had her as kind of an Owen/Izzy hybrid. Well that's actually because she was on at one point. You see, back when everyone was starting SYOC fics, I had one that was earmarked for use in any 'kids of the cast' fics. Her original name I want to say Sarah and she was Owen and Izzy's daughter. When making the cast for the original Danger Island. She was added purely as a contestant who could go far if not for running afoul of the season's villain. She just happened to get lucky when I did the Randomization for the cast.
And for those of you that were curious, all former contestants are at Victor's hotel this season. It's just only the All-Stars that are meeting the eliminated campers in the clips
And as always I'm sure I'm forgetting to mention something.
I hope you all enjoyed the episode, or some part of it.
And I'd also like to remind you guys that a TVTropes page for this series does exist and needs you guys adding to it.
With that I'm signing off
-TotalDramaFan14
RDR ELIMINATION TABLE:
24th Place: Gary
23rd Place: Anne Maria
22nd Place: Leonard
21st Place: Trent
20th Place: Jaxon
19th Place: Britney
18th Place: Rodney