Author's note: Wow, after what just happened, I'm kinda sorry about booting Nate first. Also, retroactively adding this, but the name of the in-universe show will now just be Total Drama Island. Just Total Drama doesn't sound right to me. The fic's title will remain the same though.
The camera shows Chris standing on the end of the Dock of Shame. "Last time on Total Drama Island." The scene cuts to flashbacks of the previous episode. "The teams were tasked with running an obstacle course, and I was even nice enough to let them help their teammates. Team Power Mouse proved they had the best teamwork, partly thanks to Kevin seeing everyone's powers and being able to plan around them. Then Team Checkmate sent off Mandy, who terrified everything into submission, including Chef somehow. Come on dude, she's a four-and-a-half-foot girl in a pink dress, she can't be that scary. Or maybe she can, I don't know. Anyway, after her team finished, it was time for the Golden Lions. Eliza kept pausing at every animal obstacle to talk to them, making people question whether she can talk to them or if she's just crazy. However, it was Nate's obsession with looking and acting cool that cost his team the chance to finish outside of last place, leading to him being booted from the island."
The camera cuts back to Chris on the dock. "Who will be the next team sending someone home? Who will win an amazing prize? And who will sit in prizeless purgatory? Find out right here, right now, on Total Drama Island."
Intro song plays.
It's been three days since the first challenge, and the contestants were sitting down for breakfast, ready for whatever Chris had to throw at them that day. "Hey guys, why don't we use our prize from the first challenge?" suggested Pepper Ann. "You know, get ourselves something good before the next challenge?"
Confession Cam: Pepper Ann
"Okay, so I'll admit, I'm a bit worried. My team has some pretty strong players. Like, most of them have stopped some kind of apocalypse. Heck, even Mikey helped stop some scientist guy from abolishing recess by causing an ice age…yeah, it didn't make much sense to me either. Anyway, looking at all this, I think I'm the weakest link in the team, so I need them to think I'm cool and fun to be around so I don't get booted."
"Hmm…I don't know," said Kevin. "Right before a challenge? I don't think we should eat anything too heavy, in case it's another really physical one."
"Come on, lighten up a little," said Star. "I mean, when else are we going to use it?"
"We could use it as a celebration when we win today as well," said Kim.
"Boring," said Luz. "Let's see what they've got now."
"Agreed," said Jake. "Besides, it's not like these meals can't get heavier. I'm pretty sure this oatmeal is made out of rubber cement." As if to demonstrate, Jake tried to pull his spoon out of his oatmeal, only for it to flying back into the bowl and break.
Confession Cam: Chef
"I slave over a hot stove all day for these ungrateful brats, only for them to make fun of my rubber cement oatmeal? For shame."
"Hmm, let's see, what can we get for ten bucks?" asked Pepper Ann, looking through the choices with most of her team.
"Pizza, ice cream, cookies, fried chicken, porterhouse steak…" said Dipper, looking through the options. "Nothing here's really breakfast food. Maybe Kevin and Kim are right, maybe we should…"
"Wait, look, the pizza's only $5," pointed out Pepper Ann.
"And the ice cream's only $3," said Star.
"And the cookies are only $2," said Mikey.
"So, if we combine them…" said Luz.
"We have a feast," said Jake, handing over the voucher. "Chef, the pizza, cookies, and ice cream please."
"Alright, your funeral," said Chef with a shrug.
"Be honest, is it as bad as I think it's going to be?" Kim asked Dipper as he got back to the table.
"What do you think?" asked Dipper, as the rest of the team returned with a massive pile of junk food.
Meanwhile, on Team Checkmate's table…
"Look at them, rubbing it on our faces that they get to eat all the junk food they want," said Buttercup. "It makes me sick."
"It might make them sick too, eating all that before a challenge," said Tulip.
"Good, we have an advantage over them in the next challenge," said Ben. "And if the Lions are a man down, that gives us a shoe-in to win."
"Keep in mind, they got rid of a player who wasn't that good to begin with, so that might be to their advantage," said Dexter.
"Hey, we don't know if he was good or not," said Elliott. "He just made a mistake and they booted him. Who said he was bad?"
"Nicely said Elliott," said Steven. "I mean, just because their team has a ghost, a robot, and…whatever Korra is, who says Nate would have been useless?"
"Will you people shut up?" snapped Mandy. "I'm trying to eat my slop."
"She's right," said Jessica. "We should be focusing on winning the next challenge, so we can be the ones pigging out on junk food next. Right guys?" Jessica's speech was greeted with a general round of approval from the rest of the team. "There, see, we're on your side. Can we be friends now?"
"Don't push your luck," said Mandy, continuing to eat.
Confession Cam: Mandy
"Actually, it might not be a bad idea to have an ally or two. Something very lucky happened during that last challenge, but I can't expect that to work forever. Or can I? Hmm…"
Meanwhile, at the Golden Lions table…
"So, we lost the first challenge, leaving us a man down," said Lincoln. "But it's no matter. We can still prevail. We can always win the next one."
"Why are talking to us like you're the team leader?" asked Korra.
"Well, I am the Man with the Plan," said Lincoln. "If anyone's the captain, I think it should be me."
"Are you kidding me?" demanded Korra. "I am the Avatar. You know, the human embodiment of light and peace, able to command the four elements whenever I want? I should be the captain."
"Does this competition even have team captains?" asked Danny.
"I don't recall Chris ever mentioning it," said Jenny. "By the way, I'm pretty sure there are actually one hundred and eighteen elements, Korra."
"No-one asked you," snapped Korra, keeping her attention on Lincoln. "Besides, I need to settle this with Lincoln here."
"Guys, come on, we don't need a captain," said Arnold. "We just need to work together, at least until the teams merge. Surely you can agree with that?"
Lincoln and Korra kept glaring at each other. "Fine," they said in unison. "But he/she better keep out of my way." The two continued to glare at each other as Eliza noticed Annie sneaking out of the Mess Hall, a plate of food in hand.
Outside, Annie walked up to Pony. "Here, eat up boy," said Annie, holding up the plate for him.
"Oh boy, what is it?" asked Pony.
"According to Chef, it's food," said Annie.
"Uh…huh…" said Pony. "Any particular type of food?"
"That was all the information I could get out of him," said Annie.
"Oh well, it's probably…" started Pony.
"AH HA!" yelled Eliza, causing both Pony and Annie to jump. "I knew that pony could actually talk."
"Uh…neigh?" said Pony, trying to play innocent.
"Don't bother Pony, she's got us," said Annie, getting on her knees. "Please please PLEASE don't tell anybody. It's just that he's my best friend and I didn't want to leave him at home alone and…"
"Whoa, whoa, you don't have anything to worry about, I'm not going to turn you in or anything," said Eliza. "I mean, we're on the same team for one thing, and for another, it doesn't bother me. It's not like you're using Pony to cheat or anything."
"Yeah, that's true, I guess," said Annie. "I'd still appreciate you not telling anyone though, in case they decide to send him home. He'd be so lonely."
"Your secret's safe with me," said Eliza, giving her new friend a hug.
"Campers, meet me in the clearing in the woods for today's challenge," said Chris's voice over a loudspeaker. "I am in need of entertainment. And by that, I mean your suffering."
Ten minutes later, the teams were assembled in front of Chris. "Welcome campers, to today's challenge," he said. "Today, you're going to show us how bad you are as architects."
"So we're building something?" asked Steven.
"Duh, and shush. I'm still talking," said Chris. "The first part of today's challenge is to build a fort. The best fort will get a good advantage in the second part, second place will get an okay advantage."
"What about third place?" asked Elliott.
"Why would I give them anything?" asked Chris. "You can take whatever you want from this pile of crud we got from a local junkyard."
"Is there actually anything good in there?" asked Kim.
"Do you think I actually looked through this garbage to see if there was anything good?" asked Chris. "No, I made an intern do it. Then they ended up in hospital. Something about contracting HVI and Tetris or…something. I dunno, it was all doctor gibberish to me."
"Uh…do we at least get gloves for this?" asked Eliza.
"And why would I do that?" asked Chris. "Okay, you got twenty minutes to get your supplies. And…GO!" Chris blasted his airhorn, and the contestants began digging through the piles of trash for building supplies.
"Guys, there's some sheets of metal up here," called Jenny, who immediately started throwing them down to her team.
"Uh, Jenny?" said Korra, dodging one as it landed.
"No time, just grab it and start building," said Jenny, throwing down more.
"Jenny?" said Korra again.
"What?" snapped Jenny, looking down at her team. "Oh…" Jenny saw that, while throwing her sheets of metal down to her team, she'd accidentally crushed most of them under it. "Oops, sorry guys. I'll take care of it." Jenny flew down and grabbed the metal, before flying to a secluded corner to start building.
"Are you guys okay?" asked Korra, helping everyone up.
"I will be once my spine's back in alignment," said Lincoln, rubbing his back.
"Really?" asked Korra. "Well, since you're so injured, maybe I should…"
"Don't even think about it," snapped Lincoln.
"Guys, please keep your fighting until AFTER the challenge," said Arnold. "We'll even have a team vote if it…"
"Less talk, more build," said Danny, running to help Jenny build their fort.
Meanwhile…
"What can we do with any of this stuff?" asked Steven, throwing stuff over his shoulder as he dug through a pile. "Pieces of wire, half a computer, scraps of metal. No-one can do anything with this stuff."
"Hmm…" said Dexter, slowing collecting the pile Steven was creating and moving away from the group.
"Well, there's some wood here," said Buttercup. "Can we do something with that?"
"Who ever made a wooden fort?" asked Ben.
"Well, we have to make something, or we could lose the challenge," said Jessica.
"Done right, wood can be very useful," said Mandy, putting something in her pocket. "I even took over a group of kids who had a giant wooden treehouse for a little while."
"…right…" said Tulip, concerned about Mandy's choice of words. "Anyway, we should…"
"Hey, does anyone have a welder handy?" called Dexter, hard at work doing something.
"Whoa, Dex, what are you making?" asked Ben.
"We need a fort, right?" asked Dexter. "Well, this is a fort."
"It looks like a pile of cra…" started Buttercup, before Elliott covered her mouth.
"It looks amazing Dexter," said Elliott. "Hey Ben, you said you had some kind of fire alien, right?"
"Uh…yeah," said Ben, uncovering the Omnitrix. "One fire alien, coming right up." Ben selected the right alien, and hit the button, turning into Heatblast. "Let's get cooking."
"No, but seriously, it isn't just me, is it? That does look like a pile of crap, right?" asked Buttercup.
"I mean, yes, but I don't want to discourage Dexter, since he was the only one doing any work," said Elliott.
"We are so screwed," said Tulip under her breath.
Meanwhile…
"Hey Luz, did you find anything useful?" asked Dipper.
"Oof, I don't feel so good," said Luz. "I think I ate too much at breakfast."
"You did seem to eat a lot of pizza," said Dipper. "How's everyone else going?"
"Not much better," said Kim, pointing out Star, Mikey, Pepper Ann, and Jake groaning on the ground, clutching their stomachs.
"I don't get it," said Kevin. "I mean, I get they ate a lot, but they look really sick."
Confession Cam: Chef
"Okay, so maybe the meat I used on the pizza was left unrefrigerated for a day or two, and maybe the milk used in the ice cream was unpasteurised, and maybe the flour in the cookies was subject to a millipede infestation. So what?"
"Okay, it looks like as the only ones to not pig out, it's up to us to build something," said Dipper. "Do either of you have much experience in building anything?"
"Not really," said Kim.
"No," said Kevin.
"Right…right…" said Dipper, pacing as he thought. "Well, we're in trouble then."
"Look, it doesn't have to be great, right?" asked Kevin. "Just grab some stuff and set up a crude shack. That might work, right?"
"It might have to, look at the others," said Dipper. "Though Checkmate's doesn't look like much, we should be able to beat that at least."
"Okay, let's get to work," said Kevin, grabbing some partially rotted planks of wood.
Later…
"Okay campers, let's see what you made," said Chris, calling time on the competition. "Let's start with last week's winners, Team Power Mouse."
"Ta-da," said Kevin, presenting their fort. "What do you think?"
"Hmm…" said Chris, looking at what appeared to be a small wooden house with several planks missing. Inside, he could see most of the team curled up on the floor. "This took a lot out of your team, did it?"
"Some of them had a bit of a big breakfast," explained Dipper.
"Well, that'll certainly make things interesting for the second part of the challenge," said Chris. "Overall, I'm going to say this doesn't look great, but it might be passable. Let's see what Team Checkmate has."
"May I present to you: the Ultra-Fort," said Dexter, standing proudly before his fort.
"Hmm…" said Chris, trying to figure out what he was looking at. "Gonna be honest, this looks like a pile of crap. Definitely undeserving of its name."
"That's what we want you to think," said Dexter, pulling out a remote. "But you see, one push of this button, and…"
"Yawn. Next," said Chris, walking away before Dexter could do anything. "Team Golden Lion, let's see how you went."
"As team captain, may I present to you, our fort," said Lincoln, bowing as he showed Chris their fort.
"Huh, I don't remember handing out team captaincies," said Chris with a shrug. "But holy cow, THIS is a fort." Before him stood a fence of reinforced steel, with guard towers and balistraria at the top. "Well, we have a clear winner. Chef, bring them their advantage for part two."
"Behold, your reward," said Chef, wheeling out a small trebuchet.
"We're gonna be fighting, aren't we?" asked Steven.
"Hush, that's for me to announce," said Chris. "So, second place goes to Team Mighty Mouse. Chef, if you would."
"For you guys, you get these handy dandy slingshots," said Chef, handing them out to the team.
"So, wait, we get NOTHING?!" asked Buttercup.
"That's right," said Chris. "Maybe next time you should build a better fort."
The rest of Team Checkmate glares at Dexter. "If we have to send someone home tonight, I think I know who it will be," said Ben.
"Trust me, we're fine," said Dexter, still holding the remote control.
"Okay campers, time for the second part of the challenge," said Chris. "You've got a base, most of you have weapons, it's time to start fighting. Chef?"
Chef came back, dragging behind him a wagon full of rocks. "Behold, your ammo," said Chef, dumping it in the middle of the battleground.
"You guys have ten minutes to fight," said Chris. "Whichever base is still in the best condition after the battle wins the challenge, and the one in the worst condition will send someone home. Any questions?"
"Uh, yeah," said Steven. "What are we supposed to do with no weapons?"
"Not my problem," said Chris. "Alright, you have sixty seconds to get ready. And…GO!" Chris blasted his airhorn, and the contestants started grabbing rocks.
"Come on guys, as many as you can carry," said Dipper, trying to give some to Jake.
"Oh, man, I feel like I'm going to barf," said Jake, holding his hand over his mouth.
"As long as you don't do it where I can see, then I…" started Kim, as Jake threw up. "Ugh…we're in trouble."
"Well, no point worrying about it now," said Kevin, grabbing more rocks. "Come on, we gotta get going."
"Three…two…one…" Chris counted, then blasted his airhorn again. "FIGHT!"
"I say we take out Team Checkmate first," said Korra. "Their's is the smallest base, it'll be the easiest."
"No, we need to go after Team Power Mouse," said Lincoln. "Their's is better, so it'll help us extend our lead."
"Oh, shut up, both of you," said Danny, as he and Jenny aimed the trebuchet at Team Checkmate's base.
"Ready?" asked Arnold. "And…FIRE!" The trebuchet launched the rocks, and flew straight at Team Checkmate's base…
…only for a large robotic hand to catch the rocks before they could hit. "What the…" started Annie, as Team Checkmate's base started growing another hand and a head.
"HA! Told you we should go after Team Checkmate," said Korra.
"Yeah, but you didn't…" started Lincoln.
"GUYS! Not the *beep* time," said Eliza, shocking everyone. "Sorry, but we have a challenge to win, and squabbling isn't helping."
"Neither's talking about squabbling," said Annie. "INCOMING!"
"GOT IT!" yelled Jenny, flying up and blasting the incoming rock into pebbles.
"Wait, are we allowed to use our powers?" asked Buttercup.
"I never said you couldn't," said Chris. "As long as some bases get messed up, I don't care what you do. Though I should mention that, as cool as Dexter's robot is, it's still not a fort. Anyway, proceed."
"Nice," said Buttercup, flying out of the robot. "I'll take out their robot."
"I'll help with that," said Ben, looking through his Omnitrix. "Let's see how she deals with Upgrade." Ben found the right alien, and hit the button on his watch, immediately turning into a humanoid blob covering in what looked like circuitry.
"Can you even fly in that form?" asked Mandy.
"Who needs to fly when you can do this?" asked Upgrade, stretching his arm towards Jenny, trying to grab her.
"Hey, watch it," said Jenny, easily manoeuvring around him. "What are you…"
"Gotcha," said Buttercup, flying behind her and pinning her arms behind her. "Ben, whatever you're planning, do it now."
"Hey, get off me you little…" started Jenny, as Upgrade got a hold of her.
"Now, let's see what's inside you," said Upgrade, beginning to possess her, as a blast of plasma shot through his arm. "What the…"
"Leave her alone," said Danny, firing another couple of blasts at Upgrade before flying at Jenny and Buttercup, fist aimed straight at Jenny's head.
"Danny, what are you…" said Jenny, as Danny's fist went through her, leaving her unharmed, but struck Buttercup, knocking her off Jenny. "Oh, thanks."
"Are you okay?" asked Danny. "Are you good to take these guys on?"
"I'm fine," said Jenny. "I'll take the kid, the freaky thing can possess me. I could feel it in my circuits. No telling how bad that would be for us if he gained control of me."
"Fair enough," said Danny, flying back to fight Upgrade, as Jenny squared off against Buttercup.
"And I'll keep the big one busy," said Korra, flying up on a gust of wind. "Because that's what a team captain would…"
"Less talk, more fight," said Jenny, dodging a blow from Buttercup.
Meanwhile…
"So, what do we do now?" asked Dipper.
"Nothing, and hope they forgot about us," said Kevin. "In the meantime, we hope they just destroy each other."
"Sounds like a boring option," said Kim.
"Boring, but smart," said Kevin. "With our heaviest hitters out of commission, we would do well to only fight back when we need to."
"Sounds good to me," said Dipper. "Except for that." Dipper pointed out the window of their base, to the oncoming rock that had been launched by the rest of Team Golden Lion.
"You guys didn't think we'd actually forgotten about you, did you?" asked Lincoln, as Eliza and Arnold were about to reload the trebuchet.
"…I mean, we were hoping," said Kim, as Dipper ran past holding something in his hand. "Wait, is that…"
"Star's wand, yeah," said Dipper, pointing at the approaching boulder. "Now, how do I…" Dipper shook the wand, trying to get it to work, when suddenly it began firing cupcakes at the boulder, doing nothing.
"Wow, that boulder sure is taking a long time to land," said Arnold, which was followed by a loud crunch. "There it is."
"Is everyone okay?" asked Kevin. "What happened? Why aren't we squished?"
"Yo," said Jake, now in dragon form and holding the rock, which had broken through the front of the base before he stopped it. "Sorry I couldn't be of more help before."
"Hey, you're doing better than most of the others," said Kim, indicating the others still on the floor.
"I'll help as soon as I find my wand," said Star, as a bunch of cupcakes flew through the remains of the front of the base. "What the…"
"Sorry, can't control this thing," called Dipper, still struggling to control the wand.
Star sighed, but with a smile on her face. "Newbies," she said. "Hold on, I'll fix this." Star got up, still looking sick, but trying to push through.
"Hey, don't count me out," said Luz, who threw a piece of paper on the ground, and slapped her hands on it. A wall of ice shot up around the base, blocking their view of everything on the other side. "There, that should stop…" Before she could finish speaking, a boulder crashed through the ice wall, landing next to their base. "As I was saying, now they shouldn't be able to see us."
"What about through the big hole we made?" asked Lincoln.
"Uh…" started Luz.
"READY!" yelled Lincoln. "AIM! FI…"
Before Lincoln could finish speaking, an airhorn sounded. "Times up guys," said Chris. "Time to judge whose base is the best. And let's face it, it's between either the robot, and the basically untouched Golden Lion base."
"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure of that," said Danny, throwing a bolt up into the air and catching it again.
"…wait…" started Dexter, as the robot started shaking, then collapsed into a large pile of rubble.
"Well, I think it's obvious what the results are," said Chris. "Golden Lion are the clear winners, meaning they each get a free cardboard cutout of yours truly."
"Gee, thanks," said Korra sarcastically.
"You're welcome," said Chris. "And the clear losers are Team Mighty Mouse, so I'll be seeing them at…"
"Wait a minute, why are we the losers?" asked Kevin. "Their robot's destroyed."
"Yes, but their base went from looking like a pile of crap to looking like a pile of crap," said Chris. "Therefore, no real change. Meanwhile, yours went from vaguely liveable to trashed, making it the bigger downgrade. Well, I'll be seeing you guys later."
Team Mighty Mouse stared in shock at their loss, before looking in the remains of their fort at Mikey and Pepper Ann, still on the ground in pain. "Did we win?" asked Pepper Ann.
Later, at the campfire ceremony…
Confession Cam: Dipper
"It seems unfair to vote for PA when all she wanted to do was celebrate with the team, but it was on her suggestion that the others overeat before a challenge, so I guess I'm voting for her."
Confession Cam: Luz
"Ugh…still feel queasy…anyway, I'm voting for…UGH!" Before she could continue, Luz turns around and throws up into the toilet.
Confession Cam: Pepper Ann
"What smells like vomit?"
"Campers, there are eight of you here, but I only have seven marshmallows," said Chris. "That means seven of you are safe from elimination. One of you is not. If you receive a marshmallow, you will know for sure. The first person to receive a marshmallow is…Kim." Chris threw her a marshmallow, before continuing to throw marshmallows to the other campers. "Jake. Luz. Star. Dipper. And Kevin." The camera focused on Mikey and Pepper Ann, both looking nervous. "Mikey. Pepper Ann. The two of you weren't much help to your team today. Heck, PA, the feast was your idea. Was that enough to get you eliminated?" Chris chuckled to himself. "Well, this marshmallow says…" Chris threw the marshmallow so it landed in Mikey's lap. "Yes, it was. You're done."
"Yeah…yeah, I saw that coming," said Pepper Ann with a defeated tone. "Sorry guys, I just wanted you to like me."
"We do like you, PA," said Kevin, getting up to give her a hug. "Maybe next time, save the feast for after the win."
"Fair enough," said Pepper Ann with a small smile. "See you guys later." Chef then arrived to guide Pepper Ann to the Dock of Shame.
"Aww, how sweet," said Chris. "Now, to Boat of Losers with you. Who will be the next contestant to ride away in shame? Who will be the next to rise to glory? And who will get me another latte? Seriously interns, this is why I don't pay you. Anyway, all these questions and more might be answered, in the next episode of Total Drama Island."