Total Drama Glimmering Isles

by Allureon

With the success of the previous few seasons, Chris and Chef have returned to bring Total Drama back to its roots on a remote set of islands far off the coast of the British Isles. With an all new cast of contestants vying for the million dollar prize, this season may end up being one of the most intense yet! Please read and review!

9. Rage in the Cage

Sorry for yet another delayed chapter. Life has been rather hectic with my hours at work and school but they should be clearing up just a little bit. For now, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

---

Chris stood at the dock of the island, holding a cup of coffee and sporting a grin that was just a bit wider than usual.

"Welcome back to Total Drama Glimmering Isles! Last time our challenge went a bit too easily as our teams dove beneath the waves to gather pieces of a puzzle forming their team logos. I was intending for myself, Chef, and our interns to bombard them with some bean bag cannons from above while they dealt with traps and other obstacles under the water, but things didn't exactly pan out that way since we ran out of ammo more quickly than I was expecting but the end of the challenge was much more fun! What was even more fun, though, was the manipulation game Isaiah decided to pull with Tracy and Ginger! With a tad bit of lies and gossip, he managed to turn the two friends against each other, then get the rest of his team to vote in a way that there were just enough votes against Ginger to take her out of the game! That's not all that happened either, Omari's constant bugging of his team and some choice words made Algernon start to think that Sapphire's only nice to him out of pity, which made him want to avoid her and he managed to tick Lin off enough for her to want to get even with him! How would she do it? By talking Johan into temporarily leaving the challenge to dig up some dirt on Omari, which he did find, but whatever was found, Johan hid it well enough that not even our cameras got a good look at it! Not gonna lie, I'm kinda bummed about that but there's just so much juicy drama going on right now on both teams that I can't stay mad! Oh, yeah, and we had another surprise visit from Marsha, who will not be returning to the game! Geez, can't Chelsea keep tabs on her girlfriend? Anyway, I've kept you waiting long enough! We ended last episode on a bit of a dramatic cliffhanger, so we'll be starting from where we left off! Things are only going to get more intense on what is sure to be the most dramatic episode yet of Total!

Drama!

Glimmering Isles!"

---

"Tracy, I need to know exactly what happened to make you two start hating each other!"

The rest of the Raven team that were present were silent as all eyes went towards Tracy, who still looked a bit taken aback.

"Well, I learned that Ginger was saying some really rude stuff about me and other people on that blog of hers."

"And how did you find all of this out?" Brad continued, his brows furrowing. Tatiana had a similar reaction as Brad's as a bit of life seemed to return to her tired eyes.

"Isaiah told me..."

"And you trusted him?!" Tatiana called out as she stood up. "Tracy, you've seen how suspicious he's been acting. You should know that you can't trust what he says!"

"You say that like we should trust you." It was Butch's turn to speak up as he glared at Tatiana from where he sat. "How is Trace, or the rest of us for that matter, to know if we can trust you. You haven't exactly lead us to many victories."

Tatiana's unsure expression returned as she remained silent and sat back down.

"You can trust her..." Bea's voice squeaked as everyone turned to the brunette, who was still staring at the sand beneath her feet in order to avoid the gazes of her team. "Despite everything, Tatiana hasn't done anything to manipulate any of us, sabotage us during challenges, or try to turn us against each other."

"Is that really what you think, Bea?" Butch asked, her eyes still locked on Tatiana. Tracy remained silent, looking between the remaining members of her team. "Or did Tatiana mess with your head and gaslight you into saying that?"

"That's enough, Butch." Brad said firmly. "Bea's right."

The brute looked towards the hatted boy with a look of shock and confusion. He wasn't the only person confused as Tatiana shared in his expression and even Bea looked up from where she sat.

"And how do you figure that?"

"Because it makes no sense for her to manipulate Ginger and Tracy. Even if she was planning to use the girls for their votes against us, she would have voted either of us off by now. Marsha would still be around, despite her clingy nature towards Chelsea. Considering how close he's gotten to Mipsy, I can only assume Isaiah would have been the last boy on our team to be voted off. That would be when Tatiana would have broken off the girls' alliance." Brad explained.

"So you're saying she wouldn't turn Ginger and Tracy against each other for strategy reasons?" Butch asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Partially." Brad nodded. "But even if you take strategy out of this, while I can't speak for Tatiana herself, she does seem to like you girls."

"Is that true, Tati?" Tracy finally asked as she and Bea looked over at the taller girl, who let out a soft chuckle and a smirk shook her head at Brad.

"You really hit the nail on the head there..." She sighed. "I'd say that was sort of how we were planning things out. Us girls simply outnumbered the boys and we knew you and Isaiah were scheming, so we thought the smartest thing would be to take you two out before things got troublesome. Clearly, that didn't work. But despite that, I still thought of all the girls as friends. I liked listening to Mipsy's stories about the countries she's visited, Marsha gush about her crush on Chelsea, Tracy reminisce and tell stories about her home, and Ginger's blog. Bea's also been the best friend I have on the island right now and I do enjoy the discussions we have on literature outside of challenges, she's also been the only person I've really had the chance to talk about in terms of the continuing drama within this team. I suppose it's odd for me to really be saying all of this now, but... I've always been bad with people, that's why I've preferred books."

"So you're not messing with anyone?" Butch asked.

"I wouldn't think of it." Tatiana replied.

"So Isaiah really was lying?" Tracy pondered before sitting back down. "I just got Ginger voted off because he tricked me?!"

"He tricked and manipulated all of us, either directly or indirectly through Melissa." Brad grumbled. "The only way to truly stop them is for all of us to work together, and for us to truly do that, we need to be fully transparent with each other."

"We're not going to get all sentimental and talk about our feelings, are we?" Butch gagged.

"No, we don't have to be that open with ourselves." Brad rolled his eyes. "We just have to stop being so suspicious of one another. Butch, you've basically been doing this already with Ginger and Tracy."

"I guess." The brute shrugged. "That's why I voted for Tatiana, I thought she was the one that made them turn on each other and I figured getting rid of her would solve the issue. I can't have my friends fighting like that."

"Aww, I didn't think you'd care so much about us!" Tracy cooed, pinching Butch's cheek.

"Hey! Someone's got to keep this team together!" Butch whined, brushing the country girl off him as his eyes drifted over to Bea. "Speaking of keeping it together, what's with her?"

"Melissa snapped at her earlier. Something she said hit her hard." Tatiana explained.

"It's not exactly what she said." Bea sighed. "It's how she said it. I... haven't really been shouted at like that in a very long time. It brought back bad memories..."

"I see." Brad noted as Tatiana patted her friend's back. "It's not our place to pry into your personal history. But for the time being we should all head to bed, we've had a hard day and I think we all want it to be over. It'll be tough for some of us to sleep knowing we share a cabin with Melissa and Isaiah, but let's just focus on winning the next challenge. We can't afford to have those two doing something else to get another one of us eliminated. Starting tomorrow we need to be more open and casual. No more secrets. If we do that then those two can't manipulate us and, if they try, talk to someone you know you can trust. Remember; poor communication kills."

With the Ravens feeling as though they all said their piece, they headed back to their cabin...

*Confessionals*

Brad: "This elimination almost completely fractured this team. Taking this chance to talk with the others may have prevented that, but there are still so many things we need to prepare for, both in terms of the next challenge and of Isaiah's next move."

Tatiana: "I expected to deal with what one would call a 'villain' during my time on this show, I was just unsure of when. My mistake was thinking they would make themselves known to us, what with many contestants on this show who have been the 'bad guy' having either standoffish personalities or having being very... I suppose flamboyant would be a good word in describing their mannerisms. But Isaiah is different, he's manipulative, sure, but he's twisted Mipsy into thinking he's the good guy in all of this. I questioned if Mipsy herself was just as rotten, but she seemed nice enough during the first day. Not so with Isaiah, from what I can recall. I should have seen these red flags sooner..."

Butch: "Argh, I can't believe that guy played me! Now Ginger's out of the game! Maybe Tatiana's a weasel, I still don't know for sure, but Brad's been cool enough to me and I'd say I can trust him. The same goes for Tracy and they both think Tatiana would be a good ally, so I'll side with them. That means we gotta get Isaiah out next, and if he really did mess with my friends, he's gonna pay!"

Tracy: "If the others are right, then that means I stabbed my friend in the back and got her voted off! Oh man, I screw up badly!"

Bea: "It's become clear to everyone that Isaiah and Melissa are our primary targets. Specifically the latter of the two, as they believe he's essentially poisoned Melissa's way of thinking and pushed her into turning her back on us. Perhaps they're right, but for the time being, I... I will be voting for Melissa going forward."

*End Confessionals*

---

As the morning came, the Ravens awoke to a rather eerie silence on the girls' side of the cabin as they all dressed without a word to each other. For the boys, they had become accustomed to silence on their side as the only verbal communication was between Brad and Butch, and that was only because the latter initiated conversations. Still, the silence was rather uncomfortable to Melissa, who looked around the rest of the cabin. She was expecting the glare from Tatiana, but the fact that Bea wouldn't even look at her was surprising. The reaction that surprised her the most was from Tracy, who remained quiet and stoic in response to the smile and wave that Mipsy greeted her with.

Seeing as nobody appeared to want to talk to her, Mipsy left the cabin. The morose expression she was now sporting left her when she saw Isaiah also leaving the cabin.

"Hey!" She greeted cheerily. "Have you noticed anything weird about the others since last night?"

"Not particularly. Is something wrong on your end?"

"Well I noticed the girls seem like they're avoiding interaction with me. I mean, I kind of expected Tatiana to be mad at me since I called her out yesterday, and Bea seemed really distant since I yelled at her, too. But I wasn't expecting Tracy to just ignore me in the way she did. I figured she'd at least say something to me."

"Well you did take a stand against Tatiana, and she has her claws sunk into Bea already, so them not wanting to talk to you is understandable. We also left the campfire after Ginger was eliminated which meant that she may have gotten her back onto her good side."

"Why did we leave early, anyway?" Mipsy asked.

"I could feel an argument brewing, and I didn't want you getting caught in the crossfire." Isaiah replied with a smile.

"Aww, that's sweet! But... what are we going to do now? If Tatiana and Bea managed to get Tracy back on their side then that's almost half the team, plus Tracy is still friends with Butch. They could still vote us off!"

"Not to worry! Remember, Butch isn't all that smart and he seems to talk with Brad more than Tracy. Speaking of Brad, he's weaker than he lets on. Butch is his only ally right now and if Tatiana convinces him to vote with her like she did with Tracy and Ginger, then Brad has nothing, and he can either vote with us or get left behind."

"Wow, you really have thought a lot about this game!"

"I have. But that won't stop Tatiana, nor Brad himself, from trying to outplay me. I can't know what they're thinking or planning, but I can do what I can to stop them. I'm also thankful to have your help in doing so."

"Oh, you're just saying that!" Melissa giggled as she grasped Isaiah's hand. "So I'm guessing we should focus on winning the next challenge?"

"Precisely! As much as we should be wary of the others, if we can avoid voting anyone off at all, it does eliminate some risk for the time being." Isaiah nodded. The two caught sight of the Eagles running towards their cabin after their morning run. As per the newfound routine, the girls of the Eagles team had just exited the cabin, as soon as most of the girls saw Omari, they couldn't help but snicker to themselves. When Omari noticed the glances, he followed up with his own confident smirk.

"'Sup, ladies? Glad to see you're coming around to liking what you're seeing of the Big O!" The brash teen greeted.

"Oh, yeah, sure. You've totally got us in your pocket!" Charlene replied with a roll of her eyes.

"HAH!" Omari laughed, pointing right at Johan as he ignored what the others saw as obvious sarcasm. "Even your so-called girlfriend found out that I'm the better man! Eat that, squirt!"

"Oh no, I guess you sure showed me..." Johan replied with a tone as deadpan as the look on his face.

"Move it along Mr. Suave." Walter groaned. "We have no time for this. We should get ready for breakfast and whatever challenge we'll be dealing with today."

"Hey, if it means I get some food, I'm definitely with you!" Omari exclaimed as he began heading for the mess hall. Once he was clear from earshot, Johan and the girls aside from Jenny began to bust out laugh. The blonde cheerleader and the rest of the boys simply watched in confusion.

"Um, am I missing something?" Jenny asked.

"Let's just say we found something out about Omari that makes him look like a colossal loser." Johan answered.

"You will not be using whatever you learned to blackmail him, are you?" Walter asked, furrowing his brow. "I can not let you all do that, even if it is to Omari."

"Relax, Sarge!" Charlene giggled. "He doesn't know that we know his secret, and once he finds out we'll make sure he starts to shape up. No blackmail involved, pinkie swear!"

"Plus this was my idea. If you're going to be upset with anyone, let it be me. The others are just along for the ride." Lin said with a shrug. Joseph simple shrugged and shook his head.

"Look, I can't say I approve of digging up dirt on a member of the team, but don't let this drag out for longer than it needs to." The Chief explained. "Omari may be a moron, but he's still human."

"What did you find out about him, anyway?" Algernon asked.

"Hah! Follow me, I'll show you!" Lin replied, leading the rest of the Eagles back over to their cabin and reaching under the steps, pulling out Omari's trinket. Jenny let out a gasp before quickly covering her mouth, Algernon's jaw dropped as his face turned beet red, Walter's brows furrowed again before he let out a groan and shook his head. Joseph simply stood in silence before pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Let's... Let's just go get breakfast..." He sighed, exasperation clear in his tone.

*Confessionals*

Algernon: "I can't believe Omari was allowed to bring that to the island! Wouldn't Chris get mad if he found out about it? I'm sure there are censors or something that would have to be enforced!"

Joseph: "Just when I thought that boy couldn't be more of a disgrace to the team..."

Walter: "Not only would that... thing be considered contraband, it's also further proof that Omari is letting his emotions and lack of focus get the better of him."

Jenny: "Eewww! That's so gross! Why would he even bring that thing here, let alone have on in the first place?!"

Lin: "It's a good thing there's rubber gloves in the medical tent, because I don't think I could live with touching that thing with my bare hands. Johan was practically in the washrooms boiling his hands after finding it."

Mipsy: "I knew Tatiana and Bea wouldn't want to talk to me, or even look at me, after we yelled at each other last night. But Tracy just seemed so... distant. Like it was a bad thing for her to interact with me. I don't know what those two told her, but I need to let her know that I don't have any hard feelings towards her! We're still friends!"

Isaiah: "If I didn't have a target on my back before, I'm certain I do now. I may need to lay low for now and wait to plan out my next move. Winning challenges, and finding one of those two idols, is my main priority for right now. I've tried looking for it when it was possible for me, but free time for everyone has been surprisingly scarce. Thankfully, the only person I see that seems to be actively searching for it is that girl, Lin, since she always disappears into the woods after most challenges."

*End Confessionals*

---

The unsettling silence coming from the Raven team faded a bit once they and the Eagles entered the mess hall. Despite Omari not not noticing it, everyone glanced at him at least once, the brash teen himself was looking around to see if Carmen was around while he occasionally took bites of his breakfast. Moving her gaze from Omari to Algernon, Sapphire let out a silent sigh to herself, unsure of what to do. Algernon was still trying to look away from her, even though she did catch him gazing at her. Johan told her that he would try to talk to him soon, but she had to at least try something. She slowly reached for his shoulder and flinched a bit when he turned to look at her suddenly before shying away a bit.

"Um, good morning, Algie. How are you feeling?"

"Ah, um, I'm fine, I suppose." Algernon replied, shying away from Sapphire as he still refused to look at her. "Just eating my eggs..."

"They seem saltier than usual, don't you think?" The punk girl asked.

"Yes, I do believe they are."

Unsure of what else to talk about, Sapphire sighed and rested her head in her hands as Charlene gave her a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. The elder sister turned to Johan, who silently assured her he would handle it. From the other table, the Ravens had seemed to metaphorically draw their battle lines as Isaiah and Mipsy sat at the opposite end of the table from the others with only the latter glancing back at her team.

"You keep looking back at them, is everything alright?" Isaiah asked, not looking up from his food.

"I just think that maybe... maybe we should try talking to them. We're not kids, we can talk all of this out."

"They made their choice." Isaiah said flatly. "Tatiana chose to practically disown you from the team after you rightfully called her out and the others are choosing to make the wrong decision and side with her. You made the right decision, Melissa. I know things are difficult right now, but they will work out if we just keep going as we are now."

"Okay..." Mipsy sighed.

Mipsy wasn't the only one taking glances at the other end of the Raven table, as both Tracy and Butch looked over at the duo from where they sat while Tatiana, Bea and Brad refused to look at their teammates.

"You think she's gone to the dark side for good?" Butch asked as he took another bite of his eggs.

"The dark side? What do you mean, the lights are working over there." Tracy hummed in confusion.

"It's a figure of speech." Tatiana sighed. "To answer your question, Butch, I tried giving her chances and the benefit of the doubt when it came to if she could be trusted. But she's made her bed, now she has to lie in it. We need to remember that we have the power right now. If by chance we lost the next challenge, we need to vote either of them off, ideally Isaiah. We've established that he's the brains of the duo, if Mipsy wants to come back to us after that then that's also her choice, but she's going to have a lot to make up for if she does try to make amends."

"This is also assuming we lose the next challenge. Voting off Isaiah may be the better choice, but us winning the challenge means we don't risk him making another move and getting one of us eliminated next." Brad added.

"What do you mean 'she's made her bed'? Was she not doing that before?" Tracy added. "Or is that another figure of speech?"

"Don't... Don't worry about it..." Tatiana sighed.

"Going back to Melissa, if we assume we were able to remove Isaiah from the game and she wanted to make amends, then I think you, Butch and I would be willing to give her another chance. However, Tatiana, you mentioned that she yelled at both you and Bea, so I'm guessing it would be more difficult for you to accept her."

"I would definitely keep a close eye on her, but forgiveness doesn't come easily. I'm sure you know that better than I do. However, it's not me that has to forgive her, it's Bea. She's the one that took her outburst harder than I did, and if Bea can forgive her, then we'll see what happens."

"I... appreciate that, Tati." Bea said with a smile. None of the contestants seemed to notice the interns walk in, but Butch was more than happy to give Chelsea a friendly wave when he saw her, which she returned with just a hint of a smile on her face. Carmen sauntered over to the Eagles table, her smile growing when she sat across from Joseph.

"Hey!" She greeted. "I really liked our little chat by the beach yesterday. It was nice to get to know you a bit more."

Before Joseph could get a word in, Omari opened his mouth...

"Yo, Carmen! You don't have to be shy, baby, you could join me over here!" The smile that Carmen and Joseph had broke into a disgusted frown and a disgruntled grimace respectively as their gaze shifted over to Omari. While Joseph continued glaring at Omari, Carmen turned to look at Chef, who was standing behind the counter, with one of her eyebrows raised. Chef simply shrugged and pointed towards a watch on his left wrist, prompting a nod from the young woman.

*Confessionals*

Isaiah: "Would it be safe to say that Melissa and I are the social pariah's of our team? Possibly. But that doesn't mean it's a hopeless situation, my priority is finding those immunity idols. Despite her being very charming, Melissa isn't exactly a powerhouse nor is she a genius, but that doesn't mean she is useless in challenges, since she is far from it. Hopefully she can carry a bit more weight for me as I hunt for those things. Finding either one would help immensely."

Mipsy: "Why is it that we regret the things we say and do after going through a fight? I mean, even if I did do the right thing, I think I could have handled things a lot better than I did last night. Isaiah said that we should focus on Tatiana for now, maybe when she's out of the game things can go back to normal?"

Brad: "It's been said that a house divided cannot stand, but by this point I think this home has already crumbled, at least partially. This infighting will give the Eagle team a much easier chance to win. True, it's not impossible, since we're behind by only two people, but the quality of the people on the other team can't be understated. This really is quite the conundrum this team is faced with..."

Butch: "Man this is a mess! Didn't think I'd get wrapped up in all this but on the way here to the mess hall I kinda asked Brad what I should do right now and he said the best thing to do is just keep doing what I'm doing now and make sure to ignore whatever Isaiah says, so that's fine by me! I'll just try to keep Tracy's head on straight since she's been kinda on edge since she and Ginger had their blowout. I'm still hoping to fix that, too. Y'hear that, Ginger? The three of us are still gonna be friends, count on that!"

Bea: "I can put my feelings aside and make the more rational decision to vote for Isaiah should our team lose again, but I'm still not quite sure if I can forgive Melissa for yelling at me. I know that may be petty or that I may be overreacting to something so simple but... when someone close to you, someone that you consider a friend, hurts you, it can sting much more than you might expect. If Melissa really, truly, wants to make amends, she needs to prove it."

Algernon: "I would like nothing more than to talk to Sapphire, and I should know better than to blindly listen to Omari as well, but it just makes sense! There is no reason for someone like Sapphire to interact with me if it wasn't to play with my emotions or to get ahead in the game! She doesn't actually like me, I'm just kidding myself, I need to get a hold of myself and try to move on, no matter how tough it'll be."

Sapphire: "I hope Johan knows what he's doing, he's really my only hope right now. Joseph and Walter would probably scare Algie too much for him to really try talking to me again, heck he might get the idea that I'm trying to intimidate him. Asking my sister is not the smartest move since, knowing her, she might end up either threatening to or flat out burning Algie. Jenny's too much of a nice girl to get to the point and Lin might be too blunt. Omari himself caused the issue and he's too dense to try to fix it."

Joseph: "I wouldn't quite call it a 'date' but the time I spent with Carmen yesterday at the beach was nice. But Omari's harassment of her is getting to be much more frustrating than it ought to be. I keep telling myself to be patient with him and hope he finally starts being serious, but that patience has run out. If he knows what's good for him, he'll back off."

Carmen: "Okay, how has Joseph not smashed that dork into pieces? As a matter of fact, how has Johan not punched him in the face yet? I know he doesn't look like the most threatening guy around, but my cousin knows how to fight. I can't imagine bunking with him..."

Omari: "Ay, if I could get the girls on my team to finally see me for the stud of a man that I know I am, then Carmen can't be far behind. She's been getting too close to that tribal chump anyway. First I steal her from him, then I can take him out and be the leader of the team like I'm supposed to!"

*End Confessionals*

With a wide smile on his face, Chris burst into the mess hall, looking around at the teens with an almost expectant look. "Good morning!" He greeted. "I know it's bright and early, but it's challenge time!"

"So what are we doing today?" Butch asked, cracking his knuckles.

"Eager, are we?" Chris asked, before giving the Raven brute a coy smile. "But aren't you all feeling a bit... y'know, tired? I mean you guys have been doing a lot of physically intense challenges lately."

"What game are you playing, McLean?" Joseph asked as Jenny and Isaiah let out yawns.

"Oh, nothing, just thinking that maybe you all ought to get more sleep!" Chris replied, as soon as he uttered his last word; most of the contestants began to pass out and fall asleep, leaving some of their hardier teammates to look at the host in frustration.

"You drugged us?!" Walter called out.

"It's just a bit of tranquilizers!" Chris shrugged. "You'll be fine in about an hour or so. Plenty of time for us to get you to the challenge!"

"Damn it... Chris..." Joseph groaned as he and the last of the teens finally blacked out.

---

Algernon let out a groan as he slowly lifted his head. Whatever he was sleeping on was cool to the touch but he could feel the heat of the area around him. As the nerdy boy opened his eyes, the world around him felt like it was spinning as his vision was blurred, yet he could make out two blobs of green and blue in color before his sight cleared, revealing them to be Lin and Johan.

"Hey, you. You're finally awake." Johan said, purposefully making his voice sound a bit more gravely.

"I'm not in a cart and about to be attacked by a dragon, am I?" Algie groaned.

"No." Lin replied. "But you are in a cage."

Algernon's eyes widened as he looked around to find that the three of them were, in fact, locked in a cage.

"Wh-wh-when did this happen?!" Algie stammered, looking to his teammates.

"If I had to guess, Chris had Chef put something in our food to make us black out. This is just another challenge." Johan replied with a shrug.

"How are you so sure about that?"

"Because I have a note saying it is right here." Lin said, holding out a piece of paper. "Here, I'll even read it out loud. 'Attention contestants, you've each been placed in a cage on one of the three islands surrounding the primary one where the camp is. Your challenge today is to escape the cage and make your way to one of the canoes on the beach not too far from you, then paddle your way back to camp and meet Chef and I back in the mess hall. The first team to have all their members back in the mess hall wins while the losing team will vote someone off.'"

"I see." Algernon sighed. "Well I suppose we need to act quickly. I don't think any of us would like to stay in this heat more than we need to."

"Hey, Lin, didn't you and Terra say you went to a warm island for another challenge?" Johan asked.

"Yup. The heat back then was annoying but not unbearable, but it feels warmer now than that day. We technically have shade in here, but it's not really helping much, so we should get out of here as soon as possible."

"I fear that may be a bit more difficult than we may be expecting." Algernon said solemnly. "I don't see any padlock on the bars of the cage. Nor do I see any sort of door, now that I think about it. However Chris put us into this cage, I'm not sure there's really a way out."

"There has to be, unless Chris is intentionally making our team lose, and I don't think those TV network stooges would want to see the audience reception to finding out that this show is rigging the game." Lin explained.

"Maybe there's something up with the cage bars?" Johan asked, walking over to the side of the cage and grabbing one of the bars along the side before flinching and waving his hand in pain with a yelp of pain. "Okay! Not doing that again!"

"The air temperature of the island coupled with it's exposure to sunlight seems to have caused the bars of the cage, which we now know are metal, to become extremely hot to the touch. I fear there's nothing we can do with them now to escape." Algie sighed. "If you give me some time I can try to think of a way for us to escape."

"Take your time. Is your hand alright, Johan?"

"Yeah, it doesn't look serious." Johan replied as he let out a groan. For a moment the three sat in silence before the guitarist spoke again. "Well, if we're going to be here for a while, there is something I've been wondering; Algie, what's up with you and Sapphire?"

"Ah! Um, th-there's nothing wrong!"

"Now we all know that's not true, Algie." Lin responded, her tone flat and face deadpan. "Look, we know Omari said something that made you start avoiding her. What's up with that?"

The bespectacled boy let out a soft groan as he looked over at his teammates with a deep frown. "It's not that I'm upset with her or anything like that. But when Omari said thae she doesn't really like me, I thought it made sense. I'm not exactly the most good looking guy around. I'm not strong like Joseph and Walter, nor do I have any musical talents like you, Johan. A girl like Sapphire wouldn't like a boy like me, I see that now, but I was beginning to think she might actually like me for me. But that was just me deluding myself. I just... don't know what to do now."

"Well you're wrong on two things there, Algie." Johan replied. "First off, Sapphire does like you for who you are. Blanking on her like you've been doing is hurting her more than you might expect, and I think it's hurting you just as much. Second, you should know better than to trust Omari of all people!"

"Is that why you decided to take his, er... trinket?"

"No, I just wanted to embarrass him." Lin admitted with a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders. "But I think you and Sapphire are alright, so if putting him in his place helps the two of you, then I'm more than happy to keep going with it."

"I see. I suppose I should talk to Sapphire when this challenge is over, I mean really talk to her."

"I think she'd like that." Johan smiled.

*Confessionals*

Johan: "Well that back there was a start, I think. Whatever happens between those two now is on Sapphire."

Lin: "I guess my little prank against Omari did more to help this team than I thought it would. Not sure if "prank" is the right word but, eh. Either way I think it really just shows how much he's messed with our team and keeping him around does more harm than good."

Algernon: "I suppose interaction between Sapphire and I is inevitable but those two are right, being distant towards her is just hurting both of us. There's also the humorous fact that this little issue started with Omari, who's terrible with his interactions towards the women on this show and Johan is helping me fix it, while he seems to have bonded quite nicely with all of the girls on our team. But, joking aside, I need to steel my nerves and mentally prepare myself when I talk to Sapphire."

*End Confessionals*

---

Tracy sat in her cage, looking at Isaiah with a look of hesitance as he sat up groggily. As the boy blinked a bit to regain his vision, he locked eyes with the country girl and put on his kindest smile.

"Ah, Tracy! It's good to see I'm with someone dependable! I suppose this is another challenge?" He greeted. Tracy merely blinked as she held up the note she found when she woke up.

"Yeah." She said simply, handing him the note.

"Good, good." Isaiah nodded reading the note to himself and frowning a bit. "Well this seems simple enough, but it would be easier if we could see more of what's in front of us but this fog is definitely going to make things more difficult."

"I guess it will." Tracy replied, her tone of voice still flat as cardboard, which Isaiah was quick to catch on to.

"Is everything alright, Tracy? You seem... preoccupied with something."

"I'm... I'm not sure I can trust you." She admitted, still watching Isaiah closely.

"Is this about what happened at the elimination ceremony?" Isaiah huffed, his brows furrowing. "Tracy, I had no reason, and continue to lack a good reason, to lie to you about something like that. I think Tatiana may be trying to manipulate you."

"And what makes you say that?"

"Well, look at what she's done for the team. She's been established to be the leader of the girls side of the team, has she not? But we've quickly become the lesser of the two teams this season. We started the season with eleven team members yet we've lost three as opposed to only one on the Eagle team, and that was only because of injury."

"An injury that Tatiana says you and Mipsy caused."

"And she's made that claim without any proof. She's had it out for me since this game started solely because I've tried thinking of plans to win challenges. Not only that, Brad has been doing the same thing and yet she hasn't tried going after him! Scratch that, I've noticed that she's been talking to him as though they're friends and allies! Perhaps you've been too busy talking to Butch to notice, but those two are much craftier than you might expect." Isaiah explained.

"Hey, don't bring me and Butch into this!"

"Please, Tracy, I'm not trying to bring either of you into anything. I'm just saying that you may also be a victim of both of them, possibly Butch as well. I wouldn't be surprised if Brad told Butch that he should talk to you and Ginger and become your friends just so they could get you to vote with them!"

"Are you trying to say that...?"

"Yes, Tracy, Tatiana isn't your friend and never was. Brad was never your ally and never had the team's interests in mind. Both of them have only ever thought about what benefits them!"

Tracy's expression finally faltered as she looked away from Isaiah and towards the floor of the cage.

"It looks like I may have made you start thinking about what's really going on. While you try to think about who you want to believe, I'll start looking for a way out of here. By the way, it's 'Butch and I', not 'me and Butch."

*Confessional*

Isaiah: "Another seed of doubt in the garden of the mind. Tatiana and Brad think they've started a rallying cry to beat me, but they'll learn that it's my destiny to reach the top. I'm not done yet, however. Having Tracy's vote isn't quite enough, I need to convince Butch to vote with me as well. Once I have the majority of the team, everything will fall into place."

*End Confessional*

---

Omari grinned to himself as he reached out to what was in front of him. Just as he was about to touch whatever he was reaching for, Jenny woke up and screamed at the sight of Omari reaching for her skirt. Her scream made Charlene snap awake with a jolt as Omari flinched backwards and slipped away from the cheerleader.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" The firebug shouted as she looked around, her mood going from annoyed to frustrated and horrified when she saw that she was stuck in a cage with Omari. "Oh for the love of... Please tell me this is some sort of sick joke."

"Ain't no joke, babe. Just us." Omari replied.

"Please, don't talk. Just... Just don't say or do anything!" Jenny pleaded, tears welling up in her eyes as she backed away to the corner of the cage. The cold of their environment hit them as Jenny immediately began to shiver while Charlene read the note that Omari had failed to bring up.

"Well, looks like this is another challenge. Of course we had to be put on the cold island." Charlene sighed.

"And of course we had to be paired with the worst possible member of our team!" Jenny snapped.

"Hey, it ain't that serious, baby girl! Besides, y'all were all over me earlier!" Omari huffed.

"First off, Jenny didn't know what was going on." Charlene began with a sigh. "I was the one that was being sarcastic to you. Second, you literally tried to touch a girl when she was knocked out, do you have any idea what consent is?!"

Omari was about to say more but Charlene simple put her hand out to silence him.

"Don't talk. Neither of us want to hear your voice right now." Charlene hissed before letting out a long breath in exasperation before tossing Jenny her lighter. "I can't believe I'm in this mess... Jen, let's try to think of a way out of here before you freeze to death. I'll try to look for a key or something we can use to get out of here. You just focus on keeping warm and keeping that creep away from either of us."

"I'll look for a way out, too." Omari replied.

"As long as you don't talk and don't get near us, I don't care what you do."

*Confessionals*

Jenny: "Ugh, wearing a skirt was probably the worst decision I made when I came here! But that Omari, he really is just the worst person I think I've ever met!"

Charlene: "I don't know what went through Chris' mind when he decided that that sleazeball was going to be paired with us. Hell, I don't know what was going through his mind when he let that guy onto this show! I wish Sparky was the one with us, at least I know we'd be with someone dependable and can keep our spirits up."

Omari: "Dang man, I was so close! I thought I saw her wearing yellow undies."

*End Confessionals*

---

Bea sat up groggily and ran a hand through her hair. The heat and subsequent sweat she was feeling had added enough moisture to her hair to smooth it out and give it a glossier look.

"Oh, hey, you're up."

The brainiac looked up to see Butch standing over her, looking at her for a moment before looking at outside of her line of sight. As Bea herself began to look around, she saw that her teammate was looking around at their environment. The two were locked in a cage on a sandy beach that Bea didn't recognize.

"This is just another challenge, so don't freak out. Chris left us a note saying that we've got to get out of here and then canoe back to the mess hall." Butch explained. "I think I remember this place from one of the other challenges, too. This is one of the other islands and it's hotter here than on the big one we're usually on."

"I see." Bea said simply as she stood up to her feet and began to look around the cage.

"Yup. I know you're the smart one here, so I figured it's better to let you figure out what we should do, just let me know what you need me to do and I'll get it done."

"Sure." Bea nodded before she began to look around the cage. Butch furrowed his brows in frustration before he turned to the shy girl.

"Alright, look, I know you've been feeling mopey lately, but you can talk to me. We're teammates and I'm not going to snap at you like Mel did. Heck, if we lose this then I'll talk to the others about getting her booted off if it'll help you." Butch stated firmly, actually getting a smile from Bea.

"Thank you." She replied, letting out a bit of a chuckle.

"Whatever. So, how do we get out of here?" Butch shrugged.

"You'll have to give me a bit of time, I'm afraid. Please, just be patient and I'll let you know how you can help."

"Cool... Y'know, you should try keeping your hair like that more often. You look prettier with your hair down like that rather than it looking so poofy."

"Hahaha, I appreciate that! Perhaps I'll try that."

"Don't get the wrong idea though! The only girl I'm interested in right now is Chelsea!"

"I'm well aware of your crush, Butch. Now, with all due respect, I need to concentrate on finding a way out."

*Confessionals*

Bea: "Ginger and Tracy have both commented on Butch being much kinder than he initially appeared and I believe now I'm inclined to believe them. Additionally, while I can't see us having any sort of romantic interest in each other, it was nice to hear that I looked attractive from a boy."

Butch: "Bea's alright, we never really talked that much so I guess this is doing what Brad asked me to and talk to the girls. Kinda weird that this is how I ended up talking to her."

*End Confessionals*

---

"So what's the plan?" Sapphire asked as she sat with Joseph and Walter in the center of their cage their vision obscured by the thick cloud of fog, leaving themselves and their cage visible.

"Well, it is difficult for us to see more than three feet in front of us. I would imagine Chris placed a key somewhere close to the cage that we need to unlock the way out." Walter explained.

"That's assuming there is a lock and key in the first place." Joseph added. "But right now that's the only lead we have, so let's look for a key for now. We'll make a rotation around the cage, looking out for the key. If we don't find it then we'll search the inside. If nothing turns up then we'll try something else."

"Right." "Sounds good to me." The soldier and elder sister replied.

"Well while we're looking I feel like I should ask you boys; do you think Lin's little scheme against Omari is a distraction for the team?"

"It definitely is." Joseph replied almost instantly.

"I agree." Walter nodded. "I would prefer it if the rest of the team put their focus onto more productive exploits rather than demeaning another member of the team. However, that team member happens to be Omari and, quite honestly, I think I may give up on trying to help him reform and make something of himself."

"Don't feel bad. He chose to be a nuisance and we've all agreed to vote him off if we lose. I don't know if you still remember this, but those two idols are still out there. I doubt Omari's even bothered to look for them, so there's pretty much no chance he found one, barring some insane level of luck on his end. My only concern is that Lin's joke goes on for longer than it needs to. As for Omari himself, it's like Walter said, he's dead weight at this point. But that's not my only concern on this team right now." Walter and Sapphire both stopped their search and looked over at Joseph, who also turned to look at Sapphire. "I'm worried the little issue going on with you and Algernon might be distracting both of you."

"Right..." Sapphire sighed. "I want to fix things with him, both to make sure the team doesn't suffer and because, well, I care about him."

"I believe I overheard your sister and Johan mention something about helping you mend the rift between you two as well?" Walter asked.

"Yeah, he's going to try and get Algie to talk to me. I'd reach out to him myself but it just didn't go well."

"I hope it works out, I'll need both of you to be focused and at your best. We can't start losing challenges." Joseph huffed.

"You mean like how you're focused with Carmen?" Sapphire remarked, raising an eyebrow while Joseph cleared his throat, his cheeks becoming just a bit more rosy.

"Point taken..." The young man replied.

*Confessionals*

Joseph: "I don't want our team to go through more distractions, but after seeing how well Sapphire keeps the girls, particularly her sister, under control, I think it shouldn't be an issue. She's responsible and having her be another leader for the team is useful. She also had a point when she called me out about Carmen."

Walter: "Even though we appointed ourselves as the heads of this team when the game started, I do think we're doing an effective job overall. I do worry that both Sapphire and Joseph have become infatuated with someone, but with the progress we've made with the majority of our team, I think it shouldn't be too bad. Hopefully I will not lose focus with one of the girls on the show, but I've trained myself to show restraint and an iron-clad sense of focus."

Sapphire: "As much as I admire the sense of focus and determination those boys have, I just find it... y'know, off, for some reason. It's the feeling like they're always planning to stab you in the back the moment they're able to. I don't think they'd do that, at least not yet, but the apprehensiveness is there. I've noticed the same thing from those other boys on the Ravens team; Isaiah and Brad. Algernon's not like that, and that's why I like him."

*End Confessionals*

---

A bead of sweat rolled down the back of Mipsy's neck, despite the cold air around her as well as around Brad and Tatiana, who were sitting across from her. The three were completely silent for a moment before Brad cleared his throat.

"Well, I suppose we should get the more important question out of the way first; how are we going to get out of here?"

"There's likely some sort of lock and key somewhere around this cage, if we can find them then we can get out of here." Tatiana replied.

"If I can't find one then I'll see if there's some sort of combination lock." Brad added, earning a "Please and thank you" from Tatiana.

"So you've managed to convince Brad to work for you." Mipsy finally spoke up, her voice wavering just a bit from the cold. "Did you get Butch, too?"

Brad had just begun looking through the bars of the cage for any sort of key, but he had stopped completely when he heard that, he turned his head just a bit in Mipsy's direction when Tatiana responded.

"What makes you think either of them are doing anything for me?"

"Because you can't be trusted! You've done nothing but lead us on since the game started and it's gotten us nowhere!" Melissa snapped.

"And what makes you think you can trust Isaiah?" The red haired girl asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Well for starters, he talks to me like a person and is nice to me! When he makes plans for us to win challenges, they actually work!"

"Have we not talked to you like an equal?" Tatiana asked as her tone sharpened. "When have any of the girls ever been rude or mean to you? When have I ever been that way towards you?!"

Sensing that her frustration was rising, Brad hurried over and placed a hand on Tatiana's shoulder, as the bookworm turned towards him she looked into his firm eyes and let out a breath she didn't even know she was keeping in. As Tatiana broke eye contact, Brad then turned to the traveler with a gaze just as firm.

"You mentioned that Isaiah's plans work." He said. "If they truly did then we wouldn't have as many losses as we do. Even then the only plan that all of our team knows he's carried out is the challenge that resulted in Terra being removed from the game by injury."

"How did you know that's what he was planning?" Mipsy asked, her eyes widening.

"I don't. He could have planned something that merely slowed them down for all I know. But your reaction tells me that was exactly his intention. Why he chose to target her is something I don't know, unless he was aiming for either Joseph or Walter, maybe even both. But my point still stands; the things he's doing are tearing this team apart and causing people serious harm. Is that really the person you want to side with?"

Melissa was silent for a moment as she absorbed everything she was hearing. She put her face into her hands, the slight warmth of her body heat mitigating the cold for a moment before her body grew cold again.

"Is that why you hate him so much?" She asked.

"We don't necessarily hate him." Tatiana sighed. "We're just been trying to warn you about the person he's showing us that he is."

"But that's not the Isaiah I know! It's not the type of person he's shown me that he is!"

"Then I don't think there's really more that any of us can say." Brad said as he stood up and went to resume his search for a key. "Just know that this is the path you chose, Melissa. We're still a team, and I hope that all of us can continue to work as a team until Chris announces that they're dissolved."

Melissa looked at the boy with a mix of concern, yet her resolve remained firm. She liked Isaiah no matter what these two said, but at the same time she could feel the weight of the situation tug on her heart and a lump in her throat begin to form. That feeling only grew when she saw Tatiana stand up and look at her, a look of what she could only describe as apathy in her gaze.

"I guess that's how it is then." Tatiana said, her voice as flat as her gaze. "Just like Brad said, we're all still a team. But don't expect neither Bea or myself to talk to you and whether Tracy wants to or not is her choice. You are not my enemy, but we're certainly not friends either. You can believe Isaiah all you want, but if it turns out he's just been using you, don't expect me, or anyone else on this team, to help you."

With that, Tatiana went to the other corner of the cage to begin her own search. Mipsy watched the two for a moment in silence, her face still a bit forlorn before she also stood up and headed to another corner.

*Confessionals*

Brad: "That looked like it took a toll on both of them. If Tatiana's mental and emotional strength wasn't wavering before, it certainly is now. We'll definitely have to tell the rest of the team about this the next chance we get."

Tatiana: "For as much as my mind was telling me that there was no way to convince Melissa to break away from Isaiah, there was a part of my heart that was telling me she could. What you all saw was the reason why it's always best to listen to your head."

Melissa: "I don't want to be against them. I don't want to be seen as the bad person here, but I just don't get why they have this grudge against Isaiah. Sure, his plans aren't exactly the cleanest or the most fair, but the other team is too strong for us to handle without playing dirty! Isaiah showed me that! If they can't accept that then... I guess we'll just never be friends..."

*End Confessionals*

---

Carmen and Chelsea returned to their room in Chris' resort cabin, the latter of the two flopped down onto her bed with a groan.

"Ugh, finally done!" She groaned.

"This is so much worse than I thought it would be. Thankfully my cousin's a lightweight so carrying him and that girl, Lin, weren't too bad."

"Yeah, but your boy toy weighs a ton..."

"I know, he's so guapo isn't he?"

"He's what?" Chelsea asked, looking up from her pillow with a flabbergasted look on her face.

"Handsome!" Carmen squealed gleefully. "Sorry, I forgot you don't know Spanish."

"Well I could always pick up a few things this season since you're here."

"Sure, I wouldn't mind teaching you some Spanish. Just as long as your girlfriend doesn't think I'm getting too close to you and starts cursing at me in Korean." Carmen chuckled.

"Hah, now that sounds like it could actually be kind of funny." Chelsea shook her head, sporting a grin that quickly shifted to a frustrated frown. "Still, speaking of Marsha, that was the second time she came back to the island after getting the boot and now Chris is starting to get ticked at me since I'm her girlfriend. Plus there's the fact that she's being pretty clingy."

"I knew a guy sort of like that back home. We never dated, but I always found stuff like that to be really off-putting. My advice, think long and hard about what you want out of a relationship, if you can't see yourself being happy with someone, either look somewhere else or look long and hard in a mirror. Sometimes doing both helps, too."

"Thanks. I might just have to do that." Chelsea sighed.

"Hey, I need your girls help in feeding the chickens!" Chef called out as he entered the room with a big plastic bag of grains and bread crumbs.

"Ugh, alright, alright!" Chelsea groaned again before pausing. "Wait, since when did you have chickens?"

"Why do you think I've been serving those other kids eggs every morning?"

"I guess that also explains you baking all that stuff here." Carmen hummed.

---

"How's your hand?"

Johan was snapped out of the stupor he didn't even know he was in as he turned towards Lin, who gently grabbed his wrist to look at the hand he had burned earlier.

"Hm? Oh, that, it's fine. I'll run it under some cold water later. I don't think the bars should be hot enough to cause serious burns."

"It can." Algernon replied, giving up on his short search as he turned to his teammates. "But that's only after prolonged exposure. Some cold water would be your best bet, though I believe there should be some ointment in the medical tent."

"Cool." Johan replied before letting out a chuckle. "I'd imagine Charlene might get annoyed at me, saying that the only thing I should get burned by is her."

"Would she really do that?" Lin asked.

"Probably not. But you know how she is, always having an urge to burn something. I should hope that I'm not on that list."

"We should all hope not." Lin replied, shaking her head with a smirk.

"Pardon me if this question is a bit, um, intrusive, but I mentioned that you're popular with the girls on the team, Johan. You two seem to be oddly close, are you two...?"

"Interested in each other? No." Lin replied firmly. "I'm not really focused on dating at all right now, plus I look like a twelve year old and I don't think guys my age are into that. Or at least they really shouldn't be. I'm not even all that much to look at anyway, since I'm, you know... not that 'developed'..."

"Yeah, I don't think I could be interested in Lin." Johan added. "Not to put her down, I mean she's pretty, but she looks too much like another cousin of mine. I just feel like that would be weird. I kinda see Lin as basically another cousin at this point."

That comment caught Lin off guard as she let out a small laugh. "Isn't it a little too soon for you to be saying something like that?"

"Maybe." Johan shrugged. "But in the short time we've all known each other, I've come to like most of the people still on the island. Even if I haven't talked to them since the first day, even some of the people on the other team are alright. But you've already seen my other cousin and this scheme we've pulled off has actually been a bit of fun. Even though you're not much of a people person, I still think you're pretty cool. So no, I don't mind saying you're basically family."

Lin's smile only grew as she buried her head in her hands. "Maybe if I had someone like you around growing up I wouldn't be as messed up as I am."

"Messed up? You seem like a rather rational person, Lin. Unless you have some sort of injury..." Algie interjected.

"Yeah... Injuries. Let's just leave it at that." Lin said as she laid herself flat on her back. As soon as she did, her brows furrowed. "Wait." She said, pointing up to the ceiling of their cage. "What's that up there?"

The two boys looked up to see some sort of square pattern cut into the ceiling, Algernon's eyes immediately lit up when he saw it.

"I believe that may be a latch!" He exclaimed. "That explains why none of us could find a key or lock anywhere. If we're to get out of here, we need to open it and climb out!"

"It looks too high for any of us to reach though." Johan noted. "Looks like we're going to have to make a human ladder to reach it."

"Agreed. Algie, you're the biggest out of the three of us. Johan will stand on your shoulders and I'll stand on his."

"Well, I suppose that's the only reasonable way." Algernon sighed. Johan dropped to his knees to allow the smaller girl to get onto his back before Algernon did the same for Johan. The nerdy boy struggled a bit to get back to his feet, doing so slowly as to now lose his balance. Once he was fully standing he grabbed Johan's ankles to help him balance. The process repeated with Johan to Lin until the street girl reached the ceiling and pushed up on the hatch, which quickly opened and gave her enough space to jump out.

"Alright, give me your hand and I'll try to pull you up!" She called out. It was a bit tricky, but Johan was able to jump up to grab Lin's hand. Soon enough, Johan was out, but getting Algernon was going to be the hard part.

"You ready Algie?" Johan called out. "You're going to have to jump."

"I... I don't know if I can reach you!"

"You're going to have to try." Lin remarked. Algernon let out a low whine before bending down and preparing himself to jump. Using as much power as he could muster, Algernon jumped off the floor of the cage and managed to grab Johan's cage. Even with Lin grabbing Johan's shoulders and helping him pull, it took a minute for them to pull Algernon up and out of the cage.

"Well, that's my exercise for the day..." Johan groaned.

"Can you handle a little more? We need to hurry back to camp." Lin asked, urging the boys along.

*Confessionals*

Johan: "You know, despite her size Lin's heavier and tougher than she looks."

Lin: "I really wasn't expecting Johan to say something like that. But if he trusts me that much, then I suppose I'll have his back, too."

Algernon: "I didn't think I could jump that high. I suppose I should thank Walter and Joseph for that."

*End Confessionals*

---

Isaiah smiled to himself as he stared at the key lock that was set up along the interior rim of the cage. He had a lot to be pleased about right now, not only was he close to finding a way out, but there was a good chance that he had just scored another vote for himself.

"Any luck with a key?" He asked, turning to Tracy, who turned to look at him for a moment before putting her back to the cage bars and sinking down to the floor.

"Nothing." She said flatly.

"No need to look so displeased, I've managed to find the lock. There must be a key somewhere we can reach, otherwise Chris truly is sadistic and wants us to lose."

"Right. So I guess we have to keep looking." Tracy sighed as she got back to her feet.

"You checked the outside of the cage and didn't find anything, right? That means if the key is close it should be... Aha!" Isaiah pointed upwards towards the ceiling of the cage, where a brass key had been taped right above where Isaiah stood. "Tracy, give me a boost up so I can reach this key."

Wordlessly, Tracy went over to the boy and crouched down to allow him to step onto her hands. With a grin, Isaiah stepped up and grabbed the key before jumping down and turning the lock, which made the side of the cage flop down hopelessly to the ground below.

"Perfect, now we have to hurry! We can't afford to lose again!"

*Confessionals*

Isaiah: "Good to see that I've made an impact on Tracy's way of thinking, and she seems to have learned who should be doing the heavy lifting as well!"

Tracy: "Isaiah can think what he wants, but my gut tells me he's wrong, but I can't let him know that. I'll just do what we all agreed to do last night and tell the others what happened."

*End Confessionals*

---

"Okay, so how do we do this?" Charlene asked. "It's too far for either of us to really reach for by hand."

"Chill, I got this!" Omari assured with a huff as he tried to use his foot to slide the key over to them, only for his shoe to just barely fit through the cage bars. His feeble attempt to continue only managed to frustrate him and annoy the girls.

"As much as I hate to say it, I think he has the right idea." Jenny said, earning a shocked look from Charlene and a proud look of affirmation from Omari.

"WHAT?! What do you mean?!"

"Ah, I knew she can tell I'm the smartest guy around!"

"Don't get me wrong, he's still scum." Jenny quickly stated. "But if we can't get it with our hands, I could try my legs. Clearly he can't get it and I'm taller than you, so I have longer reach."

"But that's crazy! You're already freezing out here!"

"I know, but it's the only thing we can think of right now." Jenny sighed as she removed her shoe and reached her leg out through the bars. She managed to get her foot close to the key and position it between her toes and slowly bring it towards the cage. Charlene was both impressed and worried as she looked from the key to Jenny, who was growing increasingly more pale in some parts and red in others from the cold. He concern turned to shock and horror when she noticed Omari looking up Jenny's skirt.

"HEY!" Charlene shouted. The sudden noise made Jenny instinctively look in Omari's direction, the sight of Omari's eyes on her lower half made the cheerleader scream and pull back her leg into the cage, releasing the key in the process as it flopped back onto the ground, closer than it was before.

"Dang man..." Omari groaned before sucking his teeth. Jenny curled up into a fetal position with Charlene offering up her coat for the blonde girl to cover herself with as she sobbed.

"You are genuinely the worst person I think I've met!" Charlene hissed as she began shivering. She looked over to where the key landed and tried to reach for it, but it was still just a bit too far for her, and she wasn't about to allow Jenny to risk losing her dignity again to Omari. She glared at the pervert with pure malice for a moment before she noticed the belt around his waist. "I think I have an idea. Take off your belt."

Jenny's now red eyes darted over to Charlene in shocked confusion as Omari looked at her with an equally confused expression.

"First you want to yell at me, now you want some action? Make up your mind, girl!"

"Don't flatter yourself." Charlene spat. "I want to use your belt as a sort of lasso, to bring that key over here."

"Pfft. Whatever, you don't know what you're missing here." Omari huffed as he removed his belt and tossed it over to the firebug, keeping his pants up with his hands in his pockets.

Charlene tried taking in a deep breath, but the cold almost instantly dried her mouth as she tried to remain still. With a swift toss, Charlene managed to get the belt buckle on top of the key and, with great care, she slowly used it to pull the key closer to her. Once it was close enough, she grabbed it and ran over to the lock they had found.

"Oh thank God." She sighed, Jenny's face also lit up as Charlene tossed the belt back to Omari and opened the cage door.

*Confessionals*

Charlene: "That was way more stressful than it needed to be, but most of it was because of that perverted creep!"

Jenny: "I can't believe he looked up my skirt! That's so humiliating, I feel so... wrong!"

Omari: "Yup, they were yellow!"

*End Confessionals*

---

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Bea asked in concern as she saw Butch stretch his arms and prepare his hands for something.

"Yup. Neither of us could find any kind of key and we need to get out of here."

"But you could easily suffer from burns!"

"There's ointment back at camp, ain't there? Don't worry about me." Butch shrugged as he looked at Bea one last time.

"Butch, I don't think that-"

Bea couldn't even finish as Butch grabbed two of the bars and began pushing them apart, grunting in pain as the accumulated heat began to get to him, reddening his face and hands. Bea's concern immediately shifted to shock as she saw the bars begin to bend until the ones next to them also bent as well. After about two minutes, Butch finally stepped through the opening he had made and urged Bea to follow him.

"See? No sweat!" Butch exclaimed as he tried catching his breath and flapping his hands in the air.

"Butch, that was crazy!" Bea called out, examining the boy's hands.

"Hey, you can't get things done without getting crazy sometimes. Now come on, I need to get some water on these things."

*Confessionals*

Bea: "Butch's hands didn't seem to suffer from any immediate injuries, so that tells me the bars may have been plastic instead of metal. Still, that was way too reckless!"

Butch: "Man that hurt! But we got it done, so it's all good!"

*End Confessionals*

---

"Nothing. Just a whole not of nothing." Joseph groaned as he sat back down onto the cage floor.

"There's definitely something we're just not getting here..." Sapphire hummed as she sat with Joseph. Walter silently made his over to the bars of the cage and examined them for a moment, taking hold of one and looking closely at it.

"There is no visible key, nor is there a hatch somewhere..." Walter pondered aloud as he grabbed one of the bars in rising frustration. "I understand that we have a plan if we were to lose, but none of us want to be put in that situation."

Sapphire and Joseph immediately rose their heads towards Walter when they heard a metallic snap in his direction. The soldier turned to them in shock and bewilderment as he held a broken piece of the bar in his hands.

"Got a little too angry there, I see..." Joseph commented.

"I suppose?" Walter replied. "I didn't grip it with that much force."

The three teens went silent as the realization hit them, immediately they rushed towards the side of the cage Walter grabbed earlier and pulled with as much force as they could. One by one, the bars snapped off until there was enough space for all three to run out of the cage.

---

"Did you find anything, Tatiana?" Brad asked.

"Nothing. We've searched this entire cage and yet there's no lock or hatch in sight." Tatiana replied.

"What about the bars?" Melissa piped up, getting the attention of the two redheads.

"Pardon?" Brad asked.

"The bars of the cage." She repeated, looking at the two with an unsure expression. "We've checked everything except for them, right?"

"That's actually not a bad idea." Tatiana mused as she went over to the bars and tried bending it or moving it, only for nothing to happen. "If you're right, it's not this one."

"Well we've got plenty left." Brad shrugged. The three Ravens checked every bar of the cage, most of which did nothing until Brad pulled one that turned inwards towards him. It wasn't enough for any of them to squeeze through, but there was an audible click when it moved. Suddenly, the side of the cage opposite of Brad flipped open, much to the relief of the three.

"Alright, now let's move!" Brad exclaimed. "And Mipsy..." The traveler stopped in her tracks as she looked at both Brad and Tatiana, who were looking back at her cautiously. "That was a good idea."

---

Chris and Chef stepped into the mess hall, the former looking rather pleased.

"I tell ya', Chef, I don't know how you do it with that food sometimes." Chris said.

"I keep telling ya', I save all the crappy stuff for these kids. You and the girls get the good stuff." Chef replied with a shrug.

"Speaking of, Chelsea used to be a contestant and Carmen applied to be one, so maybe you could give 'em the slop, just for old times."

"Eh, I'll think about it."

"Think about what?" Carmen asked as she and Chelsea entered the room.

"Nothing you two need to worry about." Chris assured with a coy grin. Before either intern could respond, the doors to the mess hall swung open as Isaiah and Tracy hurried inside, the former looking around and smirking to himself.

"Did... Did we make it?" Tracy asked.

"Congratulations, you two!" Chris announced. "You're the first campers to complete the challenge. Now all you need to do is wait for the rest of your team to finish and hope they all get here before the Eagles."

Immediately upon saying the name of the green team, Lin dashed into the mess hall with Johan and Algernon behind her.

"We didn't just lose? Did we?" Johan asked.

"Not yet." Chris smirked. "But you're the first of your team to get here. For now you guys can sit at your team's table and wait for the others."

The five teens sat for around ten minutes when the next set of contestants arrived, with Sapphire, Walter and Joseph coming in and looking at Chris, who had made himself comfortable.

"Glad you three could make it. You're in the middle of the pack, and if the last three members of the Eagle team get here, they win again!... Oh, looks like I spoke too soon!" Chris announced as Bea and Butch entered the room right after the Eagles.

"Is it over?" Butch asked.

"Not yet. But now we're waiting for the last group from both teams. It's all up to Charlene, Jenny and Omari for the Eagles' side and Tatiana, Melissa and Brad for the Ravens."

With their part done, the arriving contestants sat with their teams. Sapphire sat across from Algernon with an embarrassed look on her face, which the heavier boy shared.

"Uh, hi, Algie." She began.

"Ah, hello."

"Listen, about what Omari said..."

"No need to worry about it." Algernon asserted, giving the punk girl a smile. "Perhaps I was, um, taking it too harshly. I should have known better than to listen to him and, I'd like to apologize for avoiding you as I did."

"I'd say 'apology accepted', but you didn't need to apologize in the first place." Sapphire grinned.

"Speaking of Omari, there's a distinct chance we might lose this challenge, and if we do. I want him to know how much of a complete and total loser he is." Lin said as she stood up and left the mess hall.

"He's not here yet." Walter noted. "Are you worried about how he may act and talk to your sister?" Walter asked, looking over to Sapphire.

"Around him, she can take care of herself. If anything, I wouldn't be surprised if he came back with scorch marks."

Over on the Raven table, Butch sat himself next to Tracy and Bea while Isaiah sat alone and watched the door to the mess hall. "Hey, Trace, how're you feeling after dealing with him? Did he try to manipulate you or something?"

"I think he did, but I want to wait until Brad and Tati are here. I think they'd want to know about it, too."

Everyone's eyes darted to the door when they heard it open, their expectations dashed when they saw that it was just Lin returning with a plastic bag and a pair of gloves on her hands.

"What's in the bag?" Joseph asked.

"It's Omari's little toy. Win or lose, I think it's time to let him know how serious his situation actually is. If he wants to act like how I'm expecting him to, I'll get Charlie to burn it." The tiny girl answered.

The sound of the door opened again, the silence that engulfed the room felt palpable as everyone sat in silence.

...

...

...

...

...

"And there it is!" Chris announced. "The Ruby Ravens finally win another challenge!"

Chris looked around in confusion when neither team seemed to react to the arrival of Tatiana, Brad and Mipsy, though the latter did look at Isaiah with a smile.

"What's with you guys?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "One team won the challenge and another is sending someone home, I was expecting cheers and groans!"

"We already know who we're sending home." Johan shrugged.

"And victory isn't really all that sweet considering everything going on with our team right now." Brad added.

"Ugh, that's boring! At least when it comes to the Eagles..." Chris groaned. Everyone's attention shifted when they heard a sneeze coming from outside. The door then opened again as Charlene and Jenny hurried inside with Omari behind them. The two girls shivered as they saw the rest of the contestants there before the Eagles hurried over to the freezing girls.

"Damn, did we lose?" Omari groaned.

"What happened to you two?!" Sapphire asked.

"We were stuck on a cold island." Jenny sniffled.

"The key to our cage was just out of reach, Jenny tries getting to it using her foot but someone decided to be a perv and look up her skirt!" Charlene hissed, earning Omari glares from the rest of his team and even the girls of the Raven team.

"He even tried to do something while I was still asleep." Jenny added, putting her head to her face and shaking, this time from both the cold and the trauma.

"You really are disgusting, you know that?" Carmen growled as she glared at Omari, who raised his hands in defense of himself.

"Yo, yo, yo, I ain't mean nothing by it. You know I only really got my eyes on you, Carmen, babygirl!"

"Enough of that!" Carmen shouted. "Why does it always have to be in one ear and out the other with you! I! Do! Not! Like! You! I much prefer Joseph to you!"

"Huh?! Him?! How could you like that Tribal Chump! He ain't nothin'! If we lost then I could just get rid of him, then you'll see who the real Tribal Chief is! I could take over as the boss of this team easily!"

The majority of the teens' eyes widened as they went completely silent at the sight of Joseph standing up and walking over to Omari. The Pacific Islander's eyes relayed an icy chill that could only be described as being daggers frozen to the point of absolute zero as they bore straight into Omari's very being.

"That's it!" Joseph called out in an eerily calm tone. "I can take you not liking my method of leading the team or my attitude. But all you've done since you've set foot on this island is cause problems for everyone on this team. You've sexually harassed the girls, tried bullying Johan, messed with the bond Sapphire and Algernon have. But then you tried saying you could get with Carmen even though you had no chance. You tried stepping up to me and thinking you were some kind of leader to the team. That you were some kind of boss. Do you think you're me, is that it? DO YOU THINK YOU'RE ME!?"

All of the teenagers, including the interns watched on in a stunned silence as they saw Omari back up in genuine terror. Though that was not the end as Joseph stepped forward to match him. Chris' smile only grew in excitement as he watched everything unfold, Chef raised an eyebrow in intrigue at the ensuing outburst.

"You're time on this island is up, and you know it." Joseph continued. "WALTER!" He called out, the soldier stepped forward to prevent Omari from escaping as the brash teen tried to run. Omari turned back to look at Joseph who, in a swift motion, grabbed Omari by his neck and lifted him up into the air before slamming him back down onto the Emerald Eagles' table, breaking it in two.

Everyone remained silent, with the only noise being Omari's croaks of pain and a whizzing noise from under him as he urinated himself. Lin was the first to move as she walked over to Omari and looked down at him with a pleased smirk.

"Well... I wouldn't have gotten that far but I'm not going to complain. You look so sad though, maybe you should play with your toy to make you feel better." She said, dumping the contents of the plastic bag onto him and allowing everyone to see the adult toy Omari brought with him to the island, much to the disgust of everyone in the room.

"Truly a disgrace." Walter stated, shaking his head.

"That is sick, even for me." Chris added. "Regardless, Emerald Eagles, you lost the challenge and will be sending someone home tonight. Chef, you mind Omari to the medical tent?"

"Just as long as I don't get pee, or anything on that thing he brought, on me!" Chef groaned.

"Carmen, Chelsea, I'm gonna need you two to order another table for me."

"Yeah... sure..." Chelsea replied, still staring at where Omari lay in horror.

*Confessionals*

Algernon: "See, something like that was what I was worried was going to happen to me, and while Joseph just reaffirmed why I should be afraid of him. I think I don't really have the need to worry, at least not as much as I did before. Sapphire and I are back to proper speaking terms and Omari is about to be eliminated. I think things will be alright."

Bea: "That was... certainly something. I should hope the Eagle team eliminates that cretin from the game. But, even with our victory today, I'm sure there is much to discuss..."

Brad: "I admit, I did enjoy seeing Omari get his just desserts. Even though I'm not on his team and didn't pay his shenanigans much mind, I did know he was always a problem, so I could at least enjoy the fact that he'll be leaving. Now if only I could get that satisfaction from dealing with the issue that I;m currently dealing with..."

Sapphire: "It's a relief that I could patch things up with Algie. My only regret is not being able to deal with Omari myself, and he should feel lucky about that. If I was able to get my hands on him, he wouldn't have the balls to harass any of the girls here ever again. I mean that both figuratively and literally!"

Johan: "On one hand, we lost. On the other hand, we know who's leaving and seeing him get his due was awesome. I need to make sure Charlie and Jenny get warmed up though, being in the cold for that long couldn't have been good."

Butch: "Oh man that was wicked, we got a win, and a show! All in all, a pretty good day if you ask me."

Tracy: "Okay, so I don't exactly know what that, um, thing, Omari had is. But I recognize that it looks like a girl's, um... yeah... So I think he gets what he deserves with getting voted off. Getting slammed through a table though? I think that's a bit much..."

Mipsy: "While I'm glad we won the challenge, it won't change the tension on my team and... I don't know if it'll ever really go away, especially after today. As for Omari, he gets what he deserves, I think."

Tatiana: "Disgusting, that's all I have to say about Omari. But we won the challenge, and I suppose I should be thankful for that. But it won't fix the problems that this team is facing right now.

Isaiah: "Well, that was a fun display to close out the day with."

Charlene: "Serves him right. Maybe now us girls can breathe a bit easier!"

Jenny: "I don't think I can agree with slamming him through a table, but just this one time, I'll make an exception."

Carmen: "I'm probably the only one who thinks this but whooo, seeing Joseph get like that was kinda hot!"

Chelsea: "And just like that, I have more work to do... Thanks, big guy..."

Walter: "I don't know if I can condone destruction of property, but for harassing the women of the team and for the rest of his actions while on this island, Omari needed some sort of retribution."

Joseph: "Did I lose my temper? Perhaps. Do I regret what I did? Not in the slightest."

Chef: "I gotta admit, I'm impressed with that kid! Ain't seen any good action like that in a while!

Chris: "We, the Total Drama staff including myself, Chef, the producers and show runners, do not condone bringing or using adult objects while participating in Total Drama as a contestant nor other member of our team. While we cannot punish Omari for bringing his 'object', as we had no prior rules in state for such a situation, we will dispose of the object in question and ensure that a rule is in place to prevent occurrences like this from happening again in the future."

*End Confessionals*

---

"Is that what they said?" Isaiah asked as he and Mipsy sat in the boys' side of the Raven cabin.

"Yeah." Melissa nodded. "I mean, looking back on it, I should have seen that coming but hearing them actually say it and... just the way Tatiana looked at me... it hurt." Melissa said with a sniffle.

"Don't worry about her." Isaiah replied, giving Melissa a smile as he interlocked his fingers with hers. "They can feel however they want to feel and think what they want to think. Nobody ever said this would be easy. But you and I are on the right side of history. It's our destiny to go far!"

Melissa wiped tears from her eyes before going in to embrace Isaiah, who returned the hug with a smile of his own.

Meanwhile, in the other side of the cabin, Tracy had just relayed her experience with Isaiah to the rest of the Ravens.

"So, Tracy, do you believe what Isaiah said?" Brad asked.

"No." The country girl shook her head. "My gut feeling was that he was lying. I just don't know what's going on in his head, but if my instincts are telling me that I can't trust him, I'm sticking with them."

"Good." Tatiana nodded. "You did the right thing."

"But... I will say he was right about one thing; Tatiana, you and Brad are crafty and smart. I like you two more than I like him, but I don't know if I can trust you two completely in this game."

"I understand." Brad replied almost immediately. "I'm not going to ask you to trust me, Tracy. But I will ask for your help in getting Isaiah voted off. Once he's gone, we can all go back to playing this game honestly, and you have my word on that."

Tracy looked to Brad, then at Tatiana who nodded at her before she looked over at Bea and Butch. The former looked to be sharing in Tracy's concern before smiling at her while Butch merely shrugged.

"Alright." Tracy sighed before smiling. "My gut's telling me that I can trust you two, so I'll do what I can to help. Besides, I know for sure I can trust Bea and Butch, and they both like you."

"We'll be sure to show you that your trust was not misplaced." Tatiana replied, sighing in relief."

---

Chris looked at the Eagles with his signature smirk as everyone except Omari and Joseph received a safety crystal at the elimination ceremony.

"Well, I think I can safely say we all expected these votes to go the way they did." Chris began. "Joseph, Omari, you two are the last ones left, but only one of you gets to stay another round. That person will be..."

...

...

...

...

...

...

"Get on with it, McLean, we all know Joseph's safe." Lin sighed.

"Ugh, you're no fun!" Chris grumbled. "But yeah, Joseph's safe. Omari, you're out."

"Man..." Omari sucked in his teeth before looking at his team in disdain. He struggled to stand up, clutching his back in pain, as he slowly made his way to the Boat of Losers.

"Wait!"

Omari turned around with a look of shock on his face that was shared by the rest of the Eagles as Algernon hurried over to the brash teen. Nobody was sure what was going to happen as they watched in anticipation, even Joseph and Walter looked intrigued. Their confusion turned to laughter when Algernon kicked Omari in the shin.

"That was for what you said you... you... Loser!" Algie shouted before pushing Omari onto the boat, much to the delight of his team.

"Hah! Way to go, Algie!" Johan laughed.

"I just wish I could have thought of something cooler to say." Algernon shrugged.

"Well I think that was really cool, Algie." Sapphire smiled as the Eagles headed back to their cabin.

"And so ends what might just be the most intense episode yet!" Chris announced. "With Omari gone, Johan and the girls can breathe just a bit easier. But while the Eagles have just let go of the weak link of their team, tensions continue to boil over on the Ravens side. Will the Eagles manage to rebound from this loss, or is the Raven disarray just what they needed to win? Find out on the next exciting episode of Total!

Drama!

Glimmering Isles!"

---

The Votes:

Omari: Algernon, Charlene, Jenny, Johan, Joseph, Lin, Sapphire, Walter

Joseph: Omari

---

Placements

22nd: Frank, "The Omega, in his Head"

21st: Earnest, "The Friendly Fan Boy"

20th: Ali, "The Optimistic Acrobat"

19th: Marsha, "The Pacifistic Chef"

18th: Terra, "The Meme Machine"

17th: Ginger, "The Curious Blogger"

16th: Omari, "The Brash Jerk"

---

Well, these chapters just seem to keep getting longer and longer, don't they! This one's the longest one yet, but I don't think they'll be this long except for maybe the Aftermath chapters.

Now, on to Omari, hoo boy is he one of the more... immature characters I've written. I don't exactly write characters that have his more perverse tendencies and, admittedly, writing them here was not something I particularly enjoyed doing but I felt it was necessary here because the whole point of Omari was to be unlikable. Him staying as long as he did was only for the sake of building his ego as a character before he finally got what was coming to him. I considered actually giving him some development and having him change his ways during the game, but I decided against it. Maybe I'll change my mind and have it so he actually matures now that he's out, but part of the reason why he never learns is because, just like in real life, there will always be people who just never seem to learn or grow as people. It's an unfortunate truth, but it's not the end of him in this story just yet.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the longest chapter of the story thus far and will look forward to the next one!