SPOILER ALERT! This chapter is based on season 2 of the reboot. Thus it'll contain major spoilers. Much like last chapter, if you're avoiding things related to the reboot until it releases officially in America (which has still yet to happen somehow) then skip this for now. You've been warned.
Damien frantically ran around the bonfire area, paranoia eating away at him like a disease. He needed a hiding spot. Somewhere he could store the idol without fear of someone stealing it. The forest was no good anymore, he needed to keep it close by for the elimination ceremonies. Under Chris' little podium? Under one of the stumps? Maybe he could bury it and dig it up once it's needed. Nah, too obvious. They'd see right through him.
Eventually he finally spotted something good. The rocky wall behind where the contestants sat. There was a tiny little crevice just big enough to slide the idol into and inconspicuous enough for no one to suspect it. Foolproof! He tested it out and sure enough the idol slid in without showing any signs of it being there.
But just as he was about to walk away, it hit him. That paranoia was in full effect and filling his head with doubt. What if an animal picks it up? What if Chris decides to hide it again to mess with him? Maybe Wayne or Raj could stumble into the rock randomly and use it as a hockey puck. Worst of all, what if Julia was somehow able to find it? Pfft, nah, what are the odds of something that convenient happening for her? He was just worrying over nothing... right? RIGHT? ...
Without a word, he sighed and took the idol back, pocketing it for the time being.
*** Confessional: Damien ***
"Ever since I got that letter I've been on edge nonstop. It always feels like someone's watching me, just waiting for me to slip up so they can steal my idol. All I gotta do is find a hiding spot that feels truly secure. Until then, guess I just gotta keep it on me."
And so the challenge came, a memory game with eliminated contestants on a big grid with the competitors having to remember who went where. Wayne and Raj were as inept at it as you'd expect. Caleb and Priya were doing ok though it wasn't their forte. But Julia excelled, as she often does. Not to be outdone, Damien utilized his memory of the periodic table to remember which squares to pick. Unfortunately he tended to keep picking the same correct answers as Julia, leading the villain to believe he was simply copying her. This would lead to a challenge rivalry where they attempted to screw with one another, causing them to endure some harsh punishments. Meanwhile the others were just sorta doing their own thing.
Having the idol on him proved to cause Damien a bit of extra pain since he was having that blunt metal object jabbed up against him with each hit like sitting on a particularly large set of car keys. But he'd eventually be put out of his misery when Julia got him to experience a punishment where a horde of bees carried him away from the challenge and out of the episode for a while. Man, wouldn't it be some bullshit if he later got eliminated after missing out on so much of the episode? Either way, with him gone it was Julia's game to lose. Wayne and Raj stood no chance and while Priya and Caleb put forth a mediocre effort to thwart her, the influencer still managed to snag the win. And on top of that, she could choose someone else to give immunity to? Oooh, scandalous.
When the ceremony rolled around it was revealed that Julia shared her immunity with... Caleb? Turns out the big guy agreed to a deal with her so long as Priya was also safe from being voted off. A nice idea in theory, but his girlfriend was pissed at him making deals with the season's villain. Regardless, this greatly limited everyone's options. Wayne and Raj obviously weren't voting for each other, Damien considered all three options to be friends as did Priya. Supposedly Julia was going to stay true to her word.
Ultimately the hockey bros were spared from getting votes, leaving Damien and Priya as the bottom two. Chris held up the final marshmallow, hanging on the dramatic pause until eventually...
"... Priya!"
She barely even registered the safety, too preoccupied glaring a hole through Caleb for his shady deal. Meanwhile Wayne and Raj embraced their brainy friend, one of them pushing against the idol and unknowingly jamming it into Damien's side. Their reasoning was that because Caleb and Priya had just patched things up, they couldn't in good conscious vote one of them out. They wanted to see them succeed after all, and that unfortunately only left Damien as an option.
"Fellas, fellas, it's fine. I'm not going anywhere. Because I've got... this!" Sure enough, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the invincibility statue, though the impact was lessened a bit when he winced in pain.
Nonetheless, gasps rang out from most of the others.
"You had it this whole time?" Raj yelled.
"Ooooh, so that's what was poking me," Wayne realized. "That makes more sense."
Caleb's shock gave way to panic. "Hold up. If he's playing the idol, then that means..."
"The person who got the second highest amount of votes is eliminated," Priya finished, the dreadful realization setting in.
And sure enough, Chef marched down and swiped the marshmallow from her hand before tossing it to Damien.
"And since literally everyone voted for Damien except himself, his one vote for Priya is enough to send her packing," Chris confirmed.
Damien looked over his marshmallow and sighed. The high of saving himself was nice, but seeing the utter defeat on his friend's face really took any enjoyment out of this. "Sorry, Priya. You and the guys are all friends of mine, so I had to just pick the biggest threat."
All Julia was missing was a tub of popcorn, watching all this was too juicy. "Good thing you went back to grab your idol this morning. That would have ended ugly for you."
Caleb recoiled in shock. "Wait... you KNEW he had the idol?"
"Saw him running around this morning and figured something was up. He didn't even know I was watching him from a distance."
"I knew it felt like someone was watching me!"
"He was trying to find a hiding spot for his idol, but I guess he got cold feet and decided to keep it with him." She smirked at the science geek. "Lucky that he did, otherwise it would have become MY idol. Just be glad MK isn't still here or I totally would have had her just swipe it off you."
Priya started shaking with rage. "So you set up this whole plan with Caleb KNOWING I would get eliminated because of it?"
She shrugged innocently. "I told him I wouldn't vote for you and I didn't. It isn't my fault you two never accounted for someone playing it. Chris told us that the idol was found a while back."
"Ah yeah, I remember it like it was three challenges ago," Wayne added helpfully.
As all this sunk in, Priya's bubbling rage had her go from shell-shocked to shaking with fury. "You... you... yooooou-"
"Hate to break up all this fun, but we've got a schedule to keep up." Chris stepped between the girls and motioned towards the dock. "Drone of Despair is waiting for ya, champ!"
With one last deathglare towards the villain, Priya let out a guttural screech and stormed off. Caleb was just barely able to catch up.
"Priya wait! I'm sorry, I really didn't know that was going to happen."
"Oh, you didn't think something shady might be up when you made a deal with Julia of all people?" she snapped back.
He recoiled in shame. "Well... maybe? But I didn't think it'd be this! Plus what else was I supposed to do? For all I knew the guys were gonna vote for me if I didn't have immunity."
She was going to retort but suddenly the drone whizzed above them. With a final sigh she resigned herself to the claw carrying her off.
"W-wait, we're still cool, right? Babe?"
"We'll be cool when JULIA IS ELIMINATED," she yelled back as the drone carried her off into the night. "AVENGE ME, CALEB!"
Chris watched the whole trainwreck unfold and mockingly patted Caleb on the shoulder. "No pressure, eh big guy? Will Caleb be able to avenge Priya? How will Damien survive now that his idol is used up? Can Julia continue dominating every challenge? Tune in next time to find out, right here on TOTAL... DRAMA... ISLAND!"
Votes:
Damien: 5 (Priya, Caleb, Julia, Wayne, Raj) *VOTES VOID DUE TO IDOL*
Priya: 1 (Damien)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Caleb, Damien, Julia, Raj, Wayne
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Ripper, Zee, MK, Priya
With the field narrowed to the final five Damien was feeling on top of the world. Sure his idol was gone, but with Julia and Caleb as massive threats and the hockey bros as a clear duo, why would anyone be looking his way for a vote? The million bucks was so close he could practically taste it! Speaking of the unpopular two, Caleb gets practically no sleep over his immense guilt from allowing Priya to be eliminated. Her words ringing in the back of his mind, he builds up the courage to confront Julia and tell her off... only for her to be unbothered. She reiterates that she held up her end of the bargain and was never obligated to tell him about the idol. Furthermore, him betraying their alliance would mean Caleb would be going against HIS word. And ever the gentleman, Caleb never wanted to be accused of that. But what about Priya's parting words? He'd have a lot to think about this vote. Oh, and the hockey bros? They vibin.
Of all people to bring in as a special guest, Chris calls in MacArthur from the Ridonculous Race and five of her top K-9 unit attack dogs. The objective? Survive. Each dog would target one of the final five and attempt to drag them back to the hosts. After three strikes, they were out. Last one standing wins immunity. The hockey bros would use their brains to try and survive as long as possible. Which is to say, they were the first two out. Scaredy cat Damien attempted classic dog distractions liking pretending to throw a ball or crafting a makeshift dog whistle, but these pups were well trained and immune to trickery. He was out soon enough. Caleb did his best, but despite being paired with the smallest dog, he couldn't go the distance. Julia managed to outlast him mostly due to shenanigans but also thanks to her superior nails digging into the ground while being dragged by the doggo.
Without much of a choice, Caleb stays true to his word and decides to vote with Julia. Their target? Raj. But naturally the hockey bros were voting for Caleb since Damien was their pal and they felt bad for voting him last time. Which left Damien as the all important swing vote. Julia tried to point out how foolish it would be to go into the final four with a duo in tact. Caleb begged for his help and offered a final two alliance as bribery. The hockey bros... did not campaign because that ain't their style. And in the end they didn't need to! Damien decides to vote off Caleb, citing their lack of bond while Wayne and Raj are fam, not to mention his status as a physical threat. Our former first boot is carried off in shame, dreading what Priya might say now that he'd failed the revenge mission...
Votes:
Caleb: 3 (Damien, Raj, Wayne)
Raj: 2 (Caleb, Julia)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Damien, Julia, Raj, Wayne
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Ripper, Zee, MK, Priya, Caleb
While she pretended to not care about Caleb being eliminated, Julia couldn't help but feel a little bit nervous at how clearly this final four was a matter of her versus the boys. They were united and determined to eliminate her, and even with her best efforts to talk some sense into Damien he refused to be swayed. Ugh, how annoying. Wayne and Raj were as upbeat as ever, energy that was rubbing off well on Damien. Surely this would be their time to shine. What's the worst thing the challenge could be about?
As it turns out, the penultimate challenge was all about facing their fears! Ah crap. Indeed, while the others had pretty silly fears like getting old or enemy team mascots, Damien had listed so many things that scare him that Chris could hardly fit them all into his container! Not to mention a certain special guest. Despite all three boys immediately targeting Julia and hooking her once, she was able to return in time to trick the bros into hooking each other as a fun dare, leaving Damien to fend for himself. He manages to hold his own long enough for Wayne to return, only to come face to face with Scary Girl. She takes advantage of all the fears in there with them, tossing deadly animal after vial of disease at him. Genuinely fearing for his life, this forces Damien to finally confront his fears once and for all. He stands up to Lauren and disposes of her using handcuffs from his "fear of being handcuffed as a prank and the person losing the key" phobia. But unfortunately before he or Raj can return to the battlefield, Julia had already managed to trick Wayne once again and win herself the challenge. Yet again she had immunity.
At the ceremony Julia decides to vote for Damien out of spite for him not partnering with her. Plus he was a bigger mental threat than the bros. But in a shock twist, Wayne and Raj couldn't bring themselves to vote for Damien again, nor could they vote for each other. So with no other option, they each vote for themselves. So inexplicably Damien was once again the swing vote. Unfortunately for the bros he wouldn't be as selfless. He did indeed vote for one of them and it would be... Wayne. Since he was tricked twice by Julia and he had to vote for someone. The hockey captain shares a tearful goodbye with his BFF and Damien, promising that he'll never forget them. Despite the fact that he'll see them as a spectator in literally the next challenge since it'd be the finale.
Votes:
Wayne: 2 (Himself, Damien)
Raj: 1 (Himself)
Damien: 1 (Julia)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Damien, Julia, Raj
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Ripper, Zee, MK, Priya, Caleb, Wayne
At last the finale was upon us. Someone from Damien, Raj, or Julia would soon be a million bucks richer. Despite all odds, her many challenge wins, MK's help, and a bit of strategic shenanigans had carried Julia to the end. Sure she was still going to be targeted by the boys, but if she could beat them in a 3 vs 1, why would a 2 vs 1 be any different? Damien was starting to get nervous at how unbeatable Julia had looked lately, but Raj assures him that they can get it done. And what better way to ensure it can happen than having all their friends come back! A yacht pulls up with the eliminated contestants, though Scary Girl is oddly missing which isn't lost on Damien. Unlike last time, Chris allows ALL the losers to participate in the finale as helpers, leading to support groups being formed.
Team Damien: Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Priya, Caleb
Team Raj: Chase, Bowie, Axel, Ripper, Zee, Wayne
Team Julia: MK... that's it.
Unlike Caleb in canon, Damien's team is actually quite enthusiastic about supporting him, though they're still fired up about taking Julia down. Ironically Caleb is the only one not too high up on Damien, he's just here because his girlfriend is. And it's clear things are a bit tense between them after his instant elimination after her own. But much like with Wayne in the original timeline, Raj's team feels like a big party all rallying behind their bro. Bowie is especially glowing at the prospect of helping his boyfriend to a million dollars. Julia and MK aren't surprised but still find the juxtaposition of their tiny team compared to the others awkward.
The joke's on the others when it's revealed that the finalists have to haul their supporters up a steep mountain. Julia takes a quick lead thanks to her lighter load, helped by Damien's nerd strength making progress slow and Raj getting distracted by various foods Chris had laid out. But when it's time to cross the tight rope over a ravine, Scary Girl finally emerges to make things harder for Julia. Her interest in Damien has only increased ten fold after him standing up to her in the last challenge, so she decides to help him out in her own way. MK and Lauren wrestle for a bit until Damien and Raj finally arrive. All of a sudden everyone is more or less even. The supporters take turns firing at their opponents, with Julia notably facing a lot more heat than the boys. So much so that she even loses some hair to the velociraptor in the water at one point. But this just fires her up. Between some lucky athletics from Raj, and Damien's supporters just being the most competent at actually helping, the three of them all reach their wing suits in unison.
Julia's attempts at manipulating the two fall on deaf ears, even Raj isn't falling for her tricks. So instead she tries playing dirty by knocking into them. With the air combat getting out of hand they quickly start to pick up speed, plummeting towards the finish line at a dangerous rate. In a blur three impacts strike the dock, with only one landing past the finish line. Everyone rushes to pull the winner up, revealing it to be... Damien! Able to actually measure their velocity and trajectory on the fly, he was able to determine how he needed to point his body to land past the finish line, cinching him victory at the cost of a few bruises. Raj is bummed but quickly comforted by Bowie and Wayne over a job well done. Julia... is as upset as you'd expect. Chris hands Damien his canoe full of money, with the science geek intending to spend the money on his education, which the host finds boring. I mean, letting all those hundreds of fans that swore Damien was destined to win the next season actually be right? Hmm, maybe we need to look at a different scenario instead...
Final Results:
16th: Scary Girl, 15th: Chase, 14th: Millie, 13th: Emma, 12th: Nichelle (quit), 11th: Bowie, 10th: Axel, 9th: Ripper (quit), 8th: Zee, 7th: MK, 6th: Priya, 5th: Caleb, 4th: Wayne, 2nd/3rd: Raj and Julia, Winner: Damien
BONUS SCENARIO! Now playing, What If The Alfalfa Male Didn't Quit?
"How will I go on, I've never felt like this before!"
Was this it? The end times upon them? End of the world as they knew it? It certainly felt that way to Ripper right now. Everything was going so perfect. He'd successfully wooed the girl of his dreams and they could enjoy obnoxiously making out with each other and acting borderline horny in front of everyone as much as they wanted. Why in the world would THEY ever be targeted? Now he had to watch his girlfriend be carried off and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
"Yeah, been fun. See you round, maybe."
"What?! What do you mean MAYBE?"
As the claw came down to haul Axel off his mind was racing with questions. Was she breaking up with him? Did he do something wrong? Why wouldn't she want to keep being with a peak specimen like himself? No, they couldn't end like this! Maybe if he jumped and grabbed her to prove his love... but wait. Wait a minute. Wouldn't that make him quit? Don't cool chicks like Axel hate quitters? Better yet, what if he went on to win the million dollars. Wouldn't that just make him look even MORE irresistible than he already was?
"I'll win for you, babe! We're getting that cash and I'm taking you on the best date ever. We're talking fine dining, maybe barbeque or hot wings. You'll see!"
Whatever Axel thought of this rousing profession was hard to tell, she was already gone without a word.
"Yeeeeeah, good luck with that, bud." Chris pushed Ripper out of the way and smiled for the camera. "Our lovebirds are down to one! Can Ripper stay true to his promise, or will he be flying his way back into Axel's heart right on the train to Loserville? Tune in next time to find out, right here on TOTAL... DRAMA... ISLAND!"
Votes:
Axel: 8 (Julia, Wayne, Raj, Priya, Caleb, Damien, Zee, MK)
MK: 2 (Axel, Ripper)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Caleb, Damien, Julia, MK, Priya, Raj, Ripper, Wayne, Zee
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel
Now living in a post-Axel world, the Alfalfa male now only had one thing on his mind. Win by any means necessary. Then he'll surely turn that "see you later, maybe" into a "see you later, ah hell yeah, you're so cool and awesome Ripper, we should get married!" Yeah, he could totally pull that off. Having worked briefly with Julia and MK in their cheating pursuits during the team phase, he decides to start things off by approaching them for an alliance, crashing a moment between the two where Julia grappled with feeling guilty over screwing MK in the last challenge. He had no time for their nerd problems. MK wasn't jazzed at the idea since she was still bitter at Axeripper's uselessness during the baking challenge, but Julia reasons that a vote on their side isn't something to turn down. They also spot Zee being super weird and trying to hold in a secret, so Ripper takes this as a chance to prove his worth. He and Zee were sorta kinda friendish in the last season, if anyone left could get that info out it'd probably be him. As for the others, Priya was deadset on finally getting a kiss this episode, Caleb was receptive, the bros were vibing, and Damien was doing his own thing.
Challenge time came and the crew had to haul a giant coin up a mountain to buy their way into a game of human pinball. Ripper got to work trying to fish the mysterious secret out of Zee to mixed results since bro could still remember what went down in the cassowary challenge last season. Damien was struggling with some fire ants, while Julia assisted a struggling MK with her coin and workshopped some backup plans in the likely scenario that Ripper fails. Priya's attempts at a kiss continue to be thwarted, Wayne gets stranded off the island after a series of mishaps, and Raj goes it alone once it seems his buddy is busy taking a massive dump. While on the pinball field Ripper is finally able to pin Zee down at one point and force the secret out of him. He promises not to tell, naturally, and the boys are soon quickly out of the immunity running. Same goes for pretty much everyone else back to back, even Wayne once he's delivered back to the mainland. It comes down to MK and Priya as the big point getters, and Caleb holds the kleptomaniac off to allow his ally the win.
Now with seemingly the perfect moment, the two finally have their kiss and Zee watches on in distress. But just as he's about to spill the beans, Ripper beats him to the punch and does it instead. While he exaggerates just how harsh Caleb had talked about her, the hunk does indeed concede that originally his intentions were purely strategic. He attempts to reason that he's since developed feelings, but a crying Priya is gone before he can explain himself. She can't find it in herself to vote for him... but that doesn't stop the others from doing it instead. He begs to talk to her later as he's dragged off but she doesn't know what to feel.
Votes:
Caleb: 7 (Wayne, Raj, Julia, MK, Ripper, Damien, Zee)
Ripper: 2 (Caleb, Priya)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Damien, Julia, MK, Priya, Raj, Ripper, Wayne, Zee
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Caleb
Things are pretty awkward at camp to say the least. Priya is depressed over her love interest's betrayal and is a bit bitter that the others still went through with eliminating him before they could talk it out. Meanwhile Zee feels guilty over confiding the secret in Ripper only to have the dirty laundry aired anyway. But on the plus side, Ripper totally proved himself as useful to the evil yuri couple! Now they'd totally be begging for an alliance. Meanwhile Damien, Wayne, and Raj attempt to console Priya to the best of their ability. Julia fakes concern for her but it's clearly phony.
For their challenge the contestants must retrieve as big an item possible. Damien grabs a particularly wooly goat, Julia chops down a whole tree and nearly hits Priya with it, Priya herself gets a boulder, MK steals Chef's car, Raj the fridge in the mess hall, and Wayne the outhouse confessional. During his search Zee drags back a dumpster, rediscovering his raccoon friend from the sap challenge in the process. As for Ripper, he decided to track down one of the cassowaries from last season and bring it back since he had "big" and "bird" connected in his brain. It went poorly but he just managed to get one back in time. Only for Chris to then force them to get their items through a mail slot in a door without breaking it. With everyone breaking their door or getting rid of a piece in one way or another like Raj eating expired food, it came down to Julia vs Priya with the villain just managing to win since her opponent didn't really have her head in the game.
Despite Priya's depression, her challenge prowess was still obvious enough to make the antagonists target her, so they worked on trying to split the votes from everyone else between Ripper and MK. And it worked, only because Zee actually voted for himself instead. But by a 3-2-2-1 vote, Priya was still out. Zee offers to quit in her place, content with having reunited with his raccoon and wanting to make up for telling Ripper her secret. Chris obliges... by having Zee leave WITH her instead since they were in need of a double elimination somewhere. Oops.
Votes:
Priya: 3 (Julia, MK, Ripper)
Ripper: 2 (Priya, Damien)
MK: 2 (Wayne, Raj)
Zee: 1 (Himself)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Damien, Julia, MK, Raj, Ripper, Wayne
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Caleb, Priya and Zee
Now that the would-be power couple were gone, Ripper was under their thumb, and two thirds of the remaining opposition were himbos with a collective three braincells tops, MK and Julia were feeling pretty damn great about their chances. They'd tease/flirt with each other on who would win in the end and what they'd spend the money on, feeling that their victory was all but guaranteed at this point. Ripper trying to get in on the gloating had him feeling similar at first... though they were oddly not as friendly towards him as they were to each other. Weird. As for the others, Damien had enough sense to realize he needed to rally Wayne and Raj since they couldn't afford to lose anyone else. They'd need to be on the same page today, no questions asked. He also figured he needed to keep his idol hidden somewhere safe just in case. Behind some rocks at the bonfire area should do, what could go wrong?
The name of the game today was memory, something that Damien and MK both excelled at. Julia was no slouch, though it did seem like Damien was copying her whenever she got one right, suspicious. As for Ripper, Wayne, and Raj... yeah they were eating punishments left and right. Julia and Damien eventually begin a mini feud where they try to sabotage one another and with no one really trying particularly hard to interfere, the result was all but assured. The two successfully prevented each other from winning... but MK won by a landside since the others barely managed to scrounge up any points. So the sticky fingered snarkster would be immune, which Julia was more than ok with.
Come ceremony time, despite the hockey bros best effort to sway Ripper to "the good side," the votes were revealed to be a tie. 3 for Damien, and 3 for Julia. And as established in the previous season, this would invoke the tiebreaker rule. Whoever had more immunity wins would be safe. And while Damien's jousting win was memorable, Julia had the large items through a mail slot AND baking challenge under her belt. No biggie, Damien though. He'd simply go get his idol and be safe anyway! Except... where WAS his idol? Try as he may, the dude couldn't find it, and Julia's knowing smirk told the tale. Despite his best protests, the drone carries him off and the villains share a laugh.
Votes:
Damien: 3 (Julia, MK, Ripper) *LOST TIEBREAKER*
Julia: 3 (Damien, Raj, Wayne) *WON TIEBREAKER*
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Julia, MK, Raj, Ripper, Wayne
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Caleb, Priya and Zee, Damien
While it sucked having all their friends gone, Wayne and Raj at least took solace in still having each other to keep themselves going. But the enjoyment seemed to be tenfold with Julia and MK, who were by now basically joined at the hip and even completing each other's sentences. The more Ripper hanged around them, the more he felt like a third wheel. In a way when he looked at the two of them, it kinda reminded him of... him and Axel? Maybe he wasn't viewed as an equal by them after all, and if the next ceremony came and the remaining hockey bro happened to be immune... hmm, he had something to think about.
Anyway, yada yada, dogs challenge with MacArthur appearing. While he usually hated cops and was loyal to his girl, Ripper couldn't help but find something appealing about this MacArthur lady. Perhaps he sensed a kindred spirit in her. Regardless, he felt super confident going up against a few nerdy puppies for the challenge... so naturally he was the first out courtesy of the smallest dog. MK would come soon after since even her best attempts at stealth and hiding couldn't trick the puppies. The boys put up a valiant effort, but in the end it wasn't even that close. Raj and Wayne were both out before Julia's dog had even found her for its final time. Immunity would once again be hers.
Surely this would be the most uneventful ceremony yet. The antagonists would vote off Raj for being the comparatively slightly more competent opponent remaining. But when Chris handed out marshmallows he threw the final one at... Raj?! A cackling defiant Ripper stood up to reveal that it was him that caused the betrayal. He called out that the girls were one smooch away from Datingville, and he wasn't about to risk being cut just shy of the finale as the second banana in case immunity went the wrong way next time. MK and Julia were stunned... but the later then remembered the idol she stole from Damien. And now she had a tough decision. She could hold on to the idol and guarantee her spot in the finale without worry in the next challenge. Or... she could save MK and take the risk next time. One side of her brain said to do one thing while the other half said the opposite. She was so tongue tied that MK was very nearly carried away by the drone without any parting words. But then she stood up and screamed in frustration before finally deciding to play the idol on MK. She then gets in Ripper's face and warns him that he'll regret crossing them. With the idol played, Raj is out instead, so he shares a tearful goodbye with his buddy before going.
Votes:
MK: 3 (Ripper, Raj, Wayne) *VOTES VOID, IDOL USED*
Raj: 2 (Julia, MK)
Contestants Standing:
Merge: Julia, MK, Ripper, Wayne
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Caleb, Priya and Zee, Damien, Raj
To say that Ripper was feeling the heat from Julia would be an understatement. Going against their back on the vote was one thing, but trying to make accusations on her feelings with MK public to the world wasn't gonna slide. Regardless of how true they may or may not be. She was going to make preventing him from winning immunity her personal mission. Meanwhile MK, feeling a whole mix of emotions, would keep her mind occupied on trying to win. The fact that Wayne was busy mopping and going through an existential crisis in this post-Raj world would probably help things.
The face your fears challenge came around, Ripper and Julia going at it in all out war. She was determined and rabid to get him out, but he wasn't going down without a fight. Wayne attempted to assist the bro since he was the closest thing he had left to a friend, but all this distraction managed to do was make a win even more inevitable for MK. She secured immunity without even having to see what her fear was. Julia gloated that they'd vote Ripper out and his vote wouldn't matter since the tiebreaker rule would protect Julia. But then MK proposes a different idea. Despite Julia's objections, she offers that the three of them vote out Wayne, but she warns Ripper that if he doesn't agree they'll just eliminate him instead. When the ceremony arrives his decision is made clear. He sheepishly agreed to the deal, and Wayne was karted off to join his buddy in elimination. Ripper is appreciative of MK having enough sense to stay true to their original finale deal, figuring she was just upholding some principles. But she cuts him off to reveal that she simply thought Wayne was the bigger threat, both physically and mentally. So it was in their best interests to keep Ripper instead. The girls get fired up at reaching finale together and Ripper gulps as he realizes what a task it'll be to overcome them both.
Votes:
Wayne: 3 (Julia, MK, Ripper)
Julia: 1 (Wayne)
Contestants Standing:
Finale: Julia, MK, Ripper
Eliminated: Scary Girl, Chase, Millie, Emma, Nichelle, Bowie, Axel, Caleb, Priya and Zee, Damien, Raj, Wayne
Finale day was finally here! Julia is stoked to make it here with MK, obviously, though she's in a rare flustered state trying to confront the deeper feeling she has towards her ally. Sensing the distress, MK qualms things by pointing out that they'll have all the time to figure things out once one of them is a million bucks richer. Though she cockily states that it'll be her winning, which Julia happily challenges. Meanwhile Ripper reveals to the confessional his foolproof plan... he'll use the girls' flirting against them, making them get so distracted with each other that he'll just take the win while they're busy making out! After so many challenges of him and Axel being sidetracked with their romance, he genuinely believed this to be a plan that couldn't fail.
Speaking of Axel, the losers are brought back and most are mortified at the unlikable trio left in the running. Many wish to simply support no one, but Chris insists that they all MUST pick a finalist to back. So they reluctantly choose either who they consider the lesser evil or the villain that they have the closest thing resembling respect for.
Team Julia: Emma, Caleb, Priya
Team MK: Millie, Nichelle, Bowie, Damien
Team Ripper: Chase, Axel, Zee, Raj, Wayne
Ripper is pretty stoked to have the biggest team... only to be met with the realization that he'd have to haul everyone to the top of a mountain. MK wasn't feeling any more confidant in the challenge considering her scrawny frame. Julia though? Heck, she was GLAD to have the smallest support group. As such she easily makes it to the top first, only to meet with a new obstacle. Scary Girl, who's decided to support no one and just cause chaos for the fun of it. It ain't gonna be easy getting across the tightrope. Meanwhile Ripper manages to make it up second with Axel's barking encouragement pushing him through the strain. MK gets there eventually, just very slowly. Not that it matters since Scary Girl and the helpers are firing t-shirts left anf right to make things hard for the antagonists. No one has any qualms firing off their shots at these finalists. Ripper barks out awkward comments to his opponents about how appealing they are to the other, basically attempting to convince them they need to stop what they're doing and make out. It, uh, doesn't work.
Eventually Julia is spurred across after losing a chunk of hair to a velociraptor, with a series of shenanigans getting the other finalists across at the same time soon after. All three don flying squirrel suits to race to the finish. Annoyed at hearing their flirty banter, Ripper decides to bounce off the two of them, eventually causing all three to crash. It's a footrace to decide who can make it to the end. MK tries her best, but is ultimately the worst runner of the three. Ripper and Julia try pushing each other over and... one of them succeeds! They hop over the finish line and the peanut gallery gasps as Chris congratulates the winner. JULIA, now one million dollars richer. MK is bummed at losing, but also excited that Julia won instead and the two share a moment on the dock. Axel fishes Ripper out of the water and he worries that she'll leave him after failing to secure the bag. But inevitably they just start making out again. Julia is eventually rewarded her check, and Chris signs off while promising a return sometime in the future.
Final Results:
16th: Scary Girl, 15th: Chase, 14th: Millie, 13th: Emma, 12th: Nichelle (quit), 11th: Bowie, 10th: Axel, 9th: Caleb 8th/7th: Priya and Zee (quit) 6th: Damien 5th: Raj 4th: Wayne 2nd/3rd: MK and Ripper Winner: Julia
Author's Note:
I think last time I said the next prompt would be something focused on ROTI or PI but I couldn't help it, I had an itch to do something with the new gen. Damien getting his idol stolen is probably THE most contentious moment of the reboot, mostly due to people's love for Damien but also due in part to people getting fed up with Julia doing stuff off screen, so it seemed obvious to do as a prompt and get it out of the way. But because that takes place at the final six, leaving very little to diverge from there, I decided to add in a bonus prompt for some extra content. Ripper quitting like a punk was one of MY least favorite moves of the season. I quite like him in the pre-merge portion of the season, so having him go out in such a pathetic way didn't sit right with me. The second most popular what if for the reboot is probably about Nichelle not quitting or Scary Girl getting spared either time, buuuuut I like Ripper significantly more than them. I'm a proud Ripper defender, don't at me. Oh, and of course I can comment on my predictions chapter from last time. Needless to say I was way off mark on a lot of things, overestimating characters like Axel and Nichelle while low balling others such as Caleb or Raj. BUT. Despite getting literally no other placements right (a few were close like having Damien at 5th instead of 6th), somehow the one that I did get right was the winner! And considering how damn near no one considered Wayne as a winner contender in the pre-season either because they though Raj would be more likely or just thinking he was too goofy, I'll consider that a massive dub for me. Even if I predicted his journey to being a finalist being more plot heavy, lol.
Regarding future chapters, as something important in my life rapidly approaches, the idea of me doing the shuffled style series fully fleshed out and not just as chapters here seems less and less likely, but who knows. That's a problem for future Shed to figure out. For now, I'll definitely be doing a butterfly effect thing for Gen 2 or 3 next time. After that, I have another out of the box idea that I want to do. And then it's probably time I do another "scrapped fic idea" chapter ala the first chapter's Revenge of the Rejects. So look forward to all of those.