Author's Note

Hey it's me, here with the next chapter! And this one is kind of a...strange one. In the fact that it was the result of literally scrapping a completely finished chapter.

AKA I had finished a chapter, but while proofreading it at the very last minute I thought to myself "God, this is terrible." and just completely redid the whole thing in a few days.

I hope you enjoy it...because it gets CRAZY!

-MisterStevenson

Reviews

tranquoc2004vn- I agree, I didn't want to drag the whole thing on like the original season did for some reason. And while I didn't originally intend to write Chase to be as much of a toxic, sociopathic scumbag, that infamous "Extended Break" let me rethink the story a lot. And it also made Chase's inevitable downfall much more satisfying in my opinion. Also I have a whole headcanon regarding the season of All-Stars which I won't get into right now.

ToxiVillain- I'll assume your giddiness is in reference to the kisses from last chapter? Because that reaction would be appropriate...it was rather satisfying after all the build up.

It opened on several crabs, mourning the crab squashed by Mr. Coconut.

(Narrated by Chris McLean)

Last time on Total Drama Island! Some strange "flings" happened, there was sky high drama, and others had some surprisingly tapioca-filled romance...imagine those words being uttered by a person up until this point.

But speaking of said romance, nobody was more shocked about the kiss than Wayne. Who realized that MAYBE he was getting too involved in this "Relationship Drama" stuff that everyone's been talking about...at least until he also got himself a kiss at the very end!

After a grand day of flinging, flunging, and potentially saving Zee from an interspecies marriage, it all came down to Mr. and Mrs. Lover's Quarrel to finish it for their teams. In which Emma "shockingly" beat Chase quite badly.

And at the campfire ceremony, Chase's fate was finally sealed when all his teammates vocally voted him out of the game...and the cops DIDN'T show up and arrest him for a whole bunch of stuff, then got replaced with a lookalike placed into a CGI elimination! Just ignore all the news articles, it's all fake news.

But you know what isn't fake? Your anticipation for what's going to happen in this episode of Total...Drama...Island!

(Cut to Opening and Back)

It opened on a pleasant shot of the Mess Hall, where inside Chris was sitting at one of the tables which had lots of delicious looking food on it. "You know, I'm simultaneously surprised, yet not at all phased." He smugly said, as it panned out to show that the eleven remaining campers were also there.

"The contestants making me breakfast! This is LONG overdue if I say so." Chris stated. "Well you have been doing this same job for so long, it's about time someone gave you a little love back." Bowie smiled. "You know, I was thinking the same exact thing." Chris nodded.

"Plus have you been working out? You look pretty good for your age." Caleb asked, flexing a little. "Plastic surgery and injections are just so expensive nowadays...gotta find some way to keep this face fresh and marketable." Chris pointed at himself and smiled.

But suddenly the moment was interrupted by a hand bursting through the wall and grabbing Emma's ponytail. "AHH!" She yelped. "Holy sh-(bleep)!" MK exclaimed. "Emma!" Wayne shouted. And if things couldn't get more crazy, a LOT of "individuals" began breaking through the walls, windows, and even the floors. Some human, some zombified, and some...feral.

"What in the...?" Chris was wide-eyed. And then one of them began to talk, he was wearing a green sweatshirt, and a blue toque..."My name is Ezekiel Miller, and I'm coming for you, eh!" The bizarre Ezekiel shouted before the swarm began climbing inside.

Wayne began trying to help Emma but was held back back Bowie. "Wayne! We gotta go!" He exclaimed. "But I can't leave Emma!" Wayne exclaimed back. "You'll find another big white girl, now come on!" Bowie forcibly began dragging Wayne. "Bowie you mother-" Emma was suddenly pulled into the swarm.

The large group began cutting through the kitchen, but the back door was locked. "I'll get the door." Axel began breaking down the door. "This will slow those things down..." Caleb suddenly grabbed MK and chucked her into the Ezekiel Swarm. "What the hell!? Did you just throw MK!?" Damien shouted.

"Damien, watch out!" Caleb pointed behind Damien. "Huh?" Was all Damien could say before Caleb also grabbed and threw him too. But it didn't help as the whole swarm entered the kitchen, as Chris opened the kitchen window.

"Chris, keep that window open!" Priya reached her arm out. "Uhh, sorry can't hear you. Good luck!" Chris jumped out and then began booking it towards the Dock of Shame, hiding from another group of Ezekiels. Chris kept running, now being chased by literally dozens of Ezekiels, human and feral.

As he got closer to the dock, he passed Clyde who was with the other Interns. "What the...no! Get away from me! Take them instead!" Clyde began sacrificing every single Intern in front of him before the Ezekiels got to him.

Chris kept running until he saw the iconic Boat of Losers, then he hopped aboard and started it up. "Chris! I know you ain't leaving me behind!" Chef exclaimed as Chris began driving away. "Haha, I made it!" Chris excitedly shouted as everything began fading away...and into Chris sleeping in a lounge chair.

"Mr. McLean?" Clyde's voice came through, waking up Chris. "You were mumbling quite a bit. Having a bad dream?" Clyde asked. "Bad? Maybe for you it was. I am a survivor...I ain't gonna give up!" Before Chris could go into a full musical number Chef walked into the room.

"Your little nap kind of cost us some valuable time for the challenge today. We were actually about to go on ahead without you." Chef admitted. "Wow, that's so...considerate of you to do. I don't need baggy eyes while hosting, talk about scandals am I right?" Chris chuckled, but Chef rolled his eyes, and Clyde gave a thumbs up.

Meanwhile with the campers...almost everyone was sitting around the fire pit, telling stories. "So then the six survivors got away, and the host was claimed by the island...and the spirits within." Lauren just finished telling a scary story, and judging by the reactions of the campers, it was a mixed bag.

"Whoa, that was...spooky." Raj rubbed his arms. "P-Please hold m-me..." Wayne was hugging Emma tightly. "Yeah, I'm tapping out at that." MK got up and left the fire pit. "Not to burst Lauren's bubble...but that was just the plot of that weird Topher Grayson miniseries he did a couple years ago." Bowie corrected.

"I definitely know what everyone is talking about." Axel crossed her arms with a grimace.

(Confessional)

Axel- [Using a calculator] "A couple years ago...a couple years ago...damn it, I really can't tell time! Or...do math for that matter."

Lauren- [Pouting] "I thought it was scary..."

(Confessional End)

It cut to Caleb in the Ferocious Trout's cabin, reading Millie's notebook which he still had from several episodes ago. "Priya has no real world experience so she'll fall blindly in love with me. All Axel seems to know is being a survivalist, so she most likely can't detect manipulation if it was right in front of her. And Damien could just as easily go back into coward mode..." Caleb began coming up with strategies.

(Confessional)

Caleb- "I haven't been able to really do much, with all this inter-team drama forcing everyone to the sidelines. But it did give me some ample time to catch up on my reading while the rest were busy."

(Confessional End)

Caleb exited the cabin and began heading to the fire pit, but on the way bumped into MK. "Well, look who it is again." Caleb said with a raised eyebrow. "Look, I was just at that barf fest up there, and I'd like to get some rest before the challenge." MK explained. "Funny, I'd assumed you'd want to spend as much time with your team as possible." Caleb responded.

"And why would I want to do that, oh wise Caleb?" MK snarkily asked. "Because you're gone the next time your team's got to eliminate someone." Caleb bluntly answered, causing MK's eyes to widen. "What...do you mean?" She asked in a genuine tone.

"Wayne and Raj are best friends, Emma and Scary Girl are friends, Bowie seems to be good with both parties, and in turn all five are friendly with each other." Caleb explained, seeming to not know about the kisses between Bowie and Raj, or Wayne and Emma.

"...Oh my God you're right." MK realized that she was screwed come her team's next elimination. "Tell you what, I'll form an inter-team alliance with you. But on ONE condition..." Caleb narrowed his eyes. "Okay fine, what condition?" MK asked. "How...did you know that I said blueberry-rhubarb cake in the confessional yesterday?" Caleb leaned closer.

"That!? It was just a freak...coincidence, bruh." MK could see right away that Caleb wasn't buying it, and not to mention that she needed some kind of alliance right now. "*sigh* Alright...I pocketed a phone from Julia before she was eliminated, and have been listening to everyone's confessionals." MK reluctantly admitted.

"Whoa...that's genius!" Caleb had to admit. "So is this alliance on or what?" MK huffed. "Yeah it is, but after the challenge you're showing me that phone." "Only if you show me...Millie's notebook." MK shot back. "...Deal." The two shook hands, and then the intercom went off.

"Attention campers, sorry for the long wait. But it's finally challenge time!" Chris exclaimed, before cutting to the eleven campers standing before the entrance to a blocked off cave.

"Welcome boys and girls, today's challenge is simple. You all need to travel through this dark cave full of tunnels and unknown terrors to reach the other side. And the first camper to reach the end will receive a pretty nice reward." Chris explained. "Wait, shouldn't it be the first team that reaches the end?" Caleb asked.

"Normally it would, but this challenge is a little special. In that the teams will be temporarily dissolved, making this a little taste of what's to come from the Merge!" Chris announced. "Hold it, you've never done anything like that before...what's the catch?" Priya narrowed her eyes.

"*groans* Fine, today's challenge was meant to be an all-out paintball war between both teams. But apparently there was a shipping error with all the paint, so now we got to do one of the Merge challenges early." Chris explained. "Oh, well that's unfortunate." Priya responded.

"Aww man, we're missing out on paintball?" Wayne lowered his head. "Don't worry bro, there's always the places away from the competition." Raj comforted. It panned back to Chris, who opened the heavy wooden door blocking the cave. "Alright, the challenge begins right about...now." He started the challenge.

The eleven campers ran into the cave, sticking together in one big group. "God, it really is dark in here!" Bowie tried squinting his eyes to get a better look. "Hold on everyone, I got this!" Axel called out. And a little later, she was suddenly holding a homemade torch.

"Okay everyone, let's stick together for now." Caleb called out, Priya immediately moving next to him.

(Confessional)

Priya- "Sure we technically may have been enemies on account of the Merge...but he just had such a comforting presence in that moment."

(Confessional End)

The eleven continued walking for a while, until they came to a branching path with three different tunnels. "Great, now we got trouble." MK crossed her arms. "Looks like we have no choice but to split up." Bowie looked between the tunnels.

After a while of discussing, here's what they came up with. "Alright, so Bowie, Emma, Wayne, Raj, and Scary Girl will go through the right tunnel." Axel began, also getting a glare from Lauren. "Caleb, Priya, Zee, and MK will go through the middle." Axel continued. "And me and Damien will go through the right." Axel finished, also panning out to show Bowie and Caleb holding torches as well.

"From here on out we are a little more divided with each other...move out!" Axel ordered, the three groups going down the tunnels...but then something revealed itself to be stalking the eleven campers, it let out a gutteral hiss before it cut to the first group, consisting of the two new couples, and (technically) the fifth wheel.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" Bowie called out to the darkness in front of him. "Housekeeping...don't mind us!" Raj added in. "Hmph, if anyone's in this cave, I highly doubt they'll be expecting us to refill their mini-fridge." Bowie chuckled. "Just trying to add some fun to this whole situation, ya know?" Raj smiled back.

Meanwhile Wayne and Emma were lagging slightly behind, holding each other for dear life and shaking like leaves. "Hold me, Em." "I already am...YOU hold ME." "I also already...uhh...we hold us...let's hold tighter!" "You got it!" The two conversed while Lauren watched.

(Confessional)

Lauren- "Do you ever get the feeling that you missed something very very very VERY important? Because I don't know why Emma and Wayne, or Bowie and Raj are acting so close all of a sudden. But then again I literally just joined this team, I don't know dynamics and stuff."

(Confessional End)

It then cut over to the team of Caleb, Priya, Zee, and MK. "So uh, elephant in the...well, the cavern. But why is MK with us and not her own team?" Priya asked. "Like Chris said, it's technically a Merge challenge. And also, I kinda don't like anyone on my team. This team seems a little more put together if you ask me." MK lied.

"That's a...bold assumption." Caleb looked down at the short girl. "Hey strange question, but does anyone have some water or something? I'm so parched." Priya rubbed her neck. "Why would we bring water to a challenge?" MK asked. "Well someone better..." Priya suddenly laid eyes on Zee, who had taken out a fresh can of soda.

"I don't drink soda, but to heck with it." Priya snatched the can and opened it. "Whoa Priya, I don't think you should drink that." Zee warned, sweating a little. "It's orange soda, I'll be fine." Priya rolled her eyes before downing the entire can. "Hmm, that was actually very refreshing." Priya exhaled while Zee looked terrified.

"What's got you all shook up?" MK asked. "That's not exactly...soda." Zee admitted. "What do you-" Priya stopped talking, and her eyes began to dilate. "What...the...hell...?" She was woozy. "Priya, you better pack your bags...because you're about to go on a trip, dude..." Zee warned.

"...Drink orange soda! It'll quench ya. Nothing's quenchier! It's the quenchiest!" Priya began moving around in different ways.

(Confessional)

MK- [Laughing]

Caleb- [Also laughing]

Zee- "Yep, high-sugar energy drink, plus a dudette who according to Axel has most likely never had one before...equals trippy mode."

(Confessional End)

And then it cut to the last group, Axel and Damien. "So uh, do you come from a family of survivalists?" Damien began making conversation. "Yes, except I learned from personal experience. Not any fancy survival schools or courses, stuff like that." Axel gloated.

"And yours? You come from a family of eggheads like yourself?" Axel asked a follow-up question. "Actually no, I don't. Good thing there aren't any cameras around, because...my family all have room temperature IQs at the most. I don't want to follow in the footsteps of whatever they expected me to do, so I actually studied hard and plan on going to college." Damien explained.

"College, hmm...that's something." Axel looked at the ground wistfully. "Come on, if you study hard then maybe you can go. It's not like being a survivalist is all you know or something." Damien continued, getting a small grimace from Axel. "Damien-" But Axel was interrupted by the sound of footsteps coming from behind them.

"Did we get a third member by mistake or...something..." Axel turned around and saw something that made her blood run cold. "What is it? Is it another camper that just kept quiet?" Damien turned around and also began to feel terrified.

Some ways away was a figure with dark green skin, sharp claws on both its hands and feet, it was hunched over, it had razor sharp teeth, what appeared to be the makings of a tail, bulging eyes, and was absolutely feral. "What the (bleep) is that thing!?" Damien shouted. "R-Run!" It was Axel that ran first, dropping the torch and causing Damien to run with her.

But then it cut away from the action and back to both couples and Lauren. "*SCREAMS*" Axel and Damien's screams could be heard nearby. "Oh my gosh, what was that!?" Emma leaned closer to Wayne. "Don't worry, those are just casual cave "Help Us" screams." Wayne explained.

"I dunno dude, those sounded really close." Raj was getting nervous. "This whole challenge is dumb, that's obviously just a speaker set up to play screams when someone got close." Bowie gave his own explanation. "Well, I do think we should pick up the pace a little. That torch is looking a little dim." Emma pointed to the dimming torch.

"You're right, everyone begin to start running." Bowie said as a thud was heard behind the group. "Lauren, what was that?" Bowie turned to see Lauren laying face down, and the feral figure standing before her, having already moved away from Axel and Damien. "Screw it, everyone sprint!" Bowie exclaimed, as everyone began running and screaming.

"What...what's happening?" Lauren slowly asked as she looked up and saw the feral figure, to which she recognized. "...Ezekiel?" Lauren whispered before the screen cut to the other group, who were dealing with Priya's crazed self. "Ugh, it feels like this tunnel won't end!" MK shouted in frustration.

"Take it easy, little lady. I'm sure this tunnel leads to somewhere, the Earth knows how to move around." Priya assured. "The tunnel leads somewhere, the Earth knows how to move around." MK mocked...right before the group reached a fork in the path. "What'd I tell you...? I'm such a great detective." Priya smiled at herself.

"Okay, now which way to go?" Caleb began looking through every passageway, as the sounds of screaming could be heard from one of the tunnels. "Dude, I don't think that tunnel wants us going there." Zee suggested. But then Bowie, Emma, Wayne, and Raj all ran out in a panic.

"Run! Everybody run!" Raj shouted, as Feral Ezekiel chased after the group. "Oh crap! Out of the way!" Caleb shoved everyone out of his way and began running also. "Dude, don't leave me behind!" Zee joined in. "Come on legs don't fail me now!" MK also began running. And this left Priya, who was just standing with a zoned out look on her face.

"Haugh!" Feral Ezekiel hissed and roared simultaneously at Priya. "Hehehe, okay...now my turn..." Priya also began roaring. Well, more like she began saying the word "Roar" very loudly.

(Confessional)

Priya- "Ya see how I handled that situation? I was like roar, and he was all ahhh! Hehe, thanks Mom and Dad for working...me to...ugh...my head."

Feral Ezekiel- [Tilts head] Heh?

(Confessional End)

Feral Ezekiel reached out his claws towards Priya, before just slinging her over his shoulder and jumping through what appeared to be a secret passage in the floor.

And then it cut back to Axel and Damien, who were still running. "I don't know where we are, I can't see anything! Where are we!?" Axel cried out. "I don't know, is that thing still chasing us!?" Damien exclaimed, before seeing some light up ahead.

"Axel look, there's light! It may be the exit!" Damien called out. "Yes, we made it!" Axel ran forward only to skid to a halt at the edge of a cliff overlooking an underground river. "Is it the exit?" Damien ran forward and crashed into Axel, sending them both tumbling down into the water and sweeping them deeper into the cave.

Meanwhile...back with the rest of everyone. Caleb, Zee, Bowie, Emma, MK, Wayne, and Raj were all sprinting through the darkness. "I can barely see, are we still going in a straight line?" Caleb asked. "We haven't gotten turned around, so I'm pretty sure." Bowie responded.

"We're very sorry to intrude! We just want to get to the other side of this thing!" Raj once again called out to the darkness. "Guys, I have a feeling we lost- OOF!" Wayne ran straight into a dead end, causing everyone to stop. "Great, we're at a dead end." Bowie groaned.

"Plus we still can't really see anything." Zee fidgeted a little. "Hold on, I got us covered." MK suddenly pulled a red glow stick out of her jacket and twisted it, lighting up the area. "You've had that the whole time?" Bowie asked in bewilderment. "That's odd...a certain someone used red glow sticks in his 3 AM videos." Emma tapped her chin.

"Ehh, don't worry about it. At least we got light!" MK smiled, before turning and coming face-to-face with Feral Ezekiel. "Aww sh-(bleep)..." MK cursed. Everyone screamed as Ezekiel tripped up MK, and began quickly dragging her away. "Guys! Help me! HELP!" MK's cries for help trailed off.

(Confessional)

Bowie- "Wow, for a challenge this is pretty hardcore."

(Confessional End) and (Cut to Commercial)

It faded back into Priya, surrounded by lots of different patterns and colors. It was as if she were standing inside a giant microscope. "My head...it feels so fuzzy." She then began walking around a version of Camp Wawanakwa that appeared to be made in a strange program called..."Flash".

"Well I actually decided to train on the IMPORTANT things..." Priya turned over to see the conversation with Axel that has never left her mind. "Also I wasn't conceived solely for the slim chance that there would be a reboot of Total Drama when I came of age." Axel finished, that statement actually...stabbing Priya in the heart this time.

"Excuse me, Priya?" Priya was shocked to hear the voice of...Millie. The. She turned around and looked down to see a raccoon with Millie's poofy hair. "The others and I have prepared something special for you." Raccoon-Millie said, as raccoon versions of Julia, Ripper, Nichelle, and Chase also appeared.

And then they all began to...dance and sing. "Hey what's up? I'm here to slay, don't know how the rest will be bothered to stay!" They all began singing, causing Priya to look on in sheer confusion.

"I know the game and I've got the skill! Crushing player's dreams, yeah you know the drill. I wanna be! I wanna be! I wanna be famous!" The raccoon-campers finished, and lots of stomping sounds came from behind Priya.

Priya looked to see even more raccoons, but they were giant. And they were dressed like all the previous finalists from Island to Ridonculous Race.

"We are the Guardians of Truth. Step forward, and see what your mind has sealed away..." They all parted to reveal a door, to which Priya carefully approached. She saw that the door had a lot of electroshock designs on it, and assumed it meant something important. And then she slowly opened the door and stepped forward.

But before more could happen, and a completely different story could start, it slowly cut to MK waking up. "Ugh...what just happened?" She groggily asked. "Morning, sleepyhead!" Lauren exclaimed, her face less than a foot from MK's. "Gah!" MK backed up into someone's legs. It then panned up to show Chris looking down at her.

"I gotta say, I expected someone as crafty as you to last a lot longer." Chris shook his head. "Wait, that was just part of the challenge?" Lauren asked. "Yep, and here's how." Chris snapped his fingers and Feral Ezekiel walked in, causing MK and Lauren to scream, while Priya was still on her mental trip.

"We outfitted ol' Zeke's claws here with little tasers. Plus that cave's chock full of secret passageways full of minecarts, rivers, and other things to get back here fast. Speaking of fast...get back to it, farmboy!" Chris ordered, and Ezekiel hissed...before slowly stepping out.

(Confessional)

Lauren- "After all these years, Chris is still using Ezekiel for his own personal amusement!? How...how has a show-ending lawsuit not come out of this!?"

(Confessional End)

It cut back to the now group of six continuing to run through the cave. "Stick together! Stick together!" Everyone continued sprinting, until Feral Ezekiel leaped down from the ceiling and pounced on poor Zee. "Ahh, he got me bro!" Zee screamed as everyone kept running in a random direction.

And after a little bit, some light was seen in the distance. "There, I think that's the exit!" Emma shouted. And then Caleb sprinted even faster, getting really close...until he ran face first into hard wood. They were back at the starting line, and Chris had put the door back up.

"What the fu-(bleep)? It's locked!" Bowie cursed. "Help!" "Someone help us!" Wayne and Raj were banging on the door. But then Ezekiel caught up, and his taser-tipped claws struck the remaining campers, sending them falling. "Eh...he...he..." Ezekiel seemed to laugh before fading to a later shot of everyone waking up where MK, Lauren, and Priya were.

"Ah, looks like the gang's all here." MK snarked. "Tsk tsk, looks like none of you could make it to the end of the cave. So I suppose the reward will just go to me...you know I at least expected this challenge to last a little longer than it did. But oh well." Chris shrugged.

"Excuse me...but what about Axel and Damien?" Lauren asked. "Yeah, I don't see them anywhere." Zee looked around. "Chef, check the cameras in the cave." Chris instructed, and Chef began flipping through the camera feeds.

"*sniffs* I couldn't protect you, I'm so sorry!" Wayne was holding Emma with tears in his eyes. "It's okay, don't cry." Emma was comforting Wayne. And this interaction caused Lauren to get even more suspicious.

"They're not on any of the cameras." Chef finally said. "What do you mean they're not on the cameras?" Chris asked, looking a little worried. "We put cameras in every crack and crevice of that cave for the challenge, and somehow they ain't on any of them." Chef reiterated.

"Uhh, okay then." Chris clapped his hands, and Ezekiel shuffled into the tent. "Zeke, so you have a new mission. Find two campers that went missing while running from you...they possibly fell into a secret passageway or something. So just go find them, alright?" Chris asked, really not wanting a lawsuit.

And Ezekiel looked strangely panicked for a feral creature, as he nodded and immediately ran off. It then cut to the two individuals in question, still being carried by the river.

"Axel, where are you!?" Damien exclaimed, completely panicked. "Damien, over here!" Axel grabbed Damien's hand and ferociously swam through the current and towards a small rocky shoreline, managing to drag both of them up there.

The shoreline was illuminated by a small ray of light emanating from above, just enough to see. Axel and Damien fell back to get their bearings. "*panting* Oh God, I don't...I thought I was going to die!" Damien exclaimed. "Don't worry, I got you." Axel sat near the edge of the rock, looking at the flowing river.

"Axel, your survival training may have just saved my life...thank you." Damien was grateful. "Uh-huh..." Axel was looking really downtrodden. "Axel, if this is about what just happened, we may have a big lead on everyone." Damien suggested.

"...You were right." Axel suddenly brought her knees up to her chest. "About what?" Damien asked, confused. "All I know how to be is a survivalist. What I did back there...I could've done so many better things than just brute force my way to this little rock. So you were right." Axel's tone changed entirely.

"What? I only said that half-heartedly, not at all serious." Damien sat up and scooted closer to Axel. "But it's true. Being survivalists is all my family has ever known, I may be good at it...but maybe I wanted to be good at other things." She hinted at something, causing Damien's look to soften.

"Axel, I...know how you feel." Damien tried to sympathize, but that just made Axel upset. "Don't you dare try to play that card! You're the smartest person on the island so you should know better! You come from a family that appreciates your smarts, they could probably take a cue better!" Axel shouted, but this also made Damien mad.

"Yeah, I'm from an appreciative family. A whole bunch who never went to college, work dead end jobs, and whose only expectation of me is to work at a damned GAS STATION! Well I'm not going down that route, I'm not following in their footsteps and becoming the next generation in a family of nobodies, I want to be successful!" Damien ranted, leaving Axel with wide eyes.

"What's your response to that?" Damien was breathing hard. "...I used to want to be a famous poet." Axel responded. "A...poet?" Damien asked. "I may not look like it, but I'm super into poetry. But I'm also from a...short-sighted family." Axel answered.

There was some silence for a bit before Axel continued. "I also may not be the smartest...not like I'm dumb like that Wayne guy, but...I have flunked basically every test I've ever taken. In fact, until I came to this island I thought I was forty five years old!" Axel exclaimed.

"You what now?" Damien was really confused. "I can't tell time properly, or...really do math all that well." Axel admitted. "Damn, I guess we actually have some stuff in common." Damien said, looking down and also staring at the flowing river.

"Hey, that day after the obstacle course, you were hellbent on getting yourself eliminated. But then you just stopped and now you're courageous all of a sudden? Is the position of Co-Captain really motivating you that much?" Axel asked.

This question caused Damien to look for any cameras surrounding the area, but then looked away from Axel. "I say that it's the Co-Captain position for all the cameras and stuff. But honestly...for some reason I feel a lot braver around you." This admission caused Axel to feel a huge surge of different emotions, which culminated in stunned silence.

An even longer silence went on, until Axel broke it. "How come you never told me before?" She softly asked. "Because...we weren't friends before." Damien softly answered.

(Confessional)

Axel- [Blushing profusely] "...Wow."

Damien- [Putting on the facade] "I had to step up as the Co-Captain to get us out of that cave. And judging by the fact I'm doing this confessional, I'd say I did good!

(Confessional End)

And now we're back to Priya's trip through her mind. Where after entering the strange door she found herself staring into total blackness. "Is this really what my mind has been blocking?" She scratched her head. "My first bungee jump was with my own umbilical cord..." Priya was startled by her own disembodied voice, as the blackness turned into a first-person shot of what appeared to be something bungee jumping.

It was small, they were in the mountains, and they were screaming...Priya saw this as her first moments on Earth, and there weren't any happy baby smiles as to what the TV had you believe. "I'm not supposed to remember this moment...get me out of here!" Priya cried out, only for it to change to a scene of a Pre-School aged Priya talking to her parents.

"Mommy, Daddy, I don't want to train today. My bones hurt." Priya looked at her younger self with heartbreak. Her parents then spoke, but no sound left their mouths. "...I just wanted to take a day off." Priya found herself saying, as it cut to something else.

Priya appeared to be around twelve years old, and she was talking to her Mom. "Priya, your Father is sick, and I am very busy...please go to the pharmacy and pick up his medicine." It was a simple task, but Priya began remembering this...the first time she actually left the house by herself.

Priya watched the whole memory as if she was watching a movie she hadn't seen in several years, things began to slowly fall into place for her. She was extremely skittish, jumped at the slightest loud noise, and avoided other people as much as possible. It was worse when she got to the pharmacy, where when a simple situation like picking up her Dad's medicine turned into a metaphorical hostage negotiation.

This whole thing turned out to be "social training" by her parents...but it left her traumatized. "Is there more? Please don't tell me there's more." Priya sulked. But it then cut to a memory that cut Priya like a knife, and it was when her parents dragged her out to get electroshock therapy even though she was already doing what they said.

"No parent would ever do all this to their kid...what if Total Drama hadn't still been going when I came of age? Wait, I'm not even of age, I'm fifteen and the age requirement was sixteen...did my parents lie about my age to get me on here!? What's going...what if I was eliminated early? What if the studio that produced Total Drama went bankrupt!?" Priya began asking herself all these questions, as her mind began to clear up.

(Confessional)

Priya- "I remember everything! My parents are awful people! My middle name is literally "Drama"! I have so many people to apologize to!"

(Confessional End)

Meanwhile with the contestants on the outside, it looked like Priya was sleeping with her eyes open. "Bro, what's up with her?" Raj asked. "Aw man, I ran out of orange sodas so I began going through the orange energy drinks that I packed. Priya snatched one then drank the whole thing at once...poor dudette's probably seeing the guardians right now." Zee solemnly explained.

"Guardians of Truth? Been there when I was nine..." "...Wicked, brah." Raj and Zee exchanged a fist bump. "For a guy that just got attacked by a Feral man, you're having fun." Bowie said to Raj, smiling.

"Yeah, I don't like staying in bad moods too long. Just being a downer is just so, you know...downer-like." Raj explained. "Hehehe, well that's a new one." Bowie chuckled. "Hey, I just wanted to say that uh...I really enjoyed what we did yesterday and I was-" Raj began, but he was shushed by Bowie.

"I already know what you're going to ask, and you know what? After the competition...how about we meet up somewhere?" Bowie answered. "You mean like a date?" Raj nervously asked. "Like a date, honey." Bowie answered. It then panned over to Lauren, who after seeing the interaction felt like alarm bells went off in her head.

"No way...it can't be!" Lauren quickly went around to Emma, Wayne, Bowie, and Raj. "Outside, we all need to talk!" She quietly exclaimed. "Uhh, okay?" Wayne was confused. "Well anything's better than just sitting around waiting for Axel and Damien to be found." Bowie shrugged and they all went outside.

"So...I've noticed you've all been really chummy. Emma with Wayne and Bowie with Raj. And since I'm a very curious person, TELL ME WHY!" Lauren pouted like a little kid. "Geez, that's what this is about? That we're all just becoming better friends the longer this game goes on?" Bowie explained, covering up the real reason.

"Yeah, and Wayne just helped me get through Chase's presence on the island. And I consider him a really good friend for that." Emma also explained, leaving Wayne with a shocked and confused expression. Lauren took note of this and approached Wayne,

"What's your explanation for what's happening?" Lauren asked, her Scary Girl persona coming out a little. "Uhhh...uhhh..." Wayne was sweating bullets. "It's...okay, I-" "I kissed Wayne last night and we're technically dating now." Emma was the one who ended up breaking. And this news shocked Lauren and Bowie, but not Raj.

"What!? You...kissed him? Dating a new guy? Doing what with whom?" Lauren was gobsmacked. "Is it weird that I'm shockingly not surprised? Like he's basically treated you like a princess since the scavenger hunt challenge. Not to mention all the stuff that happens off-camera." Bowie added.

"Well, since they said I think maybe I should say too." Raj looked very nervous before looking at Wayne, Emma, and Lauren. But he was especially looking at Wayne. "I...kissed Bowie, I'm gay!" Raj admitted quickly, as if ripping off a metaphorical band-aid. "*gasp*!" "No way..." Lauren and Emma reacted. But Wayne's jaw was open...before he burst into tears and tackle-hugged Raj.

"Oh buddy!" "Thanks...thanks, dude." Wayne and Raj conversed, Raj very touched that Wayne accepted him so easily.

(Confessional)

Lauren- "This whole thing wasn't at all what I was expecting. I thought they were making a secret alliance to vote me off or something. But in reality I'm on a team full of romance!

Bowie- "Um...what the hell was this whole interaction?"

(Confessional End)

After that it cut back to Axel and Damien still sitting on the rocky shoreline. Now they were sitting in pure silence, waiting for someone to come get them. That was until Damien looked up and finally noticed something.

"Wait, the light coming from the ceiling..." He commented, putting some pieces together. "What about it?" Axel asked. "That light looks far too bright to be from a glowing rock or even a mining lamp shining through a crack in the floor...that's daylight!" Damien excitedly shouted.

"We've been THAT close to an escape? Damien, give me a boost up!" Axel ordered, her confidence having regained. "You got it, ma'am!" Damien saluted before Axel got onto his shoulders and climbed a platform above them, then pulled Damien up. And this process repeated until they were finally at the hole where the light was coming from.

"It's a tight squeeze, but we can make it." Damien deduced. "Ladies first, I insist." He politely let Axel go in first before going in himself...not knowing that Ezekiel had swam up to the shoreline they had been on minutes before, and was now seeing them leave through the hole at the top.

"Almost...almost...just a little more..." Axel said as she finally squeezed herself out of the hole and onto the ground above the cave, with Damien following ahortly after. "We're...we're free!" Axel exclaimed. "Woo! Yeah baby!" Damien pumped his fists in victory. "Hold on, the challenge...we can just run across the cave roof until we make it to the other side!" Axel suggested.

"Well what're we waiting for? Let's do it!" Damien cracked his knuckles as the two began their straight shot to the finish line. But right after them, Ezekiel had climbed through the hole in the ceiling as well, and had his eyes set on the duo.

it briefly cut over to Chris and Chef looking through the cameras for any sign of Axel and Damien. Before the feed changed to what appeared to be bodycam footage of them running atop the cave. "There they are, Homeschool's found them!" Chef exclaimed, gathering everyone's attention.

"Yes! The challenge is back on, and there won't be any lawsuits!" Chris celebrated. It then cut straight back to Axel and Damien running across the top of the cave. "So what kind of reward do you think this is?" Axel asked. "Statistically speaking, since a bit of the reward budget was blown on that jacuzzi, and they didn't even offer one last episode...I'd say something underwhelming." Damien theorized.

"Either way, I just want SOMETHING after all this...huh!?" Axel turned her head around and widened her eyes. "What is is?" Damien looked behind him and saw Feral Ezekiel sprinting after the pair like an Olympic Sprinter. "GAHHHH!" Damien shouted, his pupils briefly turning into skulls and crossbones.

Axel and Damien picked up the pace, running and maneuvering over the top of the cave. Until at last...they reached the end, the finish line visible via a carpet below them. "Uh-oh, looks like we're gonna have to jump." Axel observed, meanwhile Damien was looking back anxiously.

"Axel, I'm very sorry for what I'm about to do..." Damien suddenly said. But before Axel could ask what, Damien pushed Axel off the edge, and she landed on the carpet below...winning her the challenge.

It then cut back to Chris in the tent looking at the camera feeds. "And in an...unexpected and unorthodox way of victory. Axel wins the challenge and the reward with the help of Damien...pushing her off a ledge." Chris chuckled at the last part. Chris then took out a walkie-talkie and turned it on.

"Alright, grab Damien and bring him back. The challenge is over." Chris spoke, it quickly cutting to Ezekiel to show him wearing a hidden earpiece. "Uh...huh..." Feral Ezekiel grumbled, before approaching Damien. "No way, I don't know what you are. But I ain't going out this way...I'm gonna be brave!" Damien gave a battle cry, charging at Feral Zeke and tackling him, both of them rolling off the side of the cave's top.

It once again cut back to the tent where everyone had gathered, the bodycam footage on the computer screen cutting out. "Okay, so something's going down. I just need to go check while Chris gets Axel..." Chef quickly left the tent.

"That sounded and looked pretty bad." Bowie commented. "I guess something went wrong with the challenge." Caleb added. "We gotta go help! Damien, Axel, or both could be injured!" Wayne exclaimed before running out of the tent. "Wait up, bro!" Raj ran after him.

And one by one everyone else began to join in, Zee even carrying Priya along for the ride. But then it cut back to Damien and Ezekiel, where Damien was feeling a huge surge of adrenaline. And he was using said adrenaline to...put Zeke in a sleeper hold. "*Gagging* *Exhaling*" Ezekiel was flailing while Damien wasn't budging.

"You think you can just come up in here and scare us all!? You freaky animal-guy? What's your say on things, huh!?" Damien was really feeling the rush. "Gruh...guh..." Ezekiel was still struggling.

"Guh...Uncle uncle, eh! No more, I'm about to faint!" Feral Ezekiel suddenly...spoke coherently? "Wait, why do I feel like this is a big deal?" Damien said to nobody, as Chef pulled up on an ATV, shortly followed by the other campers. "Damien, are you alright?" Zee asked.

"T-That guy nearly choked me out! This new batch is crazy, eh!" Ezekiel ran up to Chef, this small interaction causing Chef to look nervous, a lot of the campers to look shocked, and Priya to instantly snap out of her thing. "Ezekiel...spoke again?" She woozily said.

"Hey, why's everyone just gathered here?" Chris asked, walking up with Axel in tow. "Uh Chris, it's Zeke...he blew it." Chef hinted at something. "...He what!?" Chris exclaimed. "Whoa whoa whoa, what's going on here?" Bowie stepped in. "Yeah, something's not adding up. Isn't Zeke supposed to be all monstrous, grunt a lot, and make people question why his parents never sued the network?" Emma added.

Chris and Chef whispered to each other for a bit, before turning to the group. "Well I guess since too much got revealed on camera...we might as well reveal the cold hard truth." Chris began. "Go ahead, Zeke." Chef motioned to the Feral-looking boy. Who proceeded to pull at his bald, scaly head until...his mullet from seasons 1-3 suddenly appeared, and he was holding a painted bald cap.

"What the...?" MK trailed off. "It all started a long time ago..." Ezekiel began to narrate.

(Flashback)

Ezekiel had just climbed back into the cargo hold after getting eliminated a second time. He was determined to get that money, no matter how many times he had to crawl back in here. Even if he had to go through physical mutations...it would all be worth it just to finally be seen as a winner.

But then the hatch to the cargo hold opened, and Chris came down. "Zeke, I know you're in here somewhere. The outside cameras saw you grab the wing. Do we really have to do this the hard way?" Chris said, annoyed that he'd have to throw this homeschooled farmboy out a third time.

Ezekiel tried to hide, but he just ended up tripping and falling face first in front of Chris. "Wow, so much for that effort. Now time to take your third Drop of Shame." Chris sighed. "Uhh...uhh!" Ezekiel was panicking, thinking about what to do.

"Wait! Before you do anything...what if you didn't HAVE to put me back in the game? I could just make little appearances in the background...to keep the fans intrigued. Y'know? Wouldn't that be lit, yo? All those people tuning in each week to spot me in whatever place I'm in next?" Ezekiel tried really hard to come up with this idea.

"Ezekiel, I can't believe I'm saying this. But you REALLY know how to manipulate the mind!" Chris admitted, before fading out. "It started out small at first..." The disembodied voice of Ezekiel began. "A background shot here, a front and center shot there. I once even put some adhesive pads on my hands and knees to freak out Owen, eh." Ezekiel explained, it cutting to shots of all those past scenes.

"But everything changed when I was set to perform in a challenge." Ezekiel continued as it cut to the past, Chef holding a bottle of green bodypaint. "Is this really necessary for the challenge? I kinda look like a freaky zombie, not a British Killer." Ezekiel asked, his hair also ruffled and wearing a fake ear with a bite taken out of it.

"It was Chris' idea. Something about making the story more "interesting"...also do you got your script for the post-challenge. "Uhh...blegh." Ezekiel read off a piece of paper. "That's a start, but sound more...feral." Chef suggested.

"After the whole London thing when I was revealed to be "zombified" I was thrown out of the plane once again. But I easily made it back to the landing gear with the help of a hidden magnet in the back of my suit. Hence why it was just gone in the next shot of me...also Chris lied about me potentially rejoining the game, I was getting "thrown out" no matter what." Ezekiel continued.

"Now we get to the challenge in Africa, where the change to me being "Feral" took place...here's what happened." Ezekiel continued before once again fading into an old shot, Ezekiel was in the cage from the African Savanna. But he looked more uncomfortable than feral.

"These feel real weird on me, eh." Ezekiel complained, picking at the bald cap and weird latex feet he was now having to wear as part of his "transformation". "This ain't gonna be permanent though, right?" He timidly asked, fiddling with the fake claws and fangs he was also given.

"Of course not, it's not like this will be written into future seasons, become a huge controversy, and since you and your family live out in the boonies you can't tell anyone that things are a-okay...this'll be the greatest storyline ever!" Chris puffed out his chest.

It next cut to Ezekiel waking up on the African Savanna to an Intern poking him with a stick. "Hey, get up...time to go." He said with a complete lack of enthusiasm. "Ugh, okay...wait, how will I have gotten back on the plane?" Ezekiel asked. "Eh, they'll just green screen a few scenes when you get back." The Intern said.

It also showed some other things, like Ezekiel making the deal with Alejandro and attacking Heather, walking in the ocean before appearing in Hawaii, as well as attacking Heather again for the case of money and falling into the volcano. "I had to play dumb and act like an animal the whole time. It was always the plan for the money to be lost in some way, and the lava...I can't explain that." Ezekiel explained.

(Flashback Over)

It slowly faded back to the present. "So that's the gist of it...I've been acting this whole time for the show to build some storyline in exchange for paychecks. And from my explanation...I guess I ain't getting this one." Ezekiel looked depressed. "Come on, Farmboy. I'll at least give you today's pay." Chef lead Ezekiel offscreen, still leaving the campers shocked.

"*ahem* So, after that whole...ordeal. Let's get back to the meat and potatoes. Axel has technically won the first Merge challenge, and the reward that comes with it...an all-expenses paid trip to go caving in the deepest abandoned mines on Earth!" Chris announced, making Axel uncomfortable.

"Uhh, no offense but could I maybe just have some food or something?" Axel asked. "...Eh, more money in my next paycheck." Chris shrugged as Clyde handed a basket of snacks to Axel.

Axel turned to Damien and held out the basket. "If you keep what we said in the cave a secret...I'll let you share." Axel mumbled. Damien made a motion of zipping his lips and throwing away the key. "...Thanks." Axel smiled a little.

(Confessional)

MK and Caleb- [Watching the day's Confessionals] "See? I've been using this to get info on everyone, which I would've used to strike come the Merge." "Interesting...maybe this little alliance will turn out to be great after all."

(Confessional End)

It then cut to Chris and a now normal looking Ezekiel walking down the Dock of Shame. "Do I really gotta be taken off the island this way?" Zeke asked. "After all the craziness that happened today, a good drone carry is what I need." Chris answered. "*sigh* Okay..." Ezekiel put on his iconic blue toque, before his head got grabbed by the Drone of Despair.

"This has been fun! Catch ya later, eh!" Ezekiel called out while disappearing over the horizon. "And with that ends a near decade and a half long storyline..." Chris laments.

"But how will other storylines fare on this show? Find out next week on the next episode of Total...Drama...Island!" Chris exclaimed.

(Fade to Black)

Placements

12th: Chase

13th: Millie

14th: Nichelle

15th: Ripper

16th: Julia

Author's Note- Post Script

And there it was, probably the craziest and most story-driven chapter of the story! Now a lot happened, and let's review.

Caleb and MK formed an alliance, Priya saw the truth about her parents due to drinking an energy drink (which definitely wasn't an allegory), Axel and Damien became friends, and Ezekiel...oh yes, Ezekiel.

See, there are lots of What Ifs? about Ezekiel never turning Feral and stuff like that. Well this story has one better...What if Feral Ezekiel Never Existed in the First Place?

So I hope you enjoyed this one, even if I was pretty sleepy when writing some of it. And as usual, look out for more!

-MisterStevenson